Merrily crafting away

..still no snow, but plenty of fun challenges out there so here's another Christmas card. This time my favorite angel from Whiff of Joy (isn't she adorable?!), in blue,pink & yellow promarkers, white silk ribbons and some pretty flowers. Based on the sketch from the Midnight Madness Sketch Challenge #129 (MMSC129) where this is entered.

It's often a help to have a sketch when you're not very good at deciding what to craft. Perhaps the options are a tad too many... have done a bit of shopping lately, both from Joanna Sheen and from House Mouse (eek! incidentally one of the sponsors for the MMSC). SO many lovely things, so little time..
Now a blueberry pie is calling me so off to colour myself in other shades of blue.. and cream.

Let it snow with Whiff Of Joy ......

.. after weeks of very foggy and bone-chillingly humid weather we're actually looking forward to the first snow, to Advent and the coming Christmas (decorations just waiting to be put up everywhere).
While waiting, what better to do than a bit of card making.
This is one of the cute girls from Whiff of Joy, coloured with promarkers as usual (a variety of the blues, yellows and warm greys) with paper "snow much fun" (I didn't name it, honestly), a cute floral decoration, some ribbon and plenty of green stickles & golden pearl maker.

Entering this in the Whiff of Joy Challenge #117 "Let it snow.

Happy Father's Day!

On Sunday November 13th it's Father's Day in Sweden. Happy Father's Day, everyone!
 Best way to celebrate? Why, to send a card of course! Everyone likes to get a card... or they had better like it anyway...
No stamping this time, just two envelope-and-card-in-one cards with gingham background and tools-n-stuff decorations from a neat "male-type" old cardstock (name forgotten) and some colour-coordinated stickles. Oh, and tried out my latest Punch Bunch punch, 'apple'.

Now I'll get back to the Christmas cards. They're slightly on hold while waiting for the latest bargains from Joanna Sheen (bestest shopping place on the web for craft goods, outside the US!) - ultra fine white Flowersoft and a fluffly snow pen ... but soon it's time to Go Wild in White.

Christmas time is HouseMouse time

'Tis the season .. to start making Christmas cards. At least if you're kinda indecisive when it comes to choosing and (the horror!) cutting paper. So, time to get going. And what card making session would be complete without the adorable House Mice (commonly known as Meeces)? Plus it's an excellent opportunity to try out a brand new stamp from House-Mouse.com.
This is a stepper card using Kraft paper, green cardstock, some cute text scraps from Bella BLVD "December details" mainly in green, green stickles and the cutest mistletoe House Mice coloured with promarkers (of course, I love my promarkers) - blush, sandstone, cocoa, brown grey 1-3 with a little poppy red and apple+meadow green for the mistletoe. Now to find someone to send a mistletoe date to ...

Entering this in the Passion for Promarkers challenge #125 , Papertake Weekly's First Christmas and in Craft your passion's Anything Goes+Brown just for the fun of it.

Smått & Gott - Bloggcandy!

Our favourite "real world" store celebrates 1 year in Uppsala! Hurrah for Monica @ Smått&Gott!! May there be many more years, more papers, more bling and more fun courses!!

The Smått&Gott bloggcandy looks delightful .. fingers crossed for me! :-)

Don't despair - almost there

I have two more cards to share before I pop off and do a new bunch of birthday cards (with a handful of birthdays coming up within a month it's going to be a busy time. Let's hope it rains some more.. or maybe not).. these both to the same person(s). Well, to the same occation anyway.. First they move, and while moving someone takes a wrong step and tears a ligament. Not good, but excellent excuse for a card

Accidents do happen far too quickly. Be careful out there...
Anyway, square folded card. The stamp is another well-used favourite, Henry Mouse from Whiff of Joy (somehow it's strange how the stamps I've used the most is a sleeping boy and a mouse with a broken leg. Hmmm). Used various old cardstock and some neat see-through butterflies. See how well it themed in chocolate brown? At least it looked that way to me.. Made me so hungry I stuck on a picture of a chocolate pie, with the recipe on the reverse side of the card with a (perhaps not so very) subtle hint of wanting to tast it.

Yes. And now when they finished moving, of course they had to get a "Congrats to the new house" card. This time an easel card with decoupage Joanna Sheen-style, from her gorgeous "Country Diary of an Edwardian Lady" CD-set (now withdrawn, unfortunately). Love those little bees and the foliage that decoupages soooo well. Some matching paper, a bit of Fiskars scissor borders, some lace and topping with green bling and liquid pearls in gold.
See, you don't have to use promarkers. You can just collect them .. LOL

Now on to the birthday cards so I can get started on the Christmas cards.. After all, Christmas IS just 10 weeks away .. time to start planning and preparing in earnest!

When it rains, it pours..

Even if it is October and more supposed to snow it can still rain, apparently. And the good thing is one can stay inside and finally update the blog with some more cards.
Now then, where were we..
One more birthday. This time a quickie simple folded card. More use of the darling Lili of the Valley boys, there's a nice selection and all equally cute-but-usable (not too sugary sweet). Since the recipient is a huge fan of all bicycle races both the stamp, the backing paper and the extra decorations were rather unavoidable. This bicycling boy is such fun, you can really see how fast he pedals.

More promarkers of course. I couldn't be without them.. And don't listen to other people, you DO need ALL the colours.. well, almost.. well.. at least it's more fun the more you have.. Don't forget the new nice Flexi Markers, nice complementary colours!

Signed, the squirrel

Long time no see - have I missed mee?

Wow, that summer sure went by fast! Having a garden AND a country cottage might have helped with the time-stealing, you could say. The card making sort of went on standby, to go online only in dire need, like for the birthdays of nephew (a card with monsters, that seems to have run away and hid under the bed) and niece..

 .. who, being of the princessy-variety adores pink, lilac, cute dogs and flowers so this card (Giordano stamp coloured with promarkers, with papers and bling to match and a Martha Stewart punched decor) with matching dress and hairpiece-flower suited her to perfection.

We had three more birthdays almost at the same time, so plenty of decisions, wild ideas and small papers scraps flying around..

 Tried a few different card techniques as well, this folded-pockets one is rather neat. Thanks to Anne-Marie for that one (and when I figure out your blog address I'll put it here, be warned......).
Stamp one of the adorable Lili Of the Valley boys, coloured with promarkers. Text stamps from LOTV as well. Paper a nice freebie paper from 'Skogstokiga Creations' - check out her freebies!

 And one of the lovely House Mouse stamps for the nextcard.. aren't they too sweet! Joanna Sheen is releasing more of these cuties every month, check out the House Mouse Saturdays on CreateAndCraft.tv
(though this particular stamp is wood mounted and bought on Ebay. Hah!)

.. for the last one a re-use of my favourite boy-stamp and more freebie paper from Skogstokiga. Simple folded card, some liquid pearl decorations and edge cut by fiskars scissor. They don't have to be fancy to be appreciated (unless sent to scrapbook fanatics, of course LOL)

Eastertime

Easter is upon us - Happy Easter!!

Haven't had time to really "do" Easter - decorate, make cards etc - as spring arrived at the same time. Just a few cards made it, the rest goes into the "maybe next year" heap.
All stamps by Whiff of Joy, ever so cute and such fun to colour with promarkers in colour cordination with the rest of the card. The top card is - once again - from Joanna Sheen's tutorial section and very easy to make. Had a bit of fun with doilies, glue and very fine glitter.

Birthdays galore - celebrating with Joanna Sheen

The time of year when spring arrives is also the season of many birthdays (probably for reasons very amusing to historians) and of course the perfect time to try out different techniques.
This card shape is very effectful in all its simplicity. See it (and more wonderful card ideas) on Joanna Sheen's excellent site. Highly recommended for a visit, even if it can turn out rather costly.... We want! We want it all!
Anyway, stamps from Joanna Sheen (front) and Lili of the Valley (inside), coloured with promarkers. Couldn't decide which was the cutest.
Edge is a Martha Stewart punch. Outside also decorated with rhinestones and some pearl maker drops. Inside I had a go with FlowerSoft and the effect is quite nice I think.

Happy birthday Ethan!

(Long time no see, that's what happens when Other Things stand in the way of hobbies..)
Not much time for card making lately, but this is a rather special event, a card shower for the soon-to-be 8-year-old Ethan in the U.S.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY Ethan!! Hope you receive a whole lot of cards from all over the world!!

And the hows .. various old cardstock (I especially liked the cupcakes with "you're so sweet" all around them) and some of the super-cute Whiff of Joy celebrating animals. Hand-made text. All coloured with promarkers, of course. Plus some bling in the form of pearl maker (liquid pearls) in gold.

Speaking of promarkers, don't miss out on the new terrific sets out now! Buy them at Joanna Sheen's craft shop for example.

Sweet somethings

"in the bleak midwinter" .. No, let's concentrate on happier things. Like making a card for mum, using a neat card idea from Joanna Sheen, colouring one of the lovely Lili of the Valley girls with promarkers, adding an antique doily, some home made promarker coloured and glitter-decorated flowers

I note that the LOTV thursday challenge is for circles, so here goes..

Winter yet again - cards galore

Long time no cards.. but a heavy snowfall quite put an end to other activites, so this weekend has been rather productive. Some birthdays coming up (one to a skier, one to someone prone to falling asleep when reading the paper and did I find the perfect motives?!) and what better way to celebrate than with a homemade card? Haven't quite finished decorating yet, more bling definitely needed. Coloured with promarkers (love them!) and used an old stash of marmored yellowish and green paper for the backgrounds. The patterned edge is an old fiskars paper edges favourite.

And, since this is also the season for the flu and other nasties I had the opportunity to colour up a feverish Henry as well.. no one can look as happy (check in on Henry with heart)- nor as miserable - as this little guy and with a pink bow and a pink-lilac scarf plus some flowers and lace it's definitely on the feminine side. Promarkers everywhere, of course, and a mix of old lace, old papers and new papers. The sign says "Hugs to you" in Swedish and is an embossed stamp from.. I don't remember.. Vilda, perhaps?

House Mouse goes Swedish

I was actually thinking of a suitable birthday card for a friend when I stumbled upon the Creative Card Crew's Show us the colours of your country while looking at the House Mice and their cheese parcels (which is such a cute image) .. this is what came out.

It also gave me a chance to try out my promarkers on the House Mice, which worked surprisingly well. The mice themselves - i.e. the image - is embossed using black Versafine and clear powder (Versafine works very well for embossing, you just have to hurry a little..)
The flags are old OLD stash (probably 1950s, Christmas decorations from an old store), as is the lace. Paper shaped with the nice free patterns over at Lili of the Valley's.
Let's see if I can put this over at the House Mouse challenge blog as well as with Simon Says

Hearts for Henry Mouse

Valentine drawing closer, time to get into that romantic feeling.. what better way than with cute Henry with heart (he is adorable, hugging a heart), coloured with promarkers and some glossy inkssentials (because the gloss gives such a lift), more hearts, gold embossed and promarker coloured butterflies, edge with stickles (glitter glue) and some bling, sparkly cut-out flowers, small sparkling hearts.. The embossed borders of the butterflies do not show very well unfortunately, they give a lot of glitter to the actual card

So, will our loved one get the point, we wonder, or do we need to sprinkle on more hearts...
While we wonder .. entering this in passion for promarkers and Bunny Zoe's Crafts Challenge. Oh and I can't resist adding him to the "Getting Warmed Up" challenge over at Stampin For the Weekend.
Perhaps it can fit into the Whiff of Joy "Love is in the air" challenge as well..

Take it easy

The pavements and roads are icy, slippery and full of gravel buried in the ice, so it's quite dangerous to be out walking. Add a bit of distraction in the form of message sending and you have an accident waiting to happen.
So, for those unfortunates it's time for a card. Ever-cute Henry with a broken foot, coloured with promarkers (of course).

I like the scissored borders, nice effect. The upper leaves are cutouts from the letterpaper at the bottom. The sign is hand written. Got to get hold of a printer one of these days...

Musing Melinda - thinking of you

Finally got around to buying a few Whiff of Joy stamps designed by Elisabeth Bell - they are all beautiful but this one has to be one of my favourites. She's so sweet.... and it's amazing how different colouring completely change the look (I have done another one with green ink and brown-green colouring, might finish that later today).
Lovely Musing Melinda, embossed in gold (VersaColor), coloured with promarkers (yellow and blue tones, plus skin tones and ivory). Various papers (old stash and new), scissored borders, some punched flowers, stamped butterflies, handwritten sentiment in gold.

The dark-blue paper is about 20 years old (actually a stash of long-forgotten letterpaper), the card stock (watercolour paper) and scissors about the same age (old stuff keep well :-)). Stamps and flowers brand new (as is the embossing - only got the heat gun a few days ago!)
Entering this in the CES Challenge Angels&Fairies and into the always fun Sketch N Stash challenge

  

House-Mouse

I love the House Mice but I'm finding them very hard to colour in to make them justice. This simple card is made with watercolour pencils, so far the best way but I'm trying to get to grips with the promarkers - try and try again.
The text says "It's a girl!", not sure if it shows in the photo. Plenty of pink, hearts, flowers

Entering it in the House-Mouse blog jump "New beginnings" just for the fun of it - it's actually a bit too simple to fit with all the gorgeous designs there..
I definitely need more House-Mouse stamps.. practice makes perfekt, right?

The great people over at Crafty Cardmakers have a challenge out now for pencils, so here goes.. 

We love Henry (and Whiff of Joy)

Today I got my new Whiff of Joy stamps (YAY!), including the ever-cute Henry, so I just had to try something love-inspired.. but simple, as I didn't have much bling at home. Coloured with watercolour pencils, the heart has a glossy accent (by Inkssentials), shapes cut by hand (no cuttlebug or dies in this household. Yet..), a little lace, some green & pink rhinestones, some flowers, two stamped & coloured butterflies and a bunch of watermark-stamped golden butterflies - so far my favourite stamps from that clear stamp sheet. And a handwritten sign (no working printer handy).

The flash made the colours a bit weird, it's a lovely old-fashioned shade of pink and an almost mossy green.
It's a very old & new card - the stamp I got today. The water colour pencils I bought 20 years ago and have hardly used the last 15 years.. the pattern paper with the butterflies is 10 years old, the pink paper bought today.

This goes into the Whiff of Joy challenge no. 95
And, since it's a mix of new and old, into the Sketch and Stash challenge

And yes, the recipient liked it :-)

Butterfly box

Well, since the snow continued to fall what better way to spend the day than with a bit of scrapbooking, themed for dreams of summer..

Decided to try decorating a gift box of sorts, nice for perhaps a gift certificate at a craft store?
Tried a variety of larger stamps but they did not quite do it so in the end I went for butterfly stamps (from My Paper World), coloured with promarkers and some stamped on the cardstock (versacolor gold inkpad) as well. Some stickle glue, some flowers, a gift tag and a gold ribbon to tie the top together.
Pretty basic, just an easy box to make while still fun to decorate.

And, while I'm at it, I'll enter this attempt in the Truly Scrumptious Challenge "Dream of Summer"  and with "Anything Goes" over at Papertake Weekly 

Check out the gorgeous cards at Papertake Weekly, made with stamps from Lili Of The Valley - so cute!

Giordano stamps

Recently bought one of the cute Giordano stamps and had to try making a card with it. These cute animals are to-die-for on cards and cut-outs, but it turns out that in stamp form they are - not surprisingly - very hard to colour with any sort of justice to the original image.
Anyway, it turned out like this in the end

(and just might end up as a birthday card).
To indulge in more of these cuties, check out the selection of Giordany stamps at the superb webshop of Joanna Sheen - http://www.joannasheen.co.uk/craft-supplies/giordano-studio-rubber-stamps/
I'm entering this in the fun "Anything Goes" Fuzzy Wuzzy Challenge while I'm at it.

Finally caught up with the world

.. once in a while you want to try something new. Or, in this case, try something that's seemingly old news for everyone else, like creating your own blog.

I have a vague suspicion that the content won't write itself (no fun with an empty blog, is there) so it will be interesting to see whether Inspiration will suddenly strike - or not.

While waiting for this momentous event, let's check out the weather..

Yup. Still winter outside. Which means it's possible to indulge in some scrapbooking without wasting precious time in the garden.