Happy news and a happy bear!

Hello lovely people,

Eeeeeeeeeek!  I am so excited, can you tell?!
I am over the moon to have been chosen to be part of the new LOTV Design Collective :-D
I can't quite believe that I am going to get to work with an amazingly talented group of people using my favourite crafting products!

While I try to catch my breath let me tell you about the new challenge at Top Tip Tuesday where our theme this time is...

MELLOW YELLOW

We are sponsored by Sami Stamps with a $12 gift card

Given my earlier news I feel it is highly appropriate that my card today features some of my lovely new LOTV goodies that I picked up at the Hobbycrafts show.

I've made a tent card, which I haven't done before and it was pretty easy to do, using my circle dies to cut the aperture.

Here's a view from the side so you can see the folded card at the bottom and how the image is stuck on the back panel.

These happy bears are going to be featuring a lot on my cards for the next few months, ok years probably!
I've gone for the fluffy look on this bear!

Anyone for another arty angled shot?  Go on then...

I decorated the back of the card to match... another first for me as I don't usually decorate the inside/back.

Card recipe;

Image and sentiment: Happy bears - LOTV

DP: Country meadow - LOTV

Flowers: Wild Orchid Crafts

Seam binding/twine: The Ribbon Girl

Tag: Sentiment tags - LOTV
Dies: tea label tags, twisted swirl - Magnolia Doohickeys, circle stax - Die-namics

Copic colours;
Bear: E40/41/42/43 & E44 on feet
Flowers: RV34/17
Leaves: G40/43
Present: YR20/21/23 & RV34/17/19 & W00/1
Ground: W00/1/3/4

I hope you will pop over to Top Tip Tuesday and check out the lovely sunny yellow projects from the rest of the team and there is a fabulous tutorial for you too :-)

Thanks for visiting and I really appreciate any comments that you leave,

Challenges I am entering;
1.  Deep Ocean challenge (Easter/Spring)
2.  The Pink Elephant (anything goes)

A glass half full

Hello lovely people,

Confession time; I forgot about the clocks going back (!) forward this morning!
I hope everyone else remembered!

Today I am going to be mostly in my happy little crafting space to finish up some DT work and maybe make a little something just for fun :-)

Meanwhile, I have a very simple little card to show you... it doesn't get much more CAS than this!

The trickiest bit with this design was getting the sentiment where I wanted it as it wasn't a clear stamp.
I was planning on sharing with you how I did it but I made this a few months ago and I actually can't remember - lol!

Oh and the other problem with CAS cards is that your colouring is really in the spotlight so no hiding those mistakes!  Can you spot anything odd?  If not, perhaps I shouldn't tell...

Card recipe;

Image & sentiment: Opal the Optimist - Stamping Bella
Glamour dust on large flower, edge of dress and shoes (just about visible!)

Copic colours;
Skin: E000/00/21/11/04 & R20
Hair: E50/53/55
Dress: BG13/15/18 & R81/83/85 & G28
Bottle: YG95/97/99
Bottle label: Y23/26/38
Champagne: YR30/31

If you are still wondering about the image, check out my inconsistent light source on the shiny stripe for the bottle... yep, I am that picky!

I wish you all a lovely happy weekend whatever you are up to :-)

Thanks for visiting and I really appreciate any comments that you leave,

Challenges I am entering;
1.  As You Like It (fave technique - lines or no line...mine is definitely lines, at least until I am brave enough to have a go at no lines!)
2.  Fussy and Fancy (girly)
3.  Simon Says Stamp (anything goes)

Which way now?

Hello lovely people,

Tonight I have a very quick little post for you with a CAS card I made for my nephew.

I used a freebie alphabet stamp set to add his name to a blank tag - the font matches the LOTV tag sentiments perfectly!

It seems like ages since I coloured a Saturated Canary image and this is the first time I have coloured this little guy up; I think he was a freebie at some point.

Card recipe;

Image: Saturated Canary but not available to buy

DP: Country gent - LOTV

Flowers: Wild Orchid Crafts

Twine: Natural button twine - The Ribbon Girl

Tag: Sentiment tags - LOTV

Copic colours;
Skin: E000/00/21/11/04
Hair: E41/3/7
Eyes: B0000/000 & B91/93
Hat / trousers: B91/3/5/7
Patch / pencil / arrow: YG63/67
T-shirt: R27/46/39
Bag: E55/57/59
Map: E40/41/42
Shoes: W00/0/1/2/3/4/6
Ground: E40/41/42/43/44

That's it from me and I'm off to do the ironing :-(

Thanks for visiting and I really appreciate any comments that you leave,

NEC goodies!

Hello lovely people,

As many of you will know, on Friday I was at the Hobbycrafts show at the NEC and I thought you might like to see all the lovely things that fell into my bag during the day!

Unsurprisingly my biggest spend of the day was on the LOTV stand!  I got a couple of retired stamps, the gorgeous Happy bears clear stamp set and these yummy paper pads...

I want to try my hand at some non-card stuff too so I got some MDF hearts...LOTS of them but here's the 3 different sizes...

and some plain gift bags...

I wasn't going to buy any dies, but have had my eye on these pretty Memory Box dies for a while and couldn't resist any longer!
I got a couple of others I haven't photographed, just a border die and some tag shape dies.

This next item won't be to everyone's taste but I got some new Magnolias, very cheap as they were unmounted.
I quickly mounted them up this evening and stamped them on some scrap paper so you could see which ones I got.

And the day wouldn't have been complete without a few odds and ends of lace, buttons and pearls!

So, it was a great day out and I have been happily playing with my new LOTV stamps and papers today :-)

I am also very excited to now have 101 followers so watch this space for some candy, once I put something together... some of that lace I bought might just find it's way into there ;-)

Thanks for visiting and I hope you have all had a lovely weekend.

Criss cross layers

Hello lovely people,

I think I shall be clock watching all day today as I look forward to finishing work and heading up to my parents' house...
and then off to the Hobbycrafts show at the NEC tomorrow with my Mum!

For now I have a card to show you for our new challenge at In The Pink where we have the theme of...

LOTS OF LAYERS

We are delighted to be sponsored again by The Ribbon Girl with a £10 voucher prize

Using lots of layers on my card wasn't too tough for me but I know it's not everyone's cup of tea...

...and talking of tea, I just had to give this stamp another outing, this time for a Mothers' Day card for my Mother-in-Law.

I went with pink again, but it is quite a different shade to the last one!

I went with a really simple pull-out tag with a sentiment circle and ribbon loop.

Ooooh, look at all those lovely layers ;-)

Card recipe;

Image: Time for Tea (Moonbeam meadow) - Crafter's Companion

DP: Coffee in the arbour - Maja Design (available from Live and Love Crafts)

Flowers: Wild Orchid Crafts

Seam binding: Pink tulip seam binding - The Ribbon Girl
Twine: Ivory button twine - The Ribbon Girl

Tag: Sentiment tags - LOTV

Tag: Family sentiment tags - LOTV

Sentiment: Happy circular sentiments - LOTV

Copic colours;
Teapot: R81/83/56
Box / label: E40/41/42/43
Box corners / stick: E43/44/47
Mouse: E40/41/42 & R01/11
Bunting: YG61/63 & R81/83
flowers: RV0000/000/R81
Grass: YG61/63/67/G99

If you haven't already done so then do pop over to In The Pink and check out the gorgeous layered creations from the rest of the Pink Ladies.

If any of you are heading to the NEC over the next few days then I hope you have a fab time and come away with some lovely new crafty goodies :-)

Thanks for visiting and I really appreciate any comments that you leave,

Challenges I am entering;
1.  Papertake Weekly (happy...anything)
2.  A Gem of a Challenge (pretty in pink)
3.  Fab 'n' Funky (Spring into colour)

Sewing themed apron card

Hello lovely people,

It's time for a new challenge at Top Tip Tuesday and our theme this time is...

BUTTONS &/OR BOWS

It's a double sponsor week as well so we have 2 fab prizes on offer

Whimsy Stamps

and 

Bugaboo

It was my Mother-in-Law's 65th birthday at the weekend so that needed a really special card and after the success of my previous apron card (this one) I thought I'd do a sewing themed one.

I used bits and bobs from all over the place to fit the theme and when I couldn't find what I wanted I created my own, like the little button card and thread spools which I cut by hand and stamped.

I very nearly forgot to add a '65' so had to quickly add the little tab; not so easy to stitch in place with the pocket already stuck down!

I also made a matching tag to pop on her present :-)

Card recipe;

DP: Petal fresh - NitWit collection for LOTV

Flowers: Wild Orchid Crafts
Lace: Danielle  -The Ribbon Girl

Twine: Ivory button twine - The Ribbon Girl

Tag: Family sentiment tags - LOTV

Sentiment: For you circular sentiments - LOTV

Dies: Heart flower swirl - Magnolia Doohickey
Pins: Teardrop ivory pearlised pins - The Ribbon Girl
Charm: Scissors charm - The Ribbon Girl
Ribbon / buttons: from stash

I hope you will pop over to Top Tip Tuesday and check out the fabulously creative projects from the rest of the team and there are some great tips on creating the perfect bow :-)

Thanks for visiting and I really appreciate any comments that you leave,

Challenges I am entering;

1.  ABC Challenge (F is for festive - any holiday or birthday)
2.  Fussy and Fancy (ribbons and lace)

Cake and flowers

Hello lovely people,

Today was spent celebrating my Mother-in-law's 65th birthday but you'll have to wait a bit to see her card!

Instead I have another birthday card to show you, made purely for a few challenges and for fun :-)

One of the challenges I am playing along with is As You Like It and they are asking us to use our fave type of stamp - rubber or digi.
I use both and love each type for different reasons but if I had to have just one it would probably be rubber.
Using a digi means fiddling around on the computer and then waiting for the ink to dry before I can colour it and well, I'm far too impatient for that sometimes!

Stamping Bella are one of my favourite rubber stamp collections as they are so stylish.
I cropped this image to fit my hand cut polaroid frame.

Then I loaded it up with girly embellies, including some yummy lace from my latest shopping spree at The Ribbon Girl :-)

Card recipe;

Image: Ava loves to celebrate (Uptown Girls) - Stamping Bella

DP: Vintage Spring and Summer basics collections - Maja Design (available from Live and Love Crafts)

Flowers: Wild Orchid Crafts
Lace: Lyra - The Ribbon Girl - currently unavailable :-(

Twine: Ivory button twine - The Ribbon Girl

Tag: Sentiment tags - LOTV
Charm: Dragonfly charm small - The Ribbon Girl
Dies: Tea tags - Magnolia Doohickey

Sentiment: freebie stamp set with magazine
Pearls: from stash

Copic colours;
Skin: E000/00/21/11/04 & R20

Hair: E41/43/47
Dress: BG53/45/57/09
Pink bits: R81/83/85
Cake: YR30/E41/42/43
Tray: T0/2/4

Tonight I am going to chill out and watch a film with Dr. Hubby (who has a really awful cold, poor thing) and tomorrow I shall be crafting and baking :-)

I hope you are all having a lovely weekend whatever you are up to :-)

Thanks for visiting and I really appreciate any comments that you leave,

Challenges I am entering;
1.  Papertake Weekly (Mum's the word / any girly card)
2.  Cute Card Thursday (celebrate)
3.  As You Like It (fave type of stamp - rubber or digi - see above!)
4.  Sweet Stampin' (cakes)
5.  The Ribbon Girl (birthday)

Spring colours

Hello lovely people,

It's been a lovely weekend and I was even in my shorts for a walk in the sunshine on Saturday afternoon!

Now I have some fab news to share...

I was delighted to be picked as guest designer for Bunny Zoe's Crafts Challenge and this month the theme is...

SPRING COLOURS

To me this means fresh green and pretty soft pastels, and you know, I think Spring is really here now :-)

I have been admiring the Whimsy stamps Sylvia Zet images for quite a while now so I chose one to use for this card and I think it's safe to say I have a new stamp addiction!

Heres' another peek at the pretties I popped on here...yes, it's those butterflies again!

Card recipe;

Image: Dyanne - Whimsy stamps (from Bunny Zoe's Crafts but currently unavailable)

DP: Vintage Spring Basics - Maja Design (available from Live and Love Crafts)

Flowers: Wild Orchid Crafts

Twine: Ivory button twine - The Ribbon Girl

Dies: heart flower lace - Magnolia Doohickey

Sentiment: clear mini sentiments - Kaisercraft
Charm: small butterfly charm - The Ribbon Girl

Copic colours;
Skin: E000/00/21/11/04 & R20
Hair: E41/43/47
Dress / hairband / shoes: BV00/02/04 & R81/83/85
Wings / flowers / socks: BV0000/000/00/01 & RV0000/000/R81/83
Flower stems: YG61/63/67
Ground: YG61/63/67/G99

I wish you all some Spring sunshine and hope you have a great week!

Thanks for visiting and I really appreciate any comments that you leave,

Time for tea

Hello lovely people,

It's that time again so I'm here with our new challenge at In The Pink and this time we have the theme...

FOR A SPECIAL LADY

So, this can be something for Mother's Day or for any other special lady in your life!

Even better, we are sponsored for this challenge by the fabulous Dies to Die For with a £15 voucher - how exciting!

I created this card for one of my special sister-in-laws who loves teapots!  She also loves rats and has 3 as pets so let's say this is a cute rattie in the teapot rather than a mouse!

I stamped the image in brown rather than black ink for a softer look and I created the dotted effect on the teapot with my blender pen just to add a little extra interest :-)

My usual flowers are all present and correct plus my favourite lace and some seam binding.  I did a little running stitch down the middle of the seam binding and pulled it up to create the ruffle.

I was aiming for a vintage style, inspired by the pretty papers - what do you reckon?

Card recipe;

Image: Time for tea (Moonbeam meadow) - Crafter's Companion

DP: Sweet baby - Pion Design (available from Live and Love Crafts)

Flowers: Wild Orchid Crafts

Seam binding: Cruise beige - Wild Orchid Crafts - no longer available
Lace: Teresa - The Ribbon Girl

Tag: Family sentiment tags - LOTV

Sentiment: For you circular sentiments - LOTV

Copic colours;
Teapot: R000/30/20/21 & blender for dots
Box / tag: E40/41/42/43 & E44 on box corners
Stick: E44/47
Mouse / bunting: W00/0/1
Grass: YG11/13/63
Flowers: YR30/31/24

If you haven't already done so then do pop over to In The Pink and check out the very special creations from the rest of the Pink Ladies.

Thanks for visiting and I really appreciate any comments that you leave,

Challenges I am entering;
1.  Live and Love Crafts (photo inspiration - I was inspired to use pastels, florals and vintage style)
2.  Papertake Weekly (anything goes)
3.  Simon Says Stamp (special lady/girly)
4.  ABC Challenge (E is for exceptionally cute)
5.  The Ribbon Girl (add flowers)
6.  Sweet Stampin' (all or nothing - I went with lots of layers!)

A country bike ride

Hello lovely people,

Oh, I did miss my little craft room while I was away and it was lovely to be back in there colouring and creating on Sunday while Dr. Hubby played on the PS4 :-)

I hope you all had lovely weekends too!

And now it's time for a new challenge at Top Tip Tuesday where our theme is...

USE AN ACTION IMAGE

We are sponsored by Zlatoena's Design with a prize of 2 digi images of the winner's choice

I was over the moon to finally get my hands on the Go Kreate die shapes that I have wanted for about 2 years so they had no sooner hit my doormat than they were out on my craft table and being put to good use!

Now, I have lost count of how many times I have said this recently but this is the first outing for this cute stamp which I have had for many months!

I was all ready to add some pretty flowers to this card but to be honest they didn't really work; the outer die shape is not actually that big and the image is a fairly large one, so flowers would just have made the card look too crowded.

So, I just settled on adding some teeny butterflies instead.

Card recipe;

Image: Annabel pedal power - LOTV

DP: Life in the country - Maja Design (available from Live and Love Crafts)
Lace: from stash (find similar at The Ribbon Girl)

Twine: Ivory button twine - The Ribbon Girl

Tag: For you circular sentiments - LOTV
Dies: butterfly die set - Impression Obsession

Copic colours;
Skin: E000/00/21/11/04 & R20
Hair: E21/25/29
Dungarees / bows: R27/46/39
Jumper / shoes: YG61/63/67
Dog: E42/43/44 & E40/41
Light grey bits of bike: W0/2/4
Dark grey bits of bike: W5/6/7
Tyre: W6/7/10
Basket: E40/41/42
Puddle: BG70/72

I hope you will pop over to Top Tip Tuesday and check out the fabulously creative projects from the rest of the team and there are some great tips for you too :-)

Thanks for visiting and I really appreciate any comments that you leave,

Challenges I am entering;
1.  Winter Wonderland (tie a bow)
2.  The Pink Elephant (girly girl)
3.  Deep Ocean (our furry friends)