As You Like It - anything goes

Hello everyone :o)

We have an anything goes challenge this time over at As You Like It... I'm at that horrible desperation stage of Christmas crafting, where you realise there aren't enough cards to go around and you're running out of time to do anything about it (or is that just me?).  I start making cards in small batches, in a state of mild panic, muttering about being more organised next year... the card I've made for this challenge is part of the batch that will go to the neighbours.  I still need to make a card for my mum, and poor Pav probably won't get one at all!

I cut the tree die from kraft card, then from different patterned papers, distressed the pieces and then placed them in the spaces left in the kraft card.  The handy thing about this design is that by cutting the tree die from 5 different papers, you end up with 5 slightly different variations.

Items Used

MFT die-namics Christmas Tree Cut-out die

Sentiment stamp - Simple Festive Greetings - LOTV

Papers - Vintage Christmas - LOTV

stamped in Memento Ink in Rhubarb Stalk

Doodlebug sequins

I'm entering my card for the following challenges

Allsorts - Christmas trees

Dies R Us - anything Christmas

Hiding in My Craft Room - keep it simple Christmas

Thanks for popping in, hope you have a lovely evening :o)

Everybody Art GDT - Christmas

Hello everyone :o)

I'm here with my Guest DT card for Everybody Art, where our challenge is 'Christmas'.

What tends to happen with me is that I'll make a reasonable pile of 'general' Christmas cards, and then realise as it looms closer that I haven't made any of the more specific/ special ones that I need for family members.  I have obviously done exactly the same this year, so I'm trying to catch up now - this one's for my auntie (and her husband), who prefers very simple cards, so I've tried not to go overboard with stuff.

Items Used

Digi stamp - Robin Cracker - LOTV Etsy Shop

Colouring - copics

Papers - Scandi Christmas - LOTV

Rectangle Frame Die - MFT Die-namics

Sentiment - Tonic Modern Merry Christmas die

Hessian (stapled into place) - Crafter's Companion

Glitter - clear Glamour Dust + Nuvo Clear Sparkle Pen (on the sentiment)

White textured + navy cardstock - Papermill Direct

I'm entering my card for the following challenges

Crafty Cardmakers - Christmas

Cutie Pie - add a little sparkle

Crafty Calendar - it's Christmas time

Card Mania - Christmas

Thanks for popping in, hope you have a lovely evening :o)

As You Like It DT - favourite Christmas animal

Hello again :o)

I'm here with my DT card for As You Like It, where our challenge is 'your favourite Christmas animal'.  I couldn't decide on one animal - I like anything cute really, so could have picked just about any reindeer, penguin, polar bear... and then I remembered James, so I've gone with my favourite Christmas bear!

The image is James - Pile of Presents, coloured with copics.  I used the old stamp version, but you can buy him as a digi in the LOTV Etsy shop HERE, or if you prefer stamps you can get a similar image (with just one present) in this set.  The papers are a mix of a recent Christmas pack that seems to have sold out and been removed from the LOTV shop now, plus the Watercolour Dots Cool Sunset set.  The sentiment tags are from this set, stamped in Memento Sweet Plum ink.  Added a Memory Box banner, a pearl from my stash and some Glamour Dust clear glitter.

I'm entering my card for the following challenges

Cheerful Sketches - fab sketch

Cute Card Thursday - anything goes

Dream Valley - Christmas

CRAFT - Christmas - the last stretch

Thanks for popping in, hope you have a lovely evening :o)

Snowmen & Snowladies - Sweet Stampin' DT

Hello everyone :o)

I'm finally starting to feel better after the horrible cold/ flu bug I've had for the last couple of weeks... still shaking off the cough, but feeling a bit more human at least!  Happy to be getting back to a bit of crafting again.

Our new challenge over at Sweet Stampin' is 'snowmen & snowladies', so that's another one to add to the Christmas pile.

I've used a sweet Lili of the Valley snowman from the Festive Folk 2 set, coloured with copics and added Glamour Dust for sparkle.  The papers are from the Scandi Christmas set and the sentiment is from Simple Festive Greetings.  The snowflakes are MFT die-namics dies, with a bright red enamel dot in the middle that for some reason looks almost black in the photo.

I'm entering my card for the following challenges

Simon Says Wednesday - anything goes

Crafty Catz - anything goes + optional too cute

Crafting by Designs - get ready for Christmas

The Holly & Ivy - anything Christmas goes

We had an actual rare night out last night, to see Rock of Ages at the Lyceum theatre... it was SO much fun, we loved it :o)  Nice to do something just the two of us for a change.  Thanks for popping in, hope you're having a lovely weekend.

Sweet Stampin' - sparkle & glitz

Happy Saturday :o)

I'm pooooooorly, so keeping this brief today!  Our challenge over at Sweet Stampin' is 'sparkle & glitz'... and it's also our fabulous 'boss lady' Abi's last challenge with us - thanks for letting me rejoin Sweet Stampin' Abi, we'll miss you xxx

I made a very simple card using a snowman stamp & die set from Clearly Besotted, with a sentiment stamp from this set from LOTV.   The square frame was cut using a MFT die-namics die from a fabulously sparkly Stampin' Up glitter sheet.

I'm entering my card for the following challenges

Allsorts - CAS Christmas

CRAFT - Christmas

The Paper Girls - do you want to build a snowman?

Off to get back to feeling sorry for myself, my voice has gone so at least I can't bore anyone about it out loud lol.  Thanks for popping in, hope you're having a lovely weekend :o)

Everybody Art GDT - grey & green

Hello everyone :o)

I'm here with my Guest DT card for Everybody Art, where our challenge for this fortnight is 'grey & green'.  It's not a colour combo I'd generally think to use, but really like it now I've tried it.

I used a shaped card blank (from Craftwork Cards, years ago probably), with papers from the Winter Woods set, plus a spotty piece from Frosty Christmas - Grey from Lili of the Valley.  The stamp is also LOTV from the Carol Singing set, which is currently out of stock, but you can now buy them in the LOTV digi shop on Etsy, along with lots of other lovely digis!  The image is coloured with copics, with some Glamour Dust for sparkle, the sentiment stamp is from this set, and I popped some sparkly enamel dots on some dark green circles, just because I liked how it looked... possibly taking my obsession for everything being matted onto darker colours too far lol.

I'm entering my card for the following challenges

Sketch Saturday - sketch (turned)

Crafty Cardmakers - lots of layers

Cutie Pie - winter layers

Crafty Catz - anything goes + optional getting ready for Christmas

Dex left for his first residential trip yesterday, so I've been keeping myself busy in the craft room trying to take my mind off him not being here... the house is so quiet, and he's not even a particularly noisy child!  The school have put a few photos up on twitter and they all look SO muddy, dread to think what state he's going to come home in lol.  They're back tomorrow evening, so won't be away from home too long.

Thanks for popping in, hope you have a lovely evening :o)

Sweet Stampin' - trees

Happy Saturday :o)

Our challenge for this week over at Sweet Stampin' is 'trees'... so I thought I'd grab the opportunity to add to the (tiny) Christmas pile.

I've had very little time this week for crafting, so I used an old pre-coloured image from Lili of the Valley, which is still available as an art sheet HERE.  The papers are from the new Vintage Christmas paper pad and the sentiment stamp is from the Simple Festive Greetings set, also from LOTV.  I added some sparkle to the image using Glamour Dust, an MFT die-namics snowflake layered with a MS punched one, plus a brad I found in my stash.

I'm entering my card for the following challenges

Allsorts - pretty papers

Simon Says Wednesday - anything goes

Cute Card Thursday - anything goes

CRAFT - winter

The boys have been off school for half term, Pav had the week off too, so I rarely get much computer/ crafting time when they're all around.  We've been busy shopping for Dex's first residential trip - they're only away for two nights, but from the list of stuff they need, you'd think they were going for two weeks lol.  And today we're off to one of Morgan's basketball games again, this one's about 2hrs away, so that's most of the day gone (we'll be there by the time this posts, I scheduled it).  Better get a move on and get us all ready... thanks for popping in, hope you're having a lovely weekend :o)

Sweet Stampin' - chevrons or stripes

Happy Saturday :o)

This week at Sweet Stampin' our theme is 'chevrons or stripes'... I've got both on my card.

I've used a super cute stamp and gorgeous papers, both new over at Lili of the Valley... you can find the Carol Singing stamp set HERE and the Scandi Christmas papers HERE.  I coloured the image with copics, and added some Glamour Dust sparkle.  The stitched curved rectangle die is MFT die-namics, the red twine and silver note charm from my stash.  I added the charm because Dex spotted the card while I was making it, and claimed it for his piano teacher, so I thought I'd add to the musical theme for him.  The sentiment is from another LOTV stamp set available HERE.

I'm entering my card for the following challenges

Double D Challenges - stripes & dots

Simon Says Wednesday - animal antics

Crafter's Castle - anything goes + optional winter/ Christmas

We're off out tonight... well, sort of!  Some of Morgan's classmates are going on one of those trips, where they go to a deprived area (they're going somewhere in India) and work on some sort of charity project out there.  They have to raise several thousand pounds each in order to go, so they've organised a family quiz night tonight, and Morgan really wants to go.  I was quite looking forward to having almost nothing to do this weekend, as we had a rare weekend off from basketball games, but never mind!  Maybe it'll be fun, you never know lol.

Thanks for popping in, hope you're having a lovely weekend :o)

Cute Santa set - Digi Stamp Boutique DT

Hello everyone :o)

The new Digi Stamp Boutique Christmas release is now available from Lili of the Valley.  Grab them now, as NO digital products at all will be available from the end of September, LOTV have made the difficult decision to stop selling them due to increasingly complex EU rules around VAT.  The good thing to come of this, is that LOTV will be selling real stamps AND papers again, which will be fabulous, but I'm really going to miss Digi Stamp Boutique!  Have a look on the FB page for full info - lots of digi bundles and bargains to be had at the moment.

So, you may have noticed that Lili of the Valley sort of 'inherited' me from the Digi Stamp Boutique DT... so here's my first card for the new release, using the fab Cute Santa set and a sentiment from the Christmas Greetings Bundle.  I coloured Santa with copics, adding some Glamour Dust for sparkle.  The papers are digi ones from Northern Whimsy, the stitched oval and snowflake dies are MFT dienamics, and the pearls and card candy from my stash.

I'm entering my card for the following challenges
Crafty Gals - 3 or more layers
The Merry Christmas Challenge - anything Christmas
The Holly & Ivy - anything Christmas
Cute Card Thursday - dies & punches

Thanks for popping in, hope you have a lovely evening :o)

Papercraft Challenges - Christmas in July

Hello :o)

I'm here with my DT card for Papercraft Challenges, where our theme is 'Christmas in July'.

The cute image is from the Reindeer Blocks set from Bugaboo Stamps, coloured with copics.  I used a couple of different embossing folders on white linen card, some purple Centura Pearl card and a sentiment stamp from Clearly Besotted.

I'm entering my card for the following challenges

The Holly & Ivy - anything Christmas goes

Creatalicious - anything goes + optional no patterned paper

Simply Create Too - no pattern paper

Cute Card Thursday - anything goes

I'm having a proud mum moment as I've had an email from one of the teachers who was with Morgan on his trip to France last week... it made me cry!  Here's part of it...

'I wanted to spend a bit of time to let you know that no other student has made me feel prouder of being a teacher than your son.

Every day during the trip Morgan was an absolute pleasure to have in my group and made the whole trip worth while. He had a strong phobia of heights and what impressed me more than any other student was the fact he did not let that stop him and ploughed through the activities regardless! 

Morgan has inspired me as an individual and I am convinced he will continue to inspire those around him as he grows up into an awesome young gentleman!'

 How lovely is that?!  And so nice of him to take the time to write to us.  Morgan told me about this particular teacher, and said he couldn't have managed some of the activities without his encouragement.

Thanks for popping in... back tomorrow with another card, that's quite productive for me lately lol.  Have a lovely evening :o)

Penguin baubles!

Hello :o)

I did say I might show some knitted projects occasionally, so here goes... these little penguin baubles are this year's teachers' gifts.

They're definitely not perfect, but they were fun to knit... not so much fun to sew up!  I'd forgotten just how much I hate stitching knitted things together!  The pattern was in Let's Knit magazine, and the only thing I did differently was adding ribbon loops instead of crochet chains... I'm yet to try crochet, but hopefully I'll have a go at that soon.

I've been wrapping presents all day, something else I'm not too keen on... ugh, it just seems never ending!  Next year I MUST be more organised!  Thanks for popping in, hope you have a lovely evening :o)

Sweet Robin - DigiStamp Boutique DT

Hello everyone :o)

Here's another Christmas card, using the recent Sweet Robin image from DigiStamp Boutique.

I coloured it with copics, adding some Glamour Dust sparkle.  The papers are Doodlebug, sentiment is Clearly Besotted and snowflake border is part of a Memory Box die.  Finished off with some large black pearls from my stash.

I'm entering my card for the following challenges

Addicted to Stamps - seasons greetings

Incy Wincy - red & green

Crafty Calendar - it's Christmas

If you fancy treating yourself to a cute image or two, there's a 50% off sale at DigiStamp Boutique at the moment.

Thanks for popping in :o)

Sweet Stampin' - last minute Christmas/ CAS

Happy Saturday :o)

This week's challenge at Sweet Stampin' is 'last minute or CAS Christmas'... great for getting a few much needed extras made!

Now, I know it's a bit unusual, but I really love yellow for Christmas cards... well I like yellow in general really.  I think these papers are Trimcraft baby ones, and the dies are Tonic.  The cardstock is all Crafter's Companion Centura Pearl and the sparkly snowflake centre is from my stash.

I'm entering my card for the following challenges

CAS on Friday - Christmas

Crafty Addicts - non-traditional Christmas colours

Pile it On - non-traditional holiday colours

Thanks for popping in :o)

Yet another reindeer...

Hello... yep, I made another one!

Another sweet reindeer from LOTV's Reindeer Collection, coloured with copics, with a sprinkle of Glamour Dust sparkle.  The papers are Doodlebug, the bow die is Memory Box, sentiment is Crafter's Companion and I added some little black buttons from my stash... oh, and a Doodlebug enamel dot too.

I'm entering my card for the following challenges

Cute Card Thursday - festive colours

CRAFT - Christmas

4 Crafty Chicks - Christmas/ winter critters

I can't promise this is the last of the reindeer invasion, as there are still some sat on my desk waiting to be coloured, along with some other images, as I just don't have enough cards made... eeek!!!

Thanks for popping in :o)

Another reindeer...

Hello :o)

I'm back again with another of those sweet LOTV reindeer images...

I coloured him with copics and added my usual Glamour Dust for sparkly 'snow'.  The papers are Doodlebug, sentiment is Clearly Besotted, the stars are a cut up Memory Box die and the corner die is Whimsy.  Finished off with a couple of enamel dots.

I'm entering my card for the following challenges

Cutie Pie - stars and/ or snowflakes

Little Red Wagon - Christmas critters

Pause Dream Enjoy - reindeer

Thanks for popping in, hope you have a lovely evening :o)

Guest DT - Deep Ocean Challenge

Hello :o)

I was asked to be Guest DT for this week at Deep Ocean Challenge, where the theme is Jingle Bells (anything Christmas)... I was happy to join in and get another Christmas card made.

The fab image is from the Cute Santa Collection from DigiStamp Boutique - I really love this set, and it makes at least one appearance every year.  I coloured it with copics and added Glamour Dust to Santa's hat.  The papers are those lovely Northern Whimsy ones again, fishtail banners and snowflakes are MFT Die-namics dies, sentiment is Clearly Besotted and I added an enamel dot from my stash.

I'm entering my card for the following challenges

Christmas with the Cuties - Santa Claus is coming to town

Crafty Cardmakers - Christmas

Come and Get It - Christmas

Dragonfly Journeys - here comes Santa Claus

I counted my finished Christmas cards today, and am now trying not to panic... knew it was a mistake, I felt quite organised until I had actual numbers lol.  I foresee some speedy cardmaking in my near future...

Thanks for popping in :o)

Reindeer Collection

Hello :o)

Unusually for me, I've made my mum's Christmas card already... I'm not sure why, but family cards always seem to get left until the very last minute, so I'm trying to be a bit more organised this year!  Although I'm not sure if I have enough for posting yet, so I should probably make a few more of those too...

I've used a cute image from LOTV's Reindeer Collection, coloured with copics and a bit of Glamour Dust sparkle.  The papers are old ones that I found when I was moving things around recently... the fishtail and snowflakes are MFT die-namics dies, and I added red pearls from my stash.

I'm entering my card for the following challenges

MAWTT - T'was the challenge before Christmas (not sure if you can tell as I've covered some of it up, but the paper behind the image is actually printed with the poem)

Allsorts - snowflakes

Winter Wonderland - anything Christmas goes

Cute Card Thursday - anything goes

LOTV on FB - December challenge, anything goes

Thanks for popping in, hope you have a lovely evening :o)

Polkadoodles Challenge DT

Good Morning :o)

Time for a new challenge at Polkadoodles... as always it's 'anything goes' for participants, although the DT have all made 'anything but a card' this week.

How I wish I was better at taking photos!  This is quite pretty and sparkly in real life, but I'm not sure you can really tell.  I've used flowers and leaves from Winnie White Christmas, cut them all out, shaped them with an embossing tool, inked the edges and dabbed Stickles all over them with a brush... original plan was to spray them all with Spray & Sparkle, but the can just wouldn't spray... I cleaned the nozzle, poked things into it, swapped for a new spray top, swore a lot and then gave up and got the Stickles out!  I used Collall 3d glue to attach all the flowers to a plain polystyrene bauble... oh, and a pin to attach the ribbon before that.  The flower centres are silver pearls.

I'm entering my card bauble for the following challenges

Paper Minutes - Christmas ornaments

The Holly & Ivy Christmas Challenge - anything Christmas goes

Dream Valley - Christmas

Pile It On - non-traditional holiday colours

Ooh the more I look at this, the more I dislike the photo lol... might see if I can retake it later!

Thanks for popping in, hope you have a lovely day :o)

Arctic Fun - DigiStamp Boutique DT

Hello :o)

I'm just popping in quickly to show you a card made with a super cute DigiStamp Boutique image called Arctic Fun... I don't think I've used this one before, and I've no idea why!

I'm sensing a theme with my Christmas cards for this year... most of them seem to feature a penguin or two!

The image is coloured with copics, with a touch of Prisma pencil, plus Glamour Dust sparkle and some tiny Viva pearl 'snow' dots.  The papers are those pretty Northern Whimsy digi ones again - Peppermint Latte Plaid and Peppermint Latte Coordinates, printed on linen card.  Sentiment tag stamps are LOTV (stamped in white on black card), snowflake dies and the oval are MFT die-namics and the border die is possibly Lil' Inkers?  Black twine and blue gem from my stash.

I'm entering my card for the following challenges

Come and Get It - animals challenge
Crafty Cardmakers - animal magic
Cutie Pie - bear hugs
Moving Along With the Times - Christmas animals
Crafty Catz - anything goes + optional winter colours

There was a showcase at Dex's school today - they have them a few times a year to show parents whatever the kids are working on.  There were little quizzes for the parents to join in with, and Dex's table did 'sentences using your senses', so we had to write something about what we could see/ hear/ smell etc... my sentence won first place, and I asked Dex afterwards if he cheated and made sure I won... he said 'no, I thought you should have got second' LOL!  I always go to Dex if I want an honest opinion on anything I'm making... he doesn't sugar coat anything!

Thanks for popping in :o)

Polkadoodles DT!

Good Morning :o)

I've sat on this news for a little while, so I'm thrilled to be able to say I've joined the DT at Polkadoodles!  I decided that the only way I'm ever going to get going again properly, making and blogging more, is if I join a fun new DT, so I did :o)

Our challenge is always 'anything goes', and there's a $10 voucher prize for the winner, plus a free digi stamp for each of the top 3, so lots of chances to win.

I've used a super cute penguin from Winnie White Christmas, coloured with copics and Glamour Dust glitter for 'snow'.  I also printed the papers, sentiment and holly from the same set onto linen card, fussy cut the holly and added some enamel dots for berries.  The penguin is also available HERE (with another cute penguin) separately from the set.

I'm entering my card for the following challenges

The Merry Christmas Challenge - anything goes + Christmas

Cards und More - things with wings

Deep Ocean Challenge - things with wings

Pile It On - large sentiments and/ or things with wings

I'm scheduling this, as I'll be doing the school run and then walking the dog right about now... fingers crossed for a less freezing morning!

Thanks for popping in, hope you have a lovely day :o)