An alternative take, snippets and cobwebs

Morning Peeps, a new Allsorts challenge and Sarah would like us to use Design Papers this week with the option of Anything Goes as per usual. Our prize come AALL and Create.

Many thanks for all the get well wishes and encouragement. Improvement continues, I've managed quite an inky week and yesterday afternoon actually drove myself and ventured out for something other than escorted medical trips and fortnightly trip to the village for nails, can't miss that one.

Now I'll confess to a dilemma here, I don't own any DP's, shock horror to many I know. I did have quite a stash accumulated over the years which I looked at, stroked but very rarely used as love to create my own backgrounds. So when my craft room had it's refurb in the Spring decided to donated all to a more deserving home. I do have MCS to fall back on but for this card used what I hope is an acceptable alternative, A&C layer it up washi tape.

But just so I'm not blacklisted from the team here's a project with some 'proper' DP which I found in my files from last year but never blogged. 

It's a clock kit with coordinating DP's, flower etc., from Oakwood Archer, one I did for Create and Craft before I made the decision earlier this year to cut back on some DT's. From memory I sprayed the clock frame with Oxides, covered the base with the DP, fixed the clock hands in place and added the flowers and leaves.

There's a new challenge over at the Snippets Playground, after all the fun and excitement of the conker hun and competition I had to sit down so made a card. I think the words would also fit the The Path of Positivity current focus of 'Growth and Change'.

A Kraft card base.....I've a pile of it which I really don't use often enough. Snippets for the flower, two of the circles, birdies and sentiments which were all stamped, cut out and paper pieced. Oxides and are nice and chalky and work well on Kraft, stamps are Flower Trio (924), Quill Ends (908) and Power of the Word (754)). Finally some stamping down the leading edge using the same sets and washi tape.

Always had a fascination with cobwebs so couldn't resist a few photos yesterday when it was misty and frosty with a good display of them in the gardens, particularly spectacular on the Mahonia's.

Have a good weekend everyone, although if weathers like here where it's throwing it down, won't be too much outdoor activity.

Way to Grow

Morning everyone and first I must thank you for all your Birthday wishes and cards this week, if I've not done so I will get round to thanking you all but a tad déjà vu, nasty meds, kidney pain, migraines etc. But at least the sun has been shining which is wonderful.

At Allsorts Gail is hosting her first challenge since joining the team and has the fun theme of 'Way to Grow'. Prizes come from Highlight Crafts,  AALL and Create and Stampendous.

Lots of different AALL and Create stamps The Great Outdoors (370), Flower Journey (904) and Elemental Notes (905), stencilled background using Digits Checked (110). I masked border stamped with Elemental Note, coloured ad cut out the wellies and sentiments form same set as the wellies with a pen nib to reflect the border. Popping to Path of Positivity with this one......and the Snippets Playground as the wellies, flowers, birdie and sentiments strips are all offcuts.

A card for the new Rudolph Days challenge, the bauble stencil which so many of us have is from Sweet Poppy, DI's to add the colour, Lavinia Rabbit and Hare and sentiment from my Christmas Magic stamp set (£16.99 here mounted, £14.99 unmounted, or from Create and Craft TV). 

Up up and away

Morning everyone, a new challenge at Allsorts where Mervi would like to see Balloons. Prizes come from AALL and Create.

A short post, it was scheduled ready but realised last minute I'd not done the write up. Not been the best of weeks and to top it all infection and constant migraines now playing havoc with my dodgy eyes, so not feeling on my game. 

Both shares were samples for Stamp Addicts TV shows a few months ago but never shared, using what were then new release stamps, Pan Pastels for colour and dies.

Thanks to all who visit and leaving kind comments which I so appreciate.

Springtime in Paris

Morning everyone, we have new challenges at We Love Stamping and Stamping Sensations where our themes are Spring and Anything Goes plus a Spring Mood Board so basically Spring all the way. Lovely prizes as always, stamps and stencils from AALL and Create and a £25 store voucher from Crafty Individuals. 

Above a tri-fold card with an acetate and Oxide splodged background with lots of AALL and Create stamps, Crocus (624), Violet (574), Elegant Spring Florals (623) plus Seasons (455) and Mouse (811). All of the images including the tiny Birdie and Mice were cut out on the Scan and Cut after stamping onto inked cardstock. 

Here's the mood board for Stamping Sensations....

I've gone with Paris, Blossoms, Pinks and a Bird. The backing is from MCS printed onto rice paper and the blossoms Penny Black At Grace repeat stamped using the platform and again cut out on the Scan and Cut, as I've said before, invaluable whilst I've one hand/arm not working properly, but hopefully to be sorted this week (see below).

A simple Spring tag following the colours and Daisy in the mood board using AALL and Create Tag it Yourself die set (27) and Flower Trio (924) onto a brayered and crackle paste background.

Below just one more for the new Path of Positivity challenge, sentiment from my Believe stamp set which I always find inspiring, guess I would say that wouldn't I, but good value with ten different inspirational quotes for £16.99 from Stamp Addicts here or Create and Craft. All other stamps are AALL and Create A5 set Just Grow (270) on offer at £7.60 (usually £18.99) and numbers from Grunge Alphabet (397) also A5 and £18.99. Flowers are paper pieced using inky offcuts onto an inky background created with oxides and acetate.

I won't be round to visit for a day or two, eventually I'm going into hospital for the January cancelled spinal, cervical and occipital nerve blocks and radiofrequency albation. Hopefully relief from some of the pain and mobility issues plus almost daily migraines (my body's built up antibodies to Emgality injections, they had been a miracle for a few years, dropping migraines from 20 to 5 or 6 days a month). It's a PM list so may be overnight and then a day or two recovery and rest,  but I'll catch up with you all very soon.

Snippets (maybe)

Hello Peeps, I've a card to share for the new Snippets Playground challenge, it's a bit tenuous as to use of snippets, only Misses Di and Sarn can decide or if I'm headed for the naughty corner.

AALL and Create have some beautiful Washi Tapes and there will be special collections launching on Create and Craft at 6pm and shows again tomorrow. The DT have all been busy making cards showcasing how it's possible to create the focal element of a card using just the tapes. Patterns repeat about every meter and basically you tear off strips and match them up, you do end up with quite a few oddments (snippets?) but with perseverance you can use those to create yet another card as I have done above (these were all left over from the original one I made using that design). The random torn edges are all part of the technique to give a less formal feel.

The easel card inner circle. was a leftover from another project and the Butterfly and words stamped onto offcuts. 

Hope everyone has had a good Easter and even saw a little bit of sunshine.

Fur, Feathers and a Butterfly

Morning Peeps, our new challenge at Allsorts starts today with the theme of Fur and/or Feathers as selected by Ellie. Prizes this month come from Craftstash and AALL and Create and will be drawn on Friday 22nd March.

Two shares, above my favourite Fox from AALL and Creates A4 stamp set In the Wild (529), stamped and just the flowers coloured, stencilling using Digits Checked (110), only a small stencil but so useful which I use over and again. Words from Power of the Word (754) stamped onto black card and embossed with white EP.

This was a Stamp Addicts TV sample using one of the new Terri Sherman stamps, this one Sparrows, as you can see a bit of artistic licence with the colours as my Sparrows turned into Greenfinches! Card base made with Tattered Lace dies and for the background crackle texture paste and a leaf stencil. The birds all cut on the Scan and Cut which I'm finding really useful for cutting stamped images since my left hand and arm went AWAL. The sentiment was one of several released with the birds.

Now for my Butterfly Challenge card, the letter this time is 'D for Decoupage' and I was immediately inspired by that and the colours. So I have incorporated Daffodil, Dairy Cream, Delft Blue and Dark Green from the colour options, die cuts and of course my Butterfly.

I have a huge bag of ready decoupaged Daffodils from my January Flower of the Month Highlight Crafts samples, in hindsight I've no idea why I prepared so many, I literally cut out every printed Reflection they sent so had excess to requirements.

I used MCS/Canvas Workspace/Scan and Cut to create the base layers including apertures and with the Daffodils ready cut and decoupaged so it was just a matter of adding a piece of acetate and arranging the flowers. A few TRR Lily of the Valley, again ready cut to bring in some blue, ribbon,  Butterfly which is AALL and Create ephemera and a die cut word.

The Clematis Armandii is just breaking into flower (looks a bit shadowed as took the photos at 6.30am before the sun rose) and looking and smelling glorious, it straddles a fence and garden seat and looks lovely both sides. On the left you can see a Magnolia which is now intermingled with it.

As always my appreciation for your kind visits and words of encouragement.

Butterfly Meadows

Morning everyone, time for a new challenge at Allsorts where Lynn has chosen the theme of 'Use Yellow'. Prizes come from Craftstash and AALL and Create.

Yellow is a colour I love incorporating into my work, perfect for Spring but equally throughout the year combined with different colours, black and purple in particular.

Above one of the newish dies from AALL and Create, Oxides brayered onto the background, some random text stamped, Butterflies and words from Through the Meadow (449) stamped onto offcuts and cut out. So as there's lots of snippets, Butterflies, words and even the tag itself I'm off over to the Snippets Playground with it. 

And I even remembered to take a photo of my snippets......maybe I'll avoid detention this time round.

This is another recent Highlight Crafts sample for Create and Craft using Flower of the Month Daffodil and one of the new stencils from Highlight.

Just For One Day was awesome and we all decided even better that We Will Rock You which we saw in July. And some very exciting news, we have received invitations to attend eldest Son's investiture at Buckingham Palace on 1st May....feel a new outfit coming on!

Glorious Daffodils and Sweet Peas

Morning everyone, Saturday morning and time for a new challenge at Allsorts and this week Lolo would like to see 'Anything but Square. Prizes come from Stampendous and will go into the February draws.

Youngest son has been in and out of hospital again, his ketone's went dangerously high, thankfully a change of insulin stabilised things. My Dad had Brittle Diabetes, then myself,  eldest daughter diagnosed last year and now Alex (other siblings worried!). And my planned procedure this week cancelled the evening before, imaging machine in theatre broke, no new date yet, am going to have to try and craft one handed as going stir crazy!

Above one I made some weeks ago for Highligh Crafts Flower of the Month for January which launches today. Lots of decoupage and a new Highlight stencil used on the base.

A second share which was a DT sample, a hexagonal box with a lattice lid using Tattered Lace dies (real oldies but goodies) with flowers printed from MCS A Mothers Glory, cut out and arranged around the box and a coordinating card to go inside.

And here are a few of my samples for Create and Craft TV's current Weekend Wonder, also made a few weeks ago. The collection consists of dies, coordinating DP's and USB.

Sweet Peas bring happy memories, my Dad grew them along the path leading up to the farmyard, lovely aromas especially in the evening.

Inky backgrounds

Morning everyone, time for a new challenge at Allsorts where Ellie is our host, prizes come from Polkadoodles and Oakwood and will be drawn on 26th January.

My MS flare has rendered me pretty useless and lots of increased pain, so no crafting and apols only comments c&p ones. My regular stay at the pain clinic for treatment was brought forward and hoping it will get me going again. 

I've managed to find suitable cards for upcoming themes thanks to my TV/DT un-blogged samples and above using AALL and Create 904 stamp set and stencil 161. 

This one is also for the current Path of Positivity, Lavinia stamps and sentiment from one of my own inspirational sets called Believe available from Stamp Addicts or Create and Craft TV.

Hellebore

Morning everyone, today see our first Allsorts challenge of 2024, Lynn is our host with a mood board to inspire us. Prizes come from AALL and Create and Craft Stash and will be drawn on 26th January.

Short and sweet I'm afraid, one hand typing's not easy (left hand and arm still pretty useless) so minimalistic comments and apols for any typo's, card from file made some weeks ago.

The Hellebore comes from AALL and Create Hellebore (1063) stamped, coloured and cut out and placed onto an inky background, snowflakes using Snow Crystals (221), another new release, but unfortunately as it's a translucent crackle paste doesn't really show up on my photo. Some washi tape and words from the same stamp set.

Peace Lily Snippets

 

Good morning Peeps, I hope you all had an enjoyable Christmas. Here it was hectic with fourteen for three days, I was still under the weather so for the first time ever handed the kitchen reigns over to whoever was willing and there were no shortage of takers. 

We've cause for extra celebration, our eldest son has been named in the New Year Honours list for his service to Policing, he played a leading role at the Home Office during Covid and the death of The Queen. I make no apologies for the very proud Mum mention.

So onto my card, I've not been up to much crafting the last few weeks so it's another from my unused folders. I would like to enter this into the current challenge at Path of Positivity, the optional twist is music but I have nothing music related so going the A/G route. The stamps are all from AALL and Create Clocks and Flowers (448) and stencil White Lotus (170) along with Oxides. The sentiment (cut into two) from my own Moments stamp set, also available from Create and Craft.

There is also another challenge in full swing over at the Snippets Playground so popping in there as well, the Lily's and leaves were all stamped onto snippets and paper pieced as were the words.

And meet Merlin, the newest member of the family. After losing Ben in October it was down to Anysia to let us me know when she felt ready to move on. Purely by chance Merlin was spotted and they bonded immediately, he's only a baby at three but so well mannered and going well for one so young. He arrived the week before Christmas and already fitting in well with Heskey and Penelope.