Mini Pizza Box ......

....... except it's not really a pizza box - unless you want a deep pan pizza! LOL!

Hi, I have been busy making a couple of boxes and a couple of gift bags over the last couple of days. My nephew and his children will be coming to stay towards the end of the Easter holidays and so as well as Easter eggs for the children I have made a goodie bag for them too. Charlotte does actually look at my blog at times so I do not want  post the bags for her and Sébastien until they have been. I don't want her to see them in advance.

Today's Box

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Open box showing yummy chocolates

The children always get gifts and poor dad gets left out so I made this mini pizza box which I found  here at Split Coast Stampers. (This site has some fabulous tutorials.)   I had to adjust the measurements because I wanted a 2 inch deep box rather than the 1 inch shown in the tutorial.  I bought a little box of Thornton's Chocolates which consists of 8 chocolates in two layers. They fit in this box beautifully.

The picture doesn't show it but the matting layers have actually been run through the GC with M-Bossabilities Dainty Dots. The leaves are SB Foliage mounted on SB Labels 1 with a little gingham bow to finish off. The pictures don't actually do it justice because it actually looks better in real life.

Well it's Good Friday so I hope you all enjoy the coming weekend.

Love and hugs from Christine xx

Parisian Inspired

Good afternoon. Still no sign of this snow going. John had a GP appointment this morning in the next village so it was a case of digging out the snowdrifts to get to the road. It was then a pretty hairy drive, but he made it home in one piece.

My Card

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Sneak peak of the inside

My base card is 6x6 burgundy cardstock. The patterned papers are from the Heritage Collection by Making Memories and they have been in my stash for many years. The striped one is Heritage Stripe - Deep Plum and the other is French Lace Dark - Deep Plum. I really love the richness of them and I had to force myself to use them. It's stupid isn't, but I hang onto papers in case I want them for "something special"! I think there are a lot of people like me out there. I used Parisian Motifs and Accents which is the first fancy die I bought. The ribbon and pearls are from my stash. This is another Becca Feekin inspired card.

Well just a quick post card today. Have a good day - well the rest of it anyway.

Love and hugs from Christine xx

Every Storm Cloud

Hello blog friends

Well Sunday was definitely a day to stay warm and craft! What a hardship eh?

Unfortunately my friend was only out of hospital a couple of days when she was re-admitted with an infection, so this card is for her. Hopefully it will cheer her a little.

My Card

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This is my usual 6x6 inch card. The digi image, sentiment and the backing papers are all from the Rainy Day set by Clear Dollar Stamps. There are a few different images and sentiments in this set plus three backing papers so it's very useful. My picture is wonky I'm afraid  and it looks as if the purple backing paper is unequal, but I can assure you it's not!

Well that's all for now. Have a good day.

Love and hugs from Christine

Entered in: http://joannasheenchallenge.blogspot.co.uk/2013/03/come-rain-or-shine.html

Christmas Card Club Challenge - Attempt No 2

Hello again!

Well if you read my earlier post you might have come to the conclusion that I wasn't too happy with my card. LOL! I said I was going to try again, and here is my second Kraft card. I am so much happier with this one.

My Card

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I think I just went into panic mode before. This morning the pressure was off because I had already posted my card. I went through my Christmas papers and found this which  is from a pad I got last year at the NEC and it is called Handmade Holiday from Simple Stories. A few sparkly snowflakes and Bob's your uncle! Finito! And a happier Christine. In fact, I actually like this and might make a few more because there are a few pages of this design. Very simple Christmas make.

Love and hugs from Christine xx

Entered in: http://craftyhazelnutschristmaschallenge2.blogspot.co.uk/2013/03/chnc-challenge-extra-for-march.html

CCC Challenge - Use Kraft

Good morning friends.

Two weeks ago when I was making my CCC challenge card it was snowing, and here we are again  in even worse conditions I think - at least in this part of the country.

 Now this certainly was a challenge for me! I have never used Kraft card, although I did buy a pack some time ago so at least it has come in useful.  I must confess that this is certainly not something that I will be leaping to use again in a hurry. It really isn't my thing I'm afraid. But hey, that's what challenges are all about aren't they,  pushing you out of your comfort zone? Well it worked, because I am definitely out my particular comfort zone! I'm not happy with my card. I think I've settled for something very boring, but I just couldn't think of what else to do. I am going to make second card just to see if I am any happier with that!

My Card

 

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I embossed the Christmas Tree with the Cuttlebug embossing folder onto Kraft cardstock and mounted it onto red and Kraft card. The red pearls and red bow are from my stash. It all seems rather dull, sorry. It was almost impossible to get a decent picture too, so that doesn't help!

Well, enjoy your Sunday. If I manage to make another card I'll pop back with another post.

Love and hugs from Christine xx

Entered into: http://christmasstampin.blogspot.co.uk/2013/03/csayl-challenge-8-anything-goes.html
http://craftyhazelnutschristmaschallenge2.blogspot.co.uk/2013/03/chnc-challenge-extra-for-march.html

New Dies To Play WIth

Good morning my dear blog friends. Hope you are all surviving the snowy, wintry conditions! I would normally have been going to the NEC on Thursday or Friday but this year I decided to give it a miss. Just as well considering the weather and conditions here over the last few days. Yesterday we managed to get out and do the food shopping fortunately, because this morning is really bad with snowdrifts because it is also very windy. I think it snowed most of the night and still it comes down! There'll be no newspaper today!!

 I saw these dies on Becca Feekins Amazing Paper Grace blog   here  and so decided to treat myself - well I would have spent much more if I had gone to the show, now wouldn't I?  They really are gorgeous and large enough to use for an actual card since the largest die, used here, is 6½ x 4½ inches. Her card is stunning, as always, but I'm not unhappy with mine. LOL!

This will probably be for my sister's birthday which she will be celebrating whilst away on holiday, so I didn't want to make it too bulky for packing. However, knowing me I could well change my mind!

My Card

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I used the largest size in the Detailed Scallop cut twice. I made a smaller light weight card to join the two pieces together and make it stable and I also glued the scallops together along the top edge. The packaging says 5 x 7 inches but that's a not quite true.  I then used Radiant Rectangles for the centre. The largest of this set is approx 6 x 4 inches, so again would make a decent size card. The sentiment is from JustRite Grand Sentiments and the roses are WOC. The pearls and ribbon are from my stash. I must try to wean myself away from purple and lilac - but I do love those shades!

Well I hope you all have a great weekend and I  hope the weather doesn't spoil any plans you may have made.

Love and hugs from Christine xx

Happiness

  Hello dear friends. I have a simple card to show today.

My Card

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My card is A5 white pearlised card stock. I ran a second piece through SB Garden Trellis embossing folder and matted it onto purple. I used the set of Creative Expressions sentiment stamps called "Beautiful Wishes" which I won from Sue Wilson. It was a lovely surprise to see my name pop on her blog!!I diecut the stamped image with SB Floral Ovals and then used the largest size on the purple card. The pearls and ribbon were from my stash. I kept it pretty flat because it is going in the post and I try to keep the postage costs down as much as possible.

Well that's it from me today. Hope you all have a good day.

Love and hugs from Christine xx

Bloglovin

Hi everybody,

Well I guess we are all on the same mission to try and keep our favourite blogs, and our friends and followers, when Google Reader disappears. I am so ignorant that I didn't know that the blog list etc was via Google Reader!! It was certainly very simple to register with Bloglovin and transfer the blog list over.

I have added the "Follow Button" to my  left sidebar and would love it if you were to press the button and follow me - if you still want to do so that is! I will be doing the same as I visit your blogs if the button is there.  I'm still confused by it all though. Will we be able to know who our followers are or will that facility be lost? I must admit that I love to be able to look at the little picture and see just who is who - unless you are incognito! This is something I will really miss.

Love and hugs from Christine xx

Encouragement

Happy St Patrick's Day to any of my followers who may be   Irish - and particularly to my brother Morgan. Today is his 60th birthday but I always send him a St Patrick's day card too. We call him a hybrid - he's English, born on the Irish National Day and christened with  Welsh names,  Morgan David. I'm sure my parents could have fitted in a bit of Scotland if they had tried! Why not Andrew instead of David? LOL!

Considering it is only the middle of  March it has been a pretty rough few months. Yesterday I had some news which knocked me for a six. A very good friend (her husband was in our wedding party) has just been diagnosed with an extremely aggressive form of leukaemia.   She has just had her first chemo so the sentiment on my card is perfect for the situation I think. She is a fighter.  I thought I would make her a card at each treatment so here is the first.

My Card

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I have used these two sets of stamps from Our Daily Bread Designs before, but they are particular favourites of mine. The sentiment is from the Keep Climbing set, and the image is from Bird and Butterfly Labels. I stamped them with Tsukineko pigment ink Pearlescent Crimson and die cut with SB Labels 18. The patterned backing papers are Forever Friends and the others are from my stash, together with the pearls. The 3D butterflies are Hobbycraft Fly Stickers.

Well that's it for today. Hope the snow stops soon; it is a real white world here again today!

Love and hugs from Christine xx

Entering in: http://cutecardthursday.blogspot.co.uk/2013/03/challenge-260-anything-goes.html 
                  http://happycamperscc.blogspot.co.uk/2013/03/happy-campers-challenge-no-12-flutterby.html
http://onestopcraftchallenge.blogspot.co.uk/2013/03/challenge-220-anything-goes.html
http://nutcrafters.blogspot.co.uk/2013/03/challenge-38something-beginning-with-b.html
http://www.ladyanneschallenges.com/stamp-challenge.html

Celebrate The Journey

Good morning dear blog friends, sorry I've been MIA for a couple of days. John had hospital appointments both days and since it is quite a long round trip it takes quite a slice out of the day, especially when you factor in "waiting time". You can waste so much time at hospitals.

 When I was cataloguing my list of milestone birthdays I cannot believe that I didn't include my brother's 60th!  I'm not really sure about this card so I might make something different and keep this for one of the other birthdays that are coming up. Morgan has a terrific sense of humour so I also computer-generated a card for him from my sister and I, since Jeanie and I are both past the magic 60!

My Cards

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I folded cream leather cardstock to form an A5 card. The backing paper is Kanban, the stamp is  from the Docrafts magazine and the cogs are a combination of stamps and Kanban. I computer generated the sentiment onto Letraset  Safmat so that it looks as if it has been added directly to the card. I really love this medium!

Then comes the funny one, which I know he will really appreciate. I'll probably hear him laughing all the way down here from the North East! I used Greeting Card Factory Deluxe which I only ever seem to use now for inserts etc. However for something like this it is brilliant because you can really personalise things. 

Front

Inside

 Back

Well that's it from me. Hope you all have a good day - and hope the weather is good because we will probably visit an National Trust property if it is.

Love and  hugs from Christine xx

Entered into http://pennyblackatallsorts.blogspot.co.uk/2013/03/march-challenge.html

http://sweetstampinchallengeblog.blogspot.co.uk/2013/03/males.html

Hello

Hello everybody, from a bitterly cold and blustery Oxfordshire!

My Card

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My card today is another quick and easy make. I was having   a look through my stash and came upon these Papermania flowers. I knew I had some scrap bits to match  from the Lincoln Linen collection so I cut a couple of pieces in different patterns and used Fiskars Threading Water punch on one of them. I ran another piece of scrap through Couture Creations Damask embossing folder. Finally I used a rub on for the greeting and attached  it to a 5x7  white card. Nice and easy but also, I think, quite effective.

I'm glad I don't have to go out today in this awful weather so maybe I'll spend some time sorting  out my craft stuff. Or maybe I'll just make another card, therefore creating even more mess! LOL! You know that saying about "Creativity is messy - and I am very creative!" ? I think it was meant for me!!

Have a good day everybody.

Love and hugs from Christine xx

Christmas Card Club - Roll Up, Roll Up

Hello to all my friends and blog buddies. Well the weather forecast is for more snow, so it doesn't feel too out of  place to be making a Christmas card! LOL!

This is my entry for the CCC challenge which is "Roll Up, Roll Up, Snowballs and Glitter."

My Card

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The image of the boy is a Polkadoodles stamp and  the tub of snowballs is a digi image that I found on the internet,  both coloured with Promarkers.  I diecut it with the smallest SB Grand Labels 1 and after embossing it I cut  around the embossing  line and then used the same size die to make a tight blue mat. The dark blue snowflake paper is from my stash and I'm afraid I don't  know what make it is.  The sentiment is  from Little Claires Designs and diecut with SB Lacy Circles.  The snowflakes are a combination of SB Create a-Flake 4 and Mariannes Swedish Snowflakes cut from glitter card. I used Twinklets Diamond Dust for the snowballs. The blue pearls are Hobbycraft adhesive gems - and I have replaced the one which seems to have jumped ship!! It's amazing that you never actually see the flaws until you look at the picture!! There is quite a lot of glitter on this card but it isn't showing in the picture.

Well, that's another Christmas card under my belt. This next Christmas should be less stressful - at least from the card point of view!

Have a good day everybody, and I hope your weather is not too bad!

Love and hugs from Christine xx

Entering into http://craftyhazelnutschristmaschallenge2.blogspot.co.uk/2013/03/chnc-challenge-extra-for-march.html
http://christmasstampin.blogspot.pt/2013/03/csayl-challenge-6-patterned-paper.html

http://christmasatsweetstampinchallengeblog.blogspot.co.uk/2013/02/challenge-3-snowflakes.html

http://www.cupcakecraftchallenges.blogspot.co.uk/2013/03/cupcake-232-sparkle.html

Mother's Love

Hi, a very quick post today with a very quick CAS card. A friend asked me to make a very simple, very flat card for posting. Well, it doesn't get much quicker or simpler than this!

My Card

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It is a 6x6 card cut from hammered cardstock.  A strip of lilac checked  paper was glued to it and a computer generated sentiment attached.  I used a peel off teapot and teacup stuck onto a scrap of lilac Bazzill Basics and that was it.  I debated with sticking on some pearls or gems but in the end decided that sometimes less is more!  I love this sentiment, but it does bring back so many memories of my mum. I guess all of us who no longer have our mothers with us feel  more than a little nostalgic at this particular time of year.

Almost the weekend - again!! Where does the time go? I'm sure the fairies are stealing some days out of the calendar because we surely cannot be into the second week of March already!!!

Love and hugs from Christine xx

Pastel Confection

Hello friends. Some time ago  I was wandering through blogland (as you do!) and I found myself on Christina's Card-Making-Magic site. My card today is my take on one of the cards that I saw. She really does have some fabulous stuff that would give anybody inspiration.

My Card

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My card is A5 size and is ivory cardstock. It was matted with a pearlescent card which gives a shimmery pink or lavender effect, depending on what you put with it. I placed some pink floral card from Kanban on top of that. I used a Special Touch Mask from Creative Expressions to emboss another piece of the ivory card. Unfortunately there is no name on the packet but it is interlocking circles which gives a really nice effect.  SB Labels 20 was used to cut two apertures so that you can see the Kanban card through them. Various leaves were diecut from SB Foliage and sponged with pink ink whist still in the die and a rose from WOC was used in the middle.  I've never used the largest fern leaf before because it is so big, but since this is a large card it works well. For the first time I tried adding pearls with Cosmic Shimmer Pearl PVA - not with a great deal of success I'm afraid, but I'll just have to practice more.  I need to try to  repair the corner - I think I must have caught it with my arm before it dried, and didn't notice it till I looked at the photo.The pink spotted organza ribbon is from my stash. The corner die is Cheery Lynn Deco corners.

The picture is not good at all. No matter where I put it the light was always wrong. The lovely pearlescent card looks grey. Very weird!

Well that's it for today. Have a great day everybody.

Love and hugs from Christine xx

A Flippin Man's Card

Hi, well what a glorious day! So warm and sunny. John decided to trim the hedges while the weather was good and so I had a "Me Day" today and took myself off to Cheltenham. It's about a 40 mile drive over very beautiful country roads . Mind you, when I was still working and had to do that drive in the winter it was a very different story!!  I had a lovely walk around the shops (didn't buy anything!) treated myself to lunch then went to the Range and to Hobbycrafts and bought some crafty things from both. Well, how could I walk out of a craft shop with nothing in my bag!!!  My best buy was a set of Papermania stamps called "Nostalgia Pastimes". It includes two golfers, a soccer player, a rugby player, a bowls player, a cricketer,a young chap playing guitar, and best of all a hiker - which is great for my husband. And also five different greetings. I can't say I have nothing to make men's cards now becaause there is something for everyone here. The task will be putting them together. LOL!

My Card

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I used one of the Flippin' Men range from La Pashe which I have had for ages and never used so I thought I would make it up and see what it was like. I thought it turned out okay. At the same time I bought a  Christmas one so  I might make that up for my brother next Christmas. He likes funny cards.  At least I got to use the tools embellishments which I must have had for about 10 years!!! It was actually quite difficult to photograph. It was so sunny that I was either getting glare off the card itself or if I moved the card then the glare was on the acetate, which looked it even worse, so I settled for it on the card. Makes a change from saying it was too dark to get a decent picture!! I quite like seeing both the front and back view of the guy through the acetate film.

I've decided to schedule this post for morning because John wants to try something with my PC. Lets   hope the weather  is just as nice as today. Asking a lot!!!

Have just been and edited my post. Don't know what happened to Blogger but my post was okay when I previewed it but this morning it has omitted the first picture. It's really weird sometimes.

Love and hugs from Christine xx

On The Move

Hi, I have got a lot of  milestone birthdays this year.  Two of them are female 40th  which are easy peasy! However, I also have two male 40th  and two male 70th birthdays which I will find far from easy.  This  one is not one  of the milestone ones, but one of my nephews celebrates his  birthday this week so this is a trial run, as it were! Oh I do prefer cards for ladies, there is so much choice! I guess there is choice for men too but I'm just not good at putting them together.

My Card

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The stamps are all from Kaiser Kraft  "On The Move" which is ideal for men as it features tyre tracks, various wheels and an aeroplane too, as well as the car and banner. The backing paper is from K & Company "Life's Journey " pad.

Well that's  it from me today. Hope you are all enjoying your weekend!

love and hugs from Christine xx

Entering into : http://qkrstampede.blogspot.co.uk/2013/03/challenge-28-3-of-something.html
http://nomatterwhichchallenges.blogspot.nl/2013/03/challenge-7.html
http://anythingchallenge.blogspot.co.uk/2013/02/challenge-87-make-it-manly.html

http://pennyblackatallsorts.blogspot.co.uk/2013/03/march-challenge.html

Dandelion Girl

Hi dear blog friends, and welcome to my new followers.

I'm sure that like me, when you were a child you used to "tell the time" by blowing on the dandelion clock. Ah those were the days... long hot sunny days, lots of fun and no worries! If only life could be like that again eh?

My Card

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Enlargement showing the flower

This is Sylvia Zets Dandelion Girl from the Wee Stamps collection.  I die cut it with Spellbinders Standard circle and matted it with SB Lacy Circles. The backing papers are Forever Friends by Docrafts. The corner dies are Cheery Lyn Lace Corner Deco B. I die cut two flowers from SB Jewel Flowers and Flourishes and added a small WOC rose into the centre.  The main picture was a little dark and the flower not very visible so I did a close up. The little starry flowers are the bits  from the corner dies. A little bling in the corners and a little Stickles glitter on her ruffles and the dandelion and that was it. I decided to omit a sentiment. It can always be added later if necessary.

Well Friday was quite a nice day here and tomorrow promises to be better, so maybe Spring is around the corner. I did whisper that - just in case!!!

Hope you all have a great weekend!

Love and hugs from Christine xx