LIM off center challenge!

Evening all.
Today is a good day. I now have 5 days off of work after working 7 straight days over the easter weekend! Hoping to get some crafting done tomorrow on my day off before we head of to the lake district for the weekend!

Today I have my card to share with you that I have made for this weeks 'Less is More' challenge, which is off center. I actually made this at Julies card class last night, although I took a different slant on the card Julie had made and made this one my own! With Romance in the air with the Royal wedding this weekend it seems only right that this weeks card is romantically themed. So I chose an anniversary card.



and of course the inside...

Materials

CS: SU Crumb Cake, Very Vanilla

Stamps: Something to Celebrate, Occasional Quotes

Tools: SU Large Heart, Extra large Oval and Decorative Label Punches, Square Lattice, Vintage Wallpaper and Elegant Bouquet Embossing Folders, Sponge Daubers

Misc: SU adhesive pearls & Very Vanilla ribbon

I love this card. Love the colours (my own wedding colours) and the embossing folders I've used to create all the texture. There is no designer papers and minimal stamping (only sentiments) on this card, but yet it is so interesting.

As I have mentioned that these were the colours I used for my own wedding I though I would share a picture of my wedding place settings with you. I only have a picture of mine and my husbands, but I did exactly the same for the other 16 guests at the wedding, obviously with their names on it though!

The waiters at the restaurant kept calling me and my husband Mr Groom and Mrs Bride! Bless! It made us laugh anyway!

Well I hope you enjoyed todays card.

Thanks for stopping by and I will be back next week after my trip to the lake district with my family!

Have a great may day bank holiday weekend and I hope you all enjoy the royal wedding!

Hugs, Victoria ~x~

Happy Easter!

Happy Easter to you all!

I hope you are all enjoying this long bank holiday weekend, such beautiful weather, which is soooo unusual for Bank Holiday's in the UK! Unfortunately I have been working since last wednesday (stuck indoors for most of it), but I am going to the Lake District next weekend for the Royal Wedding and May Day Bank Holiday so I am realy looking forward to that!

Today I have an easter card to share with you that I gave to my husband.


An arty farty angle to show how I've cut the front of the card away and slightly decorated the inside...

and the decorated inside...

Materials

CS: SU Whisper White & Wild Wasabi

Paper: Designer Series Pumpkin Pie (Brights), Retired SU

Stamps: Elzbells (Retired)

Tools: SU Scallop Border & Square lattice embossing folder

Misc: SU Markers

I love the colours of this card, lovely and fresh, perfect for spring. My hubby really liked his card. I know it's not very masculine, but he likes colourful cards and he has a thing for cute, cartoony type images. These Elzybells are some of his favourite desgins, it's just such a shame they are no more!! I also managed to incorporate my favourite technique on this card, paper peicing. I think it just finishes the egg off perfectly!

I don't know about you guy's, but I am in love with new embossing folders from the SU mini catalogue, especially this square lattice folder. They create some lovely textured effects and mke the perfect background to your proects.

I'm entering this card into the challenge over at Papertake Weekly (Spots & Stripes), as I've not done a challenge for a while!

Well I'd best dash, I've got to get ready for work!!

Enjoy the last day of your bank holiday, whatever you're doing!

Hugs, Vicky ~x~

Butterfly birthday!

Good morning all!

What a beautiful day, the sun is shining and to top it off I have the day off work!

Today I though I'd share with you a card I recently made for my neice's 16th birthday. I hope she liked it! She went to NewYork with her parents to celebrate! Lucky thing!!

I went for a pink, black and white theme with butterflies! I just adore butterflies at the minute!


A simply decorated inside....


Because the butterflies were lifting from the card I decided to make a box, using my score pal, so they wouldn't get squashed.

An arty farty angle to show the dimension of the butterfly.

Materials

CS: SU Whisper White, Basic Black, Melon Mambo

Paper: Designer Series Melon Mambo (Brights)

Stamps: Butterfly Prints, Curly Cute, Afterthoughts (Level 1 hostess set)

Tools: SU Scallop Trim Border & Butterfly punches, Square lattice embossing folder, Nestabilities

Misc: SU Adhesive Rhinestones, Rose Red stitch trim ribbon (Retired)

I really enjoyed making this set, it's not often I make a box to put the card in, but it makes it look so much more special!

Well thanks for stopping by today. I'm off into the garden to enjoy bit of sunshine before I get crafty later.

Hope you all get to enjoy a bit of sunshine today.

Hugs, Vicky ~x~

Three of a kind!

Good morning all.

What a lovely start to the weekend we're having here in West Yorkshire. The sun is shining brightly and it is suprisingly warm. Let's hope it stays this way until monday as I am off work this weekend!

Today I have three cards to show you, all made with the same LO and stamp set, I've just changed the colour way and sentiment on each card.

Since my wedding I have had lots of thank you cards to send out, so I needed a quick design that I could easily replicate. This card took less than 10minutes to create, so perfect for those quick, multiple makes.

I love black, white and pink (Melon Mambo) together...

A change of colour and sentiment, et voila....

For this last card I went for a more muted colour scheme of Crumb Cake, Baja Breeze and Wild Wasabi and substituted the square lattice embossing folder for the Perfect Polka Dots...


All of the insides were simply decorated, just changing the colour scheme to match the colours on the front of the card...

Materials

CS: SU Whisper White, Crumb Cake, Melon Mambo, Wild Wasabi

Stamps: Just Believe

Tools: SU Square Lattice and Perfect Polka Dots embossing folders, Circle punch

Well I really enjoyed making these, so quick and simple to do and one that can be adapted for any celebration and in any colourway!

Thanks for stopping by. I'm off to enjoy some of the sunshine. Enjoy the rest of your weekend!

Hugs, Vicky ~x~

One layout, two different cards!

Hello Everyone!

I'm having a quick sit down and cuppa before my BF comes round for tea. It was her birthday yesterday and whilst I sent her card in the post, I still have her present to give her. I haven't seen her for almost 3 weeks since we returned from my wedding, so it will be nice to catch up and look at the photo's.

Today I have two cards to show you. I used the same stamp set and same LO for both cards but as you will see, they are quite different themes. One is modern and funky, the other more vintage.

The first option...

...and the inside (decorated to match of course)


The second more vintage inspired option...


...and again with the matching interior.

Materials

CS: SU Whisper White, Crumb Cake, Melon Mambo, Peach Parfait, Very Vanilla

Paper: Designer Series Melon Mambo (Brights)

Stamps: Butterfly Prints, Bliss(retired), Music Notes (Wheel)

Tools: SU Scallop Trim Border & Butterfly punches

Misc: SU Adhesive Pearls and Rhinestones

Whilst I love both of these cards, my favourite has to be the brigh one! Which one is your favourite??!

There's a technique I have been wanting to try for ages now, so I though I'd give it a go on these cards. Bleach stamping! I stamped the scroll/swil stamp with bleach onto the peach parfait card and after it had dried you get the above result! Et Voila, customised backgound paper! I'll definately be doing this technique again!

Well I've got to dash and start getting the tea ready.

Thanks for stopping by and for any comments you leave!

Hugs, Vicky ~x~

Hope and Strength!

Good morning all!

Its the weekend at last and the sun is shining. What a beautiful day!! I am just packing up to go and see my family for the weekend. I didn't get to see my mum last weekend for mothers day as I was working, so we're heading over to see them today and staying over night.

Today I have a beautiful card to show you that I made using a set from the new Stampin Up mini catalogue. It's called Hope and Strength, a set that Stampin' Up have produced in aid of breast cancer research. Stampin Up is donating £1 to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation for every set sold. (Please click on the link on my side bar for more details). So many of our lives have been touched by this horrible disease, mine probably more than most. Not only has this disease affected friends and family of mine, but as a District Nurse I have looked after many patients with this disease and seen the devastating effect it can have on them and their families lives . That's why I have decided to also donate £1 to Cancer Research UK for every set that I sell.


The simply decorated inside (this has become an addiction)...

Materials

CS: SU Crumb Cake, Pink Piroutte, Very Vanilla

Stamps: Hope and Strength

Tools: SU Scallop Trim Border punch, SU Large Heart Punch, Square Lattice
Embossing Folder & Sponge Daubers

Misc: SU adhesive pearls

I love the backgound you can make with this beautiful scroll/swirl stamp form the set and I also used it to stamp a pattern on the corner on the inside. This square lattice embossing folder, along with this Hope and Strength set, are some of my favourite items in the new mini catalogue so I couldn't wait to combine them on a card together!!

Well I must get off & start to think about getting my bag packed, it's not going to pack itself, and my husband definately won't be packing it!! Lol!

Thanks for stopping by. Please don't forget to leave me a comment so I know you've been, I love to read them. Have a great weekend everyone, and I'll be back in a few days with another project to share with you.

Hugs, Vicky ~x~

Less is more 'A Touch of Red'

Evening all!

I've had a much needed day off work today and how did I spend it? Shopping and crafting of course, the cleaning can wait. Although if I'm being honest I did manage to do a load of washing, in between cards!! Lol!

Those who know my style of card know that I love the CAS look. So the new challenge blog 'Less is more' is perfect for me! I decided to join in on this weeks challenge which is 'A touch of red' and here is my card..


and I simply decorated the inside, also 'adding a touch of red'.

Now this card was so easy to do (in under 5 minutes) so I decided to replicate it, just with a different sentiment.


Two cards in under 15 minutes, that must be a record for me!!

Materials

CS: SU Whisper White, Basic Black

Paper: Scraps from my stash

Sentiment: SU Afterthoughts (Level 1 hostess set)

Stamps: Butterfly from SU 'Bliss' set (retired)

Tools: SU Scallop Border & Butterfly punches

Misc: SU adhesive pearls

I really enjoyed making these. I am on a roll at the moment, my mojo's in full flow. I am trying to use my new stash that I haven't got around to using yet and scraps of card & paper before I buy anything else. I don't see that lasting long though as I am in love with the new Springtime Vintage papers in the new SU mini catalogue, and I can see them being in my basket on my next order!

Well I'm off to have a lovely soak in the tub with a cuppa before I head off to bed for a good nights sleep ready for work in the morning!

Thanks for stopping by.

Hugs, Vicky ~x~

Happy Mother's Day!!

Evening all.

Now I know it's a little late in the day but I have been working all weekend and this is the first chance I've had to post! I want to wish everyone a happy mother's day! I hope you all got some lovely cards and gifts from your children. For those,who like me are childless, I hope you are enjoying your weekend regardless!

Today I want to share with you the card I gave my mum today. Now she's received it I know it's safe to post it on here! Now this post is a bit picture heavy so bear with me please! Lol!

I made this twisted easel card at one of my recent tuesday night classes at Julies..



the main panel...


and a bit of an arty farty angle...

And here is a matching box that we made to put the card in....

I love the dimension of the daffodils....

Then we made a matching gift tag which I attached to my mum's present (Some red wine & chocolate which she's probably enjoying as I write this!).

I made my Mother in Law's card a month or so ago but I needed a tag for her present too, and as we only made one at Julies I decided to make another. I used the tag above as inspiration and this is what I came up with...

The daisy is a clip that I used to attach the tag to the present.

Materials

CS: SU Melon Mambo, Pumpkin Pie, Daffodil Delight, Old Olive,Whisper White

Paper: SU Brights Pattern Designer Series

Sentiment: Broadsheet Alphabet, Occasional Greetings, Just Believe

Stamps: SU 'Just Believe', A la carte 'Flower Accent'

Tools: SU Scallop Border Punch & corner punch, Oval punch, Large Designer Label punch

Misc: SU assorted ribbon

Well, I spoke to my mum earlier from work and I think it's safe to say she liked her card and gift, I hope you do too!

That's a long enough post from me today I think! I'm off for a nice soak in the bath, then it's early to bed as I've to be up at 6am for work!!

Thanks for stopping by.

Hugs, Vicky ~x~

It's Finally Here!!!

Morning al!!

The SU mini Catalogue 2011 is finally here. It's the 1st of April today which mean it's launch day, the day we have all been long awaiting. I've been dying to share the catalogue with you since I saw it over a month ago! It is crammed with lots of new goodies including the Owl Punch (which is my personal favourite) and the Big Shot, with lots of Sissix dies that are exclusive to Stampin Up. Please click on the Mini Catalogue picture in my right hand side bar to instantly view the new Catalogue!

I have a quick card to share with you that was made with one of the new items in the Catalogue, my favourite, the Owl Punch.



This card was made by the fabulous Jules (My friend and SU grandma!!) for my recent wedding! She knows how much I love Owl's so this is the card she gave me, and I absolutely love it! Check out the cute bride owl with the ruched ribbon dress!

Well I hope you all enjoy the new mini and love all the new products as much as I do! If you would like to ask me anything about the products in the new mini you can contact me by e-mail.

Right I must dash, got to go to work!

Thanks for stopping by!

Hugs, Vicky ~x~

Happy Birthday Dad!

Hello all!

Today was my first day back at work following my wedding. I've had 3 weeks off so it was a bit of a shock to the system to get up at 7am, oh well, back to reality!!

Today I have the card I made for my dad's birthday to show you. It was his birthday last friday, the day after we returned from our holiday so I had to be super organised and make this last month! I was inspired recently by a card I had seen to use punched shapes as a stencil, so I decided to use some various sized circles to create my own stenciled background!

What do you think to the end result??


....and a simply decorated inside following the theme from the front.

Materials

CS: SU Choc Chip, Old Olive Whisper White

Sentiment: SU Just perfect Alphabet set, SU Cute Curly

Tools: SU circle punches (Various sizes), SU Sponge Daubers, SU Button in Marina Mist, Twine from stash, Post it notes

I'm really pleased with how this turned out with the masked edges to create a frame and the circle shapes. I always struggle with male cards, so this was an unusually pleasant experience for me!! Lol!


I just want to say thanks for all your lovely comments on my recent wedding and the photo's I shared with you last week. For those of you who have asked here is a few more for you!

As you can see I've been playing around a little with the colour of the last photo, I'm amazed with technology today that enables you to do this!! We were stamping our thumb prints onto our marriage certificate in this picture, which whilst not done in the UK, is tradition in Mexico!

Well, I'd best dash, I'm off to my tuesday night craft night at Julie's and need to get ready!
Oh, and for those who don't already know the new SU mini catalogue is being released in 3 days, and I can't wait for you to see it. I've been having fun since I got home last week making some samples with the new products and believe me, they're fab!! Watch this space for the mini link!

Thanks for stopping by!

Hugs, Vicky ~x~

Just For You!

Morning all!

Long time no see!

Well I am back from my wedding/honeymoon. I have had the most fabulous 2 weeks in Mexico with 16 of my closest friends and family, an unforgettable experience for all of us! Just a shame I had to come home, but at least I have returned to some unseasonably mild weather!

Today I have a card to share to with you that I made a few weeks ago for a friends birthday. I think its amazing what a change in colours can do to an image . I used the just believe image some time ago to create this card at one of my friend Julies card classes. For today's card I used brighter colours to create more of a summery feel!

Materials

CS: SU Melon Mambo, Whisper White

Paper: SU Pattern Designer series in Pumpkin Pie

Sentiment: SU Afterthoughts set (Level 1 Hostess set

Stamps: SU 'Just Believe', Butterfly image from 'So Happy' sale-a-bration set

Tools: SU spritzer tool, SU stampin markers

I love using my SU markers to apply colour directly to my stamps, it enables you to get some stunning effects. As you can also see, I am still enjoying my spritzer tool to help me to create backgrounds, such a useful addition to your craft collection.

Well thanks for stopping by today. I will leave you with a couple of my wedding pics of me and my handsome new husband.




Hugs, Vicky (AKA Mrs Tate)

~x~

Swaps!

Morning all!

I hope you're all enjoying your weekend whatever you're doing, be it relaxing, crafting, shopping etc!

Well I went to a SU training day yesterday held here in Leeds. It's my first training day as I have only been a demo for just over a month now and I had such a wonderful day. Got lot's of hints and useful crafty tips, and I got to meet lots of lovely fellow crafters. Now at such events everyone creates some projects to swap with all the other ladies, a great way to be inspired. Well, I underestimated my swaps a bit and only made 40, but there was 70 ladies, oh well I know better for next time! So here is the swap that I made, a topper that can easily be added to any card base.

Materials

CS: SU Whisper White, Rich Razzleberry and Melon Mambo

Sentiment: SU Vintage Vogue

Stamps: SU I heart hearts

Tools: SU Scallop Trim border punch, SU Colour spritzer tool, SU stamp-a-ma-jig

Misc: SU markers, Foam dimensionals

I love the pink and purple together. I though this card could be used not only for a love themed occasion such as Valentines day or an anniversary but to give to a friend as well!
I got the spritzer tool for christmas and have really enjoyed playing and experimenting with it. You can create lovely backgrounds with it if you use a few diferent colours and depending how close to the paper you are, it gives different splatter effects!

Well I have an afternoon filled with crafting ahead of me , I will be busy finishing my table favours and place name settings. Only 9 days left until I get married and only 3 days until we leave for beautiful Mexcio. I will take pictures of my wedding favours/table decorations that I have made to show you on my return. Lot's to do in the next few days so might not be around much.

Thanks for stopping by today and if I don't see you again before tuesday i'll be back in 3 weeks with lots of pictures to show you all!

Hugs, Vicky ~x~

Apologies....

....for not being around much this past week. I have been really busy with long days at work and I have been busy with projects I can't show you just yet. I've been finishing my wedding favours and place name cards for the reception tables which I am keeping secret as my mum reads my blog! Only 11 days to go and things are all starting to fall into place. I am also going to my very first stampin up training day tomorrow which is being held here in Leeds, so I've had to make lots of swaps, which I'll be able to show you after tomorrow. I'm really excited for the training as it's an opportunity to get together with fellow SU demo's in the area and pick up lots of hints and tips! We will also be discussing the new Stampin Up mini catalogue which I am lucky enough to have had a sneak peak of. It is available for general viewing from April 1st and I can assure you, you won't be disspointed!

Well thanks for dropping by today, it's my last day at work and then I have 3 whole weeks off! Bliss!! Please do stop by again in the next few days as I should have some of my new projects to share with you!

Have a great weekend.

Hugs, Vicky ~x~

Sweet Summer Cards!

Hello all!

Today I have some cards to show you that I made using the sweet summer set from the sale-a-bration catalogue. This set comes free when you spend £45 or more on Stampin Up products (but only until the 28th feb).

I made these cards at the tuesday night club that I attend with some of my other crafty friends. I just love these colours, so summery.






I love these gatefold cards that open up to show your hidden mesage, so easy to do but gives that extra wow factor! This white organza ribbon is stunning as well and finishes this card off perfectly.


I could go on and on making these cards. These were so quick and easy to do and can be easily adapted for any occasion with just a change of sentiment.

Materials

CS: SU In Colours, Whisper White

Paper: SU Pattern Designer series

Sentiment: SU Sale-a-bration set 'So happy for You'

Stamps: SU 'Sweet Summer'

Tools: SU oval punch, SU stamp-a-ma-jig

Misc: SU In colour markers and White Organza Ribbon

If you like the look of these cards and would like to create them yourself then I have put together below a suggested list of items that you will need to create these cards (plus lots more besides!).

1 Pack of A4 In Colour card - £6.25

1 pack of In Colour Patterns Designer Paper Patterns
stack (40 sheets of 12x12) - £15.50
1 reel of white oragnza ribbon - £5.25
1 pack of Whisper White card (40 sheets) - £7.50
1 pack of 5 In Colour Marker pens - £11.75

This comes to a grand total of £46.75 (excluding p&p) and then you can choose the Sweet Summer Stamp set free, but you'll have to hurry, there's only 5 days of sale-a-bration left for you take advantage of this fab offer!

The only other things you will need, aside from whats on the list above, are some sentiment stamps, a black or grey ink pad and some adhesive of your choice. These are items that are staples in any crafters cupboard!!

Well I hope you've enjoyed looking at the cards I've shown you today. I have definately enjoyed making them and can't wait to experiment further with this set. Thanks for stopping by and please feel free to email me if you would like to place an order and take advantage of this limited offer from Stampin Up!



Hugs, Vicky ~x~

Be my Valentine!

Evening all!

I hope you are all enjoying the weekend so far! We woke up to snow here in Leeds this morning and it idn't stop until about 1pm! Unfortunately for me I still had to go to work!

Today I though I'd share with you a card we made at Julies Tuesday night card class last week. I gave it to my H2B for Valentines day and he loved it! He said a lot of work had gone into it! Bless him!




Here is the simply decorated inside...


....and a matching love cheque book.


The cheques are blank in this photo , but I have since filled them in with promises. There were some rather rude suggestions flying around at that tuesday group I can tell you!!!

Materials

CS: SU Real Red, Choc Chip, So Saffron, Whisper White

Paper: SU Playdate

Sentiment: SU Just Perfect Alphabet

Stamps: Su Trendy Tree's, I heart hearts, All in the family

Tools: SU scallop oval punch, SU Small and Large Heart punches, SU stamp-a-ma-jig

Misc: SU markers and inks

Well my H2B loved it, I hope you all like it too! An evening of TV for me now I think, need to relax after my hard day at work!

Don't forget you only have 9 days of sale-a-bration left, so if there are any SU goodies you would like and you fancy earning yourself a free stamp set or two get in touch with your order and I would be happy to place it for you! (See my side bar for details!)

Thanks for stopping by and I hope you all enjoy the rest of your weekend!

Hugs, Vicky ~x~

Happy Birthday Millie!

Morning all!

Hope you all had a fab weekend and wonderful Valentines day yesterday! I got a lovely card and some chocs off my H2B, although I won't be eating them until after the wedding!!

Thanks for all your lovely comments about my hen weekend! I had a fab time, even if I was a little worse for wear on sunday!


Today I though I would share with you the card I made for my neice's brthday last week! Now I know Millie sometimes reads my blog, so if you are reading this Mille I hope you liked your card and had a great birthday!

I took the oportunity to break open one of my new stamps sets for Millie's card. I just adore this Fox and friends set, I have seen some fabulous cards out there made using this set, so I coldn't resist!

and I quickly decorated the inside again, not to dissapoint you Jules!!

Materials

CS: SU Pretty in Pink, Rose Red and Old Olive


Sentiment: SU Occasional Greetings

Stamps: SU Fox and Friends set, SU Polka dot background stamp (Retired)

Tools: SU Bird Bunch, SU stampin markers, SU stamp-a-ma-jig

Misc: Sponge daubers for inking the edges

Now I know I've said this before, but I just love the stamp-a-ma-jig! It was one of my first purchases from SU and it makes making cards so easy and ensures that your images/sentiments are straight first time!! It would have been near on impossible to position these monkeys without my stamp-a-ma-jig!


Don't forget there is only 2 weeks left to take advantage of sale-a-bration and earn yourself some free stamp sets! For every £45 you spend you get a free set to choose from the sale-a-bration leaflet (which can be found on my side bar!). If you'd like to place an order I would be more than happy to help you just email me!

Thanks for stopping by today!

Hugs, Vicky ~x~

Sale-abration gift box!

Afternoon all!

It's friday and the working week is almost over! I hope you've all got something nice planned for the weekend! It's my hen night tonight and tomorrow I am going for my wedding dress fitting! Only 32 days to go until the big day!!

Well today I have a gift box to show you that I made for my aunts birthday this week. It has a little present for her inside wrapped in tissue paper! I also made a matching card, but stupidly deleted the puicture of of my camera before I'd uploaded it onto the computer!

I used one of the current sets 'Sweet Summer' available in the SU Sale-abration leaflet . I just love this set, so fresh and summery and perfect for a multitude of occasions!






I love how you can use the stamps to create a background pattern on the CS for the base and lid of the box.

Materials

CS: SU Rose Red and Rich Razzleberry

Stamps: SU Sweet Summer Sale-abration set

Sentiment: SU Just Believe

Tools: SU Stamp-a-ma-jig, SU Blender pen, Old Olive, Rose Red and Rich Razzleberry ink

Well I hope my aunt liked it as much as I enjoyed making it for her.

Don't forget that this 'Sweet Summer' set is only available until february 28th and is free with purchases totalling £45 or more. If you would like to get this wonderful 'free' stamp set then I'd be happy to place an order for you!

Have a geat weekend everyone and thanks for stopping by!

Hugs, Vicky ~x~