Chalkboard or Blackboard??!

Hi everyone!

I hope you're all well.  Have you all managed to avoid being nominated yet?  For the ice bucket challenge?  I think I may have an imminent nomination heading my way, my sister has just been challenged but hopefully she'll take pity and vote elsewhere!!  I don't know how my pain and aches would cope with a bucket of icy water, the dip in the temperature weather-wise has been tough enough.  I'll wait with baited breath!

We have a new challenge up today at the Creative Card Crew blog and our sponsor for this fortnight is Die R Us

 They're offering a $10 voucher to our lucky winner!

The challenge we have set for you is...

Chalkboard!

I grew up calling it a blackboard and I think it's a whatever-side-of-the-Atlantic-you're-on thing!  It's a technique I haven't tried before and I'm not sure if I did it right but here it is anyway...

I used pearly black card and ran it through my printer which I had set at high quality so as the ink would stay wet for longer as I wanted to throw some white embossing powder at it!  I also pawed all over the card before I printed on it as I wanted some stray ep this time.  The font I used for the "Happy Birthday!" is called Bleeding Cowboy.  I added a frame around the writing on Powerpoint too.  I had crocheted some hearts and flowers and I thought they'd be a nice addition to my card in their nice bright colours.  (Sorry for the blurry pic, it looked OK til I enlarged it!)

The ribbons and Prima gem/pearl swirls are from my stash and match the colours of the crocheting nicely.

I put a modern school twist on the inside and made it into a whiteboard - you don't find many black-boards in schools these days! lol!  The sentiment is a stamp from the Whimsy Stamps Film Strip Sentiments set.

So join us, do, at the Creative Card Crew (that rhymes!) and let us see your idea of a chalk/black board, and make sure you check out what the rest of our clever design team did (including a guest designer this time!).  Let me know, too, if you call it a chalk-board or a black-board, just for my own amusement!

I'd like to enter my card in the following challenges:

Crafty Ribbons Challenge; Celebrate with ribbon
Cute Card Thursday; Back to school (I hope a black-board counts?!)
Dream Valley Challenges; Flowers
Sweet Pea Stampers; Embossing
The Pink Elephant; Anything goes

Thanks for looking!
 

Feel Better Soon

 Hi Everyone!

I have come to the conclusion that I need to have at least 28 - 30 hours in a day, cos 24 just ain't enough!  I don't know how others fit so much into their days and some of them have children to deal with too!  It's now 2:30am but I couldn't leave this any longer, so here's one of the cards that I should've blogged last week but completely forgot about - sorry, too much goin' on in my mind!

There's a challenge running on the Creative Card Crew blog and it's got just under a week left on it so there's still time to enter.

We are being sponsored by Imagine That!  and they're offering 3 digi's as a prize

 

We also have our regular sponsors, Marianne Designs, who are offering a fab prize of dies and/or stamps.

 

Our challenge this time is...

Embossing - wet or dry.

Here's what I did:

My image is called Nurse Ashley and was provided by our sponsors Imagine That!  (They have now added this card to their shop gallery for the Nurse Ashley image!)  I coloured her with the following Copics: Skin: E21,13,00,0000,R20.  Hair; E27,Y26,24,21. Clothes; R59,37,24. 100,C9,7,5,2,1. Clipboard; E35,33,31. Eyes; YG07,05,03.  I then fussy-cut around the image before adhering to the card with foam pads.

I shaped the card by making my usual square card and then cutting 3.5cm squares out of each corner to make a cross, which would later become a red cross!
I didn't use patterned papers, instead I used a Cuttlebug swirly embossing folder - thereby fulfilling the challenge!  The swirly gems, ribbon and charms are from my stash.

The inside has not been decorated this time, instead I used a lovely wee verse stamp from LOTV.

So that's my belated card for the Creative Card Crew Challenge, I hope you can join us during the remainder of our challenge.

I'd like to enter my card in the following challenges:

Crafty Girls Challenges: Anything goes
Creative Fingers Challenges Blog; Anything goes
Patties Creations Challenge; Monochromatic
Sentimental Sundays; Monochromatic
The Sisterhood Of Crafters; Favourite colour - Mine is definitely red and I don't get to use it often enough!
Southern Girls Challenge Blog; Texture
Sweet Pea Stampers; Embossing

Thanks for looking!
 

Christmas Cutie!

 Hi everyone!

I hope you're all well today?
I have been kept busy at work, this is a particularly busy week for me but it's OK, next week will be quieter.  I've been doing the 5-2 diet and today is one of my fasting days so it's good to be kept busy and then I don't notice that I'm hungry! lol!

We have a new challenge up today at the Creative Card Crew.
Our sponsor for this fortnight is Whiff Of Joy

 They are offering a rubber stamp to one lucky winner!

The challenge we have for you this time is a scary one!  We want you to make items with a theme of...

Christmas!

It scares me anyway!  It seems like no time at all since last Christmas and there's less time til next Christmas than there has been since the last!

But I knuckled down and this is what I did..

The image is Harry Hugging A Christmas Bauble by Whiff of Joy.  I coloured him with the following copics: E29,27,25,23,21,13,00,0000. R59,39,37,24. YG07,05,03. N5,3. Blender.  I used a metallic gold gellyroll pen on the hanger and other um, gold bits!
Again, I wasn't overly happy with my colouring on this one, I guess I just need to get back to practising again!

The papers are Helz Cuppleditch "Santa's Workshop" by Trimcraft.  The sentiment is also by Whiff of Joy from the Seasons Greetings set.  The ribbon came from Next and the kraft card, tag, pearls and button are from my stash.  The string on the tag is reused after I kept it from some clothes tags.  I used Spellbinders circle and scalloped circle to cut out the image.

The inside is much of the same with another sentiment from the same stamp set.

Please take a look at what the rest of the DT have done over at the Creative Card Crew blog and have a go at entering too!

I'd like to enter my card in the following challenges:

Bearly Mine Challenges; Lets go digital
Crafty Ribbons; Anything goes with ribbon
Creative Fingers Challenge Blog; Anything goes
Delightful Challenges; Add ribbon
My Time To Craft; Use kraft
Sentimental Sundays; Christmas in July
Southern Girls Challenge Blog; Christmas is a coming
The Corrosive Challenge Blog; Christmas in July

Thanks for looking!
 

Springtime Joy!

Hello folks!

I'm a little late in posting this as it should've been done on Tuesday, I haven't had a minute to get it done so apologies to Mari and the other ladies at Creative Card Crew.
I went to Belfast on Monday to get my car serviced and went shopping with my mum while we waited.  I got some lovely fabrics and trimmings at the Spinning Wheel shop in the city centre, I can't wait til the patterns I ordered online arrive so I can maybe get started, I'm excited about starting to sew, I hope I can pull it off and not be too disappointed with my results!

But in the mean-time I am sticking to what I know best, card making!
We started a new challenge at the Creative Card Crew on Tuesday and this fortnight we are being sponsored by Marianne Designs who are giving away a gorgeous stamp and die set to one lucky winner!

 

And we are also being sponsored by the fabulous Lacy Sunshine with 3 digi's going to another lucky winner!

 

So, the challenge for this fortnight is...

Spring!

We want to see how you see spring, the colours, the wildlife or whatever!

Here's what I did

The image was provided by our sponsor, Lacy Sunshine and I coloured her with the following copics:  Skin; E21,13,00,0000,R20.  Hair; R22,21,20. Dress; YG07,05,03,YR04,02.  Wings; E0000,R20,G00,B05.  Sky; C3,2,1,B01,00,000,Blender.  Grass; E47,31,YG07,05,03,97,95.
I had just refilled my skin-colour pens and I think they are a bit over-powering in the picture, but you live and you learn!

I used some pebeo paints on the image, to make flowers in the grass.  I also used some champagne mist ink on her wings which shimmer nicely in the light, you can't see it above so I took another pic which shows it a little better.

The papers I have used are First Edition Spring Feast and I teamed it up with some contrasting green card to mount on.  The lace, net, brads and charm are from my stash.  The sentiment is computer generated using the free font Fortuna Schwein.  I didn't use any dies on this card!  Go me!

The inside matches the front with the sentiment completed in the same font as the front.

I do hope you can join us in this challenge, there is a load of amazing inspiration to look at from the rest of the DT at the Creative Card Crew!

I'd like to enter my card in the following challenges:

Bearly Mine Challenge Blog; Spring
Craft For The Craic; Easter or spring
Divas By Design; Easter or spring
Fab N Funky Challenges; Pink
Lacy Sunshine Challenge Blog; Add flowers
Moving Along With The Times; Easter or spring
Papertake Weekly; Spring has sprung
The Corrosive Challenge Blog; Show us your metal
Top Tip Tuesday; Cute

Thanks for looking!
 

Mousey Wedding

Hello everyone!

What a difference a day makes, to the weather anyway!  Yesterday was wild and today is lovely - lets hope I haven't jinxed it!
It's my mum's birthday on Thursday and then Mother's Day on Sunday and, organised as ever, I have nothing for her yet!  She is so hard to buy for too, I don't know what to get for her, so any suggestions, please share!!

We have a new challenge today at the Creative Card Crew and I missed the last one cos I had the flu so it's nice to be back!

 This fortnight we have 2 sponsors again, the first one being one of our regulars, The Scrapping Center

With a $15 voucher for one lucky winner

And our second sponsor is the fabulous Whiff Of Joy!

Who are offering 4 digi's to another winner!!

The challenge we have for you this time is...

Animals!

Great or small, we want to see them all!

We were given images to work with by our sponsor so my animals are of the small variety!  Here's what I did..

I made a diamond fold card - I think that's the name for them, it's a while since I made one of these but they are so easy and look fab!  They are difficult to get right in photo's though.

My image is by Whiff of Joy and is called Happy Couple.  I coloured them (very quickly!) with the following Copics: Mice; E44,43,41. Suit; E49,47,44. Dress; E40. Flowers; RV29,25,23.YG17,13. Ears & tail; E21,13,000.

The papers are Melissa Frances, 5th Avenue and I thought it would be nice to mount the image on a rosette, so I used 2 strips of left-over base card stock and started folding!  The sentiment is computer generated and the font is Curlz.

I added a few diamante's here and there for a bit of that all important bling!  There's space on the back for a written greeting.

So that's my animal card, I hope you can join us at the Creative Card Crew - go check out the rest of the DT's fab work to get you started!

I'd like to enter my card in the following challenges:

Crafts 4 Eternity; Anything goes
Craft For The Craic; Something green
Crafty Catz; Bling it up
Eureka Stamps Challenge Blog; No square cards
Moving Along With The Times; Photo inspiration
Patties Creations Design Challenge; Anything goes
Stampin For The Weekend; Anything goes

Thanks for looking!
 

Wishing A Speedy Recovery!

 Hi everyone,

I hope you're all well?  My Granny was taken into the hospital during Sunday night/Monday morning and is on antibiotics and oxygen at the moment.  I've heard that she's doing well and there's plenty of craic out of her, so hopefully she won't be in for too long.  I wanted to visit her myself yesterday evening but I have a bit of a cold and don't want to be adding more to her list of things to get over.

My title is not just aimed at her though!  We have a new challenge today at the Creative Card Crew and we have a new sponsor in the form of Imagine That

who are offering 3 digi's to one lucky winner

And we also have one of our fabulous regular sponsors - The Scrapping Center

With a $15 voucher for another very lucky winner!

Our challenge for this fortnight is...

Get Well!

So here is my card...

When I saw the images we were given by our sponsor, Imagine That, I knew I had to use this image!  In case you don't know, I am a huge Formula One fan so I couldn't bypass this image!  It's also very apt at the moment with the 7 time World Formula One Champion, Michael Schumacher, still recovering after his skiing accident - Michael Schumacher was my favourite driver when he was racing, particularly when he was at Ferrari, so I made the card Ferrari Red!  I used the following copics: R39,29,27. 100,N9,7,5. YR21. Plus a Gold Sakura metallic gellyroll pen.
I added the sentiment (also from Imagine That) onto the rear wing, which was easy cos of it being in PNG format!

I kept the layout fairly simple, the papers are by Carta Bella, Giddy Up (the male version) and I added some gold brads to the corners.  I gave the card interest by mounting the layers on foam pads so there's lots of dimension.

The inside has the same papers and layout with a Wild Rose Studio sentiment and I used nail heads instead of brads to keep it as flat as possible.

I do hope you can join us this fortnight at the Creative Card Crew, go and check out what the rest of the DT have been up to too!

Thanks for looking!
 

Very Special Sister!

Hi everyone!

The last of my catch-ups now, this one is for the new challenge at the Creative Card Crew that started on Tuesday.

Our sponsors for this fortnight are...

Marianne Designs

Who are offering this fabulous prize to one lucky winner

And QKR Stampede

 Who are offering 5 dig's to another lucky winner!

So to be able to try getting your hands on one of these fantastic prizes our challenge for you for the next fortnight is...

KISS

Keep It Simple & Sweet!

So, here's what I did...

The image was provided by our sponsor QKR Stampede and is called Ballet Shoes.  I coloured them with the following Copics: RV23,21,10,Y15 and I used a clear stardust pen on the stars before adding a little gem to each one.

I haven't used any design papers or dies on this one!  The sentiment was computer generated using the font Lainie Day and the ribbon, pearl (which isn't as bright in real life!) and diamante numbers are from my stash.

As the card is so simple (& sweet!) I thought I would use the image again on the inside but I decreased the opacity and coloured it with Blush Pink, Light Peach, White and Sand prisma pencils for a less bright look.

I made the card for my "little" sister who turned 17 on Monday!  Where has the time gone, it seems like no time since she was only a wee baby!
I hope you will be able to join us with this lovely challenge - check out what the rest of the DT have done on the Creative Card Crew blog!

I'd like to enter my card in the following challenges:
4 Crafty Chicks; Use pearls
Crafty Boots Challenges; Bingo - first line down:Pink, Glitter, Star.
Loves To Create Challenges; Use red or pink
Top Tip Tuesday; Girly

Thanks for looking!
 

Retro Revival!

Hi everyone!

I have been demented over the past few days because my Office 2010 programs quit working.  I use them for so much - I have everything organised in excel and it was really annoying that I couldn't get it fixed.  I think the problem happened when I was renewing my internet security program cos it was just after that when I tried to open excel and it wouldn't let me.  It told me to go to the control panel and do a repair, which I did, unsuccessfully, several times!  I then had the task of finding the box with the disk in that the program came on (which I eventually found and I have no idea why I put it where I did!).  I then tried the repair again, this time from the disk.  It still didn't work.  I ran virus scans and checks and could find no solution so I un-installed and re-installed the entire Office program.  I entered the key and did everything right and thought it was fixed but then it said it needed to verify the key.  Then the bloody pop-up came up again saying: “An unspecified error has occurred. Your request cannot be processed at this time. Please try again later. (0x8007000D)” with a little link asking if this information was helpful...well, no.  It really wasn't helpful!
So after a few more attempts at doing repairs that I knew wouldn't help I finally found a solution on google and got it fixed!  I can't tell you how relieved I am!  I keep opening excel and just keep looking at it!  I'm so grateful to the people who run blogs which are there to help people with things like that, cos it's not the first time I've had to get help with something and found the answer on a blog.  So a big cheer to everyone in blog-land for putting so much time and effort into things that help other people (for free!), even if it is just a silly story that will maybe help someone to put a smile on their face!

So back to my post which will bring you back through time to Tuesday, when this should've been posted!

We had a new challenge up on Tuesday at the Creative Card Crew and 2 fabulous sponsors...

First of all, one of our regulars, Marianne Designs

Who are offering a gorgeous set of stamps and a set of dies to one lucky winner!


Our second sponsor for this fortnight is Kenny K Designs

They're giving another lucky winner 3 digi's!

So, the challenge we have for you is a special one as it is running along with Seems A Little Sketchy and using their sketch!  It was lovely to use the same sketch for 2 cards and see how differently they turned out!  Here's the sketch:

And here is my card, I'm nice and early for my sister's birthday this year, it's not til April!

The image is by our sponsor, Kenny K Designs and is called What If.  I coloured her with the following Copics: Skin; E21,13,00,0000,R20. Hair; E49,47,44,43. Clothes; RV23,21,10. Background; Y15,13,11.

The papers I used are from the Country Drive pad by Echo Park.  It's not too often that I use all the papers in a pad but this one is nearing the end, lots of lovely papers in that one!
Not a lot going on on this card as I thought the retro look of the image suited a simple design, so I went with the bright coloured papers teamed with the black border and rounded corners instead.
The sentiment is computer generated using the font Calibri.  I usually make some dig at my sister about her age as she is older than me so I can get away with it!  A few years ago I bought her some wrinkle cream!  She was not amused, well, maybe a little!  lol!

The inside uses the same papers and a simple happy birthday sentiment using a Wild Rose Studio stamp.

So that's my card, please pop over to the Creative Card Crew and Seems A Little Sketchy blogs to submit your entries and have a look at what the DT's have done - lot's of inspiration this time with 2 design teams!

I'd like to enter my card in the following challenges:

Crafty Creations Challenges; Something to drink - I wasn't sure if mentioning a drink in the sentiment was enough to enter, if it's not then please remove my entry :)
Crafty Sentiments Designs; Anything goes
Cute Card Thursday; Warm it up
Deep Ocean Challenge Blog; Happy birthday
Lady Bug Crafts Ink Challenge Blog; Keep it clean (and simple)
Moving Along With The Times; Girly Cards
Stampin For The Weekend; Happy Birthday
Top Tip Tuesday; Clean and simple
Kenny K's Krafty Krew; Use black

Thanks for looking!