80th Birthday Celebration

.... Hello, good morning!!! It's been almost two months since I posted on my blog - we've had a busy summer and, while I've not made many cards, I have been busy in my craft room doing a bit of reorganisation and working in my dyalogs. However, today, I'm sharing a couple of birthday cards that I made for my uncle Ian, who celebrated his 80th birthday last weekend. Here's the first card I made:

Stamps: Simon Hurley - Candles; Cas-ual Friday Stamps - Shenanigans

Inks: Gina K - Wild Dandelion, Sweet Mango, Applemint, Key Lime, Jelly Bean Green, Grass Green, Christmas Pine; Versafine - Onyx Black; Versafine Clair - Nocturne, Green Oasis

Dies: Stampin' Up! - Large Numbers

Accessories: White & Black Card; Glossy Black Card; Sakura Stardust Pens; Clear Embossing Powder; Simon Hurley - Layering Candles; Copic Markers

I'm submitting this card to Happy Little Stampers Stencil Challenge - HLSSC#09 where is Anything Goes.

I used my MISTI to stamp the candles in Versafine black ink and heat embossed with clear powder. I added colour by ink blending through the matching layering stencils. I checked with my uncle to find out his favourite colour - green!! Yea, mine too!! I started at the top of the panel with light, bright greens and shaded down to darker greens at the bottom of the stencil. I used the next stencil to colour the flames. Next, I added sparkle to the candles and flames with Sakura Stardust pens in co-ordinating colour giving a subtle shimmer. I trimmed the panel to size, layered it onto a black mat layer and added the panel to the front of a 5¾" square white card. I cut the numbers from black glossy card and white card; I layered them together for dimension and stability and adhered them to the card. I finished the front with a bold sentiment stamped on white card. I used dimensional tape to add this to the card. Inside, I cut a mat layer of black card. On the white panel, I added a fun birthday greeting, stamped the candles at the bottom and coloured them with Copic markers. This is the card Jonathan and I gave to Ian.

Next up is the card that I made for my mum to give to Ian, her baby brother:

Stamps: Visible Image - Brother Definition; C&9 - Beautiful Words; Winnie & Walter - The Big, The Bold, and The Happy; Stampin' Up! - Made with Love; Uniko - Classic Numbers

Inks: Gina K - Powder Blue; Versafine Clair - Nocturne; Versafine - Onyx Black

Dies: SU - Word Bubbles; Gina K - Today & Shadow

Accessories: White Card; SU Card - Blueberry Bushel; Copic Markers; Clear Embossing Powder; Cuttlebug Embossing Folder - Happy Birthday

I'm submitting this card to Happy Little Stampers Anything Goes with Dies - HLSAGD#09.

There's a story behind the design of this card. Ian's, mum's brother, always teases her by calling her "his older sister". So, when I asked what she'd like on Ian's card - mum smiled and said "the words 'baby brother'". I went one step further by adding a cute blue babygro with the number 80 on the front 😁. I made the note card from dark blue cardstock. I used a very old, but perfect for the theme, embossing folder from Cuttlebug, I lightly inked the edge and glued it to the front of the note card. I stamped the babygro and number on white card, embossed with clear powder, coloured it with Copic markers and then fussy cut it out and glued it to the card. I die cut the word bubble from white card and made the sentiment by mixing words from several stamp sets. I finished the front by adding the die cut word 'today'. Inside, I cut a piece of white card onto which I stamp the brother definition - absolutely perfect. I kept the 'baby brother' theme going by adding a cute duck and teddy, along with a row of alphabet letters in pale blue ink.

I am happy to report that Ian thought that both cards were just brilliant. Mind, he wasn't too keen on the thought of 80 candles on his cake!!! This is the birthday cake that my aunt had made for him:

It was a good birthday party with all the family there to celebrate - including some very distant cousins that I hadn't seen in years!! 

That's all for now. I'm going to publish this post and then go down for a cool glass of water. The weather this week has been nuts!! July and August were not the best summer, and then the first week of September is blazing hot!! See you soon.

Floral Birthday ....

.... Hi! It's a really gloomy, dull, wet and cool day here in North Wales. I was going to make a card yesterday, but instead I spent the day out in the garden potting up some plants for mum - don't tell her, but I think I'm actually beginning to enjoy this gardening lark!!! Who knew??

Anyway, as I didn't make a card yesterday, I thought I'd share a birthday card that I made last month for a friend. Her husband called and asked me to make something special for her - the only requirements were flowers and pastel. Here's the card:

Stamps: Altenew - Garden Hydrangea; Winnie & Walter - The Big, The Bold and The Happy
Inks: Gina K - Innocent Pink, Powder Blue, Lemon Drop, Key Lime, Wild Dandelion, Wild Lilac, Wild Wisteria, Dusky Rose, Red Velvet, Jelly Bean Green, Grass Green, Fresh Asparagus, Soft Stone, Jet Black Amalgam; Memento - Summer Sky, Danube Blue, Angel Pink, Lulu Lavender, Lady Bug, Pear Tart, Bamboo Leaves; Stampin' Up! - Pink Pirouette
Dies: Altenew - Garden Hydrangea; Die-namics - A2 Stitched Rectangles Set 2 #5 and # 6
Accessories: White Card; SU Card & DP - Smoky Slate; Joggles Stencil - Branches

This is a large card measuring 8" x 8". I'm sure that I'm not the only person who buys stamps and dies and then doesn't actually use them!! I've had this stamp set a while and it was such fun getting it out and creating such pretty hydrangeas. I used my MISTI to speed up the process of stamping this multi-layer flower. I stamped each flower in this order, outline, solid layer, detail and finer detail and then used the matching die to cut them out. I did the same process for the leaves. I stenciled a soft grey ink through a branch stencil for a soft, subtle background. I stamped the birthday greeting and then added the flowers and leaves. On the inside of the card, I cut a mat layer of soft grey card and on the white panel I stamped another hydrangea flower in soft yellow, and added a greeting which I typed on the computer, die cut and layered on some design paper.

I'm submitting this card to Never-Before-Used-Schtuff - NBUS#16 - a challenge run by the wonderful Darnell. I love this phrase that Darnell coined - she has other fabulous sayings too! As I said, I've had this lovely hydrangea stamp for a while, and it was fun to use. I've other similar sets, so I will probably be back to play along again soon.  

That's all from me for now - time to get some lunch. See you soon.

Starlines ....

.... Morning all! I'm sharing a very clean, simple card that I made a couple of weeks ago. It's for my friend Cheryl who I've known for many years! It's her birthday today and the card should have reached her, so I'm safe to share today:

Stamps: Papertrey Ink - Star Gazer; Winnie & Walter - The Big, The Bold & Happy
Inks: Versamark; Versafine - Onyx Black; Delicata - Silvery Shimmer
Dies: Die-namics - Ovals
Accessories: Stampin' Up! Card - Basic Black; White Lustre Card; Silver Embossing Powder

I got the idea for this card when I was going through my stamps looking for something for the Less is More - LIM#306 one-layer outline challenge. I found these super constellation stamps from Papertrey that haven't seen ink for a while. Perfect for the outline part of the challenge, but I couldn't share it at the time. However, I can share it now.

I made the card base from black card and cut an oval mask for the centre of the card. I lightly sponged on some silver shimmer ink - to suggest outer space. After removing the mask and making sure that the ink was completely dry, I stamped the constellation for Sagittarius - Cheryl's star sign - and added the words too. I embossed them with silver powder. A very clean and simple card. On the inside I cut a panel of white card on which I added a very bold birthday greeting and some small silver stars.

I'm sure that Cheryl will be having a super day with her family. That's all for today. Bye for now.

CIC - Theme ....

..... Hello, good morning! This is the last of my scheduled posts. After a two week break, it's time for our new challenge at Cupcake Inspirations Challenge - CIC#365. This week we have a theme for you - FLOWERS. Our sponsor for this challenge is Winnie & Walter and the winner will receive a $25 Gift certificate from them. Here's my card:

Stamps: Winnie & Walter - The Big, The Bold & Friends, The Big, The Bold & Happy, In Bloom Addie's Garden
Inks: Memento - Tuxedo Black; Versafine - Onyx Black; Stampin' Up! - Crushed Curry
Dies: Winnie & Walter Cutaways - Hugs
Accessories: White Lustre Card; SU Card - Crushed Curry, Wild Wasabi; Copics; Wink of Stella - Clear

I've made a very clean, simple and pretty birthday card for my mother-in-law. I can share it safely now, as her birthday was last Saturday 1st July and she has already seen the card. I stamped the tulips and leaves on some scrap white card, coloured them with Copic markers and then cut them out. I added sparkle to the flowers with a clear Wink of Stella brush - you can just about see the sparkle above. I used dimensional gel to adhere the flowers to the card. I die cut the word "hugs" three times - twice in yellow card and once in green, glued them together with the green slightly offset to give a shadow effect. I added clear Wink of Stella to the word. I finished the front by stamping "and kisses". On the inside I cut a mat layer of design paper and added a large birthday greeting along with an outline tulip in yellow.

Do visit our blog to see more from the team. That's all for now - see you again soon.

SNG - Hat Lady ...

...  Good morning all!  I'm running a bit late with this post - should have been up a few hours ago, but I completely lost track of the days!  Anyhow, here's a card that I made using one of Rick St Dennis's wonderful Hat Lady images.  The ladies are so glamorous; I've made a couple of Hat Lady cards before here and here.  Here's today's card:

Stamps: Rick St Dennis Digi - 1960 Couture Hat; Winnie & Walter - The Big, The Bold & The Happy, The Big, The Bold & Extras
Inks: Memento - Tuxedo Black, London Fog; Stampin' Up! - Melon Mambo
Dies: Spellbinders - Petit Ovals Lg (S4-138) #5, Petit Ovals Scalloped Lg (S4-139) #5
Accessories: White Lustre Card; Teresa Collins DP - Far and Away; SU Card - Melon Mambo; Copic Markers; Wink of Stella - Clear

The one good thing about running late with today's card, is that I got inspiration for the layout from this week's Freshly Made Sketches challenge - FMS#170.  It's a super sketch and can be ultra clean and simple, or a bit more dressed up like my card.  Like many of us, I have lots of design papers which I've been keeping safe in my stash.  One of this year's resolution is to USE the papers that I've got.

I printed the digi on white card, coloured her with Copic markers and added some sparkle to her gems with a clear Wink of Stella brush.  I cut the image out with an oval die and adhered it to a pink mat layer.  I found this elegant damask style paper and thought it would be the perfect backing.  I added a simple greeting to the front.  On the inside of the card, I cut a mat layer of pink card and on the white panel added some roses.

Rick is a fabulous artist and his digi images are a joy to colour.  If you want to see more of his Hat Lady collection check out Rick's Esty and Zibbet shops.  Before I go here are all the cards I've made - looks like I've got a theme going!!

Bye for now!

Beauty and the Beast ....

.... Good morning!  Today's card is based on the story of Beauty and the Beast - and many of use will have seen the Disney movie too!  At the heart of the story is the fact that love overcomes all.

Stamps: Rick St Dennis Digi - Belle et Bete; Waltzingmouse - Frosty in the Meadow, All Hallows Eve; Winnie & Walter - The Big, The Bold and The Happy
Inks: Memento - Grey Flannel; Distress - Evergreen Bough, Iced Spruce, Chipped Sapphire; Versafine - Onyx Black
Accessories: White Lustre Card; SU Card - Basic Black; Copic Markers; Wink of Stella - Clear

I'm submitting this card to the Progressive Challenge Part II over at Sparkle and Glitter.  It's the final part of the challenge and we have all been given this fabulous digi - Belle et Bete to use on our projects.  It's a cute image, but with a bit of edge.  I used the colours from last week's Colour Q - cQc#263 for Belle's dress and for the Beast, and I created the forest background using Waltzingmouse stamps.  I had so much fun colouring this image and I'm really pleased with the way Belle's dress came out (yellow, like in the movie).  On the inside I've put a mat layer of black card and on the white panel is a tiny cottage in the woods.  I've also put a close up photo of Belle's dress showing the sparkle!!

That's it for now - I can't put off the ironing any longer!  I'm going to have a marathon Walking Dead session while I do the ironing and then it's on to more boring housework stuff!  See you soon.

Birthday flowers ....

....  Good morning!  It's absolutely gorgeous here this morning, bright blue skies, sunshine and a cold wind!!  Well, you can't have everything.  One of the things that I'm still having trouble with over here, is posting cards home early so that they arrive in time!  This card is a special one:

Stamps: Winnie & Walter - The Big, The Bold & The Happy, The Big, The Bold & Extras, Parentville Extras; PTI - Phrase Play #2
Inks: Versamark; Stampin' Up! - Crisp Cantaloupe, Pink Pirouette; Versafine - Vintage Sepia
Accessories: White Lustre Card; Gold Mirrio Card; Dawn Bibby Vellum; Gold Embossing Powder; Papermania Ribbon

I used the colours that Gayatri picked for the Winnie & Walter WCMD Colour Challenge and the layout is based on the sketch from this week's Freshly Made Sketches - FMS#157.  I love the colours, they are really soft and feminine, perfect for my Mum's birthday card.  I stamped the solid rose images in pink and peach and then over stamped the outline rose in Versamark, heat embossed with gold powder and cut them out.  I adhered the peach rose flat to the card and used dimensional gel for the two pink roses.  I created the panel by adhering some vellum onto gold card.  I added a gold ribbon and finished the front with a simple birthday sentiment.  After fussy cutting the sentiment I used dimensional tape to attach it to the front.  On the inside I cut another gold mat and on the white card added a simple, but heartfelt message.  I created a subtle shadow on the word Mum by stamping twice - in pink and peach.  Also below is another view of the front of the card - this time you can see the dimension.

Now to get this in an envelope and head off to the post office so that it gets to Mum in time.  I know that I'm perfectly safe sharing this card here, as my Mum (love her) knows nothing about computers and the Internet!!  Before I go - here a photo of the tree in front of our house - it's suddenly gone a wonderful shade of red and is positively glowing in the sun!

See you soon!  Bye for now.

Bohek effect ....

... Morning all!  It's really dull, grey and wet here this morning, so I've the perfect excuse to stay in my craft room and play - at least for a while!  One of my favourite effects in photography is bokeh - where there is a blur on lights in the background of an image.  I've noticed that people are creating a similar effect in stamping.  Here's a card I made trying for the same effect, not entirely successful, but I like it a lot:

Stamps: Winnie & Walter - The Write Stuff: Love Story, The Big, The Bold & You, The Big, The Bold & The Happy, You've Got Love Mail, Big Bang Confetti
Inks: Brilliance - Aurora, Twilight, Peacock; Versafine - Onyx Black; Memento - London Fog; Stampin' Up! - Real Red
Accessories: White Lustre Card; Vellum; Clear Embossing Powder; Copics; SU Card - Pink Pirouette; SU Marker - Smoky Slate

I used the layout from Freshly Made Sketches - FMS#129 and the inspiration photo from Winnie & Walter's Playdate - W&WPD#1.  To create the bokeh effect I used the a couple of stamps from Big Bang Confetti, inking them up with Brilliance ink which has a lovely shimmer, and echoes the W&W image.  I stamped the journal style heart on to white card in grey and used words from a couple of sets to create the greeting; I added the kisses by hand. I cut out the heart and added a bit of definition to the edge by running a grey Copic around it.  I didn't want to hide the pretty bokeh panel, so I cut a panel of vellum and stamped the sentiment in Versafine and then heat embossed with clear powder.  I ran the vellum through my Xyron to make it self-adhesive, that way you don't see the adhesive!  I finished by adhering the heart with dimensional tape.  On the inside I cut a mat panel of pink and stamped another heart with a greeting.  I've included a close up of the heart to show the pretty colours!

The image on the W&W graphic suggested family to me and, as it's our anniversary next month, I though I'd make a card for Jonathan.  We will be celebrating 13 years of marriage on 22nd April!!  The time has simply flown by.  I know I've posted this card early, and I know that Jonathan will see it, but he's terrible at remembering - so this is a BIG hint!!!  That's all for now.  I suppose I'd better get on with ironing - again!  See Ya!!

ASM - Holiday ....

... Good evening!!  So it's officially spring now, while we have blue skies and bright sunshine, the temperature still hasn't improved much, we're still below 0°C!!  However, it is time for our new challenge at Addicted to Stamps and More!  This week it's our Holiday theme - Christmas, New Year, Halloween, Easter, National Holidays - anything, so long as it is a holiday.  Here's my card:

Stamps: Winnie & Walter - The Big, The Bold & The Happy; Waltzingmouse - Nestie Eggs
Inks: Stampin' Up! - Rich Razzleberry, Soft Sky; Memento - Lulu Lavender
Dies: Spellbinders - Nested Eggs (S4-264) #2 & 3; Die-namics - Highrise Alphabet Uppercase
Accessories: White Lustre Card; Vellum, SU Card - Soft Sky; Copics; Sequins

I need a few more Easter cards for this year, so this time the holiday was easy!  Easter.  I used the colours from this week's Dynamic Duos - DD#95, but had to adapt them a bit for the vellum as I didn't have any that matched exactly and the pastels that I do have were too pale to show.  I've been taking the online class Clean & Simple 3: One Layer Cards.  I've used the Copic colouring on vellum a technique that was demonstrated last week.  It is very easy to do and makes a very dramatic card.  I added a few die cut Easter eggs to the front and some sequins.  On the inside I cut a mat layer of pale blue, stamped a few more Easter eggs and a simple greeting.

For more inspiration with the Holiday theme, check out the cards from the rest of the team and from our Guest Designer, Anni.  Our sponsor this week is STAMPlorations and the winner will be getting a prize from them. 

That's all for now - I can't wait to see your holiday themed projects.  See you soon!