Tim's Tag V - VIII

It's beginning to feel a lot like Christmas!

I had a spare few minutes ... yup ... got there in the end ... bring it on ... it is official ... I am now ready for Christmas!

I have literally just finished my last few cards ... I know ... I know ... I have cut it a bit fine ... but here we are!

I just thought I would share the next set of my Tim tag inspired Christmas cards ... you know Tim ... the man that got ready for Christmas on January the first while entertaining old folks at the same time as rescuing Santa's little helper ... who had too many mince pies and got stuck up a tree ...

My Christmas tree perched on the car was sparkled with glitter and dimensional fabric paint ... not very practical to be honest ... but it is all I had ... and I will spend Christmas in the knowledge that my Dad will be sparkling all day :0)

I am afraid these are not the best pictures I have ever taken either ... tad rushed you see ... did n't have time for the micro wotsit that Mr Kodak told me all about earlier this year ... Hey Ho! ... or rather Ho Ho ... you get the idea :0)

On this last card I had very little of the right stuff ... so it is more or less completely improvisation on my part!

I hope Santa brings you all health, wealth and everything else you asked for on your lists.

Happy Christmas everyone!

Timmy's Tags I - IV '09

If I thought I was ill Friday ... well that was nothing compared to Saturday ... it was Sunday before I felt remotely human again ... that means with enough energy to craft ...  and although I had the energy my MOJO had scarpered ... so I turned to Tim ... the man that can cook up crafty goodness during a long and complex design meeting where he could create a further 7 wonders of the world ... in a hour ... if he wanted to!

Anyways ... when I say I turned to him ... he was n't next to me or nothing *swoon* I mean I went straight to his 12 Chrimbo tags and created his backgrounds for the first four ... as closely as I could ... materials allowing etc.,

Next I added this lovely little chappie ... full of Joy ... from Stampotique ... and turned the tags into Christmas cards for my and OH's sons! They will all look like the image at some point over the holiday season ... trust me! I just added a dabber and distress background to each ... a Wendy Vecchi text stamp and I am rather pleased at the result.

Now I just need to either find my MOJO or turn the other 8 tags into Christmas cards for my daughter ... our parents ... you get the picture :0)

I am also finding my new Scor-it a god send .... it does n't matter what I create .... no more digging through pre cut card stock for the right size and inevitably chopping a lump off... the Scor-it makes life soooooo much easier!

Thank you for all your well wishes ... the chocolate has n't arrived yet ... nor have the grapes come to think of it ... maybe tomorrow :0)

It is snowing again here and Christmas is only 4 days away and I have still not wrapped any presents ... or delivered them .... which is quite obvious if they are n't actually wrapped! If I get snowed in now ... well that would be a complete disaster! I would actually have to cancel Christmas.

I do hope it is not too bad near you ... take care and have a great week!

The Ugly Card Does Christmas and other Stuff!

Yes ... there is such a thing! The ugly card is gradually making it's way around the world. It started off here and has been to several different countries and has made public appearances on several different blogs before reaching Cambridge in the UK. The idea is that you take pictures when it reaches you ... blog about it ... and then ask for volunteers to take it next ... they then do the same thing and who knows ... maybe in a hundred years time or so ... it will be famous!

I have attached some piccies of the ugly card doing Christmas ... we had our annual crafty Christmas dinner yesterday ... I say we ... I mean the usual suspects ... lots of laughter ... eating ... drinking ... chatting ... cracker pulling ... presents ... and erm ... presents! A fab time was had by all!

I am always so full of Mojo ... and erm ... chocolate after spending the day with such creative people that I went straight up to my craft room last night and started making some little tree decorations ... Yes ... I finally got the tree up ... I rather like them ... they are really simple and quick to make ... which suits most of us at this time of year me thinks! If you want to know how I made them ... you can read all about it on the Bubbly Scrumptious blog!

All that remains for me to say is if you would like to help the ugly card along it's journey ...  please just put "Ugly card" in the comments and I will pick a winner ... I choose this term loosely ... it aint pretty ... then you can blog and post and so on ... don't worry full instructions come with the card. Thank you to Cath for choosing me :0)

Have a great week people!

Miracle on 34th Street!

This project has been in my head for 960* years ... finally I made it! *Please see note re exaggerating on Monday's post!*

Call me a child ... to be honest I am ... but I LOVE Miracle on 34th Street. I really do think that Mr Attenborough is Father Christmas and whenever I watch the film ... at least once every year over the Christmas period ... I want to hold something up that says that I believe ... you know in that bit when they are in the courtroom. Well this year they are gonna be sooooooo impressed ... this is in a different league to my usual A4 sheet of paper with a Marker pen scribbled "I Believe" on it :0)

I cannot begin to tell you what is on it ... papers are clearly Cosmo Cricket Be Good ... I say clearly ... I have used them on everything this year :0) Book is Bo Bunny ... although I did n't use their book rings ... I have bound it with the Bind It All. The Grunge paper flowers are Paper Artsy ... the ribbons are Rusty Pickle ... Cap n' Jack and if you really neeeeeeeed to know anything else ... please feel free to email me.

Okay ... Big deep breath ... I am going to brave the shops  ... see if I can't do all my Christmas shopping in one day ... actually one shop would be nice ... Do you think that is possible??? ... I could try I suppose :0) I will let you know!

Have a good day and remember to leave the mulled wine out on your blogs ... I am going to need a stiff drink when I visit you later ... after all that shopping :0)

Beer Mats and Baubles!

Would n't that be a great name for a drinking establishment???... I would drink in there! Actually ... right now as long as alcohol was plentiful and I did n't have to give present shopping another thought ... I would drink anywhere!!!

I started Christmas shopping today ... Yeah ... 7 down and about another 930 to get!!! I exaggerate by the way ... tis a flaw in my character ... I say that ... when I exaggerate I do it so ridiculously ... no one ever believes me anyways ... so I don't think that needs to remain on the list of my flaws ... which has 10,000 other things on it ... I shall now remove it :0)

This beer mat box was a submission for the Zutter Zisters DT for December ... it is slightly different from my usual ... in that it opens like an exploding box and I have decorated a bauble to celebrate Jack's first Christmas ... I thought it would make a nice keepsake and seeings as Jack's Dad grew up in a pub ... quite apt too!

Now for the dilemma ... Do I wrap the presents I have bought and do them gradually ... or do I let them all stack up ... as per usual ... and then curse because I have left them until the last minute ... thing is ... I really cannot face shopping and wrapping in the same day ... maybe tomorrow :0)

Hanging Around!

Have you been wondering where I had got too? Well ...

I have been away to an exotic crafting Island somewhere hot and relaxing ... actually that is a lie ... I have n't been anywhere different from usual ... just real life and Christmas getting in the way of blogging!

I am back now and thought I would share this door hanger with you. It is completely inspired by Tim ... the man that can decorate a Christmas tree with an ATG gun and some blue tack while saving people from burning buildings and making inspirational Christmas tags at the same time :0) Not a 2009 Chrissie tag but Tim's very first Christmas tag way back in ... erm ... 2007!

I am loving these Maya Road acrylic snowflakes by the way ... and plan on using them at every available opportunity. If you would like to know what else I used ... it is all here.

Am I the only person on the planet that has n't actually started Christmas Shopping yet??? ... if I am ... please lie and pretend you have n't either ... Yes ... you can detect an element of panic in my voice!

Have a good week people!

A Chip and Cheerful Christmas!

I had a right 'ole panic first thing this morning ... the flippin' internet decided not to play ball and today is my day for contributing to the Bubbly Scrumptious blog ... luckily ... it is all sorted now and my panic has passed!

The piece I have designed this week is Christmas Studio 490 style ... and blimey did I get messy???  ... in fact ... I have showered and slept and breakfasted and dressed and washed my hands a few hundred times in between and my fingers are still the colour of Pine needles distress ink ... or is it Marvy Le Plume green? ... to be honest ... it could be either!

I had great fun with this piece ... I even played with shrink plastic and it has been yonks since I have done that ... it could be a new phase though ... I had a great time! All the details for making this piece can be found here.

I am off to do some ... erm ... stuff ... Have a great day!

Cute Ickle Fella!

This rather cheeky little chappy is a new release Mabel Lucie Attwell stamp!
Aint he cute? The Holly is rather lovely to chop about and layer up too.

I am not going to mention the fact that it appears to have finally stopped raining here ... would n't want to jinx it or anything ... but at the moment if I glance up I can see a clear blue sky ... I say "up" because my Craft room is in the roof ... so the windows are up too ... I don't know why I told you that ... but you know what I mean ... Don't ya???
Do you remember my first Christmas card? ... weeks ago? ... the start of many? ... well that is what I said at the time ... and this is my ... erm ... third! Doh!
This card is my entry for the Sunday Stampers Challenge this week which is The Holly and The Ivy ... Do pop over and look at Hel's sample this week ... tis gorgeous!
I know some of you don't just pop in for my sparkling personality and witty rapport :0) ... so the image is coloured with Pro Markers ... the paper is from the Paper Artsy Rum and Raisin Range and the card is Bazzill. I have added a few Rock Candy Stickles but they look pretty naff in this picture ... I promise they look Ok in the flesh!
I hope you have a good day whatever you are doing ... I have an anniversary card to make and a serious amount of blog hopping to catch up on ... Have a good one!

Just a Quickie Post ...

Morning all! Just a quick peek this morning of the card that I have blogged for Creativity Boutique ... information regarding products etc., is on the Kreative Kaboodle blog here ... please pop over and say Hi to me if you get a minute!

And if you don't ... well have a lovely day anyway :0)

Keeping Promises!

I am not sure how many of you will remember this card ... from last Christmas ... hands up please :0)

Well ... just to update those of you still with your hands down ... I made several ... all very similar but in different colours and blogged them all.

So Why are you blogging them again? I hear you ask ... probably those of you still with your hands up anyway :0) ... Well they were a bit of a palaver to make to be honest ... and everyone asked if I could explain how I made them ... I promised I would ... and then never did!

This week the lovely people at Scor-it sent me one of their Scor-it mini embossing boards to play with ... it makes the whole card really easy ... I am soooooo chuffed with it ... I can't put it down and have started making these cards in time for Christmas again this year ... I say card ... it is more of a fancy fold book thingy!

I always keep my promises ... I may be a bit slow sometimes ... but I always keep them ... So I thought I would do you a little tutorial to show how they are made ... it is here ... as promised :0)

If you make one ... please come back and share it on this thread and if you don't Hey-Ho or HO HO :0)

Have a good evening ... oh ...

You can put your hands down now :0)

Just For the Record!

I have had so many comments of concern about my diet ... whether just eating beans is good for me??? ... the simple truth is I don't! I don't eat many beans at all ... in fact I rarely eat beans ... unless of course I am in the mood for altering a tin and my supply of empty tins has run out! Then I pretend to have a sudden craving and have managed to convince John to change the menu on at least one occasion!

I am a bit fussy about the tins I use too ... they have to be the ring pull ones ... so that I can get rid of any sharp edges with a pair of pliers ... round nose or otherwise ... in fact anything that comes to hand at the time.

John recently purchased a new tin opener though ... he insists on saving the pennies and not buying ring pull versions of tins and this method leaves a nasty and potentially hazardous sharp edge ... I moan ... and stamp ... he takes no notice whatsoever and continues to irritate me with his new toy!

The simple truth is I have empty bean can suppliers ... otherwise known as friends and family ... that collect the tins and even deliver them at no extra cost ... How cool is that?

My best supplier is a lovely lady that I don't even know ... she is the cook in a children's nursery where my daughter works ... she washes the tins and puts them to one side for me ... now that is real recycling.

The next question I get asked ... lots ...  is what I do with the altered tins ... most of the ones that you have seen on this blog are displayed either at shows or in shops ... I get to keep the occasional one ... I use those for storing pens and tools and brushes etc.,!

I have also given a few away as gifts for crafty mates and that is about it!

The tin I am displaying today was made with my lovely Bind-it-all ... some TSS pearl metal which I painted in Turquoise Precious metal colour and then decorated with the Swiss dots Cuttlebug folder ... the snowflakes were made using a Spellbinder die.

If you have a spare five minutes don't forget I am blogging here today too and I sure could use some of your lovely company! I am off to make a family tree ... nothing to do with beans what so ever :0)

Have a good weekend y'all!

Bad Blogger!

Sorry guys ... I have been a really bad blogger lately ... in my defence it was n't all my fault ... firstly my t'internet connection played up for two solid days ... I could n't even hop let alone Blog! Then I went to a party where I was plied with copious amounts of alcohol ... I did try to resist ... honest ... I then had to pay for my indulgence with about 16 hours of hang over and finally I have been busying myself making my first DT submissions for the Zutter Design Team ... of which this is one!

In the latest edition of Stamper's Sampler there is a little Christmas Screen and I was completely inspired to go away ... create a larger version and instead of just folding the screen ... binding it ...

I need to start telling you now exactly what I used coz there is a lot on it ... but basically ... chipboard; Bind-it-all; Round-it-all; ribbons; Grunge paper; bells; 3 sets of Dark Room Door stamps; Paper Artsy Egg and Nog plate 2; Gold embossing powder; Ranger Distress inks; Promarkers; Fired Brick Stickles and my favouritist ever Chrissy paper from Cosmo Cricket ... aptly named ... Be Good! ... Trust me ... I do try :0)

I hope you are all having a good week ... I promise I shall visit you all very shortly :0)

The C Word!

I know it seems like a long way off ... but I have never managed to make every Christmas card that I have sent.

Each year I start off with the best of intentions and each year I end up buying several packets of cards to send out, in addition to the few that I have made. 

Well ... You heard it here first ... this year I am going to make every single card!

So best I get started then seeings as my list runs into 100 plus cards!

To get the bauble rolling I have joined the Cupcake Craft Challenge this week where the theme is distressed.

I have stamped 4 Wendy Vecchi Christmas trees coloured them with Pine Needles distressed ink and layered the middle tree up. All the trees were stamped with Wendy's Christmas text and then mounted onto a background made up of the beautiful holiday pear collage stamp by Rubber Stampede. I distressed the edges and added some Vintage photo ink for the distressed look.

The paper used is from my favourite Christmas paper collection which is Cosmo Cricket's Be Good range.

If you are wondering what to get me this year Santa ... Don't worry I shall be posting my list very soon :0)

P.S I have been good ... well, sort of :0)

Scor-it!

1.    Cut four pieces of card 8 ¼” by 5 ¾”
2.    Score all four pieces of card 2 1/16” from  each end to form a tri-fold.

3.    On one piece score again at 1 7/8“ from each end to form a mini spine.

4.    Line all the corners up and round them off together using the Zutter ½” Round-it-all.

5.    Cut a further piece of card 8” by 5 ½“ and score down the middle and round all four corners.

6.    Line the three tri-fold cards up end to end and tape the middle flaps to the outer two cards so you now have a long card.

7.    On your spined card make holes at 2 ¾” and 3 ½” approx ¾” in from the spine on each side with your Zutter Rivet hole punch tool.

8.    Now cut a straight line from each edge of your circle to form a slot.

9.     Feed a piece of ribbon through the slot that is long enough to go around the card and tie.

10.     Adhere the back of the middle part of your long card to cover the ribbon part of your spined card.

11.     Adhere your final card to the front of the middle part of your long card to form an insert.

 

 

 

 

 

12.     Decorate as desired!