Snow Dust

I have a Christmas card to share today, made using a rather neglected Penny Black stamp called 'Snow Dust', last used in November 2023! I stamped it onto smooth white card using Versamark ink, heat embossed it with white embossing powder, then blended 'Wilted Violet', 'Chipped Sapphire', and 'Uncharted Mariner' over the top. I used it as a background for a cluster of reindeer (cut from snippets of white card using dies from the 'Winter Wonderland' set by Tim Holtz/Sizzix), adding a strip of white card, with a torn top edge, along the bottom for the snowy ground. I matted it onto a piece of navy card before adding it to a white card blank. The sentiment stamp is from the 'Scribbly Christmas' set by Tim Holtz for Stampers Anonymous.

Challenges for this card:

• A Cut Above - Anything Goes Using a Die Cut
• Allsorts - Anything Goes
• As You Like It - Favourite Christmas Critter (Reindeer... after all, they're the ones helping Santa bring the presents!)
• Christmas Cards All Year Round - V & W (W is for Winter Wonderland)
• Fab 'N' Funky - Three of Something (Three deer)
• Krafty Chicks - Anything Goes
• Jingle Belles - Animals
• Neglected Stuff - Anything Goes (The tree stamp is my neglected item)
• Simon Says Stamp (Wednesdays) - Anything Goes
• Sparkles Forum - Use Dies

Guest Designer - 52 Christmas Card Throwdown!

Today, I'm excited to be sharing a Guest Designer card for the 52 Christmas Card Throwdown Challenge, where the theme is:

I started by cutting out three large circles from snippets of white card using one of my Nestie dies. I embossed the first one, using a Sizzix embossing folder called 'Snowfall'. I used a Clearly Besotted die called 'Tree Landscape' to cut one of the circles, and one of the 'Scenic Border' dies from the Contemporary Christmas collection by Crafter's Companion to cut the other. I added a sentiment to the layer with the houses, using a stamp from the 'Scribbly Christmas' set by Tim Holtz for Stampers Anonymous, heat embossing it using metallic silver embossing powder. I distressed the edges of the circles, then layered them up, before matting them onto a scalloped circle, cut from another snippet of white card. I added a square of white card (with distressed edges) to a card blank, then popped the circle scene on top using 3D foam pads.

For more inspiration from the fabulous DT, please pop over to the 52 Christmas Card Throwdown.

PBSC September - Anything Goes (Optional 'Use a Die')...More Inspiration!

It's the third Saturday of the month, so that means it's time for some more inspiration for this month's Penny Black Saturday Challenge...where the theme is:

'Anything Goes'

or

'Things with Wings'

We're currently without a sponsor, so this challenge is just for fun.

I picked a cute snowmen image from the 'Bundled Snowman' set, and stamped it onto a a snippet of watercolour paper, then coloured it using watercolour pencils. I used dies from the Tim Holtz/Sizzix 'Snowglobe 2' set to cut the 'globe' from a snippet of watercolour effect paper from the 'Mystery Marbles' pad by Craft Sensations, and the 'plinth' from a tiny snippet of kraft card. I used a Tim Holtz/Sizzix 'Snowfall' embossing folder to emboss the 'globe', then lightly sanded over the raised areas to reveal some of the white core of the paper. I layered the snowmen over the top, then trimmed it to match the circle shape. I added a sentiment to the 'plinth' using a stamp from the 'Christmas Hats' set by Anita Jeram for the Colorado Craft Company, then inked around the edges of that, and the 'globe' using 'Brushed Corduroy' Distress Ink. I wanted to keep the background fairly simple, so added a piece snowflake covered paper (from the 'Snowscapes' pad from Woodware) to a kraft card blank, then added the assembled snowglobe on top. 

I'm also entering this card into the following challenges:

• A Cut Above - Anything Goes with a Die Cut
• Allsorts - Anything Goes
• Can You Handle the Pressure - Anything Goes (Using an Embossing Folder)
• C.R.A.F.T. - Christmas
• Lil Patch of Crafty Friends - Anything Goes
• Pixie's Snippets Playground - Use Snippets

For more inspiration from my lovely DT buddies, please pop over to the Penny Black Saturday Challenge.

PBSC September - Anything Goes (Optional 'Use a Die')

It's the first Saturday of the month, so that means it's time for a new Penny Black Saturday Challenge...where the theme is:

'Anything Goes'

or

'Use a Die'

We are currently without a sponsor, so this challenge is just for fun.

I picked a Penny Black die to use on my card, and started by cutting the 'Immense Joy' from a snippet of bright red card. I then used the die to cut the centre of the 'O' from a snippet of white card, then stamped my Penny Black 'Jingle Friends' stamp onto that, then coloured it using watercolour pencils. I made a simple background by embossing a piece of white card using a snowflake embossing folder from Sizzix, then matted it onto a piece of bright red card. I added the die cut on top, inserting the coloured image into the centre of the 'O', then added it to a white card blank.

I'm also entering this card into the following challenges:

• Can You Handle the Pressure - Anything Goes with an Embossing Folder
• Christmas Cards All Year Round - R & S (R is for Rudolph & S is for Santa)
• Christmas Kickstart - Reindeer Games
• Creative Moments - Make it Cute
• Simon Says Stamp (Wednesdays) - Stamp It
• Sweet Stampin' - Use a Die Cut

For more inspiration from my lovely DT buddies, please pop over to the Penny Black Saturday Challenge.

Crazy Dog

Today's card features one of the 'Crazy Dog' stamps from Tim Holtz's set for Stampers Anonymous. It's been a while since I last used him, and even longer since I used the matching dies, so I inked him up and stamped him onto a snippet of watercolour paper. I coloured him using watercolour pencils, then used his matching die to cut him out. For the background, I used a snippet of paper from an old Core'dinations card pad from Tim Holtz's collection. I embossed it using my Crafts Too 'Bone & Paw Print' embossing folder, then lightly sanded over the raised surface to reveal some of the kraft core. I added it to a snippet of kraft card, matted onto a piece of navy card, distressing all of the edges, then added the pup on top using 3D foam pads. I stamped a sentiment, using stamps from the Paper Smooches 'Birthday Buddies' set, onto snippets of watercolour paper, then added those using more 3D foam pads.

Challenges for this card:

• Allsorts - Anything Goes
• Can You Handle the Pressure - Anything Goes
• Crafty Calendar - Happy Birthday
• Cut It Up - Critters
• Just Us Girls - Long-neglected Dies (The dog die was last used in 2021!)
• Krafty Chicks - Birthday
• Neglected Stuff - Anything Goes (The stamp & matching die were last used in 2021!)
• Pixie's Snippets Playground - Use Snippets

PBSC April - Anything Goes (Optional 'Pastel Colours')...More Inspiration!

It's the third Saturday of the month, so that means it's time for some more inspiration for this month's Penny Black Saturday Challenge...where the theme is:

'Anything Goes'

or

'Pastel Colours'

We're currently without a sponsor, so this challenge is just for fun.

For my card, I picked a cute cat image from the 'Christmas Hugs' set for my card, and stamped it onto watercolour paper, along with a sentiment (using a stamp from the 'Christmas Hats' set by Anita Jeram for the Colorado Craft Company), then coloured it using watercolour pencils. For the background, I used a snowflake covered paper (from the 'Christmas' pad by Craft Sensations, and a couple of snippets of plain-ish papers from the 'Mystery Marbles' pad, also by Craft Sensations. I embossed the plain-ish papers using snowflake embossing folders from Cuttlebug and Sizzix, then lightly sanded over the raised areas to reveal some of the white core. I distressed the edges a little, then layered everything up on a white card blank.

I'm also entering this card into the following challenges:

• Can You Handle the Pressure - Anything Goes
• C.R.A.F.T. - Anything Goes
• Crafty Animals - Anything Goes
• Creative Fingers - Anything Goes
• Lil Patch of Crafty Friends - Anything Goes
• Little Red Wagon - That Song ('Joy to the World')

For more inspiration from my lovely DT buddies, please pop over to the Penny Black Saturday Challenge.

Sledging Buddies

Today's card features a cute Penny Black stamp from the 'Holly-Jolly' set. I stamped it onto a piece of watercolour paper, along with a sentiment using a stamp from the 'Scribbly Christmas' set by Tim Holtz for Stampers Anonymous, then coloured it using watercolour pencils. For the background, I used a 'Holly' embossing folder from Sizzix to emboss a piece of plain white card. I distressed all of the edges, then matted the image and embossed background onto some red card before adding it to a white card blank.

Challenges for this card:

• Allsorts - Anything Goes
• Creative Fingers - Anything Goes
• Peace on Earth Christmas - Anything Christmas Goes
• Polkadoodles - Anything Goes
• Simon Says Stamp (Wednesdays) - CAS
• Sparkles Forum Christmas - Snowman
• We Love Stamping - Wildlife

Winter Village Scene

Today's card features a set of scenic border dies from the 'Contemporary Christmas' collection by Crafter's Companion that I got recently from a charity shop. I used them, along with my 'Mountain Tops' dies by Taylored Expressions, and my 'Houses on a Hill' die from Your Next Stamp, and lots of snippets of plain white card to make a wintry scene. I layered all of the elements over a piece of white card embossed using my 'Falling Snow' embossing folder from Tim Holtz/Sizzix, using some 3D foam pads to add dimension

All white cards are always tricky to photograph, but here's another view:

Challenges for this card:

• Allsorts - Embossing
• C.R.A.F.T. - Christmas
• Lil Patch of Crafty Friends - Anything Goes
• Rudolph Days - Anything Christmas Goes
• Simon Says Stamp (Wednesdays) - Anything Goes

Moose & Bear

I have a couple of Christmas cards to share today, made using die sets by Elizabeth Craft Designs, that I picked up in a charity shop yesterday. I used snippets of kraft and white card to cut the pieces of both animals, with tiny bits of grey and black card for eyes, paws, ears and nose), then inked around the edges using Distress Inks ('Brushed Corduroy' and 'Gathered Twigs' for the Moose, and 'Hickory Smoke' for the Polar Bear) to add some definition. I embossed squares of kraft and white card for simple backgrounds using embossing folders from Couture Creations (for the Christmas trees behind the Moose), and Sizzix (for the snowflakes behind the polar bear). I stamped sentiments (using a stamp from the 'Scribbly Christmas' set by Tim Holtz) onto snippets of kraft and white card, then distressed all of the edges before assembling.

Here's a better look at the two cards:

Challenges for these cards:

• Allsorts - Embossing (Second card only)
• Can You Handle the Pressure? - Die Cuts
• Cardz for Guys - Monochrome (First card only)
• Creative Fingers - Anything Goes
• Fab 'N' Funky - Dies & Punches
• Peace on Earth - Anything Christmas Goes
• Pixie's Snippets Playground - Use Snippets (First card only)

Favourite Five Cards 2025

As has become traditional on New Year's Eve, I'm sharing my favourite five cards of this year. As I look back through my blog posts, I always find it interesting to see if any themes have emerged in my cardmaking over the course of the year. Whilst there are still plenty of cute critter cards, I used more die cuts this year, and my cards have become increasingly clean and simple.

All of the photos are linked to the original blog post, so please click through for more information.

My first card is from February, and features (unusually for me) die cuts as the main focus. I love the modern shape of these floral dies...and they're great for using up little snippets of card & paper!

My second card is from May, and features several things that I love (and usually make it onto at least one of my favourite cards each year) - Distress inks, gold embossing and the big butterfly stamp!

My next card is actually a bookmark...I'm an avid reader, and always like to have plenty of bookmarks handy...and they're a great way to use up offcuts of card! This one features a favourite floral stamp, and Cosmic Shimmers that I've used many times this year.

Of course, there's a Penny Black image amongst my favourites, and the next card, from August, features a 'new to me' stamp called 'Surprise!' I also love the colour in these floral papers.

My final card is from November, and although I've made a lot of one layer cards this year, I love the effect the added layer gives on this CAS card.

I'm going to link up this post over at Ellie's I Spy With My Little Eye - Favourite Creations of the Year.

I posted my Favourite Five Christmas Cards here last week, if you'd like to take a look.

Finally, thanks to everyone who has visited and taken the time to comment on my blog this year - I wish you all the very best for the New Year!

Woodland Winter Wonderland

Today's card features a lovely woodland die called 'Birch Tree Forest' by Creative Expressions that I got from a charity shop earlier this week. I used it along with a few other dies (one of the 'Hillside Borders' dies from Lawn Fawn, and a couple of the deer from the 'Winter Wonderland' set by Tim Holtz/Sizzix), to create a wintry woodland scene. I cut all the die cuts from snippets of plain white card, then layered them over another snippet of white card embossed using my Tim Holtz/Sizzix 'Snowfall' embossing folder, before adding it all to a white card blank.

Challenges for this card:

• 52 Christmas Card Throwdown - Pick a Previous Technique (May - Use Die Cuts/Punches)
• Allsorts - Create a Scene
• Can You Handle the Pressure - Anything Goes
• Creatalicious - Winter Animals
• Cut It Up - Anything Goes
• Pixie's Snippets Playground - Use Snippets
• Rudolph Days - Anything Christmas Goes

Favourite Five Christmas Cards 2025

Today, as has become traditional, I'm sharing my favourite five Christmas cards of the year. I made slightly more cards this year - 88, compared to 81 last year. Each photo is linked to the original blog post, so if you would like any more details, please click through.

The first card is from February, and uses a 'new to me' time (the lovely large Penny Black 'Joy' die) that I've used several times this year. I particularly like using the central aperture for a scene/sentiment.

Penny Black critters continue to be my most used stamps, and this chicken, used on this card from March, always makes me smile!

I made several cards using this technique on black card - I love the way the mica pigments show up when used as a watercolour paint, this card from August also makes use of one of my many charity shop crafty finds this year!

Coming a close second to the Penny Black critters, are the Anita Jeram animal stamps, like the bunny stamp used on this card from October. I also love making embossed backgrounds, and used a layout similar to this on many cards this year.

My final card is a recent one from earlier this month, and again features some Penny Black critters, and lots of lovely papers!

Merry Christmas everyone!

PBSC December - Anything Goes (Optional 'Snow/Snowmen')...More Inspiration!

It's the third Saturday of the month, so that means it's time for some more inspiration for this month's Penny Black Saturday Challenge...where the theme is:

'Anything Goes'

or

'Snow/Snowmen'

We're currently without a sponsor, so this challenge is just for fun.

My all-time favourite snowman is 'Snowy' by Penny Black, so I just had to use him for my card. I stamped him onto watercolour paper, extended the line for the 'snowy ground' on either side of him using a black gel pen, then coloured him using watercolour pencils. I paper-pieced his hat and scarf using a snippet of paper from the 'Fresh Florals' pad by Craft Sensations, adding some shading using watercolour pencils, then carefully cut around the top of the image. For the background, I used a piece of snowy paper from an unnamed pad from The Works, then layered Snowy over the top. I added a sentiment using one of the stamps from the 'Scribbly Christmas' set by Tim Holtz/Stampers Anonymous, and some snowflakes, cut using some of the 'Paper Snowflakes Mini' dies by Tim Holtz/Sizzix, then matted it onto some teal card before adding it to a card blank.

I'm also entering this card into the following challenges:

• Creative Knockouts - 'Tis the Season
• Gem of a Challenge - Anything Goes
• Love Those Pretty Papers - Anything Goes
• Peace on Earth Christmas - Anything Christmas Goes
• Polkadoodles - Anything Goes
• Simon Says Stamp (Mondays) - Anything Christmas
• Stamps + Fun = Creativity - Snowmen
• Sweet Stampin' - Christmas

For more inspiration from my lovely DT buddies, please pop over to the Penny Black Saturday Challenge.

Christmas Joy

I have a CAS Christmas card to share today...made using my Penny Black 'Immense Joy' die. I cut three 'Joy' sentiments from snippets of plain white card, then layered them up for some dimension, and added them to a white card blank. I cut a snowflake, using one of the dies from the 'Paper Snowflakes Mini' set by Tim Holtz and Sizzix, then added it to the centre of the 'O' using a 3D foam pad.

Challenges for this card:

• AAA Cards - Anything CAS (Optional 'White on White')
• Addicted to CAS - Christmas
• Allsorts - Anything Goes
• CAS on Friday - Snowflake
• Krafty Chicks - CAS
• Little Red Wagon - Christmas Cards
• Simon Says Stamp (Mondays) - Anything Christmas

Christmas Boxes

Every year, I make some little gift boxes for family members using a We R Memory Keepers punch board that I picked up in TKMaxx. This year, I used 12x12 papers from a Make & Create pad from The Works (I really wish that they'd name these!) to make the largest size (4x4x4). They don't require any glue/tape and simply fold together - so quick to make! I cut some simple gift tags using an old Sizzix Bigz die from some snippets of silver glitter card, then added a snowflake (cut from matching plain card using dies from a Tim Holtz/Sizzix set called 'Paper Snowflakes Mini'), and attached them to the boxes using some white organza ribbon.

Challenges for these boxes:

• Allsorts - Anything Goes
• Alphabet Challenge - R is for Ribbon
• As You Like It - Anything Festive
• Creative Moments - It's a Wrap!
• Ellibelle's Crafty Wednesday - Anything Goes
• Simon Says Stamp (Mondays) - Wrap It Up
• The Sisterhood of Crafters - Christmas

PBSC December - Anything Goes (Optional 'Snow/Snowmen')

It's the first Saturday of the month, so that means it's time for a new Penny Black Saturday Challenge...where the theme is:

'Anything Goes'

or

'Snow/Snowmen'

We are currently without a sponsor, so this challenge is just for fun.

I have a fairly 'healthy' collection of Penny Black snowman stamps, and picked 'What a Snow!' to make a large 8x8 square card. I stamped it onto watercolour paper, added a sentiment using a stamp from the 'Joy to the World' set, also by Penny Black, then coloured it using watercolour pencils. I paired it with some pastel coloured papers from the 'Snowscape' pad by Woodware...I distressed the edges, then added some faux stitching using my CutterBee Bug and a black gel pen. I cut some snowflakes from matching pastel card snippets using dies from the 'Paper Snowflakes Mini' set by Tim Holtz for Sizzix, then added those to the card with some little gems in their centres.

I'm also entering this card into the following challenges:

• Aud Sentiments - Non-traditional Christmas and/or Winter + Sentiment
• Fab 'N' Funky - Christmas
• Jingle Belles - Anything Christmassy
• Polkadoodles - Anything Goes
• Simon Says Stamp (Mondays) - Use Dies
• Simon Says Stamp (Wednesdays) - Use Dies

For more inspiration from my lovely DT buddies, please pop over to the Penny Black Saturday Challenge.

Hoppy Birthday!

Today's card features a long neglected Penny Black stamp called 'Leap for Joy!'. I stamped it onto watercolour paper, coloured it using watercolour pencils, then cut it out using one of my circle Nesties. For the background, I took strips of paper, from the Craft Consortium 'Over the Rainbow' pad, and embossed them using a Sizzix embossing folder that I picked up from a charity shop recently. I distressed the edges a little, then lightly sanded over the raised areas to reveal the white core before adding them to a kraft card blank. I cut a matching scalloped mat using anotheer Nestie, then added that to the card along with a sentiment made using stamps from the 'Birthday Buddies' set by Paper Smooches...I masked off the 'A' in 'Happy' before stamping then added an 'O' using a black gel pen.

Challenges for this card:

• Allsorts - Birthdays
• Alphabet Challenge - J is for Jump
• Neglected Stuff - Anything Goes (The frog stamp was last used in March 2024)
• Simon Says Stamp (Mondays) - Stamp It!
• Simon Says Stamp (Wednesdays) - Anything Goes