The Sugar Bowl Mothers Day Challenge

Another challenge would you believe? I getting quite into all this aren't I? This challenge is on the Sugar Bowl blog which is one of the Sugar Nellie blogs. The great thing about this challenge is no complicated rules (I think!) other than having to use a Sugar Nellie image and needing to be a follower.

It's not the easiest of challenges to join in terms of confidence as the talent within the Sugar Nellie camp is breathtaking. It's nice though to have a reason to do a card as there's only so many birthday cards etc that I need to make. I LOVE these images as I may have mentioned before) and also what's ever so exciting is at last I managed to track down some pom pom ribbon and it arrived in time to ass to this card. I've longed for pom pom ribbon forever-it's even more fab than I hoped it would be so expect all my future card for a while at least to be embellished with pom pom ribbon!
So here goes...

Ingredients:
Cream card blank from stash
Basic Grey papers
Pink card from stash
Sugar Nellie stamp by Leanne Ellis
Bazzill Pom Pom ribbon
Stickles diamond
Blooms from Sarahs cards
Heart brad from stash
Heart punch
Organza ribbon from stash
Dark brown colorbox chalk inkpad
Black Stazon

Goodbye Jade

I've just found out that dear Jade Goody has died.

I am deeply upset. I find injustice a very difficult thing to cope with at the best of times-this is an injustice if ever there was one.

Jade died at home surrounded by her family and friends as she wished. She was 27.

God bless.

Passion for Papertrey challenge

With many thanks to the lovely Steph who kindly sent me a few Papertrey bits so I could participate, here is my attempt at the current challenge on A Passion for Papertrey.

If you've seen my previous attempt at a challenge you'll know that I can never fully understand the instructions! This challenge is for 'one layer'. My interpretation is that the card is the one and only layer. Embellishments and ribbon are allowed-other than that it's a no no.

Kate's cards seem to me to follow this rule so I desperately tried to reign in my usual urges to amass as much as is possible on a single card! I often feel my cards are akin to the Guinness World Record attempt-along the line of how many people can fit in a telephone box! My take on this is how many different things can I stick on a card and it still:

a) fit in an envelope to send

b) stand up unassisted!

Anyway, I did my best, then looked at the other challenge cards and it seems I may be alone in my interpretation. Other people have put paper layers on and then everything else-I may be disqualified for getting it all wrong and I suffered, yes, suffered doing this card with it's cruel (and maybe not entirely factual) limitations!!!! Sorry guys if I've got it wrong!

Anyway, I tried to do my usual /more is most definitely more' kind of card with only 1 layer-the card. It was hard but I certainly can see the value in cards like this-a true one layered card is so much quicker to do and although I'm clearly extremely organised (in fact organisation is my middle name along with fibber), there are times (most times) when I need a card in a hurry. A quick card would be my saviour but alas my genetic make-up gets scared by minimalism-I'm a victim really, so back to the Guinness World record attempts I think!

Ingredients: (All Papertrey unless otherwise stated)

Card

Paper

Stampin Up Riveting stamp set

Stampin Up Swirls and Blossoms background stamp

Brilliance ink Pearlescent Purple

Flower punch unknown

Gems unknown

Blog candy

Just must let you know about some fab blog candy over at Phoenix Crafts.

There's lots of gorgeous candy about so keep looking at the blog candy information on the right hand side of my blog as I'll keep you informed of anything else I come across. If you win though you have to share with me!!! Hee! hee! Just joking of course-good luck.

Spring has sprung!

It has been the most beautiful day here today, Not only did we get the most glorious sunshine but it was mild, particularly if you stayed in the sun. I had to get a bit of shopping and got so hot in the shops due to my wearing Winter woolies still. It's now just after 6.00pm and the temperature has dropped significantly so it's quite chilly. The sun seems reluctant to disappear for the night so we have a glorious sunset with the sky a delightful orangey red watercolour mix. Artists glory in sunsets such as this-I am a huge sunset fan so never bore of watching their all too brief existence. What's so incredibly wonderful about sunsets is that nature doesn't place any limit on the number we can enjoy. Eclipses happen once every so many years, sunsets can occur night after night and never be diluted by the frequency of the act.



I was compelled upon waking to get out in the garden and take some photos. I also took my camera out with me but totally forgot about it so the beautiful flowers down at Ernie and Bobbies will have to wait. These Narcissus are from in my garden but we have rather a glut of Daffodils nearby. I live literally round the corner from the river that runs through my town. It's not a huge river and it meanders through my town gently apart from when it's torrential rain when it breaks it's banks with alarming frequency-people still are repairing thrir homes after the floods of last 'Summer'. I've always longed to live with a river running either through or at least at the bottom of my garden. Last Summers floods showed that such a dream can also be a terrible nightmare. My town flooded badly twice in consecutive months. Our much loved river became a common enemy to many-no one will ever view it in quite the same way agin.


>

Nonetheless most of the time the river is something we all gravitate too though it's not only humans who enjoy it's charms. Behind my garden I have the town bowling green, tennis courts, putting green and fishing pond. The pond is directly behind my garden. The combination of all that water results in a great variety of nature. We have an owl, a sparrow hawk (good and bad), the most enormous amounts of frogs and toads in the garden (and in the Summer with open doors often in the house!) and ducks! At night they go to bed on the pond and you can hear them squabbling (or that's my view anyway) with honking and squawking as they presumably elbow one another in an attempt to get a bit of space to sleep!

In the day they sit all over the place and adore it by the river where they nest. The joy of walking into town counting the ducklings as they sit on the riverbank which itself is covered in daffodils never diminishes. As the ducklings grow they learn to swim and again counting becomes almost compulsory with a current conversation between town folk running along the lines of:

Person A'I saw 12 ducklings today by the river'
Person B 'Really, I've seen 10 but last year I saw 14 swimming behind one mother duck'
Person A '14? Blimey, I wouldn't want 14 children!'
Person B 'Ah, but if you're a duck you don't have them for as long as we do!'

Laughter from both!

When the ducklings arrive I will try and take some photos top post on here. In the meantime we've some Primroses, Narcissus and a stunning Hellebore from my garden.

A time of hope?

It's swiftly becoming a beautiful and bright Spring for us in the UK. We've been blessed with lots of sunshine and the odd bit of warmth, though it's still chilly in the main. Spring is a time of hope and looking to the future, of being glad we've got through another dark, cold Winter.

In a few days the clocks 'spring forward' and we can look forward to lighter evenings-something I'm very much looking forward to.

Sometimes the world seems so entirely full of hope that we almost take our eye off the ball and forget, if only for a moment that the feeling of hope and of a new dawn is not, and cannot be shared by everyone.

I write as last night we learnt of the death of the actress Natasha Richardson, a beautiful Mother, Wife, Sister, Daughter and friend. A desperately sad death coming out of nowhere it seems.

Jade Goody is facing her last moments with her small children, her husband of less than one month and her other family and friends. Jade is 27 and less than a year ago was diagnosed with cervical cancer.

In Northern Ireland more families are grieving and walking behind hearses carrying the bodies of those they love. All too often we hear of the death of yet another soldier in Iraq or Afghanistan, of more civilian deaths, of suffering in Zimbabwe, Darfur and so many other places.

It seems that there is as much despair and pain and suffering as there is hope. It's easy for all that hope to evaporate, to seem as fragile as the daffodils thin flowerheads. It's all very cliched though, but we can look back to these flowers to reignite our hope. Look at the snowdrops and crocuses, the little naccissus daffodils, all so small and yet they force their way through frost hardened grown, through snow if necessary and bloom their little hearts out.

The winter flowering bulbs have to be some of the most hardy species in nature. You can plant them one year and for years after they'll just get on with it and flower merrily and what's more increase in number year on year. They do this all by themselves, those tiny little snowdrop bulds smaller than the fleshy part of your thumb, do battle with Winter year on year and what's more win that battle.

No matter how harsh the Winter, how freak the weather conditions, when we are doubting the existence of Spring these little flowers show us to keep the faith, that there are cycles in this life and come what may these cycles of life carry on and on and on.

It's normal to feel despair at times, to worry and be afraid but all things will pass and the next cycle will begin. We always remember how amazing the Spring flowers looked last year and the year before yet each year is somehow even better than the previous and if we ever feel small and wek and out of control of life we could do worse than going off and finding some little Spring flowers and remembering that if they can get through the darkness of Winter-so can we all.


I'll get some photos for this post asap but I wanted to post the words anyway.

Jade Goody

I have been wanting to post about Jade for a long time now but it is so upsetting that I really struggle to determine what exactly to say.

This is a terrible, terrible time, Jade's life is ebbing away and no-one can stop this awful thing happening.

Jade is a true human being, with good points, bad points and has learnt her lessons well. She is wise beyond her mere 27 years. She is kind and decent and clearly a devoted Mother, daughter, wife and friend to so many.

At this time of year Marie Curie do their annual appeal for funds. Fittingly for this time of year, a Daffodil is their logo and you may have seen the pretty paper daffodils together with a donation box in shops recently. Marie Curie nurses provide round the clock nursing care and support. The existence of Marie Curie nurses allows many people to die in their own home and not in a hospice or hospital.

Dying at home means so much for so many people; to be surrounded by the familiar and by their family is the last wish of many and Marie Curie nurses grant this wish where possible. Should more intensive care be required, Marie Curie also have 10 hospices in the UK.

This appeal may sadly be all too personally relevant to some of us, but for the card makers amongst us, this appeal allows us to do our bit to actively help in the way we do best-making cards. Together with Do-crafts, Marie Curie ask that cards are made that can then be sold to raise funds for the charity. All cards need to be received by 30th April so there's still plenty of time.


If you go to the following website:

http://www.create-a-card-for-cancer-care.org/

you will find all the information you need. The forum on 'In Love with Stamping' which is a UK site dedicated to Stampin Up in the Uk though not solely about Stampin Up also has details-forum members are trying to make as many cards as possible for this cause.

www.inlovewithstamping.com

You can also find details of this campaign on the following Docrafts site:

http://www.docrafts.co.uk/asp/articles/?page=261

Details on the special Papermania Daffodil clear stamps available are also on this site. A donation is made to Marie Curie for every set sold.

As crafters, we have so much stash and usually make far more cards than we actually ever send. What better use of your crafting abilities than to raise money to help Marie Curie nurses help people at their time of greatest need? You can make cards especially for this appeal or use ones you have already. Do both if you possibly can!

Cards for all occasions are welcomed, the only stipulation is that they need to be
A6 size. A special card gift bag is available in many stores selling docrafts products but all the details are available on the docrafts site mentioned above.

Of course making cards isn't the only way to help this appeal. The fundraising page of Marie Curie nurses has some interesting crafty ideas:

'-Host your very own Craft Class
- Host a Tea Party
- Craft as a family
- Have a Craft Clear Out!'

Funds are desperately needed. It's awful to consider this but who knows if we or someone we love may need the Marie Curie nurses one day? If we did need them, they would help us-we need to help them. We really can make a difference and it's all so easy to make our craft stash that usually makes us feel so guilty become something so positive and good.

We can get involved with this appeal for many reasons. There are so many good reasons. I have many reasons myself why I am making cards and Jade is one of those reasons. I have been incredibly moved by her ordeal and I will never forget her on Big Brother when we all first 'met' her so to speak. I never for a moment thought it would end like this, I'm still finding it hard to grasp. Jade though has proved herself more than just a fighter though, she's also shown such compassion and forgiveness in these recent months. My cards are for Jade as are my prayers and if any of you pray, please consider a prayer for a young woman facing being torn from her two small boys, her husband, Mum and friends at the age of 27.


If anyone wants to know more about the help Marie Curie nurses offer please go to:

http://www.mariecurie.org.uk/

You can also ask your GP or District Nurse about the free service offered if you or someone you know would like the support of Marie Curie nurses.

A moan and a bit of a weep

OK, creaky necks again guys!! I have NO IDEA why Mr Blogger is being so naughty again! It's getting tedious though and I'm feeling so stressed at the moment anyway so for now it's this or nothing-can we make do with this just for now please?

Just a quickie as fed up too-stressed and fed up-does it get any worse? My neighbours are renovating their house. Bad enough at the best of times but 3 years ago that house was gutted and central heating out in and re-built so I have had my share of noise methinks! this time it's sanding the floors thus far. Noisy yes and now we have the varnish fumes flooding through an untold number of holes between the two house which is a nightmare. I realise we're terraced but it's like living communally with the amount of sounds and smells that come from next door. I always know what they're having for tea and ..well yes, I know what they're having for tea!

What makes the varnish a particular issue is that I have alot of allergies chemical wise and have discovered I have an allergy to floor varnish too! Great! I have a sore throat, painful chest, am very shaky (which is horrible) and have tingling in my lips. No good. I'm using my asthma inhaler but no more antihistamines allowed as on a betahistine for vertigo. It never rains.....

The fact is, I'm not worried about me it's my guys I'm worried about. The smell is so strong and it's fumes essentially. We have to keep windows open 25/7 (gosh-never used that phrases before) and it's COLD! I can also still smell it. When I dash to Ernie and Bobbi I feel so much better-I can breathe but the rest of my guys can't come so it's no good. Tom virtually is living outside and not sure if it's the fumes. Humphrey and Jacob are on antibiotics for long term respiratory problems so I'm scared to death about them. These door are neighbours from hell so didn't have the decency to come round and warn us about this-nor did they the other side of them. When I saw the girl and asked her about it she told me it was going to go on 'all year as we're doing the whole place up'-that was just before she shut the door in my face. Classy!

When I moved here it was a lovely road-now we have alot of crime-particularly aimed at vechiles and the outside of our properties. The police are here all the time doing door to door about the latest crime-it's horrible. At night people run past banging on the windows and shouting and swearing until goodness knows when as we're on a 'pub route' apparently. Day and night there's cars and motorbikes racing up and down; combined with the partying neighbours from hell it's become unbearable living here to be honest.

The thin walls mean we hear every conversation, every argument, every time they have visitors round-shouting and shrieking until late. Sorry, I'm feeling really low and they've just got home-that awful sound of their front door slamming signals their homecoming. Bad every night of the week but Friday is particularly feared as it marks the beginning of the weekend. In the Summer it's even worse-they have all day barbecues-my little garden that I used to love becomes out of bounds-you can't breathe and it's intimidating when there's so many of them. My poor animals are afraid to go out so we're left inside with the windows shut to keep the smoke out day after day.I just have reached the end of my tether on this I think, and I'm just so tired which doesn't help.

I should go-I'm too moany and I think cuddle with my bunnies and puss cats is in order. I just feel so responsible for them-I can't change things and I hate that I can't protect them-can't even ensure they can breathe clean and safe air. Sorry guys-useless post this with a card on it's side and me fed up-try again soon!! I'll try and sort out the photo and details of items used too though it's obviously little Tilda on a swing.

Your radiance lights up the sky

Apologies for the gloomy photo-it looks like it's going to rain very hard soon-typical as need to pop out! Another Sugar Nellie stamp-how could I resist the little birds? I just had a play with this and had tonnes of fun! I paper pieced the girls dress, top, hair and boots as well as the bow in her hair and bird box. I used Stampin Up markers to do colouring in and attempted rosy cheeks for the first time! I used my Silent setter to make the hole in the bird box, or how would the little birds get in and it's baby birds time soon!

I used up a few things from my stash which I'm pleased with. The gorgeous paper rose and other bloom are as I used on the scrapbook layout for 'The beautiful and very brave Sophie' and from Sarah's cards. The bird brad however, is from Papermania and I've had it an age but it's perfect for this card! I have no idea by the way why Mr Blogger has turned my photo around though I suspect he has an issue with the size of it! I'm not very PC literate so won't try and fix it or I'll end up losing everything. Don't get neck ache though by looking at the photo too long!



The star buttons are also something that have been hanging out in my button jar for ever. I wasn't completely sure about them on this card-not sure if they look a bit 'plasticky' but with the Stampin Up chocolate chip grosgrain I think (hope) the nasty plastic look is diluted at least.



Sentiment wise I used an All Night media stamp which was one of the first stamps I ever bought. I always feel I'm lacking in basic, small sentiments but have a few with really lovely messages and I think this one fits the bill on this occasion nicely.

Other than that my Stampin Up scalloped punch got another outing (are you bored yet?) and the rest of the card is a mixture of utterly gorgeous Basic Grey papers-Sultry and Sugared to be precise. I do have some 12" x 12" theoretically for scrapbooking but in reality more for looking at and going 'ahhh'. I love the 6" x 6" for cardmaking though as the pattern is reduced and so is far more suitable for cards.

My favourite Basic Grey paper set thus far is 'Perhaps' (I LOVE IT!!) but the 12" paper pattern is far too large and overwhelming for cards, whereas the 6" is perfect and I mean PERFECT in every sense of the word!!! This card is bigger than 6" in height but it didn't matter as I layered the papers anyway and for 6" x 4" cards the smaller papers easily cover the card if you choose.I just matted with random bits of card from my stash-no need to use really nice stuff when you only see a millimetre or so so my Stampin Up stuff stayed in it's box for this card! Oh, just fibbed a bit! I did use Chocolate Chip for the girl and sentiment but I don't have any other choclate card!




I had alot of fun making this card and have to say that I'm pretty chuffed with the result. I'm really enjoying my cardmaking again after a horrible mojo drought and my confidence is coming on slowly but surely. Having a nice sunny day helps of course, I'm cheerier as regular readers of this blog will know, but also the light lends itself so much better to cardmaking. It's so nice to be able to see colours accurately and patterns too. I definitely feel like making fresh cards, Spring clearly comes to cardmaking land too!

Ingredients:
Sugar Nellie girl with birds stamp by Leanne Ellis
All Night Media sentiment stamp
Basic Grey papers-Sultry and Sugared
Maya Road ribbon charm
Stampin Up chocolate chip narrow grosgrain ribbon
Stampin Up Chocolate Chip card
Stampin Up scalloped border punch
Stampin Up markers
Blooms from Sarah's cards
Bird brad from Papermania
Star buttons unknown
Europa card
Royal & Langnickel hammered card blank

Being a Domestic Goddess

OK, so I've shown you my lemon meringue pie; this is the only other thing that gets me near an oven! I've always had a bit of a soft spot for Nigella Lawson and adored her first husband John Diamond the Times journalist who sadly died from cancer several years ago. The Times isn't the same without him and I still flick straight to the back page looking for him even now.

Alas Father Christmas hasn't been so encouraging of my Nigella crush recently so I've not got her most recent books but I do have a few and the muffins above are from 'How to be a Domestic Goddess'.

I actually haven't cooked for a while now as I got a new oven that was lousy at cooking-ironic huh? This oven actually burnt things, or specifically the bottom of things and I assure you with hands on heart that it was the oven and not me!

Recently I got a new microwave/grill/oven which is fab! It's brilliant for me for many reasons including the fact that sitting on the worktop as it does means I don't have to bend down with heavy things to gain access to the oven. Mobility wise I am extremely appreciative and grateful for this. The oven works in essence as a microwave does, even in it's 'oven' capacity, so you choose the time the food needs to be cooked for. Once it reaches this time, it beeps several times then turns itself off. It has a fan that then kicks in, thus removing the possibility of food carrying on cooking and burning as I continueside-tracked as ever, oblivious to all of this due to my terrible memory problems! This alone makes the most almighty difference to my life.

Most brilliantly of all, this is an oven that cooks and does not burn things unless programmed incorrectly. Hallelujah!

I'm thrilled (yes I need to get out more!) and so have found myself in the midst of a cooking frenzy and am compelled by unknown forces (possibly hormonal or just because I'm female and like scrummy things) to make muffins, and then double quantity muffins, then Lemon Meringue pie and a few more muffins (OK double quantity again) and then a couple more(or maybe more than that) Lemon meringue pies!

In the past

I've also had a Flapjack addiction and have no idea how I've thus far resisted the rather sticky and torn flapjack page in my cookbook (also Nigella I believe) and I've always had a certain fondness for Banana and Honey tea bread (a pattern emerges) which again I've somehow not re-visited as yet! Worry ye not! I will get there I assure you!

I actually have as yearning for something orangey so need to have a good search through the recipe books and see if I can find anything easy peasy to make and yet highly scrumptious to eat. I do have a project in mind, only thwarted thus far by a lack of peanut butter. My dreadful memory is working against me here as I keep forgetting to buy some and the jar we have has been raided to almost extinction already. I must remember soon though, I'm chomping at the bit to make some Snickers Muffins!! Snickers + Muffins = Gorgeousness!

Yep, you've guessed it, another Nigella recipe but come on, this is the woman who cooks with Coca Cola-you've got to admire her for managing to create the most unhealthy and utterly divine food possible.

Oh, dear, I've got a serious issue with crumbs littering my keyboard now and to get them out I did the incredibly stupid yet at the time so obvious idea of blowing them free!

Astonishingly, it appears that banana and honey muffin crumbs aren't the only thing to fall victim to the crevice between 'w' and 'e' and 'j' and 'k' and so forth. A dust storm has emerged from my keyboard and raised the ugly concept that maybe, just maybe we've a bit of a dusty home. My right eye has something (possible many things) in it and it hurts. Why is the obvious generally also the most stupid? Why with the balance of hindsight do obvious things seems so 'obviously stupid'?

Nope, considered the dusty home idea and flung it out of court-one dust storm need not lead to extreme measures-need to calm down, a bit of dust never killed anyone (the fluff could do with C.S.I. to identify it's origins possibly-or maybe not as it'll be skin-YUCK) but I'm certain dragging an extremely heavy Dyson around can and has! ***I actually did do some hoovering or Dysoning today so I can take it easy now and polish my housekeeping halo-seems I am a bit of a Domestic Goddess after all.........

*** Mr Dyson I was just being humorous of course, please don't trouble your legal team to sue me for suggesting that Dysoning can and has killed people!! Gulp!

Showing off my hodgepodge!

I thought I'd do a card using the Polka Dot punches Stampin Up set that was available only during Saleabration. This set is courtesy of Jeannette-a lovely, lovely set, thank you! The hodgepodge hardware is also courtesy of a fab offer from Jeannette where you pay a certain amount to get a partial set to try. Jeannette's also offering this with papers and pretties and I think she may have the odd spot available still on a ribbon deal-not sure-pop over and see.

I've never used the hodgepodge before but I was struggling to finish the card sentiment wise. I'd been so used to not having the hodgepodges that I forgot I did now have some and when I spotted this small frame, I wondered and tried it and think it is just right!

Best disappear for now, need to feed the birds before it gets dark and it's getting darker rapidly. It's also getting extremely chilly-I've just been down to Ernie and Bobbi (for the second time I hasten to add) and given them more food and changed their water as I forgot the bottle of water when I went earlier. The guys wouldn't exactly be short of water though as it rained extremely hard when I was there this morning. As a result of getting soaked, I put my gloves on the radiator to dry and forgot to retrieve them when I went back just now. My poor hands are so cold! Picking wet dandelion leaves and Sow Thistle on a cold still Winter's evening isn't the best idea when you're prone to painful hands when cold! What could I do though? My bunnies want dandelions, they get dandelions and when I've picked them when it's hailing/raining/snowing and snow on the ground, conditions such as those this evening are by comparison a breeze!!

Ingredients:
(All from Stampin Up)
Polka Dot Punches stamp set
Happy sentiment from retired set
Designer paper (retired but still avaialble)
Real Red card
Real Red and Chocolate Chip inkpads
Silver Hodgepodge Hardware (frame and both sets of brads)

A quick hello

Just a quick hello and a card before you all think I've been abducted by aliens! The reality is considerably less interesting as I'm just feeling pretty awful at the moment.The culprit this time is ongoing vertigo which is worsening and starting to really get me down. I've had problems with vertigo before and have had what I call 'background' vertigo for several years which tends mainly to raise it's ugly head when I lie down.

Before Christmas the vertigo increased in severity and it's essentially 24/7 vertigo now. It is not nice and I really struggle to stay on my feet sometimes. I even get big 'waves' of it when I'm sitting down and being perfectly still. I've been back and forth to the GP each 'back' bit clutching another different lot of medication that it's hoped will alleviate the symptoms; each 'forth' because it hasn't.

I feel very nauseous as you can imagine living in a world that's forever spinning, and I'm utterly exhausted. I'm always tired thanks for M.E. but this is different, quite simply I feel I could go to bed to sleep throughout the day and by the evening I'm struggling to keep my eyes open when Eastenders is on!

My GP says the tiredness is due to the strain mentally and physically of trying to keep a 'grip' and stay on my feet and hopefully walking in the direction I want to (which is harder than it sounds for me). She said it's also tiring as it's so frightening and it's true it isn't pleasant at all and I am worried about what is causing it and if it will go away or carry on like this forever which is an unbearable thought.

Anyway, I have more tablets to take as well as some other tablets I've been given so this is the big guns by the sounds of it! I have to go back again in a week, so back along that well trodden path again...

Not sure if you're all totally asleep (other people's health can be so boring I know) but back to more interesting matters. I latterly have discovered the joys of Sugar Nellie. I'm not into all of the children stamps (and there's a phenomenal amount of them on the market), but I do like Tilda though not the baby who's a bit scary! I adore the girl on the card above part of the range by Leanne Ellis. The range is so pretty and lovely. I really, really, really like them!

This is my very first attempt at a card and I hope I've done the beautiful stamp justice. I wanted to do a pretty card to reflect the character's prettiness and I'm pleased with the result-I'm getting better at playing with papers I think though still lots of practice to be done.

Sorry I've not been here alot but been shattered, too tired to blog and too tired to play-too tired even to blog hop!!! Shock! Horror! Gasp!

I'm trying to play a bit with my cardmaking but it's alot of looking up and down and it's not good with vertigo alas. I'm off to cuddle my bunnies now ( my calming medicine) and I'm sure Basil will take part as when there's cuddling going on Basil always seems to know and appears from nowhere to join in! Ahhhh!

Ingredients:

Royal & Langnickel cardblank
Sugar Nellie Leanne Elllis rubber stamp
Pebbles paper
Paper blooms from Sarah's cards
Pink lace from haberdahery department
Stampin Up sentiment
Stampin Up Old Olive & Barely Banana card
Stampin Up markers
Papermania gems
Stazon black ink

Another bunny & a bit happy/sad

All this lovely sunshine is contributing to a really positive and sunny outlook hence this rather cheerful card. I've been struggling with my colouring in of images (an ongoing battle) and thought I'd be brave and tackle my constantly overlooked and much feared H20's. I got some H20's a good couple of years or so ago and had such high hopes for them as everyone was talking about them at the time. When they arrived, I adored the little containers full of jewel like colours but apart from doing paper swatches of colours I never managed to do anything especially productive.

Inspired once again by Jeannette (honestly her blog is choc a block full of so many techniques) who is clearly a HUGE fan of H20's I set about the transition from paper swatches to full blown colouring in!!! Well, Rome wasn't built in a day, but I managed to find just about the right colours for the above bunny and flowers in my teeny weeny H20 collection. The bunny colour I'm especially pleased with. I do have a problem though. I don't actually know what colour I used to colour in my bunny as I just took the tops off all the H20's, spritzed them with water, waited (all of about .5 of a second!) and then did a few colour swatches and then dived straight into colouring the bunny! Brave or what?

Whatever the colour is (and I will of course work it out one day), I'm really pleased with it. It's a lovely sort of caramel (nope none of the H20's are called caramel). The roses are a sort of reddy-pink (Ok, hands up I can't remember that one either) but the green was called (drum roll please) SAGE!!! At least I think it was! hee! hee! It's not the perfect green but it's the only green I have so sage green it was. Oh no, just remembered, there's actually two browns used. Oh dear I am useless!

Moving on swiftly, I adore this Elzybells stamp and it was one of the first stamps I bought. The bunny is so gorgeous and I'm sure he's smiling. Yes, I think he's a he too-not sure why, probably as women don't tend to give bunches of roses though this image could be a lady bunny thrilled at having received a big bunch of roses....um..got you thinking now!

I'm being a good girl and doing quite well at using up stash. The papers are K & co (and very nice they are too) and I've managed to find a use for one of my lovely Love Elsie chipboard buttons that I have and never seen able to find a purpose for on one of the hydrangea (love hydrangeas) blooms. I did struggle to use the ribbon as I think I'd like to just keep it to look at but it works so well I think that it was a 'meant to be kind of thing'. Oh, just from a local haberdashery shop-ooh I love that word-haberdashery, haberdashery, haberdashery.

I decided to continue the scalloped theme after punching out the bunny. I'm not sure I chose to do this, more that I am compelled to being as I am utterly bewitched by the Stampin Up scalloped border punch. I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE it! Ok, I'm a bit behind the pack on this but I thought I could resist it. I now know how certifiably mad I was to resist it so long as it is fab and makes a real difference to a card.

I will try not to do every card with scallops but I think some praise is due being as I did resist doing all the card edges in scallops too, and it wasn't easy. My hand (firmly holding the said punch) moved all of it's own accord towards the card edges and it took all my strength to resist and put the punch away and out of sight (though it called to me LOUDLY). Oh, mustn't forget the Making memories rub on-without which the card wouldn't be what it is!

Back to gloomy cards soon according to dear (voice of doom) Len the neighbour. For the past week, whenever I've happily mentioned how cheery I feel when the sun is shining dear (um!) Len has said 'I don't want to be the conveyer of bad news but it's going to get very cold and snow and the end of the world is nigh'. Oh, sorry, he didn't say anything about the end of the world being nigh, it's just when he starts his gloomy weather forecast I can't help but feel he is being a prophet of doom!! Yes, it may well get cold and even snow but Len doesn't have to tell me and change my smiling face into a sad one does he? He could pretend he hasn't heard the weather, it's not as if I asked him for the weather forecast, but no, stomp, stomp, stomp all over my (sun reliant) happy mood!!

On a serious note, I've really come to have a much better understanding of my SAD (Seasonal Affective Disorder). When the sun shines I feel almost a bit hysterical with happy, positive thoughts and a belief that I can do anything. If it's gloomy I want to stay in bed and I'm useless at everything! I'm not sure if it's getting worse but I certainly believe the poor Summer's have made things worse by having so many negative and gloomy days. I've read a bit about SAD recently and it's actually unusual to have symptoms all year round-most people just suffer from October to February. Trust me to be weird and get it all year round-or is that the SAD and melancholy speaking?! Clearly I've found another reason why I need to move to a sunnier and warmer climate.

My guys would love it too (apart from the travelling, none of us would like that), with all this 'pussy cat and bunny rabbit weather' (as we call nice sunny days!), I've been up and down opening the back door every hundreth of a second for Tom (cat flaps are demeaning apparently). Basil, Jacob and Humphrey have been doing a lot of 'indoor sunbathing'. We've all been much happier, Bobbi and Ernie have been warmer too and we don't want any more cold weather and snow thank you very much!!!

Bye for now.