The Return of the Merry Snowflakes

Hello, crafting friends!

 

Last week I posted THIS snowflake card. The colour combination was inspired by Nancy's palette at CAS Colours and Sketches but I felt my card wasn't clean and simple enough for that challenge. So I made another one today :)

 

This one uses the same snowflakes (from Dies by Chloe) and stars (from the retired Stampin' Up Twinkle punch) but there's no stenciling, I used only one of the Nordic Frames (from the Greetery) and the sentiment is much smaller.

 

I heat embossed the sentiment in silver, cut it out with the small frame die, and attached it to a card base. The snowflakes and stars were arranged above and below the sentiment and I added a few drops of silver liquid pearls to link them.

CHALLENGES

Just squeaking in at CAS Colours and Sketches colour challenge *waves to my former teamies there* ; I'm also linking up with Perfectly CAS where the current challenge is Festive - and as always we are asked to use up to a third of the card front.

 

 

AND IN OTHER NEWS

Today's card would make a perfect note card for this weather if only I had a sentiment that said 'Sending Cooling Wishes'! After I press send on this post, I'm off to the supermarkety; I don't actually need anything - I just want to hang out in the freezer aisle!

Sending hugs,

Merry snowflakes

Hello, crafting friends!

 

I've been wanting to join in with the Christmas theme at The Snippets Playground for over a week now. A rummage through my snippets box brought no lightbulb moment but I finally got out the folders containing my offcuts of card instead!

I made a background on the flip side of a ruined card base, using the Snow Flurry stencil from Funky Fossil and some dark purple ink. Then I set to work cutting snowflakes with my favourite Dies by Chloe snowflake dies. These are great because you really can use tiny little snippets! I cut some stars out of the fragments too using the retired Twinkle punch from Stampin' Up.

 

The panel was cut out using one of The Greetery's Nordic Frame dies. I cut a smaller panel out of the panel with the smallest Nordic Frame die then inlaid it again for a bulk free look. Once the panel was attached to a card base, I topped the inlay with a bold sentiment from The Greetery's Snowflake Soirée, stamped in versamark, heat embossed in silver and fussy cut. And then it was just a matter of arranging the die snowflakes and stars over the stenciled background and adding a few silver accents with silver liquid pearls.

CHALLENGES

So I'm finally turning up at the Snippets Playground with my homework (Sorry I'm late Miss Sarn!); The challenge chosen by Lynda at ABC Christmas is N is for New, O is for Old. I've gone for old stash - the newest thing on my card is the Nordic Frame dies which were released 2 or 3 years ago now; At Sparkles Christmas, Helen is challenging us to use the Sentiment as the main Focus so I'm linking up there too.

 

AND IN OTHER NEWS

It hasn't rained for ages here, so instead of lush green grass we have hay, and there's certainly not a snowflake to be seen...

 

 ... unless you count my very own Special Snowflake of course!

Sending hugs,

Chilling in July

Hello, crafting friends!

 

There are lots of Christmas in July challenges going on this month and, as the temperatures soar here in the heart of England, I thought it would be a great opportunity to make a snowman to cool down! 

 

This card features Berry, my favourite snowman from Purple Onion, and was made from snippets except for the card base! I stamped Berry in black ink on an offcut of white card and cut him out, trimming off his bottom half. The carrot nose was stamped again and cut out to make it easier to fussy cut him. His nose, scarf and arms were coloured with alcohol markers.

 

 

I glued Berry to the back of a panel with a die cut aperture, allowing his head, twiggy arms and scarf to burst out of frame. He was backed with a cut-to-size scrap of blue card. The sentiment is from Clearly Besotted's Red Robin.

 

The aperture had been die cut a bit too exuberantly and the stitching on the left of the frame had become just a slit. I hid this with snowflakes die cut from the rest of the blue card and balanced them with another snowflake under the sentiment (which you can see on the previous photo.)

 

Oops, spot the typo!

 That'll teach me to try to be all clever clogs in Photoshop!!

Here are the snippets I used: a blue die cut snowflake panel which had gone pear-shaped (used for the blue backing and the snowflakes), and the aperture panel which had damaged stitching. I'm happy to have saved them from the bin! I also used an extra white snippet for stamping Berry and Berry's nose! 

 

CHALLENGES

This is my snippetty homework for The Snippets Playground where there is a Christmas in July challenge; Jo at the Kickstart Christmas challenge wants to see cards featyuring Snowfolk so I'm joining in there too; Happy Little Stampers CAS challenge has chosen a Christmas in July theme, as has Allsorts so I'm also linking up there.

AND IN OTHER NEWS

I'm still resting my fluffy girl's leg and we still have Myurphy staying with us. He has been a total star, seeming to understand that Eva is not quite right, and apart from one incident where Eva forgot herself and tried to chase Murphy down the hallway, they have both been very calm. I came up with a fun game where I stand in the middle of a paddling pool with a floating squeaky ball and try to keep it away from them with my feet. They stand there and use their noses to try to get it, and this appears to be very enjoyable for them!

Neither dog is keen to get IN the paddling pool as they don't trust the bottom of it (!) but sometimes the squeaky ball is irresistible and one of them cautiously steps in. Look at Murph pretending to be a hunter :) He's a lap dog really although he does love a hedge!!

Sending hugs,

Snowflakes and warm hugs

Hello, crafting friends!

 

Happy Saturday! If you've got some crafting planned for this weekend, we have some great inspiration for you at Addicted to CAS. Lovely Jaydee is at the helm today and she has chosen the word Snowflake to inspire you.

I was tempted to go for a festive card for this one but then I decided that these long winter months are a great time to cheer people up with a handcrafted card to let them know they are in your thoughts :)

 

This card is very simple but required precise placement of the elements so my stamping platform came in handy. The first step was stamping the spirograph-like image from The Greetery's Catching Snowflakes. I used versamark and heat embossed it with clear embossing powder so that it was revealed as white when I sponged blue ink down from the top of the card panel.

The large snowflake from the set stamps neatly into the middle of the spirograph and I embellished it with a white die cut snowflake centred with an orange enamel dot. I chose two of the sentiments and stamped them in orange around the snowflake image, then trimmed the panel to size with a stitched rectangle die from Heffy Doodle. The panel was attached to a card base and I sprinkled it with a few gems and sequins for an icy look.

And now it's your turn. Do hop over to the Addicted to CAS blog and see the amazing cards Jaydee and the rest of the team have made to inspire you. You will find the Linky Tool at the bottom of the post and you can use it to upload your own creation. Remember to keep your card nice and clean and simple won't you - and have fun!

CHALLENGES

CASology has a lovely theme this month, Affection, so I'm joining in there; I'm also playing along at Happy Little Stampers CAS challenge where we are asked to get Inky; this is my first go with this beautiful stamp set, so I'm also sharing at Darnell's NBUS challenge.

 

AND IN OTHER NEWS

I really do feel for anyone who is having to pick up the pieces today after Storm Eunice. More trees have come down in our area and two parked cars were damaged, but we were not affected. Eva would take issue with that statement as she was a bit miffed by the short walks! There was a bit of excitement in the afternoon when an escaped balloon made its way into our garden. Eva demanded to be allowed out to investigate...

 

"How dare you invade my territory you little green monster!" (Sorry about the terrible action shot!)

The air had mostly come out of the balloon so she had to savage it pretty thoroughly before it popped and she was able to sashay back inside with a satisfied air!

Sending hugs,

Merry snowflakes

Hello, crafting friends!

 

Welcome to another fabulous challenge at Tic Tac Toe where we aim to inspire you eight different ways with our boards! Betty has come up with a beauty for this week:

 

I chose the middle column for my simple festive card:

 

I stamped the fun sentiment from The Greetery's Snowflake Soirée in bright red ink on a nice thick card base. The edges were masked off with sticky notes and blue ink blended inwards from the edges, creating a 'glow' effect in the centre around the sentiment. The sticky notes were removed to reveal a border.

Next came the die cutting! The Greetery's Halvsies Diamond die was used to cut a gorgeous deep blue/green plaid paper which was layered over the top of the ink blend to frame the bottom of the sentiment. I also die cut some snowflakes from coordinating card stock, embellished them with clear gems and used them to finish the card.

 

Okayy, now it's over to you! Which column or row will you choose? And don't forget you have the diagonal options too! Do hop over to the Tic Tac Toe blog to admire the gorgeous samples my teamies have made to inspire you. You'll find the Linky Tool at the bottom of the post so that you can link up your own creations with us. We are looking forward to seeing what you make!

CHALLENGES

I'm linking up at Watercooler Wednesday where Heidi is hosting the All About Occasions challenge; I'm also joining in with the fun at Festive Friday where they're celebrating Christmas Jumper Day! I've chosen Red Green and Plaid from the list.

AND IN OTHER NEWS

Never mind card stock snowflakes, we had a taste of the real stuff earlier in the week! Not so much that we couldn't get out but just enough to get us in a festive mood. This was a very good thing for me as I've been so busy with the dogs that my Christmas preparations are very much behind!

On the other hand, Someone had other ideas about how I should be spending my time!!

Sending hugs,

Special snowflakes

Hello, crafting friends!

I made this card on the 25th of the month when my thoughts turned to other 25ths of the month! It seems impossible to imagine short, dark days and freezing temperatures while it's still warm and sunny outside but they're definitely coming! 

The background was made by masking off parts of a card base, to make an offset panel, and stencilling snowflakes into it with the Snow Flurryy stencil by Funky Fossil. I embellished the flakes with silver Liquid Pearls and left it to dry.

Meanwhile I die cut some snowflakes from dark green-blue card stock as well as a cheery red sentiment. These were arranged on the background and clear gems added to the centres of the snowflakes.

CHALLENGES

I'm linking this card up with Jingle Belles where they theme is Snow; I'm also joining in at Happy Little Stampers Christmas challenge where it's Anything Goes with optional Non-Traditional;  and I'm playing along with Merry Little Christmas where Anything Goes; and Rudolph Day where we must share a Christmas card between 25th and the end of each month.

AND IN OTHER NEWS

I enjoyed making a snowy scene but if I'm honest I would love to stave off the first frosts for a little while. The only ice I want to see at the moment is in a glass of G&T!!

Sending hugs

Baby, it's cold outside!

Hello, crafting friends!

It's time for a new challenge at Addicted to CAS! Ceal is hosting this fortnight and she's chosen Snow as her code word. 

Snow usually makes me think of Christmas, even though it's quite rare to have a white Christmas here in the heart of England! But I think a snowflake motif also works well for sending heartwarming cards in the winter. 

I started this card with a retired die from the Stained Glass set by Stampin' Up. I cut it twice and attached it to a card base with spray glue. The banner is from Winnie & Walter's Sugar Rush which I stamped in green/blue ink and added the sentiment from Clearly Besotted's Warm Wishes. The snowflakes are from Dies By Chloe and the centres have been decorated with gems.

Now it's over to you! What comes to your mind when you hear the word snow? There's plenty of inspiration from the rest of the team at Addicted to CAS as well as a beauty from our talented guest designer Melanie. Click here to have a browse and to link up your own creation :)

CHALLENGES

I'm linking this card up with Happy Little Stampers' Anything Goes With Dies challenge and am also joining in with Cardz for Guyz where the theme is Let it Snow.

AND IN OTHER NEWS

Well we DID have snow last week, but only briefly. A little dusting on the ground when I took Eva out in the morning and a few of those tiny magical flakes that fall very slowly. By the time we got home, it had stopped and the snow on the ground had pretty much gone. Enough for me to sing 'Do you wanna build a snowman?' to the empty fields but not enough to actually build one!!

Sending hugs,

A special snowflake

Hello, crafting friends!

I am so happy to be guesting at the wonderful Time Out Challenge today! There's such a gorgeous photo prompt there today - why not come and join us? You can never make too many Christmas cards and if you've already made enough for this year, you can always start next year's stash while you're in the mood!! Here's the challenge prompt:

Isn't that photo beautiful? The thing that leapt out at me was the chair with that fabulous snowflake on the back. (Although not literally of course!)

Stampin' Up's Sahara Sand was a good colour for this and I used my last precious piece for the card panel. Using white embossing powder, I heat embossed a sentiment from WPlus9's Silver Bells onto the bottom of the panel, then mounted it onto an off cut of grey card stock that I trimmed to fit.

This was attached to a card base made out of Sahara Sand card stock that I'd once made for another project but then never used. To finish the card I added a white snowflake found in my stash, and topped that with a white enamel dot. A really quick card - and well worth looking in your snippets box for making last minute cards! Quite a dimensional card too but it will be delivered by hand :)

EDITED TO ADD AN AWARD

So pleased this card was awarded a Top Cup award at Sunday Stamps!

CHALLENGES

I used only snippets and things from my stash for this card so I shall toodle along to the Snippets Playground with it, and a plate of sossidge rolls, and say Merry Christmas to Miss Di and the gang :) The sketch is from Sunday Stamps, so I shall link up there; and I'm also joining in with AAA cards where they want to see cards made in minutes with an optional twist of Christmas.

AND IN OTHER NEWS

No sign of any snow here or even frost. In fact it is so warm I have done several of the dog walks without a coat! It IS December isn't it?

Sending hugs,

Frosty Christmas greetings

Hello, crafting friends!

My fingers are beginning to feel a bit chilly when I'm out walking Eva first thing and, although that's because of a sharp wind rather than any frost, it got me thinking about those lovely bright frosty mornings to come. Which inspired today's card!

First I made a background by masking off most of my card front and inking a fading strip down the left hand edge. I removed the mask and stamped a greeting, combining stamps from Stampin' Up's Merry Christmas To All and Uniko's Pure Floral Poinsettia.

Then out came my perfect snowflakes from Dies By Chloe that I found on eBay last year! I cut several flakes out of silver and blue card stocks and arranged them down the edge. The card was finished with clear gems and blue sequins.

CHALLENGES

I used the fabulous sketch at this week's Freshly Made Sketches challenge; I'm also joining in with Less is More, choosing the blue and Silver option; and will also link up at The Rainbow Card Challenge's Sparkling Sapphire Challenge.

AND IN OTHER NEWS

Just when I thought we'd got through firework season, they started up again last night :/ There are fields at the bottom of the road behind our house and I had taken Eva out there last thing as usual when a firework went off directly across the field. She was petrified and her flight instinct took over. She turned tail and ran home, with me clinging to her lead like a rag doll. When 40 kilos of golden retriever wants to get home fast, there's not much you can do about it! I just wish people would stop buying fireworks. Yes, they're pretty but they're a shocking pollutant and they're sure as heck not good for either wild or domestic animals. What do you think? Could you live life without fireworks?

Sending hugs,