2013 - My First Blogging Year in Review (and some favourites)

Hi there

Well, as 2013 comes to a close I wanted to share some thoughts and favourites with you.

I started making cards quite a few years ago but I never really stuck with it for any length of time.  So last year, after seeing some blogs listed in a magazine, I decided to have a look and find out what it was all about.  That was it, from that moment I was hooked and I've become addicted to cardmaking more than ever before.  Having absolutely no clue about how to create a blog, after a few months of following some of you 'Neet & Crafty' was born.  And what a wonderful year I've had!

It seems to be a crafty blog tradition with many of you to review and share your favourite creations from each year so I've decided to do the same.  I was going to pick a card from each month but most of my favourites were from the latter part of 2013.  Some of my early designs, well, what was I thinking! haha

So here goes...

Please click on the date link if you would like to see the original post.

26 February - This was my first really CAS card and I still love it.  All the lovely comments also gave me a real boost.  The photography, however, was rubbish! :D

1 March - This card gave me my first challenge recognition, Top 3 Featured Member at Muse.  You've no idea how happy this made me!

16 June - I was so delighted with this card.  I just loved the mix of Clearly Besotted Stamps products and the colour combo.

23 June - The combination of a natural card base, kraft cardstock and the gorgeous papers from Fancy Pants just made me smile.

23 July - I was so happy with this card, this subtle colour combo turned out to be one of my favourites

7 September - I think this is at the top of my favourites list, the anniversary card I made for my best friend.  I love everything about it, especially the buttons :)

12 September - I was so pleased with this New Home card I made for my brother and his girlfriend.  I love the simplicity and of course, the button and jute twine.

4 October - I had this stamp unused in my stash for months and once I inked it up I just loved it.  And clearly, as the year's gone on, I think clean and simple has become my favourite style.

9 October - I made this card with two new die purchases and was so happy with it.  I still have a very limited die collection but I will certainly be purchasing more in 2014.  I think they just add that little something extra.

5 November - I really struggle with masculine cards so was really happy when I managed to create this one for my chap's birthday.  I think I may create some more versions in the future, based on this design.

10 November - I wanted to include this one as I tried two new techniques and was really pleased with the result.  The first was embossing with dies which creates a lovely effect and adds interest to a one layer card.  The second technique was creating a background of words, it took me ages but worked really well in the end.

7 December - I wouldn't normally use flowers on a wedding card but loved the end result of this one.  These stamps from Uniko Studio had been on my wishlist for so long and I'm so glad I finally managed to purchase them.

And there you have it, I managed to choose 12 cards, albeit not one from each month.  CAS is definitely becoming the style that I love the most and I think this is the general direction in which I aim to continue.

I want to thank each and every one of you whether a follower, subscriber, reader or fellow blogger for all your wonderful comments, hints and tips, product advice and for generally making me feel so welcome in this crafting community.

I also want to specifically send a massive THANK YOU to Stephanie at Clearly Besotted Stamps for asking me to Guest Design for her September release, I feel so honoured to have been part of your team.  And special thanks also goes out to Lizy at Lizy's House of Cards for thinking of me and asking me to Guest Design for Sketch Saturday throughout October.  I had a wonderful time so thank you both SO MUCH xx

So all that remains is for me to say Happy New Year to you all.  I hope you have a fabulous night tonight whatever you're up to and I wish you and your nearest and dearest all the best for a happy and healthy 2014.

Much love

Happy Birthday Panel

Hi guys

I'm back with another card this afternoon, please scroll down for my first post of today.

This time I'm pairing up yet another entry for Less is More, to choose any previous challenge, with the latest challenge at ColourQ, #221.

So, again I asked my boyfriend to pick a number between 1 and 150 and this time he chose No 4.  The Week 4 Challenge at Less is More was a Recipe of 'Three Squares'.

Here's my card...

Apologies for the not great photography.  The lighting was very strange in my lounge today, no matter where I stood I was casting a shadow.

I started by stamping the base card using a very old wood-mounted stamp.  After cleaning off the stamp I then inked up sections of it in the three other colours and stamped this on a scrap of white cardstock.  I then used a small square die to cut out sections of the three coloured areas before adhering these to the card base in their original positions, popping up on some adhesive squares to add dimension.

The card looked like it required something else so I finished off by colouring in the hearts using co-ordinating ProMarkers.

Here is the ColourQ inspiration palette.

I love this colour combination, I think these are beautiful together but I actually think my card will be great to give to a guy.  I'll have to remember this combo as I always struggle with masculine cards.

Materials used:

• Stamp: Penny Black - "Birthday" Panel
• Ink: Versa Color - Neptune, Sky Blue, Mint and Sand Beige
• Die: Xcut - Nested Squares
• ProMarkers: Powder Blue, Pastel Green and Tan

Thanks for visiting and for your comments, I love receiving them and appreciate your feedback.

Take care and I hope to see you again tomorrow.

CAS Party!

Hi guys

Well, I was in a mood for crafting today so I decided to have another go at the latest challenge at Less is More which is to choose any previous challenge.

I didn't have a clue which one to choose so I asked my boyfriend to pick a number between 1 and 150 and he decided on 82.  So there you have it, I made this card based on Week 82 which was a Recipe challenge, being '3, 2, 1'.  I hadn't started blogging when this challenge was set previously so haven't attempted it before.

I also decided to enter another challenge at the same time, this being the latest at CASology where the theme is Party.

I had all sorts of 321 combinations going round in my brain but settled on this:

3 - Pearls

2 - Patterned Papers

1 - Stamped Sentiment

Materials used:

• Stamp: From an unknown set free with a publication
• Ink: Versa Color - Pine Cone
• Patterned Paper: Echo Park - Sweet Day 6x6 Paper Pad
• Dies: MFT Die-namics - Fishtail Flag STAX
• Pearls from stash

I'll be back tomorrow with my favourite creations from this year and who knows, I may ask him to pick another number later and have another go!

TTFN

My Favourite Five Christmas Creations

Hi there

I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas and are still tucking into a fridge-full of leftovers!

I've not had any crafty time since Christmas and my craft stash is still packed away so I have no card to share with you today but I thought I would use this opportunity to enter the challenge from Debby, over at A Scrapjourney which is to share our favourite five Christmas creations.

This is my first year of blogging and my first year of making Christmas cards.  I didn't make as many as I hoped I would but I was very pleased with how most of them turned out.  I've linked each one to the original blog post if you want to read more about them.

Number One

I made this one as part of my Guest Designer spot for Sketch Saturday in October.  I loved making this one and was thrilled with how it turned out.

Number Two

I love the simplicity of this one with all the white space and this one earned me Top 3 Featured Member status at Muse :)

Number Three

Has to be this one, as soon as I made this one for my chap it became one of favourites.

Number Four

This is one of six versions of the same design I used to make my main batch of Christmas cards.  I like them all but if I had to choose one it would be this one.  All six versions can be seen in the link above.

Number Five

This is the only project from this year that wasn't a card.  It was the advent present I made for my very best friend.  It took a bit of planning and a while to make but I know she had great fun opening one of these every day on the approach to Christmas.  As I know it made her happy, it just HAS to feature in my top five! :)

Looking at the above choices I think my favourite style is definitely leaning towards clean and simple, and that's the way its headed throughout the year.  

I hope to get a bit of crafting done in the next day or two and will be back with another post to share my personal favourite cards of 2013.

Thanks so much for visiting, your comments and ongoing support has been completely overwhelming this year.  I've had a lovely time hearing what you think and also learning so much from you all.

Take care

Cosy Snowman

Hi guys

I'm back today to share my final card this side of Christmas, having now tidied away my crafty mess for the second time!

This is the card I made for my chap and I'm really pleased with how this one turned out :)

I stamped the snowman image and coloured him in using ProMarkers and FlexMarkers before die cutting using a circle die.  I then used a smaller die from the same set of nested dies and stamped the first sentiment.  I then stamped a piece of background cardstock with a cluster of snowflakes stamp and the second sentiment.  I popped both die cuts up on 3D foam before tying some twine around the whole panel and attaching a heart button.  The whole panel was then adhered to the card base.

Materials used:

• Stamps: Penny Black - Sweet Snowman; Marion Emberson Designs - Sparkling Christmas; Personal Impressions - To My... (Sue Dix)
• Ink: Impress - Jet Black; Versafine - Onyx Black; Versa Color - Polar Blue
• Coloured with ProMarkers and FlexMarkers
• Dies: Xcut - Nested Circles
• Twine: Doodlebug - Brights Selection
• Button: Craftime Additions - Country Love

Challenge entries:

A Gem of a Challenge - Anything Goes

Addicted to Stamps and More - Anything Goes

Charisma Cardz Challenges - Anything Goes

Dream Valley - Christmas

Paper Pretties - Let It Snow

Passion for Promarkers - Include a Sentiment

Sketch Saturday - Anything Goes - Any Sketch: I chose #272

So now I take this opportunity of wishing you all a wonderful Christmas and very best wishes for a happy and healthy New Year - but hopefully I'll be back with more to share before 2014 makes an appearance!

Bye for now...I'm off to open the Baileys! :)

Festive Feline

Hi there

Today I have another Christmas card to share with you, this time its the card I made for my Mum.

She is currently looking after a friend's house whilst also cat-sitting for three little fur balls so I thought it appropriate that I made her a card featuring one of our feline friends!

Materials used:

• Stamps: Wild Rose Studio - Molly and Baubles; Clearly Besotted Stamps - For Everyone; Marion Emberson Designs - Sparkling Christmas
• Ink: Impress - Jet Black; Versafine - Onyx Black
• Embossing Folder: Free with a publication
• Die: Spellbinders Nestabilities - Classic Ovals Large
• Coloured with ProMarkers and Flexmarkers
• Twine: Doodlebug - Brights Selection
• Gems: Papermania - Glazed Gems (Iridescent)

Challenge entries:

Merry Monday - Use an Animal on your Christmas Card

Less is More - Choose a Previous Challenge - I chose Week 120 Theme - Cats or Dogs

Papertake Weekly Challenge - Christmas card

Passion for Promarkers - Include a Sentiment

Addicted to Stamps and More - Anything Goes

Just a short post today as got a few bits and bobs to do before Christmas and I'm at work tomorrow - luckily only a half day though :)

I hope all your Christmas plans are coming together nicely - not long now! 

Take care

Happy New Year

Hi there

I thought I'd have a little more craft time this afternoon and decided to have a go at creating a card for a few more challenges.

I've been meaning to have a go at the 10 Minute Craft Dash at Pretty Pink Posh for a long time but have never entered until now.  When I saw that the latest challenge was the last one for the foreseeable future how could I resist, however stressful it was! 

Here's my card...

This card was made purely using VersaMark ink and three different embossing powders.  I was going to use a black panel but decided to go for purple instead and I think this works great with the three powders.  I also chose a pearlescent card base to echo the shimmery theme.  I first stamped the three fireworks and embossed with the three powders, one at a time so I could shake the card off in different directions.  I then stamped the sentiment, being careful not to disturb the unheated powder already added, and added powder to this also.  I only wanted to heat the card once which is why I took this approach.  The card panel did warp slightly after being heated so I used strips of 3D foam instead of squares which helped to straighten it back out.

Materials used:

• Stamps: Clearly Besotted Stamps - Happy Days and Window Dressing
• Ink: VersaMark
• Embossing Powder: Rubber Stampede - Silver; All Night Media - Crystal Sparkle; Wow! - Aniseed Embossing Glitter
• Cardstock: Bazzill Basics Premium Cardstock; card base from stash

And, I succeeded and managed to finish the card within the 10 minutes!  Crikey, how fast does that time go?!  I think a few 'OMGs' may have left my mouth during that time! :D

Challenge entries:

Pretty Pink Posh 10 Minute Craft Dash - Anything Goes

CAS-ual Fridays - Happy New Year

Less is More - Choose a previous challenge (I chose week 144 - Dark Background with a splash of colour/ firework colours)
CAS on Sunday - Happy New Year

That's all for now.  Back to work tomorrow and Tuesday (boooo!) but hopefully I'll find some time very soon to share more of my projects.  

Thanks so much for visiting, your comments are always very much appreciated.

Snow Angel

Hi guys

A very quick post to share a card I made this morning as I woke up really early so decided to have a little crafty time :)

Materials used:

• Stamps: Ladybug Crafts Ink - Nikki & Friends; Paula Pascual Stamps - Christmas Messages
• Ink: Memento - London Fog; Versa Color - Celadon
• Paper: Dovecraft - Christmas Blues
• Coloured with ProMarkers and FlexMarkers
• Glitter Glue - Stickles - Star Dust

Challenge entries:

Crafty Cardmakers - Winter Fun

Passion for Promarkers - Include a Sentiment

Keep It Simple - Warm

Paper Pretties - Let It Snow

I'll be back later with more to share but have to dash as I have a friend coming round in a mo.

Have a fabulous Sunday x

Aqua Bling

Hi guys

I'm back today with another quick post to share another of my Christmas cards.

Apologies again for the poor photography, not liking these dark winter days!

 



Materials used:

• Stamps: Clearly Besotted Stamps - Modern Christmas
• Ink: Versa Color - Celadon and Silver
• Paper: Stampin' Up - Winter Frost Designer Series Paper
• Cardstock: Kanban - Sherbert Pips; white cardstock from stash
• Bling from stash

Challenge entries:

A Gem of a Challenge - Anything Goes
Addicted to Stamps and More - Anything Goes
Charisma Cardz Challenges - Anything Goes
Crafty Creations - Anything Goes
Creative Inspirations - Anything Goes
Dream Valley - Christmas
Papertake Weekly Challenge - Christmas
Simon Wednesday Challenge - Bling It On!
Stampin' for the Weekend - Anything Goes
Totally Papercrafts - Christmas - Non Traditional Colours


That's all from me at the moment, I have another couple of cards to share very soon. 

I hope you're having a lovely weekend, the weather down here in the South West is horrendous so I don't think I'll be venturing outside anytime soon!

Take care