Easter Gifts

I have a few little Easter gifts to share today...a couple of baskets, and a mini pizza box:

The first one I made by attaching a handle using brads to a simple open box. I covered it with We R Memory Keepers 'Hippity Hoppity' papers, and used my EK Success 'Scalloped Diamonds' punch along all of the edges.

For the second one, I cut circles using my Blossom Nesties, then joined them together using a strip of card. I made a handle in the same way as the previous basket, but covered this one with BasicGrey 'Kioshi' papers, and a couple of bunnies from the 'Bunny Friends' stamp by Penny Black.

I made the mini pizza box following this tutorial over on Split Coast Stampers. I used more papers and a die cut from the 'Hippity Hoppity' pad, and the rest of the Penny Black Bunnies to decorate it.

Challenges for these items:

• BasicGrey - Easter/Spring (Basket 2)
• Crazy4Challenges - Easter Gifts
• Creative Stamp Friends - Easter Package
• Double Dutch - Easter Basket
• For Fun - Easter 
• Fussy & Fancy - Springtime
• Our Creative Corner - 3D Easter Project
• PaperPlay - Easter Time
• Penny Black Saturday - Easter Extravaganza (Basket 2 & Mini Pizza Box)
• Sweet Stampin' - Chocolate

Party Perch

I've dusted off an old stamp for today's card...it's one of the first Penny Black stamps I bought, and it's called 'Party Perch'...I just love the expression on the chicken's face!
I coloured the image using watercolour pencils, to match the bright colours of the We R Memory Keepers 'Hippity Hoppity' papers...see, I said you hadn't seen the last of those! I added faux stitching around the edges using my CutterBee Bug and a white gel pen, a sentiment (from the 'Cupcakes' set by Hero Arts) and a few paper flowers (from Wild Orchid Crafts).

Challenges for this card:

• Papertake Weekly - Spots & Stripes
• Sweet Stop Sketch - Sketch wth a Spin (Winged Things)
• Wild Orchid Crafts - Wings

ABC Christmas Challenge - H is for...

Here's another card for the ABC Christmas Challenge, where the theme this fortnight is:

'H is for Hotspot'

Our sponsor for this challenge is Simon Says Stamp, and the prize is a $ 15 shopping Voucher to spend in their shop!

And...if that's not enough to tempt you...we are having a Guest Designer call on this challenge, so if you fancy joining us ABC Christmas girls next month, make sure you join in.

This time I've used a Lili of the Valley image, called 'Decorating the Tree'. I stamped them whilst at my friend Kaz's last week...but I had trouble getting to grips with using the rubber glued straight on to the acrylic block (I EZ Mount all mine), and the first couple came out a bit patchy...I thought I wouldn't be able to use them, but Samantha had the brilliant idea of using the 'less than perfect' images for 'hotspots'...so that's what I did! I coloured my 'hotspot' with watercolour pencils, and then cut it out using one of my circular Nesties. The papers are from the 'Countdown to Christmas' pad by My Mind's Eye, I used my EK Success 'Scalloped Diamonds' punch along the bottom of the red card under the image, and added some spotty ribbon from my stash.

Here's a close-up of the 'hotspot':

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

• Christmas Stampin' All Year Long - Watercolour your image
• Crafty Hazelnut's Christmas - Sing Song (Mine's 'O Christmas Tree')
• Critter - Dies and/or Punches (I used a circle Nestie to punch out the hotspot, and a border punch along the bottom of the image)
• Digi Doodles - Stripes
• Raise the Bar - Tree-men-dous

You can find more inspiration over on the ABC Christmas Challenge, and there's a fab tutorial by my lovely DT buddy Dorte on last week's 'Hotspot' post...along with the linky widget for your entries.

Spring Bunnies

This is my last Easter card for the year...but it's not the last you'll see of these papers...I just LOVE them! They're from the 'Hippity Hoppity' pad by We R Memory Keepers...and were such a bargain in TK Maxx! I distressed the edges, then added faux stitching using my CutterBee Bug and a white gel pen. The image is 'Spring Bunnies' by Hambo digi stamps, the sentiment stamp is by Hero Arts, the flowers are from Wild Orchid Crafts, and the rainbow ribbon is from Hobbycraft.

Challenges for this card:

• Card Makin' Mamas - Spring Colours
• Cooking it up with Katie - 1 image, 2 papers, 3 embellishments (flowers, brad & ribbon)
• Incy Wincy - Bright & Bold 
• My Time to Craft - Easter Wishes
• Sweet Sketch Wednesday - Sketch

I Baked a Cake!

Well...actually I didn't...that's the name of the adorable Lili of the Valley stamp I used on this card! I coloured  it with watercolour pencils, then cut it out using my Nesties. I didn't use any patterned papers on this card, but instead embossed plain card using my Cuttlebug 'Swiss Dots' and 'Moroccan Screen' folders. For the scalloped border along the bottom, I used my EK Success 'Scalloped Diamonds' punch (covering up the diamonds). The sentiment stamp is from the 'Sending Sunshine' set by Simon Says Stamp, and I couldn't resist adding a few pieces of Card Candi in one corner.

Challenge for this card:

• Crafts & Me - Ribbon
• Lili of the Valley - Happy Birthday
• Paper Sundaes - Texture
• Ribbon Girls - Red, White & Blue
• Stamp with Fun - Birthday
• Totally Gorjuss - No Patterned Papers
• Your Next Stamp - Texture

Hunny Bunny

I have another Easter card to show you today...this time I've used 'Kiki Hunny Bunny' by Pollycraft, which I coloured using watercolour pencils. The papers are from the 'Hippity Hoppity' pad by We R Memory Keepers...I know I've used them a lot recently (and you'll see more of them next week too!), but they're just perfect for Easter and Spring cards. I distressed the edges, and then added some faux stitching using my CutterBee Bug and a white gel pen. The flowers are from Wild Orchid Crafts.

Challenges for this card:

• Craft Your Days Away - Easter
• Everybody Art - Sketch
• Pollycraft - Easter

Secret Crafter Saturday Challenge - Stitching

This week it's Beate's turn to set the theme of the Secret Crafter Saturday Challenge, and she has chosen:

'Stitching'

(Real or faux)

Faux stitching is something I love to do on my cards, especially if I've distressed the edges of the papers, as I always thinks it makes them look kind of like fabric. I use a CutterBee Bug to pierce holes in the papers to make the stitching look more realistic, before drawing on the stitches with a white gel pen. The image I've used on this card is called 'Amelie Bunnykins' by Toodles & Binks, which I coloured using watercolour pencils, then cut out using my circle and scalloped circle Nesties (available here at the Secret Crafter). The papers and tag are all from the 'Hippity Hoppity' scrapbook pad by We R Memory Keepers.

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

• C.R.A.F.T. -Easter
• Crazy - Easter
• Creative Inspirations (Wednesdays) - Easter
• Daring Cardmakers - Spring Fling
• Delightful - Easter
• Die Cut Dreams - Easter
• Fab 'N' Funky - Spots & Dots
• For Fun - Choose at least 3 from: Pink, Blue, Purple, Green & Yellow
• Little Red Wagon - Easter
• My Time to Craft - On the Spot

For more inspiration from my lovely DT buddies, please visit the Secret Crafter Saturday Challenge.

You're the Bestest!

I said I'd be back today with another card made using some of my Glitter Pot haul...I just had to get a Penny Black stamp while I was there...and I've had my eye on this one...'You're the Bestest'...for a while...my lovely friend Pauline keeps creating beautiful cards with it, so I caved in when I saw it on the shelves. I coloured it waith watercolour pencils, and then cut it out using one of my 'Labels 1' Nesties. The papers are from the My Mind's Eye 'Ohh La La (for Him)' collection, and after I'd distressed the edges a little, I added faux stitching with my CutterBee Bug and a white gel pen. The sentiment stamp is from the CCSR set by Papermania.

Challenges for this card:

• Midnight Madness - Sketch (the simple version)
• Crafty Calendar - Arpil showers bring forth May flowers
• Crafty Catz - Furry Friends
• Creative Card Crew - Spring
• Penny Black Saturday - Say it with Flowers
• Top Tip Tuesday - Spring has Sprung
• Totally Papercrafts - Spring

Mint Chocolate Cupcake...

No...this one isn't edible...but I just had to make something using some of the stash I bought on my trip to craft heaven A.K.A. The Glitter Pot with Kaz & Samantha on Tuesday. I've never seen so many Penny Black stamps all in one place...it's what I imagine my friend Squirrel's craft room to look like! ;0)
Here's a photo of my little haul:

I've been a little obsessed with cupcakes...both real, and crafty...so I had to grab a set of the Marianne Designs Creatables 'Cupcakes' dies, and also a 'Cupcakes' embossing folder by Craft Concepts when I saw them. I had a little play with them at Kaz's afer we'd shopped, but didn't have time to assemble my card, so have finished that off this morning. The papers are both by Doodlebug (I think...not sure, as they're not mine!), and the card is Bazzill...I'm rather disappointed that the Papermania 'Kraft' card blanks aren't quite the same shade of brown as Bazzill 'Kraft', but they're a much better weight than the older flimsy Papermania cards! Oh, and I also used some of my new Card Candi.

Challenges for this card:

• Creative Craft - Embossing
• Moving Along with the Times - Mmmm...Chocolate

I'm going to have a play with some of my other new goodies this afternoon...so hopefully I'll have something else to show you tomorrow.

ABC Christmas Challenge - H is for...

Welcome back to another ABC Christmas Challenge, where this week we have a fabby technique themed challenge for you all:

'H is for Hotspot'

Our sponsor for this challenge is Simon Says Stamp, and the prize is a $ 15 shopping Voucher to spend in their shop!

And...if that's not enough to tempt you...we are having a Guest Designer call on this challenge, so if you fancy joining us ABC Christmas girls next month, make sure you join in.

I've never tried the 'Hotspot' technique before...and if it's new to you too, my lovely DT member Dorte has made a fabulous step-by-step tutorial to guide you through it. I've used a Penny Black stamp from the 'Jolly Friends' set. I coloured the 'Hotspot' with watercolour pencils, then cut it out using on of my Nesties, and mounted it on the uncoloured version using 3D foam. The papers are from the '29th Street Market' collection by My Mind's Eye...and I distressed all of the edges using my distressing tool. I used my Cuttlebug 'Snowflakes' folder to emboss the reverse of one of the papers, then sanded over the raised areas to reveal the white core.

Here's a close-up of the 'Hotspot':

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

• Crafty Catz - Embossing
• Crafty Hazelnut's Christmas - Circles
• Sketchy Thursday - Sketch
• The Stamp Man - Embossing

My DT buddies have really excelled themselves this week, so please stop by the ABC Christmas Challenge for more inspiration.

Recipe Book

This is one of the presents I made for a friend of mine for her birthday last week...it's an altered notebook - I bought the blank notebook from The Craft Barn. She likes to cook...like me...and I thought that this would be good for jotting down recipes...so I used 'Busy Baking' by Lili of the Valley (coloured using watercolour pencils). The spotty paper is from the 'Wild Asparagus' collection by My Mind's Eye, and I used my Cuttlebug 'Olivia' alphabet to cut the lettering. I distressed all of the edges with ink, and once I'd attached it to the front of the notebook, and covered the back in some of the same paper, sealed it all with a few layers of matte finish Mod Podge.

Challenges for this project:

• Crafter's Companion - Aqua & Brown 
• Spoon Full of Sugar - All Creatures Great & Small
• Totally Gorjuss - Fluffy
• Totally Stampalicious - Anything Goes

I'm so excited...I'm off to The Glitter Pot today...it's been one of my favourite online shops since I first started crafting, but I've never actually been to the shop before..and if that wasn't enough...I'm meeting up with two lovely crafting buddies...Samantha & Kaz...can't wait to see you both!!!

Boing!!! Boing!!! Boing!!!

I have another Easter card to share today...this one uses 'Spring Bunnies' by Hambo digi stamps...I love their springy shoes! The papers are from the 'Hippity Hoppity' pad by We R Memory Keepers, and I used my EK Success 'Scalloped Diamonds' punch along the bottom of the card, and under the central strip of paper.

Challenges for this card:

• Card Patterns - Sketch
• Creative Inspirations (Sundays) - Easter
• Die Cut Dreams - Easter
• If the Shoe Fits...Scrap It! - Spring
• Pink Elephant - Easter

Pile It On! Challenge - Say it in Style!

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

'Say it in Style!'

(Your saying has to have sparkles, rhinestones, pearls or bling galore)

Our sponsor for this challenge is Pizzazz Aplenty...who have put together a fabulous prize package containing gems, pearls, rhinestones and more worth over $10!

I decided not to include an image on my card, and made the sentiment the focal point. I don't really have any large sentiment stamps, so created mine using my word processing software, and printed it directly on to my card blank (please don't look too closely...my printer really hates card, so it's a little patchy). Then I went a little mad with adhesive gems!

Here are the challenges that I've Piled On!:

• Pile It On! - Say it in Style
• Cardmakin' Mamas - Embellish It
• Creative Cottage - White/Blank Space
• Less is More - One Layer Card with a Sentiment as the Focal Point
• Papertake Weekly - Anything Goes

Please visit the Pile It On! Challenge for more inspiration from my lovely DT buddies.

Secret Crafter Saturday Challenge - Our Feathered Friends

It's Andie's turn to set the theme of the Secret Crafter Saturday Challenge this week, and she chose:

'Our Feathered Friends'

I chose to use another of the adorable Pollycraft digis that I won recently...this one is called 'Follow the leader'. I coloured it using watercolour pencils to match the zesty colours of the 'Hippity Hoppity' papers by We R Memory Keepers. The sentiment is a Hero Arts stamp, but I masked and stamped the words individually so that it would fit in a circle, which I cut out using my Nesties (available here at the Secret Crafter). I used my EK Success 'Scalloped Diamonds' punch for the border, and a scrap of ribbon from my stash over the top of it.

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

• Creative Fridays - Easter
• Creative Insprations (Wednesdays) - Punches & Dies
• If the Shoe Fits...Scrap It! - Spring
• Raise the Bar - Hey Chick!
• Simon Says Stamp - Spring Colours
• Stampin for the Weekend - Easter
• Sweet Sketch Wednesday - Sketch

For more inspiration, please check out the fabulous cards by my lovely DT buddies over at the Secret Crafter Saturday Challenge.

And the winner is....

I've just pressed the button on Random.Org...and the winner of my 1000th post mystery mini candy is:

#21 - Dragonlady

Congratulations! Please email me with your full postal address by 10pm (BST) on Thursday 14th April to claim your prize. Thank you to everyone who helped me celebrate my 1000th post by entering my candy! :0)

Easter Bunnies

Hippity Hop...I have Easter bunnies for you today...these ones are from the 'Bunny Friends' stamp by Penny Black...I love masking off parts of this stamp and using just one or two of the bunnies. I've used my favourite papers of the moment 'Hippity Hoppity' by We R Memory Keepers, the colours are just perfect for 'Springy' cards. The sentiment is Hero Arts (although I masked and stamped the words individually), the flowers are Wild Orchid Crafts, and I used some dew drops that have been knocking around in my craft box for ages, in their centres.

Challenges for this card:

• C.R.A.F.T. - Animals/Pets
• Dutch Dare - Spring has Sprung
• Everybody Art - Easter
• For Fun - Bunnies
• Paper Sundaes - Spring Blossoms
• PaperPlay - Critters Galore
• Penny Black Saturday - Sketch
• Sundays with Crissy - Spring is in the Air

I'm off out to run some errands, and enjoy a bit of the glorious sunshine we're enjoying today, but I'll be back later with the winner of my 1000th post mystery candy.

Mmmmm....cupcakes!

No card from me today...but I haven't been slacking, I've spent the day baking cupcakes for a party tonight:

There are three flavours: Lemon (with lemon curd in the centre); Blueberry (with blueberry jam in the middle); and Chocolate...yummy! I made a dozen of each...and this was my first attempt at piping the frosting on with a piping bag...so please don't look too closely! lol

The party is for the evening class I teach called The Broken Consort...it's their end of term concert tonight...and judging by the programme (which had me almost tearing my hair out yesterday, trying to figure out how to print it in a booklet form!) it's going to be a bit of a marathon, so we'll be in desperate need of refreshment by the time we're finished!

Teddy Christmas

It's been a whole week since I uploaded my last Christmas card, so I thought it was about time I showed you another. I've used an adorable Lili of the Valley teddy called 'Present Pile', which I coloured with watercolour pencils, then added some 'Crystal' Stickles to the fur trim on his hat for a bit of sparkle. The papers are from the 'Countdown to Christmas' pad by My Mind's Eye...they're really sparkly, but I couldn't get it to show in the photo. The snowflakes were cut using a mixture of Cuttlebug and Marianne Creatables dies...then coated with more Stickles.

Challenges for this card:

• Charisma Cardz - Sparkle & Bling
• Craft Your Days Away - Spots & Stripes
• Crafts & Me - Glitter
• Sketchy Colours - Sketch
• Winter Wonderland - Teddy's Christmas

Pink Party Princess

I have a VERY pink card to show you today...I've used a Sugar Nellie Gorjuss Girl called 'Party Princess', which I coloured using watercolour pencils. The pink papers are from a Heidi Grace pad, the sentiment stamp is from the Hero Arts 'Anytime Messages' set, and I used my EK Success 'Scalloped Diamonds' border punch on the white card. I cut the flowers using a die from the Cuttlebug 'Olivia' alphabet set, and added some adhesive pearls to their centres.

Challenges for this card:

• Crazy Challenge - Flowers
• Sugar Bowl - Sketch & Pink
• Teddy Stampers - Me & My Teddy (although I'd never wear this much pink!)
• Totally Stampalicious - Birthdays
• Wags 'N Whiskers - Ribbons & Pearls

Hunny Bunny

This little cutie is called 'Kiki- Hunny Bunny'...it's one of the adorable digis I won from Pollycraft a couple of weeks ago. I coloured her with watercolour pencils to match the 'Hippity Hoppity' papers by We R Memory Keepers. I distressed all of the edges, and added a couple of Wild Orchid Crafts flowers.

Challenge for this card:

• Bee Crafty - Easter
• Crafts & Me - Use Yellow
• Craft Us Crazy - Easter/Spring
• Spoon Full of Sugar - Easter
• Stamp Something - Digi
• Stamp with Fun - Easter
• Sweet Stop - Sketch

Happy Mother's Day!

Happy Mother's day to all you Mum's out there...hope you're being spoilt rotten! Today I'm going to show you the card that I made for my Mum. I used 'Gifts for You!' by Penny Black (coloured with watercolour pencils), and papers from the 'Wild Asparagus' collection by My Mind's Eye. I distressed the edges, and added some faux stitching using my CutterBee Bug and a white gel pen. The flowers are by Prima, the brads are BasicGrey 'Wisteria', and the sentiment is a Hero Arts stamp.

Challenges for this card:

• Allsorts - Blooming Blossoms
• Crafty Sentiments - Mother's Day
• Creative Inspirations (Sundays) - Mother's Day
• Cupcake Craft - Flowers for Mum
• If the Shoe Fits...Scrap It - Sewing
• My Time to Craft - Mum's the Word
• PaperPlay - For Mum
• Scrapbook Sisters - Mother's Day
• Simon Says Stamp - Sketch
• Stampin' for the Weekend - Mother's Day
• Your Next Stamp - Stitching

Secret Crafter Saturday Challenge - Butterflies

It's Wendy's turn to set the theme of the Secret Crafter Saturday Challenge this week, and she has chosen:

'Butterflies'

I've used a cute Lili of the Valley stamp on my card called 'Gift Wrapped', which I coloured using watercolour pencils, and then cut out using my oval Nesties (available here at the Secret Crafter). The papers are from the 'Hippity Hoppity' pad by We R Memory Keepers...I'm loving the fresh 'Springy' colours of these at the moment. The flowers are form Wild Orchid Crafts, and the rainbow ribbon is from Hobbycraft. The sentiment stamp is from the 'Cupcakes' set by Hero Arts, and I used my circular Nesties to cut it out (available here at the Secret Crafter).

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

• Wild Orchid Crafts - Sketch
• Crafty Creations - Bunnies
• Delightful - Flowers
• Digi Doodles - Happy Birthday

For more inspiration from my lovely DT buddies, please visit the Secret Crafter Saturday Challenge.