A masculine 18th birthday

Hello, crafting friends!

 

The birthdays are coming up fast in our family, including those masculine ones that are a bit more challenging to create cards for. I am always very grateful for challenges that inspire me for those!

 

This card features a background made with an off-cut of green/blue card overstamped with Stampin' Up's retired Hardwood stamp using a darker green/blue ink. I trimmed it to size with a Heffy Doodle Stitched Rectangle die, then gave it a bit of interest by cutting it in three with Lawn Fawn's Stitched Hillside border dies and then glueing it all back together on a card front.

 

The popped-up focal tag was cut from a snippet of white card using a Heffy Doodle Stitched Rectangle die. I used some washi tape to mask off two horizontal lines and then sponged the rest with red ink. I loved the way it showed off the stitched framing. The number 18 was die cut from a tiny snippet of navy card, and I punched the star from it too. The Stampin' Up sentiment is a very handy one that is a gazillion years old (give or take a few years!)

CHALLENGES

All of this card was made with snippets except the card base, so I shall skip over to The Snippets Playground with my homework. No need for a brolly of course because the sun ALWAYS shines there!! The card was heavily inspired by the challenge Inspired By, where they always have the most amazing photos to get our creative juices flowing. I also took inspiration from Inkspirational where the word prompt is Frame - I have the stitched frame on the focal tag and the background acts as a frame too. I shall also link up with Ellie and Pauline's I Spy With My Little Eye challenge where the theme is Something for Boys or Men.

 

AND IN OTHER NEWS

My eldest son lives locally and often pops by to say hello. Today he came bearing a box of chocolate truffles he'd found at Marks & Spencer. "I've brought you some essentials," he said.

 

Then he added: "I don't know who this Marc fellah is but I hope they'll be nice!"

We opened them up to check and can reveal that they are very tasty indeed! 10 out of 10, would recommend!

Sending hugs,

A hugely happy happy birthday

Hello, crafting friends!

 

I'm living in Birthday Land at the moment as lots of friends and family celebrate their special days around this time of year. Today I want to show you a really quick card that I made for my brother's upcoming birthday:

 

The bright striped paper is a Stampin' Up design given to me by a lovely friend. I trimmed a little smaller than a card front and cut off the top at an angle.

 

 

Along the top I positioned the die cut word 'happy' from Uniko's Big and Bold Happy die set. I cut several of these out of yellow card and stacked them together for some nice dimension. I topped that with a birthday sentiment from Uniko's Simply Said Blocks stamp set, stamped in red ink and snipped out. That's it, very quick and simple :)

CHALLENGES

Kim's fabulous 'cut on an angle' sketch at Freshly Made Sketches this week was my inspiration for this card, so I'm linking up there; I'm also joining in at AAA Birthday, where the theme is Clean and Simple birthday cards; The sentiment is the main focus of this card so I'm playing at Word Power too.

 

AND IN OTHER NEWS

The nesting season is in full swing in my tiny garden and loads of birds, mainly sparrows, robins and blackbirds are busily popping in and out of the ivy and making exciting rustling noises. Eva takes it all in her stride and although she gets quite interested when the fledglings start to learn to fly, I am pretty confident she wouldn't harm them. Lulu, on the other hand, spends a lot of time watching them...

 

... and I cannot be sure that there are no dark hunting thoughts going on in that pretty head! You will be glad to know I don't leave her unsupervised in the garden!!

Sending hugs,

Masculine birthday brights

Hello, crafting friends!

 

Welcome to another fun challenge at Tic Tac Toe! LeAnne has come up with a great board which will cover all your back-to-school needs but that is versatile for those of you who aren't in the school market!

 

Since my 'kids' are all in their twenties now and left school long ago, I looked for a way to make a birthday card for my eldest son. I chose the diagonal from the top left Blue/Red/Yellow.

 

I reached for a stencil that I've been dying to try, Mid Century Modern Shapes by Uniko. After selecting the inks, I created an abstract pattern by sponging them into some of the shapes on the stencil, allowing them to overlap.

 

The sentiment is a favourite from Concord & 9th, stamped in black ink, and the panel was trimmed to size with a stitched rectangle from Heffy Doodle. I linked the sentiment with the pattern using bright enamel dots and attached the panel to a card base.

 

Right, it's your turn now! Do hop over to the Tic Tac Toe challenge site to admire the beautiful samples the team has made for you. You'll find the Linky Tool at the bottom of the post and can use it to share your own creation with us. We can't wait to see what you make!

CHALLENGES

I'm linking this card up with Seize The Birthday (no topping); as well as AAA Birthday where Anything Birthday Goes; and Happy Little Stampers Birthday challenge; I'm also joining in at Cardz 4 Guyz where Melanie would like us to Use A Stencil.

 

AND IN OTHER NEWS

Eva's little pal has settled in so nicely and the two are enjoying each other's company. I told you that having fallen in the river, Koda has become quite the water baby and she has gone on from strength to strength. I threw a stick in the Big River for Eva the other day and before I could blink, Koda had launched herself off the river bank, swam over and whipped the stick out from under Eva's nose!

 

Don't worry about Eva's nose being put out of joint. Once I had made sure the little dog had come to shore safely, Eva got another stick to swim after. I think Eva likes having a swimming pal!

Sending hugs,

A truckful of birthday wishes

Hello, crafting friends!

 

It's Thursday today and time for another Tic Tac Toe challenge! LeAnne has devised a board that could could cover your masculine card requirements - or is versatile enough for other kinds of cards! 

My nephew's birthday is coming up and I've gone for the middle row to make a truck-themed card for him Car or Truck/Square/Blue.

I used a couple of off-cuts of white card to create a small square panel and a slightly larger square to layer it onto. I didn't have the right red card to coordinate with the red ink I was going to use for the present, so I swiped the edges of the larger square with the ink and left it to dry. On the smaller square, I masked off the sky and sponged grey ink over the rest for a road, then positioned Funky Fossil's Scenic Borders Stencil over the sky and sponged blue ink into the clouds.

 

 

The truck and present from Stampin' Up's Holiday Hayul were stamped onto another scrap of card and cut out with sharp paper snips. I used the same blue to stamp the sentiment from Uniko's Simply Said Blocks and then snipped that out too. To assemble the card, I layered the stenciled panel over the red inked panel then topped it with the sentiment and truck. That was then attached to the front of a squyare card base.

 

Okay, so now it's your turn! Do hop over to the Tic Tac Toe challenge site to see all  the beauties my team mates have made to inspire you. When you're ready, you can use the Linky Tool at the bottom of the post to   link up your own creation. We can't wait to see how the board inspires you this week!

CHALLENGES

I'm linking this card up with Claire's red, white and blue colour palette at The Paper Playyers; also CASology where the cue card is RIDE; Less is More's current theme is Masculine so I'm playing along there; Brenda has chosen the theme of Any Stamped Image for Allsorts  so I shall link up there too; and last but not least, I used up a satisfying little pile of white card snippets, so I'll be skipping off to The Snippets Playground to hand in this card as homework!

 

AND IN OTHER NEWS

We are having a heatwave in the heart of England and Eva is finding it tougher to cope with the heat as she gets older. During hot weather, her favourite place to sleep indoors is on the porcelain tiles in the kitchen and her walks take place by the river and are more swims than walks! The only problem with this is that she doesn't believe me when I explain that wet puppies are not allowed to say hello to passers by. Her wistful glances at everyone whilst trailing behind me on her lead result in more people stopping to pet her than would have if I'd let her off! She knows exactly how to get what she wants!!

Sending hugs,

Birthday mail for the birthday male

Hello, crafting friends!

I was lucky enough to win a stamp set of my choice from Uniko back in the summer and have only recently found the time to play with it! This is what I made:

For my prize, I chose a beautiful large set called Decorative Doilies - The Hands of Time (which, as a master enabler, I can tell you is currently in the sale at Uniko!) To me, the designs look like those trendy honeycomb decorations and I thought they'd be perfect for birthday cards, especially for those challenging-to-design-for male cards.

To create this one layer card, I used a stencil I made with various circle punches. I sponged ink into each circle, then stamped the doilies over the top in a darker colour ink. The bold sentiment was combined with a 'happy' from Avery Elle's Big Birthday and a 'birthday' from  Uniko's Wild. I finished with some coordinating enamel dots.

CHALLENGES

I'm playing along again at Allsorts where Tracy has chosen From Boys To Men as her theme, so it's all about male cards; also Seize the Birthday where Jules' choice of topping is Beverages but I've gone for the Anything Goes (as long as it's a birthday card) option; I'm also playing along at Addicted to Stamps and More where the current theme is Birthdays.

AND IN OTHER NEWS

Firework season seems to have finished for the season here thank goodness. It doesn't seem to have been quite as manic as usual - we have had years when fireworks have been fizzing and banging every evening for two or three weeks. The great news is that Eva has not been an inconsolable, quivering wreck this year. She has stayed close to my side but has been able to focus on me which is a massive stride forwards. 

Here's a photo of my girl enjoying an autumn walk with not a thought in her head about nasty noises, only squirrels and meeting her pals!

Sending hugs,

One layer leaves

Hello, crafting friends!

Happy Tuesday and welcome to another fun challenge at CAS Colours and Sketches. I'm hosting this month and have come up with a sketch which I really hope will get your mojo going:

There are plenty of options with this sketch. It's a great way to use up your scraps of designer paper; or you could use smaller stamps in the general shape; or you could use one of your background stamps at an angle. I chose to stamp a collage of leaves using my favourite autumn stamp set from Reverse Confetti.

This is a very simple idea but it does need a practyice on a piece of scrap paper before transferring the design to the card base! I thought it would make a good male card :)

I used two shades of orange and two shades of green to add a little depth to the stamping, but left the outlines uncoloured. The sentiment is from Uniko's Simply Said Blocks, stamped in the darker green, snipped out and attached to the card front with dimensional pads.

So now it's your turn! Do hop over to the CAS Colours and Sketches challenge site where the team has some fabulous inspiration for you. You'll find the Linky Tool at the bottom of the post so that you can share your creation with us. I can't wait to see what you come up with!

CHALLENGES

I'm linking this card up with Color Hues where the colour duo is Orange and Green; I'm also joining in at Cardz 4 Guyz where the theme is male autumn birthday; also We Love Chocolate Baroque where Anything Autumn is the theme.

AND IN OTHER NEWS

The leaves are taking their time to change colour this year but here's a young lady showing off some absolutely stunning autumnal berries we saw bursting out of someone's garden:

I've realised that my photography skills are letting the side down here and you can barely see the berries in that dark background. But Eva tells me it's irrelevant anyway as she can't believe anyone would bother looking at berries when there's a floofy princess in the picture!!

Sending hugs,

DIY birthday

Hello, crafting friends!

Welcome to another fun challenge at  the Tic Tac Toe challenge, where Betty has come up with such a fun board to inspire you!

My card uses elements from the left-hand column Die Cut/Masculine/Wood and was so much fun to make!

First, I dived into my paper drawer and came out with some snippets. The background is a plank design that was the back of the last off-cut of some ancient fruit and veg paper byy Stampin' Up. I trimmed it to size with a stitched rectangle die by Heffy Doodle. I also found a small piece of silver foil.

The wonderful, detailed tools are from a die set by Sweet Dixie called DIY Tools. I was lucky enough to win them from The Snippets Playground back in the summer and they are brilliant! It's amazing that I was able to get all these tools cut out of it!

I finished my card with a bright red sentiment from Uniko's Floral Vines stamped directly onto one of the planks on the paper and finally glued those lovely shiny tools in place.

Okay, now it's over to you! Do hop over to the Tic Tac Toe challenge website to check out all the inspiration from my teamies. You will also find the Linky Tool at the bottom of the post and you can use it to share your own creation. I can't wait to see what you make!

CHALLENGES

I'm linking this card up at Happy Little Stampers Die challenge where Anything Goes using dies; I'm also joining in with Cardz 4 Guyz, where the theme is Add Some Metal; I'm also playing at the Snippets Playground, where Miss Di wants to see us Use Our Snippets; and I'm sharing at the NBUS challenge where Darnell would like to see projects made with our Never Before Used Schtuff.

AND IN OTHER NEWS

I made this card for my nephew who has inherited my brother's talent for suddenly building something amazing! I really admire this skill for imagining something and then just going ahead and building it, and consider it a gift, but both of them are very modest about it and seem to think everyone can do it!!

Sending hugs,

One layer of sunshine

Hello, crafting friends!

It's time for a shiny new challenge at Addicted to CAS today!  Sue is hosting for the next couple of weeks and has chosen a code word which is sure to get your mojo jumping!

I was very excited about this one because it gave me yet another opportunity to bring out my favourite stencil!

The Sunny Day stencil by Clearly Besotted was positioned over the top left hand corner of my card base and two shades of yellow blended out to a fade. I stamped a sentiment from Concord & 9th's Hello Sunshine using brown and orange inks, and added an enamel heart coloured to match with an alcohol marker. And that's it - the simplest card ever!

So now it's over to you. As always, there's a ton of inspiration from the design team at the Addicted to CAS challenge blog. You'll also find the Linky Tool there so that you  can upload your own creation. Have fun - but remember to keep your card nice and clean and simple with plenty of white space. I can't wait to see what you make!

CHALLENGES

I'm linking this card up at the Tic Tac Toe Challenge, using the top row Friendship/Summer theme/Single layer; also Perfectly CAS where the challenge is to use One Corner and up to one third of the card front; and AAA Cards where the challenge is also to use One Corner and the optional twist is Childhood Memories - I grew up in the UK in the '70s when there were heatwaves every summer!

AND IN OTHER NEWS

Ironically, our lovely sunshine has been ousted by torrential rain but here is a photo of my own particular little ray of sunshine!

Sending hugs,

Special Delivery by snail mail

Hello, crafting friends!

If you've arrived here looking for some inspiration, I hope that the new challenge at CAS Colours and Sketches will tickle your fancy! Our host, Samantha, is challenging us to use the new mini slimline card format (6 1/4" wide and 3 1/2" high) and has given us a great sketch to inspire us:

I have never used this size card before and enjoyed the novelty! I started the card by sponging a little distress ink into the Postage Frame stencil by Funky Fossil. It wasn't wide enough to do in one go, but the design is very easy to line up. I used washi tape to create the horizontal line across the card base - and if you look closely in the photo you can see that I trimmed my customised envelope with the same tape.

The stamped images are from Funky Fossil's Snail Mail. I stamped the 'special delivery' sentiment repeatedly across an offcut of card stock, using my stamping platform to keep the words straight and to create regular spacing between them. This was layered over the washi strip. I stamped one of the cute snails from the set, doodled a gift, coloured both with coloured pencils and fussy cut them before attaching them to  the card.

So now it's your turn! The team has pulled out all the stops to inspire you so do check out all the inspiration at the CAS Colours and Sketches challenge blog. You'll find the Linky Tool there too so that you can share your creation to our gallery. You have until 11pm BST, Monday 17th May 2021. I can't wait to see what you come up with - but don't forget to keep it clean and simple!

CHALLENGES

The Day of the Month Card Club challenge is celebrating National Escargot Day this month so I'll be taking my cheerful little gastropod over there to join in the festivities!

AND IN OTHER NEWS

My way of organising myself is to write everything down on a wall calendar - birthdays, appointments, dog walks, meet ups with friends and family... it all goes on The Calendar! I keep them so that I can go back and check when things happened too. I was looking at 2016 this morning and I noticed that someone else had written in one of the spaces. On the 20th June, there was a Full Moon apparently, and my daughter had written one word: Arroooooo!

Sending hugs,