Christmas is in the Air

Hi everyone! I have to say thank you for all the lovely comments on my PTI Blog Hop card the other day. Really made my day (and yes, I loved the card so much, I made another one and intend on trying more colours!) ;)

I thought seeing as Christmas is a couple of months away, I should get cracking with the annual mission. I suspect I will be busy one work starts end of November.

My challenge is to make different cards from last year - not an easy one when your stamping mojo is still lost somewhere in the Pacific Ocean and you haven't got a single new Christmas stamp (well, there are a couple on the way!) - but it's a challenge for that reason. I didn't want to send out same cards to people as last year, and I try to make different cards for most people.

Since I kept you all waiting whilst I was enjoying the tropical sunshine in Aitutaki, Cook Islands for 9 weeks, I thought I'd throw in a couple of cards today. I do have another but intend to share another day just to keep the flow steady.

First card is reasonably simple. I am having a horrendously difficult time coming up with new ideas for the Damask Snowflake dies. I used it so much last year, I think I may have depleted of new ideas for this year!

 Next one is another simple one using the In the Meadow set. It looks awfully a lot like other cards I made using it in the past, but it looks great with white cardstock and a bit of shimmer mist!

Thanks for coming and I will have more cards to share soon :)

SUPPLIES & TOOLS:

{Peace on Earth, Good Will Towards Men}

STAMP: [PTI] Wonderful Words: Holiday

INK: [StazOn] Jet Black
PAPER: [PTI] Stamper's Select White, Aqua Mist, Hawaiiam Shores

OTHER: [PTI] Damask Snowflakes die collection, Wonderful Words: Holiday die collection; Tin Types impression plate, grosgrain ribbon (Fresh Snow); [Studio Calico] Mister Huey's Color Mist (Calico Shine)

{Good Tidings to You and Yours}

STAMP: [PTI] In the Meadow

INK: [PTI] Dark Chocolate; [SU!] Old Olive
PAPER: [PTI] Stamper's Select White

OTHER: [PTI] In the Meadow die collection; In the Meadow Silhouettes die collection;
[Studio Calico] Mister Huey's Color Mist (Calico Shine)

Last Post for 2011

Hi everyone! It's already end of 2011 in New Zealand with less than 4 hours of the year left! A lot has happened this year and to sum it up into a word, I'd say "rollercoaster" is the word. Despite it all, I've made it through another year, and I'm happy to say my blog is still going! My past blogs have been failures as I've lost interest in updating them only after a few months.

Next year will be an interesting year for me as I finish off my degree (YES!!!), go on my long-awaited elective to Aitutaki, Cook Islands for 3 months (I've waited 6 years for this!) and some travel in between to different places around the country as I do my runs in a couple of different places ;) Should be exciting.

Ok, so last post of the year it is. And with lots of cards yet again! It just happened that my PTI order, MyCuteStamps order and things I bought from Jennifer on PTI forums all arrived yesterday and I had lots of new things to play with! I'm a bit overwhelmed, really! :D

 So here's the card that I re-did from my previous post. I took out the Berry Sorbet cardstock out and just left it with Aqua Mist. I love how it goes so nicely with Kraft!!!
  

  

And by now you would have figured that I got Embellishments set recently and is going through a phase. I regret not getting this set earlier. The die for it just arrived yesterday in my PTI order (it had LOTS of dies!). I put the two die-cuts together and taped them. It makes a large embellishment die cut which is quite unique with two different colours ;)
  

 

I've gotten my hands on my 2nd Year of Flowers series set. I've kept this card simple and added some shimmer with the Mister Huey Color Mist. No sentiment on this one as I couldn't find a place for it. I coloured the flowers with my Copic markers. I wish I had a purple/mauve shade to colour the flowers. Pink isn't really the colour for Lily of the Valley, but I felt that it needed a little colour there somewhere.

 

   
And some cute cards now! I was sold on Tiny Tags when the second of the series came out recently. It's one set I never thought I'd get, but they are so cute!!! I admit that it was a bit of a mission transferring all the stamps onto my acetate sheet, because there were so many pieces!!!

The seal stamp is from My Cute Stamps. They are still doing the 50% off all stamps so if you were thinking of getting some earlier, get them now!!!

I also got Modern Wood Mats set and Diamonds impression plate in my recent order. I love this new IP! It's just gorgeous and you get so much more texture than the Tin Types IP.

 

 

 Last card for the day, continuing on the cute theme. The cupcake stamp was also from My Cute Stamps and I coloured it with my Copics.

 

 

That's it for the year!!! Happy New Year to you all and may next year bring you lots of love, happiness and surprises (good ones!). Thanks for coming by :)

SUPPLIES & TOOLS:
{Wishing You Every Joy & Happiness...}

STAMP: [PTI] Embellishments, Half & Half

INK: [PTI] Aqua Mist, Vintage Touch Tea Dye Duo; [SU!] Early Espresso; Versamark

PAPER: [PTI] Kraft, Rustic Cream, Aqua Mist

OTHER: [PTI] jute button twine, button (Hawaiian Shores), Mat Stack #4 die

{Embellishments Card}

STAMP: [PTI] Embellishments, Inside & Out: Birthday

INK: [SU!] Early Espresso, Old Olive, Real Red; [PTI] Vintage Touch Tea Dye Duo

PAPER: [PTI] Kraft, Rustic Cream

OTHER: [PTI] Embellishments die collection, jute button twine; [Spellbinders] Nestabilities Labels #1

{Lily of the Valley Card}

STAMP: [PTI] Year of Flowers: Lily of the Valley

INK: [Memento] Tuxedo Black

PAPER: [PTI] Rustic Cream, Simply Chartreuse

OTHER: [PTI] Woodgrain impression plate, ribbon (Simply Chartreuse - saddle stitch); [We R Memory Keepers] Crop-A-Dile Corner Chomper (aqua); [Copic] Sketch Markers (G21, YG95, YG97, R20, R22, T1); [Studio Calico] Mister Huey Color Mist (Calico Shine, Clover)

{Your Special Day Tiny Tags Card}

STAMP: [PTI] Tiny Tags II, Modern Wood Mats; [My Cute Stamps] Circus Animals

INK: [PTI] Aqua Mist, Spring Moss; [Memento] Tuxedo Black

PAPER: [PTI] Stamper's Select White, Aqua Mist

OTHER: [PTI] Mat Stack #4 die, Tiny Tags die collection, Diamonds impression plate; [We R Memory Keepers] Crop-A-Dile Corner Chomper (aqua); baker's twine (grey); [Copic] Sketch Markers (0, T1, BG11, Y35, Y38, R24, R29, R59)

{Make a Wish, Eat Cake Card}

STAMP: [PTI] Cupcake Collection; [My Cute Stamps] Little Cupcake

INK: [SU!] Early Espresso; [Memento] Tuxedo Black

PAPER: [PTI] Vintage Cream, Sweet Blush

OTHER: [PTI] Spiral Notebook Page die, Diamonds impression plate, button (Pure Poppy); [We R Memory Keepers] Crop-A-Dile Corner Chomper (aqua); [Celebrate!] satin ribbon (cream); [Copic] Sketch Markers (R20, R22, R24, GG20, G21, G24)

I'm Runnning Out of Post Titles

Hello everyone!

 

I hope everyone had a good Christmas. Things have been ok in Kiwiland with not too many big shakes in the last few days.

 

I've got lots of cards to share with you all today. I need to fill up my card box again now that it is looking rather empty after sending out my Christmas cards! And Mum's given me an order(?) to make lots of pretty cards to show off to relatives on New Year's Day haha.
  

So here they are. I am still misting and that bottle is going down fast. I'll be needing a new bottle soon at this rate!!! The first card is all about polka dots and getting out my cute wee Tiny Treats set out again :) I also managed to use up that little bit of ribbon I had left over which was good! I love this Melon Berry (PTI) and Calypso Coral (SU!) colour combo!

   

 

 This next card was inspired by Maile Belle's card when Faith & Hope set was introduced. This may as well be a case... almost! I got out the mists out yet again to add a bit of colour and shimmer to the frame. Since I didn't have the Faith & Hope set, I got a similar looking stamp from Turning a New Leaf and went stamp-happy. It's a nice simple card. I love green on white <3

 

 

 The next card was a Copic challenge for me. I don't think I've done many cards using Copics yet. I've used it the odd time on Tremendous Treats and Tiny Treats, but haven't really used it. I thought I'd try something a little different for once. It took a while to colour all those carnations in, but it adds something in the background certainly :) I got the sentiment from Half & Half set and decorated it with images from Vintage Labels set.

 

 

 Here's a card that has all the right elements but the balance isn't quite right. It looks okay in the photo, but I'm just not quite satisfied with it. I think it's the glitter and shimmer - it's not really something that goes with kraft and rustic cream look. I might try again without all the shimmer and see if it looks better later. I do love the wee button on the Mat Stack with button twine.

 

 

 Here's one last card for the day. It's another case of Maile Belle's card. As much as I love my Cupcake Collection, I could never seem to make that perfect cupcake in the right colour combo! So I just copied Maile's perfect little card with what I had at home. Instead of Simple Sentiments, I have used some Big Birthday Wishes set on the kraft Mat Stack die cut. And who needs shimmer cardstock when you have Mister Huey's Color Mists? :D

 

 Anyway, that's it folks! I'll have some more (hopefully) later in the week. Thanks for coming by!

 

SUPPLIES & TOOLS:

{Lady Bird Happy Birthday}

STAMP: [PTI] Polka Dot Basics II, Tiny Treats: Birthday

INK: [PTI] Fresh Snow; [SU!] Calypso Coral; [Memento] Tuxedo Black

PAPER: [PTI] Stamper's Select White, Melon Berry, Pure Poppy

OTHER: [PTI] Mat Stack #5 die, Limitless Layers 1.75" Circles die collection; [American Crafts] ribbon; [Studio Calico] Mister Huey's Color Mist (Calico Shine); [Copic] Sketch Markers (Y35, R22, R24, R29, T1, 0)

{Today Take Time...}

STAMP: [PTI] Turning a New Leaf, Inside & Out: Birthday

INK: [PTI] Spring Moss; [SU!] Early Espresso

PAPER: [PTI] Stamper's Select White

OTHER: [PTI] Mat Stack #5 die; [Studio Calico] Mister Huey's Color Mist (Calico Shine, Clover)

{Celebrate & Wish Big}

STAMP: [PTI] Year of Flowers: Carnation, Half & Half, Vintage Labels

INK: [SU!] Early Espresso; [Memento] Tuxedo Black

PAPER: [PTI] Vintage Cream, Pure Poppy

OTHER: [PTI] Mat Stack #1 die; [KaiserCraft] rhinestones; [kikki.k] saddle stitch ribbon; [Copic] Sketch Markers (T1, R22, R24, R29)

{Wishing You Every Joy & Happiness...}

STAMP: [PTI] Embellishments, Half & Half

INK: [PTI] Aqua Mist, Vintage Touch Tea Dye Duo; [SU!] Early Espresso; Versamark

PAPER: [PTI] Kraft, Rustic Cream, Aqua Mist, Berry Sorbet

OTHER: [PTI] Mat Stack #4 die, Edgers #3 die collection, button twine (jute), button (Hawaiian Shores); [Studio Calico] Mister Huey's Color Mist (Calico Shine); [Palette] Prisma glitter; double-sided tape

{A Little Sweet Surprise}

STAMP: [PTI] Big Birthday Wishes, Cupcake Collection, Polka Dot Basics II

INK: [SU!] Early Espresso, Calypso Coral; Versamark

PAPER: [PTI] Stamper's Select White, Kraft, Melon Berry, Dark Chocolate, Pure Poppy

OTHER: [PTI] Mat Stack #5 die, Cupcake Collection die collection, button (Pure Poppy); [Studio Calico] Mister Huey's Color Mist (Calico Shine); [DMC] Jewel Effects Embroidery Floss (E703)

Bits and Pieces

Hi everyone. We've got guests coming for dinner in 15 minutes so I'm just going to have to make this quick. I've made a few cards in the last couple of days that I'd like to share.

  

My mother has given me the ultimatum (?) to make lots of pretty cards this week so she can show off to my aunt LOL So I'm going to be casing a lot of pretty cards I've been eyeing for some time now.

  

Anyway, the cards... I have been trying to resist using my mist too much, but this first card needed that extra touch hehe. It's just a plain white cardstock with Dewey mist over it for the background. Then some cloud die cuts and Fly Away plane and voila! I'm waiting for the day my Fly Away die arrives on my doorstep so I don't have to cut it by hand!!!

   

      

Here's one fresh off my desk-space. I wish I had some neutral buttons! Only just now I have realised I don't have any basic colours for buttons!!! So I had to coordinate it with the base cardstock.

  

  

    And one more for good measure. This one's a case of Nichole Heady's card that I love so much. My Banner Builder set needed some more love recently.

    

 

Ok, better get going. That was some serious speed blogging! Thanks for coming by :)

SUPPLIES & TOOLS:

{Happy Birthday Fly Away}

STAMP: [PTI] Fly Away

INK: Versamark (for embossing)

PAPER: [PTI] Stamper's Select White

OTHER: [PTI] Clouds die collection; [Palette] Filigree embossing powder (black); [Copic] Sketch Markers; [Studio Calico] Mister Huey's Color Mists (Dewey, Calico Shine)

{Live Love Laugh}

STAMP: [PTI] Embellishments, Damask Designs

INK: [PTI] Spring Moss, Vintage Touch Tea Dye Duo; [SU!] Early Espresso; Versamark

PAPER: [PTI] Vintage Cream, Simply Chartreuse, Berry Sorbet

OTHER: [PTI] Buttons (Simply Chartreuse), Half & Half die collection, Button Twine (Jute); [We R Memory Keepers] Crop-A-Dile Corner Chomper (aqua)

{Celebrate Today Banners}

STAMP: [PTI] Fancy Flourishes, Banner Builder, Cupcake Collection

INK: [PTI] Spring Moss, Smokey Shadow; [SU!] Early Espresso

PAPER: [PTI] Vintage Cream, Spring Moss, Aqua Mist

OTHER: [PTI] Banner Builder die collection; [KaiserCraft] Rhinestones; [We R Memory Keepers] Crop-A-Dile Corner Chomper (aqua)

 

 

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas everyone! It's a beautiful sunny and warm day in Christchurch today!

I thought I'd share a quick card with you all before things get a bit 'mad' at my place tonight (it's grandma's birthday today in my family).

Anyway, it's Christmas and funnily enough, I made a Christmas card to say Merry Christmas to you all lol Either this card waits a year before being mailed out, or this can be my belated Christmas card for later ;)

 

  

I somehow managed to spray the Mister Huey mist with some blobs today! Thank goodness that blob over Santa Claus wasn't over his eyes!!! Hehe.

It's a simple card using my Copic Sketch Markers and Mister Huey mists.

Wishing you all a very Merry Christmas, and a fabulous time with all your loved ones.

SUPPLIES & TOOLS:

STAMP: [PTI] Tremendous Treats: Christmas, Embellishments
INK: [Memento] Tuxedo Black; Versamark
PAPER: [PTI] Vintage Cream, Pure Poppy

OTHER: [Spellbinders] Nestabilities Labels #1; [Copic] Sketch Markers (Y32, Y35, Y38, R24, R29, R59, T1, E21, E00, 0); [Studio Calico] Mister Huey's Color Mist (Calico Shine); [kikki.k] saddle stitch ribbon; [We R Memory Keepers] Crop-A-Dile Corner Chomper (aqua); foam tape

Earthquakes and Cards

Earthquakes and cards have nothing to do with each other. In fact none of the cards below have anything to do with quakes we had today, but I thought, surely, it would seem like an interesting title for a blog post. So there.

  

Anyway, what a day it has been. Today is Christmas Eve Eve (yes, it's 23rd December) and Mother Nature has kindly decided to join in on the party. 

  

As an update from the previous post, power lines and phones have been down on the Eastern suburbs (yet again - that side of the town as had so much damage already this year, and to have to go through it all over again, my heart goes out to them), there's fresh liquefaction, rockfalls by Sumner/New Brighton/Lyttleton area, we had rest home residents trapped on a floor, airport is closed, busses running once an hour, malls evacuated, but all in all, no one died today. Thank goodness. Just as well we're in the middle of sunshine and it's not cold like it was when the first earthquake struck in September last year.

I'm on one of the best areas of the city in terms of quake-damage, so my house got away without a single crack and everyone's doing a-ok :)

 

So, shall we get onto some cards?

 

I can now officially say that I can't flick those mists without making a mess! I've given up on flicking inks. I might just stick to spraying. i swear this card looked better before I flicked all that mist onto it.

    

     

And I finally got a hold of those Shape Up series cupcake dies!!! And who said you couldn't use the In the Meadow snowdrift dies for things other than snow? I used it to make that puuurfect cut for the icing ;)

  

     

Here are some cards I've cased. The first one's Nichole Heady's card. It's very clever in the way you use the back of the stamp to get the solid ink images on the card. I just wish I had New Leaf ink pad...

    

   

This card is a case of Maile Belles' card. I love this card so much <3 It's just such a neat card. Maile used a pink shimmer cardstock at the bottom, but I just sprayed it with my Calico Shine mist - VOILA! It's a shimmer cardstock!

 

I had no black buttons, so had to substitute with Raspberry Fizz ones.

   

   

 That's it for the day! I have to say that I'm a bit inspiration-less these days. I think I need a little break and hopefully when my new dies arrive along with the Tiny Tags sets, I'll have a bit more inspiration :)

 

I hope the city pulls through this setback as well. It sucks for those on the heavily affected areas because it's Christmas and it's meant to have been a great time to relax and chill after a long, difficult year.

 

Kia kaha ("stay strong") Christchurch.

  

SUPPLIES & TOOLS:

{Just a Little Something...}

STAMP: [PTI] Everyday Button Bits

INK: [SU!] Early Espresso, Calypso Coral

PAPER: [PTI] Vintage Cream, Summer Sunrise
OTHER: [PTI] Tin Types Impression Plate; [Studio Calico] Mister Huey's Color Mist (Calico Shine); buttons; [We R Memory Keepers] Crop-A-Dile Corner Chomper (aqua)

 

{Cupcake card}

STAMP: [PTI] Cupcake Collection

INK: [SU!] Early Espresso

PAPER: [PTI] Raspberry Fizz, Vintage Cream, Sweet Blush
OTHER : [PTI] Raspberry Fizz button, Shape Up: Cupcake die collection, Tin Types Impression Plate; [Celebrate!] Satin ribbon (pink)

 

{For You}

STAMP: [PTI] Year of Flowers: Carnation, Fillable Frames #2, Fillable Frames #5

INK: [SU!] Wild Wasabi, Old Olive, Daffodil Delight; [Memento] Tuxedo Black

PAPER: [PTI] Stamper's Select White, Ripe Avocado
OTHER : [PTI] Edgers #1 die, Fillable Frames #2 die; [unknown brand] ribbon

 

{Wishing You Happiness...}

STAMP: [PTI] Year of Flowers: Carnation

INK: [SU!] Early Espresso, Melon Mambo, Pretty in Pink

PAPER: [PTI] Stamper's Select White, Sweet Blush
OTHER : [PTI] Edgers #1 die, Raspberry Fizz buttons, button twine (jute); [Studio Calico] Mister Huey's Color Mist (Calico Shine)

Get Mistin'

Okay! I'm finally back. I know I promised some cards, but it's been a busy few days. Weekend got taken out by my last acute shifts in paediatrics and on Monday, I went car hunting!!!
  

I can proudly tell you now that I have bought my first car. A bit of a flash one for a first one, but I reasoned that it was long term investment. I ended up with a 2005 Mitsubishi Lancer. One friend said, "What a boy racer!" haha.

I have to remember to take a photo of it. I just keep forgetting to take one!

Anyway, I'm sure you didn't come to hear me talk about a car. It's more of a guy thing than a girl thing. You probably wanted to see some new cards hehe.
    

So, I got my second part of my Christmas gifts from Steph just recently. It had to stay at the postal service depot for almost a week, because this particular service didn't attempt re-delivery. So I had to wait and collect it myself. Steph kindly sent me 3 Mister Huey mists - Calico Shine, Dewey and Clover. I had also bought some more stamps from her so I'm trying to put them into action :)

   

  

I don't know how Dawn always makes her mists look perfect in her creations. I can't seem to spray it in the right places. Hence this card somewhat turned out messy. But it kind of adds an interesting touch to it.

 
The next card is a simple Love Birds card. I just had to use it, because those bird cages are so cute! My dies haven't arrived yet (I bought lots in my last order) so I had to cut up the cages by hand. It's a nice easy shape to cut out, so I do wonder if it was worth getting the die now...
     

 

    

 I misted this card with the Calico Shine mist too. I love how it just turns any cardstock into a shimmer cardstock! It's a little harder to tell in the photo, but trust me, it comes out with a really nice sheen to it afterwards! I have yet to figure out how to flick it properly to get the blobs ;)

Thanks for coming around. Sorry it took such a long time for an update!

  

SUPPLIES & TOOLS:

{Love Birds: Congratulations}

STAMP: [PTI] Love Birds

INK: [SU!] Real Red, Early Espresso; Versamark

PAPER: [PTI] Vintage Cream, Hawaiian Shores

OTHER: [Studio Calico] Mister Huey's Color Mists (Calico Shine), Foam tape

{Sending a smile across the miles}

STAMP: [PTI] Everyday Button Bits

INK: [SU!] Early Espresso

PAPER: [PTI] Vintage Cream, Spring Moss

OTHER: [Studio Calico] Mister Huey's Color Mists (Calico Shine, Clover, Dewey); [PTI] Buttons (Hawaiian Shores, Harvest Gold, Simply Chartreuse), Clouds die collection, In the Meadow (Snowdrift) die collection; foam tape