Love a Duck!!

 There were a few ducks loitering on my desk, left over from a previous card so I brought out some of my snippets to cut a few more components to turn them into a card for the Playground challenge # 506.  I started with a fairly large snippet of patterned paper and added touches of green ink to turn it into more of a scene.  Dies from various sets were then used to cut items from some of my Snippets and there is a picture of a few of the left overs. As usual, apart from a card blank, everything else here came from my Snippets mountain.

In my head I rather imagined these ducks were maybe learning to fly by jumping off the bridge with the option of a safe landing into the water 🤣🤣.

                                                       

Ducks and Bulrushes - unbranded dies
Bridge, Tree trunk and Clouds - from Playing in the Rain Stampin' Up (retired)
Ripples in Water - die from Gummiapan Easter Calendar exclusive set

Why not have a rummage in your own Snippets collections to make a card for the challenge -

lovely prizes for the lucky winner

While we're talking challenges, I hope that the Playground management won't mind if I remind you that the next Allsorts challenge is a special Birthday Event with some great prizes to be won.

Allsorts Challenge # 823

The theme for the current Allsorts Challenge has been chosen by Lynne and is **Paper Piecing** with as usual the option of *Anything Goes*.  Prize this time  is  a voucher to spend at Personal Impressions. They stock a wide range of crafty goodies.

I really like this style of paper piecing and ended up making two cards because I was unable to choose between the two stamp sets which I pulled out as  being suitable for this technique..  In both cases the images were stamped onto the backgrounds and then again onto some Gelli prints using archival ink.  The Gelli print ones were carefully fussy cut using scissors and then adhered (paper pieced) in place to match parts of the stamping.

Acorn and Sentiment - Blueprint Sketch style stamp from Stampers Anonymous
Flowers - Abstract Florals by Stampers Anonymous collection
Sentiment - computer generated
Background on Second card - from a Prima paper pad (not recent)

Tag Along

 I have another project to share for the new Tag Along and ATC challenge which launched recently.  This time I've made a tag from a piece of corrugated pizza box which a kind friend let me have.  These were brand new pieces so no greasy remnants of cheese or tomato and they have nice fine corrugations.  I started by cutting the tag shape and then carefully peeled away some of the top layer to reveal the inside layer in places.  Distress Oxide was smooshed on and then a background texture stamp used to add some interest.  I then found scraps of cream card and stamped the chevrons, flowers, leaves and the word before cutting everything out with scissors ready to assemble into what I hope is a pleasing composition.  I'm quite enjoying this foray into making tags and ATCs as a change from the usual greetings cards.  Why not have a go yourselves - you might just discover a whole new interest.  After all variety is the spice of life, or so 'they' say 😂😂

Stamps - all from various Crafty Roo sets (sadly no longer trading)

Generosity

 Thanks to the generosity of a lovely crafting friend I now own a set of the hexagon slatted dies and my first card design is, I suppose, quite predictable in that I've chosen to use a bee die although there are many other ways in which these could be used - they come in varying sizes too which makes them very versatile..  I opted for a CAS style here, cutting the hexagon shape using all three dies taped together.  This was then backed with a yellow layer and adhered to a white card blank.  The bee was cut from yellow and black card, layered up and given some shine using Wink of Stella.  I deliberately used the slats on the diagonal as a change from either vertical or horizontal.  A simple computer generated sentiment has been added.

Hexagon Slatted Dies - Craft Addiction UK
Bee - Sizzix Bee #663852 (2 sizes)
Sentiment - produced using MS Word

Tag-Along Challenge

 A new challenge started yesterday and you can read all about it HERE.  This gives us an opportunity to make either Tags, AT Cards or AT Coins - all great ways of making Art, a change from greeting cards and, particularly in the case of the ATCs to work on a somewhat smaller scale.  Tags of course come in various sizes so plenty of scope there too.  

My share today is an ATC (measuring 3.5 x 2.5 inches) which I started by trimming a Gelli print to the correct size and adhering to the card blank to form the 'sky'.  A recent tidy-up and rummage amongst my pot(s) of useful bits and bobs came up with this city skyline just calling out to be brought into play.  I'd been racking my brains recently for ways of using the die cut drummer and the idea of a traditional marching band popped into my head.  This small die came along with a random selection of others when I purchased a 'mixed bag' of miscellaneous small dies with no idea of the contents.  I think I mentioned that I like the odd surprise even if it does tax my brain occasionally 🤣.  I simply stamped a few musical notes and added a 'sticker' phrase which I'd produced on the computer.  Time now methinks to work on some ideas for tags .

Cityscape - from a magazine give-away set ( from way back in 2018)
Drummers - mixed bag of small dies (unbranded)
'Sticker' - hand made by me using MS Word

Snippets Challenge #505

 I'm popping along to the Snippets Playground with the card made using the dies from Day 8 of the Gummiapan Easter calendar (the final instalment).  This was such a fun set of dies including a cat, a Vespa style scooter and a cloud.  Added to this there was a scarf and a really dinky crash helmet.  I delved into some of my older magazine give-away dies for a couple of bushes and a sun.  Also I remembered as I was stamping the sentiment that sometime in the past I'd received a mini scooter die as a gift from Gummiapan so brought that into play at the last minute.  Everything on this card came from my Snippets mountain and I must apologise for not thinking about saving the small remnants to take a photo before sweeping them into the bin.

Ovals - dies from Tonic which I use quite regularly
Sentiment - came with the magazine give away dies (bushes and sun)

Day 7

 I'm back today with day 7 of my Gummiapan Easter calendar.  There were three dies in this set and I've used two of them along with a technique which I'd not tried before.  This method was featured in a YouTube video by Lou Collins and it involves using copy paper to make delicate features such as flowers or butterflies etc.  Basically the image you require is either stamped and cut out or simply die cut and then embossed with clear embossing powder which gives a delicate appearance.  I die cut the butterfly and dragonfly in copy paper and then coloured before embossing.  The bodies were cut separately in white card and then coloured with a touch of Wink of Stella for shine.. I was lucky enough to have been gifted the hexagon slatted die set recently and two of the dies were used as a background.  Some waterlily leaves and bulrushes were added as a final touch.

Hexagon Dies - from Craft Addiction UK
Dragonfly and Butterfly - from Gummiapan Easter calendar 2025
Waterlilies and Bulrushes - unbranded dies
Background - a piece of patterned paper to show through the slats - paper from Clarity
Lou Collins Video link

Allsorts Challenge #822

 The theme for Allsorts Challenge #822 has been chosen by Sarah and she would like to see your designs **Inspired by a Song** or there is of course the anything goes option. Prizes this time are from In2Crafts

 I've gone back a good few years to 1945 with a song entitled 'Love Letters Straight from Your Heart' which featured in a film of the same name.  I really liked the look of the dies in the form of various letters and have used one of them for this card along with the slatted heart die set.  The letter die cut was easily snipped apart so that it could be layered and I sponged a little ink to give it the appearance of a bit of age. The pink backing to the heart was over stamped with some text and I added a die cut sentiment.

Slatted Heart - dies from Craft Addiction UK
Love Letters - unbranded die
Sentiment - die I've had a long time and I think it was a give-away with a magazine 

Rudolph Days

 A short break from the remainder of my Easter Calendar cards because suddenly it's Rudolph Days again - the months are certainly whizzing by.  I was, of necessity, having a bit of a tidy of my working space which had shrunk to almost nothing and as luck would have it I came across a few odds and ends of Christmas themed die cuts so I was able to put together this card fairly quickly.  The Santa wine glass was already assembled and I found the foliage and poinsettia flower to add a bit of interest.  I did have to cut the sentiment from a scrap of gold card.

Happy Rudolph Days everyone 😊

Wine Glass and Sentiment - unbranded die set
Poinsettia - Stamp from Crafty Roo (sadly no longer trading)
Foliage - I think Sizzix dies

Day 6

 Day 6 of the Gummiapan Easter calendar offered up some interesting dies to cut a distressed tag and a matching pocket.  I used various Distress Oxide inks to colour a piece of card which I then used to cut out the two pieces.  My next move was to use stamps from my box of miscellaneous backgrounds to decorate before assembling the pocket.  For the main image on both the tag and pocket I've used a flower stamp, which I then stamped again onto a piece of scrap card so that I could fussy cut the petals to layer up onto the outside.  Final touch was some baker's twine for the tag and there you have it - a project using the mystery dies from Day 6.  Only two more to share after this - I know it was only eight days but I do miss opening the little surprises with my breakfast - sad or what 🤣🤣.

 Flower Stamp - from Aall & Create (readable words also from this set)

Day 5

 I'm sharing the card for Day 5 of the Gummiapan Easter calendar today - I have actually made something with each set through to the eighth day so watch this space 😊.  The dies for this day were food orientated and it took me a while to think of a way of using them, finally deciding to bring out my postage style die to make this into a Thanks card which would perhaps be good to send in thanks for a dinner party or meal out.  As well as using the 'dies of the day' I also included a tall drink die (source unknown) and a couple of milkshakes which I think used a mini Gummiapan die which came in an order as a little thankyou.  The sharp-eyed of you will probably recognise the plates from Day 4 😉.  Cheese and wine anyone???

Postage die - unbranded
Sentiment - using a set of alphabet dies which were a magazine freebie eons ago

Day 4

The dies which came on Day 4 of the Gummiapan Easter calendar had me flummoxed for a while when I opened the packet - I could see that three of them were sweets or chocolates but couldn't immediately see what the other four pieces were.  I came to the conclusion that they should be assembled into  a three-tier cake stand, or in this case, a sweetie stand.  I also used the pretty patterned border die which came with the previous day's set to decorate the edge of the white layer.  So that's it - a CAS card with a birthday greeting on a fancy label shape.  The card blank is the same white as the tag layer but for some reason it appears to be grey 🙄.  I must say that assembling the stand and adding the sweets took me quite a while - all die cut in white and coloured with alcohol pens.  I can think of quite a few different items which could be perched onto this stand once I get around to playing.

Dies - from the Gummiapan Easter calendar 2025
Tag Layers - two dies from an unbranded triptych set
Sentiment - from a retired Stampin' Up set (stamp and die)

Day Three

 Today I'm sharing what I made using  some of the dies which were in the packet opened on Day 3 of the Gummiapan Easter Calendar - I couldn't really incorporate the other two - a little feather and decorative border into this card.  I did however use a wooden crate die which I've had in my stash for a while (can't remember where it came from).  I also went to the 'useful bits' pot on my desk and fished out some grasses and a couple of flowers 😊.The crate and bunny were coloured using Distress inks and alcohol pens; the eggs cut from tiny snippets of coloured card. and I smooshed some green onto the card to ground everything.  The sentiment also came from the pot - would you believe I don't seem to have an Easter sentiment.  I opened Day 6 this morning, leaving just two more surprises to come - I'm pleased I decided to treat myself to this calendar.

Easter Calendar Again

 This project was made using the dies which came as Day 2 of the Calendar and I decided to use them for a tag - something to get me back into the swing of tag making ready for the new challenge which starts on 1st of May HERE.  I started by die cutting a tag using kraft card and smooshed some Distress Oxide ink, adding some background stamping using various visual texture stamps from my collection.  The 'honeycomb' style heart die was part of the mystery , as were the flowers and leaves.  The larger cream heart, the golden bees and the little hexagon hole protector were cut using dies from my stash. It's onwards now to day 3 and Day 4 of the Calendar which are already no longer a mystery, with Day 5 to come tomorrow.  Watch this space to see what I manage to make next.  So far I've avoided seeing what other people have made with their dies until I've made something myself 😊😊.

 Tag - die set from Sizzix (Tim Holtz)
Heart, flowers and Leaves - Day 2 dies from Easter Calendar Gummiapan
Golden Bees - die from an old Tonic magazine give-away set
Background stamping - various stamps from my stash
Cream Heart - dies from Craft Addiction UK (Slatted heart set)

Easter Calendar

 I have a card to share today which uses dies which were the surprise for Day 1 of the Gummiapan Easter calendar.  This year they have come up with an idea similar to their Advent calendar but this one has just eight days of exclusive dies in the run up to Easter.  Two dies in this set - the pretty oval flower one and a tiny flying bee which is an embossing die although it could be snipped out with pointed scissors  and used without its flight trail.  I decided to go for a clean and simple style for my first use of the dies and cut the oval out of a square of white card, embossing the bee at the same time.  The oval and the centre 'waste' were popped back into the aperture before adhering the two squares together.  Two more ovals were cut, and the flowers coloured using Distress inks with a water brush.  One complete one was glued directly on top of the plain white oval and the two larger flowers snipped out from the third to layer on top for a bit of dimension.  A simple computer sentiment and that's it done and dusted.  I'm working an idea for Day 2 and Day 3 has been opened this morning.  I do love a bit of mystery 😉

Dies from Gummiapan Easter Calendar 2025

Snippets Challenge #504

 There's a new challenge published on the Snippets Playground blog and of course the usual lovely prize as well as the chance of your card featuring as a Top Pick.  I do like to create a scene now and again - that is when making a card, not as in 'throwing a tantrum'  think I'm probably a bit too old for that 🤣🤣.

Everything on my card, apart from the card blank itself, came from my mountain of white snippets.  I started with a white piece slightly smaller than the card and then selected a couple of other pieces which I inked and stamped randomly - one with greens and one with brown shades.  Once dry these were then used to die cut the bulrushes and the greenery surrounding the pond (a tiny sliver of blue was used for the water).  The ducks were die cut from white card and their beaks and feet coloured with alcohol pen. At this stage, after playing around with the components and arranging them I decided a little background was needed so some blue ink was stencilled onto part of the white square.  A simple sentiment was added (snipped from a partly used page of computer sentiments which  I 'made earlier')

Stencil - from Lavinia Stamps
Duckpond - from a Sizzix die set called Oliver
Bulrushes and Ducks - unbranded dies
Sentiment - produced using MS Word

Some of the leftovers

 

Allsorts Challenge # 821

 It was my turn to suggest a theme for the current Allsorts Challenge and I would like to see what you can make using stencils and/or masks in your designs and of course there is the usual Anything Goes option. Prizes this time are from Lisa Horton Crafts more details if you follow the link to Allsorts.

For my card I started by stencilling a partial background onto a square of white card to fit my card blank and I also used the same stencil on a spare piece of card and set it aside.  My next move was to die cut the two circles (one green and one white), using some hill masks to brush colour over the white circle to represent the sky and ground.  The fairy house was stamped onto a scrap of white card, coloured and cut out with scissors and once I'd decided on the position of the house I stamped the footpath using black ink, and then various first and second impressions stampings of foliage and grasses in green.  I then went back to the trees stencilled onto the scrap piece of card and carefully cut out three trees, again using scissors.  Final move was to arrange them and the cottage and stick them in place.  No sentiment has been added at present, that can be decided later.

Tree stencil - Lavinia Stamps
All Stamps - Lavinia Stamps
Mini Hill Masks - also Lavinia
Colouring done using Polychromos pencils

Daffodils

 I have another Spring flower card to share today which was made using printed elements from an ancient CD which I recently pulled out of retirement 😊.  It was quite simple to make once I'd printed off the background paper and a page of images.  The sentiment was stamped and cut out with a punch which I've also had for a while.  Much as I love having new crafty items to work with there is a certain satisfaction in using items which have lain neglected, sometimes for many years.

Background and Images - from Joanna Sheen Floral Fantasy CD  dated 2008
Punch - a long retired one from Stampin' Up

Snippets Challenge #503

 My entry for the Snippets Playground Challenge this time is entirely made from Snippets - in fact everything came from the pot on my desk which contains heaps of miscellaneous bits and bobs which are too good to throw out and which deserve to be used rather than just piling up.  I had cut the two circles from some inked and stamped snippets of card some time ago with the intention of making some Artist Trading Coins but somehow these two were left behind.  I had a further rummage and pulled out the birds on a gingko branch and also the white rabbit along with some flowers and leaves.  So two more ATCs were the result and a few more Snippets used up.  Sorry no photo this time of my left over scraps as all of these bits and bobs were produced some time ago.

For anyone who may not know, an Artist Trading Coin is circular and 2 1/2 inches across - a great way of using smaller pieces of card aka Snippets 😊

Don't forget the new Tag and ATC Challenge starting 1st of May because making tags and ATCs are both excellent ways of using up your Snippets.  I don't know if AT Coins will also be included in the brief for this challenge, but I guess it's a possibility.

Fairy in a Bottle

 I had a bit of fun recently trying to decide which of my many stamps would fit and look good inside a bottle and this is the result.  I cut a piece of white card to fit onto a  card blank and then used one of the fairly new Lavinia stencils to apply some ink for the bottle, adding a stamped cork.  I have to admit I felt a bit bad about actually enclosing her in this way but then thought that as she is magical, no doubt she'd be able to escape if she so desired 😊😊.  Mad I know but that's how my brain works.  Some foliage and a  'shroom complete the scene and a sentiment was composed using Word.  There was some second generation stamping of text to give a little interest to the background.

 

Sticker Stencil and Stamps - all from Lavinia

There's news today of a brand new monthly challenge and you can read all about it HERE - officially starting on 1 May so plenty of time to get your brains thinking along Tag and/or ATC lines

Allsorts Challenge #820

 The theme for the next fortnight at Allsorts has been chosen by Ellie, who would like to see some **Spring Flowers** or there is the usual *Anything Goes* option.  Prizes  are from Aall & Create. 

For my DT card I've chosen to feature snowdrops which I think are one of the earliest signs of Spring.  I started by cutting a panel of white card and a slightly larger one of light green.  A polyplate was used to stamp a 'streak' of green as a background, adding a few stamped grasses.  The snowdrops were stamped in grey onto a scrap of white card, coloured and die cut before adding to the card using thin foam pads.  The sentiment was prepared on the computer and die cut with a small stitched rectangle.  The snowdrop stamp and die set has been in my stash for many years and the other elements are more recently acquired.

Edit - it would appear I might have been misinformed about Clearly Besotted as it does appear that they are still trading - SORRY🙄

Snowdrop - magazine freebie from Clearly Besotted 2019 (sadly no longer trading)
Green Background - Polyplate from Crafty Roo 2025 (again sadly no longer trading after 1 April))
Sentiment - prepared using Microsoft Word
Stitched Rectangle - die from retired Stampin' Up stitched rectangle set

Rudolph Days

 Happy Rudolph Days for the month of March which is nearly at an end.  If you don't know how this works you can read all about it by following the link.  I've been busy in the garden whilst the weather has been nice rather than in the craft room so I had a little rummage in my pot of  'useful bits and bobs' and pulled out a couple of snowmen, some trees and a scattering of stars.  These were all a bit small to make much of a card so decided to put together an ATC using a snippet of gelli print and a torn scrap of white paper for the snowy ground.  It never ceases to surprise me just what you can actually fit onto a card which is only 3 1/2 by 2 1/2 inches 😃 and they are great fun to make.

  

Snowmen - stamps and dies, possibly a magazine freebie (I've forgotten, sorry)
Trees - from a long retired Stampin' Up Christmas set
Stars - possibly from a Tim Holtz seasonal die set

Spring has Sprung!

 There seem to be so many Spring-themed challenges going the rounds at the moment and for once the weather this year seems to have also realised that Spring has indeed sprung.  This card isn't for any of the challenges but whilst mulling over ideas I realised that I have quite a lot of craft CDs which have been very neglected, so I had a look at the images on a couple of them and printed some floral pages.  They do  look somewhat dated - to my eye anyway but here's a card I decided to make using some primroses which came with matching background paper.  The background was trimmed to fit the base card and was backed with a slightly larger piece of toning dark green card, which was also used to back the floral panel.  A simple stamped greeting was cut using a punch and there it is - a simple to make card.  I feel that card making these days seems to be far more creative with the wide choice of stamps, dies and so much else at our disposal - what do you think?

Primroses - from Floral Fantasy CD by Joanna Sheen (from 2008 would you believe)
Punch - from Stampin' Up (long retired)

Spring at Stamping Sensations

 The theme for the current Stamping Sensations challenge is **Hello Spring** or the usual *Anything Goes*.  My card is a floral one and I reckon the colours are saying 'Hello Spring' although I think the actual flowers might be more Summer time ones which would take my card into the Anything Goes category.  I started by smooshing two colours of Distress Oxide ink, followed by adding some visual texture using stamps in the same colours.  The flowers and leaves were stamped onto spare pieces of white card, coloured using Zig markers and then fussy cut.  The sentiment was also stamped and coloured to match.  I then shuffled the components about until I was happy with the arrangement and then decided to add some strategically placed stamped vines onto the background.  This card was inspired by a video made by Kym (Crafty Roo) and the floral, vine and sentiment stamps were the final surprise to open on Christmas Day last year as part of her Christmas Countdown project (variation on an Advent calendar).

All of the stamps were part of the Crafty Roo Christmas Countdown for 2025

Snippets Challenge #502

 It's lovely to see the sunshine again today but still pretty chilly outside so I'll need to wrap up warm to pop along to the Playground with my card for the latest challenge.  This time I've used some of my white snippets - one larger one for the background and some smaller pieces for the rectangle and the little house.  I've not included a photo because I felt that just seeing three pieces of white card could be boring for you  😉.  I started with the larger piece and smooshed some ink until I was happy with the result, followed by over stamping with the keys background stamp.  I also stamped a larger key at the base of the small die cut rectangle.  The little cottage was stamped onto an even smaller snippet, coloured using pencils and then fussy cut.  The sentiment was also a snippet from a part sheet of computer generated ones produced some time ago and which I keep handy so that I can cut them as and when required.

Keys - stamp sets from Crafty Roo
Cottage - stamp from Lavinia Stamps
Rectangle - die from Stitched Rectangles, Stampin' Up (retired)
Sentiment - computer generated, banner die Creative Expressions

Allsorts Challenge #819

 The theme for this fortnight on the Allsorts Challenge has been chosen by Lynn and she is asking for **Feminine Projects** and of course there is the *Anything Goes* option.  Prizes this time will be from Stamp Addicts.

For my DT card  I have a 100th birthday card to share and I thought such a milestone deserved a larger card than I normally make.  This was a commission and I was told that the lady loved pretty colours and flowers. For many years she was a member of a Patchwork Group so I thought that the background paper was very appropriate and then I set about finding toning colours for the layers and the flowers.  All of the white elements were cut using some pearlescent card; the flowers were cut using dies from two sources and arranged around the central numbers.

Background Paper - from a selection of 12" papers which I've had for a long time
Decorative Layers - Die set from Tonic, probably no longer available
Flowers - Dies from Creative Expressions and Spellbinders
Numbers -  dies from Amazon (possibly Globeland)

Spring Bird

 The card I'm sharing today covers a couple of challenges set by the talented Darnell.  Firstly for her I.D.E.A.S where there is a rolling theme through the month with a different technique or 'idea' for each week.  I'm not sure I've explained this too well but you can read all about it if you follow the link to her blog 😊. Secondly this card will fit with the NBUS challenge where we are encourage to knuckle down and actual use some of our 'never before used schtuff'.

The ideas theme this week is to use dies - the circle and of course the bird and flowers.  The circle die I've had for ages but the bird on the floral branch is definitely NBUS..  I selected a square scalloped card and a piece of patterned paper from my stash and then die cut the circle and other elements from bits and pieces from my ever-growing snippets collection.  A simple stamped and die cut sentiment added - job done!!

Circle Die - from a John Next Door set from way back
Bird and Flowers - Sizzix Spring Bird die set
Sentiment - from a retired Stampin' Up set

Stencilled Butterfly

This card was made quite a while ago but never posted here so I thought I'd share it today.  The butterfly was coloured using a set of layering stencils which came with matching dies and the lattice panel was die cut into the cream panel using a die from a set I've had a long time.  The sentiment was also die cut with its shadow and that's about it really, a fairly CAS card 

Sentiment - from Julie Hickey
Lattice - die from Sue Wilson, Creative Expressions (years old)
Butterfly - layering stencil/die set from Amazon 

Reminders

 Travelling around to various blogs and seeing what other people are making often serves as a reminder of a technique which we might have forgotten about as well as sometimes being introduced to something new.  Recently I've spotted a couple of reminders of the faux bleach technique or reverse stencilling as it is sometimes known.  This involves colouring card or watercolour paper using water-based inks such as Elements, Distress, Distress Oxides or similar and once it is dry a stencil is placed over the top and water sponged on (best to try not to make it too wet otherwise it can seep under the stencil and spoil the effect).  The water lifts the colour leaving the design of the stencil.  I used blue, purple and yellow on heavy watercolour paper and a leafy stencil..  Once I'd trimmed the piece to the size I wanted I spattered it with some mica mixed with water.

I've trimmed a snippet of my piece to make a panel for this card which I'm taking along to the challenge at the  Snippets Playground for this fortnight.  Had a rummage and found snippets of silvery glitzy card and some toning purple which were almost the right size for a couple of layers so very little left over from that.  The dragonfly layers were die cut from snippets of the silver and faux bleached pieces, also the fun sentiment came from the piece I'd coloured..

Here is a picture of the smallest snippets and I still have some of the coloured piece left

Dragonfly and sentiment - dies from Gummiapan
Element inks in yellow, purple and blue (from Lavinia Stamps)

One of the 'reminders' of this technique came from a video by Chrissie Stokes who used 'Mr Magic' sponge (a domestic cleaning product) to apply water to the stencil and this is what I used - works well. Link to her video  https://youtu.be/MzSjRRvijWQ?si=h-nEUruH6RkqcVqu

Allsorts Challenge #818

 The theme for this fortnight on the Allsorts Challenge has been chosen by Helen who would like to see something Clean and Simple (CAS) or of course there is always the 'anything goes' option.  Prizes are from Oakwood.

For my card I started with a cream 5 x 7 card blank and cut a matching layer slightly smaller.  Next I cut a cream circle which was then embossed using a double pierced die from a set of nesting circles.  Next move was to cut a smaller plain circle which was then stamped with text for a bit of interest.  Once assembled I  added a die cut sprig of lavender (2 layers of cream card for stability).  Final touch was the stamping of a sentiment in a colour to match the text background.

Pierced Circle dies - from Creative Expressions Noble double pierced nesting circles set
Lavender - unbranded die
Sentiment - from a magazine give-away set of stamps
Text Background - stamp from an old Stampers' Anonymous set Tim Holtz

Inspired

 I was inspired to make this card by seeing a recent video from Jo Rice and this is my version as I don't have the tree stamp which she used.  I'd recently made a few DL backgrounds using inks on the Gelli plate so decided to use one of them as my tree seems to fit that format in preference to the square of the original.  The tree and pixie were both stamped onto the background and a few mushroom dwellings and a bit of foliage added.  A mask was used to give the impression of a moon with some toning yellow ink.  I'm undecided about adding a sentiment, or perhaps a word sticker but there is space for either at some point. Some touches of gold glimmer were added to the moon,  tree and shrooms but of course they don't show up particularly well in the picture.

All stamps by Lavinia

Christmas Tag

 I'm sharing a Christmas Tag for Rudolph Days  - fewer of them this month with February being a shorter month.  I may decide to pop this tag onto a card at some point but there's plenty of time for that decision later in the year.  I'd followed along with making a tag book in December inspired by Kym of Crafty Roo fame and this one is my version using one of the floral stamps in the Christmas countdown and turning it into a poinsettia. I started by smooshing some Distress Oxide onto the tag and adding some visual texture with a text stamp before adding a swirl of leaves.  I then used some scrap white card and stamped more leaves and the flowers which were then coloured and fussy cut to arrange over the leafy swirl.  The Noel word was stamped and fussy cut as well and the tag finished off with some toning ribbon. It doesn't show in the picture but some glimmer was added to the top layer of each flower.  Happy Rudolph Days everyone 😃

Noel Stamp - from Lavinia
Rest of stamps - all from Crafty Roo Christmas Countdown collection 2024
Tag was cut using a Tim Holtz die which I've had for some years

PS - The sad news is that Crafty Roo will be closing down on 1st April

Celebrate!

 It's celebration time over at the Snippets Playground because this is challenge #500.  This time there is a mandatory theme of *Celebration* and there are two mystery bumper prizes to be won. There is cause for celebration on lots of occasions and for my card I've chosen to make one which says 'Celebrate Your Day'  rather than making it too specific.  Apart from the card blank this was made using various snippets but I've only included a picture of the two smaller ones which I used for the sentiment.  The white and grey backgrounds were trimmed from slightly larger snippets which left me with some very narrow slivers which went into the bin..  I coloured the white layer using a layered stencil (4 layers in all) using Distress inks in four colours.

My snippets picture

Stencils - Four layer set from Sizzix called Scroll Text
Celebrate - unbranded die

Love Stamping

 The theme at We Love Stamping is **Clean and Simple* but I've chosen to go for the *Anything Goes* route this time with my card.  Thought I'd change things up a bit and coloured my dandelions in pink for a change.  A couple of bumble bees hovering over them and that's it with just a small computer generated sentiment.  Some great inspiration from the Design Team as always and some lovely prizes.  This card also suits the theme at Stamping Sensations of **Love/Romance** so I'm popping along there with it as well.

Stamps all from Lavinia - dandelion clocks with Bumble and Hum
Words - produced on the computer

Allsorts Challenge #817

 The theme for the Allsorts Challenge this fortnight has been chosen by Liz and is **Shades of Blue** or of course there is always the *Anything Goes* option so why not look through your crafty items for something blue and have a go.  Prizes this time are from Lavinia and we welcome Carol as a guest designer..

For my card I've chosen some designer papers for the background and then stamped a flower onto a piece of white card.  I masked off the flower head and leaf before adding the texture stamp and then added colour using Distress Oxide ink with a water brush.  The sentiment was stamped and coloured and cut using a stitched rectangle die.

Background Papers - from Boho Indigo collection Stampin Up (retired)
Stamps - all from Crafty Roo
Stitched rectangle - die from Stampin' Up (retired)

Valentine

 A quick post this morning to share a card suitable for a Valentine although I've not indicated that purpose inside.  That way it would fit other occasions such as Wedding, Anniversary or simply sending love.  I simply cut the swirly hearts out from a square of white card which I then backed with a pink layer.  The word was die cut a couple of times from the remains of the pink and layered to give it a bit more height.

Dies are unbranded ones from Amazon

Branch

 When is a branch not a branch?  Odd question maybe, but I turned this one into a tree, adding a sentiment for this tall card.  I started by making an inky background before stamping the 'tree' with a few extra leaves and trailing vines - a fairly quick card once the background inking was dry.   

Stamps from Lavinia
Sentiment stamp I've had a while - think it was from a magazine give-away

Snippets Challenge #499

 Time for another visit to the Playground for the current challenge - looking forward to a yummy chocolate croissant too if there are any left.  This card is from my drafts file, still a few left there which were made at the end of last year and for that reason I don't have photos of the snippets used - sorry.  Rest assured though that the Snippets mountain is ALWAYS my first port of call each time I make a card and I'm sure everything but the card blank came from there.  The two cream pieces were trimmed to size along with their slightly larger layers in brown.   The larger piece was embossed and then lightly brayered to show up the design and the smaller piece was stamped using a random text stamp.  For the leaf I found a small snippet of some glimmer card which had been swiped with alcohol ink and a really small snippet of a darker colour for the leaf detail.  The sentiment was snipped from the remains of a sheet of sentiments which I'd produced and printed using Microsoft Word

Embossing Folder - an ancient one from Tim Holtz
Leaf - from a Sizzix set called Artsy Leaves

Allsorts Challenge # 816

 The theme for the current Allsorts Challenge has been chosen by Gail who would like to see **Romance/Music notes/Instruments** or of course there is the *Anything Goes* option.  There are prizes from Aall & Create.

I've made a card which would be good for a Valentine; maybe a wedding or anniversary; or just to send  some love.  I cut a piece of pink card slightly smaller than the card base and another white one smaller again.  The hearts were die cut from this layer followed by stamping the little mice and the music notes.  A die cut sentiment added within the swirl of hearts - job done - a fairly CAS card to suit the theme.

Swirl of Hearts - unbranded die from Amazon
Stamping - Stamps from Lavinia
Sentiment - die which was a magazine gift a while ago
Squares - die cut using Creative Expressions Noble Pierced squares nesting dies

A 'Borrowed' Design

 The Mojo is still being somewhat elusive here but when I spotted this card made by Miss Di for the recent Playground challenge I was reminded that I have the Birthday version of the die which she used and I have to agree that it's not the easiest of dies to use which is probably why I didn't go for the Christmas one as well.  I do, however, really like the size and format of the wording and just happen to have the tall parcel die and stamp set as well so, with her permission, I decided to 'CASE' her ideas (copy and share). I've had the sentiment die for probably well over a year and despite being a tad troublesome, it does deserve to be seen more frequently as it's quite versatile.  Fortunately the tall parcel stamp and die set is a dream to use and I certainly have plenty of Snippets to make use of both dies.  Thankyou Di for the inspiration which encouraged me to try again with the sentiment die 😉

Birthday Die - unbranded
Parcel - Stamp and die set from Gummiapan
Sequins - Die-namics die set which was a challenge lucky win a few years ago
Card Layers - DL nesting die set from Creative Craft Products (Craft Stash)

Happy Rudolph Days

 I was very lucky recently to win a bumper bundle of Christmas related items in one of the Snippets December challenges so I thought what a great idea it would be to use one of the die sets to make a card to celebrate the January Rudolph Days.  I started with a pile of green and red card snippets to die cut all the pieces from the set.  These were then assembled and the flower was painted with Wink of Stella, which sadly doesn't show in the photo.  Next move was to bring out a die set which I've had for many years to make a background on which to mount the floral spray.  This in turn was mounted onto a piece of suitable design paper and a sentiment was stamped and added.  That's it - I've started on my cards for this year - entering a challenge such as this on a regular basis will build up a nice collection of cards for later on so why not see what you can find to make something for Rudolph Day each month.

Background paper - printed using a download from Buddly Crafts
Background shapes - die set from Sue Wilson, Creative Expressions.  Probably no longer available
Main Motif - Die set from Sizzix Holiday Brushstroke #3
Sentiment - Stamp from Contempo Christmas, Stampin' Up (retired)

Snippets Challenge #498

 There's an optional theme on the Snippets Playground challenge this time to make something incorporating hearts, bearing in  mind that Valentine's Day will soon be here or of course an anniversary card could be made. I've used various snippets to make my card which doesn't really feature hearts although I did notice that the little leaves on the sprays are vaguely heart-shaped 😊.  Everything apart from the card blank has come from my snippets collection and I've included a photo of the smaller remnants.  The design is loosely based on a card made by Chrissie Stokes who posts a video  on You Tube most days showing her latest makes and giving lots of useful hints and tips along the way.

I started by embossing a snippet of cream card using a text E/F using a plain strip with embossed edges to give it some extra interest (one of Chrissie's tips).  I then die cut two sprays of leaves in gold along with a cream vase, which I've just noticed has cut-out hearts at the top.  Finally the sentiment was die cut in gold. As usual there is a great prize to be won so why not sort out some snippets and have a go.

Leaves - die from Gummiapan
Vase - die from retired Stampin' Up set Boho Indigo
Sentiment - Die from retired Stampin' Up Hey Chick
Embossing Folder - unbranded from Amazon