Christmas cards

Hi Guys,

Hope you haven't fainted at 2 posts in two days, that's if you've even had time to stop at your computer. I need to go and clean but thought I'd do something more fun first.

I was running so behind on cards and thought I wouldn't get any done but last week I sat down in my craft room/study with my box of Christmas stamps, SU's Christmas themed DSPs past & present and my ornament punch (sadly now unavailable) and made approx 40 cards in one day. It was a marathon effort but I so enjoyed it. Creation is so good for the soul. I also sat and wrote in them and sealed most of the envelopes before it dawned on me that I hadn't taken pics. I did then take a few but some of my best cards missed out. Oh well. So here are a few. I won't put the recipes as they are fairly self explanatory, except to say that the gorgeous Lavonne did send some delicious contraband. The US catty had the most beautiful nativity stamp and I just love it. I saw it used with the shimmer mist on lots of Splitcoast pages and had to give it a go. Lavonne also sent some 'Cherry Cobbler Seam Binding Ribbon'. It is so beautiful, please SU Australia, can we get it over here, pity please!!!

Anyway, here are some cards:

The ornament stamp (currently unavailable) and lovely 'Christmas Cocoa Specialty DSP'. It is flocked, amazing! 

Loved how this holly pattern looked. It and the RR flocked were my favs of the 'Christmas Cocoa' papers.

The shimmer paint is so pretty. I went through more Very Vanilla in one day than in 4 years combined I think. This is from the 'Jolly Holiday' DSP.

A monochromatic style, not my usual thing but I was very happy with the card. Much nicer in IRL. 

Thankfully my family and friends seem to like their cards. Must get a photo of the one I made for Mum and Dad. Always try to make them one that is a little bit more special as they are so good to me.

Must go & face the cleaning :-(

Have a great day,

Love Fi xox

                                    

Birthdays in December

Hi Guys,

I can't believe it's been nearly 3 weeks since I was here.What a crazy busy time of year, not helped by having only 2 days off last week instead of 3 (as I do permanent 10hr night shifts, 2 days off actually only gives one full day not at work).  I have been creating, just not posting (slacker!!!). Not only have I been making Christmas gifts to sell at work (see previous post) but, to add insult to injury, there are also 4 December birthdays amongst my family and friends. I have been making their cards, plus must make 2 today for my brother & SIL who have b'days in January but live in Russia. Phew! It's not surprising, then, that my stamping stuff has been the first thing returned to order post painting.

Anyway, enough of my drivel. How about some cards!

Firstly, here are two that I made for my gorgeous niece who has, unbelievably, just turned 14 this month. She is a beautiful girl, inside & out, and greatly missed (Russia is soooo far away!). You may remember me CASEing Karen's gorgeous 'Aviary' card (see 2nd card here). I loved it so much that I had to CASE it again. Doesn't a change of colours & DSP make a difference? (Forgive the poor photo, had to take quickly before I rushed to the PO). I made this one from Mum & Dad.

The DSP is from the 'Playdate' pack, so cute but not too young. The '14' is cut out of 'Totally Turquoise' CS & a painted with 'Champagne Mist Shimmer Paint'. I am in love with this stuff!!! The sentiment is from a past mini cat hostess set, thought it was so appropriate to use with the scrummy 'Aviary' set.

Next is my card. I CASEd it from this blog but originally found her card on good old Splitcoast.

I love the 'Sweet & Sour' DSP colours, the spotty pattern is my fav. I was never a fan of orange but being part of SU has given me an appreciation of all colours and this 'Pumpkin Pie' Satin Ribbon is just beautiful, it has a real glow to it. I have used the Level 1 Hostess set, 'Birthday Bakery', isn't it cute? The number stamps are retired, I stamped them in 'Pumpkin Pie' ink and added 'Fine Supernova Glitter' with my '2-way Glue Pen'.

If you can handle it, I have one more card. I CASEd this one from p58 of the catty. It is for my cousin's son's 6th b'day.

I used the 'Celebration' DSP as my inspiration. I'm pretty sure I've said it before, but I love this DSP for boys. The stamps are from 'Lots of Bots' and I made the cog by cutting the petals off and punching a circle out of the centre of the flower die that comes with the 'Timeless Type Junior Alphabet' dies. The 6 is painted chipboard covered in 'Crystal Effects'.

Thanks for popping in, I hope you've survived to the end of this post. Will try & post some Christmas card pics tomorrow.

Cheers,
Fi xox

Finally, I'm back

Hi Guys (if anyone has bothered to call past since it's so long since I posted),

Don't faint but I actually have a few items to show you. I have been making goodies to take to work for my annual 'Christmas Shop in a Basket'. I make earrings (Christmas Trees, Angels, and this year, Christmas Baubles); Swarovski pendants and a few earrings; candles and body products; and, of course, some stamping craft.

I saw quite a few stampers making the little Ferrero boxes (namely Kirsty & Karen) and I had to go to Becky Roberts' blog and purchase the 12 Days of Christmas tutorial. I made a few changes to make it metric and to make a smaller fold over card. I made some with Rochers and some with Lindt Balls.

By the way, apologies for poor pic quality as I didn't have my usual system set up due to my place still being rather disorganised (or, more disorganised than usual shall we say).

I saw these very cute calendar and shopping list sets made by Susan Rowe and had to have a play. If only I had the Fancy Flower Punch, oh well. I thought the base of the Easel Calendar would be a good spot to pop some Post-it notes. I made a few varieties but only took a pic of one.

Here's my attempt:

It is made like an Easel card only with a longer base. I used a brad to give the easel something to hold it in place. I made a matching shopping list. I had Officeworks cut some A5 notebooks in half.

Again, sorry for the bland looking pic. I combined the 'Morning Cup', 'Share a Cup' & 'Apple Blossom' stamp sets and used my (contraband) 'Sweet Pea' DSP. I made some with 'Cottage Garden' DSP and co-ordinating butterflies cut with my 'Beautiful Wings' embosslits; some with 'Bella Rose' DSP (retired) and felt flowers; and some with 'Walk in the Park' DSP (ret) and the bird punch. I've sold all but 2 sets (though I only made 12 all up).

Another popular item has been individual post-it note pads. I found a tutorial here but they are so easy to make. Applying the sticky strip is the most labour intensive part. I have a photo but it was taken on my phone to send to a friend, so terrible quality. It does give the idea though.

As you can see, there is a little contraband here as well, thanks to my lovely friend Lavonne in the USA. In fact, she posted a bundle a few weeks ago that arrived today. Lavonne's son Kevin has been over visiting for a wedding but he arrived back in Oz today. Very sad for Lavonne (hugs) but very happy for his wife Bec, a very good friend of mine. It is difficult when family lives far away but how treasured are the moments we spend together.

Well that's enough of my blathering on, have a great evening,
Cheers,
Fi xox

MIA

Hi Guys,

Thought I'd let you know that I've been having my place painted and as such haven't been able to take pics of creations, or even create, for a while. Hopefully I'll be able to re-sort my place on my next days off (my 3 weeks hols is over as of tonight, sob) and get back into action. Have made a few little Christmas projects, but have a bucket load of Christmas cards to make, once I figure out where my box of Christmas stamps has ended up....

I went down to Sydney for Regionals and had a fab time meeting some other demoes. It was a much better venue this year, the lunch was so yummy (still thinking of that creme brulee, mmmm). I also got to take the helicopter ride over Sydney Harbour that my gorgeous friends gave me for my birthday. It was a great experience. Here's a couple of pics.

Cheers,
Fi x

Another quick one

Hi Guys,

This will be a quick post as I have to duck out, in the rain, to the shops. My holidays are flying past. Why do days of go by so much faster than work days???

A friend of mine is in hospital with lung problems and she absolutely hates hospitals. She is a terrible patient, despite having a husband and friend who are nurses, and she should know better. I made her a get well card using Blueberry Crisp DSP but then thought it looked a bit masculine, so made another one. Jen is not into florals and things so I CASEd this card that Karen Thomas made, that I loved.

My first attempt:

I used Night of Navy, Very Vanilla and Pacific Point CS. The stamp set is the lovely, and versatile, 'Thoughts and Prayers' and I added interest with the sanded BG stamp. I didn't have any pacific Point brads so coloured circles and went over them with Crystal Effects. Ribbon is Night of Navy grosgrain.

Now for number 2:

Thanks Karen, for making such a fab card. This is such a cute stamp set and if we are very good, santa might put it in the Summer Mini ;-)  I used Sahara Sand CS stamped with the Sanded BG stamp, and a strip of Pacific Point stamped with the 'Wonderfully Worn' BG stamp. Very Vanilla & Night of Navy CS for the image, Raised up on dimensionals. I did the paper piercing as I liked it so much on Karen's card. So easy with the new Paper Piercer and the mat pack. Finally a piece of ribbon and a Teeny Tiny Wishes sentiment stamped and punched from VV CS. Simple.

Must run, hope this all made sense,

Cheers,
Fi x

Super quick post

Hi Guys,

My good friend & work colleague, Tracey, had her 25th wedding anniversary on Tuesday, and heads off for a week in Vietnam on Monday. As such I needed to make 2 cards.

For the anniversary card I  used the layout from this week's Sweet Sunday Sketch challenge (#90). Trace & Pete didn't have a party or anything so I went OTT with the silver, boy is it silver, LOL.

The sketch:

My card:

I stamped the 'Medallion' in versamark & embossed with silver EP. Used my Big Shot & Junior Timeless Type for the numbers, 'Teeny Tiny Sentiments' for the Happy Birthday, and 'En Francais' BG for the back panel. I wish I'd had some silver & white paper, oh well. It seems a bit busy but Trace seemed pleased to get a card. (Sorry for terrible pic, will need to retake with darker background I think).


The Bon Voyage card is very simple, and I'll just say, if only the Summer Mini pre-order had begun *wink* (other demoes will know what stamp set I mean). I resorted to using a stamp I bought years ago from another company. Just not the same stamping quality as SU, but desperate means...

I used the lovely 'Elegant Soiree' DSP and even though it doesn't mention it in the catty, I'm sure some of those circles are 'Marina Mist'. I used 'Baja Breeze;, 'Marina Mist', 'Soft Suede', 'Crumb Cake' & 'Chocolate Chip' markers; 'Very Vanilla' & 'Soft Suede' CS & 'Marina Mist' grosgrain ribbon. The sentiment is done on my Mac & I used my 'Word Window' & 'Modern Label' punches, love how they work together.

Must run as need to get ready for week, but only 3 shifts til hols, yay!!!!

Cheers,
Fi x

Guest Designer for Keesh, scary!!!!

Hi Guys,

I was blown away to win Keesh's last sketch challenge with this card. I wish my mojo would visit more than once or twice a year, LOL. I was so excited to win until I remembered that the winner got to be a guest designer for an upcoming challenge, gulp. It is a great honour but rather scary. Thankfully it is a sketch challenge, which I prefer to colour challenges, and a fab sketch at that.

The sketch:

And my card:

The colours look a bit similar to last week's Colour Challenge but I actually used the colour coach. I wanted 'Certainly Celery' and the nicest combo was with 'Bashful Blue' and 'Pink Pirouette'.  I originally was thinking of BB DSP for the background but then thought of my new, as yet untouched, 'Elegant Lines' embossing folder. It is so cool, I'm really keen to use it in conjunction with the 'Elegant Soiree' DSP. I used some retired DSP from last year and some retired ribbon from a past promotion (yes, it was free, how cool. See here for another opportunity to receive free ribbon).

I have been hanging to use the floral frame and sentiment stamps from the 'Just Believe' set. I love these butterflies too from the 'Beautiful Wings' embosslit, used with my trusty Big Shot. The circle looked a bit too white so I sponged the edges with 'Pink Pirouette' ink and stamped the smaller leaf design from the 'Just Believe' set in versamark and rubbed over it with 'Certainly Celery' chalk giving just a hint of colour.

The other new 'toy' that I've used is the stick on pearls, so, so, easy to use. I've seen pearls and rhinestones used on this embossed pattern out in blogland so thought I'd try it. It adds a soft touch I think.

Well, I've survived (I hope) my stint as guest designer and greatly thank Keesh for the opportunity.

Have a great weekend,
Cheers, Fi xox

BBFF award

Hi again,

Another quick post. I made a few candles and 2 bottles of shower gel but had to watch the return of NCIS, love that show. Lucky I only needed to make 2 little pamper packs for a girl at work.

Recently, the gorgeous Andrea Lowcock blessed me with her special BBFF (Best Blogging Friends Forever) award and it was so lovely. It is designed to acknowledge those wonderful people who pop by our blogs and say a kind word, support & encourage us. We are allowed to pass it on so, the award goes to:

1. Lee Pelosi
2. Andrea Lowcock (you didn't say we couldn't send it back, it is well deserved)
3. Lee-Anne Barry
4. Genelle Little.

These are not my only blog friends, but they are my faithful buddies who pop by regularly and always make my day better.

Thanks guys,
Love Fi MWAH!

Super quick post

Hi Guys,

I have a million things to do and today is my only full day off. I have cleaned my place (at last) and done some washing but I still need to make up some shower gel and make some candles.

I loved the colours in Keesh's Colour Challenge this week, even didn't mind the Daffodil Yellow even though yellow is far from being a fav colour.

I had seen a card layout that I liked in the catty and decided to use it for my card but then I saw Karen's latest Sweet Sunday sketch and it was so similar to the catty card that I decided to "kill two challenges with one card".

I was looking through the catty trying to get ideas when I stumbled across the older (or should I say 'classic'?) stamp set "Pun Fun". I chose this set to be in my starter kit, mainly for the teacup, rocket & hippo. I did think about using the bird but decided it would be far too much yellow LOL.

Here's what I ended up with:

I cracked open my new pack of Subtles DSP for the Marine Mist paper, I love this old-fashioned tea-house type pattern. I used the 'Take a Sip' wheel on the Pretty in Pink CS and added the detail with my PiP marker. Not so sure about using the wheel but it is there now. I water-coloured the cup from 'Pun Fun' and the teabag from 'Morning Cup' and added the sentiment, also from 'Morning Cup". Finally a punched piece of Daffodil Yellow CS and a few buttons. I think I'm happy with all but the PiP piece of card stock.

Must run,
Cheers,
Fi xox

Another go at Keesh's Sketch

Hi Guys,
I really wanted to play with Keesh's sketch again (see this post for first attempt). I broke out my new 'Elements of Style' set, which, true to form, I didn't like until I saw everyone using it. I am so easily led LOL.

My new take on the sketch:

I decided to use the 'Lap of Luxury' DSP as my inspiration for colours and added 'Pear Pizzazz' for the leaves. I inked the stamp using my markers & then filled the image in with my blender pen & ink pads. I used 'Confetti White' CS for a softer look.The background is 'Pretty in Pink' CS stamped with the floral image in matching ink. The other CS is 'Concord Crush'. The bird image was stamped in 'Pretty in Pink' and then 'Concord Crush' ink was applied with a dauber. I was inspired to try this after seeing this card on Splitcoast (want to try it in the 'Sweet & Sour' colours, isn't it yummy?).

I also pulled out my 'Color (sic) Spritzer Tool' for the first time and spritzed with Concord Crush & Pretty in Pink. I took a close up to show the 'spritzing'.

 I can't believe how different 2 cards can be using the same sketch by the same stamper. That's the joy of stamping.

Another reason for using this sentiment and these colours is due to thoughts of my midi friends who were killed. Purple is the colour of midwifery (we even wear bright purple scrubs, and boy do we stand out!!) and it is a timely reminder to take notice of those moments. Thank you to everyone for their lovely supportive comments at this time too, MWAH!

Love,
Fi xox

A super quick card

Hi Guys,

Friends of mine in Tamworth ordered some of my Body Butter for Troy's Mum to take back to the US. I wanted to throw in a card with the parcel but only thought of it at about 2am (night duty body clock). I had not long received the hostess gift 'Because I Care' and was itching to ink it up. I had been seeing some lovely one layer cards and storing up the ideas to use for work cards. This seemed like a good idea for 2 am LOL.

I has seen this card on Splitcoast and didn't even look at it again before i stamped. Next time I will add in the score lines as I really like it (and now own a scor-pal which does great score lines!!!).

Here's my card:

It is a shocking pic as I quickly snapped it so I could post it. 2am pics taken by desk light are not great quality, LOL. I used the gorgeous new colours 'Marina Mist' and 'Pear Pizzazz'. The sentiment stamp is also new & I just love it. It is 'Curly Cute'. The edge is done with the 'Eyelet Border' punch. This card was so quick to put together yet quite pretty I think.

Thanks for all your lovely comments re the loss of my work colleagues, and my sore back. It really helps.

Better run, my friend's hubby is coming to quote fixing up my front yard.

Cheers, Fi xox

Yet more birthdays..

Hi there,

The birthday run has slowed considerably. My cousin's hubby has a birthday on Thursday, which is also Mum & Dad's wedding anniversary, 43rd I think! Mum & Dad head to NZ for a holiday this week so they should have a great anniversary. Bon Voyage.

Michael loves camping and boating. He is also a fab cook, both using a camp oven and a pizza oven. I saw this card on Splitcoast & really liked it. Here is my CASE of the card. I used retired DSP and a retired colour, Brilliant Blue, as I like it with grey.

The 4WD is from the retired set 'Just Beachy' bit the sentiment is current, 'Perfect Punches', a freebie from Convention.

Have a great day,
Fi xox

2nd sketch challenge for Jake

Hi again,

I made one card for my nephew Jake, who is turning 15 (shock, horror!) at the end of this month, from me, see my previous post. I have also made one from Mum and Dad. I did the same thing back in July for my other nephew, Jake's 16y.o. brother Luke. The cards I've made for Jake are rather similar to them but as Luke's parcel never arrived in Russia (*!?*@!) it doesn't really matter.

For this card I have used, for the first time, a sketch from Clean and Simple Stamping. It is a good basic layout. I wouldn't mind having a go again, could imagine inking up my new 'Just Believe' or 'Elements of Style' with this sketch.

Anyway, the sketch:

And my card:

I actually made this one first and carried the same colours through to the card from me. I find there are a lot more papers with designs suitable for guys in this year's catty. Who would've thought a DSP set such as 'Greenhouse Gala' would have had a boyish pattern. It pays to look through all the papers.

The large stars and sentiment are from PTI's Star Prints set, the 'grandson' is from SU's 'Wonderful Favourite' and the small star from a retired SU set. I find it hard to get away from stars for teens, and he is a super star to us. Love ya Jake!!!

Must go and get to bed as I have an osteopath appt in the morning.

Have a great day,
Cheers,
Fi x

My nephew's birthday.

Hi Guys,

Things have been a bit subdued here. Two of my work colleagues were killed this week in a freak accident. Rebecca worked with us, mainly on the wards but occasionally in Delivery Suite, and Jan did her midi training with us and was working in the Early Childhood Clinics. They met for lunch and were waiting to cross the road when a van veered out of control, hitting them both. Rebecca had worked in ICU and her partner also works in the hospital, so it has affected everyone greatly. It is a reminder to value and care for one another. I also mildly injured my back on Thursday night and have been sitting on the lounge with hot & cold packs for two days. It is one of the few times I can truly say I would've rather been at work. The way everyone is pulling together and supporting each other is truly a blessing.

Enough sadness, I have made 2 cards this week but the layouts come from two different sketch challenges so will put them in separate posts. Firstly I have used the latest sketch challenge of Keesh's (#43). I had already planned on using my 'Extreme Guitar' and 'Extreme Elements' in a challenge this week as I needed to make a card for Jake, my soon to be 15y.o. nephew. I saw Kirsty use the same set but decided to go ahead anyway.

First, the sketch:

And now my card:

I've based the colour scheme on the 'Greenhouse Gala' DSP as Jake's fav colour is (or at least it was) orange. I've used Pumpkin Pie, Pear Pizazz (love this green, must get more CS in this colour) and Baja Breeze CS. I've distressed the edges in keeping with a rock/boy look. Maybe i should add some black around the edges to grunge it a bit and add some definition?

The pic quality is poor as I took it tonight under my desk lamp. It has to get to Russia by the end of the month so need to post it tomorrow. Thank goodness that I can drive again. My sore back has mainly been in my left hip and the pain radiated down my left leg, thus making it difficult to use my clutch. I see the osteopath tomorrow so she should get me sorted.
ETA: am changing things around to try and get link on Keesh's site to work with no success :-(

Will go & write my 2nd post
Love Fi x
RIP Rebecca & Jan, you'll be sorely missed

Inkspirations challenge

Keesh has an interesting colour combo this week, and it uses one of my old favs, Kiwi Kiss. I really wanted to play along with the sketch hosted by Kirsty last week, using 'Awash with Flowers, but ran out of time so decided to use it this week.

The colours:

The sketch:

And finally, my card:

I used the, now retired but still lovely, 'Urban Garden' DSP for the background. I liked the subtlety of the Kiwi Kiss in the background paper. The circles are cut with my Circle Scissors plus, so easy, especially if you use 'Dotto' adhesive. The ribbon is retired 'Riding Hood Red' taffeta. Luckily lots of my retired ribbons are still in current colours so they can still get lots of use.

It is a grey, wet day for the start of daylight savings. I noticed last night at about 1am (which was 2am DST) that my freezer door hadn't closed properly, aagghh. Thawed out food and a freezer so iced up that I couldn't pull out the baskets (it is a little upright). I am so glad that I was lazy & ate two lots of lamb shank casserole this week otherwise it would've been wasted (and it was so yummy). Thankfully not too much wastage and I now have a lovely defrosted freezer. Wish it hadn't been 1 (or 2) am when I discovered it though.

Have a great day,
Fi xox

Recipe:
Stamps - Awash with Flowers, Great Friend
Ink: Kiwi Kiss, Not Quite Navy, Riding Hood Red
Paper: Kiwi Kiss, Riding Hood Red, Very Vanilla CS, Urban Garden DSP (ret)
Accessories: Riding Hood Red ribbon (ret), Scallop Edge Border punch, Circle Scissors Plus, Dimensionals.

A quick post

Hi Guys,

I just wanted to share a gift bag that I decorated to go with this (the second card down in the post) card that I made for my friend Eileen. I got the idea from the lovely Sarah-Jane Kale and the gorgeous "Convention Survival Kit" that she made me when we were roomies in May.

Apologies for the pic, I took it in a rush and at night. I stamped the coffee pot from 'Morning Cup' on Whisper White CS and coloured it with my inks & blender pens. I punched it out and backed it with a Soft Suede circle. I ran a strip of baja Breeze CS through the crimper and topped it with a strip of Soft Suede CS & some retired Baja ribbon. I randomly stamped the mug image over the bag in Baja. Very easy but Eileen was impressed. Mind you, she is a lovely lady and very easily pleased. (She also agreed to swap her hols with me so that I can go to Melbourne for Convention next year so I think I'd better buy her a nice gift and make a fancy card to go with it. Gotta love Eileen!!!!!).

Cheers,
Fi xox

Two challenges in one day!

Hi again,

I was going to set this to post tomorrow but then I forget to come back and link it to the challenge site, so you get 2 posts in one day (it's either feast or famine with me LOL).

I really liked the simplicity of this week's sketch over at Just Add Ink. I'm not sure, but this may be the 1st of their challenges that I've entered.

Firstly, the sketch:

And now my interpretation:

As usual, I am pretty literal with sketches, some people get so creative but I'm pretty much a 'take it as it comes' 'KISS' sort of stamper.

I inked up my 'Very Vintage' jumbo wheel in 'Rich Razzleberry' ink and stamped onto 'Very Vanilla' CS. I love this wheel, I should reach for it more often. Would like to try it in 'Marina Mist' on 'Very Vanilla' as well, hmmmm. I stamped the section of the wheel with the butterfly onto some scrap VV CS and cut it out (so much cutting today, at least more than I like to do LOL).  I stamped the flowers from 'Very Vintage' in RR and added some pearls, the smaller is from the new, fabbo, stick on pearls, the larger is from my (retired) Pretties Kit. Finally I finished off with a sentiment from the classic 'Sincere Salutations' set and added some (retired) RR ribbon. I can't wait to put it my next order (patiently, or not so, waiting until the new SU quarter) and get some of the new 'Rich Razzleberry' satin ribbon, yummo!!!!

Must head off, I desperately need a haircut and to buy some groceries, so must leave the land of stamping fun & go back to the real world :-(

Cheers,
Fi xox

Another birthday and a challenge

Hi Guys,

I've had fun playing with some more challenges. I needed to make a card for a 3yo and was going to use last week's Mojo Monday sketch again (see this post, 2nd card) however I came upon the Sweet Sunday challenge which was to use a favourite past sketch. I already had in mind making a card with a rectangle panel using 'Choo Choo' so searched til I found a suitable sketch.

This is the one I decided on:

And my card:

I am so in love with this Celebrations DSP for boy's cards. I will need to order more 'Pacific Point' & 'Real Red' CS as I think I'll be using it a lot. The hills are cut from 'Pear Pizazz' CS layered over 'Bashful Blue'. I did the grass with the 'Wonderfully Worn' BG stamp, another new love. The '3' is made using my Big Shot. I always think "can I be bothered using it to cut out just one thing", but with my fairly organised stamping area it takes less than 5 mins to do, so very easy. The track is from the 'Right on track' wheel, so cute.

I covered the train windows & my '3' with Crystal Effects. Only prob is that I sat something down unintentionally on the card before the windows were quite dry so they're not real smooth, DUH!!! The ribbon is retired, it came wrapped around a free stamp set that i received at Convention. Waste not... I wish they had Pacific Point ribbon in the new catty, oh well.

Must keep moving. I am hoping to post another card I made for the JAI challenge.

catch ya,
Fi xox

Mum's order

Hi Guys,

Mum needed a birthday card for her prayer partner. I saw this one on Splitcoast (I'm a shocker for CASEing everything but my work week sucks up all my brain power & I need to use other people's brains on my days off LOL). I loved the simple 2-tone use of the '5th Avenue Floral' daisy. It also gave me a reason to break out my new marina Mist CS, it is such a pretty blue, I love it. I used it with Not Quite Navy and So Saffron for the flower centres.

I decided against the embossing, instead I added some interest with the new 'Wonderfully Worn' background stamp, I really like the effect it gives. A sentiment (retired US) and one of the new rhinestones and I was done. I hope Mum finds it ok for the intended recipient.

Must run, off to have morning tea with my neighbour,

Cheers,
Fi xox

Baja Birthdays

Hi there,

The birthday bonanza continues. I will be so glad to see October, I think it's pretty birthday free. I still have one to go for September after the three cards I made today.

My friend Lou, whose daughter's Christening I attended last week, had her birthday on Sunday. We're meeting for coffee tomorrow to celebrate. I saw this card (the first one) ages ago on Splitcoast and fell in love with it and had to CASE it. I love the 'Friends Never Fade' set and am really growing to love the 'Greenhouse gala' DSP so it was a given I suppose. I only changed one DSP pattern & the ribbon, plus I didn't own the stamp set she used for the leaves, so substituted a stamp from the 'Cottage Garden' set. I used my markers to ink the flower stamp, am so happy to have a Baja Breeze marker at last (doing happy dance). I left off a sentiment as I think it would've been too busy. Am wondering if I should have stuck with the wider 'Certainly Celery' ribbon though....

My good work friend, Eileen, also had her birthday on Sunday. She loves her coffee, I think that is what she exists on during our busy shifts. I had to use the new 'Morning Cup' set, of course. It is one of my favs, being a great tea drinker myself and loving all things tea related. I was browsing the web trying to come up with a layout, when I came across the latest Mojo Monday sketch. I haven't done one of their challenges for ages & I really liked the sketch.

I used the new 'Elegant Soiree' DSP as I thought Eileen would like those colours. I inked the images using Stazon on watercolour paper (I stamped it rather crookedly, oops) and then used my aquapainter with my markers & inks. I chose the Scallop Trim border as I felt the little holes echoed the DSP pattern. The sentiment is from the retired set 'Think Happy Thoughts', with a piece of DSP cut out using the small heart punch (to echo the heart on the mug image) and the buttons from the retired 'Latte' collection. I think the part that took the longest was 'threading' the buttons with the little strips of Baja Breeze CS, fiddly! I don't think it is as crooked as it looks in the pic LOL.

I will save my other card for a new day, need to spin this out a bit LOL.

Have a great day,

Love Fi xox

Wow, 4 posts in one week!!!

Hi there.

Don't faint, I just thought I'd better get all these cards that I've been making onto my blog. Andrea won't believe her eyes *waving*!

As you would know if you'd wandered past here recently,  I have been up to ears in birthday cards. I don't remember July-Sept being this crazy before, maybe I've just been more diligent in making & sending cards, I'm not sure. Anyway, every spare minute seems to have been spent making cards. It has been fun, especially with the release of the new Catty & thus new goodies to play with :-)

My cousin Mikki had a birthday in August and she is very creative. I decided to use the new 'Newsprint' DSP as I thought it was a bit arty. Here is her card:

I had seen a tutorial for this accordion flower on Mary Fish's blog & decided to have a go using our scallop circle punch (the US now has a larger one as well, covet!). It was really easy to do. I added a 'Build-a-Brad' and then stamped some images from 'Artistic Etchings' in black & Rich Razzleberry.

Next, Mikki & Adam's son, Byron, turned 3. I used a sketch of Keesh's that I'd wanted to play with ages ago but ran out of time. I had this cute non-Su paper and combined it with 'Lots of Bots'.

The papers co-ordinated well with my SU cardstock but I used some non-SU ribbon I had lying around. I used the Timeless Type sizzlet for the '3' and covered it in glitter popping it up on a star that I punched out. The silver star brad was the finishing touch. The sentiment is from the new 'Party this Way' set.

I had one more card to make on this day so decided to stick with the same sketch. My good mate Ian was also having a birthday and he is a mad 4WDer. He & his family are planing a trip around part of Oz next year so I figured the map paper from the 'Newsprint' DSP would be appropriate, and added the music notes as he has a great voice and works on the Church sound desk. I added the 4WD image from 'Just Beachy' (ret) and some twill tape, distressing it with some sponging to keep it 'blokey'. I hope he liked it.

Thanks for calling by, I think that's all for now,

Love Fi xox

Sarah's Christening.

I was blessed to be the midwife for my good friends Louise & Chris (Lou is a midwife too) when Lou birthed her gorgeous daughter Sarah back in February, and was thrilled to be able to attend Sarah's Christening on Sunday. I had made a Name Frame for one of my friend's daughters a while back & thought that would be a nice idea for Sarah. For reasons that I won't go into to, many midwives do not like images of butterflies and I wasn't quite sure what else to do. Finally I thought of my heart punch and thought that would be ok. I printed the text on my computer using this fantastic website to get the right RGB values for SU colours. I used 'Raspberry Tart' DSP (ret) as I love the colours and Sarah has bright pink 'In the Night Garden' sheets. The frame came from Big W.

Forgive the photo, I took it in a hurry on my phone as I was about to leave, as my camera batteries were playing up. You can see my reflection in the glass :-(
(The verse is Jeremiah 29:11, a fav of mine).

I didn't have any Christening type stamps so went with a card that co-ordinated with the frame:

I got the inspiration for the layout from this post. I can't stop using the 'Modern Label' punch, I have been wanting it for so long and it is fab for giving a frame to the 'Word Window' punch.

Lou seemed happy with the frame, I also added a little book from Koorong to complete the gift. It was a lovely morning despite the fact that I worked the night before and ended up being awake for about 20 hrs before crashing out on the lounge!

Thanks for visiting,
Cheers,
Fi xox

Sweet Sunday Sketch #85

Can you believe it, another post. I should have 4 days off more often. I had a gorgeous day on Tuesday, using a voucher for a Day Spa treatment that was a birthday present. I was buffed, polished, massaged into blissful relaxation. What a wonderful gift!!!! Anyway, all that relaxing seems to have unleashed the blogging monster LOL.

I liked the Sweet Sunday Sketch this week. I always see it on Sarah-Jane's blog, but the original source is Karen Giron's blog. It has been ages since I was able to play along with a challenge and had fun with this one. Here is the sketch from karen's blog:

And here is card:

After I'd put it together I realised it would've looked better if I'd punched out consecutive images, but I couldn't be bothered re-doing it (slacker). I have used the ever so cute Level 1 hostess gift 'Birthday Bakery'. It has such cute images and sentiments. I used the now retired 'Sweet Always' DSP. I love it for girly cards & stocked up on an extra packet before the last catty finished. At least the colours in it are still current. I'm not completely happy with this card but it is passable I think.

Thanks for looking,
Cheers,
Fi xox