2015 - Year in Review and Some Favourites

Hi there

May I start by wishing you all a very Happy New Year!

I was planning to write this post yesterday but was working all day and then completely ran out of time so I suppose New Year's Day is a good enough day to reflect on the previous year.  I've also been crafting today, catching up on Design Team commitments so have finally got my essential stash back out where no doubt it will remain until I need the table again next Christmas!


Design Teams

So, during 2015 I have remained on and love being part of the Design Team at Addicted to Stamps and More.  It's been sad to see some great teamies go but also great to have new members join the friendly team.

In May I was asked to be Guest Designer for a few weeks at Less is More and was then delighted when I was invited to join the team as a permanent member, alongside some lovely ladies.  Clean and Simple designs are my absolute favourites so I'm so lucky to be on this team creating CAS cards on a weekly basis.

July saw me join the CAS team at Happy Little Stampers.  Having worked with 'boss lady' Kylie at ATSM for some time I was delighted when I was chosen to join one of her teams and thrilled for her when she launched her very own stamp company.  I can't wait to see what new designs are coming up this year.

And finally, I had to pinch myself when Queen of Clean and Graphic, Ardyth, emailed me asking if I'd like to join the team at Muse. Er, helloooo!  Of course, I bit her hand off and started creating for Muse in July.  I love that there are no rules, I can create any type of card I want and love seeing how it inspires the participants.

So, to all my bosses and teamies at the above teams I would like to say a massive THANK YOU for having me, I'm having a blast!


Guest Design Work

At the beginning of the year I was lucky enough to be invited by the lovely Stephanie, owner of Clearly Besotted Stamps, to be a Guest Designer for the second time, this time for the January Release.  I absolutely LOVE Clearly Besotted and have soooo many CBS stamps and dies in my stash so this was an absolute honour to showcase her products.

I also had the pleasure of guest designing for Less is More, Uniko Challenge and twice for CASology.


Stash

I played around with a few new techniques last year, and the main reason for this was that I discovered and purchased my first Distress Inks!  I don't know how I managed without them and now plan to add a few more colours to my collection.

As usual, I purchased a lot more than I used so hopefully this year (!!!) I'll use more of what I already have and spend less....hmmmm, not very likely is it?  We crafters are all the same so I know you'll understand our need to have new happy mail....if only to stroke it before storing it away in a nice new storage system! haha


Favourites

Now to share some favourites.  These aren't a card per month, just the ones I've enjoyed creating or was really happy with the result.

Loved this combo of stamps and a digi

Really enjoyed this stacked inlaid die technique

A simple one layer card but I absolutely loved it, and you did too

One of my first attempts at blending with Distress Inks = hooked!

Loved working with this little touch of gold and I won some challenges with this CAS card

More Distress Ink blending and I was so pleased with this super simple card

My first of many cards using the ghosting technique with Distress Inks, stencils and water

 

One of my GD cards for Uniko, loved building the design with these tiny stamps

A one layer card, digi, colouring, masking and stencilling - loved how this turned out

 

I think this is my absolute favourite

I adore this Altenew stamp set, perfect for colouring

Tone on tone colouring - this won a few challenges and had so many lovely comments

Took some planning but was really pleased with the result - and was delighted when fellow bloggers wanted to CASE it too

I've done very little paper piecing but this one was great fun to create

 

My GD card for CASology and one of the simplest cards I've ever made!

If you're still with me, thank you so much for stopping by.  I hope you've enjoyed my blog throughout 2015 and that you'll continue to visit, I just love your visits and overwhelming comments.

I'll be back in the morning to tell you about the new challenge at Less is More :)

Favourite Five Christmas Cards

Hi guys

As I've now shared all my Christmas cards made this year I thought I would join in the fun over at Debby's blog and choose my five favourites created in 2015.

So, here goes...


This is my absolute fave and I'm so glad I purchased Distress Inks this year.

I love how this one turned out and it took a lot of planning to get the sentiments in the right place and to do the separate embossing.

Paper piecing is something I've done very little of so I was really happy with this one.

The ghosting technique using Distress Inks and stencils with water is my favourite (new to me) technique this year, I just love the effects you can create.

My last minute batch of Christmas cards.  Once I'd settled on the design they were easy to replicate, I made ten of each colour.

So there you have it, all very CAS, Distress Inks featuring quite a lot and who knew a one layer card would be my favourite?!

Thanks as always for joining me today.

2014 - Year in Review and Some Favourites

**Please scroll down to my earlier post if you are looking for my Clearly Besotted teasers**

Hi guys

I was hoping to get this posted a day or two ago but I completely ran out of time so I'll share it now.

2014 was a fabulous year for me in blogland.  In July I was lucky enough to join the Design Team at Addicted to Stamps and More.  Working with Kylie and the amazing Design Team has been a blast and I'm looking forward to creating with the girls again, plus a few new teamies who I know are going to be fabulous.

I have also had a few amazing Guest Designer spots which I thoroughly enjoyed, these were at Color Throwdown, Crazy for CAS, Muse, CASology and CAS(E) this Sketch, and I had a whole month guest designing with the ladies at Colour...Me! in November.  So, my thanks goes out to those who invited me to take part x

After looking back at my creations in 2013 I can see that I've now found the style I really enjoy which is clean and simple.  I've had a really good sort out of my stash and even though I have bought a lot more goodies than I should have (oopsie!), I am concentrating mainly on useful (and must have because they are so pretty!) stamps, versatile dies, a few good paper pads and some decent coloured cardstock...plus a few other must-haves!  There are lots of techniques I still want to try so hopefully I will be able to give them a whirl this year.

Right, on to my favourite creations.  I haven't picked one from each month, just the ones that I really enjoyed creating.

Here goes...

En'twine'd Hearts

Feel Better

Just to Brighten Your Day 

Eyelet Accents

Fabulous 40

Make a Wish

Hello

Celebrate Your Day

Geographic Masculine Birthday

On Your Wedding Day

Bullrush Sunset

Peek-a-Boo Rainbow

Lovely Leaves

You Are Beautiful

Have a Fabulous Birthday

Thinking of You

Thanks as always for stopping by and for your lovely comments.  I hope I can continue to provide you with some inspiration throughout the coming year.

Bye for now

My Favourite Five Christmas Cards of 2014

Back again!

I've just been having a look around blogland and thought I would join in with Debby over at A Scrapjourney by choosing my five fave Christmas cards from this year.

So, here goes...

Starry, Starry Night

Kylie's Christmas Card Challenge

Black and Gold Christmas

Winter Glow

Let It Snow

So there you have it.  Apart from one I've got a bit of a snowy theme going on here!  

Bye for now x

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