A Mother's Day card with a tale to tell.

Hello My Crafty Blog Friends

How was your weekend? I hope you were able to do something nice. We made a trip to a nearby Waitrose so I could buy some Chilli Jam to make one of the the recipes in the Jamie Oliver Five Ingredients cookbook that I got for Christmas. We had to make a special trip as we couldn't  find anywhere else that stocked Chilli Jam. The rest of the day we spent tidying the rabbit room, which had become something of a tip, as they are coming to stay next weekend. On Sunday we went to see the Darkest Hour a very dramatic film.

I made this card with the bonus papers that would have been in the next edition of Quick Cards Made Easy magazine. But as we all know the  issue at the end of December was their last one ever. I did like the magazine a lot it is a shame it has gone. I am pleased that all the staff got jobs on other publications.

When the papers sent I printed them all. I started by looking at the sentiments and I decided to make a Mother's Day card. The papers were very pretty. There was always a stipulation that the card was square and no more than 150cm x 150cm. I used entwined  heart dies to make a fussy background. 

So this is the sentiment I chose and I made a frame for it using some of the card from the mats and layers. 

Then I used a punch to make the butterflies they added some extra detail to the card. I still like using punches they are quick. Did you spot the heart button in the corners. I bought those at the Makery in Bath where we went for my daughter's hen party. That seems so long ago now. 

I still feel it is a shame that the magazine closed. I hope you had a great week 

I would like to enter challenge 134 at the Let's Craft and Create Challenge blog , challenge 172 at Dream Valley Challenges and challenge 94 at the Butterfly Challenge blog.

Happy Crafting

Hugs Jackie

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Quick Cards Made Easy Magazine last ever issue

Hello My Crafty Blog Friends

How was your weekend? I hope you did something nice. We were expecting to see a friend but he had to rearrange so we had a quiet weekend catching up on things in the house and garden. There is always something to do.

I am sure you all know by now that the latest issue (174) of Quick Cards Made Easy Magazine is their last. It is a shame I have enjoyed the magazine and I have had quite a few cards published in it. Mostly ones using the monthly bonus papers. I was pleased to see my card in the last ever magazine.

The Meadow Bonus papers this time were very pretty. I also used some of the new colours of Centura Pearl card with my Double Pierced Square dies from Creative Expressions to make the mats and layers. 

I think it is a Spellbinders die that I used to make the frame. 

Here is my card in the magazine. 

It is such a shame this magazine had to go. I was pleased to read that all of the staff had been redeployed. It is the end of an era. 

I would like to enter challenge 189 at the Crafting From the Heart challenge blog and challenge 170 at the Dream Valley Challenge blog. 

Happy Crafting

Hugs Jackie

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Quick Cards Made Easy magazine issue 172 Bonus Papers

Hello My Crafty Blog Friends

How is your week going? It is lovely and sunny here today and I have been helping at another felting workshop. I know enough about it now that I can actually help people. I will be helping at another workshop on Friday.

A little while back I responded to a request on Facebook for people to apply to be on the Readers's Design team for issue 172 of Quick Cards Made Easy Magazine. I was one of ten selected I printed off the papers, made a card and sent it in. I was thrilled to see my card in print on page 40 when I bought the magazine today.

The card has to be square and not measure more than 15cm x 15cm. I started with a Craft Card blank. I used coloured card that matched the papers to make the mats and layers. The dotty paper I used to make a snowflake border with Sue Wilson's Snowflake border die. 

There are various sentiments to use that come with the bonus papers. 

I just love the Cookie Cutter Christmas Stamp set from Stampin Up that comes with a matching punch. Now I have a stamping platform I stamped lots of these and I have used them on a few project. The bow is in the set too. Isn't great that depending where you put the bow they look like a boy or a girl. 

I have a Sizzix candy cane die. I inked the edges so they they showed up against the background. 

Here it is in all its glory in the magazine. 

I did like these paper a lot and the free gift is some pop-up box cards with cute characters I will definitely be making those. 

Enjoy the rest of the week. 

Happy Crafting

Hugs Jackie

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Moving Along with the Times (MAWTT) Challenge Blog - Geometric Shapes

Hello My Crafty Blog Friends

Where is the time going it is Thursday already. Today I am having lunch with a friend to celebrate her birthday. I hope you have something nice planned.

The new challenge starts on the Moving Along with the Times (MAWTT) Challenge blog and the theme for the next fortnight is Geometric shapes.

I used some of the bonus papers I had printed for a card for Quick Cards Made Easy Magazine. I didn't have quite enough for the background of the card so I reprinted one of the patterns and made it bigger to fit the card. 

I cut the papers with some hexagon dies that came with one of the Crafter's Companion Inspiration Magazines. I do love the flamingos. 

The sentiment came from the bonus papers to. It was cut out with one of the Double Pierced Rectangle dies from Creative Expressions. 

Yesterday I helped my friend (she is in the middle) as she led a felting workshop. The ladies all made four coasters and a flower to make a brooch. I got to bring home a poppy I had helped to make. When it is finished I will share a photo of it with you. I have some other dates lined up to help it is lots of fun. 

I was quite pleased with how this tropical themed card turned out. I do like using hexagons on cards. 

Enjoy the rest of the week. 

Happy Crafting

Hugs Jackie

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Quick Cards Made Easy Magazine Issue 170 Christmas Bonus Papers

Hello My Crafty Blog Friends

How is your week going? I had a bad day yesterday I ended up with a migraine they really do wipe you out. So not much happened. Today our daughter and her new husband set off on their Honeymoon. They are going to Florida so it has been a bit hit and miss if they would be able to go. Of course this is nothing compared with what the people have had to contend with over there.

I was sent the bonus papers for issue 170 of Quick Cards Made Easy Magazine and I sent them a card but it didn't make it into print. I thought it was worth sharing it though.

Apart from the card for matting and layering and a gem everything came from the bonus papers.

I did love the image of the cute gingerbread man. 

The snowflake was cut with a Snowflake die designed by Sue Wilson for Creative Expressions. 

We seem to be experiencing trouble with our internet. I will try to get round to comment as best I can. 

Happy Crafting

Hugs Jackie

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Nautical Step Panel Card

Hi My Crafty Blog Friends

How is your week going? So far the weather has been quite kind this week and we have seen a bit of the sun. I have been ordering food for a celebration of my mother-in-law's 90th birthday. We are having a get together at the end of August.

I think I have said that I am struggling with my card making at the moment. I wanted to make something for my father-in-law he does love getting my cards. I had no inspiration at all and then I was flicking through issue 168 of Quick Cards Made Easy magazine and I spotted How to make Step Panel cards. I knew this would be ideal. He loves shaped cards and this one I have never made before.

The instructions in the magazine were very easy to follow. I used my scoring board to make all the folds. This card will fold flat to go in an envelope. 

The topper came from an old card. The mats and layers were cut with circle dies. 

I decided to make an extra panel for the Happy Birthday it helps it to be seen more clearly. 

I think he will like this card. I enjoyed making a different type of card. I think I need to challenge myself a bit more. 

I would like to enter challenge 176 at the Cards 4 Guyz Challenge blog , challenge 342 at Penny's Paper-Crafty Challenge blog , challenge 50 at the A Bit More Time to Craft Challenge blog , challenge 348 at the Crafty Creations Challenge blog and challenge 8 at Do-A1 (1) Kreatives.

Happy Crafting 

Hugs Jackie

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Free Gift Quick Cards Made Easy Magazine - Issue 167 July

Hi My Crafty Blog Friends

How is your week going? It has turned very wet here such a contrast to the temperatures last week.

When I bought the latest issue of Quick Cards Made Easy Magazine I was thrilled with the free gift and I couldn't wait to make a card with it.

The background papers came from my stash. 

I started by cutting a circle of water colour card. I had some Pixie Powders left over on my craft mat from another project and I wiped the circle through the ink to make the background. Then I stamped the fairy and the sentiment with black archival ink. I picked up some of the colour with a paint brush so the colour was a little darker on the fairy. I cut the frame with a Spellbinders lacy circle die and a Tonic die to cut our the centre. 

This is  a Crafter's Companion die.

I hope you enjoy the rest of the week. With the wedding so close nothing else is really happening for us just planning and organising. 

I would like to enter Pixie's Snippets Playground weeks 287 and 288.

Happy Crafting

Hugs Jackie

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Quick Cards Made Easy Magazine - Issue 167 Bonus papers

Hi My Crafty Blog Friends

How was your weekend? I was hoping for a quiet time having finished all the wedding makes. Unfortunately we have been let down with help getting things to the venue before the wedding and our fridge decided this was a good time to break. We also went to Portsmouth to a craft show and then to Aldershot for a celebration for my mother-in-laws 90th birthday. We are having another celebration in August. Not everyone can get together at the same time.

A little while ago I applied to be on the Reader's Design team for issue 167 of Quick Cards Made Easy Magazine I was emailed the papers and I sent my card off. This time my card wasn't one of the ones chosen to be printed. It is pretty so I thought I would share it anyway.

It is very appropriate that the papers were wedding themed. I loved the swans. I used a tattered lace die to make the frames. For the background I used one of the papers and then over the top like confetti I put different sized hearts cut from one of the other papers. 

I used pink card to enhance the image. 

I did the same with the sentiment. 

My stash from the Portsmouth Craft show I did try to reign my self in a bit. 

Have a great week. 

Happy Crafting

Hugs Jackie

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Father's Day card for Quick Cards Made Easy magazine

Hi My Crafty Blog Friends

How is your week going? We are nearly at the weekend. Tomorrow we are setting off for our daughter's Hen Weekend. My husband has kindly agreed to drive us there and he will stay for one night and return  on Sunday to pick us up. It is so good that this will be a long weekend meaning we will get a day to recover.  I will be out of touch for a while as it is going to be busy.

A little while ago I responded to a request on Facebook from Quick Cards Made Easy Magazine to be one of the readers to use the bonus papers for issue 165 of the magazine. I was accepted and I was sent the papers by email to print at home. Ten people are chosen and three of the cards are printed in the magazine and all the cards appear on the Quick Cards  Facebook page.

I was quite thrilled when I saw these papers they are just brilliant for Father's Day. 

I found some online tutorials for how to fold an origami shirt I added a ribbon tie. 

This is one of the sentiments it looks like a chalk board. 

This sentiment went well with the the gardening paper. Both of our dads like gardening. 

I bought a copy of the magazine and I was thrilled to see that my card was one of the three chosen to be featured along with my little write up. 

Of course I added all my mats and layers and I found some black buttons for the corners.

I am quite looking forward to the weekend. If I can get some appropriate photos I will post them on the wedding page at the top of this blog. 

Happy Crafting

Hugs Jackie

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My card in Quick Cards Made Easy Magazine Issue 163

Hi My Crafty Blog Friends

I hope that you have had a great weekend. We have been down to Bristol and we stayed in the hotel that we will be using for the wedding. Luckily nearby there is a nice restaurant to use for a meal on the night before the wedding. Our daughter, her fiance and his parents saw the hotel and the restaurant and liked both. We also had a meeting about chairs and sashes - you knew there were so many ways they could be tied. So a lot was achieved and we know where lots of things are now.

While we were away I bought a copy of Quick Cards Made Easy Magazine (issue 163) and I was thrilled to see my card in print.

I made this card for the sketch challenge in the current issue. 

I won a cute pack of LOTV images from the Pixie's Snippets Playground a couple of months back and I used one of the images to make this card. I used colours from the image in my design.  

Here is a picture of my card on the page with the lovely comment from the editor. 

While we were in Bristol we had a walk along the Clifton Suspension Bridge. This photo was taken from the Visitors' Centre.

I hope you have a great week. 

I would like to enter Pixie's Snippets Playground Week 267 and 268 and challenge 148 at the Crafting from the Heart Challenge blog. 

Happy Crafting 

Hugs Jackie

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Happy New Year!

Hi My Crafty Blog Friends

I know it is a couple of days before we celebrate the coming of the  New Year. We have been invited to our future in-laws to for a small party that should be fun we all get on well. There is even talk of hiring a big house altogether next year for Christmas.

This is a card I made for the Reader's Design Team for issue 160 of Quick Cards Made Easy Magazine. My card wasn't one of the main ones featured in the magazine but it was featured as a small thumbnail with my name down the side.

I used lots of elements from the bonus papers to make this card. I also matted the layers with matt black card and gold mirror card. 

I used my Hougie board to  create some rosettes. 

I used some of the sentiments on this card. 

I like the small image of the champagne glasses. 

I must admit that I am looking forward to next year. I have about 6 months to get all the things I need to make for the wedding made. I am cutting back on a few things to make this possible. Of course I need to think about an outfit as well and my husband will need a new suit. 

I would like to enter challenge 458 at the Cute Card Thursday Challenge blog and challenge 118 at the Inspiration Destination Challenge blog. 

I hope that you have a great start to the New Year. 

Happy Crafting

Hugs Jackie

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