Christmas again...

Last week I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw that I had won a Guest DT spot at the Die Cut Dreams Christmas Challenge blog.  What an honour and complete surprise that really made my day.  I really do love making Christmas cards and it doesn't matter how many stamps I have I just can't resist buying more.  However, the stamp I've used to make this card and matching gift tag is so old that I can barely see the design on the wood mount.  It still stamps okay though and that's what really matters.

As you may have already guessed Die Cut Dreams are asking everyone to create a card and matching gift tag.  I must admit I do like to do this for special people so it's nice to have one ready in my box for next Christmas.  Eeek it's only February!

Materials used...

•  Snowflake ornament stamp by All Night Media 926J
•  Marianne die cut circular frame
• CD - yes behind the frame is a CD.  I really like the effect.  It reminds me of the little mirrors they used to sew on clothing.  (in the days of my hippy youth)
• gorgeous black and white snowflakes swirl patterned card by Kanban
• black, red and silver mirri card
• Swiss dots embossing folder 
• black organza ribbon
• large Sizzix tag die
• Black sentiment peel off

Additional Challenges...

• Winter Wonderland - It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas (well it is on my blog anyway!)
• Bah! Humbug! - Use a CD
• Stamp Something - something funky - hmmmmm think having a CD on is funky and the lettering is so reckon I can enter this.

Have a fantastic weekend everyone.  I'm scheduling this to post in the morning and right now I'm off to watch a soppy DVD - 'Letters to Juliet'.  I've seen so many trailers for this - hope it's as good as it looks.

Ann xxx

Bah! Humbug! Day ... Using CDs...

Phew, just had a very busy week at work so I've had to snatch an odd hour here and there to take part in our great new challenge at Bah! Humbug!  This week we are asking everyone to be creative using CDs or even create something to hold a CD gift.  Tons of scope in this theme and I can't wait to see what everyone comes up with. 

For my first project I decided to use a CD on the front of my card.  Love the reflective shine even if it is horrendous to get a good photo of. 

Materials used...

• Holly face rubber stamp by American Art Stamps - Paula Best design
• green corrugated card
• green mirri card and holly printed mirri card
• silver peel offs
• die cut spiky circle - Nellie Snellen die
• silver brads
• Promarkers

Additional challenges...

• Rainbow Lady - Use and old CD
• Cute Card Thursday - Shiny Happy Cards
• Fab's Big Christmas Card Challenge - Use Peel offs

My second project has been a nightmare to complete and I'm not very happy with it at all.  It just went so astray from my original idea, but oh well these things happen.

I bought an CD clock with 80s graphics on it's face from one of the Pound shops in Leeds some time back intending to alter it.  I thought it would be a relatively easy task - hmmm think again!  My original plan was to have a pink and silver theme so off came the red second hand, which is a bit of a shame seeing as I ended up using red in my design.

Another sad thing was that as the face of the clock was already so patterned I couldn't use take advantage of the mirror quality of a CD.  I did try to dismantle the clock with the aim of adding a blank CD, but I hadn't got the right tools.  Sigh, the only thing I could do was use the CD as a base and cover it with papers. 

Materials used...

• Joanna Sheen House Mouse stamps
• Nellie Snellen dies
• white card, silver and red card
• Promarkers
• self adhesive gems
• computer generated sentiment

I'm not happy with the finished clock at all and if I were starting again I would do the whole thing completely differently, but we learn by our mistakes and I do think that part of the fun of crafting is trying new things and experimenting. 

Additional challenges...

• My Time to Craft - Going round in circles
• Papertake Weekly - Putting on the glitz
• City Crafter - Cute Stuff
• A Spoonful of Sugar - Anything but a card.
• Totally Stampalicious - use some glitter or bling on your card

Have a wonderful Friday everyone and do pop over to Bah! Humbug! to check out the challenge for yourselves.  Max has found some fantastic links to tutorials for making all kinds of things using CDs.  I think I'm going to try some of them out myself this weekend. 

Ann xxx

Special Card for a very Special Friend...

Yeah as well as being Valentine's day Monday was also my fab friend Max's birthday.  Ooooooooooh the stress of creating a card for someone who is not only special, but a talented crafter too.  You wouldn't believe how many false starts and changes of mind I had when doing this card.  I must admit that when finished I was proud of my work though ( a rare occurence as I usually think something is not quite right) and as Max loved it too all is well.  It was definitely not a card that would fall off the mantleshelf in the slightest breeze.

Materials used...

• elegant lady rubber stamp from a grab bag collection bought many years ago from Frantic Stamper.
• silver mirri die cut frame by Marianne topped with extra swirl using a Spellbinder die
• pink and silver mirri patterned tartan by Kanban with matching pink card
• silver mirri die cut corners by Spellbinder
• black card and silver mirri card
• black organza ribbon and tiny black gems for the lady's jewels
• Promarkers to colour
• 8.5 x 8.5 square gatefold card base

I even did the inside - eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeek!!!

The verse is from Hallmark Card Studio and the silver mirri trimmed border was made using an Xcut border die.

My special card is also for the following challenges...

• The Cuttlebug Spot - Gatefold cards (no cuttlebug folders used but the die cut frame and corners are embossed)
• Pollycraft - Special Birthdays

Off to work on my Bah! Humbug! project now as it's very nearly Friday again.

Love and hugs

Ann xxx