More Angels

Good morning.  We had a fabulous day at the Steam Rally yesterday.  After two days of solid rain the sun was shining and it was really warm.  I thought the field might be muddy or soggy but everything was really dry so we had a great day. Rode the Ferris Wheel, ate candy floss which I haven't had for years (I'd forgotten just how sweet it was!!) and even bought a lovely leather bag at one of the stalls. We left early enough to beat the crowds so we didn't have to queue for hours to get out, yet still managed to do everything we wanted to do.

If you tuned in  yesterday these are the cards I was talking about.  If not - a quick explanation. I misplaced the stamp I wanted to use for my card yesterday and had to do something else instead - then I found the stamp so I started again!!  Still, they have boosted my Christmas Card stash.  I am doing quite well and have actually got 52 cards ready now.

My Cards

click image  to  enlarge  picture

My card bases are 15 cms square and I used ready made cards from Ryman.  I usually make my own card bases from 300 gsm card stock but for Christmas cards I think these Ryman cards are pretty good value and sturdy enough to stand up.

I decided to use up old stash for my cards.  I made both cards the same but changed the topper and backing papers.  I used LOTV toppers that I have had for quite a few years. The blue paper is Dovecraft "Winter Wonderland", the green paper is Papermania "Traditional Christmas" and both have been in my stash for years.  I used Memory Box "Frostyville Border" and "Snowflake  Corner" to cut the glitter card, which again I have had for about five years.  So I am pretty pleased with myself for using up so much of the old stash.

Hope this finds you all well and ready to face the week ahead. Take care.

Entered into:
http://suzysmarty1.blogspot.co.uk/2014/06/completely-christmas-challenge-18.html
http://christmascardchallenges.blogspot.pt/2014/06/christmas-card-challenges-31-anything.html

Angels - CCC - Challenge # 14

Good morning.  Well in true English fashion the weather changed for Glastonbury and they are partying in the mud. So, no change there!

Today it is time for another card from our friendly little group who just want to get ahead with our cards so we don't have a mad panic in November.  If you are interested in joining us then just drop me a line. You will find the names of my fellow club members on my right side bar if you would like to see their Christmas cards.  Maureen has chosen our topic this week.  I know that she loves angels so I wasn't surprised to see her choice.

My Card

Click to  enlarge image

Unfortunately it is not a very good picture because it is matted with silver mirri card and the backing paper is also  impregnated with a silver foil pattern.  The paper is from First Edition Silent Night and it really does look fabulous in real life but the picture certainly does not do it justice.  Silver always seems to come up almost black doesn't it?

My card is 7" x 7" from Anna Marie Designs.  The image is an LOTV stamp Angelic Candle coloured with Flexmarkers and Promarkers, matted onto core'dinations then silver mirri.  I embossed a piece of the core'dinations with Die'sire Seasonal Music and also used the same card to die cut the Cheery Lynn Holly Corner.  The sentiment is from Little Claire Christmas Sentiments and matted onto SB Lacy Circle .The flowers are WOC and the silver bead sprays are very old stash but I have no idea where they came from. Finally some ribbon and gems from my stash to finish - and the obligatory Christmas glitter of course!

I actually made a couple of other cards because although this was the card I wanted to make I couldn't find the stamp and I had to have something to show.  Anyway, it turns out I had misfiled the stamp and instead of it being in my Christmas box it was in the sentiments box.  Note to self - take more care when putting things away!  I will show those later.

Well that's it from me. We are going to the Bloxham Steam Rally this morning which has more things than steam engines, I hasten to add!  After the terrible rain on Friday and Saturday I think I might need Flora's flowered wellies because I guess the field will be pretty water logged.

Hope this finds you all well.  Take care.

Entered into:
http://suzysmarty1.blogspot.co.uk/2014/06/completely-christmas-challenge-18.html

http://www.addictedtostamps-challenge.blogspot.com.au/2014/06/challenge-101-anything-goes.html

http://4kraftygirlzchallenges.blogspot.co.uk/2014/06/challenge-21.html

http://christmascardchallenges.blogspot.pt/2014/06/christmas-card-challenges-31-anything.html

Through The Window

Hello everyone. Hope you are all well and enjoying our lovely summer.  We waited long enough for it didn't we?  Hope Flora doesn't need her fancy wellies at Glastonbury this year.

My Card

click image  to  enlarge

My card is 15 x 15 cms square.  I have used an SB embossing folder "Bricks".  I have only ever used this for men's cards in the past but I think it works really well on this card.  It's funny how we get something fixed in our head isn't it?  I shall certainly be using it more now.  The SB Die D'Lites Window 4 is one I bought last December and have never used it until now.  I bought it because I had a lovely Christmas card from Planet Susie and she used this die so I bought it and then promptly forgot about it - as you do!!  The flower image  inside has been cut from an LOTV Art Pad image and I thought I could do a similar card and use up the rest of the image.  The plant pots are actually buttons which have been in my stash for about ten years.  I bought them from a craft shop in Chipping Norton which closed down about nine years ago, maybe even longer .  The foliage is a very lightweight plastic and I have no idea where it came from, but again has been in the drawer for many many years.  I like the fact that the card looks fresh and clean even though it is not exactly CAS.

Well that's it from me for today.

Frogs and Snails - OSAAT Challenge # 218

Good morning to you all.  We had a fabulous day on Friday when we went to Longleat. The weather was beautiful, but as Patricia said - it was very warm having to drive through with the windows up.  We did have one hitch hiker but fortunately he didn't do any damage - unless you count peeing down the back windscreen!  He jumped on the roof, walked along the roof, and then climbed down and just perched on the passenger wing mirror staring at John until it was time to leave the monkey enclosure.  My favourite animals were the giraffes and tigers - both such beautiful creatures.

Today it is time for another card for OSAAT.  This will be the last one before we break for the summer - but we will be back in September!  The theme this week is "Anything Goes". Don't forget if you use an image from our sponsor Stitchy Bear Digi Outlet you could win seven digi images.  There is also a prize even if you don't use one of these images, so there is no excuse.  We'd really love to see your entry.

My Card

My card is 6" x 6" square.  Believe it or not the green backing papers are all from a Papermania Traditional Christmas Pack that I've had more than 10 years. Okay some of it can only be used for Christmas, but at least half of the pack is so useful for other things.

The image I have used is 4You by BBKakes.  It comes with a matching girl image.  I initially planned to use the little girl but I couldn't get this nursery rhyme out of my head, and couldn't really think of anything for a little girl - so it had to be the boy.  I coloured it with Promarkers.   The ladybirds were a magazine freebie from many moons ago and I found the snail image on t'internet.  I just had to add the googly eyes because they seemed to match the smiley snail image so well.

Hope you are all well and have had a good weekend so far.  Take care.

Entered into:

http://divasbydesignchallenge.blogspot.co.uk/2014/06/3-or-more-layers.html

http://sisteractcardchallenge.blogspot.co.uk/2014/06/challenge-62.html

http://craftcreatoins.blogspot.co.uk/p/new-challenge.html
http://www.ttcrd.blogspot.co.uk/2014/06/ttcrd-challenge-june-17-june-23.html
http://suzypantssmarty.blogspot.co.uk/2014/06/suzy-bees-bloomin-challenge-33-anything.html
http://pumpkinspiceblog.blogspot.co.uk/2014/06/challenge-76-masculine-week-2.html

Best Friends

Good morning friends and fellow bloggers.  This post has been scheduled - hopefully!   Today we are having a day out with our friends to Longleat.  Sue is really keen on the safari part but John and  I are more interested in  visiting the house and gardens, which is something we both enjoy.  When I retired we joined the National Trust and try to make a point of going out every couple of weeks.  We have been to all the ones within a reasonable distance so now it means setting out early and making a full day of it.  Which isn't a problem - that's what being retired is all about.  Sorry Ang - but you'll love it in 20 + years time ... lol!   I'll remember to make you a card!  I'm sure we'll enjoy the safari too - but Maurice will be driving so here's hoping the monkeys behave themselves and don't break stuff off the car!

My Card

Click image to  enlarge

A nice easy and simple card made using an LOTV topper.  This is some very old stash, going back to when LOTV produced an A4 sheet with one large topper and about three other sizes of the same image.  This is the biggest one and as this is a 6" x 6"  card base you can see that it is a decent size topper.   I die cut it with Go Kreate XXL  Frilly dies #10.   I use the next size to mat it with Papermania Capsule Collection paper, which is again some fairly old stash.  I die cut a bow with the same paper using Sue Wilson's Classic Bow die which was still on my desk from my last card.  I have promised myself that I really will spend some time over the weekend tidying my desk which is a bit of a mess at the moment.  The flowers were from a couple of punches.  I decided to try and use some old stuff instead of heading straight for the lovely dies etc.

Well I must be off now and get myself organised.  Hope this finds you all well.

Retirement

Good morning friends.  Well, I see that I have actually reached my 100 followers so I'll have to think about some candy now!!. Came as a bit of a shock.  When I started my blog I wondered if it was going to be a big mistake and would anybody actually follow me.  However, I have made some wonderful friends in blogland!! Thank you to you all!

This card is for an ex-colleague who has decided to retire and as you will gather it is for a lady.

My Card

click image  to  enlarge

The card is 5" x 7".  The SB folder Diamond Fleur De Lys was still sitting on my desk so I thought I would use it again, this time is landscape rather than portrait. I decided to use what I think is the debossed side this time. I'm really not sure which is which because both sides are embossed. By using a pale yellow ink, Narcissus by Versacolor, to colour the folder it looks so very different. I used the largest die from SB Opulent Ovals and the largest one from Classic Ovals to make a frame for the centre. Being smaller you can actually see a lot more of the embossed design. I computer generated the sentiment and die cut it with SB Fancy Tags. The bow is a Sue Wilson Classic Bow die from Creative Expressions. I sponged all the die cuts whilst still in the dies to get a delicate effect. Then a pearl in each corner finished the card. I think it's amazing how very different two cards can look using the same layout and some of the same embellishments.

Well that's it from me again today.   Hope you are are all well and enjoying the summer now it is finally here.

Christmas Card Club - Challenge # 13 Penguins

Good morning all.  Today it is time for another card from our friendly little club.  This time the challenge was chosen by Carol and she asked us to use penguins or some other Christmas bird.

My Card

My card is 5" x 7" and is for a child so I kept it fairly simple - and flat, so fine for posting.  The blue snowflake glitter paper (although the glitter doesn't show in the pic) and the penguin strip are from Helz Cuppleditch "Special Delivery" pack.  The pre-coloured penguin image is from Pink Gem Designs and matted onto SB Lacy Circles.  A  few snowflakes from my drawer of ready cut dies finished off this very simple card.  Of course, no Christmas card would be complete without some sparkle so I added Diamond Dust to the fur and bobble on his cap and some red gems to the snowflakes.

Well that's all for today.  Hope you are all well and enjoying the sunshine.

Entered into:
Holly Jolly Christmas - Winter Birds

Pastels, Petals and Pearls

Good morning to all my dear friends and blog buddies, and to any visitors who may have dropped by then welcome, and I hope you like what you see.  I would love it if you could leave a comment so that I can reciprocate and pay you a visit in return.

I have had a few new followers lately whom I have not welcomed, and I apologise for the omission.  Sébastien, my super-observant great nephew, noticed that I am very close to 100 followers.   " So what are you going to do when you get to 100 Auntie Christine?" he said.  I am presuming he meant 100 followers, but you never know!  Maybe he thinks I am getting on in years ....  lol!!  Anyway, I will certainly think about some candy for my faithful followers -  if I get there!

My Card

click to enlarge

My base card is a smidgen over 5" x 7" and cut from some super quality card from Anne-Marie Designs. I used a brayer and Versacolour Petal Pink to colour SB M-Bossabilities "Diamond Fleur de Lys" Design A. I love the border this folder gives. In retrospect it might have been better to use a slightly darker pink, but that's the way it goes. I then die cut the three largest dies from SB "Resplendent Rectangles" together to make a frame which I layered with foam to give a slightly raised appearance. Instead of using flower dies I dragged some daisy punches out of hibernation and used them to punch out a number of flowers. Gosh, you forget how quick it is to use a punch! However I did use Cheery Lynn "Wreath Strip" for the feathery leaves . I positioned the flowers and leaves around the frame and popped pearls into the flower centres and the central frame.

Well that's it for today.  Hope you are well and enjoying our summer days!  Take care.

Entered into:

Petals and Pearls - Crafty Calendar

Male CAS

Hello to you all.  Just a quick post this morning because we will be going out shortly.

My Card

My card is 5" x 7".  I used some white card stock and coloured it Hessian using Pink Petticoat Natural Neutrals. I ran just over half of it through SB M-Bossabilities Bark folder. I added a piece of Hobbycraft jute ribbon to a strip of brown card and glued it to the base card. The stars were punch outs from the same brown card with a brown pearls added, and then Happy birthday was stamped with Memento Rich Cocoa.  A nice quick and easy card to add to the box.

Hope you are all well and enjoying the glorious sunshine.  Take care!

Have A Ball - OSAAT -# 216

Hello to all my friends and fellow bloggers.  It is time again for another OSAAT  challenge - Use A Digi.  We look forward to you joining in with us and if you use an image from our sponsor Stitchy Bear Digi Outlet you could win seven digital images. There is also a prize even if you don't use one of our sponsor's images, so what are you waiting for?

My Card

For my card I used "Lady Jane" from Scrappers Delight.  This is a great digi because you get three slightly different images of Lady Jane plus the sentiment circle.  The shaped base card is from a pack I bought a couple of years ago at the NEC and never used.  I used SB Grand Decorative Circles to cut the purple pearl layer and Go Kreate Square Frame Frilly #10 for the image and the mat.  The flowers are Memory Box  Fabulous Phlox. The sentiment circle was matted onto SB Lacy Circles.  A few pearls just added the finishing touch.

Hope this finds you all well and also hope that you have been enjoying your weekend despite the fact that yesterday it rained heavily again here in the morning and then we had beautiful sunshine and blue skies in the afternoon.  So much for flaming June eh?

Take care everybody!

Entered into:
Through The Craft Room Door
Sister Act
Craftitude Challenges
Petals and Pearls - Crafty Calender

Fathers Day by Sébastien

Good morning to you all. The card I am featuring today is not one of mine.  My nephew was here last week with his children and 9 year old Sébastien decided to make a card for his dad for Father's Day.  Darren had to be kept out of the way so he didn't know what Séb was up to.

Seb's Card

And this is the result.  Since this was only the second card he has ever made I think he did a great job. He chose the the car image from the LOTV Art Pad because his dad has just got a new car.  The scrap of striped paper is from Papermania Capsule collection. He enjoyed using the Grand Calibur and he even used the guillotine - whilst I was filled with great trepidation!  He was warned never ever to touch it if I'm not there  but  I think it might have to get put away whenever he is here ... lol!   He typed the sentiment himself and also the label which he glued to the back of the card.  I think there will a happy dad on June 15th!

It was so lovely to have them here and we certainly missed them after they left on Sunday. The house is soooo quiet!  Ah well, I'm sure they will be back in the summer holidays.

Hope everyone is keeping well.  It absolutely poured with rain the entire day yesterday.  Come back summer!!!

CCC # 12 Nativity Card

Good morning, and what a lovely morning it is too.  Sorry I have been missing for the past few days but I have had family visiting and wanted to spend as much time with them as possible.  I will be able to start visiting your blogs later today to see what you have been up to.

Once again it's time for our little Christmas Card Club to produce another card to help us overcome the mad panic in November/December.  This time Sue J (Ollie's Mam) asked us to make a card featuring the nativity.  Nothing could be more appropriate!

My Card

Unfortunately because of my visitors I didn't have time to make the card I had planned. I was having a look through my stuff and found this image from Cuddly Buddly which I had downloaded a few years ago and not used.   Oh my goodness this brings back memories of taking part in Nativity plays in home made costumes  and later attending the plays of my nieces and nephews.  I love the giggling angel here!  All I did was add a few punched stars and some gems.

I have kept it very flat so it is ideal for posting.

Hope you are all well.