O’ Christmas Tree

Hello friends,

November is here  … and Christmas is coming soon. I have my first Christmas card for this year to share today. The card was created for the new challenge at The Shabby Tea Room and the theme for this fortnight is “O’ Christmas Tree”. Our sponsor is Bugaboo stamps and you could be the winner of 7 Bugaboo digi stamps by just playing along. A visit to The Shabby Tea Room for the inspiration picture and more info on the prize and rules will be worthwhile.

For my card I used a Bugaboo stamp “Merry Christmas Tree”  so kindly sponsored by Jodie. As the Christmas tree is so cute with the pink gem stones and glitter as decorations I decided to keep the rest of the card clean and simply. To capture the rustic and shabby look of the inspiration picture, I layered the image on a wooden plank background, add a strip of burlap, some vintage seam binding and pink roses. The distressed edges adds a perfectly aged, weathered look. Hope you like my take on a non-traditional Christmas card.

Challenges:

• Alphabet Challenge (ends 11/27) – T is for ‘Tis the Season’
• Crafty Calender November Challenge  (ends 11/28) – Sparkle, Bling and Embellish.
• Craft for the Craic November Challenge (ends 11/30) –  Something Glittery
• 4 Crafty Chicks Challenge #272 (ends 11/19) – Ribbon
• Aud Sentiments Challenge #144 (ends 11/17) – BINGO plus A Sentiment (I used middle row horizontally: Ribbon, Digi, Flowers)
• Crafty Ribbons Challenge #134  (ends 11/19) – Christmas Tree with Ribbon
• Scrap & Craft Challenge #15 (ends 11/29) – Shabby Chic or Vintage
• 613 Avenue Create Challenge #150 (ends 11/22) – Anything Goes

A close up of the Christmas tree

The flowers and ribbon

A peep at the inside

Project details:

• White cardstock
• Wooden plank designer paper
• Bugaboo stamp “Merry Christmas Tree”
• Pink gem stones in various sizes
• Skwiglues glitter
• Derwent Inktense pencils for coloring
• Hug Snug seam binding “Pink Tulip”
• Roses
• Tim Holtz distress inks “Antique Linen”

I love having you stop by, thank you for visiting! Have a wonderful day and happy crafting.

Regards,

Amelia

Pretty in Purple

Hello friends,

It’s Monday and time for a new challenge at The Shabby Tea Room! Our challenge is called ‘BOO-riffic” and you can create a card or any project inspired by the inspiration photo on The Shabby Tea Room blog. The sponsor is Paper Sweeties and the winner will receive a $20 gift certificate from the Paper Sweeties boutique!

I’ve got something created in purple and black to share for this challenge – lace, pearls and lots of stamped roses. This is some of my favorite things to use on cards. The stamped roses, leaves and sentiment are from the Paper Sweeties Party Time bundle (stamps and dies set) & “You make Me Smile” sentiment set. Hope you’ll allow yourself some time to play along this fortnight at The Shabby Tea Room.

Challenges:

• Craft for the Craic October Challenge (ends 10/31) – Inspired by Music (Purple Roses – John Williamson)
• Creative Artiste Challenge #7 (ends 10/31) – Mixed Media with Lace and Pearls
• Simply Papercraft Challenges #14 (ends 10/09) – Anything Goes
• 613 Avenue Create Challenge #144 (ends 10/11) – Anything Goes
• Artistic Inspirations Challenges #141 (ends 10/12) – Anything Goes/Twist of Black
• Love to scrap Challenge LTSCB#63 (ends 10/19) – Ribbon and/or Lace
• Vintage Stamping Challenge #37 (ends 10/31)  – Use a Die/Dies  (I used Paper Sweeties “Party Time” bundle (stamps and dies set) and Spellbinders Shapeabilities die D-Lites “Frame One”)
• Cuttlebug Mania Challenge  (10/11) – No Squares (I used Paper Sweeties “Party Time” bundle (stamps and dies set) and Spellbinders Shapeabilities die D-Lites “Frame One”)

The sentiment

A close-up of the roses and leaves

A peep at the inside

Project details:

• White and black card-stock
• Designer paper in purple and black (Unknown)
• Paper Sweeties : Party Time bundle & “You make Me Smile” sentiment
• Spellbinders Shapeabilities die D-Lites “Frame One”
• Derwent Inktense water-color pencils
• Lace
• Washi Tape
• Pearls
• Hug Snug seam binding “Sky Mauve”

Thanks for visiting! Have a wonderful day and happy crafting.

Regards,

Amelia

Sweet as Sunshine

Hello friends,

Today’s post I share with a happy dance – this is my first as design team member for The Shabby Tea Room Challenge blog! I am so honored and delighted to join the very talented team of ladies. This is going to be an incredible experience and a golden opportunity to learn more about card making and the shabby style. Thank you for holding thumbs for me and all your kind comments when I submitted my cards for the design team call. I appreciate it so much.

The theme for the The Shabby Tea Room challenge this fortnight is “Sweet as Sunshine”. Please hop over to The Shabby Tea Room to see the lovely inspiration photo and more details on how to enter the challenge. Our sponsor is Bugaboo stamps and they offer a lovely prize of 7 digi’s for this challenge!

For my card I was kindly sponsored with a yummy cupcake image that I layered on a paper doily. I coloured the image with my watercolor pencils and paper piece the cupcake layer and cream topping for more dimension. To embellish I added a gingham ribbon, some sequins, a red button and glitter. The sentiment is a a die cut from Marianne Designs Creatables.

The bow and button

The yummy cupcake

The sentiment

Project details:

• White, yellow and red cardstock
• October Afternoon designer paper “Confetti”
• Bugaboo Stamps: Yummy Cupcake
• Marianne Design Creatables sentiment die (LR0223)
• Doily
• Gingham ribbon
• Star button
• Sequins
• Derwent Inktense watercolor pencils
• Skwiglues glitter “Crystal”

Thank you for visiting today. Please come and join in the fun at our challenge at The Shabby Tea room, I would love to see your take on the challenge. Have a wonderful day.

Kind regards,

Amelia

 

A Bird House

Hello friends,

Another card to share today, featuring stamps from Hot Off The Press stamp set “Sweet Tweets”. I have this stamp set for a long time and never used it  until a few weeks ago. Since then I have so much fun making cards with all the little “birdie” stamps in the set.  For this card I used the bird house and a fancy swirl  to create the foliage at the bottom. The image is colored with Derwent Inktense watercolor pencils and a few pink gemstones were added. A few pink paper roses and a bow completed the card. The sentiment is from JustRite stamps.

I would love to enter my card in the following challenges:

• Allsorts Challenge Week #311 (ends 05/23) – No Squares Allowed
• Come and Get It Challenges (ends 05/24) – Ribbon and Bling
• Pile It On Challenge #69 (ends 05/24) – Not Cute
• Fan-Tastic Tuesday Challenge #85 (ends 05/19) – Anything Goes … Twist Add Some Flowers
• Loves Rubberstamps Challenge #151 (ends 05/18) – Add A Sentiment
• 613 Avenue Create Challenge #124 (ends 05/23) – Anything Goes
• Suzy Bee’s Bloomin’ Challenge (ends 05/22) – Anything Goes With A Twist – Add Pink
• Simply Papercraft Challenges #4 (ends 05/22) – Anything Goes
• Crafting With An Attitude Challenge #3 (ends 06/04 ) – Anything Goes/Spring Fever

A close-up of the bird house and sentiment

The flowers and bow

A peep at the inside

Project details:

• White cardstock
• Hot Off The Press stamp set “Sweet Tweets”
• JustRite sentiment stamp “Heart To Heart” set
• Paper roses
• Hug Snug seam binding
• Gemstones
• Derwent Inktense watercolor pencils

Thanks for stopping by and looking at my card – I appreciate it so much. Have a wonderful day and happy crafting.

Regards,

Amelia

For The Birds …

Hello friends,

A quick CAS card to share today. I discovered a few days ago an old Hot off the Press stamp set “Sweet Tweets” in my storage box. I enjoyed it so much to make a few cards with the beautiful birdie stamps again. I used an adorable birdhouse image, which I stamped triple, for today’s card. I did the colouring with my Derwent Inktense watercolor pencils and then added some cherry blossoms for a springtime look. The sentiment stamp is from JustRite stamps. I will share more cards featuring this stamp set in the coming weeks – I so love the sweet images from this stamp set!

Challenges:

• Fantasy Stampers Challenge #34 (ends 04/25) – Clean and Simple (CAS)
• Loves Rubberstamps Challenge #146 (ends 04/14) – Anything Goes (Stamps used: JustRite sentiments stamp and Hot Off The Press ‘Sweet Tweets”)
• A Gem of a Challenge #142 (ends 04/25) – Spring is in the Air
• Sister Act Card Challenges #101 (ends 04/17) – Anything Goes
• 613 Avenue Create Challenge #119 (ends 04/19) – Anything Goes
• Inspiration Destination Challenge #28 (ends 04/15) – Anything Goes
• Little Red Wagon Challenge #284 (ends 04/15) – Spring is in the Air
• Creatalicious Challenges #73  (ends 04/15) – Anything Goes

A close-up of the birdhouses

The sentiment on a fishtail banner

Project details:

• White cardstock
• Hot off the Press clear stamp set “Sweet Tweets”
• JustRite sentiment stamp set “All Occasion Nested Sentiments”
• Memento dye ink “Tuxedo Black”
• Derwent Inktense watercolor pencils
• Skwiglues “Crystal”

Thank you for visiting today – I really appreciate the time you take to look at my card. Have a wonderful day and happy crafting.

Regards till next time,

Amelia

Forever Yours …

Hello friends,

Today I have a cute card to share  with you. It feels like ages since I last used my aquarelle pencils for coloring and worked with cute images. I have the image stamped ages ago but never sat down to make a card with it. It is really busy at work since the beginning of the year and time for my hobby is so limited – hopefully things will calm down.

I am an animal lover and working in a Veterinary Science Library, animal stamps are always a popular choice for me. This cute stamp is from the Crafter’s Companion range Everyday with Barkley “Special Friend”. Those two adorable faces really portray a perfect animal heaven on earth. For the layers I used designer paper from Iralamija and a Spellbinders die cut “Fancy Lattice”. The leafy branch is from Marianne Design Creatables. Hope you enjoy my card as much as I have in creating it.

I  entered my card in the following challenges:

• A Gem of a Challenge #112 (ends 02/14) – All You Need is Love
• Little Red Wagon Challenge #223 (ends 02/12) – Love
• Crafty Calender February Challenge (ends 02/28) – Love is All Around!!
• Fantasy Stampers Challenge #3 (ends 02/15) – Love and Cherish
• Open-Minded Crafting Challenge #3 (ends 02/22) – Show Some Love
• Crafts Galore Encore Challenge #2 (ends 02/28) – Add a Gem, or Glitter, or Candi or any Bling
• Fairies Challenge #19 (ends 02/28) – Love is in the Air
• Craftitude Challenge #58 (ends 02/28) – Anything Goes or Valentines/Love
• Fussy and Fancy Friday Challenge #107 (ends 02/20) – Be My Valentine
• Crafty Little Fairies Challenge (ends 02/13) – Love
• 613 Avenue Create Challenge #58 (ends 02/16) – Anything Goes or Create your Own Challenge (sentiment, image, die cut, stickles, flowers, bling and ribbon)
• Penny Black and More February Challenge (ends 02/28) – Make It Sparkle (gemstones and glitter)

A close-up of the stamped image from Crafter’s Companion “Special Friend” and the ribbon roses

The sentiment

The roses

A peep at the inside with another two bling hearts and a fancy lattice

Project details:

• White and pink cardstock
• Designer paper from  Iralamija
• Crafter’s Companion stamp Everyday with Barkley “Special Friend”
• Lili of the Valley sentiment stamp
• Spellbinders Shapeabilities “Fancy Lattice”
• Marianne Design Creatables “LR0150”
• Cuttlebug die “Tiny Tags” (37-1222)
• Gemstones
• Wax cord
• Paper roses
• Ribbon
• Tim Holtz distress ink “Antique Linen” and “Peeled Paint”
• Skwiglues glitter glue “Crystal”
• Lyra Rembrandt aquarelle watercolor pencils

Thanks for visiting today, it is always such a pleasure to read your comments. Have a wonderful week and happy crafting.

Regards from South Africa,

Amelia

Greetings from the Farm

Hello dear blog friends,

Last week I was browsing through my Penny Black stamps storage box and discovered two golden oldies. Oh dear, I just love the cute cow ladies and had to ink then up immediately and  colour them. It feels like ages since I last made a card with cute images and making these two cards were fun. I kept the layout for both cards the same except for the sentiments. As the images look so happy and cheerful I used minimum embellishments to kept the focus on the critters. After my eye surgery, coloring of images were difficult but my vision did improve so much over the past three months that I am very glad to have my coloring pencils back in hand.  Hope you enjoy these two cards as much as I have enjoyed creating them.

Challenges:

• Word Play Saturday July Challenge (ends 07/27) – Birthdays
• Crafty Cardmakers Challenge #96 (ends 07/29) – Birthday
• Let’s Craft and Create Challenge #74 (ends 07/23) – Anything Goes
• Anything Goes Challenge #97 (ends 07/30) – Anything Goes
• Tuesday Throwdown Challenge #156 (ends 07/23) – Anything Goes
• Addicted To Stamps Challenge #60 (ends 08/04) – Lots of Layers
• Stamp with Fun Challenge #217 (ends 08/05) – Celebrate

A close-up of the image, the cow lady and her two chicken friends

The roses, doily and leafy flourish

My second card with three pretty cow ladies

A close-up of the three ladies with their fashionable head pieces

A peep at the inside which was decorated in the same way for both cards

Project details:

• White and green cardstock
• We R Memory Keepers gingham designer paper  “Baby mine”
• Penny Black stamps “Skip and Romp” (2877L) and “Ladies Devine” (2882K)
• Penny Black sentiment stamp “Critter Party transparent set” (30-013)
• Paper doilies
• Marianne Design Creatables “LR0271” and “LR0191”
• Memory Box die “Puffy Clouds”
• Green wax cord
• Prima flowers “Sherwood rose cottage” (Item #552718)
• Tim Holtz distress ink” Tea Dye”
• Lyra-Rembrandt Aquarelle water-color pencils for coloring
• Skwiglues glitter glue “Crystal”

Thanks for visiting today to look at my cards and I would love to know what you think. Have a wonderful week and I will be back next Saturday with a vintage/shabby card. Happy crafting.

Regards from South Africa,

Amelia