Altered Ribbon Reel

This Christmas tree ornament started life in the bin! My daughter was throwing it out, can you believe? I often annoy myself  with the way I look at packaging in terms of what can I do with it rather than what it contains. I also regularly but stuff just for the packaging - sad but true; and I know I'm not the only one!!!

Again, I made my own backing paper - text background on white card, overstamped and clear embossed snowflakes, overstamped lilac and blue snowflakes and finally the card was coloured using distress inks and a blending tool.

Challenges Entered

Allsorts - Keep it Simple

Dutch Magnolia Lovers - No Designer papers & 2 stamped images (made own paper, angel tilda on front and back)

Magnolialicious Highlites - Altered Project

Stamping For The Weekend - What A Cutie

Craft Room Challenge - Anything Christmas

Top Tip Tuesday - 2 or more ribbons/lace/twine/fabric (lace)

Messin' with inks again

On Sunday, I bought two new colours of Distress inks - Aged Mahogany and Barn Door, so yesterday, I had a play with them; I stamped and heat embossed snowflakes on white card, then went to town with the inks, then I spritzed with water followed by Glimmer Mist. I also used the inks on my altered beer mat - I cut the aperture with a nestie, then inked it, passed it through the swirls embossing folder ans highlighted the embossing with gold embossing powder.

Challenges Entered

Magnolia Down Under - Fancy Folds

Totally Tilda - Decorate a Beer Mat 

Magnolia Stamp Lovers - Distressed

Stamping Scrapping - Red

 

Amongst the leaves

How cute is this Tilda? She just looks as though the autumn winds are about to take her hat.

Challenges Entered

Magnolia-licious Challenge Blog - Colour Combo

One Stop Craft - Easel Cards

Paperplay - Autumn Leaves

Just Magnolia and hanglar- Fall

Simon Says Stamp - Dies and Punches

My Mums Craft Shop - Boys and Girls

Paper Sundaes - Anything Goes

Groovy!

I don't have a great deal of this Crate Paper Bliss left, which is a shame as the colours are lovely and it bridges the gap between girly and trendy. Still, I have had more than my moneys worth out of it and at least I've used it rather than letting it gather dust - I'm trying to use rather than hoard, but it's an uphill struggle!

Challenges Entered 

It's a Magnolia Challenge - Use 2 Magnolia stamps (Tilda and greeting)

Dutch Magnolia Chickies - Bingo (Buttons - made of felt, flowers and glitter - on small flower centres)

Paper Sundaes - Felt ( flower stalks and buttons)

Magnolia Down Under - Picture Inspiration

Magnolia Mania - Dots (Embossed oval)

Passion for Promarkers - Sketch

Crafts and Me - Stripes (paper)

Guest Designer at Top Tip Tuesday

Last week, I was thrilled to win a Guest Designer spot on Top Tip Tuesday; the theme was ' a card for a child'. Why not pop along and see the lovely creations the Design Team have come up with?

Thanks for Looking

An Altered Book

I got this book yesterday in one of my favourite shops (Home Bargains) for 39p - its a great one to alter because it's really thick so you can get something substantial in the void you make in the middle. The tealights are scented and cost £2 for 24. I thought it made a really pretty but inexpensive little gift.

Challenges Entered

Addicted to Stamps - Stitching

Craft Your Days Away - Pink, Brown & Blue

All Sorts - Alter/recycle

My Mums Craft Shop - Happy Birthday

Crafts and Me - Add a Charm

Simply Magnolia - Shabby Chic

Just Magnolia and Hanglar - Sketch

Thanks for looking

Autumnal

This card started with the idea of wrapping twine around a frame, and the bunch of raffia to resemble straw. I added the embossed punched leaves, but felt I was missing something.... enter paper pinecones. The ticket greeting seemed so appropriate; 'Inspire beauty in all that surrounds you'. Thanks for looking.

Challenges Entered

Magnolia Stamp Lovers - Fall Colours

Bunny Zoe's - Sketch

Little Red Wagon - Twine

All That Scraps - Fall

CES -Embellish me more (twine, punched leaves, button, raffia)

Mmmm Chocolate

Easy on the punching with this one! Another simple colour scheme, using a really subtle embossed backing paper which I inked for definition and to give that old cookbook feel.

Challenges Entered

TOMIC - Chocolate, brown & cream

7 Kids - Holiday Goodness (Festive Truffles recipe)

Paperplay - Punches and dies 

Anything Goes - Vintage/shabby chic

Deep Ocean - Lace

Winter Wonderland - Girly Christmas

White Wedding

I know, I know, with all the punching I'll be complaining of repetitive strain injury before long! Ahh the price of craft. A fairly simple colour scheme with this one, but I think it needs to be simple and elegant for a wedding - so I used tone on tone DP but in opposite colours. I'm also loving the seam binding, it makes such lovely bows - I'm having to stop myself getting it in every colour!!!

Challenges Entered

Totally Tilda - Wedding

Magnolia Down Under - Sketch

Magnolia-Mania - White and....(pink)

Simon Says Stamp - Inspired by film/song (White Wedding - Billy Idol)

Die Cut Dreams - Flower Power

Heart 2 Heart - Die cuts - flowers and spellbinders

 Marianne Design Divas - Flowers - english rolled roses

I'm so excited!

I'm so pleased to tell you I've been accepted onto the design team for Lets Ink It Up The blog is relaunching, and challenges restart in early October. The rest of the team are

Tammy

Cor

Tamara

Hazel

Suzanne - DT Leader

I hope you'll take a look at their blogs, just to whet your appetite for what's to come.

Keeping it simple

No punches or rolled roses, what's going on?
I've gone for a simple look with this card because it's aimed at a teenager - and teenagers don't do fussy - well mine doesn't. So instead of lots of embellishing, I let the image and funky papers be the main focus. It gets the teenager of the houses' approval at any rate -well a grunt was heard and I took that to be approval!

Top Tip 

 If you don't have the right colour of pearl or gem for your project, use Promarkers to colour white/clear ones to match

Challenges Entered

Top Tip Tuesday - Birthday

Passion For Promarkers - Beary Special

Sweet Stampin - For a teenager & sketch

Tuesday Throwdown - Pearls

Santa Clause is Coming to Town

My poor MS punches have been working overtime making this card! I even managed to use the corner punch on a circle.  I used kraft for a vintage/ folky feel and kept to 'traditional' colours as I thought it would make it suitable for a male recipient - then I added the bow, the flower and the glitter, so that went by the wayside!

Challenges Entered

Winter Wonderland - Santa is coming to town 

Christmas Card Challenges - Vintage

Christmas Inspirations - use glitter (poinsettia and Edwin)

Paper Sundaes - Finishing Touches

Dutch Magnolia Lovers - Christmas

Marianne's Design Divas - Anything Goes

Thanks for looking

Sweet Angel

More messing today - this time in silver and grey. I used the Stampin up text stamp with grey ink, then over stamped with a free Stampotique star and embossed in silver, finally I distressed the edges with grey ink. I wanted the background stamping to still be visible, so my accent papers are silver angel hair paper and swirl embossed vellum. I'm also entering this card at Lets Ink it up for their Design Team call.

Challenges Entered

The Sweet Stop - Sketch

Secret Crafter - Inspired by a song (Jimi Hendrix, Sweet Angel)

Charisma Cardz - Inspired by a song (Jimi Hendrix, Sweet Angel)

Allsorts - Flowers and swirls (swirl embossed vellum)

Craft your days away - Make your own flowers

Crafty Hazelnuts - Swirls (swirl embossed vellum)

Catch the bug - punches or dies

Crafty Emma - Make it magical or spooky

Just Us Girls - Text me (background text stamp

Fairytale Challenge - Flowers and lace

Stuck on us - Die Cut flowers - marianne design dies

Thanks for looking

Paper Patchwork

I love patchwork -although usually the fabric kind. I would use stitching a lot more in my cardmaking, but my machine doesn't seem to like sewing paper!
Once again, I used my new MS punches - wonderfully satisfying randomly punching paper - or is that just me? I also had a rolled roses fest last night, so I've a good stock of them to use up.

Challenges Entered

Just Magnolia - Sketch

Paperplay - use 2 or more stamped images (Tilda, Hearts and ticket)

Craft Us Crazy - Autumn colours and/or favourite embellishment (rolled roses)

Passion For Promarkers - Patchwork

Cupcake Crafts - Patchwork

Incy Wincy - Make your own flowers (rolled roses)

Lexi's Creations - Autumn

Stamp with fun - Autumn

Papertake Weekly - anything goes

Crop Stop - use Spellbinders (Scallop circle & inverted scallop)

Thanks for looking.

Getting Messy

For the past few days, I've been having fun with my distress inks and embossing powders; I started with plain white cardstock, stamped the script with distress, stamped the fleur de lis with versamark and clear embossed it, then went to town with various distress inks and my blending tool.

I also did a combination of the above for my accent papers.

TOP TIP - With the more 'grainy' embossing powders, such as Metal Magic, heat from underneath. This prevents all the powder blowing away, and gives a more even finish.

My fingers now look rather nicotine stained - ahh the price of getting creative!

Challenges Entered

TOMIC - Make your own background

I (heart) promarkers - Metal embellishment or charm (frame embossed with Metal Magic also used metallic lace)

Truly Scrumptious - Decorate the inside

Stampavie and more - Pearls and lace (pearl headed heart pin, metallic lace)

Little Red Wagon - Use Die Cuts (frame & chipboard buttons)

My Mums Craft Shop - Layer it up

Anything Goes - Vintage/Shabby

Top Tip Tuesday - Easel Card

Magnolia Mania - Sparkle (Stickles on Tilda)

Magnolia Down Under - Frame it

Crafts and Me - Buttons and bows (chipboard buttons, hessian bows)

Thanks for looking

Windfall Tilda

This week, I've had lots of new Martha Stewart punches, so I've been having a bit of a play - funny how things go in cycles, when I got my sizzix machine, I got rid of quite a few punches thinking my die cutting would be much more versatile, then I got my cricut and again thought that would replace the sizzix; although I learned with the punches not to let go of the sizzix! Now I'm back to buying punches and dies. Funny how we NEED it all isn't it.
I used a punch around the page to make the mat on this card, a Nellie Snellen die, border punch for the rosette, marianne rose die and a leaf punch.

Challenges entered

Just Magnolia - Anything Goes

Simply Magnolia - Anything Goes

Magnolia-licious Highlites - Fall Colours

Sketchy Colours - Purple, Brown, Beige - Purple in the paper, although it looks more pink in the photo!

Cute Card Thursday - Use at least one punch

Papertake Weekly - Anything Goes

Shabby Chic

This is my take on shabby chic - for me it's distressing, lace, florals and tatty ribbons with a soft colour palette.

Challenges Entered

Just Magnolia and Hanglar - Anything goes /circles

Simply Magnolia - Love is in the air (heart pins and with love sentiment)

Magnolia Mania - Swirl (die cut)

Top Tip Tuesday - What is shabby chic?

Deep Ocean - Hearts (pins)

My Mum's Craft Shop - 1,2,3 (1 doily, 2 pins, 3 looped bow)

All That Scraps - photo inspiration

7 Kids - easel cards

Stamping Scrapping Challenge Central - Anything goes

I love promarkers - anything goes