Cuthbert card for a few challenges

Hi Everyone, I hope that you have been enjoying the glorious sunshine that we have been having in the UK.  Its supposed to rain tomorrow - just my luck on my day off!

Today's card is Cuthbert again from Pollycraft, I think he's a real cutie!  I've coloured him with Tan and Pastel Beige pro markers , so he's a bit lighter shade than I've done before.  The papers are Henbury Lane by Papermania.

I am entering him into the following challenges:

Just Cute Bears - open theme, just make sure there's are bear on it

The Corrosive Challenge blog - flowers

Sew Many Challenges - anything goes

Thanks for looking and if it does rain tomorrow, at least that is more time indoor to do crafting!

Amanda

One Stitch at a Time Challenge #19

Hi All, back again with my second post of the day. 

Here is my very first DT card for the One Stitch at a Time Challenge blog, I do hope you like it!

The challenge for this week is Stars and Stripes - so we are looking to see stars and/or stripes on your projects.  I have used the fantastic digi papers by Toucan Scraps, available from Stitchy Bear Stamps here.  They come as a set of 6 designs in 8x8 size and are amazing value, I have only used 3 of the designs that come in the set.  I loved the denim theme and they printed brilliantly.  I am sure that I will be printing many more of these paper sheets.  They go so well with the dreaded "man cards".

I must admit, I haven't really used digi papers very much before now - but, WOW! I am now a total convert.  I love these and they will help go a small way to keeping my crafting clutter down as everything is stored on my laptop.

This week's prize is 3 digis from the Stitchy Bear shop - of the winner's choice. 

Don't forget to check out the DT blogs of my OSAAT buddies and visit the challenge blog here.

I look forward to visiting your blogs to see your take on our challenge.

The image I used is from Pollycraft and I've coloured it with my pro markers.

I am entering this card into the following challenges:

The Pixie Cottage - I used their brilliant sketch

Ginger Snap Creations - Shades of blue

ABC Challenge - X is for Xtra dimension

Charizma Cards - One for the Guys

Paper Cutz - Circles, Stars or Squares

Polka Doodles - Boy's Birthday

Crafty Catz - let's go digital

7 challenges!!! I think that's a record for me!

Thanks for stopping by and do have a go at the challenge.

Amanda

Magical Crafts Challenge #18 Flower Power

Good Morning Everyone, today sees the start of another brilliant challenge over at Magical Crafts Challenge blog. The challenge for the next two weeks is:

Flower Power 

I have tried something different for this challenge - I decided to have a go at quilling again.  I love quilling but it does take me so long to do and since I discovered pro markers, everything else has been put away and forgotten.  So, I blew the dust from my quilling tool and and started rolling and fringing.  I have quilled a Christmas wreath, the red flowers are supposed to be poinsettias.  How early of me - making a Christmas card in June!  I bet there's loads of you out there already finished this year's Christmas cards!!!

Remember, we are a multi craft blog so it does not necessarily have to be a card. It could be a scrapbook page, a gift or anything else, as long as you've crafted it and you make flowers a big theme on your project.

For this challenge we are being sponsored by Simon Says Stamp and one lucky person will will $10 to spend in the SSS store.

I used 3mm green paper strips for the leaves and 10mm red paper strips plus a bit of 3mm yellow for the flower centres.  I fringed the red flowers - it would be so much easier to buy a fringing tool but they are quite expensive and I can't really justify buying one for the amount of quilling that I do.  The gold dots are peel off "left overs" and I have just added a simple peel off greeting.

So, I can't wait to see what you make for our challenge and don't forget to have a look at the other DT blogs - they've come up with some great ideas for this challenge!

I am going to enter this card into the following challenges:

Cutie Stampers - Red, Green, Yellow
ABC Challenge - Extra Dimension
Paper Cutz Challenge - Circles, Squares or Stars

Thanks for stopping by,

Amanda

One Stitch at a Time DT

When I got back from my hols last week, I had a lovely surprise email waiting for me - I was asked to be one of the new design team members for One Stitch at a Time Challenge Blog.  Of course, it took me all of about 1 second to say "yes". 

My first challenge that I'm joining in with as part of the DT is tomorrow at noon - so I look forward to joining you there!

I am really impressed with the quality of the digis that I've used from the Stitchy Bear Stamps shop (which has just been given a great new look) and I can't wait to share my creation with you tomorrow!

Amanda

A new card at last - Princess Anya

At last, I have finally made a card!!!

It has been about 2 weeks since I did any crafting due to my holiday and the endless pile of washing and ironing that followed!  Usually I take some crafting on holiday with me so that I can "get my fix" but this time I didn't, the ship's cabins are a bit small and I wasn't planning on spending much time in the cabin.  Lot's to catch up on now though!

I bought 2 new Anya stamps which arrived just before I went away and I've been itching to have a play with them.  This Princess Anya card is my first try.  I like the simpleness of the images - really easy to colour with my pro markers! 

Here's what I've used:

Image - Princess Anya, from The Greeting Farm, coloured with Pro Markers

Paper - from the DCWV Stack 6 pad plus DCWV glitter mat stack

Sentiment - from Pollycraft

Bling, buttons and bits from my stash

I used the left over papers to decorate the inside of my card too.

I am entering this card into the following challenges:

Totally Paper crafts - I have used their sketch

Forever Friends - cute, not forever friends

Craftalicious - monotone, I've used shades of blue teal

The Pixie Cottage - Inside out, I decorated the inside of my card to match

Thanks so much for stopping by, pop back soon!

Amanda

Totally Tilda - new challenge blog

Ooooh, look what I've just found!  A new challenge blog that is going to be run monthly from 1st July, totally devoted to the most adorable Tilda.  I already follow a couple of the ladies blogs on the DT and know that their Tilda cards are complete works of art, so I'm really looking forward to the new launch.

Click here to visit the blog. 

I only have a small handful of Tilda stamps myself, although my collection is growing and I'm sure that it may reach obsessive stage at some point!

I look forward to meeting some of you over at the new challenge blog!

Amanda

I am back from sailing the seas!

Hi everyone!

I just got back from my holidays about 4 hours ago and the washing machine is now in overdrive!  I would like to say thank you to everyone who left lovely comments for me while I was away.  The posts that I scheduled over my holiday seemed to post okay.

It will take me a while to catch up with my blogging as I haven't been on line for over a week.  Please bear with me, I will come and visit you again soon!

My family have just spent a fantastic week cruising around the Mediterranean - it was my first cruise, but probably not my last!  I loved the excitement of waking up in a new port each morning and the ship's crew were totally amazing and treated their passengers so wonderfully.

I thought I'd share a few of my snaps with you ...

Here's the ship, small in comparison to some I saw, but I still had problems finding my way around all of the decks after a week.  There were 1,500 passengers and 500 crew on board so it was like a floating town!

This is where we went:  Palma, Mallorca - Tangiers and Casablanca, Morocco (stayed on the ship in Tangiers, Casablanca ... not what I was expecting at all - glad I saw it but wouldn't go there again, ever!) - Gibralta - Duty free shopping Yay!!! - Almeria, Spain (loved it!) and Alicante, Spain (pleasantly surprised by Alicante!).

However, here's the place I spent most of my time (with my All Inclusive drinks card, yum!!!) .....

Here's me in one of my "posh frocks" that I bought.  I now own 6 dresses, this has never been known before!  I am strictly a jeans and trainers girl at home!  However, I do have a bit of a handbag thing.  I took 5 with me and bought another 3 during the week!

Back to reality now and I can't wait to get back into my blogging again!

Thanks for looking!!!

Amanda

Teddy bear face tutorial

As promised, here is how I make my little teddy bear faces.  So, I have hand stitched the head pieces together and fitted a cotter pin joint for the neck.  Using a bonded nylon thread I have made two stitches to create the eye sockets.

Next, pin and then stitch the ears into place.  Where the ears are placed can greatly affect the overall character of the bear:

Use a very strong thread to stitch the eyes into place.  I use doubled up bonded nylon thread to secure my eyes:

Using a satin stitch, sew the nose onto the bear.  I sometimes draw the outline on with a fabric pen that is designed to fade after a short while so tha I can get the right shape:

Now that the nose is finished and the head is secured to the body, I like to add a little shine to the nose.  My gloss of choice is my papermaking gloss by Anitas.  The bluey-white tint will dry to a clear glossy finish:

All dry!  Now just thread joint the arms and legs onto the body and were all done .....

Thanks for visiting!

Amanda

Another bear - and about time too!

It has been a whilte since I posted one of my bear pictures onto my blog.  To be honest, I did finish this one about 2 weeks ago but I knew that I would have to schedule a few posts during June so I've saved him for one of those.

He's made with a vintage short pile rayon, with ultra suede paw pads.  I'm not sure how tall he is but here he is in my hand - so that give's a bit better perspective of his size. 

Ooooh, and if you rememer my last bear posting, the unanamed polar bear, I said that he was like a dirty polar bear and I couldn't decide on the name.  He is now proudly named Bertie, thanks to the suggestion by The Crafty Duck.  When I was in junior school there was a boy in my class that we called Dirty Bertie because he always left a bit of KitKat at the sides of his mouth for Ron (Later Ron!).  So my polar bear is now called Dirty Bertie.

If time allows, I'll post a few pictures on how I made him.

Thanks for stopping by,

Amanda

Magical Crafts Challenge #17 DT card

Good Morning Everyone, today sees the start of another brilliant challenge over at Magical Crafts Challenge blog.  The challenge for the next two weeks is:

Father's Day / Something for a male

Remember, we are a multi craft blog so it does not necessarily have to be a card.  It could be a scrapbook page, a gift or anything else, as long as you've crafted it.  It doesn't have to be a Father's Day card, it can be a card or project for any man/boy in your life.

For this challenge we are being sponsored by the lovely Stitchy Bear Stamps.  Why not pop over to their shop and have a browse through their brilliant digi images.  The prize this challenge is to win the 3 digi images and the digi backing papers we've used from the Stitchy Bear shop.

My design papers and image are all from Stitchy Bear Stamps and I decided to use two of the design papers to make a carpet and wallpaper style background.  Then, I cut out my main image and glued it to the background.   I've coloured the image with my favourite pro markers.

I've used my circle and scallop nestabilities together with a couple of hand cut "ribbons" to make a rosette style greeting.  I love the circular sentiment which was this month's freebie over at the Creative Cottage.

So, I can't wait to see what you make for our challenge and don't forget to have a look at the other DT blogs - they've come up with some great ideas for this challenge!

Thanks for stopping by,

Amanda

Pink birthday card

Today's card is going to fit into a few challenges, which is great.  I had originally made it to enter the OSAAT DT call but have just checked their blog this morning to see that the DT call is now closed, oops!!!  Typical me - always leaving stuff until last minute!  I still love the digi image, which is from Stitchy Bear Stamps.

This picture shows up my glitter and sparkle - I'm always happiest with a little tube of glitter in my hand!  I've also used a Sakura crystal gel pen on the petals to add a subtle shimmer, which you can just about see.  The edges of the paper have been lightly distressed with scissors and edged with glitter.

Here's what I've used:

Image - from Stitchy Bear Stamps, coloured with pro markers

Cosmic shimmer crystal glitter

My new Nellie Sneden scallop frame die

Paper - my new Henbury Lane pad from Papermania

everything else from stash

I am entering this card into the following challenges:

Pollycraft - Ribbon and bling

Passion for pro markers - pink birthday

The Creative Cottage - pink

Sketch and Stash - I've used their sketch below.  My newest item is the die cut and papers, the neglected item is the white flower brad.

Lastly, I would just like to say a big "Hello and welcome to my blog" to my newest followers: Nina, Farrah, Susie and Silk on glass.  I really appreciate the comments left by all of my followers and hope that my blog can help with the odd bit of crafty inspiration.  I do try and visit my followers blogs, if I've missed you out leave me a comment with your blog URL so I can pop by!

Amanda

Relaxing Ronnie for Father's Day

As soon as I saw the Relaxing Ronnie image on Crafty Emma's blog, I knew that I just had to use it for Other Half's Father's Day card this year.  I am for ever telling him not to put his leg on the arm of the chair - but my request always falls on deaf ears; he always leaves his snack wrappers on the floor and he is, in our house, Ruler of the Remote!  I guess there of lots of Ronnie's out there - and where would we be without them?

Ronnie is a special charity digi stamp and can be purchased HERE so please help by buying him if you can.

Here's what I've used:

Image - Relaxing Ronnie, coloured with Pro Markers

Paper - all from the Perismmon pad by Papermania

Sentiment - freebie from the Creative Cottage/Pollycraft, cut out with nestabilities and layered onto a scalloped nestie

Brads - Papermania

Card - from stash

I am going to enter this card into the following challenges:

The Pixie Cottage - include some metal on card (brads)

The Creative Cottage - Father's Day

Secret Crafter - I've used their lovely sketch:

Thanks for visiting!

Amanda

Cuthbert Bear by Pollycraft and great news!

Firstly I must apologise - I have been neglecting my card making the last few days.  The glorious sunshine has come first, I am trying to catch as many rays as I can before its' gone again.  I have managed to make a card today though.

Before I talk about the card, here's my good news.  My Tilda tin was picked as this week's Creative Cottage favourite.  When I was looking at the new challenge I thought "why on earth is my picture on their blog?" and then I realised that I was this week's favourite.  To say I was pleased was an understatement and I didn't waste a second in getting my blinkie on the sidebar!  Then, it get's even better, the other challenge that I entered the Tilda tin in came up trumps too.  I won 2 Whiff of Joy stamps in the Passion for Promarkers anniversary draw!  That has really made my week - and I just love the WoJ stamps soooo much!!!

Okay, back to the card ..... here's Cuthbert with a big bunch of flowers.  He is from Pollycraft and is coloured with Pro markers.  The gingham paper was from a cheap pad I've had ages.  The other papers are Nana's Nursery from DCWV.  I've used some punches from my stash and card candy centres for the flowers.

I am entering this card into the following challenges:

Charizma cards - flowers

Just Cute Bears - Thank you card

Crafty Card Makers - Least and most favourite colours.   My most favourite card making colour at the moment has to be orange, you'll see it in lots of my cards.  My least favourite colour is green, don't know why, I suppose it is because it is not really a girly colour, and I like girly colours!

The Pixie Cottage - I have used their fab sketch:

I promise I'll try and get a bit more crafting done tomorrow - and I know that it is about time I finished making another teddy bear.

Thanks for stopping by - visit again soon!

Amanda

It's never as planned

Hi Everyone,

My card making never goes to plan - this one was supposed to be all blue and white.  However, when I started putting it all together it looked really boring so I've added a pink theme to it so as to brighten things up.  It is a dark coral pink - but it looks quite red on these pictures, I guess that has something to do with my (in)ability to take a good picture.

I have used one of my Miss Anya stamps, coloured with pro markers, the circles are cut with Nestabilities and the flowers were originally white but I coloured them with pro markers.  They are coloured the same as the flowers on the image although (again) the picture doesn't show the true colour.  All papers and card are from DCWV.

I am going to enter this card into the following challenges:

I love pro markers - I have used their brilliant sketch:

Charizma Cards - Going Round in Circles

One Stitch at a time - Use something new.  The "new" thing is my white ribbon.  I bought a whole reel of this on Sunday so I now have about 50 metres to play with.  I decided if I buy lots of white I can colour it with my pro markers so I'll always have the perfect shade for my crafting!

Thanks for stopping by and pop back soon!

Amanda