Stray Mice

 As well as always having scraps of paper or card left over from making a card often find that I have various left over die cuts and of course they all get saved.  This week I found two little mice lurking in a  tray on my desk (not real ones I hasten to add) and I guess they've been there ever since last Christmas.  I felt I should use them to make a Christmas card for this year so I looked out the set of stamps and dies along with a few other seasonal bits and pieces so that I could die cut some more bits to make a little scene.   The tree was cut from a scrap of plain card and then I stamped a woodgrain texture on it, coloured the window frames, then die cut a mouse snowman, fairy lights and some trees to go with the two stray mice.  |A scrap of blue spotted paper was used for the sky and some white card die cut into a snowy landscape.  I really should go through the plastic trays on my desk to see what other treasures there are which could be made into cards - I know there are definitely flowers and leaves as well as quite a few shapes which are left when cutting frames etc.

I have a feeling that Christmas this year will be a pretty low key affair but I think people will be glad to have some nice cards.  I hope so because I have lots of Christmas 'stuff' to use.

Tree and mice etc - stamp and die set which has lost its packaging
Snowy Landscape - Stitched Hillside Borders Lawn Fawn

A Lucky Win

 I was lucky recently and won a lovely prize in the Pixie Snippets Playground challenge - some dies, a stencil and pack of sentiment stickers so I thought it appropriate to use at least some of the prize to make a card for the current challenge.  I started off with a fairly large snippet of cream card and used the stencil to emboss the card before brushing it lightly with some Distress ink and then over stamping with a small swirl stamp.  I'd found an already cut piece of trellis which was a left over from a project made ages ago.  This was white so I inked it with the same ink so that it would tie in nicely.  A selection of smaller snippets in varying colours was  then used to cut out some flowers and swirls using the die set and these were arranged onto the trellis.  Finally a sentiment was stamped onto a scrap of cream card, die cut into a banner with a slightly larger one in brown as a backing.  Thought it just needed a little something extra so a tiny bee was die cut from brown card.

There is another great prize on offer for the current challenge so if you'd like to be in with a chance why not make a card using up some of your snippets - take a look at the inspiration card, I love it.

Background - embossed using Joanna Sheen stencil, small stamp Chocolate Baroque
Trellis - die given \away free with magazine many moons ago
Flowers and Swirls - die set from Sweet Dixie
Sentiment - free stamp, banner dies from Creative Impressions
Bee - die from Tonic

Yellow Poppy

 I don't think I've ever seen a yellow poppy, not that I can remember anyway but this die set came with a  CD for printing out a selection of colours and this was one of the choices.  I quite like the look of it anyway even if it isn't true to life.  The dies and CD were given away with a magazine a few years ago so I doubt they are still available.  I die cut a fancy shape in ivory pearl card, backed with some toning yellow card before layering up the flowers and leaves.  The print gives several to a page so I was able to cut into the images to use bits and pieces for decoupage.  The background paper also came from the CD and I over stamped this with a poppy image from a set of stamps which I seem to have had forever.  Because I'm unable to get out and about to look for new craft goodies (probably not a bad thing really I suppose) I've been looking through what I have stacked up in my craft room with the aim of using items which have been neglected.and sometimes even forgotten 🙂🙂

Flowers and Background - Charisma Dies and CD given free with Tattered lace Magazine 

Fancy Shape - Creative Expressions dies Caribbean Collection St Kitts
Words - from Clarity Word Stickers book on punched shape by Stampin' Up
Overstamping on Background - stamp from Chocolate Baroque

Playground Challenge #386

 I'm a bit later than usual checking into the Playground this time but I'm here now with a card which has used a selection of snippets from my 'mountain' of scraps.. I started with a piece of background paper from a pad I've had for ages and this was over stamped with feathers.  Next layer is a scrap of white card which had been embossed and I brushed this over with some purple ink to match the die cut feather (cut from a snippet of mauve) and layered onto a shape die cut from another snippet of card.  Finally added a couple of cogs which were lurking on my desk just waiting to be used up and a banner die cut from a purple snippet with a punched sentiment.  There is still time for you to catch up with this challenge before it closes and to be in for an opportunity of being in the draw for a prize. Well worth popping along to see what the clever Di has done with some of her snippets this time 

Feather stamp - from a free set by Phill Martin
Embossing folder - from Tim Holtz, Sizzix
Feather - Sizzix die
Backing for feather - die from a Tonic set
Cogs - dies from Sizzix
Banner - Creative Expressions die
Sentiment - computer generated, punch from Stampin' Up

Lace Border

 Just realised that I've not posted on my blog for over a week, no excuses really because I have a folder with lots of pictures to share.  I fancied doing a bit of parchment grid work so I produced a piece with this lacy border, then found a piece of coloured parchment to fit into the centre.  Cut using picot edge square die before searching for a design which would fit into the small space.  Decided to add these quirky flower pots and bird.  

Lace - Elizabeth Groovi plate from Clarity

Panel - one of Tina's flower plates from Clarity

Background - paper from 'Barb's Favourites' from Clarity

Bluebell Wood

 I do know that I've not done any bead work for some time but hadn't realised just how long ago I last picked up needle, thread and tiny beads.  This Bluebell Wood project was started when I purchased a lovely book called Floral Beaded Jewellery from Spellbound Beads, with designs by Julie Ashford.  This book was published in 2016 so that makes it four years ago that this 'work in progress' was started but at least now it is no longer an 'UFO' (unfinished object). It took me a while to sort out just what point I'd reached in the work and then of course it was back to the instruction books to remind myself of the various stitches and techniques but fortunately it all came back to me quite quickly once I'd got going again. I'm so pleased to see this one completed, quite fiddly to make but worth the effort of one bead at a time to bring it together.  I have to admit that I came across another 'WIP' (work in progress) which I'm sure was started before the bluebell necklace so I'm going to get down to getting that one completed as well - different stitch, different technique so again back to the instruction books!! 

 I'm sure I can't be the only person who is very good at starting projects but not always as good at actually finishing them😀😀.  Most do get completed - eventually!!

Floral Beaded Jewellery from Spellbound Beads, designs by Julie Ashford

Flower Pots

 A couple of quirky flowers in pots to share today.  Images stamped onto card with a few of the tiny stamps from the set added.  Edges were sponged with ink.  Button stamp from the set was used to stamp around the edges of the background paper - no need to stamp all over because much of it is hidden..  Image coloured using water based pens and a little label also from the stamp set was cut out and added. Hope you all managed to enjoy some sunshine over the Bank Holiday weekend - difficult to believe we are into September now.  It has certainly been a strange year so far.

Stamps - set from Hobby Arts