The Pink Elephant - Monogram Challenge

Happy Monday morning to you! Today we have a Monogram Challenge at The Pink Elephant......it's hard to believe we are up to #15 already..........how time flies when you're having fun :)
We have some exciting challenges for you over the coming weeks and of course more fabulous prizes, so make sure you 'stay tuned' :)

I have a couple of projects for you today, the first being this dinky binder clip.............it's holding a rather old but gorgeous picture of my Granddaughter Danielle, taken in a studio when she was 8 months old :)
The centre of the clip was created with shrink plastic and a Just Rite Monogram Stamper. I first coloured my shrink plastic with ColorBox cats eye chalks and then overstamped the letter D with the JR stamper. The ink remains quite wet, so careful positioning was needed when cutting out with my Nestabilities!! I also cut the pink & green card using the CB & Nesties and then placed the stack onto some paper blooms................a little bit of bling and job done! :)

My second project is a matching card & envelope....................for projects like this one i would be lost without my Cricut machine! it's perfect for the ovals and the lettering that i've cut to embellish my gatefold card......................it cuts really tiny for the envelope too!I used George cartridge for the ovals and Base Camp for the monograms, the scalloped edges are cut from a Papermania 12 x 12 stack......... all other paper and card is Anna Griffin.............so elegant!
We would love to have you join us for this challenge, it's so refreshing to see all your different ideas each week..........and so hard to choose our favourites!!
Thanks for popping in today..........................see you soon ;-D

Hugs
Carol x

Stamp Something..........Lauren style!

The challenge this week over at Stamp Something is Clean & Simple 'Thank You's' to make a card in honour of DT member Lauren, using her style.........................after much browsing of Lauren's fabulous work, i decided to go with this one

Like many of us cardmakers these days i tend to rely on designer papers a little too much! so this card took me back to my roots of stamping the background instead.....................and, i have to say i really enjoyed making this one :)

I started by covering the front of a pre-folded 5 x 7 card blank with some K&Co ReMake.....then i took some white card and using my Pebbles pearlescent chalks and a cotton wool ball, smooshed it all over the card! This was then overstamped with Stampendous 'Ruffled Bloom' and Stamps by Judith 'stubby dots' inked with Versafine 'onyx black'.
The sentiment is a Printworks stamp from acrylic set QO44 and the black frame is from my box of 'practice cuts' that i have on my desk to keep all my cuts from my Cricut machine................when i am cutting something specific for a project i then use up the rest of the paper while it's in the machine on 'practice cuts'................they always come in handy later on and saves wasting the paper too!

My gorgeous Granddaughter is not visiting today, she is out with her other Granddad celebrating his Birthday! 'Happy Birthday Mark'.....................my home is very quiet today and it feels strange for me to have an empty house on a Sunday, it's normally bursting at the seams!!.....................
Thanks for popping in today...............enjoy the rest of your weekend ;-D

Hugs
Carol x

Creative Card Crew.........Minimal

Hi folks! My medication for my back pain is working very well, but does make me very sleepy! so in between snoozing yesterday!! ....................... i managed to make a couple of cards...........the first is for the MINIMAL challenge over at CCC..........
Of course i love my patterned papers , embellishments etc, but i disciplined myself here and only used a tiny amount of ribbon................Even the card size is minimal at only 4.25" x 5.5" aka U.S. A2 the perfect size for the CB embossing folders :) I only have a few of this size left so i may have to get some more as they are such a good size for a quick notecard etc.

Stamps.... Hero Arts 'Raindrop Background'
Paper Inspirations.... 'Watercolour Rose'
Thanks.... Personal Impressions
Inks.... Ranger 'Bikini Pink' & 'Lettuce'
Cardstock.... K&Co ReMake
ribbon from stash!

Back soon...........................
Hugs
Carol x

The Drugs Do Work!!!!!!

..........yep! sorry folks but i am feeling no pain at the moment.........thanks to my GP and some lovely co-codamol tablets!!
Before you think i have finally gone completely mad i have been signed off work yet again............this time it's my back, between my shoulder blades and at last they are going to send me to the Hospital as an urgent referral!
I have had constant problems over the last few years.....shoulders, neck , back various different pills and potions and lots of physio...........hopefully now i may find the real cause of it all..........the best of it is..........the tablets are so good at taking away the pain that i may find time for some crafting!..............if i can stay awake long enough!!!! they also make me very d r o w s y :) and a bit tipsy too!...........................................i love 'em ;-D

Hugs
Carol x

New Team Mate at Funky Hand.....

I'm pleased to tell you that the new team member over at Funky Hand is .......... Dolly!

I would like to welcome Dolly to the team and say how much i am looking forward to your creations.................and getting to know you better! Welcome aboard :)

Hugs
Carol x

Time for Sketches!

Yay!! it's Thursday and time for another fab sketch by Tamara :)

My design today incorporates some elements that were created using....... Alcohol Inks...........i don't use them often, but was asked by some of the ladies that attend my workshops if we could do some cards with them again, so this was one of the samples that they worked from on Tuesday evening.......................
The flowers were cut with my Cricut from acetate using George cartridge and coloured using inks 'Caramel' & 'Ginger' and a tiny bit of gold mixative. The small square portion of glossy card behind the sentiment was coloured in the same manner.
My Cuttlebug and 'Textile Texture' folder was used for the embossed portion which has been 'smooshed' over with a Brilliance inkpad in Galaxy Gold, the sentiment is also cut from the George cartridge and has been coloured with a Colorbox 'Chestnut Roan' catseye inkpad.

I hope i have inspired you to have a go at the sketch, or maybe to try something with your Alcohol Inks...............i bet loads of you have them?...............check out the work by the lovely girls on the DT.............you're sure to find something to get your mojo going :)

Have a Great Day, and thanks for popping in! ;-D

Hugs
Carol x

Penny Black Saturday Challenge & OCC

I've used Robin's fab sketch over at Our Creative Corner to create my card for PBSC this week, which is................

Black, White + 1 other

I did consider using a colour other than pink, in fact my first thought was lime green but as you can see i settled with my old favourite combo of pink, black and white :) I have been playing around with some of the cuts on my newest Cricut cartridge 'Home Decor' and just love this little swirl, so although it isn't on the sketch i just fancied adding it.............

Image.... PB 'Youthful'
Ink.... Versafine 'Onyx Black'
Cricut machine/ Home Decor & George
Papers.... Basic Grey 'Urban Prairie'
White Rub-On Crafting Time
Card Blank.... Craftwork Cards
gems & black card from stash

I have my workshop this evening where we will be getting down & dirty with Alcohol Inks!.......catch up with you soon..............have a great day ;-D

Hugs
Carol x

TPE Challenge #14

Today at The Pink Elephant we have a colour challenge for you.................

Medium Blue, Light Blue, White & Green

As these colours are ones that i do not regularly use, i thought i would try something other than a card for my DT project this week!

A 12 x 12 Card Box

I used a great tutorial that i found here .............very simple instructions, easy to follow step by step...........just how i like it!
I used one 12 x 12 sheet of Crate paper to make my box which i've then embellished with papers from Making Memories and a Letraset rub-on. The brads and ribbon are from my stash.

My box has been filled with shredded tissue for the purpose of the photo, but i have since made one little card from some of the scraps........................i intend to make several more cards to add to it as a little gift for my MIL.please note:- the original photo has been replaced with one taken in natural light

This box would be perfect for giving a lightweight gift as well..........maybe a Teddy Bear for a new baby? I hope you have enjoyed my projects today....................now it's your turn! I would love to visit you to see what you create with our colour challenge for this week...............and if you are looking for more inspiration be sure to check out the fabulous work from the other DT girls :)

Have a great day! ............see you soon ;-D

Hugs
Carol x

Secret Crafter Saturday Challenge/ Class samples

Morning all :) I have been busy this weekend making samples for my workshop on Tuesday evening, we are going to be working with Alcohol Inks this time as well as the usual stamping!

The challenge this week at SCSC is to use brads or eyelets.........both cards that i have to show you today have brads on them, so i guess they will be in keeping with the challenge, but the first card is the one i will enter :)

Papers.... Basic Grey 'Wisteria'
Alcohol Inks.... Eggplant, Cranberry & Silver mixative
Sentiment.... Hero Arts
Cricut machine
Acetate
Ric-rac and brads from stash

Papers.... Basic Grey 'Boxer'
Alcohol Inks.... Meadow,Lettuce & Copper mixative
Sentiment.... HOTP
Glossy card.... JudiKins
Acetate
Cricut machine
Dovecraft punches
Black card, ribbon and brads from stash

It's an absolutely glorious day here in Bedford today.......may even get up to the low 70's apparently............guess i will have an even harder job of keeping Danielle inside when she comes to visit later on................she just loves to be in the garden, and who can argue on a day like today!

Have fun whatever you are up to today..........i hope the sun shines for you too! ;-D

Hugs
Carol x

Papertake Weekly

Morning all! Just getting round to showing you the card i made earlier this week following Dawny's fab sketch over at Papertake Weekly

I have used this gorgeous Unicorn which is a digi stamp from The Greeting Farm.......these digi stamps are becoming so popular now and of course are perfect if your storage space is limited......................you just hold them on your computer until you are ready to print.....fab idea!!

The papers i've used are from Basic Grey 6 x 6 'Wisteria' and the cardstock is Papermania...........excellent value at only £9.99 for sixty sheets....it's 240gsm, 12 x 12 double sided and scalloped as well!!! ........just perfect :) the sentiment is a rub-on from Making Memories and i used watercolour pencils to colour the image.

I have some projects to prepare today for my workshop on Tuesday evening, DT things to finish and catching up with some lovely people in blogland.................busy busy busy but just how i like it!!

See you soon ;-D
Hugs
Carol x

Inspirational Card Sketches

I have been visiting Inspirational Card Sketches for a while now, the sketches are fab and some of my favourite cardmakers are on the DT too!......... At the moment they have a DT call running, so if you fancy trying out then why not pop over and have a look :)

Those of you that visit me often will know how much i love sketches and have enjoyed sharing some of my own recently over at TPE challenge blog. I have made quite a simple card using the current ICS #15 which i've rotated slightly..........



The more i use this gorgeous Penny Black 'Andante' image, the more i like it! It has to be my all time favourite PB stamp ............... i LOVE it's simplicity :)

Image.... PB 'Andante'
Papers.... Basic Grey 'Boxer'
Inks.... Adirondack & ColorBox
Cricut Machine
Glossy cardstock.... JudiKins
other cardstock.... Bazzill
Dove Brushes for blending
fibres and brad from stash

I know i will be visiting ICS often and hopefully joining in with lots of the sketch challenges..........
thanks for your time today, i do appreciate you popping in........ ;-D

Hugs
Carol x

Sketches! *one last blast *

Today sees the last of the 'blast from the past' sketches over at Sketches!{by tamara}........next week we have a brand new sketch for you to try out!

I have to be honest and say that the sketch this week had me a bit stumped!! my mojo was absent i think when i made this card :( and the result is a little strange to say the least...................

I love the colours together, just not sure about the rest of it!! also i didn't use a pre-folded card blank so it's not a standard size.............guess i'll have to make an envelope to fit it somehow!

Image & sentiment.... Hero Arts
Papers.... Basic Grey 'Porcelain'
(paper pieced on the cupcake)
cardstock.... Bazzill & K&Co Remake
Cuttlebug D'Vine Swirl
Punch.... Woodware
buttons, ric-rac, and gems from my stash

To see a selection of gorgeous cards made with the sketch pop over to the other DT members and check them out! Thanks for popping in today..............see you later ;-D

Hugs
Carol x

Sketch Saturday #49

I do love Bank Holidays........my hubbie is usually very busy with his business at weekends and especially when it's a BH, so that leaves me in the house on my own :) I get up very early and rush round doing the housework like someone posessed............which then gives me the rest of the day to play with paper and stamps.........perfect!!

I love the sketch this week over at Sketch Saturday and really enjoyed making this card using the fab sketch as my starting point..............................

Image.... Daisy & Dandelion
Sentiment.... stamps away
Ink.... versafine
Papers.... HOTP
Cardstock.... Bazzill
Watercolour pencils
Nestabilities
Punches.... Fiskars 'Threading Water'
& Woodware circles
flowers.... prima
all other embellies from stash

Thanks for your visit today..........hopefully see you tomorrow ;-D

Hugs
Carol x

Penny Black Saturday Challenge......Welcome Home

It's week 47 over at Penny Black Saturday and the theme this week set by the lovely Kath is.......

Shapes

I was asked to make a card by a colleague at our Glasgow Admin centre........she wanted the card for a baby that had been born prematurely and had spent time in Hospital since being born, but needed a card for when the baby came home! She said she could not find anything suitable in the shops and would i be able to make something for her. I have used this gorgeous PB image so much for baby cards.............i think it works very well. As there are several different shapes on this card it works for the challenge too! :)

Image.... PB 'In a Nutshell'
Papers.... Making Memories & Anna Griffin
Letter Stamps.... Hero Arts
Nestabilities
Cuttlebug
Inks.... Versafine & ColorBox Chalk
Watercolour pencils
Adornit.... Tiny Alpha Stickers
ribbon, button & twine from stash

Back to work for me today.......hope we are a bit busier than of late............it's very hard to look like you're doing something when you actually have nothing to do!! and as we aren't allowed to chat in the office it can make for a very long boring day!!!!!

Catch up with you all later ;-D

Hugs
Carol x

DT CALL................

It's great fun being on the DT for Funky Hand, we have a laugh and we help each other out with words of comfort when needed, it's just like one big family and..............we get to play with fabulous CD's and downloads too!
Anice is looking for a new team member, so if you fancy your chances why not pop over and see what it's all about......................there are so many exciting things coming up at Funky Hand Towers.......go on, give it a try......you never know your luck.....oh and it helps if you are slightly mad too!!!

The Pink Elephant challenge #13

Today in the U.K. it's Bank Holiday....yay!!.........and time for The Pink Elephant challenge, so two reasons to be happy! This week we have a recipe for you from Ella's Kitchen..............

CIRCLES
Scallops & Punches (or die cuts)

I usually schedule my post for TPE to co-incide with the girls in the U.S. but i fell asleep on the sofa last night and have only just woken up!! so if some of this sounds a bit 'double dutch' then it's because it really IS just past 5a.m.!!!.............haven't even heard many birds singing yet!!
Anyway..................onto my card..........

Image.... JudiKins cube #6736I
Sentiment.... Stamps Away
Nestabilities.... Petite Scallop Circle small
Twinkling H2O's.... Blue Grass
Inks.... Versafine Onyx Black & Distress Black Soot
Cardstock.... Bazzill
Ribbon.... Making Memories

I love turquoise and black together...... i'm not sure about this card!..............i feel it's missing something but i'm not sure what..........maybe some gems, brads, buttons?........ what do you think..............let me know :)..............and if you are looking for inspiration check out the creations from the rest of the team...............yummy stuff!

I hope you will have fun cooking up a card/project for us using circles...................just add yourself to Mr Linky, then we can all come visit you to see what you have made.........have fun!! :)

Thanks for your visit today, i hope to see you very soon ;-D

Hugs
Carol x
Edited to add:-.................... As i was up VERY early, i made one of these as well :)
i made a bunch of these last Christmas for my tree............i've used a Marvy Giga punch 3"...........you can find the tutorial here :)

Sneaky Peek Sunday! and some excitement!!

Morning all...........not a card for you today but a couple of sneaky peeks at my DT work for the coming week.............not long to wait for this one as it's my design for The Pink Elephant challenge starting tomorrow...................i would like to thank everyone that played along with my sketch this past week...some fabulous cards! and......good luck to you all for the prize draw :)

not at all sure about this card!! Tamara's sketches are great, but i could not think of anything good to do with the new one coming up on Thursday!!...........i hope you will all be totally honest if you come back for the reveal...............definitely NOT one of my best efforts :(

Are you wondering what has got me so excited?.........well 'Little Hoppy' had a friend join her last night whilst she was eating her food............she was none too chuffed about the newcomer and started grunting her disgust!!...............then they snuck off into the bushes and were there for about fifteen minutes grunting and shuffling about :)......................maybe some more babies on the horizon.........how cool would that be!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

See you tomorrow..................it's Bank Holiday....Wahoooooooooooo ;-D

Hugs
Carol x

Secret Crafter..............

The challenge over at Secret Crafter today is flowers! Now, i have hundreds of flowers in several different forms, so was a bit unsure which way to go........................

I love stamping, so decided to plump for that,...... along with some crystal flowers to accent the flourishes on the paper.................and what gorgeous paper it is too! Anyone that knows me will be aware that i don't often use the colour blue.......i tend to go for earthy, grungy colours or nice and bright but i fell in love with this Making Memories paper at the show a couple of weeks ago and just had to have it!!

Image.... Hobby Art 'purple toadflax'
Papers.... Making Memories 'poolside paperie'
and page from spiral journaling book
Ink.... Adirondack 'Denim'
Sentiment.... Printworks
Ribbon.... American Crafts
crystal flowers.... Impex
Dovecraft corner rounder punch

Off to do some housework now.................let's see how long i can stay away from Mr Blogger!!! ;0)

Hugs
Carol x

Start the day with a Smile!

Morning all!.......up before the birds this morning!!!! DT work all finished, so i thought i would show you this little darling......................
Andy took this picture about 9pm last night of our gorgeous hedgie Mummy 'Little Hoppy'..........she comes every night for her food, sometimes more than once! The funny thing about all this is our three cats will just walk straight past this plate of food..........they seem to know it's hers!!

We are so chuffed that she has come back this year..........maybe she didn't go far away........who knows ?

I'm taking Danielle to her ballet class at 8.45 as Mum & Dad are both at work today.........back later with a card or two.............

Hugs
Carol x

STAMPTACULAR SUNDAY CHALLENGE

I am chasing my tail a bit this week, so only just getting round to showing you my design for the current challenge over at Stamptacular Sunday.................Challenge #4....

"Charmed I'm sure!"

For the eagle eyed amongst you who will recognise the stamp i've used as being another from the Huuuge QVC kit...............yes, i kept a few of the nicer ones :) You may remember i used the Watermelon a few weeks ago.......this little Iris has been used a couple of times for Sympathy cards.......... and I found one little lonesome Dragonfly charm to go with it!
I have no idea where this little beauty came from, i think it may have been given to me by a lady at a beading workshop a few years ago.............i may have to hunt the www for some more!

Basic Grey 'Wisteria' papers (obsessed of Bedford!!) and a sentiment from an acrylic set by HOTP..............bit of doodling and scrap of narrow ribbon from stash!

I hope you have a lovely evening and a great weekend...........off now to catch up with some of you lovely peeps,............... see you soon ;-D

Hugs
Carol x