Just a Couple of Cards

This is just a flying visit with a couple of cards I did over the weekend.

The first one is for a colleague who is leaving our office for a job in another department:




Ingredients:
Making Memories paper
Papermania flowers with added layers cut using a Cuttlebug die
Lace from local market
Hobbycraft ribbon
Dovecraft brads
Felt leaves cut with Quickutz die
Pin from local market
Personalised ticket made using a Sizzix die

The second one is a birthday card for my sister. I have downloaded this fabby template/tutorial from the wonderful paper and string blog to make a purse, but I couldn't resist making one of the cupcake embellishments to use on the card I was making for my sister:

Ingredients:

Cupcake make from the paper and string pattern
K&CO Amy Butler papers
Ribbon and pin from local market
Felt lettering cut using Cuttlebug dies
Personalised ticket made using a Sizzix die
Papermania pearl brad
Cuttlebug embossing folder
Papermania paper flowers
Felt flower cut using a Sizzix die.

I will post the purse soon, I just need to get a zip then I can start making it up.

Cheers,

Ruthie x

A Lovely and Productive Day

Well it's been lovely and sunny here all day and I've had the day of work which makes it even better.

So far today I have cycled to the gym; done some washing; started a beading project (more of that later) and made the most of the sunshine by having my lunch in the garden! A nice way to spend a day off I think.

As you may have gathered from earlier posts my sister is getting married this year. Like all 'proper' girls I have been consumed by thoughts of which shoes to wear, pretty much since the engagement was announced! (The dress is taken care of as I am one of the bridesmaids).

Both my sister and I agree that these are the perfect bridesmaid shoes:

but as they cost more than my first car, perhaps a little excessive!

So yesterday we decided to hit the Trafford Centre (or the gates of hell as I prefer to call it) in search of some 'nearly perfect' bridesmaid shoes. We knew we were safe from temptation as Selfridges don't stock Manolo Blahnik!

We trawled every shoe shop and shoe concession in the place, including a long and lingering look at the Jimmy Choo bridal range in Selfridges, but finally settled on these in Debenhams:

which were a much more reasonable £18, with the idea that I would do a bit of 'shoe customisation' for a bit of Manolo inspired bling!

So here is today's beading project aka 'pimp my shoes':

My dress has a clear and purple crystal brooch on the front which provided the inspiration for the design.

This is only the first attempt and needs a bit of fine tuning but I am pleased with progress so far.

Cheers,

Ruthie x

A Patchy Dare and More Burlesque

I haven't played along in a while, but this morning I popped over to Daring Card Makers to check out this week's dare, set by Jane, to be inspired by patchwork or to make a patchwork looking card.

I decided to have a go and use the dare to make a Mother's Day card for my MIL. This is what I came up with:


The papers are a digital download from a new company in the US. Check them out here, and I finally got creative with the felt ric-rac I bought a few weeks ago.

Other ingredients:
Felt ric-rac from the fantastic paper-and-string
Felt flowers cut using a Sizzix die
Dovecraft brad
Coffee cup sleeve
Inking and pen stitching
Ticket made using Photoshop and a Sizzix die

This week I have also been playing with some more designs for my Sister's burlesque themed hen party. This is the latest design I have done for her:

I've had the basque stamp for years and this style has been doing the rounds for what seems like forever. I used to do quite a few birthday and valentines cards with it using feathers or net for skirts but I haven't done one for a very long time. In fact I nearly sold the stamp on ebay.

It's a good job I didn't as my sis is very taken with the basque idea. To me it just seems a bit dated, but as card makers/crafters I think we are always looking for new styles and ideas. That and I probably overdosed on basque stamping at some point!

Have a good weekend,

Cheers

Ruthie x

Fabric Not Felt

Just a quick post to show you a card I made for a colleague who had her first baby last week.

A bit of a departure for me as I didn't use any patterned paper or felt, just plain cardstock and some gingham fabric. I also dug out my Quickutz Bunny die, which is my usual standby item for new baby cards.

Ingredients:
Pink gingham fabric
Quickutz bunny die
Nestabilities oval dies
Safety pin from a pound shop pack
Ribbon from stash
Inking and pen stitching

Hope your Monday is going OK,

Ruthie x