Happy New Year

A huge thank you to everyone that's dropped by my blog, left a lovely comment, or offered a bit of encouragement over the last crafty year. It honestly means more than you know.

I take part in a lot of challenges through the year, so thank you to all the design team members, and the behind the scenes admins, for all your hard work and inspiration.

Here's a selection of my best cards of 2025 - as chosen by my Instagram followers.

This year I got to grips with die cut sets, so it's nice to see some of those in there, but it will be no surprise to my followers that cute animals were my go to.

Next year I have to keep a tight rein on my budget, so I'm looking for versatile sets, and maybe dipping into some digi images.

Any recommendations for digis will be much appreciated.

Thanks again for your visits - and for being such a brilliant crafty bunch 

Happy crafting and a very Happy New Year  xxx

May Your Days Be Furry and Bright

Hello.

The skiing dog is back  
and this time I couldn't resist giving him a little wobble  :o)

The background is stencilled and then this cute little die-cut dog was placed on a wobble mechanism, so he can head of down the slopes for some après ski  :o)

Watch the wobble  -  here

Challenge

Allsorts

Create A Scene

This is their last challenge of the season, so Merry Christmas to all the DT

for such a great challenge blog, and for all their inspiration this year xxx

and here's a hello from Buster - 
who thinks that skiing looks like far too much work :o)

• waffle flower crafts - cool pup die and stencil, snowy hills stencils
• ranger distress inks - salvaged patina/twisted citron/mowed lawn/walnut stain
• copic markers
• wobble mechanism

The Cheeky Robin

 Hello. I'm excited today, to be a guest designer for the

AAA Colourful Challenge

with this sweet, winter snow scene.

There was lots of debate in our house about whether this colour scheme was blue, or green!
As you can see, I went with more blue shades, a touch of green and some lilac (that my dh insisted was in there)   :o)

I can't wait to see what the other designers have come up with. 

The background was inked up with distress ink  (tumbled glass)  then I used a small, round stamp for the extra blue/green shades.
The white ink doesn't stamp well, so I made a quick stencil with a piece of scrap card and a hole punch, and sponged the ink through that.

My snowy pals were stamped, fussy cut and coloured with Copics - then popped up with foam tape for some extra dimension.

Check out the amazing work from the Design Team and 

I know it's a busy time for everyone, but I hope you'll find some time to play along.

xxx 

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• colorado craft company - christmas presents
• ranger distress ink -  tumbled glass
• my favorite things - snow globe sentiments
• winnie and walter - big bang confetti
• copic markers / white gel pen

When A Dog Turns Up On Skis - You Buy The Set!

A dog on skis?
Yeah, that went straight into my basket :o)

Can you believe this was my first time using stencils like this? You lot make it look easy don't you?
I've got a few basic stencils, like stripes and circles, but this was my first layering type.
I didn't manage to quite line it up right, so copic markers helped me out a little.

Also, I realised you probably need a good supply of inks if you're going to use these - something I'll have to be careful of for future purchases.

Challenge

Inkspirational

The dog comes with a stencil for adding shadows and details
Then I used a snowy hills set ( 2 stencils ) for the background

Here's Buster - waiting for Amazon to deliver his skis  :o)

• waffle flower crafts - cool pup die and stencil, snowy hills stencils
• mft - snowglobe sentiments
• ranger distress inks - salvaged patina/twisted citron/mowed lawn/walnut stain
• copic markers
• pretty pink posh - snowfall stencil

The Chaotic Christmas Tree Club

Hello.
Today I'm sharing these cute critters, decorating the tree.
There's a rabbit up a ladder, a penguin with a star, a fox trying to hang the baubles and a bear untangling the fairy lights.
What is the guy with the Santa hat?  Any ideas?

I've continued with making multiple cards at once, which is really helping me to get on top of things this year. 
The background 'snow' is a die cut, and then the tree and little critters are added, popped up with foam tape for some extra interest.

Challenge

A Place To Start

                                                                

**Winter Things**

• mama elephant - decorate the tree
• avery elle - falling snow
• mft - stitched scallop edge die
• copic markers 

Everybody Join The Conga Line

Hello.
Who doesn't love a versatile stamp?
These guys were bought for birthdays, but here they are, having fun with a Christmas conga line :o)

This was a simple card to put together. Just a quick stamp and some Copic colouring.

Then, I added the die-cut fairy lights for some extra festive fun.
Yeah - I'm not sure about the lights. I think I'll make another card without them.

Challenge

We Love Stamping

Anything Christmas

colorado craft company - conga line

concord and 9th - handmade holiday dies

concord and 9th sentiment - tiny trees turnabout

copic markers / white gel pen

Father Christmas In The Snow

Hello.

I think I've cracked Christmas cards.
Usually all my cards are different, but this year I've had production lines going of the same design,
with just a little twist.

This Father Christmas is on different coloured, snowy backgrounds. 

Which one is your favourite?

This design and colour combo is for the AAAColourful Challenge - where the palette is reds, white and a touch of gold. I hope I'm forgiven for the little bit of green in there on the present!

The backgrounds are all made with distress ink, some water splatter, and a white gel pen and snowfall stencil.

Challenge

AAA Colourful

• spellbinders - dancin' st nick
• lawn fawn stitched hillside borders
• ranger distress ink - festive berries / salty ocean / salvaged patina
• mft - snowglobe sentiments
• pretty pink posh - snowfall stencil
• white gel pen

From 'Just a Sprinkle' to 'Shut the Schools'

Hello.
Today I'm sharing this cosy, woodland cabin with you. 

Can you imagine spending Christmas here? 
I would need a roaring fire, a stack of books and a well stocked fridge.
What would you need?

I love how the colours came together with this one.
With that warm glow in the windows, I can imagine a log burner inside,  running on maximum.
Which is just as well really, as I think I overdid the snow.

It ended up more British blizzard than festive flurry :o)

Challenge

Moving Along With The Times

Winter Wonderland

• concord and 9th - yuletide lane
• versacolor inks - lagoon blue/ turquoise
• copic markers / white gel pen

Pedal Power Post

Hello.
Today I'm sharing this cute, little bear and his helpful penguins.
Rushing around to deliver the Christmas post before he gets snowed in.

I stamped this cute image onto a card panel, and then masked it and distress inked the background.
Then I coloured the image with Copics and added the sentiment piece, and a strip of gold.

Lastly, the snow was added with a white gel pen and a snowfall stencil.

Challenge

Freshly Made Sketches

I've definitely pushed the 'clean and fresh' brief on this one!
I just couldn't resist adding that snow flurry.

• purple onion designs - happy mail
• ranger distress ink - salvaged patina
• mft - snowglobe sentiments
• copic markers / white gel pen

A Little Stroll Down Yuletide Lane

Hello.
I've been layering and sticking my way down Yuletide Lane,
adding snowy rooftops, festive trees, and fairy lights.

Each one is slightly different, so they are lots of fun to put together.

Which one is your favourite?

Card One - with small Christmas trees out front, a merry banner and some fairy lights.

Card Two - with extra trees at the front, a merry banner, snow on the tops of the windows and door, and a bell on the roof.

Card Three - with three trees, fairy lights, and a holly bough.

Card Four - with two Christmas trees, fairy lights, and a noel banner.

As you can tell there's lots of die cutting an glueing on these cards, but also quite a bit of stamping.
The stamped areas are the sentiment, the snow, the lines or bricks of the house, the front door, and the Christmas trees.

The snow is white glitter paper, and the fairy lights and baubles have glossy accents on them, but the photo isn't really picking up any of that shimmer and gloss!!

Challenge

Allsorts

Using Card One as my challenge entry.

🎄Christmas Cards☃️

• concord and 9th - yuletide lane
• concord and 9th cardstock - poppy/parsley/peacock/aqua sky
• glossy accents / white gel pen
• distress ink - festive berries/salvaged patina

Top Of My Crafty Charts

Hello.
Today I'm spinning a few paper discs, for this 'greatest hits' card.  :o)

It doesn't really show on the photo, but I have found that layering these die cuts does make them look better, and stand out more on the card.
It's a lot of extra glueing, but it does help to use up some of my massive offcut pile of card! ;o)

Challenge

AAA Birthday Challenge 

• concord and 9th - greatest hits stamps and dies
• pinkfresh studio - diagonal stitched rectangle
• versa color - turquoise

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