A Couple of Cards with my Favourite Things...

Butterflies and embossing!

As everyone knows I love butterflies, and just before Christmas I found an Aladdin's treasure trove of a craft shop on the way from Birmingham. I thought the shop would be huge, but what they lacked in space they made up for in piles and piles of crafting bits.

In amongest my rummages I found a cuttlebug embossing folder made by Craft Concepts called 'Wings'. I saw it and knew I had to have it, but wasn't sure what it would look like on a card.

Well after a few tries of different ideas to do, I finally settled on letting the folder be the main part of a card, and just added a few flat back gems to give the butterflies a bit of sparkle, and here are the results:

I love them, because I think they are pretty elegant, and are very quick and easy to do. The ribbons used on both cards is from my stash, and the sentiments from CraftWorks Cards.

I'd like to enter these cards into the following challenges:

Aly's Sunday Challenge - Things With Wings
Sentimental Sunday - Anything With Wings
CES Challenge - All Creatures Great and Small
Mark's Finest Papers - Embossing
The Secret Crafters Saturday Challenge - Texture
Flutterby Wednesday Challenge - Angels/Butterflies

A Couple of Thank You Cards

For the beautiful bouquet of roses I received yesterday, I have sat today and made 2 thank you cards in the same style; one is for the roses; and the other is for a late Christmas present the boys and I received last week.

I am trying this year to use more of the pretty papers I have collected over the last few years, so on this card I have used a paper from the Papermania Rose Garden pad.

The image was a freebie, I requested from last weeks challenge at I Did It Creations. Since I have used a paper pink cardstock for the bottom of the card and embossed it with the 'swiss dots' cuttlebug folder, I have managed to colour the image in with the same colour pink as the cardstock, although it doesn't look like it in the photo. I have used a 'nestie' label to cut the mat and image; an MS boarder punch for bottom of the patterned paper; a piece of ribbon, and peel offs from my stash; and finally some flat backed clear gems to add to the middle of the roses. As an experiment I inked (with cotton wool) all over the image and white around it to give the image a subtle finish. This technique worked perfectly on the first card, but didn't go so well on the second. I obvious had a bit too much ink when I started doing this one in the corner.



This card has been made exactly as the one above, except the paper is from Papermania Summer Blooms, and I have used the 'daisy' embossing folder on the pink cardstock.

I'd like to enter the first card into the following challenges:

Craft Your Days Away - Anything goes
Moving Along With The Times - Ring Out the Old and Ring in the New [old peel offs and ribbon; new paper]
Creative Craft World Card Challenge - Anything Goes
Creative Cottage - Something New [rose paper pad]

Ladybugs Craft Ink Challenge - Anything Goes

How Lucky Am I!

I have had a fantastic day today. First I got to go sales shopping on my own for a couple of hours this morning, and after a bit of searching I found a beautiful top in Coast that was reduced from £40 to £10. It was almost a case of having to buy the top as I almost didn't get out of it when I tried it on! After a lot of pulling and tugging I managed to get the top off, I had visions of having to get a sales assistant to help me out of it. I wasn't stuck in it because it was the wrong size but because I hadn't noticed that there was a zip in the seam to open, to enable to top to go on and off more easily. My OH took great delight in telling me the top had a long zip in it and why didn't I undo it. He only let me in on this when he saw me struggling to get out of it.

I logged onto MSE to find out I had won the current Valentine's Card Challenge, so I am chuffed to bits about that.

I then managed to get the kids a sledge, incase there is anymore snow this year. Sledges must be like gold dust around here, as it is the first time I have ever seen them.

I came back from buying the sledge, to be given a cardboard box from M&S that had this gorgeous bouquet in:



It was from my friends Mum and Dad to us all to say thank you for the beautiful handmade gifts I had given them for Christmas. It is such a lovely thought, and know that my gifts were appreciated.

What a fantastic way to end the day. I wonder what lies in store for me tomorrow.

Finally Got Some Crafty Bargains!

Popped into the town I work in, early this morning, before work, as I wanted to see whether Sussex Bookshops and Stationers had any crafty bargain. I was so happy that they did, not that I need any more stash, but the paper pads will come in handy, and who could refuse to buy the Gemstones 8 x 8 Pads for £1.50 each. Not sure what the original price for the Rose Garden 8 x 8 Paper Pad was, but I am a sucker for girly papers!


On a different shelf I found a goody bag for It's A Man's Word, that said it was 4.99, and had all of this lot in, except for one of the decoupage kits that I bought separately for £1.99:

Imagine my surprise when this goody bag went through the till at £2.00! What a fantastic bargain, and it will get me started into make more men's cards, as I really do have very little in the way of Men's stash so the paper pack of 20 papers will come in very handy. The pack also came with a template for making a beer mug card, so may well try to make one at this weekend.

All of the above stash cost me just over £9.00.

I think I will pop into the shop again next week to see if they add anymore crafting goodies to their sale.

I Wonder What I Can Make With These....

I've only been in my new job since the end of November, and I absolutely love it.

One of my jobs today was to take down the Christmas Tree and pack it away for next year. I love all things Christmas so didn't mind doing the tree at all. As well as the large silver tree with blue twinkly lights - in the corner, looking very sorry for itself, was a very small well loved little green tree, which to be honest has seen better days, and they have had it a very long time.

Our overall boss went to throw it out, but before she did, I asked if I could cut the little wooden decorations off, and do something crafty with them. She didn't mind at all, and really liked the idea of trying to reuse the figures, so am now the owner or 24 different shaped wooden figures like this:

I'd really like to make something that incorporates one or two of the figures for each of the girls to give them next Christmas so the options could be a keyring; christmas card; bag charms. I've got a while before I need to get down to making something, so watch this space....

If anyone has any other ideas, feel free to tell me, think I need all the help I can get!

Another Quick and Easy Card

Following on from the sympathy cards I made yesterday, I altered the wording and font and added a felt butterfly from a Henbury Lane Goody bag I got last summer, to make a very quick and stylish birthday card. I've made 4 of these with different coloured butterflies for my basket of cards to sell.



I'd like to enter this card into the following challenges:

Fab 'n' Funky - Anything Goes
Tuesday Throwdown - Embossing [on the bigger mat behind 'Wishing you a Happy Birthday'
Creative Craft World - Anything Goes

With Symathy Card

Now that I have loads of white linen card, I have sat and made 2 very quick cards tonight. I saw a similar style card on a blog last year and I loved the simpicity of the card, and thought that it would make a fabulous layout for any style of card, so I have done my take on the one I saw and come up with this Sympathy Card:

I love butterflies, and think it makes this card looks elegant and peaceful. The butterfly is cut on the craft robo, in white linen card, as is the 2 'nestie' shapes in the centre. One of which I have embossed with the daisy folder on the cuttlebug. A few pearls from my stash finish it off.

The cards will be added to the basket for sale. I've made 30 so far, and just want to make a couple more before I give it to my friend. Fingers crossed the cards will sell well, and i'll be on my way to making the £2,500 I need for our trip to Florida in the summer.

I'd like to enter this card into the following challenges:

My Time to Craft - Up in the Air [butterfly]
Paper Take Weekly - Anything Goes
Cupcake Craft Challenge - White is White

Boy Baby Cards

I had a trip down to Portsmouth today, purely because it is the nearest one to us (over 80 miles each way), and I was in desparate need of some white linen card. So off I go, expecting to have to pay £8 for 100 sheets, which is an offer they had last time I went in September, although I was sure I'd get more like 200 sheets for £16. However, they finally had an offer one for boxed linen card instead of having to buy it in pack of 10. So I snapped up 3 boxes of around 70 sheets in each box for £15. Bargain, and I am hoping that 210 sheets will last me a very long time.

I've sat tonight and made up some of my 'named' card for the basket I'm giving my friend at the end of the week to sell for me, and did a couple of baby boy ones:

They have been made with white linen and silver mirror card, and 2 different ribbons across the bottom. I love the top one with the gingham and teddy bear ribbon, but think that this will be the last one I can make as I have run out of the satin teddy bear ribbon and can't find it in my local haberdasher shop anymore. As always the letters were cut on the craft robo.


I'd like to enter these baby cards into the following challenges:

The Crazy Challenge - All Things New
Crafty Hos Challenge - Babies
Quirky Crafts Challenge - New Beginnings
One Stop Craft Challenge - New Beginnings
The Alphabet Challenge - I for Infants

Another Card Using Ink Around the Edges

Another card made specifically for the I Did It Creations Blog Challenge, which is to use a favourite technique. I am in love with inking around the edges of images to give them a softer feel, even though I have only been doing it for 2 days, and I also love embossing card through cuttlebug folders.

I have used a freebie image from the I Did It Creations Blog, and have coloured it with some of my promarkers. You can probably tell I love the colour purple!

The layout is from a card I spotted around 'blogland', and just loved the two tone card that was used, and the use of a boarder punch to give it a elegant look, and the card finished with ribbon. This card has mainly been made from my ever growing scrap pile.

I have cut the image and mat layer with the Labels One nesties, and inked the edges of the image, and added some clear gems to the middle of the flowers. The embossing folder I have used on the purple card is the 'daisy' folder, and on the black 'swiss dots' although you can't really tell from the photo. A piece of black ribbon and sentiment finish the card off. For a bit of dimension I have added 3d foam pads to the back of the image/mat and then put it on the card.

I love the use of the boarder punch and the two tone colours used to make this card, and will definitely be using this style, and layout again, as I think it is one that would work for any occassion.

A New Technique for Me

On my travels around blogland, over recent weeks, I have seen a technique where you use ink to 'brush' around an image or edges of the paper. I have got around to giving this technique a go today, and after seeing a video on You Tube I have this card, as a thank you to my last but one boss, because over Christmas I received a very large cut glass vase, as a leaving present, at it is stunning. It is so big that instead of the occassional bunch of flowers my OH often buys me, he will now have to by a large bouquet!


I don't have the correct tools ie distress inks; brushes, stamps to do the swirls, to follow the card that was made on the You Tube video, so I have improvised and used the things that I have got - cotton wool; normal ink pad; embossing folder; and stickles.

I've started with an A6 card, and tied a ribbon/bow around the front. Not sure how it happened but lately I seem to have mastered tying a flat bow the first time instead of having to keep undoing and redoing it until I was happy with it.

I have then cut 2 different sized nestie label one shapes (a crimbo present from my OH) and embossed the smaller one with the devine swirls folder. I have then taken a piece of cotton wool and inked around the edges of the larger label shape, and all over the smaller one. After drying I have gone around the smaller label with lavender stickles to give the card a bit of a sparkle.

To finish the card I have added a Thank You peel off and pearls from my stash.

I'd like to enter this card into the following challenges:

Paper Sundaes Challenge - Something New
Allsorts - Thank You
Sew Many Challenge - New Things [nestie shape; new technique of inking]