Cook up a card October recipe Challenge card

I came across a new Challenge blog a few weeks ago. Susie sets a recipe Challenge on Cook up a card each month which you have to follow to make a card.
October's recipe was:

• 2 Rectangles.
• 1 Button.
• 1 Ribbon &
• 4 Pattern papers.

I used 3 different K+Co papers and the spotty paper is Basic Grey - for my 4 patterned papers.
The green ribbon is from my stash an I think I might have bought it in Cornwall.
I cut 2 rectangles with my scalloped rectangle nesties and embossed the kraft one with a Cuttlebug folder to give it some texture.
I then cut 4 Nestie scalloped circles from the patterned papers, distressed them and layered them into a flower held together by a button from my stash threaded with string.
I added a Thank you sentiment with stick on letters.
Why don't you come and join in with the Challenge, there is a little prize up for grabs and the recipes are really good fun.
Hope to see you there! The link is on my side bar.
Jane
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Moving along with the times sketch Challenge

I really enjoy taking part in the Moving Along with the times Challenges and this time there was an extra Challenge element that was too tempting to resist: no stamping!!! I don't make many cards without stamps so I thought I would have a go.

There was a great sketch to follow by Clare C, I love the squares and thought I would use some of my Labels Nestabilities for them. The brown card is Kraft card that was a birthday present from Petra, the backing paper is Crate paper which I bought from Ally Pally, the button was from a pack at Quixotic Paperie and the letter stickers are Making memories.
I really enjoyed this Challenge, the no stamping rule made me 'think outside the box' and was a perfect excuse to use up some of my Sizzix shapes, I have loads precut and they are always abandoned in favour of my stamps!
Hope you are having a good week so far...
Jane
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Fiakarettes Design Team project: An autumn Magnolia card

This is my 3rd Project as a Design Team member on the Fiskarettes website. As autumn is definitely in the air, I decided to make an autumnal card using my Leaves template for the shape cutting system.

To make the card:
1. Fold a piece of A4 card in half to make the card blank then cover with 2 coordinating My Mind's eye backing papers trimming to size with the Fiskars paper trimmer.
2. Cut a strip of orange backing paper and punch using the Fiskars scalloped paper punch and stick to bottom of card front. Weave a piece of narrow green ribbon through some lace and stick over scallop edged strip onto card.
3. Stamp image twice onto white card using the Fiskars stamp press and colour with Promarkers. Ink the edges of the image on the rectangle shape. Lay the Leaves shape template over the second coloured image and when happy with the positioning cut the image out. Ink the edges of the leaf shape with distress inks. Layer up both images using foam pads making sure the edges match up.

4. Stick the completed topper to the card with more foam pads.
5. Stamp the greeting onto a small rectangle, ink the edges and embellish with stick on gems.
6. Add a small green ribbon to the leaf stem and layer up a button tied with string onto a paper flower and add to top right hand of card.

This is the first time I used my Leaves shapecutting template and I loved how easy it was to cut such intricate shapes. I have lots more ideas on how to use the shapes for future projects. I can't believe I am already half way through my time on the Design Team already, I am really enjoying using the products, especially the Stamp press and paper trimmer, they make life so easy and allow you to be so precise when positioning stamps and trimming papers!
Jane
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Elzybells Challenge 28 - Case a DT member's card

This fortnight's challenge on the Elzybells blog was to case a DT member's card. I chose a card by the very talented Michelle. I just love all the cards she creates as a member of the Elzybells Design Team an I knew I would love the opportunity to 'case' one of her cards.


I recently order some Halloween stamps from Elzybells and chose to use these to reproduce Michelle's DIY ted card which is pictured below. I stamped the background panel used Versamark and the mini message strips then matted on to a darker shade of purple card. I then stamped the Halloween trick or treat trio and cut out the Mummy, he is so cute! I coloured him with Promarkers and cut him out and mounted him with foam pads to the card. I then stamped 'Boo!' directly on to the card and coloured with Promarkers.
Such a quick and easy card, would be great for invitations!
Thank you Michelle for creating such a lovely inspiring design for your card. Please go and check out Michelle's blog to see more about this card but beware you may end up stuck there for a while browsing her beautiful cards and projects.
Charlie and I had our first Puppy training class tonight and we were useless! All the things Charlie had learnt so far seemed a distant memory to him and I felt really embarrassed at being the only dog owner whose dog could not concentrate! Oh well! We can only improve! I have signed up for another 5 classes so we will see how we get on. Monday nights are certainly going to be interesting from now on :-)
Hope you had a good Monday.
Jane
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New Fiskarettes Design Team Project Sneak Peek

I couldn't resist sharing another sneak peek with you of my next Design Team Project for the Fiskarettes Website. My next project will be published on Tuesday and I can't wait to be able to share this with you!

I am really proud of the way this Project turned out as I tried to do something a bit different with the Fiskars tool. Make sure you pop back here or to the Fiskarettes website on Tuesday to see the whole project!
Hope you are having a nice Weekend!
Jane
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Get Funky Challenge - Halloween!

Boo! Happy World Cardmaking day to one and all of you! Finally got around to doing some crafting today after a long morning watching Jack playing Football. It was the first round of their cup games and they got through after extra time and penalties! I think my Hubby found it more stressful than watching his favourite team play.
I decided I would make something to take part in Anice's Get Funky blog challenge. This month's theme is Halloween and I have made a little trick or treat bucket.

I chose the Daisy design papers from the Funky Wordbooks cd. I printed the lilac and green daisies backing papers and the lower case letters.
I used an empty Slimfast container and covered it with the green backing paper. I then cut some scalloped borders with a Fiskars punch and added them to the top and bottom of the paper. I punched holes in the side of the bucket to thread through an Asda sparkly purple headband for a handle and embellished that with an organza bow.
I then cut some labels from the purple card to match the scallop borders and another from the lilac daisies paper. I doodled fake stitching on the label and stuck on letters from Funky Hand and American crafts.
I stamped an Elzybells witch from the Trick or treat trio and coloured her in with Promarkers, cut her out and stuck her to the panel with foam pads.
I made up a flower from felt flower shapes, a purple fabric flowetr and some die cut shapes and stuck to the top right hand corner of the label. I embellished with a few gems.
I decided the bucket was looking a bit empty so I made some treat bags from cellophane bags and staples a Nesties label on with fake stitching an a stamped Boo! Coloured with Promarkers.
I am really proud of the project, hence the photo overload!
A couple more things to finish off today so I may be back later!
Jane
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Fishing Funky Hand Wordbook

I had printed and cut out all the pages for this Funky Hand Wordbook and finally had some last night to finish it off. The card is an order from my Friend Helene to give to her Brother in law who is French.

Eric is from Provence so I used colours reminiscent of the countryside and the lavender fields.

His passions include Fishing and cooking so the Elzybells Fishing Ted stamp was perfect to add a bit of decoration to the inside of the wordbook.
I printed out the sentiments on the PC. Helene gave me a sentiment in French to add to the inside of the card.


I used some charms I bought at Ally Pally to make a hanging embellishment for the front of the card. I started another card as well last night but can't post details of it yet!
My Craft desk is now a complete mess, it was already untidy before I started and it now has the scraps of at least 4 projects strewn over it.
Time for a serious tidy this weekend! I always plan to be ruthless and go through my stash to get rid of some of the bits and pieces I don't use but somehow get sidetracked by Blog Challenges...
Have a lovely Friday!
Jane
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Stampin' up Party

I went to my first ever Stampin' up Party tonight. I had a really nice time. The Party was hosted by Caroline who works at the Ashridge Farm Craft shop and also runs Carann Crafters. I ordered the tab punch (I have been after one of those for a while) and a set of tree stamps. I also picked up some good tips for future projects.

There was a 'Make and take' and we made a lolly card. We tried out some of the punches and stamps.

It was a lovely opportunity to have a chat with other crafters and to finally see Stampin' up products in the flesh. I had been looking forward to going for ages! I was expecting to feel more enthusiastic about the products but only saw a couple of sets I really wanted to order. During the demos the stamping did not seem to come out very even which put me off a bit, the treat bag above was stamped with a roller stamp and I think it looks quite patchy...could be the ink maybe...I will see how my stamps perform when they arrive!

Am off to bed now! Am hoping will have some time for a crafting session tomorrow, I felt really under the weather yesterday and had to go to bed early :-(

Jane
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A recipe for Cupcakes...

I made this card this evening to take part in 2 blog Challenges. The Monday Challenge on the Fiskarettes website is Spots and Stripes (2 of my favourite patterns!) and I am also taking part in the first Challenge for the Cook up A Card - Recipe blog.
The September Recipe is to use:

• 1 Flower
• 2 Ribbons
• 3 pieces of Chipboard

I used some of the stash I bought yesterday at Alexandra Palace for the card.
I cut a piece of orange card with my Fiskars paper trimmer and rounded one edge with corner shaper scissors. I then cut a rectangle of striped card which I matted on to blue to give a slim border.
I cut some circles with the Circle cutter and layered them up. The Cupcake stamp I got from Sugar and Spice crafts was stamped onto striped Paper Crate paper and spotty My Mind's eye paper and was paper pieced.
I added some blue ribbon to the striped rectangle and matted onto the orange card.
The topper was assembled with foam pads and I added a flower to the top of the cupcake.
I used Making memories chipboard letters to spell out 'cup' to the left of the card, I added some folded ribbon tab details to the 'U', set an eyelet with the Eyelet setter and tied ribbon through it.
I finally stamped the greeting and finished off with some stick on gems.
I like the summery feel of this card and it fits in well with the weather we have been having lately, let's hope it lasts!
Jane
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Magnolia Thank you card

This is another Thank you card for a Friend. The Magnolia image was received in an image swap.

I cut all the shapes with Nestabilities. The papers are from the DCWV Baby Girl stack and I coloured the image with Promarkers. The green flower was also coloured with a Promarker and the sentiment is Elzybells.
This is the first time I have used a Magnolia image and I think she is really cute, I have recently bought a Magnolia stamp of my own which I hope to try out soon.
Jane
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Congratulations Card

I made this little card to include with the Blog Candy which I sent out this week. I used the lovely Elzybells Scrap and Stamp image and an Elzybells sentiment stamp. The layout has been kept quite simple.

The image was coloured with Promarkers and the backing paper is K+Co. The ribbon is an old belt I kept from a shirt which was thrown away ages ago and I finished of the card with some stick on gems.
Jane
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Look what I got today!!!

I went to Alexandra Palace today with my Friends and had a whale of a time!! I spent far too much money, saw lots of interesting and clever people and got loads of goodies to play with!

I met Linda from Oak House studio whose blog I follow and bought some of her stamps, a tree and some oak leaves, a My Favourite things stamp, a cupcake stamp set, a new ATC back, a Lili of the valley stamp of a little girl on a swing with a puppy that is soooo cute!
I got 20 sheets of 'Crate paper' 12x12 scrapbooking paper for £5.00 in some packs from Willow tree crafts, a Basic Grey 6x6 stack for £2.25 and some lovely chipboard letters...
I treated myself to 2 new sets of Nestabilities and a Quickcutz photo corners die...
I got lots of pretty embellishments, ribbon, pins, brads, lots of Prima flowers, gems. I also stocked up on the basics, envelopes, adhesives, card bags etc... I had a great day and can't wait to start playing with all my new stash. I also swapped ATCs with some other crafters and watched a great demo by Sheena Douglass, she is so clever and also very entertaining!
Here are my Friends Petra and Helene with bags of stash as we were leaving.
Can't wait for the next outing now! I am hoping to go up to Birmingham in November.
Hope you all had a lovely weekend!

Jane
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Whiff of Joy Thank you card

I made this Thank you card to give to one of my Friends to Thank her for my lovely Birthday presents last week. The image is Whiff of Joy and was received in an image swap with a blog Friend. The backing paper was won in a blog candy recently.


I cut the image out with a labeks Nestabilities and layered onto a brown scalloped square, this was then layered onto a lime green square.
The image was coloured with Letraset promarkers and was layered onto the matted and layered backing paper. I chalked the paper to give it a distressed feel.
I layered some paper flower and punched an oval to stamp the Elzybells sentiment onto.
The lace was coloured with Promarkers and was stuck to the backing paper before adding the stamped topper.
I scheduled this post today as I will be at Ally Pally all day but will hopefully be back later with news about my day!
Jane
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ATCs for Ally Pally

Last time I went to Ally Pally in April they kept announcing ATC swaps over the PA system and I wasn't able to take part as I didn't have any ATCs with me :-( I am going to Ally Pally tomorrow so I thought I would make a batch to take with me this time.

I used the Elzybells Scrap and Stamp set to make these ATCs. I chose some nice backing papers and coloured the images to coordinate with them. I embellished the image with a gem and cut it with Nestabilities and mounted it onto a black scalloped circle. I then stamped the 'Stamping is my Therapy' sentiment directly onto the backing paper and put the whole thing together. I really love this little stamp and hope that whoever receives my ATCs will like it as well.
Only one more sleep until Ally Pally!!! Wooohoo!!!
Jane
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BLOG CANDY WINNER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The blog candy winner has been picked! Ryan wrote out all the entrants names and Jack's innocent hand picked a winner from our trusty Sainsbury's red label tea caddy. The winner is........

Hazel (Didos)

Congratulations! Please email me with your address and I will send the blog candy out to you asap.
Thanks to all of you who took part and keep your eyes peeled for more candy!!!

Jane
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Birthday and 100 post Celebration Blog Candy!

***********CANDY IS NOW CLOSED!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!************

To celebrate reaching my 100th post on my Blog and my Birthday at the end of the Month I am offering the shamelessly pink candy below.

The package includes:

• a Magenta Promarker
• a bundle of pink and purple ribbons
• a sheet of Doodleug icon stickers
• 2 Little Claire designs tag card blanks
• a pack of lilac Kaiser Rhinestones
• A Craftwork cards Cupcake chipboard album and binding ring.

The blog candy will stay open until the 25th of September and (I hope!) this post will stay at the top of my blog until then. I will randomly draw a winner on the 25th.

To be in with a chance of winning, please comment on this post, tell me what you would love to receive as a present for your next Birthday. If you would like to mention my Candy on your own blog, I would be very grateful!
Good luck!
Jane
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You are a star!

For my second Fiskarettes Design Team project, I decided to challenge myself to make a card without using any stamping.

For this project you will need a square card base, kraft card, My minds eye papers, Basic Grey and Making memories letter stickers, a K+Co chipboard letter and various Fiskars tools.

1. Cut a square of brown kraft card 1/2 a cm smaller than the card base using the Fiskars paper trimmer, then cut a square of green card 1/2 a cm smaller than the Kraft card and finish off with a square of patterned backing paper another 1/2 cm smaller. Matt and layer all pieces on to the front of the card. The graduated ruler on the paper trimmer makes matting and layering so easy and precise and very quick too!

2. Cut circles in decreasing sizes from various materials using the shape cutter and circle templates. I used the template to mark the circle on the orange lacy fabric and cut with my trusty Fiskars scissors. When the circles are all cut layer them up and stick together. The larger green circle was stuck flat on the card but the smaller one was raised on foam pads to give the card some dimension.

3. Cut a star from Patterned paper with the Fiskars squeeze punch and stick to the smaller circle. Embellish with a button. The punch is easy to use even without applying too much pressure and gives a really neat finish to the cut shape.

4. Stick backing paper to a chipboard letter ’S'. I used quick drying PVA and stuck something heavy on the letter while it was drying to make sure I got a nice smooth finish. When the glue is dry, cut around the shape to trim off the excess paper with the finger tip craft knife. As this is really small and you have such great control of the blade it is ideal to cut around awkward shapes. To give a neat finish, file the edges of the shape with a nail file.

5. Stick the chipboard letter on the largest circle and add die cut letters and letter stickers to complete the sentiment.

I like this card as it shows how you can make an effective card layout using a few papers and tools. Cutting the shapes with tools make such a difference to how neat the card looks and makes it look much more professional!

Jane
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A perfect Birthday!

It was my Birthday today and Thanks to my Wonderful Family and Friends, I have had a perfect day!
I was truly spoilt by my Husband this morning with a tin full of Promarkers. I already had about 50 and he bought me the colours I was missing from the original 92 colours! I am so excited to have the full collection and can't wait to get colouring and experimenting with shading etc...

I my got lots of lovely pressies from my Mum and Dad and money to spend too and lots more pocket money from my inlaws and Nannies to add to my Ally Pally shopping fund :-)

I went into work this morning as usual and was greeted by a banner at our Office door which really made me chuckle! Petra and I made this banner for a Friend's birthday earlier this year and my Friends decorated the office door as well.
I was further spoilt with a gorgeous homemade cake to share with everyone at work, it was so yummy! Petra's cakes are really the best I have ever tasted! I also received handmade cards too which were so pretty.
These are my lovely pressies I received from my Friends Petra and Helene, lots of lovely Craft stash to play with, papers, card blanks, ribbons, embellishments, enough to keep me out of mischief for ages!

The pink box is a milk carton that Petra gave me with some gorgeous buttery crumbly biscuits inside. I also received a very pretty book with lots of ideas and tips for homemade projects which I am going to snuggle up in bed with in a wee while.
We went out for lunch today too and were able to sit out in the sun, we also popped in to the Craft Shop at Ashridge farm for a warm up shop in preparation for our trip to Ally Pally :-) I restrained myself and just bought some lace, stick on gems and some American crafts paper, I spent less than £5.00 which is unheard of for me!

I thought I would add a little photo of Charlie taken today, he is growing so fast! We will be able to take him for walks next Tuesday as he will be fully protected from his jabs by then. He is still very cute and naughty and pesters poor Patch the cat all the time, she has no patience with him and he thinks she is just the most amazing thing he has ever seen! I hope one day they will be Friends...

Am off to bed now, Thank you to everyone who has made my day really special! I feel so lucky to be surrounded by such a lovely kind and caring Family and wonderful Friends.

Jane
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September ATC swappers ATCs: My favourite stamp

I made some ATCs for Paul's ATCS swappers monthly swap. The theme of the swap this month is 'My favourite stamp'. It is really hard to pick a favourite but I do really love this little Snoozing ted stamp from Elzybells and I have used him on so many cards for men and ladies, it is very versatile and so cute!


This time I paper pieced the sofa with K+Co papers and coloured the Ted in with promarkers. The letter stickers are Making Memories.

If you are interested in taking part in Paul's swap, you can contact him via his blog. I also run a monthly swap. Take a look here for more details and some photos of past swaps.
Jane
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Stampin' Chic Challenge card

This is a card I made to take part in Clare Curd's Stampin' Chic challenge. The photo does not really do this card justice as the colours seem to have gone a bit funny...in real life the green of the 'Mum' letters does match the other green card used!



The challenge this week was to follow a sketch. I love the Clare Curd 'Big One' paper pad as you do not need to put much else with it to make stunning card. I cut out and layered up some flowers and added them to a Nestabilities circle, the flower stalks are cut from a Cuttlebug shape. The letters are Basic Grey and the scallop strip was punched with a Fiskars border punch.
I love all the polkadot papers in this paper pad as spots and stripes are my favourites :-)
Hope you are having a good week.
Jane
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Carol's sketch fun challenge card

I made this card earlier this evening to take part in Carol's sketch challenge but I think I missed the deadline :-( I had trouble with my camera running out of battery and then uploading piccies so I think I was a bit late!
It doesn't really matter though as I had lots of fun making the card.



Carol had provided a lovely sketch for us to follow again and she has a lovely prize up for grabs. I will have to make sure I am a bit more organised next time!
Oooh! Nearly forgot, image is Messy Rabbit coloured with Promarkers and glossy accents and the paper is DCWV Christmas stack, ribbon is from my stash and the snowflakes are confetti embellished with a gem. Sentiment is Elzybells.
Jane
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New Fiskarettes Design Team project sneak peek

My latest Design Team project will go live on the Fiskarettes blog on Wednesday. I made the card last night so I thought I would give you a sneak peek.

I challenged myself to not use any Rubber Stamping on this one, quite hard for someone as addicted to rubber stamps as I am! I decided to gratify my other addiction....patterned papers, and in particular polka dots. I love polka dots and stripes, if I had to choose 2 patterns and forsake all others, they would be my choice :-)
Am hoping this week will fly by as I am off to Alexandra Palace on Sunday for a LOT of retail therapy! Are any of you going? I am looking forward to seeing Linda from Oak House Studio who will be there as her stamps are just fab and some of my favourite local shops will be there too with lots of Show specials!
Can't wait!

Jane
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PS. Remember there is still time to enter my Birthday blog candy which I will draw the day after my Birthday on the 25th!

My First Whiff of Joy card

I received some gorgeous Whiff of Joy images in a stamped images swap (Thank you Claire !) and this is my favourite. I think the girl looks so cosy and the image is really peaceful.



I am going to see my Mum this weekend, she has been quite ill and had a stay in hospital this week. It was bad timing as my Mum and Dad moved house yesterday! I am going to see them for the Weekend so I wanted to take a card for my Mum. She still has to rest so that she can get completely better so I thought the Take it easy sentiment from Elzybells would fit well with this image.
I coloured the image with Promarkers and layered it onto K+Co papers and corrugated Kraft card. The scalloped border was cut with a Fiskars punch. The ribbon was a bargain buy from Hobbycraft and the flowers are Prima mixed with a Sizzix flower diecut from lacy ribbon.
I really liked combining the orange blue and brown on this card and I can't wait to colour the rest of my stamped images and make them in to cards!
Jane
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Blue and Silver Messy Rabbit ATC

I made these ATCs quite a few days ago for Becky's Monthly ATC Swap. I have been practising my colouring with Promarkers and tried to get a shaded effect on Messy Rabbit.

I really love this little rabbit and I think he will be making an appearance on quite a few of my Christmas cards. I used glitter glue for the snow.
We have had quite a hectic week with both my Mum and Darren's Mum being ill and giving us a bit of a fright. They are on the mend now and I am off to spend the weekend with my Mum and Dad tomorrow so no crafting for me but lots of unpacking as they will be settling for good in their house in Swindon.
I hope you all have a lovely Weekend!

Jane
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A Special Couple Card - First Fiskarettes DT project

This is my First Design Team project for the Fiskarettes blog. I bought this paper recently and thought it would be ideal for a Wedding Card.

1. First cut a large card blank using my Fiskars paper trimmer. I made a large card which was 20cm square so cut one piece of card 20cm X 20cm and a larger piece, 23cm X 20cm. I scored and folded the larger piece 3cm in from the edge on the shorter edge of the card and stuck both pieces together covering the join with a piece of ribbon.

2. I layered pink, cream pearlescent card and the backing paper onto the front of the card. I cut the first piece the same size as the card front and trimmed the 2 other pieces so they were slightly smaller with my paper trimmer.

3. To make the topper, I stuck my Elzybells Wedding couple stamp onto my Easy stamp press and stamped the image onto white card. I use unmounted stamps for most of my crafting so the stamp press is ideal for me to get a perfect stamped image every time. When I have finished I just whip the stamp off and am ready to go again. I coloured the image with Promarkers and matted it onto some pink card to frame it nicely.

4. I took inspiration from the lace pattern on the Backing paper to make a punched border panel to set the stamped panel into. I used the 2-in-1 Corner & Border Punch - Vines to decorate the edge of a panel I had trimmed to size with my paper trimmer. The paper trimmer is great as it measured in inches and cm.

5. The vines border punch looked very complicated but after reading the instructions I realised it would be very easy to create a beautiful border. You simply set the tool in the corner of the paper and punch, there are then notches on the punch to make sure you get the paper in the right place for the rest of the border so you can’t go wrong.
The design of the border has perfect little photo corner slits so I popped my stamped panel into them.

6. Before sticking down my backing paper, I added a length of ribbon to the front of the card, tucking the raw edges under one of the layers. I secured it with a tiny piece of double sided tape on the front of the card to stop it from moving around. I then stuck the stamped and punched panel onto the front of the card with foam pads and tied a bow with more ribbon to the side of the topper.

7. I stamped my Sentiments using the Easy Stamp press on to some white card, cut them out and matted on to cream card before sticking them to the front of the card with foam pads.

8. I finished off the card with a paper flower and a pearl heart.

I love the border punch so much and can’t wait to use it again on another project!

Why not pop on over to Fiskarettes and sign up to join in the fun, there are Challenges, Competitions and loads of inspiration. You can create your own profile and upload your projects to share with the rest of the Fiskarettes!

Jane
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