You're A Star ...

I've used some more of this gorgeous patterned paper from Melissa Bennett to make this patchwork card using a template from Traci Reed. The papers are really pretty and girly, just right for a pretty birthday card

Baa Baa!

I didn't make any Easter cards this year as they are just not something that our family would send but I did use some of the Easter/Spring themed products that I have to make cards for other purposes. Hence these two shaped cards made from the In The Meadow digital kit from Nitwit Collections which I have imaginatively titled Baa! and Baa Baa!

Diamonds are a girls best friend ...

This weeks challenge over at the Daring Cardmakers is to make a diamond inspired card. This was an easy peasy one for me as love my glitter and sparkle and love adding diamonds to my cards

Sweet Shoppe papers, paperchase diamonds, papertrey scalloped die and ribbon and that butterfly that I have coated in glitter is a die from Crafts U Love, I haven't stopped using it since it arrived.

And ... I get extra brownie points as I used up all my scraps off a different project to make the card. Jean and Gail will surely die when they read that as they call me for not keeping anything :lol:

Ahoy! ...

Ahoy my maties! Don't you just love this little pirate pussy cat? It's a digital stamp from Chicken Girl Designs, coloured with Promarkers and I matched it with some papers with a travel theme from Sweet Shoppe Designs.

I think I shall be making more cards with this stamp as it makes me happy :)

Lollipop, Lollipop ...

Ooooh how I love these little rubber characters. Lori Boyd's gorgeous Lollipop stamps are definitley a favourite in my craft room and this one is so sweet with her polka dot dress and bow in her hair. This was one of the cards I made whilst I was away at a retreat a couple of weekends ago with my friend Jane and I teamed the stamped image with some pretty papers from Sweet Shoppe Designs by Traci Reed

The Money Box ...

When I went away last weekend to play with paper with my friends I made some lovely projects, as well as eating - lots, laughing - mainly about nonsense, watching naff television - Gail made us! and celebrating Christmas in March - or as Hannah christened it 'Marchmas'

Jean provided us with all the bits and pieces to make and decorate a Kaisercraft minibook which I still need to add photographs to and Gail held my hand whilst I got arty, painty and crinkly with crackle paint to make a gorgeous mini canvas. We went craft shopping on Saturday morning and I happened upon some pretty Doodlebug chunky glitter in Turquoise. Totally gorgeous so I had to use some of it on the edges of my canvas.

I made a couple of cards, one of them using a stamped image from Jean (I can't remember the manufacturer but I think Jean is hoping to stock them) and another using some Papermania papers. You wouldn't believe it if I told you that I carted my laptop and printer half way across the country only to get there and realise that I had brought the wrong power lead for my laptop so had to buy 'real' paper just incase I couldn't get it to work (for future reference you can charge up a Toshiba laptop with the power lead from a Craft Robo!)

Then on Sunday morning we started the mammoth of all projects. A money box made with a sizzix die, some wooden beads and some florists wires. Gail was again the chief instruction giver and halfway through I was cursing (albeit quietly) as I happily stuck things the wrong way round, upside down and back to front. Anyway, we joined and secured the wooden beads with craft wire poked through the bottom of the box, glued the two pieces of the diecut chipboard cube together, covered it in pretty papers (mine is my favourite Sweet Shoppe papers) and then decorated it and made it look pretty. Then it kept me company sitting on the front seat of my car as I left the others (lucky devils got to stay an extra day) and came home ready for work on Monday monday

Poorly Sick ...

Not me, I'm fighting fit but the next time I am in need of a get well soon card for a friend or family member I have just the thing - this little card and decorated mini mail box tin. Made using a digital kit by SuzyQ Scraps at Scrap Orchard, a metal mail box tin from Target sent over by my lovely friend Robin and a template to make it really quickly and easy by Heather Roselli at Sweet Shoppe Designs

You Make Me Smile ..

So, I've mentioned a few times about the retreat I went to last weekend with the lovely girls who go to my crop and my friend Jane who makes the most gorgeous cards. Well, whilst we were there we both shared our stamps, I showed Jane how to make cards with digital products and she showed me how she colours her stamped images with Distress Inks. She made a gorgeous card using one of my Hanglar stamps and her distress inks and I cardlifted her design completely to make my own card using the same stamp. The little bumbley boy is a Hanglar stamp, coloured with distress inks, I added glitter to his wings. The paper is Cosmo Cricket, the dies nestabilities and the sentiment stamp from Papertrey. Thank You Jane, I love it and now I shall be doing some more :)

A Little Huggabugg ...

I had a bit of a spending spree at Christy Croll's digital stamp store last week and had a chance to play with some of the stamps when I was away at the Gibside Retreat that I attended last weekend. I've used papers by Zoe Pearn at Sweet Shoppe Designs for the purple card and coated the cupcake in gorgeous chunky glass glitter and the second card is Cosmo Cricket paper and Papertrey ribbon and stamped sentiment. I love both of these cards and now I think I am going to have to buy more of these stamps :)

How To Make A Shaped Card ...

Poor neglected blog, it's been quite a while since I last updated it. I just never seem to have enough time to do everything I want to, need a few extra hours :)

Anyway, I have been making a few more shaped cards and when I was away with my lovely and talented friend Jane last weekend I showed her how I make them and I thought I would share on here too. I have used another cat from NitWit Collections, this time from the Me-Wow collection to make this cat shaped card.

Start by deciding how big you want your card and creating a new document at that size and 300 dpi in photoshop and placing the cat element. Don't worry that his tail doesn't fit as we are going to be creative with this part and do a spot of plastic surgery to resize it later on. When you are happy with the sizing print the document

Carefully cut around the cat and chop off his tail, yup - chop it clean off, it shouldn't hurt and we want it to be smaller!

Use a glue stick to reattach the tail at the back making it smaller

Next cover the whole of the back with glue (I use a Tombow gluestick), use some scrap paper under the cat so that you can glue right to the very edge then stick it to a sheet of white cardstock

Using a sharp craft knife carefully cut around the cat leaving a narrow border of a couple of millimetres

Next we are going to attach the cat to a folded cardblank. Position the cat over the folded cardblank, see how his tail and bottom stick up over the fold? The next step is to add strips of adhesive to the back of the cat to attach him to the cardblank but don't put any on his tail or bottom (the bits that stick up off the top)

After adhering the cat to the cardblank use your craft knife again to carefully cut all around the cat, use the edge of the cat as a guide for the knife and there is no need to leave a border this time. When you've cut all around you should have a cat shaped card and you'll have cut through both pieces of the cardblank

After you've cut the cat card out it's time to add an embellishment and sentiment if you'd like. I added a paper flower to my cat using one of the flower elements from the Me-Wow Collection. I just curled the edges of the petals between my thumb and finger, adhered to the cat and added a button tied with twine

Miaow ...

Can I just say that I am totally in love with this little cat from the Family Ties kit by Nitwit Collection. Totally in love!

And whilst I am declaring my love for the cat I think I should confess my love for the little doggie too :lol:

As you know I have loved Mary Fran's work for many years, you can see all the cards I have made with her designs here and I am delighted to say that we're working together again :)
Anyway, that's my love share on this damp and foggy Thursday morning

Another Challenge ...

Over at Daring Cardmakers, this weeks challenge is called 'Have A Heart'. I have used Nitwit Collections Family Ties kit again to make this new home card. I just love the text on the image which reads 'loving hearts make a house a home'.

(Family ties digital kit plus the add on, Nestabilities dies, Papertrey ribbon)

Check It Out ...

I love being on holiday from work. I get to play with paper all night without constantly thinking that I should be in bed ready to get up early :)

Today I have a card that I am entering in the Papertake Weekly challenge called 'Check It Out' which is to include gingham or checks. I have used the newest kit from Mary Fran at Nitwit Collections called Family Ties. I love this little pussy cat so much, she is gorgeous!

(Family Ties digital kit, Nestabilities dies, MFT sentiment stamp, East of India ribbon, Coredinations cardstock)

A Little Bit Lovey-Dovey and catching up ...

Well I have no one to send it to unless I mail it to myself but I made a valentines card with some pretty paper that I got from Sweet Shoppe Designs. The papers are so lovely and versatile too, I have used the same set of papers to make a recipe book that is almost finished but I've run out of ink for my printer so hopefully I'll get it finished this weekend

This card was made using some leftover papers and another of the Heather Ellis digital images, she's a cutie

This card was made for one of the CPS sketches but I ran out of time to upload it. The little dragon is a stamp from Bella Stamps and this is an older paper set from Sweet Shoppe Designs but I think the patterns really go with the spots on the dragon costume

Finally is this card that I made for a friend of mine to give to her niece. I love the papers, the patterns, the colours and my edging from a martha stewart punch - basically everything! and I'll be doing some more of these

Happy Birthday Sweet Shoppe Designs ...

It is our 4th Birthday celebration month over at Sweet Shoppe Designs and I have been playing with some of the latest kits to hit the shelves.

First up is the card I made to kick of the birthday card competition in the Sweet Shoppe forum

I used the gorgeous lollipop kit by Melissa Bennett for this card and of course I had to add some Raspberry Fizz ribbon from Papertrey Ink - my favourite ribbon ever!

Then, because I was in a birthday mood I decided you couldn't have a birthday celebration without a birthday cake so I made one. Totally fat free and zero calories too :)

For this I used Manda Bean's Cupid's Confectionary. The papers in this kit are gorgeous, just the perfect ingredient for a pretty cake really!