Happy New Year

Here is a Happy New Year card for all my crafty and blogging friends.  The image is from Kenny K's and called "Happy Hour".  I have coloured in with my Promarkers and highlighted areas with a white gel pen and my Sakura Stardust clear pen.

The spotty backing paper I have used is from the Bearly Mine Designs Mini Dots collection.  The image has been fussy cut and placed on top of a Tim Holtz clock die-cut which has the brad set at midnight.  I have finished the card off with some faux stitching, gems, ticket sentiment and a felt flower with a brad centre.

I am entering this last card of 2012 into the following challenges:

Cute Card Thursday - Anything goes

Paper Pretties - Happy New Year inspired

Simon Says - Anything goes
Winter Wonderland - New beginnings
Lady Anne's Stamp Challenge - Must use a rubber or digi stamp

Brown Sugar - Happy New Year

Lady Anne's Challenge Sentimental Fridays - Anything goes

Totally Gorjuss - New!

Crafty Mess - Show some sparkle/bling

The Squirrel and the Fox - Party time

Kenny K's - It's party time

Bunny Zoe's - Celebration

Paper Make-up - Anything goes

Natalie and Amy's - Your favourite things (Promarkers, dies, colouring, gems and making my own flowers)
Kaboodle Doodle - Anything goes

What have you got planned for New Year's Eve?  My hubby doesn't finish work until about 8.00pm so we hope to watch a film and see in the New Year - not that I have concentration for films.  I've got the lurgies that have been going around and hope I feel better as tomorrow lunchtime our eldest son and friend are coming for lunch and then my brother-in-law and his family are coming for tea.  

New Year's resolutions?  I normally say I will use up my stash before buying more and have been good at that.  Last year I made a resolution to always decorate the inside of a card when making the front and I must have done this for about 80% of my cards.  Maybe 2013 I might do it 100% of the time as it saves such a lot of hastle trying to match papers after the fact!!!

I am hoping that 2013 is a happier and healthier one for lots of people.  

I shall be glad to see the back of 2012.  2011 was awful with the sudden death of my mum but then I never imagined my own health problems escalating in 2012 and being off sick for so long.  Fingers crossed the impingement in my shoulder gets sorted very soon and I can get back to work very soon as I miss it so very much.  

2012 also saw our eldest son move out into his own home a few weeks before his 20th birthday.  He's settled in very well and it's just his mum not coping too well.  He cooked for us on Boxing Day for our lunch and tea and did us proud. 

I was also proud of my husband this year as he went away for 7 weeks to London and helped out with the Olympics and Paralymics.  He didn't do much driving (as he's a bus driver) but spent his time doing union duties.

HAPPY NEW YEAR TO YOU ALL!!!

Favourite Five Cards of 2012

Debby over at a Scrapjourney is challenging us to pick our top 5 cards for 2012.  Yikes this gets difficult each year.

For my first card I was honoured to be a Guest Design Team Member in January 2012 for the Crafts and Me Design Team and this is the card I created.  Here is my original post here.

This is a Sweet Pea Stamps card I made as I have the honour of being on the Sweet Pea Stampers Design Team.  Here is my original post here.

 

 

 

 

 

 

This is a card and matching box that I made for a customer earlier in the year to give to her best friend.  I do love the cards I colour in but I also enjoy using CDs for toppers/decoupage to make my creations.  Here is my original post.

This is a card I made using kraft card for the first time using a gorgeous image from Krista, Saturated Canary.  Why did I wait so long to try kraft card?  I love it.  I just wish one of those cards companies would make a kraft card maybe just a tad lighter and suitable for using Promarkers on as I love to see images coloured in on kraft card but my current card eats the ink.  Here is my original post.

Last by no means least is a card I have made for a special friend using an image from the ever so talented Teri of Delicious Doodles.  My original post is here.

If you fancy showing us your top 5 cards pop on over to Debby's blog to have a look at her top 5 and also to take part.

Just a Reminder Regarding the Bearly Mine Designs Boxing Day Sale

Just a reminder that the Boxing Dale Sale over at Bearly Mine Designs runs out at midnight on 31 December 2012 so you haven't got long now to grab a bargain.  Pop on over and have a look at the wonderful digi kits Donna has designed.

Altered Christmas Gift Bag

Here is an recycled and altered gift bag I have made with a Rick St Dennis imaged called "Steamee McPunk" for a Christmas present still to give.

I have coloured the image in with about six shades of red for her outfit/shoes etc.  It's amazing how many different shades of one colour there can be and I didn't use all my reds and I haven't even got the full set of Promarkers!!!  I just wish I had her gorgeous figure and was that out-going to wear those clothes and boots.  The backing card is come I got for my birthday last year and is Hunkydory.  I have embossed two pieces of card, one with a button effect and the other with a metal effect and used my Inkylicious brushes to distress one with Tim Holtz's Fired Brisk distress ink pad and the other one with Tim Holtz's Aged Mahogany distress ink pad.  The bag has been finished off with some poinsettias, Papermania Glitterations and a flower made out of Christmas tissue pad with a brad centre.  The flower is made with a set of Nestabilities Blossom 2 I have barely used since buying but this year I came to the conclusion that it looked similar to the shape of the poinsettia dies so I have used this instead so it's got more use in one year than in the last 2-3 years since I've had it.

I am entering this bag into the following challenges:

Sparkle and Glitter the Rick St Dennis Challenge - Last minute shopping

Craft Your Passion - Alter it

Crafting for all Seasons - Green, red and glitter/sparkle

Simon Says - Anything goes

CRAFT - Not a card

Lady Anne's Stamp Challenge - Must use a rubber stamp or digi stamp

2 Sisters - Anything but a card

Mark's Finest Papers - Use tissue paper on your card/project

Charisma Cardz - Anything goes

Card Crafter's Circle - Anything goes

Meredith Dillman's "Steampunk Doll" Digital Image from Sweet Pea Stamps

This is a card I have made with a Meredith Dillman's digital image from Sweet Pea Stamps called "Steampunk Doll".  I've coloured in with my trusty Promarkers and Flexmarkers.  The backing papers I have been given and I distressed all of them with my Tim Holtz distressing tool and inked the edges with a chalk ink pad.  I have again used up some chipboard pieces which I have coloured with Promarkers and added peel-off sentiments to.  The card has been finished off with a Tim Holtz clock die-cut which I have inked with Tim Holtz's Vintage Photo distress ink pad and some card candi.  Again I have tried to keep the card as flat as possible and decorated the inside to match.

I am entering this card into the following challenges:

Paper Play - Out with the old and in with the new (old is the chipboard shapes I have had for years and years and the new is my digital image)

Papercrafting Journey - Anything goes

Challenges 4 Everybody - Anything goes

Paper Make-up - Anything goes

The Pink Elephant - Anything goes

Through the Craft Room Door - Anything goes

Party Time Tuesday - Anything goes

Tuesday Alchemy - Anything goes

Simon Says - Anything goes

Passion for Promarkers - Use the word happy in your sentiment
Lady Anne's Monthly Stamping Challenge - Use any rubber or digital stamp
Pause Dream Enjoy Challenges - Anything goes

Rick St Dennis Christmas Card

This is a card I have made using a Rick St Dennis image I got last year and coloured in.  I can't see him in Rick's Etsy store but there are lots more of his wonderful images to have a look at.  The image was coloured in with Promarkers and areas highlighted with a white gel pen and my Sakura Stardust clear pen.  Santa and his bear friend have been cut out.  The backing papers I was given.  The card has been finished off with various die-cut shapes/corners, Crafty Ann's poinsettias, doily and Craftwork cards die-cut sentiment.

I am entering this card into the following challenges:

Crafty Hazelnut Christmas - Anything goes for Christmas

Di's Digi Designs - Christmas

Challenges 4 Everybody - Anything goes
Whoopsi Daisy - Celebrate

Tuesday Alchemy - Anything goes

Dutch Dare - Celebration

Charisma Cardz - Anything goes

Meredith Dillman's Airship Digital Image from Sweet Pea Stamps

This is a card I have made with a Meredith Dillman's digital image from Sweet Pea Stamps called "Airships".  I fell in love with Sweet Pea Stamps a few years back but now they have digital images it is perfect for people like me who hate waiting for things to come in the post.  The image has been coloured in with my Promarkers and I have kept the colours vintage looking.  The backing papers I have been given and I distressed all of them with my Tim Holtz distressing tool and inked the edges with a chalk ink pad.  I thought an interesting addition to the card would be to use some chipboard shapes I have had for years and years so I coloured them with Promarkers and added a sentiment peel-off to them.  I have simply finished the card off with some card candi as I wanted to not detract from the gorgeous image and also it is costing more and more to post here in the UK so it needs to be kept as flat as possible.  The inside has been decorated to match.

I am entering this card into the following challenges:

Paper Play - Out with the old and in with the new (old is the chipboard shapes I have had for years and years and the new is my digital image)

Papercrafting Journey - Anything goes

Crafts 4 Eternity - Anything goes

Challenges 4 Everybody - Anything goes

paper Make-up - Anything goes

The Pink Elephant - Anything goes

Through the Craft Room Door - Anything goes

Party Time Tuesday - Anything goes

Tuesday Alchemy - Anything goes

Simon Says - Anything goes

Sweet Pea Stamps - Show us your blog
Passion for Promarkers - Use the word happy in your sentiment

A Very Difficult Scrapbook

In May 2011 we had saved up tokesn in the Sun Newspaper here in the UK and went on a cheap week-end away with my mum, our friend, my husband and two boys to Skegness in a static caravan.  The caravan was nice and the site we stayed on was lovely.  Tragically less than a month later my mum was found collapsed at home and within four hours we were told there was nothing they could do for her.  Her life support was turned off two days later.  My mum was 61.

I had an idea about doing a scrapbook of the time away but in the end decided to do two, one for me and one for our friend.  It's taken about 18 months and certainly has been the hardest craft project I have ever done.  

It's remained unfinished for about 9 months as I needed to do the journalling but I couldn't get my head around it.  Thankfully Mel Heaton who us crafters see on Create and Craft (doing Cricut shows, Copic shows, stamping shows and also scrapbooking shows) came to my rescue.  I was going to type the journalling on the computer but she would constantly say it was important to write things - yikes I thought as I hate my handwriting - but I did as I was told!!  Most of the journalling is done on a LOTV postcard stamp or on the paper used on the scrapbook page.  I just wish I'd have been able to afford lots of 12x12 card so I could do two page layouts but I couldn't and had to go with what I'd got.

The scrapbook is made up of our photos and I have stamped/coloured and cut out various images from Sheena Douglass, Jayne Nesterenko and Glenda Waterworth.  The images have all been coloured in with my Promarkers.  The pages have been finished off with stickers/peel-offs.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I added this picture of mum at the end of the scrapbook of her Order of Service as I thought it was a fitting end to the scrapbook.

If it wasn't for scrapbooking programmes on Create and Craft and people like Mel Heaton coming on the show I wouldn't have had the confidence to even start such a scrapbook let alone finish it and let alone do two.  They are both virtually the same apart from some different papers used and different layouts.  I am hoping our friend will like seeing her scrapbook on Christmas Day.  Fingers crossed.

It's going to be our second Christmas without my mum.  It's not easier yet but I know it will come in time.

I am entering this scrapbook into the following challenges:

Papercrafting Journey - Anything goes
Stampin' for the Week-end - Anything goes
The Pink Elephant - Anything goes

My Favourite Five Christmas Cards of 2012

Debby over at A Scrap Journey wants to know what our top five Christmas cards are for 2012.  Well here we go, these are my top five:

 

Well this skull Santa card isn't my normal Christmas card but he is an image designed by the ever so talented Teri at Delicious Doodles.  Here is the original post on my blog about this card.

Next is a snow leopard image again from Delicious Doodles.  Here is the original post on my blog.

My third card is another image from Delicious Doodles and the image is called "Snow Cuddles".  My original post is here.

 

 

 

 

 

 

This is a special book-style House Mouse card I made for someone special.  My original post is here.

 

 

 

 

Last and by no means least is my final Top 5 cards and this time it is a special concertina card which I made using Debbi Moore magazine and CD.  My original post is here.

Why don't you pop on over to Debby's blog to have a look at her Top 5 and the other crafters.