A Perfect Postage Easter bunny

Despite the snow flurries and a wind that would freeze the marrow in your bones, I'm gritting my teeth and thinking spring and Easter!  I've gone very CAS for this card - come and have a look:

The embossed border was made using Stampin' Up's new Borders score plate. This is a board that fits into my Simply Scored tool and enables me to add decorative curved designs anywhere on my cards. I can't stop using it - I love it to bits!

The sentiment was stamped onto a strip of Certainly Celery Patterns designer paper and fixed above the border. I added the cute bunny from the Perfect Postage stamp set which I stamped and cut out. He normally holds a balloon but, despite the fact that only the hardiest flowers have made an appearance in my garden so far, I felt a flower would be more in keeping with spring! The flower is usually held by the elephant in Patterned Occasions... I love how markers and a stamp-a-majig broaden my stamping horizons!

To make this card I used the gorgeous sketch at CASE this sketch, where, by the way, I was delighted to be a 'Favourite' with this card. I'm cutting it very fine to link today's card up so I'd better get a move on! Oh and since I blame this week's stripe and spot obsession on the lovely ladies at Less is More, I shall also link my card there, my second entry! (Edited to add: Oh no I won't - I'd forgotten it's one layer this week!)

Here's what you'll need to make this card
Stamps: Perfect Postage, Patterned Occasions (Sale-a-bration freebie), Everybunny (sentiment)
Ink: Early Espresso
Card stock: Very Vanilla
Other: Simply Scored and Borders board, Patterns designer paper stack, Basic Rhinestones, stamp-a-majig, markers
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It's all go in our household at the moment! After the excitement of mothers day on Sunday, we held onto our ears and launched straight into the birthday celebration of my youngest son who turned 12 yesterday. It was a school day of course but in the evening we feasted at a global food buffet in a nearby town where my daughter and I went for tastes of various delicacies and the menfolk had about seven plates each groaning with food!

See you tomorrow,

Hello purple Stampin' Up rabbit!

If you've been reading my blog lately, you'll know that the children and I have been watching films from before the '60s. One of our favourites was Harvey, a gentle comedy starring the wonderful James Stewart as Elwood P Dowd whose best friend is an invisible six-foot-three-and-a-half-inch rabbit... Well, what's good enough for Jimmy Stewart is certainly good enough for me - although my pal today has gone the other way and is just under 2cm tall! I'm making no sense at all am I? Well come and have a look at my rabbit:

Isn't he adorable? He is another image from the brilliant Perfect Postage stamp set from the new mini catalogue. The set contains four fabulous images and it's easy to make postage stamps from them with one click of the coordinating punch. I've not chosen to do that today...

... although I did use the punch to make this fancy edged windmill! The designer paper is from the Regals Patterns assortment and that gorgeous brad is a designer printed brad in Wisteria Wonder. I must confess to not thinking much of these when I first saw them in the catalogue, but they are gorgeous in real life and I have all sorts of plans for them now! Let's zoom in on my little rabbit:

He's standing in grass borrowed from the Easter Blossoms set - another set from the new mini catalogue. I'm really pleased with the way you can see the grass through the sentiment, which I stamped with my Just Perfect alphabet in scrumptious Concord Crush. I've become rather attached to the colour purple this week thanks to this week's Less is More challenge, so I thought I'd pop another entry in; and of course the starting point for this card was the rabbit, so that fits in rather nicely with the challenge at Make My Monday which is asking for cards with an animal theme this week. This is also a pretty clean and simple card which is exactly what Young Crafters Unite have asked for!

Supplies needed for this card:

Stamps: Perfect Postage, Easter Blossoms, Just Perfect alphabet

Ink: Concord Crush, Wisteria Wonder, Lucky Limeade

Card stock: Concord Crush, Wisteria Wonder, Very Vanilla

Other: Markers, Regals Patterns designer paper, Postage Stamp punch, designer printed brad in Wisteria Wonder, 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. 

Stamping the rabbit today reminded me of a book I used to read to my boys when they were tiny - 'I love you Blue Kangaroo' by Emma Chichester clark. It's a sweet and beautifully illustrated story about a soft toy who is its owner's favourite toy until a series of new toys come along. My oldest son always used to imagine being the Yellow Cotton Rabbit and so, for quite a long time, I would tuck him into bed, give him a big hug and say: "Goodnight Yellow Cotton Rabbit!" He was always very pleased by this. My daughter was fond of the Babar stories when she was tiny and once disconcerted me by wishing me "Goodnight Queen Celeste!" I mean really - an elephant!

Thank you for joining me today and for leaving me your comments and suggestions. I hope you have a lovely weekend and I shall see you very soon.

Hugs,

Three Minute Thursday valentine post

Good morning! It's Thursday so I've got my three-minute hat on today and I must say, I'm rather pleased with today's speedy card! Valentines day has been on my mind and today's design came to me in a blinding flash while choosing a sentiment from my Petite Pairs stamp set for some other card: The 'sending a kiss' sentiment would be perfect with the heart design from Perfect Postage I thought! Come and see the result of this pairing:

Of course the postage stamp and the sentiment needed some other elements to link them together but I have a saying about that:

When in doubt
Get French Foliage out!

Honestly, it works every time - French Foliage seems to go with absolutely everything! If you haven't yet bought this amazing set, I really do urge you to do so - it's only £13.95 in clear mount or £17.95 in wood! My set has certainly earned its place in my Craft Square Metre with the amount of use I've had from it!

Here's a close-up of all the elements layered together. I stamped the French Foliage text first in Crumb Cake ink. Then the Perfect Postage heart was stamped in Real Red ink, cut out with my new Postage Stamp punch and layered over the top. Next, the sentiment was added, using my stamp-a-majig for perfect positioning. And finally, a few postmarks were stamped over the postage stamp and a tiny card stock heart added.

Supplies needed for this card:

Stamps: Perfect Postage, French Foliage, Petite Pairs

Ink: Real Red, Crumb Cake, Early Espresso

Card stock: Crumb Cake, Very Vanilla, scrap of Cherry Cobbler for the punched heart

Other: Heart to Heart and Postage Stamp punches, 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. 

I love Valentines day! Not that I'm expecting to be whisked off to Paris for the weekend or anything - hubby and I have been married long enough for such grand romantic gestures to be a thing of the past!  But we do like to give one another cards and I always give the children a little something too. After all there are different kinds of love and I'm never one to miss an opportunity to let my fabulous family know that I love them to bits!

I notice that I have some new followers and I'd like to say a big welcome and thank you for choosing to follow my blog. I post every day during the week (and sometimes at the weekend too (did I mention that I'm hopelessly addicted to crafting?!!) so I hope you'll come back and visit often.

See you soon,