Paul's Mum's Birthday Card

 

Good Morning Ladies, 

Early up and out for Lucy and I today as I have GP appointment,  just for them to check my blood pressure themselves and I have to have blood test too.  

I now have an added appointment this week as Warwick Hospital called yesterday morning to ask if I was free on Thursday morning as they had a cancellation,   I already turned one cancellation down as they rang me when I was at my Gastroenterology Appointment a few weeks back, they wanted me to come in the next day,  I was feeling awful that week so I declined the appointment,  this was the day before I was diagnosed with High Blood pressure, which was why I felt so unwell.  Anyway Paul is going to go in to work Tomorrow evening to do the work he had to do on Thursday morning,   so that he can take me,  Soph said she didn't mind but was a little nervous as it was a totally new place,   I would hate to make them feel uncomfortable especially when driving.  I also really appreciate Paul being with me especially when decisions have to be made about surgery etc   

Today's reminder is something I find SO difficult,  it really frustrates me that I can't do certain things because of physically being unable or feeling to unwell.  I have tried to be gentle with myself but my goodness I struggle!  🤣

Paul reminded me that it is his Mum's birthday on Wednesday and asked if had her card ready 😯 I explained that it had slipped my mind and got busy,   the hardest and most time consuming part is deciding what to use and then what colours to go with!  

I cut the card base to 4 1/4 X 5  1/2 inch,  then cut a Pear Pizazz mat 1/4 inch smaller,   then cut another piece of white card and embossed it,  for the detail layer I took a piece of card and cut it with a stitched rectangle and used a stencil with Pear Pizazz ink to add some colour and interest, I added a very narrow mat to this layer to make it stand out.   

I die cut a variety of  flowers with my  Spellbinders Bold Blooms die set, in subtle spring colours.  I used Pear Pizazz card for the foliage to tie everything together.   I then set about arranging the flowers around the edge of that stencilled piece,  I really struggled with the sentiment for this card,  I didn't want to cover the stencilled background with a large sentiment in a label,  so I die cut 'Mum,' using a variety of letter dies and settled with this one,  I then just stamped and die cut the Happy Birthday and adhered them above the 'Mum'.  It's not perfect but it looks ok I think. 

I hope that you all have a good day, 

Love and hugs to all of you, 

Sandra xxx 

Sonia's Beautiful Folio

 

Good Monday Morning Ladies, 

Welcome to the start of a new week,  fingers crossed it's going to be a good one!  I have a few appointments etc this week, Doctors, blood test to check that my liver isn't reacting to my new medications.  

Sadly I don't think the weather is forecast to be as nice this week,  which is a real shame. 

Today's reminder is an odd one,  I'm not really sure how it works as a positive affirmation,  but in case you were feeling it I want to reassure you that you are all so much more than a number 🤣🥰

I feel so lucky that I am able to share Sonia's first 'folio'.  It is so beautiful,  perfectly finished edges and elements, you would never believe that they were papers printed on a regular home printer, they look like they are from a fancy collection.

Sonia's Description:

I created this folio card for Mum for Mother’s Day. I have used Shaylee Morehouse’s designs, which I printed from her facebook page. 

I’ve used Craft Addiction Uk Wings of Elegance butterfly dies, a Spellbinders border die, and tags and flower dies from Temu.

I bet your Mum felt very special when she opened it up expecting a card and finding a beautiful gift.  

Buying that printer was the wisest decision you have made in a long time, it has opened up a whole new world of crafting for you and like I said about Karen's enthusiasm for her Aall&Create challenge giving her crafting a new excitement,  I feel that your printer and the gorgeous images you are discovering have given you back your love of crafting. 

Thank you so much for allowing me to share your beautiful folio.

I hope that you all have a great start to your week,  

Love and hugs to all, 

Sandra xxx 

Your lovely craft makes

 

Good Sunday Morning Ladies, 

Well we were treated to another glorious day yesterday,  I did a few indoor chores in the morning then joined Paul in the garden, he filled a load of new planters with soil and I filled them with strawberry plants, fingers crossed fresh soil and a sunnier position will encourage some strawberries this year, last year was a lot of foliage and very few strawberries 🍓!  After I had finished I could barely walk back up to the house,  I am regretting it today!  The sunshine was wonderfully therapeutic though. 

Today's reminder needs to no explanation,  you are ALL incredibly WONDERFUL! 🥰😍😘

Lets look at your makes.....

Karen

Karen's Description:

1:  Hobby finished!

Background is torn pieces of a knitting pattern and inked with Antique Linen and Pumice Stone DO

Various A&C stamps including gold embossed scissors 

Printed sentiment using junkos typewriter font

Did a little knitting on 2mm needles and created needles using cocktail sticks and heat embossed rolled paper.

2:  My version of number 10 Nature I was inspired by a make I saw on FB by Margaret Hoyle All stamps by A&C

Karen I can see how much you are loving creating this collection of artwork pieces for yourself just by the amount of work and love you put into the details of each piece  

The hobby piece is my favourite so far,  I love that you created the background with knitting patterns and then adding the knitting and the amazing handmade knitting needles.  It's just incredible, I love it 

Nature, wow I love the pop of colour and all of the little details like the snail, that I missed on my first look, then the bird and the hares!  It perfectly depicts the category!  

Thank you so much for sharing your amazing Challenge pieces with us, so incredibly inspirational XXX

Lilian 

Lilian's Description:

Hi, here is my journal page for this weeks.

I used the category friendship 

Once again mixed pieces from several books.

It’s a bit difficult to see the little cat, but I feel pets become friends.

What a stunning Journal page Lilian,  that gorgeous Carta Bella background is so pretty, such a genius idea to add the Secret Diary girl on a swing,  she looks like she is looking down at the cute cat sat beside her. 

Thank you so much my lovely for creating this beautiful challenge piece despite feeling unwell, fingers crossed you get some answers this week XXX 

Maria

Maria's Description:

I did have some crafting done this morning and here they are.

I used my sprays I bought from Honkydory first and then I used a stencil I had with embossing paste. No splatters this time just a sentiment to finish it off🤭

The next little one is 3x3 and I used here another stencil with black ink and a sentiment.   

Oh WOW Maria,  your embossed card is absolutely amazing,  those sprays you used for your background are such beautiful colours,  your embossing through that intricate stencil is perfect, such a pretty stencil too. 

You made a perfect Thrinchie Maria,   its perfect,  the sprayed background,  the stencilled poppies and a lovely sentiment.  

I really hope you are pleased with your pieces this week,  they are amazing !  Thank you so much my lovely friend,  I know you have had a lot on your mind this week but still made time to support the blog. XXX 

Sonia 

Sonia's Description:

A double journal spread for the challenge ‘Childhood’

I printed the background paper (Shaylee Morehouse) and the pictures and quotes from Pinterest. The stamped sentiment from Inkylicious which I cut up. I used a mixture of Stamperia stamps on the background. The world die is from Temu I think which was gifted to me from a beautiful friend 😊

Oh Sonia where do I start,  the background is so lovely,  the images of the children are adorable,  you have created an incredible layout, the Inkylicious stamp works perfectly with your added quotes. The background stamping finishes the layouts perfectly.  

It perfect depicts Childhood  

Thank you so much for sharing your journal spread with us XXX 

**************

I hope that you all have a lovely Sunday, 

My love and hugs to all of you,  

Sandra xxx 

 

Mixed Up Saturday

 

Good Saturday Morning Ladies,  

I hope that you are all relaxed and looking forward to the weekend,  what are you all up to this weekend,  we have no plans,  Paul wants to get the strawberry runners all potted up and his new Temu potato buckets filled ready for potting up,  the seeds that I had sowed a week ago have all started to come through,   years ago we had Lavateras growing in our garden,  they grey really big,  we both loved them so when I found a pack of seeds that came free on a magazine it was definitely worth sowing them just to see if they germinate and guess what...every seed germinated,  so fingers crossed they all grow on.  I am pleased my sweet peas all came through too. 

My Mothers Day card from Soph

Its quite a good likeness 🤣😂,  She said it was her revenge for my calling her a crazy plant lady.  

I love it 😍

Here are some of the lovely Spring flowers that the lovely warm sunshine has encouraged to open up...

I get so excited seeing the garden burst into life,  we planted some of the daffodils quite late last year but that hasn't stopped them coming through,   I love how many different varieties of daffodils we have,  from plain white, to orange and white and all sorts in between,   the ones 3 & 4 photos up have really thick inner petals they are almost waxy and the scent is so strong 🥰 It has been the perfect antidote to feeling fed up about my health.  

Gina's Bargains 

Gina's Description:

Three photos attached showing what I bought on Thursday. 

First one: Embossing folders, Stamps & Stamp platform. I paid £3 for it as it had 1 leg missing. 

2nd :  Dies

3rd Mica Rub on powders from Craft Artist,  which cost me £5 ,for all 3!

Wow Gina you got some incredible bargains,  if the stamp platform has one of the little sticker type feet missing try adding a bit of blu tack or something to even it up.  

I hope you enjoy playing with your new goodies,  I look forward to seeing what you create. 

Thank you so much for sharing your shopping with us XXX 

That's all for today my lovelies,  

I hope you have a lovely weekend   

Love and hugs to all of you, 

Sandra xxx

 

Arden Creative jounal page

 

Good Friday Morning Ladies,  

This lovely weather certainly brings joy to the day,  although it was chilly in the shade.  

Soph was excited for a day off in the sunshine 🌞   so to celebrate she took me to Bourton for an icecream by the river,  which was lovely x

Today's reminder is something I actually felt on Wednesday,   I wasn't feeling great after a rubbish night and BP issues,   I sat at my desk and just couldn't summon the energy or enthusiasm to create anything,  I walked away and went into the garden,   then came in sat down and created yesterday's card!  So I felt really proud that I created something,   a bit daft but it was an achievement!  

Today's journal page I made yesterday using Arden Creative die cuts. 

I used Stamperia paints and used an old loyalty card to add the paint rather thatln a brush for a change, after the base colours were dry I drybrushed some white paint over the orange.  Then took my arden stamp set and added some background stamping,  then finally I added some stencilling. 

I then picked out some of the lovely Arden ephemera stamped tickets and created some clusters, then onto the focal piece,  starting with window frame,  then the leaves,  gauze and sentiment tags,  the butterfly finished the page with some splatters! 

I hope that you all have a lovely Friday,  

Love & hugs to all, 

Sandra xxx 

A clean and simple card

 

Good Morning Ladies, 

Today's reminder goes out to all of you,  you all hold a place in my heart,  I look forward to reading your comments every day.  You are all as loved as family ❤️

Today I am sharing a clean and simple card that I made yesterday.  I used a die that I bought recently from Temu. 

I started by creating the coloured background, I wanted it to have a shimmer for added interest so I used Distress Mica Stains,  these are the colours I used....

It was fun using them as they sat on the shelf for too long without being used. 

I spritzed some of each onto a piece of card and popped on the Aga to dry. 

I cut the base card to 4 1/4  x 5  1/2 inch,  then cut another piece of card 1/4 of an inch smaller and took my leaf die and cut it out.  I then stamped the sentiment in the bottom corner.  

I trimmed down the coloured layer so that it fit behind the front panel,  I added foam pads to the nack of the front panel and sandwiched them together.  I added glue to the back of the coloured piece and placed on the base card.  

Here is a look for at the shimmer....

I hope that you all have a lovely day, 

Love and hugs to all of you, 

Sandra xxx 

Silent sea Journal page

 

Good Wednesday Morning Ladies,  

Just a quick one today as I am feeling a little fragile as my BP decided to shoot up again yesterday afternoon,  I woke with a bad headache,  but just took paracetamol and got on with my day,  by mid afternoon I was struggling,  then around 5pm I started feeling really dizzy and sick and had to go lie on the bed,  tested my BP and it was 172/98 which is highest its been since the day i went to surgery,  I called GP and they advised me to take an extra Amlodipine and check my BP later in evening and early tomorrow morning and to call if it hadn't settled down.  

So today's Gentle Reminder is perfect for me ! 🤣

Today I am sharing the Silent Seas journal page I made on Monday,   I created the background by adding Grey and Blue paint to the watercolour paper and moving it around after drying it I added some splatters of the blue ink.  

I added some stamping and texture paste too. 

Then came the fun part,  building the focal point using die cuts and stickers and rub-ons. 

The rub ons from Stamperia are really amazing quality,  its hard to see but the brick work behind the window frame die cut is a rub in, they leave no shiny outline or anything. 

I chopped down a moon and added in the corner of the window frame and built up the die cuts etc on the outside.  I finished with some splatters. 

I am really pleased with this one x 

Maria, I am sorry to read that your Dad has had to have his other leg amputated,  it must be so hard for you being so far away my lovely,  sending you hugs xxx

I hope that you all have a great day, 

Love and hugs to all of you, 

Sandra xxx