Pixie's Crafty Snippets Challenge - 23

A hot week again in the playground, not much skipping but certainly queues for the swings and the paddling pool - although I think we're in for a change in the weather, just in time for the Jubilee celebrations, ain't that always the way :(

This is my snippets make for this week:

It's patriotic, without being red, white and blue :)

I used:

- 6" x 6" square white card stock

- snippets of SU's 'Baja Breeze' card stock as backings - from the snippets folder, which never seems to go down in size

- a whole 6" x 6" sheet of backing paper from Wild Rose Studio's 'Vintage Rose' paper pack, plus a complementary snippet left over from a previous card

- really pretty topper from the Shabby Chic Union Jacks Card Toppers set, sent to me to play with by Tracy of Cardmakers Delights

- snippets of ribbon which were lying here on the desk. The lilac/pink organza ribbon strip looked washed out against the backing card, so I backed it with a strip of magenta ribbon before adding a bow just in the organza - and it made such a difference

- Josy Rose nail heads (but of course)

I also played with a new toy, it's called Sew Easy by We R Memory Keepers:

Such a simple little gadget, it pierces the paper so you can then hand stitch using the guide holes. I do have a cute little sewing machine here, purely for working on paper, but don't always have room or the inclination to set it up. And, hand sewing round the papers was quite therapeutic - good for stress relief when things seem to be going a bit silly :) 

Right, that's my card this Jubilee weekend - onto the Snippets Roll Call now.

Lynn was the first this week to dash into the playground with such a great 60th birthday card. It's a really lovely card - fantastic image and layout as well as a super image - and all in gorgeous shades of purple too. Great words and advice inside as well. Just perfect for a 60th birthday Lynn!

Next was Sylvia-Anne, with a darling baby card, also for the Less Is More Challenge. It's so flippin' cute, with a delightful old fashioned pram (baby carriage for our American playmates) and perfectly proportioned. I love it. Do go and see, and while you're there do scroll down to see the amazing 'book card' Sylvia-Anne made - I've seen these before but this one tops the lot, just beautiful. Not surprisingly it made top 5 in last week's Allosrts challenge - so beautifully made and carefully designed. Well done Sylvia-Anne.

Then Sandra H called by with this terrific card for one of her brothers.  It truly is fabulous and spot-on for a keen fisherman. The wooden effect background looks fantastic and the star fish and nets are brilliant, all in all it's one perfect card Sandra and I love the inclusion of a few pints of beer :)

Elizabeth, feeling the heat like so many of us, arrived next with a really adorable Teddy Bear card (featuring another of Tracy's toppers, and blaming me for temptation). Just wait Elizabeth, my Raspberry Tiramisu will be even more temptation, just you wait and see :) I love the way the hearts on the card echo the heart being held by that Teddy!  So cute.

Next in for a play was Mary H, with some clever tips and this beautiful card - lovely image, great sponging, embossing and a  lovely teal frame. But, also with the tip of embossing two pieces of lighter weight card stock at once - great hint Mary and one I'll remember in future. We're always finding out new tips and hints here :)

Carol scampered in next - with the worrying comment that she'd just topped the paddling pool up. I did laugh, thoughts of it being less than fresh water sprang to mind so I did hop over and say that I think there's a chemical you can get which turns bright green if anything other than fresh water is added to a pool. Anyhow, this is the card that Carol brought. It's absolutely adorable - super image of a fairy on a toadstool, great colouring and I love the PATP set you used Carol.

Next was Irene, with her first attempt at a collage card. I squeaked out loud, if it's a first attempt then I might as well pack up and go home now! Do hop over here to see what I mean - well, I bet you're with me on this one! It's so pretty. love the embossing, tag, DI ink dusting, stamping and lace - they all go together just beautifully Irene!

The irrepressible Sam flew in next (why do I imagine that Sam never walks, but runs everywhere with boundless energy?) - with this brilliant pop-up card, also for Rudolph Day over at Sarn's (challenge is closed now so do start thinking about the 25th June when we have another one coming up!). It really is such a happy card, using a great stamp from Penny Black's 12 Days of Christmas set - which I love to bits! Just take a peek at Monsieur Chook avec un tipple de vin :)  Told you, can't help but smile - thanks Sam.

Linby was next, with such a clean and crisp card, beautiful embossing and lots of pretty little butterflies - you can take a peek for yourself over here. Those little beauties must be a great way to use up the tiniest snippets - and a labour of love to put such a pretty card together Linby. I love it - and thanks for the offer of a chocolate, don't mind if I do :)

Next was Karen T, with this cute card - a little girl on a swing with her teddy :) Lovely colouring Karen and the word 'Hugs' sums the image up perfectly too. Interesting to see peel offs still in use, they'll always have a place in our little hoards I suspect. And, who doesn't love their teddy bear :)

Bernie (winner of this month's Rudolph Day prize) was next to visit with a funny tale and this great card. A first go at resist embossing/stamping and a great success too. Love the music background and the bright, cheerful colours you used too Bernie. There was some debate about how bad the smell of a skunk is - I'm guessing I'd never want to get close up and personal with one then?

Next was Kath, my very dry and funny pal, with this stunning card, also for the Less Is More shaped card challenge. Love the vibrant colours in the flowers and all the sparkle, which did go down well with the LIM team despite Kath's doubt. The sentiment 'Hope Your Birthday Sparkles' is so appropriate too - see Kath, I do press me nose up against the screen :))

We had two visits from Gilly this week, despite it only being four weeks to 'W for Wedding' Day - hope you girls are snipping up confetti and polishing your trimmers for a guard of honour! Gilly's first card is here, also for Rudolph Day, and features a really great Sheena Douglas image, beautifully coloured and then cleverly finished by using white embossing on both the snowflakes and the sentiment. It really does remind me of The Shambles in York. Then, Gilly brought such a pretty blue and white card to show - lovely background Gilly and I love the butterflies using the Sizzix Beautiful Wings embosslit. Perfect!

Mary Mac, despite having a busy time getting ready to go away for her daughter's wedding (have a super time Mary!), found time to come and play this week too, with three fabulous cards which were also for Rudolph Day. Great embossing, little windows with Santa in his workshop and some really cute embellishments make this such a great trio Mary.

Two visits from Amanda as well this week - firstly with such a cute baby card. Having sorted all her snippets (being a bit laid up after a nasty fall had some slight compensations, but you wouldn't want a fall like it I promise you) someone is on a bit of a roll I think :) Love the image Amanda and such pretty papers too. Then, back again with this great card for a chap. Great image and colours Amanda - they go together perfectly! Also another tip from Amanda - she's been using a Cuttlekid machine to die cut. I got really excited about this and tracked it down in the UK, but my understanding is that it only takes dies up to 2.5" square. Such a shame as I know we all whimper when Cuttlebug top plates end up going banana shaped and all scored. Plus, a tip-off from Amanda sent me rushing over to the Glitterpot where they had a 50% sale on, with quite a few Stickeroos I really needed. Of course, quite a few other things fell into my shopping basket and the parcel arrived this morning, whoop, whoop!! Bad influence Amanda :)

Brenda was next with the most fabulous House Mouse card - quick, go here and see! The image of a house mouse lying back relaxing is just adorable, and his sunshade (flower) matches the papers so perfectly Brenda, and a great layout :) I've thrown my hands up and promised Brenda I'll make a stamped House Mouse card as soon as possible - but I just know it won't be a patch on this one. It's a winner in my eyes Brenda!!

And last, but never least, Mrs A arrived with two kitty-kat cards which are both just great. They really are just Purr....Fect - such simple but effective stamped images and set off so well with the ribbons (snipped from rosettes - waste not want not!). And the wry comment about the snippets folder getting fatter by the day struck a real cord here too Mrs A :)

OK, that's it for this week - whew. I hope no-one was disappointed that the playground gates closed at noon yesterday - at least this can now be scheduled and I don't need to keep checking up until 10pm this evening, sometimes I'm frantically typing just before midnight. You could always be first on Sunday instead :)

Our Jules is taking a little break - and I for one have missed her snippets card(s), she still manages to make at least one each week, plus no posts on her blog to go and sigh over :( Just over a week to go I think!

And a little bit of extra news, next week will be an even shorter week. It's my school reunion (a local one - not the huge one we have every other year, although I think 120 of us are going to this one next weekend). I fully intend to have a large glass of wine or G & T firmly in my hand a lot of the time, when not being out and about with friends during the day (snort, perhaps carrying a wine glass even then!). Also, I know that hotel internet charges where we're staying are ridiculous - even IF I had any time, which is doubtful unlikely impossible just not gonna happen. So, the playground will close at noon on Friday 8th June allowing me to do the roll call before packing my little spotted handkerchief to go away on Saturday. I'll make sure that the roll call is posted and the playground is re-opened with a new Mr Linky at midnight on Friday 8th June - giving you seven and a half days to play the following week. Whoop, whoop - the hotel is less than a five minute walk from The Art of Craft so I know where one outing will be headed for!

Mr Linky is below as usual. Hope you have a great week and please do remember to follow the conditions below.

Di
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The only conditions to playing nicely in the Snippet Playground are that your card (or anything else you wish to bring here to show) must be made by using up snippets (card, paper, lace and ribbon are all fine), and a link back to here in your own blog posting will mean that you'll be included in the Weekly Roll Call. Oh, and no nipping or hair pulling of course :)   

Anyone for a raspberry ripple?

This card really reminds me of raspberry ripple ice cream (yummy) - and I made it in about 10 minutes flat once we got home yesterday afternoon. One of those cards where everything just comes together so easily:

I used:

- 6" x 6" square white card stock

- snippets of plain card from the snippets folder

- Penny Black Stickeroo from the 'Collage Flowers' set

- pink and cream backing paper from the Melissa Frances 5th Avenue paper pad

- pink ribbon and cream lace, just lying on the desk begging to be used

- raspberry coloured card candi

It's Saturday today and roll call writing time. As so much is going on generally, I'm closing the playground gates at noon this Saturday folks! If it works, then normal weeks might end up the same so that I don't end up typing away at midnight each Saturday. Hope you understand!

Have a great Jubilee Weekend, whatever you have planned!

Di
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Friday Feast - Lamb Kebabs

This recipe is one I've used since the 1980's, back in the days when you had to hunt to find plain yoghurt, and it's still a great favourite.

Lamb Kebabs

Makes 8 kebabs, serves 2 hungry people

450g/1lb lamb (either leg or fillet) cut into 1" cubes
250g or so button mushrooms washed and trimmed if necessary
Small onions - approx.16
Tomatoes- at least 8, cut in half
8-12 rashers streaky bacon
60g/2oz butter

Marinade:
150g carton natural unsweetened yoghurt
2 tablespoons lemon juice (normally the juice of an average sized lemon)
1 tablespoon onion (either dried or freshly sliced)

Mix marinade ingredients together, stir in the cubed lamb, cover and put into fridge for at least four hours - more if possible.

Cut bacon rashers in half across the middle and roll them up.

Peel onions and boil for l0 minutes, or even less, just to soften them but not long enough for them to begin to come apart. Drain thoroughly.

Thread ingredients onto kebab skewers and brush with melted butter, I just melt the butter in a bowl in the microwave.

Pre-heat grill and grill for 6-8 minutes on each side, brush the second side with butter when you turn the kebabs over.

Serve with rice.

Things I do: Oh boy, these are a delight for someone like me  to make. I just love neatness and organisation - not that I always live my life like that but making kebabs comes quite close :) I made these yesterday evening, after a blip on Wednesday afternoon, the lamb ended up in the marinade in the fridge for about 28 hours - and it was absolutely non the worse for the experience. I've always used dried onions for the marinade, just habit really. I like to make the bacon rolls whilst boiling the onions earlier on in the day - it speeds things up later and you don't have to run the gauntlet of handling hot onions.

Then, with everything nicely lined up on plates/in bowls, comes the fun part - your hands will be messy from the marinade so it's good to keep everything within easy reach. There are no rules for assembling these kebabs, other than (I find) it's good to have half a tomato on either end which helps to keep everything else on the kebab skewer. Just alternate the ingredients as you fancy.

I've always cooked these under the oven grill, never on the BBQ - my own gut feeling is that I have a lot more control by using the oven grill as things like the tomatoes will cook faster than the lamb so I do end up turning the grill up and down a bit. But don't let that put you off having a go.

They are great served with rice, although yesterday evening I served these with pitta pockets stuffed with lettuce, tomato, cucumber - and a jaunty spring onion poking out of the top of each one :)

Something for the Jubilee holiday weekend perhaps? Enjoy!

Di
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Monochrome Magic in Paris

This week's challenge over at Penny Black's Saturday Challenge Week 203 is 'Monochrome Magic'. It would have easier to just use shades of black and grey but I opted to be awkward, as always, and went for greens. Waaaaay out of my comfort zone - I hope the little touches of blue are acceptable for the challenge, I've peeked at other entries and some have touches of other colours:

Sigh, the 'PARIS' lettering on the bunting shows up much better in real life :( The bright sunshine here is washing everything out - including me!

I used:

- 6" x 6" square white card stock

- backing paper from Wild Rose Studio's 'Letters from Paris' paper pack

- Stickeroos from Penny Black's 'Paris Je T'Aime' set - the Paris lettering on the bunting is even included on the set

- bunting punched from SU's 'Certain Celery' card with SU's scalloped pennant punch

- Josy Rose nail heads

Friday Feast's recipe will follow later.

Di
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Diamond Jubilee - 60 years

...... that's quite some record for our Queen, and I bet there have been quite a few times when she will have gritted her teeth and muttered "Keep Calm and Carry On":

So, to celebrate, I made this card above.

I used:

- 6" x 6" square cream card stock

- deep red Core'dinations card

- paper from the fabulous Docrafts Papermania 'Portobello Road' pack

- 'Keep Calm and Carry On' topper from Tracy over at Cardmakers Delights (thanks again for the chance to play with these Tracy :) I slightly trimmed the top and bottom of the topper to keep it more in balance with the layout

- stamped crown (in 'Paris Mist') using a freebie set called 'Cool Britannia' which came with this months Quick Cards Made Easy magazine

- peel off numbers '60' from my little hoard

- lots of diamantes on the crown

- Docrafts Papermania 'Portobello Road' buttons

I'd like to enter this card into the following challenges:

Pan Pastel - Challenge 20, Diamond Jubilee

Glitter Geeks - Week 21 Diamond Jubilee

Joanna Sheen - Remember When (I do remember the Coronation and wearing a paper crown)

The Crafty Pad - Challenge 172 - Colours of Your Flag

The Stamp Man - Card for a Queen

I've read and re-read the rules for each challenge, so I hope I got it right. Phew, unlike me, five challenges at once, not sure I could do that party trick very often!

Di
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WOYWW 156 - time to celebrate

Crumbs, three whole years of WOYWW, although I wasn't in at the start it's a super fun idea! Clever Julia!

Here's my desk today, as it was left yesterday afternoon:

Snort, the mess is still to the right out of shot, a bit less there but not much different and this is what I was playing with just before the wine waiter called me for a glass of wine and a sit out in the late afternoon warmth.

We have, usual mug of coffee to the left, ink pads and such to be put away, a couple of clean stamps also to put away, blank ATCs and envelopes to the back left, spare camera battery awaiting charge in front of those and the rest is card making Jubilee stuff I've been toying with. Totally love the Portobello Road papers and buttons! The little plastic box holds Union Flag pennants I've been snipping out of paper chain strips bought ages ago from Hobbycraft - just as well as I was in there yesterday and the place had been raided in readiness for this coming weekend! You can see the paper chain strips poking out of the basket in fact.

OK, I've been persuaded by my buddy Sarn to join in the ATC swop - so that's why there's some ATC stuff out in readiness. I know, should have made them earlier but until yesterday I truly wasn't going to join in as I've never made one before! I worked on them after the photos was taken - good fun too, I could be hooked now. Some extra ones are going to bloggy friends' :)


Right, too many words as always - so do hop over to Julia's here, go peek at some fun work spaces and remember to join in the ATC swop if you fancy it!

Di
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Christmas foliage and Rudolph Day

Whipped up a couple of Christmas cards here in the scorching heat, to enter into Crafty Hazelnut's Christmas Challenge (the theme is Christmas foliage) and of course Sarn's Rudolph Day Challenge. You have until 7pm on Friday 1st June to enter Sarn's challenge, and Hazel runs a new challenge each week.

I rootled round and found some ready made-up foiled pyramage (probably by Dufex and assembled ages ago) which it would be such a shame to waste, plus some metallic cards so these went together in next to no time before rushing back to sit in the freezer and cool down:

Crumbs, you can hardly see the layers in the photos unless you peer very closely, or click to enlarge.

Grinning here as these were the sort of Christmas cards I made almost at the start of my card making. They are both A6, ready embossed metallic cards. The gold card already has Happy Christmas in the design so I didn't add a sentiment. The silver one just had a silver lettering Craftwork Cards oval sentiment added, which had been layered onto pink pearlescent and muted silver plain and scalloped ovals respectively, punched with SU punches from little pieces found in the snippets folder.

Everything looks a bit wonky although it's straight in real life - think I need a new camera Len!!

More for the Christmas card box :)

Di
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