So here I am with my first post for my new gig at Double Trouble. The requirement is for stitches, however you like to create them, along with 2 or more stamped images and 3 or more layers. An additional twist is to use a ‘punny’ sentiment.

I chose to use the sketch from TSOT #675 starting on August 5th. This card will not be entered in the TSOT challenge, because it would be backlinking.

I kind of liked the sketch background element in the inspiration picture and had a go at creating one similar to it. I made a mask and used it to ink the 4 sections of the panel. Distress Oxides used are Mermaid Lagoon and Twisted Citron and considering I don’t do this type of inking often, it worked out quite well. I had this Kokorosa stamp and die set on my desk and decided to try 3 images from the set. I used Versamark ink and a coppery coloured powder from Recollections to heat emboss and then I coloured them with watercolour pencils. To give a bit more strength to the die cuts I cut several more for each image and glued them together. I hadn’t quite decided on which stitched style I would use and considered doing it by hand, but in looking through my dies I found this pierced star set from Spellbinders and cut 3 stars. Once I had decided on placement they were glued down and the chicken images set on top. The pun sentiment, or as close as I can get to one, comes from the same stamp set, but the rectangle piece was cut using a die from StampinUP. After I glued this in place I used some Scrapbook.com Pops of colour underneath the words. The entire panel was then added to the GKD card front.

I’m quite pleased with how this one turned out and I like the way the background looks. I may do something like this again.

Thanks for joining me today. I hope you have fun making your own version of the recipe.

Seize the Birthday #309-Food and or Drink and I chose drink for my theme. After watching this technique on Pinterest by viewing the video a few times, I initially made my mask from card stock. A hot mess, although one piece I can use eventually. In the end, and what I should have done first, I made a mask using some packing plastic and a rectangle die from Hero Arts. I used double sided tape that could be easily removed and attached the mask in the center of my white piece. Using Tombow markers I scribbled colour all around the edges of the plastic and using a baby wipe gently swiped it so the colour ended up looking like this. Mine does not look as good as the one I saw, but I with practice the next one will no doubt be better. This piece is my 3rd attempt. After removing the mask I hand drew the frame squiggly lines.

Using a Joy Clair stamp set I stamped the glass, added olives, lemon slice with some colour to them and the liquid in glass. Stamped the sentiment from same set and die cut using a Sizzix set of scallop dies.

Hubby liked this one, the jury is still out in my own head. Thanks for stopping by, I appreciate you and your time.

A Card for the Kiddo’s Challenge at Double D. This card ended up being quite different than what I had in my head mainly because I messed up some stamping. Rather than begin completely from scratch, I decided to fussy cut Pooh, repair the errors and use him on his own. To fix his arms and legs I stamped a second image, coloured the parts I needed and fussy cut. These were added to cover up the mistake and while I was at it I made one arm and leg pop up for a more realistic look. The stamp is an old wooden block someone recently gave to me and on the side it says Rubber Stampede. Based on its age, a defunct company now, I would imagine. To colour images I used pencils, a small amount of Distress Oxide Frayed Burlap and some glitter Sakura pens.

From a Forever in Time dollar store set I took a couple of bees and stamped them and I also used the honeycomb stamp. I edged the layer with a black Copic marker. I also used a couple of Ephemera pieces from Simple Stories to complete the card.

I don’t have any children in my life these days, so I may give this to a friend who has grandkids so it can be used. Thanks for stopping by to take a look. I appreciate it more than words can say.

This card has been created with two challenges in mind, the first is at As You See It, Challenge #352 – The Shape of Things to Come, and my fill in the blank is circles. The second is at Seize the Birthday #309-Food and or Drink and you can see I chose a cake.

It is obvious that some of my inspiration for this card came from several of the DT examples at Seize the Birthday. I used some scrap glitter strips to make the initial background and then it was an MFT birthday die with a center using a StampinUP dotted circle die. Stamp comes from a dollar store set, was stamped with Versamark and then heat embossed gold. After that I used water colour pencils to add some colour. My candles came out slightly darker than intended so look a bit black in the photo. A few Pops of Color from Scrapbook.com and I called the card finished.

Thanks for spending time with me today. I appreciate you and any comments you leave for me.

To make this card for the flower pot theme at https://daranddiane.blogspot.com/ I returned to my new Weekender set from Spellbinders. I had the sky piece already on my desk as it wasn’t used at the time it was cut. The sentiment was also already done. Once I figured out a design in my head, I set to work cutting the rest of the pieces. Flowers, leaves and oranges were cut from scrap pattern paper. The arch and cobble stones were cut from a photograph that didn’t print well and the same applies to the step tops. The pots were cut from an inked piece I had in my stash. I assembled the pots with flowers, leaves and some oranges. Then it was a matter of finding the right placement for everything on the card front. Using these dies is fun, but also quite fiddly so I have to be in the right mood to do it. I added a few extra flowers at the top because I could see a small gap and wanted to hide it. I used foam tape on several elements to give dimension. The little seagull is done using a Jen McGuire hack. Works like a charm. Overall I’m happy with the end result. I quite like the effect of the stones, arch and steps as they look pretty realistic.

I have a new gig – I’m now a design team member at Double Trouble. First card I shall post will be July 21st. I’m pretty excited, but also a little nervous. I hope you will join me at some point.

Thanks for stopping by, I appreciate you and your time.

Challenge #254, as chosen by Caz, is all about wedding or wedding anniversaries here at cardz4galz. As a member of a local dragon boat team and the person in charge of celebrations for members, a wedding anniversary card was required so this is what I created. It uses up some of my oddments, while at the same time using a new EF by StampinUP called Starstruck. The embossed piece was leftover from an Art Deco card I made, as was the black piece you can see behind the circle. The white scroll die cut is an old one but I’m not sure of the brand and the circle is infinity dies by Hero Arts with the sentiment and scrolls from Crafters Companion for Gemini. The two tiny stars you see are stickers from my stash. A fairly simple card to make, but the EF sure makes a statement especially on this mirror gold CS.

Thanks for taking a look and we hope to see your creations in our gallery. Have fun creating and enjoy the summer months.

The current challenge at CYHTP is Anything Goes with a Twist of CATS and/or DOGS (6/25) and I didn’t use the twist for this card. And at Four Seasons the challenge is all about Summer Season July 2025 and lemons and lemonade mean summer time to me.

Before life went slightly crazy with overseas guests and a hubby who contracted a tummy bug while they were here, I had begun this card using a folder and die set from my Dolce Vita collection and the weekenders retreat. I decided to angle the cream embossed piece on top of a linen yellow card front. Then I added the lemons, flowers and leaves playing with placement until satisfied. I heat embossed the sentiment, edged it with some vintage photo ink and attached using foam tape. To colour the flowers I used a Q-tip so giving me more control on how much ink and shading. I added a little extra colour to the lemons and some pieces were attached using foam tape for dimension.

I’m happy I got this finished and also that my hubby is beginning to feel better. Poor man, he has suffered quite badly and yesterday had to sit with an IV for rehydration, which I was worrying about, as I knew he wasn’t keeping enough fluids inside him. He still isn’t 100%, but he is definitely on the recovery road. Our guests have gone and are continuing with their vacation in the U.K. and then a Mediterranean cruise before going home. In spite of the small crisis we, actually me, managed to give them a good time and to show them around our island home.

Thanks for stopping by, I appreciate you and your time.

Pamela has chosen a Welcome to Summer theme for our latest challenge (#253) here at Cardz4galz and I decided on a back folded card for my example. My card was inspired by an earlier one done by a stamp buddy in late March and she provided a link tutorial found here to create it. Probably one of the easiest fun folds for anyone to make.

My paper is from a Simple Stories pad, the sentiment and shades are from MFT, the wavy frame die is from Penny Black, with the flip flops coming from an unbranded die set. The jeweled embellishment is from my stash.

I used a Spectrum Moir sparkle pen for the shade lenses and a mop up ink piece for the frame along with a touch of gold glitter on the flip flop butterflies.

Thanks for stopping by, your time is appreciated and I hope you have fun with your own creations and enter them into our gallery.

We’ve had a hectic few days with some friends coming over from the mainland. They are house hunting so we may find they become neighbors once again. Anyway I am now exhausted and probably shouldn’t have begun crafting but I did and this is what I came up with. I’ve made it with Double D in mind as their current challenge is Let’s Go to the Beach.

My card uses one of the sets received through the recent virtual retreat I did by Spellbinders, called under the sun. The sentiment is from the same company. The waves are from Kokorosa and the foot prints are an old Hero Arts wooden block stamp someone recently gave to me. She had a box of old stamps and I pulled out a few I thought I might use, but most of them went to the thrift shop. I’m too lazy to pull out a stamp positioner for this type of stamp, but getting a good impression in the right place is challenging with the block. For me, clear stamps made so much difference to what I could do and imagine.

My fatigue made me forget to plan my scene properly so the sand and sky portion were added after the fact using watercolour pencils. It isn’t one of my best scenes, although the concept is not bad. The end result is okay, but definitely could be improved upon if I had been thinking straight.

Thanks for stopping by to look, I appreciate you and your time.