52 CCT Pick a Previous Sketch

As there are five Saturdays in the month, we are having a 'Pick a Previous' for this week's challenge at 52 Christmas Card Throwdown.

 

 

I have returned to a sketch from earlier this year, in February.

 

 

 

My card is a sneak peek of a new stamp set arriving at the beginning of September in the new SU Christmas catalogue. It is called Winter Wishes and I love the vintage style ice skates. You get just the one skate stamp, so I masked with a post-it note to make the pair. The background is stamped in Mint Macaron on the same colour of cardstock. I've also added a dusting of snow to the pine branches with a chalk marker. I love stamp sets that have pine needles or cones involved in some way!

 

We hope that you will find lots of inspiration browsing through our archive of sketches. The DT can't wait to see your festive creations! April x



Canine Christmas

 

 

Real housework avoidance strategies being deployed round here! Couldn't resist this cute doggie though. He is a Bugaboo digi (Candy cane Charlie). I have surrounded him with some stamped gold bones (from SU's Hot Diggity Dog) and added some sequins. I have backed him onto a piece of Watermelon Wonder cardstock, which is quite a good Christmassy colour, I think.

 

He is the fourth attempt. The first one I ended up with colour bleeding into his teeth (not a great look), the second time I merrily coloured the candy cane completely red (why??), the third time I did exactly the same thing (aaaargh!!!)

 

Charlie is off to bury his candy cane in Pixie's Snippets Playground (Mustn't let that Parsnip dig it up!)

 

He is also being 'cute and cuddly' at Cards in Envy.

 

Then he is trotting to Catch the Bug for their photo inspiration challenge and CCC Digi Creations for an 'Anything Goes'.

 

Finally curling up and dreaming of golden bones at CHNC - use some gold and CHNC Extra for August.

 

Right, now for some housework (sadly). Have a lovely Bank Holiday weekend, April x

Curly Flower Fairy

I love this Curly Flower Fairy from A Day for Daisies. I really enjoyed colouring her with a mixture of Copics and Pro Markers. I cut the digi out using SU's Lots of Labels Framelits and stuck it to a piece of Heidi Swapp patterned paper. The challenge over at A Day for Daisies is to add sequins. I love sequins - I have sequin dies, sequin stamps and er... sequins. The stamp that I have used here is from Hello Darling - a retired SU set that I had to have because of the sequins! The real ones here are little gold critters from SU's sequin trim.

 

 

Of course, I am also sending my fairy off to the capable hands of Di (and the equally capable paws of Parsnip). I was so delighted that Di chose my card as one of last week's picks. One day I might take a photo of Snippet Mountain. It is so big that it is currently applying to be an E.U. member state. Unfortunately, the application is lost under a pile of patterned paper and inkpads...

 

Here is the link to Di's fabby challenge blog - Pixie's Snippets Playground.

 

Happy crafting! April x



52 CCT Technique Challenge

Julie has a great technique challenge for us over at 52 Christmas Card Throwdown.

 

 

I decided to recreate a folded card that I first made at one of Monica's training days (my SU Granny upline). I have added a couple of ice cream munching snowmen - sneak peeks from a cute new stamp set coming in the Stampin' Up Christmas catalogue. A fellow demo did wonder whether snowmen eating ice cream was a form of cannibalism, which really made me giggle. I have edged the folds with a lovely silver sparkly ribbon that is also from the new catalogue. The snowflake dsp will be appearing there too!

 

We can't wait to see your shaped festive creations. It's so lovely seeing lots more entries each week. Everyone is clearly getting into Christmas production mode! April x



Birthday Blossoms

I am in headless chicken mode today as I have a workshop tonight (last minute preparation? moi?) However, I was determined to get into Pixie's Snippets Playground with this card that I made during a lovely card-making session over at my friend Ruth's house. I have to confess that the snippets used to make the flowers aren't even mine - they are from Ruth's snippet stash! I have combined SU's Birthday Blossoms stamps with a piece of Cherry on Top dsp and a strip of washi tape. I hope you like it! April x

52 CCT Theme Challenge

Our theme challenge at 52 Christmas Card Throwdown is to make a card for a child. I have used a cute freebie digi from a papercraft magazine. I have coloured my Christmas bunny with Promarkers and added some Cosmic Shimmer to his hat. I've also used my SU chevron embossing folder and surrounded him with champagne Glimmer paper stars. The finishing touches are a die-cut bow (from SU's mini treat bag), a pink sequin and a piece of washi tape.





The design team at 52CCT look forward to seeing your Christmas cards every week - I hope that you can join us! April x

Rainy Day Card

Generally in the world of papercraft, I take the view that 'less is more'. Sometimes though, 'more is more', particularly when it's raining and it's going to rain all day. Believe it or not, this card started out as a CAS creation. An enamel dot was used to cover a smudge, then another and then it all just went downhill from there leading to a rather unfortunate embellishment explosion. Added to all that, the lovely girl this card is intended for is about as far removed from being a party animal as it is possible to be. Oh dear!

So this is my last contribution of the week to Pixie's Snippets Playground. I've already scared Parsnip with my dinos and I think this will give him a different kind of fright! :-) (Poor Parsnip!!)

April x

Aloha!

Here is a summery card stamped with SU's Secret Garden - a bit of a blast from the past! I created a simple sponged background combined with a piece of wood-grain embossed card. The letters were die-cut from a suitably 'surfy' piece of patterned paper!

This is my second foray into Pixie's Snippets Playground and I would also like to enter AAA Cards - It's so Hot and Stampin' Celebration Challenge.

April x

Dinosaurs

I love these cute guys with their x-ray style bones! This stamp set is Stampin' Up's No Bones about It and it's one of my favourites from the annual catalogue. I really enjoyed stamping the ferny/footprint background and I have added a banner made from Cherry on the Top dsp.

My dinos are stomping into Pixie's Snippets Playground. I would also like to enter them in Cards in Envy - Birthday Party.

Garden in Bloom Workshop

Join us for a relaxing, summer evening workshop on Friday, 21st August at 7pm.

We will be making three cards and a box to keep them in, using Stampin' Up's Garden in Bloom, a three-step stamp set that creates a lovely, soft watercolour effect. Lots of inspiration and tips will be provided and you are welcome to either follow the example cards or create your own fabulous designs. A variety of sentiment stamps will be provided so that you can tailor your cards to the occasion of your choice.

All card, inks, embellishments and the use of stamps are included in the cost of £12. Please bring your own adhesive.

You will need a strong glue and may wish to use dimensionals. Please let me know when you book your place on the workshop if you would like to pre-order adhesive. Multi-purpose liquid glue is £3.75. Stampin' Dimensionals (300) also cost £3.75. Snail Adhesive is available at a cost of £6.25 (refills are £4.00) and Mini Glue Dots (300) cost £4.75.

All bookings are non-refundable. In the event of being unable to attend the workshop, you will of course receive the materials and instructions required to make all the items that we make during the evening.

Please contact me for any further information and for Bebington venue directions. Hope you can join us!

 

52 CCT Colour Challenge

We have a colour challenge at 52 Christmas Card Throwdown this week.

 

I'm afraid this is rather a simple card this week as my tonsils are playing me up! Just a bit of stencilling with a Penny Black stencil and Real Red and Pistachio Pudding inks. The holly die-cut is a Marianne one and I have added a bow in Cherry Cobbler baker's twine with some red rhinestones for berries. The Noel sentiment is from Clearly Besotted and the washi tape is SU.

 

I'm sure that you will knock our socks off with your red and green Christmas cards. We can't wait to see them! April x

 

I'd like to enter my card in CHNC #241 - Something beginning with S (stencilling!)



A Little Birdie

 

Here is a cute little birdie digi kindly offered by A Day for Daisies. I would like to enter her in ADFD Challenge 127 - Add a Feather. The feathers were stamped using SU's Four Feathers and I've just added some snippets of patterned paper and a piece of chevron ribbon.

 

She is also flitting over the gate into Pixie's Snippets Playground and tweeting hello at Eve, Di and Parsnip!

 

Happy Crafting, April x

52CCT Sketch Challenge

As it is the start of a new month, we have a sketch challenge for you at 52 Christmas Card Throwdown, hosted by Julie.

 

 

As you can see, I've taken a bit of a liberty with the width of my panel on the left - but that is fine! As long as we can recognise the sketch, it's all good. Hopefully by now you will have a tidy pile of Christmas cards all ready for the off!

 

I have chosen a cute digi of a rocking horse from Bugaboo that I have coloured with Promarkers. I stamped the left hand panel with snowflakes in silver and Soft Sky and adhered it to a piece of purple glitter card. The green panel is a Marianne die-cut and the purple bow is a piece of cord from a clothing tag! The sentiment is from SU's Good Greetings.

 

I hope you will be able to join us! April x