Everybunny chick - you've been framed!

Sorry to have gone missing in action this weekend; it was a sleepover weekend here - need I say more?! - and I'm just catching up now. At Less is More this week, the theme is Frame it - perfect for show-casing the Easter chick I had lined up for Addicted to CAS's current Wings cue word! I've used up lots of scraps in my card today so I think I'll pop over for a romp in Di's Snippet Playground too! Come and see my card:

My favourite frame at the moment is made using the oval Designer Frames embossing folder and then cutting it out with one of the Labels framelits. I mounted the Crumb Cake frame on same-coloured card stock and accented with a little flower and leaf embellishment made with an Itty Bitty punch and the 2-step bird punch.

This adorable chick is from Stampin' Up's Everybunny set - which contains some gorgeous Easter images which can also be used all year round. I coloured my chick with markers and paper-pieced the shell using Naturals White card stock - I love the shell-like texture this has.

I wanted the sentiment to really pop so I stamped it in versamark and embossed it with white embossing powder. TIP: If you find you get specks of embossing where you don't want it, try wiping your card stock with the embossing buddy before stamping and embossing - it really does make a huge difference.

Here's what you'll need to make this card
Stamps: Everybunny, Delightful Dozen
Ink: Pool Party, Early Espresso, More Mustard + markers
Card stock: Crumb Cake, scraps of Whisper White, Rose Red, Certainly Celery, Naturals White
Punches: Itty Bitty punch pack, 2-step bird punch
Other: Labels framelits, Designer Frames embossing folder, Big Shot, Basic Pearls, versamark, white embossing powder, heat tool.
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When my oldest son heard that the house was going to be invaded by my youngest son's friends, he promptly organised sleeping over at one of his friends that night. It is extraordinary how someone who finds organising general day-to-day tidying and homework a bit of a challenge can be ragingly efficient when it comes to something he wants to do! I protested about his sleepover, asking how on earth he was going to get things done while feeling sleep-deprived. He looked at me with those huge blue eyes and gave me a hug. "Don't worry," he said. "When I get back I'll be your little napkin!" I melted and before I could remember to be a tough mum, he'd disappeared out of the door!

Thank you for popping in today. See you tomorrow!

Spots and stripes - as nature intended

After our glimpse of spring last week, Buckingham has been plunged back into winter with snow forecast for the weekend! I'm thinking of Easter nevertheless - it'll be here at the end of this month. The challenge at Less is More this week is One Layer Spots and Stripes and I've combined it with the fabulous Inspired by Nature challenge at Make My Mondays to create an Easter card with a difference. Come and see:

Not everyone wants to see Easter cards with cute images of bunnies, chicks and pastel colours, or religious themes, and this card is for them! Stampin' Up has a variety of beautifully detailed nature-inspired stamps and I've taken images from two of my favourite sets, Nature Walk and Fine Feathers, to make this card.

I started by stamping the striped pheasant feather onto my card front. It was stamped again on a sticky note and cut out to make a mask. (TIP: these masks are reusable, so it's a good idea to store them in the stamp case for another day.) With the mask in place, I stamped the other feather and then added the eggs using a stamp-a-majig to get them where I wanted them. Watercolour Wonder crayons gave extra spots to my eggs and I gave them a quick wash with an aquapainter. Watercolour crayons are also the best way of adding shadows to images - they give a lovely subtle finish and you need no artistic skills at all!

I always like to show you my sentiments... this one is from Everybunny and I inked it up with a marker so I could use just the section I wanted - LOVE my markers!

I'm also going to link this card up with the lovely ladies over at Addicted to Stamps and More where the challenge is to go CAS!

Here's what you'll need to make this card
Stamps: Nature Walk, Fine Feathers, Everybunny (sentiment)
Ink: Baja Breeze, Cajun Craze, Soft Suede
Card stock: Naturals Ivory
Other: Watercolour Wonder crayons, markers, stamp-a-majig
I'D BE DELIGHTED TO ORDER STAMPIN' UP ITEMS FOR YOU AND HAVE THEM DELIVERED STRAIGHT TO YOUR ADDRESS IN THE UK. I'M COMMITTED TO PROVIDING EXCELLENT CUSTOMER SERVICE AND AM ALWAYS HAPPY TO OFFER HELP AND ADVICE. TO PLACE YOUR ORDER, JUST SEND ME AN EMAIL OR GIVE ME A CALL ON 01280 820593.
• Add a free Sale-a-bration item from this list for every £45 you spend!

I'll be settling down to make more Easter cards when I have a minute, and thinking about eggy things, so do pop back this week if you're looking for a bit of inspiration. And talking of eggy things, my husband insists on calling the boys' games consoles 'egg boxes' despite the frosty looks he receives when he does!

 See you soon,

To Everybunny with love

I know some people think I'm mad to give my hulking great children anything on Valentine's day but one thing I've learned in life is that it costs nothing to let people know that you love them and it makes them feel great. So Valentine's day celebrations are here to stay in our house and my children will be getting cards and treats as well as my husband! I think I'll be safe to show this card today:

It's for my eldest son who's 14 and all man, but I made it because its cuteness will make him laugh and because it will remind him of when he was a little boy. The boys used to share a room when they were little and I used to read two bedtime stories, one each, and the other got to listen in. One of their favourites was the wonderful 'I love you Blue Kangaroo' by Emma Chichester Clark. My youngest always wanted to be Blue Kangaroo when I tucked him in, but my eldest son preferred to be my Yellow Cotton Rabbit.

I just loved the way the paper-pieced Everybunny rabbit turned out. He was stamped four times: once on the card base and then on yellow dotty designer paper, on Whisper White card stock and on Naturals White card stock. I cut the whole image out of the Naturals card stock using my sharp paper snips and sponged the egg shell with Marina Mist ink. The rabbit was cut out of the yellow paper and glued to the Naturals and the scarf was coloured with markers before being cut out and glued onto the rabbit. Finally I attached the whole thing to the stamped image on the card base so that only the stamped shadow showed beneath the paper-piecing.

The sentiment is computer-generated.

I thought this card would make a sweet card for Easter too or for a new baby.

Here's what you'll need to make this card

Stamps: Everybunny

Ink: Early Espresso, Marina Mist

Card stock: Whisper White, scrap of Naturals White

Other: Scraps of retired designer paper, markers, paper snips, stamp-a-majig

I'D BE DELIGHTED TO ORDER ANY OF THESE ITEMS FOR YOU AND HAVE THEM DELIVERED STRAIGHT TO YOUR ADDRESS IN THE UK. I'M COMMITTED TO PROVIDING EXCELLENT CUSTOMER SERVICE AND AM ALWAYS HAPPY TO OFFER HELP AND ADVICE. TO PLACE YOUR ORDER, JUST SEND ME AN EMAIL OR GIVE ME A CALL ON 01280 820593.

• DON'T FORGET TO ADD ONE OF THESE FREE SALE-A-BRATION ITEMS FOR EVERY £45 YOU SPEND

It was Shrove Tuesday here yesterday but we decided to have our pancakes on Monday because my daughter was going to be away. While I was busy with my pancake production line I was amused to hear my eldest son say: "Man, that is a lot of pancakes but then I am a lot of man!"

It's Three Minute Thursday here tomorrow so if you're interested in quick cards, do pop in and take a look! See you then,

Vintage Everybunny!

There's an overall vintage theme going during September at Make My Monday and this week's particular challenge is Vintage Childhood. Vintage isn't really my strong point - as you may have noticed! - but I had a go at this, inspired also by the bingo over at Addicted to Stamps. Come and have a look:

I thought I'd go with a scored card base, made using my diagonal Simply Scored board insert, and topped it with this rabbit from Everybunny on an inked and wheeled vintage-style background. The bunny normally wears a t-shirt, but, when you ink with markers, you can just leave out the bits you don't want - it makes your stamps so versatile!

Now my bunny looks like one of those old-fashioned soft toys - think The Velveteen Rabbit! I gave him a flag to hold - it's a strip of card stock topped with the streamer from Ain't Love Grand - and teamed him with lace and pearls to add to the vintage feel.

I chose the top line of the ATS bingo card, with scoring, yellow (hope the More Mustard ink counts!) and a birthday theme.

I've got to admit, this card is so far out of my comfort zone that I might need a map and compass to get back! I've really enjoyed the challenge though.

Here's what you'll need to make this card
Stamps: Everybunny, Create a Cupcake (sentiment), Very Vintage wheel, Ain't Love Grand (hostess, retiring)
Ink: Basic Grey, So Saffron, More Mustard, Crumb Cake
Card stock: Very Vanilla
Other: Simply Scored plus diagonal board, Basic Pearls, Chantilly crochet trim (retiring), Basic Pearls, stamp-a-majig

I'd be delighted to order any of these items for you and have them delivered straight to your address in the UK. I'm committed to providing excellent customer service and am always happy to offer help and advice. To place your order, just send me an email or give me a call on 01280 820593. Click here to view my regularly updated lists of retiring stamps and accessories, some at up to 40% discount. 

It's been a busy week but now it's time to wind down for the weekend and welcome my husband back from his parents'. We've already heard that my father in law's operation was a success so let's hope he'll recover quickly and get a new lease of life. Thank you so much to everyone that left good wishes, it's much appreciated.

Enjoy the weekend and I'll be back very soon,

Everybunny slider card

I was delighted when the lovely ladies over at the Simply Stampin' Challenge asked me to be a guest designer for them this week! The site was set up to inspire those who love Stampin' Up products and there's a new challenge every week. Why not join in? This week's theme is Easter and I've had great fun making a slider card using the gorgeous Everybunny stamp set. Come and have a look:

I do like interactive cards! I loved the idea of pulling the tab...

...  and watching my Easter bunny sail across the sky spreading his magic into the grass!  My grass was stamped with the large image from Just Believe and I added little punched flowers and half-hidden Easter eggs.

The eggs are from the Everybunny pot plant and were coloured with markers before being cut out with my sharp paper snips.

Here's a close up of that wonderful balloon image. It can be used all the year round not just for Easter - just add a circle of designer paper as I did in this card.

This technique for making these slider cards is so easy: I used the word window punch to make the slide-along aperture and cut a strip to fit behind it. The sky was sponged in next, both on the front panel and on the strip so they blended in together. With the strip in the closed position, I added a dimensional into the aperture and attached my cut out balloon. After decorating the bottom of the card, I put my card together with snail adhesive. TIP: It's a good idea to enclose the strip with adhesive on three sides but DO keep it about a centimetre away from the edge of the strip so that it doesn't interfere with the sliding mechanism and DON'T seal the bit where the strip comes out of the card for pulling!

Here's what you'll need to make today's card:

Stamps: Everybunny, Teeny Tiny Wishes, Just Believe

Ink: Bashful Blue, Early Espresso, Old Olive, Pumpkin Pie

Card stock: Marina Mist, Whisper White

Other: Markers, word window punch, Itty Bitty punch pack, corner rounder, dimensional, paper snips, stamp-a-majig

I'd be delighted to order any of these items for you and can have them delivered to your address in the UK. I'm committed to providing excellent customer service and am always happy to offer help and advice. To place your order, just send me an email or give me a call on 01280 820593. And don't forget to add a free pack of designer paper if your order is £45 or more (Offer limited to one pack per qualifying order - click here for details).

Don't be deceived into thinking that this card would only go down well with tots; my daughter was entertaining a roomful of hulking great teenage boys the other day and they must have spent half an hour cooing over this card and making the bunny fly to and fro across the sky! And when I rewarded them with juice and biscuits, they didn't turn those down either! Teenagers do get a pretty bad press this days but, I have to say, we know some lovely ones!

Have a wonderful Easter won't you. I'll be taking a few days off but will be back in time for next week's Three Minute Thursday. Hope to see you then,

Everybunny with a masculine pun

Good morning. I must apologise for going AWOL - I was away for a funeral last week and then the weekend was full of preparations for my youngest son's birthday yesterday. In fact, it's his birthday card that I'm showing you today:

The mushrooms come from the Everybunny stamp set I'm so obsessed with at the moment. It's an Easter set but you can use it for so many other things! I've seen this punning sentiment lots of times before and thought it would be perfect for my jokey son who really is a fun guy! I made mine on the computer and printed it off onto Very Vanilla card stock which I used to form a banner across the card.

Here's a close-up of those fabulous mushrooms - I stamped the outline of them and coloured them in with markers. You may notice a couple of score lines underneath - I love to add these to ground an image. I chose Confetti White card stock to add interest to the design and punched a decorative hole through the tiny bit of banner on the left.

Here's what you'll need to make this card:
STAMPS: Everybunny
INK: Basic Grey
CARD STOCK: Confetti White, Very Vanilla
OTHER: Markers, scoring tool, cropadile or hole punch, stampamajig
I'd be delighted to order any of these supplies for you and can have them delivered to your address in the UK. Just give me a call on 01280 820593 or send me an email - I'm committed to providing excellent customer service and am happy to offer help and advice.
Until the 31st March, you're entitled to choose a free Sale-a-bration stamp set or set of papers for EVERY £45 you spend! Click here to see all the fabulous free sets! 

My son had a lovely birthday opening presents, playing outside in the surprisingly warm sunshine and, later, eating out at a wonderful buffet-style restaurant called Red Hot. You can help yourself at the buffet as many times as you like at this place and you certainly don't leave hungry! My two sons have the greatest difficulty with self-restraint and complained they had little room left for pudding. "I know - drink some of your lemonade," suggested my youngest son. "You might burp and that would make a bit of space!" We hushed him at once but he was later heard to say: "There we go! Space made!"

Thanks for dropping in today and a special thank you to all those who have left lovely messages for me about my absence last week. I really do appreciate it. I'll be back tomorrow with a little watercolouring - hope to see you then,

Everybunny baby with Elementary Elegance

The sun is shining, all sorts of pastel-coloured flowers are pushing through the earth and spring is definitely in the air; birds are nesting and soon all sorts of little creatures will be being born out there! Of course our babies don't wait for the spring to be born but it is especially fun to make baby cards at this time of year. This one is for the CAS-ual Fridays challenge:

Okay, I know - I've used my favourite Everybunny stamp set again! But I adore these chubby little rabbit images and they're perfect for baby and children's cards.

I stamped this gorgeous frame to surround my baby bunny. It's from one of the free Sale-a-bration sets, Elementary Elegance, and coordinates with the Curly Label punch which make it very quick and easy to use. The hearts and flower are from another of the Sale-a-bration freebies, sprinkled Expressions...

...and I stamped this cute message from the set inside the card.

Supplies needed for this card:

Stamps: Everybunny, Teeny Tiny wishes, Sprinkled Expressions and Elementary Elegance (free Sale-a-bration sets)

Ink: Pretty in Pink, Rose Red, Crumb Cake

Card stock: Whisper White, scrap of watercolour paper

Other: Markers, Itty Bity shapes and Curly Label punches, corner rounder, Itty Bitty buttons, white gel pen, aquapainter, paper snips, stamp-a-majig

I'd be delighted to order any of these supplies for you and can have them delivered to your address in the UK. I am committed to providing excellent customer service and am always happy to help and advise. Just send me an email or give me a call on 01280 820593.

Click here to see all the free Sale-a-bration sets and don't forget to let me know which ones you'd like - remember, you get one free item for EVERY £45 spent!

The way the bunny in this card appears to be reaching out to touch the hearts reminds me when I used to get the bubbles out to entertain my own babies. There was a lovely intent look that came into their faces and they would reach out to try and touch the bubbles. I also used to have a sheer scarf that I would throw over their heads and pretend I couldn't see them. I loved the way they sat very still, with a secret smile on their faces, certain they couldn't be seen!

Thanks for dropping by today. I'll be back tomorrow with more crafting fun - hope to see you then!

Hugs,