CASE Study Challenge #168

A card using my Cuppa Card Kit from Studio Calico.  This is pure "Clean and Simple!".

It is my entry into CASE Study Challenge #168 - inspired by Keisha Campbell - photo below.

I mirrored the die cut circles with the speech bubble die and also used a similar muted colour palette.

The speech bubble is a die from Clearly Besotted Stamps (you said it!).

Challenges
Simon Says Stamp - Anything Goes

Thanks for peeking.

Happy Happy Happy!

This card actually makes me happy!  You know how I love the bright colours and it's a change from the autumnal colours we have going on in nature at the moment.

The pp is from the Studio Calico Cuppa 4x6 Paper Pad and it's by Paislee Press.  Love it!  I actually made two cards with the one piece.

I opened up the "you said it" speech bubble dies I got from Clearly Besotted Stamps and got stamping/die cutting.

Thanks for peeking. 

Yes you are!

Supplies:  Cardstock, pp & sentiment -Studio Calico, 
frame patterned paper - One Little Bird,
bow tie embellishment - SC, versamark 

embossing ink pad, white embossing powder - Hero Arts, 

towbow roller adhesive, aqua button - Basic Grey
and machine stitching.

Firstly - Happy Thanksgiving to all our friends in the US - thinking of you all across the miles today.  Would just adore to be "giving thanks" with us all around the same table.

Very quick clean and simple card to share - I am suppose to be working on Wedding Invitations - so I took a sneaky break and made some cards.  Ooops!  Hope my SIL doesn't read this!

Love how this turned out.  Thanks for peeking.

Wishing you all a blessed day.

Congratulations!

Supplies:  Shall we dance stamp - Lili of the Valley, Sentiment - 
SRM Sticker, die - x-cut, patterned paper - Persnikety - 
Lilybee design, metallic paper - Canson, White card blank, 
wink of stella, copics, roller adhesive 
and glossy accents.

This is a cute Lili of the Valley stamp ("shall we dance").  I partially coloured with copics and cut with a square die cut - then realigned and cut into a rectangle.  Added an SRM Sticker and some sequins.

I added some wink of stella to the dress - impossible to photograph.  Thought this would make a cute Wedding Card.

Thanks for peeking. Hope you have a great start to your week.

WMS - Nov PJ Party! - Interactive Christmas Card

So it's fun times over at Waltzingmouse Stamps as it's the monthly PJ Party!

I should have tried to do more of the challenges - but there are not enough hours in the day with a new puppy in the house (who is doing very well by the way!).  Here's a photo of him trying to sneak into a sailing bag to go sailing two weeks ago!.  I noticed he didn't try to do the same thing this morning - he obviously knew the layer of frost outside meant it was COLD!.

 Anyhow, on to my card.

Supplies:  Seasons of Love stamp set and Compliments of the Season set - 

WMS, Spellbinders heart dies, vellum - Papermania, 

blue & metallic cardstock - Canson, ultramarine stazon

 ink, wink of stella clear, blue sequins - Studio Calico, 

machine stitching and tombow roller adhesive.

I used sequins in this shaker type card (yipee! it's interactive!!!) under embossed vellum with scored metallic cardstock that I had left over from another project.  I stamped the sentiment from the Seasons of Love stamp set and die cut the little heart and then stamped it with a tiny starburst from the Compliments of the Season set.  I then added tiny dots of wink of stella to each starburst which doesn't show in this photo.

I am also putting this into the WMS Christmas Card Challenge - February - "Incorporate hearts into your card".

Thanks for peeking.

Waltzingmouse Stamps - November Pajama Party!

Supplies:  Compliments of the season sentiment - WMS, Festive Foliage - 

WMS, Textured cardstock - Papermania, Swiss dot - Bazzill, 

Distress ink - peeled paint, tea dye and walnut stain, Tuxedo 

black ink - memento, pop dots and roller adhesive.

I decided to play along with this month's Pajama Party over at Waltzingmouse Stamps - lots of fun challenges this month.  Challenge 2 for this party is "Pick a card, any card as long as it's Christmas"!, so I made two!

I am loving all the cards with diagonal designs and decided to give this trend a twirl!.

Added some glossy accents to the berries for added dimension.  I also added it to the card base with pop dots.

Thanks so much for peeking.  Make sure you jump into your night attire and pop over to the "Party" - check it out here - it starts at 11.55 pm GMT.

Moxie Fab Thanks!

By now everyone knows that the wonderful Cath over on Moxie Fab World is finishing her 5 year stint.  While we were all very saddened by the news we decided to honour her in a way that hopefully she will appreciate - a blog hop!.

 Cath - for the daily inspiration, amazing challenges and friendship that you extended to us all - thank you.

You should have arrived here from Tifany DeGough's blog.
Here is my card! - just realised when I posted it that it mirrors the banner colours! woohoo!

Supplies:  Cardstock - Bazzill, canson and docrafts (kraft), patterned paper - 
Cosmo Cricket, Hero Arts background stamp, versamark ink, feather dies 
- my favourite things, tag die - pti, button - SC October add on kit, 
enamel dots, white embossing powder - 
Hero Arts, "you" die and sentiment - Simon 
Says Stamp, pop dots and machine stitching.

 Thanks so much for stopping by - the next blog on the hop is Cheiron Brandon.  If you have got lost (which believe me won't be too difficult with the number of blogs to hop! you can go back to the Moxie Fab World Blog here).

Hope you have a truly wonderful day.

Meet York!

Meet York!  He arrived into our family on Monday and is just a complete cutie.  He is 7 weeks old and we will "puppywalk" him for the next year for the Irish Guide Dogs for the Blind.

He is a golden retriever/ x labrador.  If you want to see some photos of him when he was younger you can check them out here.  You can spot him as he is the blondest/white one in the litter.

Thanks for stopping by - hope you have a blessed day.

Puppy Proofing!

We are waiting for our next Guide Dog Puppy to arrive.  We are due to collect him/her next Monday so the house and garden are in the throes of being "puppy proofed" again!.

We are hopefully getting a puppy from the "y" litter but don't know it's name yet.

Want to see some amazing photos of these cuties? 

Check out  http://chennaspups.info/

Thanks for stopping by - hope you got a good dose of puppy cuteness!

Best Wishes!

Supplies:  stitched sentiment stamp - The Crafts Meow, 

Feather die - mft, white dotted swiss cardstock - Bazzill 

Basics, cerise cardstock - Canson, enamel - Ranger industries,

tuxedo black ink - memento and pop dots.

I loved how Laura Bassen created this - love how she used up scraps and stamped the sentiment twice to make a beautiful card.

I have these stitched sentiments for quite a while since I saw this card by Jennifer McGuire.

I used cerise pink cardstock that looks very bright here in this post! and some scrap swiss dot cardstock that I had in my stash to cut out the feather.

Enamel dots are all the rage at the moment but I didn't have any white ones - I grabbed my bottle of enamel by Ranger Industries and created my own!

Challenges

Simon Says Stamp - We are going dotty!

Thanks for peeking - hope you have a great day.

Congratulations - another fun shaker Wedding Card!

Supplies:  pp - Amy Tangerine for American Crafts, 

computer generated sentiment, glassine envelope and 

insert - from my stash (possibly Paper Source!), machine 

stitching, SRM sentiment sticker, heart die - Spellbinders, 

pop dots, roller adhesive - Tombow, white sequins and white 

card blank - Craftworks.

Used some pp from the Studio Calico August Card Kit - Marks & Co to create this fun wedding card. 

I found the glassine envelope and insert in my stash and know that I have had it for quite a while.  I machine stitched the top of the glassine envelope to make sure the sequins wouldn't fall out!

It's a touch of a shaker card! - it has the shaker element and is certainly using non traditional wedding colours but I thought it was perfect for an autumnal card.

Thanks so much for stopping by and peeking - hope you have a wonderful Wednesday.

Wedding Cards using dies!

Supplies: pp and cardstock - October Afternoon 

(Studio Calico July Card Kit), white sequins, Alphabet dies - 

Lawn Fawn, acetate, computer generated sentiment, 

enamel dots - MME, pop dots, white card blank.

Firstly, I decided to make some wedding cards in non traditional colours!!

So the first one I created using some patterned paper from the July Card Kit by Studio Calico - Valley High.

I created a layer between the cardstock and pp and layered it with acetate to create a "shaker" card using sequins.

 

Supplies:  pp and cardstock - Studio Calico August Card Kit (Marks & Co.), 

gems, Boy Meets Girl - Die-namics by MFT, heart die - 

Spellbinders, pop dots and card blank

The second one I want to share today is another wedding card with the same colour palette!

Thanks for peeking - hope you have a wonderful day. 

Love You!

Supplies:  Studio Calico - Valley High Card Kit, glossy accents, 

spellbinders heart die, sequins - SC and machine stitching.

Yes! I am on a roll!... so another card from the Valley High Card Kit.  This one I left the wood veneer message and cut out heart be the focal point.

Thanks for peeking!

Happy Birthday!

Supplies:  Studio Calico - Valley High Card Kit, 

Wood veneer shapes - SC, machine stitching, glossy accents

 and sequins.

Another card created with the Valley High Card Kit.

I think this would be perfect for a teen.  I added machine stitching around the edge which held the tag to the cardstock.  I stamped the stamp in black, fussy cut it out and added a layer of glossy accents on top to get a shiny speech bubble.  A light sprinkle of white sequins finishes it off.

Thanks for peeking.  Hope you have a wonderful day.  Thanks so much for stopping by.

Hello... there!

Supplies:  Studio Calico - Valley High Card Kit

I am back creating but just didn't have enough hours in the day to post some photos!  My PC ground to a halt as it was running out of memory - just transferred/backed up to an external hard drive so we are back in action! Yipee!

Here I am sharing a card I created with the Valley High Card Kit I got during/before the Summer but never managed to get a chance to use.

Thanks for peeking - hope you have a great day.

Missing this little cutie!

Missing this little cutie - even asked the boys yesterday morning what colour/breed of dog they would like next!?  Am I mad?

I actually tweeted this photo a few days ago and the @irishguidedogs responded 

@DeirdreIrl Absolutely not! Who could resist the chance to do something so rewarding while spending time with such amazing dogs?

I know they are sooooo right!  I just thought I'd take a little break!!!

My hubby reckons we won't last past the end of October! LOL!

I spoke to the trainer that has been assigned to Clarly last Monday.  She told me Clarly is settling in well and getting to know her kennel companions.  Most, if not all of her litter is now in training - which is fantastic.  The trainers have to initially create a bond with each new dog so that is what they are working on with Clarly this week.  Next week she gets to leave the centre to do some training in urban locations.

Thanks for stopping by - hope you have a wonderful day.

Where did the Summer go?

Clarly - 12 months old

Hi everyone - I know.... I haven't posted here since June 24th!.  I am sorry but this year Ireland actually got a Summer!.  It took about 15 years to get here so the whole country took advantage of al fresco dining, swimming in the sea and enjoying the outdoors!.

Boat Buddies!

We had a wonderful time and enjoyed the school holidays. 

I have been doing some creating with some Studio Calico card kits that arrived and I will share them over the coming days.  I have challenged myself to create with the kits before I look at any of the inspiration/creations online.  It's not going too badly! (hope I don't jinx it!).

Leaving soon!

This little girl turned one during August and returns to the Irish Guide Dogs next Thursday to commence her formal training.  We will be heartbroken but hope that she will go on to have a positive impact on someone's life after her training is completed.

Will be back with some creations I promise!  Thanks so much for stopping by!

At 10 months!

 "Clarly" - aka cutie patootie came into our lives last October - you can read about her here.

Jan 2013

She has such a fun personality.  She loves company and children and has such a friendly disposition.  She doesn't wag her tail - she wags her whole body with excitement. We call it the "body wag"!.

 (above) Four and a half months of cuteness!

 

Here she is in her training jacket (May 2013) doing some fundraising for the Irish Guide Dogs for the Blind annual campaign - "Shades".

Cola Bottle anyone?.  She loves playing "fetch" and we have a vast array of chew/fetch toys for her to play with.  Wish you could hear the squeak the cola bottle makes - she runs around the garden squeaking it in her mouth - I'd say the neighbours think we are batty!.

Here she is just this week - chillin' after a walk - she is 10 months old.  She will be leaving us at the end of the Summer to enter Early Training with the Irish Guide Dogs for the Blind.  We are so proud of her and her progress to date but dread the thought of handing her back to start her "formal" training.  

Lots of Summer Fun yet to be had with her!.  It's hard to think of life without her but truly hope she will have a hugely positive impact on someone's life.

Thanks for peeking - hope you have a great week.

Using some hand crafted paper!

I am sure if you are the same as me you have an extensive collection of gathered items over the years - quite a lot of them will be connected to paper supplies!.  I recently came across a sheet of this beautiful handcrafted paper in my wrapping paper container (have had it for at least 10 years!) and decided to use it to make a card to match packaging for a friend's birthday.  I think I got it at Paper Source but could be wrong!... it was quite a while ago!.

I matched the flower centres with a sheet of AC Cardstock.  Cut feathers with my new fave dies - Die-namics Feathers and Arrows.

Used some white ribbon from ribbonbox.co.uk and a button from my stash.  I machine stitched the paper to the card base and hey presto - card done!  Imagine - no stamping!

Thanks for peeking.

Mixy-Matchy Style Challenge!

Supplies:  pp/cardstock butterfly/alphabet letters - 

Vintage Bliss - Simple Stories, pink cardstock - Papermania, 

Tape strips - kneehighs & bowties by Basic Grey, Labels 14 

die - spellbinders, Enamel dot - basic grey, versamark ink, 

embossing powder - ranger industries, paper scraps - AC, acetate 

sheet, white sequins - Gutermann, alphabet stamps - Heidi Swapp, 

machine stitching and 6x6 card blank - Craftworks.

When I saw that Cath had posted a new style challenge on Moxie Fab World I knew I would have to make a card!.

My SIL recently got engaged so whilst the card above isn't the one I made for her and her fiancé! (forgot to take a photo - oops!) - it has me thinking about making some Engagement cards!.

I also have been enjoying making shaker cards recently - so it's a mish-mash of mixy matchy patterns and styles!.  I stamped the sentiment on a die cut piece of cardstock with versamark ink and heat embossed with white embossing powder.  Then I machine stitched to the patterned paper.  I then secured the acetate to the base layer and card base with free form machine stitching - popping in the sequins right before I sealed the last side.

I adhered the "congrats" to the outside of the acetate so that the sequins could "travel" without catching. Yes, I did intentionally position the banners to be slightly offset - since the stitching was "free form" for this you read wonky I decided I didn't want the banners to be perfectly straight.  I think this makes them more dimensional - looks like they are fluttering in a light breeze!. 

Thanks for peeking - hope you have a great week.

Summer has arrived!

So the sun has come out here in Ireland!

 Photo taken yesterday from the top of Lough Hyne - Sherkin and Cape Clear Islands in the distance

You know this country is known for it's green-ness (proof above!) - that comes as a result of excessive moisture aka rain at all times of the year and not a lot of hot sunshine!

So when the sun comes out to play - so does the whole country!

I will be missing for a little while!

Sunscreen - check

Hat - check

Sunglasses - check

items to fussy cut in the sunshine - check! (see I won't be idle!)

Sweet!

Supplies:  PP & cardstock sticker - Vintage Bliss - Simple Stories, 

SRM Sentiment Sticker, heart shaped doily, aqua cardstock - 

Canson, Card Blank - Craftworks, machine stitching and 

roller adhesive.

A Birthday Card to share today.

I love this collection by Simple Stories and you will have seen it pop up in my last few posts.  I paired it with a chipboard sticker today and an SRM sentiment sticker.

Thanks for peeking.

Waltzingmouse Stamps - Friendly Feature

As you all know I am a HUGE fan of Waltzingmouse Stamps - so you can imagine my absolute delight when Lynn Mercurio/Claire Brennan contacted me a little while ago to appear on their new "Friendly Feature". Yeah... still doing the happy Irish gig! - today is the day.

Check out my creations and step by step over on the Waltzingmouse Blog.

Thanks for stopping by and I hope you leave me some "lurve" over on the WMS post.

Have a great weekend - I know mine has gotten off to a wonderful start!.

Good Luck!

Supplies:  Chickenwire Die - Die-namics, sentiment - Free Spirit

Waltzingmouse Stamps, feather die - Die-namics, notebook 

die - Papertrey ink, Kraft card blank - docrafts, Blue 

cardstock - Papermania, washi tape - Queen &Co., button - 

Cardz n Scrapz, black tuxedo ink - Memento, glossy accents 

and roller adhesive.

A Good Luck card suitable for a teen starting exams!  Exam time is fast approaching here in Ireland and I wanted to make a supply!.

Used this fun chicken wire die from Die-namics.  The feather reminded me of the olden times where the scribes used feather quills for writing!.

Thanks for peeking.

A Plaid Birthday!

 Supplies:  Pink Cardstock - American Crafts, pp - Simple Stories, 

Sentiment sticker - SRM Press, feather die - MFT, aqua and 

grey cardstock - Papermania, button - Cardz n Scrapz, 

ticket die - PTI, glossy accents, embroidery floss, machine stitching 

and tombow roller adhesive.

A quick and easy one today!

I used patterned paper from my new fave collection by Simple Stories.

Added some die cut feathers using this die.

An SRM sentiment sticker, big button and hey presto!

Challenges

CAS on Sundays - Pastels Pretties!

Thanks so much for stopping by and peeking.  I really do appreciate your visits.

A little Latte!

Supplies:  Funny Coffee Volume 1 - Skipping Stones Design,

 pp - Persnickety by Lilybee design, wine bottle die - pti, 

kraft card blank - docrafts, black tuxedo ink - memento, 

machine stitching, scor-pal, and tombow roller adhesive.

You know what I would LOVE to add to this card - enamel dots!

Just feel that they would be the finishing touch!  Can't add sequins to every card - although I could be sorely tempted! LOL!.

No enamel dots in my LSS - double checked today - the craze hasn't quite reached Ireland yet.  I did buy a Maggie Holmes Class Kit last week and I know there are enamel dots in that... can't wait for those to arrive.

I scored the kraft cardstock coffee sleeve after stamping and cutting - a little visible in the photo!.

Thanks for peeking - hope you have a wonderful weekend.

A flowery birthday!

Supplies:  pp and flowers from Watercolours Digital kit by Jen Martakis, 

Ribbon from MemrieMare on Etsy, white sequins, glossy 

accents, printer, computer generated sentiment, aqua textured

cardstock - Papermania, font - scrubble, machine stitching.

Sorry about the poor photo quality - it's difficult here at the moment!  It's May but feels like November and the sun is not co-operating.  It is still very cool - where is our Spring?

I went through my stash of digital kits saved on my computer and decided to get crafting with some of them again.  It's so easy to have lots of amazing kits filed away neatly on your computer and forget about them - right?

This kit is by Jen Martakis and it's called "Watercolours".  I used the flower on top of the patterned paper from the kit and added a sentiment and then printed.  Trimmed, matted on aqua textured cardstock and added machine stitching (of course!).

I tied the ribbon and adhered to the card using glossy accents and then also added the sequins with glossy accents to make sure they won't budge!.

Challenges

Simon Says Stamp - Flower Power

Thanks for peeking.  Hope you have a great day.

Happy Birthday!

Supplies: Live Simply pp - Simple Stories, sentiment - 

Sticker by SRM Press, kraft cardstock - Canson,

white sequins - Gutermann, ribbon - American Crafts, 

Flower from stash, fimo button - made by me!, pop dots, 

Scor-pal, glossy accents, embroidery floss and roller adhesive.

So I just love this paper by Simple Stories - Vintage Bliss and decided to make it the focal point of this card.  I added an sticker sentiment by SRM and scattered sequins (had to get in on the craze right!).

I scored the cardstock using my trusty Scor-pal and adhered the panel with dimensional adhesive. 

Thanks for peeking - hope you had a great weekend.

For the Dads!

Supplies: Green Washi Tape - Prima Marketing,  

Telephone Wire Washi - Freckled Fawn @Simon Says Stamp, 

black tuxedo ink - memento, sentiment from Man of the Hour 

stamp set - Waltzingmouse Stamps, Glasses - spectacle stamp set - 

Sweet Stamp Shop, glossy accents, black sharpie, kraft knife/

 scissors and pop dots.

This one is a quick and easy card for the Dad in your life!

I stamped the spectacles, fussy cut them - then went over them with a black sharpie and added glossy accents on top!

I had them sitting on my craft table ready for use and didn't know what I would do with them.  Then my order arrived from Waltzingmouse Stamps and I knew I had to use the sentiment with them - hey presto - card born!

Challenges
Paper Creator's Crafts - For the Boys

Stampavie and more - Use Kraft Cardstock

Thanks so much for peeking - hope you have a fun day.

Best of Luck!

Supplies - DeLovely pp - Cosmo Cricket, Pink cardstock - 

Canson, Green cardstock - American Crafts, Kraft 

cardstock & Vellum - Docrafts, Rose creations die - Spellbinders,  

Fresh Foliage die - Memory Box, polka dot embossing folder -  

Lifestyle Crafts, winebottle tag die - pti, 

computer generated sentiment, 6x6 cardblank - docrafts, 

fimo button - made by me!, pearls, embroidery floss, pop dot and

 tombow roller adhesive.

Lots of die cutting on this one!

As exam time fast approaches - I made this personalised card for a college student using Cosmo Cricket DeLovely 6x6 paper pack, PTI wine bottle hangtag die and my favourite butterfly die by Stampin' Up.

I am entering it into this week's challenge over on Simon Says Stamp - Things with Wings.

Also entering the first challenge over on As You Like It - Favourite Die/and or Punch

(I keep reaching for this Butterfly die - I use it over and over again!).

Thanks for peeking.

Party Set!

Supplies: Food On the Go Stamp Set – Jane’s Doodles

Wonderful Words Additions – Papertrey Ink

“you” die – Wonderful words die collection – Papertrey ink

Kraft Cardstock – Anita’s docrafts
White Gift Bag - Cupcakecrafting.co.uk

Merry Rhinestones – Lost & Found Christmas – My Mind’s Eye

White, Red and Aqua cardstock - Canson

Machine stitching

Black Tuxedo Ink – Memento

Copics-0, C1, C3, C5, G14, Y00, Y15, Y21, YR23, YG23, 
YG91, E18, E31, E33, E35, E43, R27, R37

Guillotine - Purple Cows

Sharing a set I made for a recent submission that wasn't picked up!  Think it was my second time submitting - no luck yet!!! Just have to keep on trying!

I had an idea in my head and was pretty happy with how it converted into real life.  I love aqua and red together and you know I am a huge fan of Jane's Doodles Stamps.

The set comprises of a gift bag, card and gift card holder.

Thanks for peeking - hope you are having a great week and have an even better weekend.

PJ's to fit American Girl Doll or any 18 inch doll

You may remember that back in December I created bedding - quilts and sleeping bags for my hubby's nieces as gifts. You can see the original posts here and here. (small photos below).

 

Well before you know it the birthdays have started to roll around!  The first is in February and we decided to continue the doll furniture theme and gifted a dolls wardrobe - oops! didn't take photos and some clothes for her American Girl Doll.  

I decided to make PJ's out of left over fabric from the sleeping bag so that the AG would co-ordinate beautifully!  Plus... it was to hand!.

I made a pair of cream fleece PJ bottoms with a patchwork trim on the ends of the pants (photos of the process below).

 I also made a red polka dot pair and a little bed shirt with a heart (cut the heart with a Spellbinders Die).

Pattern for the PJ Bottoms was from fleecefun.com - check out the free patterns and tutorials here. The t-shirt tutorial was from New Green Mama blog.

Then our adorable puppy decided to help! Yikes!!! - left unattended even though they were out of reach!  I didn't take a photo of the cream fleece ones - but the damage was similar!.

So I had to restart and make a second pair of these - make the cream fleece into shorts! and very quickly washed the t-shirt.  It was the only thing that survived!!!!

Thankfully the PJ's are really, really quick and easy to make.  I got more fabric today as I see more doll's clothes making in my future - 3 more birthdays fast approaching!

Thanks for peeking - I snapped a photo of the AG in her PJ's with my iphone.  

 Hope everyone had a wonderful Mother's Day yesterday on this side of the pond.  Hope you have a wonderful week.

Supplies:
Left over fabric (Pants pattern here)
Old t-shirt which I cut up to create the doll t-shirt (pattern here)
Velcro (Peel and Press tape)
White thread
Bias Binding (for ends of PJ's)
9 inches 5mm elastic (x2)
sewing machine