Pink and turquoise florals

It's been another long week with no crafty time. I just can't find time for work, gym and crafting during the week. And while I spent most of the winter in my craft room and out of the gym, my trousers are unfortunately so uncomfortable on me right now that I had to trade crafty time for some serious fat busting. Which went well with three nights at the gym last week, but then I spent last night making donuts, and this morning eating them. Anyhow, nothing like enjoying a Saturday morning with lots of crafting and a few home made donuts.

Today's card was inspired by several challenges. I love the inspiration image over at The Card Concept, I was inspired by the colours, the tags, the flowers, the polkadot and striped patterns. I was also inspired by the colour challenge over at The Color Throwdown and the sketch from CAS(E) This Sketch. Last but not least I was also inspired by the Polkadot theme over at The Challenge and at Addicted to Stamps where the theme is Make Your Mark All of this put together was very much a Kath Kidston type of feel. 

I masked and stamped the flowers using the Stampin' Up I Like You set, and coloured them with Copics and Blendabilities. I created two tags from Stampin' Up DSP and die cut the Hello three times in white and pattered papers. Last, I stamped, coloured and fussy cut a flower for the tag, and added pearls to the flowers for that finishing touch.

Card: Coloured 240 gsm kraft card baby pink, 160 gsm white card

Stamps: Stampin' Up I Like You

Ink and colouring: Tsukineko Memento Tuxedo Black, Copics R20, R43, RV29, YG11, YG13, YG17, Stampin' Up Blendabilities Coastal Cabana

Paper: Stampin' Up Designer Series Paper Patterns Stack - Brights Collection

Other: Stampin' Up Scalloped Tag Topper punch, Lawn Fawn Hello die, Ranger Ice Stickles Crystal Ice, Adhesive pearls from my stash

Crafts Galore Encore May Challenge

We have officially arrived at my favourite month of the year! I might be a bit biased as my birthday is in May, but it's also the most amazing month as spring is about to turn to summer and everything in the garden is so beautiful. At the same time I can't believe a third of 2015 has already flown by, although I'm still convinced we were robbed of a month or two somewhere in the midst of it all as I have no recollection of February and most of March. A new month means it's time for a new challenge over at Crafts Galore Encore. For the duration of May we are challenging you use a stamp or digi image on your fabulous crafting projects and linking up with us. 

Our wonderful sponsor is Oak Pond Creations and they are giving away three digi images for our challenge winner. There are so many wonderful images to choose from! I had the pleasure of using Boris the Party Pig for my card. I think he looks like such a happy little chap! But then again, who wouldn't be happy if they had a bucketful of ice cream. You can see more of the lovely Oak Pond Creations images and get inspiration from the CGE Design Team. 

For my card I coloured Boris using Copics and die cut him using Lawn Fawn Stitched rectangle dies. I used the lovely Lawn Fawn Scripty Sayings stamp for the sentiments. I matted the image onto some birthday themed paper and used the Stampin' Up Bow builder punch to create the bow. 

I am linking up with the following challenges:
Creative Craft Cottage - Something Yummy to Eat or Drink
A Gem of A Challenge - Sweet Treats
Craft Your Passion - Anything Goes
Crafting for the Heart  - Anything Goes
Love to Scrap - Anything Goes 
The Pink Elephant - Anything Goes
The Corrosive Challenge - It's Hip to be Square
Addicted to Stamps - Make Your Mark
The Crafter's Cafe - Food and/or drink
Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge - Anything Goes

Card: Hobbycraft 160 gsm Three Shades of Green, Hobbycraft 160 gsm white card, 300 gsm white card
Stamps: Oak Pond Creations Boris the Party Pig, Lawn Fawn Scripty Sayings
Ink: Tsukineko Memento Tuxedo Black
Colouring: Copics
Paper: 
Other: Lawn Fawn Stitched Rectangle Dies, Stampin' Up Bow Builder Punch

Holly Jolly challenge - White with one colour

It's time for a new challenge over at Holly Jolly. This time the challenge is "White with one other colour". Our wonderful sponsors this time are Stitchy Bear, QKR Stampede and Sami Stamps. Not only do they have really great images to work with in the their stores, they are all giving away great prizes you can win by following the theme and linking up with us over the next two weeks. There is plenty of inspiration from the amazing DT over at Holly Jolly to get you going. 

For my cards I used the beautiful Snowflake Ornament and Striped Ornament digi from Sami Stamps. After deciding on my card design I created multiple cards in different colours as I'm trying to build up a good stash of Christmas cards in good time so that I have one less thing to worry about come December. 

For the cards, I started by arranging the two Christmas ornaments into the design I wanted and then printed multiple copies of the card. I die cut the card front using Lawn Fawn stitched rectangle dies. I coloured the ornaments using Tim Holtz distress inks and a foam applicator. Then I stamped a Christmas sentiment using the same ink. Last, I added some Crystal Effects to the ornaments giving them a cool glossy look although unfortunately it doesn't show very well in the photos.

I made three different coloured cards using Pine Needles, Peacock Feathers and Festive Berries distress inks. I mounted the cards onto matching coloured cardstock and added a home made enamel dot. I was inspired to make my own enamel dots from Perler beads using this tutorial. 

I am linking up with the following challenges: 
CAS on Sunday - White and one other colour (Great minds think alike!!)
The Glory of Christmas - Use a digi 
Crafty Hazelnut's Christmas Challenge - 20 minutes or less
Crafty Hazelnut's Christmas Challenge Extra - Anything Goes
Christmas Cards All Year Round - Christmas ornaments 
Hiding in My Craft Room - Any Holiday
Digitally Sweet Challenges - Anything Goes

Card: Hobbycraft 160 gsm white card, Coloured 240 gsm kraft card
Ink: Tim Holtz distress inks Festive Berries, Pine Needles, Peacock Feathers
Stamps: Sami Stamps Snowflake Ornament and Striped Ornament, Dovecraft 'Tis the Season S'Jingle 
Other: Lawn Fawn Stitched Rectangle Dies, Crystal Effects, home made enamel dots

Pink and grey patterns

I should be cleaning. Instead I have been crafting and blogging, and catching up on my blogs. I did do something useful though, I did an inventory of our freezer. I can't believe how much blackberries and plums we still have from last year. I'm clearly not very good with using plums. Any ideas? 

This morning was a bit more successful in the craft room after yesterday's creative block. First thing in the morning I headed into the craft room with my cup of coffee and blackberry muffin. And I was inspired by the great picture over at The Card Concept. I was inspired by the beautiful grey and pink colour combo and the pink chevron pattern on the curtain as well as the striped grey pattern on the wall. I have to say I wasn't too into shaker cards, but they have somehow grown on me. There was a really good series of posts on shaker cards on My Favourite Things which inspired me to give them another chance. The layout is inspired by the sketch over at CAS(E) This Sketch. I'm also linking up at Chocolate, Coffee & Cards where the theme is Die cuts and In the Pink where the them is "Make it Sparkle (in Pink of course)" and Simon Says Stamp Wednesday challenge where the theme is Clean and Simple. 

I used washi tape to create a mask for the grey inking. I then die cut the hello and crated a shaker that I filled with sequins and tiny little beads. The background is stamped using a chevron stamp. I really like the stamp, as I can create any custom coloured backgrounds. I think I will look for a few more stamps like that, maybe a stripy background and a polkadot background stamp too. With a few select background stamps I would basically never need to buy any more patterned paper, and I would always have backgrounds in the right colours. 

Card: 300 gsm hammered white card, Hobbycraft 160 gsm white card, acetate

Stamps: Stampin' Up Positively Chevron

Inks: Stampin' Up Smokey Slate, Picked Raspberry

Other: Lawn Fawn Stitched Rectangle dies, Hello die, sequins and beads from my stash

Hello balloons

Friiiiiday!!! Finally a bit of time in the craft room. And it was like getting back to the gym after a break... my crafting muscles had atrophied! It took a few tries to actually get a card together. This card was supposed to be something completely different and I needed a few tries before getting there. 

Anyhow, after a few misguided die-cuts and stampings, I got my act together with the help of inspiration from ColourQ and RetroSketches. I absolutely love the Tim Holtz balloon stamp. And I've wanted to do the sentiment with layers of stashed different coloured die cuts for ages. This sketch gave me a perfect chance to do that! I'm also linking up at Through the Craft Room Door and Craft Your Passion where Anything Goes.

Card: 300 gsm white card, Stampin' Up Bermuda Bay and Wild Wasabi, kraft card, Dovecraft 110 gsm premium vellum
Stamp: Tim Holtz Remnants
Ink: Stampin' Up Bermuda Bay, Wild Wasabi
Other: Lawn Fawn Stitched Rectangles and Hello die, sequins from my stash

Clever snowflake die card

Wow this week has just flown past, it's already Thursday and I haven't manage to write a blog post all week. I can proudly announce that I have managed to go to the gym three times this week, so it's not like I've just been sitting around doing nothing. But I can't wait for tomorrow afternoon, I will most certainly leave work right on time and not a minute later, and then hit the craft room like the craft-starved woman I am. Maybe with a glass of Pimms as well... oh, I can't wait for tomorrow afternoon!

This card is made using a very clever die that has just retired from Stampin' Up. I used a great hammered white cardstock which gives the card a really great look. I also die-cut a piece of silver paper from All Is Calm for the snowflake. Then I simply stamped the snowflakes and sentiment. Really quick and easy card but the clever die makes it look really intricate.

I am linking up with the following challenges:
Addicted to Stamps - Anything Goes
Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge - Clean and Simple
Crafty Hazelnut's Christmas Challenge - Something beginning with F (flakes of the snowy kind... is that cheating?)
Crafty Hazelnut's Christmas Challenge Extra - Anything Goes
Creative Card Crew - Use a sentiment

Card: 300 gsm hammered white card
Paper: Stampin' Up All Is Calm
Stamps: Stampin' Up Endless Wishes
Ink: Stampin' Up Coastal Cabana, Pear Pizzazz, Smoky Slate
Other: Snowflake Card Thinlits dies

Krafty flower power

I have been widowed for the day due to a violent computer game. I have hardly exchanged two words with the Culinary Consultant as he has only come up for air once (lunchtime) and other than that spend the day blasting the living daylights of pixel monsters. So that means I made a batch of blackberry muffins in the morning, and after that have spent most of the day in my craft room. I've started watching Suits and have worked my way through the whole first season in the last few days (thank you Netflix). Not sure this is how I thought it would be when you are in a relationship, but hey ho... 

Anyhow, I have got caught up with my DT assignments for a while to come and also had time to catch up on all the wonderful challenges out there. There seems to be quite a few floral themed challenges, so I thought I would absorb some inspiration from them for a card. I was inspired by the "Crafty Bouquet" challenge over at CASual Fridays, as well as the inspiration photos over at Curtain Call and Fusion. The colours in the images from Curtain Call and Fusion are very bright and vibrant colours, a bit different from the pastels I usually go for, but I thought it's a good exercise for my crafty muscles. Challenge yourself. Kind of like crafting push ups, or maybe burpees. Hard to do, but rewarding when done. I was also inspired by the great sketch over at Sweet Sunday Sketch. I actually coloured the flowers with Sharpies instead of my usual Copics to get the most intense colour on the kraft card. I also got out my never before used Lawn Fawn hello die. I really like it, it cuts really clean and it's easy to work with. 

Card: Kraft card, coloured navy 240 gsm kraft card

Paper: Scrap of Stampin' Up  DSP

Stamp: Stampin' Up So Very Grateful

Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black

Colouring: Sharpies

Other: Lawn Fawn Stitched Rectangle dies, Hello die, piece of burlap twine from my stash