Snippets Christmas card with recycled Robins

Hello My Crafty Blog Friends and Visitors

How is your week going? I have had a very busy two weeks but the invigilating has finished for the time being. I still don't have a lot of time to craft. I hope things will calm down soon.

I have so loved making the Christmas cards with the Snippets backgrounds. I was given lots of Christmas cards to recycle at the weekend. When I sorted them out I found a cute robin image that I wanted to use.

I made the background by cutting strips of patterned paper and gluing them to a piece of card the right size for the mat. I kept the colours a bit more muted to suit the image.  

I used the Sophia die set from Creative Expressions to cut the white lacy doily and one of their Double Pierced circle dies to cut out the image from the old card. I inked the edges of the circle and added a small bow. 

I just love making these cards. If I have a bit of time at the end of a craft session I am trying to make another Christmas card. I am determined that I am going to have enough Christmas cards this year.  So far  I have made 32 Christmas cards. 

I would like to enter the following Challenges:

The January Challenge at Craftyhazelnut's Patterned Paper Challenge 

Challenge 422 at Cratyhazelnut's Christmas Challenge blog

Challenge 344 at Pixie's Snippets Playground

Challenge 6 at the Merry Little Christmas Challenge blog

Challenge 106 at Scrapy Land Challenges

Enjoy the rest of the week. 

Happy Crafting

Hugs Jackie

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Hunkydory Poppy Mother's Day Card

Hello My Crafty Blog Friends and Visitors

How was your weekend? We really enjoyed the American Idiot musical we went to see on Friday. It really helped checking out the Green Day album before we went. Saturday was spent tidying and taking things to the tip. On Sunday we went to visit our parents. and helped both sets out with a few things.

At the moment I am not getting a lot of time to craft. So when I found a Hunkdory papercraft kit free with Papercraft Essentials magazine it was just what I needed. . One of the images and some of the papers featured poppies. My mother-in-law loves poppies. 

The backing paper is so pretty with its poppy border. I cut the corner lattice die from the Sandwich Box die set from John Next Door in gold mirror card to add interest to the corner. 

This the poppy topper from the kit. Now I did sick this down the wrong way round but I really don't think it makes too much difference. I added a small butterfly at the side. 

This is a Signature die I cut it once in red and once in white. The white shadow helped the die to show up against the lattice. 

With the same kit I made a very simple Mother's Day card for my Mum. It is very pretty I think she will like it. 

I know my Mother-in-law will like this card. There are lots of pretty images and papers left in the kit so I will be using it to make some more cards. 

I would like to enter the following challenges: 

The January Challenge at Craftyhazelnut's Patterned Paper Challenge 

Have a great week. 

Happy Crafting

Hugs Jackie

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Deer on a Snowy Night

Hello My Crafty Blog Friends

I hope you are all well. This has been a very busy week for me. Invigilating takes quite a bit of time. Then there is my weekly visit to Winchester. Today I am doing two sessions of invigilating then I am heading into Southampton to meet my husband. Then we will meet up with our daughter and son-in-law to have a meal. After that we are all going to the theatre to see American Idiot. I hope it will be a good show.

Last week when I had a bit of time, I had a bit of a tidy of my crafty stash and I found a lovely piece of paper that would make a wonderful snowy background for a Christmas card.

The backing paper came from an old edition of Making Cards Magazine. I did find that I had another sheet of the paper so I may well recreate this card to add to my stash. I extended the Branched Birch die from Sizzix. Once the trees were cut I inked them with Distress Inks. Behind the trees I added a silver circle to create the moon. 

I cut the deer from the Winter Wonderland die set from Sizzix out of craft card and inked them with Distress ink. I removed the antlers from one of the adult deer to make a female. 

This is a die from Creative Expressions. I cut it in gold and another in brown to make a shadow, I do find that adding a shadow helps the sentiment to show up against a busy background. 

I think I have made over 30 Christmas cards so far this year. All of them are flat and will small enough to go on ordinary postage. I don't want to get caught out like I did last year. 

I would like to enter the following challenges:

Challenge 421 at Craftyhazelnut's Christmas Challenge blog

Challenge 176 at the Crimbo Crackers Challenge blog

Challenge 6 at the Merry Little Christmas Challenge blog

Challenge 22 at the 2 Crafty Critter Crazies Challenge blog

Challenge 55 at the Craft Rocket Challenge blog

Challenge 235 at the Crafting from the Heart Challenge blog

Challenge 566 at the Cute Card Thursday Challenge blog

The January Challenge at the Christmas Cards all Year Round Challenge blog

Challenge 13 at the Crafter's Castle Challenge

Challenge 106 at Scrapy Land Challenges. 

I would have like to enter this card into the Rudolph Days Challenge but there isn't one this month. The lovely Maureen who hosts the challenge is having some surgery and needs time to recover. 

Have a great weekend. 

Happy Crafting

Hugs Jackie

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Through the Craft Room Door (TTCRD) Guest Designer

Hello My Crafty Blog Friends and Visitors

How is your week going? I am now into the thick of invigilating. This time the Year 10's are doing practice exams. It is nice to have a part time job.

Back last year I was a winner of one of the challenges at the Through the Craft Room Door (TTCRD) Challenge blog. As a result I was asked to be a Guest Designer for the challenge that starts today. I was very lucky and I was able  to work with a beautiful image from Morgan's Artworld who is sponsoring the challenge.

The backing card came from the back of my Advent Calendar. The card was embossed with the Heart Lattice Embossing folder from Creative Expressions. In the corner I added the Lattice die from the Sandwich Box die set from John Next Door. 

Why not join in with the latest challenge it is always Anything Goes. 

The image I chose to work with was the Old Roses Frame.  The images are available to sell in Albums within a Facebook Group called Morgan's Artworld Digital Image Shop which you can reach HERE. 

 I created a background on the computer and I added a personalised  greeting at the same time. I coloured the image with Promarkers. I added some die cuts to enhance the design along with some lace. 

This is a card I made for a commission I am sure the recipients have it now. 

I would like to enter the following challenges: 

Week 477 at the Passion for Promakers Challenge blog

Challenge 117 at the Love to Scrap Challenge blog

The Week 4 22nd January Challenge at the Digi Chooseday Crafting Challenge

Challenge 84 at the A Bit More Time to Craft Challenge blog

Challenge 155 at Creatalicious Challenges 

Enjoy the rest of the week. 

Happy Crafting

Hugs Jackie

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Some interesting News

Hello My Crafty Blog Friends and Visitors

How is your weekend going? Yesterday we went to the Craft Show at Newbury Racecourse It is a good show to go to I did buy a few things it is hard to resist. After we went over to see our daughter to spend some time with our daughter while her hubby was out suit shopping with  his best friend for his wedding. Today we are having a quiet day to catch up. Next week I am invigilating again.

Well my news is that Beccy Muir from the fabulous Beccy's Place has asked me to be one of her blog contributors. This isn't like being on a regular Design Team there are seven of us and we are given specific images to work we don't all get the same. We also have longer to work on our projects. I am every excited to be taking part.

This is a card I made with an image set that I already had. I found the backing paper and ribbon in my stash. 

I even get my own badge to display on my blog. 

For this car I used the Magnolia Digital Stamp set that is available HERE. This is the pre-coloured version of the image. I created the background on the computer and I changed the colour of the sentiment. 

This is the magnolia tree that we have in our garden. At the moment the tree is in tight bud to resist the cold when the weather gets warmer it will be in full bloom. These pictures are from last year. I am very fond of this tree. 

I am very happy to share my news with you. 

I would like to enter the following challenges:

The January Challenge at Craftyhazelnut's Patterned Paper Challenge blog

Challenge 234 at the Crafting from the Heart Challenge blog

The January Challenge at the Crafting by Designs Challenge blog

Have a great week

Happy Crafting

Hugs Jackie

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Moving Along with the Times (MAWTT) Challenge - theme Have a Heart

Hello My Crafty Blog Friends and Visitors

How is your week going? I have had a poorly husband who has been off work for a bit. On Tuesday we visited the hospital so he could have a chest x-ray to check things out. He is now working from home but the cough still persists. I was hoping to go to the Newbury Craft show on Saturday we will just have to see if my hubby is up to going.

The new challenge starts at the Moving Along with the Times Challenge blog and Donna for team B has chosen the theme Have a Heart. So we would like to see a heart or hearts in your creation.

I made a new home card.

For the sky I used some rescued inky paper towel which I had glued onto card. The clouds were cut with some Crafter's Companion dies. The green hills were cut with the Snow Scenes dies from John Next Door. 

Why not join in with our challenge. Valentine's Day isn't far away. Click on the logo and you will be to the challenge blog. 

The heart was cut with the outer dies from the Heart of Hearts die set by Creative Expressions. The house and tiny heart dies came free with a magazine and have proved to be very useful. 

I think these word dies are from Britannia. The daisies were made with the small Star Flower dies from John Next Door. 

I added some small butterflies made with the Small Butterfly dies from John Next Door. 

I wanted the card to have a summery feel. Even though I sent the card in December. 

I would like to enter the following challenges:

Challenge 386 at the Shopping Our Stash Challenge blog

Challenge 234 at the Crafting from the Heart Challenge blog

The January Challenge at the Crafting by Designs Challenge blog

Challenge 160 at the Creative Moments Challenge blog

Challenge 30 at the Love the Craft Challenge blog

Enjoy the rest of the week 

Happy Crafting

Hugs Jackie

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Cute Penguin Christmas card

Hello My Crafty Blog Friends and Visitors

I hope you are all well. My husband has had a nasty cough and on Monday he went to the doctors and was given antibiotics. It was recommended that he go to the walk in X-ray department at our local hospital for a chest X-ray. That is what we did yesterday. Today he is working from home. The cough at last seems to be responding to the antibiotics.

It is hard to craft when there is someone poorly in the house. Yesterday I actually  felt like making a simple card. In my stash I had spotted a sheet of foil edged  strips of patterned papers and I wanted to try the snippets technique with them,.

This is what I made. The sheet was an old Kanban one. I found a silver glitter die cut square in my scraps pile. That made one of the mats and I cut a dark blue outer mat. I then cut a piece of card to fit inside the piercing on the silver mat. This was then covered with strips of paper from the sheet. 

I looked back through my stash and found a sheet of cute images this is also an old Kanban sheet. If you look carefully the pattern round the image matches the pattern on some of the strips. The sentiment I used I found in my stash. 

I entered a giveaway competition on Facebook I think back before Christmas. I was the chosen winner and my prize arrived yesterday. There are 23 stamps all designed by Sharon Callis for Personal Impressions. The stamps are all Christmas themed and they are lovely. I am looking forward to using them. 

I did make three other cards with the strips once I had got going it was fun to do. I am hoping to get a bit of crafting done this afternoon. I do need to stay out of the way while my hubby is working. 

Enjoy the rest of the week 

I would like to enter the following Challenges:

The January Challenge at Craftyhazelnut's Patterned Paper Challenge

Challenge 420 at Crafty Hazelnut's Christmas Challenge 

Challenge 6 at the Merry Little Christmas Challenge blog

Challenge 22 at the 2 Crafty Critter Crazies Challenge blog

Happy Crafting

Hugs Jackie

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Adventures in using up Patterned Paper Snippets

Hello My Crafty Blog Friends and Visitors

How was your weekend? Our plans changed completely when my husband came home ill on Friday afternoon. He has had a cough for a while and it just seemed to take a turn for the worse. So a weekend of rest was the order of the day. He still isn't right. I am not sure when he will go back to work.

After making my snippets Christmas cards I was having a think about making birthday cards this way. Not only do I have lots of snippets of Christmas papers but lots of other patterned paper snippets too.  Here is what I came up with.

I saw a card on Facebook which showed the lines of the card offset. I only got an impression of the card I have no idea whose card it was. After I had made all the mats and layers I cut a piece of card to cover with strips.  I did offset the strips they are an inch wide and cut on my guillotine. When I had covered the card and cut the strips around the edge I used some Distress ink on the edges. 

I wanted an intricate die to make a focal point on the card. I chose to use the Sophia die set from Creative Expression. The sentiment in the middle came from a Hunkydory kit that came free with a magazine.  

Once you have made a card do you get ideas on how you could improve the design. This was the case here. I had some time to craft on Saturday I will share with you what I made soon. 

Have a great week. 

I would like to enter the following challenges: 

The January Challenge at Craftyhazelnut's Patterned Paper Challenge 

Challenge 87 at the Cardz 4 Galz Challenge blog

Challenge 156 at the Seize the Birthday Challenge blog

Challenge 160 at the Creative Moments Challenge blog

Challenge 234 at the Crafting from the Heart Challenge blog

Challenge 56 at the Crafty Addicts Challenge blog

Challenge 13 at the Crafter's Castle Challenge 

The January Challenge at the Crafting by Designs Challenge blog

Happy Crafting

Hugs Jackie

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Not Just Cards - January Challenge - Anything Goes

Hello My Crafty Blog Friends and Visitors

How has your week been? Thank you for all the kind comments on my snippet Christmas cards. It was such a cool idea I wanted to share it. Since I have made another four cards.

Now as it is the 11th of the month it is time for the new challenge at the Not Just Cards Challenge blog. The theme is Anything Goes.

This is the card I made for our son-in-law's birthday back in early December. I used the bottle die set from John Next Door. It comes with all the bits to make the bottle and the wine glasses and stars. The backing paper was in my stash. I chose red for the wine as that is what he likes. 

Our challenge is open just click on the logo and you will be taken to the blog to join in. 

This is a Creative Expression Happy Birthday die. 

The numbers for the year where cut with some Crafter's Companion dies. I think he like his card. I hope you have a good weekend. We are planning to do more tidying and sorting out. 

I would like to enter the following challenges:

The January Challenge at Craftyhazelnut's Patterned Paper Challenge blog

Challenge 156 at the Seize the Birthday Challenge blog

Challenge 56 at the Crafty Addicts Challenge blog

Challenge 444 at the Crafty Catz Challenge blog

The Anything Goes Challenge at the As You Like It Challenge blog

Challenge 13 at the Crafter's Castle Challenge blog

Challenge 388 at the My time to Craft Challenge blog

Happy Crafting

Hugs Jackie

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Snippet Busting Christmas Cards

Hello My Crafty Blog Friends and Visitors

How is your week going? Tomorrow I start back on my weekly trips to Winchester. There is a lovely shop there called C&H fabrics. There is a coffee shop and a craft department. I am looking forward to visiting both again.

I have been having a bit of a think about my blog. I have had an unofficial schedule that I have been working to. The consequence is that I have made too many cards over time. Last year I was given the opportunity to donate cards that I didn't think I would use to a coffee morning raising money for a charity. This meant that I had a good clear out.  The long and the short of it is that I will be only posting when I have something worth sharing. I am still on some design teams and I will still be entering competitions. I will also continue to visit all my crafty friends blogs. I will be around.

One of my friends who goes to a craft class gave me a lovely handmade card. I liked the design so much I decided to have a go at it myself. It is a great way to use up all sorts of snippets of which I have many.

It is a very simple design and the cards I made are A6 in size. I used my guillotine to cut the strips of paper. All those bits of paper I had been saving could be used.  I cut a piece of white card and covered it with the strips this way it could be neatly trimmed. I started with the centre strip and worked out from there. This design is so easy to adapt to any size. 

The sentiment is the one I used a lot last year from the John Next Door range. The two mats were cut with two Sue Wilson dies that came from the centre of a larger die. 

I had so many snippets I made 10 cards. Last year I made a few mistakes with my Christmas cards. Firstly I was making them right up to the last minute I hadn't made enough. Secondly I  made too many big cards that needed large letter stamps. These cards are flat and small. I might make some more as I have lots more snippets to use. 

Enjoy the rest of the week. 

I would like to enter the following challenges: 

The January Challenge at Crafty Hazelnut's Patterned Paper  Challenge

Challenge 43 at the Holly and the Ivy Challenge blog

Challenge 419 at Craftyhazelnut's Christmas Challenge blog

Challenge 343 at Pixie's Snippets Playground

Challenge 6 at the Merry Little Christmas Challenge blog

Challenge 175 at the Crimbo Crackers Challenge blog

The A and B Challenge at the ABC Christmas Challenge blog A for Anything Goes

Happy Crafting

Hugs Jackie

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Winter Wonderland Challenge blog - theme It's Snowtime

Hello My Crafty Blog Friends and Visitors

How has your week been? Are things back to normal now? My husband went back to work on Wednesday. We have had a good break. There have been ups and downs but mostly good. The highlight has to be the trip to Brighton with our friends to see the Bootleg Beatles.

Today the new challenge starts at the Winter Wonderland Challenge blog the theme isI It's Snowtime  and our sponsor is the wonderful Beccy's Place. Just to let you know we are now a monthly challenge blog.

I went to Beccy's Blog and I found a suitable free image. I created a background for him on the computer. I had a snippet of the patterned card left over which was ideal for this card. I used the Snowflake border die to add some detail to the top of the card. 

Beccy has a lot of wonderful image sets in her store. It you click on the logo you will be taken there. 

Now Beccy is also very generous and on her blog there are lots of free images. I used Frank the Snowman and he is available HERE.  I used the pre-coloured image and created my background on the computer. I cut the image and its mat out with the Double Pierced Rectangle dies from Creative Expressions. 

I have loved using this sentiment die from the John Next Door range this year. 

This card, and three like it,  have already been sent. I was very short of Christmas cards this year I was still making them right up to the end. I do hope I will be more organised next year. 

I would like to enter the following challenges: 

The January Challenge at Craftyhazelnut's Patterned Paper Challenge,

The January Challenge at Beccy's Place Challenges 

Challenge 145 at the Simply Create Too Challenge blog

Challenge 329 at the QKR Stampede Challenge blog

Challenge 418 at Cratyhazelnut's Christmas Challenge blog

Challenge 175 at the Crimbo Cracker Challenge blog

Challenge 6 at the Merry Little Christmas Challenge blog

Happy Crafting 

Hugs Jackie

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Thank You with Flowers and Butterflies

Hello My Crafty Blog Friends

How is your week going? Are things back to normal for you now? Round here the children go back to school on Monday so they have a few more days to enjoy. My husband is back at work and I am slowly getting the house back to normal. I am hoping to have a big sort out this weekend. All the bits we have for Christmas have got a bit out of hand.

What do you need when you have had lots of lovely presents? Why thank you cards of course. So once I had got my craft desk sorted out after its Christmas move I was able to start crafting again.

I started by making a background with my Distress Oxides. I used watercolour card and lots of colours. I used lots of dies from the John Next Door range designed by John Lockwood. starting with  the stitched edge dies from the Snowflake background die set to make the two mats. I cut the Gerbera Square Frame die in dark purple. 

This thanks die  (from Crafter's Companoion)  cut from the waste  from  middle of the of the Square Frame die. 

I cut the flowers and leaves with the Gerbera Flower and Star Flowers dies all from a sheet of patterned pape with a white background. I changed the colour with Distress Ink. The butterflies were cut with the Small Butterfly die set. 

I did enjoy making this card. I need quite a few thank you cards so the rest will probably be a bit more simple. 

I would like to enter the following challenges: 

Challenge 152 at the Through the Purple Haze Challenge blog. 

Challenge 47 at the Crafting with Attitude Challenge blog

Challenge 83 at the A Bit More Time to Craft Challenge blog

Challenge 87 at the Cardz 4 Galz Challenge blog

Challenge 563 at the Cute Card Thursday Challenge blog

Challenge 114 at the Butterfly Challenge blog, using Imperial Purple, Die-cuts and butterflies. 

Happy Crafting

Hugs Jackie

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