TMR - Hobbies

   Hello, Good Morning! It's time for our new challenge at The Male Room - TMR#212. Our challenge this month is to make a project featuring HOBBIES. My first thought was photography (my hubby's hobby), then computing, and on and on. I settled on a sporting hobby - rugby. Here's my card:

Stamps: Paper Smooches - Hip to be Square; Gina K - Birthday Greetings

Inks: Gina K - Christmas Pine; Versafine Clair - Nocturne; Versafine - Onyx Black

Accessories: White Card; SU Card - Shaded Spruce; Copic Markers; Kanban Toppers - Rugby, Birthday Greetings; SU Punches - Circles

While deciding which hobby to pick for my card, I went through my leftover stash and discovered the background panel. I made this panel when I lived in Michigan, and it was made as part of my post for The Male Room challenge in April 2018. At that time I made four backgrounds and this is the only one left! The image was stamped with Versafine black ink, embossed with clear powder, and then coloured with several shades of green ink. The rugby images come from a Kanban card topper sheet. Various circular images, in several sizes. I selected three and used punches to produce different sized images. I edged all the images with a black marker. I adhered them to the card front with dimensional pads. I finished the front with a simple black birthday greeting cut to fit the card. Inside the card, I cut a mat panel of dark green card, and on the white panel stamped a birthday message and fun greeting. I finished by adding another rugby image. I'm very pleased that I was able to use quite a bit of my older, more neglected stash!!

I'm submitting this card to Inkspirational - INK#370 where the word challenge is Leftovers. I'm also playing along with Seize the Birthday - STB#329 where I'm going with the Anything Birthday Goes.

Having not made many cards over the past couple of years, my stash is almost totally depleted. So, this one if for my stash of birthday cards.

Please do join in with our HOBBIES theme at The Male Room - I'm looking forward to visiting your creations. Bye for now.

TMR - The Outdoors

... Good morning!! I've been keeping a secret and I can finally tell you, I am thrilled and delighted to be re-joining the Design Team at The Male Room. I love making masculine cards and this challenge has a special place in my heart. Now, moving onto this month's challenge at The Male Room - TMR#211. Our theme for the next month is THE OUTDOORS. I've made a birthday card:

Stamps: Waltzingmouse Stamps - Way Out West, Back in the Saddle, Sheriff; Happy Little Stampers - Born to be Wild; Waffle Flowers - Postage Collage Dad Silhouette; Gina K - Find Peace

Inks: Gina K - Sea Glass, Turquoise Sea, Blue Sky, Powder Blue, Kraft, Warm Cocoa, Dark Chocolate, Charcoal Brown, Stormy Sky; Versafine Clair - Nocturne

Stencils: WF - Postage Collage A6 Blocks Stencil

Dies: WF - Postage Collage A6 Die

Accessories: White Card; SU Card - Crumb Cake; Copic Markers

Do you ever dream about the cards you plan to make? Well, I dreamt about this one. I know it's strange. It's an A6 US size card - that's 4½" x 6¼". I used kraft card to make the card base. I wiped various ink pads over the note card to create a kind of wood grain texture. I used the A6 postage die to cut out a panel of white 'stamps'. I inked the background to make a soft, early evening sky. Then I stamped silhouette images of a desert background with various cacti. I added some birds flying in the sky, a crescent moon, and lightly added some stars. I cut the panel into individual 'stamps'. I stamped some additional cacti, and a horseman on white card and cut them out. I stamped the sheriff star on white card, cut it out, and then added the birthday greeting. I adhered the two middle stamps flat to the card, and used dimensional tape to add the bottom stamp and the sheriff star. On the inside, I cut a piece of white card slightly smaller than the main card. I stamped a fun birthday greeting, added a small sheriff badge, horseshoe, and star, added a line of blue stars along the bottom of the panel, and edged with a blue marker.

I'm submitting this card to Inkspirational - INK#368 where they have a word prompt - For the Guys. I'm also playing along with The Neglected Stuff Challenge - NSC#0626, they have no theme, just use old products - done!

One of the things I like to do is mix products from different companies. This card mixes new - the waffle flower die, some of the stamps, and the inks. It also has a lot from older, and sadly, closed companies; in this case the wild west silhouettes from Waltzingmouse Stamps and the birthday greeting in the star from Happy Little Stampers. While the companies have gone, I have the products and it's great giving them a new lease of life!!

I had such fun making this card. The theme gives so much scope - do visit The Male Room to see more inspiration cards from the rest of the Design Team. Bye for now.

Rainbow Birthday

... Good Afternoon! I've got one card to share today. Last year I finally jumped on the press plate bandwagon. I got plates from Pinkfresh Studio, Spellbinders and Altenew. I had fun making several backgrounds and I've finally started making them into cards. This is a birthday card:

Stamps: Gina K - Blooming Sunflower; Mama Elephant - Mixed Wishes Greetings

Inks: Versafine Clair - Nocturne; Gina K - Soft Stone

Dies: Pinkfresh Studio (PF) - Ornate Trellis; Gina K - Blooming Sunflower

Accessories: White & Black card; Rainbow Foil; Copic Markers; PF Press Plate - Ornate Trellis

One of the things I discovered is that press plates work really well in a Spellbinders Glimmer machine!! I foiled the design onto black cards and used the matching die to cut it out - the shine is spectacular. I adhered the panel to an A2 note card. I used my MISTI to stamp the floral image on white card. I removed it and coloured the image with Copic markers, keeping the colours soft so as not to compete with the rainbow background. I stamped a simple birthday greeting in black ink. I used the matching dies to cut out the images as well as a number of black die cuts. I layered up the black die cuts and topped each with the focal images and adhered them to the front of the card. Inside the card, I cut a piece white card slightly smaller than A2, stamped the floral image in soft grey ink and added a simple birthday verse in black ink. I edged the panel with a black Copic and glued it into the note card.

I'm entering this card into several challenge one of which, Colorful Options, is new to me.

Colorful Options - CO#0126 - where they have either a colour theme or rainbow

Seize the Birthday - STB#318 - where it's either the topping option or birthday theme

Inkspirational - INK#358 - the word prompt is 'shine/shiny'

Never-Before-Used-Schtuff - NBUS#82 - to use new, or never-before-used, stash

I'd like to thank you for the comments on my cards and welcoming me back to the blogland!! It's so good to be back making cards. Drop by again tomorrow, where I have a Christmas card to share - using the same pretty background. See you soon.

First Christmas Card of 2026

... Good morning! It's a really dull, dark morning in North Wales with rain, so perfect for staying in my craft room and playing. I didn't make any Christmas cards last year - no mojo!! But this year I've decided get started early and join in with as many Christmas challenges as I can. So, here's my first Christmas card of 2026:

Stamps: Gina K - Let Your Light Shine, O Christmas Tree

Inks: Gina K - Red Velvet, Tranquil Teal; Lisa Horton - Cloud 9 Solid Gold; Versamark

Dies: Gina K - Let Your Light Shine

Accessories: White Card; Lawn Fawn Embossing Powder - Gold; Christmas Wrapping Paper

I'm entering this card into the following challenges:

Jingle Belles - JB2601 - where they want us to use recycled gift wrap

Merry Little Christmas Challenge Blog - MLCCB#66 - anything Christmas goes

Inkspirational - INK#358 - word prompt 'shine/shiny'

Never-Before-Used-Schtuff - NBUS#82 - Darnell encourages us to use that never-used-schtuff

I saved the holly gift wrap from one of my gifts in December. It's so pretty that I decided to use it for the background. I trimmed the gift wrap to be slightly smaller than an A2 (US size 5½" x 4¼") card base and adhered it to the card. I stamped the greeting and stars in Versamark ink and heat embossed with gold powder, I used the matching dies to cut out the images. I also cut out a number of white pieces which I used to layer up and give the images dimension. Inside the card, I used another scrap of the gift wrap as the mat layer, and on the white panel I stamped a simple greeting in colours to match the paper and added some gold stars which, in real life, have a lovely shimmer.

It's quite tough getting decent photos in such dull light, but I think these have turned out okay! It's so nice to be getting back into making cards - I used to love sharing my cards with Mum, but I'm sure she's watching from on high!! It's good to have some mojo back 😀

That's all for now. I've got some new inks that I need to swatch and add to my collection. See you again soon.

Birthday Boy

... Hello! It's been quite a while since my last post. I really thought I'd got it together, but it turned out not to be the case. However, I'm determined to get back to making cards - I've got hardly any left in my stash! So, today I'm sharing a card that I made for our son, Ben. Ben is 30 years old on Tuesday - I'm safe sharing it now, as he doesn't look at my blog!! Here's the card:

Stamps: MFT - Bitty Birthday Wishes, Sassy Pants Birthday Greetings

Inks: Gina K - Red Velvet, Stormy Sky; Versafine Clair - Nocturne

Dies: SU - Large Number Framelits

Accessories: Waffle Flower Stencil - Layered Triangles; Graphite Grey Mirri Card; Gina K Card - Red Velvet; White Card

I'm submitting this card to Color Hues - CH#124, great colours for a guy, AAA Birthday - AAAB#81, Winter birthday theme, and Inkspirational - INK#358, where they want shine.

This stencil is great for a masculine card. I did the first layer in red and the second in grey. I trimmed the panel to be slightly smaller than an A2 (US size card) card. I stamped a simple birthday greeting in grey, and finished the front with a bold, shiny number 30. I die cut two numbers from mirri card (so hard to photograph), along with several in white card which I layered up to give the number some depth. On the inside, I used what was left of the ink on the stencil to make a second generation image. On top of that I stamped a fun birthday greeting.

I've posted the card to Ben and, hopefully, he should get it by Tuesday. It's hard to believe he's 30 years old.

Before I go, I'd just like to wish everyone a Happy New Year - I'm sure this will be the latest one in the year. See you soon.

SHC - Shimmer and Shine ....

.... Morning! I can't quite believe that it's already August - the year is flying by. However, it's Wednesday and that means it's time for my weekly Seven Hills Craft Blog post. Not a Christmas card in sight today, instead I've made a set of three cards all using products from Concord & 9th. Here's the first:

Stamps: Concord & 9th - Stripes & Sayings, Everyday Greetings

Inks: Gina K - Wild Dandelion, Passionate Pink; Versafine Clair - Nocturne

Dies: C&9 - Confetti Card Die, Butterfly Perfect Pairing

Accessories: White Card; SU Card - Melon Mambo; C&9 - Tintables Card Fronts; Silver Holographic Card; Sheer Shimmer Spray - Sparkle

I'm submitting this card to Color Hues - CH#23 where the colours are yellow and pink, and to Inkspirational - INK#244 where they want to see Dots/Spots.

I started by blending yellow and pink inks over the dotty tintable card front. I love the way the pattern is revealed as the colour is blended! I spritzed the panel with a shimmer spray and once it was dry I used a fancy edge die to cut the panel to fit on the front of an A2 (US size card) notecard. I stamped a simple greeting in bold black in the bottom corner of the card. I finished the front by adding a flutter of butterflies. I die cut a silver layer and two white layers. I adhered them together to give strength and stability to the die cut, and then I glued them to the card. Inside, I cut a mat layer of bright pink card. On the white panel I stamped a birthday greeting in bright pink and added a tiny sun stamp in yellow. I also added a silver holographic butterfly - some of the waste from the die cut!!

Next, I used word tintable card front:

Stamps: Concord & 9th - Everyday Greetings

Inks: Gina K - Lemon Drop, Key Lime, Lucky Clover

Dies: C&9 - Confetti Card Die

Accessories: White Card; SU Card - Granny Apple Green; C&9 - Tintables Card Fronts; Sheer Shimmer Spray - Frost

I'm submitting this to the current Never-Before-Used-Sctuff - NBUS#29 - first time I've used the Confetti die, despite having it for a while!!

I used acid lemon, lime green and grass green for this tintable cover sheet. In real-life the words are clearly visible, but not so much in the photo. I think perhaps, I'll use darker colours next time. As before, I used the Confetti die to cut out the panel, after first adding shimmer with a frost spray. I adhered the panel directly to an A2 notecard. Inside, I cut a mat layer of bright green card. On the white panel, I simply adding a bold greeting in green. Lots of space left for my own message.

My final card is a simple hello card:

Stamps: Concord & 9th - Shine On

Inks: Gina K - Powder Blue, Blue Denim, In the Navy, Slate

Dies: C&9 - Confetti Card Die; Everyday Sayings

Accessories: White & Black Card; C&9 - Tintables Card Fronts; Sheer Shimmer Spray - Frost; Copic Marker

I'm submitting this card to Cardz 4 Guyz - C4G#276 where they want us to use Shades of Blue - done!!

This time I used blue and grey inks to blend over the chevron tintable card front. I spritzed on some frosty shimmer and, once dry, I used the Confetti die to cut the panel to size. I adhered it to the front of an A2 card. I used a large 'hello' die to cut a black shadow and three white hellos. I layered the white words together, glued them to the black shadow and then adhered the lot to the front of the card. Inside, I cut a piece of white card slightly smaller than the note card. I edged it with a dark grey Copic marker and stamped a message and some stars. There's plenty of space for my message. I think this one will go to our son, Ben.

That's all from me today. I'm taking Mum and Kat into Chester later this morning for a bit of retail therapy. And then, in the afternoon, I'll be watching the Olympics - just love all the sports. See you soon.

SHC - Watercolour Hello ....

.... Morning! It's been a while since I posted here. I'm here today with my card for Seven Hills Craft blog - I've made a watercolour background.

Stamps: Waffle Flower - Simply Said 1
Inks: Versamark
Dies: Waffle Flower - Simply Said 1
Accessories: White and Black Card; Tim Holtz Watercolour Card; Zig Clean Colour Pens; White Embossing Powder

I'm submitting this card to Inkspirational - INK#217 where they want painting or colouring on the card.

I used a couple of the rectangle images from Simply Said 1 to create the background. I put some watercolour card in the MISTI, stamped with Versamark, covered with images with White embossing powder and heat set them. I spritzed the card with water and used my Zig Clean colour pens to add ink. I allowed the water to blend the colours and I really like the way this looks. Once dry, I carefully wiped over the card to remove any ink from the white embossed pattern. I finished the front with a simple hello diecut greeting. The inside is blank as I want lots of space for a message for our son, Ben.

That's all from me today. See you again soon.