Just Playing - Making Cards #2

Hello dear friends.

So happy you decided to drop by.

Back to share another of the cards I made while hiding at home from the heat we have been experiencing lately.  Have to say, the last couple of weeks the weather has been much more bearable.  Still warm but we haven't needed the aircon.  I believe that is about to change though.  Apparently we're in for another week of temps in the 30's (centigrade)  Not sure exactly how hot but, I guess, we're about to find out.

Ok.  So, here is the second of the feminine cards I created in this 'Just Playing' series.

The papers are from the same Collection as the card I shared in the first of these posts 'Making Cards #1' here.  It's the Floral Romance 12 x 12 paper pad from Kaisercraft.

Added a Chloe Stem (a Memory Box die) as well as a few leaves (a Cheery Lynne die)

and tucked more of my fave lace under the cluster.

More diecuts trailing down to the bottom (these are from Altenew).

The flower is by Little Birdie.  I edged it with Ground Espresso Distress Ink and sprinkled it randomly with some glitter.  Can't really see that too well but it does have a lovely shimmer in real life.

And that was another card done and dusted!!
Gathering all the bits and pieces before hand and then only limiting myself to those bits and pieces certainly worked a treat!!

Thank you for stopping by and for the lovely comments you leave me to read.   Love getting your feedback.

Have a wonderful day dear friends and have fun with your crafting!
Take care and God Bless.

Crafty Cardmakers Challenge #208 - Bunnies, Chicks or Eggs

Hello dear visitors and welcome to my blog.  So nice to have you drop by.

The new Challenge has gone live at Crafty Cardmakers and, as Easter is so close, it's all about Bunnies, Chicks or Eggs.  Our host is the lovely Kim and, as always, you may create anything you like for this Challenge as long as it meets the Bunnies, Chicks or Eggs Theme.

I decided to use Eggs on my card.  Mainly because I had no images of Bunnies or Chicks and couldn't find anything I really liked on the net.

Doing a bit of stash busting here.  I have had these papers for ages (years actually) and thought it was time to use some of them.  They are from a Collection called Pink Gelato, a really old one from Kaisercraft but very pretty.

I've had this flower in my stash for a long time too .. didn't actually realise I had any left.   It is a Burgundy/Cream Open Paper Rose and they are available from Megs Garden.  I love the colour!!

The rose bud is also from Megs Garden and the little white bloom is from my stash.  The leaves are a die from Cheery Lynn.

I made the eggs by cutting the shape out of chipboard and then covering it with more of the papers.  Added a few gold border stickers for decoration and sprinkled them with a little gold glitter.

I also sprinkled some clear glitter on the flowers and leaves but, unfortunately, it doesn't show very well on the photos.

Popped a bit of gauze and some sissal underneath the cluster.

The sentiment was computer generated and then mounted on a piece of chipboard.

Hope you will pop over and take a look at the fabulous creations by my Teamies and perhaps you'll be inspired to join in.

Crafty Cardmakers Challenge #208 - Bunnies, Chicks or Eggs

Looking forward to seeing what you create!!!

Hopefully it won't be so long between posts this time.  Just after my last post, I fell over in our back yard and ended up with a broken wrist.  Not badly broken thank goodness .. the bone didn't shift  (must say, it did hurt a lot though).   I didn't need a cast, but I do have to wear a brace for 4 weeks or so and I do have to be careful what I do.  It does still ache at times but is feeling a lot better now so, I should be able to get a bit more crafting done.  Yayy!!

I have entered this card in the following
Ellibelle's Creative Moments - Papercrafter's Linky Party
Make My Monday - Challenge #67 Easter Fun
 
Thank you so much for stopping by and I hope you enjoy the rest of your day.

Take care, stay safe and God Bless.
oxox Marg

A Christmas Trio

Hello everyone and welcome to my bloggy place. 

Thank you so much for stopping by at this very busy time of the year.  I hope all your Christmas preparations are going to plan.  

Hubby and I have just returned home from Victoria where we helped my sister celebrate her 80th Birthday.  Just have to point out that she is a bit older than I am .. LOL!!  We had a wonderful time while we were there catching up with family and friends but, it is so nice to be back home again.  The only thing I don't like about coming home is all the washing that has to be done!!  I hate housework.  I can think of many, many better ways to spend my time .. such as crafting for one!  Ha! Ha!  I am looking forward to catching up on everyone's beautiful works though!  Might take a little while but I will get there!!

I would like to share a few more of my Christmas cards with you.  These three cards are basically the same design with just a few different elements.

The papers I used are a mix by Kaisercraft and Crafts Smith.  I die cut the top layer on two of the cards with a Tim Holtz MM die.

I found those little plastic pine cones in one of our cheaper outlets but I can't remember which one.  Duh!!   I only bought the one pack and have been trying to find them again but not having any luck.

The pine branch is a die by Impression Obsession and the flair is handmade.  Simply printed out the greeting, used a circle punch to cut it out and then covered it with an epoxy sticker.

The poinsettia was made with a Poppy Crafts die and I simply added some prills for the center.

I randomly swiped the flowers and pine branches with Liquitex Matte Medium and then sprinkled on some glitter.
This time I used a scallop punch for the flair and covered it with Glossy Accents.

Lightly highlighted the flowers and pine cones with gesso and used some gold twine to make the bows.

As I said at the beginning of this post, the design of these cards is the same  but I used different papers and elements so they wouldn't all look the same.  Easy peasy!

Thank you so much for taking the time to come and have a look.

I would like to thank you all so much for the encouragement and support you have given me over this past year and would also like to wish you all  a very Merry and Blessed Christmas and a Happy and prosperous New Year!!

Have fun, take care and God Bless.
oxox Marg

My first Christmas Card for 2016 and an Update on my Planner

Hello everyone and welcome to my Blog.  I hope you are all having a wonderful day.

I am in shock!!!  I have actually made my very first Christmas Card for this year  ..  I think I might be really sick and just don't realise it yet!!  LOL!!

For a long time now I've been  trying to convince myself that I should be making Christmas cards right through the year and I have finally listened!!  I actually found a Challenge site for making Christmas Cards and that has given me the incentive to get cracking on this.  The site is called Christmas Card Challenges (surprise! surprise!  LOL!!) and the current Challenge is Anything Goes!

HERE is the link and here is my card ..

Used some Kaisercraft papers on this one and actually popped it through my sewing machine to stitch the edges.

The chippie is from 2Crafty Chipboard.  I simply painted it with a paint dauber and, while it was still wet, sprinkled it with some glitter.

Used crackle paste through a stencil and again, while it was still wet, sprinkled on some micro beads.

The larger bloom is the Carabella Rose which is available through Megs Garden.   It was pink originally .. I simply sprayed it with a mix of acrylic paint and Cherry Pie Dylusion spray.

The inside with some blank space for a personal message ..

.. and my first Christmas card for 2016 done and dusted!!!  So now I just need to stay focused and make sure I make at least two per month.  Then, hopefully, I won't be so rushed at the end of the year.
With that out of the way, I thought I would give you a little update on my 2016 Planner.  I haven't done a great deal on it yet but I have completed the dividers for January and February and decorated a few of the January weekly pages.  

This is the January divider ..

.. and the full month on two pages.

The little plastic pocket was meant to hold some photos but, as I keep forgetting to take photos (Duhh!!), I have inserted a couple of quotes instead.

So, on the full month pages I will record appointments and reminders, etc.

and then on the week pages, I will write about  those in more detail and, hopefully, remember to take some photos and place them in there as well.  By the end of the year, I should have a really good record of what we actually did.  

Here is the divider for February.

 The plastic pocket here holds the strips and quotes I will use for that particular month.  I have decided to colour code each month to match with the tabs on the side.

I was going to purchase a whole heap of Washi Tape to decorate these pages but , as that would be quite an expensive exercise, decided to simply use strips of scrap paper from my stash.  A little more work but will look just as effective and I get to use up all of those pesky scraps!!

I should point out that I'm not really happy with those dividers and I may yet decide to create some art journal-like pages instead.  Will have to see how enthusiastic I am whether that happens or not.  LOL!!

That's about all for now folks.  Just a reminder about the Christmas Card Challenge Blog.  Why not join in and start making your Chrissy cards now.  Would save a lot of hassle at the end of the year!!  HERE is the link again.

Thank you so much for visiting and do enjoy the rest of your day.  Happy crafting everyone!!

Take care and God Bless.

Christmas with Feeling Sketchy #133

Hi everyone!!  Welcome, and thank you for dropping by, so nice to have you visit.

I started making my Christmas cards for this year a few weeks ago.  Haven't made very many yet but am totally stoked that I actually managed to get them started this early.  Well, early for me anyway.  It's usually December before I even start thinking about them and to have actually started making them in November is amazing!!  I am so proud of myself!!  Anyways, I thought, seeing as I was making cards anyway, why not make one for a Challenge, and so the card I am about to share with you was made for the Feeling Sketchy Challenge # 133.
I saw the sketch thanks to Lizzy Crust at Crumbs of Creativity (love her work!!) and thought it would be perfect for one of my cards so ..

This is the sketch  ..

 .. and this is my interpretation.

I have used papers from Megs Garden's  'A Musical Christmas' Mini Paper Pack and turned the sketch upside down ('cos I could!!)  LOL!!

This large bloom was white originally.  I simply sprayed it with Dylusions Cherrie Pie Ink Spray.

I've had those gold 'Merry Christmas' stickers in my stash for years.  Found them again while I was cleaning up and they came in very handy!

The tickets to the North Pole are from an old Kaisercraft Sticker Sheet and the little bauble spray was pulled out of a Christmas decoration which was bought specifically for use on my cards!

Created a pocket for a Gift Voucher by fussy cutting one of the paper sheets.  The quote at the top is a cut apart from another Kaisercraft collection.

Created a bit of 'snow' on my card by adding some spots of gesso and then, while it was still wet, sprinkling it with some glitter.  You can't see it too well on these photos but it looks really pretty!!  Pamelia Johnson did a fabulous tutorial on the Frilly and Funkie site.  Her card is a lot snowier than mine but I did use some of her technique!!

So, another card done, and a Challenge entered!!
At the beginning of the year I had intended to enter at least one Challenge each month.  Well, that never happened so, I'm thinking, maybe next year!  Maybe!!  You never know!!

Thank you so much for visiting and here is the Link again for the Feeling Sketchy Challenge.  Why not have a go??  It's really fun and so easy to make a card following a sketch!

Thank you so much for visiting and enjoy the rest of your day!!
Happy Christmas Crafting!!
Take care and God Bless.