ABC Christmas Challenge - A is for...

Before I get on to our first ABC Christmas Challenge of 2011...I have a little bit of house-keeping...for our last challenge & blog hop, there was some candy hidden on my blog...which means I have a winner to announce. I picked the winner using Random.Org from the comments left on my challege post:

#52 - Katarina

Congratulations! Please contact me at helenbrammer@hotmail.com with your address by Monday 17th January, so that I can get your prize in the post!

Ok, so on to our new challenge...we know that you may be thinking that it's a little early to be starting on this year's cards...but we believe it's never too early, and to help you get a head start, we've made it a nice easy theme for you:

'A is for Anything Christmas'

We are sponsored for this challenge by our lovely regular sponsor:

 

And the prize is a $15 shopping spree in their store!

I've used an adorable Stamp Fairy digi stamp on my card of Al the penguin...that I won with one of the items I made for our last challenge :0)

I coloured him with watercolour pencils, and added Glamour Dust to the snow, and around the edges of the lacey scallops. The papers are new...from the My Mind's Eye 'Countdown to Christmas' pad...they're all gorgeous and glittery! The sentiment is a Penny Black stamp, and the ribbon is from Poppicrafts.

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

• Unscripted Sketches - Pick any old sketch ( I used #3)
• Christmas Cards All Year Round - Anything Goes (Card 2)
• Crazy4Challenges - Celebrate Something (I'm still celebrating Christmas!)
• Paper Sundaes - Something New (The papers & the digi stamp are new)

For more inspiration, please check out the fabulous creations by my lovely ABC Christmas Challenge DT buddies!

Cuttlebug Spot - Inspired by a Book

This month at the Cuttlebug Spot we're getting inspired...and this week we're taking our inspiration from:

'Books'

I really didn't know where to start...but decided I'd take a look through all of my stamped images, to see if anything came to mind...and when I fsaw this adorable Penny Black stamp 'Feeding Frenzy', I knew I had it...'One Hundred & One Dalmations' by Dodie Smith...lol
In keeping with the 'spots' idea I used my Cuttlebug 'Swiss Dots', 'Spots & Dots' and 'Tiny Bubbles' folders on plain grey card. I used my EK Success 'Scalloped Diamonds' punch on the edges of the strip across the centre, and added some spotty ribbon from Hoobbycraft.

For more inspiration, please check out the fabulous samples by my lovely Cuttlebug Spot DT buddies.

Happy New Year...

...to me! Well...I liked the easel card calendars I'd made for other people so much, I thought I make one for myself! lol
The image is 'Champagne Thomas' by Lili of the Valley...which I coloured with watercolour pencils, adding a little sparkle to the bubbly with a Sakura Stardust pen. The papers are from the 'Oh La La (for her)' collection by My Mind's Eye, the ribbon is from Poppicrafts, the calendar tab is by Anita's, and the numbers were cut using my Cuttlebug 'Olivia' alphabet.

From the side:

And a close-up of the front:

Challenges for this card:

• Crafter's Companion - Sketch & New Year
• Creative Stamp Friends - New Year's Cards
• Dutch Dare - New Beginnings
• For Fun - New Year
• Lili of the Valley - New Beginnings
• One Stop Craft - New Beginnings
• Prairie Fairy - New Beginnings
• Sew Many Challenges - NewThings

Pile It On! Challenge - Brand Spankin' New

The theme of this week's Pile It On! Challenge is:

'Brand Spankin' New'

You can interpret this in any way you like...use some new stash...try a new technique...or make a card or other item celebrating a 'New' occasion.

Our sponsor for this challenge is the Technique Junkies, who have very generously donated a Fancy Fancy Folds and Motion Paper Crafts CD (Value $17.95) and a one year on-line subscription to the Technique Junkie Newsletter for the lucky winner.

I've used some of the stash I got for Christmas on my card...to make a...yes you've guessed it...a Christmas card...my first of 2011! lol

The image is a digi stamp I won a while ago called 'Robin Hello' by Pollycraft, but this is the first time I've used it...I coloure it with watercolour pencils, and added some 'Crystal' Stickles to the snow. The papers were a Christmas present...they're from the 'Countdown to Christmas' glitter pad by My Mind's Eye...and are all lovely and sparkly! I used my EK Success 'Scalloped Diamonds' punch for the strip accross the middle...then tied some spotty ribbon from Hobbycraft over the top. The snowflakes were cut using dies by Marrianne Designs Creatables & Cuttlebug dies, then coated with a generous layer of Glamour Dust...and finally I added a couple of adhesive green gems, which were also a Christmas present :0)

Here are the challenges I've Piled On!:

• Pile It On! - Brand Spankin' New (The digi stamp, paper & gems)
• Anything Goes - The Letter C (Mine's Christmas)
• Christmas Cards All Year Round - Anything Goes
• Creative Inspirations (Sunday) - Use Something New (The digi stamp, paper & gems)
• My Time to Craft - Brand Spanking New! (The digi stamp, paper & gems)
• Pollycraft - White Christmas (I went for the snowy winter scene option)
• Sketch & Stash - Sketch #33

• Stamp Fairy - Let's Celebrate (I'm still celebrating Christmas...lol)
• Stamp Something - Glitter

For more inspiration, please check out the fabulous samples by my lovely Pile It On! Challenge DT buddies...including our new members Corinna, Crystal, Julie, Melissa, and Sharon.

Shimmery Butterfly

Today's card was made for one of my parents' neighbours who will turn 90 soon. All of the stamps I used are from the CCSR 'Doodles' set by Papermania, which I stamped and embossed in pearl violet on lilac card, before colouring them with Cosmic Shimmer pigments (one of my Christmas presents). I used my Cuttlebug 'Floral Fantasy' folder to emboss some pearlised card, and cut out the mats using various Nestie shapes. The numbers were cut using my Cuttlebug 'Olivia' alphabet.

Challenges for this card:

• Mojo Monday - Sketch
• Moving Along with the Times - Birthdays & Circles

I'll be back later with my DT card for the first Pile It On! Challenge of 2011.

Secret Crafter Saturday Challenge - Buttons & Bows

Before I get on to this week's Secret Crafter Saturday Challenge, I'd just like to say:

 Happy New Year to all my lovely visitors!

It's Bridget's turn to choose the theme...and she's easing you gently into 2011 with a nice simple challenge of:

'Buttons & Bows'

I've made an easel card calendar, using the fab 'Bee Costume' stamp by Penny Black, which I coloured using watercolour pencils, and then cut out using my Labels 1 Nesties (available here at the Secret Crafter). The checked paper is from the 'Kioshi' pad by BasicGrey (available here at the Secret Crafter), and I embossed the plain yellow card using my Cuttlebug 'Swiss Dots' folder (available here at the Secret Crafter). The flowers are by Prima, the ribbon is from Poppicrafts, the buttons and brads are by Papermania, and the calendar tab is by Anita's.

Here's a view from the side showing the easel card shape:

And a close-up of the front...you can just about see the sparkle on his wings I added with a Sakura Stardust pen:

I used the sketch from the Truly Scrumptious Challenge for the layout of this card.

For more inspiration, please check out the fabulous samples by my lovely Secret Crafter DT buddies.

My favourite cards of 2010

I joined in with Debby's challenge to show her our favourite five Christmas cards of 2010 last week...and loved hopping round to see what everyone else had chosen...so I thought I'd join her again and show you my five favourite cards of 2010...there's yummy candy on offer...and plenty of inspiration to be had...so do pop over and join in.

After looking through all this year's blog posts, I had 12 cards...but managed to get it down to 5 in the end...so here goes:

Lots of my favourite things on this card...cute Penny Black image...My Mind's Eye papers...Cuttlebug emboossing...distressing and faux stitching...lovely! :0)

This card is special to me, because I made it for a special crafting friend's wedding...and I love white on white cards...

I had to include a Lili of the Valley card...and this one also uses one of my favourite colour combos...and more distressing and faux stitching ;0)

This easel card/calendar was quite a recent make...but I just love the image and soft colours on it.

My final card is not a card at all...it's a box that I filled with Penny Black cards I made as a birthday present for my Nan...I love the colours & papers on it...I've had that Kioshi pad for months...but still find it hard to cut into the papers! lol

Bumble Bee

It's been ages since I joined in with the Sugar Bowl Challenge...but I had a little play this afternoon...and made a card using their sketch. The image is 'Bumble Bee' by Sugar Nellie which I coloured with watercolour pencils, adding some sparkle with a Sakura Stardust pen and cut out using a craft knife. The papers are from the 'Kioshi' pad by BasicGrey, and I embossed the plainer ones using my 'Kassie's Brocade', 'Victoria' and 'Floral Fantasy' folders...sanding over the raised areas to reveal the detail. The sentiment stamp is by Cuddly Buddly, and the lace is from Hobbycraft.

Challenges for this card:

• Sugar Bowl - Sketch & optional extra of embossing
• Charisma Cardz - Pearls & Lace
• Die Cut Dreams - How girlie can you get?
• Paper Sundaes - Cut it out
• Sew Many - Anything Goes

Birthday Dog

This card uses one of my most favourite Penny Black stamps...'Birthday Dog'...he was one of the first ones I bought, but he still gets inked up regularly. The papers are all from the 'Max & Whiskers' pad by BasicGrey, and I distressed the edges using my distressing tool. The 'bone' ribbon is from Hobbycraft, the little bone charm was from a seller on Ebay, the sentiments are from a little Studio G set, and I used my EK Success 'Scalloped Diamonds' punch for the border.

Challenges for this card:

• Sweet Stop - Sketch
• Crazy Challenge - Punch It!
• Creative Card Crew - Birthdays
• Incy Wincy - Distressing
• Penny Black Saturday - 3 Papers, 1 Ribbon & a Charm
• Simon Says - Time to Party/Celebrate

Thank You Notes

I made a few quick 'Thank you' notes this afternoon...really very simple...I cut the shaped cards using the largest of my scalloped square Nesties, then added a panel embossed with a Cuttlebug folder (I used 'Floral Fantasy', 'Textile', 'Kassie's Brocade', 'Victoria', 'D'Vine Swirls' & 'Perfect Paisley') and a sentiment cut using my Cuttlebug 'Olivia' alphabet.

Challenges for thses cards:

• Cupcake Craft - Thank You
• Papertake Weekly - Thank You
• Winter Wonderland - Thank You

2011 Calendar

This is one of the presents I made for my Mum...it's one of the 'Create a Calendars' from the Papermill Shop. As there are rather a lot of photos...I've made them into a slideshow:

The images are mainly Penny Black, but there's also some Lili of the Valley and Toodles & Binks images. The papers are a mixture of all the usual suspects: My Mind's Eye; BasicGrey; and Pink Paislee. There's not too much else on there...just a little bit of Cuttlebug embossing...I tried to keep them really simple, and made all of the 'pictures' A6 sized...for easy recycling into cards when the calendar's finished with. I did a couple of the slim calendars too this year...but forgot to photograph them before I wrapped them...doh!...but they were pretty similar to this one...all different images & papers...but set out in portrait, rather than landscape to fit the calendar.

I'm going to enter this into my lovely friend Samantha's Christmas Candy Challenge.

Merry Christmas Everyone!

The lovely Debby from A Scrapjourney has challenged us to show her our favourite 5 Christmas cards of 2010 in return for the chance to win some yummy candy...

I made so many cards this year...and started back on Boxing Day last year...lol...so I found it really difficult to remember what I'd made...but after a little look back through my blog posts for this year...(all 380 of them!)...here are the ones that I've chosen:

These little Whiff of Joy 'Love Birds' are so sweet...and the colours are one of my favourite combos too...a bit of distressing and faux stitching...lovely...the image was a RAK from my lovely friend Samantha...so I turned it into a card...and sent it back to her for Christmas! lol

I love little James the Bear by Lili of the Valley...I have a few stamps of him, and I've used them loads this year...but what I like about this card in particular are the bold colours...even though I don't like pink, I really like this card! lol

This card is so over the top I just had to include it...it also has a few of my favourite things on: a Penny Black stamp (this is from the 'Holly Jolly' set; gorgeous glittery My Mind's Eye 'Wonderful Winter' papers (I love these...and have used them loads this year...and there are still loads left!); and the Cuttlebug 'Ice Crystal' snowflake. And I couldn't resist adding little fairy lights to the tree:

I love the colours of the BasicGrey 'Figgy Pudding' papers on this one...not traditionally festive, but they still look wintry...and that Prairie Fairy 'Snow Friends' image is so cute!

And I just had to include an 'All White' card as I've made quite a few of those this year...great for showing off all the fabulous Cuttlebug folders...and I love this cute Rachelle Ann Miller 'Teddy Bear' stamp.

I'll be back on Boxing Day with one of the gifts I made for my Mum, Merry Christmas everyone!

In the shed!

I've made this easel card calendar for my Dad...and the image I chose to use is 'In the shed' by Lili of the Valley...as my Dad is rather fond of his shed! I coloured the image with watercolour pencils, and added '2011' to the little sign. The papers are all from the 'Max & Whiskers' pad by BasicGrey...and I distressed the edges with my distressing tool, before adding some faux stitching with my CutterBee Bug and a white gel pen. The calendar tab is by Anita's.

Here's a better view of the 'easel card' shape:

And one showing the front:

Challenges for this card:

• Crafts & Me - Anything Goes
• Creative Craft - Anything Gooes
• Digi Doodles - Anything Goes
• Moving Along with the Times - Anything Goes (NO Christmas Cards)
• Scrapbook Sisters - It's a Man's World
• Stamp Fairy - Anything Goes
• Stamp with Fun - Sketch
• Totally Stampalicious - It's all faux fun! (I've used faux stitching)

All wrapped up!

Phew...I've finally finished making all my Christmas presents...woo-hoo!!! I do have photos of some of them to show you, but today it's all about the wrapping. I like to wrap my presents in ordinary brown paper...and I use kraft bags & tags to match. The bags were bought on form a seller on Ebay, and the tags are from WHSmith. I decorated the bags with a few snowflakes cut using Cuttlebug & Marianne Creatables dies. The tags were simply stamped with a Lili of the Valley sentiment, and decorated with a piece of My Mind's Eye 'Wonderful Winter' or 'Colourful Christmas' paper, and the images are a mixture of Penny Black (from the 'Christmas Critters' & 'Holly Jolly' sets) and there's also a Stamp Fairy snowman. I didn't bother to photograph them separately, but you should be able to get a better view by clicking on the photo.

I'm going to enter these into the following challenges:

• Pink Elephant - Tags
• Prairie Fairy - Use Kraft Card
• Stamp Something - Something with a Tag or Pocket
• The Stamp Man - Anything Goes Tags
• Winter Wonderland - Wrapping

Rudolph Noses

It's not a card today...but a quick and easy last minute gift idea. I bought these little glass jars from Ikea ages ago...can't remember what I thought I'd put in them...but I decided to fill them with little chocolates for a little gift. I made the tags using a Sizzix die, then added a scrap of My Mind's Eye 'Wonderful Winter' paper, and a mat cut using my 'Lacey Circles' Nesties, with computer generated wording.

And on the top, I've used a Penny Black stamp 'Deer in Skates'...although I had to cut him up to fit on the top...he's coloured with watercolour pencils, and (although it doesn't really show up in the photo) I added some Glossy Accents to his nose.

Challenges for these:

• Fab'n'Funky - Quick & Easy
• Papertake Weekly - Anything Goes
• Simon Says - Anything Goes
• Stampavie & More - Red