Monday, 17 June 2013

My Besties Pearls and Lace challenge

It hardly seems like 5 minutes since I posted my teams last challenge and here we are a fortnight later and it's our turn again. This time around the theme is 
If you want to be in with the chance of winning $30 worth of digi images, then show us your Pearl and Lace creations using a My Besties image.
There are so many gorgeous images to choose from I always find it difficult to pick which image I want to use, but this time around I decided to go with the beautiful Daffodilla, but as it is now summer (well at least it's supposed to be) instead of Spring I used my artistic licence (bought cheaply at a local car boot sale, as you can probably tell LOL!) to colour the daffodils as sunflowers.

My Besties Image  -Img660 Daffodilla - coloured in Photoshop
Papers and butterfly - Just So Scrappy - Denim and Daisies Scrap Kit
Lifestyle Die - Doily Circle
Lace and pearl string - Stash
Ribbon and stick on pearls - Meiflower

The right hand edge of the card front follows the shape of the gingham border (comes in kit ) and is shorter than the card back, so the green curvy strip at the end is actually part of the card inside. I cut all the little scallops around the front card edge by hand, firstly out of the printed paper, then once the paper was stuck to the card front, I cut around them again, very time consuming, but I like the effect it gives.

Pop over to the challenge blog and check out the fabulous creations from the rest of my teamies.

613 Avenue Create - Anything Goes
Hobby House - Anything Goes
Digi Haven - Anything Goes with a Digi
Pennys Paper Crafty - 1 Image, 2 Papers, 3 Embellishments
Alphabet Challenge - I for Image
Glitter N Sparkle - 3 of Something (pearls in groups of 3 around die cut)
Sister act card Challenge - Anything goes
Challenges 4 Everybody -Anything goes

I would also like to take this opportunity to wish my gorgeous niece Nicola a very happy 21st birthday today, and a big congrats on your First with Honours in your Art and Fashion degree - being chosen to show off your collection at Graduate Fashion Week in London and being one of the 10 designers chosen by Victoria Beckham at Fashion week, to meet and have a chat with her, way to go Nic!

Thanks for stopping by,
hugs,
Colette xx

Sunday, 16 June 2013

Happy Father's Day

Just a quick post to wish all the Dad's out there a wonderful day!
I lost my dad many years ago, but am lucky enough to have a lovely father in law, and I always like to send him a bit of  jokey card on special occasions. When I came across this card front on Craftusprint on Friday, I knew it was the card for him.
Although you can't tell from the picture, the poster and speech bubble are added with a layer of foam pads, and the image is decoupaged up with about 4 layers. I didn't add ribbons or embellishments as I didn't think it needed anything else.


We are off out for a family meal this evening, there will be 16 of us all together, with four generations of the family plus my daughters boyfriend's mum, so we should have a fun time.

Hope you enjoy your day,
hugs,
Colette xx 

Saturday, 15 June 2013

Paper Creator challenge and my new Peacock!

Woohoo! it's the weekend again! shame about the grotty weather! At least there is something to look forward to as today is the start of the latest Paper Creator challenge and I got to pick the theme, which is

You don't have to use Paper Creator products, but if you do you get two entries into the draw for the £10 store voucher.

I decided to make three cards for the challenge, mainly because I used a fabulous Mega Bundle called Simple Cards, which contains 20 card fronts all using Sassy Cheryl images, (simple they may be, but they are also very effective).
Each one comes with two versions of the topper, (one with wording, one blank for adding your own) , matching inserts and the decoupage layers for the image. They all have swirls on too, which I thought would be perfect for glittering or adding gems to and at only £7 for 20 card fronts it's a bit of a bargain too!

Birthday Tweets
I added wording which I came across on the Sassy Cheryl blog to the blank topper and used all decoupage layers, then glittered around the inner blue line of the frame and all the swirls, added glossy accents to hair accessories and the heart on the envelope.The ribbon, birdie charm and tiny diamante ribbon slider are all from Meiflower.


 Swinging by to say Hi!!

I used the topper with wording and made up all the decoupage layers, added glitter around the inner edge of the frame, to all the swirls, her hair accessories and shoe laces, the string the star is hanging by and the spots on the star. I also punched some stars out of a silver glittery paper I bought at HobbyCraft many years ago, and added some yellow stick on gems from Meiflower to the ends of the swirls and the dot of the i.

and finally - Happy Thoughts
This time around I only used one layer of the decoupage, glittered around the inner edge of the frame, the hair bow, shoe laces, dress pattern and the little heart on ted's leg, added my own sentiment, (there is a freebie version of it on my blog HERE if you want to snag it)which is glittered around the edge and above and below the sentiment. The ribbon and charm are from Meiflower, as are the stick on gems which I went to town with, adding them to the swirls using a mix of turquoise blue and crystal, with a few more on the sentiment circle for good measure LOL!

Check the bundle out HERE.

Don't forget to pop over to the challenge blog and check out the rest of my teamies sparkling inspiration.

Now something that has nothing at all to do with cards - just before my birthday last month I came across a gorgeous metal peacock sculpture in our local garden centre that I thought would look lovely by the pond in my garden. I got enough money for my birthday to go and buy it (helped a little more by the fact that my friends daughter works in the garden centre and gets 20% discount) so yesterday, Julie, her daughter Alison and I went Peacock shopping, (which obviously included a small detour into the restaurant for cake and coffee LOL!).  Anyway, I thought I would show you a couple of pics of my new Peacock, standing by the pond, although I haven't quite decided exactly where it's final resting place will be yet.

as you can see from this photo I have a bit of a fantasy theme going on around the pond, with the fairy and goblin sitting on the side of the raised pond and the gargoyle in the background overlooking it.

The lower pond is covered with netting at the moment as my youngest grandson loves to run around out there, and we need to keep him safe, although he is pretty good and knows not to get too close to the ponds, we also need to keep the fish safe as there is a heron about and he has managed to get a few fish in the past.

Thanks for stopping by,
have a lovely weekend,
hugs,
Colette xx

Friday, 14 June 2013

Cream Wedding Anniversary card

I made this wedding anniversary card just using die-cuts, gems and little pearl heart embellishments. I think the card I used was rich cream and ivory, there is a slight difference in the colours which makes the die-cuts stand out a little from the base card.

Rich Cream and Ivory Card - Papermill Direct
Nellie Snellen Multi Frame Circles MFD020 Flower Circle
Marianne Creatables LR0130 - Doily #2
Lin and Lene - 1201/0012 Corner Die
Burgundy stick on gems and pearl hearts - Meiflower

Thanks for stopping by,
hugs,
Colette xx


Tuesday, 11 June 2013

Teddy Bea - Someone Special

A while ago I mentioned that my friend Julie had rung me up and asked me if I wanted to go the theatre with her and her daughter to see the Dreamboys, and somehow my befuddled brain translated that to Dreamboats, I thought she meant the musical Dreamboats and Petticoats, which I have always wanted to go and see, so I immediately said yes. It was only when talking to my daughter about it a couple of months later, and telling her that Julie must have got mixed up because I was sure she had called it Dreamboys, that I found out that I was going to see a male dancing/stripping group!!! so instead of a show full of net petticoats, rock n roll and jiving, it's going to be a show full of men, muscles and gyrating hehe!
Well the show is tomorrow night and I'm going to have to go - I've already paid for the ticket and it would be a shame for it to go to waste , don't ya think? LOL!

Before then I have a Teddy Bea card to show you.


Image - Teddy Bea_249 - coloured in Photoshop
All papers from Scrap box
Martha Stewart border punches-  half daisy and Deep edger Daisy Fan
Flowers made with X-cut Daisy palm punches in 3 sizes.
Metallic edged ribbon and gems - Meiflower

Thanks for popping in,
hugs,
Colette xx


Sunday, 9 June 2013

A Christmas Chuckle

My first Christmas card of 2013, made on a beautiful warm sunny day, something not quite right there LOL!

In October 2010 I bought a decoupage download from Craftusprint because as soon as I saw it the idea for a card popped into my head, with DT work and other commitments I never got the time to make up the card but the download was never forgotten, every now and then it would pop into my mind, I knew it was in a safe place until I found the time to make the card.  Well guess what? that day finally arrived yesterday, I printed out my decoupage sheet, some papers and wording and set about making the card I had planned all those years earlier.



and what exactly does Mrs Claus find when she opens up her present.........


Cheeky Santa Doodles Decoupage - Lee Jacobs at Craftusprint
Digital Papers and frames - Holiday Hoopla and Santa Baby - Just So Scrappy and Crazy 4 Monograms Dotty Border - Tonic Geared border punch
Polar White flower soft
All wording computer generated
Ribbon and red gems - Meiflower 

Well there you have it, might have taken a while but I got there in the end!

I am going to enter this card into the following challenges

Crimbo Crackers  - #43 Make me laugh
ABC Christmas Challenge - K is for Kept safe (my kept safe item is my decoupage download)
Holly Jolly Christmas Challenge - Must be Christmas - Use 6 or more layers (santa contains 6 layers of decoupage)


Thanks for stopping by,
hugs,
Colette xx

Saturday, 8 June 2013

Flipper Pyramage

Today I have a Paper Creator card kit that is decorated with flipper pyramage, something I hadn't heard of until I saw this kit. All the layers are taped into place along the top only so that you can actually flip them if that's the sort of thing you like to do with your cards LOL!

You can buy the Flipper Pyramage card kits separately at £1 each or purchase the mega bundle which contains 10 card designs for only £7.

Ribbons and satin rosebud trio - Meiflower
I tried to replicate the arrangement around the stems of the glasses as best as I could with my ribbons and rosebuds.

Thanks for calling in,
Have a lovely weekend,
hugs,
Colette xx