ON THE CARDS

My final regular post.

2012-01-02T22:29:00.000Z

Happy new year everyone. I hope you achieve everything you wish for this year. After a long hard consideration I've decided not to continue with my blog on a regular basis. When I started out the blog was influenced by my card making. Somehow I let this totally turn around so my craft was ruled by my blog and what my followers would like to see.I felt (and quite rightly too) the need to give links to the free artwork I have used in my creations, which sometimes took me a long while to trace the origins if I hadn't already saved the page addresses.My blog also sometimes got in the way of doing stuff that wasn't really blogworthy ie, repeat stuff or items using images I didn't have links for.
I didn't do typing at school and as a result ( although I was good at English), I can look up from my laptop and find I've done a whole sentence in capitals which is a real pain. It happens all the time, lol.
Thank you so much to the 14 people who have asked me to carry on. I will continue to follow your blogs. I had 203 followers. 4 have jumped ship already. It sort of says it all.
If I have anything unusual or particularly seasonal to share I will post it here.

Thank you to my faves, Coops, Jules,Lee from St Agnes, Jules,always with a heart,Teresa, Incy, Liegh, Irene,Kay, Faith,Barbara, Julie Smith, Tilly, Sheila Cyprus, Triciasconfetti, Ali, Purple mad Alison, Lynn, Crafty Loops,Judi, Ali, Karen, And any regular readers.
My next project is to update my really naff rented kitchen. Curtains, tablecloth, mugs etc.Maybe a crafty make or two................

Oh and this is the real biggie....Target weight 9st 2lb. Today a whopping 9st 6lb1!!!!

Taking a little break.

2011-12-15T17:12:00.000Z

Hello everyone. It's been a week since my last post and I've had to make myself do this one today. To be truthful I'm feeling a little bit despondent where my blog is concerned. I don't know whether it's because of this busy time of the year or whether I just don't want to keep it up. Therefore, I've decided to have a bit of a "trial separation" in the hope that I'll miss it and try again in the new year.
Meanwhile here is my last Christmas card for the year. Yippee!!

Well, it's actually one of a pair I made for mum and mum in law. The image is by Meljens Designs. I don.t know the origin of the paper but it's one I downloaded ages ago. It was originally pink but I changed it to sepia in picasa. That's not glitter around the edges, it's actually the design of the paper. I love my fiskars deckle scissors because it doesn't matter if you can't cut straight, lol.

I do hope I'll be back in a few weeks time. I still want to make things but I'm a bit fed up of editing photos, doing links,etc. Maybe I've just got my lazy head on.
I hope you all have the best Christmas ever. I'm going out to a local hotel for my Christmas dinner as my kitchen closes for the day.

So merry Christmas, happy new year and hopefully I'll sort myself out.

I'm at my target weight again today but as of Saturday I'm going to stuff my face for a few weeks then back to the diet.

A couple of Christmas cards.

2011-12-08T19:05:00.002Z

Quick post before I get ready for work. These are a couple of cards I made for an order. They are both in my easy "go to" layout.

Both images are by Meljens designs from Whimsy Stamps.

A few scraps, a bit of ribbon and plenty of Stickles and we're done.

Weight this week still 9st 3lb, one over target.

A card for Teacher.

2011-12-04T21:21:00.001Z

I wasn't going to blog this card as it was for a special order for someone who used to teach and I thought everyone would be more into Christmas stuff at the moment. Then I realised a teacher card is probably one of the most needed but hardest to come up with ideas for at this time of year.

So here it is. It could easily be made into a Christrmas teacher thank you card. It took me ages to find a suitable image but I eventually found this one from Colouring Pages 4 Kids HERE. It's a great site with loads of different free images.

I didn't keep the link to the apples but I found them from Google images/line drawings. I just typed apples into the search box. I resized them and applied glossy accents after colouring them.

My sleigh's virgin outing was such fun yesterday. There is a Christmas market in town which is pretty abysmal, but we hung out and had a mulled wine and a mince pie and everyone was commenting on my sleigh and asking where I got the lights from etc. One bloke ( who I knew) asked where they where plugged in and I gave him such an X rated answer, lol. You should have seen his face. He saw the funny side though. He should have known what sort of answer I'd give him.

The Sleigh is Ready.

2011-12-02T19:11:00.000Z

Well it's December again and time to hit the streets with my sleigh. I've bought some new lights which are bigger and brighter than my old ones.

I will be going out with it for a few early doors drinkies after a bit of late afternoon shopping tomorrow. People have already been asking when I'm bringing it out as it gets them in the festive mood. You know what that means though.......yes it'll probably pee down all afternoon.
I've been of work this week using my hols and sods law, I've not been well again. This cough/cold keeps coming back and I've not felt like doing much at all. I've managed to finish my Christmas card orders though. I know I'm using capitals here but I do mean to shout. THANK YOU TO ALL THE GENEROUS ARTISTS WHO HAVE BEEN GIVING FREE CHRISTMAS IMAGES!! They have helped such a lot. I don't really like making Christmas cards but new images cropping up makes it much more enjoyable.
As this is supposed to be a card making blog I suppose I'd better show you one. Not a Christmas one either.

Another free image this time thank you to Doodle Pantry. There's a whole page of them there. I'm not sure about the paper as I've lost the cover but it's from a 12 x 12 stack and it could be DCWV. The card is 6"X6".

Target weight 9st 2lb. Today 9st 3lb. Lets face it the only way is up for the next few weeks, lol.

Christmas bargain quickies.

2011-11-29T08:04:00.000Z

Quick post this morning as I'm off to the Hospital with Speedy for his check up. I was in B&M last week and found a card of 24 gift tags for 89p. I made a set of 24 5x5 cards.

The card bases and envelopes were in a kit and have been sitting around as I don't really get on well with cream card bases. The photo is a bit naff, it was getting dark. I gave them to Patrick, my boss as a little thank you for letting me sell my cards in his shop. They do other colours. If anyone is needing to do loads of cards they would be an alternative to resorting to shop bought ones.

A sad day for Speedy's family.

2011-11-28T02:48:00.000Z

As we all know Gary Speed took his own life yesterday. Gary was my Speedy's second cousin i.e. Speedy's dad's brother was Gary's granddad. I'll never understand suicide but my heart goes out to my husbands family especially at this time of year.

Santa pringles cans.

2011-11-25T20:15:00.000Z

I went for a drink to a pub in Chester and spotted 2 Small Pringles cans on a vacated table. I pounced on them before the bar staff could clear them away. I've seen so many of these and other containers and jars altered for Christmas pressies and thought I'd have a go.

Good what a bit of red and black paper can do. The buckle was made with silver glitter card and scalloped plain square punches. I bought a huge reel of the braid at Abakhan for £1 last year and have used loads of it on various gift boxes. I glued a circle of red paper to the lid and edged it with silver stickles.A week later I went back to the pub in the hope of scrounging a couple more tins but guess what? They don't sell them any more. Typical !!

Friday weight, 9st 2lb (target weight) Christmas is coming though............

Grinch pills for the grown ups.

2011-11-23T18:38:00.001Z

When I was sitting glued to Pinterest for far too long I came across this idea for Grinch pills.

Speedy calls one of his mates the Grinch because he's such a miserable so and so and he asked me to make some to take to the pub at Christmas.Well, you know what I'm like, I can't possibly make something so tasteful and decided to make my own version.

D'you know what? I've worked in a newsagent for nearly 7 years and have always assumed spearmint softmints where green, lol. There's always something to learn in any job !! I bought these from poundland in a pack of 4 rolls and was gobsmacked when I opened them. Still I'm sure they'll still work.

I found the little Grinch clip art from google images.

I'm about half way through my Christmas shopping. I'm off next week so hopefully I can get it finished. In a moment of weakness I've gone and promised speedy ( who thinks he's Father Christmas ) we can put the tree up this weekend. Eeeeek!!

A million housewives every day...........

2011-11-17T16:45:00.002Z

...............Pick up a tin of beans and say. I'm probably showing my age now but most of us will probably remember the old Heinz beans advert. And as we were kids at the time we just couldn't resist singing our own version could we. On my daily scavenge to the Free Digital Stamps site I found this image from Marlene at Disguised as a Grown Up.

Don't you just love his face? You have to be quick to get Marlene's images though as they are usually only available for 24 hours this one is now available from Dude Time Doodles HERE. The papers are downloaded from Summer Driggs.

Here's another version. I added the caption before printing the image.

I've had a right cold and cough this week and I've felt as "rough as our soles". I very rarely get ill so this came as a right shock to the system. I'm on the mend now though so hopefully I'll be OK for the next few years.

Friday weigh in. 9st 2lb. (target weight).

I couldn't help myself.

2011-11-10T17:55:00.000Z

I was in Tesco this morning and noticed the loose "fill a bag" sweets. I spotted these false teeth and thought about my workmate's hubby who has just had 6 top ones fitted. Then I remembered the bloke who sweeps the roads outside the shop also recently had a full set.Both of them are up for a laugh. Well, what's a girl to do??

I made up the little poem and found the sad man on Google images.

I also went into Boots to look for Christmas pressie ideas and found these among all the boring toiletry sets.

Sorry about the blurred photo. The hard backed note book at the back says " little gorjuss thoughts and was £10. With the 2 for 3 offer I got the memo block free. A nice little pressie for a young lady or perhaps a fellow crafter.

Well that's it from me for now. I'll weigh myself in the morning and confess to being a right greedy madam all week. I'll be good next week.......................

Update. Target weight 9st 2lb Today 9st 3lb. Should have been worse really.

Naughty stocking fillers.

2011-11-06T15:35:00.000Z

These are neither use nor ornament really.They serve no purpose except for providing their recipient with a cheap chuckle after opening all the boring socks.

They are the result of killing time in Tesco while waiting for Speedy to meet me.I should never be left unattended in a shop for too long, lol. I saw these balloons, 20 for £2 and thought "they remind me of something". They just needed to be blown up for 5 minutes or so to make then look a bit more convincing.

I made up the little poem and found the santa clipart on google images. The bags are the size used for C6 cards. The Works usually have them for 99p but be warned, they are slightly too small for C6 envelopes but fine for gift bags. Feel free to copy the idea if you know someone who's up for a laugh.

Another quickie baby card.

2011-11-04T06:05:00.000Z

I've had this idea in my head for ages but couldn't find an image of a baby in a nappy. On last Friday's post I gave a link to a site which I've just found. There are lots of baby images ( some a bit blurred but most are OK ) including this one.

A bit different to the usual "welcome baby" stuff. The backing paper is from a stack. I've lost the cover but I think it could be DCWV.

The glue on my flower and the stickles aren't dry in the pic because I was going out and had to take the photo because it would be too dark when I got back.

Off to work now but before I go............
...........Target weight 9st 2lb. Today, 9st 3lb. One back on, lol.

Ramblers Card.

2011-10-31T17:19:00.000Z

Evening all, I won't say "good" because it's peeing down here in Chester.I managed to get back from town before it started though.

A friend of mine rang the other night to ask me to make a card for someone who has just completed the Wainwrigh'ts walks across the Pennines. I remember my dad doing this years ago. He used to walk for miles.In the days of using just wooden stamps, I'd have had to say no but I searched Google images and came up with a nice map to use as background paper and found a great image from Artur's Clipart HERE.

And here's the result. I even managed to find some walking boots. I resized them, coloured them, then coated them with glossy accents.

The card base is 6"x6".

Well, I need to get myself into the kitchen now. Speedy is still not managing to eat properly and being quite picky, so I've put a chicken in the oven hoping the smell when he comes home will make him want to eat it.

RSPCC. Look away now!

2011-10-27T19:56:00.000+01:00

I was printing out some jars and was looking in my saved images for something to go inside the jars when something caught my wicked eye. Well how could I resist, lol. I just had to make up a quickie card.

How cool is that! I wonder if anyone will buy it if I put it on sale?! The jar image is from Scrapping Turtle.

I can't find the original source for the baby but while I was looking at google images I found THESE and was well chuffed.The baby at the bottom is the one I used for this card and couldn't find it again. I printed the caption in "thread fun" font. There is a link to the cute buttons in my side bar.

Todays weight 9st 2lb (target weight).

Another spice gift and some measurements.

2011-10-26T18:44:00.001+01:00

Here's another little stocking filler for the cooks in our lives. Again, a bargain from Tesco on special offer. Not sure how much but around the £1.50 mark.

The image is from ( oh no! I left a space here to add a link later only to find it was one of those 24 hour freebies but you may find something suitable HERE, another useful site) and the caption is by Meljens Designs HERE.

The instructions on the packet says " rub into poultry, meat, fish or anything else you can get your hands on " so look out speedy, lol.. I peeled the use by date off the back and stuck it onto the card so people can see it without pulling the packet off as it's stuck on with double sided tape. The piece of card is 11.5 cm x 24cm, Score at 2cm, 13cm and 14cm.As you can see I've put some staples close to the bottom fold so the flap stays in better.

I've also worked out the measurements for my little box on my last post;
The lid is 17.3cm x 20.3 cm and scored at 4cm on all sides.
The bottom ( slightly taller) is 21cm x 18cm and scored at 4.5 cm on all sides.
Happy gift making.

Another spice box.

2011-10-24T18:13:00.001+01:00

Well, here we go again, back to trying to take decent photos in electric light. This is the best I can get these to their true colours.

I know I've posted this type of box before but I'm showing you this one because the spices are on special offer at Tesco, 2 for £2.50 at the moment so it makes an even cheaper stocking filler.The links for the free image is on this post along with some slightly better photos.

I've got quite a few of them made ready as they come in handy for work mates and little extras for people who are hard to buy for.

Remember me telling you about my boss with his packet of oats last week? Well, speedy has had to go one better. He fancied nachos with a bit of chilli last night so I decided to have chilli with rice for myself. He wanted to watch the end of the film so I dished mine up and left his chilli in a dish and grated some cheese for him. I told him the chilli was under the grill on low keeping warm and all he needed to do was put half of the cheese on top, grill it for a couple of minutes, put the nachos and the rest of the cheese on top and grill it again. Easy??? No!! He goes into the kitchen and comes back with a plate with a layer of grated cheese on it, lol. nothing else, just cheese. He said "do I put it under the grill like this then?" He hadn't listened to a word I'd said. What he was planning to do with the plate of grilled cheese, I just don't know. As you've guessed, I normally do all the cooking. Useless men!

An emotional occasion.

2011-10-21T06:00:00.000+01:00

Well, what a week I've had. Speedy had his third Hepatitis B injection last week as part of prep for a possible kidney transplant. He had a really bad reaction, partly because they gave him a flu injection at the same time. Sickness, trots, stomach pains, you name it he had it. On Monday he went to the doctor's and collapsed when trying to convince the receptionist that he needed to be seen.He doesn't usually go to the doctors without me hounding him, so he must have felt bad. He rang me to say he was on his way to A&E in an ambulance!! I managed to get there about an hour later ( on the train as I don't drive), and was taken to an isolation room.He looked so pale, he had his eyes closed, and for all the world he looked dead.I just stood there rooted to the spot. Then he woke up and saw me and he cried his eyes out. We both thought his kidneys were packing up. He was on a drip as he was dehydrated and there was also a paracetamol drip. He had been waiting for a doctor to see him. To cut a long story short it was the jabs that did it and blood tests showed his kidneys hadn't been made worse. It was very scary. He's OK now though, 9lb lighter but starting to eat again.

But that's not the emotional occasion that this post is about. We've been invited to an anniversary party on Saturday, which we will go to for an hour or so as it's only a short walk away. Sometimes I go to Google images/ line drawings and type in things such as fruit, cookies, toys etc and save free images for future use.This card uses one of them.

It was from a colouring page HERE. The caption which came along just in time is from Create with TLC. The backing paper is Papermania. The little hearts were from the Papermill Shop before it closed down and the little tag is from the bowels of my stash. I used liquid pearls on the icing and decided I'll never make a confectioner, lol. Sorry about the photo, it's a bit blurred.

As a result of speedy not eating much, I've been taking advantage of not having to cook renal friendly food and made a big vat of bolognese ( tomatoes are a big no no) and have been scoffing it all week, so.....
Target weight 9st 2lb. Today, 9st 3lb. I did expect it to be worse.....................it will probably hit me tomorrow.

Oats so Hilarious.

2011-10-16T21:59:00.001+01:00

No cards today but a bit of a giggle instead. Now, no way am I about to take the wee wee out of my boss as I respect his position as proprietor and besides, he pays my rent,lol. No, I love him to bits, partly because he's such a sweetie pie, but not least, because he makes me laugh. He doesn't tell jokes or funny stories. He doesn't need to. He makes me laugh just by being Patrick. On Friday morning he arrives on the shop floor with a sachet of Oat so Simple which his girlfriend had given him for his morning break as he usually skips breakfast due to the 6am start.

I'm tittering to myself now before I've even told the story, lol. It was fairly busy in the shop so I couldn't give him my full attention, but he was basically trying to figure out what to do with the sachet. I glanced at it ( I've never had one of these either as I don't like porridge) and said well have you got a bowl ? He said "no, I'll make it in my mug", which is quite large. Then he said, " oh come one Di, it can't be as hard as it looks on the packet" (!!) and went downstairs. 2 minutes later he went back to check on his gorgeous smelling brekkie. I heard a load of expletives and he was standing there with a microwave turntable covered in oats. "What happened", I said. "I dunno, it's a load of s**t ", he said. It was only half an hour later after a load of questions, I realised what he'd done. He'd stood the packet of oats in the mug, filled it to the mark with milk and switched the microwave on!! Well we laughed our heads off. At least the shop smelled of lovely syrup for ages. I told him he was going on my blog which he doesn't look at anyway. Love him to bits , he's so funny, much better than working with a load of boring women talking about bleaching and cleaning..................

Naff Christmas Gifts, lol.

2011-10-14T06:30:00.000+01:00

Let's face it, I'd be gutted if someone gave me tea towels for Christmas but some one's going to get one of these jokey gifts in their stocking this year.

I found a pack of 4 micro fibre tea towels for £1.79 while browsing at B&M and I thought they would be perfect for this image and caption from Create with TLC. The link to both is at the bottom of THIS POST. Lesson learned here is to use strong glue in vertical stripes then it will be easier to curve the image around. I used glue all over and it set quite hard so it was a bit tricky not to end up creasing it up. I think double sided tape might not stay put with it being curved unless you've got super strong stuff.

Today's weight. 9st 2lb. ( still at target ).

Ghostly Smut!

2011-10-10T10:59:00.000+01:00

Back again as promised with the result of yesterdays shopping. These little gifts are for grown ups! Why should the kids have all the fun?

I've smudged the naughty word with picasa tools so Mr Blogger won't shout at me.

I got the idea when i was mooching on Pinterest and found a much tamer version. I googled Halloween in google images/clipart to find the house. There's loads of ghosts, spiders etc. I printed the poem in Hoola boola font.

Off to mother's now. when i get back I'll see if i can find the clean version from Pinterest and do a link. Meanwhile I found a great site for printable tags, journaling pages and labels etc. Its called Sweetly Scrapped . Make sure the kids are in bed and hubby is bound and gagged and spend a couple of hours browsing as it's quite a big site.

EDIT. The original treat bags with printable topper can be found HERE at Glorious Treats. I couldn't find all white marshmallows or little red sweets so I had to improvise with craisins and popcorn.

Sneak peek.

2011-10-09T16:26:00.000+01:00

How lazy is this? All you'e getting today is a peak at my shopping. These were bought from Tesco along with a bag of white popcorn. CLUE..............Ssmmmuuuttttttttttttt.

Yes the seasonal smut is back. I need to print and bag up. See you tomorrow. xx

Cookie tin gifts.

2011-10-07T06:04:00.000+01:00

I think it's time I got my skates on with my Christmas gift making while there's still a fairly decent amount of daylight left. I was mooching around what I call the naughty aisle ( biscuits and sweets ) in Tesco and came across these tins of cookies.

There were 5 or 6 different types and all were priced at between £1.60 and £1.99. Not a bargain for a few cookies by any means but with a bit of paper and ribbon, I made them into nice little stocking fillers.

The main background paper was already there so all they needed was a contrasting band.

Here's the double chocolate version. I got the free image from Arthur's Clip Art HERE. There are a few more useful images in the "food" pages. The caption is from Create with TLC HERE.

I didn't like the sticker on the top with the scruffy black tape so I cut around the circle and stuck it onto a punched scalloped circle.
I learned a couple of things when making these so I'll pass them on. First of all make sure there are no dents in the tins. Secondly apply all layers separately. With the tin being a curved surface the papers crinkle if you mat them up and then apply.

I cheated and drafted this post last night as it is a fairly longish one. So all i need to do then is...................

Today's weight 9st 2lb ( target weight ). Going out for a big scoff tonight for stepsons 30th birthday so that will soon change.

An older cutting and sticking habit.

2011-10-05T14:25:00.000+01:00

I was sorting through my enormous cookery book collection the other day trying to decide which ones to give away and which ones to keep. I had far too many and my shelves were bursting at the seems. I ended up wondering which one i would keep if I was only allowed to keep one. No contest. It was one I started compiling 14 years ago. It started life as a hardback " day to a page " diary. I decided to give it the respect it deserved and here's how it turned out.

12 x 12 paper wasn't wide enough to fold inside at the top and bottom but that's OK as I'm going to cover it with some clear adhesive plastic. It took 2 sheets, one for the front and one for the back.

I've spent years cutting recipes out of magazines and copying ones from library books.

I've used each month for a different category eg chicken, beef, cheese , desserts, food gifts, preserving, etc.

And another page. I'm looking at it now and wondering how on earth chicken soup ended up in the fish chapter, lol.

And if you're not drooling enough already here's a page from the desserts chapter. Unlike the rest of my cookery books, there is nothing in this book that I wouldn't like to make and eat.
If I've inspired you to start one of these yourself make sure you buy a decent quality diary and reinforce the spine with tape before covering it as it will end up bulging quite a bit.

I'll hit the publish button now but I'll find the links to the images which were freebies and add them later.

LINKS. CHEF by TLC. HERE
VENDING MACHINES CAPTION by TLC HERE
LADY BAKING by TLC HERE
LADY WASHING UP by TLC HERE.
BON APPETITE by TLC HERE.

More Christmas Quickies.

2011-09-30T05:54:00.000+01:00

Morning all. A quickie post and some quickie cards.

Meljens digi stamp again.This design would be great for hot chocolate gift sets.The cards are five and a half inches square again.

I added the sentiment before printing out then coloured with Promarkers and added some stickles.

I'm off to work now. Channel 4 are filming a programme about small businesses in Chester today and they are coming to our shop early this morning. I hope they've gone by the time I get there as I hate cameras. Besides I'm on the wanted dead or alive list at the cop shop...........just joking. Oh, and we have already been filmed for don't tell the bride in November. Me and Patrick must have looked right nerds as we didn't know what was going on. We thought it was an OTT stag party who had bought an amateur film crew along until they finally told us what they were doing. That should be entertaining, lol.

Weight today 9st 2lb, (Target weight).

I'm back !

2011-09-28T19:04:00.001+01:00

Well. I don't know what happened but my blog has been poorly for a few days. I had one of those " malware" warnings flashing up and no-one including me could get into my blog. My mate who sorts peoples computers out for a living said Google would spot it and sort it out and not to worry about it. The good news is that he was right and according to Webmaster tools I'm clean as a whistle. The not so good news is that i didn't give a monkeys if my blog never came back.I felt relieved at not having to update it, not that I "have to" anyway but I feel I should. It's not the writing of the posts as much as the photo editing and trying to get a decent pic in bad light etc. I think I really started to get fed up of it when I started entering challenges as I find it such a pain finding suitable ones and linking up and so forth. It turned my hobby into a job and I've already got one of those. So I've decided not to enter any more for the time being and see if that helps me. I don't want to stop blogging. I'd get fat for a start, if I didn't do my friday weigh ins, lol. Anyway, I hope i'ts just a temporary feeling and that it will go away soon.

In the meantime I've made a few simple Christmas cards.

It took me long enough to get these photos too look ok. The cards are five and a half inches square and are from Hobbycraft.

The image is by Meljens designs. I don't remember where i found the sentiment tickets but there are loads if you look in Google images/line drawings.

Here's a close up of the image with a dollop of Stickles to finish.

I've got a huge slow cooker full of beef, tomato and olive casserole to sort out now. I'm trying to get the freezer full of "ready meals" for the winter . Tesco 3 meat items for £10 are 4 items for £10 at the moment so I'm making the most of it while it lasts.
EDIT. Sorry it was 4 for £12 at Tesco but still good.

Ride like the wind.

2011-09-23T19:10:00.000+01:00

I was having a little look at Free Digital Stamps last week and came across a page of free images at Operation Write Home. I couldn't resist this little gem as it's perfect for younger men. It's my stepson's birthday next week so it came just in time.

I got the gingham card from Payperbox a couple of years ago when i was on holiday and I'm really tight with it because there isn't a Payperbox anywhere near me. So, Simon, consider yourself honoured!

I got the caption from TLC Creations HERE. It goes really well with the image.
Off to work now but I'll be back tonight to link up to any suitable challenges.

Challenges. Southern girls, Anything goes
Anything goes challenge. Anything goes.
Digital tuesday. People images.
Papertake weekly. Creature comforts
Top tip tuesday. Kids/teenagers.

Target weight 9st 2lb. Today, still a slightly naughty 9st 3lb.

Not quite PTI.

2011-09-18T14:07:00.002+01:00

I have always yearned for the Friendship Jar stamps from Papertrey Ink, but they are not available over here and the shipping costs from USA are so high. Still, every time I saw a card made with these stamps the yearning started again. For anyone who's wondering what the hell I'm on about, the set has an empty jar and an assortment of things to put in it. One day I had one of those "Hmmmm" moments and Googled "jar" in Images/line drawings and there it was. I didn't share it straight away as I don't know if there's a copyright on it. It was part of a newsletter and doesn't seem to be available to buy on the website. If anyone disagrees with me sharing it please say so and I'll delete the link. Meanwhile, i got it from Scrapping Turtle newsletter HERE.

I coloured it (badly) with promarkers. I added the strawberries before printing. These are from Fimolas Arts HERE. For more jar ideas checkout the gallery at SCS . I don't know what I'm going to make with it but at least I can stop yearning.

EDIT. Just checked the link for the strawberries and it appears to have expired. There should be plenty more on Google Images though.

Glamour.

2011-09-16T06:01:00.000+01:00

Still not really in the mood for this card making lark but my craft room is slowly getting tidier. I hope I kick in again soon as I need to get on with all the Christmas stuff I've started. I haven't had much time this week though as I went with Speedy to Liverpool hospital for his tests on Monday and Tuesday. Two nuclear heart scans, one after exercising on Monday and one resting on Tuesday. Both appointments took 4 hours !! 15 minutes to do the actual test and the rest was spent hanging around waiting for the Chemical injections to take effect. On both days it didn't work first time so had to be redone. Still, that's over with now.

Here's a card I made a few weeks ago using an image and caption from TLC Creations.

It was one of those days when I didn't make a note of the page addy. I've just realised the paper matches the box in my last post so I will give these both to the same person with some chocs in the box.

It was my wedding anniversary on wednesday so we went out for a big scoff to our local, The Mill Hotel. One of the lads who works behind the bar had paid for a bottle of champagne for us. He's such a nice lad. As another bonus the kitchen staff knew we were there so we had larger than average portions. I had a trio of fish, salmon, cod and sea bass and it was no way supposed to be that big. I was really stuffed at the end of the night.
So guess what? Target weight 9st 2lb. Today.............9st 4lb. Worth every ounce though.

Vintage gift box.

2011-09-11T15:19:00.000+01:00

While I'm not in the mood for making cards as such, I thought I'd start decorating my pile of blank boxes. Most of these boxes are a result of mis-measuring and getting sizes wrong for the stuff that I want to put in them. Others are from when I've forgotten to cut the card for the lids bigger ( always 3mm to get a good fit ) than the bottom and having loads of half boxes waiting for other halves to be made.

This one is about 6" square. The pic makes the lid far too big but it isn't in real life. The paper I've used is from a big K & Company stack.

The image and sentiment are both from TLC Creations. If you look up TLC in my labels in my side bar there is a link in one of the posts to both images.

Here's a close up. The flowers were made with punches using a You Tube tutorial. There's loads of different ones available.

Challenges.Craft your days away. Make your own flowers.
Di's digi designs. Anything goes.
Secret crafter. Inspired by a song ( Lady in red ).
Critter sketch. Anything but a card.
Anything goes challenge. Vintage.
Charisma cards. Inspired by a song ( Lady in red ).

Speedy's hospital check up was fine. He's waiting for the go ahead for a kidney transplant ( hopefully mine or his sister's will match ) but as they messed up his heart medication there has been a delay while they get that sorted. He's got to have a nuclear scan ( not as scary as it sounds ) tomorrow and another on Tuesday but the doc is more than confident that there will be a good result and we will be able to get things moving again. He has kidney damage, caused by a virus rather than kidney disease so he doesn't actually feel ill. In fact he says he's never felt better.

Birthday gift.

2011-09-09T09:59:00.002+01:00

Hello there. Has anyone seen my mojo? I seem to be having a little "I hate card making and blogging" phase at the moment. But that's ok because I know it won't last long and in the meantime i can blitz the flat. I have got a couple of unblogged cards to keep me going and here's one of them.

The image is from Meljens and the paper is by Papermania.

I downloaded the ticket sentiment when i had my stupid head on and forgot to copy the webpage addy. If I'm bored enough tonight I'll try and track it down. I know i got it through the free digital stamps website and the date is in my file so we may be in luck.

Edit. I found the ticket sentiment freebies at SG Stamper HERE. There's a whole page of them too.

Challenges. My Mums Craft Shop. Layer it up.
Cards for Men. G is for.......( gift ).

Meanwhile I've got to go to Liverpool later as Speedy has a hospital appointment.

Today's weight 9st 2lb ( target weight).

Variations.

2011-09-04T15:10:00.001+01:00

Another sunny day here in Chester. The first two weeks in September usually are nice though. It's like last chance saloon before the autumn sets in. I don't mind it getting cooler but I can't stand dark mornings. I like to be awake early and the lack of daylight fools me into sleeping for longer. I hate waking up on my day off and realising it's 8 o'clock. I love the summer when i can be awake at 5 o'clock. I'ts hard to believe I used to lie in bed all morning in my teens. What a waste of life.

On to today's card share. I needed a couple of men's cards so I went down the easy road and made 2 similar ones.

The stamp is from a set called "Ethel and Murray" which I got from Create and Craft a few years ago.

The caption is from Gingers House. The patterned paper is from Papermania Henbury Lane and the main paper is an unidentified scrap.

Another TLC caption and again the main backing paper is an unidentified scrap. The striped paper is by Summer Driggs. Both card bases are 6" x6".

Challenges. Allsorts challenge blog. Green and blue.
Challenge up your life, Something for a man.
Creative stamp friends. For a man

Another Anniversary Card.

2011-09-02T06:06:00.001+01:00

A quick post today as I need to get ready for work. Another anniversary card, this time for my mum in law to give to her son.

Made with another Meljens digi image. The paper is from Craftwork cards. I got it earlier in the year when they were doing those goodie bags for a fiver. Card base is 6" x6".

Challenges. Sweet stampin' Anything but birthdays.
Alphabet challenge. P, pretty pastels

Target weight 9st 2lb. Today, still 9st 3lb.

Love is Sweet.

2011-08-31T21:10:00.001+01:00

Evening all. I'm a bit late today as I've been out shopping. I still had birthday money ( yes, from July ) which I hadn't spent as I've been waiting for the Autumn stuff to come into the shops. I got myself a couple of nice knitted tops and some jeans. I got them from Wallis. They are boot cut with just enough elastic in the waist to hoist them over my bum. There's no sticky out bit at the front where the button would be so they make my stomach look quite flat. I got a dark navy pair and another pair the colour of............wait for it..........Caramac, lol. I' ve got quite a few creamy and beige tops and they look good with teal green too.
When I did get home I had to knuckle down and make a couple of cards I'd been putting off. It's my sister in law's Anniversary on Monday so Mum in law asked me to make one for her to give.

This is the one for me and Speedy to send. I don't really have much stuff for making wedding/ anniversary cards but Meljens came to the rescue with this image. The hearts are also Meljens which I resized to fit. I coloured them and added glossy accents before cutting them out.

The paper is from Craftwok Cards and the card base is 6" x6".

Challenges. Creative Card Crew. Anything goes.
Deep Ocean Challenge blog. Hearts.
Do you stack up. Friendly critters.

My name is Diane and I'm an addict..........

2011-08-28T15:38:00.000+01:00

.....................to Pinterest!! Do NOT click on the link unless you've done all the housework. Loads of people already know this site but I was always the slow one, lol. So many nice things to look at and loads of crafty inspiration. Go there if you dare...........

Today's card share is a bit out of my comfort zone as it's a C6. I usually do square ones but I bought loads of these last year as they were in a sale. I tend to struggle a bit with layouts for rectangular cards but I really must use them or they weren't such a bargain.

The image is from Meljens Designs. The bones paper is DCWV from stack 6 and the dotty paper is by Papermania.

I coloured a fabric flower with a promarker and added a circle sentiment from Craftwork Cards. I have at least 120 of these cards left so I'd better get used to them.

Challenges, One stop craft challenge. Anything but square.
Polka Doodles, Spots and dots.
Do you stack up. Masculine

A few more Christmas cards.

2011-08-26T06:03:00.002+01:00

Mornin' all. Guess where I went yesterday?

Yep, that's right. I went for a mammogram, lol. It was my first time and one of the girls I work with said she'd rather give birth so I was dreading it. When she calls in for her wages today I'll throttle her. There was nothing to it. A bit of a dull ache but that's all. They do not squash your boobs to within an inch of your life as I was expecting, just a small squash and she kept asking if it was ok to squash a bit more before she went any further. So if anyone's wondering, it's not bad at all and I'll definitely be going for my 3 yearly checks without getting worked up. While I was looking for info on the net I found this beauty.

It made me titter. I bet there'd be no shortage of women applying for that job. Revenge would be so sweet.

Anyway, on to my cards.

Just simple ones with a Meljens image and some scraps of paper. The sentiment stamp is from a Penny Black clear set.

That's it from me for now. I'll look for some challenges when I get home from work.

Paulette at TLC Creations will be adding a free digi image to her blog every time she gets a new follower until sunday, so what are you waiting for? Get following.

Challenges. Craft us Crazy. Anything goes.
Moving along with the times. Birds.
Divas by design. Christmas

Target weight 9st 2lb. Today's weight, a naughty 9st 3lb.

Live Life Glamorously.

2011-08-21T17:01:00.003+01:00

Well, that's one thing you can't call me. Glamorous. I can't walk in heels for a start. Hats drown me. I'm short, and I slouch. You can't work on your feet for 36 years and not end up slouching ,lol. Still this is what glamorous looks like.

I found the image HERE. I can't link directly to the blog as i stupidly only saved the image addy. I will leave it like this for now but will do a bit of searching and try to find the blog .EDIT, I've found it. It was from Digital 2 for Tuesday. I've edited the link and feel heaps better. We ain't supposed to give links to the image, just links to the blog so I can sleep with a clear conscience tonight. The caption is from TLC Creations. Papers are by K & Company and the card base is 6"x6".

You can't tell from the photo but I went over the necklace with a clear stardust sakura pen. The flower is made with a sizzlits embossing die which I've had for about 3 years and have hardly used.

Challenges. Glitter Fairies. Pink
Cardmakin Mamas. pink
The Corrosive Challenge. Girlie.
Stamps R Us. Anything goes.

While I'm here I must show you this photo.

This is what the local council have done to our trees because they think it will attract more tourists. I kept my nose out of it as as it made no difference to my life what they did to the trees. Then I found out how much it cost. £25.000 !!!!! And no, I haven't put too many noughts! There are so many empty shops in Chester because the rent and rates are too high and this is what's at the top of the council's shopping list. All paid for with our council tax no doubt............

Dance Yourself Dizzy.

2011-08-19T06:07:00.000+01:00

Morning everyone. Friday again so that means early start at the paper shop. It's Getting so dark in the mornings now too. I get up at 5.30 because I'm not into rushing around so early in the day. I like to get ready slowly and I have to visit the Daily Mail website every morning. Yes I know I work in a paper shop but I'm turning into my dad who had to read his paper as soon as he got up.
On to to day's card which actually uses a rubber stamp!!

Her name is Dotty and she is made by Art Impressions. I got her from Sir Stampalot a few years ago but I'm sure she's still available. I paper pieced her dress then cut her out as i wanted to put her on a " textured" background. There is so much space around her that she looks a bit lost on plain white.

I put loads of stickles on her dress and used an X Cut botanicals punch for the leaves. The papers are from my scraps but i think they are from a Papermania Christmas pad.
By the way if you have a WHS near you it might be worth popping in as I got a 12x12 scrapbook pad for £3.50. It's a Brenda Walton and apart from 36 double sided lightweight card pages there are lots of usable die cut letters, numbers and tags etc.

Challenges. City Crafter. Use scraps
Crazy Amigo. Black white and red.
Divas by Design. Birthdays
Rainbow lady's. Song ( dance yourself dizzy ).
Southern Girls. Black white and one colour.

Today's weight, 9st 2lb ( target weight).

40p Christmas Gift.

2011-08-17T17:05:00.002+01:00

And a snack to eat while you're making it. Can't be bad. I saw these canisters of bread sticks at Morrisons and as they were on special offer i thought I'd buy a couple.

Not because I wanted the bread sticks though. Oh, no, it was the canister I was after. The bread sticks were just an added bonus. The main attraction was the clear lid. I know the pringles have clear lids but they're three times the price and three times as fattening ( i mean you couldn't just throw them away could you, lol.) So here's today's crafty make.

I wanted my first one to be quite " grown up" so I used THIS little tree image from Create with TLC. I got the caption from there too. The papers are K&CO. I cut a circle of matching paper to cover the top of the lid then used a gallon of Stickles around the lid and the front layers. Makes it look so expensive, lol.

Not bad for 40p. It's about 10" high so will take lots of choccie type things , trial size toiletries or perhaps a rolled up scarf or even a T shirt. The list is endless. Well what are you waiting for ? Morrisons is open............

Challenges. My Time o Craft. The Letter G ( glitter glue )
Creative challenges, Anything but a card.
Try it on Tuesdays. Anything goes
Craft Your Passion. Anything but a card.
Make it Monday. Anything goes.

Yummy Cookies.

2011-08-14T13:35:00.006+01:00

Another dull day in Chester. There's a big black cloud just sitting there ready to burst. Not moving much, just sitting waiting for enough people to be out without an umbrella. Well, it won't get me as I'm not going anywhere this afternoon. I'm just going to stay in and relax, maybe do a bit of colouring while thinking about chocolate cookies.

I found the image from Arthur's Free Clipart HERE. It prints out really well considering it's only a colouring page. There are quite a lot of unusual images on the site. I got the caption from Create with TLC.

Here's a close up of the yummy cookies. Have you ever wanted to eat one of your cards? The paper is a scrap of Papermania Henbury Lane and the card base is 5" square. I'm off to get myself a biscuit before i do eat the card..................

Challenges, Crazy 4 Challenges. Monochromatic.
Inspire me fridays. Anything goes.
Totally Papercrafts. Food and drink.
Catered Crop. Recipe FTR18 ( promarkers.). Oops sorry didn't read the info properly. It should have been back to school/ garden theme. Don't know how to delete my entry.
Stamps & fun. Monochrome.
Paper Playtime. Anything goes.

Whoops, nearly forgot.

2011-08-12T06:07:00.002+01:00

I was sitting here eating my brekkie when i remembered my poor old blog. So it's going to be very quick,lol.

Image from Free Extras. Paper from stash, maybe Papermania. Sentiment done on computer.

Close up of image.

EDIT. Back from work now and found a couple of challenges
Cute Card Thursday Clean and simple.
Stampin Royalty. Photo Inspiration.

Weight 9st 2lb (target weight). Boring, I'll have to stuff myself tomorow, lol.

Goodbye.............

2011-08-10T15:47:00.002+01:00

...............Summer, lol. What a horrible windy wet day. I was looking through my images for something to make today and this one is perfect.

It's from TLC Creations, but I didn't make a note of the page addy. I usually copy and paste the URL into the "add caption" bit under my pics in picasa but now and again I forget. The caption is on THIS page. I hope it's still available as most designs are now only up for 48 hours before going into the shop.

The papers are by Summer Driggs. We owe such a lot to these generous providers of freebies. I know they have helped me a lot with my paper crafting. Sometimes I just don't want to do something cutesy and these images and papers are such a Godsend. I thought the card looked a bit bare around the edges so the old peel offs came out of hiding.
I'm off now to do a terrible thing...............................HOUSEWORK !!

Challenges, One Stitch at a Time. Use a digi.
I did it Creations, Children.
Birthday Sundaes, Birthday.
Make it Monday, Anything goes.
KB Cute Monday. Digi
Shopping our Stash. Dogs/ digi.

Spice Box.

2011-08-07T13:17:00.004+01:00

My sister has just had a new kitchen put in so I've made her a little, "happy new kitchen" pressie. I've been making loads of blank boxes lately so this one just needed decorating.

I got the image from TLC Creations HERE. Paulette has (quite rightly) made the decision to only keep her designs as freebies for 48 hours as a result of too many people just snagging and going without so much as a thank you. After 48 hours the designs will be up for sale in her shop.Become a follower so as not to miss out. Fortunately this little chef is still available, so is the caption HERE.

The box is just the right size for 2 jars of Schwartz seasonings. Nice little stocking filler for "awkward" people, lol. The paper is by K& Company.
Not sure if I'll be able to find any suitable challenges for this one but I'm off to have a look.

Found a few. Challenges. Sisterhood of Crafters. Simply Handmade.
Allsorts challenge. Red
Stamp Something. Use a digi

Early Bird.

2011-08-05T06:07:00.003+01:00

Yes that's me on Fridays. Up at 5.45 to get ready for work. Good job I'm not going in search of bread.

I made up the sentiment because I think I'ts so true of most supermarkets. The image is by Meljens Designs available from Whimsy Stamps.

There is a link in my side bar to the free digi buttons. You can't really tell in the pic but I've coated them with glossy accents. The paper is from my stash of unidentified scraps.

Time to get ready to go and sell newspapers to the early birds now, lol.

Challenges. I love promarkers. Things with wings.

Todays weight 9st 2lb ( target weight ).

Feeling Fruity.

2011-08-03T16:42:00.005+01:00

I thought I'd make a nice summery card today as the weather is so nice. Mind you I did trash my room in search of my mojo.

This card is the result of thinking "oh well, I'll just do some colouring while the mojo is away". It all fell into place when i remembered this caption from Ginger's House HERE. The image is also a freebie and is from Meljens Designs HERE. The flowers are also Meljens and there is a link to them at the top of my sidebar. I coloured them, added glossy accents and cut them out. Another thing that gets done when the mojo takes a hike.
EDIT. OMG! How freaky is this, I've just been to TLC blog and apparently today is............wait for it............National watermelon day!!!!!!

Challenges. For fun Challenges. Anything goes.
Little red wagon. Put a Critter on it.
Tuesday Throwdown. Summertime
Craft your passion. Anything goes.
Penny's papercrafty. Watermelon
The Playdate Cafe. Watermelon, sorbet and lime.

Cheat !!

2011-07-31T13:24:00.003+01:00

Big cheat today as my card is a version of friday's.

The main paper is DCWV and the panel and dressing gown is by Brenda Pinnick. There is a link to the circle sentiment freebie on my last post.

And that's that. How lazy am I ? I may do a bit of colouring while Speedy watches cars going round and round then I'll go looking for some challenges. Thanks for looking. xx

Challenges. Fussy and fancy Friday. Christmas in July.
Crafty Catz. Christmas in July.
Sweet Stampin Christmas in July.
Stamping for the weekend. Paws for thought.

Unearthed some antiques.

2011-07-29T06:07:00.005+01:00

I was rummaging around in my craft room and came across some strange wooden things. They had pictures on them and I vaguely remembered them from the olden days. I googled them and found them to be a primitive crafting item. Apparently people used to dip them into pads of ink and press them onto card. Yes.......I'm talking about rubber stamps, lol. It's been such a long time since I've used one I almost forgot I had them. So I made a card just to see if they still work.

Hey, it worked !! Just joking. I'm so used to all these kind people designing free digi stamps and having access to a new one every day, I'm getting spoilt. This little Forever Friends stamp is one of my favourite Christmas stamps. I like to paper piece his dressing gown. I got the papers from Artstamps when it was on at Wrexham about 4 years ago.They are made by the English Paper Company and i got little packs for £1 each. I haven't been able to go since then, I've either been working or at someones wedding. I'ts on tomorrow and yes I'm at work.

The circle sentiment is from When the Scrap Hits the Fun HERE.

Challenges, Party time Tuesdays, Anything goes.
Crafty Creations.Christmas in july.
Forever Friends, Pastel colours.

Target weight 9st 2lb. Todays weight 9st 3lb. ( 2 words, Speedy, & Cheese...........)

Dumb Animals.

2011-07-27T17:06:00.002+01:00

Another card with a TLC digi. This one was e,mailed to all blog followers to celebrate Paulette having got to a grand total of 1280.

I love the image and although i couldn't wait to make a card, it took me a few days to come up with a caption. The dotty paper is from an 8"x8" stack by First Edition Paper. It's called Desert Blooms and has 48 sheets, half double sided and half glittered. It's a good weight for making box lids too and only £9.99 from WHS.

I printed the caption in Orange font size 24.

Challenges. Make it Monday. Anything goes.
My Creative Moments. Wild Animals.
Stampin' For The Weekend. Paws for thought.
Totally Papercrafts, One for the boys
I love Promarkers. Anything goes.
ABC Challenge, Z is for Zoo.

Speedy has gone to Nantwich show today with a mate. I'm glad it went a bit dull as it was quite hot this morning and there's no escape from the sun in the wide open fields.At least he won't come back with a sunburned head. Oh......last year he came home with 2 carrier bags of cheese. I asked him why the hell he'd bought so much and he said they were giving it away at the end of the day. So guess what we'll probably be living off for the next 6 weeks, lol.

More TLC.

2011-07-24T12:20:00.002+01:00

Here's a card i made with another brilliant image from TLC which can be found HERE.

The darker red paper is from a Papemania Christmas pad. The other one is from my pile of unidentifiable scraps.

The sentiment is also by TLC and can be found HERE. Both digis are freebies, how good can it get? I've added some pewter stickles around the circle and the leaves are done with an X Cut botanicals punch which also embosses.

Challenges. Fashionista friday. July birthstone, Ruby.
Sweet stampin'. Fashion.

Stamp something. Embellish it.
Our Creative Corner. Black, bling , buttons, bows.

The dreaded F1 has just started so I think I'll have something to eat and sneek away into town to see if there's anything worth having in the sales. Speedy can of course meet me later to treat me to a couple of drinks and a bar snack. Lucky him...........

Mummy's Drank all the Gin.

2011-07-21T16:55:00.005+01:00

On Wednesday night Speedy asked me if i fancied a gin and tonic. You should have seen how much gin he put in it! Still, I was off work Thursday so i didn't object, lol. I went on my travels to various blogs and when I got to TLC I saw that Paulette had added a couple of free images. Well, I looked at this one and knew exactly what to add as a caption, it was just crying out for it.

I imagined the little girl being sent to ask if he's getting anything to eat tonight and mummy being too drunk to care,lol. The papers are all by K & Company.

The flowers are a Meljens digi stamp and the card base is 6"x6". I would usually do this post on Friday morning but I told Paulette I would make a card with the image today and send her a link. I'll be back in the morning to add my weigh in, most important or I'll go off the rails.

Challenges. Crafts and me. Add a flower.
CES humour/ funny
Make it Colourful. Colour your own embellishments

Todays weight 9st 2lb ( target weight ).

Would you believe it ?!!

2011-07-20T18:17:00.002+01:00

After slating my new camera in my last post, I take it all back. I was taking pics of this card with my Sony and the batteries went. I hadn't got any more charged up so i had to "resort" to my new one. I don't know what it was playing at on Sunday but these photos have turned out much better. On the same settings too.Oh, well, sorry Mr Fuji.

Maybe it was the dull light on Sunday. I'm so glad I haven't got to take it back to the shop as it had quite good reviews. Anyway, the card. The image is of course one of Meljens. The paper is from my very first paper pack which i bought 4 years ago. Lord knows what it is as I don't have the packaging.

The little "jingle all the way" caption is from TLC. The card base is 6"x6".

Christmas is quite a way away yet but the days are getting shorter and it will soon be dark by mid afternoon so I've spent quite a bit of time sorting out my stocking filler ideas. I've made quite a few samples to make more of but i feel it's a bit too early to blog them yet as they might get forgotten along the wayside so I'll leave them for a few more weeks. There'll be a few cheapie ideas for cooks this year.

Time to look for some challenges then see to something for dinner.

Challenges. Meljens. Buttons and bows.

Simply Create, Christmas time

Crafty Emmas. Christmas.

Creative Inspirations, Christmas in July.

KB Cute Monday, Use a digi.

Quick card.

2011-07-17T12:37:00.000+01:00

I bought myself a new camera last week. I've already got a really good Sony one but wanted a second one just to keep in my bag. I did have one but gave it to my stepson when little Michael was born as they didn't have one. It was a little Fuji Finepix and was really good. Naturally i bought another Fuji ( AV 10) but to be honest it's rubbish. It's not bad for general pics but the macro mode is crap The pics more often than not come out blurred as there is no " steadying" facility which my other one had. I've had to fiddle on Picasa for ages trying to get this one right. I think I'll stick to using my good one for cards.

Mind you this dull weather doesn't help either. The image and sentiment for this card was from TLC HERE and HERE. I know red is a funny colour to photograph but even the gel pen dots on the scalloped circle don't show up very well. The photos on my last post were taken with this camera and are also very dull despite being taken in a good light. I think it may be going back to the shop soon............

TGIF.

2011-07-15T06:08:00.002+01:00

No, not thank God it's Friday as I've got an 11 hour shift today. It's " thank God I'm fabulous". I downloaded this image a few months ago from Broken Box Stock, HERE.

I coloured them in straight away but have only just got round to making some cards with them.

I got the papers last week from TK MAXX for £1. there was 6 pages and a little clear stamp set which i wasn't that impressed with.

They are by We R Memory Keepers. The stamps are a sun, some clouds and the word "sunny". I might use them one day.

I need to get ready for work now but I'll look for some challenges tonight.

Challenges. Cute Card Thursday. Use circles.

Today's weight 9st 2lb ( target weight) not bad after 2 birthdays.

Baby's First Birthday Card.

2011-07-13T17:16:00.003+01:00

It will be our grandson's first birthday next week. It doesn't seem like 2 minutes since he was born. He is literally days away from taking his first steps then we can all look out,lol. I don't have many baby images so this one turned up on Free Digital Stamps last week just in time.

It's at Papercraft Planet HERE. I am a member at PCP and although it says it is a freebie for Sassy Cheryl's members , which I'm not, I still managed to download it. I'm not sure if I'm being naughty, but at least I'm sharing the link to the post and not just the image.

Isn't he cute. The papers were from a My Craft Studio CD ROM which I've had for years. The Card base is 5"x5".

Challenges, Fuzzy Wuzzy, Get Punchy.
A Gem Of a Challenge. For the boys.
Sweet Stamping. Cute and Cuddly.
Crafty Creations. Boyz to Men.
Penny's Paper Crafty Challenge. Happy Birthday

Masculine box.

2011-07-10T13:38:00.001+01:00

First let me say thank you for my "happy birthday" comments from yesterday. I had a lovely day in Nantwich. There's some really nice little shops there. All the little gifty type shops have gone from Chester now due to greedy landlords and councils. We came back in time to have a few drinks at the local then we got a Chinese and a bottle of wine. You always know you've had a good birthday when the scales tell you to get off them next day.

I've been making quite a few bags and boxes lately and decided to make a "non girly" one as men do exist and do appreciate handmade gifts.

Not much to it really. The paper is from a stack by K and Company. I started with a white box base and inked up the edges with brown ink.

I don't really do "dirty" but i like the way this one turned out so I'l be doing a few more. I'll probably make a matching tag for this one to finish it off. Perhaps a diary, a pen and a few notecards will go inside. One stocking filler sorted.

Challenges, C.R.A.F.T. Boxes.
Crafty Catz. A vintage look.

A card for my stepson.

2011-07-08T09:02:00.001+01:00

The phrase "Christmas in July" is very appropriate for me and my family. There are so many birthdays it's like shelling out for Christmas twice a year. It's my stepson, Neil's turn next Tuesday and here's his card.

The main image and the bits of food are from a Papermania, Clare Curd clear set. The papers are from Summer Driggs but as my printer gives everything a blue cast even after loads of head cleaning the colours are not true to the originals.

Before i made this card i was looking through my digi stamps for ideas. I came across this baby one and had a light bulb moment. Our grandson Michael is also a July baby and will have his first birthday on the 19th. I think i got the image from a colouring book site but i've searched google images and can't find it. I downloaded it a couple of years ago before i needed to keep note for fellow bloggers.

Challenges, Scrapalicious USA. Use turquoise.
My time to craft, Use food, A La Carte

On the subject of birthdays, it's mine tomorrow. As usual, Chester races is on so town will be full of scallies. If it's not peeing down we're going to take a little trip to Nantwich on the bus. We'll have a wander around the shops and perhaps a pub lunch and we'll get a takeaway in the evening.

Today's weight 9st 2lb ( target weight).

Same but Different.

2011-07-05T23:08:00.002+01:00

Sometimes when you trundle around various websites/blogs you can find yourself miles away from home and miles away from your usual style. Sometimes these sites have freebies which enable you to try a different style without spending a penny. One such site is Create with TLC. I love all the designs and sentiments on this site. So far i have only snagged the freebies but as there is a special offer of buy 5 sets get 2 free until midnight tonight I'm going shopping straight after this post. Here's 2 slightly different cards done with the same digis.

I looked at this image and didn't really think much more about it until i came across the matching sentiment. I opened them in " My Craft Studio" and put them together and printed them out, 3 sheets of them.

The image is HERE, and the sentiment is HERE. Big naughtiness here, i don't know where i got the ticket sentiment from. I know there was a whole page and i think i found them through Free digital Stamps but I'm going to have to go back and find them, unless anyone can help. The papers in the first card are Summer Driggs, but the second card is made with scraps so i don't know where they were from.

Challenges. Sentimental Sundays, Anything goes.
Stamps R Us. There was a little girl.

Now then......Speedy's birthday night out at the Mill Hotel. He had the big meat feast but it was a hot night so i opted for the sirloin steak with trimmings. Food......no problem. Wine? OMG!!! We had a bottle each and then, when we went to pay the bill they said that one of the lads behind the bar had paid for another. Well after the wine we already had, there was no logic, so we had the third bottle. OK we drank it slowly and we walked home with dignity. We have a long narrow hall in our flat and there are 2 wooden chests in the hall.I sat on one of the chests to get my shoes off and the wine kicked in. I heard a bang and thought "what was that"? It was me falling off the chest after falling asleep,lol. Next morning one of my toes was blue, i vaguely remember stubbing it on the edge of the bed. No hangover, and I'm fine ........until Saturday.............It's my birthday then......................................

Happy Birthday Speedy !!

2011-07-03T09:40:00.002+01:00

Today is my lovely Speedy's birthday.

Happy birthday you big softie ! Mind you this photo is 12 months old and Speedy is now one and a half stone lighter, but still a big softie. Everybody loves him, even the men, lol. My mum used to say you could tell if a man will be a good husband if he looks after his mum and she was right. Speedy goes to his mums every day after work and makes sure she's had something to eat and everywhere is locked up.He bought my mum a little pressie just from him and asked me to pretty it up for her. The little bag contains some Thorntons chocs.

We are going out tonight for another of those Roman meat feasts. I may opt for something a bit smaller , but then I'm a greedy so and so , I'll let you know tomorrow...........

Edited for Ali. The sentiment is from Ginger's House. There are loads of sentiments on this site, it's fab.

Cute Card.

2011-07-01T06:07:00.001+01:00

I think this is such a cute image and such a fitting caption. They are Both by TLC and are on this page.

I'm 90% sure the stripy paper is from Summer Driggs' website. I downloaded it about 18 months ago. luckily I printed a few sheets out before my printer started playing up. The spotty paper is definitely one of Summer's. The Happy Birthday circle is from Craftwork Cards. The Card base is by Craft UK LTD and is a good quality and nice and white. I got mine from Hobbycraft when they were on offer ( and still might be ) at £4.99 for 50. This one is 5"x5".

Target weight, 9st 2lb. Today 9st 1lb. Speedy will put an end to that on his birthday on Sunday,lol.

Stripy Gift Set.

2011-06-29T16:13:00.005+01:00

I've been a busy little bee today. I've been into town to get some bits and pieces this morning. I got some little hand creams from M&S for mums gift bag and made her a necklace to but in her little box. I've just got to wrap her main pressies to take to her tomorrow. It's Speedy's birthday on sunday so I've made him a little gift bag and matching card while i'm on my day off.

There's more info about this bag on an earlier post HERE, and instructions at Splitcoast Stampers HERE. After making a few of these bags i found that making the first 2 folds half an inch instead of an inch made them a little bit taller and made all the difference when finding things to put inside as they have to be fairly flat

You can just about see the side view of the bag here but my 2 links will show you better. The little boat is a Meljens digi image.

Here's the matching card which is 6"x6". The paper is from DCWV stack six 12 x 12 papers. The " AHOY" is also by Meljen's.

And here's the set together. As you can see by the pic, the bag is about 5" square. Things I've got for the bag so far are, a Thorntons 4"x4" bar of chocolate with ginger, a Cadbury's kids size bar of dairy milk ( the flat one) , a Caramac, some wrigleys chewing gum and a small 2" square Thorntons trial size white chocolate. I'm going to get a Scratch card and a lottery ticket as well. Big kid he is, lol.

Challenges, Meljens Stripes ( how could i not )
Totally Papercrafts. Stripes and spots.
Sisterhood of Crafters. For men.

Gifts for mum.

2011-06-26T12:39:00.004+01:00

Well i was going to moan about the weather on my post today but while i was faffing around trying to get some decent pics of today's creations the sun managed to come out. How long for, i don't know but it's certainly not the heatwave stuff. The funniest thing is that on the news yesterday morning they gave out a heatwave helpline number. It was quite chilly and I envisaged loads of workers falling asleep waiting for someone to ring up and say "I'm hot, what shall i do?", lol. Anyway here's a little bag and box i made to go with mums birthday pressies.

There are details of how to make the bag on a previous post HERE, and more info on the little box HERE.
All they took was one 12 x12 piece of K & CO. paper and a piece of A4 card.

I used a 2" circle punch and cut the circles in half for the corners and my little eyelet tool came out for an airing.

I got the little heart embellishment from The Works, £1 for six. The bag and box are not as big as they look in the pics, the bag is 4" tall ) so it will be a bit of a challenge finding something to put in them. Perhaps a trip to Thorntons and a mooch around Crabtree and Evelyn's trial sizes tomorrow.

Edit, to anyone who's looking at that bag and thinking " if only", please have a go, it's so very easy.

Speaking of challenges..........Glitter Geeks, Handbags and Gladrags.
Creative Belli Blog, Something begining with G. (GIFT)

First birthday.

2011-06-24T06:09:00.000+01:00

I nearly forgot about my poor old blog this morning so it will be a mega quick post.

Image by Lili of the Valley. This is one of the cards i made for the bloke who wanted 7. He'll be picking them up today. Right i'd best get ready for work.

Target weight 9st 2lb. Today, 9st 1lb.

Frenzy !

2011-06-22T16:38:00.000+01:00

What a card making frenzy I've had today! A friend of mine (male of course ) rang me in work yesterday and requested 7 personalised cards. Yes great that's £14 in the stash fund. When does he want them for? Friday morning !! Bear in mind not much housework got done last week with the hospital fiasco and i need to make 6 cards for my own use before next weekend. I was going to nip out and get some birthday pressies for my mum today but i made myself do these 7 cards instead. I haven't photographed them all yet but i also got my mum s done too.

The digi image is from HERE and the papers are Papermania Creative Tones. There is a link in my side bar to the little digi flowers and the cake sentiment is by TLC Creations. The card base is 6" x6".

I could just scoff my way through all those cakes, lol.

Challenges. Kaboodle Doodles, food and drink.
Digital Tuesday Challenge, Favourite ice cream colours, Strawberry.
My Partner in Crafting Crime, Tutti Fruitti.

So Many Books.

2011-06-19T14:12:00.002+01:00

Good afternoon all. I don't know what it's like near you but it's a very unsettled day weather wise here in Chester. We are going out for a bit of a walk soon and i'll definitely be taking my brolly.

These two quick cards are made using images and captions from TLC Creations. I spent an odd hour here and there going through the whole blog . Usually i copy and paste the blog page in the "add a caption" bit in Picasa but on this particular session i forgot to do it so apologies for no links but i will one day go back and search for them.

The papers are again from my scrap box which is looking a lot less full than it was. I'll be joining in with the fun " sunday snippets" challenge at Jules' "Always with a Heart" blog which is a great way of encouraging each other to use those scraps.

Speedy is feeling better than he has done in ages, in fact he's a bit too frisky for my liking, lol. He's still in need of a new kidney though and there are a couple of us due to be tested for a match. Hopefully we'll be able to get it sorted soon so he can bypass any need for dialysis as he's not quite at that stage yet.

Speedy's Home.

2011-06-17T06:08:00.001+01:00

Just a quickie to say Speedy's home and well. They told me at midday yesterday he was being discharged so i had to get the next train as i didn't want him coming home on his own. We got home at about 5pm. He's wired up to a portable heart monitor. He's got to go about his life as usual, then go back with it on Monday so they can see how his heart has coped. His heartbeat is back to normal. It was the beta blockers which were a too high dose.

Thank you for all your well wishes and here's one i made earlier. Image is a freebie from Meljens Designs.

Target weight 9st 2lb. Today, 9st 1lb. I'll have to run around Liverpool more often, lol.

So very late....

2011-06-15T21:31:00.002+01:00

...........and so very tired. What a couple of days!! I went with Speedy to one of his hospital appointments in Liverpool yesterday morning and while we were there he came over all queer, sweating and feeling faint etc. He hates hospitals, but when his hands stated turning white there was a bit of a panic as it was obviously more than nerves. They took his blood pressure and pulse and both were dangerously low so they gave him oxygen and took him to A&E. He spent all day wired up to a monitor having ecg's and blood tests and they finally decided to keep him in. Luckily we'd gone by train and i finally got home at 9pm. I went back again today as they are keeping him in again tonight. I've just got home. Seems that one of his blood pressure tablets were too high and they are trying him on a lower dose. I'm glad we were there at the time as it could have happened anywhere and he probably would have ignored it, as a lot of us would,lol. I'll have to see what tomorrow brings but in the meantime here's a card.

I made it for my sister who's just got herself a puppy who looks just like the one on the card. This image was from Kids n Fun Colouring pages . Isn't he cute. When she went to pick him up she said he's going straight in the sink when i get him home so i added the caption.

The paper is by Brenda Pinnick and there's a link to the digi buttons stamp in my sidebar at the top.

Apolojeez four enee typows butt iem to nakred too ker, lolll. XX

Challenges. A spoonfull of sugar, Splish Splash
Going Grey with Scrap Creations, Anything goes.
Woodware USA, Happy Birthday.

Something different.

2011-06-12T13:23:00.000+01:00

When i was sorting through my craft stuff i found a pack of Gorjuss card toppers. I bought them when i hadn't been making cards for long, just before i turned into a stamping snob. I decided to overcome my snobbery as i need to have loads of cheapie cards ready for if and when this weekly table top sale starts. It's being organised by men so it could be years yet,lol.

I've been trying to make these cards from scraps and stuff I'd normally either leave in the drawer or throw away. That way i won't be gutted if they don't sell.

They can then be given away at no great loss.

The deckle edged cards are from Hobbycraft and are c6 size.

The toppers were also from Hobbycraft and were under a fiver. There's enough left for at least 10 more cards.

Of course I intend to do some "posh" cards too just in case people want to shove their hands a bit deeper into their pockets.
As a bit of encouragement I will be joining in with Jules's Sunday snippets challenges at her "Always with a heart" blog. It's a fun challenge with no prizes except the satisfaction of seeing your scrap pile go down a bit.

New Job...........

2011-06-10T06:07:00.000+01:00

.....No, not me, lol. A friend of mine asked me to make a card for someone who is a qualified midwife but has just started a new job as a doctor at an anti natal clinic. Much cleaner I'd have thought. He suggested a stork with a baby so i had a Meljen moment.

The main background paper is K&Co and the spotty one is My Mind's Eye. The good luck was added before printing out and the "you go girl " is from TLC. I bought a license from Paulette to be able to sell cards with her sentiments. It;s all too easy to "sneak sell", but i wouldn't feel right in this case. Paulette uploads every day, sometimes more then once and does fabulous sentiments for free. She also has a shop with digis for sale but up to now all I've done is to snag the freebies with the odd thank you, so i thought a licence purchase was in order and well worth the tenner. I've got £2 back already with this card ( no fancy colouring on these £2 jobs) and I've made loads more this week. The right words make such a difference.

Challenges, Papercrafting journey. Feathered friends.

Target weight, 9st 2lb. Today's weight, 9st 2lb.

My poor blog.

2011-06-08T21:52:00.000+01:00

I nearly forgot my poor old blog today! I've been shopping for jeans.......enough said ,lol. Needless to say i haven't got any yet. It takes at least 3 trips to find a pair that fits properly. I'm petite with quite a boyish figure so i would probably be better off in a mans shop. The last ones i had were from Next but I don't like the styles they have in at the moment. They look worn out before you've even worn them. Call me old fashioned but i like my new jeans to look at least quite new, not old and battered. I may as well stick with the ones I've got.
In the meantime here's a card.

I made one similar to this for my sister in law a while ago and she asked me to make one for her friend. The caption is from Ginger's House and the stamp, ( yes i used an actual wooden stamp) is a Dolly Mamma by Stamps Happen. I'm still trying to use up scraps of unidentified papers. My mountain has gone down quite a bit. I may even allow myself to cut into a new 12 x 12 tomorrow,lol.

LICENCE TO THRILL'

2011-06-06T01:01:00.000+01:00

Woo hoo. Just purchased a licence from TLC. I've been dithering for a few weeks but there's no question as to whether a sentiment or caption sells a card no matter how much work has gone into the decoration. I can now flaunt my ideas and my intention (dreams) to sell my finished cards, and all for less than a tenner. Thanks TLC. XX

Bright and breezy.

2011-06-05T12:25:00.004+01:00

Just like the weather, lol. Here's a few quick simple cards. I've made loads this week, all quickies. I need to check angel policies before i decide which ones i can sell. I know a couple of sentiment sites including Gingers House are for personal use only so they can go into my Christmas gift sets.

The sentiment on the left is from TLC and the one on the right is from Ginger's House.

The turtle is also by TLC and the little girl is from Crafty Sentiments.

The deckle edged cards are from Hobbycraft and make the cards look a little less plain. The papers were from my odds and ends and were 2 6 x 6 sheets of double sided but i don't know what make. I've got so many bits of rogue unidentified paper and i need to use them up. I need to join Jules's sunday snippet challenge, a great inspiration and a big shove,lol.

Time for something to eat now. I'm going into town later for a bit or retail therapy and then out for a bar snack later as my kitchen is CLOSED after 2pm on sundays............

Take Note. It's Friday.

2011-06-03T06:08:00.001+01:00

I don't know about you but Friday always seems to come around quickly. That's alright though because i get paid on Fridays. Weekly, old fashioned in the little packet,lol. So easy to manage your money when you get paid this way.
Yesterday i had such a card making frenzy it was unbelievable. Speedy has a little pint at the local catholic club on the way home from work (cheap ale ), and they are planning to start a weekly indoor "local produce" market in the next few weeks. They said i could have a table for my cards so i need to get my act together. If they don't sell at least I'll have all my cards sets to give as Christmas gifts made nice and early. It's supposed to be on Thursdays which is my day off. I just hope some big git doesn't change the day or i'm stumped. I'm determined that these cards are all going to be made from stuff i would normally chuck in my scrap box and be dead simple to make and will be posting here regularly.
Meanwhile here's some notebooks I've altered. I found them when scratting around for bits & bobs.

The digi image is from Meljens and i added the "NOTES" in Back to School font. I added a panel of paper on the back to match the front, mainly as i couldn't get the label off,lol.

The coloured books were from Woolies and the black and grey from Wilkinsons all 50p each.

Challenges.. Pink Elephant, Teacher Gifts.
Stamp something, Use a digi.

Target weight 9st 2lb. Today's weight 9st 2lb :)

More quickie cards.

2011-06-01T18:59:00.000+01:00

Bit of a rush jobbie these as i've been out most of the day but i needed some mens cards to take to work.

The stamp is by Inkadinkado and is great for quickies as there's not a lot of detail to colour. The papers are scraps left over from some i won a few weeks ago so i don't know their origin. The card bases are 5" x 5", and are on offer at £4.99 for 50 at Hobbycraft at the moment. Quite good quality too although they don't look very white in the pic.
I need to go and do my kitchen goddess thing now before a very hungry Speedy gets home,lol. I'll have to conjure something oriental up out of the Chinese pork i found in the freezer and the mushrooms and spring onions from the fridge. Bless him, he doesn't notice when I've been shirking my duties!

Funny Anniversary Card.

2011-05-29T12:53:00.001+01:00

Morning all. I won't say "good" because it isn't, not here anyway. I hope it brightens up later as there is a street carnival up the road and we are nipping along to take a peek.The street is quite multicultural as there are Polish, Indian and Caribbean food shops and quite a few ethnic eateries as well as good old English pubs. I think they are trying to attract more people to the area as although this used to be the main walking route from the train station into the city centre there has been a free bus service for a couple of years now which has not been good for businesses.
Anyway meanwhile here's today's card. It's Speedy's sister's anniversary next week. Her and hubby are well into retirement so i thought i'd use my third stamp from Imag-e-nation (link in last post) for a bit of a laugh.

The papers are from my huge pad of K & Company "360 best of" papers. It was just under £30 but has loads of different styles and is well worth the money.

The glossy accents has been out again (see link in sidebar for flower digi). This time it's on the glasses too. The caption is from TLC again. I love my Fiskars deckle scissors. They are great for trimming a layer of coloured card around a smallish sentiment without having to cut it dead straight. Card base is 6"x6.

Challenges. Simply Create. special day/event.
Stamp Something. Add a sentiment.

Let yer hair down Granny!

2011-05-27T05:59:00.001+01:00

Well, you didn't think i only bought one stamp from Imag-e-nation did you? To me that would be just plain rude, lol. No, i bought 3 and all were only £1 each. How long can i keep myself from going back for more i wonder?

I chose these backing papers from my scraps as i was originally planning to make a retirement card, then halfway through i decided it would be sitting in my box waiting for someone to retire so i changed to a birthday card. The caption is from TLC, a great site for little sayings.

Is there such an illness as Glossy Accentitis because if there is I've got it bad,lol. These little flowers are from Meljens Designs (another addiction) at Whimsy Stamps. I printed loads out and coloured and glossed them.

Challenges; Creative Card Crew, Anything goes.
Crafting for all Seasons. Anything goes.
Creative Craft World. 3 or more flowers
Divas By Design. For the girls

---------------0-----------------

Our local pub is actually a hotel around the corner called The Mill. We noticed a new "thing" on the notice board a few months ago and have been hankering ever since. They've started doing a Roman feast. Different kinds of meat served with potato wedges a side serving of veg for £22.50. We did think it was a bit pricey for a "mixed grill" but we caved in and gave it a try on Wednesday night. Well, a mixed grill it was NOT!!. It was 5 chunks of different meats EACH, which arrived part cooked on 2 big skewers and was then flame grilled with brandy at the table. A couple had plonked themselves at the table right next to ours even though the were loads of others and hadn't ordered yet and i thought to myself "please let them be vegetarians" just to P them off but they weren't. The side veg was cauliflower cheese new potatoes and a stuffed mini courgette as well as a little dish of homemade wedges. Guess what? I managed to eat most of it!! And we had a bottle of wine each. But the best bit is that when we went to pay the bill one of the lads from behind the bar had paid for one of the bottles of wine. How nice for a young lad to think like that.

Here comes the bad bit;
Target weight, 9st 2lb. Today's weight, 9st. 4lb. Well, what can i say.................

Remember Space Hoppers?

2011-05-25T07:20:00.000+01:00

I needed to make a card for my nephews birthday. He'll be 22 on Saturday. I've got plenty of male stamps but they are either a bit too cutesy for a young lad or more suited to old fossils,lol. I've got a couple of cars but he's already had them so i went to scour the net. I googled digi stamps, male, images and eventually found THIS ONE from Imag-e-nation.

What a hoot, and a bargain at £1.00. It takes me back to my childhood and that was when the original ones came out. The caption was from Ginger's House and i added the Hoppy Birthday before printing out the image.

Finished off with some of Torico's cute digi buttons, ( link in my side bar) coloured in and glazed with Glossy Accent's before cutting out. I think you'll be seeing loads of these on my cards, especially ones for men.

Well, that's it for today as I'm off to Hobbycraft. Partly because i need more Glossy Accents but mainly because I'm going out for a big scoff tonight and i need to walk the 4 mile round trip.

Challenges.....Belli challenge, the letter S ( space hopper)
Top Tip 35, use 2 or more stamps.
Stamping Scrapping, Masculine,
Stamps R Us Go digital.

Another quickie.

2011-05-22T15:34:00.001+01:00

Having a lazy day today so i thought a lazy card would be appropriate for today's post. I made it last week with no particular person in mind, just to top up my male card supply.

See? Downright lazy, not much effort involved with this one. The stamp and sentiment are from the Papermania "it's a mans world" clear set and the paper is from my scrap box. Now i'm going to be really hard faced and enter it into a few challenges,lol.

Totally Papercrafts, Don't be square.
Crafty Catz, Anything goes.
Crazy 4 Challenges. Humour.

Quickie Cards.

2011-05-20T06:06:00.000+01:00

And quickie post as i'm about to get ready for work. I have a few "friends of friends" birthdays coming up and needed some basic cards at the ready.

Really quick to make. Image, Meljens " pair of carnations" from Whimsy Stamps. Sentiment printed in Scriptina Pro font. Cards 5"x5".

Target, 9st 2lb. Today 9st 3lb, I seem to be a bit stuck. ( I didn't eat one single pink doughnut)!!

How Naughty are These Then ???

2011-05-18T08:53:00.004+01:00

Do any of you remember Fanny Craddock, the famous TV cook and her poor henpecked husband Johnny?

Well, i was just a little lass when she was on TV but i can still remember her. The one thing which people will remember poor Johnny for is his final sentence on one of her shows in which she had been making some doughnuts. " Goodnight to you all, and may your doughnuts turn out like Fanny's". What a famous last line ! The poor bloke never lived it down.
Yesterday, i was doing the food shop in Tesco when i saw these pink doughnuts,lol.

I looked at them and thought they'd be good for a bit of smut, but what could i make? I bought 3 packs. Then I remembered Johnny....................

This is the outcome of going to a strict all girls school,lol. I've just given Speedy a bag full to take to work and I'll be taking some to my boss's dad John later as he's up for a bit of smut to give out in his pub.
They also do chocolate ones which bring to mind another body bit, lol. I'll be making something with these soon but i doubt whether they'll be fit for public viewing. Probably best left to the imagination.................

Edit.... Whenever i give Speedy some of these naughty gifts to take to the pub he always comes back and says everyone said "ooh your missus should sell these she'd make loads of money" (bless), but have any of them ever asked to actually buy anything????? No, no, no. So, how do i make all this money then ?? You could shoot 'em couldn't you, lol.

Yummy Cupcake.

2011-05-15T12:26:00.008+01:00

So, when are we having this major heatwave then? According to the "experts" we are in for a long hot summer but haven't they been saying that for the last 3 years. Hopefully they may have got it right this year, i won't hold my breath though. Meanwhile here's my card for today. I hope Blogger doesn't magic it into thin air,lol.

Another freebie image, I'm such a cheapskate. This one was from Designed 2 Delight and is so easy to colour. Again, the papers were part of a prize so i can't tell you who they are by but the circle sentiment is from Craftwork Cards.

Finished off with some ribbon and some stickles. I'm going wandering now to see if i can find any challenges to enter it into.

Challenges, Kaboodle Doodles. Lots of layers.
Crafty Creations. Anything goes.
Elephantastic. Birthday party.
One Stop Challenge. Ice cream (image or colours). ( parma violet, avocado and strawberry)

Another Floyd and a new hero.

2011-05-13T19:02:00.004+01:00

Well, i don't believe it i drafted a post last night ready for this morning and couldn't post it because of Blogger being down. Fair enough but I've just got home from work to find not only my draft has disappeared but also my last post was gone. I managed to retrieve my last post (well, half of it) but have had to rewrite this one.
Anyway this is the card i made for The Party Time Tuesdays gatefold challenge and it's the handsome Floyd again.

Details of the stamp in my last post. The papers were part of my prize from The Card Grotto.

I thought up the caption and printed it out before stamping Floyd at the side.

But here's the best bit. I was looking on the Free Digital Stamps site and found a link to these digi buttons by Torico I was so excited i scuttled off to print a sheet of various sizes. Then i coloured them with Promarkers before adding a coat of Glossy accents. Then i cut them out. Thank you Torico, my new hero,lol.

Here's the rest of my sheet.

Also entering; Fab n Funky Challenge, Buttons and bows.

Target weight 9st 2lb. Today, 9st 3lb.

I've got my man out again!

2011-05-13T18:43:00.000+01:00

Yes, here he is my favourite bloke stamp Floyd by Art Impressions. I got him from Sir Stampalot and i do certainly stamp him a lot.In fact he'll be on fridays card too.

He comes in so handy for middle aged blokes, you know, the brother in law, hubby's mates etc. All you need to do is print out a suitable caption and plonk him by the side. The spotty paper is from my scraps but i'm almost sure it's by Summer Driggs.

Not a Full Shilling.

2011-05-09T15:47:00.002+01:00

I sometimes wonder if i need to have my head tested to see if i need some sort of medication,lol. Mind you i was in the pub when i dreamed up the idea for this card.

See what i mean? Barking mad! I'm putting this in as another entry for the I Love Promarkers "song title" challenge. I used Meljens umbrella digi stamp from her page of fantastic freebies and added the wording before printing out and drawing in the little men.

The backing papers are from a big stack by K & Company. And of course, no card is complete without a splash of stickles.

Also entered Crafty Cats, Include a sentiment or quote.

I Saw Three Ships..........

2011-05-08T14:06:00.002+01:00

Now here's a challenge and a half for me. It's Meljens challenge 57 which is to create a business size card which i assume is the American equivalent to our DL size. I very rarely stray from my safe square cards but i thought I'd have a go.

I used Meljens "sail away" image which i printed out three times and added the caption underneath. The paper is one of loads which i won from The Card Grotto blog a couple of weeks ago. They were loose sheets so i can't tell you who it's by. I drew over the swirls with a Sakura clear glaze pen and added lots of stickles to the water.The card measures 10cm x 21cm.

Here's a close up for your inspection, lol.

Also entering May digi day challenge at Stamp Something

On The Beach.

2011-05-06T06:01:00.000+01:00

On my daily visits to Free Digital Stamps i found this lovely summery image from The Stamping Boutique. It's perfect for this weeks challenge at I Love Promarkers which is to make a card inspired by a song title. I chose Chris Rea's "On the Beach".

The seahorse backing paper is from a huge stack by K & Company. I cut out the turquoise mats with Fiskars deckle scissors. I added the sentiment in "Thread Fun" font before i printed the image. I've got a thing about making daisies at the moment. I coloured some card candy with promarkers for the centres.

A bit of stickles for the sand and we're done.
It's Chester races this week so it should be quite busy in work. I went into town yesterday and i couldn't believe some of the sights. It gets worse each year. The women are getting fatter and their dresses are getting smaller. And as for the make up and hair extensions you'd swear they were going to a fancy dress do. Anyone living in a race town will know exactly what i mean.

Target weight 9st 2lb. Today''s weight 9st 4lb. Not bad as i was 9st 7lb on Tuesday morning...........

Flower Cart.

2011-05-04T18:43:00.001+01:00

Here's a little card i made with a free image from The Stamping Boutique. Unfortunately it was only available for one day but hopefully some of you may have been able to nab it.

I go to the Free Digital Stamps site every day so as not to miss out on these one day offers. I used a scrap of Papermania Creative Tones paper for my background and coloured the flowers and cart to tone.

I added some stickles and some peel off dots to finish. The card base is 5"x5".

Well, i ate so much while i was away at the weekend. 3 mornings of help yourself brekkies and 3 evenings of 3 course meals have sent me completely off the rails so I'm likely to still be fat by Friday. It was worth it though. We had a little visit to Poole in Dorset as on of our excursions. Lovely place with very expensive houses but the shops were very tacky. Seaside grot shops and pound shops etc. I believe they get better right at the far end of town but we didn't have time to walk that far. There were a couple of gift shops in between these grot shops but at the other end of the scale they were very overpriced. So i didn't spend much money at all. I've put half of what was left into my stash fund and half into my Wallis fund, my fave clothes shop.

Entering, Cupcake Challenge "C" (cart)
Papertake Weekly, anything goes.
Tip Top Tuesday, Open challenge

Winner of my little prize.

2011-05-03T20:27:00.000+01:00

I'm back from, whoever would have thought.............Weymouth !! I never thought in a million years we'd be heading south and neither did anyone playing my little guessing game. According to Google maps, although it was a very close shave, the winner is Kay. Well done Kay, if you could either e,mail me or pm me at Docrafts with your address I'll send it to you.
We had a few excursions and one of them had a little stop off at Shaftsbury where the Hovis advert was filmed.

Here's that famous road.

And here's the famous loaf.
I had to work my 11 hour shift today but I'm off tomorrow so I'll be washing and ironing. Lovely.............

A Little Competition.

2011-04-28T18:49:00.001+01:00

I'm going away tomorrow for 4 days. It's a mystery coach trip so we don't know where we are going. I was tidying my den and found a few things i wasn't likely to use so i decided to do a little competition. Try and guess where we end up (leave comment) and the person who guesses nearest wins. If more than one person gets it right i'll get Speedy to pick a name out of his pint glass,lol.

Not the most exciting prize, just a few odds and ends for a bit of fun .I may find a few more bits but won't have time to take another pic. We will definitely be in either England, Scotland or Wales and don't forget if you choose a place which there is more than one of like Whitchurch or Whitby etc, to say which one. Closing date/time, 6pm Monday2nd May. I will let you know who wins next week, either Monday or Tuesday night. Sorry, open to UK residents only due to postal charges. Good luck. XX

Orff with their heads !!

2011-04-27T14:51:00.000+01:00

Before you send me to the tower, this wasn't entirely my idea ,lol. My boss's dad asked me if i was making any Royal smut bags and i said no, but then he'd planted the seed and my head just wouldn't let it go. I relented this morning and went shopping in search of suitable "stuff", and i hereby risk my whole reputation........

The "stuff" is iceland cornflake cluster bites. They come in a plastic tub, £1.50 for 22, so are a cheap laugh in more ways than one. My "accomplice" owns a pub so i'm taking him a dozen bags to give out on friday. You'd think i had nothing better to do with my time. I'm going away on friday for 4 days on another mystery coach trip to who knows where. I'd better take my disguise kit in case we end up anywhere near any Royals. I bet Prince Harry would pay good money for a sackload though, he's usually up for a practical joke. I've just had a mental picture of him swapping the wedding favours on the top table for these...................

Something Pink and Sweet.

2011-04-25T11:37:00.004+01:00

Well, it's pink and it's sweet, just right for Crafts and Me challenge this week. It's also just right for my mother in law's birthday on Thursday.

The fabulous cake image is a freebie from Beyond the Fringe HERE. The paper is a scrap of Papermania. I added some gems and pearls to the ribbon and flowers and did some "icing" with liquid pearls. A bit of stickles to finish and we're done. There is also a version of the cake without the goldfish bowl but i chose this one to give mother in law a chuckle.

Also entering Cooking it up with Katie, "Show me a pink flowery lady".
Cupcake Inspirations challenge 108
My Partner in Crafting Crime. Challenge 25.

Boy's Birthday Card.

2011-04-22T08:56:00.000+01:00

Happy Good Friday everyone. It's an extra happy one for me. When i got into work on Tuesday i said to my boss " mornin' happy" which is how i usually greet him. He's only a young lad and doesn't do happy until at least 8 o'clock,lol. Anyway his reply this Tuesday was " well you're gonna be happy". "Why"? I said. " Because you're off Friday, i decided you can have the day off, paid" he said. Bless!! We all expect to have to do bank hols when we work in shops so this was a complete surprise. He's going to do it on his own. Love him to bits.
Anyway today's card is another lovely Meljens freebie image.

The challenge for this week is "masculine" so this one fits the bill nicely.Both papers are from DCWV stack 6. The round sentiment is a freebie from Sentiments 4 you, HERE.

I'm also entering the following challenges;
Crazy Challenge. Friendship.
Incywincy Designs. Bright and bold

Target weight 9st 2lb. Today 9st 2lb. I'm sure the Easter bunny will soon change that!

Meljens Easter Card.

2011-04-20T13:53:00.003+01:00

I don't really send many Easter cards but i couldn't resist this little Meljens image from Whimsy stamps so I made one each for the two mums.

The daisy background paper is K&CO. It goes so well with the little punched daisies. The leaves are done with an X Cut botanicals punch. The daisy centres are card candy coloured with promarkers.

It's another sunny day so I've been out and about while it lasts. Chester is full of howling kids at the moment. Every shop I've been in has been full of them running around and even playing football with daddy in Tesco! Still i did manage to find another bargain dress on the sale rail at Wallis so it was worth it. Off to do a bit of the dreaded housework now then maybe a bit of fun in my den, well after I've scouted for a couple of challenges to enter.

Digital Tuesday. Pretty Punches.

Creative Inspirations. Easter.

Dream Valley. Easter.

Quirky Crafts. Easter.

Top Bloke Card.

2011-04-17T09:40:00.003+01:00

Another sunny Sunday. What have we done to deserve this then? Two in a row, we don't even get that in the middle of summer. I've got a few little tasks to do this morning then I'll be off into town with Speedy later.
I made this card for his brother in law for his birthday last week.

I found the image from Arthur's Clip Art HERE. It's a great site for finding images for men especially sport and recreation images.

Just got to laugh at the teeth! I put some glossy accents on the medallion and decided to put some on the teeth. It doesn't look quite so bad in real life though, honest.
I've just been looking at various challenge blogs and this card just about fits the I Love Promarkers sketch challenge.
Also entering; Stamping with the Dragon, "sports sports sports".
Papercrafting Journey, "use a freebie".

Two More Quickies.

2011-04-15T06:04:00.001+01:00

Made a couple more quick cards for work to fill up my little stand.

The stamp is by Inca Stamps coloured with Promarkers. A few bits of scrap paper and voila! Easy money,lol.

And here's another version. I'm so glad i learned to print my greetings onto my card bases. No more half inked smudged efforts.
I must get ready for work now, 11 hours of smiling away at Joe Public. Lots of drunk men today too as they knock off work early on Fridays and go straight to the pub. Heaven forbid that they should go home and start the wife's dinner while she's still at work! Oh no, the pub is their entitlement.........bless 'em.

Target weight 9st 2lb. Today's weight 9st 3lb. Not been on my best behaviour this week though.

A few quickies.

2011-04-13T14:24:00.002+01:00

I got into work yesterday and noticed my little stand of cards for sale was looking a bit bleak so I've had to do a few rush cards.

Two for the men.

And one for the ladies.

All made with a Penny Black stamp and a few scraps. To be honest these little quickies sell better than the fancier ones even though they are only 50p more.
Off to make some more quickies now but here's a piccie of some Easter gifts i made with the leftover tags from the last post. The little rabbits are from good old Aldi.

Quick little Easter idea.

2011-04-11T10:36:00.000+01:00

I was strolling around Morrisons last week and i came across some gingerbread Easter bunnies. They were in the bread section in a plastic tub, you know, the ones they have the mini flapjacks etc in. There were 35 for £1.99. I could feel a little Easter gift coming on.

I searched Google images for the Easter bunny and made up the little ditty. I thought if i put 5 bunnies in each bag i'd get 7 bags. Nope, there were 2 broken ones so me and speedy had to eat 5 biccies between us. Shame,lol.

I hope i've given you enough time to get some of these done before next week. The bags are the ones used foe 4x6 cards and the font is Riesling.

Another Summery Card.

2011-04-10T11:00:00.002+01:00

Mornin' all. The sun's out again and I'm still in the seaside mood.I looked in my little file of simple layouts and used one 2 ways to make 2 slightly different cards from one image.The little boat is from Meljens Designs and can be bought from WHIMSY STAMPS.

The spotty papers are by Brenda Pinnick and were in a big thick 12 x12 pad. They sometimes have them on QVC when they have Rosemary Merry on.

The "sand" paper is by DCWV from stack 6 and the blue is another Brenda Pinnick.

I used a Sakura gold gel pen on the swirls and a clear one on the sun. Glitter glue is Hobbycraft own brand, a bargain at £1.99 for quite a large bottle. The cards are both 6"x6".

Entered into My Time To Craft nautical challenge.

On The Beach.

2011-04-08T06:06:00.000+01:00

Spring has sprung and summer's on it's way......soon be Christmas,lol. I've been shopping today as i didn't spend all of my Christmas money on drab winter clothes so i have some left. I bought a nice dress reduced to £17.50 in Debenhams. It's a petite size and i have to snap them up when i see them as they fit properly. I'm determined to get my legs out more this year as i have quite decent ones but they're always tucked away under trousers. Up to now there's 5 dresses lined up. Cue for a cold summer? I hope not. While i was feeling summery i made a card to fit the mood.

Details on the printing of the card base can be found on a previous post HERE. The stamp is called "collecting seashells" by Stamps Happen. The circle sentiment is from Craftwork Cards. I've used a tiny bit of glitter glue on the sand. Card base 6"x6".

Target weight 9st 2lb, Today's weight 9st 3lb. Back on the naughty step.

Yummy Cakes.

2011-04-06T12:29:00.000+01:00

Hello peeps. Just got back from having my routine smear test, yuk. Anyway enough of that, let's talk about cake instead. Much better.

These cakes are from a set of clear stamps by Woodware called "tea for two". The caption is by Elzybells and the little circle sentiment is from craftwork cards.

Here's a close up of the yummy cakes just to make you all hungry. The border is done with a Fiskars punch and the card base is 5"x7".
I'm going to get myself something to eat (not cake) then i'm going to use this mornings "ordeal" (wasn't really though but don't tell Speedy) as an excuse to laze around in my den. xxx

21st Card.

2011-04-03T21:11:00.001+01:00

This is a card i made for Speedy's nephew who likes to go fishing with his cousin.

I found the image from some kids colouring pages HERE. The papers are K&CO. The glitter glue is Hobbycraft's own brand and is really good.

The font i used for the caption is Thread Fun and is one of my favourites for lighthearted cards.I bought some Fiskars deckled scissors in WHS sale months ago and forgot all about them. I found them while looking for something else and tried them out on the blue matting. Not bad hey?

Enjoy what's left of mother's day. xx