One Stitch at a Time Challenge 165

This week at One Stitch at a Time, our challenge is ... Make it Stitchy! You've got to use something from the Stitchy Bear shop, and if you want to add some stitching, so much the better! It's a very special week and there're lots of prizes available - check out the challenge blog for full details.

This week I worked with a sweet image from B B Cakes called Flora Fae.

See what I mean about 'sweet'? I coloured the image with Promarkers, and added a faint backgroun with Distress Ink applied with Ink Dusters. I've used Spellbinders dies to cut the image and the mat, and the doily ring used a die from Cottage Cutz. The paper is from Dovecraft's London collection, and although you cn't see it, it's rather prettily glittered. To finish I've used some flowers and pearls from my stash as well as a couple of stick-pins I've had for ages. I know they were a gift from someone online - I suspect someone I bought something from - but it was so long ago, I just can't remember! So, thanks to you, whoever you are.

I hope you can join us this week - take a look at the Stitchy Bear shop - you're bound to find loads of images and papers you'd love to use!

I'd like to enter this card into the following challenges:

Bearly Mine where anything goes,
Passion for Promarkers where anything goes,
As You Like It where they want favourite colour combinations (mine is peach and warm blue. Why? Well, look, it's just gorgeous!)
Milk Coffee where they want us to load on the flowers,
Creative Belli where the theme is 'flowers',
I Love Promarkers where anything goes,
Wags n Whiskers where anything goes,
Sweet Stamping where they want doilies and dies (I've die cut a doily - hope that's ok!)
Crafty Calendar where they want 'blooms and blossoms'.

A Couple More Birthday Cards

I've managed to get a couple more cards photographed, so here they are!

This is an unusual card for me - not least because it's watercoloured! The gorgeous image is from Becky Muir and I printed it out ages ago. I also watercoloured it ages ago - about the time I first got my Aquamarkers. But for various reasons, I never did anything with it and it's languished in a box until recently. I've always loved the image, and I was reasonably happy with the watercolouring although I'm not generally.

So, I cut and matted the image with various Labels 8 Nesties, added some paper from Papermania and a Sizzix die cut finished with some sticky gems, and that's it!

I'd like to enter this card into the following challenges:

Craft Us Crazy where they want us to 'get cutting',
Lady Anne where anything goes,
Crafty Bloggers Network where anything goes.
Sweet Pea Stampers where they want digital stamps,

Now, for the second card, if, by any chance, my daughter is visiting here, she should leave now. No scrolling down, please. (I don't think it's likely she'll visit, but it's a possibility.)

So, now, the other card is for my daughter's 19th birthday.

Of course, this is a Ching Chou Kuik image, and it's been coloured with Promarkers. The stamped image was kindly given to me by a blogging friend ages ago, and I've been saving it for a special occasion!

In the background, I've used some paper I got on clearance from Craft Creations last time I put in a card order. It's really pretty - embossed and foiled too. The other paper is from Papermania.

The die cut is from Cottage Cutz. I'm reasonably impressed with how it's cut the mirriboard here - although it took a lot of passes through my machine. I think the problem I've had before with this die is due to the ejection foam. Attaching the die to the card as I would a 'normal' die doesn't work as the card seems to stretch during the first pass and subsequent passes shave bits off each cut line. Here, I've used eight bits of tape to hold the card securely all round, and I've then run it through with extra shims and at different angles until it seemed to be cut. Even so, there are a couple of areas where the paper behind the mirror finish wasn't completely cut, but I've managed to finish that by hand.

I'd like to enter this card into the following challenges:

Forever Friends where they want animals/butterflies or birds,
Hanna and Friends where anything goes,
Moving Along with the Times where it's 'Only Girls Allowed',
Flutterby Wednesday where it's an open challenge.

Crafty Cardmakers Challenge 84

This Crafty Cardmakers challenge is hosted by my team-mate Kylie, and she says, 'I would like to see a challenge that incorporates "Vintage Love". Your project must be vintage and show at least one object that reminds people of love. Perhaps a picnic basket, gold locket, love letter, etc.' Here are some photos for inspiration.

I've got to say that vintage isn't my favourite style, but I raided my stash of digital images and came up with an image and paper from the Crafty Image Emporium CD which I've had for several years but used less often that I would have thought, and I came up with this:

I altered the image in Photoshop Elements, removing the background and adding one of the digital papers from the CDrom. (I had to do that to make the image fit a circular format!) I sized it for my circle nesties, added the text, and printed on glossy photo paper. I matted using a scallopped nestie, and then used one of my Christmas presents - a doily die from Cottage Cutz - and backed that with a circle cut with my Martha Stewart circle cutter.

I printed more of the same design paper, this time onto matte photo paper, and cut that, and the bits for the easel card using my circle cutter. The doily die I used cuts two separate shapes, so I've used the smaller doily on the base, and finished with a sticky gem and a locket and key die cut set.

I hope you can join us this time.

I'd like to enter this card into the following challenges:

Die Cutting Divas where anything goes,
Party Time Tuesday where anything goes,
Shopping Our Stash where they want red/love/hearts/valentines
Tuesday Alchemy where anything goes,
Crafty Calendar where the theme is 'love and marriage',
Lady Anne's where anything goes,

Di's Digis where the theme is valentines/love,
One Stop Craft where anything goes,
Sugar Creek Hollow where the theme is 'romantic love',
Card Makin' Mamas where 'they're in the mood for love',