My Heart Pieces - Vibrant Colors

Just a quick post today to share with you the new Challenge starting at My Heart Pieces Challenge Blog which is Vibrant Colors.

For My Card I have used the delightful Peacock Image which I have water-colored with my Gelatos and I have also used my Gelatos for my Emboss Resist Background, adding some pearls to the corners with my Viva Decor Pearl Pen in Sunny Yellow.  A piece of paper from  K & Co Citronella Collection frames this.

For more vibrant color inspiration be sure to head over the MHP Blog.

Alter Your Creativity Challenge - #2

With it being Breast Cancer Awareness Month, Altered Pages has turned Pink and we want you to think Pink for our second challenge!

Be sure to pop over to the Challenge Blog to check out the wonderful inspiration from all the DT, which includes a Bra Mini Inspiration Book, Post It Note Holders, an assortment of tags and an Altered Barbie!  Whilst there you can also vote for your favorite project from the Design Team!

Here's what I came up with!  I took a Manilla Tag and using my new Gelato Pens colored it Pink!  I then cut the bra image out from the Support Collage Sheet and the image of the female looking in the mirror from the Waterhouse Maidens Collage Sheet both of which are from the Altered Pages store. A touch of Inka Gold - Old Silver from Viva Decor adds a bit of shimmer around the edges and  I then stamped an Awareness Ribbon on Shrink Plastic using a Unity Stamp from their October 2011 KOTM.  Once shrunk I colored this in with a pink marker and attached with a rose on top.  To finish my tag, some pink grosgrain ribbon, twine and my favorite can't be without bling - a dew drop from the Robin's Nest.

The Altered Pages Team would love it if you joined the fun, simply think pink and create something for our challenge this month.  One lucky winner will be rewarded with this fabulous prize jam packed with lots of wonderful pink goodness from the Altered Pages Store.

And the Top 3 as voted by the Design Team will each receive a Digital Collage Sheet of their choice.

For all the details head over to the Alter Your Creativity Challenge Post here!

Magical Mondays - Ahoy Mate and Recipe

I am actually a day late posting this card as it was due yesterday for Magical Mondays at There's Magic in The Air, however I already had done two posts, so a third would have been overkill.  But its kind of fitting that I post it today as its - National Talk Like a Pirate Day and my card has a cute picture of a Pirate Owl!

The Paper Cupcakes DT all got to play with this adorable image called Ahoy Mate and this week our challenge was a recipe set by Kathy.  She wants us to create a card using the following:-

- 1 Embossing Folder or dry embossing of some sort 
- 1 or more die or punch 
- 1 ribbon, twine, string or something of the like 
- 1 button 
- Use glitter or some sort of sparklies 

It turned out that I forgot to add my button!  But I am hoping it will pass as I have used the Robin's Nest Dew Drops which are like little gem buttons.  There's lots of spots and dots on this card, behind the image I have used white ink and punchinella on the red cardstock.  The black cardstock I embossed with my Swiss Dots embossing folder. The very background piece is a piece of paper I have had in my stash for sometime now which was created whilst at the Time To Create Studio on a Terrific Tuesday last year.  It uses stamps cut out of fun foam.  You can see strips that had holes punched into it in the black ink and the more textured look was strips that had been engraved into.

I do love creating my own backgrounds, however I don't always get the time to play and do so.  

For the rest of the required recipe, the twine I incorporated by using it to keep the pirate's treasure map in tact.  For further texture and to have the glitter part of covered I have used my Gold Viva Decor Glitter Liner and simply swirled it all over the card.  I was trying to create the richness of the buried treasure this little pirate might find if the x on his map marks the correct spot!

PTT#79 Anything Goes

Hello everyone!  Today is Tuesday and the last day of the month which means it's time for a new Anything Goes Challenge over at Party Time Tuesdays but before I show my card for today I want to mention a special blog hop that is happening on the 29th of August.

As some of you may be aware one of our very own Party Planners Jen Scull is battling breast cancer so to put a bit of sunshine in her day, Katie at Paper Makeup Stamps has created a special stamp set to raise funds to be donated to Jen and her family and there will be a fabulous blog hop which all of you are invited to be part of.  For all the details and to find out how to join in please visit here.

Now onto my card.

I am using the delightful and recently new digi from Crafty Sentiments called Tess Summer Fun.  I first saw this image being used by Jo from Crafty Sentiments on one of her cards and thought it was gorgeous and was so excited when I found out that it was going to be one of the images we got to work with at PTT.

I have colored the image with my Tria Markers adding a little glitter with my Viva Decor Gold Glitter Liner and using my Viva Decor Pearl Pen to add to the yellow flower centres.  The bright and glittery papers are from the Citronella Collection by K & Company.  I have used some of these papers to make my own rolled rosettes.

At PTT this week we are once again joined by Creating is Fun, The Digi Garden and Viva Decor aswell as Crafty Sentiments as our sponsors.

I have created this card with the following challenges also in mind.

The Crafty Bloggers Network - Challenge #1 Anything Goes

The Paper Players - Challenge # PP106 - Tic Tac Toe -
I am using the top row across which is circles, birthday and favorite color.  To meet this challenge criteria my image is on a circle, and my rosettes are circles cut into spirals and rolled, I have used a birthday sentiment and my all time favorite color combo of pink and green.

PTT #78 - A Cute Christmas in July Challenge

Hi everyone I am back again with my second post for today which is for the Party Time Tuesdays new challenge which wants you thinking cute and thinking Christmas!

For my card today I am using the adorable Snowman Image from the Digi Garden who is our month long sponsor.

I have printed him twice so that I could cut out his scarf and nose to pop up for some extra dimension.  He is colored with my Tria markers and I have used my White Viva Decor Pearl Pen to add some shine and texture to the snowflakes and the snow at his feet.  The Sentiment was cut with my big shot using the Aquarius Alphabet Die from Quickutz.

We are joined once again also by Viva Decor, Creating is Fun, and Digital Delights as a sponsor also this week.

So I do hope you will join the fun of this challenge, as it is definitely a great way to kick start your Christmas Card making if you haven't already.  Be sure to pop by the PTT Blog for all the details of the challenge, more  information about our wonderful sponsors and to be further inspired by the Party Planners.

This weeks PTT Sponsors are:-

I am also entering this card into the following challenges:

Lexi's Creations - #70 Christmas in July

Lollipop Crafts - #84 Christmas in July

My Craft Spot - #63 Christmas in July

The Cutie Pie Challenge - #23 Christmas in July

PTT#77 Color/Picture Inspiration

Hi Everyone!  This week's color and/or picture inspiration Challenge at Party Time Tuesdays is sure to cheer everyone up as it is using lots of different shades of yellow and the picture is a gorgeous close up of a sunflower.  I find yellow always makes me smile and my creation for this week's theme did just that too!  I think it is because of the sweet image from the Digi Garden I was using and the fun shaped card and sentiment I added with it.

For my card I have used the Beehive Shaped Card Cutting File which also comes with a number of Bee Inspired Sentiments and other items from The Cutting Cafe.  I haven't fully set up my new cutting machine (Sizzix Eclips) to use SVG Files yet so I have cut this file by hand.

The adorable image from the Digi Garden is called On a Wing and a Prayer No 3.  The Digi Garden is our Month Long Sponsor so be sure to pop by each week to the PTT Blog to see all the adorable images being used by the DT.  

This week some of the DT are also showcasing images for the Stamping Boutique and products from Creating is Fun and Viva Decor.  

The flowers on my card are from my stash and I have used my Tria Markers to color the Boy and also do some faux stitching around the edge of the Bee Hive.  The touch of Glitter on the Wings is from my Gold Glitter Liner from Viva Decor.

I can't wait to see all the sunny entries we have to our challenge this week, as it will probably be the only sun we are going to see here at present!  I do hope you will join the fun.  For all the challenge info, sponsors details and for lots of wonderful inspiration, pop over to the PTT Blog.

This weeks sponsors:

PTT #76 Let's Get Punchy

This is my second DT Post for today - Please scroll down for

Paper Cupcakes - Magical Monday's Challenge

Hello for the second time today to all my lovely followers and friends.  It's Party Time again and this week and we want to see you all Get Punchy.  So break out those punches and die cuts and join the fun at Party Time Tuesdays.

We are joined once again by some fabulous sponsors who this week who include our Month Long Sponsor The Digi Garden, along with The Paper Shelter, Viva Decor and for the very first time Martha Pineda who sells lots of lovely trims and embellishments such as buttons through her store Creating is Fun over at Zibbett.

This adorable image is from the Paper Shelter and for something a little different I printed it out on a page I tore from my Sketch Book and then colored it in with my water colored pencils.  I have torn and distress inked the edges and layered this onto a piece of paper from the Echo Park For the Record Collection.  Then I got to punching!  I have used my Stampin' Up! spiral punch around my layered image.  My Martha Stewart Ribbon Loop Punch, a circle punch, a square punch, my Stampin' Up! Two Step Bird Punch, and two different sized Sakura Flower Punches to create my flowers.

Other items include some bling, and ribbon and a bit more patterned paper from the Echo Park For the Record Collection.  The sentiment is from the Cottage Garden Stamp Set by Stampin' Up!  

So with out further ado its time to Get Punchy and see what you can create.  If you are stuck for ideas pop over to the PTT Blog and check out all the wonderful creations from the rest of the Party Planners this week.

PTT#76- Lets Get Punchy

Sponsored by the following companies:

You can read more about our sponsors here on the Party Time Tuesdays Site 

and find all the links to their webpages also.

Platypus Creek Challenge #10 Buttons and Bows

Good Morning I hope you have all had a wonderful weekend.  I did the weather was fabulous here which was perfect for catching up on all the washing and spending time in the garden.  We've been moving and placing some new plants from pots into bare spots in some of our already established gardens, plus planning on where some new gardens can go, its always so nice to connect with the earth and get outdoors.

Today is the start of a new challenge at Platypus Creek.  This week we want to see lots of buttons (3 or more) and bows on your cards.

For my card I chose to work with the Digi Image called Daisy.  I played in Photoshop to create my background and my main image piece, which I have colored with my Tria Markers and then some sponged color around it.  I placed my ribbon on the background piece keeping the left side white whilst sponging color over the right side so that the white space matched the white space framing my main image.  I have used one button as the flower center and four smaller buttons in the corners of the white frame and added a bow to my ribbon.  For the smaller, full daisies in the background I have used some Viva Decor Pearl Pens for the flower center.

If you are like me you would have heaps of buttons in your stash. Right?  So what are you waiting for?  Head over to the Platypus Creek Blog for all the challenge details and for lots more wonderful inspiration from the Design Team.

Magical Monday - Less is More

Less is More when it comes to the Challenge over at There's Magic in the Air this fortnight.  Our challenge this week is brought to you by Ildiko and she describes the criteria for this challenge as follows.

1. Clean: the design is uncluttered with lots of white/negative or open space. Simple: having a clear focal point without a lot going on to detract from it. OR

2. Simple in design regardless of the number of embellishments or how long it takes to color, stitch or to use a special technique. OR

3. Can be copied and mass produced fairly quickly… usually without a lot of coloring, layers, embellishments, tools and/or techniques OR

4. any combination of the above

Image:  Egg Hunt by Paper Cupcakes,  Colour:   Tria Markers

Other:  SU Ribbon, Scallop Square Nesting Die, Viva Decor Pearl Pen, Tonic Corner Punch.

Upon seeing the easter inspired image provided for the DT, I automatically thought Spring Chicks and yellow came to mind, so da-da  yellow is the main colour of my card this week.  I kept the design Clean by having lots of white and Simple by adding just a ribbon and four pearls using my Viva Decor Pearl Pen to the punched corners of my my white background and a little bit to the sun.

Don't forget that if you use a Paper Cupcakes Image for your entries into the challenge you get a second entry into the random prize drawing.  Nina has made this super easy for you to do this fortnight as its Freebie Time and from now until Wednesday you can pick up the adorable 'Egg Hunt' image which has been showcased by all the DT simply by following the link over on the TIMITA Blog.

So remember Less is More and let's see those wonderful CAS Creations.

Spring is in the Air - In the States that is!

I have been hearing for a while now from my friends in the States that Spring is in the Air, so I decided to use this as my inspiration for a card to send to a friend in the States to let her know I am thinking of her.  I thought that bright colours and a spring theme would be perfect to add a bit of sunshine to her day.   These bright colors also added some sunshine to my day, given we have experienced a very wet summer and Autumn has commenced in a similar fashion

Stamps:  Unity February 2012 KOTM, Papers"  Echo Park, Me & My Big Ideas

Ink:  Black Memento, SU Choc Chip, Tria Markers

Other:  Ribbon from 3 Girl Jam, Viva Decor Pearl Pen, Paper Flowers, Kaiser Bling.

The best part about using a Spring Theme meant I got to use brand new rubber.  Who doesn't love using new stamps.  My February Unity KOTM arrived about a week ago, the sentiment, the two brown rows of tulips and the framed sunflowers behind the picket fence are all from this latest kit.  This type of background is simple to do and a great way to use up your paper scraps, you simply layer strips in various colours and lengths.  To finish I went over the outline of the sunflowers with a yellow pearl pen to give some texture and shine and added some ribbon and two paper flowers.

I have entered this card into the following challenges:

Sweet Stamps - #57 Think Spring
Allsorts Challenge Blog - Week 145 Say it With Flowers
CCEE Stampers - CCEE1210 - Flowers Flowers Flowers

I am off to the vet today and tomorrow.  Elwood is due for his yearly vaccination, whilst Felix and BB are due for their third and final vaccination as kittens.  I am interested to see how much weight they have both put on since being here, as they both seem to appear to be growing on a daily basis, and have very healthy appetites.

PTT #58 Riches at the end of the Rainbow Card 2

You still have a couple more days left to enter this challenge over at Party Time Tuesdays.  Here is the second card I created this week using a image from A Day for Daisies.

The image I thought was perfect for our End of the Rainbow Challenge and for the bling I have simply used lots of Glitter to create the rainbow and my Viva Decor Pearl Pen to create the fluffy cloud. The paper and Dew Drop Flower Centre are from Robin's Nest.

FWF - Sending Wishes

Remember in my last post I told you I had just recieved my Unity November KOTM and it had the most adorable snowman.  Well I don't just have to tell you because today I am going to show you just how cute he is. 

When I saw him I knew he would give me the perfect excuse to use the last of my favorite Bo Bunny Christmas Papers from Last Year and to make a card for Unity's Friday Friends with Flair Link Up and yesterday I discovered he would also be perfect to use to play along with the Unity - Let It Snow Challenge  currently running on the Unity Blog aswell. 

As I don't have any Tria Markers (my now absolute favorite thing to colour in with) in the colours of my chosen papers, I reverted to using my Stampin' Up! Markers, I sort of roughly coloured him in and then went over this with the fine end of my marker in a cross hatch motion to give his jumper and beanie a woven look.  For the snow I used my Viva Decor Ice White Pearl Pen.  I have found this is good for adding layers of snow not just snow flakes as it doesn't flatten out.

To continue with the snow theme of my card.  I punched out more snowflakes and added purple rhinestones to make them glisten and I repeated my sentiment of Sending Wishes, and punched them out with my circle punch to replicate more snowflakes. 

The layout for my card was created using this weeks sketch #142 over on the Inspirational Card Sketches Challenge Blog where you will find lots of fabulous sketches to inspire your creativity and cards.

So do you agree is this little snowman the most adorable you ever did see? 

Well that's it from me today.  Don't forget to follow the link to the Unity Blog for more fabulous inspiration and to check out their Friday $5 Feature Stamps which for this week is actually featuring four different sets two of which are only $3. 

Other Challenges I have entered this card:

Fab & Funky Challenges: #101 Anything Goes

I hope you all have a fabulous weekend.

PTT #44 - Loving Wishes and Fairy Kisses

Happy Tuesday Everyone!  Yep you guessed it, its time for a new Party Time Tuesdays Challenge and being that its the last week of the month means its time for Anything Goes!  It also means its the last week for our fabulous month long sponsor Viva Decor.  I have loved using some of their products which I hadn't tried before and found them all wonderfully easy to work with.

This week I chose to play with the delightful fairy image called Birth of Twilight from Crafts and Me, and found the perfect sentiment to go with it too!

I have used my Gold Viva Decor Glitter Liner for the detail on the fairy's dress and also the inside of her wings.  The extra finishing touches of flowers were done with the Vintage Vogue Stamp Set and XL Bird Punch from Stampin Up and the Sentiment is from the Almond Blossom Flower Fairies Friends Stamp Set by Crafters Companion.  The cardstock and paper are all from my stash of scraps, which I am slowly working my way through. 

We are lucky to have four fabulous sponsors along with four fabulous prizes for four lucky winners this week so what are you waiting for? 

Be sure to check out all the Challenge Details over on the PTT Blog and while you are there you may also like to check out the details on the Party Time Tuesdays Design Team Call.

PTT#43 Snow Us What you have Got!

This week at Party Time Tuesdays we want to see some snowy projects.  So if you card or project has "SNOW" then it needs to be in our challenge!

For my card this week I really wanted to play with all the fabulous products from Viva Decor and I was also thinking that a Snow Storm might cool things down here a little as we have been averaging 30 degrees Celcius for the last few weeks, Spring is well and truly preparing us for a hot Summer ahead.

So I got out my Elina Doodles Stencil which has lots of swirls, to use with the Viva Embossing Cream. 

I found the Viva Decor Embossing cream a bit like a texture paste, you smear it on with a palette knife or in my case a paddle pop stick and then once you remove the stencil hit it with a heat gun.  It puffs up and gives a lovely embossed/textured look.

This close up shows the texture and detail of the Viva Decor Products on the card.

The snowflake is a Unity Stamp Company Stamp.

I then decided that some of the finer detail I would also highlight with my Gold Glitter Liner and add some Pearls with the Pearl Pen to create my swirling snow background. These pens were also used to go over my three snow flakes.  The glittery gold and mix of colours was to represent the snowflakes glistening in the sun.

Anyway that's enough of my day dreaming coming to life, instead I think I will cool down by going and jumping in the pool.........lol.

Our Sponsors this week are:

 

 

For all the details about the Challenge, Our Sponsors and the fabulous prizes on offer this week simply head over to the PTT Blog.  As always you will also find some wonderful inspiration by our lovely Design Team aka the Party Planners.  So come on what are you waiting for - Snow Us What You've Got!



Give Thanks - A Paper Cupcakes Challenge

Today I was met with the sad news of a friends passing and so today's Paper Cupcakes Challenge over on the There's Magic in the Air Challenge Blog to Give Thanks really strikes a cord.  There are many things in life we should be grateful for, and one is our good health, our family and friends.  My deepest sympathy goes out to my dear friend Toni and all her family.

This week the challenge has been set by Gloria and she would like to see you incorporate the colours Brown, Orange and Yellow into your projects as well as wording or images representative of 'Giving Thanks'.

For my card I chose the Autumn Splendor Image from Paper Cupcakes and simply used the word "Thanks" as my sentiment.  I coloured my image with Tria Markers and also added some Yellow Viva Decor Pearl Pen to emboss the sunflower and Viva Emerald Glitter Liner to highlight the leaves and the stem of the pumpkin.

I do hope you can play along with the challenge this week.  Don't forget for all the details and for some wonderful inspiration from the Paper Cupcakes Design Team be sure to head over to the "There's Magic In the Air" Blog.