Christmas in August #2

Hello sweet visitors and welcome to my blog.  I hope everyone is having a lovely day.  

Our weather here in Adelaide has been really lovely the last couple of days.   I hope it lasts a bit longer ..  loving it!!

I'm back today to share another of my early Christmas cards.  This one is a little bit different.  I  haven't made one quite like this before but I really like it so I know I'll be doing it again.

The papers are from Kaisercraft.  I have so many of their 6 x 6 pads, I thought it was time to start using it up.  So, even though they are not Christmas papers per se, I'm finding them quite suitable for these cards.

 A little bit of stenciling ..

.. and a touch of glitter.  

The flower is a White Apple Blossom by Green Tara  which is available at Megs Garden.  I simply sprayed it with Dylusion Ink.  I think the colour is called Cherry Pie but, unfortunately, I can't put my hands on it at the moment.  Obviously wasn't put back in it's right place last time I used it.  Have to have a treasure hunt me thinks, LOL!!

Used the pine branch die again .. really love that for Chrissy cards!

Used a Distress Ink pad to colour the gauze underneath the cluster.  So easy to do!

Added a few prills too!!  Not easy to see but you can just make them out here I think.

The inside, ready for a personal message.

I was ready to add this to my stash of cards  but thought that side flap just needed something.  Had a light bulb moment  (Yes, I know, it's really obvious what should go there isn't it?? )  So I added a gold sticker sentiment .. (Duh!!) ..

.. and, 'Voila!'  Done!!

Thought I'd throw my hat in the ring with this one and entered it into a couple of challenges

Christmas Card Challenges # 36 - Optional Challenge - Angels
12 Months of Christmas Link Up # 20 - Optional theme - Christmas Confectionery 




Thank you so much for dropping by and taking a look at my little creations.
Have a lovely day and enjoy the rest of the week.
Take care and God Bless.

A Christmas Card and some Holiday Pics

 Hello my lovely visitors and welcome to my bloggy space.  Hope you are all having a wonderful day.

Before I went away on holidays I mentioned that my mojo had gone AWOL and I was hoping that, when we returned, it would all be ok again.  Unfortunately that didn't happen .. the cobwebs are well and truly still in place.  I had started a couple of bigger projects that I was having problems with and still am not able to concentrate on them to get them right.  So, for a while, I am going to focus on just making cards and tags and maybe get back into some Art Journaling.   Hopefully, mojo will return soon, and then I can finish those pesky projects off .

So, I made this simple Christmas card .. and quite enjoyed it too!

The papers are from Kaisercraft and the top layer was cut using one of the new dies from Tim Holtz. 

Added a small piece of gauze under the cluster.  The baubles were taken from a cheap Christmas decoration and the pine boughs were cut with an Impression Obsession die.  Think I have used these items on every one of my Christmas cards this year.  Just love the look I guess.

I've had these gold stickers in my stash for years and am finally getting around to using them.  Simply stuck them on a small banner .. so easy.

The fabric flowers were hand made with some ribbon.  I followed a tutorial by Pamelia Johnson from
My Little Craft Things.  Mine are not as pretty as hers but I'm still happy with them.  HERE is the link to Pamelia's post which includes the video.

The inside .. with a little pocket at the bottom and plenty of space for a personal message.

Added a few splashes of white paint .. and that was it .. done and dusted!!

I set myself a schedule at the beginning of the year to make at least 2 Christmas cards each month.  Well, I'm way behind .. should have made about 10 by now but this is only No. 5.  Still, that's 5 more cards than I had at this time last year so I'm pretty happy with that.

Now, for those of you who may be interested, here are a few shots from our holidays.
We went on a Cruise to the South Pacific and these were shots taken at our first port of call.  This is the island of Lifou in New Caledonia.  It is part of the Loyalty group of islands.  I believe it is actually the largest one in the group.

This was taken from the ship as we were coming in ..

.. as was this one.

Have no idea what the place is called where we landed.  It was quite small with a few huts and a little market.  This little place did hair braiding .. not a good look for some!!  LOL!!  We had the option of going on different excursions but didn't bother this time.

It was really hot and humid so it was good to get out of the sun.  I bought a fan at that market  .. really needed it!  LOL!!

 

 There was no actual Port here so the ship anchored off shore.  We were taken in on the ship's Tenders.

Some passengers took the opportunity to go swimming.  The water looked amazing .. so clear and clean.

 In line at the jetty waiting to get back on board.  We didn't stay long, only a few hours (because of the heat) but it was really interesting and very enjoyable.

Hope you enjoyed this little look at Lifou.  I will share more photos of our trip in the weeks to come.  Have to say I love Cruising and we will be doing it again.  Probably not back to the South Pacific but we would love to go back to New Zealand and also do a Cruise around Australia.  One day!!

Thank you so much for visiting  and do enjoy the rest of your day.
Take care, stay safe and God Bless.

Happiness isn't about getting what you want all the time. 
It's about loving what you have and being grateful for it.

2016 Christmas Cards #3

Hello everyone and welcome to my blog.  Hope your day is going well.

At the end of last year I decided I would make at least two Christmas cards each month so that, by the time Christmas came around again, I would be well on the way to having my cards done.  Well, if you have read my previous Christmas card post (HERE), you know that didn't happen.  I have fallen way behind on that schedule but, I am trying to catch up. 
After posting the previous card, I actually surprised myself and got stuck right in and made two more.  Bit of a shock to the system actually but, I survived it .. LOL!!

As you can see, these two cards are very similar.  Similar design and similar elements, just slightly different colouring.  Papers used are from Kaisercraft's Holy Night 12 x 12 Paper Pad. 

Card No. 1.

The baubles and berry sprays are leftover from last years cards (it's great that I'm using these up and don't have to find a place to store them) and the pine boughs were cut with Impression Obsession Die 021-N.

Just to add a little interest, I tucked some gauze in between the circles ..

.. and, of course, I had to add some splooshes and splats of gesso.

The inside has a pocket on the right for a gift card or, I can just tuck a personal message in there.

So, that was card No. 1 ..

.. and this is No. 2.

As I said, they are very similar to each other.  Different colouring of course but this one has an extra paper layer and rounded corners.

The silver baubles were originally red.  I simply painted them with gesso and, while it was still wet, dipped them into some silver glitter.

Added a little gauze underneath the cluster this time and used some different flowers.

As on the first card, the right hand side is a pocket.

I used a different brush for the splatters this time and it went down a bit heavier than I would have liked.  Will have to go back to the old brush I think.

And there you have it, two more Christmas cards done and dusted.  Now that I've started the ball rolling maybe I can keep it going.  Maybe!  LOL!!

Thank you so much for dropping by and enjoy the rest of your day.
Take care, stay safe and God Bless.
Live the life you have imagined.

2016 Christmas Cards #2

Hello everyone and welcome to my blog, hope you are all enjoying your day.

Seems like the weather in Adelaide is definitely heading into winter mode .. has been a little chilly of late.  Have to say, I much prefer that to the heat of summer.  It is so much easier to just rug up and get yourself warm than it is to strip off and cool yourself down.  Besides, I think my stripping off days are way, way behind me.  LOL!!

So, I am here to share a Christmas card with you.  Yep, you read that right .. a Christmas card.  After last Christmas I decided I was going to make at least two Christmas cards each month so that, by the time Christmas did arrive, I would have at least some of my cards done.  Well, you know what happened to that idea don't you?? .. totally went out the window.  I made one in January and that was it.  Now, we are already into April, and I thought it was about time to get some more done.

The papers used are the left-overs from last years cards and are from Kaisercraft's Holy Night 12 x 12 Paper Pad.  I love the traditional colours for Christmas so these papers are perfect for me.

The large bloom is the Azalea from Green Tara and is available at Megs Garden HERE.
The different berry sprays and the twine are from my stash and the leaves were cut on my Silouette.

I created a small banner from the papers, added the gold sticker and then mounted it onto the card with some dimensional adhesive dots.

Popped some Art Extravaganza White Crackle Texture Paste (boy, that's a mouthful) through a Prima Dots & Stripes stencil and was going to add a bit of glitter here and there but, unfortunately, I used it all up and forgot to get some more.  Duhh!!!

So, when it was all done, I splooshed around some gesso and also added a few prills here and there.

The inside ready for a quote and message.

So, I now have two Christmas cards for this year and hopefully there will be some more to share soon.  Hopefully!!!!  LOL!!

I am entering this into the challenge over at Christmas Card Challenges HERE

Thank you so much for visiting and do enjoy the rest of your day.

Take care and God Bless.

(Just a quick update .. I won!!  I am so thrilled that my card was chosen from all the lovely entries.  Thank you to everyone at Christmas Card Challenges.  I feel very honoured.)

Chantilly Cream Sympathy Cards - Megs Garden

Hello my lovely visitors and welcome to my blog.  Hope the World is treating you well.

Creating sympathy cards is always a bit difficult and when you have to make them for someone who is very close to you it makes it even more so.  I needed to make cards for two very close friends who had lost someone dear to them amd I used Megs Garden's Chantilly Cream Collection because they are such lovely papers and the creamy tones were just perfect for these cards.

Triple layers of paper for the base with some different laces in between.  I will list all Megs Garden products at the end of this post.  Distressing and crumpling the edges slightly, I think, gives everything a softer look.

The small tags and the frame were cut from the ephemera pages.  All the flowers are available from Megs Garden.

The leaves and doily are from my stash.

Printed the greeting on my computer and simply cut it into a small banner.

The next card only has a single layer of paper for the base.

I added some book paper, a doily, some ribbon and a piece of lace for the layers under the cluster.

The Puffy Paper Flower flowers are available from Megs Garden and I added a bow made from knitting cotton to my cluster.  The leaves are from my stash.

I used a lot of the same elements on both of these cards and the insides are the same as well.  I haven't shown you the right hand side as I had already added a personal message.

As I said at the beginning of this post, I did find these a bit difficult to make and, as they are quite personal, I really had to think twice about posting them.  I am hoping that, by doing so, I have helped those of you looking for some ideas.  I found the Chantilly Cream Papers  were the perfect choice.  As I wanted a monochrome look, the lovely creamy tones and subtle patterns were ideal.


Thank you so much for visiting and I urge you to hop on over to the Megs Garden Blog HERE to take a look at the gorgeous creations by my Team mates.  You will find some wonderful inspiration for using this fabulous paper collection and more.

A special thank you to all you sweet visitors who have left me some words of encouragement  and love.  I really do appreciate each and every one. 

Enjoy the rest of your day.
Take care and God Bless.
oxox Marg