Now for somthing a little different.

When I sent out the Goodie bags to the winners of the Spot the Difference games we played over Christmas I also enclosed a handmade Mug Rug for everyone. Stylised to each person in some way. As the parcels have nearly all (barring 3 just heard another has arrived so 2) reached their destinations I am showing some of the first ones sent out. 

I did stalk all your blogs mercilessly hunting for clues . Worts an all!! 

First to be sent was one for Di who was my guinea pig  and also  helped me set up my Click and Drop on line postal service with the Royal Mail. (Thankyou so much Di) No way was I going down to the local post office with 22 parcels otherwise. Face mask on or not. 

It really was a no brainer to make this in Pink and add a little Dudley for Di.( Actually quite a few cats and dogs found themselves depicted on other mug rugs too.)

It was a toss of the coin with the next mug rug. Sunflowers or Purple.! In the end purple won for Liz as I had some lovely purple materials that  all went well together. 

Whilst stalking Kate's blog I picked up on a photo of hubby wearing  a kilt and as I did have some green tartan in my stash that is how this mug rug and wee little box came about. Had to be Scottie Dogs. Just hope the tartan I used wasn't a rival clan!

I am not going to tell you the name of the next recipient. Lets see if you can guess. I did print a list of the winners here if your  looking  a clue.

I was going down a completely different path for my next recipient but then I spotted a chance remark on one of Viv's posts  (told you I stalked relentlessly) so it really couldn't be anything other than a boat on the ocean waves. 

 

Showing the last one for today for Carol who loves Blues so I chose this ditzy floral print for her. 

Hugs 

New Joy Folds

Spring is certainly in the air. The days are beginning to be sunny and the bulbs are all starting to flower too. The Magpies have finished building their nest in the tree top opposite our back garden and are just tweaking it to their liking. It took them nearly two weeks to construct. They will start to nest shortly. 

In the meantime it is time for a new Butterfly Challenge. 

#153 Spin The Butterfly Wheel with J for Joy Fold 2.

I know that we have already done this shape but I have found a couple of different variations which in my opinion  make re visitng this shape worth while. We made the original version way back in July 2019 in the hazy,lazy days of summer pre Covid. If only we knew then what we know now!!

  Your 6  elements are:

Joy Fold 2/Jade/Jasmine/Japanese Carmine/Jewels

+your Butterfly.

n.b.   Jasmine = a pale hint of yellow

Japanese Carmine = light Burgundy

Jewels  = use your diamonds and pearls.

So here is my first variation for your inspiration.  Instead of the usual Joy Fold Flap you make it into a Buckle Fold closure. Very easy to do. I have made tutorials for both of the cards and you will find them under the Card Shapes Tab over on the Butterfly Blog. 

I am using all six of the elements. 

The Butterfly paper is a freebie from Making Cards July 2015 called Busy Butterflies and the Jade coloured card is from a pad from 'The Works' Su punch for the butterflies and the Thankyou Die cut is by Cheery Lynn Designs.  Here you can see the card slightly open and where  you make a simple slit in the front part of the card to fold the buckle into.

Variation 2 is for a Double Joy Fold which I have also attached together in an unusual way for added interest.

Again I have used all of the 6 elements. 

Not showing very clearly here but the front of the card also folds back on itself. The tutorial explains it more fully.  Butterfly paper is from the same freebie set of papers as the first card. The jade design is from Making Cards Magazine Christmas edition 2016. Sentiment is a stamp by Tonic. 

Well I hope I have whetted your appetite and you will come and give these shapes a go over at the Butterfly Blog. The challenge is running for two weeks and closes on Tuesday 16th Mar at 8pm (GMT).  Gosh the clocks will be going forward shortly. The days are already drawing out. It was warm enough in the Summer House to have our Tea in there.  

                                                 Hugs

and continue to Stay Safe. 

Managed my Quota!

A short month but I managed to make my quota of Christmas cards for this month. Another Bakers Dozen in the bag.  It's time for the girls in the Christmas card club to show our makes and Rita chose the theme of Christmas Carols.

My First Card is a digital background from  Vintage By Me on Etsy. You get two different song sheets per page so I printed off one page and used one for the  background and then stamped and  die cut the poinsettia flower out from the other one  using  John Next Doors Poinsettia set.  Glitter glue and gems were from my stash. The sentiment came in the stamp set. 

Second Card uses another Etsy download from 'Digital Magpie'.  Again you get two song sheets per page and here I have just used one as they are pre coloured. I printed off , trimmed to size and distressed round the edges for a vintage look.  Sentiment as above and gold stickers were from my stash.

Third Card. Trawling around the Web for more inspiration I found this darling  free image on a blog called 'Crafty Moments Card Making' by Vince 'Festive Carol Singing Mice' and just had to colour it up and use. Unfortunately Vince doesn't appear to have blogged since 2014 which is a shame.  I have made into an easel card. and used Tattered Lace Round corner Rectangles dies for the mats.  Setiment by John Next Door.

Fourth Card. I already had this in my stash. It is another free digital image from  Free Dearie Dolls digi stamps called 'Kip and Me Carolers' Coloured with my Graph'it pens/gold gel pen and then die cut using Spellbinders Marvellous squares which I also die cut in red cardstock. Both have been hand stitched round the edges using toning cotton thread for a bit of a rustic look. 

Lastly my card for Mo's Rudolph challenge for February.  Keeping to my theme of depicting the twelve days of christmas  (second day being  2 Turtle Doves ) I have used a dgi image from Beccy's Place which is actually Wedding Doves but by changing the colour of the flowers and printing off several images and decoupaging the same flowers I have managed to cover the non christmas looking ones up.  The Doc says it looks a bit like a  birds nest but I think it works.  The sentiment is a dig cut by Tonic that I have die cut twice and drop shadowed. I have edged the doves with a gold gel pen and then given a shadow round them as they are white on a white cardstock.  Gold edging strips from my stash. 

Keep Safe and watch out for your Vaccine invite.

Hugs 

Recycled bits and bobs.

I am behind with my Bakers Dozen for this Months christmas card stash so I looked at what was still out on my desk and before tidying it away decided to see how many cards I could make from the bits and bobs. 

First Card.

When I have small bits of design paper left over I make panels up with the strips and then I have ready made backgrounds to either use as panels on a card or to die cut shapes and sentiments from.  This card has an already made up panel and a sentiment that I salvaged from a shop bought card I had received. Too nice to just  throw out. We had a box of old decorations up in the loft that The Doc brought down and before disposing of them  I went through and salvaged any bits and bobs suitable for putting on cards. The poinsettia came from a 9" high christmas tree that had seen better days.

Second Card.

Another already made up panel of blues/greens/turquoise papers that I teemed up with silver and Turquoise backing card to make the base card. The sentiment I salvaged from a shop received card and the ribbon, gems and snowflakes were found in my stash. Everything was layered up for 3D dimension. 

Third  Card.

Again using an already made up panel of browns/creams/burgundy design paper oddments. The Merry Christmas was hanging on the 9" christmas tree already mentioned above. It had two holes at the top that ribbon had been looped through and looked a bit odd as not part of the wording. I solved the problem by stickinga gem over each hole. I also  found an oddment of ribbon that matched the burgundy in the papers.  This is quite a small card being only 4.75" x 3.5" but it still packs a punch. 

Fourth Card.

Again an already made up panel of pink/burgundy/brown and red spotty papers and a sentiment die cut from another panel  using a Tonic Die.  The gems/flower and oddment of ribbon were gathering dust on my desk. All layered up onto larger pieces of card stock to make a bigger card. 

Fifth Card.

A long narrow one this time as the panel I had was that shape . I had an oddment of bakers twine on my desk so wrapped it around the panel before layering up with plain cardstock and sparkly card.  The sentiment was from a received shop bought card and the gems I found in my stash. 

 

I am still getting over the vaccine. Like a few other people I have heard  from, I got flu like symptons about 8 days after my initial reaction. Runnng nose/wet eyes and just could not get warm no matter how much clothes I piled on. The Doc felt rough too about the same interlude from his jab and  felt like he had been punched in the arm . He is still sporting a bruise on his arm the size of a large grape.  I had no reaction at the point of entry on my arm so it really is affecting people differently.  It is the only way forward though if we are to have any chance of overcoming this pandemic. 

Inside Out Card

Sorry for the delay in publishing this next challenge. I really do not want another week like the last one and dread having to go through it all again in 10 weeks time to have my second vaccination done but needs must .( Never had such a bad reaction before and I certainly do not want to experience the real thing if that was the vaccine trying to teach my system what to expect in the event.) Everyone is different though so please when your turn comes to have the vaccine go and have it done. It is the only way forward out of this Pandemic.

We are at the start of another Butterfly Challenge and we are on the letter I. 

#152 Spin The Butterfly Wheel with I for Inside Out Card. 

  Your 6  elements are:

Inside Out Card/Ivory/Iceberg/Inch Worm/Inking

+your Butterfly.

n.b.   Iceberg = very light blue

Inch Worm = pale green

Inking  = use distress ink or marker pens to colour with.

There really is only one version to making this card and I have put the tutorial for it over on the card shape tab on the Butterfly Blog. Once you have the concept of how the card is made it is very easy to do but you do need to see the tutorial first  for the full explanation.  

I have 2 examples here to show you. 

Card 1 using Inside Out Card/Inking/Iceberg/Inch Worm/Ivory/Butterfly.

This is the front of the card.

When you open the card up you see this. It is very intriguing! 

Side ways on view.

I have used a Woodware Sentiment stamp for the inside FRS137 and a Butterfly edging die by Joy Crafts.  Th coloured in butterfly on the front is Stamping ups  Papillon Pot Pouri. Design paper  is Simply British, Simply homemade a magazine freebie from several years ago and gems from my stash.

Card 2 using Inside Out Card/I/Iceberg/Ivory/Butterfly.

This is the front of the card.

When you open the card up you see this. 

Side ways on view.

The  digi design paper is by Pink Petticoat  'Dandelion Clocks' Blues. The Love die by' Crafters Companion' and part of a stamp and die set.  The Someone special Sentiment is by Woodware from their Just To Say collection JGCL560. The smattering of small butterflies were out on my desk from another die not used. I coloured one blue using my promarker for the front of the card. 

I do hope you will give this card shape a try.  The challenge is running for two weeks and will finnish on Tuesday 2nd Mar. 8pm (GMT).

Hugs

Playing in the Snow.

It is time again for the girls in the Christmas Card to show our next makes. It is with heavy hearts though  that we will be posting our cards today  as we have lost one of our own. Shaz lost her long battle against Cancer yesterday.  Rest in peace now Shaz. 

Lorraine set the theme this time which is Playing in the Snow.  I found these freebie papers in my stash going back to Dec 2015 from Making Cards Magazine by Hunkydory and managed to make 3 cards from them. 

I just layered and matted in different configurations using red and navy cardstock from my stash. Gems were from my stash as well.  

 Card 1 using the main sheet of paper and one of the sentiments fussy cut from another sheet. 

Card 2. Using mostly the sentiment sheets and image  that already had the border on it in the design. 

Card 3. I was left with 2 circle sentiments  with the same image on them and made the card below.  I cut the middle from one of the images and made an acetate window placing the  cut middle on the inside of the card. The acetate had snowflakes on it which I thought perfect as the boy is throwing a snowball.

Card slightly ajar. 

I am going to be short this month so will need to make a few more before the next show and tell. 

Thankyou to you all for your well wishes. I have never had such a drastic reaction from a vaccination  before. I was advised to not have the Pfizer  one for this very reason due to all my allergies  with certain drugs so am not looking forward to having the second dose in 11 weeks. I am slowly feeling back to normal after being out of it for 72hrs.  The Doc had his vaccine on the same day albeit at a different location. He was supposed to have the Pfizer but they had run out by the time of his appointment and so ended up having the same one as me. 

More Bones

Well where did that week just go to. I looked under the sofa in case it was hiding!! Started with my  visit to the dentist and at last six months later I can say I have a full set of teeth again. The new front tooth was fitted without having to file the teeth down either side and it is a good match.  Shame that I still have to wear a mask when I go out!  Just got to get used to my mouth  having so much metal screwed into it. 

We both have our covid vaccinations  finally  sorted for next week albeit mine is at a Pharmacy (as I have to have the Oxford one due to all my allergies and The Doc is having the Pfizer one at the local hub via his G.P. surgery.  Throw in searching for a food delivery slot and I feel like I have been glued to my computer 24/7.

Here are a few more Herringbone cards for inspirations for the current Butterfly Challenge which ends next Tuesday 9th Feb.8pm (GMT).

This first card uses a panel of herringbone. I have a tutorial on how to make  over on the Butterfly Blog on the Card shapes tab. This is Version IV.

From the wheel I have used Herringbone/ Hemp/Hansa Yellow/Hazel/Butterfly.

The herringbone design lends itself perfectly to being a Tri Fold Card.

 

I have used design  papers and hemp from my stash. The butterfly stamp was a freebie from Craft Stamper Magazine Aug 2012 and coloured used my Promarkers.  

 Sentiment by Kaisercraft, the larger die cut frame is a Sizzix thinlits and the smaller a magazine freebie.

Second card is a panel of  Random Broken Herringbone. Again I have written a tutorial for it over on the Butterfly blog. You will find it under Version V

From the wheel I have used. Herringbone/Hemp/Heat Wave/Hansa Yellow/Hazel/Butterfly.

The butterfly stamp is by Stampography and coloured using my Promarkers. Fussy Cut and mounted onto a label die cut by Sizzix and a 2" circle punch.  Sentiment by Kaisercraft. 

Last card is a variation of Version I (again over on the butterfly blog card shapes page) but uses solid blocks of colour opposite one another. I have divided the sections up using a butterfly washi tape from my stash. The label  shape is an SU Punch and the sentiment is by Julie Hickey.

All of the UK goodie bags have been sent out now and I am starting on the International ones .  This click and drop  with the Post Office is certainly a learning curve as the first  one to USA went out wrong. I hadn't enabled the button for printing off the CN 22 Customs Declaration  labels so had to do it manually. My good buddy Miss Di soon sorted me out though. Thanks Di. 

Stay safe

Hugs