First and Last or Greatest

This is a trip down memory lane encouraged by Crafty Cardmakers.
Well most of you know I haven't been crafting long. In fact tomorrow marks the 1st anniversary of when I ordered my first kit. Yes, I started with "Create and Craft" on the TV here in Britain. I watched them all before even getting my first bit of double sided tape. I only ever made 2 cards up out of that kit and didn't think to photograph before giving them away. This is the first card I made "all by myself" and is the first blog post back in March of this year.


Black/gold cardstock, an image lifted from google which I coloured in using ordinary felt tips then decoupaged and surrounded by border punched paper and some corner peeloffs all on black CS.

I didn't own a single stamp digi or rubber. Then.

Now my latest, though maybe not my "greatest". One I finished only this morning for my daughter's birthday today.

I have learnt how to colour better. Helps having something like promarkers instead of kids felt tips.

Crafty Cardmakers challenge #36 are allowing 3 entries per person first/last cards, tags etc. different posts and be of different types of project.

Third Winter birthday card

Second card for the soon to be 50 year old. Found out she likes blue and fairies so this next one that I worked on in the week will fit the bill to a T.
Again, grateful for those preprinted images, this one is the newest from the Delicious Doodles range called Wistful Fairy. I used my sakura pencils in blues for the main image just picking up a few details in purple to add colour.


I followed another of the sketches over at Priscilla Styles' midnight madness, this one is #82.
Layered the image, after distressing the edges onto a blue distressed paper then onto a torn vellum layer. The little panel has a piece from a crafty individuals paper.
All this was layered onto an distressed, embossed layer with highlights in oil pastels. Then came the layers of lilac and navy. The ribbons from stash
Some distress stickles were dotted on to complete.

I am entering this into the Midnight Madness Sketch Challenge #82

2nd of 3 birthday cards

A friend asked me to make a card for him to give to his wife for her birthday next week. Her 50th. So had to be something a bit special while not revealing her age. I thought long and hard on the images to use. Then the PC stopped working and all my digi's stored were not accessible. Still I had some preprinted.....
This one is from Delicious Doodles called "Smell the Roses". I followed the sketch over at Midnight Madness MMSC#83.


The image is coloured using promarkers with just a touch of glittery gel pen to highlight. This was layered onto an embossed oval shape that I had lightly touched with oil pastels and surrounded with some lace and backed with another embossed oval to enclose the lace edges.
The base card is a linen effect cream card with the diagonal cut away. The front panel consists of layers of red, yellow and cream paper topped with DCWV paper from citrus range. The inside panel is the same red and yellow with a panel embossed the same as the image panel.


The ribbon section consists of a wide yellow satin with 2 narrow red satin and golden yellow cord. Attached to the back panel and mirrored on the front by cutting a slit and a hole and threading through before tying in the front.



I am entering this into the challenge over at Midnight Madness for the sketch #83

Winter birthdays

Now the Christmas rush is over I have been able to concentrate on a few birthday cards that are needed in the next few days. This first one is for one of my daughters. I only just managed to get a couple of pics before it went out the door.
I used one of the stamps that was in a fantastic gift from a very dear friend, I know it's a sweet pea stamp but haven't yet looked up the name. An Easel card.


After colouring in the image in promarkers, I fussy cut it out and stuck to the image I had already stamped onto the Crafty Companions BP. The frame stuck onto that made from irridesant pink and pearlised gold CS. Some dots of stickles to complete.
The swirls are made from diecut heart shapes, cut and twisted after painting with pearlised paints and secured with brads. The ribbons are from Crafty Feelings. The sentiment came as part of a freebie set of diecuts in a mag. The little pearls from stash.
All mounted on lime green CS.
Now that I have a couple of SweetPea stamps, I can enter their challenges. This card is being entered into the current challenge over at In A SweetPea Dream of "ribbons and bows".

Purple Reign

Well after a few days of no PC - I'm back on line. Dec has not been the best month for anything that involves moving parts or requires some heat. That weather!! Well hopefully I'm back on track now.

This card is for the challenge over at Delicious Doodles' challenges. Use purple somewhere.
I used the sketch over at Midnight Madness MMSC#84 - the simple version.


The image is the Jewelled Fairy of Delicious Doodles. I have used a mixture of watercolours, DI and promarkers to colour in. She was layered onto some green pearlescent card then a scrap of papermania. The side panels are pearlescent purple onto papermania green. These were then added to a freebie paper from a mag onto which I had added an acetate panel with the sentiment. All this layered onto a dark green from Crafty Chaos' Velvet Descent range and then onto some sage green CS.

I am entering this into Delicious Doodles Purple Reign challenge as that was the inspiration.
Also into the Midnight Madness # 84 challenge for the sketch

HAPPY HOLIDAYS

and a very merry Christmas to all that celebrate it from all at Tellen's Place.

What ever your beliefs, I hope this day finds everyone safe and warm (or cool for those in the southern hemisphere) and in the company of those we hold dear.

Here in Scotland, and I know in other parts of the world, it's been a testing time with the arctic weather hitting a lot of us. Santa's helpers (the postoffice) are going to be saying sorry to a lot of people in the new year as they haven't managed to clear the backlog left after the weather stopped a lot of deliveries.

Terry at Tellen's Place will be composing the main post and there are links to all the other lovely Divas and their greetings for you all and their cards, but in the meantime here is my little piece.

It's the image called "Santa Sexy Elf" from Tellen's Place of course.
I have coloured the image with promarkers and ink distressed it. Placing in a recessed window card with glitter strips of black and red. The BP is flocked and is a freebie from a mag. The sentiment is on the attached tag, heat embossed in silver on one side and ink distressed on the other with some diecut pressies stuck on to match the one on the card (scraps of embossed gold and irridescant red card).












The challenges will be starting again over at Tellen's Place soon as well - January 7th. By that time this holiday will be fading into the memories and the scrapbooks of many will be on the go. We would all love you to come back and join us for this time.


In the meantime, HAVE FUN AND STAY SAFE.

I am going to enter this into the challenge over at Shannon's Sentiments Storefront for their ANYthing Christmas/Winter.

Colour Blind Christmas

Nearly all cards made yayyyyyyyy
The challenge over a Haunted House Designs was ideal for one of the cards to be made for hubbies drinking buddies.
The challenge ---

Colorblind Christmas

You are to create a dark, Gothic, or Halloween-based Winter Holiday card WITHOUT using RED or GREEN...
Not even a teensie bit of it anywhere :)

Well this is "dark" hehehe



All dark blue, grey, black with a touch of brown.
The image is from Stamp It Crazy. Coloured using promarkers in shades of grey and black with that touch of browns. The sentiment is mine.
The BP is navy card stock, painted with a silver shimmer to which I have attached some house sillouette images and houses from MCS (a touch of blue distress ink added) and MS drippy goo borders.
A piece of navy organza ribbon to finish.

I am entering this into that challenge over on Haunted House Designs # 69.
Also entering into the Stamp It Crazy Christmas challenge where you must use one of their digis.
Also entering this card into Shannon's Sentiments Storefront for their "Create a Scene" challenge

More for Tellen's Place

Marathon blogging session today methinks
Next up is a card and candle set made using Tellen's Place's Santa Sleigh and Teddy.
I did ask Terry if I could use the images for this kind of project and has been pointed out before in CDAC by Helen Laurence of Ellephantastic - some digi company's Angel Policies do prohibit this - so be aware.
That said, this is the project for this week using Helen's technique.


Card with matching candle.
The image on the candle was traced onto tissue paper and coloured with promarkers and gel pens. Cut out close to the lines, and using a glue stick, stuck to the candle. Then with greaseproof paper wraped round the candle to protect hands and aid even heat distribution, use a heat gun to melt the candle just enough for the wax to grab the image all over.
I then attached some sequins round the top and ribbon to match the card.
The image was then used to make the card. Again coloured in using promarkers and gel pens. I attached it to some concertina'd card stock which in turn was stuck to some gold miri. This was attached to a lace effect DP that a couple of embossed white panels had been stuck to. Matching ribbon to candle and 3 sequins.
A piece of red card with the sentiment embossed in gold to finish.

I am entering this into the challenge over at Stamps R Us where anything goes

Tellen's Place cards for Christmas

Hi all you happy bloggers out there. Sorry, I've not been keeping up to date the last couple of weeks. Work, the holiday season, the weather. All conspiring to keep me away from here. Our internet went kaputt for a few days because of the snow, arrggghhhh. Back on now :)

Anyway.
I had made a few cards for Tellen's Place as part of their design team and Terry had them for posting before calamity struck here. Just as well!!
So just to update and give more details, is the main reason for this post.
First up was this little card using a freebie from Tellen's Place and the folded frame technique from Splitcoast Stampers. The patterned papers are all from Crafty Chaos.

Ribbon, brads and card stock from stash. Image coloured with promarkers.
This card was featured in the CDAC forum


Next up was a shaker card I made using the Little Drummer Boy image.
Again using papers from Crafty Chaos. Image coloured again in promarkers and the shaker filled with seed beads and sequins from stash as was the base card and ribbon etc.

Octo card

Make a card with only 8 items. No more and no less!! That's the challenge over on Macabre Mondays at Haunted Design House this week. More difficult than you'd think. I hope this one counts. It's a birthday card for SIL.


The backing paper was made by me ..... loads of words stamped (from the same set as the image Smeared Ink - Li'l Grumpies set)
1. base card
2. main BP
3-7. matting and layering layers
8. Image layer

So the challenge HDH#068 over on Haunted House Design is where this little card is being entered.

blue Christmas

Snow cones and snowflakes for Stamp It Crazy. Well as long as the snow is on a card, I don't mind. Living in Scotland, we've sure had our share of snow this year. It's piled up here everywhere and with temps touching on -20C it's cold as well :(
Anyway, onto the card.....
An easel card with snowflakes on the paper, one of those freebies from last year and I can't remember the source. I think it was crafty companions. The snowman with his head knocked off is stampotique to which I added just a dusting of pale blue promarker and sparkle and a fibre scarf.
The snowflake was made by threading "a few" seed beads onto thin wire and stitched onto the card then a couple of peel off snowflakes.

The base has a topper from a RAK "Winter Wishes" mounted onto sticky pads and 6 little homemade snow cones using more of the BP and some crackle beads and a couple of little pompoms. The ribbon was rescued from a box of chocs. All mounted onto a hammered white card stock.


I am entering this into the challenge over at Stamp It Crazy - Snowflakes and snow cones challenge
Also the City Crafter Challenge - Let It Snow
The Crafty Purple Frog have an Easel card challenge so I'm entering this in that as well

Paper Pandemonium

Haunted House Designs set the challenge and I've just squeaked in I hope. At least two papers to be used. Well I snuck in with just that - 2 papers. They are from the velvet descent range from Crafty Chaos, although I did a little bit of alteration of the colour on one of them .... sorry Susan.
The image is from Delicious Doodles. The folded paper frame was inspired by splitcoast stampers, though I have added a bit of my own to it.
The colouring of the image was done with promarkers. Ribbon and brads and other cardstock from stash.


I am entering this into the HDH challenge #67 - 2 or more patterned papers

Yet more cards

This being snowed in has meant that a few more cards than usual are being churned out of my crafty room. I have followed a few sketches and recipes from some of the challenge blogs and these have been credited.

Sketch from the Craft Mad and Loving It group on the craft bubble forum... an image from digidrawn



Using the recipe of lace SISC#37 from Stamp Insanity, one of their images and the sketch from Midnight Madness MMSC#84. Papers from Crafty Chaos, blue Christmas range.



Using the recipe from Delicious Doodles challenge #3 - use a digi and one of Teri's images "Bark at the Moon".


Using the sketch over at Midnight Madness again. This time MMSC#82, the CAS version. The image is from Gingerloft.

Yep - yet another C'card

This time it's the turn of blue for a christmas card......
Following no particular sketch... just plonking down bits and pieces where ever the mood took me....


The image is "Star Keeper" from Digistamps4joy. Coloured with promarkers and made into a shaker with blue and silver glitter, seed beads and sequins. The top layer is a dotty embossed card from stash. The base is pearlised with a pearlised damask effect (it's there but I couldn't get it to photograph) layered on followed by a piece of torn vellum with a couple of snowflake brads and some peel off stars. No flowers or ribbons ..... I toyed with some but decided against them, the clean lines looked better to my eye.
Simple and clean
I am entering this into the challenges over at I Did It Creations - Surprise Me challenge
Lexi's Creations - Blue and silver

Yet Another C'card

Well, we're well and truely snowed in. Even hubby's 4x4 hasn't been able to move!!! I made it into work on monday, that was it. As of this am we had over 30cm of the white stuff at the door!!
Staying in and crafting (mostly making boxes or thick envelopes for previously made cards) has been the reason why I haven't gone stir crazy as we even lost the internet for a while. No milk or bread to be had in this small area of Scotland, luckily I had been shopping on friday before all this.

Anyway - on to one of the cards I had made in this "enforced" crafting session.
I followed the sketch over at Fairymoon Crafts for this one.

.

The image is from Digis With Attitude!, one of the "Grumpy Gretchen" range called Santa's helper. I wanted to do a Christmas card out of the normal colours and this "Berry Snow" range from Crafty Chaos was the ideal choice.
All colouring was done with promarkers with just a touch of purple glitter to the "furry bits" on the outfit of Gretchen. A tiny bit of ink distressing and some purple gems were all I felt this needed.
I am entering this into the Fairymoon Crafts challenge as it is their sketch.