Krafty Chicks Challenge #709 All Occasions

Hello again friends; I'm back with my DT card for this week's Krafty Chicks challenge.  We are on Week 4 which is 'All Occasion' i.e. birthday, sympathy, get well etc; the world's your oyster!  

I needed an anniversary card for my in-laws so this challenge was perfect timing for me.  Here is my card:

a closer look at the florals:

I also decorated the inside:

I began by cutting my white panel 4 1/2" x 6 1/2" and my black panel just a touch bigger to give me a thin border.  I adhered them together with double sided tape.  The floral die comes in two parts; the backing piece I cut from white card and the top detail layer I cut from gold mirror card.  I used the matching layering stencils to colour the backing die cut and then added the gold detail layer over top with liquid glue (it's not perfectly lined up with my stencilling but it looks ok).  I repeated this another 2 times, an extra one for the inside.  I added foam squares to the 2 for the front on my card and arranged them in such a way that I could stamp my sentiment in the centre of my card.  The sentiment is made up of 4 different stamp sets and I could have made my spacing a little closer between the mam and the ampersand but it was too late once I had stamped it!  I added a few tiny heart die cuts to fill some empty spaces and the front was complete.  For the inside I stamped a sentiment in black ink in the centre and then added the third die cut flower arrangement at the bottom of the panel (I did trim it ever so slightly so that it would fit).  I added the panel to the card base with double sided tape.  My card size is 5" x 7" which is my preferred size for family cards.  I hope you like it. 

I would like to enter my card into the following challenges:

Addicted to Stamps & More challenge - any occasion

Beautiful Blossoms challenge - anything floral goes with optional mood board

Cardz 4 Galz challenge - spring flowers with dies or punches

My Time To Craft challenge - multi-coloured florals

Pearly Sparkles challenge - celebrate

Simon Says Stamp Wednesday challenge - ATG

Stencil Fun challenge - must use a stencil option Easter/spring (I used a die/layering stencil combo)

The Paper Funday challenge - ATG option the DIES have it

Tic Tac Toe challenge - pastel colours, CAS design, flowers

Triple B challenge - must include at least one bird, bloom or butterfly

Try It On Tuesday challenge - use a stencil (I used a die and layering stencil combo)

I hope you will be able to join us for our 'All Occasions' challenge and I cannot wait to see your creations in our linky.  Please leave some love for my fellow chicks - Leanne, Diane and Lori and also our guest designer for March, Shirley. 

Thanks for stopping by. 

Love and hugs, 

Card ingredients:

Gina K Designs - doodled autumn stamp set

Gina K Designs - floral wishes stamp set

Gina K Designs - curved floral die set & layering stencils

Gina K Designs - lovely ladies stamp set

Gina K Designs - grand gentlemen stamp set

Gina K Designs - ink pads - bubblegum pink, passionate pink, ocean mist, wild dandelion, soft stone

Cardmaking Magic - verses for occasions (for inside sentiment)

MFT - tag builder blueprints 6 (for tiny hearts)

Limetree Crafts - 250gsm silky smooth white card

Hobbycraft - A4 luxury black card

gold mirror card from stash

Spring Into Card Making IG Hop - Week 3

Hello my lovely friends; I hope you've had a wonderful day so far.  It's Week 3 of the Spring Into Card Making IG Hop organised by my lovely friend Kelly and this time we are all about spring.  Each week we will be sharing a themed card focusing on the joys of spring.  If our hop inspires you please use the hashtag #2024springintocardmakinghop to join in the fun.  

This week we are making Easter or spring creations and as Easter is almost here I decided to make one more Easter card.  I used an older (but new to me) stamp.  Here is my card:

A close up of the cute image:

I decorated the inside:

I began by cutting a panel of alcohol marker friendly card to 3 3/4" x 5" and stamped the image towards the left of centre and coloured it with Promarkers (I also stamped a mask to use later).   After colouring the image I placed the mask overtop and lightly inked all around with a sea glass ink pad to give a slight halo effect to the image.  I then stamped the sentiment to the left of the image in black ink.  I cut a panel of kraft card slightly larger than my white panel and adhered them with double sided tape.  I then added this onto my card base with foam tape.  For the inside I cut the exact same panels as the front, stamped a sentiment in the centre with black ink and lightly ink blended the same sea glass ink around the edges.  I decided to stamp just the little eggs from the image into the left bottom corner three times and coloured them with Promarkers.  The panels were again adhered together with double sided tape and added to the card base with double sided tape also.  I finished with some white highlights using a gel pen and my card was complete.  

I would like to enter my card into the following challenges:

AAA Cards challenge - anything CAS goes option spring/spring colours

Allsorts challenge - keep it simple

CRAFT challenge - Easter/spring

I Love Promarkers challenge - ATG option use the rainbow

Papercraft challenges - Easter

Scrapping4Fun challenge - Easter/spring

Shopping Our Stash challenge - spring has spring (13 challenges total)

Simon Says Stamp Wednesday challenge - ATG

Stamping Sensations challenge - spring (3rd entry)

Sweet Stampin' challenge - Easter

The Cutie Pie challenge - Easter/Mother's Day

The Sisterhood of Crafters challenge - bunnies and or chicks (if my 'bunny' isn't appropriate please delete/ignore my entry)

Tic Tac Toe challenge - Easter eggs, yellow, free

I would love it if you would pop over to Instagram and see the amazing work by all the other crafters taking part in the hop.  Please use the hashtag #2024springintocardmakinghop to find us and also so that we can find your creation if you are inspired to take part.  

I'll be back again with you tomorrow with my card for the Krafty Chicks challenge so please pop by and check it out.  As always I appreciate the comments you leave and thank you so much for stopping by. 

Love and hugs, 

Card ingredients:

Stamping Bella - Valerie bunny stamp (retired)

Dovecraft - essential sentiments (for inside greeting)

Promarkers

Gina K Designs - masking magic sheets

Gina K Designs - sea glass ink pad

Limetree Crafts - 250gsm silky smooth white card 

Heffy Doodle - alcohol marker friendly card

Crafter's Companion - 280gsm kraft cardstock

Memento - tuxedo black ink

Versafine - onyx black ink

Sakura - no 10. white gelly roll pen

A bit o' green (and gold)

Hello and happy Sunday friends.   I hope you've all had a wonderful weekend; although it seemed to go by in a blur it was so fast.  I'm sharing a card that I originally was going to post last Sunday (St. Patrick's Day) but time got away from me but I thought I would still share it.  It's not a SPD card but it is green so I thought I would have been perfect for last Sunday.  I hope you like it.  

Here is my card:

a close up of the focal image:

I decorated the inside:

I began by die cutting the circle die from gold mirror card and a further 3 times from white card and adhering them together with liquid glue.  I took the circle pieces from one of the white die cuts and ink blended onto them using 5 different colours of green ink.  I cut a white panel with a stitched rectangle and a slightly larger gold panel with another stitched panel.  Using some of the green ink that I used to ink blend with I splattered the background; I also added some gold splatter.  I adhered the panels together with double sided tape.  I took 2 of the white circles and stamped them with sentiments using black ink.  I added the gold circle outline die cut and the green ink blended circles with liquid glue.  The white stamped circles were added with foam squares for some dimension.  I didn't think the card needed any further embellishments as it was sparkly enough.  For the inside I cut another 2 stitched rectangle panels and added a few ink blended and gold circles randomly at the very bottom.  I didn't add a sentiment as I thought this card could be used for many different occasions and I can add it when needed.  

I would like to enter my card into the following challenges:

Addicted to Stamps and More challenge - any occasion

Allsorts challenge - keep it simple

Aud Sentiments challenge - use glitter/bling and/or green/St. Patrick's + sentiment

Colourful Options challenge - green

Double D challenge - green/clover/shamrock/luck

Dragonfly Dreams challenge - circles

Dream Valley challenge - dies and/or punches (3rd entry)

If You Give A Crafter A Cookie challenge - inspired by the colours

Inspiration Station challenge - I was instantly drawn to the colour of their skirts

Shopping Our Stash challenge - round and round

Simply Clean & Simple challenge - green

The Sisterhood of Crafters challenge - green

That's it for now but I'll be back on Wednesday with my Week 3 card for the Spring into Cardmaking IG Hop so until then take care and thanks for stopping by.  

  

card ingredients:

Waffle Flower - outlined circles die

Gina K Designs - ink pads - jellybean green, fresh asparagus, lucky clover, key lime and grass green

Gina K Designs - Lovely Flowers stamp set (for sentiments)*

Gold mirror card from my stash

Limetree Crafts - 250gsm silky smooth white card

Kuretake Gansai Tambi - starry colours palette (I used yellow gold for my splatter)

Versafine - onyx black ink 

* should be available once new kit is released

Krafty Chicks Challenge #708 - CAS

Good morning lovely friends; I hope you're having a great week so far.  I had a bit of a fright yesterday as every time I tried to get on my blog it was redirecting to spam/selling pages.  I got a bit stressed, googled for help and tried a few things, but not being very tech savvy couldn't figure it out.  Luckily my eldest son is very tech savvy and even though it was 12:30am he patiently sat with me and finally sorted it out.  Apparently it was a corrupted widget on my blog and once we removed it (after a bit of trial and error) everything was back to normal.  I'm only explaining just in case some of you experience it in the future.  It's when old, outdated widget gets taken over by dodgy types and they can change the purpose of the widget.  

Anyway onto happier, nicer things.  Today is the start of a brand new challenge over at Krafty Chicks challenge and this week Diane is our hostess and wants to see all your CAS (clean and simple) creations.    

I've been making cards with lots of details and layers lately so it was a nice change to go back to a CAS style.  I didn't have anyone in mind when I made this card so just had fun.  Here is my card:

A closer look:

I also decorated the inside:

I began by cutting a white panel 4" x 5 1/4" to create my background.  I took 2 ink cubes in yellow and blue and simply swiped them across the panel in a stripe pattern.  It's not perfect but I really like that plank or woodgrain effect you get by doing it this way.  I took another white panel and cut it to 3 1/2" x 4 3/4" and die cut a star into the centre.  I added foam tape behind this panel and added onto my striped background at a jaunty angle for some interest.  I die cut the 'birthday' word from navy card 3 times and adhered them together with liquid glue (on the 3rd layer I only added the middle part, from the i to the d so that it would give some support as it was over the open part of the die cut).  I added that over the star cut out with liquid glue.  I foolishly left it until now to add the happy sentiment so carefully using my Misti stamped it above the die cut word with navy ink.  I felt it needed a little something but nothing too in your face so found a die that cut out some teeny tiny stars and added some above and below the star.  These were cut out of some of the same striped background that I had practised on.  For the inside I cut a white panel 3 3/4" x 5" and stamped a sentiment in the centre with navy ink.  I swiped the yellow and blue ink at the bottom to replicate the front and added a few more stars.  This panel was added with double sided tape.  This was a really quick and easy card to make and the background took seconds but I think it looks really fun.  I hope you like it. 

I would like to enter my card into the following challenges:

AAA Cards challenge - anything CAS goes option spring/spring colours

Dream Valley challenge - dies and/or punches

Get Creative challenge - sing a song (Star by Kiki Dee)

Incy Wincy Designs challenge - birthday and/or funny, humourous

Inkspirational challenge - CAS option feature a balloon

Pearly Sparkles challenge - celebrate

Simply Clean and Simple challenge - anything CAS goes option green

The Paper Funday challenge - ATG option the DIES have it

Unicorn challenge - for the boys/men

I hope you will be able to join us for our 'CAS' challenge and I cannot wait to see your creations in our linky.  Please leave some love for my fellow chicks Leanne, Diane, Lori and our guest designer Shirley who is joining us for March.  

Thank you stopping by and leaving me such lovely comments; I appreciate you all.  

Love and hugs, 

Card ingredients:

Quickutz - nesting stars dies (they are really old and no longer available)

MFT - tag builder blueprints 6 (for tiny stars) 

Spellbinders - simply perfect mix & match sentiment dies (for birthday word)

Gina K Designs - doodled autumn stamp (for happy word)

Gina K Designs - let's celebrate stamp (for inside greeting) free incentive set last month but will be available in the store once the new kit comes out

Gina K Designs - ink cubes - prickly pear & powder blue from Winter assortment

Gina K Designs - in the navy ink pad

Limetree Crafts - 250gsm silky smooth white card (for panels and card base)

Spring Into Card Making IG Hop - Week 2

Hello friends; I'm posting really late tonight but better late than never lol!  It's Week 2 of our Spring Into Cardmaking IG Hop, which has been organised by my lovely friend Kelly, and this time we are all about spring.  Each week we will be sharing a themed card focusing on the joys of spring.  If our hop inspires you please use the hashtag #2024springintocardmakinghop to join in the fun. 

This week we have a beautiful mood board to inspire you.  Perhaps the colours call to you or the design or even the images themselves, whatever it is we hope you will create something and join us. I was initially drawn to the colours and the boxes so that was my focus.  Here is my card:

A closer look at the cute images:

Plus I decorated the inside:

I began by creating my background panel using a new postage die and matching stencil.  I lightly stencilled each box in the colours indicated by the mood board (although the smaller boxes look beige in my photos but it is really peachy in real life) and then set it aside.  I stamped the cute images onto alcohol marker friendly card and coloured them with Promarkers, adding some highlights with a white gel pen.  I used the matching dies to cut them out.  The sentiments were stamped directly onto the stencilled panel with black ink.  I added foam squares behind all the images and added them to the background.  I decided to add another layer behind my background panel so die cut a slightly larger stitched panel again from white for extra interest.  I adhered the two panels with liquid glue.  Even though I already had some dimension with the foam squares I decided to add the panels to the card base with foam tape.  No embellishments this time as it was already quite busy.  For the inside I cut a stitched panel and a coordinating plain panel, both from white and adhered them with double sided tape.  I stamped the sentiment in the centre with black ink and two of the sweet images at the bottom with light grey ink.  I ink blended some of the yellow ink that was remaining on my brush around the edges to add some soft colour.  I think this card is so happy and cheerful and I need to make more.  I'm sure my family will love them for Easter this year.  

I would like to enter my card into the following challenges:

Addicted to Stamps & More challenge - any occasion

Allsorts challenge - feathers and/or fur

Creative Moments challenge - flora & fauna

Creative Friday challenge - Easter

Daisy Chain challenge - animals

Dream Valley challenge - dies and/or punches

Just Us Girls challenge - birds of a feather (collaboration with Time Out challenge)

Make My Monday challenge - spring

Papercraft challenges - Easter

Scrapping4Fun challenge - Easter/spring

Simply Create Too challenge - bunnies and blooms

Simon Says Stamp Wednesday challenge - Easter/spring

Stamping Sensations challenge - spring

Stencil Fun challenge - use a stencil option Easter/spring

Sweet Stampin' challenge - Easter

The Cutie Pie challenge - Easter/Mother's Day

The Four Seasons challenge - spring

Time Out challenge - birds of a feather (collaboration with JUGS challenge)

Try It On Tuesday challenge - use a stencil

Woah!  Lots of Easter/spring challenges around at the moment.   

I would love it if you would pop over to Instagram and see the amazing work by all the other crafters taking part in the hop.  Please use the hashtag #2024springintocardmakinghop to find us and also so that we can find your creation if you are inspired to take part.  

I'll be back again with you tomorrow with my card for the Krafty Chicks challenge so please pop by and check it out.  As always I appreciate the comments you leave and thank you so much for stopping by. 

Love and hugs, 

Card ingredients:

Gina K Designs - spring friends stamp & die*

Gina K Designs - Master Layouts 14 die set

Gina K Designs - postage grid stencil

Gina K Designs - lovely lace stamp (for inside greeting)*

Gina K Designs - ink pads - peach bellini, bubblegum pink, applemint, ocean mist, wild dandelion, soft stone

Jane's Doodles - from us (for bottom sentiment) - sadly Jane's store is now closed

Limetree Crafts - 250gsm silky smooth white card (for panels and card base)

Heffy Doodle - alcohol marker friendly card

Memento - tuxedo black ink pad

Versafine - onyx black ink pad

Sakura - white no. 10 gelly roll pen

* these products were from the last kit, which is now sold out.  They will be available individually when the next kit is released.  

Krafty Chicks challenge #707 Christmas

Good Morning lovely friends.  I'm back again today to share my card for this week's Krafty Chicks challenge and this week is all about Christmas.  So grab your Christmas stamps, dies, papers etc and join in the fun with us. 

I bought some new stamps recently from LOTV as they've been having a fab offer and all their polymer stamp sets were only £10 - it would have been rude not to get some lol!  One of the sets I got was Christmas Mugs so I thought I would use one of the images for my card.  I asked my son to choose the image and he picked the cute snowman so here is my card:

a closer look at the cute image:

I decorated the inside:

I began by stamping the image with alcohol marker friendly ink and coloured it with Promarkers.  I also added some white highlights with a gel pen.  I decided I wanted to keep my card as one layer so stamped the image again onto masking paper and made a mask to cover my coloured image.  I then ink blended around the image with a light blue ink and also added some stencilled stars behind the mug.  Below the image I ink blended some very light grey ink to ground the image.  I cut out the panel with a scalloped rectangle and added it to my card base with foam tape.  I stamped a sentiment with black ink and cut it out with a banner die.  I also cut a slightly larger banner from a light blue card and layered them together.  This was added to the top right corner with liquid glue.  I didn't add any embellishments as I liked it as it was.  For the inside I cut another scalloped rectangle, stamped a sentiment in the centre with black ink and partially stamped the image at the bottom in a light grey ink.  I applied the mask and lightly inked with blue ink around the image.  The panel was adhered to the card base with double sided tape.   I'm really happy with how this card turned out and cannot wait to ink up all the other mugs.  

I would like to enter my card into the following challenges:

Christmas With The Cuties challenge - Santa and/or snowman

CRAFT challenge - Christmas

Crafts Galore Encore challenge - ATG

Crafty Gals Corner challenge - ATG

Creative Inspirations challenge - ATG

I Love Promarkers challenge - ATG option love/romance

Merry Little Christmas challenge - anything Christmas Goes

Peace On Earth Christmas challenge - anything Christmas themed

Shopping Our Stash challenge - round and round (dots on my mug and background) 13 max

Stencil Fun challenge - must use a stencil option Easter/spring

The Holly & Ivy Christmas Challenge - anything Christmas goes

The Male Room challenge - food and drink

I hope you will be able to join us for our 'Christmas' challenge and I cannot wait to see your creations in our linky.  Please leave some love for my fellow chicks - Leanne, Diane and Lori and also our guest designer Shirley, who is joining us for March. 

Thanks for stopping by. 

Love and hugs, 

card ingredients:

LOTV - Christmas Mugs A5 stamp set

MFT - blueprints 27 (for scalloped rectangle and banner dies)

MFT - itty bitty holiday stamp set

Funky Fossil Designs - snow is falling stencil

Gina K Designs - ink pads - soft stone & sea glass

Gina K Designs - masking magic sheets

Paula Pascual - Christmas messages stamp set (for inside greeting)

Promarkers

Limetree Crafts - 250gsm silky smooth white card (for my card base)

Heffy Doodle - alcohol marker friendly card

Sakura - no. 10 white gelly roll pen

Spring Into Cardmaking IG Hop - Week 1

Hello again lovely friends; I hope you're having a great week and for my friends in the UK I hope you had a lovely Mother's Day (although I know it's a tough day for some and I send my love to you).  I'm back with the start of another Instagram Hop organised by my lovely friend Kelly and this time we are all about spring with our Spring Into Cardmaking IG Hop.  Each week we will be sharing a themed card focusing on the joys of spring.  If our hop inspires you please use the hashtag #2024springintocardmakinghop to join in the fun. 

We know not everyone has stamp or die of their birth flower so you could use any spring flower you like.  I didn't have the flowers for my birth month (July) so made a birthday card for a friend whose birthday is this month so I used a daffodil.  Here is my card:

A closer look at the flower:

I decorated the inside:

I started this card with a completely different idea in mind but it evolved into a spotlight card after I had coloured the image.  I stamped and coloured the beautiful image with my Promarkers and cut it out with a small circle die and used a slightly larger one to create a black frame.  I took a white card panel and cut it to 3 3/4" x 5" and stamped the image once again in a light grey ink (I did have to extend the stems slightly using a pencil.  There is a slight colour difference but I don't think a non-crafter would notice).    I cut a black mat panel just slightly larger and adhered them together with double sided tape.  I added the coloured image over top of the grey stamped image, lining them up and then added the black frame around to make the image pop.  I used 2 pre-printed sentiment strips and added one to the top right corner and the other to the bottom left corner, both with foam tape.  For a change I used a coloured card base in a bright yellow to match my image.  For the inside I cut another white panel and stamped a sentiment in black ink and added a potion of the image, again stamped in grey ink, to the bottom.  I matted the panel with a black panel and added it to the card base with double sided tape.  I love the look of spotlight cards and they are simple to create but really pack a punch.  I didn't added any embellishments as I didn't think the card needed anything else.  

I would like to enter my card into the following challenges:

Addicted to Stamps & More challenge - birthdays

Allsorts challenge - use yellow

Craft Rocket challenge - for the girls

Cut It Up challenge - colours of spring

Double D challenge - first signs of spring

Dragonfly Dreams challenge - circles

Fab 'n' Funky challenge - spring

I Love Promarkers challenge - ATG option love/romance

Incy Wincy Designs challenge - birthday and/or funny, humorous 

Make My Monday challenge - spring

Scrapping4Fun challenge - Easter or spring

Simon Says Stamp Monday challenge - a bit o' green

Simon Says Stamp Wednesday challenge - a bit o' green

Stamping Sensations challenge - spring

The Four Seasons challenge - spring

Triple B challenge - birds, blooms or butterflies

Try It On Tuesday challenge - spring

We Love Stamping challenge - feminine 

I would love it if you would pop over to Instagram and see the amazing work by all the other crafters taking part in the hop.  Please use the hashtag #2024springintocardmakinghop to find us and also so that we can find your creation if you are inspired to take part.  

I'll be back again with you tomorrow with my card for the Krafty Chicks challenge so please pop by and check it out.  As always I appreciate the comments you leave and thank you so much for stopping by. 

Love and hugs, 

card ingredients:

Gina K Designs - Easter blessings stamp

Gina K Designs - birthday babble sentiment sheets

Gina K Designs - birthday cheer stamp (for inside sentiment)

Gina K Designs - Master Layouts 5 (for smaller circle)

Spellbinders - standard circles large (for larger circle)

Gina K Designs - soft stone ink pad

Versafine - onyx black ink pad

Promarkers

Limetree Crafts - 250gsm silky smooth white card

Limetree Crafts - daffodil 230gsm card (for card base)

Hobbycraft - A4 luxury black card