A big welcome to all of my lovely followers and visitors to my little space in the crafting world of blogland! I love colouring, drool over every embellishment and love to 'look' at papers (never mind using them) - some are just TOO good to use lol. I hope you enjoy your little wander through my creative world and would love to feel that I may have inspired some of you in some small way. Happy Crafting to you all and I hope you will stop by again soon!

Saturday 29 September 2012

Birthday Seduction

Hey all, hope you've all had a fab Saturday so far!  I'm back with my 2nd male card of the weekend ...... phew! I clearly want to make life difficult for myself this weekend :) The other half better flipping like it after all my hard work, blood, sweat & tears! Well ..... little bit of a fib there ..... there was no blood!!

For my Fiance's birthday card this year I chose the adorable 'Seduction Suzie' digi stamp from Redonkadoodles. When I saw this gorgeous girly I just knew I had to have her!  I think Mike'll appreciate her too - seeing as she looks so much like me :o)  (okay, in my dreams ....and probably his too) ha, ha, ha!  Anyhow, I usually do the fishing ones, or football, or fishing and yet more fishing cards for Mike but, for this year, I thought he could do with a change ;) ..... I'm kind like that!! And it has absolutely nothing at all to do with the fact that I soooooo wanted to make up a card with this image! Nope! Not at all ......

and here she is ......


I coloured her hair and skin with my usual promarkers, and, for a change, I paper pieced her dress, shoes, hair bows and pressie bow! I haven't used this technique in a fair while now - not really sure why I haven't as I just LOVE cutting out and sticking :) The gorgeous papers are called 'Man About Town' and, yep, you guessed, it ..... I got them from my local craft shop!  They are made by a company called Wild Rose Studio



I had a weeny accident whilst doing up this card and spilt glitter on the pressie and her little hair accessories .... Oopsie!!! Silly me!!! ...... ;o)

I had so much fun making this card and enjoyed every minute! Have now got my beady eye on another Redonkulous Design ...... watch this space!!

Anyway, ladies, I'm off now to chill and watch a bit of X Factor! Don't usually get much time in front of the box so I'm gonna treat myself tonight!  Enjoy the rest of your day whatever you are up to and big thanks for popping by today!

Hugs,

Friday 28 September 2012

Little Monster!

Hey there lovely ladies! Sorry I haven't been on here sooner .......... proper slacking this week!! Not sure if it's the rivers of rain we've been having or being overloaded at work but my crafty side has certainly taken a back seat and tiredness won!! :( Today, though, I woke with a crafty boiiiiiing in my step and here's my little make ........



It's a little different than my usual makes, however, I needed to create a birthday card from my little boy, George, for his Daddy and what better image than this little cutie from Meljen's Designs called 'Fuzzer the Monster'.   George is the image of his Daddy (apart from George has hair! Hee, hee!), so I copied 'Daddy Fuzzer' and reduced in size to make 'Georgie Fuzzer' :) 

To be totally honest, I try and stay away from male cards as much as I possibly can as I find them so tricky and staying clear of flowers, lace and glitter is trickier still!!!  Also, as much as I love real furry friends, I do shy away from colouring them as they never seem to be very furry looking once I've done my bit .........  So, all in all, this was a bit whole lot of a challenge for me but I think Daddy will like it all the same :)


The papers I have used are by Dovecraft called Masculine (very apt) and I've had them years!! I do find them ideal for male cards though so I'm so glad I kept hold of them :)  I have coloured the fur on Fuzzer with Copics this time - I only have a limited number of them at the moment and am just getting the feel of them, but I think they may well be on my Christmas list this year! Ssssshhhhh ....... I couldn't help myself and had to add a bit of glitter to the eyes!  Ah well, I think Daddy's pretty used to finding glitter here, there and everywhere at home so a little bit on his card's not gonna hurt is it!!!

I typed up and printed the greeting from my PC and added a little Brilliance Pearlescent Beige ink around the edges.  I dotted some card candy around and added a brad from the same Dovecraft range as the papers.  Daddy will be SUPER pleased that NO flowers were added :)

Anyhow, I've waffled on long enough and need to get my thinking cap on for my next card ...... this time for Daddy from Mummy! Oh dear ........

Wishing you all a fab weekend!  Thanks for popping by today ...... Happy Crafting :)
Big hugs

Monday 24 September 2012

All the B's

Hiya ladies, hope you are all keeping super well and happy! :)

Today I am sharing a card I have made for the Saturated Canary Challenge #26 and the theme is to add a minimum of two items beginning with 'B' ....... only I think I may have gone a little overboard with the B's but, hey, it was fun doing it! :)

My B's are:  Blue, Black, Bow, Buckle, Blossoms, Baby's Breath, Butterfly and Button. This stunning image, called 'Zoe' was created by the lovely Krista Smith of Saturated Canary to be used in conjunction with a fabulous E-Book tutorial by Zoe from Make It Crafty called 'Colouring Long Hair in Fine Detail'.  I actually bought this book exactly one month ago ..... but was a little too scared to try it!  I could also maybe add 'Braving the Beautiful Brown locks' as more B's??? ;) 

Well, this is how my attempt has turned out ...... I guess it needs a little lot more work at it but, for now, I'm happy that I've finally given it a go! :)


The gorgeous background papers are from the Papermania Capsule Collections from docrafts and matted onto black pearlescent cardstock.  The lovely little blossoms are from, once again, WOC.  I used a baby's breath flower to immitate a fascinator in Zoe's hair :), white netting within the ribbon buckle and the same netting to make a separate bow - attaching a little button from my stash!  The beautiful butterfly I bought from The Range.

 

Well, I guess I should head off to get this little make submitted to the challenge ..... before I'm too late!

Wishing you all a great rest of the day, thanks heaps for stopping by :)

Big hugs,


Sunday 23 September 2012

All our Dreams

Good evening lovely ladies!

Hope you've all had a fab weekend! Today the weather has been super dreary here but we all got cheered up with a visit to my lovely Mum's and one of her fab roast dinners! We did make sure we left ourselves a 'pudding pocket' (as my daughter calls it) for my yummy rice/apple meringue :) Sooooo very sweet, but scrumptious all the same! Which actually brings me onto my next card I thought I'd share with you all ...........it's not a pudding, but it's certainly very sweet and scrumptious ;)

I made this card back in June for a lovely friend who was expecting her very first granddaughter!  Well, if there are any Grandparents out there then you'll know what an exciting, amazing, emotional and proud event this is!  She asked for a special card to welcome her baby granddaughter into the world and this is the little creation I made up for her!



This darling little baby is an unmounted rubber stamp from Lili of the Valley and is called "All our Dreams".  I coloured her in with my promarkers and die cut the image using my Spellbinders Lacy Oval.  I punched the papers with my Martha Stewart edge punch and diecut Millie's name using my Cuttlebug 'Hippie Chick' Alphabet dies onto glittered card, then painstakingly adhered each little letter :) The beautiful flowers are from WOC and the little footprint charm I bought from ebay.  I created the little template for her birth weight and date from my PC.



My friend was over the moon when I gave it to her and, more importantly, her granddaughter has a very cute, personal little keepsake of the day she arrived into our little world!

I am extremely honoured and flattered to also add that this card sits proudly in Lili of the Valley Card Inspiration Gallery ........ how excited was I?  I didn't sleep for days .........

Thank you so much for having a peek and all of your lovely comments are so very much appreciated!

Big hugs to you all

Saturday 22 September 2012

You and Me Baby!

Hey all! I’m back with another post ……. I’m kinda getting the hang of it now in a smallish kinda way! 

Guess what though! There’s not a single, solitary candle in sight on this one (silently crying here) …… it was tough, but I held back!  That’s discipline for ya! ;o)

Anyhows, I had a wedding card to make and, previous to designing it, I noticed the newest challenge going on at Tiddly Inks so, I put my brain into gear and came up with this little design using the gorgeous ‘You and Me Baby’ couple from Tiddly Inks.

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Aren’t they just an adorable little couple?  I can feel the love from here :)

I coloured the happy couple in promarkers and also the ivory background.  The beautiful background papers I got from my local craft store – I bought two sheets of 12” x 12” and actually wish I’d bought more!  The colour was a perfect salmon pink and, although you can’t really see it, the background has the word ‘LOVE’ written along it.  They were on her ‘bargain shelf’ so I reckon they’ll have been snatched up by now!!!  I tell you, that ‘local craft shop’ is probably a bit TOO local for my own good but, hey! Needs must!!!  :)

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The flowers were again from Wild Orchid Crafts – I seriously can’t get enough of flowers ….. a bit like my candles ;) I used my Nellie heart die, glittered the edges and added three pearl pins from The Hobby House


I loved making this card! It’s such a clean, simple design but yet so elegant and, with the gorgeous little couple, you really can’t go wrong!

I shall be proudly entering this card into the following:

Tiddly Inks Challenge #94 - Make it like Asa
Unique Crafters Challenge: September Challenge - Anything Goes


Hope you like my newest creation and thank you for taking a peek!

Happy Weekend Everyone!! Lots of hugs

Tracey xxx

Friday 21 September 2012

Heaven Sent ….

No!! Really? ANOTHER candle set? (I hear you say) Well, ermmm, yes!! It’s true. But there is an extra special meaning with this post and, of course, there is a slight difference ….. not one single marker pen touched my pinkies AT ALL! 

A fantastic couple we know went through an extremely traumatic time last year.  They got through it all by being strong and positive, with the love and support of family and friends.  In December of last year, the news came that we had all been waiting for  …….

Beautiful baby Joey was born at the end of August this year! A perfect, most treasured, bundle of loveliness! With the permission of his Mummy and Daddy, I can now share him and my creation with you all ........

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For the card I downloaded this beautiful photo of him, printed it in black and white onto Super Smooth 325gsm cardstock from Anna Marie Designs and die cut the scalloped oval around him.  I used Victorian Classic backing paper from Paper Cellar and lace from my local craft shop.  The bow I made from white netting.  I printed Joey’s details from my PC and placed onto my fab Nellie Snellen multi heart die cut.  The corners were cut from my Fiskars corner edge scissors.  I added a sprinkling of glitter to the corners, the heart & around Joey’s die cut scalloped oval.

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I printed the pic again (but this time onto a lighter weight cardstock) Elegance Satin 160gsm from Joanna Sheen for the candle and also transferred Joey’s birth details onto the back.  Then wrapped in cello wrap, tied with a netting bow and …. voila!!

To be totally honest, this little baby is a work of art all by himself – I just added a few little touches to make a treasured little keepsake for ‘Mummy and Daddy’ of their gorgeous boy who, quite clearly, is truly a baby ‘Heaven Sent’ …..

I have entered this card/candle combo into Unique Crafters Challenge: September Challenge - Anything Goes

Thank you so very much for popping by :)
Big hugs to all
Tracey xx

Wednesday 19 September 2012

Love is in the air …

Hi all, today I thought I’d share my recent Wedding card (plus candle, of course), which I made for my boss’ son & his new wife as a little token keepsake of their beautiful day! …. and what a gorgeous day it was again on Saturday! Oooh! I do love a bit of sunny brightness in a clear blue sky! 

The card/candle I made was using a digi stamp from Redonkadoodles called ‘Wedding Couple’ ……. and here it is ……..

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This is the very first Redonkulous image I have used and it was great fun to colour up – what a super beautiful couple!  I used promarkers to colour them up – adding a reddish tint to the groom’s hair and a darker brown to the bride’s to reflect the ‘real’ happy couple!

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The gorgeous flowers I added from Wild Orchid Crafts, the beautiful flat backed pearls are from Joanna Sheen and the ribbon and lace were from my crafty stash!  The backing papers were actually a freebie from a craft magazine and have been sitting in the cupboard for a while just waiting ….. and waiting some more …… to be used with the perfect image!

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Lastly, I added the all important glitter! I do love a bit of shimmery glitz!!

I am proudly entering this into Unique Crafters Challenge: September Challenge - Anything Goes

Hope you like my newest creation …….. am just off now to continue with yet another wedding card!  You gotta love weddings ……..
Thanks for taking a peek, lots of hugs
Tracey xx

Sunday 16 September 2012

Fairy Godmother

Hey all! Long time no see! I’ve been super duper busy this last week and a bit.  The glorious sunny days we were blessed with last weekend were taken up with packing up my youngest daughter’s old home then helping unpack in her new home!  Not a speck of sun touched my skin but, hey ho, there’s always next summer!!! ….. and we have a happy bunny who is now much closer to home! 
My sweet boy decided on Wednesday he’d have his share of the ghastly school bug so, no work for me but lots of lovely huggles taking care of my baby!  I’m happy to say he was back to his usual self on Friday and running around like a loon again!!
As this blogging is still all very new to me it seems to take me days hours to write a post ….. but I have FINALLY managed to get around to posting one of my latest creations!
And here she is – as a set of course (as I am completely candle mad at the moment).
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I was asked to make a card for a Godmother from her little Goddaughter and, what better image to use than Saturated Canary's Whispy!
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I coloured her up with my promarkers, glittered her fairy wings and skirt and completed her look with beautiful lace from my local craft shop and gorgeous flowers from Wild Orchid Crafts.
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The heart and butterfly were diecut and glittered (the butterfly is a Marianne Creatable die) and little gems were then adhered to add the finishing touch!
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For the candle I coloured little Whispy with the exact colour combo as my card (although the tone looks slightly deeper on the candle).  I then placed the little verse onto the back of the candle and fixed two glittered butterflies either side of Whispy with jewelled pins.
I followed Pops Cards' tutorial for the candle, as in my previous blog, and am so very grateful to her for sharing this super fab idea!  So far this weekend, I have made up three beautiful candle and card sets ……….. I’m completely hooked!
Thank you so much for popping by and taking a peek!
Lots of hugs to you all, Tracey xx

Tuesday 4 September 2012

Keeping the candle burning …………

Hiya all!  Today I thought I'd share my most recent make with you all - and I am super excited that my effort actually WORKED!!!

Today is my beautiful eldest daughter & son-in-law's wedding anniversary - I'm probably a bit biased, but I have to say they really do make a perfect couple :o) 

A couple of days ago I was looking through Pop's Cards and was amazed at her tutorial for transferring images onto candles!  I went straight out, bought myself a couple of candles & practically ran home to begin my project! 

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I downloaded this adorable cave couple from Tiddly Inks, which also comes with lots of extras including a cave & background papers!  After colouring I attempted my transfer and ........ voila ......... it worked!!! :o) Yippee!!!  (I actually want to transfer EVERYTHING onto candles now!)

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I did a simple card to co-ordinate with the candle.  The background papers on this card have been in my stash for absolute donkeys years ... (really sorry but I cannot for the life of me remember where I got them from) and the rocks are from part of the 'cave' extra.  I printed the sentiment from my computer then drew a bone & coloured.  A bone is also one of the extras that comes with these digi stamps but, as I wanted to insert the sentiment within it, I thought I'd just draw my own!  I'm sure there may be a way to add text into the digi image ............ I'm just not sure how yet! :o)

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My daughter & son-in-law were chuffed to bits with my little creation .......... hope you like it too :o)

Thanks so much for dropping by today!
Big hugs, Tracey xx