Di's December #3 Sketch

Three weeks into December already & this time next week it'll be Christmas day!! Woo-hoo!! Nope, I'm not ready, organised or even close! LOL.
Anyway, Di's sketch this week was a stunner & I love it ... even tho' I struggled with the li'l envelope: I'll definitely use a template next time! I've been playing with Prima product this last few days ... luuuurve anything kinda vintage/shabby or whatever, so I'm lovin' Prima too - & it's no coincidence that they have their DT call on right now *smiles*. Will share my DT application end of the month I think: I don't expect I'll be chosen from the thousand that apply ... but if not, I'll have some great projects to show for it, so it's all good! LOL.
Anyway, pop on over to Di's Blog to see what the rest of the DT did with the sketch ... & maybe have a go yourself?

A Fabby Early Christmas Prezzie!!

Did you see this post on the CCAYR blog?? Evidently this card is a winner & I'm now a proud member of the January to March DT! Obviously, I'm thrilled! LOL
I'm taking a break from Deanne's team this week & from Di's Team next week - with hospital visiting & the fact that I've not started my Christmas preparations yet, I just needed a li'l time off to concentrate on making all those Chrimbo gifts that I've planned. So I might be a li'l bit quiet this week ... but then again, I might not! LOL

Di's December #2 Sketch

The chilly winter is here & I'm finding myself drawn to these papers by Bo Bunny ... last year's collection but I do love them. the photo is a bit pants ... & you can be expecting more pants photos until I'm able to take them outside again - never mind 'twill be the spring soon! LOL.
So this is Di's December #2 sketch & I found it sooooo easy to use that I was able to create a few sets of crimbo cards for DS4's Christmas Fayre last week & have been dying to share the photos!

Why not give the sketch a try ... I bet you'll be glad you did!

Di's December #1 Sketch

Not the best photo in the world ... it has been soooo windy here that, even when it isn't raining, I've not been able to take photos outdoors. Anyway, Di's sketch this week was particularly festive, so I created this li'l lovely with scraps of Bo Bunny Teen Chic papers ... not traditionally festive but I'm loving the green/pink combi this year (as you might have noticed! LOL). There's a full supplies list on Di's blog but check out those pink/white circular patterns: Stampin' Up! Seeing Circles Stamp set & Pixie Pink ink (possibly my fave!!)
Wanna know how to make it or how to get those stamps for free? ... check it out on Mad Mumma Stampin's Blog.

Di's November #3 Sketch

I do love being part of Di's sketch team ... it gives me just the excuse I need to make at least one card every week, even when I'm not feeling creative. And that's usually enough to get my mojo going so I can create more cards all week long. I gave all my christmas cards away ... so I'm starting over for my own stash! LOL. It might seem like a daft thing to do but I quite like making them, so I'm happy to start over.

I thought I'd used all the Fancy Pants Holly Jolly scraps that I had but I found another bunch hidden away in a pizza box (I store my project supplies in them until I'm done ... most of the time they don't get unpacked again for months!) which is OK cuz I love this line ... although you might be sick of them now!!
Lots more machine stitching & a few odd embellies. The snowflake punch is a Stampin' Up! one, now retired I think & I made the crystal swirls using a Crafter's Workshop template that Auntie Jane bought for me last time she visited from the US.

If you haven't already, don't forget to 'follow this blog' (there's a link up at the top right), there'll be a RAK at the end of the month for all my followers!

Di's November #2 Sketch

As much as I love Di's sketches, I found this one a bit of a struggle & I'm not entirely sure I like the end result. I just isn't how I saw it in my head IYGWIM. It was definitely a great one to use up a bunch of scraps & odd embellies tho!

There's a li'l bit of Teen Chic paper there & the rest is basically odd bits that I had lying around on my desk. I think I'm gonna have to clear it up soon ... the scraps just seem to keep going on forever!
Check out Di's sketch - & if you do something with it, do drop me a comment - I'd love to see it!

Di's November #1 Sketch

Here's my DT card for Di Hickman's latest sketch. This was a really easy one for using up scraps! I've used Bo Bunny Teen Chic papers but I guess you are going to be seeing them a few more times yet ... these scraps seem to be going on forever!! Be sure to check out the other DT card & snag yourself Di's free digi files ~ they are only free for a li'l while!

Di's Oct #5 Sketch

Back with another scheduled post while I'm enjoying a half-term break! We don't really do Halloween but this fun sketch (October #5) from Di Hickman was just crying out to be a Halloween card ... & all the paper scraps were still on my desk from a recent layout! DS1 is going to a Halloween party at his best buds this weekend, so I made this with him in mind.
The supplies list is on Di's blog if you want to have a lookie - & while you are there, check out the rest of the DT cards & maybe have a go yourself! And ... did you know Di offers her sketch templates as free digi files? You have to hurry tho' as they are only available for a limited time!

Di's Oct #4 Sketch

Another fabulously easy-to-use sketch from Di this week! This is another of those could-be-for-Christmas-but-doesn't-have-to-be cards using Fancy Pants Holly Jolly range. As it's another scheduled post, hopefully by the time you get to this one (in a li'l over a week) I will have finally finished these scraps! LOL.
I had a bit of a problem with my sewing machine (it's one of those li'l hobby ones) - the tension spring flew out & I couldn't get it right again - then the thread snapped & wuddenly, after partially re-threading, it's fine again - so I've been going a bit OTT with the sewing since. Happily, my stitching has started getting straighter too - so I don't have to claim it's for deliberate 'quirkiness' any more! LOL.
Pop over to Di's blog for the rest of the DT cards ... & for the sketch!

Di's Oct #3 Sketch

As I missed the deadline for this one, I have no idea whether it was included with the other DT samples (& it's a scheduled post - so I can't check first) this week - but I loved the sketch & had a go anyway!
More of those fancy pants Holly Jolly papers (I did a bunch of LOs earlier in the year & came across a ton of scraps while clearing out) - they'll be popping up again for a while until they are all gone!! The flowers are from the HOTP citrus flower pack - hadn't realised before how well they would work together! & much as they are Christmas papers, I think this card would be good for any 'party' kinda event - birthday maybe?
Pop on over to Di's blog & have a go - it's a great sketch!!

Di's October #2 Sketch

I'm not entirely sure that I like this card - love the colours but maybe it shoulda been an anniversary card - or a sympathy card even. Anyway, this is Di Hickman's October #2 sketch. The papers, lace cardstock & alpha stickers are all Autumn Leaves, Manhattan; the button & card blank are from my stash. Oh! and I made the sentiment tag by drawing around my ink pad! LOL.
So let me know what you think, OK?

Di's October #1 Sketch

Wow! October already!! I guess the more organised among us is thinking Christmas about now but I had rather more Christmas cards than I was planning last month - so here's a good old fashioned card for a loved one. Rather predictably, I'm still wading thru scraps on my desk (these were from a layout recently) using the fab Blue Awning from K&Co. Check out Di's Sketch here!

Di's Sept #4 Sketch

Here's my DT card for Di Hickman's Card Sketch this week (Sept #4). As always, really easy to use. I've used scraps of Fancy Pants Holly Jolly & a Maya Road chipboard butterfly, coated with Doodlebug flock ... full of yummy texture!
I've not crafted so much lately ... been busy in the garden & building my new 'green' blog. More on both fronts soon.

Fab's Big Christmas Challenge!

I totally missed Fab's Christmas Challenge last month ... 7 cards for July & the deadline for August is today - so another 8 due! So to stay at 'nutter' level - that's 15 Christmas cards ... go on, count them ... a total of 16!!!! (yup! mis-counted & made an extra one! LOL)
I'm not totally sure that they count as technically these are new year/happy winter cards ... I have a lot of friends who do not celebrate Christmas as such ... but it's still nice to let them know I'm thinking of them.
All these cards are based on this sketch by Di Hickman, the same one I used for my thank you cards last month too. Really great for whipping up a batch of cards quickly!! It works really well with the smaller 4.25" square cards, so your supplies go a really long way too!
More cards coming later this month!!

Di's Sept #3 Sketch

OOOOps! The problem with scheduling posts is you have to get the dates right! LOL. This one should have published LAST thursday & it wasn't until I scheduled this week's one that I realised what I had done! LOL. Anyway, this was the post:
I couldn't decide which of these two cards I liked best. The top one, I used as my DT card for Di Hickman this week ... mostly cuz it has more 'substance'. Still using up scraps of Cloud 9 Designs Cocoa Mint as for last week, in fact I've managed to get a bit ahead of myself and scheduled this post on 9th September - go me! LOL. The rubz on this one are Upsy Daisy Designs, left over from a DT entry earlier this year.
The second card, I think I might like more than the first. It's slightly simpler, with the papers doing all the work for me. The flowers are a mixture of Yummy Cupcake Daisy Layers & Dahlia Box Blends, both by Petaloo - luuuurve their fabric blossoms! LOL. The rubz on this one are Scrapworks - I use these soooooo much, which is great while they are cheap!
Other than thank you cards (of which I have plenty right now) & some Christmas cards, I don't actually need any for the next few months so I've been struggling a li'l bit with what type to do ... & what to do with them when they are made! I think I have my answer & have decided to make a few boxes of assorted cards up for my sister in law, MIL & grandmother-in-law as Christmas gifts (yup! kids are back at school for the Autumn term ... time to think Christmas, folks!)

Di's Sept #2 Sketch

Back to Christmas Cards with this week's sketch from Di Hickman. I've been really slack at posting projects just lately ... but if you take a look at my Etsy store, its not because I haven't been crafting. I'm back to scheduled posting ... it's the only thing that works for me! LOL
I have been struggling to keep up of late, so if you are waiting for me to e-mail you, send you stuff or whatever ... please bear with me, I haven't forgotten about you & I'll get to it as soon as I can.

So, back to Di's sketch. The top card is the one I submitted & used up the couple of Noteworthy scraps I had left from my last layout. The one below is all scraps again, this time Cloud 9 Design's Cocoa Mint, from a layout I did a couple weeks back - love these colours & have enough scrap for a few more cards yet!
The rub ons are Scrapworks ... on offer in the webstore right now at 25% off - I really like this font & if your letters aren't straight, it looks deliberate! LOL. Talking about the webshop, I know some of my International visitors are disappointed that they can't buy from us ... Good News! Although I had trouble setting that up thru the store (don't ask, it's a long & tedious story!) I can do it thru the Etsy store. So if you see anything there, we can post it to Etsy as a special order, converting the cost to US $ ... cool huh?

Catching Up With Di's Sketches

This first card was my DT entry for Di's Sept #1 sketch ... but was in fact, my third attempt: The first one I hated, the second batch were, I thought, too simple & this one , I really like. I used Noteworthy scraps from the last layout I posted, with just a li'l ink & stitching to give a 'country charm' sorta feel to it ... v. feminine but I love it! All it took was a couple of odd paper flowers & some buttons (odd ones, same size ... they don't need to match!) ... finished!
This is such a versatile sketch & although the new one is up now, I can see me using it a whole bunch more! Especially as that sentiment stamp was a magazine freebie that came as a set of three (just as soon as I find where I stashed the other two! LOL)

The 'playtime' card was my first attempt at the sketch & at first I hated it. The problem was that I had the proportions all wrong (see, you can go wrong with a sketch, it seems) ... I added the ribbon in an attempt to sort it out, which didn't work - & then I added the flourish in the top corner. Still not my favourite card, but I like it more now than at first - live & learn! LOL
I have tons of these papers that are around a year old now & it was a case of either using them or chucking them out ... & I hate to throw things away! They are actually Christmas papers but I think they are pretty enough & not overtly Christmassy, so I've used them a lot of late.

As you can see in the next pic, I used the same sketch in it's simplest form & a bunch of toning 4" square card blanks to whip up a whole bunch of 'thank you' cards. These are the same 'Christmas' papers with the same stamp & a bunch of the co-ordinating artwork cut outs that came with the papers. A whole load of paper punched flowers secured in two layers makes for really easy cards. I have more than enough cards now for all the lovely birthday stuff I received & even to pop a blank one in with every webstore or etsy order. In fact, I've even listed a bunch of these on Etsy for others who might need a number of inexpensive notecards in a hurry. This was my first attempt at batch making cards - can you believe that I have never done that before???? I'll certainly do that again tho'. Some nights when I'm just too tired to think, it's nice to just cut a bunch of paper strips or make up the flowers, or if that is already done, I can just assemble them without thinking about design or whatever. Cool!
The last couple of cards were made for Di's August #3 sketch (totally missed #4!) but I forgot to e-mail to her DOH! Scraps again, this time Cloud 9 Design's Sunrise Smoothie ... & a few odd Flowers/Buttons (I really want to buy some more flowers but kinda thought I should use some of the old up first???). The rub ons are DCWV ... about 4 years old, so it's all about using up not just the scraps but all that old stash too - I'm seriously trying not to buy a whole bunch of new stash & to work thru what I have - it's an obscene amount of stuff really! The second card was really just to use up the scraps left from the first one ... did I mention I hate waste??? And I'm definitely into stitching right now too!

Di's August #2 Sketch

There was a bit of a glitch with blogger the other day it seems ... in fact I guess it could have been google as a whole - I say that because my e-mail was down at the same time. The upshot is that the scheduled 40 days winners post & this one, completely disappeared!
Anyway, the first card is my DT sample for this week's card sketch and the second one is a simpler version of the same sketch. I do like to make multiple cards from Di's sketches! LOL. You might have noticed that these (there are others too similar to warrant posting) are thank you cards. This ties in with Di's 'Theme Thursday' this month, which couldn't have come at a better time for me. I have absolutely no thank you cards in my stock ... & I need a whole bunch of 'em due to the Big Birthday! LOL. So you can expect to see a few more this month too.
And in case you were wondering ... yeah! It's all scraps again!!
Why not have a go at the sketch yourself ... or maybe join this month's theme & make some thank you cards - hey! do both!!!

Be back later with that 'winners' post.

Another Di Card - August #1

It seems that, unless I schedule these posts, I don't quite get around to blogging them ... not until the 11th hour at least. So I'm spending tonight (Monday 11th August) scheduling some catch up posts. Gotta love scheduled posting! LOL.
Anyway, this is last Wednesday's sketch ... & you still have time to whip up a quick card & get linked up before this week's sketch!
I'm still using up scraps & old stash ... HOTP Earth's Palette papers, scraps of HOTP 8x8 Vintage & Karen Foster Loopy Brads (unopened after about 3 years!!)
Check out the next post for some more cards ... yup! more scraps!!

Am I A Scrap Addict?

Evidently Deanne Burton thinks so!! I have just joined the Layout Sketch DT over on Deanne's fabulous blog ... Along with a few other names you might know! Go check it all out ... but first, just have a look at that cool blinkie over on the right column ... cool huh?
So, the deal is I'll be designing a cool layout for Deanne on the 1st & 15th of the month using one of her fab sketches ... & you can join in too - just link her up in the comments section when you've done yours ... so fun!
And don't forget the Pen Pals Challenges - you still have a few days to join in challenge #1 & grab a cool prize ... and join us in the coveted 'Pen Pal of the Week' spot.
I'm also sticking with Di Hickman's card sketch team ... even if she tries to shake me off ... I ain't goin' nowhere! LOL.
I haven't forgotten about the outstanding 40 days prizes ... struggling a bit to get straight at the mo - I feel another catch up post coming soon! LOL