Anything goes at Marianne Design Divas

 Hello!  I have a little Christmas card to share with you today for the Marianne Design Divas challenge of anything goes - so a nice easy one for you to show off your Marianne Design goodies.  Our sponsor is Nicki at Bunny Zoe's crafts with a £15 voucher to spend on Marianne Design goodies in her shop, and a second prize from Marianne Design - do stop by the blog to read all about it and see the stunning creations from the rest of the design team.

I just made a card, not feeling too inspired at the moment but I was pleased with how it turned out.  The base card is a small scallop square that I've turned to make a tend fold opening.  I've stamped little Daisy Pirouette and the trees from the Winter scenery for my image, then coloured with my Copics before cutting her out to fit my pretty mat. I've dusted the trees with loose glitter (not safe to use Stickles over Copic pens I've found as they make the colour bleed).  I have used crystal Stickles with a finger to go over the die cut elements so my card has lots of festive sparkle - here it is:

Here's the list of Marianne Design goodies I used on my card:

Paper pad Scandinavian Winter PB7040

stamp Daisy Pirouette DDS3336

Don and Daisy Winter scenery DDS3331

fancy mat for image CR1249

mini poinsettias LR0142

swirls snipped from LR0112

holly leaves, baubles and snowflake COL1363

I'm managing to find time to browse some blogs whilst waiting for doctors to call on Mum, and have discovered my pc will work for about 3 hours before the internet connection slows to a halt, so I'm thinking that something must be overheating.  The solution is I have to switch off for a couple of hours and then try again .. .. mind you, weekends are still an impossibility!  Thanks for stopping by, and I hope you will come and join in our Marianne Design Divas challenge and show off your MD goodies.

CAS at CCT

This week the theme at Cute Card Thursday is for CAS creations, and our sponsor for this challenge is Katharina at Whiff of Joy, please stop by the CCT blog to read about it and for more inspiration from the design team.

I already had the pretty LOTV Christmas spray stamped out so got colouring with my Copic pens, then simply added a stamped text, embossed the faux stitches around the edge and inked with green ink before sticking to my C6 card base.  I hope you like it.

Still having problems with the internet here, along with home issues, so not sure how often I'll be able to post a new creation.  Mum had a funny turn early yesterday morning and I had to dial 999 for the ambulance .. .. thankfully not a major heart attack although the actual cause of her pain is still a mystery.  The doctor called in the afternoon and has tweaked her meds and this morning the lovely nice nurse came and took bloods - they might show up something.  Mum refused to go into hospital for observation so I'm having to do the nursing here, and I'm pretty sure she has another wee infection too .. .. but doc wants to test for the appropriate anti-biotic - hopefully we will know what is going on and what medication to start by tomorrow.  So last night I was waking up at the slightest squeek in case she was in pain again, and with the wind blowing doors open and shut, . .. consequently I am knackered today!  On top of the other family issues I'm not sure how I'm going to cope with it all on my own .. .. anyhow, thanks for stopping by, and double thanks for leaving me a message - I'll try to return asap.

Wee Winter Friends

Been playing with my pens again and coloured up this little cutie by Sylvia Zett - this is the digi version of Winter Friends from Wee Stamps.  I've not touched my pens for a few weeks so found it a little harder going, but persevered and like the finished results.  Although, I'm not sure penguins and rabbits are purple .. .. hey! it's my Christmas fantasy, ok!


I was lacking inspiration when it came to putting the card together but found I already had the mat cut and a piece of the matching paper on a base card .. .. so cut another layer and found a scrap piece to layer up, then finished off with the die cut embellishments.

Here is the card, gone a little bent with the wet glue so I will need to try and flatten it a bit (or blame the postman/weather).  The mini poinsettia dies are from the MD LR0142 set and the mistletoe leaves from LR0189.  I've added red and white pearls to finish things off.  The patterned papers are from the MD Wintertime pad PK9100 with embossed stitch edges I've inked with brown chalk ink.  I've not seen any Christmas challenges to link up too .. .. but then looking isn't easy.  Thank you to everyone stopping by, and I do love to read comments too!

Still having internet problems here especially in the later afternoon/evenings or anytime over the weekend.  But I've got a new little gadget from Tesco with my vouchers, so instead of paying £113, I only had to pay £23!  I've figured out how to use it for reading Facebook and my emails, and even got GOT series 4 loaded from Blinkbox (couldn't wait until next February for the dvd set) although I might get a cable to link it to the TV for a bigger screen.  I've not yet learnt how to do anything else and I can't seem to get the blog listings to show or the Pinterest adding icon .. .. sometimes I feel like a techno-dino!

Vintage Style at CCT

Hello!  I am back with a little C6 card to share with you .. .. but oh boy has it taken an age to load the pictures, fingers crossed I can do the post.  This week at Cute Card Thursday our theme is Vintage, and our sponsor is a new company, to us, from Finland called Sunflowerfield - please stop by the the CCT blog to read all about it.

I recently treated myself to a couple of Sylvia Zett's Wee stamps digital images, at least my new printer works after a fashion .. .. still need to fiddle about with settings to get the sizes right. Anyway, here is the little Rowan Fairy, coloured with Copic pens.  I've kept things very simple as this card will either need to be posted, or will end up as one for the Children's Hospice charity shop.

Here she is on the card:

 I've used a kraft base and papers from the Marianne Design French Roses pack PK9106 with inked embossed faux stitching around the edges.  A little beige satin bow and the pale amber liquid pearls around the image mat finish it off - simples!

It's impossible to link up to any challenges, my internet wont load the blogs, even my own takes forever!  So, sorry for not visiting and leaving a comment, sometimes I can manage to see the top post but the pictures aren't always there .. .. I'm going to have to save up for a new machine.

My newest Marianne Design things!

Life is definitely difficult at the moment!  My internet is virtually non-existent some days (today being one of them) and even on a day when it's working reasonably well, posting can take all day!  I am still not convinced it is all my machine's fault, DH did manage to get about faster with his laptop at the weekend but even he found it slow at times.  I'll have to struggle on for a while .. ..

So, here is my DT card for the next Marianne Design Divas challenge to use your newest MD goodies.  There are two prizes each month, this time Cuddly Buddly and Marianne Design - stop by the challenge blog to see what they are and see the rest of the DT's creations.

I've used a new to me Snoesjes Christmas stamp and coloured him/her with Copics .. .. I think this image could be either a girl or a boy.  Here's the card and the list of MD goodies I've used:

I'm having to keep this short and sweet as I'm likely to loose the connection at any time .. .. so here's the list copied from the Marianne Design Divas blog:

Snoesjes Freezing Cold stamp HM9452 - new stamp

Collectables: jingle bells COL1363 - new die

Craftables: circle CR1248

Creatables: Poinsettia straight LR0122, text LR0225, branch LR0286

Papers: PK9089 and  PK9100

I see that the Divas by Design challenge is for Christmas in July so I'll try to link up with them.

Sorry I'm not able to get around to commenting with the internet connection problems I'm having at the moment. Also, having a few problems getting used to the new diet my GP has put me on .. .. but I hope once I understand what I can and can't eat it will be worth the hours of research, cooking from scratch, and shopping trips to find the ingredients that are ok to eat!

I'll take a break for a couple of weeks then hope to be back with you again.

CCT with Pretty Papers

I am back with my DT card for this week's Cute Card Thursday challenge to create something with pretty papers.  Our sponsor is Whiff of Joy and you can read about the prize and see what the rest of the DT did on the CCT blog.

My card was one I made as alternative for last week's theme, hence the stars, but knowing that this week was going to be pretty papers, I thought it would be better to share with you now.  The papers in question are new from the Marianne Design Garden Party pack PK9108 - and here you can see I even put paper inside too!

The die cuts I used are all by Marianne Design too so here's the list:

star layers with CR1226
flowers with dies in LR0188 and LR0145
leaves from LR0226
Birthday and text stamp COL1349
tag from LR0187

The Charisma Card challenge is an anything goes theme so I can enter my card with them.


I've been having a lot of problems connecting to the internet and after contacting EE on several occasions I'm told it's my machine that's not up to scratch .. .. but since last night things have picked up so I'm not altogether convinced about that.  It has meant that I've not been able to do much other than wait 5-10 mins for each page to load and then just look at pictures .. .. hopefully now I'll be able to leave comments too!

And after trips to the doctor for blood tests and prodding, I'm on a couple of regimes for a month's trial.  The asthma one just needs me to remember to take my steroid inhaler night and morning - but the specialist nurse thinks I might need a different kind as the one I'm on only lasts 8 hours.  I've been doing it religiously for a week now and notice my dips are early morning before I take it, and early evening just as it's time to make a meal, take a walk with DH and the dogs or water the garden .. .. I have a review in August so will see how that goes.  This morning I started on a low FODMAP diet as recommended by the GP, but perhaps shouldn't have eaten all the 'bad' stuff yesterday afternoon to use it up as I'm really suffering now! It's going to be hard not having any stone fruits with all those lovely cherries, peaches and plums in the shop .. .. but perhaps it's my over-indulgence on the cherries recently that has really upset my system, along with the hummus, beans and of course lots of onion/garlicky things too.  I'm doing research trying to find more information other than the list the doctor gave me .. .. the first question being: can I have those little baby french beans?  I know that beans in general come under the Galactans heading that I have to avoid but haven't found info on the runner or french beans.  And what about peas?  Ah well, hopefully in a few days I will start to feel much better.

CCT Seeing Stars

As promised, I'm back with my DT card for Cute Card Thursday's challenge to reach for the stars!  I've not added it to the CCT blog, just in case I mess up the entries so far .. ..   Our sponsor for this challenge is Nikki at Bunny Zoe's crafts, and Nikki has a 15% off weekend sale currently running .. .. I must go take a look!

My card is a simple little 5" square that I make for the Children's Hospice shop in Tavistock (DH delivers them when he's over that way) so there's not too many embellishments and no specific text.  I started out with the Handyman Don stamp from the Don and Daisy collections by Marianne Design then after I'd stamped him up I masked him and added the fence from the Summer scenery set.  I've coloured with my Copic pens, and added my signature faux embossed stitching around the edges of the layers then highlighted with a sandy-brown chalk ink.  Here's the card:

I couldn't resist using some of the papers in the new Garden Party pad PK9108, even if some of the bits are cut off left-overs from another project I've been working on - don't waste a thing!  I even used the tiniest pieces to punch out the stars for the theme - stars always work well with masculine designs I think. I've only used a couple of Marianne Design dies on this card:  the text comes with the banner die set COL1324, and then the corner is cut from COL1342 with the bit I cut off added at the bottom.  I'm always snipping my die cuts apart to create more looks, I'm sure Marianne wouldn't mind.

The Creative Card Crew are looking for masculine cards and Marianne is one of the sponsors this time too, fingers crossed then!

It's Saturday already!

Where does the time go .. .. it's been a strange week here, with the work in the garden still on-going and the workman coming back 'dreckly' so goodness knows when that will be!  I planted some of the new plants for the sunny side myself, but either I got them too close together or I'm going to need a lot more!  This morning I had a tidy up after the rain and picked an assortment of blooms for a summer bouquet, it probably wont last long and the colours clash, but it's nice to have flowers in the house.

I managed to have a day off with hubby on Wednesday, although it wasn't a day off for him, but at least we got to spend some time together even if most of it was in the car.  The last couple of days I've been battling technology and on the phone to EE to figure out why my internet connection is so slow .. .. actually it's the BT line that is slow and there's nowt can be done about it.  This part of Cornwall has beautiful scenery and gorgeous sandy beaches, but is pants for phone signals and internet connections.

I was happy to see one of my cards on the Snoesje blog today - this one I blogged a while ago back in May and you can see it here if you want to know what's on it.

I wasn't able to add my DT card for the Cute Card Thursday stars challenge .. .. but I do have one so will share with you later.

Enjoy your weekend, we have the sunshine back and I have more plants to put in before I can relax and catch up with everyone.  Thanks for dropping by, and thank you for leaving me a comment if you have the time.

Wee Emily

twice my post has disappeared - probably just as well as I was having a right old moan about it - technology that is and the stresses of life that are getting to me again just now.  So perhaps I'd best not go back there and keep the spiel short and sweet.

My image is one of Sylvia's Wee Stamps digi designs called Emily, also available in rubber from Whimsy Stamps.  I've coloured her with my Copic pens and added a touch of sparkle around the edge of the die cut image.  I've also added sparkle with the Marianne Design snowflake card, but am slightly disappointed that it's ivory rather than snow white although in the picture it's looking brighter so not so bad!  Here's the card:

My base is a scallop square I've turned to make a tent fold and the papers are old K&Co from my stash.  I rounded the corners and added some stitching with a white marker - that's also more ivory so ties in with the sparkly card.  The die cut elements are all by Marianne Design and I've finished off with the stamped bunting, also from MD, a double bow and the pearls I've coloured with Copic RV69 to match.  No flowers on this one as I just couldn't make any that matched in with the image and that I liked, and I wanted to keep the card fairly flat for posting.

So, here's the Marianne Design die list for you:
buttons from LR0188
butterflies from LR0261
leaf spray from LR0150
lace edge CR1250

The Moving Along With The Times blog are celebrating their birthday with bunting and buttons, hence the embellishments on the card for them.  At both Crafty Catz and Papertake Weekly it's an anything goes week, Allsorts are looking for summer girls, and the Fussy and Fancy Friday girls are looking for summertime creations too.

Due to technology problems with internet and my pc, along with the stresses of life here just for the moment, I'm not getting around to commenting on blogs very much - I am sorry.  I do appreciate your visits, and doubly so the kind friends who leave me a comment as reading them does cheer me up, so thank you all.

Going Round in Circles

Going around in circles is kinda the way things are for me just at the moment!  This week the Cute Card Thursday challenge is sponsored by Rick St Dennis - do stop by the blog to read all about it and see what the rest of the DT have made.

I've been backwards and forwards to the doctor for blood tests, asthma checks etc so, along with the garden project and looking after Mum, I've not had much time to craft.  I was browsing Pinterest a while back and knowing that this challenge theme was coming up I took note of a card originally posted on the AnMaCreatif blog last year - see it here - and sort of copied it .. .. my layout is slightly different as are my papers and I've added the pearls.  It was reasonably quick and easy to do, die cut out the different pieces, ink the edges with green chalk ink for a touch of shabby, then stick it all together!  I've used Marianne Design papers from the Beautiful Butterflies pad PK9089, and the owl die set COL1302 plus the hearts from the bird set COL1301 and the little pearl heart embellishment on the top of the hearts is also by MD.

The Sketch 'n' Dies blog challenge is anything goes with die cuts so I'll enter my thank you owl with them.  The Fussy and Fancy Friday theme has been anything with wings - hope I'm in time to join them again espcially as I was in the top 5 last time!  And, the Incy Wincy challenge and Crafty Creations also want to see things with wings so I can enter with them too.

Sorry I've not been around to blogs this week, I will try and catch up over the weekend .. .. life sometimes throws a spanner or two in the works and you end up going round in circles!

I do love to be beside the seaside!

It's still sunny here beside the sea on the north Cornish coast today although a breeze is making it deceptively cooler, but a great day for sailing! My DT card for this week's Cute Card Thursday seaside challenge features the cute LOTV lad with his sail boat and I wanted to create a scene with him using the sail boat from the Marianne Design Don & Daisy summer scenery set.  I've coloured with my Copic pens and added touches of glitter for the waves.

Our sponsor for this challenge is Whimsy Stamps - always a great prize!

And here is my card, a different picture to the one on the CCT blog - I took another this morning so there are less shadows, but the colours don't look quite as bright - ah well!

My papers are from the Maya Design Life in the Country pad, Happy Birthday is cut with a Joy Crafts die from red SU! card and I've decorated with punched fronds and die cut shells using Marianne Design dies.  The numbers are also MD - and my original plan was to make a birthday card for my grandson to give to one of his friends .. .. but I couldn't think if they would be mostly 5 or 6 years old so cut each number, then saw how they both looked together and turned it into a 65 year old birthday card, perhaps for a keen sailor that's about to retire and spend a bit more time at the beach! The numbers are only fixed with a single foam pad each so if necessary I can do a bit of tweaking .. .. that's the joy of making your own cards.

The shells are MD LR0230 with a touch of chalk ink on the embossed areas.  The numbers are MD COL1347 and the set comes with a couple of stamps to add pattern - I left mine plain.

Moving Along With The Times blog challenge is also beside the sea side so I can enter with them, and the ABC challenge is up to the letter 'N' for nautical, so I'm in with them too!

Taking it easy - I wish!

Well here I am with another card to share with you .. .. but I kinda ran out of inspiration when it came to the embellishing bit .. .. too sore with sunburn and an aching back!

The image is one of my new LOTV stamps that I've masked and then added the fence from the Don and Daisy Summer Scenery set by Marianne Design plus a couple little butterflies from another Daisy stamp.  I've coloured with my Copic pens to create the scene - here's the card:

The papers are scraps from my digi print out basket, the bunting is another MD stamp, and I've simply finished with a die cut button and bit of string.  There are a few MD dies I've used, the button is from the label & button set LR0188, and the scallop edge is from the daisy border die set CR1273.

The Additcted to Stamps challenge theme is outdoors, and Totally Gorjuss are celebrating Dad's so I'll enter with both of them.

And this is how my new bit of garden looked at the end of yesterday, taken from the guest bedroom window.  Thankfully I'm not the person doing the digging .. .. actually it's a digger done digging!  It is looking a bit better this evening with the trench along the fence now filled up with good topsoil ready for the hedging plants arriving tomorrow.  Looking at that ground it is a wonder I grow anything - not really soil at all but something the locals call 'shisty shillit' which is the worst kind of decayed slate layered with clay .. .. rock hard in the dry and sticky in the wet - and stony all the time! Plus there's the remains of builders sand and agregate below the window, at least there's going to be a path along there so not so much of a problem. I've painted the fence posts dark brown this afternoon, and might get the fence painted later on with a darker brown woodstain so it ties in with the rest of the house.  The sunburn that is now starting to itch is the result of Saturday's wondering about, the backache is from painting and watering the patio pots and back garden this evening with the closest water-butt running dry so I'm having to walk back and forth with the cans to the one with water left in it - we need rain!

Flowers for Marianne Design Divas

oh my!  I am late sharing my DT project for the next Marianne Design Divas challenge - its flowers, so nice and easy.  You just need to have a minimum of 3 MD products on your creation, let us know what they are, but other than that you can mix in any other brands you like.  As always the prizes are fabulous, and don't forget the Candy for our followers too - stop by the blog to read all about it.

I went with something a bit different and made a little heart hanger for the wardrobe.  I used some good quality thick felt for the base heart, but the rest is a selection of thinner, and cheaper, felt .. .. although I think I would rather have something in between.  The flowers were easy to gather up with a thinner felt and I've just added a small seed bead to the centres.  Here's a close up:

And here's the list of Marianne Dies I used to make my little heart hanger:

hearts cut with CR1225
flowers cut from the 3 dies in COL1323
leaves are from the biggest flower in LR0107 then cut up in bits to look like leaves.
loop to hang my heart made with white Tulle JU0924

I hope you will come and join us, the rest of the DT have put together some gorgeous projects for your inspiration - remember, you can make anything with flowers and the 3 MD products.

The Crafty Catz challenge is to use at least 2 different dies on your project, so I can enter my heart with them.

I am busy in the garden again .. .. at last I have found someone to do the landscaping of the last little bit that the builders used as their cement mixing area and lay the gravel drive with gates .. .. so by next week it should all be looking fabulous!

Marianne Design Divas Candy!

Oo! just look at these lovely goodies .. .. I wish I could enter!  Marianne Design Divas candy is for our followers, just hop over and see what you have to do to enter.  I love that cute bucket and spade die set with the sandcastle, and those new alphabet stamps coming out are sure to be a useful addition to anybody's collection.

So Macho!

It's Thursday so it's time for another challenge on the Cute Card Thursday blog, and with Father's Day this coming Sunday here in the UK, we are going all Macho!  Our sponsor for this challenge is Katharina at Whiff of Joy, stop by the blog to read about the prize and see what the rest of the DT have made.

I took advantage of the recent 3 for 2 offer on the manly stamps at LOTV and added 3 new pieces of rubba to my collection.  I am going through my stash though and selling some off, check out the Stamp Sale page - I've started the list with 5 LOTV teddy bears that have been forgotten and need a new home .. .. email me if you are interested in re-homing them!

Back to my card, I've coloured up the Vegetable Patch stamped image with my Copics - it's a bit brighter in real life with the carrots being, well, a more carrot colour!  Here's the card .. ..



I had both brown and mustard card in my stash and a piece of digi printed out paper (not sure where from though) in the basket that matched in, again more mustard in real life.  The strip of ribbon is dark brown gross grain and I coloured the pearls with a dark brown Copic pen to match - no they are not black!  I've added the embossed faux stitching around the edge of the paper and mustard layer then inked with brown chalk ink so they pop out.  I've used the same chalk ink to highlight the embossed areas on my die cut daisy flowers and the buttons - Perfect for Incy Wincy's challenge for faux techniques as I have faux stitching and faux buttons, and of course faux flowers.

And, of course the die cuts are by Marianne Design, so here's the list:
faux stitching created from LR0161
brown scallop edge from CR1273
daisy flowers from LR0106
brown stamen in centre of flowers from LR0105
green fronds from LR0107
buttons from LR0188

In addition to the Incy Wincy challenge, there are several Father's Day/Masculine challenge themes around this week so I'm also going to enter my card with Craft Your Passion, Oldie but a Goodie (old paper and card and in fact everything is old except the stamp) and Cutie Pie looking for Cute for Dad.  And then there is the LOTV monthly challenge I almost forgot about .. .. it's for sporty or male creations so I can enter my gardening chap.

I am busy in the garden today, weeding around my sweetpeas where I'd dug in my home made compost and now I have tomato, cucumber and melons coming up! Obviously my compost bin hasn't been hot enough to kill of seeds so I might have to be a bit more selective about what I put in it from now on!

I'm on the Snoesje blog today!

How exciting to see one of my creations on the Snoesje blog this morning!  I made this one as my first DT card for the Marianne Design Divas a little while back - you can see it and get all the details on my blog post here

I am taking Mum to Bodmin Hospital this afternoon for an eye check up so have to get myself organised.  I'll be back tomorrow with a card to share, until then: Byeee!

Happy Birthday from Ruby

I have another card to share with you today with another of Sylvia Zett's adorable digi images for Wee Stamps, this one is called Ruby and is a favourite to colour with so many details in her hair.  I've used my Copic pens and a mix of colours as this is another card for my Mum to send to one of her friends - and she likes to see bright colours.

Here's the card:

I was turning out my paper stash and trying to get some order .. .. this subtle sheet of blue stripe is an old piece but I thought it would work for this card as picking out any other shade from the image wasn't working.  To bring the colours 'out' I've die cut flowers from different coloured card, added the butterflies and pearls, and finally a stamped birthday text by LOTV. Job done!

Here's the Marianne Design die list for you:
flowers COL1323
leaves cut from LR0137
little butterflies from LR0261
scallops along bottom from CR1273
embossed faux stitches with LR0161

Stampin' for the Weekend have an anything goes theme this week, and at a Creative Romance it's also anything goes, with the optional extra of a Birthday creation as they are celebrating a whole year of challenges!

Enjoy your weekend, I am keeping my fingers crossed that the wind doesn't get any worse as my garden is already taking a battering .. .. at least the sun is shining and it's warm for the moment!

Perfectly Pink at CCT

Sorry I'm late sharing my DT card for Cute Card Thursday .. .. I've been stuck in the garden finishing off bits and bobs and staking the tall plants before the bad weather hits, and it's taken longer than I thought.  Anyway, here's my card, and we are looking for perfectly pink creations with a fabulous prize from our sponsor Nikki at Bunny Zoe's Crafts - do stop by the blog to read all about it and get some inspiration from the Design Team's creations.

For my card I've coloured up Wee Stamps design, Amy.  Mine is a digi but she is also available in rubber too from Whimsy stamps.  I've coloured with my copic pens with lots of pink - here's the card:

The base I cut with a Frilly #10 die from bright pink old SU! card and also cut my 'Birthday' and little butterflies from it too.  I've decorated with flowers and leaves, added sparkle to the butterfly wings and little pearls to the flowers colouring them with a Copic to match.  I've also coloured the pretty flower lace strips which has the effect of stiffening them up so they so any overhang doesn't flop - like at the top of my card.  The pretty background paper is from the Marianne Design Rose Garden pack, code PK9102, and after cutting it slightly smaller than the base I've gone over the edge with pink Stickles.  All the dies are by Marianne Design, of course, so here's the list:

Birthday COL1349
flowers COL1323
flower stamens from LR0105
skeleton leaves from LR0156
butterflies from LR0261

The Squirrel and the Fox challenge is for girly creations, the Papertake challenge is anything goes with the optional extra of making it summery, perfect!

Peace on Earth

Just a little Christmas card to share with you today, and one I made for a couple of festive challenges.  Jingle Belles want to see Peaceful creations and I remembered I had an old stamp that would be perfect .. .. and Winter Wonderland don't want to see any red or green, so I've avoided those colours and stayed with a monochrome white/grey blue theme which is what the ABC challenge are looking for with the letter 'M'.

My card is all Marianne dies, starting with the big candle die - quite an old one but new to me.  After I cut it out and embossed with the blue-grey chalk ink, I went over the candle drips with a crystal Wacco pearl pen which has given a shimmer look with a hint of pink in certain light! You can see that in the centre of the poinsettias it's just a sort of white, so it must be the ink that's giving the shimmer - nice though!

Here is the card:

I've embossed a piece of paper with Swiss Dots then added the embossed faux stitching around the edge, highlighting with the chalk in.  Then there's the 4 corners, text stamped onto the banner, mini poinsettias and the ivy sprays - job done!

So these are the Marianne Design dies I used for this little card:
embossed faux stitches with LR0161
corners from set LR0285
candle from set LR0243
text stamped onto banner from COL1324
mini poinsettias from LR0142
ivy sprays from LR0206

All being well I'm going to see a crafty friend tomorrow so will be back with my next card on Thursday - see you then!

Take a hike!

that's what Don is doing, hiking along the coast path, maybe he will find Daisy!  This card could be the companion to the last one I shared with you as many of the elements are the same, although I avoided any pink and chose to add more yellow to the mix.  Again I used the little sailing boat from the Summer scenery set and a smaller sun then repeated some of the sea and grass edges across the design to create the image.  I've coloured with my Copics and added the Lace Stickles to the waves, the same as before.

Here's the card:

I've used the same paper and turquoise card but this time cut the shells from white card and inked with an aqua chalk ink and chose blue and aqua Stickles to add the sparkle.  The little yellow shells I picked up on the beach, and the little piece of white shell too.  I've used all Marianne Design die cuts so here's the list:

Square turquoise mat for the image - LR0242
shells - LR0230
anchor and starfish - LR0232
swirls and frilly bits - LR0157
text and banner - COL1324

The Sweet Stampin' blog challenge is for a special boy/man card, and Allsorts challenge is for the guys, so I can enter both of those with my card.

Guest at Don & Daisy blog

I was invited to be a guest designer on the Don and Daisy blog for the new challenge - holiday greetings.  I've put together a card with Daisy In the Sunshine stamp and the sailing boat from the Summer scenery set.  I've coloured with my Copic pens and added Lace Stickles along the edge of the sea as it meets the sand, and on the waves.  I've got a couple more close ups for you .. .. ..

Here you can see the sea shells I've die cut and some little pieces of sea shell and sea glass from my local beach, dusted with a mustard shade of loose glitter as though they are still covered in sand!  I simply got craft glue on my finger, stroked over the shells and then dusted the glitter - messy but effective! The little flower is one I was making up as I went along a while back and it was on my desk so I used it, the centre is a blob of clear Viva Decor pen and pink glitter - lovely sparkle on this card!

And this is the bottom left corner with more shells, the little bit of fence and a text stamped onto a die cut banner that I've trimmed down. The embossed areas and edges on the die cuts I've coloured with chalk inks in soft pink and sandy brown shades

Finally, the card .. .. ..

Again, taken on a bright sunny day so the colours are looking washed out, it is brighter in real life.  There's another shell decoration at the top along with a stamped PB postcard onto the MD handmade paper, and a tiny scrap of tinsel I found in my stash.  I had fun making this card and beachcombing for the little extra bits, there are so many shells on the beaches here washed in after all the storms.

Here's the long list of Marianne Design products I've used for my card:
patterned paper from Rose Garden pad PK9102
Mulberry paper used to stamp the PB postcard RB2219
Daisy In the Sunshine stamp DDS3320
Summer Scenery stamps DDS3333
shell dies LR0230
anchor and starfish dies LR0232
lace edge across middle of card and used to make faux embossed stitching around edge of paper LR0161
fence die LR0205
text and banner die set COL1324
flower created from smallest die in CR1201
fronds from LR0192

I'd like to enter my card into the Fussy and Fancy Friday outdoor challenge.  Today I'm off out with hubby, need to get a few bits and pieces and walk the dogs somewhere although it's looking a bit cloudy and the roads in Cornwall are usually hectic on a Saturday .. .. but hopefully everyone will be leaving the county now that the Whitsun/half-term break is over .. .. leaving the locals a little peace and quiet before the summer madness begins!

Shades of Blue at CCT

It's time of our next challenge on the Cute Card Thursday blog, and this time we are looking for shades of blue on your creation.  Our sponsor is the Stamping Boutique so why not stop by the CCT blog to read all about it and see the rest of the DTs creations.

For my card I've used a cute LOTV baby stamp I got a while back and have only just got around to inking and colouring with my Copic pens.  I've cut out the image with a pretty Marianne Design die and added blue stitches then embellished with little clear and blue stars I found in my stash and an odd strip of lace.  Here's the card:

I've cut the base from kraft card with a Frilly #10 die, and with a smaller die in the set my piece of pretty background paper.  The paper and die cut pieces are all by Marianne Design, I'll give you the list:

patterned papers from Hello Sweet Baby pad PB7041
image cut out with CR1248
clear text stamp CS0890 onto small plain die cut piece from CR1251
large white flowers with embossed hearts also from CR1251
little duck LR0307
leaf flourishes from LR0271
little flowers from CR1210, embossed and inked with soft blue-grey chalk ink.

I hope you like my cute baby card.  The Die Cuttin' Divas have a boy theme going at the moment so I can enter my card with them, and the Crafty Cardmakers would like to see flourishes so I'm in with them too!

A simple Fairy wish!

Hello there! I am back after a busy weekend and then a day or so of catching up on the housework and laundry .. .. the garage is looking almost empty but there are bags of rubbish for the bin men (hope they take them all) and a stack waiting for the tip .. .. and at last the floor is down in the lounge and the skirtings fixed - now it's fill and paint time again!

But first, I needed a little relaxation time so finally got to colouring one of Sylvia's sweet Wee Stamps digital fairy images I've had on my pc for ages, and now at last can print out! And, as she is a fairy her wings needed a touch of sparkle so I played safe and used a quickie glue pen and some loose glitter that is now top of the stash pile.  I did have a little difficulty layering up the shades of colour on her hair .. .. not sure what I've done differently as it's the same card I've been using for a while, perhaps going through the printer somehow changes the properties?  I will have to watch and see.

Here is the card, taken in the glorious sunshine we've been having here in North Cornwall (no sign of the promised rain, yet!) so shadows and a little washed out on the colours, but they are pastel anyway. And I just noticed there's a stray pearl to the side of the card on the blue cushion .. .. but now I've looked it's gone, how strange! I've coloured with my Copics then found a scrap of digi paper from my stash pile to add to the front of the small scallop card, inking the edges with spun sugar DI.  The white lace mat and matching paper strip across the bottom of the card are Marianne Design dies, as are the flowers and leaves too.  I added the lace and pearls but kept things clean and simple - well as CAS as it gets for me that is! I left off adding a greeting so I could use the card for any occasion, and will just add something inside when needed.

So, here's the list of Marianne Design dies I've used:
circle - CR1248
strip - CR1250
flowers with the smallest die in  COL1323
small skeleton leaves from LR0156

The Addicted to Stamps blog are playing bingo and I can make a cross with two diagonal lines .. .. first with lace, pearls and a doily, and second with die cuts, pearls and flowers.

And at the Corrosive challenge blog it's an anything goes theme!

Wee Peggy

At last I've got the printer working!  well I had it working the day we got it but then when the router died I couldn't get it to link up to the new one .. .. after a long, and no doubt expensive, phone call to Epson a nice man walked me through the hassle of re-loading all the software.  And hubby told me how to resize the pictures easily so I can print out my adorable Wee Stamps digis the size I want!

Here is Peggy, she is coloured with Copic pens and I gave her a sunny shadow to pic up the warm tones in the paper, although I'm not altogether sure I like it.  Here's the card:

It's a deliberately bright card as I've made it for Mum to send to one of her friends, and at nearly 90 years old, neither of them see pastel shades too well.  The bright pink card is SU! from my stash, the text is an old PB stamp and I've coloured some of the pearls a darker shade of pink with a Copic marker, the rest of the stuff is all Marianne Design, so here's the list:

paper from Rose Garden pack PK9102
Scallops vintage lace JU0907
pink die cut along bottom edge is the plainer die in set LR0300
flowers cut with Mulberry paper RB2219 from die set COL1323
skeleton leaves LR0156
little butterflies LR0261

There's quite a few challenges I can enter with this card, so here goes:  Stampin' For the Weekend are all for the girls as is A Creative Romance, Papertake Weekly are all so cute! At Craft Your Passion the theme is for pearls and lace, and Totally Gorjuss is also looking for lace.

I've had to clear all my craft stash away as my youngest son is arriving with the family tomorrow to stay for the weekend so we need the dining table for meals! Hopefully the weather will be kind as the grandsons are wanting to have a bbq on the beach - and I don't fancy that in the wind or rain!  Enjoy your weekend, and as it's a BH here in the UK on Monday, I'll not be around 'till later next week - catch up then!

Just the words

This week on Cute Card Thursday we are focusing on words, so just a sentiment on your card and no image.  We are sponsored by My Creative Classroom for this challenge, stop by the CCT blog to read all about it and see the rest of the design team's creations.

I was messing about a few weeks back with the cute little baby feet die I won on the Marianne Design challenge #101 and together with some other bits and pieces by Marianne Design I created this card .. .. and then saw it was going to be perfect for the challenge!  The colour is looking rather grey on my screen, it's a proper baby blue in real life.

And here is the card, a small square (still using up the envies) and as well as cutting out the feet from silver card, I cut the nappy pins, swirls and little ducky too.  The flowers I cut from handmade paper then inked the edges, more of the blue chalk ink that's gone a bit grey but matches the lavender grey coredinations card I used to mat and cut the fronds.  The text I stamped and then cut out with a pretty circle, inking the embossed areas and the inner circle with the chalk ink. I found little snips of satin ribbon to tie up the pins and buttons to finish things off.

Here's the list of Marianne Design bits and pieces on this card:
Hello Sweet Baby paper PB7041 gingham in the background and flower design for the buttons
Mulberry paper RB2219 for the flowers
vintage lace stars JU0906
text is clear stamp CS0889
embossed faux stitching LR0161 around edge of gingham paper then inked to highlight
circle die LR0168
baby feet LR0305
nappy pins LR0217
little duck cut from LR0307
silver leaf sprays LR0271
fronds from set LR0107
flowers CR1204 the smallest in the set
buttons LR0188 small ones

The Diva's by Design challenge is an anything goes week so I'll enter my baby boy card with them too.

Marianne Design challenge - with flowers

Oops! I nearly forgot that I had made a card for the Marianne Design Challenge and now have left it to the last minute to join in .. .. better late than never!  The theme is Mother's Day with flowers or, as Mother's Day has already been and gone here in the UK, a card with flowers - there's plenty of inspiration on the blog.

I've created a little scene with Don and Daisy stamp 'Love Is' DDS3330 and scenery stamps from the Summer set DDS3333, colouring with my Copic pens.

Here's the card:

Keeping with the floral theme in the image, I've added a floral spray and floral lace, and as there were little butterflies on the pretty paper I die cut some extra ones to fly on my card.

Here's the list of Marianne Design products I've used in addition to the stamps:

paper from Rose Garden pack PK9102
lace from JU0925
faux embossed stitches added around edges with LR0161
pink scallop cut with die from CR1273
pink flowers and swirl from LR0112
turquoise leaves from LR0227
ivory sprays from LR0106
little butterflies from LR0261

I didn't add a greeting as I'll keep the card for whatever occasion crops up - birthday, anniversary, engagement etc.

The ABC challenge is up to the letter L = lots of layers, and as I have a fair few I'll enter my card with them too.