The Mad Hatter Wants to Play at Sketch Saturday!

This week's Sketch Saturday sketch is a little bit funky so I thought this guy and some fun colours would suit the layout - he's Just INKlined's Mad Hatter and you can find him HERE. I do think this guy will need some dental work in the near future though - or am I obsessed with dentists at the moment as I'm finishing off my root canal and crown - LOL.

Now here's a little confession - you may notice the sentiment is in the wrong place according to the sketch - well originally I hadn't planned to have one at all - I figured my computer generated text background was enough!!! But.......someone, somehow managed to drop a little something on my finished card - BEFORE I had a chance to take a picture!!! Sooooooo - a little sentiment seemed the obvious choice to pop on over the stain - and what better choice than some of the text I had used in the background! And all this AFTER I realised I place my "wedges"the wrong way around - c'est la vie - LOL.

xXx

Mo Manning Meets Make It Crafty....

Recently Mo Manning has been drawing up some FABULOUS carnival characters which complement the gorgeous carnival backgrounds from Zoe over at Make It Crafty. The first suggested "pairing" from these two amazing artists was Mo's "A Little Smooch" with Zoe's "Kissing Booth" (click on there names if you want to check them out!). Then Mo started coming up with some special carnival images. But the original idea made me wonder what other of Mo's images would work! So I hit my laptop and played around - this is what I ended up with.

There are 3 of Mo's images here - mixed with Zoe's "Ticket Booth". I popped "Goth Girl" in the booth as the ticket seller - she looks a little frustrated with "Paul Texting". I wonder what she's thinking...."are you going to BUY a ticket or what????" or "will you get off that phone and talk to me!!"  - LOL.

The third image I used is "Monkey Tricks" - can you see him - he must have escaped from his trainer and is playing around on the roof of the booth!

I had such fun with this - I'm sure I'll be back with some of Mo's carnies soon!

xXx

Magnolia Down Under Challenge #89

This week we have a fun challenge for you over at Magnolia Down Under Challenges - we're asking you to create something in a Shabby Chic style and use lots of white. This isn't my usual style so I hope I pulled it off.

For the "chic" part I used touches of gold CS - and gilded up some chipboard hinges too. The DP is from Magnolia, as are the dies used to cut the flower and dragonfly. The swirl die is from Whiff of Joy. I used my distressing tool to add some "shabby" to the edges of the papers - and I also dragged my white ink across the hinges to "age" them a little. With all the white, off white and gold I felt the touch of pink gave it a lift.

If you're after more inspiration you should check out the rest of the MDUC DT's work HERE - in fact you should check it out just because I know it'll be worth the visit - I'm soo lucky to work with these talented crafters.

xXx

It's Party Time

Meet Veronica - she's all set to party on into the night in her little black dress - though she has a flair for fun as you can tell by the red ruffle. I've also glammed her up a bit with my red spica pen - she has gorgeous sparkly red shoes! The ribbon on the bag, her ear-rings and the spots on the box are all spica'd too. I've used my glaze pen to give her lips a full gloss pout. She's such a fun lovin' gal I thought the black lace and white feathers added a touch more fun - though I think she should re-think the blue eye-shadow - LOL.

Veronica is another of Mo Manning's gorgeous gals - and she's available HERE.

xXx

Playing With Digital Designer Papers

As many of you know I use a fair few digital images - but I've been a bit scared by the thought of digital papers. I LOVE the idea that I wouldn't run out of my favourite pattern - but the thought of spending MORE time going through computer files put me off - though I have used the odd one I keep forgetting they are there!!! Recently I started chatting with the lovely Donna Smith from Bearly Mine Designs. She designs some gorgeous papers and convinced me to try some out. She also has some FABULOUS freebies on offer on her blog if you want to give them a go yourself.

These beautiful soft toned papers are digital papers - and I LOVE that the lace edged set can be re-sized so I'm not chopping off the lace edges to fit my card! I am going to source a cheaper version of my printer ink and make a sample book with any left-over scraps to remind me what I have.

The image I've used is from Just INKlined and can be found HERE. It's meant to be a wedding purse but I think it would be perfect for Mother's Day too, or even a birthday card. You can't see it here but I've used my silver Spica pen over the swirls in the bag to add a little glamour! And look - I found some new flowers at the recent paper show - LOVE the lilies and carnations and none of my roses matched the ones on the bag - LOL!

xXx

Grand Opening of The Craft's Meow

My gorgeous friend Lisa Hjulberg is launching her dream today - The Craft's Meow - her very own online store selling papercrafting kits from companies such as Crate Paper and Graphic 45. She's also introducing her very own stamp line featuring this little cutie! Her name is Frieda and there's a lovely story behind her name! Lisa's mother's name was Frieda and she was hoping Lisa would name one of her children after her - but Lisa had 4 boys! So now Frieda is remembered and honoured in ink. This image is "Little Frieda's Flowers". There are 2 other cute Frieda images to check out too. 

There are several of Lisa's friends who have jumped on board to help her out - and most of us are celebrating today with previews - you can check out who else is playing along today at The Craft's Meow Store blog HERE. I can't tell you how honoured I am to play a part today - especially amongst such talented crafters.

In honour of Lisa's kits I used Crate Paper DP - these are from the Restoration paper pad. I'm not sure yet if it's one being used in the kits. I also coloured Frieda's dress in green - Lisa's favourite colour (and mine)! The flowers and wreath have a little sparkle on them from my clear Spica pen. The sentiment comes with Frieda.

I used this week's sketch from Friday Sketchers for inspiration.

Good Luck with your new adventure Lisa!!!

xXx

My Magnolia Down Under Birthday Candy Winner

Thanx to EVERYONE who joined us on our 2nd Birthday Blog Hop - the Magnolia Down Under DT had an absolute blast - and it seemed many of you did too. I have announced my winner on the MDUC blog but I thought I'd announce her here too.

Congratulations go to Sarah - your goodies will be on the way sooooooon!

xXx

Time For Some Magic From Just INKlined

Anyone who knows me knows I'm more into magicians that vampires - LOL. Doesn't this guy remind you of childhood images of Merlin - or is it just me??? He's soo full of razzle dazzle that I decided he didn't need too much embellishing - just a cloud-like bow that looks like the remnants of a spell.

This fabulous wizard is called Wizz Doodles (what a fun name - LOL) and he's from Just INKlined - you can find him HERE. And check out the other images from Just INKlined while you're there - they are a bargain at less than $2 each!

Wishing you all a magical weekend

xXx

Seeing Circles with Sketch Saturday

I was a little thrown when I saw this week's sketch from Sketch Saturday but I finally figured out how to fit my main image into a small circle - I left most of it hanging out the bottom - LOL. This is another of the gorgeous new images from Wee Stamps - Autumn Happiness - very appropriate for us here in the Southern Hemisphere as the trees are starting to drop their leaves and the air has a little it of a chill to it in the mornings!

xXx

It's Mo's Dream Team Blog Hop Time!

Yay - I love it when Mo's Dream Team get together to hop in a theme - it's always a fabulous time! This month our Hostess with the Mostess is the gorgeous Elaine and you'll need to start the hop over on her blog HERE. Elaine has challenged us to "Use 2 images to Create a Scene".

If you are already on the hop you should have arrived here from the lovely Alice's blog.

Having an "almost 19yo" daughter it always amazes me how teenagers live with their mobile (cell) phones constantly attached to some part of their body - even when they are out together and should be spending time talking to each other - LOL. These two fabulous teenage images from Mo just screamed out to me that this is what modern communication is all about! These two are "Paul Texting" (available HERE) and "Cara Chatting" (available HERE).

I also wanted to add in a little bit of humour so I popped in the poor little pooch at Cara's feet - he is "It's all about the accessories" and he's available HERE. He seemed to be a little lost but his bemused expression was worth bringing attention to - hence the placement of the sentiment. To add to my urban scene I popped a cut out of a city skyline along the bottom - I cut this using my craft robo. My DPs are from Collections Elements and the black rolled flowers were made using my MFT die.

Before you head off on your way we have some special news for you - Mo has generously offered TWO SPOT PRIZES - the winner's will be randomly selected from all the comments left on all the blogs

 - GOOD LUCK!

 Your next stop on the hop is Mina's blog - where I'm sure you'll find something FABULOUS to inspire!

And here's the hop order in case you get lost along the way - all the links are on my left sidebar under Mo's logo....

Elaine, Arielle, Jak, Bea, Heidy, Alice, Debbie {me}, Mina, Kerttu

Happy Hopping and don't forget the Dream Team have their own blog HERE if you're after regular inspiration! Please note too that Mo is changing over to a new store - you can check it out HERE.

xXx

Magnolia Butterfly Dreams Collection - Pre-Order ON NOW!

Hi everyone! I just wanted to give you all a little heads up - Tickled Pink Stamps has the Magnolia Butterfly Dreams collection now on pre-order... to snap them up, click HERE.

This little cutie is Tilda with Hanging Rabbit and she is one of many adorable new stamps in this range.

Playing with Wee Stamps and Friday Sketchers

When I was on the DT for Spesch Stamps I was rapt when owner Tracey found a wonderful new artist to design for her called Sylvia Zet - her images are super cute and I loved working with them. Recently Sylvia has ventured out on her own and started up Wee Stamps. This is the first one I've coloured up and popped onto a card - but I do have others waiting patiently for their turn - LOL. This cutie is called Sweet Blossom - isn't it ADORABLE!!!

I've used this week's Friday Sketchers sketch and my DP is from Stampin' Up - but it's probably retired by now - I found it at the bottom of the drawer - LOL.

xXx

A Fairytale Gazebo

When I saw one of the previews for Lauren Meader's March release for My Time Made Easy I was blown away by her 3D birdcage (available HERE) - it got my creative juices flowing! I bought the cut file the day it was released and cut out the pieces with my craft robo (silhouette) - and then they sat there!!! I knew what I wanted to do but needed to figure out HOW! I was inspired to create something for this month's Copic Oz Challenge - A Little Magic. I wanted to create a scene INSIDE the cage. I tried to add in a door that would open but the thick bars cut off too much of the view - so I decided to cut off the bars from the front piece entirely - thus creating a gazebo for my fairy scene. I've embossed the base and top bars for some extra interest.

I used Mo Manning's gorgeous fairy Summer Fairy Finna - available HERE. I printed her off twice - once in reverse. This way I could glue them back to back so the rear view would be Ok too. You can see her through the bars at the side in the photo on the left. I have been able to sit her up straight by attaching tabs between the two layers and then making a slit in the DP on the base to slide the tabs through and then I stuck them down.

Now you may be wondering what the little yellow flame shape at the front is - well I've popped a battery operated tealight up through the bottom and created a gazebo night light for a bit of ambience. The tealight base is hidden but easy to access to turn the switch on or off. The photo just doesn't do it justice as the light flickers like a flame and the glitter on Finna's wings shimmer.

This was such a fun project to do - and the birdcage was very easy to put together - especially as I didn't have to cut it out myself - LOL.

xXx

Magnolia Down Under Challenge's 2nd Birthday Bash!

If you are looking for my TPS Blog Hop post please scroll down - it's right below this post! 

WOW - it's been two years since Kellie asked Kristy and I if we would be interested in starting the Magnolia Down Under Challenges - and what a long way we've come - and soo have Tilda and Edwin! Magnolia stamps are now well known with lots of fans around the world - and we've been happy to have been a small part of the fun along the way.

To celebrate our second birthday we are combining our challenge with a blog hop - and lots of fun prizes too. We have four FABULOUS sponsors....

Tickled Pink Stamps

All That Scraps

Michelle’s Scrapbooking

Quixotic Paperie

Prizes from the sponsors will be given to random entries AND the winner of the week - so what's the challenge theme???

TWO – two images, two DP, two flowers, two buttons, any of these or any other item in groups of two or combo.

Many of the DT also have some 2nd birthday blog candy for one of their commenters to win - all winners will be announced after the close of entries at 8am AEST, Saturday 19th March on the MDUC blog. I have this little prize parcel for one lucky crafter...

In it you'll find 2 Magnolia stamps, 2 bunches flowers and 2 metres of lace daisies.

You should have hopped here from the uber talented Camilla's blog but if you didn't head back to the MDUC blog where all the fun begins.

For my project I've decorated a 6"x6" chipboard album. It grabbed my attention for this challenge because it has 2 binding springs - a fabulous way to start my "2" project! I also have used two of each of these - DPs, tassles, images, Magnolia doohickey dies. My DPs are from my Basic Grey Sultry pad. In place of the stamped bubbles I trimmed off I've added some lime green gems.

Now you need to hop on over to see what amazing creation the lovely Debbie Dolphin has for you.

Here's the blog hop order for you - the DT's links are on my left sidebar under the MDUC logo, the guests have their names linked for you......

MDUC Blog, Ann, Camilla, Debbie P{me}, Debbie D, Denise, Fran, Jane, Janiel, GUEST – Jodie, Karen, Kathrin, Kristy, Kylie, Sharon, GUEST – Stephanne, Tanja, Tara and then back to the MDUC blog

I'm entering this into these challenges -

Gem of a Challenge - Sketch

Basic Grey - Wings

Southern Girls Challenge - Flowers

My Time to Craft - Jewels

Easy Craft Projects - Green

xXx

Tickled Pink Stamps Release Day Blog Hop

YAY - we know you've all been waiting for it so we're glad to say today is release day for the Lil Lads set from Tickled Pink Stamps. As usual the DT are celebrating with a blog hop and there is a prize in it for one lucky hopper - the full set of the release in rubber - and all you need to do is comment on every blog in hop.The winner will be announced on the TPS blog on Thursday, 17th March 2011.

The hop starts at the lovely Amy's blog - but if you're already hopping you should have arrived here from the amazing Angela's blog.

For my card I've used the gorgeous Lil Lad Eric designed by Christina Dee. I love this cool nerd with glasses - maybe it's because I've been wearing glasses since I was a teenager - and I was also a bit of a nerd - not so much the cool part though - LOL.

I found this fabulous b&w stripe tape on sale at Borders - it was sooo much fun to use and adds a fun detail. The sentiment is from Ann Vento's gorgeous Lil Lad's set for TPS - also being released today - this one fit my DP perfectly - it was fun to colour in the circles to match.

Your next stop on the hop is the gorgeous Emma's blog.

If you get lost along the way head over to the TPS blog and you'll find the hop order and all the relevant links there.

xXx

Tickled Pink Stamps Preview Day 5 - Lil Lad Damon

I can't believe we're up to Day 5 of previews already at Tickled Pink Stamps - we have only one more day before our release day blog hop - we hope you've been LOVING the new release as much as we have. If you've missed any you can check them all out on the TPS blog HERE.

Today we have our musician of the group - this is Lil lad Damon designed by the incredible Christina Dee. I can just imagine him strumming away in a smokey bar and singing the blues. I've paired him with one of the awesome sentiments from the Lil Lad set designed for these guys by the talented Anne Vento - she just seems to know what fits!

I took this photo with the card laying down and have just realised the charm isn't hanging straight - grrrrrrrrr.

If you want a chance to win this cutie for yourself make sure you pop over and leave a comment on the TPS blog - and check out the rest of the inspiration from the DT while you're there.

xXx

Tickled Pink Stamps Preview Day 3 - Lil Fox Rockin' Emilio

In case you haven't noticed Tickled Pink Stamps is in the middle of previewing it's newest release. Today it's Day 3 and if you want to check the FABULOUS images from the past 2 days pop over to our blog HERE - and remember to leave a comment for a chance to win one for yourself!

This month we have 6 new amazing characters from our Lil Lolita designer Christina Dee - and we're pairing them with a fabulous new sentiment set from designer Anne Vento. Today I'm showcasing Lil Fox Rockin' Emilio - I wonder WHAT he's listening to on his ipod??? Release day is this Sunday when we'll be celebrating with a blog hop.

I know there is some more GORGEOUS inspiration today using Emilio from the TPS DT on our blog - so make sure you pop over and check it out.

xXx

Blog Candy Alert

Just a little heads up for those of you who LOVE copics and LOVE blog candy - my wonderful friend Lisa is starting a new adventure and is celebrating with an AMAZING blog candy - check it all out HERE!!!! You have until Sunday 20th March.

xXx

BLOG CANDY WINNER

WOW - thanx to everyone who was in for a chance to win my little bit of blog candy, I wish I could give you ALL something! But I HAVE picked a winner using random.org and that winner is........

 

ANNETTE BOWES

Congratulations Annette - please email me at rdpam@hotmail.com to claim your prize - please include your snail mail address.

xXx

Just INKlined Monthly DT Blog Hop

Well here we are again at the start of another month - I swear yesterday we were just celebrating the start of 2011 and now it's already March! But the good thing about the first Monday of the month is the fun I get to have hopping with my Just INKlined team-mates. This month's theme is Embossing - anywhere, anyhow on your project - and our gorgeous host is the lovely Joyce who starts off the hop - so head back there to begin at the very beginning (a very good place to start...) - OH dear - I'm humming that song now - LOL.

If you ARE already on the hop you should have landed here from the fabulous Meesh's blog.

For my card I used one of my favourite images - Scamp, Special Delivery - and you can find him HERE. I created a double embossed frame using my nesties to sit him in (tutorial HERE) and also added an embossed background. And now here's little confession - in a last minute decision I decided to add a sentiment to Scamp's envelope - and I smudged it - grrrrr - and then had to add a new one over the top, you should have heard me - NOT HAPPY!!! Never mind - there are no mistakes in crafting just "opportunities" they tell me - and hence the touch of stickles around the "patch" to make it a feature and more along the embossed edges to co-ordinate - LOL.

Now time to head off and see what gorgeous creation our lovely Jak has for you.

And if you get lost along the way here's the hop order - you'll find all the blog links on my left sidebar under the Just INKlined logo.

Joyce, Toni, Karen, Jeni, Lydia, Meesh, Debbie (ME), Jak, Cathy

xXx

Aa - aaa - achoooooo

It seems to me that no matter which side of the world you're on it's cough and cold time!! We are heading towards Winter and our Northern Hemisphere friends are starting to feel touches of Spring. With so many of my friends - and sadly myself - suffering with sore throats and snuffles I thought it was time to dress up a box of tissues! I found THIS fabulous tutorial over at Splitcoast Stampers to make a re-usable tissue box cover - it was soo easy to do!

I had the perfect image to pop on my cover - this is "Needs Mummy" from Mo Manning (available HERE). I just love his sad little face and soulful expression. I had to make his poor little nose a little bit red too - though it's hard to see here.

The embossing folder I used is from Sizzix - I LOVE these big dots!

Hopefully this will brighten up the sick-room and help chase those nasty lurgies away! And if you're feeling a bit under the weather...

Get Well Soooooooon!

And don't forget to enter my blog candy HERE - I'll be picking a winner sooooon!

xXx

Happy Birthday with Cherrie and Friday Sketchers

I just loved this week's sketch over at Friday Sketchers so decided to have a play. I've used the gorgeous Birthday Cherrie from Tickled Pink Stamps - available HERE.

For anyone interested in finding out HOW I cut Cherrie with her balloons outside the edge of the nestie I've done a tutorial over on the Tickled Pink Stamps Blog HERE.

The DPs are from Pink Paislee and the sentiment is from Magnolia.

Hope everyone is having a FABULOUS weekend - I just wish they were longer!!!

And don't forget to enter for a chance to win my blog candy HERE - I'm drawing it on Monday!!!

xXx

Tagged for Just INKlined

Recently I bought my son a new pair of pants and it had a cute little swing tag that opened up - combine that with the AMAZING tags that I've been seeing aroung the blogs and I was inspired to make this little tag. I used the largest of one of my nesties and cut out the tag on a piece of folded Kraft CS. I cut out some DP to cover the front and inside and then decorated it.

The image I used is from Just INKlined and his name is Mr. Hoppy - available HERE. The sentiment was computer generated.

And don't forget to enter for a chance to win my blog candy HERE.

xXx

Three Challenges in One

This week Tickled Pink Stamps is proudly sponsoring 3 different challenges. And as they all work together I have combined them into one card. I've used the wickedly handsome Lil Pirate Luca and popped him onto a circular easel card - you can get this cutie HERE. I don't have a Grand Calibur so these are the original sized circles but I'm thinking it works OK as I haven't let the boundaries scare me off - LOL. The sentiment is computer generated and the flourish dies are from WoJ.

We have Cupcake Craft doing anything BUT a square, Bearly Mine are doing "Happy Birthday" and lastly Do You Stack Up are using the colour GREEN.

We hope you can play along with some or ALL of these fabulous challenges for a chance to win some TPS prizes!

And just in case you hadn't heard Kellie has this amazing offer...

SPEND OVER $50 FOR FREE SHIPPING "WORLDWIDE"

That's right spend just $50 and you get free shipping and this doesn't just apply within Australia but WORLDWIDE. You really can't go wrong with a price like that! (Stamps ONLY for overseas customers)

And don't forget to enter for a chance to win my blog candy HERE.

xXx

Mo Meets Friday Sketchers

As always when I get stuck putting a card together I head over to the sketch challenge blogs looking for inspiration. I've used this week's fabulous sketch from Friday Sketchers here but I've skewed one of the layers - you all know I'm a little twisted right - LOL.

This gorgeous image is Mo Manning's "I Wuv U" and you can find it HERE. There's also a curly haired version if you prefer.

I used a  mix of DP's from October Afternoon and Cosmo Cricket, they worked so well together. And if you're wondering how I did the frame around my image - I cut my CS using the same size nestie as I used on the image. I then spliced it in 2 halves on the diagonal and glued it in place - easy! The sentiment is from Tickled Pink Stamps.

xXx