Monday and another week begins ...

Morning readers,

Hope you all had a good weekend and managed to keep yourselves "gainfully" employed - whether that was actually work!, or perhaps crafting or socialising with friends/family.

I've a make to share with you today ... it's an anniversary card - I figured I hadn't used this wood mounted image in YEARS and it was high time it saw ink again. I do think I may have had it a little too long though, as it didn't really want to stamp as crisply as I remember. Anyone got any suggestions of how I might recondition an elderly rubber stamp?

The front/back of my envelope, insert and reverse of my card,
along with the snippet used for my sentiment

Materials used:

• White, 250gsm, C6 card and envelope
• Card in white and pearl cream
• PSX Petaluma lily botanicals image (K-1276) stamped using Versafine Clair nocturne ink
• Faber Castell polychromos pencils used to colour my image
• CRASPIRE sentiment (WHO-167-57-0256) stamped using Versafine Clair  nocturne ink
• Once my sentiment was fully dry, I fussy cut it, leaving a narrow white border and adhered it to my card front
• Elsewhere on the card I stamped the TCP sentiment (from S.5845.CL) using Versafine Clair morning mist ink
• Stardust stickles added, to give some celebratory sparkle

I'll be entering the above make for the following challenges:-

1. We Love Stamping - August challenge - SUMMER BLOOMS
2. Kleuren met Potloden - August challenge - ANYTHING GOES
3. Neglected Stuff Challenge - August challenge - ANYTHING GOES (using neglected stuff)
4. Polkadoodles - challenge No. 8 - ANYTHING GOES
5. Pammie's Inky Pinkies - challenge No. 2634 - ANYTHING GOES

Saturday, it's the weekend!!!

Morning readers,

I've a make to share with you today ... I've been asked to make a few anniversary cards recently, plus, I always need them myself! Twice this past week I have set out to make an anniversary card ... only to have them turn out to be BIRTHDAY cards. You will be pleased to hear that I managed to control the urge to make a birthday card and to make the anniversary card below. One down, two to go! This one turned out to be Quick, Clean And Simple - nothing to distract from the message sentiment!

 

Materials used:

• White, 250gsm, C6 card and envelope
• Card in white and red, for my card front, insert and matting layer
• TCP sentiment (from S.5845.CL) stamped using Versafine Clair nocturne ink
• Honey-Bee Stamps sentiment (from HBST-218 "Heartfelt") stamped using Versafine Clair charming pink and strawberry inks
• Stardust stickles used to trace the lines of the hearts and give some well celebratory sparkle!

I'll be entering the above make for the following challenges:-

1. Papercraft Challenges - challenge No. 133 - BACK TO BASICS (Keep it simple)
2. Pammie's Inky Pinkies - challenge No. 2633 - ANYTHING GOES
3. Dream Valley - challenge No. 366 - ANYTHING GOES
4. Stamps+Fun=Creativity - challenge No. 499 - ANYTHING GOES
5. Krafty Chicks - challenge No. 834 - CAS (Clean And Simple)

TGIF peeps, got plans for the weekend?

Morning readers,

I've a make to share with you today ... Quick, Clean, Simple and masculine! Always handy, I find, especially if you happen to know a globetrotting male motorcyclist!!! I'm quite pleased with the way it turned out too

And a better view of the stickles!

Materials used:

• White, 250gsm, C6 card and envelope
• Card in white and pearl grey, for my card front, insert and matting layer
• Altenew image and sentiment (both from ALT303 - 2019) stamped using Versafine Clair nocturne and morning mist inks
• Inkadinkado motorcycle image (96346) stamped using Versafine Clair nocturne ink
• Stardust stickles to add some celebratory sparkle!

I'll be entering the above make for the following challenges:-

1. Seize the Birthday - challenge No. 332 - ANYTHING GOES + (optional) FUNNY / PUNNY
2. Stamps + Fun = Creativity - challenge No. 499 - ANYTHING GOES
3. Krafty Chicks - challenge No. 834 - CAS (Clean And Simple)
4. Papercraft Challenges - challenge No. 133 - BACK TO BASICS (Keep it simple)
5. Try It On Tuesday - 18th Aug challenge - INSPIRED BY A SONG - in this case "Motorbiking" by Chris Spedding

Wednesday .... have a good one!

Morning readers,

I've a make to share with you today ... this make was SUPPOSED to be an anniversary card but ... as you can plainly see, it evolved in to a birthday card somewhere along the way!! Don't care, I still like it BUT ... I do still have three anniversary cards to make, along with some ATC's so - my mojo had better start behaving!

Materials used:

• White, 250gsm, C6 card and envelope
• Card in white and yellow, for my card front, insert and matting
• Using low tack tape I masked off a section for inking
• Using a makeup brush and Versafine Clair cheerful ink I applied a layer of colour on my masked panel
• Alex Syberia foliage images (from "Create your own happy" - August 2026 it was an NBUS prize and also NBUS) stamped using Versafine Clair nocturne ink
• HLS sentiment (from "Butterfly birthday") stamped using Versafine Clair nocturne ink
• Stardust stickles used to trace the "veins" and stems of the foliage and give it a bit of sparkle

I'll be entering the above make for the following challenges:-

1. NBUS - challenge No. 89 - USE NBUS
2. Seize the Birthday - challenge No. 332 - ANYTHING GOES + (optional) FUNNY / PUNNY
3. Ally's Angels - challenge No. 109 - ANYTHING GOES
4. Creative Crafters - challenge No. 103 - ANYTHING GOES
5. Simply Clean And Simple - August challenge - ANYTHING GOES + (optional) NATURE

Monday - here comes another week!

Morning readers,

Hope you've had a great weekend and that the weather didn't interfere with your plans, take care everyone.

I've a make to share with you today ... a little Artist Trading Card but (unusually for me) using a coloured background. I wasn't sure how the green pencil would come out on the black card so I coloured with white first - seemed to work!

Materials used:

• ATC blank
• Snippet of black card to fit my ATC blank
• Using Versamark embossing ink I stamped the Crafty Roo image ("Celia full bloom") before sprinkling with gold embossing powder and heat setting
• I used Faber Castell polychromos pencils to colour my image
• MFT sentiment (from CS.74) stamped using Versafine Clair nocturne ink
• I fussy cut the sentiment and adhered to my ATC using dimensional foam pads ... cut in half to make them fit!

I'll be entering the above make for the following challenges:-

1. Snippets Playground - challenge No. 539 - USE SNIPPETS
2. The Little Things - challenge No. 07 - ANYTHING GOES
3. As You Like It - August 13th challenge - FAVE COLOURING MEDIUM and WHY! I love using pencils, I find blending from one colour to another so much easier - that and I'm rubbish with water colours!
4. Beautiful Blossoms - challenge No. 44 - ANYTHING FLORAL GOES + (optional) MOOD BOARD

Saturday - that makes it the weekend! Woo Hoo!

Morning readers,

Happy weekend! Hope you have some nice plans.

I've a make to share with you today ... Whilst still CAS-ish, it does have a couple of layers and some designer paper but .... still happy with it!

Materials used:

• White, 250gsm, C6 card and envelope
• Card in white and red, for my card front, insert and matting layer
• Snippets of card in Funky Fossil designer paper, black, red and white
• Penny Black image (3138D "Gentle Gaze") and CRASPIRE sentiment (from DIY WHO-167-57-0250) both stamped on to white snippets using Versafine Clair nocturne ink.
• WRMK nesting rectangle die used to cut my image in to a rectangle before matting on black and then red card which I cut using scissors
• I fussy cut the CRASPIRE sentiment using scissors and then adhered to my card using dimensional foam pads (which I had to cut in half widthwise, to make them fit!)
• Stardust stickles to add some sparkle to the bloom and vase

I'll be entering the above make for the following challenges:-

1. Addicted to Stamps - challenge No. 523 - BIRTHDAY
2. Seize the Birthday - challenge No. 332 - ANYTHING GOES + (optional) FUNNY / PUNNY
3. Paper-Rocks-Scissors - challenge No. 19 - USE PAPER AND/OR SCISSORS
4. Ellibelles Garden Party - challenge No. 18 - ANYTHING IN OR FROM THE GARDEN
5. Time Out - challenge No. 319 - PICK AT LEAST TWO ... I went with CAS, FLORAL and BIRTHDAY

I was a lucky winner over at Starstampz for their challenge No. 83 - thanks peeps, appreciate it.

I was also a "Birthday honour" pick over at Seize the Birthday, thank you so much. Since both of these featured cards include the dots/grids and same colour scheme .. I was, obviously, in my red and grey abstract period!! Todays card (at the top of this post) also features red but with only black as the other colour!

TGIF peeps, the weekend is close!

Morning readers,

I've a make to share with you today ... I recently acquired a stamp from Paper Artsy and set out to make a card with it ...

Materials used:

• White, 250gsm, C6 card and envelope
• Card in white and red, for my card front, insert and matting layer
• Snippet of card for my heart image
• Paper Artsy heart image (from JM90 - May 2026 - NBUS) stamped once on to my card front and a second time on to my white snippet, using Versafine Clair nocturne ink.
• Paper Artsy "Christmas" (also from JM90 - May 2026 - NBUS) stamped using Versafine Clair strawberry ink
• Once dry, I fussy cut out my heart/sentiment, with scissors, and coloured it using Faber Castell polychromos pencils
• MFT splatter (from CS.97) stamped using Versafine Clair strawberry ink
• On the inside of the card and on the envelope I stamped the Uniko Sentiment ("Christmas wishes") using Versafine Clair strawberry ink
• Stardust stickles, to add some festive sparkle to the snowflake and star on the heart

I'll be entering the above make for the following challenges:-

1. Kleuren met Potloden - August challenge - ANYTHING GOES (using coloured pencils)
2. NBUS - challenge No. 89 - USE NBUS
3. Paper-Rocks-Scissors - challenge No. 19 - USE PAPER AND/OR SCISSORS
4. Holly and Ivy - challenge No. 209 - ANYTHING CHRISTMAS GOES
5. Krafty Chicks - challenge No. 833 - CHRISTMAS

I was a lucky winner at Kleuren met Potloden for their July challenge, I am so appreciative