Game on

I know I am supposed to be on a stash diet but as soon as I saw this stamp set by Dimension I had to have it lol. I saw them on Create and Craft but decided as I wanted it quickly I would source it direct, I ordered whilst watching the show and at only £1 p and p was surprised that it arrived two days later. There are several other sets that I like the look of too but no more buying until my next Florida trip.

I used paper that I printed at least 2 years ago from 300dpi, they were the digital site for DCWV but they don't seem to be available anymore which is a shame.

I used cardstock from the Papertrey sampler pack in New Leaf, so impressed with their card stock, so many colours and they match perfectly too. This wouldn't have been a colour I would have bought normally but I can see me buying it now.

Ingredients

Image: "Boys Toys" Dimension Stamps

Papers: "Extreme Boys" DCWV

Cardstock: "New Leaf" Papertrey Ink

Sentiment: "Game on" Boy Basics - Papertrey Ink

Challenges: Snippet Playground

Virtual Playday Paper Comparrison

Not the most exciting post title but this post does exactly what it says on the tin.  Last weekend I was supposed to be at the Bristol playday but the snow prevented any of us getting there so we had a virtual playday instead, some made cards, some tidied and most like me just chatted lol. Not much change to a normal playday really lol. I am not sure I would have been able to make it even without the snow as have been ill since before Christmas, now been diagnosed with viral bronchitis which I think is a posh word for a bad cough.

I did manage to try some colouring though. I have always used Rymans 200 gsm for my Copic colouring and still do but I have tried a few others. I attended a Copic class at MFT where I tried Copic xpress it cardstock and really liked the way I could get a deeper colour blend. Now I forgot to buy some and even though I have been since I forgot then as well. So I don't have a comparison to show you.

I did buy a Papertrey ink sampler cardstock pack on my last visit to Florida and this included 2 sheets of their popular "stampers select" colouring card. I decided to try colouring an image on both Rymans and pti using the same colours, shading etc to see the difference. The first difference I noticed was that I needed to work harder and faster on the pti than the Rymans but I also noticed that the colours look richer and deeper on the pti. It did seem to take longer to colour and although I am not ready to swap completely from Rymans ( maybe cos I have 6 packs to work through lol) I will use pti for images that have great hair, as I think the effect is better and easier to achieve on pti.

                                                               PTI                      Rymans

I also coloured the boy version of the stamp but this time only on PTI, I was so surprised by how easy it was to get a great effect on the hair

Images: "Later Skater" The Greeting Farm

Thanks for looking, would be interested to know if you have used any other card stock and found it works well with Copics and or pro markers, Spectrum Noirs etc.

Happy 18th Birthday

Today is my cousins 18th birthday, I hope his card arrived in time and that he has a wonderful day. Oh to be 18 again....no thank you....I am enjoying my 40's too much lol.

That T-Shirt die has been used again, so perfect for guy cards, think I will get the ladies version when I am next in Florida, oh and they do a baby version too. Think I have found a new obsession.

Ingredients

Dies: T-shirt, notched border, lead the way (arrows) all MFT stamps

Sentiment: "Boy Basics Rock on" Papertrey Ink

Papers: "Boys Mini Theme" Echo Park at Jessica Sprague

Cardstock: "Simply Chartreuse" Papertrey Ink and blue from snippet draw

Numbers: cut on cricut with "Billionaire" cartridge

Challenges: Snippet Playground

Remember when ....

So I don't make new years resolutions as I am notoriously bad at sticking to them, once only got as far as lunchtime on the 1st before breaking one lol so this is not a resolution but a change of tack. My craft room has been groaning under the weight of unused crafty items for a while but it was particularly noticeable in the Christmas card making marathon when things kept trying to escape and I decided that I needed to stop buying and start using. I have lots of decoupage, peel offs etc but never use them so I am starting to use them up, any that I know I won't use will be donated to my good friend Kay for her nursery kiddos to use.

So with that in mind I made this card using remember when decoupage which I have probably had since 2009, there were three in the pack and I made them all up, using exactly the same style and actually I quite like them. I know the recipients will enjoy them and hubbie says I get stuck on the latest craze not realising that the recipients have no idea that this is so last season darling.

Ingredients

Image: "Remember When" La Pashe

Cardstock: Snippet Draw

Challenges: Snippet Playground

Rain, Shine or Snow

Well my mojo is definitely on holiday or lost, if anyone sees it can they please send it back as I have five cards to make before the weekend...eeek.

Anyway onto the card, I am loving these paper pads by MME that I got at Michaels, so much so that I am running out of some of the papers but that is ok cos then I get to buy more lol. 

I have used the current, I know the current sketch saturday sketch and must say I loved working with it. I always find sketches help when my mojo is on holiday although I am so slow normally they are out of date by the time I have finished the card but not this time so I get to enter...yeah...

Ingredients

Image: Miss Anya from The Greeting Farm

Sentiment: "Happy Hexagons" Papertrey ink

Papers: "All Dolled Up" MME

Cardstock: Walmart (left over from the guy card)

Challenges: Snippet Playground

Sketch Saturday

No Colouring......Breathe

Ok So this card has no colouring, in fact no real image at all, what was I thinking I love colouring and it is the main reason I make cards so why make a card without it, well this cute t-shirt die was calling me and I had an idea and am so pleased it turned out exactly like I thought it would.

I wanted the t-shirt to have the cuffs in a different colour so I cut it in the blue cardstock first then the white and cut along the embossed lines so that you could just see the blue underneath. The stamps are from the same die/stamp set and have so many great guy sayings I can see this being a go to style, especially for  teenagers as it has lots of gaming references.

I used cardstock from the snippet folder to cut the chevrons and used my new ebosser, wow that surely made short work of the cutting as I was able to cut all the papers and cardstock in one pass.

Ingredients

Image: MFT T-shirt die

Sentiment: MFT T-shirt stamp set

Cardstock: Walmart

Brads: Stash

Papers: Pink Paislee "Love my Boy" from Jessica Sprague

Chevron: MFT die

Challenges: Snippet Playground

Retro - gotta love those leg warmers

I totally forgot to post this last week so as I didn't make anything this weekend I thought I would show it now.

I loved this MFT stamp immediately but thought I would have to wait a while before I used it then I remembered this birthday and she was perfect for it. Sorry about the awful picture but she was already in the post by the time I realised how bad the lighting was.

I used paper and card from the snippet box and thought the silver circles looked a bit like disco balls. The leg warmers were plain so I used my memento pen and drew in a couple of lines to make them stripy just like mine were back in the day.

Ingredients:

Image: "80's Girl" MFT

Sentiment: Same as image

Paper: "Dance with Me" Summer Driggs

Cardstock: Snippet folder

Candy: "Glitter Dots" Papermania

Challenges: Snippet Playground

Clarice Cliff Crocus Jug

As soon as I saw this stamp I knew it reminded me of Clarice Cliff pottery and I also knew the perfect recipient too. I needed a quick card so used the already coloured version of this Just Inklined digi stamp, this was on the "Next Big Thing" CD Rom I bought last year and that cd has been worth it's wait in gold. Such amazing value I have been thinking about the new ones too.

I used the left over cardstock from the Wedding card I needed in December. I have been trying hard to get organised and make the cards I need well in advance but at the moment that seems impossible. First I think I need to clean my craft room as the card was still sitting on my desk over a week after I made the wedding card.

Ingredients:

Image: "crocus jug" Just Inklined

Cardstock : "Royal Velvet" Papertrey Ink

Challenges: Snippet Playground

Edited: Thank you everyone for the lovely comments I really wish I had coloured this but it was done already on the CD

Wow 30 Already my how time flies

So today my cousin is 30, the big 3 0, wow that means she is no longer in her twenties and must now move over to sensible shoes, slippers and a nice fluffy dressing gown lol well at least that is what I did. Just wanted to wish her a very happy birthday and to welcome her into the thirties, not as many things change as when you turn 40 but still a big milestone.

The card is a little busier than I wanted but I like the concept.

Ingredients

Image: "Got your back" a la mode by MFT (cut the letters away)

Papers: "Christy" Sassy Designs Inc

Cardstock" "Cherry Cobbler" Stampin Up

Letters: cut on cricut using Billionaires cartridge

Dies: "Jumbo Squiggle" MFT

Brads: Stash

1st card of 2013 and it's a 1st birthday card too

Well I have made my first card of 2013, I had intended on it being a Christmas card but my mum asked me to make a boy 1st birthday card similar (well she asked for the same but I can't copy exactly lol) to this one.

I used this adorable Mo digital stamp, gotta love that cheeky grin and nit wit papers and the card flew together. Its always easier if I know that she will like it. Seem to be rehashing old cards a lot lately.

Ingredients

Image: "I Love It" Mo Manning

Papers: "Toy Shop" Nit Wit

Cardstock: "Pacific Blue" Stampin up & "Limeade Ice" Papertrey Ink

Punch: "Train" Martha Stewart

Letters: Cut on cricut with "Robotz" cartridge