Colours And Sketches

I came across a new (to me) challenge site called Colours And Sketches where the challenge alternates weekly between, well colours and sketches. This is their sketch this week

And I've combined it with the Less Is More challenge which is based on this picture

For my card I've used the shoe from Stampin' Up's Fabulous You set. I've stamped it with Versamark and embossed with black embossing powder onto cream card. I've coloured it with a gold Sakura Stardust pen which gives a lovely sheen and mounted it onto a scrap of black card. The strips of gold  stripy pearlescent paper are from my snippets folder and the greeting is from Stampin' Up's Itty Bitty Banners and embossed with the gold powder. I'm also entering this into Pixie's Crafty Snippets Playground

Cuttlebug Mania - OMGoodness

Wow, I can not say how surprised and delighted I was to receive an email from the girls at Cuttlebug Mania asking if I wanted to join their team. Of course I had to say yes so here I am with my first card for the team.

The challenge this week is Clean & Simple and my card is very simple. I've printed the Pink Petticoat bee straight onto some Rymans card I've cut it into a square and put it through my Cuttlebug with Stampin' Up's Oval Designer Frame. The bee is coloured with Promarkers and I've added some gold Glamour Dust to the wings. Layered onto a square of yellow card with some ribbon to finish

So pop over to Cuttlebug Mania and join in the fun

Stampin Up Oval Designer Frame

Pink Petticoat Buzzy Little Bees

Promarkers

Gold Glamour Dust

Rymans Bright White Coated Card

Craftwork Cards card blank

Yellow card and ribbon from my stash

Prague Montage

This is my Birthday card for OH and as it is to go with his Prague Clock, I had to use my Darkroom Door Prague Volume 1 stamp set. I wanted to add some of the Prague Montage pictures to make it a lottle different to the other cards I've made him using this set but spent most of the morning playing and not getting very far. Then I remembered this weeks sketch at Friday Sketches and decided to have another go. This is the sketch

I've turned it round so the small elements are on the bottom. The main image is stamped with Versafine and embossed with clear powder and matted onto a snippet of black card. I've used some of the other stamps from the set to make the background and layered that on black snippets. The three montage images are also layered on black and like the main image raised with foam pads. Lots of black snippets so another card for Pixie's Crafty Snippets Playground

And because it's a photo stamp, I'm entering it into the Docrafts challenge this week which is to have the image as the main part of the card

Christmas In July For Men

The challenge this fortnight at Cards For Men is to make a Christmas card. I've made this one with a Kanban topper and backing sheet that I pinched from Cally on our weekend away. She very kindly said we could help ourselves to her kit and as I sat next to her I got first dibs (I also took a sheet of gorgeous Christmas cats but they will be used later). I really liked this sheet as I thought it would be ideal for those difficult blokes Christmas cards. I've added some red polka dot paper from a Papermania pad and some mirror card and that was it - a very quick and easy card. Thanks Cally x

Sorry You're Leaving

It's always sad when you have to say goodbye to someone but a little card can ease the pain. This cute digi is a freebie from Doodle Pantry and I spotted him when I was buying another set. I suppose he could be saying hi but he looks to me like he's waving goodbye. I've cut him out with Nesties and coloured with Promarkers. The grass strips are cut from some snippets with a Martha Stewart punch and the sentiment is computer generated. Some green gems to finish

Because of the snippets I'm entering this into Pixie's Crafty Snippets Playground (I personally think it was very cruel of Miss to fill in the duckpond so that our little friend had to leave!)

Sunday Sketch & Stamp 167

It's Sam's turn to give us a sketch to work with at Sunday Sketch & Stamp and this is the lovely layout she has come up with

I must admit I nearly forgot about doing this so mine is a very quick card and the stamp I've used made it very easy. It's from the Stampin Up set called Crazy Mixed-Up Love and there are 6 images all with a sentiment attached. This is going to come in handy for making some quick love themed cards for the forces. They don't always want Valentines cards as they never know how long it will take the cards to get there - it depends on when there is room on a plane so general love ones are always welcome.

 For my card, I've masked off the words and stamped the blender in red ink and cut it out with Nesties. Then I've masked off the image and stamped the sentiment and cut it out with the word window punch. The backing paper is from Papermania's Festive Midi Spots pack. I can see I'm going to have to get another of these packs as it's so useful for everyday too. A strip of ribbon and some heart gems and the card is finished

Addicted To Stamps Photo Inspiration

The challenge at Addicted To Stamps & More this week is to use this picture for inspiration

As soon as I saw the picture I thought of the Woodware Huge Happy Birthday stamp. I've stamped in black Memento and coloured with Promarkers in primary colours and where it overlaps I've used the new colours they make. I was a little disappointed that the way I did it there wasn't much green so I've added some green card for the background which I've partially embossed with the Cuttlebug numbers folder. Red, yellow and blue gems on the un-embossed card to finish

Let It Snow

It's Christmas In July at Polka Doodles, Cards For Men and I Love Promarkers so I've made my card with these challenges in mind. I've followed this new layout from Sketch Saturday

For my card I've used a stamp from The Polka Doodles Christmas Boutique pack which came out a few years ago and I've still got loads of it left. I've stamped the snowman in London Fog Memento and coloured him with Promarkers and added some glamour dust to his bobble and the ground. The backing paper is from the kit too. The sentiment is from a Polka Doodles set that was free with Papercraft Essentials a couple of years ago too. I've coloured that with Promarkers too and cut it with a Stampin Up die

Let It Fly

The theme at Polka Doodles this week is Let It Fly. I've rotated this sketch from Feeling Sketchy

I've used a couple of Forever Friends stickers on white card. The punch is by Martha Stewart and the embossing folder is the classic Cuttlebug Swirls. The backing paper was a freebie with a magazine some time ago and the greeting is from Hunkydory's Antique Pastime set

Another Blurred Vision Card

I wanted to have another try at the Blurred Vision challenge at Technique Time Tuesday so I've started with this sketch from Sketch Saturday

I decided to go for a masculine card this time and used a Personal Impressions stamp set called Cars and stamped the car and sentiment with Faded Jeans DI and used a blender pen to blur them. The backing paper is from a Smirk For Him pack and the blue Core'dinations card is embossed with the Cuttlebug Diamond Plate embossing folder - I think this is one of my favourites for male cards. I've distressed the edges of the panels to add interest

Not What It Started As

This is a card for my brother in law and I was struggling to come up with something for him. I did get my Wellington images out but  then I saw Di's gorgeous Little Red Car, I thought I've got that image and the backing  paper so I'm sorted but my card is nothing like Di's at all.

I started with this sketch from Tuesday Morning Sketches but turned it on it's side

The image is a pre coloured one from Lili Of The Valley but different to Di's. I've gone with backing papers from the new Papermania Midi Festive Spots which I think is a great pack for male cards. As my image is square it looked a little lost on the A5 card so I was going to add some buttons but OH said no so I've added some scraps of one of the other papers to the corners and it's balanced it  a bit. The sentiment is by Personal Impressions cut and layered with a Stampin Up punch and I've added some bakers twine across the top to finish

And then I forgot to post it so missed the deadline for TMS 

Happy BLEAT-ed Birthday

I love this cute digi by Clearly Digi Stamps and it comes with a good selection of sentiments. I've coloured it simply with Promarkers . I'm not sure what the backing paper is as it's from a pile on the side of my desk to be used up. I've cut some grass with a Martha Stewart punch for the bottom from a scrap of card and the trampoline (yes, that's what it's meant to be) is made from scraps with Stampin Up punches. In case you hadn't guessed this is for the Playground - why not pop over and join in the fun

CD Sunday - Dreams And Dragons

The challenge at CD Sunday this week is Dreams and Dragons and for once I haven't left it to the last minute. Now I'm hoping you don't have to use both and that it is an either or challenge. Even then I'm not sure this will count but here goes. I've used this sketch from Friday Sketches which I've rotated anti clockwise

My image is from the Jayne Netley Mayhew CD and so is the backing paper. The sentiment is from a Wild Rose Studio set and the glittery flowers are from my stash. I've covered the wings of the dragon fly with glamour dust for sparkle and some Diamond Stickles on the flowers

Sunday Sketch & Stamp Week 166

There's a free choice at Sunday Sketch and Stamp this week so you can choose any of the previous sketches including those under the sketch tab above. Being lazy, I've gone for the first sketch on the tab Sketch #70 which is this

I've used a Bugaboo image for my card and coloured him with Promarkers using the blender pen to give his skin some texture. The backing paper is by Stampin Up and I've used a Cuttlebug folder on the white card. I'm not sure what the folder is called but it looks like scaly skin to me so I thought it went well. Some card candy to finish

Christmas In July

It's Christmas In July at CD Sunday and it's a good way to feel a little cooler. As I had my Joanna Sheen Furry Friends CD out from last week, I've used an image from that - another beautiful Rachael Hale picture. The backing paper is from the Papermania Boofle Ultimate pack and the embossed white card is done with a Me To You snowflake folder. The little snowflakes are from one of the small Cuttlebug dies. I've added some Diamond Stickles to the centre of all the snowflakes but they just don't show up in the picture

Fun In The Sun

The lovely girls at Cuttlebug Mania have got their sunhats on this week and want us to make a card with the theme Fun In The Sun. I was looking through my embossing folders for a snowflake one and came across this one. I'm ashamed to say I've never used it and was so impressed with the quality of embossing in the Cuttlebug - you can see the pips on the strawberries it is so detailed

I'm not sure of the name of the folder but it is by Cuttlebug and I think it came in a set. The image is from an old Stampin Up set called Cheers To You and is stamped on a scrap of Rymans card and cut with Nesties I've coloured it tones of red with Promarkers as when I was sat in the garden listening to the Wimbledon final I had Pimms with strawberry juice to help cool me down. The backing paper is from the DCWV Sweet Stack and I chose the strawberry sheet to match the strawberry in the drink The sentiment is from the same set and stamped onto scraps too. To finish, I've glazed the drink with Glossy Accents which I left to dry overnight.

I'm also entering this into the following challenges:

Pixie's Crafty Snippets Playground - snippets

Polka Doodles - Summer Fun

Kaboodledoodles - Any Embossing

Now I must get on and clear my desk so that I can start on OH's birthday present

May Your Bobbin Always Be Full

This is my second go at the Blurred Vision stamping challenge at Technique Time Tuesday and I do prefer it to my last effort. I wanted to use something other than flowers and came across this stamp set by My Favourite Things called So Nifty which was the first thing I bought when I found My Mum's Craft Shop in Poundbury. I've stamped the manikin with Gathered Twigs Distress ink and blurred the body part with a Stampin Up blender pen. The background is stamped with the tape measure from the set with Frayed Burlap and again blurred with the pen. The bobbin was die cut from scraps and stamped and I've added some brown and white bakers twine which I've lightly coloured to take the brightness down. I wanted to add some buttons but didn't have anything that would go in my stash so I raided my slippers!

The greeting is from the same set, again stamped on scraps. A strip of lace across the middle to finish.

I'm also entering this into the following challenges
Pixie's Crafty Snippets Playground - Snippets
Anything Goes - Anything Goes
My Mum's Craft Shop - Just For Girls

Blurred Vision Stamping

Technique Time Tuesday have come up with another technique that I haven't tried before - Blurred Vision Stamping. Pop over and have a look at the video. For my card I've used the Woodware stamp Bubble Bloom Feliciity and stamped in green ink. I've blurred the stem leaves and smaller circles with a Stampin Up blender pen an I've used some checked Card Candy on the larger circles. The sentiment came with the flower. Just realised - yet another green card!

A Gentle Breeze

Another card for the Cuttlebug Mania Make Your Own Flowers. I first made these cute little flowers in a class with Jane Gill and although they are quite fiddly, I really like the results. For these I have used a Woodware 4 heart punch and some teal vellum which was in my scraps folder. The stamen is a Leone Em punch and black paper and the background is embossed using an un-named folder which I won in a challenge. The sentiment is by Inkylicious called Gentle Breeze and cut out and layered on Nesties. Another one for Pixie's Crafty Snippets Playground

Sunday Sketch & Stamp

It's Carole's turn to give us a sketch this week at Sunday Sketch & Stamp
and she's come up with this lovely layout

For my card I've used a stamp called Nature Speaks by Inkylicious. I've coloured the edges with PanPastels and layered it onto pink card. The white card is embossed with the Cuttlebug Roses folder and again coloured the edges and layered onto pink card. The backing paper was free with a magazine and is lovely and colourful to match the sentiment. The butterflies are cut with some Joy Craft dies and I've added some ink before taking out of the dies.

Get A Hat, Get Ahead

The challenge at CD Sunday this week is Hats. I don't know where the week has gone because I printed this image off last Sunday and I've only just made the card this morning. The image is from Joanna Sheen's Furry Friends CD. I love this CD as it has something for every occasion and all by Rachael Hale. The background is made using my home made paws print embossing sheet - see here for details - so I'm also entering this into the Polka Doodles Make Your Own Background challenge. I still haven't found a proper paw print folder so if you know of one, please pass on the details. I've added some bakers twine and the greeting is from an old Wild Rose Studio set called Dog Greetings

Make Your Own Flowers

The challenge at Cuttlebug Mania this week is Make Your Own Flowers. The girls on the design team have made some lovely flowers so do pop over and see what they have done.

For my flowers I've used some Clearly For Art film and some packaging from a Sizzix Bigx die to compare the two. I've cut the flowers with my Tattered Florals die in the Cuttlebug and the purple were coloured with Raspberry, Wild Plum & Silver alcohol inks and the greenish ones with Lettuce, Pool & Stream inks. They were all heated with a heat gun and shaped with my fingers. The Clearly for Art ones are definitely thicker but the packaging ones seemed to hold the heat for longer making them easier to mould to the shape I wanted. This is the result

I've used the green ones on my card for this challenge - green seems to be prominent on my cards at the moment - must be the sunshine we've been having as everything in the garden is looking so lush. The sentiment is from the Indigo Blu Poppy Meadow set cut with Nesties and layered on scraps of card. I've stuck the flowers down with sillcone which shows through so I've added some vintage buttons to the centres.  As I've used some scraps I'm also entering this into into Pixie's Crafty Snippets Playground - why not pop over and have a play too

What's In A Name at Cuttlebug Mania

The challenge at Cuttlebug Mania this week is to use something that starts with the first letter of your name. I've chosen Kitchen and used a glittered backing paper from DCWV Nana's Kitchen stack. This piece is actually a scrap that I had kept with the pad. There was a prettier paper but I didn't want the card too girly because of the image. I've based my design on this sketch at Freshly Made Sketches

I've turned the sketch on it's side (not because I wanted to but that's how the baking paper fitted). The right hand side is white card embossed in the Cuttlebug with a folder from the Retro Kitchen set and the image is from the Wine Buffs CD. I didn't want to add ribbon so I've embossed a scrap of green card with another folder from the set and some handmade candy in the top corner. Another card for Pixie's Crafty Snippets Playground too

Sunday Sketch & Stamp

I had a lovely crafty weekend with friends last week and after coming home on Monday I've hardly been in my craft room. I also did a class with the lovely Kay from Indigo Blu at Jendenink which was fantastic and although I've got nothing actually made, lots of techniques were learnt.

So onto my card for this weeks Sunday Sketch & Stamp. Joni has given us this lovely sketch to work with

For my card I've used a Marianne Design stamp from their Romantic Vintage range. I've stamped it with Victorian Velvet distress ink and embossed it with clear powder. I've gone over a few of the white areas with Antique Linen and matted it onto a scrap of pink card and distressed the edges. The backing paper is from a paper pad called Parisian Dreams which came free with Quick Cards Made Easy. I've used a paper doily for the circle which is lightly edged with the same distress inks. The lace was white but I've added a little colour with the Antique Linen to take the brightness away. The card under the lace strip is another scrap which wasn't quite long enough so it's cut in half and the gap is under the doily. The greeting is from a Wild Rose Studio set again, stamped and mounted on scraps. I'm also playing along at Pixie's Crafty Snippets this week