Shop for shoes ....

For my 52 {Christmas} Card Throwdown post - click here

For my Waltzingmouse Fanatics post - click here

... Good afternoon everyone - only one more day of our long weekend holiday - to go.  We've really been making the most of our time off.  Eating - obviously, and I'm going to have to be very creative with turkey recipes in the coming weeks :)  Friday evening we all went to a photo shoot with the lovely Andrea - I'll post some photos soon.  And today we even did a little shopping - glad we saved it until today.  The shops were very quiet first thing this morning!  After we got in, Jonathan watched some football - NBC show the UK Premier League games - I think he actually sees more games here than he did in the UK!!  Kathryn beat Pokemon - she was delighted.  And I played in my craft room and made a fun little card:

Stamps: Docrafts - Born to Shop Shoes
Inks: Versafine - Onyx Black
Dies: Spellbinders - Reverse Wonky Rectangles (S4-307) #4
Accessories: White Lustre Card; Clear Embossing Powder; Copics - R17, R14, G24, G20, BV02, BV04, B12, B14, R81, R83, R0000, W1, W3, W5, W7, Y13, YR23, YR27

The cue word for this week's CASology - CAS72 is SHOP.  As soon as I saw that word I knew which stamps I'd be using - I've had them for quite a while and they don't see ink as often as they should.  There are a number of really fun images that are perfect for this challenge.  I used the sketch from this week's CAS - Colours & Sketches - CASC&S#52, but I turned it through 90° as the layout worked better in this orientation.  I stamped the image on to some scrap white card, heat embossed it with clear powder and cut it out with a die.  I coloured the image with Copics and edged the image with R17.  I made the shoe border by repeatedly stamping the shoes, embossing them and colouring them in.  I made the vertical strip by colouring some scrap card with R17 and cutting a piece to size.  The inside is simply a mat of white card that has been edged with the red R17 Copic.  I've left it blank to add a message.  I've a feeling this might find its way to my Mum - she just LOVES to shop!!!

Well, that's all for now - I think I'm going to try and do a bit more crafting, but for now I'm off to make a coffee and read my book - I'm reading Dragons Dawn by Anne McCaffrey - I think it's the third time I've read it, but it is a wonderful place to visit!  See you soon.

A coloured card ....

... Hi - goodness only knows what's happened to this week - I had big plans to get in my craft room, but only managed a couple of hours this afternoon.  However, I do have a card to share with you and I think I'm only just going to be in time:

• Less is More - LIM119 - to use a coloured card blank
• One Layer Wednesday - OLW140 borders

Stamps: Docrafts - Candle Border; CAS-ual Friday Stamps - Bold Wishes, Countdown
Inks: Memento - Tuxedo Black
Accessories:  Stampin' Up! Card - Pacific Point; Staedtler - Ergosoft Pencils

I've been thinking about the Less is More challenge all week and trying to work out what colour card blank to use.  I finally decided to go for a bold blue base.  I've combined the LIM challenge with this week's One Layer Wednesday to make a card with a border; it's being hosted by Heather this week and it's been quite a while since I joined in.

The card was really easy to make.  I simply cut the card to make a standard 5½" × 4¼" card base.  I used my stamp-a-ma-jig to position the row of candles along the base of the card and then added a couple of score lines above.  I added a clean, bold sentiment to the front and finished by colouring the candles with pencils.  First I filled them all in with white pencil and then went over the top with colours.  For the inside I cut a panel of white card and repeated the candles (second impression) at the bottom, coloured them and finished with a birthday greeting.

I think the inside could also work as a card front - it's clean, simple and bold and I'm really pleased with it.

That's all for now.  See you soon.

Vintage Christmas ....

... Good morning!  It's time for our new challenge at 52 {Christmas}Card Throwdown.  I am absolutely thrilled to be hosting this month's challenges.  As it's the first week of the month we have a sketch challenge and here's my take on it:

Stamps: See-D's - Traditional Christmas; Waltzingmouse - Compliments of the Season II
Inks: Memento - Elderberry
Dies: Spellbinders - On the Edge (S5-168)
Accessories: Stampin' Up! Card - Elegant Eggplant; Kaisercraft Design Paper - Christmas set free with Simply Cards and Papercraft; Copics - various; Cream lustre card, Gems; Lace ribbon

I really like this Christmas paper (free with a UK magazine); it has a super vintage feel and soft, subtle colours.  I layered the papers onto deep purple which coordinates nicely with the colours in the DP.  I stamped the image of Santa and his reindeer onto cream card and coloured the image with Copics (just got them and they're fab).  I decided to colour Santa's suit green as it goes better with the colours in the paper and also because Santa is often depicted with a green suit.  I finished off the front of the card with some cream lace ribbon and a few purple stars and a big purple heart.  I went for a very clean and simple look for the inside of the card, stamping the large outline stamp from Compliments of the Season II and colouring the sentiment with two shades of purple.


Here's our sketch for this week and I'm really looking forward to seeing all your creations.
 

Have a wonderful weekend and see you soon.

Our house ....

... is a very, very, very nice house! We've been here a year today!!!  I can't quite believe just how fast this past year has flown by.  This time last year it was sunny and hot, we had virtually no furniture in the house and I had an "emergency" crafting kit.  This year, winter is hanging on - there is even snow in the forecast for today, our house is home and my crafting stash has exploded since arriving in the States!  It's been a fabulous year.

Our challenge at 52 {Christmas} Card Throwdown is Anything BUT a card, ATC or tag, goes!!  On Saturday I posted a pretty Christmas bauble that I'd made for the challenge.  But I'm going to be honest with you - sometimes I don't always read the instructions!!!  Yes, shocking isn't it!!  What I actually made for the challenge and had almost finished writing up the post for were TAGS!!  Doh!!!  Silly me.  While they weren't right for the challenge I have at least made a start on some tags for this Christmas.  Here they are:

Stamps: Docrafts (don't know what the set is called)
Inks: Memento - Tuxedo Black, Cottage Ivy
Accessories: Promarkers; SU - Dazzling Diamond Glitter; Sakura Stardust pens; Ribbons

I stamped the tag outline several times onto plain white card, cut out three tags and then stamped the images and sentiments.  On some scrap card I stamped the tree, snow and mistletoe again and this time coloured the images with Promarkers, cut them out and glued them onto the tags.  I used my glue pen to go over some of the words on the tags and decorated them all with lots of glitter.  I finished off by adding a touch of sprayed ink and some bows to the tags.  On the reverse of each tag I added a To/From panel.  These were really quick and easy to make.

I have to admit that I did feel a bit of a twit once I realised what I'd done.  But I'm pleased with the tags and, as I always intend to make tags for Christmas, it was a happy mistake!!!

I hope that you all had a good Easter weekend.  Kathryn is on Spring break and Jonathan has had a couple of days off work, so we headed to Cleveland, Ohio for a short break.  After checking in, we explored the city centre; there are some lovely buildings in Cleveland and planned our visit. 

On Saturday we went to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame - it was lots of fun!  The building is fab and inside there is so much to see and we were able to take photos inside too! 

Yesterday, we went to the Great Lakes Science Centre and just played!!  There are lots of fun hands on games and a super exhibit with an Apollo capsule on display!

If you want to see more of my photos from Cleveland here's the link to this set on Flickr account!

Oh yes, you might have noticed a change to the look of my blog!  It's spring - time for a quick change!  Have a super day and see you soon.

Hugs and kisses ....

.... I don't have a card to share with you this morning - but Kathryn does.  This is a card she's made for her aunt, who has had some rough news recently.  Kathryn used to have her own blog, but Blogger stopped access, so I decided to share this with you all.  I think Kathryn has done a brilliant job with the card.  She stamped the flower onto some plain white card, coloured it with her felt pens and then cut it out.  Kathryn really likes the way I used so many Spellbinders dies and wanted to have a play with some herself.  So we picked out some backing papers and then I let her lose with the Cuttlebug.  Finally, we found a simple sentiment to finish off the card.

Stamps:  Docrafts - Scribble Daisy; Waltzingmouse - Sweethearts
Inks:  Stampin' Up! - Baja Breeze; Memento - London Fog
Spellbinders: Fleur de Lis Squares (S4-318) #4, Standard Squares Sm (S4-128)
Accessories:  Felt pens - Kathryn's; Card and gem from my stash

Just a quick update on the film - Monte Carlo - it was actually really good fun.  It's very much a girly movie, which was perfect as I took Kathryn and her friend Taylor to see it and they loved it.  And, to be fair, I quite enjoyed it too!  It's a light, frothy film and has a feel good factor, but I did have to smile at Selena's "British" accent :)  After the movie, we had to time to pop into Hobbycraft - I only got a few bits and pieces!!  And yesterday, Kathryn and I went to the local shopping centre - I had to get some new shoes.  I did quite well and ended up with three pairs!!! 

I hope to get into my craft room later this morning to make some cards - I've a few DT cards that need to be made (you'll get to see them at the beginning of November) and several birthdays coming up too.  See you later.

CR84FN40 - Merry Christmas ....

... we're well into October now and it's time for our new colour challenge at CR84FN.  Mona does pick the loveliest colours and these are just gorgeous - red, brown and kraft. 

Our inspiration photos are just fantastic - yummy cherries, toffee apple and a bunch of fab flowers - lovely!!  Scott (Mona's husband), like many people, is a big APPLE fan and our quote is in memory of Steve Jobs, a sad loss to the world.  The quote is so true.

Now to my card for this week - it's one for my 2011 Christmas Collection. I started with the red card base and found a really lovely red Christmas tree on the papers that matched. I used my nesties to cut out the tree and to make an ornate mat in kraft. I stitched some rich brown paper onto kraft card - using some red thread I found in my sewing box. Before attached the Christmas tree I added some lovely red ribbon. I made a matching tag and attached that to the card - my bows are definitely improving! I stamped a simple sentiment in red to match the card base and ribbon. Oh yes, I added just a touch of glitter to the tree - after all you have to have bling at Christmas.

Stamps:  Docrafts - Christmas set
Inks: Stampin' Up! - Real Red
Spellbinders: Fleur de Lis Squares (S4-318) #3, Regular Squares Lg (S4-126) #4
Accessories:  Brown grid paper - Bo Bunny;  Christmas Tree Paper - Nancy Watts free with Making Cards; Ribbon - Stampin' Up! - Real Red

We are welcoming Cheryl Lea as our Guest Designer for CR84FN40 and CR84FN41 - do check out her blog - Ink Up - to see Cheryl's card using these lovely colours.  And don't forget that the rest of the Design Team have also made some gorgeous cards - so drop by and leave some love:

Sue

Andrea

Stephanie

Suzanne

Heather

Mona
Lisa

That's all for today.  I had a lovely relaxing evening last night - and today I'm going to make some cards for a few challenges, and I'll share them with you tomorrow.  Hope you're all having a wonderful weekend - bye for now.

Black, white and read all over .....

... the challenge for this week's CAS-ual Fridays - CFC18 almost caught me out earlier in the week.  I read the comment and thought black, white and red - just like PDCC97 - and off I went to make a card for both challenges.  It was only as I was about to publish my blog that I read the instructions properly - the team at CAS-ual Fridays want us to make a card based on a book - any book - in honour of The United Nations' (UN) International Literacy Day - on 8th September.

I have to admit that it's taken me a while to decide which book to use as inspiration for my card.  I love reading, and next to crafting, it's my favourite hobby - we have books scattered all around our house.  And I usually have at least two books on the go at once!  Jonathan's taken to reading books and magazines on his Kindle - very useful when he went to Mumbai, and Kathryn has a stack of books by her bed - her favourite author is Jacqueline Wilson.

I picked a book by Stephen King as my inspiration - you may have noticed that I'm taking part in the Stephen King Reading Challenge - so it was inevitable really.  I picked the book "It" - one of the few books that has kept me up at night, so my card is obviously a Halloween card.  I wrote a review of this book earlier - you can read it here.  The big nastie in the book is "It" who tends to appear as a clown called Pennywise; he carries balloons with him and sometimes "It" appears as a spider.  Here's my card.

Stamps: Waltzingmouse - Halloween Party, Midnight Feast;  Docrafts - Balloon; Creative Expressions - Trees; Lakeland - Birthday
Ink:  Memento - Tuxedo Black
Promarker:  Poppy
Accessories:  Card from stash

I stamped the main balloon twice - once on the card base and once on a bit of scrap card.  I coloured both images with the red promarker, but on the scrap bit I added some red glaze to give a deep shine.  Then I layered the balloon up - it really does look like its flying into the sky!!  A really creepy Halloween card :)

And it's been a brilliant day - I've got loads done at home - so much easier when I'm on my own!  And now it's time for me to get dinner ready.  That's all for this evening.  I'll be back tomorrow with another card to share.  See you then.

Colour Q challenge ....

... gosh today's plans went a bit adrift this morning.  I was planning on getting some of the washing done, but before putting the machine on, I decided to make a cup of coffee.  That was when I discovered we had no water in the village.  The mains water had been cut off - I rang to find out what the problem was - a burst water main!!  So no washing!!

So instead, I've done some reading and managed to make a card for this week's Colour Q challenge - cQc98.  They have the most gorgeous colours - but I think they are playing with the new In Colours from Stampin' Up!  That being the case, I've had to match the colours as best I can.

The stamp that I've used is really fun - love the image and the sentiment - but this is the first time it's seen ink!!!  The stamp set came with co-ordinating papers which are very similar to the colours above - well they're close :)

I started off by covering my card base with green paper.  I stamped the image in Versafine, embossed it with clear powder and coloured with Promarkers.  I used my nesties to cut the image out and to make a couple of layers - one a plain rectangle and a fancy one.  I mounted the image and mats onto the card and then added the topiary bush and pot, and stamped in some grass.  I'm so glad that this set has finally seen ink - I think it'll be out again soon.

Stamps:  Docrafts - Born to Shop - Grown & Sown
Inks:  Versafine - Onyx Black; Memento - Bamboo Leaves, Pear Tart
Promarkers: Khaki (soft suede), Petrol Blue (island indigo), Turquoise (Bermuda bay), Lime Green (lucky limeade), Raw Sienna, Ice Grey 1
Spellbinders:  Fleur de Lis Rectangles (S4-317) #4, Standard Rectangles Sm (S4-130) #5, Standard Rectangles (S4-132)
Accessories:  Docrafts - Born to Shop papers, Card from stash

Aunty Sue and Saffron arrive today - I'm so looking forward to seeing them both.  The last time I saw Sue was at my sister's funeral in March - so it's good that we get to see each other again in much nicer circumstances.  Kathryn can't wait to meet her "cousin" - I'm sure they're going to get on really well.  Keep your fingers crossed for decent weather this weekend!

Before I go, I have another couple of Blog Friends, and I'd like to take this opportunity to say Hello and Welcome to Marta and Yvette.  And that really is all for today - I'm going to busy with the family.  See you soon - have a great weekend!

Birthday cake ...

... is just so appropriate for a birthday card.  This one has been made - just because I can.  It's not for a challenge or even for a particular birthday, but it's a sweet card and it's always useful to have one in the stash.

This was a quick and easy card to make.  I started with a square card which had a pink glitter border.  I found some lovely papers that had come free with Creativity - the Pampered Pet set.  I cut a squar3e of pink and blue paper to mat onto the card.  Then I stamped the plate of cupcakes on the card, and onto a piece of plain white card.  I coloured the plate with Promarker.  I cut the cupcake cases out of a matching peice of paper and stuck it to the card.  I added lots of sparkle by colouring the icing with my glue pen and applying glamour dust!  Finally I added a birthday tag.  Simple, easy and very sweet.

That's all for now.  Back again soon.

That's the invitations done ....

... so tomorrow I get to walk around the village and deliver them all by hand.  You know when you've had a good day?  That really nice warm satisfied feeling - well that's me right now.  I'm happy with the invitations I've made and, more importantly, I've been doing homely things too.

I thought it was time to sort out the ironing backlog.  I'm sure I'm not the only one who hates the job.  But the thing is, I like the feel of freshly ironed clothes.  So unless it's leggings or the like, then I'm afraid I have to iron it.  And there are now only 3 baskets of ironing left (hides head in shame) which I shall do tomorrow.  I've also been shopping for Ben - he's got a food technology class tomorrow and he's going to make a Mint & Pea soup (Gordon Ramsay recipe) which we'll have for tea.  I think I'm going to have to help Ben pack it up to take to school.  However, I'm looking forward to tasting the soup.

Now, the cards I'm going to show today were made for Ben - he was 14 this year, and for Annabel (Kathryn's friend) who was 9. 

Ben's card is A5 and I made it using rainbow shaded card (blue and taupe) to which I added the co-ordinating vellum (both from QVC).  I used a piece of black coredinations paper which was embossed with the cuttlebug stars folder.  I sanded the paper to reveal the blue core and then layered it onto a piece of the blue card.  The topper is a fabric embellishment that I got from a Docrafts kit purchased from QVC sometime ago.  The peeloffs, also Docrafts, were coloured with a blue pen to match the blue core.  I think Ben was pleased with the card.  I wish I had another of the fabric toppers.

Annabel's card is red, red, red!!  Her favourite colour is red, so I decided to base the card on that colour.  Again it's A5 in size.  The vellum backing is a Dawn Bibby design onto which I layer some pink paper from Docrafts.  Once again the image is from Pink Petticoat - a really cute cat.  The dress was coloured on the PC (using paintbox), I added a black rectangle so that I could add a personal greetign.  Then I layered it onto some red metallic card.  I used a Martha Stewart border bunch on the backing paper and finally added lots of flowers and some gems. 

Finally, I'm going to include the last of the invitations that I've made for the Stampin' Up party.  As I said yesterday, I've used the Circle Circus set.  I opted for one design which I stamped in lots of coloured and then clear embossed.  I cut out all the circles (I don't have a punch that fits) and then matted them onto pinked circles (Nesties).  In all cases I used Tim Holtz's distress inks to add colour to the backing circles and to stamp the trio in the corner.

One final thing - I've got a follower!!!  And have now had two comments.   Thank you both - you have no idea how excited I was when I saw that!!  Actually, maybe you do :)   I do hope that you find my blog interesting, and maybe even helpful.  Anyway, it's time to log off now and have a nice cup of coffee.

Final play for today ...

... I think I'm getting the hang of this blogging lark.  And I find I rather like it.  I've added lots more sites that I like to visit.  I shop at lots of places for my craft gooides, both in real life and on the net.  I enjoy browsing (and buying) from the  Glitter Pot and Inkylicious to name only two.  I am a regular visitor to the Docrafts website and have a gallery of my cards there under the name GemDeb.

I recently completed a small 6 x 6 scrapbook about my darling son Ben (he'd hate me to say that - but he is).  I kept it fairly simple using a variety of pictures from when he was a baby to the most recent (black and white) taken by his dad in February.  The scrapbook was free in a Goody Bag.  To decorate I used a variety of backing papers and some lovely stamps from Waltzing Mouse Stamps - the sets used were Celtic Hertiage, Free Spirit - boy (wonderful funky designs) and Off Beat Backgrounds - they were stamped using Tim Holtz's wonderful distress inks.

Ben - earlier this year





King of the Castle

Learning to be a beach bum!

Oh yes, that sweet little gingerbread stamp on the baby page is another from Waltzing Mouse Stamps - in the Oven Fresh Gingerbread Joy set.  They are so cute and work for all occasions.

That's all for now.  I seem to be enjoying this.  And family harmony was maintained today - the ironing was done (well most of it), I read my daughter another chapter of Little Women at bedtime (great way to spend time with her) and Ben was a grumpy teenager.  Jonathan had a good night out with the camera club.  Anyway, that's all for now.  Back soon.