Oh Baby!

This is my first post of the day - please scroll up to see my second post

Morning all and hope you're all well!

What a busy day yesterday was, and I'm sooooo veeeery sorry that I didn't get to finalise my posts and get them up and running on here - second week running that I've been late too. Hmmmm - bad me!!!!! However, today is a new day and I'm hoping to not only get caught up but also to get ahead and try and schedule next week's posts too! Wish me luck :o)

Anyway, there's a new challenge started at Incy Wincy Designs and this one's a fab topic - Butterflies and Bows. 

We have got 2 totally amazing sponsors for you this week ... just a shame I can't enter our own competition!

First, we're welcoming Heather Valentin from Lacy Sunshine Stamps . This is Heather's first time sponsoring one of our challenges, and she is offering one lucky winner a $20 Gift Certificate to her store. And with sooooo many gorgeous images to choose from, I can guarantee that you'll be spoilt for choice. Heather also has a retiring section with a number of her digital images priced at just $1, so there is no excuse for not topping up your stash! 

Our second sponsor is perennial favourite, Krista from Saturated Canary who is offering our second lucky winner 2 digital images from her store.

Both of our lovely sponsors very kindly offered the DT their choice of image to use this week. However a number of my teamies, like me, had sooooooooo much trouble choosing between Heather's images and Krista's images that we had to do one of each! 

So here is my first card for this challenge, and this one features one of Krista's gorgeous images:

My card recipe is as follows:

• Base Card - is Centura Pearl in Ivory onto which I embossed the largest Butterfly shape from my    Crafter's Companion Ultimate Pro. Once I had cut out this shape, having left 2 hinges at the top of the wings, I then cut the reverse of the card the the same outline.
  
• Image - this beautiful baby is called Butterfly Baby and she comes from the pen of Krista at Saturated Canary. This little cutie has been brought to life using my Spectrum Noir Pens in the following colours:
• Hair - GB7, GB8
• Face - FS1, FS2, BT2, CR3
• Baby Grow - GB1, GB2, GB3
• Wings - LG3, LG4, LG5, LV1, LV2, LV3
• Outline - GG1
• Sentiment -  is of course by my favourite designer, Paulette at Create with TLC. I took this totally apt sentiment into my word processing package, and recoloured it in purple to match the colour scheme on my card, before printing it out in a purple coloured oval. Once the sentiment was cut out, I punched a hole in each side of the oval and threaded through some thread from my stash, which I had coloured using my Spectrum Noir Pen in LV3 so it matched the rest of the project, to make a "Ribbon Slider". I then finished off the slider, by tying a bow around the threads.

There'll be another post from me in a minute, and then I hope you'll head over to Incy Wincy Designs to check out the other gorgeous creations by my team mates and our Guest Designer for June Linda. Don't forget to then come back and show us your creations featuring Butterflies and Bows. This challenge ends on Sunday 16th June 2012.

I would like to enter this card into the following challenges:

• Day 152 - Sweet Baby at 365 Cards
• Challenge #48 - Addicted to Colours at Addicted to Stamps and More!
• Challenge 188 - Hey Baby! at Totally Gorjuss
• June Challenge - Summer at Crafter's Companion Challenge

Catch you in a minute!

Hugs, Helen x

Old and Distressed!

No, not me ... although I have had a rather busy week at work and a stinking cold to boot!!!!

Morning friends!

It's time for a new challenge at The Crafty Pad  and I've been asked to pick the challenge this week. I have chosen Distress It! for our topic. So, Ink it, Rip it, Sand it, Scrunch it ... whatever it takes to get your project looking distressed.

Our wonderful Sponsor for this challenge are the kind folks at Crafty Individuals who are offering this week's lucky winner this fabby prize of 1 set of rubber Christmas themed stamps and 1 A4 sheet of Angel Toppers ... perfect for Christmas crafting!

As usual, the Design Team are showcasing the delightful images that have come from the pen of Debbie at Crafty Pad Designs, and here is my card for your inspiration:

My card recipe is as follows:

• Base Card - Black card from my stash, cut, scored and folded to make a 15cm square card
• Design Papers - are both by Debbie at Crafty Pad Designs and are quite new to the store. They are , Vintage Postcard Papers and Vintage Baroque Papers. I've distressed both of these using a seam ripper tool, before adding faux stitching in a gold gel pen around the edges.
• Images and Sentiment - from the Butterflies with Verse set at Crafty Pad Designs, these are just some of the elements available and perfect for distressing. I printed the sentiment onto white card and then ink distressed the edge using gold Versamark ink. I brought the butterflies to life using my Spectrum Noir Pens in the following colours:
• Wings - DR1, DR3, DR5, DR7, GB4, GB5, EB7 and Gold Gel Pen
• Outline - CG1

Do head over to The Crafty Pad and see the gorgeous creations by the rest of Team A. Then come back and show us your Distressed creations! You've got until 8pm (BST) on Saturday 20th October 2012 to link your cards up.

I'd like to enter this card into the following challenge:

• Challenge #142 - Vintage at Fab 'n' Funky Challenges
• Inspired by Autumn at Visible Image
• Autumn Breeze at Joanna Sheen
• Challenge #3 - Photo Inspiration at Don & Daisy
• Photo Inspiration Challenge at Catch the Bug
• CIC61 Challenge #61 - Sentimental at Clearly I Stamp
• October Challenge - Butterflies, Birds and Bees at The Stamp Man

I hope you have a great Sunday!

Hugs, Helen x

Flowers and Butterflies to say "Good Luck"

Hi,

I'm feeling quite excited as this card I'm showing you today is my first commission - whoo hoo! And I'm really pleased with it. It's also the first time I've made a Side Stepper card :o)!

A work colleague has asked me to make her 3 cards, and this is the first of them. It is for a lady who is moving to a new job, and the only requirement was for the card to be pink ... that box can be ticked!

My card recipe is as follows:

• Base Card - Centura Pearl 300gsm card in Fuchsia from the Crafter's Companion Brights pack
• Design Paper - Strawberry Kisses CD Rom, also by Crafter's Companion
• Sentiment - a freebie offered by the lovely Annette on her Blog
• Image is called Nanny Rose and she is, unfortunately, a now retired digi from Kelley Kids, who are no longer operating. She is such a darling and to bring her to life I used my Spectrum Noir Pens in the following shades:
• Hair - 104, 100
• Skin - 132, 133
• Dress & Bows - 147, 88, 86
• Shoes - 120
• Rose - 147, 88, 86, 48, 43
• Outline - CG1
• Butterflies - are one of the stamps in a  "cover freebie" stamp set from Cardmaking and Papercraft, stamped and coloured using my Spectrum Noirs in the same colours as Nanny Rose. I used a small piece of sticky pad to fix each of them to card, and then bent the wings upwards to give some definition.
• Flowers - are recycled from the swing tags from my daughter's pyjamas, also coloured using my Spectrum Noirs (Shades 147, 88, 35, 33) and cut out.

I would like to enter this card into the following challenges:

• Challenge #159 - Recycle It at The Crafty Pad
• Pink and Girly at Ladybug Crafts
• Challenge 46 - Throw us Some Shapes at My Mum's Craft Shop
• Challenge #27 - Shaped Cards at The Stamping Boutique
• Anything Goes at Simon Says

Hope you're having a great weekend!

Hugs, Helen x