Made in Minutes

Hello,
Today feels very special for me because I learnt yesterday that I had won the Twofer Challenge 14. I can't quite believe it, I am so thrilled and humbled as I never think my cards are good enough to win, so thank you for giving me such a boost. Other reasons for today to be special are - it's my birthday, my wedding anniversary and Mothers day! So much in one day, I have been very spoilt. Of course I now have a million thank you cards to do, so here is a start.

This card was made very quickly so it perfectly fits the AAA cards CAS game 137 made in minutes with an optional twist of dry embossing. Here is my card:

I embossed the tulips on a white card panel and then brushed Catherine Pooler grass skirt ink over the tulips gradually fading it out. The panel and the sentiment were then die cut and it was mounted on a dark green textured card base. It probably took about 10 minutes to make.

I really like Catherine Pooler inks, the colours are so vibrant and if you hadn't noticed green is a favourite of mine. I have resisted the urge to add embellishments to it, although it is possible that I might succumb before I post it out.
Here's a close up:

Thank you for taking the time to visit my blog today, I really appreciate it.
Hilary
xx

Balloons

Hello,
Today I am entering Twofer #14 Balloons with these cards:

I have made the first card for my husband as it is our 3rd wedding anniversary soon.

The heart filled with roses is stamped and heat embossed on vellum and then coloured on the back with my Zig real brush pens. I also heat embossed the sentiment on vellum and overlaid it across the front panel, which is a lovely paper with a shiny silvery finish. I know the sentiment doesn't show up too well on the photos but it is OK in real life. I didn't want it to look harsh as I wanted to maintain the soft pastel look. The balloons are die cut and I tied thread with tiny bows to add some interest.

I am also entering this card in the  CAS Watercolour March Challenge, watercolour on vellum.

My second card is for my granddaughters 4th birthday. It is a pop-up shadow box card as demonstrated by Jennifer McGuire, I thought I would give it a go as they seemed reasonable straightforward and look very effective.

 I used a mask to create the clouds in the background and stamped the heart grass on the back of the card. The little girl on the swing is a Dearie Doll digi stamp, which are just wonderful drawings very generously shared by their creator Mary Ellen Smith. I thought this little girl looks so happy and pleased with her swinging that I would use her on my card. I coloured her with alcohol markers and fussy cut the image.

The swing is attached to the front frame of the card with acetate along with 2 of the balloons to give dimension. I added the strings so that they appear to be blowing behind her on the swing. Although, as ever, I think it could have been better, I am quite pleased with the end result. Here is a close up:

I am afraid it was dark when I took the photos so the light is not good. I have been struggling to find time in the last couple of weeks and this week my 12 year old iMac decided to give up the ghost. Having to buy a new one is a huge shock to the bank balance, but wow I have such speed now!

I am also entering this card in the Snippets Playground. The balloons have been cut from snippets found in my stash.



Thank you for taking the time to visit my blog today, I really appreciate it.
Hilary
xx

Faux Stained Glass

Hello,
Today I am sharing my card at CAS mix it up challenge blog, the theme is faux stained glass + stamping + your choice. Here is my card:

The die used for central 'flower' or 'window' as this is stained glass, is from creative expressions. I taped it together with the frame die (Nellie Snellen) to ensure that the window was in the correct position, and die cut it 4 times. I also cut the square from my base card  panel and my coloured panel. I made the panel some time ago using brusho powder paints. The panel also had some Brusho SprinkleIT on it but that doesn't show in any of my pictures. 3 of the die cuts were then glued together and glued onto the brusho base. once this was done I filled all the holes with Nuvo Crystal glaze, taking care to fill all the corners, because my spaces are quite small it was a bit of a fiddle. Once dry I glued the 4th die cut into place, fixed it in position on the card, stamped and heat embossed the sentiment.

 You have to see the close up to see the shine:

I really like this technique, I posted a card using it last year which you can see here.





Thank you for taking the time to visit my blog today, I really appreciate it.
Hilary
xx

Vellum Daffodil

Hello,
Today I am sharing a card that I made with the Altenew Layered Daffodil die collection that came free with issue 188 of Simply Cards & Papercraft Magazine. I have bought this magazine for the last 3 months because I have liked the free gifts.

Here is my card:

And a close up:

 I cut the daffodil from vellum and then coloured it on the reverse with my alcohol markers. I smooched some distress ink on the background and splattered some bronze and silver paint onto it. I then heat embossed the sentiment and mounted the panel, I am quite pleased with the finished card.

I am sharing it at CAS on Friday #152 use vellum on your card.



I have made a second card using card instead of vellum but I don't like it so much the vellum one is definitely my favourite, what do you think?

I put some wink of stella on the petals of this one and used a stencil to provide the background


Thank you for taking the time to visit my blog today, I really appreciate it.
Hilary
xx

February Card Chain Challenge

Hello,

Today is reveal day for the February card chain challenge. I sent my card to Greta in Oregon.

This is what she received:

I used the colour option and the theme option of birds.

The background is blended with distress oxide inks, I masked off the white strip before I started inking and then I stamped the little bird, which is from My Favourite Things, with versamark and heat embossed it in white. The sentiment is from Hero Arts which I also heat embossed onto black card. I drew a fine line at the edge of the ink with a fine liner pen and added the little birds in the sky with an opaque paint pen. I was surprised and quite pleased with how they turned out as I was worried that I would mess it up.

Here is a close up:

I really enjoy this challenge as it is so nice to receive wonderful handmade cards in the post.

Thank you for taking the time to visit my blog today, I really appreciate.
Hilary
xx

One Corner

Hello,
I am feeling very honoured and happy today as I have received a mention for outstanding design on February CAS Stencil Challenge, I can't quite believe it so thanks to everyone that visits me and leaves such encouraging comments. It must be proof that my card making skills are improving.

Today I have a card that I made a couple of weeks ago but have only just found the time to do the post. I made it specifically for AAA Cards CAS game 134. When I saw the prompt, one corner, I immediately thought of this Tutti Designs die that I really like but haven't used much.

Here is my card:

I cut the die from 2 different pieces of cardstock and inlaid the pieces. The inlaid pieces actually have a really nice sheen to them which the photo doesn't really capture. Looking at the picture now I wonder if I should have been more selective with the inlaid pieces, just putting them in the flower shapes. Perhaps I will try that next time. The thanks die is from Lawn Fawn. Here is a close up:

I made this card in 2 colour ways, here is my second one:

Unfortunately I lost one of the pieces so had to cover the gap with an enamel dot. I can guarantee that I will do that with at least one piece however careful I try to be!

Anyway, I am entering the purple and pink card in this challenge.

Thank you for taking the time to visit my blog today, I really appreciate it.
Hilary
xx