PDCC Colour Splash and my attempt at CAS!

Hi everyone

How are you all?  I hope you're having a great week that involves lots of crafting!

It's Play Date Cafe time again, and for this week I had my own personal challenge to use Versamark and to make something CAS (clean and simple).  Now this may come very easily to some of you but I cannot count the number of times I try to make a simple card only to keep adding to it!  I'm really pleased that I didn't with this one... I think!

This week's sponsor is Memory Box so we had two beautiful stamps to play around with, both of which are our prizes for the lucky winner!  I decided to play with the larger stamp, with this outcome....

and here's the colour inspiration from Sarah ...

If you look very closely you may just about see that I stamped the background with Versamark using Hero Arts butterflies, called Antique Engravings I think, they're not showing very clearly on this picture though.

These are the stamps from Memory Box, aren't they lovely!  I love the script of the first one and as soon as I saw it I knew I wanted to raise the wing of the butterfly.  You should see what the rest of the design team have come up with, their creations are my fave so far I think.  I have a few ideas for the second butterfly so will try and make something soon with that one too.  It would look lovely with a damask border as a background behind the plain wing, don't you think?

 Step by step for this card;

1. Mat black cardstock onto white card base
2. Stamp 3 different butterflies onto black cardstock using Versamark ink to create background
3. Stamp Memory Box image twice onto white cardstock
4. Tie green ribbon bow around main image
5. Fussy cut second butterfly and attach to main image as shown, lifting the wings to give some dimension
6. Attach panel at an angle to black base
7. Add two crystals to the antennaes
8. Ask yourself, 'shall I just add...., or just one of those brads, or that flower, or some fancy border, or some glitter or ....' and then give yourself a serious telling off reminding yourself that you wanted clean and simple and that's what you've got, so let it go!

Stamps: Memory Box, Hero Arts
Papers: Bazzill Basics
Accessories: Green ribbon from stash

Don't forget to check out the rest of the DT's inspirational pieces! 

Julie Ranae (Senior DT)

Sarah Anderson (Senior DT)

Lisa Somerville

Savannah O'Gwynn

Stephanie Kraft

Suzanne Czosek

So come and join in on the fun!  Pop on over to the Cafe and link your post. If you use an online gallery, please use the keyword PDCC40.

So, how did I do?  Shall I just stick to my normal style or give CAS a go every now and then?!   Just say it how it is, I won't be offended! :o)

A few mini cards - and Play Date Cafe Take 2

Hi everyone

I've not really had the mojo for making big cards lately, so decided I would just make some overdue thank you cards for myself, little mini ones (all 3' x 3').

My first one was done using the latest Play Date Cafe colours. You still have time to join in, the Unity giveaway is FAB, 75$ of yummy Unity-ness!  See my previous post here for full details!

For this card I used the gorgeous butterfly dandelion from 'The Simple Things' set from {Ippity} by Unity  (that's just what I call it!  If you look closely the petals are little butterflies lol).

My other cards are made using the new Lawn Fawn  'Judy's Blooms' and 'Petite Florals' (which is just new to me!) I saw how well they combined so just had to mix the two sets together.

Hope you likey!

Don't forget I do sell {ippity} so if you like the stamps click on my {ippity} link at the top of my blog or click here.  I do have the full Spring collection, although it's not all listed yet, I had a few technical issues!  Drop me an e-mail if there's something you like that you see! 

Ciao for now! 

Top o' the morning to ya!

That's what my Grandad would say if he were here! He was Irish.  In fact all of my Mum's side of the family are, so this week's inspiration picture from Julie was right up my street because we are travelling to Dublin as part of our Play Date Cafe journey, which is where most of my immediate family live!  I have a lot of fantastic sayings that my Grandad used when he was alive.  Bear with me while I take a quick trip down memory lane and share a few with you.. (don't forget to read them with an Irish accent!)

• 'Oh be the hokey' - translated as 'oh my goodness'
• 'Janie Mac' - translated as 'oh dear'
• 'Sultana Bran?  What did they do, throw the sultanas in from the top of the stairs?!'
• 'You've got eyes like two burnt holes in a blanket' - translated as you look really tired
• 'The thing is this much'
• Are you ok Grandad?  'Well I'm still able to get up and boil an egg'!
• 'Oh dear, dear, dear, the country isn't half settled' (when he was watching the news!)
• 'Paper never refuses ink' (when you showed him something in a magazine, he was basically saying it would look nothing like that when you saw it in real life)

That was fun thinking of some of his sayings, thanks Julie for that little nostalgia trip :o)   What fun phrases do members in your family have?  I'd love to hear them!

So onto my card...

This was the fab inspiration pic that Julie gave to us...

Our sponsors this week are no less than 'Unity'.  Yes, I said Unity!  How amazing is it to have them on board with us, their stamps are fantastic, easy to use and so contemporary too!  FAB!

Just look at what YOU could win just by playing along with us!!!!

Our guest designer this week is Maren Benedict, Unity DT member.
Here are the details of how to make my thank you card. 

1. Cover card base with brown cardstock
2. Mat with patterned paper
3. Cut scallop oval in brown, and plain oval in white, distress edges with tea dye ink, attach to card
4. Using 'regal crest' die cut banner
5. Stamp 'thAnKs' sentiment in black
6. Stitch buttons onto banner with twine, attach to card with pop dots
7. Stamp and paper piece flower, add polka dot brad, and attach to card using pop dots
8. Swoon over the Unity stamps wishing you could enter the challenge so that you could win such a delicious prize!

Stamps: {ippity} by Unity - 'Now &  Always', Lawn Fawn 'Harold's ABC'
Dies: Nesties - oval and scallop, Tim Holtz 'Regal Crest'
Papers: Bazzill Basics, Scribble Scrabble, 'Black Birds & Doodley Floral
Accessories: Bazzill Basics polka dot brad, buttons and twine from stash, Tim Holtz 'Tea Dye' distress ink

We had over 100 players again this week, so come and join in the fun.  We'd LOVE you to play along with this week's challenge!  You may be able to display one of our new funky badges if you are one of the lucky winners, PLUS this fantastic prize from Unity is up for grabs!  How GORGEOUS are these stamps?!  I want need them ;o)

Don't forget to check out the rest of the DT's inspirational pieces! 

Julie Ranae (Senior DT)

Sarah Anderson (Senior DT)

Lisa Somerville

Savannah O'Gwynn

Stephanie Kraft

Suzanne Czosek

So come and join in on the fun!  Pop on over to the Cafe and link your post. If you use an online gallery, please use the keyword PDCC39.

Get Sketchy Challenge

Hi everyone

I hope you had a lovely weekend.  I should be back into the swing of things next week when my treatment is finished completely.  I have one more session in London on Thursday, but I'm suffering a lot with my back so I think it will be a bit hit and miss this week, sorry! 

While I was away I made a couple of mini cards.  I don't often make them but I didn't want to take loads away with me, so thought I would make up a few mini cards for me for a change.   You know what it's like when you make cards, you get lots of requests, but when you need one for yourself you just don't have a single one to hand.  (or is that just me?!!)

I had a lot of thank you cards to make for people that have been helping out while I've been away, but in the end only managed about one card a week, but still it was better than none!  I can't believe how tired I've been after the intensity of the course, I'm absolutely shattered, and sore to boot with all of these new strengthening exercises.  It's good too though, I'm moving a bit better than I was and have made a little progress in lots of areas so there are a lot of positives too.  Anyway, enough of that doom and gloom, you want to see a card, right?! 

This little 3 x 3 card was made for the Get Sketchy Challenge. 

Camille over at Get Sketchy said that at first she thought the sketch was a little 'dated' (she did create the sketch so it was ok to say lol) but I loved it.  I had loads of ideas of how to use it but my first thought was to do a felt flower.  Can you believe I'm only just trying felt for the first time now?!  How behind the times am I?!  I am really odd with trends, I kind of don't like them to start with.  Then when I see them all over the place I eventually like them, by that time the next trend's come along though and I'm out of date lol.

This card is pretty self explanatory.  I cut out a felt flower using Papertrey Ink flower dies, and attached with a sparkly red brad.  I cut out a piece of navy Basic Grey cardstock (if you look closely you can see a slight pattern in it - but unfortunately I'm not sure of the range it's from) which I matted to the front of the mini white card.  I then cut out a square using Basic Grey June Bug paper to fit onto the navy, which I cut into triangles.  I decided not to use the fourth triangle because I wanted to add the sentiment to the right (the tag is one of the nestie rectangles) 

This card actually looks so much nicer in real life, it's really quite cute!

Reminders....

If you haven't done so already don't forget to check out Tiffany Doodles challenge.  Tiffany has just released some new images that fit perfectly into Nesties, they are lovely!  Go check them out!

Also, over at the Play Date Cafe we have another fun challenge running this week.  Last week we hit a record number of 108 players, which was SO exciting for us all.  We've got another fun one coming later this week too, watch this space!!

Ciao for now!

A Bit Like Betty Boop - PDCC 38

Hi there everyone!  It's time to join in the fun over at the Play Date Cafe! This week we have a colour story and we are being sponsored by Artistic Outpost, so the design team have used their stamps to create their projects this week.  Our very own Lisa Somerville designs for Artistic Outpost so you must pop over and see what beauties she creates!

I chose to use this set called 'Cutie Pie'.

As you may recall I love Betty Boop and this little set just reminded me of her, and also of the old Lucie Atwell pictures. Love it!  The stamps really are lovely to work with.  I often find larger, or more detailed, stamps a bit frustrating.  I have to double stamp with my Stamp-a-ma-jig to get them right, but these stamped beautifully first time. 

For this challenge we also had a set colour story to work with, so here is my card;

and here are the colours;

I had put most of the card together but had the framed image centrally on the card, and it just wasn't working so I decided to put it down and pick it up again the next day. Do you ever do that?!  My Marmie was over and she picked up the card to admire it (Don't you just love Mum's - they are your biggest fans!!! )  As she picked it up the panel slipped off at an angle, and voila the card was finished!!!  Just that little change of the panel made all the difference.  Yay for Marmie!!!!

Here are the details of how to make it...

1. Cover card base with purple cardstock
2. Mat with green cardstock
3. Cut piece of lilac paper, attach panel in middle of card
4. Using border die cut two fancy borders in purple, adhere at top and bottom of lilac panel
5. Stamp image, colour with copics. 
6. Using nesties cut purple frame, adhere to image, attach using pop dots
7. Cut out 'fancy tag' in green and purple, assemble as shown, distress edges with purple ink
8. Stamp sentiment 'Cutie Pie', attach to card
9. Add gems to the girl's hat, her buttons on her jacket, and the little dog's collar
10. Die cut two hearts in green, stick onto frame
11. Add green twine to button and attach to card using pop dots
12. Thank Marmie for picking up the card so that the frame fell into just the right place!

Stamps: Artistic Outpost - 'Cutie Pie'
Dies: Borderabilities Scallop Nestie, Fancy Tags Nestie, Cuttlebug wedding die (3 x 3)
Papers: Crate Paper (name unknown, snippet from stash), Basic Grey Kyoshi 6 x 6
Accessories: Button and twine from stash

Pop over to Artistic Outpost and check out their range of stamps, you really must try them, they are so nice to use.

Don't forget to check out the rest of the DT's inspirational pieces! 

Julie Ranae (Senior DT)

Sarah Anderson (Senior DT)

Lisa Somerville

Savannah O'Gwynn

Stephanie Kraft

Suzanne Czosek

So come and join in on the fun!  Pop on over to the Cafe and link your post. If you use an online gallery, please use the keyword PDCC38.

Delovely and Delightful!

Good evening (well here it's actually good night, I should be in bed!), how are you all?!

Using the sketch from Card Positioning Systems I made this for a friend that has just reached her target weight, she is so excited!  I wanted to make her something bright and cheery to celebrate her success, and immediately thought of Cosmo Cricket's Delovely range of papers, paired with Lawn Fawn's Sew Lovely & Just My Type Plus stamps and my Nesties.  I think the card is pretty self explanatory so I will just leave you with the piccie. 

In Cosmo Cricket's words these papers are DeLightful, DeLicious and DeLovely.  I would even add DeLectable!  They work so well with the whimsical Lawn Fawn stamps too.  So much fun!

Hope you have a DeLightful, DeLicious and DeLovely weekend, and don't forget to join in with Play Date Cafe and Tiffany Doodles challenges! 

Provencal Style

Hey there everyone, 'tis me again! Today I'd like to share a card with you that I made for this week's Play Date Cafe Challenge.

Our challenge is slightly different this week because we are not issuing a colour story, but an inspirational picture only.  We are going to leave it to you to interpret the picture this time.  What fun, no limitations!!  Here is the inspiration pic...

When I saw the picture I thought 'meditteranean' which is why I've come up with those colours.  I also wanted to bring in something with lines for the shelving.  Unfortunately my picture looks a bit washed out, but as I'm setting up my post remotely and don't have the card I will have to ask you to use your imagination and visualise slightly more intense colours!!!

Here are the details of how to make it...

1. Cover card base with brown cardstock
2. Cut two pieces of patterned paper, for the top and bottom half of the card
3. Cut scallops, tie on ribbon and attach all to card base with pop dots
4. Using nesties cut circle and scallop, then cut tattered flowers using various patterned papers, stick together, finishing off with a stick on embellishment for the centre of the flower
5. Cut a tag using nesties and stamp sentiment, distress edges with tea dye ink
6. Look at your card and hope that everyone else can see how you got there using this week's inspiration picture ;o)

Dies: Sizzix - Tim Holtz - Tattered flowers, Blossom, Circle, Fancy Tags and Borderabilities Nesties (phew, that was a few Nesties I used there, wasn't it!)
Stamps: Waltzingmouse Stamps, 'Fancy Phrases'
Papers: K & Co
Accessories: East of India ribbon,  Tim Holtz distress ink - 'tea dye', Prima gems, K & Co raised flower

Don't forget to check out the rest of the DT's inspirational pieces!

Julie Ranae (Senior DT)

Sarah Anderson (Senior DT)

Lisa Somerville

Savannah O'Gwynn

Stephanie Kraft

Suzanne Czosek

and our Celebrity Guest Designer this week is Mariana Grigsby.  I've been following Mariana's blog for a while now, her cards are fab! 

Jelly Bean Designs is sponsoring us this week, which is owned by our very own Savannah O'Gwynn.  Look at all of these lovely little yummies that she's giving away.  I LOVE these papers!  The very first challenge I won was using this range, they are some of my favourites! :o)

So come and join in on the fun!  Pop on over to the Cafe and link your post. If you use an online gallery, please use the keyword PDCC37.  Can't wait to see what you make!

Tiffany Doodles Challenge 2

*Edited* I was invited to submit my card for the 'One Stitch At A Time Challenge Blog' for their lace, ribbons and bows challenge.  Pop over and check out their blog, it looks fun!

Hey there!

It's time to play along with Tiffany Doodles again! We have our second challenge starting today. Annoyingly I haven't had much chance to play with any of Tiffany's digi images this month, what with everything going on at the moment, but I had great fun making this card.

This month's challenge is to make a card based on the theme of birds and windows. For my card I played around with Tiffany's owls. They are SO cute! I was trying to create a scene, but have come to the conclusion that they are just not my thing!  It's an ok card, but not in my normal style.  It's fun experimenting though, don't you think?  I'm not sure if I do actually have a style, you could probably all tell me that more than I could myself.

It's also Tiffany's birthday today!  Happy Birthday Tiffany!  Her birthday wish is to get 300 or more followers by the end of July.  If she hits the 300 mark she will be choosing 7 random followers to win a digi prize.  Come on, let's help her get her birthday wish!  We are now on Facebook and Twitter, so do tell anyone you know about it, the more the merrier!

So, onto the details of how it was made;

1. Cut out patterned paper to fill base card
2. Print images onto various pieces of card stock, and paper piece as shown
3. Cut out mini leaves by hand and add to tree
4. Cut out curtain shapes, tie ribbon and adhere to either side of the window frame
5. Mat onto red cardstock using pop dots, distress with black ink
6. Finish off with legless brads and sentiment

Digi Images: Tiffany Doodles
Papers: Basic Grey 'Olivia' 6 x 6 pad
Accessories: ribbon from stash, Craftwork Cards legless brads and sentiment, black ink pad

Don't forget to check out the rest of the DT's blogs, they've done some great cards!

• Tiffany Richards Tiffany's Garden
• Cammy Wall Pink Room Therapy
• Cindy Lee My Lil Crafty Corner
• Deirdre Horgan Colour and Ink
• Donna Mikasa 3 Umbrellas
• Julie Masse Stampin' with Julie
• Kathy Racoosin The Daily Marker
• Kim Schofield Paperie Petals
• Lindsay Amrhein Note to Self
• Peet Roeven Scrap Album
• Ruby McGuire (that's me!)
• Shannon Neparko Desert Design Studios
• Sunghee Chon Creativity in Progress
• Virginia Lu Yes, Virginia

You have until the end of the month to enter for a chance to win some fab prizes! More details can be found on the main Tiffany Doodles site, just pop on over there to enter. Don't forget to grab our blinkies for your blog too!

Back tomorrow with my Play Date Cafe challenge card, until then have fun!

Quick Card!

Happy Monday everyone!

Today I have a quick card to share with you that I made a while ago, but never posted it.  As you know male cards are never really my thing, but for some reason my Marmie (Mum) always needs cards for men!  That sounds funny now I've said it out loud, or typed it!  What I mean is she has always been someone that sends cards, to family, friends etc, so always needs a card.  This card needed to be funky and young for a friend of the family, and this is what I came up with.

I just find 'man cards', as they are known in this house, a challenge.  My Marmie asks for a card and I go into panic mode trying to work out what on earth I can make them!  I wondered to myself at the time who was good at them, and immediately thought of Sav, over at Savannahland2!  She comes up with such funky ideas, she really inspires me to think a little differently!   I got to know Sav initially through being on the DT with her over at the Play Date Cafe, but we have become really good 'virtual' friends (yet to meet in real life..but it will happen!).  We mail each other frequently.  It's incredible the friendships you can build just by sharing the same interests.  As she would say I LOVE LOVE LOVE it!

For this card I used the Tim Holtz die for the label, some Unity stamps from Sav, a bit of twine and some distress ink that I used for the ledger paper.  The perfectionist in me wanted to re-stamp the 'rock-on' sentiment, but I had to just 'let it go' because I'd already done the rest of the card by then! 

I will be back on Wednesday with a little card for the Tiffany Doodles challenge on Wednesday and then again on Thursday with another card for the Play Date Cafe challenge.  You will be sick of me by the end of the week!  I'm still away during the week for my treatment, so if you don't get a reply to comments straight away do bear with me I will pop over to your blog as soon as I can!

Red, pink & white

Hi everyone

Julie is hosting the Play Date Cafe challenge this week, and gave us this fabulous colour combination. I'd been thinking this week I'd like to do another red themed card, so I was really pleased when these colours were chosen!

Gorgeous colours, huh!  Anyway, all of the design team were chatting and I'd said I need to get out my caged bird by Tim Holtz, Julie said the same so as a few of us had the die cutter we thought we'd see what we could come up with using it.  The bird cage is not a challenge requirement, it was just us having a bit of fun with an idea.  All you need to do is make something; any creation, be it mixed media, scrapbooking, card etc. etc in the challenge colours and you could win a great prize from our sponsor this week, Lawn Fawn Stamps!

This is a fingers crossed, hope my Blogger will work, post!  I took the photo on Sunday night and unfortunately it looks really cream, but it is in fact pink, white and red, as it's supposed to be!  I played around with it for ages, but it needed to have the photo taken in natural light, and I ran out of time with getting ready to go away.  I hope you can forgive me for it looking the wrong colour.  It's so much brighter, and whiter, in real life!!

Lindsay Amrhein very kindly sent me a link to a ribbon tutorial.  I'd seen how she'd done a ribbon on one of her cards on her blog and loved it.  I had a play and this was what happened, it's ever so easy to do and I'm really pleased how it turned out!  Very OTT!

Here are the details of how to make it...

1. Cut out pink cardstock to cover card base, distress edges
2. Cut out scalloped paper, distress edges
3. Cut out patterned paper with 'My Sweet' set off centre to allow room for the cage, distress edges
4. Using grungepaper cut out bird cage, paint white, bend to make it curve, add pearls
5. Cut out the bird in red paper, using 'bitty grunge' stamp texture using white ink pad, cut out pink polka dot wing.  Assemble into cage (still not sure I like him inside the cage so I brought bits of him outside to make him a bit happier!)  Add pearl eye!  I had actually forgotten this bit, so my Marmie (Mum) said that as it was a love themed card I could just say 'love is blind' inside lol
6. Make fancy bow, stitch double button to centre of bow and add pearl to finish
7. Spend ages faffing around trying to make your white card look white and then give up trying!

Dies: Sizzix - Tim Holtz - Caged Bird
Papers:Prima Marketing - Shabby Chic Collection - My Lovely
Accessories:  Pearls, buttons and ribbons from stash, Tim Holtz distress ink - 'worn lipstick' and 'tattered rose', white paint for bird cage

Anyways, are you ready to play along?  Pop on over to the Cafe and link your post. If you use an online gallery, please use the keyword PDCC36. Don't forget to check out the rest of the DT's inspirational pieces! 

Julie Ranae (Senior DT)

Sarah Anderson (Senior DT)

Lisa Somerville

Savannah O'Gwynn

Stephanie Kraft

Suzanne Czosek

and our Celebrity Guest Designer this week, Kelly Marie Alvarez.

We'd love to see your creations!