Tuesday 31 December 2019

Pixie's Snippets Playground - #368 - Prize J

Today is New Years Eve Folks - but as I feared, I had absolutely no time to make a card for today's giveaway, much less take any photos. So, I've taken an image from where I bought it from on the internet and this is what you can win:
Woodware Clear Stamps Designed by Francoise Read: Sparkly Trees - FRS653
It's a lovely Woodware set of several polymer stamps, designed by Francois Read, called 'Sparkly Trees'. I really can't recall if the prize set came in the package of goodies from Jackie T and then I discovered I could still buy one for myself to make a sample. I think that was my original intention so it's probably another thank you to Jackie!

My idea is, when I find the time, to make gold or silver embossed on darker cards - possibly black or navy blue, reckon they would look really striking. And a few little scattered clear crystal gems would make them 'pop' even more!

At the end of all of the celebrations I'll do a massive draw session for all the prizes using the one Mr Linky - which is on the main snippets post HERE along with details of exactly how to join in - so you do need to have entered one snippets make over on that post during this fortnight to be in with a chance :) Maximum of one entry please - to keep things fair for those who may not have time to craft. Mr Linky closes at 11am on Saturday 4th January so you do need to have added a snippets make by then to be eligible for the draw.

Just leave a comment on this post if you would like the chance to win today's prize.

Busy day here today/yesterday as I'm writing - hence the lack of time to make a card. We've got some sort of electrical problem in that the RCD has tripped three times today - meaning loss of mains power (we still have lights thankfully) and all the sorting out that entails. We're both on the case - Len is the one with the know-how and has the electrical/electronics background, as well as mind - I'm the joker in the pack and keep popping up with ideas. Some of which haven't been so stupid after all - but the issue might plague us a bit until it's resolved.

Len then braved the local supermarket for some bits and pieces and also brought home a lovely freshly baked crusty loaf of bread. So, after I schedule this I'm going to make us a yummy pan of chicken and vegetable broth, using what's left of the Christmas poultry.

Hope you all have a pleasant New Year celebration, whatever you have planned! We might be running to and fro messing around with appliances and flipping 'flipped switches'. Since 4pm we've been hopeful that he's found the problem - one of his Heath Robinson gizmos needless to say ............. and all has been fine since he removed it from the mains circuit - fingers crossed.

At least there's also another less job to do here - I thought we might have to build stables in the Playground to house yesterday's prize of all those reindeer - but it seems you really like them! Trust me, right now I would not be asking the Playground handyman to take on anything else! Happy dance :)

Love from Parsnip, Dudley and of course me,






Monday 30 December 2019

Pixie's Snippets Playground - #368 - Prize I

Now this is where I think I dropped a bit of a boo-boo - for three reasons. First of all the prize on offer features reindeer, very soon after Saturday's offering of a reindeer stamp. Secondly, a lot of you actually declined the prize on Saturday, sigh, due to already having your own little herds of reindeer residing in your various places where you craft (that 'herd' cracked me up - thanks April, trust you to come up with that one!). Oh, and April also had the bright idea of us showing our snippets mountains so possibly, in a not too far off challenge I just might ask for that from you instead of an actual 'make' - evil snigger here. And thirdly, I actually bought three of the matching stamp and die sets to offer for this prize (plus my own for making a sample) so this place could end up with a herd as well if no-one wants to re-home them!

Here's my card, which I managed to whip up quickly yesterday, still bearing in mind your lovely comments about possibly not doing sample cards - which I might still use as a fall back:
I used:

- 5.5" x 4.25" white card blank, side opening

- selected a snippet of paper from those tucked into the back of the Dovecrafts Modern 'Back to Basics Christmas' set of papers, and spied a snippet of SU 'Real Red' card to one side of the desk waiting to be put into the snippets folder so I also used that - didn't trim the paper or card stock but used them at first to match the Pro markers I wanted to use to colour the image

- then stamped a reindeer from the Clearly Besotted 'Jingle Bells' set of stamps, using Memento 'Tuxedo Black' ink

- coloured with Pro markers and then die cut using the matching 'Jingle Bells' die

- at that point I could decide where the sentiment from the same set would go - stamped that using Memento 'Tuxedo Black' ink

- then trimmed the paper and red card so I had a little red border on one edge and stuck them together using a small tape runner

- then stuck the borders onto the card front, trimming off the overlap at top and bottom once they were adhered

- finally, glued the reindeer in place using a glue pen - finished!

There I was wishing we had some sunlight to take photos - we had it at last and my camera didn't like it much as the colours and the sentiment look rather bleached. Hey, ho!

And here's prize I in the Grand Draw:
It's Clearly Besotted's 'Jingle Bells' stamps and matching die - and there are three to be won!

I bought the stamps and matching dies a little while ago ready for the Grand Draw - and can't find the exact same ones on Clearly Besotted's website. Looks as if they've replaced them with a slighty different version which is still called 'Jingle Bells', same images but with additional sentiments - although no dies are available. Another time I'll play around more, using the other stamps in the set.

I'll do a massive draw session for all the prizes using the one Mr Linky - which is on the main snippets post HERE along with details of exactly how to join in - so you do need to have entered one snippets make over on that post during this fortnight to be in with a chance :) Maximum of one entry please - to keep things fair for those who may not have time to craft. Mr Linky closes at 11am on Saturday 4th January so you do need to have added a snippets make by then to be eligible for the draw.

Just leave a comment on this post if you would like the chance to win today's prize.

It's New Year's Eve tomorrow - we'll be having a quiet time and hoping that the idiots up the road don't let off a barrage of fireworks once again. Dudley grew out of his spell of wanting to sleep wearing his onesie at night but we'll keep one handy as it does seem to soothe him much like a thunder shirt.

He's such a funny little character. He has an evening ritual where he gallops up to his toy box on the landing around 9pm or thereafter and brings 'Stinky Monkey the Third' down for a good wash. Tonight he then galloped back up and brought down part of a deer antler we bought him ages ago. Chewed on that, raised an eyebrow at 'The Trial of Christine Keeler' on the TV - and galloped back up again. By this time Len was in the bathroom getting ready for bed so he didn't see that Dudley had been having a rummage in my waste bin in the craft room and had then brought down part of a torn up envelope for me to admire - and remove from him! Next thing I know, Len wanders down with a handful of pieces of the same envelopes asking what was going on. The little tinker had been laying a paper trail we reckon. Another one of those moments when you look at one another, then at the culprit, then at one another again and just give a wry smile - not a single word was needed!

Love from Parsnip, Dudley and of course me,






Sunday 29 December 2019

Pixie's Snippets Playground - #368 - Prize H and results from Challenge #367

This is going to be a long(ish) post - first of all the picks and prizewinner from Challenge 367, followed by letting you see Prize H in the Grand Draw.
  
First of all, let's get going with this fortnight's picks:

What a fabulous way to use up lots of little snippets of different papers - Lia made these wonderful advent calendar/books and each little box holds a small present or chocolate. Brilliant idea!

And here's another brilliant idea for Christmas, shared with us by Gail (Crafty Nomad). A super Bottle Tag, again made using plenty of snippets!

And, still with Christmas in mind, Heather brought along this wonderful Christmas card - again using lots of snippets. I love the colours and, as always, Heather's colouring is just gorgeous! 

No new Playmates this time round and 45 entries - bit of a drop but to be expected when folk were running round getting ready for Christmas.

Time now for the prize draw, which is for a Clearly Besotted 'Hot Stuff' set of stamps, an MFT Peek-a-boo Window' square die and a packet of 10 MFT Square Shaker Pouches. And the winner is:
 
Well done Meghan. Please send me your address, with your full name at the top as well so I can copy and paste or just write straight from the email onto the envelope - for speed and ease. It's also confirmation that you still would like the prize of course and I'll post your prize once I hear from you. Please put Playground Winner or similar in the subject line of your email in case it drops into my junk mail. Email address is on RH sidebar as always.

Of course, winning this most certainly doesn't mean you're not in with a chance to win something in the Grand Prize Draw Meghan!

Which takes me nicely onto the Grand Draw prize for today, which was very kindly donated by Jackie T some time ago. I couldn't make a sample card as I don't have any of these lovely stamps so here they are:
Six stamps in total so another bumper prize to give you a head start on cards for Christmas 2020! And, as usual, I won't be splitting the prize. Thanks again Jackie!

At the end of all of the celebrations I'll do a massive draw session for all the prizes using the one Mr Linky - which is on the main snippets post HERE along with details of exactly how to join in - so you do need to have entered one snippets make over on that post during this fortnight to be in with a chance :) Maximum of one entry please - to keep things fair for those who may not have time to craft. Mr Linky closes at 11am on Saturday 4th January so you do need to have added a snippets make by then to be eligible for the draw.

Just leave a comment on this post if you would like the chance to win today's prize.

Crumbs, I was quietly typing away and hadn't realised that Dudley had slipped past my legs and was lying underneath the desk. The post man just popped some post through the letter box and up shot Dudley from underneath with one loud bark - terrified the life out of me! For a little dog he's got one heck of a bark - it's a Havanese thing apparently, they most certainly don't yap!

It's Saturday today and whilst the weather isn't particularly bright, at least Len has managed to go to the postponed archery fun shoot. He's been almost running around the walls here since all this rain arrived. The field became waterlogged so couldn't be used for a couple of weeks - even if you were prepared to go and get a good soaking the Parish Council closed the Recreation Ground to prevent it from becoming a mud bath.

Love from Parsnip, Dudley and of course me,







Saturday 28 December 2019

Pixie's Snippets Playground - #368 - Prize G

Me again - with another snippets card:
I used:

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

- then, using the Misti, I first stamped the reindeer using Memento 'Tuxedo Black' ink and Impression Obsession's 'Reindeer - F10007' stamp

- as the stamp is red rubber backed with cling mount (still think red rubber is so good for first time crisp images) I'd had to remove the foam inset from the Misti so I then popped it back in for the next stamp I used, which is a clear one from the Do-crafts Papermania 'Traditional Sentiments' stamp set - again with Memento 'Tuxedo Black' ink

- the stamping looked very dark on the sentiment, but comfort and time weren't on my side so I toned it down a bit using clear Wink of Stella

- then coloured the reindeer using Faber-Castell Polychromos pencils plus a Signo sparkly silver pen for the antlers, stars and outlines

- final touch was to run an embossing tool round each side using my Scor-Pal

A totally rubbish photo, which doesn't show up the colouring at all well, but I was too tired to start fiddling around with different lighting - even some blending fluid or using Pro markers would probably have been an idea. But at least you can see the sort of thing I had in mind! Given more time and patience I'll certainly revisit this lovely reindeer stamp, and perhaps heat emboss the sentiment in silver. It would look good with a strong Scandinavian theme as well - which is what I had in mind when I bought the reindeer stamp and, for me, a silver frame perhaps.

But, I was struggling with this dratted shoulder and some sweet person actually said in a comment, 'don't worry if you can't make the samples' and I did so appreciate that recognition as it hadn't crossed my mind as a 'Last Stand Saloon' solution - and that actually might happen with one or two of my future prize posts. We shall see though, I'm not a quitter :) Ha, I moved a linen basket of folded washing ready to iron today and that told me off a bit! Note, I only moved it folks!

And so, today's prize is (sorry, I'd forgotten to add this photo when I originally scheduled the post):
An Impression Obsession's 'Reindeer - F10007' stamp plus a Do-crafts Papermania 'Traditional Sentiments' stamp set.

At the end of all of the celebrations I'll do a massive draw session for all the prizes using the one Mr Linky - which is on the main snippets post HERE along with details of exactly how to join in - so you do need to have entered one snippets make over on that post during this fortnight to be in with a chance :) Maximum of one entry please - to keep things fair for those who may not have time to craft. Mr Linky closes at 11am on Saturday 4th January so you do need to have added a snippets make by then to be eligible for the draw.

Just leave a comment on this post if you would like the chance to win today's prize.
And can I also remind you please that you must use one or more snippets on your entry for the challenge.

I've just spent a good while going through your entries, as well as all of of your comments so far - jotting down potential 'picks' and also reading every single word of your lovely comments. I love to read your anecdotes and snippets of news. Remember girls, it's YOU who make this Playground happen - if it's really in your heart then you know just what I mean.

I've been a bit saddened that a few 'wild card' entries don't even make the effort to use a single snippet, lovely as they might be - I will exclude those during the draw. Our one rule IS to use at least one snippet ......... and mention it in your post so it's clearly a snippet you've used please.

Finally - did you know that Havanese dogs dance on their hind legs for treats? Dudley is utterly enchanting when he does it - he even does a good impression of a Rudolf Nureyev pirouette. Bichons do, so why not their Cuban cousins? If he starts to wear high heeled Cuban boots for the performance we'll be seriously worried! He could be on the way I fear - all of Christmas, during the day but not at night, he's trotted quite happily around wearing a Christmas bandana that Santa left for him! With a rather 'camp' flourish!

Love from Parsnip, Dudley and of course me,






Friday 27 December 2019

Pixie's Snippets Playground #368 - Prize F

Oh well, another day of heavy rain here on Boxing Day, which meant that Len's planned 'fun shoot' archery morning was postponed until Saturday - or perhaps the morning of New Year's Day. He's a bit like a guy with cabin fever right now. It isn't even dry enough to take Dudley out for a walk - he just shoots out into the back garden, does what he needs to and races straight back in when it's such rotten weather (of course I'm referring to Dudley!).

I have an important message for Andre M who has said yes to some of the prizes on offer - do remember that you have to add a card into Mr Linky. You can use Blogger if you have a blog, although I can't see one against your name. Or, Instagram or Flickr. The draw is only open to people who enter a card, or similar, using snippets into Mr Linky which appeared on 22nd December.

Anyhow, here's today's snippets card and prize:
I used:

- 5.5" x 4.25" white card blank, side opening

- a snippet of Tim Holtz 'Sparkle' card which I'd already washed with alcohol inks some while ago

- stamped the beautiful Nellie's Choice 'Christmas Silhouette' (a gift from Shaz in Oz) onto the snippet, using Memento 'Tuxedo Black' ink (little warning here, they don't work too well together - the water based Memento ink takes forever to dry on top of an alcohol ink surface and is also a little 'patchy'. Another time I'll try Stayzon or perhaps heat emboss the image. We live and learn :)

- then die cut the image using a die from Spellbinder's 'Wonky Rectangles' set of nesting dies - and also die cut a snippet of white fun foam using a one size smaller die from the same set

- as usual, I ran a ball ended embossing tool around the die cut image whilst it was still in the die to create the 'frame effect'

- backed the image panel with the fun foam I'd already die cut, using Collall All Purpose glues then glued the image to the card front

- finally, added a sentiment from Clarity Stamp's 'Christmas & Celebrations' word sticker collection

So glad I finally managed to make a Nativity card for this challenge - as I previously said, it was originally meant to be made in time for Christmas Eve.

And today's prize is a Nellie's Choice 'Christmas Silhouette' stamp, kindly sent all the way from Oz by the lovely Shaz in Oz, a Spellbinder's 'Wonky Rectangles' set of nesting dies plus a pack of Clarity Stamp's 'Christmas & Celebrations' word stickers. Half the stickers are black on white and half are white on black - plus only half of the total number of stickers are Christmas 'specific' - the rest are a lovely mixture of general ones.

At the end of all of the celebrations I'll do a massive draw session for all the prizes using the one Mr Linky - which is on the main snippets post HERE along with details of exactly how to join in - so you do need to have entered one snippets make over on that post during this fortnight to be in with a chance :) Maximum of one entry please - to keep things fair for those who may not have time to craft. Mr Linky closes at 11am on Saturday 4th January so you do need to have added a snippets make by then to be eligible for the draw.

Just leave a comment on this post if you would like the chance to win today's prize.

The gammon/ham in Coca Cola got cooked - with help from Len to turn it over in the huge stockpot I was simmering it in. Yummy as usual!

Still struggling here with the shoulder, but each day I find I can lift my arm easily over my head - and more to the point hold it there as well. Showering and hair washing is almost back to normal, albeit not pain free, compared to a week ago .......... when even using a Faith deodorant stick was like a contortionist going through their routine!

Love from Parsnip, Dudley and of course me,







Thursday 26 December 2019

Pixie's Snippets Playground #368 - Prize E

It's Boxing Day - and to be honest I do prefer the more relaxed pace of today. All I need to do for our evening meal is to simmer our mahoosive gammon/ham joint in Coca Cola - ready to add to some leftovers from Christmas Day, a selection of pickles, poultry slices, pigs in blankets, stuffings - and Brussels sprouts with chestnuts, cut up then mixed with mashed potato and fried as bubble and squeak. We do tend to mix and match all the cold meats etc. for a few days to make life more relaxed.

Yummy - and one little boy called Dudley will be dancing on his hind legs in the hopes of a treat or two!

Len should be at the annual Boxing Day Archery shoot at his local club (waterlogged field permitting). So whilst the ham simmers I'll be bashing on making more samples for forthcoming prizes in the Christmas Draw!

And here's another prize in the 'Snippets Playground Celebration' prize draw:
I used:

- 5.5" x 4.25" white card blank, side opening

- snippet of pale green pearlescent card, trimmed to slightly smaller than the card front and glued in place

- snippet of plain white card, trimmed to slightly smaller than the pale green layer and kept to one side for now

- snippet of silver mirri card, backed with Stick-It adhesive paper than die cut using both dies from the Creative Expressions Sue Wilson 'Poinsettia Flower Square die

- I poked all the pieces out of the die cut, leaving just the frame with the flower outline inside it then backed it with a little snippet of white card cut marginally smaller than the actual die cut frame 

- to be honest, hindsight being 20/20 vision, I could have so easily not used the Stick-It at all for the flower die and cut outs. Much simpler to have covered the snippet of white card with ordinary double sided adhesive paper before adding it to the back of the die cut poinsettia frame - and probably costing a lot less angst, as well as expense to be honest. But, on I plodded with head still in the sand, sigh

- snippet of Stick-It backed white pearlescent card, die cut using just the inner main image part of the poinsettia die set, and the same with snippets of Stick-It backed baby green and pale pink pearlescent card

- then I added the relevant pieces to the die cut silver outline and watched with a smile as it came to life

- ran the panel through the Cuttlebug just to 'set' it then backed that panel with fun foam and put it to one side

- die cut the sentiment using Sue Wilson's 'Festive Mini Expressions - Christmas Wishes' die from a snippet of pale green Stick-It backed card (now that IS where Stick-It is worth every penny) - lined it up on the front panel and ran it through the Cuttlebug to 'set it' in place. I just used the normal cutting plates, making sure the front of the panel had the unmarked/scored plate against it - ask me how I know this is important - a lesson learnt some time ago. You can also add a single piece of paper on top of the die cut you're adhering to be sure to prevent any 'scoring' marks from possibly having used the cutting plates the wrong way at some point in the past

- added  the poinsettia panel and the sentiment to the card front before adding a few Mei Flower little pearls to the centre of the poinsettia - finished!

The light is so bad here right now, the frame for the image layer and also the sentiment are cut from snippets of exactly the same pale green card as the leaves on the poinsettia itself. I did originally try cutting the sentiment using silver mirri card but it just wasn't working for me so I switched to the pale green. Ha, and you can see my reflection in the silver pieces as well :)

The poinsettia also looks gorgeous in rich red, green and gold of course - but I thought pastels were also a very pretty option. In fact, it's possibly my favourite card I've made this year.

I adore this pretty poinsettia die and sentiment - so much that you have three chances to win. Yup, I bought three of the poinsettia die sets and three of the gorgeous sentiment dies (a further one already appeared earlier fro me as part of the 'Snowman Edger' prize on Monday 23rd). So here's the prize you can play for today - purely by leaving a comment in this post:

It's the Creative Expressions Sue Wilson 'Poinsettia Flower Square dies (there's an outer frame on this one) as well as a Sue Wilson 'Festive Mini Expressions - Christmas Wishes' die.

At the end of all of the celebrations I'll do a massive draw session for all the prizes using the one Mr Linky - which is on the main snippets post HERE along with details of exactly how to join in - so you do need to have entered one snippets make, over on that post during this fortnight, to be in with a chance :) Maximum of one entry please - to keep things fair for those who may not have time to craft. Mr Linky closes at 11am on Saturday 4th January so you do need to have added a snippets make by then to be eligible for the draw.

Just leave a comment on this post if you would like the chance to win today's prize.

Love from Parsnip, Dudley and of course me, just relaxing after Christmas Day here - bliss.


Wo put thag mud od mulled whine there? I thort it woz tea!






Wednesday 25 December 2019

Pixie's Snippets Playground #368 - Prize D

Merry Christmas everyone! Hope you have/are having or even have had a wonderful day, however you celebrate.

Here's another in the 'Snippets Playground Celebration' prize draw, and as today is Christmas Day, it's a bumper prize. It's also Len's Christmas card:
I used:

- 5.5" x 4.25" white card blank, side opening

- snippet of dark blue card, trimmed to an eighth of an inch smaller than the card front on each side, then glued to the card front

- another snippet of dark blue card which I stenciled using Hero Arts 'Unicorn' white ink and MFT's 'Snowfall Horizontal' stencil

- snippet of snowflake paper from LOTV's 'Frosty Christmas' paper pad, layered onto a snippet of white card which I'd covered with double sided adhesive sheet (medium strength) and then trimmed to an eighth of an inch smaller than the dark blue layer I cut earlier - purely to give it more strength for when I die cut the aperture

- then began work on the snow globe itself using assorted snippets of card, all backed with Stick-It double sided adhesive sheet snippet (I never throw even the smallest piece of that stuff away as it can be pieced together so easily!)

- first I stamped the sentiment using Memento 'Tuxedo Black' ink, a snippet of beige card (Neenah 'Desert Storm' I suspect) and a stamp from the adorable Clearly Besotted 'Simply Said Christmas' set of sentiments

- die cut the sentiment using the 'base' die from the fabulous MFT  'Classic Snow Globe' set of dies

- then, really taking my time as some of the dies are quite small and could easily be lost (the nose is teeny, tiny!), I die cut the little pieces for the snow scene to go inside the 'snow globe' - popping them into a plastic lid for safe keeping as I went, as well as putting the dies back into the packet straight away

- using the snowfall stenciled piece of dark blue card I then set about assembling the little scene. The attention to detail by MFT is lovely, for example - you have one plain snowman and one with eyes and 'button holes'. Cut the plain die from black card and then top it with the detailed one, cut from white card and you have the eyes and buttons like magic. Similarly, the scarf is two die cut pieces - one whole one with the 'tail' and one which is just the top part - add them together with the top part on top of the larger 'tail' die cut and you get a scarf which really looks as if it's been looped

- ran the little scene through the Cuttlebug to ensure all the little pieces were well adhered

- and this is where I took a huge gulp, remembering my recent attempt at a shaker card

- worked out where I wanted the snow globe to sit on the card front and die cut the globe aperture - then added the beige base base of the snow globe with its ready stamped sentiment and ran it through the Cuttlebug, as I'd done with the little scene panel

- then ran narrow red line tape around the back of the aperture before sitting one of the MFT 'Classic Snow Globe' shaker pouches in place and making sure it was adhered 

- crunch time! This time I thought ahead more and avoided pouring the shaker elements in later on. First I ran more very narrow red line tape around the back of the die cut snow globe aperture (in the LOTV snowflake card piece) and also some narrow tape around each side of the entire front panel (I'd trimmed the scene part down to just a small square)

- at this point I only removed the red line protective plastic layer from what I'd run around the actual aperture, with the shaker element nicely attached as described before

- with the little scene square in front of me I added some 'Jewels - Ice Cube Mix' shaker elements bought from Lucy's Little Things - making sure they weren't too plentiful and also in a small pile well away from the sides of the square

- just placed the LOTV snowflake layer with its shaker aperture over the top, pressed down and bingo - success!

- removed the red line tape protective red plastic from each side of the little scene (very pointed, angled craft tweezers are the one item I couldn't manage without for almost all my card making) and adhered the square to the back of the LOTV paper/card layer

- then all that was left was to glue the front panel onto the blue layer I'd added to the card earlier - finished!

I know this is such a lot of detail, much of it is for my own reference, but it does also, I hope, explain how to use the shaker pouches and avoid the risk of shaker elements getting trapped between layers as happened to me very recently in the baby dragons card.

Of course, you can add (for example) a little Christmas tree to the scene - but I like to stick with what's in the prize whenever I can.

And of course today's prize is:
MFT's 'Snowfall Horizontal' stencil, MFT 'Classic Snow Globe' die set  (along with a pack of 10 matching shaker pouches which Tara of Seven Hills Crafts kindly added into my order as a gift for me for me - as well as a set for the Playground), a packet of 'Jewels - Ice Cube Mix' shaker elements from Lucy's Little Things - plus a set of Clearly Besotted 'Simply Said Christmas' sentiment stamps. As I said, a bumper prize to celebrate today - and also it's a complete prize which I won't be splitting.

At the end of all of the celebrations I'll do a massive draw session for all the prizes using the one Mr Linky - which is on the main snippets post HERE along with details of exactly how to join in - so you do need to have entered one snippets make, over on that post during this fortnight, to be in with a chance :) Maximum of one entry please - to keep things fair for those who may not have time to craft. Mr Linky closes at 11am on Saturday 4th January so you do need to have added a snippets make by then to be eligible for the draw.

Just leave a comment on this post if you would like the chance to win today's prize.

Depending when you read this, my hope is that Len, myself and and Dudley are on the way to or are currently replete (totally stuffed!) with Christmas Dinner - and also probably looking forward to the next few days of rest and recuperation!

A quick tale about Dudley. No photo but we've been trying so one will appear ASAP. However, I was wrapping his Christmas gifts from Santa the other day - wrapping in my craft room with the unwrapped gifts in the very centre of our bed. It's a big bed as well as too high for him to hop onto. Next thing I know, there he was merrily playing with a new squeaky toy on the floor. HOW he managed to get hold of it is beyond me but he was clearly delighted he'd managed to pull the wool over my eyes! We do privately call him 'Stealth' as one minute I'll be in my craft room working alone and without so much as a whisper or slightest brush - there he is curled at my feet under the desk. I swiftly confiscated said squeaky toy and pressed his 'erase memory' button!

Love and Christmas Greetings from Parsnip, Dudley and of course me, your own Christmas Pixie,






Tuesday 24 December 2019

Pixie's Snippets Playground #368 - Prize C

Just one more sleep until it's Christmas Day!

Due to the shoulder issues I had to re-jig some of my intended posts, I still have a Nativity card to make - along with a few others for the draw to showcase prizes. I so wanted a Nativity scene for today (and the stamp I'll be using for the card is just so perfect, sent for the draw by our lovely Shaz in Oz) so do watch for it coming later on in the draw posts, but something had to give so I did a bit of a reshuffle in the end. Why on earth I didn't think to make the samples in date order is beyond me though!

I made this 'sample' card a little bit ahead of time thankfully:
I used:

- 5.25" x 4" white card blank, side opening

- slightly smaller snippet of black card, with some little twinkles in - in truth I couldn't locate where my plain black card is safely stored and all my snippet were too small so I rummaged through a box of Christmas snippets and found this - result! It has a white core so I ran a black marker around the edge so it wouldn't show when viewed sideways (no wonder I take so flipping long to make a single card!)

- snippet of SU's 'Real Red' card, trimmed to slightly smaller than the black layer

- snippet of white card which I popped into the Misti and stamped using Memento Tuxedo Black ink and MFT's fabulous and very generously sized 'Christmas' background stamp - trimmed it to slightly smaller than the Real Red backing layer

- more from the SU 'Real Red' pile of snippets trimmed to a height of 1.5", but left wider than the printed background layer for now. I trimmed a tiny bit more off the height as I wanted the background words to not be chopped in half when I adhered the red die cut to the front of the card - just a little whisker needed to be trimmed off but it does make all the difference when using such a strong set of letters on top of what almost looks like newsprint. I backed the strip with Stick-It adhesive paper, then die cut it using a die from the fabulous Memory Box 'Merry' set of three dies, all with the word Merry in different fonts - I chose the bold capitals for this card

- then popped the die cut onto the 'newsprint' background and carefully trimmed either edge of the red strip to line up with the background, quickly ran it through the Cuttlebug to ensure a good 'set' :)

- glued the black layer to the card front, followed by the red layer and finally the newsprint layer with the red sentiment strip already adhered - finished!

And, I was left with the waste from the die cut - a lovely set of capital letters all ready for a further card, when time allows.

I can sort of see the front of the Daily Mirror newspaper in this card - should have thought ahead a bit more perhaps.

I do so love the background stamp, it stamps perfectly and can provide loads of different colours of course. Another time I'll certainly try different colours for the card as a whole, even the background could be stamped using different shades of the same colour to give an ombre look for example - and both the stamp and set of dies will stand on their own and be so useful for other projects.

And of course today's prize is:
MFT's Background 'Christmas' stamp - which is red rubber and mounted onto cushion backing. It stamps beautifully! Plus a Memory Box 'Merry' set of three dies in different fonts.

At the end of all of the celebrations I'll do a massive draw session for all the prizes using the one Mr Linky - which is on the main snippets post HERE along with details of exactly how to join in - so you do need to have entered one snippets make over on that post during this fortnight to be in with a chance :) Maximum of one entry please - to keep things fair for those who may not have time to craft. Mr Linky closes at 11am on Saturday 4th January so you do need to have added a snippets make by then to be eligible for the draw.

Just leave a comment on this post if you would like the chance to win today's prize, which I won't be splitting of course.

Hope you're not racing round in a flat panic and that you manage to find some time to wind down a bit before the big day itself! There comes a point when you just have to say 'That's it. What's not done, or what we may not have, isn't actually what this celebration should all be about.'.

Love from Parsnip, Dudley and of course me. Parsnip is bustling around, hanging up stockings and generally fussing around - whilst Dudley is watching my every move, in case it involves food!





Monday 23 December 2019

Pixie's Snippets Playground #368 - Prize B

Here's the second prize in the 'Snippets Playground Celebration' prize draw:
I used:

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

- snippet of deep blue pearlescent card, trimmed to exactly to the same size as the card front then glued in place

- snippet of white iridescent card, die cut using a Creative Expressions 'Snowman Edger' die - which I'd backed with Stick-It adhesive paper

- another snippet of white iridescent card, again backed with Stick-It adhesive paper, then die cut using the Creative Expressions Festive Mini Expressions 'Christmas Wishes' die

- I then added the snowman and the sentiment to the card front, trimming the top and bottom of the die cut snowman level with the card front- really easy when you use scissors and cut from the back using the card edge as a guide

- opened out the card and ran the front panel through the Cuttlebug just to ensure the die cuts adhered properly

- added some white sequins using Glossy Accents (plain glossy white and iridescent white)  - finished!

This card has already been posted off but, before I sent it, I luckily spotted the little sliver of waste from the die cut and removed it. Can you spot it? It was dark at the time so no chance to re-do the photo. But anyhow - that's your little 'spot the boo-boo' for today!

I just love both dies I used for this card! The Snowman is a real delight and as ever Viv is my 'enabler' - plus the sentiment I added, using Dudley's pocket money, has so many uses. We have three more of the same sentiment popping up in a future draw this fortnight, wink, wink!

And of course today's prize is:
A Creative Expressions 'Snowman Edger' die - which was very kindly donated by our lovely Viv - plus a Creative Expressions Festive Mini Expressions 'Christmas Wishes' die from Dudley, sitting on the top of the snowman die in the photo - which, as you know, I had issues with due to poor light. When Viv sent me the snowman die just recently, of course I had to race online and buy one for myself. It's just perfect for making a really quick yet (IMHO) striking Christmas card. It's a very tall die at almost 6.75" so will only fit through a Cuttlebug length ways - which is perfectly fine of course.

At the end of all of the celebrations I'll do a massive draw session for all the prizes using the one Mr Linky - which is on the main snippets post HERE along with details of exactly how to join in - so you do need to have entered one snippets make over on that post during this fortnight to be in with a chance :) Maximum of one entry please - to keep things fair for those who may not have time to craft. Mr Linky closes at 11am on Saturday 4th January so you do need to have added a snippets make by then to be eligible for the draw.

Just leave a comment on this post if you would like the chance to win today's prize.

I'd also like to add this card into our lovely Maureen's Rudolph Days Challenge - HERE. It's for everyone who didn't miss a challenge throughout 2019. I think you can enter, even if you were lucky enough to already have had a win over there during the year, it's a bit like Green Shield Stamps - a loyalty thing :)

I imagine most folk are going flat out today ready for Christmas, only two more sleeps! My shoulder is coping thank goodness - some things have had to be left for now but all the actual Christmas preparations have been done thank goodness. 'We shall eat like Kings ..... and a little dog will no doubt join in for a few dog-safe nibbles!'.

Love from Parsnip, Dudley and of course me,






Sunday 22 December 2019

Pixie's Snippets Playground - Challenge 368 - and Prize A

Hi there and a warm welcome to the Christmas Snippets Playground. It's time to celebrate both the Christmas and New Year Holiday - plus, it's eight whole years on January 1st since I took the Snippets Playground over from the lovely Jules!

First of all I have to add a bit of a disclaimer. On Wednesday evening (having finished doing all the Christmas decorations luckily) just before bed, Dudley and I were playing chase around in our bedroom - a nightly ritual I confess - whilst Len was 'closing the house down for the night'. I managed to get my feet tangled up whilst avoiding the little fella who was frolicking around them, reached out for the bed and sort of missed. It wasn't quite a straight fall onto the floor but in the process I managed to do something to my left shoulder. Absolutely not Dudley's fault in any way - wrong place at wrong time, but you know what - he ran and hid in the bathroom when I squealed in pain/tried not to throw up. Poor little sausage, first thing had to be a one-armed cuddle to reassure him I was OK!

It's been extremely painful but thankfully there's already less pain and more mobility, added to which I'm right handed, phew. It did however impact on some of my plans for making samples and doing posts for the Grand Christmas Draw - not to mention other jobs around the house I had lined up as I've been pacing myself more slowly the past three days in the hope that things will improve better if I don't go being silly. Some of you may well have noticed I sort of disappeared from email and social media whilst it was so very sore. But, there is some improvement, thankfully, and I'll do my very best to stick to the plans for the publishing of prizes during the Grand Draw - although I may have to move some things around as I still have samples to make which would be better done after Christmas Day when there's more time. It will mess up the distribution and subjects of prizes a bit but we can live with that.

Plus, I managed to take a good few photos on Saturday (yesterday) when panic was setting in - and they're not all the quality I would like. The fact that it's been raining for days on end here and we have the lights on indoors most of the time isn't helping with photos I'm afraid. IS ANYONE IN THE UK BUILDING AN ARK YET? I know that Len will help with last minute 'necessary cleaning', flip the Christmas tablecloth over the dining table for me and also reach up as well as do any heavy lifting (thank goodness we're not having Emu as a Christmas roast!) - and the rest will have to wait, just so long as Christmas itself is saved. Enough of the excuses - positive thoughts only here from now on as it could have been a lot worse! And hopefully no long term damage, phew.

Warning - this is a really horrendously looooooooooong post as it sets out how the draw will work, in a lot of detail!

First of all, this is my snippets card for today:

I used:

- 6" x 6" square white card blank

- snippet of silver mirri card  trimmed to 5.75" x 5.75" for the first layer and a  snippet of white pearlescent card trimmed to 5.5" x 5.5" for the second layer. Both glued onto the card front

- a snippet of LOTV snowflake paper from the 'Frosty Christmas' paper pad, trimmed to 5" x 5" and set aside for the moment

- a further snippet of white pearlescent card - from which the two angels were die cut using an Impression Obsession 'Angels' set of dies

- then placed the angel die cuts onto the piece of snowflake backing paper and sort of juggled then about to work out where to place the next die I needed to use

- having done that, used the background die from the Tonic Studios 'Peace Strip' double die set to create a gap approximately an inch from the bottom of the piece of snowflake paper

- glued the two pieces of snowflake paper onto the card front, making sure the top and bottom straight edges were the same distance from the edge of the white layer as the side edges were. This was much easier than it sounds as Tonic Studios thoughtfully designed the background strip die to leave exactly a quarter of an inch gap

- backed a snippet of deep blue shimmery card with 'Stick'It' sheet and die cut the word 'Peace'. Gently placed it into white gap I'd created and snipped the ends off so they just finished where the sides of the silver panels ended and carefully rubbed over the sentiment using the back of my Teflon folder/scorer to make sure it adhered well

- finally, added the two die cut angels where I wonted them to go - finished!
 
It's only fair to say that this was much easier to make than to explain! I mentioned a Teflon folder/scorer. I got mine a while ago  and whilst not cheap I particularly love that it doesn't get the little nicks in that plastic ones seem to acquire over time. The one I have has quite a fat pointed end so I generally use another scorer for actually scoring fold lines in card. But, for folding and rubbing down your folds, as well as gently rubbing over die cuts as I did with the 'peace' sentiment strip die cut - it's brilliant!

So, here we have Prize A of the Christmas/New Year annual giveaway -
On offer for the next two weeks is an Impression Obsession 'Angels' die set plus a Tonic Studios 'Peace Strip' double die set.

Anyhow, as in recent years, this is what's going to be going on with the Snippets Playground over the Christmas and New Year (aka Holidays) festivities.

As usual, the Playground Mr Linky which is below will run for two weeks and closing time will be 11am on Saturday 4th January 2020 and this post you are looking at right now is where to add any entries - with a maximum of just one entry - over the fortnight. One entry means you're in the draw - and the more prizes you say you'd like to win in the comments in each 'additional prize' post does increase your winning chances of course. You have two weeks to play (if you want to of course!) as no doubt the Christmas and New Year festivities themselves will be busy for you. Some of you will be busier than others I know and, for those of you who do find some quiet time to craft, it's a chance for you to play along for some rather nice prizes too. It also means I can clear the Playground toy box out of Christmas themed prizes.

So that I don't swamp and confuse you with a load of prizes to choose from in this post, I'll be posting at intervals over the coming couple of weeks like I did last year and adding more prizes of varying sizes into the pot as we progress through the holiday. That, with luck, might be quite frequently!

If you see a prize you'd like to be in the 'pot' for then please leave a 'Yes please' (or similar) comment in the same post where I show you the prize. AND, don't be shy about wanting each prize as it appears - that way you'll have more chances of winning something. So for today's prize, leave a comment below. For me, that's going to be a lot less confusing than me having lots of little lists here and there - especially as there are so many prizes coming up!  It will mean that if you would like to be in with a chance of every prize, then you need to comment on each one as it comes up - and please don't leave it right until the end and nip through all the prize posts adding 'Yes please' to each in one fell swoop. Remember, they will show up serially on my dashboard if you do that so I will notice and wouldn't feel that it's in the true spirit of the Playground. So, if you want to play then do try to pop in over the festivities and a couple of days after New Year's Eve to see what's on offer :) Of course I'm well aware that people have family commitments and can't necessarily comment every day so I will be as reasonable as possible. I just don't want anyone swooping in at the last minute and saying yes to each prize in one visit.

Also, just saying here on this post 'count me in for all prizes that are offered' also doesn't count I'm afraid and will mean you don't go into the draw at all - other people are taking the time and trouble to check out the individual posts and prizes and leave comments so it wouldn't be fair to them. Again, this worked fine last year.

As I already said, there will only be the one Mr Linky for all entries - which is at the end of this post of course. I'll remind you where to go to link each time I post a new prize on the blog if you haven't already added your one card. Also, I'll use this Mr Linky as a basis for who entered a snippets make and goes into the draw.

I hope I've explained how the coming two weeks will work in the Playground? Please just say if it's left you confused and I hope it doesn't seem too draconian. My main priority is for everyone to play fair and hopefully be in with a chance of winning something they would like.

The Christmas and New Year Snippets Challenge will run for two weeks and the Playground gates will close at 11am UK time on Saturday 4th January 2020. There will be a new Mr Linky on Sunday 5th January 2020. The picks and also the results of the multiple raffle/prize draw will appear one week later on Sunday 12th January - with the proviso that I find the time to do it, otherwise me just might have to move the results slightly or even leave out the picks for once. But I'm a stubborn old mare and with luck will stick to the original plan.

Maximum of one entry and please say in a comment if you wish to play and be a possible winner of the prize. Remember, there's the prize today and others will appear over the next two weeks so keep your eyes peeled.

Do say in this post if you want today's prize. And, as it worked so well throughout the year, I won't be splitting any of the prize bundles. As the fortnight progresses you'll become aware that at the end of all this I will have a LOT of packages to post!! The packaging let alone the postage is going to be a considerable task/cost for me in January after the draw results are published. This I don't mind at all - I love the Playground and each one of you is someone I consider to be a friend. So, do feel free to play along for a prize, even if you really only want part of it and then you can spread the love by gifting what you might not want to a friend at your end of the line - I don't mind if you do that, although I've tried to select the stuff in the bundles to compliment one another. And please also remember to link back to the Playground in your blog post to be eligible for the draw - and also I'd love you to be a follower of mine if you aren't already, that would be a lovely gesture.

Now, this is important girls, you can leap in throughout the whole giveaway and say 'yes please' to as many prizes as you like .... even if you haven't already made and entered your snippets make into Mr Linky at that point in time. Your 'yes please' will certainly be on the list for whatever prizes you would like to win when it comes to the grand draw, so long as you've entered into Mr Linky by the point at which it closes. At the end of this I'll be using today's Mr Linky to add all entrants names into the draw so please feel free to squeal with delight at as many prizes as you wish and say some 'yes pleases' on the way through the festive season - just remember to add just one snippets make into Mr Linky below to be in with a chance

Oh, and a few of the smaller prizes on offer will have three chances to win as I bought three of the same prizes. At the moment that means there's a good few chances to win a prize, so long as you follow the usual routine/rules.

Also, I think it's only fair that the way I do the draw is from A onwards, regardless of value or number of prizes for that day. This year I won't be using the Random number generator - we'll get Dudley to stick his paw into a dish with all the entry names/numbers on slips of paper instead. That means that if you win a prize your slip is then removed from the pot and least I'm not messing about re-running the random number generator if your number comes out again - and of course, as the draw goes on the remaining numbers will have slightly better odds of being winners and no-one will win twice. You'll have to trust me to be impartial, which I always am, but this way will work better for such a big prize draw, I'm sure you'll agree. And, as always, I will post to anywhere you may happen to live.

Please let me know if you have any problems linking, it's always easy for me to sort out so don't struggle on alone.

Sorry this is so wordy but I didn't want to leave any issue not covered!Do please ask if anything isn't clear.

Merry Christmas from Parsnip, Dudley and yours truly,


Wednesday 18 December 2019

Jukebox for a chap!

Earlier this week, a good friend's husband celebrated his Birthday. Generally chaps don't get many cards for Birthdays so we've made it a 'thing' to try and remember to send them a hand made card 'each time around the buoy'.

I was a bit pushed for time but did have fun using a Jukebox set of stamps I recently bought, as he likes his music.  This is what I made:
I used:

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

- stamps from the Hunkydory 'For the love of stamps' set called 'Rock 'n' Roll Jukebox

- stamped the jukebox onto a snippet of white card, coloured it with Pro markers, carefully fussy cut right round it and set it aside

- trimmed a snippetty strip of Altenew's 'Essential Black & White' paper pack for the bottom of the card

- placed the striped strip and the jukebox where I wanted them to go on the card front, in the Misti, then added the other small stamps round about before removing the jukebox and striped strip - then stamped the small elements, using Memento 'Tuxedo Black' ink

- added the striped strip to the bottom of the card, using a small tape runner, and trimmed off either side to line up with the card edges

- added a load of thin sticky pads to the back of the jukebox and popped it in place

Finished! OK, so the jukebox isn't as perfectly centred as I wanted it to be - but if I'd tried to move it the whole card would have been wrecked. Those sticky pads don't take any prisoners for sure.






Sunday 15 December 2019

Pixie's Snippets Playground - Challenge #366 - results

Dudley is doing really well. He isn't wearing his onesie any longer during the day and the scar on his side/tummy is healing beautifully. He hasn't shown any real interest in it, apart from one little lick as if to say - 'where did that come from?'. However, he loves to sleep in his onesie at night and goes to look for it at bedtime! It gives us a little more peace of mind until his scar is fully healed - just in case he has a lick or nibble whilst we're fast asleep. Highly unlikely but it's better to be safe than sorry.

Let's move straight into this fortnight's picks:
 
Jane W brought this fun card to share with us. It's so worth hopping over the Jane's blog to read just how she made it, and isn't the sentiment clever as well?!  The snooker balls were made using little round snippets of coloured card, punched out and then topped off with clear liquid pearls. Love it and a great card to CASE for snooker loving friends as well!

How about this for dedicated paper piecing! Made by Lia and so very pretty - as well as a great way to use up little snippets of course.

I just love the fresh, clean look of this card - made by Kath. A little rainbow of birds - how sweet is that?! Another great idea for using up little snippets with such a clever CAS look.

I couldn't whittle my picks down to three this time, so last, but not least, we have a gorgeous card made by Lynne R. It's so elegant and most certainly one to CASE. The Memory Box pine tree border dies are timeless (they might be discontinued now though - which is a shame). I think I've made a total of 10 cards using mine so it's time they had another outing! I adore the colours chosen by Lynne as well!

And we had two new Playmates this time:
LeAnne Pugliese
We also had an entry from Chris Lawler, using Instagram. Once again, I almost wrecked this post by trying to add a photo from Instagram and ended up with a load of rogue HTML code, so I'm resorting to just adding the link to Chris's card HERE.

If anyone has decent step by step instructions on how to add photos from Instagram, using my laptop only as I went back to using just a very basic mobile phone a while ago, then I'd be very grateful. Otherwise I'll not take the risk again. Shame as both cards are lovely but you have to use the link to see the one entered by Chris.

So, that's my picks, and our new Playmates from Challenge 366, and I do hope they've given you some inspiration for ways in which you can use up some of those snippets.

We had 55 entries including two new Playmates this time round - sticking with a nice steady number of entries!

Time now for the prize draw, which is for a Neat and Tangled 'Paint Night' set of stamps - plus the matching set of dies. And the winner is:

Well done Marlene! I did have a giggle, you've been missing in action, came back to play - and won right away! Just shows, it's always worth buying a Lottery ticket - you never know when you'll hit lucky. Please send me your address, with your full name at the top as well so I can copy and paste or just write straight from the email onto the envelope - for speed and ease. It's also confirmation that you still would like the prize of course and I'll post your prize once I hear from you. Please put Playground Winner or similar in the subject line of your email in case it drops into my junk mail. Email address is on RH sidebar as always.

Remember folks, there's still almost another week to run on Challenge #367 - you can find it HERE. The prize is a Clearly Besotted 'Hot Stuff' set of stamps, an MFT Peek-a-boo Window' square die and a packet of 10 MFT Square Shaker Pouches.

Preparations for Christmas are moving along here, not as fast as we'd like but we'll get there in the end. The main thing is that the Christmas cards are all done and posted and much if not all the store cupboard and frozen food for Christmas is bought. I'm still working on samples for the Christmas Draw prizes - but so long as I have enough for a few days then the rest can follow as between Christmas and New Year we have nothing much planned apart from walks with Dudley, archer for Len and the craft room for me.

Speaking of walks with Dudley - Len took him out for his first proper walk for a couple of weeks the other day. I thought his tail was going to drop off at the rate it was wagging in anticipation!

I took this photo on Saturday, the day before this post went live, of Dudley catching a quick snooze on his comfy fleece before his lunchtime walk:
'Hop it Mama - can't you see I'm busy counting sheep!'.

Love from Parsnip, a happy wave from Dudley - and of course hugs as always from me,