Poppy's card

Goood morning, my friends. I'm back this Holy Saturday to show you a card I made for my friend. The lovely image for the card is from the new Limited Edition Mini CD "Fredericka" by PolkaDoodles. I have no idea why Nikky is calling it Mini because it is bursting with 10 digi characters, each in colour and B&W for you to colour. You also get loads of sentiments and over 100 digi backing papers. Wow!

For my card I'm using this image called "Poppy". She is one of the 10 gorgeous digis from this CD. These images are sophisticated yet versatile and perfect for grown-up feminine cards.

I made this card for my dear old friend Penélope, affectionately known as Poppi. It's a haunting reminder of how young and fresh we used to look 30 years ago! LOL. Poppi now lives across the pond in San Francisco where she is known as Poppy! What a difference a letter makes!

In keeping with the season, I used light and breezy spring papers by PolkaDoodles. Poppi loves spring and used to walk about with flowers in her hair. 

I coloured the image with SN and Promarkers.  My friend, Poppi, is blonde, has blue eyes but her eyebrows are not white...not yet, anyway! I forgot to do the eye-brows!!! Yikes! I only just noticed it NOW. I'll fix it before I mail the card. For her necklace I used Kuretake Silver pen.

I fussy cut the image and adhered it to the card with some thin 1mm foam tape, for the slightest hint of dimension. For embellishment I have buttons, twine and some lace.

On the inside I used some the the lovely daisy and yellow gingham papers and adhered a little yellow bow.

I'm taking this card to: Brown Sugar #35 "Flowers";  Crafts 4 Eternity #117 "Cute As You Like"; Creative Corner #12 "Anything Goes"; Sweet n Sassy Digis #98 "Think Spring"; Spark Your Creativity Now #7 "Anything Goes"; Digi Haven "Spring" and Jelly Park Challenges "Pretty Pastels". Don't forget to check out Make It Monday #134 - some great projects on display!

That's all from me today. Don't forget to take a peek and this new Fredericka Mini CD. There are loads of other crafting goodies in the Polka Doodles online store and postage is FREE worldwide. That usually seals the deal for me!

Thanks for stopping by and I wish you a Blessed and Joyful Easter.

Beijinhos!

A Wish For You

Welcome to another Polka Doodles challenge, my friends. This week we have a fun little technique for you to use in your projects - Paper Piecing. It's a great way to dress your stamped or digi image and perfect for when you're just not in the mood for fancy colouring.

My contribution to this week's challenge is a response to a blog buddy who said that Polka Doodles images and papers are too whimsical for more serious grown-up cards. Not true, I tell ya! Just take a look at this simple (almost CAS) all occasion card I made using papers exclusively from the Cherry Blossom Lane CD. The butterfly and greeting are from the Gracie Fairy Flutterfly rubber stamp set, also by Polka Doodles. I paper-pieced the butterfly, added some bling and we have a card perfect for any adult.

The papers are from Cherry Blossom Lane. There's plenty of stitching on this card. 

Here's a close-up of the butterfly. If you are new to paper piecing this is a great image to start with. Nice and big without too many nooks and crannies. Dress it up with bling and you have a simple yet striking focal image. For cutting and layering I used Spellbinders Standard Circles and Scalloped Circles dies. 

I popped the image up on some foam tape and called it  a day... err, not quite.

Since I had so much fun paper-piecing the butterfly, I went for it with a vengeance on the inside! I paper pieced the flowers, also from the Gracie Fairy Flutterfly stamp set, with the gorgeous gingham papers from Cherry Blossom Lane.

I'm taking my card to Dutch Dare Cards #210 "CAS"; C.R.A.F.T. Challenge#200 "Mother's Day / Female"; Charisma Cardz #12 "Happy Birthday";  Whimsy Inspirations #57 "Stitch It - Real or Faux"; Emerald Faeries #41 "Bling" and Bunny Zoe's Crafts Monthly Challenge "Girly".

Admittedly some of Polka Doodle's are cute, adorable and utterly precious - call it a design flaw (LOL) - but have you seen Nikky's latest designs? NO? Well then, you simply MUST hop over to the Polka Doodles online store and check out this Limited Edition Mini CD called "Fredericka" containing the  most gorgeous grown-up images. You'll find yourself reaching out for your colouring medium of choice because these images just scream "Colour Me"!  There are 10 images and over 100 backing papers and Nikky is offering free postage worldwide!


That's all from me today. Thanks for stopping by. I wish you all a truly blessed day. Link up your project and I'll be around to take a peek!

Beijinhos!

Happy Easter

Hello my friends. This is a quick post. I made this card on Tuesday evening late night midnight... I think.  In any case, I only just remembered that hadn't blogged about it...  It's probably my age, or that I feel like I haven't slept for 3 weeks... or maybe I'm finally loosing my mind!  Before I dash off to do I-can't-remember-what, I'll leave you with this Easter card....my last Pascal card for this year. A card like this is the perfect way to use up your scrap pieces of DP.

The papers are bits and bobs from Papermania's "Rose Garden" 6x6 pad, which I can only assume is out of print. This one is a good few years old. I cut the pieces down to 1" squares and stitched them to give a granny's quilt look. 

Very little embellishments here - bits of ribbon and some pearls. The card is quite flat as I'm using 2mm foam tape.

The greeting is from WMS Compact Sentiments 1, stamped with Memento Tuxedo Black. For cutting and layering I used Nellie Snellen's Multi Frame Dies Dots Circles. It has a doily look without being too fussy.  

On the inside I used up the rest of the 1" squares. 

The sketch is from Tuesday Morning Sketches #191; Pixies Crafty Workshop "Crafty Snippets Playground #65;  Easter challenges with Crafty Creations #215; Creative Belli #166; Sisterhood of Crafters; The Paper Shelter #105 "Anything Goes"; Cuttin' and Stampin' #12 "Easter"; Flourishes Timeless Tuesday #213 "Grab Some Thread"  and Whimsical Designs "Pastels".


That's my last Easter 2013 card. Thank you so much for stopping by. I'll be back tomorrow with a little something.... until then, have a great day y'all!

Get Well Wishes

I know...I'm very late with my MojoMonday card. It's been that sort of Monday...you know, when everything that can go wrong, does. I'm glad the day's over. To help me heal I indulged in some therapeutic crafting and walked out with this simple get well card for a neighbour.

Going square with papers from Cosmo Cricket's "Togetherness" 6x6 pad. 

Flat as a pancake...almost Some foam tape for the sheet music and greeting .

The sheet music is from Chocolate Baroque's Music Fanfare set, stamped in Memento Tuxedo Black.  I fussy cut it and inked the edges with TH's Antique Linen and vintage Photo. The greeting is from  WMS Fancy, heat embossed in white then cut and layered with Spellbinders Reverse Wonky Rectangles. 

And a simple message on the inside.

The sketch for this card is from MojoMonday #286. I'm also playing along with Avenue613 #12  "Aything Goes"; Challenges 4 Everybody #16 "Anything Goes"; Sentimental Sundays #147 "Stitching" and Creative Corner Challenges #11 "Layer It Up". 

That's all from me today. It's been a long hard day but I'm glad I got this little card done. Off to bed in a bit... so behind on my beauty sleep... the cracks are showing! Thank you for taking the time to visit and I'll see you soon!

Beijinhos!

Christmas Card Club #5: Colour on Kraft

Good morning, dear friends! Welcome to the 5th instalment of the Christmas Card Club offering. It feels strange to be posting a Christmas card on Palm Sunday...but there you have it, proof positive that we live in a topsy-turvy world!

This fortnight, our lovely Clare has the privilege of choosing the theme: Use Kraft on the Card. Sounds simple enough...but the execution was not so, at least not for me. I just could not decide on the colours...apart from the kraft element. In the end, I relied on this week's Colour Throwdown #234 for inspiration. Bit by bit, my card evolved into this:

The patterned papers are from HOTP's "Forever Christmas". The sentiment is from CB's Song of Christmas set, stamped in Brilliance Cottage Ivy.  I'm using kraft for layering and the scalloped trim.

I made a window card. For cutting and layering I used Spellbinder Standard Circles and Scalloped Circles dies. For embellishments, I have green bling and a sheer white bow. I did my stitching with white thread.

Here's the inside. The image is a stamp from Chocolate Baroque's "Christmas Song" set, stamped in Memento  Tuxedo Black. I coloured the bird with SN markers (GB 7, GB8, GB10, EB5, CR10).  Now that's what I call a krafty bird!

Here's a close-up of the stamped image. I used som clear bling in the centre of each ornament. On the branches I dabbed some Stickles Frosted Lace and Icicle for a frosty look. It's not really showing up well in the photos.

I'm playing along with Colour Throwdown #234; Amusing Challenges "Kraft";  Christmas Stampin All Year Long #8 "Anything Goes"; Crafty Hazelnut's Christmas Challenge #117 "3 of Something" - 3 clear bling; CHNC Challenge Extra - March; Drunken Stampers #120 "Birds"; 4 Crafty Chicks "Break Out The Circles" and Make It Monday #133.

That's all for today, folks. Thanks for stopping by today. Have blessed Sunday and I'll see y'all tomorrow.

Beijinhos!  


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You make me smile!

Can you believe it? It's time for another Eclectic Ellapu challenge. This week the Pink team has a fun challenge for you. Berni is our lovely hostess and as it's her birthday on April 1st, she is adamant that you put out your craziest, whackiest, whimsical project. The theme for this week is "Whimsy or Funny".

The inspiration for my card came from the memory of my sweet Xiara. (Don't worry, I'm not going to start bawling!) This image by MelJen reminds me of Xiara and the hours she would spend by our pond watching Turtle Joe poke his little head out of the water every now and again. I often found myself wondering "What could she be thinking?"

I'm not sure why this digi reminds me of Xiara...it is everything that Xiara was not. In reality she was a ginger dame of ample girth, who insisted on quality and variety in her food, which she elegantly consumed from her platter and no other.  Having said that..she sure made me smile with my heart, even today.

The papers are from Fancy Pants "Beach Babe" 6x6 pad.

I coloured the Cat with SN markers and layered him on Spellbinders Postage Stamp die-cut.

Every cat's dream is to have lots of fish within reach and plenty of sun....I have both on this card. The greeting is from Waltzing Mouse Stamps Compact Sentiments, stamped with Memento Expresso Truffle and layered with Spellbinders Classic Ovals and Scalopped Ovals die-cuts.  Final bits of embellies: Doodlebug Twine and red bling.

On the inside, some random stitching.

I'm taking my fun little number to: Creative Moments #13 "Animals"; Sweet Stampin' "Lots of Layers"; One Stop Craft Challenge "Recipe: 1 image, 2 embellishments, 3 designer papers"; Brown Sugar Challenges #34 "Anything Goes"; Charisma Cardz #11"Die Cuts"  and Creative Corner Challenges #11 "Layer It Up".

No it's your turn to create something fun and whimsical. Don't forget to swing by the rest of the Eclectic Ellapu design team for ideas and inspiration. And when you're done, link up your master piece to the challenge blog. I can't wait to take a peek at your creations.

That's all from me today. Thanks for stopping by and have a great weekend.

Beijinhos!

Rejoice!

Hello again, my crafty cronies. Time for another blog post and this time I want to show you an Easter card I made for our parish priest. I didn't want to make him a cutsie card with eggs, bunnies and the usual Easter fare. A modern twist on something traditional is what I had in mind. So, like Winnie the Pooh, I said sat down, scratched my head saying "think, think think " and came up with this card. The sketch is from Tuesday Morning Sketches #190 and the colours are from Colour Q #181.

The patterned papers are from PolkaDoodles Sugar Birdies  

The crosses are dies from Spellbinders Crosses Two. I used 3 dies and layered them. To cut the background I used the largest Labels 4 die and did some inking with Memento Cantaloupe. I added a blue bling in the centre...had to! 

I succumbed to my foam tape addiction but I'm using the 1mm tape...nice and thin. 

On the inside I stamped a sentiment for Verve's Everlasting Life set, with Memento Danube Blue.

I'm also playing along with Sweet Stamps Blog #109 "Crosses"; Word Art Wednesday #72 "Uplifting Sentiment"; Cards in Envy Theme Challenge "Paper Strips Instead of Ribbon"; Creative Card Crew#32 "Masculine"; Ruby's Rainbow Challenges #50 "Easter"; Simon Says Stamp "Spring / Easter" and Bearly Mine Challenges #78 "Anything Goes".    

I have a little confession. You know that I've moved to Bloglovin' and I'm still trying to work out the what-how-why of this new reader. Following the handover, I ended up with over 700 "unread" posts...most of which I have read. I tried going through it, visiting and leaving comments but with more posts being added daily there was just no catching up. So, out of sheer frustration, I marked all as read! <gasp>. I just want you to know that I'm not ignoring your posts on purpose nor have I forgotten my blog buddies. I'm just hopeless at new fangled technology. Usual commenting will resume shortly.

Thanks for stopping by. It's almost the weekend and I am so ready for it. What a week it has been...

Beijinhos!      


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Sayonara Google Reader... Olá Alina

I suppose everybody knows by now that Google Reader's days are numbered. Rather than leave it 'till the last minute and have another of my uh-oh moments, I've decided to make the switch early.

On my iPhone I have this thing called "Feedly" (ever heard of it?) and I occasionally use it to browse my fave blogs. It made sense to swap Google Reader with Feedly on my MacBook as well.  But it turned out to be way more complicated. Feedly and I were throwing terrible tantrums and only one could prevail. So I zapped Feedly  into oblivion and switched to bloglovin'.  Not bad....and then I noticed the 738 unread blog posts! Seriously?!

This is going to take a while, guys. So bear with me. I'm not going to shop around for another reader. I  just want out of this techno-fog. For those who know what it all means, I leave you with this gidget / widget / midget to click on so you can continue to follow me ...I think.

Frankly, I'm not entirely sure about any of this but there's some kind of exodus going on and I'm jumping on the bandwagon so as not to be left behind! That's the plain truth. But I'll know more when I get there....hopefully!

On a lighter note, I want to show you a couple of piccies I took of my dear friend, Alina, at a recent Easter fair. She is an amazing potter and is extremely creative with clay and porcelain. She's working on her website and I'll add a link as soon as it's up.  Sometimes you're just so proud of your friends you want everyone to know... I'm having such a moment now!     

Alina stands firmly behind her craft.

These are just some of her pieces. She also makes stunning mugs, bowls, dishes, even garden ornaments.  

See ya tomorrow for our regular crafting rendezvous.

Beijinhos!

Space Adventures

Welcome to another Tuesday Throwdown challenge. And this week we have a fun theme for you: Space Adventures. This is so perfect for any little boy and I think my young nephew will love the card I made for his upcoming birthday... provided he is still into spaceships and alien.  (And they call us fickle!)

Our sponsor for this Challenge #139 is My Grafico and they have generously provided the DT with some of the cutest images to use on our cards. I'm using images from the 3...2...1...Blast Off set. And it's not just for boys, there's also a little girl in a space suit. How cool is that?!

Take a look at my finished card project for this challenge:

The patterned papers are from Bo Bunny "Blast Off" 6x6 pad.

Since this is a boy-card, I did not feel pressured to dress it up. So, all I have is a label for the greeting and some blue twine. Because this card has it's own journey to make, I'm keeping it as flat as possible, thereby dispensing with my addiction to foam tape.

 I coloured him with SN markers and chucked some Crystal Stickles in the background... distant stars! 

On the inside I continued with a sentiment from the same WMS set and threw in that darling little alien.  

There you have it - a card to thrill any young man.

In the meantime, I'm taking my card to the following challenges: Here Come the Boys #48 "Photo Inspiration"; No Matter Which Challenges #7 "Anything Goes"; Pile It On #11 "Circle and / or Square"; Stampin' For the Weekend "Child's Play"; Crafty Ribbons #41 "One For the Boys"; Can You Digi It #31 "Male Birthday";  Little Miss Muffet #56 "Boys Only"; Delightful Challenges "Here's One For The Boys" and Ooh La La Creations "It's A Man Thing.






Now it's your turn. Show us your creative efforts and link it up with Tuesday Throwdown Challenge #139.  Remember, the theme is Space Adventures. But first, why not visit my fellow DTeamies and they'll get your creative juices bubbling in no time!  Kim Sherrod; Carol Gill; Ceal Pritchett; Davi Reid; Joyce Lofton; Julie Wells; Nana Connie and Sally Dube

That's all from me today. Thanks for stopping by and I look forward to visit your blogs.

Beijinhos!

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Mon Amie

In about 15 mins, Monday will be history. I'm going to go ahead and post my MojoMonday card without the customary chit-chat . Here it is, folks, my spring-feel card for a dear friend:

The patterned papers are from My Mind's Eye "Pretty Please" 6x6 pad. 

For embellies, some sheer white ribbon. Keeping it fairly flat so that I can send it off on its cross-Atlantic journey without upsetting the postman. 

The greeting is from WMS Fancy Phrases set, stamped in Memento Rose Bud. For cutting and layering I used Spellbinders Circles and Scalloped Circles dies.

After cutting and layering I adhered the greeting to the card with some foam tape.

On the inside I went for a simplified take on the card sketch.

I'm playing these challenges: MojoModay #285 - sketch;  The Shabby Tea Room #158 "Anything Goes"; Lacy Sunshine Challenge #4 "Layer It Up" ; Glitter & Sparkle #24 "Easter or Spring Colours" - I'm using spring colours; Craft Your Passion #154 "Ribbon / Lace" - I'm using ribbon and Challenges 4 Everybody #16 "Anything Goes".


That's all from me today. Thanks for stopping by. I'm off to bed now, it's been a long day. And I'm still recovering from a nasty case of food-poisoning. That explains my no-show over the weekend but regular visitations will resume soon. I also have scheduled a post for you tomorrow. Its time for another  Tuesday Throwdown challenge with a fun theme. I hope you'll swing by tomorrow for a peek. Until then, my sweet friends, I bid you good night!

Beijinhos!