Award

I received this award from Maureen at http://glitzzyblognews.blogspot.com/

Well hopefully I have done this right - so now going to try and pass it on to others, and have nominated the following to receive the award.

http://pixiehousedesigns-craftypixie.blogspot.com/

http://dawnywol.blogspot.com/

http://sassstudio.blogspot.com/

Whoopeeedoo!

Baby Connie has put on so much weight this week she has got past her birth weight! Yippee! Last week she weighed 7lb 4 oz today she weighs 8lb 1 oz.

I am so happy - she looks gorgeous, and so well! Just had to share them with you all. (Don't forget you can click on the photos to make them bigger)

When you compare her to these two photos you can see how she has improved - the one with her Dad taken just after she was born, and the one with her mum taken I think when she came out of hospital the second time. Her poor little face was so bruised from a fast delivery.

Doll's Blankie & Card

Some time ago, when we went to choose wool for newest grandchild's "Blankie", her older sister wouldn't leave the wool shop, until I had bought some pink wool that she wanted to knit with! Yes an ambitious two-year old!

As you know I don't do knitting or crochet, but at last I have got round to making something with the wool - a little "Blankie" for her baby doll, in the same pattern as her own blankie and that of baby Connie.

She starts Nursery School tomorrow, so I made her a special card and popped the Blankie in with it, and nipped round to see her today with it.

She had just come back from the shops with her new school bag. She has also had her hair cut today in a big girl's style. Here she is with her new Doll's Blankie.

Daisy & Dandelion again

A quick card for my GodDaughter using Daisy & Dandelion goodies, from a Docrafts Goodybag. Large pink oval from the picnic papers, using nestabilities large oval, under a white swiss dots cuttlebugged card oval with transparent image mounted on it. Apart from the chocolate drop card candy and the tie-dyed gipsy flora doodle, all othe elements from the Daisy and Dandelion range.

Competition Card

As many of you know, the past few days have been a bit worrying as my new grandaughter was rushed into hospital at only 5 days old, with high levels of jaundice and dehydration, severe weight loss and not feeding. Thankfully after five days in SCBU she has come home today and fingers cross she is on the road to full recovery.

I wasn't going to enter the JS Forum competition, as I had absolutely no inspiration, but suddenly at literally the 11th hour an idea popped into my head, based on an idea I saw on C&C tv, and I tried my hand at printing on acetate. So it was a case of nothing ventured, nothing gained, and as it was for the competition, if my idea didn't work it would't matter. Thankfully my son had returned my guillotine a few days earlier, otherwise I wouldn't have been able to make it at all!

Card is pale yellow pearlescent with a third folded over on left hand side. Backing papers from Messy Rabbit CD as is the Rabbit image.

I created an egg in Publisher using shadow filling in a square, then drawing an oval on top of that, and finally adding the wording. I used the daffodil edge of the blue backing paper to create a "band" around the egg and added some gold ribbon. finished off with some of my favourite cardy candy, which helped prevent the acetate from flopping.

Of course I didn't win, but didn't expect to, but it is the joining in that is the important thing I must admit the card looked better in real life than in the photos. It was very difficult to get a good image. I think Richard did a great job with his photo (the second one shown above) that went on the forum - far better than the ones I did.

However, the main object was to try something I hadn't done - so now I can try the technique again and improve on it.

The next thing I want to try is to print on vellum and emboss the whole image - I have printed writing on vellum and it has worked ok - am wondering what a hole image would look like embossed - watch this space - lol!

Easter Cards

Just a few Easter cards made today. As usual fairly simple.

First three for the granddaughters, using Joanna Sheen Messy Rabbit cd.

The first image is not really an Easter one, but with a peel-off on red paper placed over a red heart and few words added - I think it will be just right for the new baby.

These two are virtually identical - just wording and a Bee for Bea, and a Daisy for Ellie

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Next three are from Joanna Sheen's Heavenly Cards cd and are for the Adults in the family. I have touched up flowers on all the cards with sakura pens and a koi brush.

Added the Easter Wishes sentiment on this image

These two virtually identical - just mounted on different coloured backing papers, and different coloured card candy buttons added.

Cards for Constance

Baby Constance came home from hospital today, and we got to go and see her and deliver some cards.

I was expecting to have another three weeks, to play and decide what images etc I wanted to use and plan for either a boy or girl baby card. This of course went out of the window with her early arrival! Of course my mind went a complete blank faced with making a card quickly! I decided to use Joanna Sheen's Baby Love cd - oh decisions, decisions! and having chosen the images what was I going to do with them!

Anyway this is what I came up with - just simple cards - as I only do simple! I chose the version of the image with the little girl and balloon, without the "It's a girl" sentiment, and copied it into Publisher and added my own text, to match the edging around the topper. I printed an extra copy of the topper and decoupaged the balloon and part of the little girl. I then mounted this on silver mirri and edged the topper with a lilac peel off. I also printed off the matching backing paper, and put this on left-hand side of the lilac pearlescent card (I forget what it is called but it was from Joanna, before she changed to stocking Stardream.)

I had some lace ribbon in my stash left over from cake decorating days, and decided to add that to the mounted topper, using 3mm redliner dst. I made a small bow for the corner, and added flora doodles at the bottom. The printed image looked a bit pale, so with a koi brush and some pink sakura stardust, I highlighted the balloon and parts of the dress.

Two pictures of the card: the first so that you can read words on topper, and second for more realistic colour of the pearlescent card!

For the insert I used some printable vellum (it was fingers crossed as I have a couple of packets of vellum from Joanna, with nothing written on them, so was hoping I had selected right pack!) I thought I would try embossing the words - so with pot of clear embossing powder in hand, I printed the insert on a fairly high ink setting (can't remember, if it was normal or best) and as soon as it came out of the printer, I threw the powder all over it! Then heat set it from underneath - phew it worked. I then added a "Forever Friends" transparent peel-off to the other side.

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I also wanted to make a card for Constance's big sister. This was an easy image to chose, as it reminds me of Bea herself.

Image and words were mounted on pink mirri and then placed on a pale blue pearlescent card. I had some transparent "Forever Friends" peel-off images, that I had bought in readiness for using for new arrival, so I decorated card with these and added a pink floradoodle, as I know Bea loves these.

insert for Bea's card

Constance May

I am a grandmother again today.
Introducing Constance May, born 11.53 a.m. weighing 7lb 12oz,
arriving in this world three weeks early.

Big sister Beatrice giving her a cuddle.

Daddy and his girls

(Big sister Bea looks so grown up in this photo)

Daisy and Dandelion

A slight departure from the norm for me. I was playing with my new DoCrafts Daisy and Dandelion stamps. I started by embossing them, then decided to do one with Vintage Sepia Versamark. I rather liked the effect, so I then masked the image and using my Lavinia Stamps leaf stamp and the Woodlands Adirondack ink pad, I added the leaves. (I rather like this pad, as the colours in it range from green to brown.) Daisy was then painted using a mixture of one of my brown H2Os and Lyra White Crayon, to get the effect I wanted. (Never let it be said that I don't experiment!)

The image was then mounted on maroon cardstock and then on some striped backing paper from the Daisy and Dandelion Picnic Patch pad. I mounted all of this on the co-ordinating daisy paper from the same pad, using another piece of the striped paper to go across the card, with some brown ribbon from my Docrafts Forever Friends kit! Topped off with card candy in a chocolate colour.

I also stamped the little envelope on a left-over piece of the striped paper, and attached that to Daisy's paw with foam pads. Finally I stamped the sentiment and the swirls (all from Daisy and Dandelion) in Vintage Sepia.

(Don't know why the edge of the striped paper on the left-hand side looks as though it has come adrift from the card - it hasn't - just a fluke shadow I think!)