The Other Side Of Me

I've been dying to ink up my 'Feeling Sentimental' stamp set.  I knew this year I would only be able to afford one Sale-a-Bration item, and decided fairly quickly that this had to be it: I realised after I'd made this that I'd missed a perfect chance here, because Peter used to be a policeman, so I wondered if it would have been better with the phone box on it (I could have done it in blue, couldn't I?)  I saw a version of this card on Pinterest a while ago by Diana Gibbs and knew it would be one to make. I don't think I was concentrating fully when I made this as I didn't absorb that Diana hadn't embossed the whole white piece!  I decided to go with what I'd done and it made a nice variation on the original.  I was thrilled to have the linen thread and ribbon to make the little tag detail at the top.  The colours are Riding Hood Red and Early Espresso, so that's the last of my Riding Hood Red gone.  I only had two sheets of it s...

Hello, I hope you're having a good weekend.  I've just got back from the cinema where we went to see Iron Man 3.  It turned out to be really good. I've been busy crafting, too.  Here's the card I made for my son's birthday last Tuesday: I've had this idea in my head for quite a while.  My son is at college studying music and I knew I wanted to put some sort of music on his card.  I bought some Tim Holtz washi tape in case I got desperate but I also ordered the music notes wheel from SU.  I've wanted this for absolute ages and I'm nervous that it might be retired so I thought I'd better buy it while I have the chance. It hadn't arrived by the time I had to make the card, so I started fiddling about with ideas with stamps and cardstock, when, 'plop', a parcel fell through the letter box.  I legged it to the door and lo and behold, my latest order had arrived.  I got out some black ink, inked up the wheel, and away I went (thanks Ann...

I promise I will be back later with a post showing my birthday cards, but I need to be quick to get this card on before the deadline. These are the colours for this week's colour Q challenge: I have been dying to use my new Clockworks set from Stampin Up, especially for my son in law's birthday on April 1st.  So I have a masculine stamp set in my hand, and then I see these colours, which shout 'masculine' to me, so I put them both together and came out with this: The cardbase is Lucky Limeade.  I've substituted Garden Green for Glorious Green, too.  I stamped the sentiments in the middle, covered them  up with a piece of card, then stamped various images around the edge of the card, which leaves this lovely border.  The two small cogs are stamped in Lucky Limeade, as is the clock.  I had great fun with this, here is a close-up: This is actually heat embossed.  My stamp-a-ma-jig got quite a work-out here, as I stamped the clock face ...

Evening, everyone! I've recently decided to cut down on the number of challenge blogs I follow to help myself stay focused a bit more, so the plan is to enter the ones I've got left as often as possible. So I've made a card for this week's Friday Mashup challenge, which is: 1. Make a project with a "Time Theme". 2. Or Make a project using the "Color Black". 3. Or "Mash it Up" and create a project with a " Time theme using the color Black". I can't believe this challenge has come along the day after I've ordered the SU! Clockworks set.  Of course, it won't arrive in time for this challenge, so I had to get my thinking cap on.  It wasn't long before I did what any sensible girl would do, and ran to my local craft shop for inspiration. I ended up buying an embossing folder, and this is what I made: At first I tried embossing black cardstock, but didn't like it, so then I swapped and got some green core...

I've had one of those conversations with lovely, lovely hubby.  You know the sort: DH: Can you make me a birthday card for work, please? Me: Of course darling, who's it for? DH: (In a voice of doom) A male colleague  (Cue thunder and lightening!) Me: (Swallowing) No problem.  When do you want it by? DH: (Casually) Tomorrow. Me: You're 'avin a larf! But have I let the situation defeat me?  No, I have not!  But I would like to say a huge thankyou to Freshly Made Sketches , for coming up with one of the most wonderful, and inspiring, sketches I've ever seen. This is what they've given us to work with: And this is the card I made using the sketch: I actually made a prototype card first, just using paper, as there was quite a lot of measuring to work out before I put everything together.  The card is 5x7" but then I went into metric for everything else (The joys of going to school in the '70's!) I cut a 7cm x 7cm square in white card...

I feel I've come full circle as I make my first birthday card of the year, which is always for my friend's son.  He will be 9 on Sunday.  For the past few months, he, his dad and his brother have taken up Ju Jitsu.  I've known for a while the exact image I wanted to use for his card.  Check this out: Of course, it's Teddy Bo doing his karate!  How perfect is this?  It's a digital image, so I adjusted the size to meet my needs and printed it off onto my beautiful smooth paper. I decided to give him a red belt (I actually had to research this!) so coloured his hat to match.  I've backed it with Real Red cardstock.  The tartan paper is from a nice masculine set of checks from Papercellar.  I've added some card candi bottom left in the same red as I coloured Teddy Bo's belt, grey and black.  The sentiment (Time to have fun) is by LOTV.  I cut the mount for it from a red scalloped die, then decided it was too big, so cut the sca...

Over on the Cards For Men challenge , they want to see 'Fancy Folds'.  I didn't even know that's what I was doing until I'd finished the card.  I'd been fiddling at my desk for ages and discarded loads of stuff and then got my Rudolph stamps out (from Woodware) and decided to have a play.  This is the result. I think it would make a great card for your brother or uncle etc.  I've been wanting to use this embossing folder for ages, but cut it square instead of leaving it as the usual rectangle.  I am very careful whenever I make a card like this, to make sure it's still going to fit in an envelope. And I'm obviously in recycling mode, as the red card used is actually from some old file dividers that hubby brought me home from work.  You've got to appreciate a husband that goes through his office, sees some card and thinks, 'Hmm, I know where this should go!'  Well it's better than throwing it away, isn't it?! This card was quite ...

Hello all, I hope you've had a good weekend, and have had a chance to get into your crafting area or maybe even been to an exhibition.  I would have loved to have been at the Doncaster Dome, but I'm afraid horsey business took precedence this weekend.  I've still been busy though.  This is the latest card I made for one member of our Bible Study group: Everything on here is from Stampin Up! and it was a joy to make.  We tore a piece of scrap paper with a jagged edge, then taped it in place about two-thirds over to the left hand side, covering up the rest of the card blank.  Then we sponged the revealed area with Old Olive ink.  We kept the scrap paper in place while we stamped the leaves in Early Espresso.  I wasn't too sure about these leaves in the catalogue, but they make a striking image when you use them, so these may well go on my shopping list. Next we stamped the tree in Old Olive, but used an Early Espresso pen just to dab ink randomly on t...

I've decided to use the fab sketch over at Sunday Sketch and Stamp  to make my husband's birthday card.  This is only the second time I've made his birthday card, and I find it quite hard work as I want to make something he will really like. And so, here we are: I often end up using a Forever Friends bear as I think they're so sweet.  I colour them with Blush and Pale Yellow Promarkers.  I'm not saying that's the only way to do it, but I like the end result each time I do it. I stamped the image again on patterened blue paper and cut the gift box out of it, then stamped it again on plain card, cut out the ribbon and tag and coloured them with a blue Promarker, then stuck them on. I have finally got around to using these truly awesome Kaisercraft Seaside collection papers.  In fact they're so awesome I've spent many hours just gazing at them and wondering what on earth I could do with them to do them justice  (and, I confess, stroking them, but ...

I made this card late last week, and when we went shopping I saw a man in the supermarket with this very thing on his T Shirt, so I felt as if I may have been barking up the right tree for once! I've made this as a Father's Day card for a friend to give to her dad.  I gave her three to choose from and this is the one she picked.   The VW camper van is from Little Claire's Designs, and as their Challenge No. 9  is to make a card for a man, I thought I'd enter this one.  It's a digi image, wonderfully clear and a pleasure to colour in. The papers are from MME, which I've had for ages.  The ribbon is from my ever growing collection (a girl can never have too much ribbon in my opinion!) I printed out the Happy Father's Day sentiment on my computer, then decided to stamp over it with my blank ticket sentiment from Bunny Zoe's Crafts.  It's rubber, so of course I can't see through it, so I decided it didn't matter if I missed, I'd ...

I have been having fun making some Father's Day cards, which I'll show you as I get time, but on Friday I put this together: I had great fun making the shirt.  I had to practise on some blank paper first.  There is an excellent tutorial here  (I use this website a lot.)  Once I felt ready, I picked some paper from my stash (it must be rectangular, but size doesn't matter) and hey presto, one shirt.  Obviously it's spotty, so I stuck on some card candy as buttons and cut out a bow tie shape, completely freehand, a first for me.  At first I left them white, but then decided to colour them a pale yellow with my Promarkers.  I was rummaging in my desk and found this paper, which was a magazine freebie last year, but it worked perfectly with the spots.  I cut out the sentiment and backed it onto contrasting paper, added the little photo corners, which you can't see very well, and there you have it.  I have found a lovely new challenge blog call...

As you know, I've been doing a lot of blog hopping lately, and I've come across some very good challenge blogs.  Now I've had a go at one or two, I can see it could become quite addictive, especially as I am now going to add my second post of the day! The challenge blog in question is Sunday Sketch and Stamp .  I mean, what could be more perfect?  I love to stamp and I love sketches for inspiration, so hopefully I'll be going there regularly.  Anyway, enough preamble, here is my card for the challenge: These papers are called The Linen Closet by DCWV and to say they're exquisite is not an exaggeration.  They are almost too beautiful to cut up. I've spent a few days just gazing at them and stroking them!  Most of them have some sort of texture and all of them work really well together.  I wasn't going to make this the first card I showed you (more tomorrow!) but I've got to whack it on quickly or I'll miss the challenge deadline.  Th...

I'm on a roll with cards for men and boys now.  Last week I had to do a 40th birthday card for a male friend of ours.  He is very into ships, and we'd bought him a book on cruise liners for his birthday, so I decided to stick with that as a theme.  I wasn't entirely happy with the card, as I thought the finished result was a bit 'young' for a man, but I would definitely make one again for one of my grandsons, as the concept is quite clever.  Here it is: One of the sails has got 'Happy Birthday' stamped all over it, which I liked, and I like the idea of his initials and age being the registration for the boat.  I just think it needs a little more background or something, I'm not sure. I wrapped his present just in plain brown parcel paper, but I'd stamped all over it with boats, anchors, seagulls and lifebelts, which looked really good, but that's what inspired me to make this gift tag, which I really do like: It was really easy and fun to make...

I love this card because: I've been wanting to make a card that has some connection with music for ages. on which I could put the phrase, 'You rock!' I've used a digital image as I had exactly one day to make this card to take it away with me and give it to my youngest son for his birthday on Saturday. I have wanted to use this shape for a card for ages but wasn't sure how to go about it. I am delighted with this because: it's for my youngest son who is now 20, but who loves his guitar and playing on Guitar Hero, so this is perfect for him. I worked out how to do the fold and made sure it fitted in the envelope!  I kept thinking I was making an easel card, which of course, it isn't, but I got there in the end. I'm not keen on digital stamps, as to me it defeats the whole idea of stamping and colouring.  However, I had a day to make this, as I said, and I'd like to say a massive thankyou to Squigglefly, whose image this is.  I can also see th...

I must confess it's taken me a while to get an idea for this challenge this month, as they want us to use patterns, stripes, dots, zigzags etc.  I decided to get the weekend out of the way, and then knuckle down to it before it's too late. And so here is my card for this entry: This is my first ever attempt at a Father's Day card, but these gorgeous new stamps from Lili of the Valley are so sweet I couldn't resist having a go.  I am definitely on a roll with cards for men now (two more to come that I've made recently).  The papers are by Papermania, and this colour scheme is the Blueberry Pie collection.  As you can see, I've used stripes and polka dots from the range. I have also decided to enter this card into another spots and stripes challenge over at Mami Doodles  .  Fingers crossed! Mrs O.

As you know, I have volunteered to make a card for each member of our Bible study group as their birthdays come around.  This card was made for our lovely friend Rex who is in his sixties.  As you know, it's not easy to make a card for a man, especially an older man, but I've been dying to make a card with a Bible verse on it and this seemed the perfect opportunity to give it a go.  I've obviously used Psalm 23, The Lord is my shepherd, and added the little sheep at the bottom.  I decided to keep it simple with backing paper, there's no point getting all frilly for a man's card, is there?  In fact, I made one before this that seemed a little bit too feminine, so this is actually Take Two! The paper is from MME Wild Asparagus collection, which I've used a lot in both scrapbooking and cardmaking.  Everyone in the group signed the card, and Rex really liked it, which is what counts, isn't it? Time for me to hop round now and see what you've all been up to...