I have been a very bad blogger!!!!

I have to apologise for not being very consistent with my blogging this year.  It is so hard to believe that it is March already.  Since Christmas I have been distracted from my business as my father is very ill fighting cancer.  At the moment he is doing ok.  This is not going to be an easy time and I have thought about taking time off but I think that I need the distraction.  I have always said that cardmaking is my sanity escape so now would probably be the worst time to take a break.  I will however only be posting occassionally as I get spare time.  Thank you to those of you who have enquired about my absence.

This is a card that we made a few weeks ago in class. 

Card stock:   Cherry Cobbler, Soft Suede, Very Vanilla

Ink:  Cherry Cobbler, Soft Suede

Stamps: A Word For You, En Francais

Accessories: Elegant Bouquet Embossing Folder, Blossom Party Dies, Boho Blossom Punch, Daubers

Wedded Bliss

I have always admired teh Word Play set and I finally got it so looking forward to creating with this one.  I had a quick play and this is a simple wedding card that popped into my head.  I have used Basic Black and Vellum.  The vellum was run through the Big Shot using the Vintage Wall embossing folder.  You can't see it in the photo but I sprayed the Vellum with Champagne Mist Shimmer Paint and it looks great.  I used the scallop circle punch and the 1 3/8" circle punch and added a clear Rhinestone brad just above the O in Do.  Add a bit of white grosgrain ribbon and a quick card done in about 10 - 15 minutes - got to love that!

Been A Long Time

Wow, I can't believe that I haven't posted since Deccember 17th!!  It is now February.  We had a wonderful holiday firstly in Port Stephens and then my hustband and I went to Hawaii for a week.  That was absolutely awesome and I highly recommend it as a wonderful holiday destination.  We came back so relaxed and I think I still have a little "Holiday Head" going on.  It has been harder to get back into it all than I thought. 

Classes started back this week and it was so good to catch up with most of you.  I look forward to seeing everyone that couldn't make it soon.

The first card was designed for Valentines Day as it is just around the corner.

The colours are Real Red and Sahara Sand with patterned paper from the Bold Brights pack.  I just love the Owl punch and we also go to use the Punch Bunch stamp set from the Sale-a-bration Catalogue.  The hearts are from the Heart to Heart punch and the words are from Short & Sweet.

This card is the same layout as the first but looks completely different.  the colours are Rich Razzleberry and River Rock with Very Vanilla.  The papers are from the Bold Brights DSP pack.  The stamp is from Friends Never Fade and we used the Markers to ink up the stamp.  The River Rock layer was stamped with the flourish from Baroque Motifs which is ann old favourite.  Add a bit of Rich Razzleberry ribbon and a Clear Rhinestone and there you have it.

These were both quick and simple cards as we all had a lot of chatting to catch up on. 

Dasher and Dancer

Most afternoons I have my two little "lions" sitting on either side of my steps reflecting on their day and enjoying the afternoon breeze.  Each year I try to add some new christmas lights and some sort of decoration to my collection.  This year I saw these gorgeous reindeer and tried to resist.  I managed for several weeks but yesterday whilst driving my car somehow managed to get to Parramatta on its own and before I knew it I was parked outside the Christmas Warehouse!!  Now I don't know how that happened but who am I to fight fate, so I thought, if they are there I will have to have them.  Well it was obviously meant to be  as not only were there a few left but they had been marked down - bonus!!
I rushed home and set up Dasher and Dancer and just as I went to take the photo, one of my little "lions" came out to take up his post.  He was a little miffed and certainly gave me a look of disgust as his possy was gone and some strange creature had taken over.  I will have to teach him some Christmas spirit.

I want to take this chance to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas and a safe and Happy New Year.  A huge thank you to everyone who has attended my classes throughout the year and best wished to all that take the time to pop in and look at my blog.
If you are travelling please stay safe and I hope you have time to relax and enjoy special moments with your family and friends. 
I am sure that Santa will visit each and everyone of you as you have all been excceptionally good all year and that you experience a little of the magic that Christmas brings.
2011 is just around the corner and I hope that the year ahead is full of happy times and pleasant surprises.  I am looking forward to catching up with everyone and hearing how you all spent the festive season.

MERRY CHRISTMAS AND HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!!!

Peek - A-Boo

This was just a quick card I put together using one of the little characters I created whilst playing with my new toy.   I have punched out a circle from the front of the card and the owl is acutally stuck to the inside of the card.  The papers are from the Celebrations pack.  The colours are Bashful Blue, Pacific Point. Real Red and Pear Pizazz.  The words are from Curly Cute which was a late addition to my modest (ha, ha, I wish) stamp collection.

My Alfred Hitchcock moment

Birds, birds and more birds!  There are greater powers working here to make me get over my bird thing.  Hopefully this will be it and I can move on.   These were made at the last class of the year which was sad but I was ready for a break and can't wait to come back refreshed and ready to hear everyones holiday stories. 

This was created using the Punch Potpourri Level 1 Hostess Set with a little EnFrancais and Medallion background stamps.  The colours are Bashful Blue and Chocolate Chip which I love together.

I have to thank my friend Kez (thanks Kez) for getting me hooked on the Owl punch but you have to admit that even though it is a 'bird' he/she can be very cute.       I say he/she as you can create so many different personalities with this punch it is amazing.  I have to admit I have had hours of fun creating different characters with this one. 

The colours are Pacific Point, Marina Mist, Real Red and Whisper White.

Christmas Tree Lantern

One of my lovely customers sent me a link to a very talented lady called Danielle Daws.  Sorry I haven't linked you directly to her positing but if you look on the right hand side for Christmas Tree Box you will be taken to the posting.

I absolutely loved what she and her very handy hubby had created so just had to make one.  The solid tree in the photo is how the template turned out.  I was lucky enough to have a play day so I actually made a few and enlarged the template to get different sizes.  Knowing how much I love Christmas I couldn't help but wanting to take this further.  I then had a thought that wouldn't it look great with windows and a flickering candle inside.  No you don't need to imagine burning curtains, fire alarms and fire fighters rushing in! - a battery operated tea light candle. 

I enlarged the tree to 130 percent and cut out windows and inserted vellum.  This size makes the base large enough to put a tea light candle in.  They look so good at night time. 

The larger candle was rolled with So Swirly and Silver ink which sadly has retired but you just have to have silver with Christmas.  I added some Rhinestones which are on page 140 of the catalogue and can be missed so easily as they are not displayed very well but are a MUST have.

Thanks Danielle for the inspiration and what a great hubby you have for drawing up the template. 

Watercolours

Watercolouring can be so much fun and this little set is just right for this technique.  We used Every Moment which is on page 72 of the catalogue and can be easily missed - I know I missed it the first few dozen times I flicked through my catalogue.  The colours are Chocolate Chip, Rose Red, Sahara Sand and Watercolour paper.  We used the Aqua pens to "paint" the image and of course we had to add a little Dazzling Diamonds that unfortunatley don't show up too well in this photo.  Both the butterfly and flower centre dazzle.

What is going on with me lately - another bird!!!!  This is also part of the Every Moment set.  The colours are the same as the card above and the words are from Elements Of Style.

To give the non watercolour lovers a break we also did this quick but effective card inspired by the Catalogue.  By simply changing the colours and embelishments you can adapt this card to be either male or female orientated or adult to child very easily.  This one is done in Pear Pizzaz, Concord Crush and Whisper White.  We used the Polka Dot embossing folder a punch or two, a bit of ribbon and some bling and there you have it, quick, simple but effective.

I have done this in several colour schemes and also used the layout for several Christmas cards but unfortunately I can't find the photo's I took before I gave them out!  That's what happens when you don't do things immediately.  Maybe Santa will bring me a personal organisation fairy!  Fingers crossed!

Fast and Fabulous Gift Set

This was a little Card Set we created to either keep on hand for those last minute occassions or to give away as a gift for someone special.  The stamp set is one of my favourites but sadly it isn't one that you can buy as it is a Level 2 Hostess Set but even better you can earn it for FREE!!!   All you need to do is  host a workshop with a few friends and you could not only get this set for free but also earn $60 in free spend.  Now there is a great reason to get some friends together.
The folder is made from Soft Suede.  The other colours are Whisper White, Old Olive and Rich Razzleberry.  We made 4 cards with co-ordinating envelopes.  The cards were kept generic so they can be used for many occassions.  We used Rich Razzleberry and Old Olive grosgrain ribbon and the scallop trim border punch.  The stamp set is a 2 Step stamping set so we all got loads of practise using the Stamp-a-ma-jig so everyone should be an expert using this now.

Missing In Action

I have so many things to post to catch up but have been crazy busy lately and unfortunately my blog site has suffered.  Hopefully I will get to post a heap of photo's later next week.  Thanks for checking in.