Spots ... and My First ...

... Christmas card this year.
Yes!  Seriously!
 For 2 years my good friend Ann and myself were responsible for running weekly challenges over at Bah Humbug Christmas Challenge blog so having a wee stock pile of Christmas cards ready and waiting to be written when December came around, wasn't a problem.  When we originally closed Humbug Hall, as it was affectionately known, in 2011, the intention was to continue joining in with other Christmas card challenges without the pressure of forward planning, deadlines etc ... but unfortunately that didn't actually happen.  As a result and to my acute embarrassment, many of my friends and family received shop bought cards last year.  Shocking I know!  I'd prefer not to be in a similar position this year so am making a start now ... which is already quite late compared to some people believe me!
Winter Wonderland is one of the challenge blogs where I used to enjoy playing so thought I'd start off there and see how it goes.  Their current challenge is 'Lots of Spots' and I just about have time to get my entry in before the deadline. 

Keeping things simple seemed like a good idea, so a DL card blank is covered with spotty snowflake paper ... a square of textured card mounted on foam pads is placed near the top onto which is glued a smaller square of embossed silver mirri card ... and to top it all off, a chipboard snowflake, which has been inked and glittered to within an inch of it's life, is adhered with silicon glue.  

There you have it ... no greeting ... no ribbons ... no fancy bells and whistles, just a snowflake and some pretty paper.
Am also going to submit my card for entry at 
Crafty Hazelnut's Christmas Challenge Extra - Anything Goes
Now I can pat myself on the back and head for bed knowing that, unlike last year, my Xmas card stash isn't non-existent.

Pretty Flowers

Decided to be ruthless the other day and began bundling up all the craft magazines I have accumulated over the years with a view to getting rid.   Surprise, surprise! ... I came across some pretty My Mind's Eye papers tucked inside a pile of mags hiding under the bed.  So I picked out a couple of sheets of my favourite design and made a few cards. 
 
The first is a Get Well card for my daughter's school friend who is recovering from recent surgery.  I cut a panel of paper and adhered it to a DL card blank.  The cute bear image reminds me of Boofle and was recycled from a 2012 calender which I cut out before adding some sparkle and the simple greeting is from the Personal Impressions stamp set - Double Sayings.  A few adhesive gems, and flowers add a touch of additional bling. 

A really simple but effective card idea is to take a square of design paper, mat it onto a slightly larger piece of coordinating card, (leaving a small border), and place it in the centre of a square card blank.  Then I added a stamped greeting from a set by Country Companions, (another magazine freebie found under the bed!), adhesive gems and a couple of pretty butterfly embellishments - job done!  Fingers crossed that this one qualifies for entry into DCC410 over at The House That Stamps Built but they're looking for Clean and Simple so this may be a wee bit too fussy.  No matter though 'cause I still like it and it does work for the Flutter By Wednesday Challenge - Anything Goes 'cause there are 2 butterflies.

Finally I took one of the offcuts, matted and layered it onto pink, then knotted some pretty satin ribbon around the panel before matting onto white linen and silver mirri card.  A 2nd panel was created from the last remaining scrap of pink card matted onto silver and white linen panels, then decorated with gorgeous wire flower embellishments. 
Following the A313 Sketch Challenge at The House That Stamps Built, both panels were then glued into place on an A5 white linen card blank before ovelapping them with a stamped greeting from the same freebie set as before.  Pink adhesive gems add a little bit of blingy balance.

Am off to explore blogland and see what everyone else has been up to this week.

Back To Blogland

YOWZA!
Where did 2012 go in such a hurry?
It's been such a long time since any crafty blogging has happened here ... so thank you to all the faithful followers who haven't jumped ship during my absence. 
It's fair to say that 2012 was a barren year for activity here at MCC,  although 'real life' was anything but ... being pretty hectic at times and frequently verging on chaotic!  My biggest problem was finding the time and enthusiasm to deal with it all effectively following my surgery. 

The intention for 2013 is to be more organised in all areas of my life and hopefully my mind will follow suit ... so fingers crossed I'll be able to do all the things I want to do, both crafty and otherwise and still have enough time and energy to share snippets of it all with everyone.

But  ... before that and to kick things off, allow me to share just a few of my 2012 cards that didn't get an airing. 
If you have any questions about techniques or supplies used, then leave a message and I'll do my best to answer your query.

Babies

(Kanban Kit)

(Stamping and Embossing)

(Stamping and Embossing)

(Stamping, Inking and Mirri Card)

(Inside View)

(Digital Stamping and Promarkers)

(Digital Image and Stamping)

(Inside View)

Birthdays

(Digital Image and Computer Sentiment)

(Inside View)

(Kanban Kit)

(Inside View)

(Kanban Kit with Butterfly Embellishment)

(Inside View)

(Kanban Kit and 3D Elements)

(Kanban Kit and Diamante Ribbon Buckle)

(Kanban Kit, Pearls and Glitter Paper)

(Inside View)

(Kanban Kit and Cupcake Wrapper Decoration)

(Inside View)

(Kanban Kit, Mirri Card and Ribbon)

(Inside View)

(Doodling and Stickles)

(Inside View)

(Easel Card and Diecutting)

(Recycling)

(inside View)

(Digital Stamp, Paper Roses and Ribbon)

Other Occasions

(Embossing and Stickles)

(Inside View)

(Kanban Kit with Black and Gold)

(Inside View)

Wedding Fever

I was recently asked to make a wedding card and was given free rein with both design and colours.  GULP!  Sometimes having this much freedom can be more difficult than when customers are specific about what they want, but I decided to try a few ideas and let her choose a favourite.
Which one would you choose? 
If your selection matches the actual card chosen then your name will go into a draw for a wee crafty prize. 
Deadline midnight GMT Sunday 22nd July.
Click the photos for close-up views.

Design 1
A linen effect white card base decorated with blue and white diecut hearts layered onto diecut blue and silver mirri card, embellished with a simple bow and greeting.

Inside shows diecut panels and a simple stamped message.
 
Design 2
I created an off centre gatefold from A4 white linen card, adding a panel of textured burgundy card and a matching Kanban wedding topper.  A simple bow and stamped greeting are the only decoration. 

The slim panel shows white padded hearts and satin ribbon matted onto layers of white and burgundy card.

Inside, a panel of white linen card has been corner punched and decorated with diamante gems before being matted onto burgundy card and stamped with a greeting.
I'd like to submit this card as my first entry to
Sparkles Monthly Challenges - 34 Weddings
 
Design 3
I opened an image from my flowers folder in PSP (PaintShop Pro), and typed a greeting before printing onto white linen cardstock, which gives a look almost like canvas. Both elements were then matted onto silver mirri. 

White organza ribbon was wrapped around the fold on a landscape base card and tied in a bow with pearl gems added for decoration.

The inside message was stamped onto white linen card before being matted onto silver textured card and placed inside.
I'm hoping this card is eligible for entry into
Southern Girls Challenge 48 - Pearls
Sparkles Monthly Challenges - 34 Weddings (2nd entry)

Design 4
I created an easel card base from cream cardstock and opened another beautiful rose image in PSP, adding a greeting onto the image before printing this time.

The easel card panels were then decorated with pretty paper from Papermania Confetti pack, matted onto black and gold mirri and the main image was then adhered to the front panel with foam pads.

Wide cream organza ribbon was wrapped around the back and tied in a knot and a matching bow was added to the image panel. 

The stopper was created using more layered panels of paper and card adhered to the base with foam pads before being decorated with paper flowers, pink ribbon bows and pretty iridescent fabric butterflies.
A greeting was stamped and embossed with gold powder, then diecut and matted onto black and gold card.

A matching box completes the ensemble as this card is way too bulky for an envelope.
I'm entering this card into
The Cupboard Trilogy - Colour Palette Challenge
The Cupcake Craftroom - July: Layers
Sparkles Monthly Challenges - 34 Weddings (3rd entry)

PLEASE REMEMBER...
Don't forget to leave a comment with your favourite from the selection and you may be lucky enough to win a prize.

Flaming June? ...

Errrrmmm ... I don't think so!
Any hint of flames would be quickly extinguished in the abysmal weather we've had recently.
However on a more positive note ...
It was my son's birthday yesterday and obviously cards were needed so what better excuse could there be to give my crafty stash a long overdue airing?

As he is, (and always has been), a dedicated Nintendo fan, the only difficulty was in deciding which character to use.  After much deliberation, I plumped for Mario and Yoshi simply because they're in my own personal list of favourites. 
An A5 card blank was covered with star paper and Yoshi was printed a couple of times so I could decoupage him for a 3D effect, (although it isn't showing very clearly in the photos).  Once dry this was matted onto gold mirri and placed on the front panel with foam pads.  The sentiment was something that simply popped into my head while I was pootling,  so I quickly printed it, used coloured chalk to kind've match the background paper and cut it out with an oval nestie before matting onto a gold mirri scalloped oval.

Inside I used another piece of the star paper and the Teddy-Bo freebie stamp from this month's Simply Cards and Papercraft provided the perfect greeting.

One down ... one to go!
Sticking 2 DL size cards together gave me a tri-panel card, the front of which was decorated with fabulous blue glittery paper - a perfect background for Mario to fly through.  I cut some silver stars with the cuttlebug and placed an embossed panel across the bottom instead of a stamped greeting.

Red card was scored and embossed top and bottom and stars were cut with nesties for a bit of decoration on the middle section.

Another silly sentiment was matted onto a slightly larger piece of blue glittery paper and the inside was done in a jiffy!  

Cards completed and I'm pleased to say he was delighted with them.