Sunday Snippets - 'Child with goose family'

I've had this Alexandra Renke set of dies for ages, I knew it would mean a ton of die cutting and kept putting off using it: 

I used: 

- DL white card blank, tent style

- first of all I die cut and assembled all the adorable geese and the little girl, using snippets from a 'Paper Mill Direct' swatch and snippets of 'Pale Ivory' linen effect card - although I used the reverse plain side. The geese are all double layered and the little girl has several layers to add dimension- the die set is 'Child with goose family' by Alexandra Renke, fabulous detail to play around with!

- then set the die cuts aside whilst  adding the background layers to the card

- for the background layers I used part of a whole sheet of Sizzix A4 grey card trimmed to size plus a sheet of pink patterned paper from Whimsy's Slimline 'Champagne' paper pack, die cut using a Creative Craft 'DL stitched straight edge' die

- glued the pink patterned paper onto the grey backing layer then added the whole panel to the card front using very narrow foam strips

- die cut the sentiment, double layered it, using more of the grey backing card and a Poppy Stamps 'Merry Christmas - Poe Script' die - then glued it to the top right hand side of the card front

- used a glue pen to add the little girl and the 'goose family' to the card front

- final touch, popped a couple of bows onto two of the geese - finished!

I made two cards the same  and they were such a delight to work with. The set even includes a couple of hats for the geese!

I would like to enter my card into the following challenges:

Allsorts Challenge #824 HERE - everyone over there is having a fun time celebrating their 16th Birthday, and there are some lovely prizes to be won! 

Darnell's NBUS Challenge #74 HERE- the 'goose family' dies were out for a first play

Christmas Kickstart Challenge #98 - HERE - the theme is 'Winter Warmers'

Rudolh Days Challenge - May 2025 - HERE

Dudley Pupdate: Earlier this week, we were visited by my new mobile hairdresser - and Dudley was thrilled to pieces! He's a real pushover for the ladies - men, not so much. When Lisa came to the front door, naturally Dudley had to poke his head out to 'woof 'Hello, my name is Dudley, may I be of assistance?' 

Not a great photo but you get the scenario I hope! We have a CCTV camera in the lounge bay window, trained onto the front doorstep area - I've cropped Lisa out as it wouldn't be right to publish her photo on here. She's a lovely lady, very bubbly - and most importantly is a very good hairdresser!

We have a new Challenge #507 being run by our lovely Sarn, over HERE. Goodness knows what weather this week will bring - it's half-term for the schools so very probably we'll have rain!

Love from myself and Dudley, 

Sunday Snippets - ATC's

A new venture for my snippets make today - an ATC coin! I made a normal ATC a couple of days earlier and then Sarn sent me a photo of my one and only previous ATC make - dating back to 2012 or so! I enjoyed making both of the latest ones, the coin was more of a 'success' though - so here it is:

I used:

- 2.5" x 2.5" front piece circle, die cut from a snippet of DCWV 'Quince Blossom' paper stack

- added the sentiment word 'Nature' snipped from a sentiment in the Clarity 'Word Sticker Collection' - absolutely ancient!

- then popped on a black silhouetted bird, sent to me ready die cut by Sarn

- then popped a few Memory Box amber 'Fairy Jewels' onto the centres of the larger flower heads

- added details to the back, using a Globeland stamp from their ATC set, then die cutting it before adhering it in place

- also made a little 'pocket' for the coin, following some very easy instructions (again from Sarn) and another piece of paper from the 'Quince Blossom' paper stack

I searched through my dies for a 2.5" circle and, despite having a load of circle dies, ended up relieving an old 'doily' set of dies of a plain circle - spot on 2.5". The ATC holder had the top semi-circle cut away, using a small circular die rather than a punch - I just don't have the strength these days!

This 'normal' ATC was my first foray - warts and all - after so many years since making Sarn's ATC.

I used: 

- a Penny Black 'Masterpiece' image as a starter for the background - trimmed down to 3.5" x 2.5" 

- I then stamped some flower heads along the bottom edge using a lovely stamp set sent to me by another dear friend and 'Old Paper' Distress Oxide

- added a couple of Lavinia fairies using a Clair 'Nocturne' ink pad - and managed to smudge one of them a bit. I think my attempts to correct it made even more of a pigs ear/dodgy legs of it, but it's here as a reminder to me that freehand stamping is so not my forte!

- the sentiment was stamped using Clair 'Morning Mist' and a stamp from Woodware's 'Postage Stamp Greeting' set

-  then decided to add a line of gold Calligraphy ink around the edges, followed by some dots of Gold ink so i went for overkill and added some dabs of Winsor & Newton gold ink

- still a sow's ear - but I enjoyed playing! And I made an ATC pocket using paper from the same DCWV stack!

Both Val and Sarn have been so encouraging and supportive during my 'journey' into ATC's - thank you both SO much!

I'd like to enter the coin ATC into the following challenges: 

- Allsorts Challenge # 823 HERE - under 'Anything Goes'

- Tag-along & ATCs May 2025 HERE - Anything Goes

Dudley Pupdate: Currently, Dudley isn't really on speaking terms with me as I had the cheek to trim down his 'Ugg boots' around the front of his paws this afternoon during a grooming session- writing this final part on Saturday evening. Always tricky to brush and tidy up with a Havanese climbing onto your shoulder. It's a battle of wits for sure - but we always have a cuddles session later - once he's out of the 'you're SO mean to me' phase. Tee, hee! 

Remember, the results from Sarn's Challenge #505 are now published in the Snippets Playground HERE.

Do come and play with us in the Playground - we have both ice cream and soup on offer - my thermal vests are dizzy with the changes in weather!

Before I go, it's a big celebration over at the Allsorts Challenge blog as of next Saturday so get thinking!

Love as always, Dudley and yours truly,

Sunday Snippets - 'Magnolia'

A very special friend had a Birthday last month - and this is the card I made for her: 

I used:

- 5.75" x 5.75" white card blank, side opening

- snippet of the same white card stock as well as a snippet of Tonic's mirror 'Inca Gold' card stock to die cut the outer frame using a pair of dies by Maximim Crafts HERE. I love the effect of these dies - instant elegance .......  IMHO of course 

- glued the white frame on top of the gold frame - thereby giving two narrow gold edges to the white frame and then glued it onto the card front

- then die cut the parts for the magnolia - using an unbranded die set called 'Magnolia Curved Branch' and snippets of pink and green ombre papers from Lawn Fawn's 'Watercolor Wishes' ombre paper pad - and again I used some white die cut card apertures to help to position where to die cut the pink flowers

- glued the curved branch, assembled magnolia flowers and additional leaves onto the card front

- added a few touches of gold pen to the magnolia flowers

- the sentiment is actually pre-folied in gold and already die cut - made by Pinkfresh - and I added it to the card front using a couple of pieces of thin sticky pad

- the final touch was a few Memory Box self adhesive clear 'Fairy Drops'

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

- Allsorts Challenge #823  'Anything goes' HERE 

- Darnell's NBUS Challenge #74 HERE - the Magnolia Branch die set was having a first outing 

Remember, I've just kicked off a new challenge over in the Snippets Playground HERE. 

Dudley Pupdate: It's been a better week with Len's jaw problems this week, although I did get in touch with the surgery for an extension of the antibiotics as he's not quite out of the woods yet. I do think that just five days of treatment was a bit optimistic - particularly as the usual course is 7 or 10 days - and am hopeful that this repeat course wlll really knock it on the head. When Len went to collect them, Dudley literally put his head onto Honka Duck and cried like a baby. One day I'll take a short video of him in action - heartbreaking. I kept telling him that 'Dad' hadn't run away, but he was too busy being a drama queen to actually take any notice - bless his little paws.

However, Dudley is at least much less worried about Len's health than he was this time last week, and I find that reassuring as well. As I'm typing this he's flat on his back - on MY side of the bed well into the land of nod! Dudley of course - not Len! The 'patient'/'impatient' is sitting in bed watching the evening news on 'Tee Vee'.

Hope to see you on the swings - come and play with us, it's always fun! The weather has been less warm that it was this time last week but it heating up again - doubtless Sarn will be supplying hot/cold drinks to suit!

Love as always, Dudley Dog and me

xxxxx

Sunday Snippets - 'Butterflies'

On Day 7 of the Gummiapan Easter Calendar, one of the lovely dies in the packet was a very pretty butterfly - and so I made this card:

I used:

- 4.75" x 4.75"  white card blank, side opening

- a snippet of the same white card stock, which I die cut using a 4.5" square die from a 'Stitched Squares' set of dies from 'The Works'. I don't think they sell dies any longer - which is a shame as they were great value for money

- then die cut the circular shape into the panel using Altenew's 'Window Sphere' die 

- next, glued a snippet of 'shades of mauve' paper from Lawn Fawn's 'Watercolor Wishes' ombre paper pad behind the 'Eclipse aperture - using a glue pen right around the circle

- time for the Gummiapan butterflies, which I die cut from a snippet of paper from the Honey Bee 'Team Tie Dye' paper pad and coloured the body with a black Tombow pen

- gently curved the wings a bit and then added the butterflies to the 'Eclipse window' using small pieces of thin foam sticky pads

- the silver foiled sentiment was just added using a glue pen - the ready made sentiment is from a pack by Pinkfresh Studio

 

- final touch was to add the whole front panel onto the card blank, using narrow foam tape to 'lift' the whole thing

Hooray, I took a photo of my snippets - and a TIP, you'll see the butterfly cut into a snippet of white card. It's an invaluable way of positioning solid dies onto most stamped images things,as well as patterned paper where you want to pick out particular areas.

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

Darnell's NBUS Challenge #74 - HERE. The butterfly die was out for its first flutter!

Allsorts Challenge #822 - HERE. The current challenge is 'Inspired by a Song' - and my song is 'Love is Like a Butterfly' sung by Dolly Parton 

Dudley Pupdate: It's been quite a week here and after several sleepless nights all round I finally got Len to agree that he should see a GP. On Wednesday I was sitting at 8am ready for the surgery to open, phone in hand as he could barely speak by then. After being triaged 'remotely by my description of his symptoms' he actually had a face to face appointment at the surgery at 11:30am - and came home with a course of antibiotics - but with no clear diagnosis. He took just two of the 20 doses in the full course and by 10pm we had the beginnings of a miracle as the excruciating pain had almost gone - incredible!  Progress is slower than that immediate improvement but so far it's going in the right direction. Still days to go on the course of pills and I do have a contact for my own needs at the surgery who would raise a repeat prescription request  for Len if needed. Just five days of treatment is a bit optimistic IMHO - particularly as the usual course is 7 or 10 days.

Thank you all for your well wishes last week - so very kind. Dudley has barely left Len's side during all of this needless to say. 

Very importantly, the results of Challenge #502 are now published HERE.

Do please come and play in Sarn's current challenge over in the Snippets Playground - we've had glorious weather for a few days now and of course she's been up to no good. Nothing new there then - once a scamp always a scamp, meant in the nicest possible way! To think that I thought a prefect's badge and finally being my partner in crime sharing the Playground would calm things down. 😰 

Love from myself and Dudley, xxx