Trick or Treat!

Hey!

Where has the week gone?!? I can't believe I gotta go back to work so soon - I've had a lovely week off and have managed to get a little crafting time squeezed in too! Well it'd be rude not to with Halloween approaching!

Now I don't really celebrate Halloween but I always like to give my nieces and nephews a little treat. So this year I came across some yummy chocolate treats whilst I was food shopping that were being sold in net bags. Now these bags didn't do the treats justice so I set on making a container for them. I searched the net high and low for a template but couldn't find anything that the treats would fit nicely in! So I took some measurements and designed a box of my own on the PC. I thought I was being slightly ambitious but it all went to plan! So I simply printed directly onto my cardstock, cut it out, decorated and stuck it all together!

Voila!

The box is a little like a popcorn box with a lid. It's kinda small but fits a nice amount of treats in! I went with an Orange Zest, True Black and Plum Pudding combo for the girls...... and a True Black, Orange Zest and White combo for the boys.I went a bit further and decorated inside each box too:
Well it's not much of a scare with that chocolate inside but it's as scary as I get!Now I'm sure the kids will appreciate the chocolate much more than the boxes but I had so much fun making them!

One tip: if I was making these again I'd print the template again on the Bitty Dot Basics paper in order to decorate these boxes easily! I tried to be frugal and trim around my printed template on scraps of paper and it was a real pain in the butt!

Box Recipe
Cardstock: Orange Zest, Stampers Select White, True Black, Bitty Dot Basics in True Black & Plum Pudding
Accessories: Cuttlebug, Cuttlebug Halloween Die, Nestabilities, Orange Zest Polka Dot Ribbon, Orange Zest Button, White Button Twine, Velcro Dots, Promarkers, White Gel Pen Chocolate Treats!

Well I hope y'all have a Spooktacular Halloween! Thanks so much for stopping by!

Catch ya later!
Aimes
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CASING myself!

Hey!

Happy Tuesday! Man, is it Tuesday already?! Why do the days fly by when you got a week off work eh?!

Well so far I've taken my car to the garage, it got repaired while I waited which was a bonus as I didn't wanna be car-less this week because we've got a couple of bus strikes here in Sheffield! Guess it's not only Royal Mail who are fancying a strike! Anyways the reason I tell you this is because to my shock - my car got repaired for FREE! Yup - FREE! So what's a gal to spend those pennies on I was setting aside for the car....hmmm.....think it may have to be a treat for me!

I've manged to get a little inky and create a card for the current Raspberry Suite Color Challenge - you can hurry an entry in as it ends tomorrow! These are the colours which I have to say I LOVED working with:Now I loved the layout of my anniversary card so much that I decided to CASE myself for this challenge! There's a few alterations but the main layout is still there...I seem to have an obsessive personality - at the mo my obsession is this layout and zig zag scissors!I hope you like it! I think I went a little crazy with my Distress Inks but I fancied trying something a little more rustic/vintage with the modern twist of the colours. Dunno if it works but it's staying as it's stuck down now! LOL!

I have some polka dot Raspberry Fizz ribbon that I was itching to use but those darn polka dots were too bold for this creation. Seeing as this is the only Raspberry Fizz ribbon I own, I reversed it and applied a strip of Dark Chocolate Twill on top - I kinda like the effect! Also great for a poor gal like me who can't own EVERY type of ribbon in EVERY colour!If you're reading this Maureen - this is the card that I had a dilemma picking buttons for LOL! I stuck with two - was gonna be three but the time I spent picking just two got beyond ridiculous! ;D
When I was stamping the flower - I decided to stamp two to show you the difference between just stamping on Raspberry Fizz Cardstock and adding detail with a Versamark Pen:
I hope you can tell that the one on the right is the flower with the added shading with the Versamark Pen! Can you also tell my fingers got to bored cutting out the plain flower? LOL! I'll trim that flower later and add the same shading for another project...

Card Recipe
Stamps: Friends 'til the End/Fancy Flourishes
Inks: Vintage Cream/Dark Chocolate/New Leaf/Raspberry Fizz/Distress Inks Antique Linen & Vintage Photo
Card: New Leaf/Dark Chocolate Bitty Box Basics/Kraft/Raspberry Fizz/Vintage Cream
Accessories: Raspberry Fizz Polka Dot Ribbon (Reversed)/Dark Chocolate Twill/Vintage Buttons Cream & Dark Chocolate/White Button Twine/Versamark Pen

Now I gotta get started on some Halloween treats for my nieces and nephews! I have a template designed - just gotta print it out and get busy! But not before getting my haircut this afternoon - I fancy going drastic but I know I'll chicken out by the time I get there!

Thanks so much for stopping by!

Catch ya later!
Aimes
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My First of the Season...

Hey!

Today I present the first of what's bound to be many....yup, I made my first Christmas card of the season! I know it's late compared to many of the organised papercrafters that I admire but believe me, this is an early start for me!

The thing that made me get off my bum and get started with a Christmas card is the PTI Blog Hop! This month's a Holiday Blog Hop where you can share what you're thinking of creating for the Christmas season. I can take part this month as I'm a little more organised and have a week off work! So with the extra hour that us in the UK blagged today, I spent mine crafting!So if you're here from the blog hop - welcome and a HUGE thanks to Melissa for putting my blog entry onto the Blog Hop Forum! I just couldn't stay up late enough to enter it as I gotta get up early tomorrow to take my car to the garage *grrr!* but that's another story! I'll stop babbling now and get on with the card shall I?
Well if you're thinking that's it to this card then you'll be surprised...this isn't an ordinary card...just pull up those scrummy candy canes and satsumas (no stocking is complete without a satsuma or two, right?)

Ta Dah!

OK I pinched this idea from my Couch Surprise Card and turned it into a Stocking Surprise Card. I just loved the way the sentiment kinda corresponded with the idea! The fireplace was hand-drawn, believe me, if I'd had a stamp for it I'd have used it LOL! Fireplaces are not my speciality when it comes to drawing but I'm hoping the added sparkle on the flames will avert your eyes!

Card Recipe
Stamps: Stocking Prints
Ink: Pure Poppy/Ripe Avocado/Distress Inks Antique Linen & Vintage Photo
Card: Pure Poppy/Ripe Avocado/Kraft/Vintage Cream/Vellum from Stash
Accessories: Promarkers/Stickles Glitter in Red and Crystal/3D Foam Pads/£10 note LOL!

This card will be for my little bro, we always tend to exchange money for Christmas. I know it sounds kinda sad, but we both have 7 nieces and nephews to buy for so by the time it gets to finding a gift for each other we're kinda pooped! We appreciate the pennies as it gets spent on something super special we can choose (probably a round of drinks in his case!)

Well I hope you like it! I'm off to hop around some more blogs and I recommend you do the same - I'm just in awe of the awesome talent I hop on and I'm definitely finding lots of inspiration for future holiday projects...

Thanks so much for stopping by - I always truly appreciate it!

Catch ya later!
Aimes
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My Shining Star...

Hey!

Well we're having a super soggy day here today, I guess it really is autumn! Can you believe that we're nearly approaching November and I've not made a single Christmas card yet - eeek!

Anyways the title of today's post is a reference to my fantastic boyfriend Chris! I don't wanna get all mushy mushy but we celebrated our anniversary last week. 9 years of bliss! Well...at least 8.5 years of it anyways ;D

I always struggle to make an anniversary card for my honey; he always insists on a handmade card (maybe because he thinks he knows just how much crafting stash I have and insist on needing - thank goodness he doesn't realise the true extent of my addiction!) and I always want to put my best effort in making a card from the heart for him without it all being one massive slushfest layered onto a card blank!

So onto the finished creation:

Well I think I cracked it! Not one slushy sentiment but a very true one (altogether now...aww!) in a colour scheme that is sooooooooooo Chris. He ADORES green (just about as much as I do!) and although a flourish is kinda girly, I think it really compliments the card!Well this is the card that I'm really proud of (I hope I'm allowed to be!) because it made the recipient so happy and that in turn made me happy. It turned out EXACTLY as I wanted it to and I know it's not fancy, it's got no clever gizmo on it but it's just a card from the heart!

If you want the full deets, this card is featured as my example over on the PTI blog for our new challenge - Goin' Dotty! All you gotta do is use at least one PTI product and get some polka dots onto your creation. Could be dotty dp, dotty ribbon, dotty stamps or even handdrawn dots! Check it out if you can because there's some fab PTI goodies up for grabs to tempt ya!

Anyways that's all from me! Thanks so much for stopping by!

Catch ya later!

Aimes

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Geeky Me...

Hey!

Hope y'all having a super Sunday, whatever you're up to today! We're havin' one of those Sundays where we have a list of jobs to do (including ironing - *Grrr*!) so I gotta be quick!

Yesterday I was playing around on the PC (We've finally got our broadband set up - hurrah!) and decided to try my hand at making a blinkie for our PTI blog!

Here's the result:



Do you like it? I'm displaying it on my sidebar with a link to the blog if you click on it.

If you'd like instructions on how to put this blinkie on your blog then click on the blinkie on this post and it'll take you to full instructions on our PTI blog or just click here!

I have to say I was kinda impressed with the result - it wasn't half as tricky as I thought it'd be! So much so, that I think I have a new obsession, though I'm not exactly sure what else I can make blinkies for - anybody need one? LOL!

Thanks so much for stopping by even though I didn't' have a card to share with you today! I've got the card I'm kinda proud of to share with you tomorrow (It's not clever or anything - I just really like it! Sorry to disappoint anyone who had high expectations!)

Catch ya later!
Aimes
x

A Fab Friend...

Hey!

Happy Thursday! It's so nearly the weekend - just one more day to go!!

I've been hoping to post this card for AGES! Believe it or not I posted it first class and in true Royal Mail style at the mo it took a bloomin' week to complete its journey, and it looks set that the postal strike is going ahead next week :o( Well fingers crossed it won't because there's nothing quite like receiving a card through the post is there?!

This card is for my fabulous friend (and fellow PTI addict) Kate! I always have a stash of cards to send (just look at my previous creations to know what I've got!) but I really wanted to make a card that screamed out, "Kate!" to me, as well as giving me a perfect excuse to play with my new Friends 'til the End PTI Set ;D

(Apologies for Pics - they were taken on my mum's kitchen worktop! Yet to find a good spot to take pics in our new place!)

If Kate could be a colour I think she'd definitely be PTI's Aqua Mist along with some scrummy Kraft and so my colour combo was pretty much decided for me (I just threw in some Dark Chocolate for good measure too!)We were joking on the phone before I made this about how much stuff I own and tried to justify keeping when Chris and I moved to our new place. I also confessed that I have so many things that were 'crazes' or 'fads' that have just gone outta my stamping style. This includes the hundreds of eyelets and gromlets I own along with my Crop-a-dile 2. Needless to say, for a giggle I was determined to get crop-a-diling and placed a gromlet through the flower ;DThe flower looked a little 'flat' when I stamped it, so to add more depth I used a Versamark Pen to create some shadows and went over this with a Copic Spica Pen. I wished I taken a pic before and after because the difference was so cool but it looks kinda subtle here! It sparkles so much more IRL y'know!

Card Recipe

(All PTI Unless Stated!)

Stamps: Friends 'til the End, Background Basics: Text Style

Cardstock: Aqua Mist, Aqua Mist Bitty Dot Basics, Vintage Cream, Ripe Avocado, Dark Chocolate, Kraft Card Blank (Hero Arts)

Ink: Dark Chocolate, Versamark

Accessories: Vintage Cream Satin Ribbon, Aqua Mist Vintage Button, Gromlet, Crop-a-dile II, Copic Clear Spica Pen

So although it took a week to reach Kate, I think she liked it! I know I LOVED making it and will be playing with that stamp set much more - though not before I start playing with my newer PTI goodies and I've already put my order in for more this month - eek!

Thanks so much for stopping by!! I'll be back soon with a card I'll confess I'm kinda proud of...

Catch ya later!

Aimes

x

Awesome Autumn...

Hey!

Happy Tuesday everyone! Well I won't lie - this week is going kinda slow for me but I know that come Wednesday the rest of the week will be a blur and it'll be the weekend before I know it!

Just in case you haven't popped in our PTI blog, we've got a new challenge set! The challenge this time around is to be inspired by autumn. I have to say I found this challenge was soooo in my comfort zone - I tend to home in on these kinda colours not only in cardmaking but in everyday decisions too!

Here's my take on autumn anyways:Just love the warm fuzzy feeling that summer sunrise (I know, kinda ironic name for a cardstock that's to be used on an autumnal card LOL!) and pure poppy gives me!

Full deets can be found on the PTI blog and I would truly love it if you took a peek, maybe a plunge too and played along. Remember, there's some PTI goodies for grabs if you need tempting!

Finally, my dear friend Kate is celebrating her Blog Birthday! Happy Blog Birthday Hun!! Kate is celebrating in her true, generous style by offering some DELICIOUS Blog Candy that's calorie free and scrumptious too! Pop by to say Happy Blog Birthday and y'never know, you could be the lucky recipient of this:Right, that's all I've got on me for now! I was actually hoping to play along with the now ended RSCC before it ended as I adored the colours set. My aim was to create and post just before the deadline but as I'm yet to put ink to a stamp for it I guess it'll just be fun to play along even though it's ended. Well I guess I could still play along right? Better late then never!

Thanks so much for stopping by - I really appreciate it as I know I've been away a while so your visits really make me think I haven't quite lost my blog totally! I promise to update much more from now on!

Catch ya later!
Aimes
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An ATC Newbie...

Hey!

Hope you've had (or having) a fabby weekend wherever you are! This weekend has been a real wake-up call to autumn. It's been soooooooooo gusty that the multi-coloured leaves have been dancing away all day long! That combined with seeing kids conker picking has really got me in the autumnal spirit - roll on the homemade soup! (no pun intended btw!)

Anyways I digress! We've FINALLY unpacked all my crafting stash this weekend WOO HOO!! So tonight I plan on making a card. Yup, I'm actually gonna sit down and craft and I can't wait! OK so it's 24 hours too late for World Card Making Day but I guess there's always next year eh?

So obviously I can't post what I've not made yet, but I can show you some ATCs I made recently for a PTI swap over on the PTI Blog. Wanted to post 'em for ages but wanted to wait for my ATC to be shown on the PTI Blog first.Now I've never made an ATC before but it wasn't as scary as I thought it'd be! In fact it was a kinda fun challenge to make something on such a small scale (uses up less of my precious PTI stash too ;D) and it was so cool to be able to arrange all my identical ATCs so I could get a pic of them all together!

For anyone who is interested in seeing everyone's ATCs then check out the PTI Blog. I felt so lucky to be a part of a swap with such talented stampers - honestly, I'll probably never use the amazing ATCs I received in return on a card as they're just too pretty to part with! If anyone is interested in participating in a future PTI ATC swap then keep tabs on the PTI Blog...deets will be popping up soon!

Anyways I'm off to start cooking a curry (though not too spicy!) and then sit down and start stamping (though not before washing up, ironing and planning my lesson for tomorrow - eek!)

Catch ya later!
Aimes
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