The Last Post (of 2014)

Oh, boy, was this urgently needed! Just realised that the deadline for my DT card for CAS Colours & Sketches was hours behind me, all my teamies had their cards up and ready and the post was live.
This is the final challenge for 2014 and is the third in a series of Pick A Previous, the delightful (or dreaded, depending on your point of view) double. This time round though we need to Make it Christmas. Deciding what to do was for me easy as I have done all three cards featuring the stamp set Ornamental Pine.

I chose a double from August 2013

I stamped the pine branch image onto the dark blue C&S, in Versamark, and then heat embossed in white before die cutting three circles. I cut up the image and used the larger size die cut circle to
make a mat in the lighter blue shade

Using my Stamp-A-Ma-Jig allowed me to position the sentiment exactly where I needed it to be. I was in such a hurry that the Dazzling Details I added to give a bit of sparkle is still wet in this shot!

I am entering

Crafty Hazlenuts Christmas Challenge  for a urgently Needed Christmas creations, and I leave you for a few days whilst I celebrate Christmas and New Year with friends and family. Thanks for visiting my blog in 2014. I wish everyone a peaceful and happy Christmas time and a very crafty 2015

Pine Cone Aperture card

Sorry, it's taken me a while to write this post, even though my card for CAS Colours and Sketches went up on time over at the challenge blog. We are revisiting our sketches this week and to help there is an archive page on the blog so it's even easier. The theme for the challenge is Christmas (what else???)
Here is my card, which uses the sketch from August 2014, challenge #89

 
You my notice a sub- theme here for my cards-I have decided to try and use the same stamp set for these challenges, Ornamental Pine. Here I have sponged the background over the top of some torn paper and then cut an aperture. I used the die cut to then stamp the pine branch and added some fussy cut pine cones, one stamped in brown ink and the other heat embossed in gold.

I layered this panel on card stock inside the card and added a gold embossed sentiment to the front panel.

This is what the inside of the card looks like

One more challenge from CC&S before we take a Christmas break, so I will see you back here next Thursday. I am going to spend the rest of today putting up the Christmas tree and outside decorations...really starting to feel like Christmas now!

Retro Christmas

The last challenge of 2014 at The Male Room is, of course, to create a masculine project for Christmas. My card inspired me to create a second card for a colour challenge I found, over at The Colour Throwdown.
Let's take a look at the Male Room card first

I used my masculine standby stamp, Hardwood, stamped onto pale green card. I then over stamped
the MERRY from Seasonal Scatterings in white craft ink and embossed with tinsel white embossing
powder (I have previously found that the stamped ink dries rather pale unless embossed). I added the
Christmas, since I find men like you to be specific 😉

As its Christmas I've broken my two male card rules, there is ribbon and bling on this card!

The second card started in the same way, with the Hardwood stamp stamped in Lost Lagoon onto the pale green C&S, but then I used this gorgeously retro Christmas colour combination from The Colour Throwdown team...

I found some little wooded clothes pegs in my stash and decided to use those on my card 

Rudolph and Burlap

So here we are, December and just a couple of weeks or so until Christmas. Over at 52 {Christmas} Card Throwdown we've been crafting for Christmas all year long The DT are going to take a well earned break but are leaving you with one long challenge open until 19th December. we want you to pick any previous 2014 challenge and there are archives on the blog to help you decide on a sketch, a colour combo or a theme. I've gone with a theme which I choose back in June ...Rudolph and/or reindeer

I started with this gorgeous red burlap ribbon and a couple of sheets of DP. Kraft, white and red is my favourite Christmas combo this year. I layered up the two papers, colouring ink the noses on the White and Kraft paper to look like Rudolph. I added a tag which I sponged with white ink and added Dazzling Details for a bit of sparkle. The majestic deer die is from Memory Box.

As you can see from this photo I don't think I'm going to be able to get this one in an envelope, never mind sending it through the post! Family card I think.

Glittery Pinecone

We are feeling Christmassy at CSS Colours & Sketches for the next three weeks, with a series of challenges based on previous colours, sketches and doubles with the theme of Christmas. This will help if you have just a few more cards you need to make or just to get you in the holiday mood! Our first one is

...and I have picked a colour combo which I chose back in September, black, white and Hello Honey.

This is such a CAS combo and was very popular at the time, let's see what you can do with it for Christmas

I inked the corner of my card, then stamped Ornamental Pine in black, adding the pinecone just where I wanted, thanks to my Stamp- a - Ma-Jig. The sentiment was also placed carefully to add balance. I know we are all CAS but I had to add a bit of glitter, well, it is a christmas after all!

Assorted Snowflakes

It's pick a previous week at 52{Christmas} Card Throwdown simply because we have 5 Saturday's in November. This time it is the return of the sketch. I have chosen a sketch from this time last year, November 2013. Remember this one?

I have used a little artic licence by only using one diagonal panel and extending the other onto the whole top diagonal of the card, that's about it, oh, and moving the circlular focal point and the sentiment. But apart from that....!

I stamped each snowflake individually, using several stamp sets and freebie stamps. The large 3D one is cut from a medallion stamp that I have had for ages, no idea where it is from, probably Hobbycraft. The ribbon I picked up just last week at a local craft shop.

I made a similar card for a card swap, where the theme was snow or snowflakes, but not for Christmas. I made it into a 'Chill Out on your Birthday' card but liked it so much that I made this second one as a Christmas card. 

Over at 52CCT there is a sketch archive which you can use to browse through and chose your favourite, it's very simple to use. I am sure you must need at least one more Christmas card in your stash!

Good Luck Black Cat

Well, this is the second card working in the theme of film strip. It actually was the inspiration for yesterday's card, so they are a bit out of sync but who cares? It all started when I saw this weeks sketch challenge for  CAS Colours & Sketches, set for us by our hostess for November, Lizy.




I have this walking cat die, I used him for Halloween, and I thought he deserved another outing. Using the film strip I wanted to create an idea of movement so he was ideal. I hand cut the film, the trickiest part was punching the holes! I've kept it monochrome for maximum impact and I thought the sentiment was most apt.

 It is a really simple design, very clean lots of white space, but it did take some time with the fiddly cutting and punching. Worth it, though, I think...I am rather pleased with the result and it's quite fun to be making something other than Christmas cards!

hollywood Film Stars

Good Morning! I have managed to make two cards by 9.30 this morning, which must be a record, it's funny how an imminent deadline can focus the mind! Our challenge for the next two weeks at The Male Room is to use ribbon on a masculine card. Hum... I have been known to say that I think ribbon and gems do not generally go down well with males, especially the ones in my family. Time to eat my words and rise to the challenge!

In my stash I found some acetate film strip, from Tim Holtz. It's years old and the label on the tin it came in says 'film strip ribbon' so I am sure it counts! I had the idea of movie stars, dressing rooms, Hollywood and all that and here is what I made

I used a Tonic die cut for the sentiment, layering it in a darker shade to give a 3d effect, whilst keeping the card itself quite flat (useful when you are going to post it, I've found). The stars are from a set of nesting dies. I chose what I think to be a masculine colour combo and finished off with the film strip ribbon. TBH this doesn't lie as flat as I'd hoped, might have to go back to it later but I needed to get this post up .

As an aside, last night at Craft Club I tried quilling for the first time ever. Watch this space for at sometime soon I will reveal the results of my evening, once I manage to stick all those tiny shapes down! Happy Crafting to all my followers. X

ornaments and Piercings

Another Saturday morning and it's time for a new challenge from 52 {Christmas} Card Throwdown. Today we have a technique challenge - paper piercing.

I have a couple of piercing boards, and one of them is for the Ornament Keepsakes stamp set so I went straight for that. I've used a purple, silver and white colour combo. I used Blackberry Bliss and Perfect Plum and Dazzling Silver inks.

I die cut the Christmas word and then decided to use the negative, layering purple card stock behind the mirricard. I've added a few gems and silver cord for the strings.

It's a Contempo take on a traditional technique. My husband tells me that when he was a child, growing up in The Netherlands, that paper piercing was a popular child's activity and he spent many hours at the kitchen table absorbed over intricate patterns. Not me! This is my limit! I'm not even sure if you can see the pierced edging to the ornaments. Oh well, a challenge is a challenge.

Scattered Thanks and a cheeky one

Christmas is coming and the colour combo atCAS Colours and Sketches this week sure does lend itself to seasonal greetings

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I made a real effort to keep it non-Christmas, as I know Christmas will be a feature over the month of December at CC&S (can't give away too much!). I always need thank you cards after the festivities and so I made this one, using Seasonally Scattered image, grey pearlised cardstock and so metallic silver ribbon,

It was very quick to make, just deciding where to put the ribbon and how much to use to keep it CAS was the hard part. You can't see the glittery finish on the card but IRL it is beautiful.

The urge to use these colours for Christmas was however too great so I'm slipping this cheeky card in to this post too....

cat through a Window II

The theme for this week at 52 {Christmas} Card Throwdown is one of my favourite designs, through a window. However, being a bit pushed for time I decided to revamp an idea/design from a couple of years ago.

My cat is the same, a black outline stamp, coloured in with Promarkers, sat on the window sill, looking out at a snowy scene, created using Winter Wonderland. I've used the torn paper snow drift that I used a couple of weeks ago, highlighted with Dazzling Details and the snowmen are cut out to add a little dimension to the scene.  The striped DP is supposed to represent wallpaper.

 I've  stamped half of the greeting on the front of the card and the rest inside, as you can see below.

I hope that you are well on your way to having your cards done, 5 weeks to go now. I'm spending the day Christmas shopping with my daughter in Leicester, which no doubt will include a stop in a favourite coffee shop for one of those deliciously warming festive hot chocolates with all the trimmings, yum yum!

My Heart is a Work of Art

It's a quick, clean and simple card from me this morning for this weeks sketch challenge at CAS Colours and Sketches. The sketch was chosen for us by Lizy and I made a very conscious decision to keep away from Christmas cards, although you could make beautiful Festive cards with this sketch?

Here is my card, I've used washi tape for the two main panels and the heart is from the Work of Art stamp set. I used some white raffia  to make the bow. The YOU is part of a stamp which says Thank
You from the set a Fabulous a Four. Very quickly made, ready for someone special.

A Gold Watch Retirement card

Followers will know that I am on the DT at The Male Room, a challenge blog for all mas culine inspired projects. The new challenge this morning is TIME. I am afraid I'm not very original with this one. I remembered when my Grandfather retired they presented him with a gold watch (yes, it was a very long time ago!) and so I based my card on that.

I used a piece of newsprint DP and kraft cardstock and Off The Grid and Gorgeous Grunge - these seem to be my 'go to' sets for male cards

The watch was stamped and then heat embossed with gold. It is from a magazine freebie set, along with the cogs. I've added a gem brad at the centre and some twine.

 

The sentiment inside is from Inkylicious. I think I used it because it reminded me of my Grandad Fred, a first world war veteran, and as I made this card yesterday, on Remembrance Day in the UK, it seemed very apt.  Grandad passed away many years ago but I often think of him. My card is supposed to be for a retirement, may be the words aren't that suitable for that occasion but I;m going to roll with it.

Christmas Wishes

Happy Saturday! At 52 {Christmas} Card Throwdown we have a colour challenge this week, which gives me another chance to get out my new Christmas stamp, Ornamental Pine. I chose to use silver with the red and green, mostly because I own silver ink.

I made two cards, one rectangular and one square, and I am sorry about the shadow on the photographs. On both the ornament and pine cones are stamped, cut out and popped up on foam pads.

I masked off the central strip while stamping the pine branch, then stamped the sentiment in silver and hand drawing the red border lines.

Not sure which one I prefer, here they are together.

Three Christmas Cards

I really, really, REALLY, love this weeks colour combo, chosen by Lizy, over at CAS Colours and Sketches, so much so that I was inspired to make not one but three cards! Here are the colours

First, I made this card

I was so pleased with it, the embossing folder is from Tim Holtz, the red star a die cut, which I then matted onto gold Miri card to match the mat of the embossing, the gold on vellum word panel and finally a small gold bow, tied using the fork method. Very CAS I thought. I had a little help from the inspiration photo 

at  Addiicted To Stamps and More and was all set, until I realised there is no stamping on my card! Oh no, that's a rule at CC&S. Back to the drawing board....

So here is card 2, my actual DT sample. I've used Ornamental Pine again, this time stamped and heat embossed in gold, with a red ornament fussy cut and popped up on foam pads, with another gold ribbon tie. I've used the same gold printed vellum and cut out and layered another sentiment.

With all these ideas swooshing around in my head and one small piece of the gold vellum left I made my third card introducing some Kraft this time with the DP. Here are all three finished cards. The third one is for one of my Christmas swaps and will be winging its way across the 'pond' in a couple of weeks time.

I hope you have as much fun with this combo as I did. I thought everyone will go Christmas with this one but it seems that my DT buddies had other ideas, hop on over to the challenge blog to see what they did!