ABC Christmas Challenge - B is for...

Woo-hoo! Not only do we have a brand new challenge for you over at the ABC Christmas Challenge, but we have some lovely new DT members to introduce to you! Joining our happy little team of Christmas crafters are: Angela, Chris, Emma, Fiona & Michelle! This fortnight's challenge is hosted by Wilma...and the theme is:

'B is for Bows or Boys'

(Or both if you like!)

We have two wonderful sponsors for this challenge:

The prize from Bugaboo Stamps is 7 free digis!

and

Prize - a £10 gift voucher to spend at the Ribbon Reel!

I've used an adorable little reindeer image from Bugaboo Stamps on my card, called 'Plush Reindeer', which I coloured using watercolour pencils, then carefully cut out...decoupaging the head for more dimension. I wanted to make a feature of the 'bow' (ribbon from Hobbycraft), so I kept the rest of the card very simple...adding a doodled border, and a sentiment from the 'Enjoy the Season' set by Hero Arts.

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

• Paper Playtime - Use Some Brown
• Papertake Weekly - Tie Up Your Loose Ends
• Simply Create Too - Anything Goes

For more inspiration from my lovely DT buddies...including my new playmates....please pop over to the ABC Christmas Challenge.

Oldie but a Goodie - Glitz & Glam

It's time for a new challenge over at Oldie but a Goodie, and this fortnight the theme is:

'Glitz & Glam'

I'm not sure of the prize info at the time of writing this...so I'll update it when I get home from school :0)

I've used a Whiff of Joy image ('Willow Dressing Up') that my lovely friend Samantha sent to me ages ago...she's been waiting patiently for me to make a 'glamorous' card! lol I coloured her in my favourite colour...teal/aqua...to match the Heidi Grace papers. I added some frilly lace along the edges of one of the papers, and some sheer ribbon (both from Ribbon Reel)...with a faux bow held in place using a sparkly brad (from Craft Obsessions). For a little bit of 'glitz' I added a few sparkly gems & pearls.

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

• 4 Crafty Chicks - Pearls 
• Crafty Your Passion - Totally Teal
• Creative Inspirations - One for the Girls
• Dream Valley - Girls, Girls, Girls
• Stampin' for the Weekend - Girly
• Sweet Stampin' - Frills
• Whiff of Joy - Favourite Colour (Teal) & Lace

For more information from my lovely DT buddies, please pop over to Oldie but a Goodie.

Let it Snow, Let it Snow, Let it Snow!

With all the snow we're currently enjoying/enduring here in th UK, what else could I post today, but a snowy Christmas card??? Inspired by one of Jen's Less is More cards from yesterday, I used her layout to create a CAS Christmas card using one of my all time favourite stamps...'Snowy' by Penny Black. I embossed the two background panels using my Cuttlebug & Sizzix 'Snowflakes' folders, and added a sentiment (also by Penny Black)...everything is popped up on 3D foam for a little dimension...but it still fits through the 'normal' stamp slot on my Post Office measure!

Challenges for this card:

• Card Makin' Mamas - Clean & Simple
• Christmas @ Sweet Stampin' - Cold & Frosty
• C.R.A.F.T. - Christmas in January
• Crafty Creations - Snowflakes
• Creative Card Crew - Snow & Ice
• Crimbo Crackers - White on White
• Daring Cardmakers - Embossabilty
• Gem of a Challenge - Embossing
• Papercraft Star - White on White
• Papertake Weekly - Baby it's Cold Outside!
• Sisterhood of Crafters - Winter
• Sparkles Christmas - Snowmen
• Totally Gorjuss - KISS
• Totally Papercrafts - Embossing

2013 Calendar

I'm going to show you my 'birthday' calendar today...well, some of it, as it's not yet finished! I saw the photo frame/holder in Ikea ages ago, and thought that it might make a good calendar...and when I looked closely at the display one, and saw that it had pockets for 12 photos...I just had to get one! The base is perspex, and the little pockets for the photos/months are flexible plastic...the 'windows' are 6x4, so it's a good size too. I'm going to use this to keep track of all of the birthdays I need to send a card - I've circled the dates, and keep a list in my diary with the names on...I made a little one last year, and it worked really well! I'm using all Penny Black images, a whole mixture of papers, and a calendar tab by Anita's. Here's the first installment:

January:

 Image - 'Bubbly' 

Papers - 'Hippity Hoppity' (We R Memory Keepers), 'Madison' (Penny Black) & Unkown (Heidi Grace)

Dies - Nesties Circles & Stars

February:

Image - 'Every Which Way'

Papers - '72 & Sunny' (We R Memory Keepers) & Unkown (Heidi Grace)

Die - 'Puffy Clouds' (Memory Box)

March:

Image - 'Bunny Friends'

Papers - 'Hippty Hoppity' & '72 & Sunny' (We R Memory Keepers)

Challenges for this calendar:

• Creative Craft - New Beginnings
• Gem of a Challenge - New Beginnings
• Joanna Sheen - New Beginnings
• One Stop Craft - New Beginnings

ABC Christmas Challenge - A is for...

I have another card for our current ABC Christmas Challenge today, where the theme is:

'A is for - Animals'

We are sponsored for this challenge by:

Stamp Fairy

And the fabulous prize:

I've made a simple one layer card...using a Penny Black stamp from the 'Joy to the World' set, which I coloured using watercolour pencils, and a sentiment from the 'Very Merry Christmas'...and that's it!

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

• Christmas Cards All Year Round - Anything Christmas
• Paper Playtime  - Pets
• Squirrel & the Fox - Anything Goes
• Top Tip Tuesday - Fur or Feathers

For more ispiration from my lovely DT buddis, please pop over to the ABC Christmas Challenge.

What's Black, White & Red All Over???

No...it's not a newspaper...or sunburnt penguins...it's today's card! I took a little break from working on music arrangements yesterday to make a DT card...and whilst I was stamping, couldn't resist inking up this stamp to make a quick card...it's called 'Delivery Sled' by Art Impressions...and was a purchase in the post-Christmas sales ;0) The sentiment stamp was also a sales bargain, and comes from the 'Very Merry Christmas' set by Hero Arts.

Challenges for this card:

• Christmas Cards All Year Round - Anything Christmas
• Crafty Calendar - What's New? (Both stamps are new)
• Crafty Creations - Something New (Both stamps are new)
• Simon Says Sketch & Stamp - Black & White with a Splash of Colour

Pile It On! Challenge - Funny Birthday

Yes...I am still alive! I haven't blogged for a few days because I've been snowed under with work...I spent far too much time over the Christmas holidays crafting, so I've been chasing my tail this last week or so trying to get all of the music arranged for this term's concerts, whilst suffering from some kind of cold/virus which seems to present a new symptom every couple of days! Anyway...I'm getting there, and have a card to show you today for the new challenge over at Pile It On! where our theme is:

'Funny Birthday'

Our sponsor this week is SK Digis:

The prize is a $5 gift certificate to spend in their online store!

I've made a really quick and simple card, using a mini clear stamp set by Inkadinkado called 'Unlisted'. The paper is from the 'Archaic' pad by BasicGrey which I had for years...still got a few scraps left though! The button was from a big bag I got in a charity shop, and is threaded with some Dovecraft twine.

Here are the challenges I've piled on:

• Pile It On! - Funny Birthday
• 2 Sisters - Celebrations
• Allsorts - Dies & Punches (I used Nesties to cut the circles)
• Card Makin' Mamas - Anything Goes
• Challenges4Everybody - Anything Goes
• Crafty Catz - Buttons & Bows
• Dream Valley - Anything Goes
• Inky Impressions - Add a Sentiment
• Loves Rubber Stamps - Dies & Punches (I used Nesties to cut the circles)
• Papercrafting Journey - Anything Goes
• Raise the Bar - One (One Paper, One Button, One Bow)
• Shopping Our Stash - Old Buttons
• Simon Says Stamp & Show - Embrace the Old (Everything, except the twine, is at least two years old!)
• Totally Stampalicious - Buttons & Bows

For more inspiration from my lovely DT buddies, please pop over to the Pile It On! Challenge.

ABC Christmas Challenge - A is for...

It's a special day for us over at the ABC Christmas Challenge, as we're about to embark on our fourth...yes, fourth!...trip through the alphabet! Annette is the host for this challenge, where the theme is a nice easy one...well, we want to break you into getting your Christmas cards for 2013 done nice and gently! So, it's:

'A is for - Animals'

We are sponsored for this challenge by:

Stamp Fairy

And the fabulous prize:

I've used an adorable bear digi from the Stamp Fairy on my card, called 'Patches - Christmas 2'. The glittery papers are both by My Mind's Eye, but from two different pads...'I Believe' and 'Countdown to Christmas'...I distressed the edges a little, then added faux stitching using my CutterBee Bug and a white gel pen. The snowfalkes were cut using Marianne Designs and Cuttlebug dies...and I couldn't resist adding a couple of adhesive gems in their centres for a little more sparkle.

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

• 2 Sisters - Anything Goes
• Cute Card Thursday - Something New (The image is new)
• Ready Teddy Go - Something New (The image is new)
• Stamping with the Dragon - Anything Goes

For more inspiration from my lovely DT buddies, please pop over to the ABC Christmas Challenge.

Oldie but a Goodie - Lace, Pins & Pearls

Today sees the first Oldie but a Goodie Challenge of 2013...and the theme is:

'Lace, Pins & Pearls'

Our sponsor for this challenge is:

And here's the fabulous prize:

Almost everything I've used on my card is at least a year old...with the exception of the butterfly die ('Darla Butterfly' by Memory Box') and the embossing folder ('Whimsy' by Papermania) which were Christmas presents. The papers are from the 'Hopscotch' pad by BasicGrey...I distressed the edges a little, then added some faux stitching using my CutterBee Bug and a black gel pen. I used a safety pin to attach a little heart charm to my piece of lace. The adhesive pearls are from Wild Orchid Crafts.

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

• BasicGrey  - Anything Goes
• Crafty Catz - Anything Goes
• Sketch Saturday - Sketch
• Totally Papercrafts - Something New (The embossing folder & butterfly die)

For more inspiration from my lovely DT buddies, please pop over to Oldie but a Goodie.

Black, White & Blue Christmas

A quick and simple Christmas card from me today...just a sprinkling of stamped snowflakes (the larger ones are Papermania, and the smaller ones from the 'A Bright Tomorrow' set by Penny Black) with some Papermania turquoise adhesive gems for a touch of colour, and a Hero Arts sentiment (from the 'Very Merry Christmas' set).

Challenges for this card:

• Allsorts - CAS
• Card Crafter's Circle - Snow
• Hiding in my Craftroom - Black White & One Other Colour
• Less is More - Black & White (with a little colour)
• Simply Create Too - Let it Snow!

Penny Black Saturday Challenge - January Blues

It's time for a brand new Penny Black Saturday Challenge, where this month the theme is:

'January Blues'

(We want to see blue on your cards)

We have lots of lovely prizes from our regular sponsors:

$20 voucher

I've used a stamp from a set that I got for Christmas on my card...'Social Butterflies'. I stamped it in black, then embossed it with clear powder, before colouring with watercolour pencils. The sentiment is from the same set.

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

• Crafty Creations - Anything Goes
• Flutterby Wednesday - New (The stamps are new)
• Stampavie & More - Blue & White

For more inspiration from my lovely DT buddies. and to see if you were one of last month's lucky winners, please pop over to the Penny Black Saturday Challenge.

Wildflowers in Bloom

I've used more lovely new goodies on today's card...a set of Hero Arts stamps called 'Wildflowers in Bloom', which I stamped using the watercolour technique and Distress Inks (Wild Honey, Spiced Marmalade, Festive Berries, Mowed Lawn & Forest Moss). I started by blending 'Old Paper' Distress Ink over three panels of white card, then stamped my Herp Arts 'Music Background' stamp over the top (inked in 'Old Paper', but with some of the ink removed before stamping). I inked around the edges using 'Tea Dye', then stamped the flowers over the top. I mounted them on to the card blank using 3D foam, and added a sentiment from the 'Wonderful' set by Penny Black.

Challenges for this card:

• Loves Rubber Stamps - Anything Goes
• Papertake Weekly - Anything Goes
• Simon Says Stamp & Show -Totally Mad Tea Party (Anything Goes) 
• Stampin' for the Weekend - Anything Goes

Garden Visit

I've used another Christmas present on today's card...the 'Puffy Clouds' die by Memory Box. The image stamp ('Garden Visit' by Penny Black ) and papers ('Prairie Hill' by Pink Paislee) aren't new...just neglected, as are the Prima flowers - can't remember the last time I used bought paper flower on a card! Not much else to say...I doodled a little, and stamped the sentiment (from the 'Critter Party' set by Penny Black) on to the clouds.

Challenges for this card:

• Forever Friends (Fortnightly) - Anything Goes 
• Kaboodles Doodles - Anything Goes
• Sweet Stop - Sketch
• Totally Gorjuss - New! (The cloud die is new)

ABC Christmas Challenge - Z is for...

I have another card for our current ABC Christmas Challenge today...where the theme is:

'Z is for Zoo Animals'

We have two wonderful sponsors for this challenge:

Bugaboo Stamps

The prize from Bugaboo Stamps is 7 free digis!

and

Sweet Stamps

Prize - a $10 voucher for the Sweet Stamps store

And...that's not all...our lovely DT buddy Miria is leaving us after this challenge, so we're on the hunt for some new DT playmates...so we're having a DT call on this challenge too!

So, if you think you can:

•  Make a Christmas card/project for each fortnightly challenge
• Take a turn in hosting a couple of challenges in 2013
• Comment on a couple in every 10 entries for each challenge

Then, simply play along with this challenge, and add 'DT' after your name in the linky, and you could be getting ahead for next Christmas with the most friendly DT in blogland :0) 

I've gone for penguins this time, and have used a couple of stamps from the 'Special Delivery - Penguins' set by Helz Cuppleditch...and matching paper and twine from the same collection. The snowflakes were cut using Marianne Creatables dies, and layered up with a button from my stash in the centre.

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

• Crafty Hazelnut's Christmas - Anything Goes 
• Crafty Sentiments - New (New stamps & paper)
• Cute Card Thursday - Anything Goes
• Cutie Pie - Cute Christmas
• Jingle Belles - New (New stamps & paper)
• Sketch Saturday - Sketch 
• Simon Says Stamp - Anything Goes 

For more inspiration from my lovely DT buddies, please pop over to the ABC Christmas Challenge.

Little Boxes

Happy New Year everyone...and what better way to start the New Year, than with a Christmas card?! I've used another new stamp...'Presents' background stamp by Personal Impressions...but as it took so long to colour, I thought I'd make it the main feature! The sentiment stamp is from the 'Holly-Jolly' set by Penny Black.

I stamped the image a second time, and cut out and popped up on 3D foam some of the presents in the foreground:

Challenges for this card:

• Crafty Hazelnut's Christmas - Anything Goes 
• Crafty Sentiments - New (New stamp)
• Little Red Wagon - Boxing Day (Feature a Box) 
• Simon Says Stamp - Anything Goes
• Totally Gorjuss - New! (The stamp is new)