Sorry I havent been able to look at your blogs....

Hi all, so sorry not to have been able to look at your blogs for a few days - it's a sick bay here and so I've just logged in quickly to say I haven't forgotten about blogging.  Will be back when feeling better and I'll be able to catch up with everything you've been making.  Not getting any crafting done here, obviously, but at least that means things are tidy for once, he he.

See you all soon,
Carole x

Happy Christmas!

Hello bloggers :) I hope you are all enjoying your day, and getting those last-minute things done.  I love Christmas Eve, for me it's the most special day, more so than Christmas Day itself, it always has a more magical feel to it, particularly in the evening after it's got dark.  This is the right time of year to have snow, so I shan't moan about the weather today, the snow just adds to the sparkle.

This is a card for everyone, to say thanks for the fab comments and encouragement throughout 2010, both on my blog and on the forums, I've really appreciated it all.

I look forward to crafting and joining lots of challenges after Christmas, I've even treated myself to a new Tilda stamp, give that poor over-worked Silent Night Tilda a chance to have a well-earned rest.

Wishing everyone a very happy Christmas, together with a healthy and crafty New Year.

Love,

Carole x

 

2 Christmas cards

Well hello bloggers!  Are you all shivering in this snowy climate?  It would be perfect weather for crafting if there wasn't stuff to do for Christmas still.  Nevermind, because give it a few months and we'll be saying that it's too hot for us, he he. 

I have a couple of cards to show, but first off, this is the award that the lovely Kevin of McCraftys Cards has passed on to me, and I'm honoured to have it.  There are some rules that come with it: I have to tell 8 things about myself and then pass the award on to 4 other blog friends (just 4?!) 

So my 8 facts are:
1. I would love to move to Wales and live in a cottage and be happy ever after.

2. My secret useless superpower is mirror-writing (apparently Leonardo Da Vinci also had the power!).

3. I am scared of dogs.
4. Before I became ill, I was hoping to join the Samaritans.

5. My favourite comedian is Ricky Gervais, everything he does makes me laugh.
6. I make a mean banana loaf.

7. My proudest moment was getting to the peak of Bow Fell in the Lake District about 6 or 7 years ago, but oh it hurt afterwards.

8. I am going on a diet after Christmas (honest!).

I don't know how to choose just 4 blogs to pass this award on to, because I'd love to give this award to all the blogs that I follow, as they are all great sites.   After a think, I've decided on:

Renkata of Scrap and Stamp With Friends
Valerie of Bastelmania
Janette of Little-Boscraftyplace
Chrissy of Chrissyxx


I have to go and tell them all now, but before I do, here are a couple of cards made before I cleared away my craft stuff for the festive period.  Tilda's coat wasn't meant to be bright red, it started off as a nice shade of pink to pick up some of the colours in the backing paper, but I blended so badly that I had to keep going over it in darker and darker shades, till eventually it ended up as it does.  Not to worry though, her red coat looks very cosy:

Hope you like them.

Happy crafting!

Carole x

Have been AWOL, and a blog award!

Hi all, I've been a very bad blogger and neglected things this week.  To be honest, after a month of blogging addiction, my humble dwelling looked very neglected and needed a bit of tidying up, and I thought I better show willing and clean up a bit.  So crafting and internet have had to take a back seat.  I think also that finally having made enough Christmas cards for this year the momentum dropped a bit, but I am getting round to looking at all the blog entries I've missed of everyone's this last week.....you've all been busy! lol.

Anyway, a lovely surprise when I logged in today, to find that a smashing chap, Kevin (McCrafty), has passed on a blog award to me!  Thanks a lot to Kevin, that's really cheered me.  I don't yet know how to pick up the award so hopefully it will appear here very soon.  I also have Copic Creations blinkie to display when that finally comes through, both should jazz up my blog a bit.

These are a couple of cards I made for a couple of sweet lovely crafting friends who should already have received them so it's safe to show them now.  I used another favourite image, Wrapped Up Tilda (which is an image first sent to me by one of the girls I made these for), and I positioned her on Marianne die cuts (sent to me by the other friend). 

Hope you are all keeping warm and cosy in this cold snap.

Happy crafting!

Carole x

My favourite Tilda again

Hello everyone :)

Do you ever find that by the time you've finished a card, it bears little resemblance to the one you started out to make?  That's what happened with this one: it was meant to be an all-white design, but I thought the pale blue cardstock looked nicer with the white lacy doily;  also I bought some white-on-white pearl patterned card specially for this project to use as a background underneath the doily, but I've ended up using no backing paper whatsoever, and allowed the hammered blue cardstock to show through instead; and originally, I had pictured a square card shape, but have ended up with a book-fold A6 as you can see.  Only the idea to use a head-shot of Tilda made it through to the finished result, but I think that's probably the way a lot of cards are completed, with lots of changes along the way from the original idea.

I coloured the image with Copic markers, then added an Anita's Glitterations circle around the head and cut around it. This circle I then stuck to a recycled doily rescued from a restaurant (from my own food, I hasten to add, I haven't yet reached the stage of foraging around other people's tables).  Some faux stitching, a large organza bow and some bling in the form of a big brad, pearls and some sticky gems complete the card. 

I am entering this in the following challenges:

Just Magnolia: a Christmas card

Let's Ink It Up: Christmas - Twist add Sparkle or Bling

Spoonful of Sugar: Christmas cards

Docrafts: Tilda challenge

Happy crafting!
Carole x

One month blogaversary, and a challenge card

Hello fellow bloggers, and today means my little blog has been going for a month already.  Can't believe it's 4 weeks now, time has gone so quickly.  I must say, blogland does seem less vast and daunting now that I've found some old friends about the place and been found by other ones. 

Anyway, having said in my last post that I hardly ever make male cards......here is one! This is the first time I used this fella, he seems a bit more grown-up than Edwin. It's my card for the Copic Creations challenge, which this fortnight is about Light Source - you have to identify where your light is coming from and colour up accordingly.  On this image, I have made the light come from in front and to the right of the viewer, and I thought I'd make it even more challenging by placing my chap near a wall to make different shadows.  I hasten to add this was an experiment as his shadow seems to belong to someone very much fatter!  He's coloured in Copics, and this was my first attempt at using greys to shade the image - I did this because the only colour I had which matched the red in the backing paper was an R46 with no other R40's to use to highlight or shade, so I needed to find a way to create depth in his T-shirt with a single colour.  I quite like the effect of using greys, the deep shadows appeal to me for some reason, and I used them on the jeans and on the beer glass too.  Shading on the skin and wall/floor has been done with related colours rather than greys.  Hope you like him.

Happy crafting!

Carole x

One sketch, two cards

Hello everyone :)  Two cards today, both using the Simon Says Stamp Challenge sketch.....have a look further down for the Tilda card which is the one I'm actually entering for the challenge.

First up, an Edwin image which is very appropriate for the weather we've been having in the UK, don't you think? I don't often make male cards, somehow I just don't get very inspired by them, but I had to have little Edwin make at least one appearance this Christmas.  The bit I like best about this image is colouring the jeans, I find that much easier than his hooded top.  The snowy backing paper is from the very first pack of paper I ever bought, back when I was a baby cardmaker, a Papermania Colossal pack. I just can't get through all this paper, I've used loads, given some away, wasted some and STILL there's a lot left.   Letters and gem stars are from my stash, and the image is coloured with Copics:

I'm entering this in the following challenges:
C.R.A.F.T. Challenge: Christmas Birthday
Cute Card Thursday: The Blues
Magnolialicious: Letters or Word projects

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Secondly, yet another Tilda card, which I'm entering into the Simon Says Stamp sketch challenge.  You must be fed up of this image by now, but I just love her even though she takes a long time to colour.  The papers are Papermania again, and I haven't put a sentiment on this card, I quite often don't because I like it without. The gold stars are quite chunky and glittery and I think they pick up the gold from the mirri mats.

I loved making this one, wish I could give Tilda cards to everyone.

 

Happy crafting!

Carole x

ABC Christmas Challenge

Hi all, I'm cracking on with my Christmas cards at last - never one to be organised and prepared, I seem to have left it to almost the last minute again.  I know there's plenty of time till the 25th, but what with bad weather hampering deliveries I think it's best to get all cards posted ASAP.  So I'm panicking slightly, and just grateful for all these blog challenges to help give me some ideas for makes.

This is one I've done for the ABC Challenge.  It's up to Y for Yuletide, and the challenge is to use either red and green, or holly and berries, or candles in our creations.  I've gone for Holly and Berries - there's a garland of them on the fireplace that Tilda is perched on, plus a sprig in the corner for embellishment.  I just love the little 'Santa Please Stop Here' placard, I've been waiting for a card on which I could use one.  The images are coloured with Copic markers, and the papers are by Papermania:

Time for a hot drink and a lie down now, and a spot more cardmaking later. 

Happy crafting!
Carole x

In The Spotlight, and a Challenge card

Hello bloggers.  We have sun and snow today, so a gorgeous winter's day, as long as you're wrapped up warm and cosy. 

I've just discovered my Tilda paper-piecing card was chosen to be in the spotlight on the Copic Creations challenge blog! I'm chuffed to little pieces as I'd worked quite hard on that card and it's probably my favourite that I've ever made.  Thanks very much to everyone that left a comment for that card, both on here and on Docrafts, that means a lot to me.

Now, this is a card I finished last night. It was made for a crafting friend who does visit my blog, so unfortunately she'll see it before she receives it, but she won't know it's for her till she opens it.  I'd coloured the coat golden yellow-red shades, then chose the gold paper to go with it.  You can't see in the photograph, but I've painted gold perfect pearls round the edge of the base paper, mat and image, and used a red ribbon with a gold trim to match the poinsettias:

I'm entering this card in these 2 challenges:

Totally Tilda - Gold & Glitz
C.E.S. Challenge - Vintage Christmas

Keep warm everyone,
Carole x