Friday, May 25, 2018

A-Camping We Will Go

I made today's card for my son Matt's birhday (in 2016!)  He and his wife bought a camper trailer and went away in it for the first time for his birthday... we bought him a voucher from a Camping store - it was in with the card
I used a couple of digital stamps from the now sadly defunct Stamp Fairy (I bought BIG before they closed, I've got a few of these little sweeties to hand, lol) Lenny Camping 3 (which is Lenny and the camper) and Lenny Camping 4 which is Lenny with the campfire.  I cropped down two of the Lennys and added a bow to the "hair" of one before putting them in the campervan looking out... they are my twinnies, Nathan and Emily :-))... another reason I love digis so much, being so easily manipulated.  The colouring, as usual, was done with Copics and Prismacolor pencils
I made an easel card, because I love making them... the grass was cut with a die, I used it as the prop for the top of the card, and I also added a pocket "behind" or under it to put the gift card and a little tag with a jotting panel on the back
 The papers are from a 12" scrapbooking pad.  The clouds are Memory Box, mounted on foam pads.  The "Celebrate" sentiment is a digi from Create with TLC - quite possibly a freebie as Paulette is very generous :-)
I think the Happy Birthday die on the tag is from the Sizzix Tim Holtz Celebration Script Words collection, cut from black card and then coated with Glossy Accents
The little flowers are from a generic punch.  That's it.
I'd like to enter Matt's card in the following challenges
The Paper Shelter Digital Image
Aud Sentiments Summer and a Sentiment
As You Like It Flora or Fauna and Why - Fauna, I love all animals and I love using animal images because there are so many cute ones :-)
Simon Says Challenge Use More than One Stamp - Two digis used here
Allsorts Challenges Happy Birthday
Sweet Stampin' Bunnies and/or Bears
Send a Smile for Kids Anything Goes for Kids
Hiding in- my Craft Room Masculine
4 Crafty Chicks Masculine Birthday
I'll be back soon (I hope) I've made a few cards in the twist pop up style (or whatever it's called, lol) as well as the LOADS still in my drafts, so I've got plenty to share 
Until then, Happy Crafting, Donna

Saturday, May 12, 2018

Twofer

Well, AGAIN Long Time No See :-)  Today I thought I'd add the oldest cards from my Draft Folder - they are both sympathy cards for our friends on the loss of OUR friend their mother, Thelma... the second one I was too embarrassed to dedicate a post to so I've snuck it on the end of this post, hence the "Twofer" title.  I did make a nice card for Thelma's hubby, that can come another day - today we have the "runners-up", lol
Here's the first one
To be honest, this card does look SO much nicer in real life, I was happy with it.  The gorgeous embossed card is pearlised, the embossing is very heavy, I got it from my favourite "speciality" paper store Starfish Lane with my birthday voucher from Son #2 :-)  
The lace ribbon with glittery bits came from there too, the pearl and rhinestone embellishment was from eBay.  I added a very fibrous dark brown ribbon on the top edge of the lace ribbon - the whole card is very tactile and using good quality papers and embellies was essential to the finished effect

I used a sentiment I have used before for Sympathy cards, just typed out on the computer.  The small flourish at the bottom is a Memory Box die (Ivy Tendril I think).  That's it!  
The inside is finished along the same lines as the outside, as per usual
Now, the feeling of quality the first card had just didn't happen with my second card; it should have, I used great quality paper from Starfish Lane again, but to be honest I'd spent so much time on the Widower's card I was pushing it to do anything too elaborate for the other two cards - I wanted them to be different and ended up with one just looking second-rate.  In the interest of warts and all crafting, here it is...


 I used a Portacraft embossing folder (which I obviously like because I've bought it twice, lol) sponged with burgundy ink on the one half and added the floral paper, which is really very nice in real life, with a subtle glittery sheen to it, matted onto burgundy card to the other half.  The burgundy trim covering the join is also from SFL.  The sentiment is available on my freebies page, here; the matt was cut with Nestabilities and ink added to the edge to tie it all together.  A couple of burgundy pearls from my stash and that was that.  Again, as usual, I finished the inside with elements from the front.
I'd like to enter one or other of these cards to the following challenges:


Creatalicious Challenges Anything Goes, add a Sentiment
Cute Card Thursday Flowers, embossed on the first card, printed on the second
Die Cut Divas Flowers, embossed on the first card, printed on the second
Crafty Cardmakers  No Patterned Paper (First card)
Crafty Hazelnut's Patterned Paper Challenge Patterned Paper (Second card)
Pixies Snippets Playground Use snippets (the patterned paper on the second card, why there's only half on each layer! though my lovely son bought me more for my latest birthday)
That's it for today... at least I've got all my cards from 2015 out of my Drafts Folder at last... except for that one sympathy card!!  I'll be back - "soon", maybe with something new (I've been adding to my dies collection like a crazy woman, lol, organizing all my stash is what's been taking up my crafting time!) until then Happy Crafting, Donna