hello ewe

Hi all, it is a wet day here in Melbourne ... 2 days ago it was a hot 36 degrees celcius ... now it is around 17 degrees ... crikey only Melbourne gets weather like that!
So I thought this morning before I start out on my albums I would make a card for the Lawn Fawn CHA 2014 Catalogue Challenge.  I have been neglecting my critters on the farm set for a while now so I dug them out and have used the sheep with my new product that I love ... puffy paint.

 This is a great set to create a scene with, here is a close up of one of my ewes ...

I have split the title from 'hello chickadee' and 'I like ewe' to create my title to make the card so that it can be used for anything.
Thanks for looking.

Merry Christmas

This afternoon is a little dreary here in Melbourne so I thought I would take a break from doing my family albums to make this Christmas card following the sketch from Sieze the Sketch #8

I have followed the theme from Scrapbook Boutique - 'a bright christmas' and also Annabelle Stamps 'christmas' theme...

I have used a 1" clear epoxy sticker over each of the baubles to make them a bit more 3d

materials used - Kaisercraft splice card, smooth white; Carta Bella 'merry & bright' papers; Annabelle Stamps 'decorated christmas' stamps; Versa Color black, lime, turquoise, pink inks; Annabelle Stamps 'christmas ornaments' dies, CC Designs 'christmas baubles' die; Jillibean Soup roma red alphabet stickers; 1" clear epoxy stickers; Ranger liquid pearls - white; Kaisercraft silver bling; Silver cord.Thanks for looking.

Who's turning fifty?

My eldest sister is turning 50 at the beginning of next year and I have made her card ... I love the cheeky sentiment of this card .... the W.T.F?  when I first saw it on a card I thought crikey that is really out there and then I read the sub title and just burst into laughter and thought what a great idea and just had to use it!

 I have used Paper Smooches alphadot stamp set and the rosette is made from pleating washi tape and then trimming it down with a circle die ... here is a close up

I would like to enter this into the designer drafts challenge over at Paper Smooches SPARKS challenge blog.
materials used - grey cardstock, Kaisercraft elephant, blush and peacock cardstock; MME a mothers love papers; Paper Smooches alphadot stamp set; Versa Color black ink, VersaMark watermark ink, Colorbox turquoise ink; White embossing powder; Washi tape; Circle dies; Couture Creations tied together embossing folder.
Thanks for looking.

Christmas `fishes'

Hello there, it has been a while since I last posted a card on this blog ... I have been busy working on my family holiday albums and decided to take a break and make this card for my Sister who recently bought herself a fishing boat and loves fishing ...

The little fish out of Annabelle Stamps - beside the sea were used and I made a little fish bowl out of a circle die.  Here is a close up of the fish and bowl ...

Although my photo doesn't show it clearly but there is coloured sand at the bottom of the fish bowl.  To make my fish bowl I cut a circle out of acetate, trimmed the top, notched a ledge and then used a smaller circle to finish it off.
I would like to enter this for the following challenges:
Annabelle Stamps - christmas
Party Time Tuesdays - use twine or hemp
Creative Card Crew - pearls (speech bubble and holly berries)
Retro Sketches #89

Materials used - White cardstock; Carta Bella merry & bright papers; Annabelle Stamps beside the sea, MFT mini banner day alphabet, Paper Smooches he said she said stamps; Staz On jet black, olive, blazing red, Versa Color sky blue and turquoise inks; Acetate; Circle cutter; Kaisercraft red and black pearls; The Twinery maraschino twine; Mocha sand; Prismacolor pencils; Sizzix scalloped frame die.
Thanks for looking.

Christmas tidings

And another card for today - this time following the sketch from Seize the sketch #7.  It is a nice CAS style sketch and this is my card ...

 I added a little paper weaving ... you would think after weaving a basket that I would be a little sick of weaving at the moment!  So here is a close up ...

materials used - Kaisercraft coconut card; Carta Belle merry & bright papers; MFT Christmas ornaments dies and stamp set; Staz On jet black ink; Kaisercraft pearl; liquid pearls opal white.
Thanks for looking.

Naughty or Nice?

I had the urge to make some cards this morning!  So I completed 2 cards - this is the first following the sketch from Sketch Saturday #282, create a humorous theme for Quirky Crafts (make us laugh), paper tearing for The Pink Elephant #223 and Anything goes for Party Time Tuesdays #144.

materials used - AC spinach, powder card, smooth red and white cardstock; Carta Bella merry & bright, Jillibean Soup xmas eve chowder papers; CC Designs no peeking and funny christmas stamps; Staz On jet black ink; Woodcraft puffy stuff; Prismacolor pencils; twine; bling.
Thanks for looking.

Traditional Pitcairn Island basket

LOL well not quite traditional as it is not made out of natural fibres like they use to in the old days ... but now they make them out of pallet strapping (not off cuts but they use an actual roll!)   While there on the island I made a basket and off course I just had to make mine different and I ended up adding a lid to mine, I bought this back to NZ and my sister ended up with it.
So once back here in OZ I endeavoured to find a place that sells this direct to the public and found one just up the road.  Back on the island they use a variety of colours and it is sourced from NZ.  My Aunt Olive has beautiful colours and when my Nana was alive she also made the baskets although her colours were limited to the traditional colours of blue, green and white.
The different colours tend to represent the different tensile strengths of the strapping and some can be very pliable and easy to work with while some can be down right stiff and rip your fingers to bits!!!
So while doing a very extensive search on the internet here in Oz I realise the colour choices here a limited to blue, blue, blue, blue and for something really different ... blue.  They do have the black and green and white but they are not very pliable.  So not wanting to rush things I try to think of a solution to add a little colour to my basket and since I love to think outside the square I came up with adding ribbon.  So off I go to Spotlight in search of a coordinating ribbon and large button(s).
Now armed with my bike and trailer I set off to get my 1km roll of blue 12mm strapping.  Once home I used the box that a carving came in as my template so my basket is around 35cm x 15cm x 28cm, it also has a lid and an elastic strap to hook it around a button.
Here is the end result ...

I did have a few problems with it but in the end I found easier ways to do things, namely the pocket is easier to put on the outside rather than the inside of the bag!   I  love how the ribbon just adds that little bit of colour and the buttons are a great way to embellish it!  Definitely by plaiting the elastic to close the lid is a lot better than a single elastic strap as it made it look tacky!

Next basket I made is one without a lid.

Baby Jayden Album

Been sort of busy lately creating this album of my youngest nephew Jayden.   He is a real cutie and came to visit us during the year - his first time on an aeroplane!  Since I am doing albums for the rest of the family on Pitcairn I thought that I would do one for my sister Cheryl ... here are some of the photos from the album -

I have used the gorgeous baby boy cards from Sn@p range, along with the stickers.  As well as incorporating the vibe color and Sn@p Life papers also from Sn@p and the alphabet stickers and stamps.
The album itself is small and was made to size to suit the baby boy cards so it is about 105mm x 150mm in size.

define good

Hello there, my card for today is a little cutie :)  I followed this weeks sketch from Sketch Saturday - a real clean and simple one.

 I also incorporated the challenge from CAS-ual Fridays - stitching and since I can't for the life of me sew I opted for faux stitching!  I would also like to enter this card into Quirky Crafts challenge blog whose challenge is to use your favourite things and I have to admit I have ALOT of favourite things so I chose my favourite NEW thing which is something called fluffy stuff ... it is a paint that you paint onto an area that you want to appear fluffy and then heat set it ... it is perfect for snow or santas beard!  I absolute love it!  check out the close up photo to see its effects -

 and a close up of the fluffy stuff!

so cute aye!
materials used - White cardstock; Carta Bella 'merry & bright' papers; CC Designs no peeking and funny christmas stamps, Paper Smooches he said she said stamps, Sassafras Lass stitched borders stamps; Staz On jet black ink, Brilliance rocket red ink; Woodcraft fluffy stuff.
Thanks for looking.

Handle with care

Ok and my last Xmas card for this morning ... you would think that as I finish each card I would upload it to the blog but no I sort of do another card, then another and all off a sudden I have several postings to do on the blog!!!
So this one is following the sketch from Freshly made sketches  and Papertake Weekly Challenges - 2 by 2 ...

 I created 2 christmas crackers ...

 here is a close up of the crackers ...

materials used - Canson red card, brown and cream card, AC cricket card; Jillibean Soup 'christmas eve chowder' papers and stamps; pearls; Staz On timber brown ink.
Thanks for looking.

CAS 25 December

Here is another quick and simple Xmas card that I made following the sketch from Seize the Sketch ...

I rotated the sketch 90 degrees ...

materials used - AC spinach, pacific cardstock; Carta Bella 'merry & bright' papers; American Crafts vinyl thickers; Kaisercraft bling; Been there done that victoria alphabet rub ons.
Thanks for looking.

December 25

Good morning all, it is going to be a lovely spring day here in Melbourne so I got up early to upload my latest creations so I can step out and enjoy this beautiful day!
This card is following the sketch from Mojo Mondays (which I rotated 90 degrees) and also the 1, 2, 3 challenge from Crafty Creations Challenge blog - 1 ribbon, 2 embellishments (pearls and fabric lace) and 3 patterned papers.

It is a clean and simple card with no image!

materials used - Canson red cardstock; Carta Bella 'merry & bright' papers; Spellbinders standard circles large, # 18 and petite scalloped circles large nesties; Ranger liquid pearls; fabric lace; 15mm cherry satin trim.
Thanks for looking.

welcome lil' one

And here is another card for today, I started it yesterday and managed to finish it early this morning. I followed this weeks sketch from Sketch Saturday and also the Lace theme from Paper Smooches SPARKS challenge blog. Now I am not a big user of lace but I did manage to find some of this lace fabric tape ... it is quite pretty in real life!

materials used - AC cricket card, smooth white cardstock; Echo Park 'a perfect summer', Lawn Fawn 'bright side' papers; Paper Smooches chubby chums, alphadot and spring groves stamps; Staz On jet black ink; Prismacolor pencils; Provocraft Cuttlebug circle and flower dies; Francheville safety pin; 10mm split ring; 10mm yellow gingham.

Oh crab I forgot!

Hi there, it is a wet afternoon here in Melbourne and I only just got back from cycling when it began to rain, I was going to go out into the garden but since it is too wet that can wait 'til tomorrow! I have a CAS style card featuring my new stamp set from Annabelle Stamps - beside the sea. I followed the sketch from Retro Sketches #84 and have included chevrons and sequins for the challenge over at CAS-ual Fridays ...

materials used - Kaisercraft splice, scarlet, denim, island, buttercup card, Bazzill pink and smooth white cardstock; Echo Park 'a perfect summer' papers; Annabelle Stamps 'beside the sea' stamps; Staz On jet black ink; Prismacolor pencils; Maria George 10mm circle sequins. Thanks for looking.

Have a monster of a birthday

Hi all, I had a very productive day and managed to make this card based on the challenge from Party Time Tuesdays - spooky monsters for kids.  Now I/we don't exactly do Halloween here so this is a birthday card rather than a halloween card!  I also followed the sketch from Feeling Sketchy, created a tag for Creative Card Crew and was inspired by the 'monster mash' song for Southern Girls (inspired by a song challenge.

 I love this monster stamp from Annabelle Stamps ... it is such a pleasure to colour!
materials used - Kaisercraft tomato, splice cardstock; Echo Park 'a perfect summer' papers; Annabelle Stamps 'balloon monster' stamps; Staz On jet black ink; Prismacolor pencils; paper cord; Kaisercraft red pearls; 10mm yellow gingham; button.
Thanks for looking.

You make my heart sing

Hello there!  It has been over 2 months since I last posted on my card blog.  For those of you who were unaware we have been travelling (yes again!) and this time we substituted our push bikes for a supply ship (50m long and 10m wide!) to Pitcairn Island.  For those of you interested you can read and see lots of photos of our epic journey on my travel blog - 4 Pedals & 4 Paws.
You are probably wondering why did we go there? ... well it is a very remote island about half way between NZ and South America.  It is only around 2.5km long and 1.5km wide and is very hilly and also its' claim to fame is it iss the place where the mutineers of the Bounty (Mutiny on the Bounty) made their home.  And my mother was born there and hasn't been back for over 52 years!  So it was a family effort to get her back there one last time.  After spending 2 weeks on the boat (it was a slow boat!) in the middle of the ocean miles away from any land (sometimes the closest land to us was 1000 nautical miles away) and also in some very deep ocean (5km deep ... eeek!) we finally made it and I have to admit when I first saw the island I did well up with tears and when I saw my Mum step foot on the island ... well the tears just flowed!
So we are back and I am in the craft room catching up!  My card was made using the wonderful set from Annabelle Stamps - Cherry blossom and I followed this months sketch

 It is a very user friendly sketch and I rotated it 180 degrees ...

 The 2 birds are individual stamps and so is the small cherry blossom so I did a little masking to make them appear sitting on the branch.  It is such a sweet scene ... I did make one little mistake - the bird with the flower is suppose to be me but I accidently gave it too much colour (as we know in nature the female bird is always the less colourful one!).  Here is a closer look at the scene ...

I would also like to submit this to Papertake Weekly Challenges whose theme this week is anything goes.
materials used - Kaisercraft blush card, smooth light blue and white card; My Minds Eye 'miss caroline - dolled up' papers; Annabelle Stamps 'cherry blossom' stamps; Staz On jet black ink, Versa Color mint ink; Prismacolor pencils; apricot satin trim.
Thanks for looking.

Quirky Crafts Guest DT - life's a picnic

Hello everyone, todays post is as a Guest Designer for Quirky Crafts Challenge blog.  The challenge is a 'picnic' theme! ... quirky isn't it!  So anything that is picnic related like an outdoor scene with food, basket of food, things that you encounter on a picnic ... which is what I followed .... one always encounters ANTS on a picnic!

 here is a close up of those lovely little pesty ants!

I never thought I would say this but aren't they cute!  The ant image and title 'life's a picnic' is from Crackerbox Palace who are currently developing their digital images and will be on their new website soon.  But head on over to Quirky Crafts blog to see the talented DT using other images from this sponsor.
The ant is a single image and I put it into my word document, resized and then repeated the image across the card and for the odd ant I used the mirror image icon on my document so that they aren't all facing the same way.  I then printed off the title and cut the individual letters and mounted them on coloured cardstock and placed them on the hands of the ants.  Another option would be to have the ants carrying food morsels!
materials used - Kaisercraft tomato, splice, island and buttercup card, smooth white cardstock; Echo Park 'a perfect summer' paper; Crackerbox Palace digital images - ant and life's a picnic; Prismacolor pencils; 10mm yellow gingham; Spellbinders standard circles large nesties.
Thanks for looking.