Cute Card Thursday - Cheers

This week's challenge is to make 'Drink' themed cards, any type not just alcoholic ones!

I have used a Magnolia stamp - again I can't remember the name of it. He is coloured using Prisma pencils and some Sakura pens for a bit of glam. The papers are from the DCWV Glittered Christmas Stack. The greeting stamp is a Penny Black one cut out and layered using Nestabilities.

A Spoon Full of Sugar Challenge #23

This week's challenge was to use sparkle and bling on the creation.

So I have used a Magnolia stamp - cannot remember it's name and I have coloured it using Prisma pencils and have used Sakura stardust pens to add some sparkle. The paper is DCWV Rose Tinted Christmas Stack and I have added some paper flowers, brads and some gems.

Papertake Challenge - Dawnys Sketch #1

This is my entry for the Papertake Weekly Challenge. The sketch is:

And here is my card:

I have used the new Sugar Nellie Daisy stamp which I totally love! I can't remember who the paper is from but it is covered in daisys and has a matching tag sheet. I have cut out some extra daisys and put gems in their centres.

Day 305 - Friday 31st October

Who – From left to right – Zoë, her beloved Herbie, Edith and Joshua

What – Having a Halloween party – Zoë is looking particularly sad for some reason
When – MiddayWhere – Joshua’s house

Why – It is Halloween today – ofcourse! We all had a great time and the children all got hyper on excess E numbers!

Here is a photo of Zoe looking a little happier with her Halloween bucket

365 Challenge - Week 43 Layout

I have been naughty and rebelled for this week's layout. Anna asked us to use the photo from day 296, and "think outisde of the box" when designing the layout! Well I wasn't keen on that photo so I used the Upsey Daisy photo.

Day 304 - Thursday 30th October

Capture a morning routine

Who - Mummy and Zoe and her new favourite toy "Punkin"
What – Leaving for work and nursery
When – 8.00 am this morning
Where – Outside the front door in the rain
Why – It is what we do every morning from Monday to Thursday - but not always with Punkin, sometimes we have Teddy or Baby

Day 303 - Wednesday 29th October

Record a daily activity, remember we are doing a "week in our life". Use these questions for your journalling.

• Who – Me again
• What – Just got out of the shower
• When – 6.47am
• Where – my kitchen
• Why – because it has the brightest lights to take a photo that early in the morning and has a shelf that I can rest the camera on to take a self portrait.

Day 302 - Tuesday 28th October

We are going to do something different this week. I have loved Ali Edwards idea of a "week in the life" concept. This week lets take snapshots of our week, self portraits of course!, and keep our journaling to a simple bullet list.

• Who - Claire
• What – a hardworking and conscientious IT Manager
• When – Always ... ... obviously
• Where – Haskins at my desk
• Why – Because I get paid to be here, otherwise I would be home doing something much more interesting like scrapping!!!!

Day 301 - Monday 27th October

"The darling buds of May" - An appreciation of what is fresh and new.

Not much in bud in October, but I have noticed this evening that my beloved Dracena has another new shoot. I have had this plant for about 10 years and it started off quite small. It must have at least tripled in height since I have had it. I love it and would be really upset if it were to die.

Secret Crafter Saturday Challenge #4

The final card challenge for a Saturday. I have christmassed up my new Penny Black stamp again.

The sketch is:

My card is:

Sketch Saturday # 22

This is the sketch:

And this is my card:

A Sugar Nellie Home Grown stamp with DCWV Christmas stack papers.

Friday Sketchers # 25

Yippee, I won last week's prize of 2 Rachelle Ann Miller stamps!!!

The challenge this week:"The sketch is easy - i just thought that it would be an extra challenge for everybody to find a image that is more horizontal rather than the vertical images. We are curious what you come up with and what stamps you have. Since the sketch does not indicate were the sentiment or embellishments have to be, you can let your creativity go loose :-)"
I bought a new Penny Black stamp which isn't particularly Christmassy but I have added some glitter etc and used DCWV Christmas Stack papers.

The sketch is this:

And my card is:

Day 300 - Sunday 26th October

"Best bib and tucker" - best clothes

Show us your posh frocks!

Not posh frocks but I treated myself to some new pyjamas today – my other ones are all a bit big now and I wake up with the trousers halfway down my legs. These were on offer in La Senza on buy one get one free. So I had a sexy silky pair and a lovely warm brushed cotton ones (pink with sheep on ;-) – which aren’t so sexy!!!!

Day 299 - Saturday 25th October

"Bats in the belfry" - crazy, eccentric!

Show me your crazy side.

This isn’t my crazy side, but James’. He likes to wear Calvin Klein boxer shorts and he loves crazy colours. He already has a pink pair and when he saw these today, he couldn’t resist them – even though they are £20 a pair!!!

Cute Card Thursday - The stars at night

This week the challenge was to put some stars or something spooky on your cards. So I decided to make my third Halloween card. I used the cuttlebug Haunted House embossing folder on Coredinations black card and then lightly sanded it show the inner core purple colour. I used halloween coloured ribbons and some halloween themed buttons and some more Little Yellow Bicycle glittery stickers.

A Spoon Full of Sugar Challenge #22

The theme for this week's challenge is simply Halloween. So here is my Halloween card again using a Magnolia stamp - this one is called Tilda with Spiderweb. The spiderweb is from Jaycue on UKS cut on the CraftRobo. Little Yellow bicycle stickers (there is a spider on the web, but the photo flash makes it look too shiny!) Halloween coloured ribbons and some buttons.

This card will be given to one of Zoe's friends at her Halloween party next Friday.

Papertake Challenge

This week's challenge is a halloween one! Anything you like - cards, bags boxes tins etc etc as long as it's Frightful but delightful!!

Zoe is going to a Halloween party next week so it was a perfect excuse to make a card for one of her little friends who is also going to the party.

The spider web is cut on the Craft Robo (thanks to Jaycue on UKS for sharing the template). The stamp is a Magnolia halloween stamp called Tilda with Spider coloured in using Prisma pencils and then I have added some halloween coloured ribbons, a pumpkin button and some glittery stickers from Little Yellow Bicycle.

365 Challenge - Week 42 Layout

This is my layout for week 42. Only 10 more weeks to go. What will I do when this challenge ends!! I have made such good friends over the past year.

We could chose a photo from the week. I chose my favourite photo but changed the title to a different one.

Day 298 - Friday 24th October

"upsy daisy" - An exclamation made when encouraging a child to get up after a fall or when lifting a child into the air.

Again another easy one! Zoë is absolutely mad on the In The Night Garden TV programme and her favourite character is Upsey Daisy. Our house is full of Night Garden merchandising from comics, to toys and books, to clothes and even her wellies.

Day 297 - Thursday 23rd October

"The bees knees"- Excellent - the highest quality.

Well this is an easy one. Our corporate is a bee and as part of our re-fit and re-launch we have had it redesigned slightly – he is a bit more hairier now. This huge bee is over the front entrance of the garden centre.

Day 296 - Wednesday 22nd October

"Think outside the box" - Think creatively, unimpeded by orthodox or conventional constraints.

I want you to use this "saying" when taking your photo today, think outside the box!

I cannot take the credit for this photo today. We have had a nig GCA meeting at our garden centre in Ferndown to showcase our new cafe and the re-fitted centre. The managing director’s PA had to take lots of photos of the centre for a presentation and she used my camera. So I had a look through the photos she took and decided to use this one.
Our Christmas department opened at the end of September and this is the animated display that greets the customers when they enter the front doors.

Day 295 - Tuesday 21st October

"An Englishman’s home is his castle"

The English dictum that a man's home is his refuge/ his home.

Not my castle but one of Zoë’s favourite toys – her Weebles Wobble Castle.
Oh to be a child again and have no cares or worries other than when you can have more sweeties and you can quite happily live in a make believe land!

Day 294 - Monday 20th October

“There's a side of my personality that goes completely against the East Coast educated person and wants to be a pin-up girl in garages across America...there's a side that wants to wear the pink angora bikini!” - Mira Sorivona - American actress

Do you have a side of you personality that wishes to be a little more daring or eccentric?

I am always envious of those that are little eccentric. I always associate eccentric or daring people as artistic and creative and these are traits that I would love to have. I would love to have their quirky dress sense – somehow they always look good in whatever they wear and I just know that I would look hideous in the same outfit.
I am not sure that I would want to be daring. Since I have had Zoe my life has gone nice and quiet and I like it that. I don’t miss doing all the things that I used to do. I am quite happy to be at home watching TV or doing my crafting. As a working mum I don’t have the energy left at the end of the day to be daring and I certainly don’t have the figure for a pink bikini – angora or not!!!!

Day 293 -Sunday 19th October

"Tickled Pink" - to be delighted

Well Zoë was certainly tickled pink to be able to spend a day with her beloved cousin Connor.

Secret Crafter Saturday Challenge #3

This week there was no sketch but a theme, set by KIM and it is "Blue, White and a little bit of snowflake!". Well a lovely Penny Black stamp and snowflake papers and ribbon had to be the obvious choice.

Sketch Saturday # 21

The sketch this week was for a square card but I adapted it slightly to fit on a rectangular card. Not overly happy with the way the card end up really - but it is one to add to the christmas card stock pile.

Day 292 - Saturday 18th October

"In the PINK" - means in perfect condition, especially of health.

I am not feeling in the pink at all. I have had this cold for over 3 weeks now and the antibiotics don’t seem to be relieving my sinuses at all.
Today we have been out today with my mum and brother down to Poole Quay and although I was feeling rubbish, I still had a lovely time.
I saw this pink Harley motorbike and thought how perfect it was for the pink prompts for the week. The photo doesn’t show it very well, but the paint work had a glittery effect to it – my type of bike.

Friday Sketchers # 24

I am really enjoying these card challenges. It is the thing I find the hardest to do - come up with a design, so having a sketch takes that bit out of it and I can enjoy choosing papers and colouring the image in.

The Friday Sketchers sketch is:

My card is here: - used a Sugar Nellie stamp and various papers from an old Scrap A Go Go Greetings kit. I will use it as birthday card for one of Zoe's nursery friends.

Cute Card Thursday - Autumn

The challenge this week is to make an Autumnal themed card. So here is mine:

Day 291 - Friday 17th October

"I don't think I will ever get tired of wearing pink" - Emma Bunton

Zoë wears lots of pink in all shades. As she has such an olive complexion and dark hair it really suits her.
We have been to Moors Valley Country park with some friends from nursery today and she had great fun playing in the park. As usual I took hundreds of photos and I think this one has to be my favourite and it just so happens to fit the prompt for today too.

A Spoon Full of Sugar Challenge #21

This is my entry for the A Spoon Full of Sugar challenge number 21. We were given a sketch to follow. I have used a Sugar Nellie image coloured with my beloved Prisma pencils and glittered. The papers are from the Basic Grey Dasher pack. The sentiment is from Papermania.

Day 290 - Thursday 16th October

“Slow buds the pink dawn like a rose From out night's gray and cloudy sheath; Softly and still it grows and grows, Petal by petal, leaf by leaf.” – Susan Coolidge

I have struggled a bit to get a photograph as there isn’t much left in the garden in flower. As I walked down the path and looked up at our rambling rose, right up high, there was a bud about to bloom. I managed to bend the stalk down enough to grab a photo of it against the late afternoon blue sky – most unusual for mid October.

365 Challenge - Week 41 Layout

There wasn't any prompt as to what to do for our layout this week. I wasn't very happy with any of my photos and my "pair" one is about the only one worth scrapping. I have used various papers from old Scrap a Go Go Greeting kits and I have staggered them to give the illusion of stairs.

Day 289 - Wednesday 15th October

“The very pink of perfection.” - Oliver Goldsmith

Mother Nature seems to manage perfection on many occasions. These are the flowers that James bought me at the weekend to cheer me up as I was feeling so poorly.

Day 288 - Tuesday 14th October

This month is Breast Cancer Awareness month. I am personally going through my own journey this month, of ups and downs, hospital visits and call backs. I believe we are all woman doing this challenge so I thought it very appropiate to use our 365 prompts to "think pink".

“Almost all words do have colour and nothing is more pleasant than to utter a pink word and see someone's eyes light up and know it is a pink word for him or her too” - Gladys Taber

Do you have a pink word?

Anna further explained this prompt as a word that gives us inspiration and hope. I am not sure that makes it any clearer for me. I think my pink word would be LOVE.
The love of my family and friends certainly inspires me and gives me hope.

Day 287 - Monday 13th October

"All right me old china" - China Plate - mate

I am pretty hopeless at keeping in contact with friends – as I move on I make all these promises to keep in touch but my good intentions never seem to last.

My oldest friend is Tina who I was recently Matron of Honour for. We both moved into a new estate – I was 9 and she was 8 and we were next door neighbours. We soon became best friends. We don’t see each other very much nowadays but when we are together, it is like we have never been apart. As my oldest friend she was the most obvious choice to be Zoë’s Godmother.

Cute Card Thursday - Buttons and Bows

And finally, for Cute Card Thursday, the challenge was to make a card using buttons and bows. So an ideal opportunity to make another Christmas card.

The image is a Sugar Nellie Snowman.

Sketch Saturday # 20

My, I have been busy today.

This card is for Sketch Saturday. The sketch is:

And my card... ... I am building up a good pile of christmas cards.

Penny Black Saturday Challenge #18

This week's challenge is called Thanks a Bunch. No sketch or other guidelines to follow.

This is my card.

Secret Crafter Saturday Challenge #2

The sketch for this challenge is:

I have made another Sugar Nellie Pirate card - again for one of Zoe's friend's birthday. I love this little pirate but sadly do not own the stamp and the images I have used are stamped by a friend - Thanks Jo xxx