White Poinsettia.

 I had fun with the last card I posted using alternative Christmas colours that I decided to have another go, this time I used some wax paper embossed backgrounds that I had made and had in my stash. Here is an article on how to achieve the look , I love the effect that it creates. I have cut with my Avery Elle rectangle die a frame in the pink and adhered it to the red background, clashing colours I know but I really like them together.  I have then added a die cut poinsettia made with the Hero Arts "Peace Poinsettia " stamp and die.  The tag is made from a patterned paper scrap I had in my basket.

I am adding this to two challenges, firstly the "Geometric "challenge at A Blog Named Hero (hope it qualifies)!! and also the Love Cards challenge over at flickr which is for alternative Christmas
colours!

Have a great week.

Christmas is coming!! Let the card making begin !!!!

Last week I traveled to London for some wedding Dress shopping with my soon to be daughter in law,  her mum and my daughter Francesca. Woo Hoo !! We stopped of at Liberty's and there Christmas shop was in full swing.  It was magical they really know how to dress to impress !!!

Lots of amazing baubles all colour coded.

Its a very special place.

Such an historic building too!  I have been inspired and here starts the Christmas great card make!

This CAS design ( picture with a bauble I couldn't resist lol) .  I used a cuttlebug frame embossing folder and the Hero Arts "Colour Layered Christmas Tree".  I am adding this to the "Clean and Simple" challenge over at Simon Says. Also the "Texture"  challenge at A Blog Named Hero.

After months away from blogging at last I can enter challenges again. 

This second card is also CAS just made with Die Cuts and a Tim Holtz embossing folder. I will also add this to this weeks Simon Says Challenge and the Merry Monday Challenge 213. ( thanks Betty ).

And if you are wondering we found THE dress and its stunning!!

New Home!

I had time to play again and made this new home card.  I am adding this to the Ombre challenge at A Blog Named Hero  Its a very simple card using distress pens and the Hero Arts Row of Houses stamp.  I cut the sentiment with my Silhouette machine.

I have only one week left of my summer holidays, I can't believe how quickly 6 weeks goes and we are back to school next week, the weather has taken a turn for the worse and it looks like rain all week!!  I was hoping to get in the garden before I go back :0(

Ombre!!

I am back in the craft room at last,but my mojo decided to stay on holiday!! I wanted to make a couple of cards for the "Ombre" challenge over at A Blog Named Hero to try and kick start my creative side!!

This first is a very simple Thank You card using a Hero Arts stamp and a few pearls.

This second card is a masculine Birthday card, I am running short of mens cards in my stash and need to think of some more ideas.

Heres one more photograph of beautiful Lake Garda in Italy, I love all the gorgeous geraniums everywhere!

Its a long Bank Holiday weekend here in the UK, lets hope the weather stays fine, have a great weekend!

Bokeh Effect

Challenge #46 at A Blog Named Hero Is "Bokeh"

For those of you unfamiliar with the Bokeh effect, it's a photography term, and it refers to the look of sparkles that appear in a photograph when part of the image is out of focus or if light reflects. 

I made a couple of cards for this challenge, the bottom card is my favourite although the top has more sparkle than you can see as I have sprayed the background with shimmer mist!!  The Happy Birthday is cut using my Silhouette machine.  

This second card is made by just dabbing the card with my Distress Stains, I have also added  "A Touch Of Stella" to the dots for added sparkle.

The weather here has been glorious this weekend and I am out to sit in the garden now.  Happy Sunday!!!

Rainbows!!

The current challenge at A Blog named Hero Is "Roy G. Bio" which translated is Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue, Indigo and Violet, the colours of the rainbow.  I had been struggling to think of an idea when I spotted this free paper from Mel over on Pinterest.  I love the design and knew I could use it in my card.  I coloured up the little owls image with Copics (A gift from  my blogging friend Heather) and added glossy accents to the eyes.  The sentiment is cut using my Silhouette machine.

I am back to work now, so not as much time to craft  Maybe I will get some time at the weekend!

Two more cards and I will use a different stamp!

I couldn't resist playing again with this flower stamp, I promise tomorrow I will ink up a different one!!  This time I have used again the perfume sample cards that I got from the perfume department of my local department store.  This first is a tag for the current challenge at "A Blog Named Hero" I stamped the image with Distress Ink and then highlighted with white gel pen before spraying with a shimmer mist. (Hard tyo see in the photograph but it has a lovely shimmer. I am also adding them to the Hero Arts Challenge "stamp your story".

This second card is very simple and I haven't added a sentiment yet as I am waiting for the right occasion to use it.

I am looking forward to a quiet weekend, both Tristan and Francesca have gone to the Glastonbury Music Festival and it looks like its going to be great weather there for a change.  No mud baths this year!!

Hope you have a great weekend and the sun shines on you.

Its that stamp again!!!!

When I get a new stamp I have to keep using it and trying various ways to stamp and colour it, this new flower stamp is no exception, it sits on my desk and I have to ink it up!!!  I have made two cards for the challenge over at A Blog Named Hero, both are tag shaped but one I coloured with my Distress pens and ink the other I have just stamped with one colour. A very different look to them both, I love the top card but am not so sure about the second one!

We are having a very busy time at work the school inspectors (Ofsted) are in at the moment so its quite stressful, this is just the time for card making, perfect stress relief.

Fathers Day Card.

Last week my daughter went shopping for some new perfume, the shop she went to gave us cards to spray the perfume onto so we could have a smell and she could choose.  Well the crafter in me had an idea and I picked up a few extra cards for stamping on!  As you can see this is one advertising a mans aftershave called UOMO perfect for a fathers day card.   I have made this for the new challenge at A Blog Named Hero.

We are having glorious weather at the moment, lets hope it lasts!!

CAS card

I am still struggling with my creative mojo so I figured a CAS card would be easier to make, I have used another of my precious wine labels for this card.  As you can see the images stamp really well as they are made of high quality paper. I am entering this card in the current ABNH challenge.

We are having a Bank Holiday weekend in the UK and at last the sun is shining, lets hope it lasts!!

Hydrangea!

I have just realized its a week since I posted last, I have been a bit off colour this week, I just wish Spring would arrive I am sure its due to the weather.  We had more snow this morning and I need some sun!!!

Here is a card I have made with the better weather in mind, the post card stamp from Hero Arts is such a fun shape and as my Hydrangea stamp was still on my desk from my last card I decided to use the two together.  That's a strip of Washi tape along the bottom, I love the look it gives.

I am entering this card in the challenge at ABNH which is free style and also the current HA challenge.

Hope you are having a better weekend weather wise.

Shabby Chic

I have been so inspired by all the beautiful cards Jacqueline has been making with the Postcard stamp from Hero Arts that I had to buy it and have a go myself.  I decided on the Shabby Chic look so that I could enter it into the current challenge overt at A Blog Named Hero.  I have used lots of new stamps on this one, part of my Christmas win over at the Hero Arts Blog.  The Tweed background has been stamped in  Old Paper Distress ink, I then stamped the Postcard in Wet Cement.  The flowers were stamped and fussy cut so I could lift some of the petal points for a little definition.  The butterfly is from the "Three Artistic Butterflies" set and stamped onto patterned paper in Dark Green ink.

I had fun with this card and feel as though my mojo is on the way back at last.
Hope you all have a great weekend.

Paper Piecing..

 I needed a couple of baby cards to add to my stash as a few of my friends are expecting to be Grandmothers very soon!!  I decided to incorporate the cards into the Paper Piecing challenge over at A Blog Named Hero..  They are both really simple CAS cards but I think the cute elephant from the New Baby set is perfect for CAS.  Here is my blue version using two shades of gingham paper and the edge of my Pinstripe background stamp.

This is the smaller pink version, I used the heart stamp from the same New Baby set for the balloon and covered it in glitter.  The bottom is an off cut of the Tweed border stamp (I keep all my scraps lol !).

Hope your weekend is fun.

An oldie but goodie!!!

If you are looking for the Hero Arts Hostess Blog Hop post please go here.

I decided to dust off an old stamp and have a go at the current challenge over at A Blog Named Hero  "Golden Oldie"  The Lets Garden Silhouette stamp is one of my favourites and I thought it would look great against the new Looped Flower background stamp, one of my new favourites.  I have stamped and embossed it in white then over stamped with the seasonal Spring Message stamp before distressing with Peeled Paint. 

Then white trawling through Pinterest I found this fabulous Gift box tutorial and decided to have a go!!

I am really pleased with the finished result, I have not added any sentiments as I am not sure which occasion I am going to use it for.

I just thought I would post a view from my craft room window, we have had three days of snow, I am hoping for a snow day off school tomorrow, fingers crossed!!

I would also like to thank you for all the lovely comments I received on my Blog Hop Post, I loved reading each and every one of them.

Thank You Cards!

 At last I have found time for a little crafting, its been such a busy few weeks, I have missed having some me time in the craft room!!  Here are a couple of Thank you cards I have been working on.  The top one is using the Hero Arts Butterfly Thank You from the Greetings set placed on the Newspaper background.  I have stamped the butterfly again and coloured with Distress Inks before coating with Glossy Accents and adhering   with glue just down the butterflies body so the wings can be raised.  I have also added a strip if Washi Tape part of my win from Tones blog!!

The second card was inspired by the stamped hexagon image that Linda sent to me, I decided to make a hexagon shaped card, to do this I got the shape from Google images and cut to the size I wanted.

Hope you all had a wonderful Christmas and wishing you a Happy New Year.  As you know I work in a school so I don't go back till 7th January, another weeks holiday is just what I need and I hope to find time for more crafting!!