Relentless femininity

Here is my ATC #1 for the Feminine collection - along with the pretty envelope. I often make these envelopes to keep the ATC's in but this is the first time I have decorated one. The ATC is made using a brown card blank which was blotted with a gold 'pretty colour' ink pad. A heeled sandal die-cut that I received with an ATC was used as the main image (using spray glue) and then red sequins added. Red and brown (with hints of greens and pinks) are the main colours in our bedroom.
The envelope is a basic ATC shape with the corners rounded and little finger holes added at the top to enable the ATC to be easily removed, and little tabs to hold it closed. To decorate I added a 3D brown dress, a red butterfly sticker and red corner stickers to the bottom corners.

To enter into:
Anything Goes - crafting by designs; catch the bug
Packaging (envelope) - hanna and friends
Bedroom colours (red and brown) - less is moore

I also finished listening to audio book 'Relentless' by Simon Kernick - another crime novel. This is about a man who hears his friend die after uttering his address, and how his life changes in the following 24-48 hours. I really enjoyed the way the story jumps between perspectives to increase the tension, and also keep you a little mad at the main character for 'being dumb' lol. The story progresses at a good pace and you are never left wishing it would get to the point. It does finish on a bit of a cliff-hanger, but in this case I think it works well as it ensures the drama remains until the end. However, being a clipper audio book it does have random repetitions (in this case it is just the blurb off the back so is not an issue really).

Finally, an update on my birth sampler @ 24.5 hours.

Thank you
Tinz

...and still more feminine

Here are two of my recent ATC collection - Feminine Thrills. I seem to have accumulated a large amount of feminine clothes stickers/toppers and thought these would come in useful for some ATCs.

So for the first card I took a red card blank and stuck a pink border sticker across the bottom. To the top I added three different types of handbag stickers, staggered slightly. To finish some little brown papermania gems were added above the border - A simple but effective ATC


The second card used a white card blank to which I added a denim dress topper. To compliment this I stuck three silver hearts down the left side and added some matching blue gloves at the top. Again simple and quick to make!

I wish to enter these into the following challenges:

Summer fun (summer dress) - V's Sweet Challenges

Inspired by a song (Devil with a Blue Dress by Mitch Ryder)  - DeepOcean #79; Crafty catz #234

Anything Goes - Suzy Bee; 613 Avenue Create (best friends option)

One Layer Card - allsorts 262

And as was requested - here is a photograph of my little red rump parakeets:

As for the vegetables - everything is starting to grow and wants to be planted out all at the same time, so I am currently being kept very busy. I have got my bean netting up and finally managed to plant the peas and runner beans out, and next is the pickling cucumbers, tomatillos and tomatoes I think. I also need to sow more fennel, beetroot and scorzenera and plant out some leeks at the second allotment (whilst still trying to keep on top of the weeds!!). I think a few extra hours are required lol.

Thank you for looking,
Tinz

Christmas Kisses with Fatal Remedies

I decided it was time to make a Christmas card again - this time using the large deer from the honey and hugs festive frolics clear stamp set. I started by making a card blank from Anita's pearlescent card. I stamped two different sizes of snowflakes onto pale blue vellum using versamark grey ink. The top of this sheet was torn and then it was adhered to the base card using vellum adhesive. A torn sheet of white poinsettias from a Christmas paper pack was then stuck to the bottom of the card. The stamp was stamped onto the same card as the base card and coloured in using promarkers from the rubber stamping set of 10 and set 1 pack of 12. I cut closely round the deer but left the base square, rounding the corners, and then attached it to the card. At the top I stamped some kisses and placed the sentiment of Christmas Kisses using red, stick-on letters. I attached some fabric flowers along the bottom to finish.

I am entering this card into the following challenges:
Anything Goes - crafting by designs; Completely Christmas
Flowers - Card Mania #48; Hobbybook Designer
K is for Kiss - abc Christmas
Cute - Glitter n sparkle #87
3 of something - (3 stamps - deer, snowflakes and kisses) - Crafty Hazelnuts #179
Critters - SOS #154
Rip it, Tear it - Craft your passion #216

I also promised some pics of the allotment - so here we go:

Onion bed - Autumn planted

Pond through wildlife garden

Potato bed

Finally - I have finished listening to Fatal Remedies by Donna Leon audio book. I am not sure if it was the reader or just the style of writing but I actually found it quite a difficult book to listen to, and I believe this is probably one of those books that is better to actually read yourself so that you can set the pace. The blurb on the back cover was also not accurate to the story as there was very little mafia involvement in the story at all, but it was indicated that this as the main idea. However, as a detective novel it certainly keeps you guessing throughout the story and you are unsure of how it is going to end. Being set in Italy it also shows a very different, but similar, form of policing which is intriguing.

Thank you for looking at my blog
Tina

Mousey - at the pub?

Hmm, speaking of mice I think I maybe need to get one out to defrost for the snake, I can hear her hunting round the viv!

Anyway, back to the post. If you like to read fantasy books can I recommend Beth Vaughan. I have just finished the three books based around a lady mercenary and found them unputdownable!! I constantly wanted to know what was going to happen next, and I especially liked the fact that the books overlap slightly, but each one is written from the perspective of a different person, so you see the scene from a different perspective.

I have two crafty makes to show you this time. The first is a Masculine card, which will probably be used for Father's Day as this is just around the corner. To make this card I took a base card from the Works, added some Anita's gold card and then layered some red 'Man's World' paper from Papermania over the top. To the centre of the card I placed a silver ribbon, layered with a black polka dot ribbon. The image was paper-pieced using the gold and red from the card backing, a wood textured beige for the base and pearlescent white from Anita's range for the froth, words and beer label. Gold promarker was used to highlight the beer pull handle. This was matted onto a metallic embossed card and adhered to the base card. Some golden balls were then added as embellishments.

 This is to be entered into the following challenges:

Male themed - Country View - Only Men Allowed; Sweet Stampin'; Delightful Challenges - It's a guy thing; Allsorts; Simplycreatetoo; Polkadoodles
Anything Goes - Simon Says Wed
Paperpiecing - CRAFT
Use dots - Stamping Boutique
Layer it up - Suzy Bee
Sketch - - Sketch n Stash

The second crafty make is this little mouse, who is made of pieces of fluffy fabric sewn together. I received the kit as a present for Christmas and have only just gotten around to making it up - but here he is finished and looking extra cute (although I do not think the snake would be impressed) lol.

I wish to enter this into the following challenges:
Anything BUT a Card - crafting by designs
Anything Goes - Crafty Catz
For the love of Animals - Delicious Doodles #90
Childs Play - A Little Bit Crafty

We may well have little red-rump eggs before too long as our two little birdies are starting to try building a nest and court each other (with lots of aerobic fighting), so we have bought them a nest box. I will keep you posted on any progress.

I will also try and remember to take some allotment photographs to share with everybody, but for now here is my little wildlife bed in my front garden  :).

Thank you for looking,

Tinz

The dark side of flowers

Here I am again, with a bit of a twist on a floral birthday card. I wanted a slightly darker theme (plus this was one of the challenge themes)whilst using a pretty feminine design.So I took a lilac flower motif, traced it onto red paper and cut it out using a craft knife (not a quick job!) and added a little metal 'handmade' brad to the top right. This was mounted onto a dark grey patterned paper, and then onto a card blank covered with red paper. A 3D birthday sticker was added to the bottom of the flower.

Anything Goes - Simon Says Wed
CAS - Card Mania
On the darker side - Delicious Doodles #88
Use metal - 613 Avenue Create; Glitter n Sparkle
Natures Glory - Country View #15

And also my recent update of my fish tank cross stitch. It is now at 54.5hours.

Hugz Tinz

Floral ATC collection

I have finally got a new laptop and can post pictures again yippee.

So here is my recent ATC collection that I have made. They are a Spring Bloom collection. I used a base ATC card, some patterned papers that I received with an ATC, ribbon, stickers and a corner rounding punch.

The patterned paper was cut into a strip that was adhered to the base card. The second paper was then cut to fit a particular sticker, and the corners rounded. This was then adhered slightly over the first paper.

For the two white card bases a complimentary ribbon was placed along the seam where the two papers overlapped. A floral sticker was then adhered to the central paper using foam pads, to allow overlapping of the ribbon, and fleur was added to the top using alphabet stickers.

For the red card base the corners were rounded. A sentiment sticker was placed on the bottom paper, and a Pepper and Friends sticker, after being placed on white card and cut around, adhered to the central paper using foam pads.

I am entering the collection into the following challenges:
Anything Goes - Divas by design
Colour Combo - C.R.A.F.T
Girly Creations - A creative Romance
Flower Power - paulaholifieldcrafts
Inspiration photo - Fussy and Fancy

Thank you for looking

Tinz

Wobbly shaped Christmas card

Hi everyone,

I will be adding challenges for this card to enter as I remember them. My computer did a standard windows update earlier today and now no longer wishes to function!!!  Slightly annoying - especially as I made the wobble for a particular challenge and I cannot remember whose it was! Nor do I know all the addresses as they are stored in my computers memory!!
Anyway here is the card:

Challenges to enter:  Completely Christmas - anything goes
Crafty hazelnut - let it shine (gold and glittery embossing powders and shiny peel-offs)
Winter Wonderland - holly and/or ivy (only holly on this one though)
CRAFT - Christmas
Stamping Boutique - Use a wobble


Thank you for looking
Tinz