Wow - LIM and it's only Tuesday!!

Do you know - I've decided the most difficult part of creating a LIM card is choosing the subject matter. This is probably because the image stands alone, there's no distracting from in with embellishments etc, although I do try never to let embellishments take pride of place or overpower the image in anyway.

I use this image called 'Dreamer' with the sentiment 'Dreams do come True' - I've had it for ages and shame on me I can't for the life in me remember who it's by - it's part of a fairy set and naughty me hasn't labelled it in my computer. If anyone can tell me I would be grateful. 

The whole card started off in kraft cardstock but I had another ooops.

Last week my cat added pawprints to my creation - this week I knocked a bottle of Sansodor all over which of course caught the edge of the card, so again I retrieved the OK part and mounted in on some blue cs.

My little 'dreamer' is coloured in my mixture of Prisma's and Coloursoft pencils and that's about it really!! I have the urge to do another card this week, again - time permitting!!

Hope you're all having a great week,

Lili of the Valley

Another of the 'Here come the Boys' images I think is fantastic for Fathers' Day

This little chap is called Cheers Bear and is coloured in the usual Copics. I've done and off center gate fold card and punched the corners - I've seen this on the amazingly talented Anita's blog and think it finished the corners so perfectly.

The stars are cut with a DieNamics die, the swirls with Magnolia and the sentiment is one of the Lili of the Valley sentiments ones.

I've put a pocket on the inside of the card which can hold a tag and/or gift token and used one of the   Additions Bows to finish off the top of the pocket. I did mean to put a pearl or diamonte into the center of the bow, but sadly, memory not being what it used to..........

 I had an AGM that I mentioned yesterday - it lasted all day and I was starving hungry when I got home so I flew into the kitchen to start cooking and sliced into my thumb (the fleshy part) which hasn't stopped bleeding since. I've gone through all my plasters so it's now kitchen roll and selotape so crafting has been rather a slow process today LOL!! Fortunately most of this card was more or less ready to go!!

I hope you've all had (having) a great weekend, and the weather's a bit warmer than it is here - brrrr....

Basic Grey is all Shabby Chic

Thank you for all your fabulous entries for the Mix & Match challenge, you showed us some real inspirational combinations

This week at Basic Grey we would like you to create something 'Shabby Chic' for us.

Pop over the challenge blog where the DT's have provided some real inspiration for you.

Basic Grey products used - Porcelain papers

This is one of my all time favourite Sugar Nellie images - Reflective - and I decided she has the right ambience for Shabby Chic. I read somewhere (?) that Shabby Chic was traditionally pink and grey - how true this is heaven only knows but I decided to go with it. She is coloured with Copics and all edges distressed and are lightly coated with a white acylic paint dabber. 
 I made the flowers with netting and some pink voile ribbon neither of which wanted to play the game so I had to use copious amount of brute force and determination!!
I used a Prima Lustre leaf, a metal butterfly and ooops I forgot to add pears to his body, lace from my stash and some cluster pearls my lovely friend America sent me.


As always, our wonderful sponsor Simon Says Stamp is offering one lucky winner a fab $25 shopping spree in the Simon Says Superstore, just think of the goodies you could treat yourself to with that !!

(Please note: This is a voucher code that entitles the winner to a $25 saving off their order inSimon Says Stamp, P+P charges will still apply unless the conditions are met to earn free P+P, please check here if you would like to see these conditions)

Right I need your sympathy today - I have and AGM to attend - it starts at 11am and last year it finished at gone 6pm - not the way I want to spend a beautiful Saturday and it doesn't help that it is all in German!!! I do understand quite a bit but not enough for meetings like this. Wonder if I could take some crafting stuff with me????

Hope you all have a great weekend (at least better than mine is going to be)

lovely hAnglars only

Well I'ts been problem after problem today,  nothing major but I reached the point I'd had enough so the answer for me is to cut off completely and do some crafting. the result is this card. 

It's one of my little hAnglar girls I've coloured in Copic and sat her on a stamp by Tim Holtz and cut out with a Spellbinder's  label 16. The papers are Basic Grey's Curio and lovely hAnglars only want to see some spots this week, hmmmm.............they might have to get some magnifying glasses to see my spots although she does have spots on her dress!!
The edge is cut with a Crealies die I've used Magnolia swirls and leaves and the flowers are by Wild Orchid Crafts.

Apart from lovely hAnglars only I had another couple of challenges this card fit if only I can find them.
Found one - not difficult - The Creative Card Crew 

Now a couple more - thanks Paula

A Spoonful of Sugar want Things with wings

 Craft your Passion - Let it all hang out - (have something off the edge of your project), my top swirl is off so that I could get the rest of it where I wanted it - but I'm not sure it is enough - if not - expel me!!!

Colour Q  

Simon Says ................Stars & Stripes

Thank you for all the fabulous 'sparkling' you showed for us last week at Simon says Stamp and this week we would like to see STARS & STRIPES .

I used Fairy with Balloon by Stamps Happen as my image and coloured it with Copics, I love Stamps Happen - their stamps are fabulous and they have such an amazing variety. 

The papers are all  Kaisers Lilac Avenue apart from the stars which are from a Bearly Mine CD  - I find the colours and selections ponthis invaluable for those occasions  when you're stuck for a specific paper.

The border is cut is the MS Arch Lattice punch and the one on top of this with a  Margarita Daisy punch. I used MFT Stacking Stars to replace my fairies balloons and finished it with

Basic Grey Opaline Pearls.

This card also fits the challenge at ABC which is V for Violet

As always we have a fabulous prize  for you from the Heidi and the fabulous team at Simon Says Stamp.  One lucky entrant a receive a $50 voucher to the FANTASTIC Simon Says Stamp Superstore !! See the NEWEST stuff on the All New Just In Page. For fabulous tutorials, inspiration and candy you should keep an eye on the Simon Says Stamp Blog too .

I hope you are all having a brilliant week so far

Less is More was nearly nothing!!

Whoo-hoo - I've managed a challenge card this week and or course it is Less is More.

I didn't dare miss again - I'll get shouted at - I do wish life would be a little kinder with time.

This one nearly ended up in the bin. I stamped my image onto the card, masked it then used the Tim Holtz script stamp over the image. I then did a mask in reverse - ie. tore a hole in the paper so that I could ink through it  -  and oh boy did that take some getting right!!! At this point I used a combination of distress inks to ink over the masked butterfly and the script. I stamped another butterfly,  slightly darker in Adirondak aubergine ink, cut it out and attached it to the one beneath.

Apart from struggling to get my negative the right shape and in the right place thing were going swimmingly up to this point - then disaster struck in the shape of cat paw marks across my card!! This will teach me to put the ink away before answering the phone.

Fortunately said cat had managed to miss the image and inking, otherwise he might just have been given a flying lesson from the second floor balcony!!! I managed to rescue the image by cutting it out and attaching it to a piece of blue and fastening it to another card - pheww - but not what I really wanted but who know if time will be a little kinder to me perhaps I will have time to ..................try again!!

House Mouse & Friends for the love of the Game

Our new challenge for this week is Football orientated.

Our super sweet DT Member STACY Morgan, of TWINSHAPPY is a BIG FAN of FOOTBALL, so she wants to see us creating projects with the USA GREEN BAY PACKERS Football TEAM in mind. Yeap, that's right!  That's her Twin Boy's Favorite Football Team. So, A FOOTBALL FRENZY theme it is!!!!  
Doesn't have to be Green Bay Packers orientated, or even American football (nothing wrong with a good old game of SOCCER I say!!) I seriously considered using MAN U as my inspiration but feared I might just get lynched!!
Check out the DT's  cards there is plenty of inspiration there 

Esme and Nancy are both our GD's again this week and we are looking for GD's for future months so pop along to the blog if you'd like to have a go!!!

Here is my take on Stacy's theme. I have lost a packet of House Mouse stamped images - naughty little blighters have gone walkabout - so I didn't have the image I wanted and had to improvise.

I decided we would have our mouses celebrating a win - thought that might keep Stacy happy!! I used some 'grass' paper as backing  and used the image called 'Olive a Party' and coloured it in Copics, I stamped some mousie footprints along some yellow ribbon and placed that one some green, twirled it around and fastened it to the card with glossy accents. I made a yellow flower with the EK Succes punch, cut the tips with some of those fancy scissors then scrunched it up hoping it looked somewhat like a rosette. I stamped the little mouse called 'Jumping for Joy' and cut him out with a round nestie and computer orientated the sentiment, which for some strange reason looks totally the wrong colour. 

We have the lovely DI from Di's digi downoads sponsoring us this week with
3 free digi's for the lucky winner!!

lovely hAnglars only

I've taken a little time out today and made a card just for fun!!

Strangely enough I've gone pretty and pink, not like me.

I followed the recipe challenge at lovely hAnglars only - 2 papers, at least 3 flowers, lace and a charm. My lovely little little hAnglar girl is coloured in Copics and the papers are called Blueberry Hill (I think - quite old!!)

I've stamped the edge of the image with a Stempelglede stamp and inked it with Victorian Velvet distress ink.  Crealies dies were used for the flowers and leaves, the ribbon is seam binding and the lace and charm are both from my stash. I've used a Lili of the Valley sentiment cut with Spellbinders scalloped and plain heart dies.

Well, play break over - back to doing something I should be doing.

Hope you're all having a great weekend and thanks for stopping by

A little lost soul and a card

LOOK!!!!

A little birdie fell out of his nest onto my balcony and I had to keep him safe until his mummy came and collected him. Not that my cat would have known what to do with him, he even runs away from flies, all he's ever caught are worms and they don't run very fast do they!!

Right here is a card that has been waiting to be posted until I got my camera back 

from my son.

This is one of the new Lili of the Valley  boys images which is perfect for Father's Day  (coming up very soon) together with their circular Father's day sentiment. The image is cloloured in Copics and cut out with a Spellbinders label die.

The papers are 'Me and my Big Ideas' and the stars are cut with an MFT die and the swirls with a Magnolia one.

Has anyone else been having commenting problems ??

I'm struggling reaching blogs - the little thing at the top of the page goes round.....

.....and round........and round........for ages and ages, then often tells me it can't connect to the site!!! I would like to know if it's just me and I should be doing something!!

Simon Says.....................lets Sparkle & Shine

This week the theme is

SPARKLE AND SHINE !!!

We, the DT have been having fun using products from Tattered Angels and loads of glimmer mist this week .

I started by running a Spellbinders Impressabilities circles die through my cuttlebug. I left it lightly attached to the cardstock and sprayed it with Denim Blue Tattered Angels Glimmer mist. The base card is sprayed with the Silver Glimmer mist. The photograph at the top shows just how beautiful the shimmer is IRL.

I used Tilda with Hawaiin Flower  as my image and coloured her with the usual Copics. The butterflies are all cut with Martha Stewart butterfly punches, inked with Distress inks, stamped with Perfect Medium then 'sprinkled' with Multi Fine glitter

I've also used the Magnolia Doohickey swirl and leaf die and Prima Athena flowers.

All the rest are bits from my stash including the lace which an old lady who used to live close by gave me years ago and I still have miles of it left , well perhaps not quite miles.

I keep forgetting to enter cards into challenges but I have a couple for this one

A spoonful of Sugar is Anything goes

Little Clare's challenge is Sparkle

Crafts and Me - Anything goes

Creative Inspirations - Lace and pearls

As usual Heidi will be giving one lucky entrant a $50 voucher to her FANTASTIC Simon Says Stamp Superstore !! See the NEWEST stuff on the All New Just In Page For fabulous tutorials, inspiration and candy you should keep an eye on the Simon Says Stamp Blog too !!! :-)

Hope you're all having a great week and thanks for stopping by

There's nothing like a little Attitude!! (AGAIN!!)

Some of you may think you've seen this card before!! 

Some of you will have seen this card before!!

 Some of you have even commented on this card before!!I

I published this card on - on gosh - I think it was Thursday, one of the days when Mr Blogger took his ball home and refused to play.

It disappeared, on Saturday it re-appeared so as I had Basic Grey to sort out I stuck it in drafts then forgot about it - I don't suppose I'll get my comments back though!!

So here it comes again, sorry if I'm pushing at you again.

**************************************************

Right I'm on a using up images mission - I have so many images coloured up waiting to be used it's just not true!!! How SAD is that ???

 I really do need to turn some of them into cards, the trouble is I'm as happy as a 'pig in muck'  colouring in, part of my second childhood I suspect. 

I even have one of the same image done three times, once in Copics, once is Prisma's on Kraft cs and once in distress inks!! So here is the start to the dent in my 'pile'.

This is one of the cute little hAnglar Attitude girls and I've decided to give her Nordic blond locks today andcoloured her in Copics (listed below).  The papers are Basic Grey's Aged and Confused (the papers - not me that is) The flowers are cut with a Marianne die and the swirls with a Magnolia doohickey one. The brown one is from Wild Orchid Crafts and the stunning lace is from my adorable friend America .

Here is a close up of the image and the copics used

Skin  -  E00, E02, E11,  R00, R20

Hair  Y0000, E41, E81

Dress  B00, B0, B91, B93, B95, B97

Pinafore and shoes  E44, E49, E70, E1

Thanks for stopping by (again - tee-hee)

Today at COPIC CREATIONS we are featuring an often neglected Copic color ~ YELLOW!!    There certainly are enough Y and YR Copic color choices, yet it seems to be one of the least used colors.   Poor YELLOW.

 Well, we hope to change your feelings about YELLOW today!   Below you’ll find some amazing creations from the Design Team, showcasing their favorite YELLOW Copic combinations.  Yes, you will be amazed at their work!

We are also welcoming back one of our favorite sponsors ~ Paper Makeup Stamps, owned by our own awesome DT member  Katie Cotton!    

Before I go any further I have to say I found this challenge very difficult - I don't  do yellow - I don't like yellow, I don't have anything yellow in the house, I don't have yellow flowers, I don't even do margarine because it's yellow (butter's OK it's a softer lemon colour).

I think this has something to do with having migraines as a teenager, migraine and yellow just don't go together, although that's probably just me!!! 

I really had to dig deep to find some yellow papers, they were all hidden at the back/bottom of a drawer - haven't the foggiest idea who they are by.

The flowers and leaves are cut with a Crealie's dies and the pearls and ribbon are from stash.

I love this image Katie's and  shall definitely be doing her (Moody for Art) again and I quite fancy her in blue, or even a lilac colour. We hope you’ll take some time to check out Katie's  store - you won’t be disappointed!    All the YELLOW sample cards from DT feature an image from Paper Makeup Stamps .

Copics used

Skin  -  E000, E00, E11, R00, R20

The Yellows  -  Y0000, Y20, YR30, Y28

Greens  -  G20, G22, G24, G28

Bag & folio's  -  E40, E41, N0, N2

Hair  -  E30, E31, E70, E74

I hope you're all having a brilliant weekend and life is being kind to you,

Mix and Match at Basic Grey!!

First we have some really sad, sad news that my matey, the lovely and very creative Tara W is having to leave us here at Basic Grey , Tara is one of my oldest blogging friends, not in age I hasten to add before she shouts at me, and I have worked with her since I first started blogging. Will miss you sweetie!!!!

Onto our challenge for you this fortnight,which is-   

Mix & Match...

We would love to see a mix of your BasicGrey crafty goodies,

this could be different collections of papers/buttons and

anything you have that is BG- all mixed up please!!

A SPECIAL welcome to our very talented Guest Designer
 Becca,

thank you for sharing your gorgeous creations with us here at BG,

it is great to have you with us Becca :)  

My papers are from two different pads, the retro styled one from Recess and the lemon and small spotted one from Hopscotch - I also used some small pearls from Basic Grey's Opaline range. I've used one of my little hAnglar Attitude girlies, she is coloured in Copics and sat upon a Tim Holtz flourish stamp. 

The flowers and butterflies are cut with Crealies dies and the flourishes with a Marianne Creatable.

As always, our wonderful sponsor Simon Says Stamp is offering one lucky winner a fab $25 shopping spree in the Simon Says Superstore, just think of the goodies you could treat yourself to with that !!

(Please note: This is a voucher code that entitles the winner to a $25 saving off their order in Simon Says Stamp, P+P charges will still apply unless the conditions are met to earn free P+P, please check here if you would like to see these conditions)

 

I would finally like to say a huge THANK YOU to Mr Blogger for having his 'hissy fit' yesterday..........I switched my computer off in disgust and waded through a mountain of jobs - I painted my balcony, fixed my wardrobe door, re-potted my beans and mange tout, did a huge pile of ironing (great - I now have some clothes to wear!!) then I fell into bed and slept like a log !!

Thanks for stopping by and I hope you all have a great weekend

Have you got yours yet????? If not you better hurry ...... pop over to Lili of the Valley right now because you know these amazing stamps are sure to be a resounding success!!

To help celebrate The Ribbon Girl has some wonderful candy up for grabs so make sure you pop over and enter.

I coloured many images and they went down with a migraine and couldn't focus enough to colour them, perhaps that will teach me to make cards one by one!!!

This one is Abracadabera, coloured with Copics and made into a shadow box card to which I've added some holographic 'strinkle' shapes.

I've added texture with a Cuttlebug floral border and stars cut with a Dienamic's die.

Simon Says.....................Look What the Stork Brought!!

Our Says Stamp challenge this  week's challenge is ...........................

LOOK WHAT THE STORK BROUGHT !!!

As many of you will know, Heidi's baby is due anyday now and we are all eagerly awaiting the news that we are to be Auntie's again !! We would love to see your baby cards !

Sshhhh a little birdie told us that Heidi's baby is a girl, if anyone would like to make a card and send it to her then please email us for the address :-) Thanks xx

We are welcoming Christine aka Nanaseaside to join us in the Designer Spotlight for the next 4 weeks :-) I am sure most of you will have visited Christine's blog but if you haven't you're in for a treat !! Please pop over and say Hi :-)

I used the House Mouse image Sleepy Head, (isn't it just so sweet??) - it is coloured with the usual Copics and cut out with the Spellbinders large Ocgagons and then mounted one two of the Spellbinders Fleur-de-lis Pendants. I have 'framed' the image with Magnolia's Doohicky  swirls and coated everything liberally with Stardust Stickles.

The base of the card is embossed with the cuttlebug Seeing Spots folder.
The lace, ribbon and charm are from my stash.
I do love all white cards but do wish it wasn't such a nightmare photographing them.

As usual Heidi will be giving one lucky entrant a $50 voucher to her  FANTASTIC Simon Says Stamp Superstore !! See the NEWEST stuff on the All New Just In Page For fabulous tutorials, inspiration and candy you should keep an eye on the Simon Says Stamp Blog too !!! :-)

Now I'm off to get very wet!! I've got all behind hand due to that thumping migraine I had last week and desperately need to do some errands and visit the bank and guess what .............. we are in the middle of a  whacking great  thunderstorm. I don't suppose I'll shrink though!!