Silhouette Cameo and Hero Arts first birthday card

Hello everyone, greetings from a cold and wet Manchester. To brighten the day,  we have a new challenge over at Addicted to Stamps and More. 

This time it's our Anything Goes week so you can let your hair down and share any of your creations with us. I'm sharing the card I made for my gorgeous Grandaughter's first birthday. I can't believe how fast her first year went and she is at a really delightful smiley stage. Love her to bits!!!

I wanted to make a large 8-inch card for her special birthday and as I hadn't used my Silhouette Cameo for a while, I turned to it to make this fun card. One of her favourite books is The Very Hungry Caterpillar, so I used files from the store to cut the caterpillar, the grass, the blue letters and the edge of the cloud panel. I inked up the sky using a cloud stencil from MFT and added white stitching on the happy with a gel pen.

I stamped and white embossed the 1st with the Hero Arts Number 1 stamp set and fussy cut them. Everything was layered up and I finished it off by adding some googly eyes to the caterpillar.

I hope you will head over to the ATSM blog to see some great inspiration from the team and you can link up your entry over there.

I'd like to play along at

Die Cut Divas Challenge # 405 - anything goes

Stamp, Ink, Paper Challenge '184 - something for baby

Cute Card Thursday Challenge # 566 - critters

Thanks for stopping by.

Hugs

Carol x

Papertrey Ink and Silhouette Cameo Art Deco wedding card

Helle there and welcome to another challenge at Addicted to Stamps and More. This time we have an Anything Goes theme so why not show us what you have been working on lately.

Our next door neighbour's son got married recently and the theme was very glamorous black and gold art deco, so I dug deep into my stash to design a card that fitted the theme.

1) I took an 8-inch square card blank and matted it with some gold textured card and a black stitched square die cut.

2) I cut a deco fan shape on my Silhouette Cameo in the gold card and black shapes to mat onto it.

3) I found several old Papertrey Ink stamp sets that came in useful for this project. I stamped the rays from the Hello Sunshine set; the flourishes from the Fancy Flourishes set; the heart from Heart Prints and the sentiment from Quilled Elegance. These were all heat embossed with gold embossing powder and then adhered to the gold fan mat, which I raised on black fun foam and attached to the card.

4) I finished off by cutting the Paper Smooches Congratulations die three times in the gold card and stacking them to make them pop.

I thoroughly enjoyed going outside my comfort zone for this card. I would never have dreamed of sending a black wedding card, but when I got to the wedding and saw all the decorations and glamorous clothes, it really fitted.

You will find lots of inspiration over on the blog, and I can't wait to see what you link up this time.

I'd like to play along with

Time to Craft Challenge #370 - stamp or colour on anything but white.

Through the Craft Room Door - anything goes

Try it on Tuesday - stencils or die cuts

Thanks for stopping by.

Hugs

Carol x

Paper Smooches and Silhouette Cameo new baby card

Hello everyone,

Well I have had the best Christmas present ever!!!! I'm delighted to tell you that my first Grandchild, Alice arrived safely last week and is, of course, just gorgeous. Mum and baby are doing well, and my son is like a dog with two tails. It's been wonderful to see my great big macho son being all tender, protective and mushy with his beautiful baby girl. Of course, I made a card for the occasion and it fits well into the Anything Goes challenge we are about to start over at Addicted to Stamps and More

I CASEd my own card here from 2015 but made it bigger and personalised it.

1) Cut a stork and baby bundle from images in the Silhouette Store using a Silhouette Cameo machine. I cut the stork body in aqua card, the baby bundle in pink, and the beak and legs in white card and coloured them with alcohol ink.

2) Use a white gel pen to add polka dots to the baby bundle and add a little green heart before assembling it and the stork onto a white square panel cut with a pierced square die.

3) Die cut the welcome word from Paper Smooches three times and stack them together

4) Cut a filmstrip on the Cameo and adhere it to the bottom of the panel. Stamp the word Baby from the Paper Smooches Welcome Wagon set just above the filmstrip, and stick the welcome die cut above it so it frames the word.

5) Mat the panel onto some aqua card and raise it onto an 8-inch white base card using fun foam.

6) Die cut the name using alphabet dies. I used an ancient Sizzix Mac'n'Cheese die set but you could also cut the name on the Cameo or use any other dies. Mount the letters onto snippets of card and cut them into little rectangles before arranging them on the filmstrip, raising them with foam tape.

7) Finish off by scattering die cut stars and hearts around the card using the same coloured card.

I know this is a very busy time of year, but I hope you will take a little time for yourself and pop over to the ATSM blog to see the fabulous inspiration from the DT, and join in with us this time.

My husband goes into hospital for his second hip replacement operation next week so I may not be around as much for a few weeks.

I'd like to play along with

2 Crafty Critter Crazies #9 - anything goes with a critter

Animal Friends Challenge #57 - anything goes

Crafty Friends Challenge #72 - babies and children

Cute Card Thursday #506 - things with wings

Thanks for stopping by

Hugs

Carol aka Grandma!

Crafter's Companion, Stampendous and Silhouette Cameo Christmas card

Hello everyone and welcome to the new challenge over at Addicted to Stamps and More, and this time it is our Holiday theme.

I came up with this card

1) Take a square of white card and emboss it with the Sue Wilson Snowfall embossing folder.

2) Take another piece of card and emboss the Crafter's Companion Icy Igloo embossing folder, cut around the igloo and use a blue alcohol pen to add shade to it.

3) Bend the igloo over a rolling pin to give some shape to it and then raise it on the snowy background with some glue gel in the centre and flat glue at the edges.

4) Stamp the penguins from Stampendous, fussy cut them and colour with a red alcohol pen.

5) I used my Silhouette Cameo to cut the North Pole sign and some icicles from red, white and yellow card. Add glitter to the snow,  icicles, sign, and igloo.

6) Assemble all the elements on the snowy background and mat everything onto the base card. I didn't have the right colour card for the mat, so I used the blue alcohol pen to colour around the edge of some white card.

I'd like to play along with

Christmas Card Challenges #23 - anything Christmas goes

Sparkles Christmas Challenge #81 Christmas is for Kids

Christmas with the Cuties - Christmas Animals

The Holly and Ivy Christmas Challenge #16 - anything Christmas goes

Thanks for stopping by.

Hugs

Carol x

Thanksgiving turkey card

Hello everyone and welcome to the last challenge of the year from Simply Create Too

and the theme this time is Gobble gobble - we need to see a turkey!!!

I have to confess that I have never had call for a card with a turkey on it before, so as I had no appropriate supplies, I turned to my trusty Silhouette Cameo and found a cute turkey image there. This card was the result!

I began by cutting the Papertrey Ink You've Been Framed: Oval die from orange card and then again from some patterned paper, and attached it to a white base card.

Then I cut my turkey in white card and coloured it with Distress Inks. I took a stamp from PTI Happy Trails and gave Drumstick (well he had to have a name don't you think?) some fancy feathers because he wanted to look handsome in time for Thanksgiving. I coloured his beak, legs and comb (had to look that one up!)with a Copic marker, and then added some googly eyes, before mounting him onto the card.

To finish off, I used the Avery Elle Lovely Letters stamps to spell out Happy Thanksgiving. I'm ashamed to say I've had these stamps for at least three years but I'd forgotten I had them. They are so easy to join up as long as you stamp one letter at a time, and I'm going to put them with my more loved stamps so I don't overlook them again. 

I do hope you will pop over to the SCT blog for some more inspiration and join in with us this time. We'll be be back in January when we will be changing to a monthly challenge.

I'd like to go and play at

Shopping Our Stash challenge - gobble 'til you wobble

Retro Rubber Challenge - I took yellow, orange and brown from the photo.

Die Cut Divas - thankful or thank you

Lizzie Ann Designs and Elizabeth Craft Halloween card

Hello everyone, today is the start of another challenge over at Simply Create Too

and our theme is Halloween. I decided to try something totally new for me and I created my first ever pop up card using the Elizabeth Craft Flower Pot Pop It Up dies. 

I started by cutting a couple of Papertrey Ink mat stacks and inked one up using distress inks before stamping the cat and greeting from the Lizzie Anne Designs Hallows Eve stamp set. I punched a couple of holes in the top panel, pushed some black ribbon through and then matted it onto the black panel. The Happy comes from the PTI One Liner dies and I matted it onto some black card so it would pop against the background paper.

For the inside, I cut and decorated the pop up box from the Elizabeth Craft pop it up die and inserted it into the card, before cutting some spooky shapes on my Cameo and adding them to the pot. I had a ball with this part, choosing ghosts, bats, pumpkin stacks, trees and a witch on a broomstick! A few stars and some patterned paper, and the inside was done.

To finish the front of the card, I cut the Halloween sentiment on my Silhouette Cameo and  placed the elements on foam tape to give some dimension. The Halloween sentiment did not stand out enough so I cut a separate pumpkin face to stick over the O in the centre, and called it done.

You will find plenty of inspiration from the DT over on SCT blog, and you have two weeks to join is in this fun challenge.

I'd like to play along with

The Male Room challenge - Halloween

Create and Makes challenge - anything goes with twist of using a die

Show us your pussies challenge - must have a cat and a Halloween theme.

Thanks for stopping by

Hugs
Carol x

Clearly Besotted Lift the flap butterfly card

Hello everyone. I am delighted to be Guest Designing for the wonderful Words 2 Craft By challenge  today and the words for the challenge this time are

       Just when the caterpillar thought her life was over... she began to fly.                         

I decided to make a lift the flap card and cut the lift up panel on my Silhouette Cameo. Then I cut a label shape and stamped the cute caterpillar from the Clearly Besotted Cute as a Bug stamp set on it. Next, I used a Silhouette sketch pen to write the quote above the caterpillar and matted the label onto some pink card. I fixed the label to the front of the flap and then moved on to the under layer.

I cut another pink mat and wrote on the words before cutting a butterfly from my NBUS  MFT Flutter of Butterflies dies, colouring it and coating it with Wink of Stella Glitter Pen.

The panel was fixed to the base card on fun foam to give some dimension, and as the white on white looked a bit stark, I took a Copic pen and added polka dots around the edge to give a frame effect.

I'd like to thank Sybrina for inviting me to join in this time - I really enjoyed playing around with this card and it was an honour to join you. Why not pop over to the Words 2 Craft By blog to see lots of inspiration from the talented Design Team.

I'd like to take my card to play at

Cards in Envy - beautiful butterflies

Case this sketch-


and

Darnell's NBUS challenge



Thanks for stopping by.

Hugs
Carol x

Sunshine Canvas for Happy Little Stampers Mixed Media challenge

Hello everyone and welcome to the new Happy Little Stampers Mixed Media Challenge

Our theme this time is 'paint' and as I am making up a sunshine package to sent to my daughter, I decided to include a canvas.

I'm still finding my way with mixed media and my mainly CAS style, but I  started by painting Gesso onto an 8 by 8 inch canvas and when it was dry, I randomly dotted Folk Art Acrylic paint in sunflower and school bus yellow on it

before using a brayer to spread the paint out. Using the brayer leaves a bit of texture on the canvas which I find pleasing. I then took a sunburst stencil from Glitzcraft and painted the School Buss Yellow paint through it to give my background

Like many people, my daughter goes to work in the dark and comes home in the dark at this time of year, so I wanted to put a phrase on the canvas to cheer her  I chose one I have seen on Pinterest and typed it into my Silhouette Studio software before cutting it from orange vinyl, which I applied over the canvas and burnished it down. I finished off by inking the edges of the canvas with orange zest ink and stamping the sunburst stamp from Happy Little Stampers Mix Mash stamp set to add some more interest.

                                                       This challenge is sponsored by

and the winner will receive a 414 discount to the HLS shop.

We have another treat for you because we have Guest Designer Autumn from Sew Paper Paint joining us this month and you will want to see the fab tag she made for us.

Why not hop over to the Happy Little Stampers blog where you will see lots of inspiration from the Team and also some links to great tutorials on mixed media work. I hope you will join us this month!

I'd like to play along with

Craft for the Craic - something to make you smile

Creative Artiste Challenge - anything mixed media

Altered Eclectics - anything mixed media

Thanks for stopping by.

Hugs

Carol x

Christmas gifts

Hello everyone,

I hope you all had a Happy Christmas and were able to spend some time with family and friends to celebrate the season. We had a very busy run up to Christmas with lots of choir concerts and social events which were lovely, but I'm ready to have things slow down now in this lull between Christmas and New Year. I had a few health problems throughout December so I'm afraid I have been a very poor blogger because other things had to come first, but I hope that 'normal service will resume soon' as they say!

I thought I would share a couple of Christmas gifts I made now that they have been given

This started life as a Ribba Photo Frame from Ikea. I removed the inner card frame, adhered some frosted vinyl to the inside of the glass, and then added the red design on the outside. The design came from the Silhouette store and I cut it on my Cameo out of red vinyl.

After replacing the glass in the frame, I stapled a string of battery operated Christmas lights around the inside before sticking the battery pack on the back with some velcro. This is how it looks when it is lit up

Next up is a Hot Chocolate gift set

I bought the aqua spotted travel mug and placed it in a bag with a little Christmas tree tag and some spotty aqua ribbon. Then I made a mug hug out of aqua felt from Papertrey Ink using their Coffee Cozy Dies. I added a little stitched heart to the front and made the packaging using other PTI stamps. 

I wanted to add a Costa gift card so I used the PTI Gift Card Greetings Die to make a nice little packet to hold it. I cut it from aqua mist card and stamped it with sentiments from the MFT Hug in a Mug stamp set and a snowfall background stamp.

For the front of the gift card holder, I stamped, coloured and fussy cut a cup stamp from the PTI Latte Love stamp set. A tin of yummy Green and Black Hot Chocolate finished the little gift off. I have made this kind of gift set before, but I love it in this colour.

Finally, here is a little gift holder for nail polish that I made using my Silhouette Cameo.

I cut the holder from kraft card and then made mats for it using PTI spotty kraft paper. The sentiment was embossed in white on the same paper and then cut with a couple of oval punches from Stampin' Up.

Well that's all for now except to say thank you so much for coming to visit me this past year. I hope you have found something to interest you, and I really appreciate your encouraging comments, I'll be back soon with a round up post of my favourite cards of the year, and before we know it, we'll be jumping into 2016! How did that happen so quickly?

Thanks for stopping by

Hugs
Carol x

WPlus9 Unforgettable New Grandparent card

Hello everyone,

Welcome to another challenge over at Simply Create Too

where our theme for this time is 'for a precious child'.

Some close friends have just had their first grandchild and I am thrilled to little mint balls for them so I created this card:-

I made the mats with Lil'Inker stitched square dies and stamped little hearts on the pale pink layer with sweet blush ink. The cute elephant and balloon are from the WPlus 9 Unforgettable set and they were coloured with Copic markers and a coat of WOS glitter on the balloon. I finally tried out my Silhouette Cameo sketch pens for the 'to the proud Grandparents' sentiment  and finished it off with a Congratulations die cut from Paper Smooches, but I dotted the i with a little heart instead of the dot. Don't you just love it when you can mix and match all your supplies? I forgot to take a photo, but I decorated the envelope with the SSS Envelope sentiments and you can just see part of it behind the card.

Why not pop over to the Simply Create Too blog to see some more inspiration from the team, and join in with us this time. We have been getting lots of gorgeous entries and we love looking at your entries.

Thanks for stopping by

Hugs
Carol x

I'd like to play along with

Moving Along with the Times - baby baby

Simon Says Stamp Challenge - anything goes

Paper Girls Challenge - Babies

Paper Smooches and Avery Elle New Baby Card

Hello everyone,

I hope you had a good weekend and are ready for a new week. Our weekend was a bit hectic but we spent a lovely evening with friends at the Lowry Theatre on Saturday seeing Tom Paxton sing. Tom is 77 years old now and I have enjoyed his concerts many times over the years. He held the audience in the palm of his hands while he took us on a journey through his songs that made me laugh and cry. He told us that this was the last concert of his last tour, and it makes me sad to think that I won't see him sing live again, but I think that at 77 years old he deserves to put his feet up, and I thank him for all the pleasure he has given me throughout his career!

Over the past few years we have been attending lots of weddings and so it shouldn't surprise me that a lot of people I know are expecting babies this year! I thought I better start preparing for the cards and gifts I am going to need and the current challenge over at Showcase Your Style caught my eye with their inspiration photo of film gubbins



I decided to cut a filmstrip on my Silhouette Cameo and play along with this card

I used the stork from the Avery Elle Plus One stamps set and coloured it with Copics and a gel pen before fussy cutting it to fly onto the card. The filmstrip was placed at the bottom and I added alphabet stamps that I stamped with various colourful inks, and I scattered stars cut with the SSS confetti die in the same colours. The welcome came from the Paper Smooches die which coordinates with their wonderful Welcome Wagon stamp set. When I first saw this lovely stamp set I was reminded of my Mum's favorite song which was 'Welcome to My World by Jim Reeves and as the current challenge over at Open Minded Crafting is 'inspired by a song', I'd like to play along there this time. Finally, the challenge over at The Pink Challenge this week is 'things with wings'  and I hope I have enough pink here to qualify!

Thanks for stopping by


Hugs
Carol x