Lyn wants us all to have some Quirky Animal Magic

 So animal magic it is, could be magical animals or just animals. My first card features Hedgehog Flower from one of our great sponsors, Bugaboo over at Quirky Crafts for the new challenge this fortnight.

I coloured him with Promarkers and die cut him and a scalloped panel with Spellbinders dies. I used Papermania Tatty Teddy paper (the blue) and DCWV cupcake paper, added some novelty buttons tied through with Tim Holtz paper string, and some polka dot chiffon ribbon which you can buy from Crafty Ribbons (as well as polka dot buttons). Happy Birthday is die cut using an IO die set that I use a lot.

I used the Papermania paper inside too, a slightly different design still pale blue.

I'm entering this card in the following challenges:

Papertake Weekly - things with wings (Tues)

Crafty Ribbons - Happy Birthday (Thurs 24)

Moving along with the times - cute creatures (Thurs)

Left of Centre - die cuts (Fri)

Allsorts - Buttons (Sat)

Pile it on - birthday (Sun/Wed)

Little Miss Muffet - anything goes (24th Sept)

Oh the trouble I had with this card - maybe I will tell you another day - if you want to know! It turned out OK in the end I think.

This image is Charmaine Flannery's We're All Mad Here, from another of our sponsors - Sweet Pea Stamps. She is pretty Quirky I think, do you like her beautiful green hair? She has a crazy cat on her lap (Cheshire cat maybe?), see the playing cards flying round? I coloured her with Promarkers and Graph'it Markers (the turquoise background), and added highlights with paperwhite Sharpie marker. The frame is die cut using two Spellbinders dies, Locking Loops and a rectangle to take out the centre before mounting it on another rectangle. All around the frame I used flat backed pearls in purple, then the first paper pack I picked up was perfect for the colour scheme, it is a Papermania pack of metallic spots and stripes, which dictated to me that I needed silver behind it. The purple brads are silver ones coloured with Promarker, I added lace and ribbon, and the Just for You is one of my brand new never before used dies by Tonic, and it cut very nicely with no problems at all.

I've entered the following challenges:

TTCRD - anything goes Sept 8 - 14

Tuesday Throwdown - anything goes

Crafty Gals - bingo ribbon, hand coloured digi, sentiment (either card fits) (Wed)

Glitter and Sparkle - 154 something beginning with G (green hair) (Sun)

Ribbon Girl - any image (Sun)

Crafting from the heart - #76 anything goes (Mon)

Creative Fingers - #92 anything goes (Fri?)

Coffee, chocolate and cards - fancy and feminine (Sept)

Delicious Doodles - Dark (Sept)

Unicorn Challenges - mythical and magical (30 Sept)

Finally we have one more sponsor, Robyn's Fetish who are giving third prize in the Quirky Crafts Challenge this fortnight. So hop on over to see more Animal Magic and to play along with us.

It's Quirky Lovely

I'm sneaking in so late, missed last week altogether - sorry about that. I have some pretty heavy family stuff going on right now. Anyway I used Love Birds together with Pussy Cat Luv and added a die cut branch and heart shaped leaves and flower petals and I found a heart shaped flat back pearl for the middle. I made the sentiments up and die cut them with an X Cut set, and the ribbon is from Crafty Ribbons, It has nearly run out so I much get more. I coloured the images mostly with Graphit markers and Promarkers and die cut them with Spellbinders card maker dies. The paper is by DCWV. White highlights are Sharpie paint pen.

The images are from Robyn's Fetish who are one of our sponsors at Quirky Crafts this time. You only have until Saturday to come and play!

This card has smooched it's way into the following challenges:

Addicted to Stamps - photo inspiration (Wed)

Cute Card Thursday - crazy in love 

Fussy and Fancy - #132 It's all about love (Fri)

Crafty Gals corner - Pinkylicious (Fri)

Allsorts - #297 love is all around (Sat)

ABC - C is for cupid (Sun) -10

In the Pink - Love is in the air (Thurs 19th)

Pan Pastels - love is in the air (Sun)

Craft Hoarders Anonymous -  How I Love Thee (Feb)

Crafty Cardmakers - Love Love Love (Feb)

Die Cut Diva's - words and sentiments (Feb)

Choo choo - BANG!

I made this card for my eldest, his birthday is just before Christmas and he was in bed ill with the flu on the day.

He didn't get this until today when visiting for Christmas. I used Stampendous Tim Holtz cling rubber stamps, not used these before, I stamped the train and tracks on kraft card in brown Memento ink, then added white highlights with my Sharpie white paint marker and added a bit of green with a Prismacolor pencil. Son is stamped with a clear stamp from a Papermania Set and Happy Birthday to You is die cut with an IO set. The three panels are cut with Spellbinders 5"x7" card maker die set. I added square antique brass brads to each corner. 

Oh and Christmas day - just as we were preparing the food to cook our dinner - the cooker blew up! Well the electric part of it, the gas hob still worked but required matches to light. So we had roast potatoes and parsnips cooked in the Actifry in three lots, veg in the steamer, and the boys went round to Richard's house with the meat (apart from the beef which I had cooked for a couple of hours before the cooker went "BANG") and stuffing and cooked it there, then brought it back. We had 10 people to dinner, and the table all set up.

We went through a few options for cooking, including the barbeque before doing what we did in the end! It was all a bit exciting really, and everyone enjoyed their dinner even if some of it wasn't as hot as it could be - and it was really healthy!

This card has chuffed its way into the following challenges:

Papertake Weekly - take your pick - one for the boys (Tues)

Simon says stamp - Wednesday challenges, anything goes.

Paula Holifield - anything goes except Christmas (Dec)

Less is More - family (Sat 3rd Jan)

Stampotique - anything goes (Jan 5th)

Merry Christmas to you!

Well here it is, Christmas day and all of the fuss will soon be over. We are ready, just about. The dogs are bathed, the bathrooms cleaned and the towels washed, the rest of the house is clean, the beds are made. Shopping is as done as it will be, presents wrapped and labelled, I just have one box to decorate, a special box for a special boy. It will contain some second hand Thomas the Tank Engine track and a Sordor mine and is an extra present that will live here for when Kenny visits.

I think most of the presents under our tree are for Kenny, and Richard has added his presents, they are not all ours. Awaiting our visitors to open them.

This card is made from a Unity stamped snow peeps image that I stamped and coloured, with Promakers, last year and a Spellbinders die cut frame that I made when I got this die, they seemed perfect together. The paper is a freebie from a magazine. The sentiment came with the snow angel, and for this frame I attempted to add white through the die with my Sharpie white paint marker. This was the second attempt, the first was far messier. I think this will be a card for next year. The ribbon is from Crafty Ribbons, and I added snowflake eyelets to the corners to let the lime green card show through.

I have entered the following challenges:

I love Promarkers - anything goes (Jan 6th)

Creative Card Crew - anything goes (Jan 6th)

This is Kenny's card, he loves any sort of vehicle so Santa in his snowmobile by Dustin Pike seems like a good choice. I coloured the image with Promarkers, the paper is Papermania/Docrafts, the ribbon is from Crafty Ribbons.

Inside the card.

I have entered this card in the following challenges:

Simon Says Stamp - Wednesday challenges, anything goes - Docraft paper.

I needed a couple of gift card holders and made them with perlescent card and the WR Memory Keepers envelope tool, which made the perfect size holders. I added a couple of images I had stamped and coloured with Promarkers last year. The geese are a Little Claire stamp, and the sheep is a Penny Black stamp.

I haven't decorated the back.

I have entered the following challenges:

Allsorts - last minute gifts (Sat 3rd Jan)