Addicted to Stamps - Theme Challenge #3 - Spring & Blog Candy

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Good morning beautiful blog friends ~

Spring is definitely in the air over at Addicted to Stamps today.  We're up to our third Theme Challenge and this week it's Spring.  I love Spring, it's my absolute favourite season of all - it helps that I don't suffer hayfever I guess.

Originally I had wanted to go a lovely daffodil colour - that to me is Spring all over.  Couldn't go there though as my Bingo card last week was yellow and I'm already starting to think my cards are looking a bit same same lately.  Then I decided orange - still nice and bright right?  Well I've no clue how I ended up with the Melon Mambo in my hand but this is what happened lol.

I've been making a lot of square cards lately - that's because I've had a stash of PTI white c/s for some time and being US sized and quite sturdy I can get more use out of it this way rather than making an A5 card.  Too many scraps otherwise.  It is coming to an end I promise so not too many more square cards to come :).

I used the Blossoms 2 Nestabilities (that were a gift from BFF a couple of years back) to cut my flowers.  I sponged all the edges and bent the petals up and down and all around - as much as a neat freak can.  My mat is MM c/s with a layer of Pretty in Pink dsp.

Why don't you head over to the ATS Challenge blog and check out all the lovely Spring inspiration this week, and then get creating and link up.  I would love lots more card ideas for my favourite season.

Actually how about a little blog candy?  Tell me your favourite season and I'll draw a winner on the weekend (30 September) and send a little parcel of goodies out - couple of copic markers and prisma pencils, a roll of ribbon and a few other bits and pieces.  Yay!

Addicted to Stamps - Bingo Challenge #3

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Happy Wednesday friends ~

Gorgeous Kid and I had a lovely time in New Zealand visiting lots of family, eating lots of yummy food and generally having a relaxing time.  I took a few photos in Christchurch that I'm sure most of you will find interesting - when GK shows me how to download from the ipad lol.  I didn't manage to find ANY marmite ANYWHERE - so sad!  BUT one hardcore marmite fan family member got a jar on 'trade me' for $NZ50 so I had it for brekky one morning.  Yummo, you really don't know what you'll miss till it's gone!

Anyway ... it's Bingo challenge time over at Addicted to Stamps this week.  Here is the card for you:

I chose the centre line down - yellow, free (flowers) and ribbon.

I wanted a fairly clean card as this was for a friend who isn't fussy at all.  She was very good to me a few weeks back when I was sick, and even made some yummy chicken soup and delivered it.  How lucky am I to have such caring and kind friends?

This is a square card, with a Whisper White base and some matching satin ribbon (how am I going to live without the gorgeous SU satin ribbons?).  The dsp is So Saffron.  I used Blossom and Circle Nestabilities and a sentiment from PTI.  I tied the little roses with silver cord and made a bow underneath, adding a few gem stones for balance.  The card was spritzed with Champagne Shimmer Mist...of course!

So what's your favourite Addicted to Stamps challenge?  I think mine are the Make your Mark challenges.  I really enjoy colouring cute images, and there are just so many out there.  If you're bored with what's in your stash, go online and grab a digi - there are also lots of freebies around.

We hope you join our Bingo challenge this week.  Head over to ATS and see what the lovely design team have provided as inspiration this week.  I look forward to checking out your entries.

Addicted to Stamps - Make Your Mark Challenge #3

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Good morning ~

Wednesday rolls around pretty quickly doesn't it?  I'm off in the Land of the Long White Cloud right now, no doubt swallowing a stack of calories that I've missed for the past 20+ years and only get to enjoy when I visit home.  Whitebait is a true favourite of mine - this coming from someone who doesn't eat seafood! Whitebait isn't fishy at all, but it is seasonal.  There is a great little restaurant in Christchurch that stocks up so it's available all year round.  I've been known to eat there 10 out of 12 nights on previous visits home lol.

I can hardly believe we are up to our third round of Challenges over at Addicted to Stamps.  This week is Make your Mark - where we want you to use your markers on your creation.  They can be pencils, copics, whatever...

I made this card for my niece's 13th birthday recently.  She's into purple so I used all the purple I could lay my hands on.  Wisteria Wonder dsp to be precise.  I've wrapped a little of the matching WW twine around my mat piece as well.  I used my copics for this little girl and her big stack of presents.  Hope you like.

If you'd like to join the challenge fun this week pop over to ATS and check out the design team inspiration.  I look forward to checking out all your entries when I'm back from my holiday.

Addicted to Stamps - Sketch Challenge #2

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Happy Wednesday lovely friends ~

The weeks and months are just flying by...Gorgeous Kid and myself are off to New Zealand on Friday.  We're visiting family, particularly my dear grandmother.  I'm so looking forward to eating lots of my favourite foods again...Mays pies from Timaru, Joy Bars - and I don't care if it's too cold to eat ice cream, Perky Nanas, yams and so many other yummy treats.  I'm hoping to track down some Marmite too, although I have a feeling the Sanitarium factory in Christchurch was flattened in the earthquakes so that may be a tall order.  I'll try my best though!

This week at Addicted to Stamps we have our Sketch Challenge.  Check it out:

And this is what I came up with.  The beauty of design team work is that you get the schedule some weeks in advance.  Because I knew August and September were going to be busy months I got ahead of myself and prepared a number of challenges some time ago.  I now realise I missed a little something on my card.  The four little spots on each corner...ooops.

This is a cute little digi image from Tiddly Inks.  I used my copics and a bunch of different blues for this card - Island Indigo, Marina Mist and Bashful Blue.

We'd love you to join our Sketch Challenge this week, so pop over to the Addicted to Stamps blog and check out the design team inspiration.

I won't be at a computer too often over the next couple of weeks - I have a strong feeling Gran has only got dial-up internet.  Too slow for me!  I've got some posts scheduled for while we are away and I'll look foward to lots of blog browsing and catching up when I'm back.

Addicted to Stamps - CAS Challenge #2

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Good Wednesday morning ~

We've got a nice easy one for you over at Addicted to Stamps today - it's our second Clean and Simple Challenge. Well actually many of you don't find CAS easy I guess, but it's right up there for me with most of what I create being exactly that.

I've used a base of Crumb Cake c/s and cut a Whisper White banner using my Half & Half dies from PTI.  I've stamped a little flower and sentiment in Crumb Cake and added an Old Olive button threaded with twine and tied a little knot of matching satin ribbon.  Voila, nice and clean and simple.

Pop over to the Addicted to Stamps Challenge Blog and check out the design team inspiration.  We hope you find some time to join the fun this week.

Addicted to Stamps - Colour Challenge #2 - Gold

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Good morning & happy hump day ~

Well finally I got over my lurgy.  Eight long days of feeling crap...I didn't think I was ever going to feel good again.  I'm very happy to say that I now appreciate good health *wink*.

This week over at Addicted to Stamps we're having our second Colour Challenge - Gold.  It was a real challenge for me too because I'm not really a 'gold' person.  Although in saying that I wear gold jewellery over silver so go figure.  I just don't tend to craft with it very often.  Because of that I have next to NO gold in my stash other than embossing powder.

So...here it is.  I tried the same thing on Whisper White c/s but it didn't really look like much at all.  Here is the cute little Christmas tree from Season of Joy on a Basic Black c/s, with just a little bling added.The sentiment is from PTI.

Fairly CAS and it's not often you come across a black Christmas card is it?  I don't know if I'll actually end up posting this out to anyone - because it's black, but it met the challenge requirements at least *smile*.

Go over to ATS and check out the design team inspiration.  Hope you can join us this week with all your golden goodness!

Thanks for stopping by today.  I really do appreciate the time you take to visit and leave the lovely comments that you do.

Addicted to Stamps - Theme Challenge #2 - Cards for Boys

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Happy Wednesday ~

Over at Addicted to Stamps this week we're up to our second Theme challenge - Cards for Boys.  I'm cheating a bit this week because I've been really sick since the weekend.  I actually made this card in February this year but haven't posted it on my blog, so hope it's okay to share now even though it wasn't 'originally made for ATS'.

I've coloured up a The Greeting Farm Ian image - fairly poorly now that I look closely.  I think I was just starting to learn to use my copic markers back when I did this little guy.  I've got shadows in all the wrong places - and if I'm being honest I still have trouble working that part out.  You'd think it would be fairly straight forward right?  Hmmm not so much I'm embarrassed to say.

Anyway pop over to ATS and check out the other design team inspiration for yourself.  Hopefully you'll get a few ideas and join our challenge this week.

Other news...we had a fabulous weekend away.  Unfortunately due to very poor weather conditions our Whale Watching Cruise was cancelled.  The ocean was just too choppy.  Instead we were offered a Dolphin Watching Cruise in the Bay.  We rugged up (5 layers I think I had on) and headed out on the tour at Huskisson.  Our tour leaders were fabulous and lots of fun - they made sure we all got wet (I could have done without this bit of fun but Gorgeous Kid was in his element).

We saw some absolutely gorgeous dolphins, and one of the mum dolphins had her baby with her - so precious. They came up nice and close to the boat and gave us a show.  I'm not sure if it was getting so wet or the nasty wind but by later that day I was feeling crud.  I've gotten progressively worse since then and spent a couple of days in bed.

On a much happier note - a super dooper happy birthday to Gorgeous Kid's Godmother Sue for today.  We had a fabulous weekend.  Thank you so much for organising it and making it so special for our boy!

The Not Quite Navy Version

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Hello lovely friends ~

I did say I'd show you the other card I made and here it is...

My photograph makes it look like I've used a couple of different blues.  I assure you it is all Not Quite Navy and Very Vanilla - would be nice if the ribbon was NQN also but I've never had a lot of success dying my ribbons - they tend to rub off onto the c/s no matter how dry I wait for them to get.

As you can see it's exactly the same as the Crumb Cake and Very Vanilla card I made for the ATS bingo challenge posted yesterday.

So...who's excited about the new Catalogue release coming soon?  I know I am.  Can't wait for new 'stuff'.

Addicted to Stamps - Bingo Challenge #2

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Good Wednesday morning ~

It's already time for another Challenge over at Addicted to Stamps and this week we're doing 'bingo'.  Here is the card:

And here is mine:

I really needed a starting point for this one, and spotted this card of Teneale Williams' over on CASE Study and decided I really liked the layout.  That's all I needed to get going with my Bella Bleu designer papers, Vintage Vogue stamps and coordinating c/s - Crumb Cake and Very Vanilla.  I've used the top line - Gems, Die Cuts and Flowers.

While I was making this card, I decided to make another with other Bella Bleu papers.  Pop back tomorrow to see that one.  Meantime head over to ATS and check out the design team inspiration this week...hope you'll join the challenge fun with us.  

On a personal note...can I just tell you my two week old car is a dream to drive!  I can see myself getting the odd speeding ticket or three though.  It's so smooth that I'm sitting on 100km/h before I know it and it certainly doesn't feel that fast!  Anyway so far so good...it's getting a bit of a run this weekend as we're off to Culburra Beach again.  Gorgeous Kid is having a birthday in a couple of weeks and his Godmother has organised a Whale Watching tour for him.  How cool is that?