Made for the ModSquad challenge to use patterned paper and also for a friend whose daughter has had twins. I cut out a large heart for the background and then using a Spellbinder die called Layered Happy Birthday, I cut out some balloons from other PP and added them to the heart. Using an unbranded double stitch rectangular die I cut the main panel and added a small scrap of marbled paper on top. I fussy cut two matching little bears from another small piece of PP, after stamping them and colouring in certain parts. I popped them up onto this and added a small fussy cut fairy above. Stamped the sentiment which I also fussy cut out. Added a few small gems here and there. Stamps and card stock all from Gina K. Designs my main go to place for ideas and purchases.
Used another of my gifted stencils to create this one. First brushed colour in circles using distress oxides. Sprinkled a bit of water and let dry. Using Mowed lawn I sponged through stencil to get design. When dry I added nuvo glimmer paste through stencil. I used a versamark pen and ruler to draw a line around edge of card stock and then added an old glitter embossing powder on top. heat embossed to give the shine at edge. Added sentiment to a piece of vellum and heat embossed in black. Two black gems added to each end. added entire piece to turquoise sea card stock.
I’ve been thinking about creating a blog for over a year now and am finally getting around to actually doing it. In order to showcase some of my cards I needed a place to upload them and display them for others to see so here is my first card for the year.
This card has been created for the monthly challenge at Gina K. Designs. We have to showcase a sentiment and cannot use others stamps on the card.
I stenciled Distress Oxides in several pinks using a lovely hand made heart stencil given to me by a great on line friend. I first masked off the area where the sentiment heart is. I stenciled the butterflies using another stencil from the same friend. I stamped the sentiment onto the die cut heart and traced over it with a gelly roll pen to add a bit of sparkle. I popped it up slightly offset over a black heart which I then glued in the masked off space. Added a few tiny bling gems in places. I added main panel to a black piece of card stock and then adhered it to the card front.
Let’s make this Air-mazing is the latest challenge here at Double Trouble #214. Our recipe is as follows: 3 Patterned and/or special papers, 2 colours from colour wheel #1, 1 image. And our twisted Sister is suggesting an optional flying element. The double dare is to use the sketch TSOT#693 and enter it there. Be careful not to backlink when posting to TSOT.
As you can see, my flying element is a kite from a StampinUP collection, as is my sentiment. I used a sky paper layer from a very old paper pad (it still comes in handy at times) and some holographic paper. As I don’t have dies that will cut a cloud shape in a line I used some shaped scissors. I could have free handed it but felt the scissors were best. Once the kite and tail were stamped I used a combination of Sakura glitter pens and Prisma pencils to colour it and did the tail stars in silver glitter. Believe it or not I did fussy cut these elements and then added them to the, also fussy cut, kite. I backed all this with foam tape to lift it off the sky and did the same to the clouds on each edge. I stamped the sentiment and heat set it with a multi coloured powder then added a small black layer behind before adding to the clouds.
It was at this point that I realized I had missed part of the recipe as there were only had 2 patterned papers and I really didn’t want to have to begin again, so some thinking was required. I settled on adding another layer of paper over a portion of the holographic section. I found this piece in a paper pad and added it flat at the top. In a way it wasn’t a bad idea as it has toned down the glare that comes from the shiny section but it wasn’t quite the look I had in my mind.
Thanks for stopping by to take a look. I appreciate you and your time. We hope to see your creations in our gallery and that you have fun making them.
This card has been created with 2 challenges in mind. The first being As You See It who want to know which occasion cards we make the most. In my case mostly birthdays. And the other is Seize the Birthday who ask us to create a Spring garden.
Having just acquired my second set of Craft Addiction Arched slatted dies, I decided to use the larger in the set to create my window. Once die cut, I used foam tape and added some sky paper in behind and an additional arch to give the piece more support. I pulled out a couple of Spellbinders die sets, La Dolce Vita and Citrus spritz, and proceeded to cut the leaves and flowers. I thought I might combine both sets on one card but quickly realized this wouldn’t work so there are only a few pieces here that are from the Citrus set and I have the rest ready for another card.
I used ink and brushes to add colour to the die cuts and then played with placement until satisfied. Once glued I used an off cut linen look yellow card for the background and then added it all to a white card front. The sentiment is part of the collection and this set has its own dies making it easy to use.
I’m quite happy with the end result and had fun putting it together. I won’t be around much this coming week as we have a guest here from tomorrow for 6 nights. It will be great to see her in person after several years of absence.
Sadly I have to make a sympathy card today as I’ve just learned that a cousin has passed away rather suddenly at age 68. It is a shock for everyone, but the diagnosis he received 2 weeks ago told him there was no hope and no treatment available. At least it wasn’t a long drawn out painful end, which doesn’t help his family, but from my own experience, is still a better outcome than watching someone suffer for weeks as happened with my youngest sister. I’ll get the card done now so I don’t have to think much about it during the visit with my friend.
Thanks for stopping by, I appreciate you and your time.
Using stencils isn’t my go to technique most of the time, which is rather silly when I think about it. I don’t think I’m very good at it, but if I don’t practice I have no chance to improve. Anyway for a change I did decide to stencil this background for the April 2026 – Stencil Fun Challenge. I’m not sure which brand the stencil is but suspect it is from Sizzix/Tim Holtz.
The challenge twist is to use rainbow colours so I used different inks diagonally. Once dry I sprayed with some shimmer and then I cut it down to the size I required. The two rings were leftover bits and I added them so the little fussy cut fox had somewhere to be as he marched along. He comes from some old StampinUP paper and was a leftover from another project. I used a Joy Clair sentiment stamp on the banner and curved it slightly on the block before I stamped. Before adding him to the top I used some foam tape for dimension and I went around the layer with a black pen as well.
As the background is quite striking and busy I decided to leave the card as is rather than add any embellishments.
We have a lovely sunny, warm spring day but I chose to do house chores rather than work outside. My hands are sore from gardening over the weekend and I woke up with them being very swollen this morning. This card was mostly done yesterday afternoon and only needed to be added to the card front today so not too much work or fiddly stuff that my hands couldn’t deal with. It will likely be a few days more before they settle so I won’t be doing much creating until they do. I don’t mind aging, but I do mind the aches and pains that come with it.
Thanks for stopping by, I appreciate you and your time.
So Double D have this Humor Challenge 2026 and I was wondering what I might do. In my search for an idea, I remembered that I had a few comic stickers that someone gave me and in going through them I decided on this one.
The challenge then became how to showcase it. After some looking through online ideas, then searching my paper stash, I came across an Ephemera package, by Simply Stated Design, that I had forgotten about. The package was all different film strips and I chose three for my background. I created the sentiment strips at the top on my computer, thinking about Academy awards and how the elephant didn’t win. Using an unbranded border die I cut a bunch of stars in both gold and silver and one larger one in silver using a Hero Arts die. I then scattered the stars onto the film strips.
This may not be the most creative card I’ve made, but it is at least amusing and hopefully will make others smile.
We have a warm spring day today, perfect for an Easter celebration and we saw a few family gatherings with people outside BBQing when we went for a walk with our dog. We ourselves, are invited to our neighbors for dinner so I get a night off from the kitchen. We both worked in the garden earlier, and I’m a bit sore but nothing too bad thankfully. I had done this card last night, but didn’t have time to post it till now.
Remember yesterday when I mentioned I tried 3 times with a design. I did come up with something I liked eventually but had the other 2 pieces sitting looking sad on my desk. As you know I hate wasting anything and knew I could redeem them somehow, and this is what I did.
The poorly stenciled piece was cut down to fit behind this embossed and die cut frame which redeemed most of it. The stamped image on the other card was ruined because I tried to add a frame around the card front after the image was there and it looked awful. What I did in the end was cut the image off – kept the scrap card left over to use somewhere eventually and then fussy cut around the Disney characters. I did another stamp and fussy cut of the mice, added them on top of the original pieces for more dimension. Then I took another stamp from the set and added the stars above their heads and the Hello at the corner.
Supplies used are: Spellbinders EF Postage Stamps with dies, Simple Stories Hello Magic stamps and a gifted homemade graphic style stencil. I scored the card front diagonally before adding the framed piece on top. In the end I think this turned out well and perhaps better than what I was originally thinking yesterday.
I am entering it into the CYHTP challenge and I believe Disney characters fits the optional twist of Kids. As well I shall enter it into the Stencil Fun March 2026 Challenge. Twist not taken.
We’ve gone from really cold wind and a lot of rain, to a balmy spring day where we didn’t even need a jacket to take the dog for a walk. Its supposed to heat up a lot for the next few days so I shall have to get into the garden before it becomes unmanageable. That will likely mean no crafting as I have to choose how I use my hands and gardening usually means pain for a few days.
Caz has chosen spring flowers as the theme for the latest #273 challenge here at cardz 4 galz. This card started with the MFT die cut circle piece which wasn’t used in a previous creation. I cut it a little more to make it work for a slimline card. Using a cut apart tissue box, that was so pretty to my eyes, I made a layer for behind the circles. This was then backed with the shimmery yellow layer before adding it to the brown card front.
I used a Sakura gold pen and added a few highlights to the stamens of the flowers and then added the Trinity Stamps embellishments. My sentiment is from a Joy Clair set and this was cut in half to be added as you see.
This is probably one of the easiest cards I’ve made recently. No real stamping and no fiddly building of die cuts. Having the right tone of brown CS and the shimmer yellow brings out the florals.
Thanks for stopping by, your time is appreciated. We are looking forward to seeing your interpretation of the challenge in our gallery. We hope you have fun creating.
There is a new challenge – Challenge #582 – Colour Challenge and this is my 3rd attempt at a card. Don’t know why it was so difficult this afternoon, but nothing worked initially.
I have a few new supplies, one of which is from Spellbinders and is an EF as well as a die. I tested it out when it arrived and had this piece on my desk. Then today other new supplies arrived and the balloons are from a Simple Stories stamp set. I coloured with pencils and fussy cut them. The sentiment is from a Crafters Companion set and the hearts are from Scrapbook.com.
To assemble I added some foam tape around the arch, but before sticking down I made sure I had the right placement for the words and hearts. Once I was sure they looked right I added the arch and then the balloons.
The other two efforts, won’t get wasted, but they aren’t good enough for posting to my blog. Perhaps after I’ve fixed them a bit? This effort will likely go to my friend in Toronto as she is battling ALS and needs lots of encouragement.
I started with the embossed layer using a Catherine Pooler/Sizzix folder. When done I went over the panel with Tumbled Glass ink and cut it down to the size I required. After some searching I located this stiped piece and added it as you see. Then I cut a square white piece and a smaller piece to go on top so that there would be a border showing. This piece I inked green and added them together. While it was drying I inked up another strip of white card in the blue and cut 2 small squares which I then added as you can see. With a small piece of the striped section I added that to join the 2 pieces together. With a stamp set from Inkadinkado I took a small floral, stamped it and heat set then fussy cut it. When that was done I added colour using Prisma pencils and a little bit of the green ink. This was popped up on the center striped square.
My sentiment was from some vellum sentiments I’ve had for a while and this one was beginning to curl so I decided I had better use it before it was too damaged to use at all.
I find it annoying when a photograph seems to change the colours on a card as appears to have happened here. The striped piece is actually a lot lighter in colour than it shows, but it looks much darker now. In fact the entire photo looks darker than it does in real life. I also think I should have used a different folder as this one is quite busy and I’m not sure about the card now. Oh well, it isn’t a disaster, just not quite what I imagined.
Thanks for stopping by, I appreciate that you do and also any comments you may leave for me.
Welcome to a new Something, Anything and Everything challenge #213 here at Double Trouble and the recipe is as follows: 3 of something, 2 of anything, and 1 of everything else, all from your stash. Twisted sister double dares you to add an Easter element, but using the sketch is optional.
As I’m someone who often uses up bits and pieces left over from other projects using a recipe such as this is fun. My main circle piece was created using a technique shared by Natasha Foote and the different paper scraps were cut into 3 before adding them to the left over silver die cut. I used another scrap piece to die cut the banner which I then added behind the circle. The little nest and bird are from Gummiapan and I paper pieced the red breast on the bird before adding it to the nest. Both of these were added to a vellum oval before placing on the circle. I should mention that the circles were cut with Hero Arts infinity dies but the doily is from a Gina Kay set as is the sentiment. The embellishments are ancient and are from my stash. The mirror card background is the last bit I have in this colour and I thought it worked for that layer.
I rotated the card to landscape before adding everything to the base and although it isn’t an exact rendition of the sketch at TSOT #692 it is a loose interpretation of it. Due to backlinking I cannot enter the card into this challenge, but you can if you are careful of the backlinking rule. My card has 3 circles and 3 gems, 2 images, 1 banner and 1 sentiment which includes the Easter element.
Please have fun creating and we look forward to seeing your creations in our gallery. In the meantime, thanks for stopping by, you, your time and any comments are always appreciated.
The current challenge at Shopping Our Stash is to make a card without white. My challenge was to make a new baby card for a dragon boat team member and hubby, who have the joyful experience of becoming a grandparents for the first time. Being able to combine what I needed with the challenge was a bonus.
Its funny how one can own a die for quite a number of years and not really use it, then in one week suddenly find uses for it. I had this MFT die set on my desk and the idea came to try to make a shaker card. (I’m generally not good at these, so rarely do them). As the baby is a boy I went with some blue DSP and cut the panel. I then backed it with some packaging plastic and adhered some of the letters that were sticking up a little too much. Using 3 of the confetti dies and some scrap glitter CS I die cut the confetti. After going around the congrats layer with some foam tape strips I added the confetti bits inside and used a scrap piece of silver CS to cover it all. This layer was then added to the card front. Taking a very old wooden block stamp, I scribbled some flesh coloured alcohol ink, let it dry, then stamped the baby on top, after which I fussy cut it. The safety pin and rocking horse are from a set made by a company called Little B. Don’t think they exist anymore as this is another set I’ve had for a very long time. I coloured the rocking horse with some Sakura gelly roll pens. Unfortunately the glitter CS confetti tends to clump together and it doesn’t shake freely so another lesson learned here. Told you making these isn’t one of my talents. The inside words were generated on my computer – Between the earth and the sky above, Nothing can match a Grandparent’s LOVE.
I guess you could say, I truly shopped my stash to make this card. It is now in the mail and I hope they like it. Many thanks for stopping by, I appreciate you and your time.
Lavender House Creations 