The Shabby Tea Rooms Challenge Week # 7

Over on  The Shabby Tea Rooms Blog the challenge was to find inspiration from this gorgeous photo.

The colours and fabrics are very Cath Kidston and Laura Ashley and are the sort of things I love.  Couldn't you just snuggle under one of those quilts on such an awful constant rainy Bank Holiday that we have experienced here in the Essex backwaters.  I did and had an afternoon nap with the sound of the rain pelting at the windows.   Tea and cake at four o'clock as well!  Lovely!

There was only one choice for me and that was to reach for the trusty DCWV Linen Closet.  I used one of the sheets that reminded me of quilting blocks as the background paper.  I stamped one of the stamps from  Justrite Stampers 'Stitched with Love' set for the centre and coloured it with Promarker pens.  The final Nestabilities large oval was cut with another sheet from the Linen Closet.  The folded ribbon, button and pearl are from my stash and the tiny flowers I coloured with the same Promarker pen used on the centre image.  Both flowers are from Wild Orchid Crafts.  I've had to take this photo during the evening so that I can enter the challenge so its very bright with the flash.  If we have some proper sun tomorrow I'll try again.  A little better today with natural daylight.

I would like to enter this in The Shabby Tea Rooms Challenge Week #7

Vintage Card.

I created this card for my good friend and a Red Hatter,  Bubbles.  The vintage image came from The Sum of All Crafts blog which has some pretty amazing vintage images.  The blog was recommended by our Choccy.   Papers are from the DCWV Linen Closet of which I am totally in love with and I've used a page from the matching mat stack.  I've inked the edges with Tim Holtz Antique Linen ink pad and used my trusty SU scallop oval and plain oval punches for the sentiment from Craftwork Cards. Ribbon around the edge is from my stash as are the gems.  If you ever get the chance to travel to the States or Canada, check out the dollar stores as they are brilliant for finding absolute bargains, the large sheet of brown and cream pearls cost me less than 50p as they were in a sale bin.

Dreamy Tilda

I can't remember who sent me this Magnolia image, I think it was npsmama over on the MSE forum.  This is a bit different from my usual stylee but I thought I give it a try and I'm very pleased. 

Background paper is from Pink Petticoat.  I used a Nestabilities Labels One and cut the corners with a Martha Stewart corner punch and the gorgeous Prima Flowers - Tiny Tots that Lou from Creative Card World sent me.   I'd like to enter this card in the

 Creative Card World challenge 4 - Prima Flowers

A quick vintage card

A very quick card for a lovely card maker in the US who retired from our card swap group.  I hope she likes it.  Pink Petticoat paper and an image from Hunkydory's Memory Lane kit.  The sentiment is from Craftwork Cards which sits perfectly on my trusty oval punch from SU.

Birthday Card

There's a lovely lady at work who has just had a significent number birthday.  Happy birthday Lyn.  Lyn has the greenest fingers of anyone I know, if Lyn can't get a seed to grow, well...... no-one can!

The image is from PCCrafter and the papers are from Pink Petticoat I'm loving the silky ribbon I found, it makes the most beautiful bows.

My fab DT friend Oona over on Creative Craft World reminded me about a pink and brown colour challenge, I'd like to enter this card in the
C.R.A.F.T Challenge 47  Pink and Brown

US Card Swap

The theme for my monthly US card swap was April Showers.  The image was especially stamped for me by the fab Rusty over on the MSE forum.  I've used the 'Clouds' range of papers from Pink Petticoat and the sentiment I printed and used the SU oval and scallop oval punches. Rusty had emphasised the rain drops with Diamond Glaze which I thought was fantastic and shows up really well in the photo.

Guest DT member

Phew! It's been one of those weeks where you chew your fingernails wondering whether what you are creating is good enough.  Well, here they are, my two cards for Creative Craft World.

I had a wonderful afternoon in The Range in Colchester last week and bought the beautiful Linen Closet papers from DCWV and Papermania's Rose Garden.

I've used one of the papers from the Linen Closet with a script paper from Pink Petticoat, the snail image is a freebie from the internet with my own comment.  Gorgeous flowers from Prima with such subtle colours. Ribbon and pearls from a dollar store in Canada.  I love receiving real mail and I'm lucky to have a couple of friends who take the time to write.  This card is dedicated to OAP on the MSE forum, she was my inspiration!

                                                                                                                                                                 The paper pad from Papermania reminded me so much of wallpaper from the 50's.  All those big blowsy pink and red roses and satin eiderdowns and real woollen blankets, bundles of letters tied with pink ribbon hidden in a drawer. I had a maiden Aunt who always wore Evening in Paris perfume. These papers are so evocative of those times.  I'm looking forward to using them again on something girly.  Birthday sentiment from Craftwork Cards mounted on the SU 1.3/8" and 1.3/4" round punches bought from the fab Monica's blog over on My Many Many Passions.  I'm a virtual hostess in one of Monica's clubs and a real fan of her creations. Buttons have a tiny pearl popped in the middle seemed to remind me of the buttons on the vest my mother used to keep me in 'til at least the end of May.  I used to get hot and bothered but hear her say "Ne'er cast a clout till May is out".  I still don't know what she meant!

Thank you Lou for the opportunity of creating for Creative Card World and huge thanks to Choccy for holding my hand through the last week.   Why not head over to Creative Card World and become a follower, you could be a winner! You've got to be in it to win it!

How exciting!

I've been chosen to join the fab Design Team as a guest designer for a month over on the Creative Craft World Challenge Blog. It will be an interesting time.

Easter Challenge without a Chocolate Egg

I started the Creative Craft World Easter challenge and then realised that there were no choccy eggs in the house only real lovely local free range ones. So here's my Easter basket with real chickens eggs. The card is meant to sit on the edge of a shelf with the flowers dangling down.

I've used Stampin' Up paper and card stock, flowers on the basket from a dollar store in Canada and I used an SU scallop punch on the edge of the basket. The SU oval and scallop oval punch came in handy for the sentiment on the pillow box. Ribbon and brads from my stash.

I would like to enter these in the Creative Card World Easter Challenge.

Also the Secret Crafter Saturday Challenge

SU Oval and Scallop Oval Punch

Two of the most used punches I have are the oval and scallop oval punches. Whilst blog hopping about all over the place the other night I came across a *tip about using the SU oval punch with Craftwork Cards small sentiments. As I had one of these sentiments to hand I thought I'd give it a try and also use the scallop oval punch as well. I've never had any problems with any of the SU punches, they will cut through the thickest of card stock, here's a couple of photos I took.

* If you come across the author of the tip I found I will gladly acknowledge her.