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Monday, 11 April 2011

Guest Designer at Shelly's Images


This week is my 2nd stint as a Guest Designer for Shelly's Images. They are having a DT call at the moment and I would have loved to enter but now I am on 4 DT's I think that is enough for the time being :)

The gorgeous image I was given to work with is Some Bunny and can be purchased from the Shelly's Images store here. I love how realistic the image is. Don't get me wrong I loves my cutesy images but I think it must be harder for a designer to get the attention to detail right when you are designing the more realistic ones like this is.

I have used the current sketch from Truly Scrumptious for the layout. The image is coloured using Promarkers and I used a blending pen to stomp on the coloured design to create some texture to the bunnies fur. The size of the finished card is A5 so you can see how clear the design has come out at a large size.

I have covered the base of the card with a pretty paper from Pink Petticoat which was a freebie in an issue of Creative Cardmaking magazine. We are so lucky that in the UK we have a few magazines where the freebie papers are such good quality that you do actually use them. However we also have some that are fabulous magazines but the papers are printed on the shiny thin paper and they are just not useable. Goodness only knows why they keep doing it. I always give these ones away to an old persons craft club as they always need materials.

Anyhoo, the pretty paper is so springlike with lots of Easter and spring references on it. I cut a strip of green card and used my Martha Stewart doily punch on it. The purple ribbon is a fabulous find. As I live in Birmingham we have a diverse array of cultures and there is a large Indian community. I love going to the Rag Market which is a big indoor market and there are a lot of stallholders with fabrics and haberdashery items. There is one Indian lady who has the most amazing trims, laces, ribbons and I usually buy loads of bits and pieces from her. This particular braid is 2 different sequin trims that are woven together with a metallic thread. Indian ladies would use it on the bottom of Sari's and on the hems of the trousers. She was fascinated that I would use these trims for cards. Just goes to show you can find crafty supplies in lots of places if you think outside the box.

Last but not least I added some little sequin flowers and popped some gems on the centres. The chipboard sentiment with the button is from a bargain pack of Easter items I bought from WH Smith's in the their January sale. The most amazing thing is that I could actually find them :)

Thankyou so much to Shelly's Images for again giving me this Guest Designer opportunity and please check out the creations that the Design Team have made with this image too on Shelly's Images Blog

I would like to enter this Card into the following challenges (in alphabetical order):-
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Happileigh Scrappin' Challenge # 17


It's Stef's turn to set the challenge over at Happileigh Scrappin' Challenges this week and she had provides us with a sketch to work with.

I used an Hello Rufus which is available to purchase HERE in the Critters section at the Happileigh Scrappin' Store.

For my creation I started with an A4 sheet of card to create and A5 blank. This has been inked around the edges and I have cut DP from DCWV Glitter Stack and distressed the edges. I have coloured the images with Promarkers and created lots of layers to give dimension to Rufus and to the likkle ladybird. Finally I have added a couple of enlarged ladybirds in circles, popped up onto 3D foam and added the sentiment which was cut using a Quickutz cookie cutter die.

Please pop on over to see the lovely creations my Happi Sisters have added. There are lots of lovely cards to feast your eyes upon.

Remember, for our challenges you don't need to use a Happileigh Scrappin' image but if you do your entry counts twice and with freebies available here it is easy to use one of Leigh's fabulous digis.


We would love to see lots of entries in this challenge. Leigh gives away her lovely digis to the top 3 so it is well worth entering and me and the DT love to see your creations, so come on over toHappileigh Scrappin' Challenges to join the fun.

I would like to enter this card into the following challenges (in alphabetical order):-
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Sunday, 10 April 2011

OSAAT Challenge #57 and a Freebie


Over at OSAAT we have a new challenge for you which is to make something for a new baby


For this Challenge there will be one winner and we are sponsored by
The Stamping Boutique and they are offering a prize of:-

5 digi stamps of winner's choice


In the Newsletter this week we have Dora in the Designer's spotlight. If you don't already subscribe I would suggest that you sign up as there are some fabulous images given away as freebies and you will always be kept up to date with the latest image news.

While you are there don't forget that for the Month of April we have a store collab with the theme of Mother's Day & Babies which is free with a $10 purchase.

For my card this week I have used a great digi called Tweet Tweet by Gingerloft. I printed out the image twice so I could layer the nest and tweety birds up on 3d foam to create some dimension. I coloured the image with Promarkers and kept to a very simple colour pallette. I figured this would make an ideal card for when you don't know what the couple are expecting.

The paper I used is from a First Editions pad by Dovecraft called Sweet Owl and I have added an inked edge to soften it a little. I added a strip of dark brown which has been stamped with a Fiskars punch and offset the image, something which for me is very hard to do. I pretty much always keep things straight and actually find it hard to fight this urge.... I added some Craftywork Cards Candi dots and the gorgeous felt flower embellishment was an amazing find. I had coloured the image a few days before and just needed to put the card together. I popped to the shops on Thursday, came across some scrummy embellishments in Poundland and they were the EXACT colours to match, obviously they had to be purchased so I could use one on this card ( as if I really needed an excuse to buy something...LOL )

Last but not least I finished the card off with a sentiment that has been cut using a Nestie die and inked around the edges. Now I have quite a few digi sentiments and was sure I had one with this kind of baby and nest theme. Well if I have I can't find it anywhere!! I thus decided to make my own. If like me you also can't find one I have added a JPG and PNG file to this post and you are more than welcome to snag them if you can find them useful.


I you do download them I would be very grateful if you would leave me some love. If you use them on a project please link back to me and let me know so I can come and take a peek at your creation.

I really enjoyed visiting the blogs last week and seeing the most gorgeous of creations. I hope you will join in with our challenge this week and look forward to passing on some love.


I would like to enter this card into the following challenges :-
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Thursday, 7 April 2011

Spotty Dotty Watering Can



Faith from Designed 2 Delight gives away a freebie image at the start of the month on the Delightful Inspirations blog and you get a new one every week if you have completed the last. I always have good intentions of taking part and then my plans fall by the wayside. Well this week, I have actually made a card using the 1st one which is this lovely image of a watering can filled with pretty flowers.

As a starting point I have used the colour challenge # 50 from Off The Wall which uses the colours of pastel green,yellow and pink.


I have use the sketch from Sugar Creek Hollow for the layout. The image wasn't the right shape so I made the mat larger and added a strip of stripy paper. I am really pleased with how that turned out

All the papers and elements are from Papermania and are a combination of the Rose garden and Summer blooms sets. The colours are so soft they are perfect for a spring theme like this.

The image was coloured with Promarkers and stickles and gems have been added for a spot of bling.

I would like to enter this card into the following challenges (in alphabetical order) :-
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AIF075 Easter





We have a new challenge for you today at AI Factory and this week we have an Easter theme.

We're showcasing a fabulous Vector set of Easter Eggs which is available from the AI Store here.
You get 8 different egg images for only $5 so it is fabulous value for money. The store is being re-vamped at the moment, a lot of time has been spent on it and it looks great but please bear with us whilst the products are being loaded back into the store.


Now for the details of my card. I have used one of the images and enlarged it to almost an A5 size. The detail was still really clear even at that size, that is one of the beauties of vectors. I wanted to hide an egg inside her so cut at the jagged line and used a matching coloured brad from HOTP to hinge the top section to the card so it could open, revealing her little beau hiding inside her.

I used a colour scheme from The Shabby Tea Room and coloured the images with Promarkers adding glitter to the bow. The card base is covered with a dotty paper from the Papermania Sweet Nothings collection.

To enter this week's challenge visit the AI Factory Challenge Blog where you will see the full rules and details. If you play along with us and upload your image you could win this week's image.

You are not required to use an AI Factory image to enter, but there are some great freebies available here in the freebies section of the store. You will need to link up your entry before midnight EST on Wednesday March 30th. If you use an online gallery Such as AiF, PCP or SCS then please tag your entry with the challenge code AIF075 so we can see all your cards in one place. Whilst you are at our challenge site please take a look at the rest of the DT's wonderful creations.

I look forward to seeing your entries in our challenge and Good Luck !

I would like to enter this card into the following challenges (in Alphabetical order) :-
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Monday, 4 April 2011

Crafty Cardmakers #43


Over at Crafty Cardmakers this week we have a new challenge for you. Dee has set a recipe challenge of Mainly yellow, stitching (real or faux), rhinestones and ribbon


Our sponsor is The Stampman and they are once again very generously offering a £10 voucher for their store.

For my card I have chosen an image of a Sunflower as it is one of my favourite flowers, they make you so happy just to look at them and of course yellow is a happy colour too. This gorgeous image is by Happileigh Scrappin'

I have coloured it with Promarkers, added different shades of yellow paper from DCWV, Pink Petticoat and Creative Cardmaking magazine. I have added faux stitching on each layer (not brave enough to dig my sewing machine out from the cupboard under the stairs....).

The fabric flowers are from a spray I bought at Poundland. Some are double flowers and some are single. Thay all have the fizzy brown bit in the centre and you got absolutely loads of blooms on each spray. I replaced the centre of one flower with a Papermania button to add a bit of a contrast. The ribbon and sentiment are from miscellaneous stash. I added 2 small yellow gems to the sentiment as a finishing touch.

The sentiment and the image have been mounted onto 3D foam to add more dimension.

I hope we will see lots of entries for this challenge as I am sure we are all ready for a bit of spring colour :) Please pop over to the challenge blog to see the beauties the DT have made using this recipe.


I would like to enter this card into the following challenges :-
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Happileigh Scrappin Challenge #16 Repost

** Due to a computer problem Leigh wasn't able to upload the new challenge details but I had already published my card and linked to challenges so I have re-posted this today along with the other girls **

It's Georgia's turn to set the challenge over at Happileigh Scrappin' Challenges this week and it is to make a shaped card, no Squares or Rectangles here !!

I used an egg from the Fancy Easter Egg's set which are available to purchase from the Happileigh Scrappin' Store. There are 5 different designs in this set for only $3 which represents fantastic value.

For my creation I wanted to try something different but really wasn't sure if it would work. I had the idea to transfer the digi design onto acetate using a Sharpie marker. I then applied some dries clear glue and ultra fine glitter to these areas and left them to dry. I think I may have used a little bit too much glue as it took over 24 hours to completely dry but the sparkle is amazing so well worth it.

The main pink background is a crackle effect self adhesive irridescent paper which I adhered to the large egg shape I had created for my template. I then used this to make a shaped card, creating a frame around the image and squaring off the base so it could stand up. I attached the acetate to this base card so that glitter would be inside, thus ensuring the recipient doesn't get covered in like I did when I made it. To complete the sandwich I added a black layer to the card front to create a frame around the egg and cover the adhesive that had been used on the acetate.

The spotty ribbon is actually a patterned shoelace from Poundland. They are printed onto a strong twill and you get 4 pairs of varying sizes laces for only £1!! The tag is from an easter set of dimensional stickers and I have suspended it from the ribbon using 2 jump rings.

This week we are welcoming some new members to our team. Please pop on over to see the lovely creations my Happi Sisters have added. There are lots of lovely cards to feast your eyes upon.

Remember, for our challenges you don't need to use a Happileigh Scrappin' image but if you do your entry counts twice and with freebies available here it is easy to use one of Leigh's fabulous digis.


We would love to see lots of entries in this challenge. Leigh gives away her lovely digis to the top 3 so it is well worth entering and me and the DT love to see your creations, so come on over to Happileigh Scrappin' Challenges to join the fun.

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Sunday, 3 April 2011

OSAAT Challenge #56

Over at OSAAT we have a new challenge for you which is to make Something 3D


We have 2 Sponsors this week which means we will have 2 random prize winners.

One Random Winner will receive 5 Promarkers from our Wonderful Sponsor


One Random Winner will receive a Gift Voucher

In the Newsletter this week we have Barbara Jensen in the spotlight. She has some wonderful sassy images in the store and they have 25% off the normal prices. If you don't already subscribe I would suggest that you sign up as there are some fabulous images given away as freebies and you will always be kept up to date with the latest image news.

While you are there don't forget that for the Month of April we have a store collab with the theme of Mother's Day & Babies which is free with a $10 purchase.

For my project this week I was able to use a brand new design from Stitchy called Little Friends. I wanted to make something a bit different and decided it would be a great design to use to make a box to hold a small gift or trinkets.


I drew around my largest Nestabilities frame and cut around this leaving a border to make the box slightly bigger. I had printed out 2 copies of the digi so I could decoupage the heads on the Wolf, Rabbit and Mouse to add more dimension. I coloured them in with Promarkers and took great care to add shading. I did toy with the idea of adding some embellishments but felt it would have detracted from the image so left it alone (unusual for me!)

Using the top section I layered this onto a strong card for the lid and made a base the same size. I then used my scoring board to make a box which was 1" thick and stuck the top and bottom onto the Nestie die cuts. I added a piece of a dark gold textured ribbon to this section to add some decoration and provide a bit of relief from all the white!

On the inside I used a free Word art sentiment from Elegant Wordart by Bethany. I felt it was particularly appropriate for our little bunch of animals that have made their own family. I intend to give this box with a gift to a very good friend of ours who is also not a relative, but family that I have chosen for myself.

I really enjoyed visiting the blogs last week and seeing the most gorgeous of creations. I hope you will join in with our challenge this week and look forward to passing on some love.

In the meantime, it is Mother's Day today in the UK and I wish all the Mother's out there a fabulous day. My Mother in Law loved her Rub A Dub Dub card which was my DT sample from last week :)

I would like to enter this box into the following challenges :-

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Saturday, 2 April 2011

DT at OSAAT


I am very proud to announce that I am on the full time DT for One Stitch At A Time.

When I submitted my card for my stint last week as a Guest DT I was asked if I would like to become a permanent member, well you could have knocked me down with a feather. I am so proud to have been asked and it is a great opportunity to work with digis from a variety of designers and styles.

It is great to have been given this opportunity and has been an amazing boost for my confidence. Paul remarked that it was worthwhile buying me the full set of Promarkers as it looks like digi's and me make a great partnership. Who would have thought all that colouring in I did as a child would have me on 4 DT's now? I'm loving being so crafty, it is great therapy for me and having things to make for deadlines is ensuring I've got something to keep me focussed on days when my mood could so easily dip.
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