Not so Impossible.

Yesterday was a day not to be repeated!. Started with not being able to get into my Paypal account. I needed to renew a subscription which was about to run out in 4 days time and I only had the option of doing it by Paypal. Talk about putting the  thumb screws on. Finally got that sorted out and then my Flickr account decided to chuck me out and I was on the verge of  losing all my history plus hundreds of photos down the pan as it kept trying to create a new blank account for me. Still is an on going
problem but it completely disrupted my planned day for me. I had spent so long sitting at  the computer that my "Frozen " shoulder kicked in big time so the only thing for it was to call it a day and go to bed.
So now I am on catch up.
It is time for the next challenge on the Butterfly blog.

#125 Spin The Butterfly Wheel with I for Impossible Card. 

Here are my inspiration cards for you.
First card uses Version I
I have used  Impossible card/Image/Inks/Iceberg/Inchworm/Butterfly.

 You will find the Tutorial for making this shape card over on the Butterfly Blog under the Card Shapes tab. I found a lovely patterned paper in a pad from The Works which has pretty sprays of  pale blue/grey flowers on it. I new I had a stamp set in my stash that was very nearly the same shape flower so I hunted it out.  (Stamp is by Imagination Crafts.) Stamped with versa mark and embossed with Wow silver embossing powder. Fussy cut several of the flowers out and coloured in pale blue and orange with my alcohol ink  markers. The butterfly is Memory box Isabella and Pipi die cut in orange and pale blue. I just scribbled some of the marker pens onto scraps of white paper and then cut out.

Sentiment are Britannia word dies.

Second  card uses Version II
I have used  Impossible card/Image/Inks/Imperial red/ Iceberg/Inchworm/Butterfly. All seven elements.
Design paper is a freebie from Making Cards Aug 2014 called Patchwork Pals which I have teamed with Imperial red cardstock for the added base.

 The butterfly stamp and sentiment  is by Julie Hickey "Fancy Flutter-bies. Coloured with my Alcohol ink markers using Imperial Red/Inch Worm and Iceberg.

 Hope you will come and have a flutter and try the Impossible card shape out which really isn't impossible at all.

Christmas Wreath

Time for the girls in the Christmas Card Club to show our next makes. I haven't been able to make a card so I looked back on my stored photos not shown and found this Christmas Wreath that I made for a Christmas Fayre 2 yrs ago. I donated it for the Tombola as I knew it wouldn't sell on the stall.
Elizabeth set the theme and wanted to see  Baubles. When I first looked at the photo I thought I had baubles threaded inbetween  the flowers but now I have blown the picture up I can see they are shiny acorns. Perhaps the little bird thought they were baubles. (Note to self, should have gone to Spec Savers.) I'm falling back on the Anything Goes if we have nothing in our stash we can use.

 It was difficult to get a good photo of it and I ended up hanging it on a kitchen cupboard door and standing back as far as I could. Everything came from my christmas stash box except the wire frame that I purchased and then covered in brown crepe paper  string that I unravelled to make it 1" wide.
It took absolutely ages to make as I backed everything up on the wrong side so that it looked just as tidy on the back.  Below is a close up. I die cut the roses using my Spellbinders Rose Die and glitter foam.

Hope this will pass muster Elizabeth.

Hexagons are in!

Week two already of the current butterfly challenge which is
#124 Spin The Butterfly Wheel with H for Hinged Card.

I'm sure this warm weather is evaporating time. 

I have two more cards for your inspiration. Both using Hexagons. 

First Card.
Using Hinged card/Heliotrope/Hexagons/Butterfly.

 My camera is picking up the base card as being blue but IRL it is a lovely rich Purple. The Hexagon dies are all from a set by  Julie Hickey called 'Layers, Frames and Banners Hexagon'. The sentiment is also by Julie Hickey from her Circle Sentiments stamp set. Butterfly is a large and small punch by SU. Design papers are by LOTV Nitwit collections 'Snow Princess' I did use some snippets that were already cut and kept inside the front page of the pad so I can hop skipety jump over to the snippets playground. I will stay off the swings though and the pogo sticks! I don't want 2 naf shoulders.

 I have again used the hinged card method to make the base card. Instructions can be found on the Butterfly blog under the Card Shapes  tab at the top of the page underneath the banner header.

Entering into the following challenge.
Pixies Crafty Workshop #355 Use your snippets.

Second Card.
Using /Hot pink/Hexagons/ Heat embossed/Butterfly.

 Base card is made from hot pink card stock and the largest die from the Hexagon set I used in the card above.  The beautiful Vellum Sunflower is also a stamp set by Julie Hickey called 'Sunflower Bee. I have heat embossed using Wow embossing powder.  The design paper is from a paper pad by The Works.

The sentiment is again from the same set as used in the card above.  (I am loving all things Julie Hickey at the moment. Not so you would notice!) Butterfly is Memory box 'Pippi/Isabella ' Die cut.

Hope to have inspired you to come and have a spin of the wheel. Challenge runs for another week.

The Garden

I'm taking a respite from making cards so thought I would show you some pictures instead  of the back garden which is looking particularly nice at the moment. Though our house is two stories all the upstairs rooms are in the roof so it looks a bit like a cottage but with a tiled roof and dormers.A few yrs back I redesigned the garden by taking the lawn away and making it into a cottage style with winding paths and round  stone slab patios and lots of different seating There are 3 different sets in this garden so we can follow the sun/shade around all day. Apart from a deweed in spring and autumn the garden pretty much looks after itself. Yay!!  This is the view from the back door. 

 We also have lots of solar power fountains as well.  3 in this garden and one in the side garden which we call the garden of the Headless Lady (after Norm knocked the head off when he was giving it a scrub up. see here)

 The rockery

 
 You can just see one set of chairs and table .

 One of the ponds. Again there are multiples. 4 in fact. Why do things in half measures!! Home to 2 types of newts and various toads/frogs.

Looking out from the dinning room double doors.  I will be sitting here with a glass of wine later or might well be two.!!

Hinged Cards.

Time for a new challenge over on the Butterfly blog. The theme this time is

#124 Spin The Butterfly Wheel with H for Hinged Card.
The challenge is back to its normal two weeks.

 You will find the instructions and tutorials over on the Butterfly blog under the tab called card shapes. Click on the card name to be taken straight to the tutorial.

You will need a fancy filigree style die to make this card but it is still a simple card shape to make and the results are very stylish.

I have also included instructions for making a simple Hexagon shaped card using a die and A4 size design paper using the hinged method. 

Here is my first inpsiration card for you.

Using  Hinged card/Hot Pink/Hunters Green/Butterfly.

 I have used spellbinders Romantic Rectangle die and a design paper from The Works to make the shape. (The Paper is double sided so I only needed to cut one extra to cover the join. )
I fussy cut some of the roses and tiny blue flower from some of the leftover paper and adhered to the front of the card using 3d pads to give dimension..

 I used stickles silver glue to give sparkle to the centres of the roses.  Butterfly is an SU Punch. The sentiment is from a stamp set by Kaisercraft called Birthday wishes. Below you can see the card opened up.

My second card for you is showing another hinged style using Spellbinders Marvellous Squares.

Using  Hinged card/Hot Pink/Heat Embossed/Butterfly.

I have used hot pink design paper for the front of the card and heat embossed the butterfly and sentiment using Wow Silver Metallic embossing powder. Butterfly is a freebie from Paper Crafter magazine along with the sentiment on the inside of the card. The best wishes sentiment is by Kaisercraft.

Design paper used on the inside is LOTV Nitwit collections Pastel Dreams paper pad.

Last card uses a Hexagon die which I have used to make a hinged card.  You will find the instructions over on the Butterfly blog under the tab called card shapes.

Using  Hinged card/Hot Pink/Hunters Green/Hexagons/Butterfly.

 Hexagon die is by Julie Hickey called 'Layers,Frames & Banners Hexagon'. Design papers are from The Works. Sentiment is by Kaisercraft 'Birthday Wishes'. Butterfly from my stash.

Hope I have given you some food for thought and that you will come and have a spin of the wheel.

Flowers sort of!

It's time again for the girls in the Christmas Card Club to show out next makes. Kate chose the theme of Christmas Flowers. My shoulder is way too painful for me to craft at present so I looked through my unpublished photos stash on my computer and found this card which whilst holly is not strictly a flower it is at least christmassy.

Card base is made using green mirror card. The lattice design is a Tonic Studios die. The holly wreath is from one of the old LOTV pre- coloured pads which I die cut using a Sizzix scalloped die. The front was finished with  green pearls (which I do remember did match the mirror card at the time).

I found some matching design paper in my stash and used on the inside cutting another of the lattice design and for some reason (I have forgotten why as I made this card way back in 2013) I die cut a plain circle for the centre. The sentiment is a Britannia die. As there is no glare from it I think I cut from plain green card.  

 Short and sweet from me this time as it is painful for me to type for very long  as well. I have had one physio session and been given exercises to do but have been told it is going to take a long time for my shoulder to heal. 

Hamilton.

Grandson No1 also has his Birthday in December and this is the card that I made for him and haven't shown yet.
The digi is a very old one from Polly Craft which I bought in a discontinued bundle called Hamilton.
Coloured with my promakers and a silver gel pen. The paper was in my stash from way back when along with the number topper.

The boys are growing up so fast and I will have to put my thinking cap on for finding images for their next cards.