Quirky Crafts Challenge - Mid Month Reminder

The month is flying by, as usual. I just want to remind you of my challenge which is half way through on Quirky Craft Challenge Blog. This means you only have two weeks left to link your creations inspired by a favourite song. Click here to see the original post and challenge and sponsor details.
Using a digi chosen from our second sponsor Delicious Doodles I have made a twist and pop card. I love doing this shape card. As soon as I saw the lovely Iris image on the Delicious Doodles site I was immediately reminded of many a day playing in my Auntie's garden when I was small. Only a small garden, but she always had lots of Iris plants underneath her lounge window. I loved them and have Iris in my garden now because of that memory. Hope you like the card.

April Quirky Crafts Challenge

It is time for a new challenge over at Quirky Crafts Challenge Blog.
We have The Cutting Café as sponsor this challenge and the theme has been set by Tinz, she has chosen Quirky Pets. There was so much to choose from on The Cutting Café site that I am not sure how she managed to come to a decision choice at all!

From Tinz's choice I have selected some one of the images from the animals and bugs set...they are all so cute. I decided to make a door hanging for a child.

I designed a box frame sized to suit using Silhouette Studio and cut the pieces using my Cameo. I also made the lettering that way.

I took the image I had chosen into Craft Artist, resized it and printed multiple copies which I then cut out using my Scan and Cut.

I coloured the images using LePlume pens and decoupaged them up to give dimension.

Quirky Crafts Challenge Blog Is Back!!!!

What seems like a long long time ago I was asked to become a member of a design team for the Quirky Crafts Challenge Blog. After being a member of the team for quite a while illness, and life in general, got in the way and I had to step down. But now the challenge blog is returning and I am back on the team. ( doing a happy dance here while I type).

Cazzy set the first challenge and I was stumped straight away. She decided to make the challenge "Use a photo"...
What's the big deal about that? Well as someone who HATES having their photo taken I rarely take photos myself...so if I have to choose a favourite photo I don't have many to choose from.
It just happened that the setting of this challenge coincided with the anniversary of my lovely Maggie passing, and I cherish every photo I have of her....so that was it, decision made.
We need to use a digi image from Bugaboo who are co sponsors of the challenge, along with Crafty Ribbons. I chose to work with Flower Tag 1. I took the image into Craft Artist, recoloured it and turned it into an intelligent frame so I could snap my photo behind it. Hope you like...

Quirky Challenge 25 - Tags

This is the last challenge I will be setting for the Challenge Blog as I leave the design team at the end of the year, and as we all know the year is speeding by at a pace!

We are all really bust this time of year so i decided that I would set a challenge that would be something we would all be doing anyway. Tags....bet you are sick of seeing cards and tags!

we are sponsored by Doodle Dragon Studios and Paper Pretties who are both offering digital images as prizes for the winners of the challenge as decided by the Design Team.
Here is mine

I used wrapped Up Rudolph from Pater Pretties and their Wrapped & Ready sentiment to make my cards. Coloured with promarkers and decoupaged to make him stand out with  huge nose!
Come and join the challenge

Challenge 24- Over to the dark side

It is Cazzy's turn to set the challenge....I don't know if she was feeling a bit grumpy or something when she set the challenge, but she decided on Over To The Dark Side....
Our sponsors for this challenge are The Stamping Boutique  and Doodle Dragon Studios. Both are offering prizes for the best entries as judged by the Design Team, so pop over to Quirky Crafts Challenge Blog to find out more and enter.
Here is my entry:-

This was a challenge for me as I don't really use a lot of dark colours and non cute images really. I couldn't resist adding some hand made flowers and a bow and swirl....got to make it a bit girly! The image is from The Stamping Boutique and is called Goth Girl.
Hope you like....

Quirky Crafts Challenge 23 - Layer it up and Let it Snow

Hi Everyone!

The new challenge at Quirky Crafts Challenge Blog is Layer It Up and Let It Snow. We have two sponsors this time, The Cutting Cafe and Dustin Pike at Doodle Dragon Studios. So prizes are on offer if you are the lucky winners.

The challenge being layers immediately made me think of this style of card, which I believe is a Double Concertina Cascade Card, quite a mouthful. Also a bit of a pain to make. Templates are available to download online for free, but they need careful measuring and scoring to make sure the card is level when completed. That is not so bad in itself,  ut what I really hate doing is working out the sizes for all the panels! I have been intending to make a cut file for this style of card for ages....so now I have. I will make more of these now they are going to be easier. The Let It Snow frame is from Cutting Cafe and has been cut down to fit the front of the card.

Quirky Crafts Challenge 22- Anything but a card and some Autumn Colour

Caro has chosen the challenge theme this time and she has chosen Anything but a Card with Autumn Colours..
I love all the Autumn Colours, not so ken on the rainy windy weather that comes with though!. I especially love the really deep reds that appear on the leaves and the ivy in my garden just before they drop. When you say deep reds though I always think Poinsettia. Luckily the sponsor for the challenge is Robyn's Fetish, and they just happen to have a lovely poinsettia stamp that was just crying out to be decoupaged.

 As it is anything BUT a card i decided to make the poinsettia stamp into a cutlery holder for my Christmas Table. This is number one of many more to come! I enjoyed making this though as I normally opt for a card, so the challenge for me was to come up with something different.

Regular followers of the Challenge blog will have noticed a Design Team call after last fortnights challenge. That is because I have made the decision to leave the team at the end of the year. So come on you regulars....throw your name in the hat......

Quirky Crafts Challenge 20 - Wha'ts coming over the hill......

It is Spyder's turn to set the challenge this time around (Lyn). The theme is monsters and we have two great sponsors this challenge. The first are well known to us, Bugaboo Digital Stamps. But we have an exciting new sponsor...Doodle Dragon Studios with the art work from Dustin Pike. So we have prizes to be won, just come to the challenge blog and join in. Here is my contribution this challenge:-

 This very handsome monster was printed on the backing paper using Craft Artist software, I then printed him separately so I could decoupage him, which i have done using a spring so he is a bongy (technical term) monster. The inside features more monsters from Doodle Dragons Studio, in fact I used them all because they were so darn cute I couldn't choose between them. The monster bunch on the final page is also decoupaged and the front character is again "bongyfied"

I have also used the Temperamental Monster digi stamp from Bugaboo. He reminded me of my Son when he was little. Hope you like him too...

Come and join the fun.....

Challenge 18 - Recycled Farmyard

Caro's turn this week and this is her theme. We have sponsorship for this challenge from Digital Delights and Crafty Ribbons, so two prizes up for grabs.

My camera flashed red battery at me when I tried to take this shot, so I apologise, I had to take it very quickly and it not actually a very good picture. I used the Clara Cow stamp from Digital Delights. I think she is cute with the little hearts for a nose! Coloured with promarkers and decoupaged ( sorry, I know that doesn't show). The backing papers are from Pink Petticoat, and sort of recycled as they were originally printed for another project and then rejected. The real recycled element is the lace and flowers. Both were cut from some foamy packaging material that protected an item I purchased in the post. I used Edgeabilities for the lace and bitty blossoms for the flowers.

Come to the challenge over at Quirky Crafts Challenge Blog to check out the other design teams ideas, and of course to enter and win yourself some goodies.

Challenge 17- School's Out For Summer.

It is time for the next challenge. The fortnights zip by so fast!


It is my turn to set the challenge this time and  I was thinking about what to set, a new shape card?....an old shape card we have all forgotten about?....a certain element? colour?...so many choices!
I decided in the end to go for School's Out For Summer. I want to see children having fun. I decided on this theme because i was thinking about how hard my Children had worked this year towards their exams. Not that they are children any more at 20 and 17, but they have worked so hard and really were ready for the Summer Break. So that's what I want to see, any project that shows or involves children having fun!

We have a sponsor for this challenge. Robyns Fetish.






They are offering a great prize of your choice of 5 Digital Images to the winner, as decided by our Design Team. There is such a choice on their website, I would be hard pressed to choose. Come to the challenge blog at Quirkycrafts Challenge Blog, show us your entry and you might have the difficult choice to make.

Quirky Challenge 16 - Cupcakes

It is Lyn's Challenge this time and she has chosen Quirky Cupcakes. A very good choice as our sponsor for the challenge is Limited Runs and they have loads of lovely and very funny and unusual cupcake stamps to choose from.
I loved the look of "Rosey" cupcake so I chose that one to work with. It made me think of Afternoon tea somewhere very very posh! (not that I ever have afternoon tea anywhere remotely posh).So a nice posh teacup was what I needed. I adapted a cut file from Birds Cards to use as the main card base. 

This is now a top fold card. The rose design is stencilled into the teacup layer, with extra pieces decoupaged. The lovely rosey cupcake was coloured with promarkers and the 'skirt' part of the wrapper decoupaged also, as were the rose and leaves on top. Just right for a Posh Afternoon Tea.
We have a second sponsor for this challenge, Paper Pretties. Come and check out the blog, both sponsors are offering digi images as prizes to the winners as chosen by the design team. See you there then.....

Challenge 15- Christmas in July...

It is Spyder's turn to choose the theme this time. She has chosen Christmas in July. I know the weather has been totally pants.....but we are not at the dreaded Christmas time already...are we???
Our sponsors this time around are Stitchy Bear, and as usual we have had some lovely images to work with.
When I am forced into Christmas mode I like the more traditional card, you know the Holly and the Ivy sort of thing, so my choice of stamp was easy. I went for The Holly Bough.

I have decoupaged this image to within an inch of it's life, and it looks really realistic in actual life. There are 8 or 9 layers here, all cut by hand, coloured with promarkers and then 3d with foam pads. The image is then mounted onto white base card which has been sent through a Grand Calibur using a Cuttlebug Swiss Dots folder. I love this background as it never detracts from the image you are using. The whole thing was mounted onto a deep red mat to set it off.

If you are in the Christmas Spirit already pop over to Quirky Crafts Challenge Blog and join in. We have a prize to give away of a 10$ Stitchy Bear certificate. See you there!

Quirky Crafts Challenge 14- Make Us Laugh!

Now there is a challenge for you Make Us Laugh!

Caro's turn to set the challenge this time, and it is a great choice for the sponsor we have....Bugaboo Stamps.
Of all the sponsors we have, and they are all great, Bugaboo has quickly become my favourite just because of the variety of the images they produce, the quality  of the images they produce, and their quirkiness! if you are looking for something a little different, check them out...especially the Gus and Stella range....LOVE THEM!

So back to the challenge. As soon as I heard the theme I just knew we would have some fun with this one. my Husband thought I has taken leave of my senses. I was all alone in my craft room browsing the images to choose what i would like to work with....and i was giggling away, just couldn't help it!

after a lot of thought I chose Stella and Gus Tidbits - Grumpy. This is going to become an anniversary card for my In Laws in August. Without any disrespect to them, Gus and Stella remind me of them so much....so the choice was easy!

I made this Pull Up Card template for my cutter some time ago. I have cut it using a fill pattern of a backing paper by Shery K Designs. I use a lot of her papers. This one reminded me of the sort of wallpaper an older couple might have on their bedroom walls (sorry Mum!). The image was printed three times, coloured with promarkers and then decoupaged. The sentiment inside is also from Bugaboo. I do feel that this card is maybe a bit too plain, but I don't have any room left for lots of embellishment. What do you think, dear readers?
come join in our challenge and MAKE US LAUGH....go on, I dare you!

Challenge 12- Hand Made Flowers and Ribbons.

My turn to set the challenge over at Quirky Crafts Challenge Blog this weekend. A very simple theme this time. I am looking for Hand Made Flowers and Ribbons. You can make anything you like, it doesn't have to be a card, any craft project is just fine....but I must be able to see Hand Made Flowers, either from die cuts, punches or hand cur shapes, and I want to see a ribbon. Apart from those rules your imagination can run riot. We had loads of entries to the last challenge, which was lovely, and such high quality entries too. Let's see if we can get lots this time too....
Here is my example.

I used the Blossoms and Butterfly image provided by Paper Pretties, who are one of our sponsors this week. We are also sponsored by Crafty Ribbons. Our first prize winner this time will win a bundle of lovely ribbons from them, and our runner up will win 6 digital images of their choice from Paper Pretties. Come to the blog and see the other design team examples, and join in, we would love to see you.

Quirky Crafts Challenge 12 - Up Up and Away

Set by Caro this time around we have a theme of Up Up and Away (or the sky is the limit). Cutting Cafe, our sponsors for this challenge have given us two sets of digi images to work with. They were all lovely, but I chose the Birthday Balloons from the Up Up and Away set. When I was thinking about what I was going to make for this challenge my head was full of ideas, but my Mojo went Up Up and Away too. I actually started 4 different cards using this stamp, but this was the only one I liked enough to use. I don't quite know what happened with the rest......hey ho! Here it is anyway....

Really brightly coloured to be attractive to kiddies of all ages...... hope you like it.
Come over to The Quirky Crafts Challenge blog and check out the other designers entries ...perhaps have a go yourself??

Quirky Craft Challenge 11 - spots/dots and stripes...

It is Lyn's turn this time around and she has chosen a them of Spots/Dots and Stripes. You can make anything you like as long as it has those elements. We are sponsored by Robyn's Fetish which of course means that there are digistamp images up for grabs for the winners as decided by the Design Team.....Come along and have a go....here's mine using the TooKewlKat digistamp from Robyn's Fetish. I love this one!

Quirky Crafts Challenge - 10 Masculine with Blue and Brown.

Time for a new challenge again. This time it is Caro setting the Challenge and she has decided upon a Masculine theme using Blue and Brown...so quite an easy one I think this time. Our sponsor for this challenge is Paper Pretties, so there is a prize up for grabs.

I struggled to get a decent picture of this card....I don't really know why, I don't usually have any trouble. Even in this one the image looks washed out, which is a shame. It is actually coloured in with Promarkers. Marsh Green and Celedon actually, so not really feint colours....Hey Ho!
Come on over to Quirky Crafts Challenge and enter yourself.

Quirky Challenge 9 2012 - Animal Antics on a wiper card.

My turn to set the challenge again..the time between challenges seems to be going faster and faster!
We have Digital Stamps by Looby Lou sponsoring the challenge this time over at Quirky Crafts Challenge Blog.
Come and join in the challenge and you might win a digistamp vouvher.
Now the challenge itself.....
I want to see animal antics on a wiper card, scrapbook page or a 3d project linked with animals. Here is mine...

Sorry about the glare on the photo, no matter what I did I just couldn't get a photo without it. The pop up part of the wiper is a mirror card scallop oval with Best Wishes on it and some of the flowers from the image. This is my favorite digistamp at the moment, it is from Digistamp Boutique. The flower pot was my addition. The papers are Wild Roses from Pink Petticoat. When I though of animal antics this immediately came to mind because my westie does this all the time. She cant bear to see flowers in pots. She pulls them all out so she can enjoy herself running around the garden with the empty pot over her face....until she crashes into something that is!

Come and check out the challenge...

Quirky Crafts Challenge 8 - Quirky Happy Event (recipe and New Baby or Pregnancy)

New challenge time, this time set by Cazzy. Our sponsors are Stitchy Bear Stamps and we have been given some lovely stamps to work with. I have chosen Baby Cakes.

I decided that I would like to make it into a shaped card, so imported the stamp into my Studio Software and created the outline by tracing, copying, fliping and welding the images. I then printed the image several times and decoupaged it. I have included gingham ribbon ( not the right shade of blue, but all I could find as I am in the middle of a craft room relocation!) and my themed button is the giraffe on the baby cup. it was just the right size!
By the time I next get to use the computer and blog I should (fingers crossed) be properly in the new craft room, hopefully with everything in its place and a new desk built etc....we will see, with Easter and Mine and Dan's birthday this weekend we are going to be busy. Its not only the craftroom to finish, but also Dan's new media room to decorate too.I am exhausted already!
Come on over to Quirky Crafts Challenge and see the other designers examples. Then you can have a go yourself and perhaps win some lovely images?
Hope to see you there

Quirky Crafts Challenge 7 - Its Sketchy

Challenge time again....cant believe how fast it comes around. I am sorting out my craftroom at the moment, it is in a terrible mess and I am climbing over boxes etc just to get to the computer. I have agreed to swoop rooms so that my Son can have more space. He is very into his computers and his bedroom really isn't big enough for him and his kit.....so he is now having my craftroom /office as an adjoining space for him to spread into, and I am trying to relocated to the old dining room. This is not going to be easy!!!
Anyway, you don't want to know all this I am sure....
This is my interpretation of the sketch set by our Lyn over at Quirky Crafts this weekend....

I have used Shery K papers (my favorite at the moment). The lacy mat is cut from a file shared by Monica's Garden, and of course the image is supplied by our sponsor this challenge....Bugaboo. Love their stuff!
Come an join us on the challenge...