Hope you all had a good one!

Hi All

Hope you had a wonderful Christmas and that Santa was good to you.... he certainly was very generous in this house... lots of nice goodies and smellies came down MY chimney!! LOL!

I'm just sharing with you some tags I made in the last run up to the big day...  I used some fabulous tags that the lovely Elaine diecut for me using a gorgeous PTI die.... Tag Sale #3 - (that I'm about to order) - and a lot of inspiration from Elaine hereself - thank you, kind lady!  The flower is using a Tim Holtz Tattered Poinsettia Die and some paper from my stash... I distressed the edges with Fired Brick Distress Ink, and the sentiments are from Paula Pascual Christmas Essentials clear stamp set.  A little button and a bit of cord finished the tags off.... and they did look gorgeous on the gifts there were attached to - even though I say so myself!!

My lovely OH is back at work today (wahhhhhh!), and will be working over the weekend and even on New Year's Eve.... well... people WILL shop at M & S.... and keep him busy!  I think he's looking forward to it being quieter after all the celebrations are over...  He says he's never seen people behave in the way they do in the shop... (customers that is...)  They still had people coming into the store at 3 pm on Christmas Eve demanding to know why there were no turkeys/garnishes/gravy/deserts etc... and getting really nasty when they were told that pretty well everything had run out!!  People had been queueing when the store opened at 6 a.m.!  And there were fisticuffs in the car park too!  All over food.... can you believe it?  The shop was only closed for two days!

Right.... it's brekkie time for me and my daughter Emma... then we're off to Harrogate to take a quick peek around the sales!

Big hugs to all.... and big thank you's for following me and taking time to comment...  I look forward to 2013 with lots of blogging friends sharing their fabulous creations - it makes the world a nicer place!

Christine xxx

A little innocence...

Hi Blogging Friends..

Hope you're all well and getting near the end of your Christmas 'to do' list.  Why do we leave things till the last minute and get so stressed?? LOL!  We KNOW for twelve months prior that it's going to happen... yet year after year we're in the same mad rush the week before!  I don't think I've heard anyone this year say that everything is all done and they're twiddling their thumbs waiting!!

Today I'm sharing a card with you that (believe it or not) has no pink anywhere....  but it really was a joy to make.  It's using one of my favourite (at the moment) range of stamps - Pure Innocence by MFT and it's called Presents for You.  The sentiment is also from the same set.

I coloured her with a mix of Copics and Promarkers and the DP I've used is a double sided Kaisercraft one which appears now to have been discontinued.... such a shame as it's a nice bright Christmas paper.  I used a Martha Stewart edge punch for the red Bazzill.  Some glitter on her hat and gifts and it was finished.   Hope you like!!

I treated us to some new Christmas lights for the outside of the house at the weekend... and this morning we fastened them up... it's a tricky operation with Barry in the garden holding the lights up through the window to me with a washing line prop as I'm hanging out of the window (imagine the picture)....  ANYWAY....  I had them all fastened up... with various pieces of string through each of the windows holding them in place...  then closed the window with the wire coming through to the plug... and chopped one of the wires right through!!  So the lights only worked for about 10 seconds... and they were expensive too!!  Seems I put the wire too near the metal part of the hinge... D'oh.....  Ah well, apparently they can be mended so all it not lost!!

Did you all watch Last Tango in Halifax?  Wasn't it good?!!

Hopefully I'll be back before the big man arrives...
Big hugs and Happy Crafting..
Christine x

It's Pinkie time again...

Hi Peeps

Today it's time for another challenge at In The Pink... this time it's called 'Pink and Pearlie'  - and as I've been pushed for time this week, I've only managed one DT card instead of my usual two!!  But I'm sure you'll let me off..

I decided on one of my fav Mo Manning images - Ruby All Grown Up... it really reminds me of when my two girls were young...  and I love her big hat and long necklace!!  I coloured again with a mix of Copics and Promarkers... used a stepper card that I made myself (!)... then Bazzil and Papermania Paper .

I used a Nestie for my image (Labels 18)..  then a Memory Box Meridien Border die for the scalloped bit... and pearl hearts from my stash.  I tried to use some Cosmic Shimmer pearl glue for her pearl necklace... not sure it works - then I added loads of glitter as usual...  Finally, I used my Hero Arts alphabet stamps that I've had for yonks for the sentiment..  And there she is... hope you like!

We have a lovely new Guest Designer over at In the Pink too...  the lovely Nic (aka Coops) has agreed to join us for our next two challenges... looking forward to seeing her fab creations!

Don't forget to join in our Pearlie challenge this time...  it's open for four weeks so Sylvia and I can have a little Christmas rest (and a glass of wine or two..).... so you have plenty of time to enter!

Big hugs
Christine x
PS.... I still have to finish my Christmas cards believe it or not!! They're going to be really late this year!

It's nearly time for Santa!! Anything Goes Challenge - Traditional Christmas Colours

Hi All

Time is flying by and it's nearly time for the big man's visit!!  Our theme at Anything Goes this time is 'Traditional Christmas Colours'...  An easy one for me where Santa is concerned!

I used a gorgeous stamp that I've used before, from Sugar Nellie... called Old Saint Nick...  and he's such a pleasure to colour... although you do have to watch that the deep red colour doesn't run into what should be white - it has a habit of doing so!

I used a mix of Copics and Promarkers to colour him...  a lot of fab Glamour Dust on his hat and coat...  and a bit of shading creating his shadow.

The DP is by Scenic Route and is called Brighton Blizzard... (don't think it's made any more), and I've added some dotty grosgrain ribbon.  A PC generated sentiment (as it's for an order), finishes the card.

Don't forget to pop over to Anything Goes - to see my fab teamies gorgeous creations... and also to see if you were a winner on our last challenge.  Lots of lovely craft goodies can be purchased online at the Craft Den - why not pop over and take a look?!

Looking forward to seeing your wonderful creations for this challenge!

Big hugs and Happy Crafting..
Christine x

Challenges: I love Promarkers - Anything Goes
Delightful Sketches - All About Christmas
Cupcake Craft Challenges - Merry Christmas
Joanna Sheen - With Love At Christmas
Dream Valley Challenge #47 - Christmas
Craft Us Crazy - It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas
The Ribbon Girl - Ho Ho Ho
Penny Black and More - December Challenge - It's Your Choice

Another one with blender pen... and a lovely visit!

Hi all

Another quickie today... showing a card I made the other day - again using the blender pen technique with my promarkers and copics...

This one uses another LOTV image...  Fairy on Tiptoe (which is one of my all time favourites...)  Of course, she had to have lots of glitter on her wings and skirt..  well a fairy isn't a fairy without her fairy dust!  The papers are Crea Diem, the die is a Memory Box Macarena Corner Die - which I've used my Frantage embossing powder on to give it that ooomph..  and lastly I used some old Papermania faceted gems.  I decided on 'without' for a sentiment!!

Now.... this is where I went yesterday and who I was with!!

Photo taken with phone... not too clear.... sorry!

The gorgeous Elaine (A Technophobe's Blog) and her lovely hubbie Phil came over to visit Barry and I... and of course, we ended up going to a nice local pub with a roaring fire... and enjoying a yummy lunch with lots of chat... we didn't really need to tape up our OH's mouths which we thought we may have to..... so they managed a whole lot of chatting too!!  And look........  doesn't Elaine look fab - she's lost so much weight... such willpower!!  But I'm not divulging what she ate yesterday!! hehe!   We had a lovely day... did lots of catching up... and really enjoyed ourselves!  Such a shame they hit lots of nasty traffic both ways... hope it doesn't put you off coming over next time Elaine!!

Better go now... my lovely OH has just come home... so I need to go tend to his achey muscles...

Big hugs and Happy Crafting!
Christine x

A little bit of LOTV...

Hi all

Just dropped in with a quickie... I tried to do a very CAS card - but with an image... as I've seen them done, but not sure if I'm totally happy with this!

I used an LOTV image - Angels with Crib - that I've had for a long, long time!!  I tried to feather out the colour on their dresses using a blender... this is my first attempt at this technique, and I've got considerably better on my second card (to be blogged soon...)

That is pretty much all there is too it... coloured with copics and promarkers... and of course glitter on their wings and stars... a bit of sewing around the edge (it's my sewing machine that goes crooked, not me!!), a bit of bazzil, and then a sentiment from Pink Petticoat (Handwritten Christmas Greetings).

And the good bit is... there's nothing too thick for Royal Mail normal letter!!

Now... I have a very special visitor coming over the Pennines to see me tomorrow... it's the lovely Elaine...  so I best go tidy up!!  She's warned me that I need to have the red carpet rolled out, but I told her it's at the cleaners!

Thank you for all the lovely comments you leave - reading them makes my day!
Big hugs to all and Happy Crafting....
Christine x