first time using promarkers and Caardvaark challenge

And it shows! I didn't have the complementary colours - only one in each colour group but I like the way they colour, although did have some bleed with the pens on the paper. The image is a digi one, based on a photo of my dd - since she was born, she has been my golden haired child and that explains the rather violent yellow hair - Gold is the only yellow I have at present - hurry on Santa!!! Her dress is Berry Red and Ruby, shoes, Olive green and her face is blush, satin and pastel pink.
Anyhow, I resisted my urge to bin the lot and cut and mounted her with nestabilities labels 1 and inked the edges with old paper and peeled paint Tim Holtz distress inks.
The frame is a folded sheet of 12 by 12 secured with brads, the edges of the frame are drawn together and held with a length of white satin ribbon. Sentiment and snowflake from Papermania elements range. This weeks Caardvaark challenge is to use a digi image.

Paperplay challenge - read all about it.

So I've put all I need to do on the long finger so that I could try this week's paperplay challenge. The theme was "read all about it" - immediately I thought of the 1897 Sun editorial - Indeed Virginia, there is a Santa Claus. I wanted a modern version and found this wordle on the very article, so I printed it off twice and layered one part over the other with foam pads. As I was making this my dd1 broke her necklace and so I snaffled the beads and glued them along the edge of the layered panel- handcut holly and the flower and label have been on the kitchen counter for a month at least

Started my Christmas cards .... finally

For a cardmaker I really hate making cards for events! New Year cards - never, Easter - I really don't do them - I love real live rabbits but cutey, flopsy ones leave me cold - Halloween? Nah. Christmas, now those I do under sufferance - cos it's expected of me and I just can't get away with bought cards. In fact my family would be more insulted with a bought card than no card at all.
This year I'm doing cards for the kids, personalised with their name and inside a letter from Santa - I've got the parents to dish the dirt, so they'll believe that Santa is indeed omnipotent!
Anyhow I made a start on the cards ..... digi designed with a second or third layer decoupaged on top and then the bits you can't really see - glitter, stickles and glossy accents, then a few bits and bobs to finish.
all that said - I do love making cards but I like quirky - I think we should have happy haircut cards, your dog is seven card - stuff that's fun to do - plumber arrived on time congrats card, anything that is creative rather than necessary.

Creative Christmas CD and free downloads

Yet again it has been a while since I blogged - been busy with the Crazy Crafts blog plus I have been doing a few free demos for the ICA's in the area and the active retirement groups, when you only get a few hours to yourself a week it means that you have to let other things slide (like this blog) but I have put together a Creative Christmas CD - crammed with easy peasy printable Christmas cards, all in pdf form - just press open and print! All with decoupage layers and free printable elements available at www.maryandbendy.blogspot.com
..... watch here for more free printables ..... the cd has 70 printable cards, 30 backing papers and more ... here's a peek at them ...
if you want one - send me a mail - for the next 5 days they are just €10

OK I'll post the pics when I find them...
but in the meantime I made this today

Amazin blog Candy from Jak

Jak, designer of all those "flippin things" has one flippin mad and is giving away an amazing blog candy
look here and good luck!
and it's Sharon's birthday and so she has some fab candy too here I have been lusting after some pro markers so fingers crossed!

anniversary card

A last minute card as usual - so it's quite simple. A lot of Spellbinders dies - I seem to be using them a lot lately, labels nine and locket, some cuttlebug embossing and prima hydrangeas, club green ribbon and a few diamantes. Can't believe it has been a year since their wedding, dd2 will be one very soon - I missed the craftzone weekend last year as it clashed with the wedding but I have my car packed ready to head off to Athlone in the morning - yipeeee! It is crammed with stash, I couldn't decide what to bring - I must remember to pack a change of clothes!
So here's to a weekend of crafting yumminess and shopping delight.

Paperplay - tag it! and papertake - fake it! challenge

I combined 2 challenges for this card - the paperplay use a tag challenge and the papertake fake it challenge (faux stitches and paper button).
The overall design looks a bit wonky but truth be told, I'm too busy to redo it. The other baby card is slightly more successful I think.
Anyhow's it all Pay per box card from different eras, cuttlebug embossing, prima hydrangeas and odds n ends from my charm box - the feet I made a long time ago from sculpey, they are really cute and a great any use baby embellishment.

cupcake socks

These are my favourite ever gift for a mum to be. The original idea came from the ultra talented Lauren Meader - I just expanded on the number of "buns" and used 2 different sizes of sock.
Each bun is made up one pair of baby socks - size 0-2.5 for the topping and one single ladies sock size 4-7 for the bun base. So my finished box has 6 pairs of baby socks and 3 pairs of socks for mum.
They were pretty tricky to get a picture of and I think they look much cuter in real life.
Lauren has a brilliant video showing how to make the socks - you can find it here Her cupcakes look really full compared to mine but I think that is because she uses different sizes of sock...

no patterned paper

This week's paperplay challenge - set by Kate, is to make a project using no patterned paper. Here's my take on it - I've been meaning to try these bowls for a long time and finally (with a bit of help, made enough strips to construct a soup bowl sized dish and mini flower pot).
Can you tell they are made from the Sunday Times magazine? A real recycling recession busting craft project and while you can't eat your dinner out of them, they will withstand a damp cloth and so I use mine for MM's or peanuts. Basically it is folded sheets of magazine paper with the ends glued down then you stick all the strips together with sellotape and roll into a "snail". Tape the ends down and carefully lift the edges up, bringing up the middle just as if you where making a clay pot. I painted them with black acrylic paint and then sealed with 2 coats of PVA and water glaze.
The flower is a Spellbinders die with swiss dot embossing and brad centre stuck to an inked kebab stick . Chipboard is three bugs and charm from E-bay.
And I've finally nailed by Nestabilities class for Athlone - I have far too many projects for the time frame but they'll be there for inspiration.

I am making stuff really,

Just it all seems to be work in progress or is for my GBCE class - I'm revising my ideas every week, but have to make a decision this weekend as to what I am doing. At present have enough for a 7 hour class! So have to whittle it down to a manageable 3 projects - all I'll say is it's Christmas Time and there are no cards...
Here's a baby rattle I made using only Spellbinder dies - nestabilities for the base and the bottom, pendant die for the the rattle (and there's a little shaker made from 2 small circles of card edged with foam tape and filled with rice in the middle, so it really rattles!)
I also decorated bth sides of the card to make it more like a real rattle, I've seen quite a few cards recently that are decorated inside and on the reverse and while it's a lot of work, I think the results can be stunning - I barely have time to finish a front and I confess I hate putting inserts in cards, but I do try and make the effort and usually add a verse or quote as well.
I did my GBCE profile as well here, near the bottom with the dorky photo and I had intended to add an "odd fact" about myself but forgot - so, here it is - I had my tongue pierced 16 years ago by a guy who had practiced on pig skin and jaffa oranges...