The Black Swan

Another quick card using an unused rubber stamp - this one was from the patterned birds and bugs set by Inkadinkado which I've had for quite a while now!

Why haven't I used this stamp before???

This black heart was part of the Romantica set by Elusive Images that I have had for ages - I was just flicking through my stamps when I noticed this one had never been inked up. So I just stamped it out to see what it looked like and was very impressed with the detail on it.

I scattered a few diamond gems in the centre of the flowers and added a round Craftwork Cards sentiment in the middle which seems to work quite well - in fact I might use this for my Brother-in-Laws forthcoming wedding now. Must go an have another rummage to see if there are more forgotten treasures in my stamp collection!

Baby Cards - Just in case!

I don't know anyone whose pregnant at the moment but made these 2 new baby cards to keep just in case!

They are more cards that I've put together to use up some of my huge pile of papers - didn't really make much of a dent!!!!

Botanical Carftwork Cards

Yes, I got a bit carried away with the free Botanicals papers from this months Simply Cards & Papercraft magazine and churned out these 5 cards in an evening!

I already had the butterfly shapes in my stash( a bargain off eBay)

as I am a big fan of Craftwork card stuff.

I have loads of their card candi in different colours and sentiments too. They are printed on quality paper with lovely fonts!

A few more LOTV cards!

Still have fun making more cards with these cute Lili of the Valley images!

Lili of the Valley Rules!

I've falling in love with these fabulous Lili of the Valley images - 20 of them were free with a magazine and I'm tempted to go out and buy another copy to get another set!
I've just spent a couple of hours unwinding from work by colouring them in and they have such great detail to them. I can now see why crafters are so keen on them!

Loads of Men !!

I had the day off today and spent the morning watching daughter at her sports day - it was very cold! I then popped into my local craft shop to get my ticket for a local papercraft show on Sunday and spotted a set of Kanban male word toppers which matched the free papers from Creating Cards magazine which then just fell into my basket.
I then spent the afternoon trying to warm up by making these cards. Just like buses, the inspiration for cards for men seem to come along together!!

Yet another Owl Card!

I don't know why, but everytime I try to make a male birthday card it ends up with an owl on it!

Good Luck Card - First of Many ??

I work in Local Government where the cuts are starting to be felt and this card is for a colleague who is leaving as her contract hasn't been renewed. In fact, my Council is looking to loose between 10-20% of it's staff next year and no-one is safe. I just hope I manage to keep my job as I am the breadwinner for the family.

Anyway, back to this card - the black cat is a Personal Impressions stamp with a little green bow as an embellishment. The hot pink card has a X-cut leafy lace border. I hope I don't have to make too many good luck cards for my friends in the next few months!

Elephants Parade

Just love this digi stamp of 2 little elephants with a flower and teddy bear - still trying to use up pieces of my stash, think this is going to be Mission Impossible!

Teenage Girls!

Didn't know quite what to make for my cousins teenage daughter so came up with this from Bo Bunny- it reads

I am every emotion times ten

I conform yet I am rebellious

always obeying but still an outlaw

always talking but never heard

I am a Teenager!

I thought it was very appropriate!!

More for the Men!

I've been playing with some blokey papers from Creative Cardmaking Magazine to make these cards - one for a Son, Dad, Grandad and Brother!

Funky Pussy Cat!

These Pink Petticoat papers came free with Quick Cards magazine so I hunted in my stash for something a bit different to use with them - instead of a cute or girly image, I decided to use this funky cat sticker for a change!

Yummy Cupcakes

Not real ones, I'm afraid - I'm a rubbish cook! But a couple of birthday cards featuring a pink cupcake with a cherry on the top and a sprinkle of glitter.

I'm entering these into Little Claires Pink & Brown challenge.

Owls Rock!

Yesterday hubby kindly took the kids swimming so I had the whole afternoon for a bit of 'me time,' which just has to be spent making cards! I managed to make 8, including these 3 blokes cards above. I had bought a copy of Creative Cardmaking Magazine in the morning so I had lots of new papers to play with.

Summer Days

I made this card after looking at the layout at Inspirational Card Sketches. I've had these lovely brown paper roses for a while and glammed them up with a bit stickles glitter glue. I've made this for my niece - hope she likes it!

My First Play with Appley Dapply!

Well, I could not resist playing with my Beatrix Potter prize ( see yesterdays posting) so produced this Thank You card to send to Crafters Companion to thank them for all the goodies!

I also had a play with the CD rom and found some papers for ATC's as well!

Lucky, Lucky Me!

I had a parcel waiting for me today when I got home from work- I have won the Crafters Companion Beatrix Potter competition from Cardmaking & Papercraft magazine!!!

In this pile of goodies I received 12 Appley Dapply Nursery stamps and a matching crafting CD-Rom plus a set of 2 large Rock-a-blocks, a can of stick & spay and 20 sheets of card - what a fabulous prize. I can't wait to try them out!!!

Having a bit of an OwlFest!

I don't know why, but I seem to be producing a lot cards and ATC's that feature different owls at the moment!

A couple of these are from this months Papercraft Essentials magazine and recently I bought 2 sets of stamps that feature owls as well.

As its chucking it down with rain today I feel a crafting session coming on - mowing the lawn will just have to wait a bit longer.

A Birdie with Black Lace

I haven't had much chance to craft this week as we have been re-decorating our bedroom. This has meant I have had to let go of some of the card making magazines I have been hoarding at the bottom of the wardrobe.

Flicking through those mags from 2008, it seems that things have changed so much in 3 years. Cards now look much more sophisticated and complex!

Anyway I just had the crafting itch and so used this cute little birdie stamp from Inkadinkado patterned birds & bugs set for the first time.

What A Hoot!

I picked up a set of cute Owl stamps made by Personal Impressions for a bargain price of only £2.23 including postage from eBay - Well Chuffed!

So of course, I had to try them out straight away and also use up a bit more of my stash at the same time. I had no idea how the flapping owl was going to turn out when I started, and the red colour was a bit of an afterthought. The ribbon was from a bundle of towels I have just bought and the background papers I have had for absolutely ages

Are Big Stamps On Trend???

....well according to this months Cardmaking & Papercraft mag they are! So I dug out this stamp of a sunflower that has been sitting unloved and unused at the bottom of my stamp drawer for several years!

It was lightly stamped in brown as the background and then the central image coloured with promarkers with a bit of distressing around the edges. I quite like the effect and might try it again with a couple of other jumbo sized stamps I have.

Watching the World Go by!

I downloaded this lovely image from Digital Two for Tuesday ages ago but have only just got around to using it.

They have loads of free vintage images on their blog and at the moment have lots of ladies with 1920's cloche hats!

A Pink Castle for a Little Princess!

A very pink and girly card for one of my daughters friends! The paper is from the 'In Love with Japan' stack from the Wild Rose Studio with a few jewels as flower centres for bling. The image was coloured with my good ol' trusty Promarkers!

Spots Before the Eyes!

A while ago I was lucky enough to win a large box of Craftwork Card Candi from a magazine. They come in loads of different colours and they are one of my most used embellishments! I now see they come in a spotted design, so think I will have to add to my collection as I love the effect. The Craftworks blog has some great ideas for using them on your cards.

This card was made with Kaisercrafts Nans Favourites papers and loads of candy spots - the sentiment is a Craftworks one too - they are printed on lovely quality card with a slight sheen to it and always look great. As you can see I'm a bit of a Craftworks fan!!