Tiny Tartan

Another Christmas card made, I could be on a roll here.
This time it is for
Daring Cardmakers - Tartan it Up
Stamp Something - Favourite Sketch

This is one of my favourite Clean & Simple sketches which I use over and over, it is quick and has just enough elements in it to make it look like you've spent more than 10 mins creating it...which it does when you're organised.
I hope there is enough tartan on it to comply with DC challenge..lol!!

Base Card - gorgeous pearly red stardream from Joanna Sheen
Stamp - Penny Black
Colouring medium - watercolour pencils
Glittery Stickles on pom pom and brim of cap and swirled on the floor for snow
Snowflake Nestie embossed white card
Strip of red white & green tartan paper from bits box
Card Candy
Sentiment sticker - Bo-Bunny Press

Always & Forever.....

Hopefully this card will cover 3 challenges if I am not too late.
365 Cards Day 173 - Mixed Message - to incorporate 3 ways to create 1 sentiment
Sketch Saturday #61 - Given sketch
Daring Cardmakers - Lace
This was a great sketch and needed a bit of guidance today.
Interesting challenge on 365 Cards and was able to complete that with the word Always being a rub-on & being a mini tag and Forever I printed out using my Dymo Letra Tag
The lace used was paper lace, I forget the make.
Ribbon strip and Papers - Laura Ashley 'Contemporary
Gems - Hero Arts
Velvet Brad and flowers from my stash
Image - Penny Black
Colouring medium - PM's Sandstone, Vanilla, Satin, Ice Grey 1, Coold Grey 1 and Cool Grey 5 and Copic - Blush
The left edge was cut using a Fiskars border punch Threading Water

Crafting in the night................

Well I was up until 1.30am last night finishing this and then I lost internet connection...which made me very grumpy...so here it is, for what it's worth..which was blood, sweat and tears.

365 Cards Day 170 - 'Double Duty'
Which means it has to double as a gift or something else at least, but no voucher holders!

I have been gathering seeds over the summer from my garden - what summer? - and had the idea to pass them on so this challenge lit up a light bulb in my head.
I made a sort of concertina book to hold all the little packets of seeds so lovingly collected.

Ingredients:-
2 pieces of grey card for front and back frrom my bottomless box
6 Vellum envelopes
large peice of Kraft wrapping paper
PP's - Basic Grey 'Offbeat'
Sentiments - a mix of Clarity Stamps, Hero Arts, and computer generated
Floral images - Penny Black 'Christmas Colour'(front cover) and Great Impressions (back cover)
Paper to cover front and back boards - a lovely piece of Mango Soft
Ribbon - Grograin: SU 'Always Artichoke' silk: Anna Griffin
Tags from my stash

Being so late in the night and so tired I just snapped away with my camera at my work table, so apologies, as always, for the poor pics.

One day I will surprise you with the most amazing photography, but the cards will still be the same..lol!!

Elephants never.....or do they?

Passion for Promarkers week 10- Pastel Pink & Cool Aqua + Sketch
Great sketch and lovely colours too.
Ingredients used:-
Stamp - Penny Black 'Embrace'
Papers - Kay & Co. 'Sparkly Sweet'
Pink border - CraftTime Deco Border
Promarkers - Pastel Pink, Cool Aqua, Saffron, Meadow Green.
Copics - Frost Blue, Pinkish White
Nestabilities - Largest scalloped circle
Gems, sentiments and base card from my stash

I messed up my colouring with this one and couldn't resurrect it, but chose to show it for future reference on how not to colour.

Spots & Stripes

A card to cover two challenges :-
Secret Crafter Saturday Challenge wk 41 - 'Spots & Stripes'
Sketch Saturday # 60 - given sketch
A great sketch a great theme.
PP - Basic Grey 'Cupcake' which had spots and stripes in abundance
Stripey brad - Dovecraft
Red Card Candy = spots
Image - Penny Black
Colouring medium - watercoloured with Sakura Gel pens
Stripey/spotty faux stiching using Black Copic multi liner 0.3
Flower - Prima
Grosgrain ribbon - SU
Base card , white card and sentiment - misc from stash

Weather

Whether the weather is late or not is the question.
Daring Cardmakers last friday had this great theme and where has the week gone?
This is a 10 minute quickie with a Penny Black image that was already coloured with Sakura pens by the look of the sparkle.
Papers - Kay & Co Hopscotch/ Basic Grey Urban Prairie
Sentiment stamp - PSX
Thanks for a quick look>>>>>>>>>>>>>>off to post it now lol!!

4 into 1 will go.......

Set myself a challenge to see how many challenges could be incorporated into one card. Managed 4 which is a record for me. Don't know whether this is allowed but I'm sure someone will say if it isn't.
The sketch is from Sketch Saturday being #47 which is too late anyway...great sketch.
The themes are '3 shapes' over on Penny Black Saturday week 47...those being the square, the rectangle and the circle plus the required Penny Black stamp on the die-cut circle.
'Mirror Mirror' over at Cute Card Thursday requiring something shiney...which is the silver card which I embossed with a 'Bug' folder and cut out portions to use as sentiments + the Jewel.
'Flowers' over at Secret Crafter Saturday Challenge

As usual the scan has bleached out the lovely colour of the flower stamped onto the die cut circle :-(

Ingredients used :-

Flower & Bug image - Pink Petticoat download
Large flower stamped image - Penny Black ' Burst of Stars'
Jewel - Doodlebug
Papers - Basic Grey 'Lilykate'
Base card and silver card from my stash
Tools Used :-
Nestabilities Embossing folder
Brilliance Inkpad 'Peacock'

Black, White & Pink....Just a bit Dotty!

Lovely colour theme at Colour Create week 12, with the addition of polka dots somewhere.
I kept this plain and simple...just like me...and came up with this card. Although the kanga is grey..that is a paler shade of black, isn't it? :-)

Ingredients :-
Image - download off Pink Petticoat
Paper - Doodlebug Paper Pot Pourri
Card & ribbon from my stash...actually the ribbon was a surprise gift from forum buddy Pat (Handy) hugs!!

Tools used :-
Letraset Pro-Markers - Cool Grey 2, Cool Grey 5, Blossom

Simples!! as that cute meercat would say. lol!!

Card for a Child....

....is the theme at Truly Scrumptiousbeing their challenge 5 with a sketch which got the old grey matter twitching.
All the papers used were from the 6 x 6 pad of Basic Grey 'Cupcake' they are gorgeous.
The cream card across the card was cut using my Fiskars wide scallop scissors
A Penny Black sticker was used for the image.
Everything else from my stash. It all seems a bit busy for me but I'm sure a child will love it. LOL!!

A Spoonful Of Sugar

A Spoonful Of Sugar is a lovely challenge blog and I spent so long on #42 that I missed the deadline so I will use this wonderful sketch from 42 for the #43 challenge which is GEMS. There are 2 flat-backed pale green pearls and a lovely little faux citrine gem in the flowers so am sure this will be acceptable. The gems are from my stash.
The image is Penny Black which is adorable and the papers are K & co., Primas flowers and ribbon from my stash. All the faux stitching is rub-ons by Doodlebug 'Sew Easy'
The lovely sentiment stamp is by Stampabilities stamped in black Versafine

Something Edible.......

This was the theme over at Papertake Weekly Challenge. I'm trying to do a few plainer cards if I can to get away from the busy, busy, busy that I have been doing lately.
The pale green Bazzill card was covered along the bottom with a scrap of paper out of my box a leftover piece of ribbon and - dare I say - 4 black peel-off squares ( I can see you all recoiling in horror as I type) turned on their point to reflect the diamond pattern in the paper. The Penny Black Image is out of my swap file and was coloured using PM's. The fly was the top half of a sentiment stamp by Inkadinkadoo...I just love it.

Sunday Combi.

Getting snowed under with challenges I want to do so have combined 2 this weekend -the theme from Secret Crafter Saturday Challenge #23 which is 'Have Your Cake And Eat It' - and - the sketch from Sketch Saturday #42 sponsored by The Cutting Cafe.
The sketch was great and cake being the theme....need I say more. The Penny Black image was coloured using PM's. All papers used were from Kay & Co. Tim Coffey Tulip and Papermania Olivine Essence. The piece of cream card was cut using Fiskars Wide Scallop scissors and overstamped with 2 flower stamps by Hero Arts using Colorbox 'Wisteria' Chalk Ink pad. Prima flowers and Hero Arts buttons used to finish. All other items misc. from my stash.

This Little Piggy.......

...Messed be about good and proper.
This was a great sketch over at Sketch Saturday, being #41 Ria's Week, sponsored by Funky Fairy's Papercrafts.
Really enjoy doing sketches as it takes a lot of the brain drain out of making a card and only leaves you with choosing the elements to use.
Which were........Green card by Bazzill, Stamped image Penny Black, Papers by Laura Ashley, loving those, and flowers by Prima.The butterflies were cut from the Laura Ashley paper too and mounted on a Glue Dot with wings a-flutter. Cream card, gems and pearls out of my stash....and the sentiment I typed up myself on Word.
So, you are wondering, where was the messing about. Well it was trying to scan or photo it. I am stuck for choice which image to upload the over bright scan or the dull and squiffy photo - no sun and it kept blowing in the wind.
I'll choose the scan and be damned. LOL!!

Food & Drink

Another great challenge at Cute Card Thursday and #50 was 'Food & Drink'/'Wine & Dine' and sponsored by Poppicrafts.
I used Papermania Collosal 'For Him' paper to cover blue card and positioned a scalloped piece of Bazzill in coffee creme onto the bottom half. A piece of navy blue Grosgrain ribbon was placed across the centre to cover the edge. A Penny Black image was coloured with Marvy Le Plume pens and cut out and embossed using Nestabilities Labels 1 and a blue piece of card cut using the largest Nestie. The rub-on sentiment was by Letraset. 2 round gems were added to each end of the ribbon and a heart shaped gem placed upside down on the flame of the candle.

Pink, Orange & Brown - Hot Chocolate!!

This was the theme over at Papertake Weekly Challenge and thoroughly enjoyed it. Out comes my greatly overlooked orange Bazzill card, why do so many peeps dispise the colour orange?, it is so vibrant. The Penny Black image which I had already coloured with Marvy Le Plume pens but did the balloon in vivid fuscia pink Sakura Gloss, was ideal. The papers, pink and brown were Basic Grey...what else? the ribbon American crafts and the gems out of my stash.
I have scored either side of the ribbon for a bit of added interest.
The sentiment stamp was out of a set of unmounted acrylics.

Clean & Simple Stamping

I absolutely love this blog it is so full of beautiful quickie cards which, most times, honestly can only take minutes to make. How many times have you been caught short for a greeting card? and the last thing we want to do is go and buy one.....heaven forbid.
So this is my Fall to Layout #31.
I too, made my own backing paper. But should have used a darker ink for the sentiment as it is quite pale stamped onto the green. I added a bit of bling with a jewel above the i in 'Birthday'. The ribbon IS straight, but because it is loose it has moved in the scanner. :-/
So thank you Natasha for this weeks inspiration.
Stamps used : Hero Arts 5 Petal Outline Daisy, Kaleidoscope Whoopsey Daisy, misc.tiny daisy and Penny Black 'Birthday Dreams'.
Inks used : Versamagic Chalk in Persimmon, Mango Madness and Niagara Mist
Green card : Bazzill Basics ?colour
Jewel, Ribbon and orange card from my stash.

Colour Combo

Found a wonderful Challenge Blog which is going to really whet my appetite as Basic Grey papers are a passion of mine....so along I went to Basic Grey Challenge and found this weeks' challenge was "Colour Combo" sponsored by The Cutting Cafe. The choice was out of Pink & Green, Pink & Brown or Blue & Brown. I chose the latter as I do love those colours together. I chose a favourite Penny Black stamp and created my little effort above. The Basic Grey papers I used were from the following 6 x 6 pads , brown from 'Sultry', brown floral from 'Boxer' and blue from 'Cupcake'. The butterfly image which is in a tan brown - not orange as it looks here :-( - was out of my stash of stamped images which I have collected over the years, I just altered it by touching up the white parts with a pale blue Pro-Marker by Letraset. Ribbon and jewels from my stash. I really enjoy working with limited colours as given free rein I am unable to make a choice. Please forgive the awful photography, didn't want to scan the card as the butterfly would squash, and photos aren't my forte.

Animal Magic

I took the opportunity to combine two challenges in this card. The sketch was taken from Sketch Saturday #39 sponsored by Emma Lockley and the theme of Animal Magic was for Cute Card Thursday #49 sponsored by Craftaway.
The stamp used was by Penny Black, watercoloured with Marvy Le Plume pens. Oddments of Bazzill Basic cardstock and embellishments out of my stash along with Basic Grey paper were used to finish it off. I love to be able to use minute pieces of cardstock which I never throw away and I feel a greater sense of achievemant if I do so.

Get Well Soon

It was lovely to be able to combine 2 challenges for this card. The sketch came from Card Sketch A Day #175 and the challenge was for Penny Black Saturday Challenge
I love this cute Penny Black stamp and the flourish stamp is from an unmounted plate by StampAttack. Flowers are by Prima, everything else from my stash. But the sentiment is peel-off words. I do find these small words very useful. Little gems were added to the centres of the stamped image flowers for a bit of sparkle.

Friday Sketchers #39

 

Yet another enjoyable sketch and able to use one of my myriad of Penny Black stamped images I have accumulated over the years. The stamp used as the sentiment is an old Brenda Walton All Night Media 'Delight', the papers, flowers, buttons and jewel all from my stash. The Image was cut using the largest scalloped oval in the Nestabilities set with small scallops. I edged the cut image with green ink.