Better start the Christmas cards I suppose!

Regular followers will know that I have been on a mission to use up my existing stash.  The 'orange' card below is one of those creations.

However, as I have, at my five year old son's insistence, got an app on my phone which tells me it's only 93 days to Christmas, I thought I had better put my existing stash away and pull out my Christmas stuff.  The 'blue' photo below is my first Christmas creation, well since about last December anyway (I keep making Christmas cards even after I have written and sent all of mine so that I have make a head start on the following year).

I dare say there will be numerous further Christmas cards to follow!  Hope you like x 

                                    

                                    

Using up stash!

I am on a mission! I am only buying things that will help me use up my existing stash. Things like cardboard, gems, double sided sticky tape - I really do have to use that what I have before I buy any more!  I know that will ring true with pretty much every card maker out there. However, the NEC show in November is beckoning and I have to make some room for the stuff that I will inevitably buy!

This week's offering comes from issue 39 of creative card making magazine, which I believe was February 2012! They are designs based on the pictures in the magazine, but I have adapted them slightly for my own purposes. Luckily my little boy gets invited to lots of parties for little girls and so the cards are quickly given away.

One day I may have enough cards for a stall at a craft fair, but at my current rate of production, that will be a long time coming!

                                            

                                            

Colleague's birthday under pressure!

After a week away in Cornwall, where we enjoyed some glorious weather, I found myself contemplating my return to work tomorrow.  I suddenly realised I had volunteered to make a card for a colleague's birthday, not just from me, but it was to be a 'team card'.  Eek!  Whilst my toddler was having her afternoon nap and my five year old buried himself watching the TV, I realised this could be the only chance I would get.  I therefore rummaged through my stash and free gifts from magazines not yet used and found the ingredients to come up with the card below. Hope you like it!

                                          

At last - time to craft!

I took a day off yesterday for my little boy's sports day.  As that was all over and done with by 11.00am, I was faced with the decision - go back to work or stay home (alone) and have some 'me' time. I did not need to deliberate for long!

After watching some tv, I did venture into my craft room to see whether my card making mojo would return. With the aid of an old magazine, some free toppers and papers, it did!  See the three cards I have made, today and yesterday (I took today off as well!). As we've got four birthday parties for my son to go to in the next three weeks, I thought the little boy cards would come in handy!

I have to admit, it has been nice to do some crafting, but taking a day off to do it is a bit unrealistic in the long term unfortunately!

Workday Wedding Card

And no, I haven't made it in work, but I have taken a day off today, partly to finish the card below. I started it about two weeks ago by colouring the bears and picking papers, but I had to wait for inspiration to strike for the layout! With a bit of inspiration from the Do Crafts Gallery and a bit of fiddling around I came up with the card. Hope you like it!

Making a card midweek, whatever next?!

I have managed to make a card, and its not the weekend! Yey! Admittedly I did start by stamping and colouring the image on Sunday afternoon, but I have at last managed to fit in some crafting into an evening. I really must do this more often.....

I hope you like my creation for today - I decided to work backwards. Instead of stamping and image and colouring it and then trying to find papers to match, I picked my papers first and coloured the image to match the papers. Genius! Why didn't I think of it before? Doh!

Lovely to have some nice weather!

We've had some glorious weather here in South Wales this,weekend (OK just Saturday really but every nice day is a bonus!) We took my 5 year old son round Cwmbran Boating Lake on his new Spider-Man bike that he got for his birthday. We also let him try out the newly refurbished play area there, although centrepiece already been vandalised and made unusable by some mindless thug.

Went for a walk along the Monmouthshire and Brecon Canal then on Sunday morning, (again with bike). Saw beautiful family of mummy and daddy ducks with six tiny babies!

Came home to cook roast chicken dinner with six veggies, ironing and somewhere in amongst doing all this I have made the card below. Only a quickie, I needed something I could use as a Sympathy card for a friend. It is entirely stash raided- I hope you like it?

Busy day!

I have at last managed to finish this card that I started about a week ago. I have decided to also finish off the inside of the card, instead of leaving it blank like I normally do.

I have used a free stamp that I had with a recent magazine, coloured with Promarkers, card and papers from stash, along with the brads, sparkles, peel off and flower etc.

I have already taken my five year old son to swimming lessons this morning, been to the garden centre to buy a rose for a dear friend's birthday, come back and prepared chicken roast dinner which is in the oven, and I have my same five year old's party at a soft play centre nearby at 2.30pm. My one year old is currently playing in her bouncer and my husband is sprawled on the floor reading the paper - alright for some!

This week I have also been organising my ribbon stash, I have cut card from various waste boxes, covered them in blue paper, made two holes with eyelets and mounted them onto rings. Hope you like. Maybe I can use more ribbon in my creations now that I will be able to find what I am looking for!

Happy Easter

Happy Easter everyone! Hope you have all had a lovely break from work etc. I've been away for Easter at the Parents-In-Law in Lincolnshire so I haven't had chance to make any cards, but we got back yesterday evening, so after the usual housework duties today, I've had a chance to make this card for my dear friend's 60th which is coming up in a few weeks. It's always a dilemma how to mount Pergamano, hope you like what I've done with this one.

Early morning cardmaking

This morning I found myself in the rare situation where I was awake before my children. After trying without success to go back to sleep, I decided to take advantage of the situation in another way - I'll make a card!

This is the result! I'm still on a mission to use up existing stash and I am currently looking through my magazines from February 2012 (I'm a bit behind!)

I have recently discovered altering things, I had the white paper flowers and decided to see whether I could make one which would match this card with the assistance of my Promarker collection. Hope you like it.

Been over a month since I posted, shame on me!

I have had a manic few weeks. With changes in the law on 1st April there has been a mad rush in signing people up to 'No Win, No Fee' agreements for their medical negligence cases. I work for Harding Evans, solicitors.  I have made a few cards over past weeks but because they have been in a bit of a rush, for my mum's 80th birthday and Mother's Day one week apart, I've given them away without taking photos of them - Doh! The other problem I have is that I have copied quite a few cards out of magazines using the free gifts that come with them so it does not feel right then to post them as one of my own creations (not to mention Copyright issues etc) so I'd rather not go there.

I had a big birthday yesterday and have been given money from hubby and mum, so i see some guilt free craft spending on the horizon! I've already ordered myself  Woodware Paper Trimmer. I've also been to The Range and bought myself a Gorjuss stamp and a big box to store all my cards in.

To make some room, I have also had a good sort out of my made cards and yesterday I posted off a big bundle to The Dogs' Trust for them to sell in their Bridgend shop - my good deed for the day.

I have had a bit of a re-organisation in my craft room and have managed to make a card tonight using up some old stash.

I will try not to leave it so long before blogging again! Note to self....take photos of cards before giving them away!

Birthday parties

I've made this card today for a friend of my son's whose birthday party he will be going to in a few weeks' time. It's the second time I have made an occasion specific card - I really enjoy it, rather than making generic cards and then trying to find one which fits the occasion at the time.

I've also started a new hobby. I've started going line dancing, which I really love. I used to go many years ago but family life sort of got in the way of that. It's also really good exercise to help along my diet. Lost 8lbs now in two weeks, so hope I can keep that up!

Hope you like my card!

40th Birthday Card needed - on a mission!

After a week of battling with a foot of snowfall since 17th January, I discovered it is my work colleague's 40th birthday on Wednesday this week so decided I would make a card specially for her. I am used to just picking a card out from the ones I have already made when I find out about a birthday, but decided that this time that I would make one from scratch.

Armed with the 40th birthday sentiment I 'rescued' from a birthday card of my husband's a few years ago, I set about finding stuff I could use.

Decided to go with the flowers and feather option (I've never used feathers before!) and chose from some free papers I had with a mag ages ago. I recoloured the flowers in this Margaret Sherry freebie (they were previously lilac and that would never do!)

I have to say I really enjoyed making this card, I'll have to make occasion-specific cards more often.

Snow day!

6 inches of snow - what a great excuse to stay in and get crafting!

I am still using up old Christmas stash, going through old magazines and using things that I have bought ages ago but never used. I usually go to the big craft show in the NEC in Birmingham in November and I am determined to make room for some new stuff by then. I don't give out many birthday cards really, just close friends and family so Christmas cards are the way to go as I give away loads every year.

I made this card with Forever Friends stamps, Festive Treats papers, coloured in with Promarkers and finished off with some ribbon I bought ages ago mail order from somewhere.

Oh well, time to bath the children and put them to bed - wonder if I'll get any crafty time later.....

More Christmas Stash

I love weekends! Nap time for baby girl, 'Sticking' and 'Punching' time for little boy and footie for hubby means Cardmaking for me! Should be doing housework but there is a load of washing in, so that counts as housework doesn't it? LOL!

Still determined use up Christmas stash so dug out barely used Forever Friends stamps, Festive Treats papers, Pro Markers and ribbon from stash and here we go, Christmas card number 6 for 2013!

On a mission to use up old Christmas stash

Finally found the time to finish this card off! I stamped and coloured the images days ago, I cut all the different layers over whilst grabbing five minutes here and there and finally stuck it all together and finished off this morning! I am on a "craft diet" where I am only going to buy "essentials" such as glue etc. No more papers or embellishments for me for a while.

I did buy a Papermania Happy Birthday stamp in a sale the other day for £1.99 but other than that I've been good. The 3 magazines a month I get don't count because they are on yearly subscription!

New Year's Resolutions anyone?

Happy New Year to all my readers! I hope that 2013 brings us all lots of love, luck and lovely crafty goodies!

I haven't had time to make any cards over the festive season, with family coming to stay, going to stay with family in Lincolnshire and two children under five, but I hope to get back to it very soon - see New Year's Resolution below!

What are your New Year's Resolutions? Mine are:-

1. To do something 'crafty' every day, and I mean in a paper crafting way, not any other way! I am keeping that small, due to time constraints but so far this year (!) I have managed to cut some toppers for next year's Christmas cards from cards received this year, and also come up with a spreadsheet detailing the crafty items I need to buy. I am hoping that by doing this, I will buy things I actually need, rather than buying things I already have or buying things I like at the time but then just putting them away for use 'in the future'!

2. My other New Year's Resolution is to spend more quality time with my son and also to stop checking and replying to work e-mails while not in work! So far, so good, but its only 2nd January!

3. To eat all my Christmas chocolate as soon as I can so that I can go on a diet!

Let me know what your Resolutions are - perhaps we can encourage each other not to break them quite so early in the year!

Hope to post a photo of my next crafty creation soon.

Deb x