Tags

Hello lovely people,

It was back to work for me on Friday but I thought I would prolong the festive spirit just a little longer and share the tags I made this year.
I decided to make my life as easy as possible and go for the same basic design in 2 sizes and just make each one a little different with the DP and snowflakes.
I used a circle die to cut the semi circle at the top and then cut the fishtail at the bottom by hand.

...

I used a variety of white organza and satin ribbons plus a little twine to tie them onto the presents.  Sorry for the poor photos but the light was terrible and I couldn't fit these all in my light box...and I couldn't wait any longer to get on with opening the presents!

Tag recipe;

DP: Maja Designs Vintage Frost Basics

Dies: Impression Obsession small snowflake set

Sentiments: Happy Circular Sentiments - LOTV

I would like to enter the tags in the following challenges;
1.  LOTV (anything but a card - hope it's ok that I just used the sentiment stamps)
2.  Cute Card Thursday (anything goes)
3.  Top Tip Tuesday (Christmas)

I hope you are all having a lovely weekend; I am having a quiet one in my craft room playing with my new craft goodies :-)  Although I have stopped for the evening now as I'm not sure crafting whilst drinking mead is a good plan!

Thanks for visiting and I really appreciate any comments that you leave,

Hugs,
Kat xx

I'm dreaming of a PINK Christmas...

Hello lovely people,

I think I actually have enough Christmas cards made now but that hasn't stopped me making a few extras seeing as I have so many lovely Christmas stamps and some gorgeous Christmas DP!

So, if you are still enjoying making Christmas cards then our new challenge at In The Pink is perfect for you with our theme of...

PINK CHRISTMAS

I think pink is a fabulous choice for Christmas cards (surprise surprise!) and I just happen to have a wonderful selection of pretty pink Maja Designs paper to choose from ;-)

I really wanted to have a go at paper piecing this image as I thought it would look good and be a great way to have the presents co-ordinate with the rest of the card.  It was a weeny bit fiddly to do but I love the finished result :-)   I added details with my Copics and some Stardust Stickles to the scarf.

 I have made a border with my individual snowflake dies again and also used them behind the sentiment.  I've kept the layout really simple this time, just adding my fave ribbon/twine combo to finish it off :-)

Card recipe;

Image: Penguin presents - LOTV

DP: Vintage Frost Basics - Maja Designs

Sentiment: Happy Circular Sentiments - LOTV

Dies: Memory Box small snowflake set 

Seam binding: Rose quartz seam binding - Crafty Ribbons

Twine: Ivory button twine - The Ribbon Girl

Copic colours;
Penguin: T8/9/10 & YR21/31 & T0/1/blender
Present details: R56 & E47
Scarf shading: RV91
Ground: T0/1/2/3

I would like to enter this card in the following challenges;
1.  Sweet Stampin' (ribbons)
2.  A Gem of a Challenge (anything goes)
3.  Papertake Weekly (Christmas creatures)

So come on and show us your pretty pink Christmas cards and if you are in need of any more inspiration, head over to In The Pink and see what the rest of the Pink Ladies have created :-)

Thanks for visiting and I really appreciate any comments that you leave,

Hugs,
Kat xx

A bit of fancy folding

Hello lovely people,

Oh dear, it seems I'm going to have to apologise again for not visiting you all as much as I would like and not posting much of late.  You see, there's this little thing called Christmas on the way and it has somewhat distracted me recently!  On the positive side, I think I have completed all my Christmas shopping and made all the cards I need :-)

So, I am sharing one of my Christmas cards today and it's another fancy fold card.  This is a buckle card that I first saw on Lynsey's blog here and thought it was soooo gorgeous that I just had to give it a go.

The buckle strip tucks in behind the image and into a slot cut in the front section - all the instructions are on an All Dressed Up blog post here.  The card will stand up if you just pull the buckle open a little.  You will see that I moved the buckle up a bit higher than on Lynsey's card; it's easy to adapt the instructions to do this.

I have used this LOTV image every single year since I got it and although it's hard to choose just one favourite, I think this would be it!
The stocking is paper pieced with matching DP; doesn't it look cosy?  Do you think I could get one in my size?!
I also added some fine white glitter to the fluffy bits on the stocking top and hats but as usual it's not showing up as well as I would like in the photos :-(

I kept the embellies simple, just some snowflakes and a swirl; I didn't want to cover up the gorgeous DP too much to be honest!

Card recipe;

Image:  Christmas bunnies in stocking - LOTV

DP: Vintage Frost Basics - Maja Designs

Dies: Memory Box small snowflake set, Spellbinders timeless rectangles, swirl cut with Cricut

Copic colours;

Bunnies: E40/41/42 & Rv0000/000

Hat (upper): B91/93/95 & T0/1/2

Hat (lower): B95/97/99 & T1/2/3

Leavs: BG93/96/99

Berries: R39/89

Bow: R89/RV99

Boot shading: T3/4

I would like to enter this card in the following challenges;
1.  A Creative Romance (sparkle at Christmas)
2.  A Little Bit Crafty (Christmas cheer)
3.  That Craft Place (Christmas)
4.  ABC (A is for almost Christmas)

I hope you are all getting organised for Christmas and feeling the festive spirit!  Next on my list is to get some decorations up!

Thanks for visiting and I really appreciate any comments that you leave,

Hugs,
Kat xx

Candy Stripes at Crafty Little Fairies

Hello lovely people,

I am having a lovely couple of days off work at the moment and trying to get organised for Christmas...not sure I'm succeeding all that well!

Anyway, it's time for a new challenge at Crafty Little Fairies and our theme this week is...

CANDY STRIPES

So we are looking for stripes of white and another colour, usually red, or maybe some actual candy canes on your creation.  I had to rummage for quite some time for something suitable before I remembered some Christmas DP I had left over from 2 years ago.  It was one of my favourite DPs and there were only scraps left so I had to be quite creative in using them.

This theme was the perfect excuse to use one of the Saturated Canary images that I got on a CD ROM with a magazine because she has a candy cane!  And she is just adorable and fabulous fun to colour up :-)

I'm enjoying making different fancy fold cards at the moment so did a stepper design here; it's great because once the panels are stitched and layered they don't need a lot of embellishment.  I did break out my new holly vine die which I have been waiting for the right card to use!

Card recipe;

Image: Candy Cane Elf - Saturated Canary (not available in the store)

DP: North Pole collection - Crate Paper

Sentiment: Happy circular sentiments - LOTV

Dies: holly vine - Memory Box

Fancy edge: Martha Stewart edge punch

Twine: natural button twine - The Ribbon Girl

Copic colours;

Skin: E0000/000/00/11/21 & R30

Hair / boots: E44/47/49 (& black on boots)

Eyes: E43/44

Red on hat / leggings: R27/29/39

Green hat / leggings / dress: YG13/17/67

Candy cane: R24/27/29 & C00/0/1

I would like to enter this card in the following challenges;
1.  Papertake Weekly (anything goes)
2.  Divas by Design (feeling festive)
3.  As You Like It (fave digi - I adore the Saturated Canary images as they are so beautiful and fun to colour and the newest addition to my collection is always my fave!)
4.  The Ribbon Girl (christmas)


The rest of the Fairies have made some lovely candy striped cards so do pop over to Crafty Little Fairies to check them out.

Thanks for visiting and I really appreciate any comments that you leave,

Hugs,
Kat xx

Twinkle twinkle little star

Hello lovely people,

I have been playing with the gorgeous All Dressed Up stamps again and the only problem with them is deciding which one to use next!  The range of Christmas stamps is gorgeous and you haven't seen them all yet as there will be another release to coincide with our next challenge on 2nd December :-)

I have had another CAS moment with this card - I think it's because I like to let these sweet images take centre stage!
I often like to ink the edge of my DP but for CAS cards it doesn't always feel right so I have recently been dabbing some white acrylic paint around the edge instead and it gives a lovely soft finish.

This little cutie demanded a little touch of sparkle with some Glamour Dust and I cropped the star off the image then printed it separately onto DP and added it back on where I wanted it.

Card recipe;

Image: Happy Christmas Little Star - ADU

DP: December Documented - Simple Stories

Acrylic paint: Adirondack Paint Dabber in Snowcap

Copic colours;

Skin: E0000/000/00/21/11

Hair: E41/42/43

Dress: BG10/11/23/13

Bunny / ground: T0/1/2/3

Wings: RV0000/blender

Presents: R81/83/85 and as for dress

I would like to enter this card in the following challenges;
1.  Totally Gorjuss (a child's Christmas)
2.  Sweet Stampin' (cause for celebration)
3.  That Craft Place (stars)

If you like this card then you can buy the gorgeous ADU images in the Etsy shop, stop by our inspiring ADU blog (unless you already came from there!) and maybe even enter our current challenge.

Thanks for visiting and I really appreciate any comments that you leave,

Hugs,
Kat xx

A pink Christmas

Hello lovely people,

This weekend is a fairly quiet one at home for me so I have been doing a spot of Christmas shopping and making some more Christmas cards.  The one I have to share with you today is a simple design that I can make several of fairly quickly and easily.

I recently bought some fantastic spotty card from Anna Marie Designs in 12 gorgeous colours but no surprises which colour I reached for first!

Yes, it's James bear again but he is showing his feminine side in pink today!  I coloured him a little paler than previously and added Stardust Stickles to the snowflakes and the snow on the ground.

There are some gorgeous snowflake border dies out there but I don't have any of them so I used my favourite snowflake die set to make my own!
I also sponged some white acrylic paint round the edge of the DP to add to the snowy feel and love how it turned out.

Card recipe;

Image: James bear in the snow - LOTV

DP: Dottie Card (set 1) - Anna Marie Designs

Dies: Impression Obsession small snowflake set

Sentiment: Handwritten Christmas Sentiments - Pink Petticoat

Copic colours;

James bear: E40/41/42

Scarf / hat: R81/83/85

I would like to enter this card in the following challenges;
1.  LOTV (pink and white)
2.  As You Like It (spots or stripes - spots for me - I just think they look super stylish!)
3.  A Gem of a Challenge (sparkles)

I hope you are all having a lovely weekend, thanks for visiting me and I really appreciate any comments that you leave,

Hugs,
Kat xx

Tra La La la...

Hello lovely people,

It's nearly the weekend but before we get to that there is the important matter of a new challenge at All Dressed Up and our theme this time is...

RIBBON and LACE

As usual, the winner of the challenge will get THREE images of their choice from the ADU Etsy store and the DT will be picking our top 3 favourite entries :-)

The DT are showcasing two lovely new digi stamps and since I have so many Christmas cards still to make I have chosen Tra La La la.

 This is such a fun image; I especially love the cute robins at the top!  I wanted to add some little pops of colour on it to contrast with the neutral colour scheme for the rest of the card.

Right now I am loving twine wrapped around ribbon/lace and the tiny tags and snowflake were the perfect addition to finish it off.

Card recipe;

Image: Tra la la la - available in the ADU Etsy store

DP: Krafty Christmas - LOTV

Tags: Sentiment tags - LOTV

Dies: Impression Obsession small snowflake set

Lace / pearls: from stash

Copic colours;

I have hunted high and low for my bit of paper with the list of colours I used but it has vanished.  Time to tidy my craft room?!

I would like to enter this card in the Sweet Stampin' challenge where they have the theme 'Christmas is coming' and that means Christmas songs!

Talking of songs, we are off to visit some of Dr Hubby's family over the weekend and will be going to a gig by Chaser (the hardest working covers band in South Wales!) on Saturday night where his sister's OH is the bass player - should be a lot of fun :-D

Don't forget to pop over to All Dressed Up to see the amazing cards from the rest of the Dressy Girls and
also you have just a few hours left to enter my giveaway, which I will draw when I get home on Sunday.

Thanks for visiting and your comments are always hugely appreciated,

Hugs,
Kat xx

Some Krafty colouring

Hello lovely people,

Happy Thursday! That must mean it's time for another challenge at Crafty Little Fairies and this week our theme is...

CHRISTMAS IN NOVEMBER!

We are sponsored by the wonderful Crafty Ribbons this week with a £10 voucher to spend :-)

Since you insist then here's another Christmas card...

I set myself a little challenge with this one to do some colouring on Kraft; not something I do very often but I do think it looks effective.  I have also come over all CAS and didn't even stitch on my card - shock horror!

I added a little Stardust Stickles to the scarf and snow and some white flock to the fluffy ends of the scarf.

I played around for quite a while before coming up with an arrangement that I liked for the little fishtails - CAS really isn't always simple to make is it?!

Card recipe;

Image: Penguin Presents - LOTV
Sentiment: Essential Christmas stamp set - Paula Pascual
Snowflake die: Small Snowflake Set - Impression Obsession

Copic colours;

Penguin body: T6/7/8/10 & 100

Penguin feet: Y17/19

Scarf / red presents: R27/29

Green presents: YG03/05/06

Brown present / scarf (under glitter): E30/31

I would like to enter this card in the following challenges;
1.  A Gem of a Challenge (Christmas is coming)
2.  Papertake Weekly (anything goes +/- Christmas)
3.  Simon Says Stamp (keep it clean and simple)

I hope you will pop over to Crafty Little Fairies for loads more fabulous Christmas inspiration and I'm sure you must have Christmas cards to make so do join in our challenge!

Thanks so much for visiting and I really appreciate any comments that you leave me,

Hugs,
Kat xx

The return of James Bear

Hello lovely people,

I hope you have been having a lovely weekend and not getting too spooked!  We went to a Halloween Party last night and the costumes were wonderful; even Otto the dog had a little skeleton outfit on!

This is Dr Hubby, and if you don't recognise the costume it is the eponymous 'superhero' from the film Kick-Ass!

I went for a more traditional Halloween costume...

Back to business though and it's on with the Christmas cards for me, using the fab new sketch from the Papertake Weekly Challenge for inspiration this time;

So, I am absolutely loving this James Bear stamp and thought he would look fab teamed with some frosty colours and snowflakes.  I have gone for several layers as usual and distressed them with a Tim Holtz distressing tool before inking them just a touch and stitching them.

I have coloured James pretty much the same as my last card using him but with a different colour hat and scarf!  I also gave the snow some Liquid Pearls treatment :-)

The snowflakes are a new die for me and wow, they are just gorgeous - so detailed and elegant :-)  I have to say that the Impression Obsession dies are always such good quality, cut beautifully and look fabulous.

Card recipe;

Image: James Bear in the snow - LOTV

DP: Vintage Spring Basics - Maja Designs

Lace - Venice Petit - Live and Love Crafts (but I can't see it in the shop anymore)

Dies: Small snowflake set - Impression Obsession (available from Dies to Die For)

Sentiment: Handwritten Christmas Sentiments - Pink Petticoat
Pearls: from The Hobby House

Copic colours;

Fur: E40/41/42/43

Scarf / hat: T0/3 & B91/93/95

'White' bit of hat: T0/1/2/blender

Ground: T0/1/3/blender

I would like to enter this card in the following challenges;
1.  Papertake Weekly (sketch)
2.  The Hobby House (pearls)
3.  Top Tip Tuesday (seasons - mine is winter of course!)
4.  Simon Says Stamp (anything goes)
5.  Totally Gorjuss (anything goes with snow)

Thanks for visiting and I wish you all a good week :-)

Hugs,
Kat xx

Krafty James

Hello lovely people,

If you read my last post you will know that I have not got very far with my Christmas cards yet so yep, it's another one today!  At least I can put in more hours of crafting in the evening thanks to my new daylight lamp :-)  It was a bit bigger than I thought it would be but the light is fantastic and yes, I don't know how I have managed without one for so long!

Since it is Thursday it's time for a new challenge at Crafty Little Fairies and our theme this week is...

Anything goes

Our sponsor this week is Hot Shot Craft with a £10 voucher...
AND a second lucky winner will get a LOTV stamp kindly donated by our very own Squirrel :-)

I am now the proud owner of a couple of LOTV James bear stamps and a lovely paper pad from LOTV so couldn't wait to have a play and this is what I came up with...

The panel with the border is supposed to be at a jaunty angle but I am wondering if I should have made it even more angled so it doesn't look like I just stuck it a bit wonky by accident!

When colouring animals I have often ended up with quite a 'blended' look so this time I challenged myself to get more of a furry texture on James and hey, I'm quite happy with the result :-)

Card recipe;

Image: James Bear in the Snow - LOTV

DP: Krafty Christmas - LOTV

Twine: Ivory button twine - Ribbon Girl

Sentiment: Happy Circular Sentiments - LOTV

Fancy edge: Double dot scallop punch - Martha Stewart

Copic colours;

James bear: E40/41/42/43

Scarf ' hat: R27/29/59

I would like to enter this card in the following challenges;
1.  LOTV (anything goes)
2.  Totally Gorjuss (string)
3.  The Ribbon Girl (brown)

The rest of the Fairies have created an array of beautiful cards to inspire you so do head over to Crafty Little Fairies to check them out :-)

Thanks for visiting,

Hugs,
Kat xx

How long until Christmas?!

Hello lovely people,

Christmas is doing the usual thing of sneaking up on me and I know this because people keep telling me how many days until Christmas or how many Saturdays until Christmas etc.  I am not a fan of this!
But it has made me evaluate how many Christmas cards I have made so far and that is a grand total of two!
So, time to step it up and here is number 3...

I used one of my all time favourite sketches from Papertake Weekly, which I love because it is so versatile and always results in a beautiful card.

I added a little stamp detail to the DP but decided not to add any embellies other than a couple of pearls as I really liked the clean design.

Card recipe;

Image: Christmas Angel - Saturated Canary

DP: Kaisercraft - On this day

Lace: from Live and Love Crafts
Stamped detail: Butterfly Flourish Swirls - Chocolate Baroque (and a random tiny snowflake stamp)

Sentiment: Handwritten Christmas Sentiments - Pink Petticoat

Copic colours;

Skin: E0000/000/00/51 & R30

Hair: E41/42/43

Eyes: E44/47

Dress / baubles: BV0000/000/00 & BG90/93

Tights / wings: N0/1/2

I would like to enter this card in the following challenges;
1.  Saturated Canary (season's greetings)
2.  As You Like It (fave sketch)
3.  Simon Says Stamp (christmas/happy holidays)

I hope you all had a good start to the week and thanks so much for visiting me,

Hugs,
Kat xx

It's Christmas...in July!

Hello lovely people,

Oh yes, it's beautiful sunny weather and I've made a Christmas card!  The reason for this is that it is time for a new challenge over at Lili's Little Fairies and this week we have the theme

Christmas in July!

Our sponsor for this week is Delicious Doodles who have a wide range of fab images available :-)

Now, I don't normally pull out the Christmas stuff until at least October...probably November...maybe December if I am being really disorganised.  Which Dr Hubby will tell you is pretty much all of the time!
So, this has to be the earliest I have ever made a Christmas card but it was kinda fun!

LOTV have an amazing range of Christmas stamps but this one is my absolute favourite and the first one I turn to every year.  I went for sepia toned colouring to complement the DP and since it is a Christmas card I just had to throw on some glamour dust :-)

I got to use one of my new dies for the pretty edging; it has a line of stitch holes just above the lacy edge but since I already had some real stitching I covered it up!

Card recipe;

Image: Christmas Bunnies - Stocking from LOTV

DP: Maja Designs - It's Christmas Time

Fancy edge: Marianne Designs stitch border die
Seam binding: Wild Orchid Crafts
Button / twine: from stash
Sentiment: Handwritten {Christmas} Sentiments from Pink Petticoat
Pearls: from The Hobby House

Copic colours;

All in various combinations of E40/41/42/43/44

I would like to enter this card in the following challenges;

1.  Papertake Weekly (buttons and bows)
2.  Crafts and Me (anything goes)

So, that's it from me but if you pop over to Lili's Little Fairies you can see lots of beautiful Christmas cards from the rest of the Fairies :-)

I'm off to put those Christmas supplies away again...

Thanks for visiting,

Hugs,
Kat xx