Once again time has eluded me. I haven't been lazy as such....I have been busy. In the past week I have made sixty invitations for a 40th birthday party (photos to follow), a Table planner for a wedding (to Match the invitations I did last year), plus other pieces I have been working on which includes the wedding favours for the same wedding, birthday cakes and I have literally just finished baking a Dark Fruit Cake for a 75th Birthday in mid February......letting it mature for a couple of weeks before decorating it. I am also trying to sort out a few other things which I could try now that I am a stay at home mum.....with both kids at school......more to follow.

This weeks challenge from Cupcake Craft Challenges is 3 different card stocks, 2 embellishments and one ribbon.

I been stalking The Greeting Farm recently. I would love to order all the stamps but my purse strings are firming shut at the moment, so I'm going to add them to my wish list (which is getting bigger all the time). Anyway after weeks of looking, and wanting I had to give in, I just couldn't resist this download...she is fabulous....Pretty Head Lily. I have coloured her with water colour pencils and added some white dots to her bow with a white gel pen. I have used ribbon from my stash and brown, cream and pink cardstock, gem stones which I added to her bow and the corner of the pink card, and the brown scalloped circle has been embellished with white peel off stickers. The Teenager description I made on the computer.

Anyone seen the Smirks range of stamps and papers etc yet? I was holding the stamps in my hand yesterday.....they are quirky and fun.....but just didn't do it for me.......I think Sugar Nellie has spoiled me and now these Greeting Farm girls are too coming up smelling of Roses xx

This weeks challenge from the Sugar Bowl is Three - three different patterned papers, three different embellishments and if possiblet three different Sugar Nellie images.

I really enjoyed making this card. The three patterned papers have come from Papermania, Raspberry and Champagne Creative Tones packs, the Sugar Nellie girls I have stamped and watercoloured but added a paper pieced hairband and top to the girl inside. The ribbon, button, self adhesive gems (on the flowers in the corner) and cream cardstock have come from my stash. The scallop edges have been made with a Fiskars scallop edge scissors.

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Over on Roses on Paper, Challenge 3 is a Colour Challenge - To use Grape, White and Evergreen. I found this Challenge by blog hopping and thought I would give it a go.
I have coloured the Sarah Kay image with watercolour pencils and added highlights to her dress with a white gel pen. I have used Grape and Evergreen Bazzill Swiss Dots cardstock to which I added some faux stitching. Ribbon and brads from my stash, and the sentiment is from Craftwork Cards. The little Teddy charm came in a pack of mixed things to make cards, which was given to me at Christmas by my lovely cousin - so Thank you Tracey x

This weeks challenge from A Spoon Full of Sugar is Paper Piecing. I love paper piecing and it seems to work really well with the Sugar Nellie stamps. Maggie is still one of my favourite Sugar Nellies - her dresses are always perfect to paper piece. The papers I have used on this card are from Papermania's Raspberry and Champagne Creative Tones papers. I just love the beige mixed with pink shades. I have added a few self adhesive gems to the flowers and some ribbon from my stash. The sentiment is from Craftwork cards.

This is the card I made for Pink Cat Studio's Lily the Fairy contest. I have used Pink Petticoat background paper, Bazzill Swiss Dots, Sentiment from Craftwork cards, Bazzill purple cardstock, ribbon from my stash. I have coloured Lily with watercolour pencils and highlighted some areas with a silver gel pen. I added spots to the flowers and Lily's dress using a white gel pen. I just had to go one step further and gave her some bling in her ears - tiny self adhesive gem stones!

I made a card for Pink Cat Studio - Lily the Fairy Contest. Lily is offered as a download, but you need to use her to make a card for the contest. I emailed mine off last night, but was thinking this evening that I didnt post it on my blog. Well, I was trying to do it just now, but the photo just wont link to my blog, (it must be corrupted or something) so I going to have to take another picture and hopefully try to post it again.

Also on to bigger news - Whiff of Joy is now taking pre-orders for the Spring collection of Elizabeth Bell stamps. Ok they are not showing you exactly what is in the set, but the sneek preview and knowing that they are coming from Elizabeth Bell......you know you wont be disappointed. They wont be available after the 26th January 2009, so what are you waiting for.....however Katharina is being really generous and giving a full set away to one lucky person - have a look on her blog for all the details on how to get your hands on these stamps.

After taking part in my first Dottie's World Sunday Challenge and receiving the gorgeous Scruff in the Tub image, I am hooked! This weeks challenge is Pure and Simple - no patterned papers just a clean, fresh and simple card.

I have coloured George with water colour pencils and layered him onto some dark blue cardstock. The Number 1 fan sentiment was taken from the Dovecraft Masculine 6x6 papers, red ribbon from my stash and birthday sentiment from craftwork cards.

I am posting early this morning, my little one seems to thrive on no sleep - he doesnt sleep all night and he is 4 1/2 years old - and he then wants to get out of the bed just after five every morning. Still the eldest needs to be at Tae Kwon do in a couple of hours, so its never a dull moment in our house hold.....I will be back to play with Scruff!

While having a look around Blog land today I came across Dottie's World Sunday Challenge. I bought some George images before Christmas but havent had a real play with them yet. I love the challenge they are offering and the reward is even greater - The lovely Scruff in the Tub image (you just have to see it - its fab). The background paper is byCarolee's Creations. The image I have used is one which was already coloured from the George downloads. I trimmed around him so he would sit on my card nicely. I found these golf club peel offs in my stash, so stuck them on and highlighted them with a silver gel pen. The golf balls I did using a woodware circle punch and the Keepsake majestic board. I dry embossed the centre of a flower all over the circle to create dimples in the balls. (I quite like how it turned out too). The sentiment was done on the computer.

I was just about to upload my card for A Spoon Full of Sugar challenge, but just saw I left the sentiment off, so I need to go and do that and then take another picture. But more news about Sugar Nellie Stamps - the GORJUSS stamps will be ready for Pre-order next week - follow the news on the Sugar Nellie Blog. The drawings look super cute so the stamps are just going to be fabulous, I image. There are so many Sugar Nellie stamps I would love to have (but cant afford right now)......but I am going to consider (what is there to consider) getting these GORJUSS girls and I would love to get the Leanne Ellis Blossom, Luvvie and Wish too! I'll add them to my wish list (Hubby take note - Valentines and Wedding Anniversary is just around the corner.....but I would be happy to have my presents earlier)!

The first challenge from The Sugar Bowl is a fabulous sketch. My new years resolution is to make as many boy cards as I do girl cards - I know you just dont use the same pretty papers, but I hardly ever have a boy card to hand when I need one.....always a last minute dash to make one. The background is bazzill card stock which I have paper pricked and added so faux stitching with the gel pen, the star patterned paper is from Dovecraft Designer papers, the check and spotty pieces have come from my stash and the denim pocket is a download from The D.A.I.S.E. Company. I have coloured the image mostly with watercolour pencils, but used a black gel pen to add the darker black areas. The sentiment I did on the computer.

The first tutorial challenge from The Sugar Bowl is paper beads. The challenge is make your creations using Paper Beads. It could be a card, scrapbook page or other crafty project, as long as you use Paper Beads somewhere on.

I have recyled this box which came with some lovely smelling bath salts (christmas gift). I have punched holes in the sides to add a ribbon handle and more holes along the front edge to thread through some organza ribbon from which I hung the ribbon beads and some seed beads. Maggie is wearing a dress which has been paper pieced with Pink Petticoat papers. I have layered her onto some orange cardstock and scalloped the edges with scissors. I have then layered this onto some bazzill bling cardstock (Black Tie). A bit of silver glitzy ric rac from my stash was used to jazz it up a bit more.

This weeks challenge 21 from Cupcake Craft Challenges is Glitter. I am also chuffed because I was named in last weeks Top 5 over on the same challenge blog....how great is that.

I have a stash of brown card to use up at the moment, so expect to see a lot of brown cards coming from me over the weeks. However brown is also one of my favourite colours and I do have a tendency to buy clothes in various shades of browns.

The topper I have used here is one I received before Christmas from the Sugar Nellie Topper swap - It is made using a stamp from Sugar Nellie. I have layered it onto a white square of card which I have paper pricked and added some ribbon (which happens to match her dress). The sentiment is from Designer Digitals. I have used a white gel pen to doodle dots around the edges of the topper and the brown matting. Her wings are glittered and as well as some areas on her dress.

No cards to post today, didn't do any crafting, but the children are back to school tomorrow and my little one will be having his first day at 'big' school....which he is so excited about and I am trying not to think about....I can't believe he has grown up so quickly. I have a recipe for today - White Chocolate Cheesecake. I have made this twice over the holiday season, this is the first one. The second one turned out better, but we had guests over and it kind of disappeared before I could think of taking some pictures.

White Chocolate Cheesecake

Oven 150 degrees Celcius. Greased an base lined 9 inch loose bottom cake tin.

Base - 300g Gingernut (Gingersnaps) Biscuits/cookies crushed and mixed together with 100g melted butter. Press into the bottom of the cake tin.

Filling - 300g melted white cooking chocolate, 600g cream cheese, 200ml double cream, 3 eggs, 1tsp vanilla extract. Whisk together until smooth then pour over the biscuit base.

Bake for approximately 40 minutes until the outer edges of the cheesecake feel firm to the touch but the centre still slight springy. Remove from the oven and slide a knife around the edges of the cheesecake to loosen it from the pan. (It will be easy to remove when cool if you do this now). Allow the cheesecake to cool, then chill for two to three hours, or preferably overnight. Remove from the tin and enjoy.

Katharina is giving away a cute little mouse stamp from her new Party Animals range which was released today on Whiff of Joy. The challenge is to create a card using the sketch on her blog and the lucky winner will be the owner of the cute mouse stamp.

This is the only Whiff of Joy stamp I have (at the moment) but I love it. I decided to try something really different and stamp her on a chip board square. I wasnt too sure how the water colour pencils would take to the chipboard, but I was able to water colour her effectively. the background is the bazzill dots cardstock, which I am loving at the moment too. The image is mounted on a square of stardream silver card. The white lace, and ribbon came from my stash as well as the star confetti. The Life friend stamp is by Studio G Designer clear stamps.

The last challenge of 2008 over on Magnolia Vs Stampavie, is a brilliant sketch and also to go with it a fabulous prize. I only saw this last night, as I have been desperately trying to play catch up and stalking my favourite blogs, now with the flu and christmas out of the way.

I have used Hot of the Press Friends Defintions paper for the bottom of the card, daisy punches with Bazzill dots cardstock and a pearl bead to make the flower, bazzill dots cardstock for the top half of the card and the tab, and ribbon from my stash. I have coloured the Tilda images with watercolour pencils. However not thinking clearly, I attached them to the bazzill dots, background card, before I water coloured them......which meant the surface was all raised and I couldn't get an even covering with the pencils and the water......oh well, will learn for next time.

This weeks challenge over on Cupcake Craft Challenges is Background inspired. The background of their blog is a mixed of Chocolate, Pink and White - Chocolate cupcakes!

I made this card a little while ago but didnt post it as I was keeping it for something else, but then decided I didnt want to use it. The paper is Doodlebug Neopolitan Stripe, Chocolate Cardstock, Chocolate Ribbon, Cupcake stamp from Studio G Clear stamps which I paper pieced. The cupcake has been layered onto Doodlebug Chocolate truffle paper and a Pink Bazill circle which has been embellishment with white peel off dots. The sentiment was done on the computer and edged with scalloped scissors

Happy New Year.....this is my first post of 2009.....
I haven't posted anything over the past weeks. I havent done any crafting at all. My family and I were hit by the dreaded sickness bug and the flu, so we all we really poorly over a period of the past three weeks....we made it through Christmas which was lovely......and we are all free from the flu which is good news. My little one goes of to full time school next week - one half of me wants him to go, he is growing up and its his time to begin his school journey - for me more time to craft but also I need to face reality and start looking for a job too - the other half of me is going to miss him so much - my baby is moving on - I am convincing myself I will be able to fill my day without this little person, who constantly chats and makes jokes and make my day.