Yesterday I had this image and sentiments from the Colorado Craft Company ready on my desk, but I didn’t have time to do anything with them. This morning I see that Sunday Stamps, SSC348 In the Frame has a sketch challenge and I decided to use them for it. I deliberately didn’t colour the image as the background paper is quite busy, but I did add a bit of sparkle here and there, which of course isn’t picked up by the camera.

The papers are from a Recollections pack that I bought last year. I used a small corner punch on the main image and popped it up on a thin foam layer.

It is a dreary gray day today, but we have to pick up our wine order at a local winery so we are off to do that and to walk our dog at the same time. Getting some fresh air will hopefully help me with some ideas.

Thanks for stopping by, your time is always appreciated.

The challenge at Color Hues #98 Red and Black and I created this Christmas card. The stamp/die set used is an older HeroArts. I kept the card as simple as possible and I quite like how stark it is.

After stamping the images I used clear heat embossing colouring the baubles and ribbon with Inktense pencils and water. After die cutting I added both images to the black piece popping the stairs up slightly so the tree looked right beside them. The bow ribbon was glued flat to the stair bannister. After stamping and heat embossing the sentiment in Festive Berries I added it to a scrap piece of red CS. My note card is shimmer white, but the photo makes it look a bit gray for some reason.

This is my last card for today as it is time for me to prepare the evening meal.

Thanks for stopping by, your time and any comments you leave are always appreciated.

November 9th AnyThing Goes With A Twist of Coffee, Cocoa, Warm Drinks is the current challenge at CYHTP and this is my take on it. This also works for the challenge at SOS534 – Time For A Hot Drink. The stamp and die set is from YNS and I used just the coffee cup and one of the sentiments. The EF is from SSS and I added a bit of sparkle using a Sakura pen. I am lousy at arithmetic so my measurements weren’t quite right but I made it work. I did mess up the sentiment on the card base so had to add a cover up otherwise I would have had to start again. I may do more in a similar design as I’ve now worked out the kinks in my math. When it comes to numbers I’ve resigned myself to being hopeless.

Entering the challenges is helping me to do more Christmas cards and my mojo is improving too.

Thanks for stopping by, your time is always appreciated.

As I’m doing Christmas cards, I decided to make one work for the Warm and Cozy challenge at DD. It is a 4×4″ card, as the image is a small one. I think I got this set as a freebie and it is from Stampendous. Too me a cup of hot chocolate and marshmallows feels cozy. I used an EF from SSS for the background layer and then backed the main image layer with some black CS for definition. The image was coloured with pencils and Sakura gel pens.

It is more challenging to make cards this year, as the postage is more expensive. If there are any embellishments they often won’t go through the machines so I’m trying to make cards that are flatter and without embellishments. It kind of spoils creativity. And sending to the USA is restrictive because if there is anything inside that isn’t paper it is either refused at the counter here or returned by their customs. I love getting a real card and love to send them as well, but I’m sure others are having the same issues I am.

Thanks for stopping by and I hope your weekend proves to be fun.

https://cardz4galz.blogspot.com/ has a new challenge and we are asking you to feature your patterned paper. Pamela has chosen this challenge and she will also choose the winners.

So many of us hoard our PP and I’m no exception to this. For some reason I hate to cut up. The ones I’ve used here all came from a crafting magazine from long ago and I’ve been saving them. I decided enough was enough and I’m using them one way or another. This design is CASE’d from something Natasha Foote did and I managed three cards at the same time. They are quick and easy and require no measuring unless you are the kind of person that simply must have everything exact. That used to be me, but these days I don’t strive for exact or perfection.

I did use another small piece of PP as a background behind the focal panel and I also added some gold foil CS to give a border to my main piece. The sentiment is a freebie from Natasha, ribbon is from my stash and the little dots are from Waffle Flower. As well, I added a bit of gold to the sentiment words using a Sakura Gelli roll pen.

Thanks for stopping by and we hope you have fun posting your versions to our gallery.

The recipe at As You See It, had me stumped for a day or two. I’m not someone who makes tags, don’t know why, but I only do them once in a while. It required some thought and the first effort was terrible and certainly won’t be posted. Back to the drawing board and eventually, this card evolved.

Warm tones started with a cocoa card base, a corrugated red tone layer and then I added the rest. The music piece was stenciled a while back with a gold metallic paste, the copper layer was a leftover embossed piece and I added them as you see. My tag was cut using a set that my hubby bought me many moons ago, but I have no idea of the brand. I used one of the smaller ones and then I took a new die set from Scrapbook.com and cut the smallest tree from gold CS. I put the two pieces together using some metallic gold twine. I did go around the edges of the tag with a gold pen, did the sentiment the same way. Although you can’t see it, the tag has to and from stamped on it, which the tree covers. The sentiment is from Crafters Companion.

In the end, I think I managed a reasonable card from the recipe. Thanks for stopping by, your time and any comments are always appreciated.

Challenge #334 – Using Spaghetti to Craft! I know this challenge seems confusing if all you have is the link and title but filling in the blank, explains it. My favourite item to craft with is: Gold. I use it often, although it did take me a while to figure out what I would say and do for this particular challenge. I thought about it quite a lot until the lightbulb went off in my head.

To do my strip, I used vellum and alcohol inks on a sponge. I added some Inka gold with my finger. The vellum curled a bit and I decided to use only a piece of it for my card and will use the leftover on another design. I cut it with a Kokorosa die that leaves a stitched edge. I used multi medium glue paste to add the strip to my card front. The gold heart is one I had saved but it was bigger so I used a smaller Hero Arts die and the resulting frame will be used later. There were a few small marks on my heart so I took the smallest die from the set and cut some tiny hearts which covered them up. Not perfectly but it looks okay to the naked eye. I can’t remember which set the sentiment came from as I had it in my bits and pieces tray.

Thanks for stopping by, I appreciate it and also any comments you may leave for me.

We are close to Halloween, which I have to say is not my favourite night of the year, and Sue is challenging us to use at least 3 of the following colours: Purple, Orange, Black and Green. She will also be choosing the winners here at Cardz4galz. I have used all of the colours due to the black card front. First off I took a Taylored Expressions stencil set that makes plaid. Using Milled Lavender, Wilted Violet and Mowed Lawn Distress Oxides I produced this plaid piece. Then I die cut the Oval (I can use the cut out on another card) I backed it with the dark orange which was heavy enough to lift the panel up slightly. In my stash of orange bits and pieces I came across the lighter orange piece which was already on foam and used as you see here. The word was die cut some time ago and was waiting for the right card so this was added at the bottom at an angle as it helped to cover up a small ink blotch. The martini glass was stamped (Joy Clair) in Versamark ink and then heat embossed silver. I fussy cut this and coloured the contents in purple and green for a potion look.

Using graphic design software I created the word Hocus Pocus so it would be curved, fussy cut it (very challenging to do) and then I cut some slits in the glass so I could push it underneath like a stir stick. Once this was done I added googly eyes and some gems inside the glass and decorated the base and stem with them too. This card was fun to do although the fussy cutting was a bit tedious. At least my hands allowed me to do that today – sometimes they don’t.

Have fun making your own creations and we look forward to seeing them in the gallery. Thanks for stopping by to take a look.

This card also works for the Sisterhood of Crafters current challenge so I am adding it there.

Thanks for stopping by, your time is appreciated.