Saturated Canary - Patches the Fairy

Wow! This heat just wont let up and hubby informs me its to stick around for a bit longer!! Crazy to think that the bottle of factor 50 we are using has lasted the past 3 summers!! Looks like i'm going to need more!

Well onto today's card. This uses a digi stamp from Saturated Canary called Patches the Fairy which i've coloured with promarkers and Lavender Stickles!

I've used a selection of lilac papers from an old Hot Off The Press paper pack and made tattered flowers with my Tim Holtz die using the Bohemian papers from Craftwork Cards - the sentiment is also from them. 

I've finished this with some mulberry paper flowers, lilac organza and lilac head pins - and more lavender glitter on the paper flowers. 

This is my entry for the Saturated Canary Challenge #47 - Celebration.
Also I'll submit it to the My Craft Creations - Anything Goes challenge and the Crafty Ribbons Challenge - Anything Goes with Ribbon.

Thanks for looking!
Mo xxx

Christmas in July!

Well, I'm totally sunburned and completely over this weather! So, I thought i'd start some Christmas cards.... well it is July and December is only round the corner! lol

I have used a 5x7 card base and pretty much all the rest are Craftwork Cards products - the Glitter Candy Cane pad, die cut flowers, sentiment and banner and of course some Candi! 

I've used a sketch from the Crafts Galore Facebook page Saturday challenge below and entered this into a few other Christmas in July type Challenges.

I've made loads of these 3D paper flowers so I think i'll get a few cards done this weekend to save for December!

Crafts Galore Facebook Group Saturday Sketch challenge -
 

Simply Create Too - Christmas in July
Paper Crafting Journey - Christmas in July
My Craft Creations - Anything Goes

Thanks for looking!
Mo xxx

Simply Betty Stamps Birthday Challenges!

Today I apologise but I have loads of photos to show you! 

Simply Betty Stamps are having a month long birthday celebration and have posted several challenges which I plan on entering today right at the end of the month before they finish! So, each card I've made, has a SBS digi stamp on it, coloured mainly with promarkers with lots of added extras depending on the theme of the challenge.

June 16th Challenge - a Smart @rse Card! Something sassy, nothing sweet! I have used Emo Lola and although she seems sweet with her 'have a nice day...' she makes it sassy with a 'somewhere else!' I've used papers from the DCWV Rockstar Matt Stack, ribbon, paper roses, card candi and bling. 

June 8th - Something for Love or out of this world. I've gone with Emo Lola again in blacks and reds with mulberry paper, more flowers and ribbon and roses, and Valentine sentiment on top of heart embossed black card.

June 9th - Glitz up your grunge. I've used the Lavinia Framed digi with pearlescent paints and added lavender and platinum stickles to the girl. There's lilac diamantes around the frame, star dust stickles around the bottom of the frame and on the mulberry paper roses. Some lilac lace and feathers and some free damask papers from Pixel Scrapper which have been distressed around the edges and inked with Dusky Concord distress inks.

June 15th - Rock n Roll. - This is Emo Lola again with more of the DCWV Rockstar papers, a printed sentiment and EK Success punched border. I've kept this simple with just some black and purple liquid pearl accents.

June 18th - Anything Goes with any Emo. This is a tag I've made with EmoLola. I've coloured her with purple hair and a red and black emo/goth outfit. So, the tag is purple, red and black with black soot distress ink around the edges. This is finished with some bling and rolled roses with star dust stickles.

June 20th - Favourite Technique. Well, here is Belladonna on a wall hanging with rolled roses! As you will have noticed from the other creations on this page I love making rolled paper roses! They are so simple and effective and I love that I can have them to match anything that I make by using the same papers. I use a Marianne Creatables Chinese Rose die to curl spirals and then roll with my pokey tool using Cosmic Shimmer Acrylic glue to keep them from unrolling. Here I've adhered them to a wall hanging - another of my favourite things just now!

Well, that's a lot from me today, might go back to bed now!!!
Thanks for looking
Mo xxx

Teacher thank you cards!

Well, its the summer holidays yet again! My oldest left primary school behind yesterday and moves to High School after the summer and my daughter will be going into primary 4. My next son will be starting nursery after the summer too so it's all change!

I made a couple of quick cards on Wednesday night that they took to their teachers on the last day yesterday. Here goes -

This first one is for Sariah's teacher and uses the papers and candi from the June Craftwork Cards goodybox with a candi flower! You can see more of my candi flowers on the Craftwork Cards Blog today with Marie Chillmaid, pop over and leave some love!

This next card is for Dan's teacher, who is a male, and uses the Kaier Technologique Papers with a Thank You stamped on the tag. Some card candi finishes this too.

I am entering the pink card into the Simon Says Stamps Challenge - Anything Goes.

Mo xxx

Crafts Galore Facebook Page!

Just a quick stop in from me tonight to mention a fabulous group on Facebook who recently changed their name from Cards Galore... to Crafts Galore!

This is a crafty wee group with lots to see and a brand new Design Team bringing you challenges, questions, quizes and inspiration. Wednesday is the Quickie Challenge: you have 24 hours to make a project in 30 minutes or less - yesterday the additional brief was to include a 'tree or trees'.

I got my thinking cap on and then i must have taken it off as I forgot all about the challenge! My baby decided that he was getting up at 6.45am this morning and so by 7.15 I was at my desk and a 'tree' card was ready in about 25 minutes.

Here it is! I went with a Christmas Tree. I've used the Craftwork Cards candi tree stamp and the Glitter Candy Cane paper pack from last year with red card for matting and a matching sentiment. Some polka dot ribbon and platinum glitter on the tree complete the card.

A couple of hours later, the winner was announced and it was me! Thanks so much to Crafts Galore! Come and join us for tomorrow's challenge! Tell them Maureen sent you!

In hopes of more good luck, I am entering this card in the Simon Say's Stamp Challenge (anything goes).
Mo xxx

Craftwork Cards June Goodybox has arrived!

I got the most decadent box of goodies in the post a few days ago! I had signed up for the 6 month deal on Goodyboxes from Craftwork Cards and the first did not disappoint! 8x8 papers, sentiments, flowers, ribbon, banners and candi in gorgeous pink, black and white with silver foiling. So here are the first two cards I've made with the kit!

This first card uses the black and silver heart paper with white foiled flowers which are also from Craftwork Cards. I've added the black candi from the kit to the side of the card and crushed some for the centre of the flower. The black and silver sentiment is from a previous kit.

This second card uses the same black and silver paper with a pink damask banner, pink candi and white sentiment from the kit. Some of the fabulous die cut flowers from the goodybox have been shaped and layered with some Star Dust Stickles.

I am entering the black, silver and white card into the following challenges:

Simon Says Stamp Challenge: Anything Goes
Through the Craftroom Door: Always anything goes
Party Time Tuesdays: Anything goes

thanks for looking!
Mo xxx

A Baptism Card

My daughter's friend Stacey, turned 8 this week - her card lent itself beautifully to the Dilly Beans Challenge this week and is a few posts below here. Her eighth birthday also meant another milestone for Stacey. Her family are members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints - you might know them more commonly as 'Mormons' - and when a child in The Church turns 8, they can choose whether or not to be Baptised and Stacey made the decision to step into the water and take on the covenants that go along with becoming a member of The Church - there's a couple of links above if you're intrigued by this!!

I knew I had to make her another card! I started with a vision - Stacey and her father who would perform the baptism would both be wearing white and I really wanted to do an all white card.... with flowers on! 

I dug out some Safmat to print a sentiment and my XCut Posey dies to make the flowers, Marianne Creatables Chinese Rose to make the rolled roses and a Cuttlebug swirly embossing folder for the background.

I added some sticky gems to the flower centres and tiny heart gems within some of the swirls from the embossing folder. There's some Star Dust Stickles on the rolled roses. And some blingy flourishes to finish.

I am entering this card into the current challenge over at My Craft Creations entitled 'Special Occasions'.

Mo xxx

Dilly Beans Challenge - Citrus Colours!

Just a quick post for me this morning - I'm heading out to Yorkhill Hospital to do 4 hours of Zumba in the rain to raise funds for Radio Lolipop - It would be great if you could sponsor me and you can do that here!

Now, i will share with you a card I made for my daughter's friend's birthday it also ties in very nicely with this week's Dilly Beans Challenge! 

I have used several free papers from a new set over at Pixel Scrappers called Challenged. They are funky bright plain and patterned sheets and really fit the citrus colour palatte. I've kept it simple with matting and layering, some yellow organza and a large flower. I've rediscovered a love for Safmat recently and used this to print the sentiment.

Here's a close up of my ladybird image - its coloured with promarkers and some Fruit Punch stickles on the wings. I dont have a lot of bright coloured markers so the yellow and green aren't as bright as i'd have liked but overall i'm quite happy with it.

Thanks for looking
Mo xxx

Happy Father's Day

Happy Father's Day to all the men out there, be they father's, grandfather's, or father's to be! Have a great day being spoiled!
My hubby and father to our 4 kids has already had it! He spent last Sunday at the Mountain Biking World Cup at Fort William and so that was his pressie - i'll make a roast dinner but that'll have to do it!

This is a card i've made for my dad, hopefully he got it in the post yesterday!

I have used the June Freebie Printable from Tsunami Rose Designs which you get free with any purchase over $5 in the store this month. The file is a tag set with envelope I've used them all on the front of a A5 card. I've teamed them up with Authentique papers that I got from Craftwork Cards earlier in the year and brown spotty candi.

I've added black stickles around the envelope, star dust stickles around the 'man' tag and glossy accents on the tie. I printed 'Happy Father's Day' on Safmat for the front of the card and 'DAD' on the tag that is removable.

And then i popped it in the post.

I am entering this card into the following challenges -
Crafting By Design - Anything Goes Father's Day
Crafting for all Seasons - one for the guys
The Sisterhood of Crafters - All about the boys
Top Tip Tuesday - Masculine
Tuesday Throwdown - You're the man


thanks for looking!
Mo xxx

Dilly Beans Summertime Challenge

Today I'm going to show you my second ever 'Dilly Beans' card. Last week I made a black and white 8x8" card and showed it on the blog entering it into the Dilly Beans Challenge.... Well, I won!!! I got the first place and am loving my wee prize - thank you Dilly Beans!

This week's challenge is entitled Summertime and can be found here.

For this challenge, I have used Dilly Beans image #444 Desi Framed and coloured her with promarkers. I have gone with browns and lilacs to match the flowery, summery paper that I decided to use.

My paper is a Dolly Mixtures pad from Craftwork Cards and I've used a frame and sentiments from them too. I used my x-cut posey flower die to cut layered flowers from some of the papers and used die cut banners as tags on the side of the image.

Here's a close up of my colouring - I feel like after a week or so of playing about with the pens i'm definately getting better, working out how to blend and which colours work together... I still have a limited palatte but working on that!!!

I am entering this card into the following challenges -
Dilly Beans - Summertime
Through the Craftroom Door - anything goes
Created with Love Challenges - anything goes.
Left of Center - 2 or more designer papers. 

Thanks for looking!
Mo xxx

Dilly Beans Black and White Challenge

Hi!! Thanks so much to everyone who joined me for the Skull Appreciation Day Blog Hop on Tuesday this week! Thank you for all the wonderful comments, I'm thrilled that you all liked my projects! It was a wonderful hop, chock full of inspiration - fabulous day!! 

This is just a quick post with a challenge entry for the Dilly Beans Challenge Blog. This week's theme is 'Black and White' and they have changed their rules slightly in that you have to use a Dilly Beans image on your entry.... so of course, I popped over to Megans Dilly Beans shop blog and bought a few to play with!!!

This has been coloured using the cool greys and black Promarkers with a hint of vanilla on her face. The embossed frame and B&W papers are from Craftwork Cards Black Magic Goodie Box and I've added some pearlescent black and white papers for matting. 

My trusty Marianne Creatables Chinese Rose die was used for the flowers, a double ribbon and some crystal head pins finish the card.

I'm still fairly new to 'proper' colouring and I think with a good bit of practice I'll become far more confident and competant at this. No doubt many of my upcoming projects will be coloured digis!!! I do have another couple of Dilly Beans to show you too!!


Thanks for looking today. Remember to join me on Friday for the launch of the brand new PunkYouGirl Challenge Blog!!!! I'll be showing you my project here on Friday morning and you can find more inspiration and challenge details on the blog at the same time!

Mo xxx

BellaDonna by Simply Betty Stamps

A little aside before I show you today's card - I was featured on the Craftwork Cards blog yesterday! Tina Boyden from their Design Team features makes by CWC fans every Thursday and I was lucky enough to have a few projects on there this week. You may have seen them on my blog already but please pop over and leave some love on the CWC blog! Thanks! Mo xxx

Here is my first card using a Simply Betty digi Stamp! The young girl in this design is called Belladonna and my daughter thinks she looks like a pop star! I tend to think she's a bit emo with a good measure of teenage angst thrown in too!


I've used free papers from Pixel Scrapper - check out the link down the side of my blog for some fabulous free papers, digi kits, photoshop bits and peices too! These are from the Purple basics kit which I got as my free download for signing up to the site!!

Base card is purple A4 cut down to approx 6x6" square and basic black card for matting and layering. I've used my favourite purple star card candi from Craftwork Cards and my EK Success Starry Night corner punch. With my digi stamp, I have coloured her with Watercolour pencils and used a water brush to even out the colour. I've added stickles in purple, midnight blue and fruit punch for effect.

The sentiment here links the card up to this month's challenge over at The House of Bears! They are having a  literary based challenge using quotes from Little Women. I chose the quote 'Dont try to make me grow up before my time...' I felt it fit quite well with this rebel girl digi! I'd also like to enter the card into the My Craft Creation challenge which is Spots and Stripes.

 

The last bit i'd like to show you on the card is the bling!!! This was a bargain find yesterday. I was in Glasgow looking for shoes and ended up in Poundland on Sauchiehall Street to get some things to keep my toddlers occupied and I found strips of 'Body Gems'!!! For £1 i got a strip which contained 10 of the same swirls and I've used one here. Of course, buying only one wasn't an option - i've bought two in black and two in clear crystal so as you can imagine these will be all over the next pile of cards I make!!
There is the option of cutting the strips into individual peices or indeed keeping as a full strip perhaps down the edge of a scrapbook page or larger card.

I'm entering this card into the following challenges.
The House of Bears - Little Women quotes for inspiration
My Craft Creation - Spots and/or stripes
Through The Craftroom Door - Anything Goes
Make it Monday - Always Anything Goes


I hope you've enjoyed today's offering.
I am happy to report that I will be attending a craft fair tomorrow in Edinburgh and I hope to find lots of new bits to share with you next week!
Thanks for visiting! Would love it if you left me a comment!
thanks
Mo xxx

Black, White and Purple Sparkly Mother's Day Card!

Well, I have been so inspired by the printable ephemera and beautiful papers from Tsunami Rose Designs, that I have made another Mother's Day Card to submit as my entry for the current Wednesday Challenge over at the Tsunami Rose Blog. This week is Challenge #18 - Mother's Day and you will see the DT projects that I've already made for the challenge there as well as here on my blog too.

Today's card is sticking with a theme! I loved the black and purple card that I created as part of the DT and have vowed to make more with these colours - given that they are my favourites and very under used!

The card also uses stash from one of my other favourite craft suppliers - Craftwork Cards. I have used black and white chevron print paper from their new Black Magic GoodyBox and Card Candi in colourway 'Saville Row'.

I used the chevron paper with the Marianne Creatables Chinese Rose die to make the paper roses in the bottom left corner and added Star Dust stickles on the flower and tag and lavender stickles around the sentiment. The purple patterned ribbon was in the bottom of my ribbon box!

I've been having a look at all the new blog challenges out there for the start of May and would like to enter my card into a few of them as well as the Tsunami Rose Wednesday Challenge.

Creative Corner Challenges #17 - Flowers and/or Mother's Day

Desert Island Crafter's Challenge - May 1st Itinerary using 3 (Roses), 7 (Glitter it), 8 (B&W +Purple)

Our Creative Corner - Anything Goes

Fussy and Fancy Friday Challenge - #88 Anything Goes

 Coffee, Chocolate and Cards - #38 Mother's Day

Bunny Zoe's Crafts - April - Favourite Colour Combo

Paper Crafting Journey - Anything Goes

The Crafter's Cafe Challenge Blog - #16 Mother's or for a female

Die Cuttin Divas - #113 Anything Goes

I hope you all enjoyed my card and hope you have a great weekend!

Mo xxx

Tsunami Rose Designs Challenge #15 - Sketch Challenge

I have been so ill! I honestly cant remember the last time I felt this bad but the show must go on and here is my second DT Project for Tsunami Rose Designs! This week's challenge is a Sketch Challenge based on this sketch and using the Tsunami Rose 'Ephemeral Love Affair' paper pack available here.

I managed to finally get hold of a set of Tim Holtz Tattered Florals Sizzix Alterations dies and decided to try them out for this challenge using them on the beautiful pink distressed damask paper from this pack. I cut some hessian/burlap too and layered up the flower with a gem in the centre and a scalloped circle underneath.

It might be hard to believe, but in all my stash, I could not find a single butterfly!!! So, a smaller tattered flower was adhered at the bottom of the card too instead. I have stamped a sentiment directly onto the paper.

And to finish, some antique distressed seam binding ribbon in a double bow at the top. I ran some vintage photo distress ink round the edges of the flower layers just to give some added dimension as well. 

Well, here's hoping I will be back to normal soon, I have so much to do including wedding invitations for my friend's impending nuptials - I really ought to get them done or that might be a very quiet day!

Why not join us for this week's Wednesday Challenge - there's no need to use Tsunami Rose Designs but we love to see what you do with them!

Mo xxx

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Tsunami Rose Designs Challenge #12 - Colour Inspiration

You will (hopefully!) know by now, that I have made it onto the Tsunami Rose Designs DT from April and I am super excited about this! I cant wait to sign up for the DT projects and get working! In the meantime I figured I would work on building my stash of Tsunami Rose products and I thought that I would enter the remaining challenges in March.... the prizes if I'm lucky enough include sets of Tsunami Rose Journal kits and credit to spend on printables from the Tsunami Rose shop.

Please hop on over to the Tsunami Rose Blog and join in this week's Colour Challenge - have a look at the fabulous inspiration from the design team this week - the creations are stunning!!! Cards and albums and even an Ice Cream Sundae!! This month we are promoting the 'Life Abloom' Printable Journal Kit which you can find here!

So, I dont have a lot of TRD papers at the moment - luckily for me, the challenge does NOT require the use of Tsunami Rose products - anything goes as long as you stay within the other criteria for the challenge.

I have looked at the DT inspiration several times in the last few days and given that it is a 'Colour Inspiration' challenge, I have decided to work with the pinks and florals that appear in the 'Life Abloom' kit and the DT samples. I've covered my card with pearlescent pink paper and inked the edges in 'Worn Lipstick' distress ink.

The products i've used to create my card for this challenge are mainly from Craftwork Cards - a Birdhouse shaped card blank, paper flowers from the Flower Fusion Pad, 'Princess' Card Candi, also some Star Dust Stickles and a length of lace ribbon tinted with 'Worn Lipstick' distress ink.

Here's a close up of the flowers - i've used candi coated in stickles for the centres and stickles on each of the candi along the edges of the card. 

My sentiment was printed on Safmat and hasn't quite come out the way i wanted - its more noticeable than I would have liked especially on the white centre - however, i'm working with a new printer and i think this will just take some practice to get it right!

I'm taking this to my friend's house tonight with a bottle of something sparkling and a big bag of crisps - should be a good night... the snow is getting heavier though... this might not be a great idea!

Mo xxx

Craftwork Cards Sweet Pea and Mojo Monday 281

Oh its a chilly wee day here - sun hasn't been out for more than a few minutes at a time and i've had the fire on in the living room for a wee blast of heat! Crafting with cold fingers is no fun at all!

I'll start todays post with my entry for this week's Mojo Monday Card Challenge. I dug out my Craftwork Cards Sweet Pea Sweetheart Buds Collection and thought i'd play around with those papers for some of this week's challenge cards.

So I was very literal in my interpretation of the Mojo Monday Sketch #281 even down to using a flower where they showed a flower! But you know by now I love my paper flowers! A wee bit of glitter on the petals to add a sparkle and a sentiment on there too.

I then moved onto a Circle card - now this was supposed to be my entry for the CAS on Sunday challenge from yesterday's blog, however, when i was finished, i really didn't think it was suitable for a 'Clean and Simple' challenge - too busy looking! Lots of patterned papers, paper flowet and sentiment. 

I had found my We R Memory Keepers Circle Cutter to make the base cards and cut the circles for the Mojo Monday card and was on a roll - more circles on this one!

 

This next card was just a quick simple make with some of the leftovers on a 6X6 card and i tried to use the frames a bit differently - rather than just framing the sentiment, i've tried to make them more of an embellishment here.

 

This final card used the scraps from where i had cut out the circles!  I cut them in line according to the pattern, lined them up in length order and trimmed the edges at an angle. A sentiment and some Start Dust Stickles complete the card.

Well, i've just received a box of stuff from Craftwork Cards - some sale items and a few bits and bobs - so i'm off to have a play with them! Hopefully have something new to show you in a day or two.... one or two things i've not tried before so quite excited! See you soon!

Mo xxx

Sarah Hurley Blog Hop Prize and CAS on Sunday #2

I won another prize! Sarah Hurley, illustrator and designer, hosted a blog hop recently in honour of the launch of her new website - sarahhurleydesigns.co.uk

On the hop, i decided that my favourite item in Sarah's online shop was her set of 3 hand drawn Rose digi stamps. As my prize, she very kindly sent me these stamps! Thank you so much Sarah - the roses are gorgeous! They can be found here!

I have never ever used a digi stamp! I rarely use rubber stamps! But i'm getting into this and loving it! I bought some Pro-markers and printed the bigger of the roses and set about colouring it just with what i had available.

I have used this stamp on this weeks CAS on Sunday blog Challenge.

The Challenge this week was called 'Making the Rounds' with theonly instruction being, make a round card - in a clean and simple manner of course!

I glued the image to a base card, added a red organza ribbon and stamped 'I love you.' with my Tuxedo black Momento pad. Very simple, stylish, and very much a first for me.

I'm happy with the results, I feel on reflection that I could have used a different colour base card - perhaps red or black. I think maybe not having the flower in the centre would have given more scope for other embellishments around the edges or perhaps down one side/along the bottom.....
So many ideas for the next one!

Mo xxx