So sorry folks, I'm needing to take a break

Hi everyone,
I'm so so sorry, I know my blogging has been hit and miss lately.  I'm afraid life has thrown some challenges at me recently and I'm struggling to get everything done.  I was hoping to get back on track this week but my hubby Owen had an accident on his way to work yesterday.  He's been patched up with stitches but as he's out of action that means I have even less spare time to craft and blog at the moment.

Therefore, rather than stressing myself out further by trying to get absolutely everything done, I've prioritised and I think the right thing for me to do is to take some time away from crafting and blogging for now. 

I will be back creating and sharing as soon as I can!

Holly Joyful Wishes Card - 52 {C}CT Jan Sketch Challenge

It's a brand new year and at 52 {C}CT we have a brand new look, very smart!  We're starting off 2014 with a sketch challenge.

 

I rotated the sketch and made an A6 landscape oriented card using Riding Hood Red CS.  I wanted to use patterned paper for the diagonal lines of the layout so I chose my double sided paper first and cut the strips.  I embossed a piece of white CS with the Holly Ribbons folder and very lightly brayered Crumb Cake ink over the embossing - plus I I brayered the ink onto a separate piece of white CS for the sentiment.  The patterned paper has a distressed look and plain white CS looked too stark so I shabbied it up a wee bit to better match the paper.  I stamped the label and sentiment, die cut the label shape, popped up the label and added red gems.  To complete the card front I added some punched holly with red gems as berries.

I used the lovely holly paper again to decorate the inside of the card and the envelope.

It makes perfect sense to make Christmas cards right from the beginning of the year - imagine how happy you'll be to have a lovely stash of festive cards all ready come November!  So I hope you'll join us at 52 {C}CT for our first 2014 challenge and keep playing along throughout the year!  Please check out the cards made by the other DT members then go and get creative and share a card with us!

Supplies:
Stamps: SU! 'Joyful Christmas' set, SU! Basic Label stamp
CS: SU! Riding Hood Red, Always Artichoke & Whisper White
Patterned paper: Kaisercraft
Ink: SU! Crumb Cake, Cherry Cobbler & Always Artichoke
Tools:  SU! Apothecary Accents die, Cuttlebug Holly Ribbons embossing folder, XCut & Woodware holly punches, brayer
Embellishments & accessories: PaperMania red gems, 3D foam tape

Sparkly Embossed Poinsettia Card

Happy 2014 everyone!  I've still got a couple of Christmas cards to share, I meant to post them earlier but time got away from me again!  I'm not quite sure where the last few weeks have gone - they absolutely zoomed by!  Anyway, this card is the one I made for Alan to give to his wife Jan.  I based it on this card I made earlier but I made some small changes.

I made the 5 3/4" square card base from Bermuda Bay CS and used Coastal Cabana CS for the mat layer.  The snowflake dry embossed panel was made using white Centura Pearl CS - it's lovely and embosses beautifully!  I heat embossed the poinsettia and sentiment with aqua tinsel embossing powder.  I fussy cut four layers of the poinsettia and I popped each layer up.  I added a gorgeous sparkly embellishment to the flower centre and added a rhinestone to the Bermuda Bay ribbon bow.   

Here's the inside of the card where I've used a lovely Ivy Corner Joanna Sheen Signature die.  I cut the whole shape from Bermuda Bay CS for the bottom right corner.  I then cut two of the centre portions from Coastal Cabana CS and after a bit of snipping I used these pieces to frame the sentiment. 

I made an envelope using some pretty Winter Frost papers and I popped up a die cut name label to finish.  I am happy to say both Alan and Jan loved the card!

Supplies:
Stamps: SU! 'Joyful Christmas' set,  inside sentiment from Penny Black
CS: SU! Bermuda Bay, Coastal Cabana & Whisper White, Centura Pearl Snow White Hint of Silver CS
Patterned paper: SU! Winter Frost DSP
Ink:  VersaMark, SU! Coastal Cabana
Tools: SU! Northern Flurry embossing folder, Ivy Corner Joanna Sheen Signature die, Memory Box Bistro Label & Chadwick Label dies, SU! Simply Scored & Diagonal Plate, heat tool, Stamp-a-ma-jig
Embellishments & accessories: Stampendous Aqua Tinsel embossing powder, SU! Bermuda Bay ribbon, SU! Frosted Finishes embellishment, SU! jewel rhinestones, SU! Dimensionals