November 2011

November 6th 
Wow, I can"t believe it's November already! First of all welcome to new blog followers and thank you for posting comments!
I've had such a busy time trying to fit in card orders and a couple of craft fairs and events with 'the day job' and still it goes on..thankfully I have a backlog of cards to post. Tom (My husband) and I had Friday off to go up to the NEC to the big craft show and had a great time. This year I also got to meet a fair few of my fellow 'Twitter-Arty', Cazz, Jax, Carol, Lynne, Craftmad to name a few and also to chat to some of the C&C presenters and demonstrators...Nigel May, Leonie Pujol, Martyn Parker, Nancy Watt, and many more. I was disappointed that Sue Wilson and Creative Expressions weren't represented at all, but a big mention for Polkadoodles creator and owner...and also C&C demonstrator, Nikky Hall..we tweet and it was great to meet her and get some super stuff from her stand. 

Last year's photo was with Nigel and Leonie (see first blog page) this year I am adding one with Martyn Parker...all good fun! Opposite, Martyn and Leonie crafting demo


And now for a card!

I seem to be on a bit of a 'roll' with mens' cards...considering they are my 'Pet-Make-Hate', but I like it when I can make ones that are simple and a bit 'different'. This is a 6x6 size card, topped with heavyweight embossed matt gold card, which is turn is matted and layered with harlequin card, printed from the Polkadoodles "Wonderland' CD. I then added a layer of black and another layer of harlequin.This was topped with a rectangle of another pattern from same CD. The crowns were cut from my Cricut, Paper Doll Dress Up cartridge and the swirls and tag were spellbinders dies. The card was finished off with a couple of brass brads.
It sounds like a lot went into this card and yes there are a lot of layers, but really it was quite quick to make.


That's all for tonight...I'm going to try and get one up a day between now and Christmas..let's see if I manage it!


November 7th


This evening I am going to an invitation only 10th Birthday Christmas shopping evening at local gift/craft shop 'Out of the Blue' in Chipping Sodbury. I love this shop - not only do Amy and her mum buy in superb quality, trendy, folksy beautiful gift ware, but also the very best and latest  in crafting products - including Tim Holz,Kanban and many more. So if you are reading this, live in this area and have never been inside this shop, where have you been? So, I am looking forward to picking up more craft stash and Christmas presents tonight!

Today's card is one I was asked to make a few weeks ago. As it was a young couple getting engaged I wanted it to be young and quite vibrant. I hope I hit the right note, I am told they loved it!
I printed the greetings on the front of an 8x8 card, after first of all sketching my design. The wording didn't come out of my head, I have, I am sure seen it on a card in a shop!
I cut the larger hearts in various sizes from the George and Basic Shapes Cricut cartridge, the very small ones are from a little punch, as are the butterflies. After attaching them all with small pinflair glue (slightly raised) I used the wonderful Creative Expressions Cosmic Shimmer Pearl PVA to careful add the small pearl drops. I love Cosmic Shimmer, you could never have added so many little adhesive pearls and I think these look so effective!
That's all for now,  Carole x


November 8th


I had a super shopping time at Out of the Blue last night...a glass of bubbly, wonderful cupcake and some Christmas shopping..Heaven! I then joined Tom in the pub opposite where he was reading his book over a pint and had a glass of wine...and all on a Monday night!


I made so many of these animal cards using the Joanna Sheen 'Furry Friends' CD, that it's only right to add some to this blog. I am so glad I photographed them, because most of them sold at the craft fair.
This is one of my favourites...I am really taken with all the Union Jack stuff and so glad it has remained on trend! This 6x6 card was covered in union Jack backing paper printed from the CD and then topped with layers of red, white and blue card (of course!) and finally the good old British Bulldog. I finished it off by tying red, white and blue grosgrain ribbon across the bottom...think it's kind of fun!
















November 9th

Today was one of those days! Everything I touched either broke or went wrong! I got all the housework finished yesterday, so I could truly spend my day off catching up with card orders..I still haven't made my own Christmas cards...oh my!


The first card I made, a Christening for a baby boy, was fine..but I had to make 2 for the same person. The second one looked fab, until I realised that I had added the front topper upside down! And so the day continued, until this afternoon disaster struck...the handle on my Calibur broke! Spilt in two...awful, what to do? I found some really tough thick black tape and now, whilst it doesn't look 'pretty'  - it works, which leads me to breathe a deep sigh of relief!

Today's card is back to being 'girlie'.This is an 8x8 card, which I topped with a layer of pale pink card from stash, followed by polka dot paper, printed from one of my Polkadoodles CD's.


I cut and embossed a ribbon circle die (spellbinders teardrop circle set) and threaded it with pink satin ribbon. The pram  was cut from the Cricut Sampler cartridge. I also used a small shapeabilities die in the left corner and attached polkadot ribbon from stash.


A border of lace and an edger cut from a Martha Stewart punch was placed across the card and the greeting was printed on to a labels one, small nestability with a flourish accent die to finish it off. The nestie was distressed around the edges using spun sugar Tim Holz distress ink. 


November 10th

It was a very long day at the office today...one long meeting in fact and quite frankly, Im feeling shattered...so less of the chat and on with the card tonight...


A very simple one...I just love this photo! it is from the Joanna Sheen 'Furry Friends' CD. The card is 8x8. The first layer is black card, to which I added some pale grey check scrapbooking paper from stash. Then a layer of black coredinations, which I distressed, a layer of matt silver, a layer of grey, which I faux stitched in white around the edges, a layer of distressed black again and finally the photo! A lot of layers I know, but in 'real life' it really makes the photo pop. I finished it off with 3 tiny polka dot buttons.
Hope you like it!
Carole x


November 11th


My craft room is in a state of utter disorder...again! Honestly, I waste so much time just tidying it up after a crafting session...but then every crafter I speak to says the same! I discovered today that I can just download a QR reader, unique to me, add it to my cards and people can just scan it and get to this blog! How cool is that? I have Tom to thank for the suggestion...

I'm afraid today's card isn't a terribly good photo. It's a small easel card, again using the Furry Friends CD (Joanna Sheen).


I covered the base card with some  brown paper and some script paper from stash and I matted and layered the photo on the brown paper and some matt gold mirror card. The flowers where made using a punch, layering and attaching with metallic brads.


In keeping with the 'books' theme, I made a little book using the script paper for the cover and glued scrap bits to make the pages. The 'binding' is a piece of gold ribbon and I tied very narrow brown silk ribbon around the 'book; finishing off with a tiny button. I actually photographed this card before tying a greeting to the ribbon.
That's all for tonight, hope you like it! Carole x


November 12th

My craft room doesn't look any better..I tidy my desk in between projects, but the rest is going to have to wait!

As I have been working hard to try and fulfill orders for mostly Christmas cards lately and have yet to upload the photos, I am going to delve into my files of cards made over the past year. This is a bad photo, so apologies. This is a pop up card, so the interesting part is the inside! I don't make too many pop ups, I really like them, but I have to be in the mood as they can be a bit fiddly...this one was really time consuming as there are so many elements and was made for a request. I used  a template from my collection to cut the ship itself and I made the waves and clouds. The ship is attached to slits in the bottom of the card and tabs on the back were stuck to the card with heavy duty double sided tape. I covered the inside of blue cardstock with blue mirror card and the 'Happy Birthday' greeting is a Martha Stewart stamp.

November 13th


I have some of the Crafters Companion Beatrix Potter CDs and when I first had them I made a lot of cards from their content, but need to revisit early next year as I haven't used them for a while. 
  As with most CD's there are a few images, which are used more often, because I like the pictures. I love Jemima Puddleduck and I think this is the best picture on the CD. 
  This is an 8x8 easel card, and I adhered the base image to silver mirror card, just leaving a small border. I then decoupaged the picture. I decided to use the same background paper for the entire card and printed some of the co-ordinating from the cd. A white voile ribbon was tied around the card and the topper placed over it. For the base I added a matching Jemima border and one of the co-ordinating ribbons, in which holes were punched with a crop-o-dile. To finish off, I used a greeting from the CD and added a button from stock as the stopper.


Please hop over to my Christmas page where I have added a few more photos....


November 14th

We are creeping towards Christmas now, so I think the time has come to slip a few Seasonal cards into my daily blog...


You will all recognise the Snowman of course! This is a stamped image, coloured with Promarkers and although the photo doesn't show it well, it is in face a shaker card and a simple one at that..I simply covered the front of a 7x5 card with snowy paper from stash and also covered another piece of card, then cut out the rectangle aperture to make the window. I covered the inside with acetate and stuck it to the front of the card with shaker tape. The 'snow' is inside the window, but I added the snowman and boy to the front of the card, again with 3D tape. I stamped the greeting on to white card and cut out on to a spellbinders label, decorated with ribbon. The card was finished off with some punched out snowflakes with diamantes in the centre.


November 15th

Good evening! Today's card is another Christmas theme, this time a touch of Art Deco! The image is a decoupage printed from Debbi Moore's Glitter & Glitz, Majestic Christmas CD. The jury's out with me on two styles of card, Art Deco and Steam Punk, both of which are extremely popular at the moment, but there are some superb images on the disc and this one is my favourite...the idea of looking out of one New York Skyscraper at the Mother of them all...The beautiful Empire State!It just oozes a luxurious Christmas doesn't it?
I actually chose not to decoupage, except for the stole. I covered the window frames  and the edges of the card with gold peel offs (I rarely use peel offs, but they saved the day here!). The card was cut to the shape of the window to emphasise the style and I simply added some glitter to the 'diamonds' on her dress to make them shimmer. The stole was simply finished off with polar white flower soft. I have a few pots of this product in various colours in my craft room and one of my aims for the new year is to make more use of it.
The card was finished with a greeting tag from stash. A simple card, but it's quite large and I was pleased with it.


November 20th


So much for adding a card every day this month, sorry - it's been one of those weeks: a sick pet hen, lots going on at work, still trying to keep up with card orders and..Sue Wilson has a Spellbinders Pick of the Week on Create and Craft, so when I've been crafting, I've been watching! Well, I have also managed to photograph a few of my latest cards, so here is one for today, hope you like it!

This is definitely a Sue Wilson inspired card! I love monotones in cards, I think they are very elegant and not used nearly enough - of course you may completely disagree! This is an 8x8 card, which I layered alternately in black and white. The black 'pearls' around the outside are simply Cosmic Shimmer dots. I added a ribbon circle die, followed by the 'snowflake' die from the beautiful Ironwork motifs set in black and the very intricate circular die from the same set in white. The corner accents are from the Ironwork Accents set. I finished off with white ruffle edged organza ribbon, black ribbon rose and hatpins, all from Creative Expressions.


That's all for tonight, if you are taking a look for the first time and like what you see, I hope you will follow my blog...and tell your friends!


22nd November 


This evening I am having a crafty evening at my friend Sandra's house, with another crafty friend, Julie...we haven't managed to get together for a while and I'm really looking forward to it...tomorrow there is no work and I will be flat out card making as it's my last full day at home for a few weeks and Christmas is so close!

I hope that I haven't already uploaded this one, if I have then I'll remove it later!
This card was made for a customer and as I was able to choose the design,of course I headed straight for my Grand Calibur and my spellbinders dies. I have ordered and impressability, box and flower die from C&C this week (it's POTW & Sue Wilson has been on, come on I had to order something!) and I am looking forward to playing with them!


This card started life as white on white and I 'beaded' the edge with cosmic shimmer pearl PVA. The edger die and filligree style circle are from the Holly Motifs and Holly Accents sets...and then I added a blaze of colour..deep red poinsettias (layered poinsettia set) with a pearl gem in the centre of each. I don'y yet have any flourishes from spellbinders, so I cut them in green with my Cricut (Storybook). I was really pleased with this card and may well replicate for a display I am doing in the library next week!
Bye for now!

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