Wishing You the Best Year for 2023

Happy New year to everyone and I hope 2023 turns out to be a good one for you, I have a big family wedding and 2 holidays to look forward to!

I've started off the New Year playing with these celestial scene stamps from Creative Stamping Magazine

I've also been making some starry background papers using Brusho powers

I hope you are all feeling crafty for the new year with plenty of time to spend creating new cards!

Still Dreaming!

 

 Yet more cards made from the fab Japanese dreams stamp set.

The koi carp were stamped onto a piece of paper which I had experimented on when playing with the brushos powder back in April 2019!

More Japanese Dreams

 

I'm really enjoying playing with these oriental stamps from Creative Stamping Magazine

and using the the orange/yellow/pink colour combo when colouring in images with my promarkers

Japanese Dreams - Creative Stamping Mag

 

I couldn't resist picking up this copy of Creative Stamping mag on a trip to Hobbycraft - it was the Koi Carp and the Good Luck Japanese Character that appealed to me.

So, of course, the first cards I made with the set featured them. The coin with the hole in the middle I have had in my stash for years!

Next I'm going to try out the Mount Fuji Scene and the paper lanterns

Beneath the Sea Part 2

 

A few more cards made with those coloured images from my last post!

Haven't used mulberry paper on a card for ages!

Beneath the waves

 

I enjoyed colouring these octopus and dolphins from the latest stamp set from Creative Stamping

Not sure that I have made many birthday cards featuring an octopus before!

Creative Stamping Mag Issue 96

 

Loving these Crafty Individual stamps that came as a free gift with the current issue of Creative Stamping magazine. I've teamed them up with some backgrounds made from Cosmic Shimmer gilding polish....

 and the image of a couple walking with their dog is so sweet! Enjoyed colouring the lumberjack shirt on this, after watching them make them in the Great British Sewing Bee challenge earlier.

Exciting news here is that we have just sold our house and are moving into a bigger home nearby in Needham Market. One bedroom is already earmarked as the craft room!

And finally I made an ATC with some peach Opal Polish in the background

Daisy, Daisy

 

These lovely bright daisy papers were free with issue 94 of Creative Stamping Magazine - along with a fab set of Garden Gnomes stamps!

They were cheery cards to make on a wet and miserable day!

Three of a kind

 

I made 3 cards yesterday using the Formula 1 racing car image that came in the magazine I bought last month, as you can see they are very similar but with slight variations in layout, colours, wording and backing papers. 

I'm going to be hunkering down this weekend, as the forecast is for snow, which seems a very good excuse to stay in the craft room and make more cards!

Feeling Sporty

 

There are loads of different sports depicted in the freebie stamps with this months Creative Stamping Mag!

This means I shall be making loads of cards for the sports fans around, practically every popular sport is included.

Stocking Up

Well, I wasn't the only person who headed to to Hobbycraft to stock up on card making essentials, as I had to queue for 20 minutes to get in, but at least I won't run out of double sided tape or card blanks now.

I also treated myself to Creative Stamping Magazine (issue 89) to inspire me through the next few weeks of lockdown.

It has encouraged me to do a bit of heat embossing - a technique I have sorely neglected for a while.

Christmas Circles

 

Last night I spent an enjoyable time making stenciled circles with my distress oxide ink pads on to the back of old Christmas cards from last year

Which today I have turned into a variety of different Christmas cards for this year ....

using lots of stamps that haven't seen the light of day for a long time!

A very good way to spend a rainy day.

Totally Tropical

I treated myself to a couple of magazines last weekend - Creative Stamping and Papercrafter, both of which had tropical themed flowers, leaves and animals as freebies.

The freebies included lots of clear stamps, die cut shapes, an embossing folder and loads of backing papers.

and of course, the magazines had plenty of ideas on how to use them to make  some bright and zingy cards!

So I've had great fun in making some new additions to my every growing pile of lockdown birthday cards.

Basketball Cards

I bought these felt basketballs back in October on holiday in USA - they go well with the stamp of a basketball hoop that was in a Sporting set of stamps from Creative Stamps Mag a while ago.

I've teamed them with a flaky brick wall backing paper for a very urban street effect!

More Stash Busting

I've spent a bit of time between Christmas and New Year crafting in a vain attempt to reduce my stash

These first couple of cards come from a Dovecraft pad that I bought back in the sales 4 years age!

This card uses rose corners from a 2018 Tattered Lace magazine and stamps from Feb 2018 Creative Stamping Mag.

And these couple of cards are using papers that have been around for ages!