Phoenix Inspirations

Today is a new round of challenges at  52 {Christmas} Card Throwdown  and the month's challenges have been chosen by Mynnette. This is also the first week that our new dt members get to strut their stuff so please do pop over and make them feel welcome. Here's this week's sketch and here is my card I made this card using a tutorial I found  HERE  on fellow dt member Patty's blog. I inked a snowflake embossing folder with Versamark ink before adding my card stock and running it through my Cuttlebug. I then added some Holographic EP and heated (?) it with my heat gun. My sentiment is from the set Wondrous Gift and I added a couple of foil snowflakes to finish it off. Well that's it - I'm not here really as I'm away visiting family but I will see you soon - Jacqueline xx

I have a card for you today where I have used a technique called Velveteen Stamping - take a look To find out how to do this please hop on over to the  Technique Tuesday Blog  and Mynnette will show you. It's also my inspiration for this week's Mid-week Motivation over on the  Make My Monday  blog. Here is a close up of my stamping Sorry - the focus is a bit off on this pic but can you see - I've used the tree from Wondrous Gift underneath my stamped flowers - they are from the Simply Said set and are stamped in Concord Crush and Tangerine Tango ink. I'm hoping to settle down in front of the telly now and watch Lewis - bye for now - Jacqueline xx

It's  52CCT  time again and this week Mynnette has come up with a fabulous colour combination for us - take a look Here are my cards The first one is my lovely scribble tree from Wondrous Gift and it has been heat embossed with silver embossing powder. I then embellished it with green flat backed gems. It's been cut out and raised up on 3D foam pads and attached to white card stock which has been dry embossed with a snowflakes embossing folder. I then layered it on to purple card stock. My second card is stamped with a Clarity stamp which has again been heat embossed with silver embossing powder. The white background has been stamped with some snowflakes from the Snow Flurries set and purple flat backed gems have been added to the centres. A large silver snowflake has been added to the middle of the O. This has all been layered up on to green card stock. Please pop over to say hello to  Mynnette  my partner in crime and do hop over to take a...

It's sketch week at  52CCT  and it's also my month to choose the challenges - here is the sketch I designed especially for you all and here is the first of my cards This is paper punched pine fronds with paper punched poinsettias (Boho Blossoms) made into a Christmas wreath. Here is my second card - it uses a retired stamp set called Snow Flurries and the sentiment from Wondrous Gift. Now this one is special - not because it's for the  52CCT  challenge blog but because it is also for this month's   Technique Tuesday link Party challenge  -a stamped punch window - over on my good friend  Mynnette's  blog Mynnette  is also my partner on 52CCT so please do pop over and take a look at her Christmas cards too. I shall leave you with a close up of my stamped punch window and I hope I shall be popping around to your blogs soon to take a look at your Christmas cards - Jacqueline xx

Good morning - it's  52 {Christmas} Card Throwdown  time again and this week it's a theme and the theme is ANGELS Take a look at my dt cards Card no.1 is an A6 landscape card - my angel is stamped onto cream card stock, embossed with gold powder and cut out and raised up on 3D foam pads before placing in the Real Red Stampin' Up card stock. The other angel was inked with Versamark and a brayer was rolled over the stamp. I then transferred it to the card stock and embossed it as normal. The sentiment is from Wondrous Gift. I used the same angel stamp and card stock for my second card but this time I did not heat emboss my image. Instead I glittered her wings and trumpet. Again I used a sentiment from Wondrous Gift. Thanks for looking and be sure to pop over and take a look at  Mynnette's  cards too - Jacqueline xx

As I write this post I am enjoying a programme on the t.v dedicated to one of my favourite bands - R.E.M so if I drift off or break into song I apologise! I am of coarse writing this last night and scheduling it for today - if you can understand that! So - it's Colour challenge time at 52 {Christmas} Card Throwdown  - here are the details A lovely simple selection don't you think - this has been chosen again by my partner in crime  Mynnette . Please pop over and pay her a visit too. Here is card no.1 And a close up of the baubles They have been cut on my Cuttlebug, layered and decorated with some red bling. Card no.2 This card uses one of the first Stampin' Up sets that I bought - it's retired now but still very useful and is called Wondrous Gift. Here's a close up I have completely exhausted my stash of red gems on this card! Hope you can find the time to pop over and take a look, why not join in and get organised for Christmas. I hav...

Good morning all, it's Monday so that means it's challenge time over on the  Make My Monday  challenge blog. This week it's still SEASONAL projects with the added extra of RED RIBBON.  Here is my contribution to the dt line -up It's a Centre Step card - I got the instructions from the Splitcoast Stampers site (via Just Us Girls). I used Kraft card stock as my base and then used SU Lucky Limeade and Very Vanilla. The poinsettias were made using the French Foliage stamp set (see Vicky's blog  here  to see where I got my inspiration for these). They were coloured using Poppy Parade and Lucky Limeade. My RED RIBBON is wrapped around the base with my sentiment mounted onto it. Hope you have the time to pop over to the blog and take a look and maybe even have a go your self. I am also entering this card in to the  Just Us Girls  challenge as they are looking for Centre Step Cards. Bye for now - Jacqueline xx

The theme this week at  Simply Stampin'  is 'Snowflake Sparkle'. I had to think about this one as I don't have very many SU snowflake stamps in my collection - I had to dig deep and rootle out a couple of retired sets - take a look The base card is 5" x 5" square and is stamped with a snowflake stamp from the Snow Flurries set using Ballet Blue ink and a touch of glitter. I also stamped a sentiment from the Wondrous Gift set. I then took a piece of Ballet Blue card stock and scalloped the bottom edge. On to this I stamped some fir trees from the Lovely as a Tree set - they were heat embossed with white embossing powder and a few more were stamped in blue in the background. I then found in my stash my Bird on a Branch set so he was added to the scene too along with a few snowflakes just beginning to fall. A strip of white organza ribbon just adds the final touch. See you soon - Jacqueline xx

I think I am just in time with this - it's the Blue Jelly scrapbook challenge and the theme this month is 'Birthdays and Bunting' I had a good rifle through all my boxes of photographs and managed to find some taken at my Daughter's 6th birthday party I used Brocade Blue (retired) for the background and stamped around the edges with two star stamps from Wondrous Gift and Hung Up on the Holidays. The photos have Pretty in Pink and Regal Rose mats (I was trying to use up some scraps) and the bunting is Regal Rose. I used Brocade Blue and Night of Navy ink. I also used a white gel pen to high light some of the journaling. I am off now to post this on to the Blue Jelly  scrapbook challenge - see you after the holidays. Hope you all have a wonderful Easter - Jacqueline xx.

Happy New Year to everyone - hope it's a good one. Hope you all had a lovely Christmas. Mine was very strange. Because of the snow and travel problems me and my husband had to spend Christmas apart so that was very sad. But that is in the past - it's a new year and time for some crafting! Today's effort was inspired by the Clean and Simple challenge on the Splitcoast Stampers site. It uses the 'Kissing' technique - you take a large stamp (in this case the scribble tree from Wondrous Gift), ink it up (Cherry Cobbler) and place it face up on your work top. Then you take a smaller block stamp  (Flight of the Butterfly) and place that on top of the large stamp and then you stamp it on to your paper. The image from the large stamp takes on the shape of the block stamp. I also used Simply Said to stamp around the card edge and on to the the card in the middle and the sentiment is from Butterfly Prints. I am off now to blog hop around all my favourite blogs - if you lea...

Well, we all had a good night last night making our Pop-Up Christmas cards. Most made tree scenes as I had done except one lady who made a lovely card with pop-up snowflakes - very effective. The Christmas Card and matching Gift Tag competition prize went to Louise - she made a lovely card and tag in traditional red and green and had added robins made with the 2 Step Bird Punch. The card I made was using another Hero Arts stamp - Happy Holiday Trees. I used Baja Breeze card stock and ink (Stampin' Up), and some sparkly glitter. Here's what it looks like inside - The sentiment is from the Wondrous Gift stamp set and the little twiggy thingy is from Lovely as a Tree. Now, some say ................... it's only FIVE weeks to Christmas!! Yikes how did that happen? I've only got two weeks left to prepare for the big Christmas Fair in the village. I think I'm going to very busy in the next few days! - See you soon - Jacqueline xx.

Hello - just thought I'd show you some more of the cards I have made for my 'Christmas' workshop on Thursday evening. My favourite is the one in the middle - it uses Stampin' Up Pocket Silhouettes and Autumn Days and is really quick to make. Also used my 2 Step Bird Punch to make the robbin and the gold embossed tree is from the Wondrous Gift stamp set. The object of this workshop is how to produce easy cards that are quick to make - and get a head start on making them in time for Christmas. Hopefully by the end of the evening everyone will have at least three cards made. Details of the workshop are in the side bar if anyone is interested - bye for now - Jacqueline xx P.S - Cath if you see this - thank you for re-following me over here, I really appreciate it xx.

Hi everybody - what fantastic weather we are having at the moment. Would it therefore seem a little weird to see a Christmas card popping up on your screen? No I am not going mad - I just found a weekly blog that does just Christmas challenges it's called Susie & Vicki's Christmas Club.  Maybe I'm not so mad after all, maybe by the time December comes around I (and all the others that play along) will have a nice stash of Christmas cards without the stress of making them at the last minute (which has always happened in the past!) So here goes - my first Christmas card of 2010 made before June! That's it flat, here it is open - it's an easel card And this is it from the side Recipe card stock: Stampin' Up - Very Vanilla papers: S'U - from the 'I Wish' Simply Scrappin' set stamp set: S'U - Wondrous Gift Ink: S'U - Mellow Moss other: bling, snowflakes and brads from stash See you soon with some more challenges, bye for now - Jacque...