Papers and Cakes and anything Baked....A journey through life's little pleasures!

2012-01-08T13:18:00.008Z

Happy New Year everyone. This is my first post for the New Year and hopefully the first of many! I have made a card - the first in ages.....but I have been baking (see below)!!! The challenge over at Secret Crafter this week is Let them eat cake and this layout comes from the fantastic sketch over on Sweet Stop Sketch challenge Blog.

The papers I have used here come from Milson & Co range (free pad with Papercraft Essentials Magazine), the cute little image came free from Sliekje Digi Stamps and the sentiment is from Stampin up. The image has been coloured with promarkers and I used a fiskars border punch for the edging. Black and pink cardstock from my stash!!

Now onto the baking. I spotted a pull apart Lemon cake on Pin Interest via here. I have changed the recipe slightly as the dough was far too sticky, so I added the flour differently.

I am not sure if I would call it a cake - I am thinking its more like bread, so I am going to call mine Pull apart Lemon Bread!! The smell when it is cooking is just fantastic and it simply just pulls apart - all the slicing is done before it is cooked. Also I was unsure if actual plain flour would work with yeast and would it rise (but it did), I am guessing that strong bread flour, would give it a different texture. I didnt use an expensive brand of plain flour either (er cough Aldi for 52p).

Being desperate to try it out yesterday, am visually thinking I had all the ingredients I started out by getting the flour, yeast etc all mixed and ready. However when it came to adding the vanilla, I discovered I didn't have any - so I used a coconut flavoured one instead. I also only had two lemons instead of three, but it did have a lovely lemon taste with a hint of coconut - but will definitely use 3 next time. It was the softest, tastiest bread and even the ends were tasty. Mine is looking a bit extra brown (didn't hinder the taste) because after 20 minutes when I was supposed to have covered it in foil - I discovered I didn't have any foil either!!! I then had to hope it would be cooked quickly - it did - within 30 minutes. To top it all off - the bread came out of the oven, it had moments to cool before the first slices were pulled of and comments were made how good it tasted - only this morning I realised I never poured the icing over the bread - so I am so going to have to make this again!!

The sliced bread risen and filled with lemon and sugar

The cooked Loaf

The inside with flecks of lemon and orange zest.

Pull Apart Lemon Coffee Cake (Bread)

Sweet Yeast Dough

2 3/4 cups plain flour plus some extra

1/4 cup granulated sugar

2 1/4 teaspoons (1 envelope) instant yeast

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/3 cup milk

2oz unsalted butter

1/4 cup water

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

2 large eggs

Lemon Sugar Filling

1/2 cup granulated sugar

Zest of three lemons

1 tablespoon finely grated orange zest

2 oz unsalted butter, melted

Tangy Cream Cheese Icing

3 oz cream cheese, softened

1/3 cup icing sugar

1 tablespoon milk

1 1/2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

Make the dough:

Heat the butter and the milk together until the butter melts. Set aside to cool slightly. While it is cooling Mix the flour with the yeast and the sugar and salt in a large bowl. Add the water to the milk mixture and stir in the vanilla extract

Pour the milk mixture over the flour and stir until combined. Mix with an electric mixer at low speed and add the eggs one at a time, mixing each egg until it is combined.

Sprinkle the dough with 2 tbsp of flour and knead it with a dough hook for 3 minutes. The dough will be sticky but should become soft and smooth from the kneading. Leave the dough in the bowl, cover it with plastic wrap, and let it rise in a warm place 45-60 minutes or until doubled in size.

Mix the sugar, lemon zest, and orange zest. It will draw out the citrus oils and make the sugar sandy and fragrant.

Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C). Grease a 9″x5″ loaf pan or spray it will baking spray

Forming the loaf: Deflate the dough with your hand. Add flour by the tablespoon as necessary, kneading it to incorporate the flour so the dough is soft enough to roll out on floured surface into a 20″ by 12″ rectangle.

Melt the butter and use a pastry brush to thickly coat the dough with the melted butter

Use a pizza cutter, or a sharp knife to cut the dough crosswise in five strips, each about 12″ by 4″ (it might not be this exact size, but try to make the five strips be equal sizes). Sprinkle 1 1/2 tablespoons of the lemon sugar over the first buttered rectangle and gently press the sugar in. Top it with a second rectangle, sprinkling that one with 1 1/2 tablespoons of lemon sugar as well. Continue to top with rectangles and sprinkle, so you have a stack of five 12″ by 4″ rectangles, all buttered and topped with lemon sugar.

Slice this new stack crosswise, through all five layers, into 6 equal rectangles. Carefully transfer these strips of dough into the loaf pan, cut edges up, side by side. it might be a little roomy, but the bread will rise and expand after baking. Loosely cover the pan with plastic wrap and let the dough rise in a warm place until puffy and almost doubled in size, 30 to 50 minutes.

Bake the loaf for 20 minutes and then check to make sure that top isn't browning too quickly. If it is, just cover the top of the loaf with tinfoil and continue baking for a further 10 to 20 minutes until the loaf is golden and cooked. (Mine took 30 minutes in fan assisted oven) When done, transfer to a wire rack and let cool in the pan for 10 to 15 minutes.

Make the cream cheese icing. Beat the cream cheese and icing sugar together until smooth, then add the milk and lemon juice. Stir until creamy and smooth. Spread over the warm bread. Enjoy

2011-12-29T09:32:00.003Z

It's the season to be baking - tra la la la la, la la la la!!! Christmas cakes, mince pies, cupcakes.....baked, decorated and eaten - well I still have one undecorated Christmas cake in the cupboard, but since everyone has consumed a years worth of calories in a matter of days, I think the Christmas cake will stay put for a while yet.

The one thing which one of my sons always ask for at Christmas is a baked cheesecake.....which we all like....... but every Christmas?? This year to incorporate several likes, I made a trio of desserts, baked cheesecake with berries, chocolate brownies with ice cream and a brandy-snap with white chocolate mousse. (The ice cream I bought, but everything else was made at home including the slightly tangy berry sauce).

Now brandy snaps has to be the most fiddly things to make!!! I made two at a time, and made just enough for one each - no there was none for seconds - I just couldn't devout the patience! The brownies were simple and easy to make and the cheesecake was just as easy and there was plenty of left overs which disappeared by the 27th!!

The picture shows a huge portion, but we all had a half a portion of brownie and cheesecake after our Christmas dinner - I couldn't cut the brandy snap down!!

Today.....I have an urge to bake.......but I think the hubby would have a fit if I produce anything sweet for the next few weeks lol - ooh but anything savoury would make him happy so mini smoked salmon frittatas and quiche for the boys will make everyone happy!

Vanilla cupcakes for School Christmas Party

2011-12-05T09:35:00.004Z

December crept in rather quickly........as we found out on Thursday morning when the youngest son got out of bed......to no advent calendar!!!!!! Okay it was a mix of getting one later, having a look at some upmarket ones online but then deciding against it and then of course realising on Thursday morning that we hadn't actually got any!!! We duly explained to a the younger son that he would be getting his after school as dad was off work and would go and get him one.........only to find by that evening..........we couldn't actually even buy one in our town!!!

Not wanting to make younger son think that he would be the only child without an advent calendar.....I told him (without thinking) that I would make him one after he had gone to bed and he would then be able to open up two windows the next morning.........he of course went to bed rather excited and very happy.

At eight thirty on Thursday night, I was beginning to wonder why I had even opened my mouth to suggest I would make him one and even more so......to start making one after eight thirty at night!!!! Having searched through my stash and a little help from Google......sour cream packets were born!!

I had some thick pearl A4 papers from Crafters Companion. I cut each sheet into four equal size rectangles, used some double sided tape to glue together two of the sides, trimmed with some fiskars scallop edge scissors, and finished of with a punched hole at the top and bit of fuzzy wool and a line of string and paper clips to hang it. Numbers generated on the computer and punched out using a circle punch.

By midnight it was all assembled........I managed to find two treats for days 1 and 2 and the advent calendar was ready. He wasn't to know the other packets were empty......until a mad dash to the shops on Friday afternoon!!

The next morning.....the facial expression said it all.......he was so pleased with the "world's biggest advent calendar"............we have to meticulously take down each one and he takes out the treat, then it has to be hung back up.............it is his biggest pride and joy!!!

I am going to showcase this on Make it Monday.........for all the hours it took.........it still goes to show how a little paper, tape and imagination can bring happiness to someone.

2011-11-28T20:26:00.004Z

It's pie season - pumpkin pie, mince pies - you name it, its in some kind of pie at this time of the year! This week I have baked whoopie pies - they went to the schools cake sale for the girls book club and on the weekend (yesterday), our first batch of mince pies!! These have to be the poshest mince pies - sweet shortcrust pasty, topped with a Viennese biscuit topping, so they are light, buttery and crisp. I found the recipe in a Bella magazine about 15 years ago (the piece of paper is so scrawny and thin now) but they are definitely the best!! The original recipe did have some covered in marzipan - but my hubby has a nut allergy so definitely a no go and who cant resist a buttery biscuit????

Recipe:

Makes 16 large (muffin pan) or 30 small (mini muffin pan)

Pastry:

80z plain flour

4 0z butter

1 tablespoon sugar

1 medium egg (beaten)

Viennese Topping

6 oz butter (softened)

1 1/2 oz icing sugar

6 oz plain flour

1/2 tsp baking powder

Filling : 1 lb mincemeat (the sweet fruit kind - Tesco (UK) finest with Brandy and Port is fantastic)

Method

Preheat the oven to 190C/375F/Gas Mark 5

To make the pastry - sift the flour into a bowl and rub in the butter until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. Stir in the sugar, then mix in enough egg to make a firm dough. Knead the dough on a lightly floured surface for about a minute until smooth. Wrap the dough in cling film and chill in the fridge for a minimum of 30 minutes.

To make the Viennese topping: beat together the butter and the icing sugar until pale and fluffy. Sift over the flour and the baking powder and beat in. Spoon the mixture into a piping bag fitted with large star nozzle.

Roll out the pastry thinly and cut to the approximate size of the muffin hole using a cutter. Line the muffin tins with the pastry circle and divide the mincemeat between the pastry lined tins.

Pipe the Viennese topping over the mincemeat in swirls then bake for approximately 20 minutes until golden.

Remove from the oven and allow to cool for a few minutes in the tins. Remove from the tins and place on a cooling rack. Serve warm or cold.

The pies will keep for up to 5 days if stored in an airtight container.

2011-11-21T20:19:00.006Z

Warm days, cold days, warm days, cold days........what's up with the weather????? Everyone seems to have been coughing, sniffing and sneezing over the past weeks and for the past four days, I have found myself in the same boat!

The queues in the shops are beginning to increase.....stressed out people in car parks trying to find a park as close to the shop as possible.....oh how I remind myself why I like the internet at this time of the year!!!

After a run of no baking - its the last thing you need to do when you're sniffing - I had to bake the guys something yesterday.......they look forward to the creations that come out of the kitchen and at least I get feedback!! A roulade means not much handling with the hands (the biggest passer on of the cold), or should I say not much touching with the hands, because its covered with paper for rolling up too.

This went down a treat last night..... by nine o'clock, hubby and middle son was eating their third slice each (I know....... alright for some) - Chocolate roulade with white chocolate and raspberry filling.

Chocolate Roulade

Oven temperature 180 degrees Celcius, 23 x 33 baking tray greased and lined with baking paper (or a rectangular roasting tin of the same size :) )

For the cake:

175g caster Sugar

6 large eggs

200g dark chocolate (I used 45 % cocoa content)

For the filling:

200 ml extra light double cream (Elmlea has half the fat of other brands)

150g white chocolate

150g fresh raspberries

To make the cake:

Melt the dark chocolate and allow to cool. Separate the eggs into to large mixing bowls. Make sure the egg whites go into a bowl which is grease free other wise they will fail to whisk. Whisk the egg whites until thick and forming soft peaks (if you turn your bowl upside down they should stay in the bowl), then in another bowl, whisk together the egg yolks and the caster sugar until pale, thick and creamy.

Fold the chocolate into the egg yolk mixture using a large metal spoon, being careful not to knock the air out of the mixture.

Add two large spoonfuls of egg white to the chocolate mixture and fold in using the large metal spoon, until all traces of the egg white have disappeared. Then fold in all of the remaining egg white - be patient - be gentle - you are making a sponge!!

Pour the mixture into the prepared tin and tilt the tin gently to ensure that the mixture reaches the corners of the tin.

Place in the oven and cook for 15 to 20 minutes until well risen. The top should appear slightly crisp.

Remove from the oven and leave to cool completely in the tin. Don't worry it is suppose to sink!

For the filling:

Melt the white chocolate and allow to cool. Once cool, pour in the cream and whisk together until soft peeks have formed.

Assembling the Roulade:

Turn the roulade out onto a sheet of baking paper. You can either sprinkle caster sugar or icing sugar on the paper first (I didn't). Leave about an inch on the short side closest to you, free of cream, Spread the cream over the rest of the cake and then dot with the raspberries.

Use a knife to make a shallow cut along the 1 inch piece of cake (which you have left cream free). This will make it easier to roll. Using the paper to help, roll up the roulade.

I have finished mine of with shaving of white chocolate scattered along the top.

2011-10-31T09:49:00.003Z

Happy Halloween!!

It's the last day of October, and I am beginning to detest the fact that as of tomorrow we will be saying "It's Christmas next month!!!" Don't get me wrong - I love Christmas - the preparation, the shopping (as long as its over the internet), the gift wrapping, and preparing and cooking a Christmas meal and anything else festive, but Christmas has really crept up on me far too quickly this year. ahhhhh!!

This weeks Challenge over on Crafting When we can is Halloween/and or Anything but a Card, Secret Crafter is Spooky or Whimsical, My Mum's Craft Shop Challenge is Spooktacular, and Dream Valley Challenges is Anything Goes, so I am entering the card below in all of these.

Our youngest was invited to a Halloween party on Saturday which was perfect as I also made the cupcakes too for the party. The image on this card which is perfect for boys was free from Dustin Pike and the Halloween papers from Shery K Designs. The spider I found on some clipart and the sentiment I made on Acme Labelmaker.

Oh I so enjoyed decorating these cupcakes - the bloodstained eyeballs, the mummies and these piped chocolate spider webs turned out beautifully and I hope the kids enjoyed them too.

2011-10-27T14:32:00.003+01:00

It's soooooo wet today. The rain has been pouring since we got out of bed and hasn't stopped. However this makes it a good day for sorting - much to the kids dismay!!! Bedrooms have been de-cluttered and de-junked!!!

Today I am showcasing some invitations I have started making for a very special couple - my in-laws will be celebrating their 50th Wedding Anniversary in December and I am on a mission to make the invitations and get them in the post by the end of tomorrow so they will arrive in St Helena by the end of November (I hope).

Now as any St Helenian will know.....Cheese straws are featured highly at any party, or gathering within a St Helenian community. These fingers of crispy cheesy pastry are addictive....I mean once you start on them......the only point at which you can stop picking at them is when they are all gone. From a bakers point of view.......bake them when you're home alone and have lots of spare time........you will at least have some time to savour your effort.....before they disappear and you're left with nothing but the washing up!!!

Recipe

Preheat the oven to 150 degrees C/300 degrees F/Gas Mark 2

8 oz/225g Mature Cheddar Cheese grated

2 oz/50g butter

4 oz/110g Self Raising flour

1 egg beaten

pinch of salt

cayenne pepper or paprika (amount depends of level of spiciness)

Beaten egg for glazing

Method

Rub the butter into the flour until it resembles fine breadcrumbs

Stir in the salt and the Cayenne pepper or paprika

Stir in the grated cheese making sure the cheese is distributed in the flour

Add the beaten egg gradually to form a firm dough.

Wrap in Cling-wrap and chill in the refrigerator for 30 minutes or longer

After 30 minutes roll out the dough on a lightly floured surface to about 1/2 cm (half cm) thick. (It may be easier to cut the dough and roll out in small quantities).

Using a knife or pizza cutter, cut the dough into straws measuring approximately 10 cm by 1 cm

Arrange the straws on a baking tray with a gap between each. Brush with beaten egg and bake for approximately20 minutes until golden.

Remove from the oven and leave on the tray to cool (They will crisp on the tray as it cools). Removing them too soon from the tray will mean chewy cheese straws!!!!

They are sooo time consuming to make......but so worth the effort.

According to my seven year old try makes practice - not practice makes perfect!!!

Yesterdays Baking - Cheesy Monkey Bread (Delicious with Soup)

2011-10-25T21:15:00.002+01:00

It's half term holidays.....which should mean time to craft and time to bake....but it seems my week has already been preplanned with college trips and days out so I am going to have to squeeze in some time to craft and bake!!

A couple of weeks ago I made these little chicken and leek pies with a hint of chilli (got to have chilli) and home made shortcrust pastry. They went down a treat in the house, and they were just as tasty when reheated the next day.

2011-10-17T09:56:00.003+01:00

Halloween is just around the corner and the shops are full of orange and black things and appropriately a lot of the challenges around at the moment is focusing on Halloween. Cardmakinmamas, One Stop Craft Challenge and Everybody Art Challenge are all hosting a Halloween challenge at the moment!

This is a real digi card this week - the image, sentiment and papers are all digi and they were free - only the black, orange and white card stock, lace and ribbons are from my stash.

This gorgeous little image is this weeks freebie at Bugaboo Stamps and was brilliant to colour with promarkers and a white gel pen. The "Boo" papers came from Shery K Designs - I recoloured it orange before printing. The patterned paper at the bottom of the card came from The Background Fairy and they are all FREE!!! The sentiment was made on Acme Label Maker!

It was national chocolate week last week - so I was told.....but hey not many people need an excuse to eat chocolate!!! This was the boys weekend treat - a chocolate cake, filled with chocolate Ganache, covered with ganache and lots of maltesers, white and milk chocolate buttons and these brilliant orange flavoured chocolate buttons. To finish it all off a big band of a darker shade of milk chocolate (yes that's what it's called from in Aldi)

2011-10-10T10:25:00.003+01:00

The cold weather has come with a vengeance - the wind is reminding us that it is Autumn after all! Winter woollies, and homemade soups are going to be featuring quite highly in our house in the coming weeks, as we try to banish the sniffles and colds!!

This weeks challenge over at The Sugar Bowl is a sketch by Gayle along with a picture of her dream kitchen for colour inspiration. I've had this little Sugar Nellie stamp for ages, (I won her for Sugar Nellies first Birthday) and she was all wrapped up in her packaging lovely and new two years plus..........until now! I've coloured her with promarkers, the Green papers have come free with an addition of Papercraft Essentials Magazine, ribbon, gems and pink cardstocks from my stash. The border has been made with a Fiskars border punch. The sentiment is a clear stamp from Studio G Designs.

I am also entering this card in The Totally Gorjuss Challenge which is Ooh La La.....as this little girl just really make you want to say that!!

One Stop Craft Challenge is anything goes......so I am entering her there too!!

Microwave Chocolate Pudding

Because I bake, our house is never short of essential baking ingredients so in moments of family desperation.........when they are swinging on the fridge door looking for something of a dessert nature and a yoghurt will not suffice......this can be prepared, and cooked in less than ten minutes and works wonders!!!

Serves 6-8

Ingredients:

4 oz self raising flour

4 oz caster sugar

4 oz butter or margarine

2 eggs

8 tablespoons milk

3 tablespoons cocoa

up to 4 oz chocolate broken or chopped up roughly - I use what ever I have......chocolate buttons, cooking chocolate, a mix of plain, white and milk chocolate, orange buttons etc

Method

Mix all the ingredients together in an large oven proof container. The pudding will rise to about double size of the uncooked mix.

Place in the microwave and cook on high power for 4-6 minutes. The mixture should be well risen and the middle just a little wet on the top. This will cook through during the cooling period.

Allow to cool in the microwave for 2 minutes.

Remove and serve, either hot, warm or cold with either custard, cream or ice cream.

2011-10-09T08:48:00.006+01:00

I have an excuse for not blogging - the weather has been brilliant, so we have been trying to catch the few hours after work outdoors.......but it's now back to dull afternoons, dark evenings and photos with lots of shadows!!!

Challenge 71 over at Sketch N Stash is a brilliant sketch with an optional extra of three different patterned papers and three embellishments either flowers or buttons - I went for both the options!

The papers are new, they came free with this months addition of Papercraft Essentials Magazine and they are from Wild Rose Studios, The image is the gorgeous Birgitta from C.C. Designs and the sentiments came free from The Beary Scrap. The lace and flowers is from my stash as well as the diamond dust on the heart and cupcake frosting. Oh and I love this chair which was free from Bird's Cards - it was so perfect for Birgitta to sit on and hold all those cupcakes!! I used promarkers for the stripy wallpaper and to ground the chair.

I am also entering this card in the following Challenges:

Cute Card Thursday - Time for Cake

All That Scraps Wednesday Challenge - Anything goes

Secret Crafter - Anything Goes as long as it sparkles

Lemon Meringue Cupcakes - Made with Cream not Butter (Recipe Below)

Last weekend, myself and our small son did some baking. Oh how he loved baking these, they were quick to make, tasted brilliant and to his amazement we could make a cake that you didn't have to put a big lump of butter or margarine in - oh so fascinating when you're 7!!! When they were cooled we cut out a piece of the cake, popped in a spoon full of Tesco's Finest Lemon Curd, and popped the piece of cake back in, before I piped on some of the meringue (ok he couldn't/wasn't going to do it all), and cooking them in the oven for 2 minutes to give a golden glow to our meringue.

Cupcakes Makes 18

1 cup cream ( I used Elmlea Double Light)
1 cup caster sugar
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 1/2 cups self raising flour
Finely grated rind of 1 lemon

Lemon Curd (I bought some but I guess you could make your own)

Meringue

1 egg white

85g caster Sugar

1. Preheat oven to 180'C. Line a normal size muffin tin with muffin liners.

2. Place all the ingredients in a large mixing bowl and whisk until thick and smooth.

3. Divide mixture between prepared liners and bake for 14-20 minutes (mine was cooked in 14 minutes) or until cakes spring back to touch. Cool the cakes on a cooling rack.

4. For meringue, beat egg white until firm peaks form, gradually add sugar, a tablespoon at a time, beating until sugar has dissolved between each addition. Spoon meringue mixture into a piping bag.

5. When the cakes are cool enough to handle, spoon out some of the cake and fill with lemon curd. Place the pieces of cake back and then pipe on a swirl of meringue.

6. Place the cakes back in the muffin tin and put them back in the oven for 2 minutes or until the meringue is golden. (A Blow torch or a couple of minutes under the grill will work too).

2011-09-14T20:57:00.005+01:00

This weeks challenge over on Sugar Nellies Facebook page is "A Piece of Cake" - a pin board showing a whole selection of cakes in chocolate, orange and white colours for inspiration! The challenge over on Sketch N Stash is Free Choice Sketch so I have used Sketch 40 for the design of this card

Now seeing as I like dabbling in both papers and cakes - I was thinking of making some chocolate and orange decorated cakes too - but thought I would cut back on those calories and show a picture from a previous baking session (but they were gooooood).

These gorgeous papers are free from Three Paper Peonies - they are new to my stash - I found them today while looking around the web!! They are so yummy and they were perfect for this Sugar Nellie image. The lace is from my stash and the brown ribbon I have recycled - had it in my stash for a few years now - it came from a box of chocolates from my favourite Middle Eastern Chocolate Shop - Patchi!!!

I am also entering this card in the following Challenges:

Make It Monday

Everybody Art Challenge - Flowers

Oreo Cupcake with Vanilla Cheesecake and Gold Dust

The inside - whole oreo on the bottom, a layer of vanilla cheesecake and dark chocolate sponge.

2011-09-11T16:26:00.004+01:00

A little time to blog before I attack the dreaded pile of ironing!!! I am only doing all the uniforms and work clothes etc for the week, but it is a real mountain when you multiply the amount of clothes for each day and four of us in the house!!!

Anyway I really like this digital stamp from All that Scraps and I am entering her in the All That Scraps Wednesday Challenge, which is "anything goes". She is gorgeous and angelic and brilliant to colour. The background papers are from Nitwits Threads and Thimbles collections. I printed out several to make this quilted background. I have layered Birgitta onto pink and black cardstock and onto a doily (from the baking section in the kitchen shop). The lace is from my local embroidery shop and the pink rose from my stash. I have coloured her with promarkers and added some white gel pen effects. Now the sentiment is a peel off - I know they sometimes have a bad reputation for looking cheap and awful but these white sentiment ones I found in my stash, and they suited this topper perfectly!

I am also entering this card into the following challenge:

Crafting when we can - Do it your own way

Card Makin Mamas - Challenge #28 - Digital

Some girlie cupcakes for my friend's daughters birthday party.

2011-09-09T20:58:00.004+01:00

It's been back to work week! It has been an early start each day as our son has just started college and has to catch the bus very early! However the early start has made me more organised - I managed to iron a pile of clothes this week (uniforms, clothes etc for all week) so no battling with an ironing board at 6.30 in the morning!!

I have had time this evening to craft, which is lovely!! This little girl is from Sugar Nellie and the layout comes from the sketch this weeks challenge over on the Sugar Nellie Challenge Blog - The Sugar Bowl Challenge.

The background papers I have used is from the Nitwits on a High Note Collection and the foreground strips of paper is from Nitwits Threads and Thimbles collection....which suits the image perfectly! I have added some string (made my own baker's twine using a promarker) and some white gel pen effects. The leaf stamp came with the Sugar Nellie stamp collection. The leaf has been stamped onto rust bazzill cardstock.

I am also entering this card in the following Challenges:

Everybody Art Challenge - #158 - Autumn

My Mums Craft Shop Challenges - Layer it up

Cute Card Thursday - At the Office

Stamp Something - Anything Goes

Make it Monday - Anything Goes

Chocolate Cupcakes, Covered in Dark Chocolate Ganache and a Dark Chocolate Heart (made with Chocolate Transfers)

2011-09-05T16:51:00.004+01:00

Hi Ho, Hi Ho.....its back to work I go!! Summer holidays are finished and its back to work tomorrow.....I really should be sorting out the ironing pile and making sure I get all the bags and kits ready but I could not resist the challenge on Sugar Nellies Facebook Page of Less is More!! Firstly its not an easy task stamping directly onto a card blank (so glad I dont do this everyday - I would hate to think of the waste)!! I had to look through my Sugar Nellies to find the stamp with the least intricate details in the hopes that I would get a clean stamp outline on my card. I won this stamp from Sugar Nellie ages ago (two year plus) and she was still sitting clean and new in her packaging.....and today she was perfect for the task!

I coloured her with promarkers and then outlined a shape around her which I coloured in with a blue promarker.....so she would at least look grounded. A border with a black fineliner and some not so good handwriting completed the look!!

Lemon Cupcakes with white sprinkles and some gold edible glitter!

2011-08-31T20:44:00.005+01:00

I have had the most wonderful week - Our middle son did us proud by playing trumpet beautifully in the youth orchestra for the Lights Down Theatre Company's Wiz production. It was one week of many round trips to rehearsals, but the end result was absolutely amazing. We also enjoyed some days away which allowed us to relax and to meet up with so many of our amazing family and friends on the weekend - something we will continue to reflect on for many weeks.

Last weeks challenge from The Sugar Bowl Challenge is a sketch along with the theme One for the Girls. I love this stamp from Sugar Nellie as it allows me to indulge in my favourite colour mixes of pinks and browns from my promarkers and the must have white gel pen!! The light pink papers are from Nitwits, Threads and Thimbles collection, the dark pink from an edition of Papercraft Essentials Magazine, and brown card stock, gems and flowers from my stash.

Nut Free Blueberry Bakewells Tarts (Puddings)

I am not sure if you can call a bakwell tart, a bakewell if it is almond free? But the man of the house has a nut allergy, so I decided to bake these nut free ones. I made a rich shortcrust pastry and filled the cases with blueberry conserve and a vanilla victoria sponge cake mixture. When they were baked and cooled I decorated then with a swirl of royal icing an a fresh blueberry! I know its not the best of pictures but they didn't hang around long enough for me to try taking pictures from various angles.

2011-08-23T12:52:00.005+01:00

Today its dull and gloomy, and a perfect day to be at home! The boys are busy doing their little projects - oldest son practicing music for his forthcoming performance and the little one has hijacked the pegs, some of my papers and sellotape and making puppets!! The challenge over on Stamp Something this week is to create a thank you something! I have made this thank you card using an Elisabeth Bell stamp which I had from Funky Kits a long time ago, coloured with my trusty promarkers, red cardstock from Crafters companion and these gorgeous background papers from Nitwits Cherry collection. The lace comes from a local haberdashery shop, which I must admit manages to make me go weak at the knees when I go there and behave like a child in a candy shop!!

Vanilla Sponge, with Swiss meringue buttercream and raspberry conserve, wrapped in

Belgian Chocolate Paste and topped with fresh raspberries!

These were so yummy. I have a tin in which I bake these individual rounds of sponge cake. I split them in two and filled them with some raspberry conserve and a little swiss meringue buttercream. The buttercream was also spread around the outside to hold the belgian chocolate paste in place. A piping of swiss meringue on the top and these local fresh raspberries, and they vanished from the kitchen within minutes!

2011-08-22T20:26:00.006+01:00

Anyone who know's me well enough, will know that I love to bake (calorie wise I cant do it on a daily basis)!!! When I saw this free digistamp at Paper Garden Projects, I knew it would be perfect coloured as a chocolate sponge with layers of pink frosting! I coloured the image with promarkers, decoupaged the frosting so that it stood out from the card (ahh no photo) and it looked pretty good If I must say so. The papers came free with an edition of Papercraft Essentials Magazine, the sentiment stamp from Craft Stampers, ribbon and cardstock from my stash and some faux stitching. What better way to layer a cake card than on a doily - just perfect! Having finished the card, I toyed with the idea of adding some "sprinkles" - it's a cake after all......so I tried some glittered stars, they looked good but just didn't seem right, so I scraped them off. I hunted through my box of stash, but nothing seemed to fit......then I had an idea...... real cake sprinkles - white non pareils (posh name for hundreds and thousands), mixed with some clear glue and yes, they complimented the card perfectly! My seven year old thought I had really lost the plot "What! Sprinkles on your cards?" he exclaimed as he walked past!!!

Ice Cream Cupcake!

I had a go at baking these some time ago, but just came across the pictures again! The sponge was baked inside the cones, cooled and then iced with vanilla cooked flour butter cream, cadbury's flake chocolate and sprinkles. These cones were the smallest I could get in the supermarket with a flat base so undoubtedly, they contain too much cake for a little one, but they could be filled with less cake mix, a load of chocolate and then the buttercream - yeah they would go down well with most little ones!! The cones managed to stay crisp for several hours, although the one I kept until the next day (just to see how long the cone would stay crisp for), was rather chewy!! Best advice - Bake and Eat on the same day!!!!

The Inside!

2011-08-19T07:07:00.005+01:00

This week has been about keeping it simple! Sometimes we spend so much time rushing backwards and forwards, that we don't know when to stop and appreciate the more finer things in life. I am proud of my roots and we were lucky to be gifted some St Helena Peaberry Coffee, which is available from here - the aroma flowing from the cupboard was amazing and this little bag of stuff don't come cheap either - £15.50 for 125g!!! I however am not a coffee or tea drinker, so the oldest guy in the house took it to share with work colleagues who said it tasted exquisite!!

Card making this week has been productive - started making some christmas cards (a bit of a mass production) and some clean and simple cards. I love these tulips which came free from Paper Garden Projects and the sentiment was free from Create with TLC. Some purple cardstock, and promarkers for colouring with some purple gems, finished of this sleek and simple card.

It was my birthday this week - just two years off a very big number now!!! The guys decided they wouldn't/couldn't bake me a cake. I was offered a lump of cheese by the youngest guy in the house though...which was clever and funny! I did however in the evening give in to my weakness for baking and baked this moist spiced apple cake, layered with a cream cheese frosting, which tastes even better the day after!!

St Helena Coffee

2011-08-11T20:33:00.004+01:00

The past two weeks have past in a rush since we broke up for the summer holidays. We we able to catch up with our family who we hadn't seen for five years........and it was wonderful. Many nights of chatting until late over numerous cups of tea (which I don't drink)!!!

I am slowly finding my way around my craft stuff and finding my way around some of my favourite blogs online......only to see more nice things which I can only add to my wish list!!

This weeks challenge from Cupcake Craft Challenges is Sew Mad - Stitching either real or faux!! The youngest son had a birthday party to attend so it was the perfect opportunity to use Birgitta from All that Scraps for this card. I have coloured her using promarkers and some finishing touches with a white gel ink pen, the papers came free with Papercraft Essentials Magazine, the brick wall cardstock is Kanban (found in stash), and the sentiment is a digi download....but I didn't save the link where I got it so it remains nameless for the moment. The lace is from the local embroidery shop. Oh and my stitching faux of course....the sewing machine is still on the wishlist!!!

Inside with a mini Birgitta and handwritten sentiment.

Chocolate Cupcakes with a Belgian Chocolate Wave and a Elizabeth Shaw Dark Chocolate Mint Crisp.

2011-07-20T09:28:00.005+01:00

My guys sometimes look at me and wonder what's all the fuss is about - my obsession with little pieces of paper - mostly in shades of pink. I am love with all things from Nitwits....so many papers in the most awesome hues and patterns. I really enjoyed making this card....its taking ages to get my thinking cap on and to think out of the box creatively after a long break, but I hope the receiver will be pleased with it. The image is a digistamp from the Greeting Farm called Kissy Kissy. It is adorable and fantastic to colour. The challenge this week at Allsorts Challenge Blog is free and easy which really suits me. I have used papers from Nitwits Threads and Thimbles collection, roses, black gems, fiskars border punch, promarkers, black card stock, lace and the digi sentiment, which I recoloured before printing comes from here. The photos aren't great...dark days really hamper good photos inside.......and its suppose to be summer!!!! Now onto the next challenge..........housework!!

Hello Kitty makes an appearance in buttercream on a Vanilla Sponge!

2011-07-13T20:29:00.004+01:00

I managed to get some of the stash out this week - spent most of the time hunting for papers, card and embellishments as I had forgotten what I had stashed away (or how much I have stashed away). This week over on Cupcake Craft Challenges is a celebration for reaching 150 challenges, with the challenge to create a card or project from one of the previous challenges. As I ease back into crafting I thought I would go simple and go for Challenge number 61 - Going Girly. These gorgeous papers are from Nitwits collection, I love them. Some faux stitching and a handwritten sentiment with some flowers to finish the card. The stamp is an ex Sugar Nellie by Elisabeth Bell, called Scattered Love. I am seeing my niece for the first time in 5 years next week and as I missed her birthday, I have made this with her in mind.

2011-07-08T20:22:00.006+01:00

Lemon and Coconut Cupcakes with Lemon Cooked Flour Buttercream and Toasted Coconut

It's been months - I've almost had to have a tutorial to find my way around my own blog!! But my Diploma course has been completed after many, many hours of hardwork, lack of sleep and juggling family and work too. I now have some spare time on my hands and hope to begin my journey through the mountains of stash I have stored over the past months and to get out the sprinkles and do some mass baking....but not Eating! Since seeing myself in a photograph at Easter.......I have embarked on a healthier eating and more exercise programme with a person who is very dear to me....so we can laugh, moan and cry (well not yet) about our weekly success! I have had cake...not weekly though......but I havent had a packet of crisps since Easter!!! The only thing I am really missing is the sunshine - it's suppose to be summer - so what's with all this rain and cooler temperatures!!!!

Weightloss This Week One and half pounds - Cakes Eaten - 1 (As Above) - Cards Made 0

Total Weightloss - Eleven and half pounds!

2011-02-27T14:33:00.003Z

It's been a good week for crafting for me.......its been good getting out the craft stash! This is one of my favourite stamps by Elisabeth Bell, originally from Sugar Nellie. She has been promarkered, and glamour dusted and I couldnt decide if I should go with pink or purple to mix with the brown so I went with both! The challenge over at Stamp Something, this week is flowers.....which I am sure most crafters have in every shape or form. The pearl dots are Woodwares pearly stuff which works brilliant and is available in many colours. I didnt have a purple rose so I coloured this one with a promarker! I even managed to put some cupcakes with flowers with mine LOL (ok not freshly baked today, but photo from a few weeks ago when I baked them).

Materials used:

Promarkers, brown and pink cardstock, glamour dust, Woodware pearly stuff, lace and ribbon, Cats Life Press - sentiment stamp, Mulberry Roses (one coloured purple with promarker)

2011-02-22T13:52:00.004Z

I know that getting the craft stuff out would be a.......good (bad) idea.....its so addictive!! I should be studying - at least thats what I just told the lovely man of the house I would be doing for the next hour or so......but will squeeze some time in to blog first:) but I will be studying afterwards!! Cupcake Craft Challeges has a challenge of cakes and Icecream for this weeks challenge......cakes I love creating....not such a big icecream fan, but this little girl from Elisabeth Bell (ex Sugar Nellie) is gorgeous.

Materials Used:

Elisabeth Bell - Summer Icecream

Promarkers - will note the colours for next time

Background paper from Nitwits Just a Note

Lilac cardstock

white corner peel offs, Doily, flat back pearls

Pink Roses from here

2011-02-20T14:17:00.007Z

For the first time in months, I have had time to do some proper crafting. Oh how I like getting all the craft stash out and using the stuff I have forgotten I had! The challenge over on Allsorts challenge blog is Inspired by Nature, and I thought this little girl with a peeking bunny would be just perfect!

Close up of the image

The Inside

The Back

Materials Used - Promarkers

Stamp - Elisabeth Bell (Ex Sugar Nellie)

Kanban and Bazzill Cardstock

Just for you circular sentiment from The Beary Scrap Paper

Diamond Dust

Ribbon from Mic

Flowers and Leaves from Here

2011-01-08T13:39:00.002Z

I haven't blogged in such a long time - July 2010!!! Happy New Year!! I have made so few cards and cakes overs the months......but I have an excuse.......I have been taking care of all my family duties, I have been working, I've been studying, and I have been really, really busy!
I intend to continue with my hobbies when the time allows as I love crafting and baking and the satisfaction I get from pursuing my hobbies. Whether I will be entering any competitions and challenges soon.....will be determined by the amount of time left over after helping our boys to forfill their dreams and my studies....... but its going to be so worth it in the end.

2010-07-27T20:26:00.002+01:00

It's been ages since I blogged anything. I have recently been focusing my attention to other things -family, work, kids clubs, and enjoying the warm weather. I have had little time for crafting recently....but I'm not going to let it go. I am storing my lovely stuff for when I get my mojo back and for whenthe weather becomes miserable, wet and dark again :( The computer too was having a real break over the past weeks - it was getting itself into a real pickle - and this is besides having an expensive anti virus running in the background- they just dont make these computers like they used to!! Anyway now its all sorted (fingers crossed), I am foward to catching up with other blogs and seeing what I have missed from the craft world over the past weeks.

2010-05-09T20:32:00.002+01:00

This weeks Challenge from Catch the Bug Challenge Blog is Flower Power. I havent posted anything for the which the answer is I have been busy! I have my very first Bugaboo Clear Rubber Stamps - they are available from Totally Stampalicious I won them in the recent blog hop and they arrived from Canada on Friday. I have this gorgeous little girl, named Desiree with promarkers, with some white gel pen enhancements. I was orginally going to do the card with some orange shades of background paper, but I just loved this piece of pink paper and thought I could co-ordinate it somehow on the card - see it matches the lollipop! The pink background paper I've recycled from a old greetings card, the orange punched circle was made using Kanban cardstock and a woodware punch, the butterfly from my stash and the sentiment from the Stamp set - yummy!

2010-04-29T16:05:00.004+01:00

Click the picture for more details - Wow these babies are going to be available soon from Sugar Nellie.

2010-04-25T14:38:00.003+01:00

This weeks challenge from Our Creative Corner is Blooming Blossoms. The stamps for the image and sentiment I have used this week is from the Popcorn Bear Thank you set available from Crafters Companion. I have used promarkers to colour the image, some ribbon from my stash, patterned paper which came free with this months issue of Papercraft Essentials magazine, and those little silver pearls from the Mark Richards collection. Scoring done using the

Crafters Companion Ultimate Pro.

2010-04-21T10:13:00.003+01:00

Way back in the day (hmm not too long ago), I bought my very first stamps from Funky Kits. It was my first go at Rubberstamping and it was my first taste of Sugar Nellie - how the addiction can grow so quicky!!! This was one of the first stamps I bought along with Hamish and his tractor. On the Sugar Nellie blog, they are currently looking back at the begining of Sugar Nellie and those first stamps. This is most definitely one of my favourite stamps. I have coloured her with promarkers, been through my stash for the papers and ribbon, the sentiment is from the Popcorn bear range of stamps, and the punched border is done with a punch from craft habitat. The silver pearls are from the Mark Richard range - how I love these too!!

2010-04-18T08:41:00.003+01:00

I know I always ramble on about the weather....but I am a Leo - the sun is oh so very important to me....and this week the weather has been brilliant. Lots of lovely sunshine - lets hope it stays that way! This weeks challenge from Our Creative Corner is Butterflies. I love this butterfly stamp from Elusive Images. It is quite a big stamp and makes a really nice topper for the six inch square card blanks that I use. I have used promarkers to colour in the image in shades of Rose Pink, Coctail Pink and Lillac. The sentiment stamp has been used from a Popcorn Bear stamp set. The pink ribbon and cardstock have been taken from my stash (which needs major organisation), and the silver self adhesive pearls are from the Mark Richards Collection.

2010-04-11T20:34:00.005+01:00

This weeks challenge from Catch the Bug is to use a bug somewhere on your creation. I love this fabulous little freebie image which came from Bugaboo Stamps - but the Bug Brats over on the site are so gorgeous and soooooo cute too. I have coloured the image with promarkers in red, pear green, satin, tan, and aqua blue. The sentiment has been created on the computer and the punched border on the red cardstock has been done with a punch from craft habitat. The black gems on the antannae are available from Paper Cellar and the ribbon from my stash. A little doodling with a white gel pen for the final touches.

2010-04-09T20:15:00.002+01:00

Hooray......the weather is on the up which means brighter days and better pictures too!!. This weeks challenge from Cupcake Craft Challenges is to Make your own flowers. I love the colour combination on this card.....and it has been made without any stamping!!! I recently went to a craft fair and though I am not big on peel offs these days, I found these from Little Claire Designs. There are some cute little characters on each sheet and they are so quickly and easy to colour and I am sorry I didnt buy more at the time (will have to order some) - I have used promarkers in cocktail pink, rose pink, cinnamon, lilac and pear green. The back ground floral paper I have found in my stash, raspberry cardstock, ribbon from my stash and the flower I have made using the woodware, small, medium and large daisy punches. The brad is from a range by papermania. The sentiment too is a peel off and came on the sheet with this cute little girl.

2010-03-31T20:05:00.003+01:00

This weeks challenge from Catch the Bug Challenge is Coral, Kiwi and Banana. The image I have used here is from Bugaboo Stamps.

I love the images from Bugaboo and they are just perfect for colouring with promarkers. I have used promarkers in the following colours cocktail pink, pear green, yellow, blush and cinnamon to colour the image. The background papers banana and green papers are from Crafters Companion and the checked coral cardstock is from Kanban. The silver metals are from the Mark Richards range and the ribbon from my stash.

2010-03-28T17:03:00.002+01:00

I have just typed all of this and it disappeared when I was about to post it!!! The second time around you'll never remember what you typed the first time.......but here goes anyway. This weeks challenge from The Sugar Bowl is to use any sketch from their sketch library. I have used here the sketch from challenge 20. The image is of course from Sugar Nellies Gorgeous girls range - this is Untamed. I have coloured her tanned with black hair as she is going to some one very special of similar colour etc. The background patterned card is from Kanban - bought a large box for a fiver of mixed card at a recent craft show. I have added some paving to the image so my girl isnt standing in mid air. The promarkers I have used for this card are black, red, pear green, cocoa and tan, and a white gel ink pen too. The ribbon is one from Anita range, the red border has been created using paper from Crafters Companion and a punch from Craft Habitat. The brads are from my stash and the flowers have been stamped from Elusive Images butterfly set.

2010-03-22T20:47:00.003Z

This weeks challenge from Our Creative Corner is Easter. I thought these colours would be perfect for an Easter card - delectable chocolate and orange! The image is Peek a Bunny from Sugar Nellie which I have coloured with promarkers. The background papers are all available from Kanban, the ribbon from my stash and the silver metals from Mark Richards. The sentiment is from one of Crafters Companion Popcorn the Bear set. The fancy edging on the paper has been done using a punch from Craft Habitat - which is lovely but they only sell at Craft shows, which mean it is always had to get most of their stock unless you go on the first day!

2010-03-21T20:05:00.004Z

The Sugar Bowl has a fabulous sketch for the current challenge. I was soooooo lucky on Friday as I received my prize for the Runner up of the Papercraft Essentials papercrafter of the Year 2009 competition. The box was filled with stamps from Crafters Companion, loads of Glue Dots products, lots of other craft stash and MIC products including this fabulous self adhesive fabric which I have used on the card below. The background paper I have used is available from Crafters companion (received in a prize recently too), the star stamp from Crafters companion, this lovely girl is from Sugar Nellie and the sentiment is from the Popcorn bear range. I have been using my promarkers to colour and they are just brilliant. The silver metals are from the Mark Richards range, and some white gel ink pen stitches.

2010-03-20T10:16:00.003Z

I love the sketch from Catch the Bug challenge.
This little cowboy is available from Bugaboo stamps and I have coloured him in with my new promarkers. I have used cinnamon, blush, red, brown, yellow, pear green and China Blue on the image. I gave him a checked shirt with by adding lines with a white gel ink pen! The sentiment has been done on the computer, and was added to the image before printing. The background papers are available from crafters companion, the silver metals are from Mark Richards and a little hand stitching to add to the embellishments.

2010-03-18T20:06:00.002Z

Create4fun challenge blog has been hosting a lovely sketch for this week's challenge. The butterfly and sentiment stamp I have used came from Elusive Images. I have been putting my promarkers to good use and experimenting with them over the past few days. The butterfly has been coloured with promarkers and Mark Richards silver metals has been used for the flower centres. The papers are all Kanban and ther ribbon from my stash.

2010-03-15T15:45:00.002Z

This is my first card from my Crafter's Companion, Flower Fairies prize, and it has been watercoloured with pencils.....but I am moving on.....I am now hooked on new colouring materials :) I made this from the Zinnia set. Well yesterday I went to a craft fair in Malvern....it was Mothering Sunday too, so it was a nice treat to be able to have the afternoon to stroll around and indulge in my favourite pastime. Okay the thrill of the event was great.....I had told myself I wasn't going to get any more stamps (I was so tempted too though) - but was going to go with an open mind about other products.....watch some demos and take it from there. I was so taken up by the demos using promarkers and distress inks.....so I gave in and bought some promarkers and how thrilled am I with them.......I want more! I bought a three in one punch too, but was after another little flower one......but it had sold out (but the salesman was still doing demo's showing of a punch he no longer had in stock :( .......and do I have the patience to wait for one (no not really). Have you seen the Gorjuss Girls decoupage and toppers?????? OMG they are truely Gorjuss.....and so cute. Now I'm off to attend to my poorly oldest boy......make dinner and squeeze in some time with the Promarkers :)

2010-03-08T10:54:00.003Z

So Many Stamps....................sooooooooooo little time! The weeks are flying by and I seem to be getting less time to play with my crafty treasures! I just had £150 worth of craft products which was a competition prize - the gorgeous flower fairies stamps - 6 sets actually and lots of card and paper. These boxes on the left, was inspired by my younger one. He was at home poorly and wanted to make something for two very special people for Valentines (yep I made them weeks ago), so we used the fabulous Lauren Meader
pack a picnic template and boy did we have fun making these - they are easy to use and with the help of a 5 year old fun to make....(if you pretend not to notice your double sided tape stuck to everything but the right thing and your favourite cardstock being chumped to shreds with scissors) The stamped heart and sentiment is from Stamping up!
I have lots of stamps to play with currently.....I have 6 sets of flower fairies, won in a competition, 10 Sugar Nellies from their birthday competition I won last year (I know, I know), and a butterfly set from Elusive images.........think I need to lock myself away for a month and craft, craft, craft!

2010-02-17T20:33:00.002Z

This weeks challenge from Catch the Bug is to use Encouragement or a loosely based Olympic Theme using rings or circles. I have decided to use braless Stella from Bugaboo Stamps with papers from Pink Petticoat downloads. The circles I have made using a circle cutter and the circular sentiment is from Magnolia Stamps. Some dotted pink ribbon and some paper pricking to complete the look.

2010-01-29T13:16:00.002Z

Oh well the Splendid Stamping relay ended abruptly due to various problems. It was fun while it lasted though. Here is another one from the Bugaboo Stamp collection - its Stella. I like Stella....she is definitley going to tell you "how it is"!! I have just used some bazzill cardstock, raspberry cardstock which I embossed, water colour pencils, round circle sentiment from Craftwork cards and the larger sentiment is available with the digital image. Clean and Simple.

2010-01-26T20:01:00.003Z

Day 2 of the Greeting Farm (Splendid Stamping Blog) Relay. I had this idea yesterday when I saw today's image what I wanted to do.....but it didnt quite materialise or the idea just didnt want to work today! Oh well there is always tomorrow...and there is a really cute little image for tomorrow so I'll get my thinking cap on. I think I have so much stuff in my stash that I tend not to look through it all but just use everything which is on the top.......I need a craft room.......one where I can lay out all my papers and cardstock etc......dream, dream, dream!
I have gone for the back to basics look - just cardstocks in pink, black and raspberry, flat back pearls (they are cream....but photo taken in poor light), ultimate pro embossing on the black cardstock, and water colours on the image. Her belt and shoes are silver glittered but it didnt quite pick up in the photo.

2010-01-25T13:55:00.003Z

I dont usually get to post on a Monday during the day, after all I should be at work....but after the snow comes colds and flu. I have spent the weekend feeling really sorry for myself sniffing, sneezing and coughing (yuck) and this morning my oldest son woke up feeling really under the weather - so its a day at home. However done the cleaning...so a little time to play - well why not? Splendid Stamping (The Greeting Farm) is hosting a relay with free images....but you have to part take to get them - they will be emailed to you. You have until 6pm CST each day to get your entry into the gallery (more details on the Splendid Stamping Blog). I couldnt quite figure what to do with this one, love the image, but a mer male....hmm (cant call him a mermaid). Some bazzill cardstock and two blue tones of cardstock and a little starfish with some embossing on the cardstock soon fixed my dilemma......and I love the result. The sentiment was made using ACME label maker and a little white gel pen for the surf on the waves.

2010-01-20T09:58:00.002Z

Valentines is just around the corner, so I thought I had better make a start at making some cards for this occasion. I am really loving this set from Stamping Up entitled Always and I have fallen into the pink, black and white pit at the moment......all my cards seem to be coming out this colour LOL....but I like it. This also happens to be a favourite layout of mine too at the moment so expect to see lots of more cards looking like this one.

Products used - Stamping Up Always set, black, raspberry and white cardstock, Paper cellar flat backed pearls, crafters companion Ultimate pro for the embossing.

2010-01-10T14:53:00.003Z

It is still snowy and the road very icy outside, which means we are spending a lot of time indoors and not heading out of town, thus me having more time to play with my crafting things :) A quick challenge from Catch the Bug Challenge Blog (thank you Ladies), which is going to be running challenges for Bugaboo Stamps. Each person taking part in this quick challenge which finishes tonight will get a free image (decisions, decisions....I want them all)! Bugaboo also offers a free image each Friday so you dont have to buy to be able to partake in the challenge. For this card, I have used Stella, from Bugaboo Stamps, Bazzill cardstock - Wild Pansy, Papermania patterned paper, sentiments from Stamping Up Always set, Papercellar gems and pearlised lilac cardstock.

2010-01-07T18:52:00.002Z

Snow, snow and more snow......no work, so time some spare time for crafting :) I love this little stamp from Snag'em Stamps. I watercoloured the flowers and leaves and added some pearl centres and gel pen dots with some piercing, red and black cardstocks and a sentiment from Craftwork cards to complete the card.
Valentines is just around the corner (crafters have to keep one step ahead) so I am working on some ideas for the next big occasion after Christmas :)

2010-01-06T17:18:00.003Z

This is my first card challenge for this year and what a fine way to start with this brilliant sketch from Create4fun and another image from Bugaboo Stamps.
This gal is called Stella and she is just so funny. The papers I have used here comes from Pink Petticoat - Dots and Lola's Boudoir both are in the shade Bubblegum. I have layered Stella onto black Bazzill Swiss dots cardstock, which has been embossed using the Glittergirls Romance Board and cut out with a fiskars scallop edge scissors. White Gel ink pen for the dotted border. The sentiment comes with the digital image which is brilliant as it can be resized or as i did here, it can be printed directly onto the background paper. Stella has been coloured with Derwent Inktense watercolours and the gems are from Paper Cellar. Black ribbon from my stash.

2010-01-03T15:30:00.003Z

OMG you have to hand it to Bu gaboo Stamps. I stumbled on these digi-stamps by chance and they just cracked me up! There are so many characters which I can say relate to many of my girlfriends, Aunties, cousins etc (sorry girls). I have only bought the one so far....but the day isnt finish yet! This one is called Ruby....most certainly the goodtime gal!
For this card I have used black cardstock, bazzill purple cardstock, Bugaboo image, watercolour pencils, Paper Cellar gems, and some ric rac.
I add a bit of hand stitching to the outer edge of the image and some white gel pen to enhance the boots and dress. Some silver gel ink was used on the glasses and ear-rings. Cheers Ruby!

2009-12-31T20:57:00.002Z

Crafts on the Net has teamed up with Crafter’s Companion for a competition - the prize is a bumper Flower Fairy kit worth a massive £149.91!

The Rules - Create a card using ANY Crafter’s Companion products.

I have used the Crafters Companion Ultimate pro to create a embossed layer on the background on the card. The pretty patterned paper came with this months issue 50 of Papercraft Essentials Magazine. Popcorn the bear has been taken from the birthday cuddles stamp set and watercoloured with Derwent Inktense watercolour pencils. The sentiment is from the same set of stamps. I have stitched the outer edge of the image using shades of pink thread by hand. The ribbon is from my stash (recycled from something else) and the gems are from Paper Cellar.

Happy New Year and cheers for many, many more crafting days and competitions in 2010!

2009-12-24T09:47:00.000Z

The magazine article:

My card is number 3 - but the name index has me as number 7 :( but still I am so proud to be a winner!

2009-12-24T09:03:00.003Z

Ok, I have had to keep this a secret since last week, but today I can officially release my news......as the magazine goes on sale today! Now I bet you are wondering what I am on about??? Well I was named as one of the nine runner ups in the Papercraft Essentials Magzine, Papercraft of the Year 2009 competition...........and as you can imagine I am bursting with excitement!! I am looking forward to receiving my prize which will be £160 of products and my card will be in this months magazine along with the other eight runner ups and the overall winner who has been crowned Papercraft of the Year 2009.

The cupcake card is my winning entry, but the entry requirements were two cards and another papercraft project.... I made a christmas gift bag.

The only disappointing thing in all of this is my card has been linked to someone elses name in the two page spread and my name with another project - but the magazine Editor will correct this in the next edition.......but I am so looking forward to getting my products and wish all the other participants and winners and big, big congratulations :)

2009-12-22T15:41:00.003Z

The days are zooming by......and once again I have had so little time to blog.......but I have some new stamps to play with so I am going to have to put in a little time for play.

I now have nine new Sugar Nellies - won them in their recent birthday competition....and I had only one of them in my collection already so that means I have eight new stamps for play.

I also have some really good news too.. (bursting with excitement) .......but have to wait until Christmas Eve before I post it :)

2009-12-06T08:11:00.003Z

Well I cant believe it has been way over a month since I last posted something on my blog.....have I been lazy?......well maybe! But I have excuses......I have been working, I have been helping to organize a Christmas Bazaar (which I suggested - glutton for punishment), making cakes, making cards, doing the family things, entered the Papercraft Essentials Crafter of the year competition and also took part in Sugar Nellie's Birthday celebrations......and yes I won six.....yes six Sugar Nellie Stamps!

Anyway this is a card I did make in the past month. Swiss dots 12x12 paper, Hot of the Press French Script, Paper cellar gems, pink cardstock and free image from Sketching Stamper, which I have watercoloured.

I have an order for about 15 christmas cards which all need to be personalised so I had better get moving, do a bit of housework, take the boys to Tae kwondo and then hide away in my craft corner for a little while.....until next time happy crafting.

2009-11-02T10:25:00.004Z

Its Sugar Nellies second birthday so Happy Birthday Sugar Nellie. To celebrate Sugar Nellie is running a birthday bash over at Splitcoast Stampers and the challenge is to make a sweet creation using a Sugar Nellie stamp, but not in green or yellow and extra points if it has anything to do with a cake

Well, I thought I would make a little cake, but I'm out of eggs so I had to re-think. So the only option was to combine paper with real ingredients and come up with something which looks like a cake.

I used a 6 inch diametre circle of card and creased it to make mountain folds. I then used my embossing tool to draw a 2 inch diametre circle in the centre so I could fold the cardstock into a cupcake case shape - after much fiddling it worked :) I then filled the case with pasta (to give some height to the "cake" and cover the pasta with some layers of paper napkins so I could smooth the fondant icing (ready to roll) on the top.

I stamped and watercoloured my image. Trimmed around it to remove the mushrooms and the butterfly, stamped the Sugar Nellie so sweet sentiment, and Happy birthday sentiment from Crafters companion Popcorn bear inside. I trimmed the circle with scalloped edge fiskars, and glued it to the hand of this sweet little girl. I then adhered the image to a cocktail stick and yeah I have made a Sugar Nellie Cake Pic.

After smoothing the icing over, I covered it in glue and sprinkled on the cake sprinkles, inserted my cakepic and so Happy Birthday Sugar Nellie :)

2009-11-01T14:41:00.004Z

This weeks challenge from Cupcake Crafts is a sketch. I made this card a few days ago, with the intention of photographing it and then posting it on my blog, but it somehow managed to slip under the piles of christmas fabric I have on the worktop and I forgot about it :( so I am late posting.

This cute little girl is C.C. Designs Swiss Pixies Birgitta, which is a digital image available from All that Scraps. I have watercoloured her and added some silver gel ink to her wings (didnt quite pick it up in the photograph). The background paper came free with Papercraft Essentials Magazine, ribbon from my stash, paper cellar gems, lillac bazzill cardstock, white cardstock which is dry embossed using the ultimate pro from crafters companion, and the sentiment from Designer Digitals.

2009-10-26T12:24:00.004Z

This week's challenge from Dare U 2 digistamp is a shape card - not square. Well unless the card is square I find myself struggling to make something that will at least manage to stand up! After trialling a few ideas I found this digistamp from the Greeting Farm which I had from their recent birthday bash - and boy does he make a super shaped card - quick, simple and oh so easy.

I printed Ian on cardstock, folded it just along his head, cut around the shape, leaving a piece at the bottom, so the card would stand, and there it was a shaped card! I have watercoloured Ian, and the sentiments came from the Popcorn the bear stamp sets, Party Time and a Gift for You. This would also make a super birthday invite too.....having said that Ethan has been planning his - only nine months in advance!

2009-10-07T16:17:00.002+01:00

Just a quick post today before football club and school meeting. I made five of these cards all the same for five teenagers who are all going to be sixteen at the end of the month. The image is Pretty Head Lily from the Greeting Farm. I have water coloured her, added some aqua glitter to her eyelids, woodware daisy punch flowers and a flat back pearl in her hair. The black and white paper was a free download, raspberry card which has been dry embossed with the ultimate pro from Crafters companion and black ribbon. The circular sentiment was done on the computer and the Lets Celebrate sentiment is from Popcorn the Bear party time stamp set.

2009-09-30T17:08:00.003+01:00

Okay so I am aiming for a record.....two posts in a day.....but I have just seen this most amazing blog candy over on Jaks blog the Crafters Kitchen - its for a............... It is worth £299.00 and I think you will agree it is an amazing prize. So what is it then........well it is none other than a Quickutz Silhouette - The Silhouette Digital Cutting Tool is your gateway to creative freedom. This vinyl and paper cutter plugs into your computer giving you access to all of your favorite fonts and shapes at anytime, in any size.

Due to weight it is open to UK Residents or you have to have a UK address to ship it too.

Hop on over leave your details, link her blog to yours and you are in with a chance of winning.

2009-09-30T16:51:00.003+01:00

Each day aim to blog and fit in craft time among many other things I need to do too......but its just not happening. The kids have been off school again with various illnesses but hopefully they are sorted and back to school as normal now - its amazing how quickly they all become ill once school restarts.
I love this image which is a digi stamp free from Sketching Stamper . I have painted it in watercolours - Derwent Intense colours and added black gems to the centre. The back ground paper is french script by Hot of the Press matted onto cerise cardstock. I have managed to do some stitching around the matted border and the sentiment and it just adds some extra chic to the whole card. The pearl in the corner is from Paper Cellar.

2009-09-23T20:13:00.002+01:00

Its been ages since I have blogged! School starts and guess what? Four or five days later the kids all start going down with some illness or other......but fingers crossed we are back to school and flowing as normal. I have so little time for crafting recently...but I do am to rectify that....hopefully by the weekend. In the meantime a quick card using the Greeting Farm digital downloads Rachael and Lily - so adorable these girls.

Also the friday challenge from Splendid Stamping was emboss it - so I have dry embossed some pink cardstock using the crafters companion ultimate pro, pink and black gems from Paper Cellar, black ribbon, girls coloured with watercolour pencils, felt flower, black cardstock, pink brad from Dovecraft, black and white background paper free download.

2009-09-07T10:21:00.003+01:00

The summer holidays are over and the kids are back to school tomorrow.....and the weather is set to be good for this week -typical LOL.

I have had very little time to craft over the past six weeks, but will hopefully get my mojo back and have some fun crafting over the next few weeks. My youngest was invited to a birthday party over the week - this little girl is his "girlfriend" and he constantly says he will definitely marry her! Anyway I had some specifications, could I make a card and a box for her gift (which he choose too as it had to be special) in pink and it had to be beautiful. He chose the image too for the card.

This is one of the new autumn stamps from Sugar Nellie and so adorable. I have coloured her with watercolour pencils, a little highlighting with white gel pen, pink cardstock, papermania background paper and sentiment from Designer Digitals.

The box entitled Pack a Picnic...the template is available from here and it is one of fantastic designs by Lauren Meader. It was so quick to make and quite spacious. I used the keepsake romance board for the scalloped edge, large brads, and pink and white cardstocks. I have made a pretty simple version, but I can see this little box being used many times from now on. The image is another from the Sugar Nellie Autumn sets which I have watercoloured.

2009-08-01T11:35:00.002+01:00

Its the Greeting Farm's first birthday. To celebrate this wonderful occasion a giant blog hop has been organised showcasing The Greeting Farm stamps.

I have used papers from Pink Petticoat Downloads, The Greeting Farm pretty head Lily Digistamp and sentiment from Designer Digitals. I have watercoloured Lily, given her a spotted bow in her hair thanks to a white gel pen, a little bit of bling too in the bow using a gem stone, and some glitter for her eye shadow.

2009-07-30T10:28:00.002+01:00

Want more Digistamps? Well Owl Whimsy has gone mad - she has decided that because of the economy, and because she want EVERYONE to be able to purchase and use her DigiStamps, she has lowered the prices on ALL Owl Whimsy stamps that are currently available and ALL Owl Whimsy Stamps to come!!

They are all now $1.00 each for the singles and the sets from as little as $6.00 a set - what are you waiting for go to here, buy and download now!!!

2009-07-27T07:11:00.004+01:00

This weeks challenge from Owl Whimsy is another bloghop around the design team blogs and yes I am giving away this weeks freebie.

So how do you play? Well you should have arrived on my blog from Paula's blog while you have been hopping along trying to find this weeks freebie. Use this freebie to make a card or go to here and you can purchase the rest of the set. Post it to here and you may be the winner of a whole lot of Owl Whimsy digistamps.

My card have been made using this weeks free image, watercolours, bazzill card stock, craftwork cards sherbert pips -which looks like big brads, ribbon scraps, paper from simply cards and papercrafts, score board. The quote which I really like, was found on google.

If you missed the other design team members creations they are here:

Steph

Billie
Jana
Elaine

Paula

Have fun playing along!

2009-07-21T19:46:00.003+01:00

Its the summer holidays - school is out so craft time is definitely out too, but I managed to fit a little time in today to make this card - well it was raining most of the day so we had to hit the indoor/at home activities today.

This weeks challenge from Victoria Case Stamps is Dark/Hot Pink, Orange and White. The image I have used here is a freebie from Victoria Case Stamps.

The papers I have used are from Pink Petticoat downloads and the sentiment is from Designer Digitals. I have used water colours to colour the image and some smooch in siren to add some definition to the flower petals. The orange card stock came from my stash (which is growing bigger by the day:)

2009-07-18T21:06:00.003+01:00

Ok I couldn't resist these Popcorn Bear stamps - there are twelve sets on the market (but I bought only four this time:), available from many places but I bought mine from Card Craft as they also did free inland UK postage and I had mine within two days of ordering. I have used the stamps from the I love you set to create the card and the sentiments from the Birthday Cuddles set. I have also bought Party Time and Thanks a bunch.......which I will have a play with shortly. The stamps are all designed to mix and match so the sentiments from the other sets will fit the little posters that the bear is holding.
The papers I have used here came with simply cards and papercrafts issue 57, and for the first time I decided to decorate the inside of the card too - must admit I love this effect so will be doing more of this in the future! I have watercoloured the stamped images and outline the toppers with blue and some black doodling........off to try the other stamps:)

2009-07-17T12:52:00.002+01:00

This weeks challenge from The Sugar Bowl is a sketch by Gayle - and amazingly I have managed
to make a card within a day after the sketch was released! The papers I have used here, all
came free with simply cards and papercraft magazine issue 57 (which I have a card published in - more on that later). The image of course is from Sugar Nellie - How quirky is she??
I decided to do a little paper piecing on all of the flowers in the image using the scraps of background paper and doodled the centres with some siren smooch. The ribbon is from my stash and the sentiment is a digital download from designer digitals. The shaped panels in the centre were free templates from Mel Stampz

2009-07-12T19:07:00.004+01:00

This weeks challenge from the Owl Whimsy Challenges is a blog hop through the Owl Whimsy Design Team Blogs - you will get a free cute image to use, but you are going to have to hop through the design team blogs to find it - only available for 7 days or to 100 people for download.

I am also using my same card to enter the Dare U 2 Digistamp challenge - Pink, Black and white.

Go to the Owl Whimsy Challenges site for all the details and the rules for this weeks challenge.

The winner of the challenge will get a free set of Owl Whimsy digi stamps of their choice.

You should have arrived at my blog from Jana's blog, however if you skipped a few, here is the list of the rest of the design team

Steph
Angi
Billie
Elaine
Jana
Paula

I have used one of the Annie May Angels along with a sentiment from the same set. I have water coloured the image, used heat embossing with silver powder on her wings, and given her some funky fishnet gloves with a gel pen! The background paper came free with simple cards and papercrafts magazine issue 57, ribbon from poppicrafts, sherbert pips from craftwork cards, white doodled dots with a gel pen, and black cardstock.

So to get your free image you need to hop around the other design team members blogs, the next inline is Paula

2009-07-02T13:54:00.005+01:00

Wow Summer has arrived - the weather is brilliant! This Dotty Spotty card is for a challenge over on the Greeting Farm. I love this stamp which is also from the Greeting Farm - she is so chic! The background papers and the handcut stem and leaf I made using free download papers from here - aren't they stunning? The pink flowers I have cut from Dovecraft wild blossoms paper, the white daisy made using a woodware daisy punch and a black sharpie marker. Dotted ribbon and raspberry cardstock from my stash, Anya image watercoloured and smooch siren added to her dress and flowers and a little hand made tag with a handwritten sentiment. I have also used a sharpie pen to do some doodled dots on the scalloped layer behind the image. Peel off black dots have been used for the flower centres.

2009-06-26T19:50:00.004+01:00

This weeks challenge from Dare u 2 Digi stamp is a fabulous sketch. I have watercoloured the image using watercolour pencils, the background papers and ribbon I found in my stash, craftwork cards sentiment, lilac cardstock from DS Crafts, and the image from Victoria Case Stamps. I have outlined the centre of the flowers and the edges of the petals with smooch pearlized accent ink (siren).

2009-06-24T20:15:00.004+01:00

This weeks challenge from Cupcake Craft Challenges is a sketch.

I have used a stamp from the Greeting Farm Miss Anya collection but I have added a set of wings to her. The wings are availabe FREE from Owl Whimsy and if you take part in her challenge there is a set of digistamps to be won too.

The papers I have used is from Papermania creative tones, red cardstock, sentiment from craftwork cards, watercolour pencils to colour stamped image, and digi stamp wings from Owl Whimsy

2009-06-22T08:15:00.004+01:00

This weeks challenge over on the Owl Whimsy blog is a sketch - and you also get a FREE image for you to use.

I have used Owl whimsy Annie May Angel Image, watercolour pencils, glitter from Kirsten Lapping Designs, background paper from Sandylion - One of a Kind pink, craftwork cards sherbert pips, bazill swiss dots and brown cardstocks. The ribbon I have used has come from Anita's everyday range.

An the prize to the winner of the challenge - the newest set which is to be released shortly - usually $12.00 worth of digistamps - so what are you waiting for??

2009-06-21T14:02:00.003+01:00

This months Craft Stamper magazine came with this awesome little owl stamp from Sugar Nellie
I have water coloured the images, along with adding some gel pen in the hearts and a couple of googly eyes. The paper I have used is Sandylion One of a Kind pink, ribbon from Anita's range and some peel off spots. The sentiment is from Designer Digitals.

I thought these would make wonderful little notecards so decided to make a little box and fill it with some of these and the envelopes. The box is made using chocolate, cream and pink cardstocks, Sandylion paper, woodware daisy punch flowers and cream ribbon.

2009-06-21T13:54:00.003+01:00

The week has flown by again so quickly. I have had little time to do any crafting for fun - I had a commisson for ten cards - mostly fathers day and this little cowboy on the right had his 5th birthday on Thursday.......so it was a birthday party and tons of baking to do. I also decorated 36 sacks for the cowboys and cowgirls......but didnt take a picture :(

2009-06-15T19:42:00.002+01:00

This weeks challenge from Dare U 2 Digistamp is Chocolate and Orange - hmmm what a delicious combination.

I have chosen to use this beautiful image from Victoria Case - I think she is just stunning with that little bit of an attitude too! I have watercoloured her with pencils.

The papers I have used is orange floral from Dovecrafts Wild Blossoms range, and Doodlebug chocolate truffle. I have added some faux stitching with a white gel pen, the sentiment from Designer Digitals and the ribbon from my stash (Anita's range)

2009-06-13T17:52:00.003+01:00

This is another sneak peek from the Owl Whimsy collection, which will be released on Monday. There is currently a challenge going on and the prize is this whole set - check here for details. She comes dressed in an outfit but there are additional dresses in the set so I have used one of those for her to wear. The fan is also in the set - I have watercoloured it and added a little gem. The image has been watercoloured and I have used a white gel pen to outline the flowers on her dress. The sentiment is from Designer digitals. The ribbon and sandal charm has come from my stash, the background paper from Dovecraft's Eastern Bloom range

2009-06-11T09:15:00.002+01:00

I do love these Anya Stamps from The Greeting Farm.....still waiting to get my hands of the newest ones though....they sell out so fast!
Splendid Stamping is running a challenge entitled Black, White and Grey with a sketch to follow....and a fabulous good bag prize. I have used papers from Dovecraft and Papermania, a white gel pen for the doodle dots, ribbon from Poppicrafts and the sentiment is available from Designer Digitals.

2009-06-10T16:02:00.002+01:00

Asian Flair Sneak Peek......do you want to win this gorgeous lady and her accessories? This is the new one from Owl Whimsy which will be coming out next week and you can win her by taking part in the challenge here.

There is a free image there for you too to download.

I have dressed her in one of her dresses (two in the set) and used her parasol, which are all watercoloured. The papers are Eastern blooms by Dovecraft. The chinese symbol in the corner is a clip art picture meaning Love

2009-06-07T20:20:00.003+01:00

Woo hoo - Betty the maid! This is another Sneak Peak from Owl Whimsy's forthcoming Betty range. Well she could be anybody really, I just thought she would make a great maid. There are some cracking images in this set and they are definitely fun to play with. I have used the striped paper from my stash, the black designs on the paper are peel offs, which I coloured with a black sharpie pen. The sentiment "Maid for you" I wrote in my not so great hand writing. The things to do list I generated on the computer, but the clipboard came from Digifree. I have coloured Betty with water colours and given her some gel pen stockings! The chair is from the Magnolia Tilda range, which I stamped and watercoloured.

2009-06-04T14:01:00.003+01:00

This weeks challenge from Cupcake Craft Challenges is Fairies.

I found this cute little image from Here. I have watercoloured her and added some glamour dust to her wings. The background paper and the bow image has come from Digifree, the flower from my stash, green and pink cardstock, scallop edge scissors and sherbert pips from craftwork cards. I also pierced a trail on the card too.

Green and Pink is starting to be my favourite colours at the moment....so more cards in the making.

2009-06-02T15:06:00.004+01:00

This weeks challenge from Dare U 2 Digistamp is a fabulous sketch. As a new design team member of Owl Whimsy Digistamps, I thought I would use this weeks FREEBIE (yes she is free) from Here (make sure you play along too - details here). This girls is called Suzie Q Diva - and comes in a set of six - all with real Diva attitudes and poses. I have been hunting through my masses of craft stash and found these papers, along with the pink cardstock on which I used the keepsake romance board to scallop the edges and a single hole punch for the holes. Green cardstock, heart and sentiment from my stash and the pink dots are sherbert pips from craftwork cards. Suzie Q Diva has been coloured with watercolour pencils and a gel pen for her shoes.

2009-06-01T21:05:00.004+01:00

New Monday Challenge with Owl Whimsy - and she's giving you the digital image for free for this challenge just fly over to the Owl Whimsy Digi Stamps site - she can be found under Girls/Suzie Q.

This week the challenge is based on the new SuzieQ Diva set, which you can purchase at Owl Whimsy Digi Stamps! This first challenge is kind of a free-for-all! You can make whatever you want, you just have to use one of the SuzieQ Diva stamps in your creation! The winner will get the ENTIRE Betty Set, which will be out next Monday! :)

Betty Sneak Peek below:

2009-05-31T21:27:00.002+01:00

It's been a busy weekend.....out and about in the sunshine which has been beautiful and I also managed to spend some time crafting too.

Another one of the Suzie Q Diva images which I really love from Owl Whimsy. I found this clip art branch a while ago and while colouring her today, I thought this branch would be perfect for her to sit on. The stamped sentiment is Studio G Designer clear stamp, black gel pen doodles around the edges and some yellow satin ribbon. The image has been coloured with watercolour pencils.

2009-05-29T20:48:00.002+01:00

Sneak Peek.......

I am using Betty from the newest set which is to be released soon from Owl Whimsy - she looks like a gal who loves a night out on the town! There will be six of these funky Betty images in a set....so watch this space :)

I thought I would add some funky stockings to her with a black gel pen and throw in some peel off shoes to complete the look. The sentiment can be made using Acme Labelmaker, the papers are from Papermania and Dovecraft. The red dots I made using a single hole punch, red cardstock and ribbon from my stash.

2009-05-29T08:11:00.003+01:00

Woohoo.......I have been asked to become a member of the Owl Whimsy Design Team - and naturally I said "yes". If you haven't seen some of her cool images - then hop over to her blog where you will find the digital images, to buy and ready to be downloaded. Do check her blog too from time to time as she will be offering a freebie from each new set.........now I off to do some design team work :)

2009-05-27T08:25:00.003+01:00

I found this cute design on Owl Whimsy's Blog She is offering up this little girl in a chance of taking part in her new venture - making Digi-Stamps and will give 1 piece from every set away for FREE. She would like for everyone to take the freebie and play with it and post the finished product on their blog and post a comment on her post, saying where you have posted what you created! Then she will have a drawing, and the winner gets the rest of the set for FREE! :)

Now on to the important part - She is also looking for 6 people to design for her. This team will get all the Digi Stamps she create for FREE. In return, they will each be assigned one stamp to use in their design. So, if you would like to be a part of the design team, just leave that in your comment when you show her what you did with the free image.

I have used some shades of pink cardstock, lace, sentiment from Designer digitals, watercolours and card candy from Craftwork cards.

2009-05-26T20:53:00.002+01:00

I was asked to make a few cards for the end of the school year as a thank you for various tutors. After much thought, and lack of suitable teacher stamps etc, I came up with this idea - and its totally made on the computer. Background paper with random typed letters, with the words thanks included, and the blackboard front with white text - covered every aspect of the requirement perfectly

2009-05-22T14:28:00.002+01:00

I got this super cute digi image from Dustin Pike. This week Dustin is running a blog candy giveaway but he wants something to be created and sent to a child from Post Pals. When I dashed over to the Post Pals site, I read some of the most heart wrenching stories about children who are suffering with various illnesses. Seeing their faces and reading their stories about what they and their families are going through is unbelievable. I decided that the card I have made, I would send to Zachary H as he is the same age as my youngest and likes pretty much the same things.

2009-05-19T19:18:00.003+01:00

Summer is fast approaching, but it seems the weather has had a real downturn.......it has been so much rain over the past days...today inside it was darker than the winter months which isnt great for crafting! This weeks challenge from Dare U 2 Digistamp is Lillac and Lemon. I have used papermania paper for the background and some lillac and lemon cardstock which I found in my stash. The sentiment is black peel off stickers and the image I found here.

2009-05-18T19:11:00.003+01:00

Its been nine days since I last blogged!!! Where have I been??? Well nowhere really.....have just been snowed under with other things.....but I have been crafting too......50 place card settings, 5 menus and a table planner for a golden wedding anniversary and 10 other commissoned cards (and I didnt take a picture) :(

The challenge from The sugar bowl challenges is a brilliant sketch by Marlene which is to also include buttons. I have used papermania background papers, green cardstock, green bazill cardstock, the wow sentiment is a fabric sticker, Sugar Nellie image coloured with watercolour pencils, metallic domes which is card candy from Craftwork cards - Sherbert pips (these are like brads but with without the backs), the button from my stash and the flower which is a download from edupics.com, with centre watercoloured to match the papers.

2009-05-08T17:54:00.008+01:00

This weeks challenge from cupcake craft challenges is numbers.

I have used a little Hello Kitty from my piece of Hello Kitty fabric. I have mounted her onto cardstock to stiffen the fabric before layering onto a punched circle. The background paper is from Dovecrafts wild blossoms pack, the pink cardstock from my stash, circles made with woodware circle punches, scallops with fiskars scallop edge scissors, sentiment from Studio G Designer clear stamps.

2009-05-06T19:53:00.003+01:00

I washed my car - it changed colour!! I have cooked dinner, taken my son to his piano lesson and waited for him, taken my youngest son to football training and I had time to do this new country girl from Sugar Nellie.

I have coloured her with watercolour pencils, and layered her onto some navy cardstock. The red cardstock and ribbon has come from my stash, the sentiment from Craftwork Cards.

2009-05-06T13:45:00.003+01:00

The Country Girls arrived in the post!! It was torture.....they plopped through the letter box just as I was putting on my shoes to go to work!! Luckily for me I only work in the morning......I havent yet eaten any lunch.....I just had to ink up this girl and get her onto paper! I have gone for very little colouring....I'm giving this to my neice who has black hair, so I didnt want to overdue it with alot of colour. Her apron is paper pieced with Dovecraft Wild Blossoms paper, I have used water colour pencils to colour the image. The sentiment is from Craftwork cards, the background paper from Dovecrafts Eastern Blooms range.

2009-05-05T19:45:00.003+01:00

Sugar Nellies Country Girls have been in the shop - I ordered two of them purrfect playmates and fragile beauty. I have been told they have been dispatched so I like most others, will be stalking the postman or the next day or two. I haven't been playing much - I have a large order for menus, place settings etc so I am getting well stock into them at the moment.....so I can squeeze in some playtime when the Country girls arrive.

2009-05-02T11:11:00.002+01:00

While going through blog land I came across a blog Dare U 2 Digi Stamp. I am a big fan of all methods of stamping and I love the fact that digi stamps can be resized to however big or small you want your image without losing the pixels and also you dont have to wait for the mail man to bring your stamp - you get it right away!

This weeks challenge is a sketch. I have used pretty head Rachel from the Greeting Farm. The black and white paper I had free with papercraft essentials magazine, black ribbon from my stash, red and silver cardstock, white gel pen for some faux stitching, and the flower in her hair made with my woodware daisy punches. I have watercoloured the image with pencils and given her some sparkling eye lids with Kirsten Lapping Designs glitter. The sentiment is a fabric topper which I picked up in a pound shop.

2009-04-28T12:21:00.003+01:00

The challenge from The Sugar Bowl Challenge is Men - the criteria -make a card, or other craft project, using a Sugar Nellie stamp for a male, For any occasion, Any age at all, young, old or 'in between'

Euton my oldest son is 14 today, so this is his birthday card. He loves this image from Sugar Nellie and he has never been able to perfect the art of skateboarding - bruises, cuts and war worns to prove he has tried, but getting it over an inch of the grown is hard work!! The slogan is by an unknown author, which I made into labels using ACME Labelmaker. The round sentiment is a fabric sticker, bazzill swiss dots cardstock, black peel off dots, Dovecraft Masculine papers, and black and light blue cardstock. The image has been watercoloured with watercolour pencils.

On the other hand, Euton loves music see him HERE and Here, and his excellent progress in his trumpet and piano/keyboard playing is unbelieveable.