Especially for You

Here's a recent commission card make for a husband to give to his wife and as both are very keen gardeners, I thought this would fit the bill.

As usual I played with some Lili of the Valley items.  The image is from Art Pad 24 - English charm and the papers are from the Promises pad.

The sentiment was made using a Tattered Lace words die. I managed to piece together the word 'Wife' using letters from other words. Hopefully the join isn't too noticeable.

I also used Martha Stewart punches and the roses, ribbon and gems are from my stash.

I'd like to enter the following challenges:

The Ribbon Girl March Challenge - Any Image
Lili of the Valley - Facebook April challenge
The ABC Challenge: E is for Everything



Thanks for looking!

Engagement

Here's a recent commissioned card to celebrate a happy couple's engagement and is destined for Spain although I'm told the proposal took place on the London Eye when they were here in the U.K. for a short break.

I used an 8x8 card blank and DPs from Dovecraft (pale pink) and the dark pink is Love Letters from First Edition - the tag is from this pad also. I used a Martha Stewart Heart Edger punch to add detail. The image is from a LOTV Art Pad and was cut into a heart shape and I used Stickles around the edge to add sparkle.

The flowers, ferns and leaves were cut using a Tattered Lace Midi Blooms die which is so versatile and the large and small Congratulations were cut with Britannia dies.  Gems and ribbon from stash.

Some close up details

I'd like to enter this card into the following challenges:

In The Pink Challenge #85 - Anything Goes
The Ribbon Girl Blog: January Any Image Challenge
Bunny Zoe's Crafts: January challenge - Hearts
Inky Chicks Challenge #61 - Anything Goes
Create and Inspire: Challenge #37 - Anything Goes


Thanks for looking!

Friends

Here's a simple but elegant (I hope) white on white card made for a very good friend's birthday. She's a fellow card-maker and was very pleased with it. Always difficult making cards for fellow crafters!
I used my Tied-Together embossing folder and accented the intersections with pearls. The central band was made with a Martha Stewart punch. I stamped the sentiment in Memento Ink - London Fog I think it's called, and then finished off with a little floral arrangement and a punched and Glamour Dusted butterfly.

I also scored several lines at the sides for a bit more textural interest.

I'd like to enter the following challenges: 

Crafting from the Heart - #84 Anything Goes

Simply Papercraft Challenges - #17 Anything Goes

Papertake Weekly - Anything Goes

Thanks for looking!

Just for You

Here's a birthday card I made recently. I used a pink/white colour combo for some winter brightness. The flowers were punched with a Martha Stewart punch, some have card candi centres and some have gems. I used a Cuttlebug Divine Swirls embossing folder on the pink card. The side edges and sentiment topper were cut using Spellbinders Shapeabilities Parisian Accents.

I'd like to enter this card into the following challenge:

Papertake Weekly Challenge: Paper Play

Thanks for looking!

Merry Christmas! and A Goodbye

Now I don't 'do' Christmas cards but this month's theme at Lili of the Valley is Merry Christmas and as it's also the LAST challenge I needed to make an effort!

I have chosen to make a bendy card which is a new concept to me. I used this tutorial from Emma Fewkes.

The base is made with a dark red Papermania textured card and I used a Martha Stewart punch at the top corners. The brads have been triple-embossed with holographic powder for extra sparkle. The image is from a Christmas Girls cute squares pack which I've had for ages. I fussy-cut out the image and also the fairy at the left-hand side, added plenty of Glamour Dust for sparkle and also some Glossy Accents to the bear's eyes and nose. The stocking, charm and ribbon are all from stash.

Looking down at the layers

Sideways Views

I'd like to enter this card into the following challenges:


LOTV Ideas to Inspire Monthly Challenge - Merry Christmas!
The Ribbon Girl - Colour Challenge - RED




Thanks for looking!

Pretty (Pink) Papers

September's Lili of the Valley Challenge is to use Pretty Papers and so I did!!

Sentiment and image also by LOTV and the 3 different papers are from the gorgeous Bonnets and Bowties 8x8 paper pad.

Art Pad 3 Wild Flowers image is framed by Cheery Lynn Polynesian Sails Doily

Close up to show the roses from Wild Orchid Crafts

Sentiment mounted onto a floral rosette - finished off with a teeny butterfly

Pink and green card and gems from stash.  The leaves were cut with a Martha Stewart punch - as were the fancy corners and the butterfly was cut with an old Hobbycraft punch.

I'd like to enter this card into the following challenges:

Lili of the Valley Ideas to Inspire Challenge - Pretty Papers    ends 30/9
Papertake Weekly - Repeat Repeat  (flowers/gems/corners)  ends 16/9
My Mum's Craft Shop Challenge 21 - Dies or Punches ends 30/9
Craftyhazelnut's Patterned Paper Challenge  ends 30/9
Divas by Design - Anything Goes  ends 16/9
Alphabet Challenge - P for Pretty Petals    ends 24/9
Let's Craft and Create - Challenge 96 Anything Goes  ends 23/9

Thanks for looking!

Too Old.........Never !!

For cupcake(s) that is!! So here is my final entry for this month's LOTV Take Two challenge. I managed to use one image, two sentiments and three design papers!  This is my second attempt at a pop-up box card and it went reasonably well although my green card isn't quite up to the task of supporting the flowers and went a bit 'wobbly'.  Hope to add a daylight photo tomorrow.

edited to add Daylight photo taken this morning

Cupcake Fairy was stamped in Memento Black ink and coloured using my Promarkers. Her wings are glittered with Glamour Dust and the cupcake icing had the Glossy Accents treatment.

The flowers were cut in LOTV Petal Fresh DPs and white card, using assorted dies including Cheery Lynn; Sue Wilson Classic Rose;  Marianne; Martha Stewart punch and an old Hobbycraft punch. The green swirls are a Spellbinders Floral Flourish die.

I'd like to enter this into the following challenge:

LOTV Ideas to Inspire Monthly Challenge - July - Take Two
Crafting from the Heart - Challenge 29 Anything Goes
Fan-Tastic Tuesday - challenge 46 Anything Goes
Creative Fingers - Challenge 44 Anything Goes
Sister Act Card Challenge - Challenge 68 Anything Goes
Divas by Design challenge - Anything Goes
Craft Your Passion Challenges: 224 Flower Power
We Do Doobadoo - Challenge 11 - Celebrations

Thanks for looking!

LOTV 10th Birthday

Lili of the Valley are celebrating their 10th birthday in May and their latest blog challenge is to make them a birthday card. Here's my make (and it also fits in with April's Ribbon Girl challenge).  It's very lilac - LOL - hope you like it.

Decorative front made with Martha Stewart PATP punch

I used one of the Fun-Time Teddies images and added Glossy Accents to his shirt and plenty of Glamour Dust to her dress and headdress. LOTV sentiment matted and layered with Spellbinders to match the image matting and layering. The flowers are punched from Dovecraft papers using  a mix of two punches; the smaller one is Nellie Snellen and the larger is Martha Stewart. All covered in Glossy Accents and finished with a gem centre. I tied the butterfly ribbon into a double bow and finished it off with a lilac dazzler from Creative Expressions. The three tiny butterflies are made with an old punch which I think was from Hobbycraft. 

close up of the ribbon bow and flowers 

another shot showing the butterfly printed ribbon

I'd like to enter this card into the following challenges:

LOTV Ideas to Inspire Monthly Challenge - 10th Birthday
The Ribbon Girl Blog: April Lovely Lili Challenge

My Mum's Craft Shop: challenge 16 Anything Goes
Challenges4Everybody - challenge 40 Anything Goes

Thanks for looking!

Birthday Mice - With Love

Now this is the sort of card I like to make - everything already in my stash and using magazine freebies too! Pity that all my efforts aren't as economical as this one but then that wouldn't be any fun would it?

The image is from a set of 20 pre-stamped ones that were a magazine freebie and I used ProMarkers to colour in. The sentiment is also a magazine freebie from quite a while ago as is the pink flowered paper. I used my Martha Stewart heart punch along the RH side and the tiny butterflies are made with an X-Cut punch.

Talking of freebies - have you seen the latest Simply Cards & Papercraft magazine - Issue 111. I bought it yesterday and there's a lovely 6x6 embossing folder and a stamp, both with a Peacock theme. Haven't had time to try them out yet but I'm sure it won't be long.

I'd like to enter this card into the following challenges:

Allsorts Challenge 208 - Happy Birthday

One Stop Craft Challenge 230 - Furry Friends

Ooh La La Creations Challenges - Inspired by Nature

By The Cute and Girly - Flowers

Whimsy Stamps Challenge Blog 59 - Anything Goes

Dream Valley Challenges - 57 - Animals

Simon Says Stamp Challenge Blog - Anything Goes

Thanks for looking !

Never Too Old...

........for Cupcake!  What a great sentiment and a fab stamp from Lili of the Valley. This will be getting a lot of use.

I really enjoyed colouring this image and added glamour dust to the wings and the icing for extra sparkle. I used a Spellbinders plain circle matted it onto this Cheery Lynn Sunflower die. It is a lovely die but a real pain to cut - it needs a number of goes through the machine, turning each time but it's worth persevering with. The flowers and leaves are Martha Stewart punches and the butterflies at the corner are part of this Butterfly Vine Border by Memory Box. I added plenty of gems and pink spotted ribbon to finish off.

and a close up of the doily

I'd like to enter the following challenges:

Divas by Design - Anything Goes

Crafty Boots Challenges - Use a stamped character

Papertake Weekly - Anything Goes

Creative Card Crew - challenge 35 Bling

Crafty Catz - challenge 182 Anything Goes

Fussy and Fancy Friday - Anything Goes

The ABC Challenge - M for Make it Sparkle

Thanks for looking !

Gardener's World - 80th Birthday Card

This is a recent commission card and fairly new territory for me. i.e. CD crafting. I used the 'From the Heart of the Garden' CD by Jane Shasky (from Joanna Sheen) and printed out various papers, toppers and sentiments. I probably have enough left to make another two cards.

I used Centura Pearl in a taupe/pale coffee shade for the base card. The miniature flower pots were cut in half before attaching to the sentiment. I think they were from Hobbycraft.

Inside of card - the Sun charm was included in an assorted pack from Bunny Zoe's Crafts and tied on to some knotted raffia. The photo I took of the right-hand side didn't come out at all which is a shame because my DH had made a miniature fork and trowel to stand in another mini terracotta pot to decorate the greeting/dedication section.

I'd like to enter the following challenges:

Simon Says Stamp - Anything Goes


Thanks for looking!

On Your Birthday

A very long overdue post from me - not sure where the time has gone to and my card mojo still not much in evidence. This is a male card I recently did and I'm quite pleased with the end result. I've long been reading the lovely Sue Wilson's blog and have watched/recorded many of her recent Spellbinder shows on Create & Craft. Here is my first attempt in this style and already I've realised that I'm going to have to get a lot more Spellbinder dies (oh dear - what a shame!!). So far I only have the Fleur de Lis and the Pendants that are suitable. I shall just have to trawl the net for more supplies - a hard job I know but someone's gotta to do it!

Brown Card - Papermania Premium Textured

Cream Card Blank

Cream Raffia Lace - PaperCellar

Brad - American Crafts Elements 

Tools used:

Spellbinders Fleur de Lis

Cuttlebug Folder - Swiss Dots

Martha Stewart Edge Punch - Traditional Scallop

Thanks for looking!

Grow old along with me! The best is yet to be ...

Happy Valentines Day and I hope you had some nice romantic surprises. This is the card I made for my DH. I used a cute Margaret Sherry image which came as a freebie with Cardmaking & Papercraft magazine. The images were already stamped ready to be coloured. I also used the Berry Fizz glitter which was part of the same freebie. The glitter stripes behind the main image are PaperCellar glitter borders - very nice and easy to use. The tiny hearts above the cat are from the punched heart border.

A quick peek at the inside. This is as 'soppy' as I get but I chanced upon this Robert Browning quotation and thought it was very fitting.

Image - Margaret Sherry Collection   (magazine freebie)

Sentiment - from Bentley Bear by Adam Pescott (magazine freebie)

Glitter Borders - PaperCellar

White, Pink card & Gems from Stash

Tools used:  Martha Stewart Lace Heart Edge Punch

I'd like to enter this card into the following challenges:

Forever Friends challenge - Valentine

Papertake Weekly - Anything Goes

Penny's Challenges #72 - Love is in the Air

Simon Says Stamp Challenge - Love is in the Air

Bunny Zoe's challenge - Celebrations

Thanks for visiting!

Kick Stand Card

Here is my first attempt at a Kick-Stand card. I really liked this style of card when I saw it on Bev Rochester's fantastic blog and I've added a link to her post  HERE  which includes a video tutorial.

I'm also loving my new Memory Box die which is so intricate but well worth the effort. Just had to use it twice!!  I managed to salvage the LOTV image from a previous project that didn't work out and have 'hidden the join' by framing it with Labels Eight. A bit of Martha punching, some ribbon, roses and Glamour Dust to finish off.

and a sideways view

White Base Card - Core'dinations Linen

Lilac card, ribbon & flowers from Stash

Image - LOTV Cute Square

DPs - Dovecraft Back to Basics II

Gems - Papermania Mosaics

Tools used:

Memory Box Die - Valerian Flourish

Martha Stewart Border Punch - Eyelet Lace

Nestabilities - Labels Eight

I'd like to enter this card into the following challenge:

Lili of the Valley - Anything Goes - week 122

Thanks for looking!

Jules' Crafty Snippet Challenge - week 45

I thought I'd join in with Jules' Snippet Challenge again this week as I had some pieces left over from a commission card I made last week. Guess who forgot to take a photo of it before it went!

The original card was 8x8 ins which I cut from an A3 piece of card. So I was left with long thin strip of card approximately 16½  x 3¾ ins. I folded it so that the back of the card was slightly longer than the front. I then covered the front with two scraps of DP and used ribbon to hide the join - (forgot to say that I Glamour Dusted the butterflies first). Front RH edge was 'Martha-ed' and words matted and layered onto scraps of pink Bazzill. Pink leaf die-cut and pearls added.

DP & Sentiments - offcuts - K & Co - Best of K&Company Too (360 sheets 12x12)
White & Pink card - offcuts
Pearls & Ribbon from Stash
Glamour Dust

Tools used:
Martha Stewart Vintage Floral border punch
Marianne Designs Creatables - Leaves-LR0192


Thanks for looking!

Wedding

Well after a little bit of time-out I'm back with a wedding card - the second one going out to Australia -using an image from my favourite Lili of the Valley. This is one of the Big Squares which come in at 5 inches square so just right for a 'big' 8 inch square card.  As you can see this is a very pink card! Lots of punches used on this one too.

                               

Image & Setiment - LOTV

DPs - Love Letters - First Edition

         My Mind's Eye - punched flowers

Pink Card - Bazzill Basics - pink shimmer

White card, beige card & Gems - Stash

Tools used -

Martha Stewart Lace Heart edge punch

Nestabilities Plain & Scalloped Circles

Nellie Snellen Multi-Frame Die Set Flower 1 - MFD020 (sentiment circle)

Nellie Snellen medium flower punch

Marianne Designs - Creatables - Swirl Leaf die

Martha Stewart medium branch punch

Thanks for looking.

                 

Gift Wallet

Short and sweet from me today. This is a little gift tag/wallet made to present some cash in. I made a little box on the reverse for the shaped tag to slide into. I used my Martha Stewart punches for the front and started with a piece of DP that was 6.75 ins x 5 ins.

DP - Papermania Capsule in Heather
Lilac card/Ribbon and Mirri Card from Stash
Tools Used:
Martha Stewart PATP - Eyelet Lace
Small & Medium Butterfly Punches (Hobbycraft I think)
Cuttlebug Olivia Alphabet
Nestabilities Labels 14 for the tag

Thanks for looking.

Have a Tweet Day !

Today's card has been made for the latest challenge over on the MSE board. So back to my favourite lilac again and this time with a hint of pink. I wanted to try out something I've seen on one or two blogs in the past, most notably Mandy's - A Sprinkling of Glitter - so used my Martha Stewart PATP set to make a pretty shaped card front and then decorated away! I also got to use one of my new Spellbinders dies from the recent C&C Multibuy Six Set offer. Can you believe I've had them about 10 days and only just cracked the first set open.

and a sideways view:

Coredinations Textured Cardstock
Image & Sentiment  - Pink Petticoat - magazine freebie
DPs - Pink Spotted - Pink Petticoat Vintage Rose
        - Lilac Glittered - Papermania Henbury Lane Collection
Ribbon & Pearls from Stash
Flower - K&Company (I think)

Tools Used:
Martha Stewart PATP - Scroll Lace
Spellbinders Shapeabilities - Floral Flourishes S4-327
Card Candy - CraftworkCards

I would like to enter this card into the following challenges:

MSE Challenge - this time hosted by OA
One Stitch at a Time challenge 67 - Things with Wings
Top Tip Tuesday challenge 38 - Open Challenge

Thanks for looking.

Seeing Double ......

Almost but not quite.....

Version 1

Version 2

This little card was made as a Thank You for the lovely Jacque from the USA.  Recently I was lucky enough to win one of her lovely blog candies and used some of the prize goodies on this card. Anyway, said card and little reciprocal gift was despatched to the USA mid-March and finally arrived with her on 31st May!  The Version 2 card was made to re-send to Jacque as I was convinced the first package had gone astray for ever.

Please do visit Jacque's blog (http://jacquesmagnolias.blogspot.com/) and say Hi. She really does some fantastic work and hers was the very first blog I read at the start of my cardmaking journey.

Scalloped card blank - Papermania

Sentiment - Papermania

Image - Magnolia's 'Sneaky Tilda' coloured with Promarkers

DP - K&Company Daisy by Tim Coffey

Gems - Papermania Mosaics

Ribbon - Offray

Butterfly (version 1) from stash

Large Flower (version 1)  - K&Co

Tools used:

Nestabilities Lacey Squares

Nellie Snellen medium Flower Punch set

Martha Stewart medium branch punch

Thanks for looking.

Good Luck !!

Here is my entry for Georgiegirl's Good Luck Challenge over on the M.S.E. board.  I was a bit lacking in inspiration so spent a while flicking through lots of my old magazines and, after cramming my head full of too many ideas, this is the end result! The most fiddly part was lining up all the butterflies and I'm still not convinced they're straight.

DP - K&Company - Daisy by Tim Coffey
Sentiment - Papermania (magazine freebie set)
Card, Ribbon & Gems from stash
Tools Used:  Martha Stewart Border Punch - Vintage Floral
Butterfly Punch (by Hobbycraft I think)

I would like to enter this card into the following challenges:

MSE Challenge - Good Luck
Charisma Cardz Challenges #22 - Something That Flies


Thanks for looking.