Guest Designer!!!

This is my last week as Guest Designer at The Daring Cardmakers Blog and I have really enjoyed myself over the past month. The different challenges have really set me thinking which is good for my little grey cells!! The first challenge gave me a few sleepless nights, it was to make a card with the April birthstone as inspiration.  For April the stone is Diamond which really threw me as they are clear, so no colour for a base but in the end I made an acetate card, after that I had more confidence and enjoyed all the challenges.

This week its 
Easel Does it
This weeks challenge is to make an easel card. There's a big clue in the title, huh?
They are so very popular at the moment but I'm hoping at least some of you will be up for my extra "sting in the tail" to this Dare - I don't want it to be too easy, you know....what I'd really love is to see what type of shape (other than a square) you can come up with using the basic Easel card idea.
So you can go for the easy option and make the simple version of the easel card, or if you're brave enough,go for the shaped option.

This is my shaped easel card cut with my labels8 nestie die, I have noticed that sewing seems to be a popular theme on lots of the blogs and stamp sites so here is my Easel sewing card. The sewing machine is a Hero Arts dgital kit called "Sew Crafty" I printed off the image coloured it with copics and the covered it with glossy accent to give it the shine. The background is Core-dinates paper witch I dry embossed and then sanded, the edge is handstitched.

I just want to say a big thank you Daring Cardmakers for choosing me to feature on their blog, I am thrilled that they thought my cards were good enough.

As this is a monochromatic card I am entering it in the current Caardvarks challenge.

Going Digital

I have had a few experiments using digital images and always go back to stamping but after seeing this card by Lucy I was tempted to have another go. I am really into using fashion type images at the moment and when I saw that sewing machine I was really tempted to buy the Sew Crafty  kit by Hero Arts.

Made this card for the current Hero Arts challenge " Home and Mothers Day" but I am also going to use it for Lucys challenge which is "Stitching".  As is fitting with a card based on dressmaking I have added machine stitching to the background papers  (much easier to see in the close up image).

Thanks for looking and leaving comments, I always love reading them!

Daisies

I decided to make another card with my die cut daisies, I love the effect and wanted to make this card without distressing the petals. I think I prefer this look to the last card here, what do you think?  This for the challenge on the "Wee Memories Blog" .

Just a quick post tonight as I have lots of jobs to do. Enjoy your evening.

Supplies: BoBunny paper, Dies: Sizzix and Quickutz. Stamp: Hero Arts

Monochromatic

Made this card with a free digital image from Mel's Blog, if you haven't visited this blog you really must, she makes the most amazing cards and projects that are complete works of art! I really love her style and when I saw these free images I had to use them! This is a birthday card for a friends daughter, she loves fashion so thought it was perfect. I am adding the sentiment after I take the photograph as I am going to add her name to the front.

I am going to enter this in the current Caardvarks challenge for monochromatic cards, I have used two shades of Core-dinations card for the background, the darker one is embossed with the cuttlebug swirls and the second piece uses the button border.
I have a few card orders for this weekend so I am glad its overcast today or I would be itching to get into the garden.
Hope you are having a great weekend and thanks for all the wonderful comments you are leaving, I really do appreciate them all.

Die cut challenge

This is my forth week as guest designer for The Daring Cardmakers  and this weeks challenge has been set by Keryn. The challenge is "Die Cuts"

It's Keryn here this week and I've been lucky enough to get my hands on a 'Big Shot' die cut machine and I'm loving it. I want any excuse I can find to make cards, well anything really using die cuts. This week I want you to play with me. Dig out your dies and your die cut machine. Cut shapes of any size and theme you please and use at least one on your card for this week.


This week their is a small prize of a Stampin' Up!® little leaves Sizzlit die so please check out the blog and have a go!!

This is the card I have made, sorry about the photograph not my best, the petals of the daisy's are distressed with Worn Lipstick distress ink but they just seem to look a dirty brown colour.  I have added some yellow glitter to the daisy centres.

Lucky me as its a five week month I have one more week to go as the guest designer!

Supplies: Daisy Die by Quickutz.  Swirl by Sizzix. Square by Spellbinders.

Vintage and Ribbons

Just a quick post, its going to be a very busy week. I have just found Jennys blog and love the way she creates her projects, she also has a challenge running to win some beautiful May Arts ribbons.  The challenge is to make a project with a vintage theme and to use ribbons on it. I have made this card using an image I found on Google, I have used it before, its a great one for female cards. Have added some real vintage lace that I found in a antiques market and also some beautiful satin ribbon that I won as blog candy from the lovely Vanessa.

April CCC

This month I took part in the April Card Chain Challenge organised by the lovely Deborah.  She sets three challenges, a sketch, a colour theme and a subject and you choose which you prefer to use. 
I received this stunning card from Barb in America, she followed the sketch and made this beauty she also sent me a little gift of some embellishments, including these lovely butterflies.

This is the card I sent to Deirdre in Ireland, I also followed the sketch, The stamps are all Hero Arts , I paperpieced the poppies and  added some black seed beads to them. This challenge is great fun, its lovely to receive a beautiful handmade card and you are never quite sure which country it is coming from!

Black and White with a splash of Orange!

This is the colour splash image for the current challenge at The Play Date Cafe as you can see the splash of colour is orange, not a colour I use often.

This is my card using the lovely digi kit here by Vinnie Pearce, such a great image and only 99cents. I dry embossed part of the card and added some stickles to give it a bit more interest.

Hope you are having a great weekend!

Stickers challenge

Just a quick post today as we have a busy weekend of celebrations, my husband and son share the same birthday, both born on 19th April! My Dh is celebrating a special birthday this year and my son will be 25, as the birthdays are Monday and I go back to work then after the Easter break we are celebrating over the weekend.

Just time to post my entry for this weeks PaperPlay challenge of using stickers. Made this quick card for a friends daughter. The wire fashion torso is a digital image by Vinnie Pearce, I really love her images and papers. The words are a sticker I have had in my stash for ages.

Have a great weekend.

Getting in a Flap!!

This week Kathy has set the challenge at The Daring Cardmakers and what a challenge it is!! Really sent my poor little brain into overdrive, I wanted to make something special as its for my guest Design Team spot!!

Getting in a Flap
I'd like to see cards with flaps this week. Little flaps that you lift up or open out to see a secret "something" hidden behind or bigger flaps that form part of the actual card. Maybe even little birdies with wings that really "flap" As long as it's a flap that lifts up from your card it will count - just flat images of a bird or butterfly flapping it's wings won't!

I played around with bits of card for ages trying to come up with an idea and eventually made this card with a secret opening on the front which you get to by undoing the bow.

As you can see my favorite stamp of the moment has been used again, the lovely Poppy stamp from Hero Arts!



The flaps open to reveal the Birthday message inside. I did enjoy making this card and will probably use this design again as I am really pleased with the effect.

Hope you all have a great weekend, looks like the sun is going to shine here. We are off to a wedding this afternoon hope it warms up a little!

More Poppies!!

This is the current sketch at CardPatterns this week and its sponsored by Hero Arts. As I am still on holiday I've lots of time to play.

This is my card and as you can see I have used my Poppy stamp again, can't get enough of this image at the moment it is so versatile.

Spring flowers.

I really liked the colour choice for The Play Date Cafe this week and decided to make another card. I dusted off some old Hero Arts" real flower stamps, haven't used them for a while and thought they looked spring like.


Added the dark lavender bow and pearls to finish. I have just got this new Martha Stewart emboss and cut border punch and I am really pleased with the result. (the embossing isn't that clear in the photograph.) I am also going to enter this in the current Hero Arts challenge for Mothers Day.
Have a great day, its turned cold again here so I am not going to venture far today, more time for crafting, I have a lot of family cards to make so must get cracking!!!

Woops just realized I am to late for the Play Date challenge nevermind!!!
Supplies:Stamps Hero Arts.

Lavender

Just a quick post and my entry for the Play Date Cafe challenge this week, Love these colours and reached again for my favorite stamp of the moment, the Hero Arts cling Poppy. This really is a versatile stamp.

Went for a country looking card with the gingham and lace, the butterfly is a digital image from Hero Arts.

If the shoe fits.

As you know I was thrilled to be asked by the design team at The Daring Cardmakers blog to be their guest designer for the month of April. This weeks challenge has been set by Sue and its called "If the Shoe Fits". Poor Sue is unable to craft alot at the moment as she has been having trouble with her eyes but she is keen to see what we all come up with for this challenge!

This is my DT card and as I didn't have any shoe stamps I looked on good old Google again, It always comes up trumps with some great images. After finding the drawing of the Vintage shoes I decided to take the route of making a vintage looking fashion card. I printed the shoes onto patterned paper and and as it left the printer I quickly embossed it with clear embossing powder to make the image shine. I had some lovely vintage sheets of paper in my stash and the image of the models also came from Google.

Hope you are having a great week, I am still on school holidays Yipee!! Must get in the garden though as the sun is shining.

Row of Houses

After seeing Shari Carroll's great easel card on the Hero Arts Blog I decided to have another go at this shaped card. The current challenge is also "Homes or Mothers Day" and as my little row of houses hasn't been used for a while I felt the need to ink it up again.

The front is the large nesties label die, I love this shape, the sentiment I found on the internet and thought it would fit this card perfectly.

Hope you are having a good week, I am still enjoying the Easter holidays, so time to catch up on all the family cards I need to make.

Feeling Blue!

This is this weeks colour challenge at The Play Date Cafe and although blue isn't a colour I use very often I have enjoyed this challenge and have ended up making two cards for it.

This card is using one of my new Hero Arts stamps Poppy Background. First I stamped a piece of BasicGrey paper with Wheat Grass in Chipped Sapphire Distress ink and let it dry. I then stamped again with the Poppy background ,versamark ink and enbossed in clear. The poppy heads were stamped and embossed again on patterned paper and then cut out and pop dotted to the card. The photograph is a little dark as the blues are quite bright!

This is the second card I have made, it was all based around the butterfly that I had stamped and coloured a few weeks ago and hadn't used.

Hope you are all having a lovely Easter weekend, the weather is ment to brighten up here tomorrow so I hope to get into the garden.

Guest Designer!!!

I have some really exciting news to share today, I have been asked to be the guest designer for the Daring Cardmakers for the month of April. I really can't believe they have asked me I am so thrilled and still in shock!
I have had a blog for just seven months and have always hoped that one day I could be a guest designer, I am so lucky to have been asked by them as they really are a very talented bunch!!



The first challenge was quite difficult and very stressful as the theme is the birthstone for April which is "Diamond". I wanted to do something a little different and my first thought was that diamonds are clear and glass like so an acetate card would fit the bill. I also found a lovely sparkly button in my mums old button tin and knew it would be perfect. The music paper is a favourite of mine at the moment, I found some vintage sheet music in a charity shop and it works well as backing paper.
I am really looking forward to my month of challenges, thank you Daring Cardmakers for giving me this opportunity.

Supplies: Stamp and Digital Butterfly Hero Arts. White Stayzon.