Last minute catch up

 Hello lovely crafters

Feeling smug! I found myself needing quite a few last minute Christmas cards due to lack of motivation and inspiration over the last few months. 

I looked through one of my folders and found these very old card bases which are a funny size. Then I  had the genius idea of cutting them in half. I really like small Christmas cards so that was perfect. Quick to make and easier when short of ideas. 

Here are three I made. Bad photos, taken in a hurry!

Finally, made with a scrap square and a small card base found in the folder. It's about 10cm square:

This one was inspired by a stamp I saw whilst browsing new stamp sets on the internet! I realised I had a similar one (never used) and found I could stamp a wreath by using it 5 times. I did draw a circle to start for help with placement. Then an simple greeting stamp for the centre. Both from magazine sets.

My greatest discovery is that Wink of Stella over watercolour pen is BRILLIANT! Do try it. Probably thanks to Jo Rice on You Tube for that one, though she used it over pen. There is lots of glitteryness on these cards. 

Also as they were odd sizes I had to make envelopes. I used single sided DP with the pattern on the inside of the envelope so I could write on the outside. 

So all the cards are made from snippets and leftovers. The envelopes were new sheets of uninspiring paper left here by my daughter. Using up my stash!

Homework in hand, I am running over to the Snippets Playground where I hear plans for a nativity play are underway. Sounds chaotic to me. I'll start practising my singing. Fa la la la la la la la la...

Also as I have never used the leafy stamp before or actually, the heart stamp:

Thanks for visiting and reading all my waffle. Have a good day x

Lavinia berries two ways

 Hello lovely crafters

Two cards made entirely from snippets:

Number one is a mini card. 10.5 x 10.5 cm. Made from a snippet of card, stamped with Lavinia Berries and Cardio Ivy, with a die cut bow. A white gel pen for the shine. The red mat and the base card are also snippets. 

You might be able to see the metallic water colour splatters. 

Number two - a gel print, Lavinia berries and a greeting from a gifted magazine set. It is straight, though it doesn't look it here 😁 The base card also found in my stash from a previously started and abandoned card. 

Again shiny watercolour splashes and gel pen shine!

So two more for my Christmas stash. I'm getting there. 

So I'll be hopping over to the Snippets Playground with these two. Time to kick around in the fallen leaves and collect conkers. 

Thanks for visiting, enjoy your day x

Red and Brown for Christmas

 Hello lovely crafters

My sort out continues and I have now confronted the exact number of snippets which have accumulated in my crafty corner. It's too many, even accounting for the ones I have ruthlessly thrown, I still have enough white scraps to last a lifetime. Several lifetimes... 

On the positive, I have sorted them, stored them and I know what I have and where! Best get on and make something with them now. 

Here is a card I made using a Kraft snippet discovered in the sort out and also a red snippet to frame. 

I used a Lavinia branch and birds and a Little Claire stamp for the centre. 

Coloured with a mix of pencils, a red glittery pen and a gel pen. 

I'd like to enter the 52 Christmas Card Throwdown challenge:

Also skipping over to the Snippets Playground

Snippets used as above and I hope extra brownie points for sorting them out! Lol.

Thanks for visiting, enjoy your day. 

Hedgehog Christmas

 Hello lovely crafters

I've had two weeks to make a card for the current challenge at 52 Christmas Card Throwdown but still I'm running in at the last minute!

Well I've got quite a few stencils so I whipped some out and made some gel press backgrounds. 

The technique is to brayer ink on to the gel press. Lay on a stencil, press gently over it, I use a piece of paper, and then lift the stencil off, which takes some of the ink too. The take the print with your card/paper. 

This was nearly two weeks ago and I finished this card today using:

Plus a Card-io branch and very old Kanban grass stamp. 

The baubles are coloured with a glittery pen and then liquid pearls added to the branch. 

I hope you like this slightly different Christmas card. And yes, I know Hedgehogs shouldn't be out in December, they should be fast asleep in a cosy nest. 

Also it makes sense to pop over to Double D challenge who are celebrating all things PINK this month. 

Thanks for visiting, enjoy your day x

Christmas Mice

 Hello lovely crafters

No sooner said than done. Sometimes a card just works and this one did. 

I'm way behind with my Christmas cards so I went looking for a Christmas challenge. 52 Christmas Card Throwdown has a challenge this week of:

It seems a long time since I was making a card every week as part of their design team!

I stamped the wreath (mostly Card-io stamps), adding the lights and mice early on and then filling in around them. Then brushed on a little yellow ink to add a glow. 

Following on from my last card, I inked another plaid background using a stencil and stamps as shown. 

Finally a few drops of Liquid Pearls for some berries. Another one for the pile. 

Thanks for visiting, enjoy your day. 

Autumn Vibes

Hello lovely crafters!

I'm back with a card at last. I'm not sure what I've been doing. I have half made a few cards and also reorganised my crafty space. That was certainly long overdue and, though I haven't quite finished, I can find things I want and have, of course, discovered some lost treasures. 

 I made this birthday card partly for the Double D challenge. Fall plaids. 

Here is what I used:

I used the stencil to with green and orange in two directions to make the checks for the background paper, and then added the plaid effect and the stitching round the edge. These Inky Doodles stamps are much neglected so I was pleased to get them out. 

The flowers are all coloured in late summer colours in inks with a little pencil detail. Then I added the bees, dithering about where to put them as usual but they are stuck down now and staying!

As I used a stencil I can also enter Stencil Fun challenge with the optional theme of Fall. 

I think I've just got time to sneak into the Snippets Playground for a paddle and a go on the swings as I've done my homework. Snippets of white and black, 1 large and several small, were used on this card. 

Thanks for visiting, enjoy your day. x

Four-fer

 Hello lovely crafters

A quick post to show you these cards I made to add to my Christmas stash (still very small).

I used my Gina K Mandala Maker stamp set with a technique I've seen Jennifer McGuire use and possibly some other people. 

Using a piece of card cut into four pieces and taped back together. Then stamping the design in the middle. Turning those corners to the outside and stamping a smaller design. 

I forgot to do the before but here are the cards half made to give an idea.

After I'd stamped the design, I wet the paper (watercolour) and dropped Brushos on in Orange and Lemon and left them to do their thing 

The final touch was a greeting in gold embossing and some liquid pearls. 

I'm not sure how Christmassy they look but hey! I like them. 

I hopping over to the Snippets Playground where it is Christmas in July. You have a few days left to join in and be in with a chance of winning a bumper prize. 

I've used larger red and green snippets to mount and black for the greetings which are also layered up to add dimension.

Dotty

 Hello lovely crafters!

Here is a dotty card I made. Not my usual sort of style, whatever that is, but I made this dotty stencilled background and then wondered what to do with it. Tell me I'm not the only one who does that?

I inked through a dotty stencil with only blue, yellow and red ink. The green is where it has blended. It was quite random, there was some overlapping and some areas still white which I quite like. 

My first plan was to add some white die cuts but I didn't find one I fancied so I stamped these Stamplorations balloons, cut them out and coloured with ink. They are slightly raised up with scraps of card and then tied down with thread. A little fiddly.

The greeting is from the same stamp set. One I use often. 

I'm hopping over to Stencil Fun challenge, for the second time this month, where the optional theme this month is Birthdays. I hope I'll have time to browse later, some of the cards look A Maz Ing!

Also Seize the Birthday challenge 

I hope the dots count as circles, if not the theme is always optional. 

And DITTO with the great cards!

And why not 

?

The dotty stencil is new (and cheap from a Range store in the UK)

Thanks for visiting, enjoy your day. 

Christmas Kitty

 Hello lovely crafters

I have not made many Christmas cards so far this year so a prompt of Christmas in July from the Snippets Playground encouraged me to make one. 

 

I had an idea in mind and it all worked out, for once and quickly too. I may have seen something similar somewhere but I don't know where. 

First of all I inked in green then added the cat (Lavinia). Then stamped the foliage at the top and the baubles. The wood stamp gave my cat something to sit on and I added a little more ivy at the bottom. Some gold splatters, gold colouring, a greeting and gold Liquid pearls and it was all done. 

The stamps are from various places so if you need to know, just ask. 

The snippets I used were one large white for the base. A piece of dp for the mat and black snippets for the greeting. I'm using up design papers I don't really want as mats and frames. I did have to colour the edges slightly with this one but it saved me using a new piece or a colour I like. I've got loads of paper, I know I'll never use, in fact I rarely use papers on a card I always make my own. 🤣

Christmas in July. 

And here is my black cat Little Mo. 

Thanks for visiting, enjoy your day. 

Soft stencilling

 Hello lovely crafters

Here is my latest card. 

This background is a gel print made by brayering ink over a gel press, pressing a stencil into the ink and removing it and then taking a print. You never know what you will get and it's always fun. 

One of my favourite flower stamps cut from scraps and inked in. Then I added some metallic watercolour as I'm obsessed with them, and some delicate splats and liquid pearls. 

I can't always do delicate but it worked today!

I'm joining in with Stencil fun Challenge The optional theme is Birthdays and I confess I forgot that when making the card. It is optional, though. 

Also Try it on Tuesday where the them is Summer Blooms. 

I hope you like it. Thanks for visiting, enjoy your day. 

It's only a number

 Hello lovely crafters

Here is a snippet busting card for the new challenge at Shopping our Stash. My last as a member of the DT. 

Thank you for having me. Surely the best idea for a challenge - to use what we have!

SOS - #500! Celebrating by numbers. 

For our 500th challenge we are asking you to create a celebration card that uses at least one number. 

I used a few. I used two scraps of inky card, one to cut out the numbers and one to mount them. The I added two white numbers to highlight the age for the card. (These are not actually glued down yet so I may change them to another number when I actually post the card 😁). Other snippets used for the greeting and white border. 

I'm also pleased with myself for using some patterned card for the base. This does have a design on both sides which makes the inside interesting too. From the previously mentioned daughter's stash, which she has left here and I'm allowed to use. 

Do join in and celebrate. 

I'm hopping over the the Snippets Playground to show my homework. 

Thanks for visiting, enjoy your day. x