Advent Calendar

While this Advent calendar wasn't especially quick to make it was very enjoyable and the instructions are available from the lovely Jenny of Stamping Moments if you think you'd like to make one.  It is made on a canvas approximately 9" x 12" which I painted with gold acrylic paint and spritzed with Glimmer Mist using some masks (not much of this actually shows) but it is better than a plain white canvas. The 25 boxes with hinged lids are made using various Stampin Up punches and are about one inch deep which doesn't show up on the photo but they are large enough to hold a nice chocolate treat of some kind.  I didn't follow Jenny's insructiions to the letter because I didn't have all the correct punches but managed to improvise by using circles to hold the numbers which were cut with X-cut dies as were the letters for the heading. I might just have to keep it for myself because I'm not sure I have enough spare time to make a couple more for the family (have to treat them alike of course).

Autumn Inchies

The challenge this week for Make My Monday autumn month is 'inchies' - not something I would normally do but if a challenge doesn't take you out of the comfort zone then I suppose it isn't really a challenge is it??  I stamped various trees and grasses onto a piece of ivory card and sponged with spiced marmalade Distress ink.  I then cut out some inch squares, sponged these too and stamped a variety of flora and fauna images using  small stamps from various Chocolate Baroque sets  (I forgot to mention that flora and fauna was also part of the theme this week).  These squares were then arranged and re-arranged until I liked the effect and a saying was added.  I do really enjoy these challenges and if you've not tried them why not have a go?

The Other Anniversary Card

As I mentioned previously I'd made two anniversary cards recently and this one actually used up the rest of the backing paper I'd printed which is better than putting it away in a box and probably forgetting all about it.

For this one I used:

A piece of card embossed with hearts and spritzed with Glimmer Mist
A heart stamped with Versamark and gold embossed (Chocolate Baroque stamp)
A heart cut with an X-cut die and embossed for texture
Sentiments produced on the computer punched with Stampin Up punches
A small piece of paper from my oddments box(Chocolate Baroque)
A Marianne die cut corner and some card candy

Finished - At Last!!

I have at last put the last stitch into this quilt which is a christening gift for a great niece and I'm not letting on how long ago she was christened but to be fair I didn't know until on the actual day that they would like me to make a quilt for her.  I did enquire if there was any preference as to design and/or colour and all I was told was that her room is fairly neutral and not to make anything 'too pink or girly' - I do hope they like my choice.

Anniversary Birds

I've been asked to make a Golden anniversary card and as there was no request for personalisation I actually made two so that there would be a choice and the one not chosen will go into my box as a 'spare'.  I turned to Artylicious Decadent Brocade CD (Chocolate Baroque) and printed off a sheet of backing paper and two inserts onto some metallic champagne heavyweight paper.  For this cards I've used the following:-
  
     Sizzix top note die cut embossed with cuttlebug swirls folder, sponged with DI and edged with gold pen
     Marianne die cut heart
     Two birds on branches using Stampin Up punch
     Numbers cut using X-cut dies popped onto punched circle and die cut shape
     A border  strip with hearts - Martha Stewart punch
     Wording printed from computer punched using Stampin Up punches

I will post the other card another day

Bah Humbug Challenge 41

The lovely team over at Bah Humbug this week are looking for 'something good to eat' as their challenge for the week.  Luckily I remembered I had a cute Cuddly Buddly unmounted stamp with a cat and mouse sharing a pudding that I thought should fit the bill and once I'd managed to actually find it I stamped and then coloured the image with Polychromos pencils.  I used a Marianne die and a Nestability die to cut out the circles, cut a strip of Coredinations whitewash card, embossed with snowflakes and then sanded to show up the design. Background paper is by Papermania, the glittery snowflakes with added gems were cut with a cuttlebug die and the swirls were cut from a scrap of spritzed card from my 'bits' box which just happened to be the right colour. The greeting was produced on the computer.

Forgotten Friday 35

My goodnes don't the weeks just rush by?  We are now on week 35 for Judith's Forgotten Friday challenge and this week I'd been rooting through my stamps for ones with trees for another challenge and realised that this particular tree stamp from the Stampin Up Lovely as a Tree set had never actually been inked - how bad is that?  I also have several other tree stamps which have been neglected so sometime soon. must use them as well.  I stamped the tree first with Versamark and clear embossed, made a moon mask then brushed and sponged Chipped Sapphire Distress ink before finally stamping the tree again (slightly offset) using the same colour.  This panel was them mounted with various bits of matting and layering using background papers from my stash and a punched tag for the words.  I was hoping that this card just might do for another Christmas challenge but sadly their theme this week isn't trees - never mind.