The sportsman

'The sportsman' is the theme for this week's Daring cardmakers, so I've used the sketch for Annabelle's ABSC049 to created my golf card:

Papers are all offcuts, including the diamond background one - so it's another for Pixie's craft snippets 18. Stickers are Express yourself DIY and the Happy Birthday band was made with a Martha Stewart punch. The ovals were cut with nesties.

I'm also linking this for:

Here come the boys 26: hobbies
That craft place: one for the boys
Crafty cardmakers 67: for the boys
Ooh-la-la 104: make it manly

Suzie's 365 photos day 124: beautiful

Suzie's day 124 is much easier than yesterday's prompt. I was spoiled for choice for what to show for beautiful, but in the end decided on this Lladro ballerina that I got some years ago as a present from my mum and dad (well, they gave me the money and I bought it while I was on holiday):

Suzie's 365 photos day 123: futuristic

When I saw Suzie's day 123: futuristic I had no idea what I could possibly photograph - after all, if it's in the future you can't see it now. Then I wondered if there were any websites that would show what you might look like in the future - I found In 20 years.

Now, I have to confess that the original photo I used was actually taken in 2003 (because I couldn't be bothered to trawl through the computer to find a more recent one), so 2003 + 20 years means the futuristic photo is me in 2023 (when I'll be 75).

So that it's a photo I've taken today rather than a download from the website, I took a picture of what was on the computer screen, which isn't very clear, but here it is:

Pity this prompt wasn't for Friday because we'll be going up to Guy's and they are working on the building and there are loads of hoardings showing what it will look like in the future.

WOYWW 152

Wednesday's come around again with remarkable speed, so it's time for WOYWW 152 - if there's anyone left on the planet who doesn't know what I'm on about, please click on the link to Julia's wonderful blog and join in the fun.

Regular visitors to my blog will know that I have a passion for making Christmas cards, which includes having my own CHNC challenge blog - by the way, I'd love to see you join in if you can. At the moment I'm almost up to date with all other necessary crafting (just have one outstanding commission to do, but it's not needed yet), so on my workspace today I have my boxes of Christmas stuff - I've been making one or two more and intend to make some more today.

I took this photo by holding the camera high and taking pot luck. This is the area to the left of where I sit at my workdesk - no point in showing the right hand side today because there's only my cricut and ATG tape gun there.

If you haven't yet started making your Christmas cards, why not join me? It makes sense to avoid the panic later in the way - and can you believe that we're already into May?!

I managed to get round to quite a lot of WOYWWers last week, but if I didn't get to you, I apologise - I'll try to this week.

Rudolph day for April

Regular visitors to my blog will know that I make Christmas cards throughout the year - I have my own CHNC challenge blog and also try to participate as much as possible in other dedicated Christmas challenges. However, there is one that I've not entered into and that is Rudolph Day run by Sandra on her Stamping for pleasure blog on the 25th of every month. I've seen entries for this on a few other blogs and thought it was about time that I joined in, so here is my first card for it:

The card is based on the sketch for Merry Monday 18 on Always playing with paper - I turned it round. This is also for Stamps & fun = creativity 97: use a sketch from another current challenge.

This is another card for my own CHNC challenge 70 to use a greeting/sentiment without the word 'Christmas'.

Anyone who's seen some of my Christmas cards recently may recognise the card that Ive used for the nestie label shape - it another piece recycled from a Christmas cracker from a couple of years ago (and, yes, I've still got some more left - I asked everyone to be very careful that year as they pulled the crackers so I could recycle!). The piece of Brenda Pinnick paper across the middle is some that's been in my offcuts box for a few years now - another opportunity to play in the snippets playground at Pixie's crafty snippets 18 -  and the ribbon is some that I got from a local market stall. The sentiment says 'Season's greetings' (not easy to see on the photo). The Jolly Santa stamp is by Hero Arts coloured with copics.

I'm also linking this for:

Jingle belles: peace on earth (day) - recycling
House of Gilli 32: oh pretty - ribbon and sparkles
Creative card crew 9: ribbon
Bunny Zoe 23: ribbon or twine
Oldie but a goodie: die cuts and punches - the Hero Arts stamp is much older than six months
Christmas inspirations 45: bingo - I've chosen layers, green, glitter
Christmas stampin all year long 8: anything goes
Christmas cards all year round May: inspired by Christmas song: Santa Claus is coming to town
Deep ocean 24: use punches/dies
Paper pretties 203: clean and simple
Phindy's Friday 103: clean & simple
Aud sentiments: anything goes
Amusing challenges (Stamped blessings): anything goes
Lollipop crafts 78: anything goes
Paper playtime 73: anything goes
Inky impressions: anything goes
Creative Mondays (always crafting) 7: anything goes
Creative craft: anything goes
Emerald faerie garden 23: anything goes
Papertake weekly: anything goes
Simon says: anything goes
Just Tracy May: anything goes
Make it Monday 87
Inspire me Fridays 56
52 card pickup 17

Suzie's 365 photos day 122: grunge

As Suzie says, day 122: grunge isn't an easy one, so all I can come up with is some grungeboard thatI bought some time ago and I've only used some of it once - perhaps  I should make sure I make something with it:

Simply a Christmas tree

The challenge for April on Christmas cards all year round was to use this photo as inspiration:

I printed out some of this pattern and then cut our the tree shape with a nestability, mounting on to gold mirror card and cutting round leaving an edge.

I've used the sketch for Papertake 67:

Papers are from my Christmas offcuts box - the far background was free with a magazine, the next paper is MME lost and found and I've also used a piece of gold foiled embossed card with holly etc. So this is another card for Pixie's crafty snippets 18.

It's also for:

Deep ocean 24: use punches/dies
Paper pretties 203: clean and simple
Phindy's Friday 103: clean & simple
Tuesday throwdown 95: use some sparkle (difficult to see, but as well as the foiled/mirror card the red stars are glittered
4 crafty chicks 87: no stamping zone
Amusing challenges (Stamped blessings): anything goes
Lollipop crafts 78: anything goes
Paper playtime 73: anything goes
Creative Mondays (always crafting) 7: anything goes
Simon says: anything goes
Make it Monday 87
Inspire me Fridays 56
52 card pickup 17

Suzie's 365 photos day 121: dessert

If I go out for a meal I have to admit that I can give in to the temptation of a delicious dessert, but when I'm at home I really don't bother, except yoghurt. However, this is more my kind of dessert:

Day 121: dessert

When Santa got stuck up the chimney

The theme for facebook's Sunday's with Santa today is 'humour' so I reached for one of my favourite Anita Santa stamps - just coloured the chimney with a copic. I found a freebie clipart scroll on the internet, played around with it digitally to include the words of the song.

This is also another card for my own CHNC challenge 70 - to include a sentiment without the word 'Christmas'.

The background paper is an offcut, so this is my first visit of the week into the playground at Pixie's crafty snippets 18 - I certainly needed my wellies on and I didn't want to get a wet bottom on the swings! The little shiny Ho Ho Hos have been in my Christmas stash for ages (haven't a clue where they came from originally).

I stuck to a black and white theme with just a bit of red for 2 sisters 89: colour challenge - black and white with only a hint of 1 other colour.

For some reason the white here looks a shade of pink - IRL it is definitely WHITE.

This is also for:

Desert island crafts 29: I chose - no flowers, red and black and favourite song
Clear it out: based on a song - paper, stamp and Ho Ho Ho are old and needed to be used
Dare to be sassy 122: Christmas card with a sentiment
Christmas stampin all year long 8: anything goes
Sparkles forum Christmas challenge 15: colour me happy - I love black and white with a touch of red
Sentimental Sundays 100: cards for kids
Twisted Tuesday 4: for the funny kiddos
Aud Sentiments: anything goes
Let's craft and create 43: sentiments - main focal point (hope the song counts as a sentiment)
Victorine 32: anything goes
Simon says: anything goes
Inspire me Fridays 56
52 card pickup 17

Suzie's 365 photos 120: lights

I can't quite believe that already we're up to day 120 on Suzie's 365 photos - it doesn't seem possible that every soon we'll be into the month of May.

Anyway, back to day 120 and this is my 'lights' photo:

Ooops, need to replace a bulb!

Commissioned wedding card

Why is it that sometimes it takes ages to make a card and it still doesn't seem right? I was asked to make a Wedding Day card - and I need to give it to the person tomorrow, so needed to get it done today. Anyway, whatever I thought of and tried just didn't seem to work.

So this is what I've settled for in the end. The background paper is Papermania - it has the look of being dusted with gold although that isn't obvious here. It was for that reason that I decided to stamp with versamark and heat emboss with detail gold, but on reflection I wonder whether it would have been better to have embossed with copper, but it's done now and I'm not starting all over again!

The inner piece of paper is from a K & Co La Boutique pad which I've had for ages. It actually had a border around it with a repeated wedding sentiment, but it included 'our wedding' which wasn't appropriate for someone else to give, so I cut it off. I stamped and embossed the image before I decided to print the sentiments directly to that piece of paper - I managed after trial and error on ordinary paper to get the sentiments in the right places, but in the process I got some printer ink smudged at the bottom - which is why I had to put the string of gems there and some more at the top to counterbalance.

The flowers are Martha Stewart - I very gently distressed the edges with fired brick DI to give a deeper pink and did the same around the outside of the card. Why is it that colours don't always look right on the photo (made worse I suppose by the poor light of a rainy day which resulted in using flash). The little punched hearts filled a space that looked odd without them.

I'm linking this for the following challenges:

Everybody art 190: wedding
Soartful: wedding/anniversary
Ruby's rainbow 27: brown & pink
Make all with love 27: celebration/party
Fashionable stamping 20: embossing
Kaboodle 116: emboss it
Crafts and me 81: embossing
Pixie dust studio 124: embossing
Deep ocean 24: use punches/dies
Truly scrumptious 79: distressing & die cuts/punches
Whimsy 36: distressing
The stamp man: show us your shabby chic or distressed style
Wags n whiskers 78: distressing
Desert island crafts 29: I chose: favourite song 'Love and marriage', embossing, distressing
S J Crafts 4: favourites (favourite song)
Craft-room: ink it
Sentimental Sundays 99: celebrating earth day - flowers
Paper creations ink 23: flowers
Little darlings 22: flowers
Moving along with the times: garden or flowers
Prairie fairy Fridays 77: anything with flowers
Cards and scrap 30: use flowers
Pile it on 17: sparkle & shine
Tuesday throwdown 95: use some sparkle
One stop craft 180: recipe - 1 image, 2 designer papers, 3 embellishments (flowers, hearts, gems)
Aud sentiments: anything goes
Victorine 32: anything goes
Simon says: anything goes
Make it Monday 86
Inspire me Fridays 56
52 card pickup 17

Suzie's 365 photos day 119: handmade

For day 119 today, Suzie is asking us to show something that is handmade.

Ellie was made by a dear crafting friend, Kaz and came to live with me some time ago now. She usually sits up on the high shelf with lots of other friends - you can see her here:

but today the naughty monkey clambered down the shelves to sit at my keyboard to help me with my blogging! Mind you, she encountered a bit of a problem because, as you can see, some of the letters have rubbed off and Ellie hasn't learned to touch type, so she found it really difficult!

Suzie's 365 photos day 118: art

I didn't get round to taking a photo for yesterday's day 118: art, so here it is today. It's a self portrait that I drew way back on 7 January 1973 when I was 26! It's laminated, so difficult to get a photo on a rainy day because of the flash, so I had to take the photo at an angle.

I look so serious!

CHNC challenge 70: any greeting/sentiment without the word 'Christmas'

It's Saturday and that means it's time for a new challenge on my CHNC blog. If you haven't discovered it yet, please head on over there and join in the fun and get a headstart with your Christmas cards.

Today's CHNC challenge 70 is all about Christmas without mentioning the actual word 'Christmas' - that's right, you can use any greeting/sentiment as long is it doesn't incorporate the word 'Christmas'.

For my card I've used the sketch given for Christmas challenges with sketches 25 (to see the sketch please click on the link).

Papers are all offcuts from My Mind's Eye Christmas glitter stack (these papers, thankfully, seem to be going on for ever - I love them!).

I used the Anit's angel stamp, stamping on to a piece of starry card and very lightly colouring with copics. I wasn't really sure about stamping over the stars, but quite like it now because it gives an ethereal look to the angel. Both scalloped circles were cut with nesties. The glittered ribbon is a piece that I had left over.

Week 21 for Christmas card challenges is a recipe to include 3 designer papers (tick), 2 stamps (I only used one), 1 ribbon (tick) and 2 buttons (I didn't include buttons) - however, it is stressed that the challenges are optional as long as the submitted card is for Christmas, so I'm linking there despite only adhering to half the recipe!

This is also for:

Dare to be sassy Thursdays 122: Christmas card with a sentiment
Crimbo crackers 14: angels
Christmas stampin all year long 8: anything goes
Fussy & fancy 61: punches and dies
Pile it on 17: sparkle & shine
Tuesday throwdown 95: use some sparkle
Aud sentiments: anything goes
Victorine 32: anything goes
Simon says: anything goes
The poodles parlour: anything goes
Inspire me Fridays 56
52 card pickup 17

Bold and bright owl

This is for this week's Catch the bug sketch:

And based on the bright colours and owls in this picture given for Pinspirational 4:

I've used some of the remains of the bright papers that were free with Crafts Beautiful (they are double sided, which gives them even more mileage) - another card for  Pixie's crafty snippets 17.

The owl in the oval was part of a Kanban Dawn Bibby kit (loads of this still in a box - I ought to use more of it).

This is also for:

Playing in paradise 64: friendship
Challenge up your life 67: owls
Crop stop 69: to the birds
Alphabet: F for feathered friends
Ooh-la-la 103: bold & bright
Totally papercrafts 114: saturated colours
4 crafty chicks 87: no stamping zone
Victorine 32: anything goes
Simon says: anything goes
The poodles parlour: anything goes
Make it Monday 86
Inspire me Fridays 56
52 card pickup 17

Urban prairie spring

For this card I've used the sketch for Card Patterns 162:

Basic Grey 66 calls for 'spring colours', so I thought that BG urban prairie papers were just right.

I've just added a little glittery strip and buttons from Poundland, an unknown piece of ribbon tied in a bow with a Martha Steward flower with a lovely glittered centre.

This is also for:

Card caravan (the hybrid chick) 17: spring
Crafts 4 eternity R69: spring
Divas by design 32: buttons and/or bows
CES 82: button it
Always crafting Creative Monday 6: yellow and sunshine
The pink elephant 145: hello sunshine - use yellow
Tuesday throwdown 95: use some sparkle
Paper pretties 203: clean & simple
Phindy's Friday 103: clean & simple
4 crafty chicks 87: no stamping zone
Victorine 32: anything goes
Simon says: anything goes
The poodles parlour: anything goes
Make it Monday 86
Inspire me Fridays 56
52 card pickup 17

Tuesday Alchemy DT call

I'm not sure why I'm doing this, except I was encouraged to do so, because I don't usually respond to DT calls. I've been privileged to be a guest designer for several crafting blogs over the past few months, but have not applied to become a regular team member.

Tuesday Alchemy have put out a design call for new people to join them for three months. The idea is that applicants show some examples of their recent crafting, so here goes.

This is a card I made and submitted for their challenge 11: black and white:

And here's a few of my recent attempts at crafting - the links show the original posts where there is more detail:

Butterfly bling:

Christmas family:

On the lookout (twinchies):

A set of ATCs:

Wow! what a day:

I craft and blog most days, so there is usually something up-to-date to see on this blog as well as once a week on my Christmas challenge blog: CHNC.

I would love to be successful and join the Tuesday Alchemy team for three months - thanks for the opportunity of applying.

Birthday crossword

For Sweet stop sketches 155 we were asked to choose any sketch from the past, so I chose 110:

I used one of my favourite Penny Black stamps, 'hedge-words' - so versatile and just right for quick cards - and, as I didn't use any patterned paper, this is for Penny Black and friends 198: no patterned paper, also for Craft us crazy 26: inspire us - favourite stamp company.

This was an opportunity to use up offcuts of sticky ribbons as well as offcuts of black and white card, so another entry for Pixie's crafty snippets 17.

This is also for:

Creative Belli 142: animals - the old and forgotten embellishments are the offcuts of ribbons and the crocheted flower with covered brad
CRAFT 152: animals
Cute card Thursday 24: animal magic
Di's digi designs: let's meet your animal friends
Really reasonable ribbon 46: black, white and one accent colour plus ribbon
Gingerloft 38: black and white and a touch of red
Tuesday alchemy 11: black & white
Crazy 4 challenges 133: make your card pop by adding black
Penny Black and more at Allsorts April: oh so cute
Let's craft and create 43: sentiments - main focal point
Celebrate the occasion 60: happy birthday + ribbon
Creative card crew 9: ribbon
Ribbon carousel 50: anything goes
PaperPlay 17: monochrome and ribbon
Sweet stampin: use more than 1 ribbon
Bunny Zoe 23: ribbon or twine
Craft-room: ink it
Crafty Ann 64: stitching
Mark's finest papers speedy fox and friends 104: stitching
Allways something creative 28: enchanting with seam (sstitching)
Paper playtime 72: say it with sentiments birthday
Penny's 78: happy birthday
Paper pretties 203: clean & simple
Phindy's Friday 103: clean & simple
Timbro scrap mania 46: anything goes
Crafty catz 130: anything goes
Victorine 32: anything goes
Aud sentiments: anything goes
Inky impressions: anything goes
Simon says: anything goes
The poodles parlour: anything goes
Make it Monday 86
Inspire me Fridays 56
52 card pickup 17

To wit to woo

This is for the sketch for One stop craft 179:

I've used offcuts of the Papermania capsule blue papers that I used last night for this card, so this is another opportunity to join Di and other playmates in the playground at Pixiei's crafty snippets 17.

The owls digital image mounted on to embossed silver foil has been in my odds and ends box for ages, so I don't remember where it came from. The owls are for:

Challenge up your life 67: owls
Crop stop 69: to the birds
Alphabet: F for feathered friends

This is also for:

Digital Tuesday 157: winter blues
Charisma cardz 16: blue, black and white
Shopping our stash 49: starts with a 'b' - blue, birds
Simon says: anything goes
Willow sketchie: sketch and/or things outside

Authentic cutting edge

I'm late ... yet again ... for this week's Daring cardmakers challenge: tag you're it! sponsored by Tea house bridge.

For my card I've used Papermania capsule blue papers, a recycled kraft tag that was on a shirt I bought for John (I knew it would come in handy one day) with a sentiment added. The shirt is a Personal Impressions image stamped directly on to striped paper, with just the tie and buttons coloured with copic ultramarine.

This is also for:
Crafty boots: no girls allowed
One crazy stamper April: boy/men
Joanna Sheen: it's a man's world
Catered crop: get krafty
Party time Tuesday 65: anything goes + kraft
Divas by design 32: buttons and/or bows
CES 82: button it
Papercraft star 94: polka dots
Stamp, scrap & doodle: recycle

Suzie's 365 photos day 117: tradition

It's become a tradition for me to have breakfast sitting at my computer catching up with Suzie's photos, blogs, forums, challenges ... so this is for day 117: tradition: