Pixie's Snippets Playground - Week 204

Yikes, not much more than a month to go until Christmas now and no doubt Rudolph is already limbering up for his big night leading his mates around the World.

I know that there has been some casting going on for the Playground Nativity play - needless to say it's already getting a bit very silly, and also very funny :) Well, there's a big surprise - not!

My snippets card for today is one of two that I made exactly the same:

I used:

- 6" x 4" white card blank

- snippet of SU's 'Real Red' card stock, embossed using Crafts-Too's embossing folder called 'Poinsettia Frame'

- the image was stamped onto a snippet of white card stock using Memento 'Tuxedo Black' ink and a favourite Penny Black stamp called 'Little Angel'

- next the white frame was die cut from another white snippet using a Lil' Inker's die called 'Instant Camera'. The sentiment was stamped onto the bottom part using Memento 'Tuxedo Black' ink and a sentiment from the Creative Expressions 'Joy to the World' stamp set

- next I used the same die to cut the image before lightly colouring the image background with pale blue 'Pebbles' chalk

- I don't think it really shows in the image of the card  that you can see above but I also covered the 'photo' with some of that thin plastic 'book covering film' we used to use many years ago - just to give it a bit of a shine such as an instant photo would have. Made me smile here - I used to cover all my cookery books with the stuff, and school books before then - err, once we'd moved on from brown paper and then patterned Fablon of course! Clear was such an innovation :)

I also bet loads of us can remember the magic of watching instant/Polaroid photos appear before our very eyes - also many years ago. Sometimes this blog seems like a walk down Memory Lane, or perhaps a history lesson to the younger ones of you!

One thing I would do differently in future when using this die would be to trim the actual image to just a smidgen less than the outside measurement of the entire instant photo frame so that the image then sits 'back' in the frame (and you avoid the sliver thin gap around the image itself) - much as the real thing did in the 'olden days' :) Hindsight is a wonderful thing but I really didn't feel up to fiddling about any more once I realised the error of my ways.

I'd like to enter this card into the current Penny Black and More - 'Anything Christmas'  challenge.

And also Craftyhazelnut's Christmas Challenge where it's' 'Things with Wings' - plus Craftyhazelnut's Christmas Challenge Extra where it's always 'Anything goes'.

Quick gallop onto the weekly picks now. And there was the usual palaver deciding on the short list of course:

This is gorgeous! Mary Anne made an amazing Christmas card using a really beautiful basket die, and lots of snippets of course.

I really love this card, made by Susan (Rainy). Loads of snippets used of course and how clever to make the tops of the acorns interchangeable by adding little magnets to the backs - a great idea!

And Eve used the same set from Stampin' Up as well, to come up with this brilliant snippets make. It really shows how the same set of stamps can be used so differently - and loads of scope for even more variations of course.

Lots of you, quite rightly, hopped over to Pat's blog to take a closer look at this fabulous card. The poppies are just so gorgeous, and perfectly set off with the embossed zig zag and  oval shaped die background - and of course the perfectly toned in butterfly too!

This is the very first white on white card made by Liz and it's absolutely fabulous - so elegant and just perfect in every way! Hard to believe that Liz had never made a white on white card before now - what a way to begin! And then, the embossing folder is just stunning don't you think? Sigh, once again I was 'enabled' and just had to go and buy one - plus a spare for the Playground toy box of course.

That's one thing about running the Snippets Challenge and looking closely at so many beautifully made and very clever entries. The Playground really ought to come with a bit of a health warning as it's one of the very best places I know to find people happily sharing what new crafting materials they're using. Don't say I didn't warn you!

Isn't this wall hanging just adorable? Made by Ileana, I think it's so pretty and that snowman is just the cutest little guy - love the jingle bell as a finishing touch!

These darling little Tic Tac holders were made by April - another great way to use up snippets and also fabby little stocking fillers/craft fayre super sellers! And, there's a link to a tutorial over at April's blog if you fancy having a go yourself :)

We had three new playmates this week:

Tina Z nipped in a couple of times, and this was the lovely butterfly card she brought on her first visit - wonderful die cutting and embossing.

What a great Christmas card this is - brought to us by Shirley. I so love the little pops of red against the white, deep blue and silver - and what a fabulous image!

This amazing scene was created by Sandma (Sandra) - it's so beautiful and I love how the twigs frame the top of the image and just flow so naturally down the side as well.

Welcome to you all and do please come back and play with us again. You'll find that the Playground is a fun place to meet other crafters as well as picking up lots of ideas - plus everyone is so kind (don't tell them I said that though!)

A little drum roll now while Mr Random picks the winner(s) of last week's prize of the Inkylicious 'Thank You Calligraphy' stamp and the set of Spellbinders Nestabilities 'Labels Eighteen' dies. And our winner is:

 Barb W

Barb has been playing along regularly with us since mid-July and this is her first win - so it's really lovely to know that her turn arrived, whoop, whoop :) I don't have your address Barb so could you please drop me an email (di_wray@hotmail.com) and I'll post your prize off ASAP.

This super 'make' by Barb was already lined up on my list of picks from last week:

It's a 'Birthday Box' and such a clever way to keep a note of Birthdays for each month of the year, as well as using up snippets of course. Would make lovely gifts as well as sure fire sellers at Craft Fayres - I know that a lot of you have picked up on how clever this idea is - and so pretty too!

Moving onto the coming week's prize, there's another stamp and die on offer, just like the ones I used on my snippets card (well, there's another surprise I guess!). We've actually had the same stamp as a prize before (won by Sam (aka Hettie) this time last year, but it's so sweet and really good for gift tags that I thought we could have another one as a prize (especially as it fits so nicely into the die aperture. The die is totally new to me, and of course another one fell into the shopping basket for the Playground :)

It's a Penny Black 'Little Angel' stamp as well as a Lil' Inker's 'Instant Camera' die, a die which isn't just for Christmas of course :)

The Snippets Challenge will run for one week and the Playground gates will close at 11am UK time on Saturday 28th November. The gates will open again at midnight UK time on the same day.

Maximum of three entries and please say in a comment if you wish to play and be a possible winner of the prize. Do say if you only want one or other part of the prize (the stamp or the die) but both are up for grabs as one prize of course and will only be split if the first name out only wants one or other of the items, in which case I'll do a second draw for the other part of the prize. And please also link back to the Playground in your blog post to be eligible for the draw.

Mr Linky is below - please let me know if you have any problems linking, it's easy for me to sort out so don't struggle on alone :)

Friday saw me at the docs once again, long story cut short - more new meds, and sent off to hospital for an x-ray. Apparently 'something out of the ordinary' does appear to be showing up on the x-rays of said 'poorly trotter' but I won't know just what until Monday as it needs to be properly evaluated. Amazing that it's taken three weeks plus of agony for me to finally be sent for an x-ray - all I want now is to know just what it is, if it isn't gRout/inflammation :)  If it's a fracture then at least I might have a head start for Sarn's 'casting' sessions - tee, hee.

Christmas could be a bit different this year I suspect, depending on what's been found. Thank goodness for Ocado and other online shopping outlets :)

Remember it's Rudolph Day over at ScrappyMo's from Wednesday until the end of the month and of course it's the last one this year. There's a fabby Memory Box die to be won, and if you hop over now and comment on Mo's post dated 20th November you can also be in with a chance to win a different and equally lovely Memory Box die set in the interim!

Have a good week!

Di and of course, Parsnip!
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