A "Fairy" Good Birthday !

I made this card for my friend Louise`s birthday, she`s a fantastic crafter and makes such beautiful cards. I don`t know if I`m alone in this but I find it harder to make cards for other crafters than I do for any non-crafters ! Louise is a stamper like me and it`s difficult to find an image to stamp that she hasn`t already got LOL !
She loved the card though so ... phew !!

The image is a lovely one from LOTV, (I just cannot get enough of their stamps). I`d like to enter this one in the latest LOTV challenge which is " I believe in Fairies "
I have coloured with distress inks and added glitter to the wings and flower heads.
The papers are MME Stella Rose - Mabel "little lady" posies , K&Co classic K Bailey and MME Bloom and Grow. The flowers are from Prima and Carnmeal Cottage and the die cut is Sizzix extended cuts Swirly. The glittery ribbon is from an old Do Crafts pack that I`ve had for ages.
This was my first attempt at stitching on a card, my sewing machine is donkeys years old and I`ve made just about every soft furnishing in my house on it so it doesn`t owe me anything but it is a bit old and cranky now so it complained quite a bit at stitching through paper and cardstock, I need to invest in one of those handy mini sewing machines if I`m going to make a habit of sewing on cards. It seems to be a fashion to do it at the moment and when I see it on other peoples cards it looks fantastic ! Maybe I just need a bit of practice at it LOL !

My first mini class that I hosted last week went really well, it was just 3 friends (I thought I`d cut my teeth with people I know !) they all thoroughly enjoyed the class and want me to do another one and I was pleased with the project I`d designed (I`ll post here soon ) The only trouble is, now I`ve got to come up with another project for next time to top the one we`ve done, it was so well received that I`ve got my work cut out for me now !
I`d best get on and start designing, thanks for looking in, bye for now and happy crafting.

A Day at the Beach

Over at the Allsorts Challenge they are having a Blog Hop and the theme of this challenge is to take inspiration from a picture of the seaside, here is my take on the challenge.
I`ve used Molly Blooms stamps available from Sir Stampalot. Molly sitting on the beach ball and the Donkey and I`ve actually pinched the Donkey`s hat from another Molly Blooms character! (hope she doesn`t mind LOL). I`ve coloured with distress inks and the backing papers are both Magnolia. The sentiment is SU and the starfish is from a Sizzix embossing set also available from Sir Stampalot. The aperture is cut from Nesties circle dies.



The little shells are some I have been collecting from beaches all over this country since I was old enough to walk. Each time I visit a beach I always pick up a handful of shells and bits and pieces from the sea that wash up on the shoreline. Some of the tiny shells on this card have come all the way from Arisaig in Scotland where I visited when I was 7 years old. See, us crafters never throw anything away ! ( Mum calls it hording !) I have over the years collected enough shells to fill a large biscuit tin and I still collect shells even now when I visit a beach.



I`m lucky enough to live only a 45 minute drive from the coast and I love being by the sea, I suppose it comes from being a water sign - Cancer, I`d love to go today, it`s a lovely warm day and there is hardly a cloud in the sky but I have to get prepared for a class I`m giving on Wednesday and I haven`t even got the project designed yet so I`d better get a move on !
Thanks for stopping by, bye for now and happy crafting xx

Daisy Mouse !

I made this card for my Brother`s partner Judy for her birthday this week, it`s a clear stamp I have had for a while by Tina Wenke from Stampavie available from Sir Stampalot. I love this little character and I`d forgotten all about it until I had a recent sort out of my craft space and organized all my clear stamps into folders, it`s amazing what you find when you have a sort out LOL !!

I have coloured with distress inks, the backing papers are MME bloom and grow and Kaisercraft - country grove - harvest. The ribbon is Ruffled Bazzill and the punch is loopy border from Martha Stewart. The sentiment is SU, flowers are Prima and the leaves cut from a Bosskut die - Daisy Leaves, which is a useful little die that I`ve had for absolutely EVER!



I have added Glamour dust to the little dandelion heads (I think that`s what they are, they look like it to me but horticulture isn`t my strong suit !!) and I`ve added a bit of Glossy Accents to the Ladybug.
I tried to do a bit more crafting today but after the great 6 card session the other day I think my muse has once again left me, I am amazed that sometimes I can sit at my desk and produce things I am very happy with and then other days most of what I make ends up in the bin ! I am supposed to be getting on with samples for Sir Stampalot and Kay Rutter but I just couldn`t achieve anything today , maybe I`ll have better luck tomorrow, you`ll have to watch this space to find out ! I hope that what I come up with will be worth a return visit LOL !
Thanks for looking in, bye for now and Happy Crafting xx

Jane`s Fairy

This Fairy stamp from LOTV was kindly given to me from my friend Jane so I thought I would christen it by making her a thankyou card with it.

I have coloured with distress inks and added SU Stampin` Glitter - Dazzling Diamonds to highlight her tiara, flowers and wings. The nestie used is Labels 10 and I have cut the swirls from Tim Holtz - Elegant Flourishes Sizzix die. The backing papers are SU Designer series papers - subltles (which I love and cannot stop using !) Imaginesce- Fairest of them all and Overton House designs - Pink Faux/ Toile. The outer flower is Prima and the ribbon flower is from Hobbycraft ( I think ? ) and the corner punch and sentiment are SU.

I would like to enter this is the latest LOTV challenge 96 - Ribbon and Bows.
The muse was with me yesterday, I put a classical music CD on the player, turned up the volume , got to work at my craft desk and made 6 cards ! That is a record for me I usually make 2 or 3 at the most in a craft session but I had some lovely new stash given to me by Sir Stampalot to make some samples for them and I had a couple of birthday cards to make also and I just kept going, I could have crafted all night !!
I have to get some housework done today, the carpet around my desk is covered in little bits of paper, 3D foam backs, glitter, ribbon ends etc etc... You all know what it`s like after a good craft session !! So I`d better sign off and get on with that now, thanks for looking in, bye for now and Happy Crafting xx

Bubbly Bunnies

I`ve tried to get ahead with my cards this year so I`m not rushing around at the last minute making cards for family and friends. This one is for my friends whose anniversary is coming up next month.
The image is from LOTV which I got at the NEC this spring and I couldn`t resist it! Mind you I find it hard to resist all of LOTV`s stamps they are so cute.
I have coloured with distress inks and added glitter and glossy accents for the bubbles and water. The backing paper is Magnolia - shoe ornament, I have used a sizzix embossing folder for the bubbly background and for a few of them I`ve used sticky domes to highlight. I have no idea who the sticky domes are from or where I bought them, I have had them forever, I think they may be DO Drafts but not sure !
The little sentiment is LOTV and I just printed the Happy Anniversary on my PC.



I have spent the last two days frantically making cards for Kay Rutter with her new papers that she is launching next week on Create and Craft. I say frantically because with the double bank holidays we`ve had the post got so delayed and I thought they`d never get to me but they finally arrived a week before the show is due to air so I haven`t had much time to prepare, I hope Kay likes what I`ve done for her, if I get time to photograph them before I send them, I`ll post here.
Well, I`m crafted out for today, time to go and relax in a nice hot bath, thanks for visiting, bye for now and happy crafting xx