Anniversaries

Good morning everybody

At  Anything Goes  this week we are celebrating Anniversaries.    Of courses there are of lots of anniversaries that can be used this time around and I suspect a lot of people will be celebrating the Diamond Jubilee.   I have decided to use a cut little Sarah Kay image for my card which I only used a short while ago, but I wanted a vintage feel to this card, and they just seemed to be right for it.

My image is coloured with Promarkers.  The colours all come from the beautiful Maja Designs Vintage Summertime papers.  They are so pretty - I just adore them.  I have distressed the edges and wiped distress ink around.  The die is Cheery Lynn - don't you just love the intricacy of them - but all the bits from the dies on the floor are not such fun - good job the vacuum has good suction!  Leaves are cut with Magnolia dies, and the hearts are Whimsy,  I have tied the two hearts together with a piece of lace.  Other embellishments are pearls and flowers from the Hobby House.

I am entering this into the following challenges:

Bunny Zoe - Anything Goes
Crafty Cardmarkers - Distress It
Hook on Crafts - All that glitters
Oh La La Creations - Make It Girly
The Cytie Pie Challenge - Die Cuts and punches
Stamp with Fun - Recipe - Lace, Flowers and 3 papers
The Squirrel and the Fox - Best Friends 


I really appreciate it that you take the time to look at my blog and leave such lovely comments. Thank you each and every one of you. Hugs,

Floral in Pink, Green and White

Sadly it is the last week of our Floral theme for the month of May at  Make My Monday.
There are some fabulous cards on the challenge blog so please do pop across to be inspired.

I have used a digi image for this card and coloured with Promarkers in various shades of pink.  The background paper has been put through an embossing folder, and the green border at the bottom is cut with a Martha Stewart border punch.  I have added lace and pearls to soften the card a bit as I felt it was looking a little too vibrant.  I am not sure where the sentiment is from - I see words that I think might suit and just collect them on a document stored on my computer for future use.

These are the colours and images the team have been guided by:

I am entering this card in the following challenges:

Corrosive Challenge - Not too Shabby
Great Impressions - Anything Goes
Senitmental Sundays - Pocket full of posies
Colour Me Creative - Pinks and Greens
Cute Card Thursday - Pink and Green

I really appreciate it that you take the time to look at my blog and leave such lovely comments. Thank you each and every one of you. Hugs,

Wild grasses and flowers

Good morning

Our Floral theme continues at  Make My Monday,  and this week we want to see Wild Grasses and Flowers.

I had several goes at this with various inks and did not like the effect, so this is my final version, with a background using PanPastels.  I do love working with this - the colours are so soft and pretty.  I tried to get the idea of the sun setting, but did not want the work to be too dark.

The grasses are all stamped in Versafine Ink, and are a mixture of stamps - Tim Holtz, Hero Arts, Lavinia Stamps, and the birds and butterfly from Tim Holtz Visual Artistry series, which I find useful when wanting the small stamps in his range, but smaller.  I have edged around the whole thing with black Promarker rather than use a black card.

The card base has been coloured with Pan Pastels as well, and then grasses have been stamped in Distress Inks around the edge.

Please do pop across to the challenge there are some beautiful pieces of work from the team to delight and inspire you.

I am entering this into the following challenges:

Pan Pastels - pastel colours
Craft a Scene - Spring flowers - thistles and cow parsley are spring flowers!
One Stitch at a Time - Anything Goes
Stamptacular Sunday - In the Garden
Hybrid Chick - Flowers
Stamp, Scrap and Doodle - Flowers
Card Makin' Mamas - May Flowers



I really appreciate it that you take the time to look at my blog and leave such lovely comments. Thank you each and every one of you. Hugs,

A wonderful day .... for a Spring Wedding

Good morning everybody

Well, this time last week I was getting ready for a spring wedding, and our theme at the One Stop Craft Challenge this week is Spring Wedding or Wedding Anniversary.  The wedding I was going to was that of the daughter of my closest friend, who I have known for nearly 40 years.  The weather was brilliant, and everybody was able to enjoy the fabulous grounds of the manor house where the wedding was held.

I decided to use my card to Lucy and David as my DT piece for this challenge.

This is an 8 x 8 card, the purply base was matched up with 29th Market Street paper which I have had forever.  The main images are from the Kanban Jasper set, and I adore them, and use them a lot.  They are coloured with Promarkers.  The side heart border is a Martha Stewart punch, and the corner is a Marianne die.  I have embellished with pearls and a toning silk Prima flower.

The inside of the card is decorated to tone with the outside.  Corners are Marianne dies.  The sentiment panel has some words from John Lennon, which I think really suit the occasion.  It is cut with a memory box die.  The bottom heart panel is only stuck along the bottom edge in order that a gift voucher can be put inside the card.

The box is covered with toning paper and embellished with a silk flower and butterfly, and then the edge was wrapped round with a ribbon to close the box.

And here are a couple of photos from the wedding.

I am entering this into the following challenges:

Colour me Creative - Anything Goes (use Copics or Promarkers)
Di's Digi Designs - Show us that bling
Sugar Creek Hollow - Pearls and Swirls
Crafty Catz - Girly Time
Hotshot Crafts - Die Cuts
Inspire Me Fridays - Always Anything Goes 
Polka Doodles - A wedding card with a difference (something old - background paper I have had forever, something new - the corner die inn the card front - something borrowed - some pearls as I did not have any small ones, something blue - the handwriting on the sentiment! I hope it counts)
DRS Designs - Wedding or Anniversary
Pixie Dust Studio - Steampunk - well the clothes are .....
I love Promarkers - Anything Goes
Whimsy Inspiration - Anything Goes
Mariannes design Diva - Spread your wings - my butterfly is on the box
My Sheri Crafts - Wedding/Anniversary


We are sponsored by the fabulous Lili of the Valley this week, and there is a £10.00 gift voucher for the winner.

I really appreciate it that you take the time to look at my blog and leave such lovely comments. Thank you each and every one of you. Hugs,

Black with one other colour

Hi everybody

At  Anything Goes  this week we have a colour combo challenge - Black with one other  Colour.  How easy is that - well it should be but getting the colours to look right is sometimes not so easy.

I have used a Sarah Kay image, which was stamped on to a Cheery Lynne die cut, and coloured in Promarkers.  The background paper has been embossed with a M-Bossibilities folder and I have various black and black/white papers behind it.  I have added two lacy bands across the middle done with a punch.  Leaves are die cut, and flowers from stash.

There are some fabulous pieces on work on the challenge blog so please do pop across there, and remember you can get lots of crafting goodies from the Craft Den.

I am entering this in the following challenges:


Crafty Ribbons -  Flowers
For Fun Challenges  - My Favourite Girl
Great Impressions - Anything Goes

Just Keep On Creating  - Anything Goes

Jellypark Challenges  - Girly

Lexi's Creations  - Black White + one other colour

Papercrafting Journey - Black and one other colour

Sweet and Sassy - Feminine

2 Sisters  - Make it Girly

I really appreciate it that you take the time to look at my blog and leave such lovely comments. Thank you each and every one of you. Hugs,

Flowers and Music

Good morning everybody

We are continuing our Floral theme at  Make My Monday,  and this week we want entries to incorporate music with flowers.

For this card I have embossed music in gold on to pink textured card.  The floral image has been coloured with Promarkers and then cut out with a die (it is from a Hero Arts set which comes with a die - fab if you are not very good at cutting out).  The white card has been embossed and mounted on some slightly darker pink card, which I have edged with a metallic gold pen.  Sentiment is Stamping up and cut out with punches.

I am entering this into the following challenges:

Stampavie and more - monochrome
Polka Doodles - monochromatic shades
Do you Stack Up - use a flower
Bunny Zoe - anything goes
Tammy's Scrappin' Corner - Show us your flowers
Amusing Challenge - Flowers
Opus Gluei - Beyond the Garden Gate
Sweet Stampin - Flower Power



I really appreciate it that you take the time to look at my blog and leave such lovely comments. Thank you each and every one of you. Hugs,

May is a month for flowers at Make My Monday

Good morning everybody

I hope you are all enjoying your long weekend.  At  Make My Monday  we are having a 'Floral' time, so every challenge during the month will be with this in mind.  So today we want to see Lily of the Valley, or any flower coloured white.

Please do pop across to the challenge, there are some beautiful examples of work for inspiration.

For my card I chose a beautiful poppy image from Hero Arts, having discarded several other stamps because they had too much detail on them and would have been very dark, and I have no white embossing powder.  I have coloured with Promarkers very lightly in Vanilla,  Ice Grey, and Ivory, and used several shades of Green on the stems.  The base card is TH Distress Card and the striped paper is from Pion.  Ribbon is from stash.

I am entering this for the following challenges:

Addicted to stamps - a Mothers Day card/card for a lady
Dream Valley Challenge - For a special lady
Great Impressions - Anything Goes
Opus Gluei - Beyond the garden gate
Paper Sundaes - Mother's Day
Scrappers Delights paper crafts - May flowers
Hybrid Digi Chick - Inspired by Nature
Paper Players - Mothers  Day/Special lady
The Squirrel and the Fox - One for the Girls
By the Cute and Girly - Spring is in the air
I Brake for Challenges - Floral
Joanna Sheen - Flower Power

I really appreciate it that you take the time to look at my blog and leave such lovely comments. Thank you each and every one of you. Hugs,

Show us your bling ...

Good morning everybody

At  Let's Ink It Up  this month we want to see your bling.

I seem to be in wedding mode at the moment - maybe it is because I am away next weekend to a wedding - the daughter of my closest friend - we have known each other for nearly 40 years, and I feel privileged to have her as a friend.  This is not going to be for her daughter though - I have something else in mind for that.

For this card I have used a Sarah Kay image which I have coloured with Promarkers.  This is one of a batch I coloured while I was on holiday - a couple of days the weather was pretty dire, so I was glad of some stamps and pens and coloured up quite a few images.  My background papers are from the Basic Grey Plumeria pad.  I have run one piece through an embossing folder with hearts.  The arch shape was cut with a Go Kreate die, and the image is edged with pearls.  Leaves are cut with Doo Hickey dies, and flowers are from stash.

Whimsy Stamps are sponsoring the challenge this month, and the prize is a $15.oo gift voucher to spend on at their store.

I am entering this card for the following challenges:

Craft us Crazy - Favourite Stamp Company

Crop Stop - Emboss It - I have a panel of dry embossing

Southern Girls - Get your girly on

Crafts and Me - Favourite colour combo

Little Darlings - Flowers

Waste not Wednesday - Use forgotten stuff - Embossing folder, die cut shape - have not used since I bought it

Deep Ocean Challenge - Die Cuts - leaves and arch shape

Crafty Mess - Pink and Cute 

I really appreciate it that you take the time to look at my blog and leave such lovely comments. Thank you each and every one of you. Hugs,

Celebrations at OSCC

Hi everybody

A second post from me today.  At the  One Stop Craft Challenge  we have a theme of Celebrations, which lives a very wide scope for what you do.

I have decided to use this sweet stamp from Sarah Kay as my card.  Who know what these two cuties are celebrating!

I have coloured with Promarkers and edged the image with DI in antique linen and then stamped the swirl around it in the same colour.  The Papers are from Echo Park Victoria Garden, the first time I have used them, and there are lots of pretty spring and summery colours.  The dies used are  Spellbinders, a Memory Die, and Doo Hickey.  Flowers, lace and gems are from stash.  The sentiment is SU.

We have two fabulous sponsors this week

with digi images as the prize

who is offering this fabulous stamp set

I am entering this into the following challenges.

2 Sister challenge - Anything Goes
Catch the Bug - Anything Goes
Colour Me Creative - Celebrations 
Di's Digi Designs - Spring
Drunken Stampers - It's not easy being green
Card Crafters Curcle - Mum's the word
LolliPop Crafts - Anything Goes
The Pink Elephant - Spring
Crazy Amico - Flowers
Simon Says Stamp - Birthday
Victorine Originals - Flowers
Emergency Crafters - Bold and Bright
Passion for Promarkers - Light and Bright


I really appreciate it that you take the time to look at my blog and leave such lovely comments. Thank you each and every one of you. Hugs,

I'm back ...

Hi everybody

It is an age since I posted, but I have had computer problems.  I bought a new computer and had arranged for all my files to be transferred from the old one.  However, it did not go as planned.  So as I was also going away for 10 days, Apple had it to sort it out.  Now I am up and running again, and just trying to use a completely different system.  I must say that I do like a lot of the features available on it, and have been having a play with some of my photographs.

This was going to be my DT card for Make My Monday a couple of weeks ago, but lack of a computer meant it did not happen, so here it is.  The image is a favourite of mine from Crafty Individuals, which I stamped onto a DI background and then coloured with pencils.

I really appreciate it that you take the time to look at my blog and leave such lovely comments. Thank you each and every one of you. Hugs,

Tick Tock Goes the Clock - Time or Steampunk

We have a fabulous new challenge for you at Anything Goes this week - Tick Tock Goes the Clock - Time or Steampunk.

I guess my card is a composition of both, but please do pop along to the challenge - there as some fabulous DT pieces for inspiration.

I have used two images from a Kanban set of stamps for focus, which I coloured in Copics/Promarkers, and then cut out.  With my wonky fingers I was not sure I would be able to cut it out, but they are not too bad.  I added a clock with some beads onthe bottom, a key, and a flower made out of the same paper as the background, with a brad through it.  The background paper is from Fabscraps, and I used a template with clocks on it, and inked through in distress ink.  The brown card has been through an clocks embossing folder.

I really appreciate it that you take the time to look at my blog and leave such lovely comments. Thank you each and every one of you. Hugs,

A very belated DT post for Make My Monday - Sports or Hobbies

Hi everybody

I cannot believe that chaning computers is so difficult.  I became the very proud owner of an iMac and last week it went in to have all the content of my old computer transferred.  The email was not done, and everything is scrambled, so tomorrow hopefully they are sorting it once and for all.  So I had been carrying on using my old PC, and then lost my internet connection - just what I wanted to happen.  So I am finally back up.

At  Make My Monday  we are continuing our theme of Men and Boys chosen by Caz.  This week the subject is Sport or Hobbies  I decided to  base my card around music - in particular jazz and the 20's.  My youngest son is a talented double bass player, among other things he does, and plays with a number of groups around when he lives.


Please do pop across to the challenge - there are some fabulous pieces of work for inspiration.

The background and other papers are from Graphic 45 Curtain Call, as are the stamps.  I used a variety of distress inks to age them.  The piano keys stamp is from Clarity.

I am entering this for the following challenges: 

Use It Tuesdays - Anything Goes - all my stuff is from hoarded stash bought last year and not touched
Deep Ocean Challenge - Inspired by a Song - St Louis Blues


I really appreciate it that you take the time to look at my blog and leave such lovely comments. Thank you each and every one of you. Hugs,

Vintage for MMM

Good morning

At   Make My Monday  we are continuing our theme of Men and Boys, which has been chosen by Caz.  This week we want to see Vintage creations for your entries, so lots of scope for this.  Please do pop across to the challenge, there are some amazing pieces of work for inspiration.

My entry is quite a simple one.  I have taken a piece of dusky pink card and overstamped with script down the middle.  I embossed some clocks on to brown card and then sanded it to get the images showing through and tore it in half.  My main image is a Dark Room Door image of a pub stamped on to card coloured with distress inks, and the words came from another Dark Room Door stamp plate.  I peated some toning ribbon across the bottom.

We are very fortunate to be sponsored by the fabulous Marianne Designs, who have provided an amazing bundle of goodies as a prize.

I really appreciate it that you take the time to look at my blog and leave such lovely comments. Thank you each and every one of you. Hugs,

Pretty Pastels

Good morning everybody

I hope you are having a good Easter break, and just remember - don't eat too much chocolate.  I was looking at the divine Easter Eggs the other day in a shop and was so tempted - but restrained myself - just can't do it at the moment!

Anyway, on to the One Stop Craft Challenge.  Our theme this week is Pastels with Die Cuts, and there are some fabulous pieces of work from the design team, so please pop across.  We were very lucky this week to be given some images from the lovely Heather Ellis to play with.

Our inspiration was this photograph, which has some of my favourite colour roses in it, so right up my street.

I have coloured with a mixture of Copics and Promarkers, and the image has distress ink sponged around the edge.  The papers were from a freebie pack, and other cardstock from stash.  I have embellished with a Memory Box corner, pearls and some flowers from stash.

I am entering this into the following challenges:

Catch the Bug - April Anything Goes
Sweet Stampin' - Dies and Doodles
Card Making Mamas - Easter
Raise the Bar - Easter
Sweet 'n' Sassy - Easter and a Digi


I really appreciate it that you take the time to look at my blog and leave such lovely comments. Thank you each and every one of you. Hugs,