Madcap Manor

Oh dear, this is not a very good photo! Last night my daughter and I saw the Moscow Ballet Company perform 'Swan Lake' at the Civic Hall. It was tremendous!! This card is for the lady at Church who organised the tickets. The challenge at Less is More is to use 3 squares on your Clean and Simple card, so I'm entering this there. The hedgies are PB, of course! I cut them out and popped them on foam pads. I used Promarkers (surprise!!) and glittered their skirts. The squares were punched from plain card using a Woodware punch, then I went round the edges with Distress Inks: Shabby Shutters, Worn Lipstick and Broken China. The text is also PB. Thanks for looking, and I hope you're keeping warm on this cold day! luv, Mags x Promarkers: Ivory, Pastel Pink, Cool Grey 1 - 4, China Blue, Blue Pearl, Mint Green, Pastel Green, Blossom, Pink Carnation

Here's my very first DT offering! The Dream Valley Challenge theme is s nice simple one: Anything Goes! Here's a description of what's wanted and the yummy prizes: Well our first challenge is finally here and what an exciting day it is for us and hopefully for you too. For our first wee Challenge we want you to make anything you like! Its that easy! Normally our Challenges will run fortnightly but this challenge will be for only one week! All you have to do is make anything you like, card, scrapbook page, altered item jewellery etc, ANYTHING GOES!! We have some fab prizes up for grabs for 3 lucky winners! 1st Prize £10 voucher for Lili of the Valley 2nd prize is Fashionista and Dude Simply Sassy set and 3rd prize is wee Windswept Simply Sassy There are pictures on the blog if you want more details. USUALLY THE CHALLENGES WILL BE FORTNIGHTLY, BUT THIS ONE ONLY LASTS A WEEK!! Ok, on to my card at last! The image is Melinda with a Basket of Muffins from Whiff of Joy's

Don't forget that the first Dream Valley Challenge starts on Sunday! It's going to be soooo good! luv, Mags x

Morning, all! Huzza! It's nearly the weekend and I think the sun is trying to shine! Put it this way: it's not raining and there are a few blue splodges in the sky. Spring is on its way!! Ok, that's enough waffle. Here is one of the quirky Lil' Lolita Fashionettes: This is 80s Sookie. Isn't she fun? The hair! The leg-warmers! The cycle shorts! The ra-ra skirt! She always makes me smile. I'm entering this card for Tickled Pink Challenge who want a TAG of some kind. The sketch is once again from this weeke's Sketch Saturday The card is tag-shaped: I wanted to use a luggage tag for the layer behind Sookie, but it's the wrong size and Sookie looked as though she was banging her head against the string tie as she was dancing! Very uncomfortable, don't you think?? Papers are Basic Grey 'Sugar Rush' which is one of the many paper pads I have in my stash which I stroke and pet and don't use because they're too beautiful. I am DETERMINED to

Dear Melly has started a new Challenge Blog called Dream Valley Challenges . And I'm on the DT! It's my first ever DT, and I haven't stopped grinning since I got the e-mail yesterday! Here are the Challenge Blog details: Welcome to Dream Valley Challenges! We hope you will join us for our fortnightly challenges. Every other Sunday a fab new challenge will be set with a wee prize for the winner! The Design team range from experienced crafters to newbies but all with great talents! The challenge is for crafters of all styles and ages! We want to see everyones crafty style! So go on, join in!! hugs Dream Valley Challenges The first challenge is this Sunday, and as it's the first it lasts a week. Do pop over and have a look. I am in awe of the talents of my fellow teamies! luv, Mags x

Grab a cuppa, this is going to take a while! I have an award from Mel ! The conditions of this Award are . . . 1. Make a post linking back to the person who gave you the award! 2. Share 7 random things about yourself 3. Award 7 recently discovered bloggers with this award 4. Contact these bloggers and tell them they've won the award. 7 random things about me. Hmmm 1 I was a librarian for 12 years, until the children came along! 2 I love the tv series 'Primeval.' 3 I prefer white wine to red 4 I make a mean lentil curry 5 I have the opposite of green fingers: anything I grow tends to die. I've decided to stick to papercrafted flowers. 6 My favourite colour is... This week it's green. Next week, who knows? 7 My ideal relaxation is making cards while listening to the cricket with a big mug of real coffee. Now. 7 recently discovered bloggers... This is SO HARD! 1 Annmaree 2 Donna 3 Caryn 4 Jill 5 Pops 6 Lythan 7 Stephanne Okay, I shall be back shortly with some AMAZING

Evening, all! Here's a card for Sunday Sketch and Stamp . This is the sketch: It wasn't until I'd nearly finished my card that I realised what a great sketch it would be for an SF or science geek! The sketch looks like a moon passing in front of the planet Saturn, with the horizontal strip representing the Rings! Yes? No? Anyhoo, the image is Little Goth Girl by Sugar Nellie, from Funky Kits . Papers are a mix of Kate Knight (a mag freebie) Daisy Bucket (from Dies to Die For and a Nitwits download. Flowers are Wild Orchid Crafts and also some from stash. Raffia is also from stash - it's a bit of a pig to stick down, isn't it? Pretty, though. I used Nesties, and a Woodware punch for the leaves. The sentiment is by The Greeting Farm. The purple gems are from stash, and I stickled all the die-cut shapes and the leaves - oh, and the skull-and-crossbones barrette in her hair! I hope you're all having a good half-term: may those of you at home enjoy a break, and may

Afternoon, all! It's a grey, chilly, dank day today and my feet were so cold at church this morning! Hurry up, Spring! We can always make cheerful springtime cards in the meantime, of course! This one is for two challenges: Less is More whose theme is 'Spring' and Penny Black Saturday Challenge who want Mens' Cards. I loved the technique that the lovely Jules used on a card a few weeks ago, when she paper-pieced one of the pretty, sketchy PB flowers. So I decided to have a go. Actually, this is my second attempt, as I chose the wrong shades for my first attempt, and made a dark purple SPLODGE. That's what it looked like, anyway! The papers are Papermania Capsule Collection. The sentiment stamp is from an unmounted collection that's lost its cover, so all I can say is it's not Woodware, who very sensibly print their name on the protective acetate. The flower stamp is PB 'Gossamer.' Thanks for looking! luv, Mags x

This card is for a chum of my daughter's, who reaches the ancient age of 24 tomorrow! The image is The Greeting Farm, one of the Oliver and Amelia sets. The sketch is this week's Sketch Saturday and I really like how it showcases the Basic Grey 'Origins' paper. The buttons are from the button-box I inherited from my MiL, the little ones have a really pearly sheen. I used embroidery thread to make the ties. I have just realised I forgot to add a sentiment to the bottom right corner - wot a plonker! It's too late now, the card will be out of the front door in about 5 minutes! I hope you're all having a good weekend! Thanks for looking! luv, Mags x Promarkers: Tan, caramel, cinnamon, Burnt Sienna; Dusky Pink, Putty, Pastel Pink; Honeycomb, Burnt Orange; Powder Blue, Sky Blue, Azure; Ivory, Lime Green, Lime Zest, Tulip Yellow, Gold

Mel has candy until the 9th March. Hop over and look at her blog - the exploding box she posted about this week is exquisite! luv, Mags x

Another of my hubby's colleagues is pregnant (it must be something in the water!) I certainly never expected to get so much use of this Bugaboo set! The current challenge at Catch the Bug is 'A New Fold' so I tried a gatecard fold. Here is the other side which shows the fun sentiment! And here's the inside with space for writing: Papers are Nitwits again. I cut out the mat using a Nestie, then measured across and down the die's cutting edges to get the rights size and shape for the image. Flowers are Wild Orchid, ribbon is Hobbycraft, leaves are a Woodware punch, and I stickled with Waterfall stickles. I also used Glossy Accents on her specs and shoes. Another pants picture - the card isn't that wonky, honest, guv! Thanks for looking luv, Mags x PS Sorry the pictures aren't very good, I had to take them in a hurry yesterday so hubby could give the card today! Promarkers: Putty, Dusky Pink, Pastel Pink; Cinnamon, Cocoa; Vanilla, Ivory, Powder Blue, Sky Blu

The current issue of 'Cardmaking and Papercraft' Magazine has some lovely Faye Whitaker chipboards as the free offer. I rustled up this card using Nitwits papers (Toy store Too). The flowers are made with a Woodware daisy punch, stickled, and with a blob of liquid pearls in the middle. MS supplied the doily lace punch, and Hobbycraft supplied the ribbon. The card is for a friend, who's a marvellous mum! Well, we all need to be appreciated, don't we?! Thanks for looking! luv, Mags x

There's a new 'clean and simple' challenge blog, Less is More whose current challenge is One Layer and a theme of flowers. Now, CAS is a real challenge for me, because you can't use embellies to cover mistakes! I had a go yesterday, since in my Grand Tidy Up I have found my chalks, which had been put away 'in a safe place.' So I versamarked this Hero Arts stamp ('Pastel Petals', it's a set of 4) and got to work with cotton wool, blue and purple chalks - and a rubber to clean up the bits of chalk that went over the edge. The faux stitching gives it a bit more definition, I think. (The stitching is meant to be wobbly and rustic, honest!!) Sentiment is PB. It was a very quick card - it took me longer to nerve myself to stamp on the card than to colout it! Also my hubby likes it!! Anyway, have a look at the blog, I know it's going to be inspiring for male and non-cute cards! Thanks for looking, and have a good Wednesday! luv, Mags x PS The photo is

One of the babies at our Friday morning baby club is being baptised on Mothering Sunday, so obviously I had to sit down and make a card! (Ironing? What's that?) I used Dawny P's sketch from Lili of the Valley Challenge 84 which is a beaut! Papers are Pink Petticoat (try saying that fast 3 times!) Vintage Rose (There's £2 off until Feb 28th.) The papers came free with Quick Cards, and I love them so much I bought the download! The sentiment stamp is also from a mag, but I can't remember which one! I also used MS heart punch, inside-out rounder punch and Woodware leaf punch, Wild Orchid flowers, pink gingham ribbon from stash, and stickles on every edge! Have a good day - I'm waiting for my daughter to get dressed so we can take the train to Hertford and buy her a trouser suit for the wedding she's going to on Saturday. Thanks for looking! luv, Mags x Promarkers: Blush, Dusky Pink, Pastel Pink; Buttercup, Canary, Gold; Blossom, Pink Carnation; Ice Grey 1, 2, 3;

My daughter asked for a card with this gorgeous WoJ stamp for a friend who's getting married. I always have a lot of trouble stamping this image, for some reason part of the greenery never wants to show! I'm entering the Whiff of Joy Challenge whose theme is 'Love is in the Air.' I used Promarkers, natch, and gold glitter on the bride's headdress and on the flowers, and liquid pearls on the hearts. The flowers (Wild Orchid) have been sprayed with glimmer mist, which doesn't show in the picture at all, chiz. The ribbon is also sparkly - unfortunately my embellies have more or less covered the MS hearts border, but it's the thought that counts. The fabulous DP is from Bearly Mine Designs The leaves were punched from some gorgeous gold paper which I found while having another Grand Tidy Up, and the pearls are from stash. Edited to Add: I forgot to say that I went over the edges of the papers with a gold ink pad to give a bit of definition! Thanks for looking,

Welcome to my new followers! I hope you like my waffle and my cards! Just a quick post before I zoom off to the Toddler Group! I made this for my sister, who's had a lot of niggly things going wrong with her house! So I thought a happy Tilda card would cheer her up. I have neglected this Tilda, which is a shame, as she is so pretty! The papers are new: Pink Petticoat Vintage Rose, and came with 'Quick Cards Made Easy' magazine. I love them, they are adorable! The sketch is a lovely one from Sketch and Stash Challenges and I'm sure I'll use it again. The flowers are from Wild Orchid and also from stash. I had a list of the Promarkers, but I'm in the middle of what my mum called 'A Grand Tidy-Up' and I think I grandly tidied-up the list into the bin. Wot a plonker, eh? I have started spring cleaning! All the computer cables, booklets, discs, bits'n'pieces now have their own little home - it took about 3 hours to go round the house finding all the

Here's some blog candy to celebrate Bows and Berries Digital Stamp Shop Hop over and have a look! luv, Mags x

The current Tickled Pink Challenge is to use punching. I cropped this stamp of Birthday Luca and gave him red hair and a blue suit because the recipient's favourite video game character looks rather like this! The papers are: blue striped from stash; Basic Grey Lime Ricky; and Paper Artsy Rum and Raisin. I used Martha's zigzag punch on two layers, and a ribbon from stash. The 4 gems were a Chrissy pressy from my daughter - she says it's much easier to get me things now I'm a cardmaker! Thanks for looking! luv, Mags x Recipe: Promarkers Blush, Putty; Vanilla, Honeycomb, Burnit Orange; Azure, Powder Blue, Sky Blue, Royal Blue, Indigo. I stickled his buttons and earring - he's a very snazzy chap!

This is the Valentine card I've made for my hubby. He does not do cute. Not at all. He also doesn't do flower embellishments, I learned on Sunday. Grrr! Actually, he doesn't really do Valentine's Day, but I'm not going to let that stop me from making him one! I had no idea what to do, and then I saw that Crafts and Me Challenge want RED this week, and Crafty Cardmakers want Hearts. I put the two together and came up with this very red card! The stamp is ages old, and came free with a mag. The flowery image is the actual stamp, the solid image is the back, which is made of foam. I inked with embossing ink and embossed with glitter red powder. The red borders of the squares are holographic red card. Neither the glitter nor the shine of the holographic paper has come out in the photo, but irl it is sparkly! The heart gem was a RAK from my daughter, and the lovely heart paper is a download from Pink Petticoat I love those cute little hearts! Now, this next card is on

Sharon has candy to celebrate her blogaversary! If you don't know her blog, hop over and take a look, she makes some marvellous creations!

Sorry I've not posted for a while! I haven't been online much because I've spent quite a lot of time helping my sister redecorate her house in Oxford (she doesn't have the internet) - I now have a pair of jeans that's splattered with cream paint! Very Modern Arty, but I don't think I'll win the Tate Prize!! Talking of awards, I have been sent one by Christine ! Thank you, Christine, this has made me really happy! Here are the conditions for the 'Love Blog' award. You have been TAGGED and want to participate? Create a post where you post the 'LOVE BLOG' image. You should also blog the person's link that gave you the award and inform her/him that you accept the award. You can then choose 3 - 5 favourite blogs which you also link in your post, then each blogger will inform you that they have been tagged. Ok, I tag: Mel at Sticky Bits of Paper Macpurp at purples, spurtles, crystals and beads Junie at Junie's Card Creations Though to be ho