....on a roll with four more Christmas Cards

 ....and posting twice in one week... WOW, that's nearly a record for this year.

Then I just had to have a go at the October challenge at 

CAS Mix Up - Blackout Embossing  ... never seen this before and luckily I have a 3D Christmas embossing folder..  

Here's my first effort ... just figured I'd use a scrap to try it out.... but it worked and I ended up covering the cutouts with my stamped gold embossed sentiment label.

This is how it started... I wasn't too careful about painting the recessed areas of the embossing with Twinkling H2Os... which I hoped would give a shiny finish...  and ... once I'd brayered over with Chipped Sapphire Distress Ink...  I was impressed with the technique.

So more had to be made...

This one as you can see I put the textured card in backwards when I embossed it... everything else was the same only I did try to paint the areas more carefully.

and another .. but I used Faded Jeans Distress Ink

and for the last I tried the whole embossing folder and brayered repeatedly to try and get a darker finish (used Chipped Sapphire Distress Ink) - the brayered areas got a bit messier 

So I'm going to play along with Christmas Kickstart #115 challenge - Gothic Christmas

....not really into 'dark stuff'  so I was inspired by the ornate decorations on the Christmas tree.

Thanks for stopping by my blog.... have a wonderful day,   Cheers Robyn

Christmas Poinsettias

Easy to keep the machine rolling and die cutting a stack of flowers...  so I ended up with four Poinsettias for the CAS Christmas October challenge  ....  and

being second week of the month... Darnell's Weekly IDEAS prompt has us featuring "D" =Die Cuts

Teamed the bright red flowers with some different die cut foliage and Christmasy patterned papers and an embossed background and finished each off with a stamped embossed sentiment.

Thanks for stopping by my  blog.... have a wonderful day,   Cheers Robyn

Merry Christmas

Hello and thanks for stopping by my blog....  today I've enjoyed some time painting with my very old Twinkling H2Os...  on this lovely Power Poppy Poinsettia stamp - it's a favourite.

The theme for October at CAS Christmas is Poinsettia 

and being the first week of October Darnell's Weekly IDEAS prompt is  "I" = Inks/Colour Mediums

Glad to be back making cards after a few weeks of no mojo...    Enjoy your day,   Cheers Robyn

Adding to my Christmas card pile...

 ....because before we know it, we'll be writing up cards and posting them.

Today I have made five cards..  my first three feature this large Christmas die - how quick and easy to make more than one.

And this BOLD sentiment makes it perfect to play along with Just Us Girls challenge #840 - Word Week  =  BOLD

My next two cards feature Reindeer ...  to play along with the 

Christmas Kickstart challenge #114 - Reindeer Games

CAS Christmas September challenge - Woodland Critters

A cute stamped image using pencil to colour it and finished with a die cut sentiment.

And a bit of recycling.... this snow globe was in my stash of unused tags from a few years ago... came in handy with the little reindeer inside - teamed with a snowflake patterned paper and stamped sentiment.

And of course it's the second week of Darnell's IDEAS prompt  ...  "D" = Dies  -   and all the cards this week feature dies.

Thanks for stopping by my blog... have a wonderful day,   Cheers Robyn

Back from an unplanned break...

Well .... there's a month gone flying by since I last made any cards and posted to my blog... but I must say I am very happy to be back watercolouring at my desk today.....   just a visitor and life getting in the way, oh and yes some crochet and gardening.

Being the first Monday of the month and being inspired by Darnells IDEAS prompt -  "I" = Inks, I got into the inking mode and stamped some holly images using Antique Linen Distress Ink and then watercolouring over the outline with more Distress Inks... the outline of the stamped image takes up the new colour  - so I did well and made two cards and added gold embossed sentiments.

My third card is just inking the stamp with the green DI and then watercolouring, finishing with the gold embossed sentiment.

My next card is for the September challenge over at CAS Christmas - Woodland Critters .... do you know how hard it is the create snowy cards and ones with 'woodland animals'  - here in Australia - not much snow and our wild critters are kangaroos and possums and dingoes... anyway I managed to find a couple of cute animals to make a clean and simple card, more stamped outlines and watercolouring.

The majority of my cards feature flowers... so when CAS Mix Up September challenge wanted Sunflowers I was pretty happy...  

My first card is stenciled with Distress Inks

and my second is a stamp - where I used markers directly onto the stamp but then added more ink to create depth.

Thanks so much for stopping by my blog.... have a wonderful day, cheers Robyn

My daughter loves sunflowers and a few years ago I crocheted her this Sunflower blanket.

This is my latest crochet project 

Christmas cards

Had a lovely visit with a friend today.... been quite a while since we got together to stamp and make cards.....   so it was nice to sit afterwards and make a couple of Christmas cards for my stash.

I'm joining challenges at

Just Us Girls #835 - Die week

Just Add Ink #791 - Christmas in July

CAS Christmas August challenge - Santa's Sleigh

Darnell's Weekly IDEAS prompt - Week 2 - "D" = Die Cuts

First card is just all Die Cuts...  a swirly background from my stash backed with pine leaves greenery and hung with a sparkly ornament and sentiment to finish.

Second card I stamped a silhouette Santa sleigh on to a starry night patterned paper, then again on a die cut yellow moon which is easy to position over the first stamping... to create a scene inked up a couple of fir trees and positioned them on a snowy slope and finished with a stamped sentiment.

Thanks for stopping by my blog, have a wonderful day,   Cheers Robyn

Cards using die cut from my never ending stash pile

Two challenges this week, using die cuts as the theme

Darnell's Weekly IDEAS prompt... week 2 "D"  = Dies

Just Us Girls challenge #835 - Dies

For my first card I've used some pieces laying to the side on my desk...a few weeks back I was making cards with this die (Sizzix - Cut Out Leaves) and I decided I wanted the leaf shapes so left the die intact and used scissors to cut around the die giving me a stand alone leaf.  Then I used Distress Oxides to ink the leaves and did this over a white panel so I got a leaf shadow (sort of like using a stencil).  I liked it lots so today I used one leaf die to cut out and glued over a matched inked leaf then arranged my other leaves around and finished with a stamped sentiment.

My second card is made from bits too... this die cut is from a large die - I had trimmed the piece from one edge and into the stash it went.  Same with the background... can't even remember making it - it's on gloss card and I've no idea of the inks but the piece was just the right size for the die cut -- gave it a red cardstock border and finished with a stamped sentiment.

Thanks for stopping by my blog... have a super day and hope I can get back again this week with a Christmas card or two      Cheers Robyn

Here's a pic of my latest crochet knee rug to donate to Palliative Care

Thinking of You and Christmas ...

Hi and thanks for popping over to my blog...  busy week again and we have a visitor staying too, so life is in a jumble...  but I did find time yesterday to make a few cards... lots of bits from my stash again and patterned papers.

My first card is for the Just Us Girls challenge #834 - CASE a DT week... (Copy And Selectively Edit or C0py And Share Everything) --   so that is what I did  --- totally copied Ina's lovely die cut corner card.  As it was, I had the same die cut panel already in my stash, so it was nice and easy to find some pretty coloured background for the die cut and then decided to attach it to a matching blue card and finish off with a lighter die cut sentiment and a few gems.  AND I see I am toooo late to join in the challenge :-(

And now for my Christmas cards this week... I've made a Twofer - so easy to die cut two Santa Sleighs and decorate them for a cards using different background patterned papers and die cut sentiment. I'm joining the challenges at:

    CAS Christmas August challenge - Santa's sleigh

    Just Add Ink challenge #791 - Just Add Christmas in July

....which reminds me - my crochet group did enjoy their Christmas in July morning tea last Tuesday - lots of fun, food and friendship, not much crochet.

Mannny months ago I bought this cool card book with lots of floral preprinted cards and envelopes ... again it was forgotten... but I've had my colouring pencils out and have nearly completed two cards... I do find colouring with whatever medium I use,  quite relaxing.  

So I'm inspired to share with Darnell's Weekly IDEAS prompt...  week 1 "I" = Ink/Colour mediums.

Cheers and have a wonderful day, Robyn