CSAD Designer Card #61

There is another of my cards featured as a Guest Designer over at Card Sketch a Day today.

It is 'Halloween week' but as I don't in any way celebrate Halloween it seemed innapropriate to make that type of card so I made a birthday card with it instead for one of my best friends Hazel.

The patterned card is from a glitter card stack from DCWV.
The image is from Pink Petticoat and coloured in with permanent pens and lots of glitter, the ribbon is a self adhesive Docrafts one.

The sentiment was made by me! I stumbled across a 'Seal Generator' on this website and thought I might be able to make something similar to the rubber stamp designs that are so popular at the moment and this was one of the designs I came up with. I am tremendously pleased with the results.

CSAD Designer Card #11

I am really getting into the swing of making my Christmas cards this year. The last couple of years it has felt like a chore as I've left it too late but I'm amazingly ahead of myself this year.

I have some rubber stamp images from a forum swap (last year!) that are already coloured in and ready to go so I am using some of the older challenge sketches to make them up.

This is Sketch 11 over at Card Sketch a Day.

The stamped image is coloured with Twinkling H20's and I think it is an Elzybels design. It is matted onto gold card. The paper is an old HOTP one that I got from USA about 4 years ago and has never been used! The sentiment strip has been cut from a recent magazine freebie paper.

The brad is a from Dovecraft and is part of a selection that I have had recently from Mad About Cards. They had some brilliant bargains on Christmas packs so expect to see a lot of DCVW and Dovecraft items used on my cards (shhh..... Don't tell Paul!)

CPS Sketch #88

Well I think this could be a first for me. Completing a CPS sketch the day it appears on the blog!

This card is based on sketch #88 at CPS and is A5 sized

The patterned papers are magazine freebies, the image is a Penny Black stamp, the photo corners are from a Christmas Brenda Pinnick kit from QVC and the round sentiment is one I made using the seal generator website mentioned a few cards ago.

Sketches by Tamara # 66

I don't always get chance to do a sketch in time for it to be published on a blog but I do try to go back at some point and do one for it. This is one of those occasions.

The sketch for this card is #66 over at Sketches by Tamara.

The backing paper is an irridescent one by Reminisce which I got in the Capture The Magic sale earlier this year for about 30p a sheet. It has a lovely sheen to it. The ribbon is by DCWV, the snowmen are a Royal & Langnickel rub-on and the sentiment is a chipboard shape with a DCWV rub-on. All the rub-ons and ribbon are glittery so it is a lovely blingy card.

Matts 30th Birthday

This card was made for a commission for a friend of ours who was turning 30. I was asked to encorporate some of his favourite things in it, A Team, Star Wars and Spurs football team.

I'd seen a tutuorial on YouTube of how to make a diamond fold card and I wanted to have a go at one, but the tutorial made the card quite small. I used a sheet of A3 card and it came out 6" square.

I used Google to get some images suitable for the card and as soon as I saw the Star Wars one I KNEW I had to use it as it is a 30th cake with all the figures around it.

Really pleased with how it came out, looks spectacular and both the giver and receiver were delighted with it.

2 Sketches 4 You - Laura # 11

This christmas card was based on Laura's latest sketch at 2 Sketches 4 You.

I used a sheet of A4 silver mirror card as the base. The patterned papers are a magazine freebie, the darker blue section is accented with Papermania silver peeloffs.

The large snowflake is a tree decoration from Asda last year, they are so delicate I though they would look lovely on a larger sized card.

The sentiment and snowflake circles are glittered rub-ons from Dovecraft.

CSAD Designer Card #52

Over at Card Sketch a Day I have another of my cards featured as a Guest Designer today.

The main image is a magazine freebie from Simply Cards & papercraft magazine. I'm not a fairy type of person but I really like these images.

The panel which looks like it has a postal stamp edge was one of the most laborious things I have done. I punched it out
by making pencil marks along a line and using by Big Bite. I didn't think it would take as long as it did and thought it was a good idea at the time. It is an A5 card and there were about 70 holes - never again !

The ribbon is from Paperchase, the sentiment is a rub on and the rubber stamp on the corners is a clear one from the Stamps Away range at Clevercut.

CPS Sketch #87

For my birthday my hubby bought me a Netbook which is a mini laptop with a 10" screen. I am using this to watch prgrams that have been downloaded in my little craft room instead of watching TV and I am so glad I did as I have been much more creative and have actually MADE cards since.

I used the latest Sketch 87 at CPS to make this card. A wonderful friend of mine (you know who you are S) recently sent me some lovely goodies in the post and write a little note on the back of a stamped image that she coloured in so nicely. Being a card maker, there is no way you can throw away something so beautiful and I wanted to make it into a card, in doing so passing the love down the line to someone else.

I think it is a Penny Black stamp, but don't quote me on it. I have just added a little Sakura glitter pen to the dandelion heads and matted the image onto a scrap of dark green card. The spotty paper is one of theose strips you get free with magazines and the swirly paper is HOTP.

I am very pleased with the sentiment. When you buy clothes from Asda a lot of them have a really chunky chipboard tag on them. I covered it with paper and the message is a cheapie rub-on from Poundland. It has come out really well.

I am really pleased with this card, it is one of the nicest I have made in a long time. I really like the mix of papers and the colours go really well together.

CSAD Designer Card # 50

Sketch 50 over at Card Sketch a day is one of the first 2 sketches I requested to do Guest Designer cards.

The backing paper is from a DCWV drawer set that I had from QVC.

The swirls are rubber stamps from HOTP, accented with Papermania gems.

The tree has been recyled from an old christmas card and the sentiment is a long Doodlebug sticker that was cut into sections and mounted onto 3d foam.

This was quite a simple card but I think it looks really sophisticated.

Di Hickman Sketch October #3

I used the latest Di Hickman Sketch to base this card around.

Now, for the record I do not like the word XMAS and it is very rare you will see me use it, however this sketch just screamed it to me so I went with my gut instinct.

The red cardstock, patterned paper and chipboard glitter letters are all from the DCWV drawer set from QVC and the brads are from an assorted Christmas designs pack I got from Lakeland in the sale last year.

Kazan Sketch #11

I used Sketch 11 over at 2 Sketches 4 You to base this card on.

Paul's sister has just had a huge operation and will have to rest for a while to get over it.

The patterned paper is from Dovecraft, the sentiment is a magazine freebie rub on layered using nestabilities dies and 3d foam.

I used my mosta favourite punch in the world from Martha Stewart on the scalloped strip.

A stylish design for a stylish lady!

CPS Sketch #86

This card was based on Sketch 86 over at CPS.

I used a sheet of A4 gold cardstock for the base an the backing paper is from the DCWV drawer set I had from QVC recently.

The ribbon is a roll that I had from Ebay some time ago. The tree is an embossing folder from Cuttlebug.

I was toying with the idea of putting a sentiment on it but felt it would imbalance the design. I am slowly learning that less is more and fighting with myself to constantly fill a blank space with 'stuff' so I decided to leave it as it is.

CPS Sketch #85

As soon as I saw Sketch #85 at CPS I knew what I wanted to do with it.

I recently got a cardmakers clearance box from Artymiss and there were a lot of patterned papers by Twelve by Twelve that were flower themed with a square panel of flower. I thought the text would go great as the background and the flower panel a great focal point for the centre. I just added a little inking around the edges to make it pop a little more and mounted it on 3d foam to add dimension.

A nice simple card where the patterned paper does the talking.

2 Sketches 4 You - Laura # 10

This card was made using Laura's sketch 10 over at 2 Sketches 4 You.

I haven't been able to do the sketches for the last couple of weeks as I have very little free time, but this sketch was perfect for a card I needed to make.

I have a long last been able to use my Martha Stewart punch and I luuuuurve it so much. It was the easiest to use border punch and lined up perfectly.

The papers are from my assorted scraps with a tiny bit of ribbon. The flowers are Prima and the letters are from the Dovecraft Retro Flowers chipboard shapes tin.

A simple card, but reallt pleased with it. The sketch is brilliant and I am sure I will be using it again.

The Ting Tings in Concert

Went to see the Ting Tings in concert last night at the Carling Academy in Birmingham and they were really good.

We saw them at the Irish Centre in June just after they had gone to number 1 in the singles charts. I'd bought the tickets months before as I heard a song of theirs on the radio and thought it was such a catchy tune and they were going to be BIG! The gig was great and as I'd bought tickets before I received notification of an advance booking on the next ones.

It was a much bigger venue than previous, but still quite low key. Katie was fabulous on vocals and I was on the balcony alongside the side of the stage and had a fantastic view of her performing. Unfortunately I could only see the drummer Jules (mmmm!!) when he came and went off stage, but he did do one of the songs on guitar at the front and I had a fabulous view of him (mmmm) He's a bit yummy. The sound was fantastic and the drumming was freally powerful, it were brilliant.

I went with Paul and our friend Garry. Unfortunately his girfriend Hazel was really poorly and she couldn't come. Gaz was very impressed with both of them although he knew none of the words. I was singing along all the way through ! It was a briliant night. I love concerts me!

World Card Making Day

Well it was World Card Making Day yesterday and I had every intention of making a card at the START of the day, but by the END of it, guess how many cards I had made ????

That's right, a big fat zero !

I think I no longer can call myself a card maker. At present I am more like a collecter of stuff. Don't get me wrong, I want to make them but at the moment I am just not getting the chance and would love more hours in the day.

Mind you, I DID tidy my room up yesterday and a little more this morning so I did something towards the whole card making thing. I suppose that's something positive :)

Computer been neglected and 9,000 Hits !!!!

My poor computer has been badly neglected over the last few days.

I went on it very briefly on Tuesday just before we went out for the night, was really tired last night (out too late on Tuesday) and didn't go on it at all.

Tonight I have just finished putting the blurb on 2 cards I uploaded Tuesday and have opened my email, I've got 198 unread emails !!!!!!! My inbox was clear so God know where they came from.

Have just reached 9,000 hits on my blog! I am well chuffed considering I thought I would be the only person who would read it as I'm not that interesting really.

Better go and sort out my inbox then - I may be gone for some time !