Farewell Divas by Design!

A bit of a delayed post from me today... And a bit of a sad one, too! Rebekah, the owner of Divas by Design, decided to close the challenge blog... And this week is our last challenge on the blog! :o( Thank you Rebekah for giving me the fab opportunity to work with you and the great Girls, I enjoyed every moment of it!!! 

The last challenge is an easy one - Anything Goes. And the prize is a surprise! :o) You have until January 14th to join the fun, so hopefully you'll share your creations! 

My last make for the challenge blog was this birthday card... A very strict order in terms of the colours and details from the person who commissioned it... To be perfectly honest, it's not too much to my liking (the colour combo I mean), but one has to listen to what the customers want, right? :o)

Let me know what you think!

I will most probably not be back here before Christmas, hence I would like to take the opportunity and wish you all a fantastic Christmas and a happy (and very prosperous!) New Year 2015! I am certainly looking forward to the new year - this one has not been my best one for sure! So here's to hoping! :o)

M.

Another Christmassy Bear - in red...

Hello Everyone,

I can't believe it's been almost a month since my last post! A lot was happening - both good and bad - and I really had no time to post. I did craft a little, not as much as I would like to taking into consideration the Christmas season, but I did finish a few cards here and there... All in all - here's to hoping that the beginning of 2015 will be more crafty and blog-related! I feel quite sad that I had to reject so many commission requests this year, but on the other hand - I feel blessed & delighted that there were many people who wanted to order cards from me! :o) Once again (and I guess I will never learn that lesson!), I will need to try making more Christmas cards throughout the year, to have enough towards the end of the year! 

Today I am sharing another of my LOTV bear cards (sorry, that stamp has unfortunately recently retired!) - I just love this bear, and I think you will see plenty of cards with him in the future (I *might* have also purchased another stamp featuring the bear recently, wink wink)! The card was made for the DT challenge over at Divas - we want to see red this week! Hope you will join us! :o)

I am entering the card into the following challenges:

Inky Chicks - Winter Wonderland

Passion for ProMarkers - Mega Christmas Challenge (Diecut-Free-Glitter)

A Gem of a challenge - Anything Christmas
Runway Inspired Challenge - Balmain

I will be back before Christmas (I hope!), but just in case - I already want to take this opportunity and wish you a Merry Christmas and a fantastic New Year! 

M.

Photo inspiration

Hello Everyone,

Eeeek! Where is this time going, and why is it rushing so...?! ;o) I cannot believe it's almost mid-November, and my Christmas projects are still in VERY early stages! As usual, it appears that I am going to have lots of lastminute.com projects made for family and friends... Uh oh... I really need to have more discipline next year (and yes, I say it every December or so, LOL)! The good news is, however, that at least I have quite a few Christmas pressies sorted, and not many more to go, yippee! 

Today's card is a DT project, and this week we were asked to use the below photo as our inspiration. And boy did that picture make me feel all Christmassy! 

I took the golds, the reds, the green branches and the shimmer/lights out of the picture, and - hey presto - the below card got created! I am quite happy with the result. I love that LOTV angel image, pity that it appears to have retired already!

I am entering the card into the following challenges:

LOTV - Merry Christmas 

Love to Create - Anything goes

QKR - Let's talk Christmas

MAWTT - Sparkle and/or shine

Hope you join us over at Divas and share your creations inspired by this gorgeous photo. Our sponsor is the fabulous Dies to Die for, so it's certainly worth the try!

Hugs and stay warm (it's freezing in Dublin!),

M.

Christmas cards? Cute and sparkly, of course!

Ugh, my most dreaded time of the year has come... And no, I don' t even mean winter... I just mean the time when it's dark when I leave to work, and dark when I come back home. I could even live with the almost-depressive feeling of that, and the fact that whenever I arrive home, it feels like it's the middle of the night & I should be heading straight to bed. But what I really dislike is... I cannot take nice photos of my crafty creations in proper daylight!!! I can get away with it during the weekends, but week days are unfortunately a no-go. So apologies in advance - there might be some gloomy yellowish photos appearing over the next few weeks :o( Any good advice on the best ways to take photos in the "middle of the night"? Everything will be hugely appreciated! I am sure my crafty friends will have some good tips for me! :o)

Now, enough moaning, let's get down to business! 

I have been making quite a few cards to order over the last few days (busy is tiring, but it's soooo good & nice to know that people actually want to order cards from me, YAY!), and slowly but surely Christmas creations are starting to peek out from my craft room also. I will hopefully be sharing most of them over the next few weeks (some are forbidden until after Christmas, sorry!), so stay tuned! 

Today we have a sparkly cutesy one - my favourite combo! I made a few similar ones last year also, and they were a huge success! I guess nobody could simply not like this cuddly little guy, right? Don't you just want to give him a big squeeze? (and by the way, rob some of those gifts, LOL) I am just after noticing that this stamp has already retired, AND is out of stock - so if you like it and would like one, I guess you better hurry up and ask around amongst your crafty circles - someone might have one to give away for adoption, hopefully! 

This is another one of those "simple but pretty" creations, as I call them... Sometimes less is more :o)

I am entering this cute and sparkly creation into the following challenges:

MAWTT - Sparkle and/or shine

LOTV - Merry Christmas

Inky Impressions - Creative Corners

I Love Promarkers - Cute Christmas

Passion for Promarkers - Inspired by the Beatles (Christmas Time is Here Again)

QKR Stampede - 3 of a kind 

The weekend is almost here - have a good one!

M.

Wedding wishes

Hi Everyone,

Hope you're all keeping well. Are you still enjoying an unbelievably warm October? I am! And I hope it will last till spring! ;o)

Today I have a simple card to share with you (although it is a bit time consuming with all this die-cutting and poking little pieces of paper out of the die-cut or the die itself), but I believe that when you use the Anja Large Oval die by Marianne Design, there isn't much that needs to be added to make the card really different and beautiful. And the person who commissioned that card from me agrees 100%! :o) It's always so nice to see how your creations can make others happy!

The colour scheme was made to request, and I added a few flowers, pearls and some Wink Of Stella (of course!) for a little bit of bling. The leaves were cut with a Martha Stewart punch.

The card is also my DT entry for this week's Divas by Design challenge - a nice and simple Anything Goes. I am sure you'll have something to submit, right? Go ahead so, join us, and share your creation(s)!

And here's the card:

Simple, but looks well, doesn't it? 

Have a great (and still warm!) week,

M.

Texture

Hello Everyone,

This week's post is a little bit late, but unfortunately I have still been quite unwell over the last few days, and I had to take a break from a few routine activities. 

Today's project has been created for the Texture challenge over at Divas by Design. Our sponsor is Magnolalicious, and so most of the Design Team have used Magnolia stamps. 

I decided to take the opportunity and make a Christmas card, seeing that Christmas is fast approaching (way too fast!), and I am not ready for it at all yet, at least card-wise :o) Well, at least now I have one extra card to mail! 

The card is rather simple and flat enough for posting. With a bit of bling/glitter, of course! I also used the Mama Elephant Femme Frames on it - love these! The stamp with the greeting is my recent second-hand purchase - the person who sold it to me didn't keep the original packaging, so I am not sure what set the stamp is from, however I have to say - I think it's really beautiful, and I will surely use it on a few more cards this year, be that on the front or inside.  

I am entering the card into the following challenges:

I Love Promarkers - Snowflakes

Inky Chicks - Christmas

Tilda's Town - Use your Christmas stash

How are you getting on with Christmas cards? All ready, or will you be making a lot of last minute cards, like I usually do? ;o)

M.

Welcome wee little one!

Hello Everyone,

It has been a little bit quiet here, apologies - I have been a bit sick, and also my mojo decided to abandon me for a while again! Let's hope it's back now cause I have a good few orders to go through in the next few days! :o)

We have been blessed with a gorgeous and mostly sunny September in Ireland, and I have to say - October is looking quite good also... so far! It's colder and darker, of course, but at least there's still loads of sunshine to enjoy! I wouldn't mind if it stayed like this until spring ;o)

If there's any type of cards that I enjoy making most, it's baby cards. Baby girl cards are even better - I just LOVE to use pinks, purples, glitter and cutesy images! And this is what I am going to share with you today, yay! 

If you have been following my blog for a while, you probably know my recent obsession with Mama Elephant dies & images, and I am "afraid" this card will showcase some of my recent purchases again. Truth be told, I am delighted that I am actually using these so much - it only proves to me that it was worth it!

I hope you like this cute little card as much as I do. It's going to a Polish friend of mine who recently had a lovely Baby Daughter - hence the Polish "Gratulacje" (= congratulations). 

A card with no Wink of Stella or some other form of bling/glitter

is not really a card, eh? ;o)

I am entering the card into the following challenges:
Mama Elephant - Anything Goes
Passion for ProMarkers - Favourite colour combo (pinks and purples!)
Love to Create - 2 dies and sparkle (I used the femme frames & the dies coordinating with the stamp set by Mama Elephant)
Moving Along with the times - Dog-gone-it
A Gem of a Challenge - Create a scene

Have a fabulous weekend!

M.

Trick or Treat...?

Hello Everyone, 

I can't wait to share today's project with you, I am so excited, so I'll jump right to it, no small talk, LOL! 

The Trick or Trick box is a project for the Divas by Design Challenge blog, of which - as you know -  I am a Design Team Member. This week we're sponsored by the fab Hobbycutz, and the theme is... SPOOKY CREATIONS.

When I saw this lovely cutting file on sale over at My Scrap Chick, I just knew I had to give it a go! Now, not exactly sure that mine is as cute as the one on their website, but nevertheless I am happy with my Mr. Hungry Pumpkin ;o) There's a bit of shading added by me here and there, I used my ProMarkers for this purpose. And the googly eyes - well, I just couldn't resist! 

I don't go Trick or Treating myself, but I will happily have some sweets presented in Mr Pumpkin on the table during the Halloween period. That is... when I have sweets to present, cause the ones in the photos are... ahem... gone! Spooky or what?! ;o)

I just love the teeth on the front of the box - they add so much dimension!

He does look spooky when it gets darker, eh?!

Just look at the shadow created by those big teeth!

I am entering the little guy into the following challenges:

Inky Impressions - Anything but a card

Inky Chicks - Die Cuts Only

QKR Stampede - Pumpkins

Hope you enjoy my little Halloween box!

M.

Inspired by a... shoe!

Hello Everyone,

Welcome in the FALL! I cannot believe it's autumn already... We really, truly are approaching the "C" season, eh!? I guess I will need to start thinking about gifts!

In the meantime, and before my poor account starts feeling a bit upset, here's something fashionable yet cheap ;-) A card inspired by a Manolo Blahnik!

Truth be told, before the Sex and the City era, I had no idea who or what Manolo Blahnik were...! My feet are still clueless, however, I now own a piece of a Blahnik in my craftroom... Kind of... :-)

Here's what I came up with, I hope you like it! 

My favourite feature is the gold embossing - it looks really beautiful in person! The colouring was done using some of my Tesco's Finest watercolours, and here and there they were supported by ProMarkers touch ups. The lovely sentiment is from Mama Elephant (yes, this love affair is still on!), and the flowers - unfortunately I don't have the packaging anymore, hence the stamp is "from my stash". 

I am entering the shoe... I mean the card... into the following challenges:

Runway Inspired - Manolo Blahnik

Passion For Promarkers - Autumn Colours

QKR -  Fall Colours

Inky Impressions - Anything Goes

Have a great second half of the week!

M.

Happy Anniversary!

Hello Everyone,

Time to share my recent "little" project - a wedding anniversary present for myself and my hubby...made by me! I love having wedding-related keepsakes in our house - I just wish I could do it all over again! - and so I thought that using a bit of my craftiness to add to our small collection would only be appropriate :o)

The project originated during a class I took a while ago with the amazing Finnabair (aka Ania Dabrowska), however I have tweaked it here and there recently, before putting it in the frame. It's my first big mixed-media project and I am really in love with it. If I continue with the mixed media journey, surely I will look back at this project and think "Did I really think THAT was good!?"... I have that with my first cards now... However, whatever way my skills in this area will go - this project will always be close to my heart because of its theme.

The layout is framed in a rather huge frame we got in Ikea (yup, joint effort here!), and since it's hung in the hallway - it greets all the guests & invites them to our home. I have to say (a bit self-lovingly) that I love the picture I used- it's generic enough that anyone could imagine themselves in it, and so in theory it could even be gifted to anyone (not that I am planning to do so, LOL). 

I was silly enough not to have taken any pictures before I framed the layout, and so it wasn't too easy to take pictures through the glass... And I wanted to share a bit of the details... Hope you don't mind!

I am entering my project into the following challenges:

I love ProMarkers - feeling distressed

Inky Impressions - primary colours

Inky Chicks - Anything goes

Passion for ProMarkers - Make it digital (the photo)

Love to Create - Add some lines

Scrapki Wyzwaniowo - Imagine

Moving Along With the Times - It's texture time

Hope you like it! 

Would you be happy to receive a gift like that as a wedding anniversary gift?

Hugs,

M.

P.S. You can see this project and many more fabulous ideas over at Divas by Design this week. The theme this time is "Anything but a card" and there is plenty of great ideas to choose from! We also have some lovely prizes, as usual! Join us and show us what you have created!

It feels so summery!!!

Hi Everyone,

I know, I know - the crafty world slowly starts admitting that "it's beginning to look at lot like Christmas", but for a short while I am still trying to keep out of that craze... I probably won't last long (LOL), but for now - I'm trying to stay strong! And the lovely, sunny and almost summery weather in Ireland is really helping! Fair enough, the mornings might already be gloomy and cold, but boy are the afternoons and evenings still lovely! 

The summery mood made me create the below card (inspired by a card I made a good while ago - see here) - will come handy next year for Mother's Day. I know what you're thinking - I refuse to make Christmas cards 3 months before Christmas (crikey, is it really only 3 months?!), but I make Mother's Days cards already!? Well, welcome to my mad world ;o) Sometimes you just make what your imagination tells you, and that's it!  And this time my imagination told me to put a Mother's Day sentiment on this card, eek!

So, without further ado - here's the card, all ready for somebody's lucky Mum somewhere out there in the world! :o)

I am entering the card into the following challenges:

Moving Along With the Times - Add texture

Inky Impressions - ABCs [my interpretation being: use alphas]

A Gem of a Challenge - It's summer time

Oh, and before I go, I also wanted to thank the owners of the Inky Impressions challenge blog for offering me a DT spot on their team - unfortunately, due to personal circumstances I had to decline the offer, but I hope one day I will be reconsidered for the "job".

Have a lovely summery weekend (here's to hoping!),

M.

Cup of tea, anyone?

Hi Everyone,

Today I'm back with a DT project for Divas by Design - this week it's all about tags! You can either create a tag, or incorporate it into your project/card. Simples, right? Well... maybe not so much for a person like me, who doesn't really have a lot to do with tags... But, if I found a solution to this "problem", I am sure all of you can! :o)

A work colleague recently asked me to make a card for her friend who collects antiques and teacups (mostly the ones with the blue motifs... it has a name... I forgot what it is :( ). She wanted the card to be rather simple, without too many mad and loud colours. 

I initially thought of making the card in the shape of a teacup, but then came up with another idea... The card ended up with a teacup with the teabag still in it (this is my "tag" bit). The fun element of it - you can actually remove the teabag from the cup, and this will reveal a secret Happy Birthday message! Honestly, the card is very very simple, but the recipient loved it - and that's the whole point, right? :o)

The card when handed to the recipient...

 Surprise! There's a message on the teabag! :o)

I am entering the card into the following challenges:

Inky Chicks - Stitching

Moving Along with the Times - A stitch in time

I hope you like my idea!

Have a great day, and don't forget to play with us over at Divas!

Hugs,
M.