CD Sunday - Sugar and Spice

Happy Easter to one and all.  A few days with family, friends  and chocolate eggs, so I hope you are all having a good rest and that your weather is as least dry even if cold.

As Jenny said in the Challenge posting there are some changes afoot at CD Sunday.  Jenny is going to take a rest. I emphasise the word rest as we are trying to persuade her (and I am unanimous in this)  that it is just a rest she needs and will therefore be back chatting and posting in the not too distant future.  In the meantime I am going to be doing the posting - no fear - just a little trepidation.  Couldn't have a nicer bunch of teamies so I am sure they will come to my rescue when I do things like losing Mr Linky. (my biggest worry at the moment).
I am not going to make a goodbye speech to Jenny but just say that I hope to to keep up her standards and justify everyone's faith and wish Jenny a good rest.

Thank you for the many DT applications and as Jenny said I will be posting our choice later in the week.

It is Marina's last week with us as our Guest and thank you Marina for the great cards and projects you have designed for us.

Now to this weeks theme - Sugar and Spice -  chosen by Jocelyn.  As I said last week my card for this theme is a little different.  Different certainly, as I discovered, to my fellow teamies cards.

This is my second card made  for this theme.  Both are stitch cards but I felt the first one was a bit tame and didn't really hit the Spice of Sugar and Spice.  So I went back to Stitching Cards and found a series of patterns that are actually called Sugar and Spice. The tights were ........ difficult to stitch and took three attempts  but she certainly will spice up a gentleman's birthday.  The backing card is from Carol Ann's Studio 'Glitz 'n' Bitz' CD. The mirror card I used for the mat, words and the corner die cuts is some new I bought from C & C and cuts beautifully with dies. Seems to be a perfect weight for both.
I look forward to visiting your Blogs and please visit my fellow teamies Blogs.  They have all made great cards.

CD Sunday - Bundle of Joy

Good morning from a snowy Surrey.  Well they promised snow and it did come.  I am just hoping my Sainsbury's delivery makes it or I shall be peckish.
Our Sue has chosen this weeks theme.  I don't think that we have had a baby theme before and the team and our Guest Designer Marina have produced some beautiful cards.  I know you will like them so please visit their blogs.

My contribution  is in parchment again and  another Judith Maslen pattern.  I have said before how much I like her patterns and admire her artistic skills.  If you are designing for parchment it can't be all higgledy- piggledy or sketchy in design so somehow the essence of the subject has to be done in careful simple lines.
This is my card:

I have used lemon, pink and blue in the colouring and, in the background, which is from - Docraft 'Me to You' Spring Chic CD2 .
I enjoyed making this one with the clean and simple lines.  It was good practice in creating longish and  smooth lines in as few sweeps as possible.
My next few creations for Cd Sunday are not parchment and next weeks is ......a little different!
Please feel free to leave a comment.  I love knowing you have visited.
Carol
x

Imogene - pattern by Judith Maslen

This was made for a dear friend whose birthday it is today so it has now been opened.  I chose this pattern as it reminded me of her - nice and slim and similar hairstyle.

The pattern is part of a set of four ladies designed by Judith and on sale here.  I have now completed two of the designs and done the prep work on the remainder.

I am flattered to see that I have some new followers - so welcome and thank you and I hope not to disappoint.

Parchment Workshop in the New Forest

It was down to the woods yesterday to the first workshop of the year at Judith's place. It was so wet going and returning that I think an Ark would have been a more appropriate form of transport.  The sun actually shone whilst we were working but Oh Boy did it rain when we left.  Many of the fields and ditches were flooded.

Despite this we had a wonderful day - as always  - and we had two new patterns to work on.
The first one - Snowy Owl - was a design Judith did in answer to a request by me. We are quite often asked to suggest something we would like so this was my 'like'.  When I stay up in Northumberland with a friend of mine I stay at an Inn called 'The Snowy Owl'.  A lovely place with very welcoming hosts and they have many pictures of Snowy Owls on the wall but not a parchment one - yet.
Here is my effort

The second pattern is one of a new series of  'Seasons'.  This one is 'Summer'.

This was an exercise in embossing in a different way - using definite strokes rather than smooth blending.  Then we used the dry pencil technique of colouring on back and front.

Loved every minute of my day.  Thank you Judith, and my friend Charmaine for the heroic driving in the Monsoon.
xx

CD Sunday - Wonderful Wings (Pegasus)

Good Morning everyone.  Well!  I chose a tough theme last week but gosh what a super response from you all. Thank you all for those wonderful creations and for not leaving me with egg on my face.  I will study them all very carefully and then let Jenny know my Top 3.
Tis Friday evening and I am doing a timed post as on Saturday I am off down to the New Forest to the 1st of the year parchment workshops with Judith Maslen. A friend is kindly taking me as I am still not sure about driving any further than locally.  I am now doing physio and of course that stirs it all up.

On to our theme this week - chosen by Jenny.  I chose to do  a parchment project this time and here it is

Pegasus is a copyright free clip art I found in Google images and I have the artists permission to use it. I printed the image on 140gsm  parchment and then placed it carefully inside an oval patterned Multi  grid to  emboss the borders.  I then embossed the mane and tail and two of the legs and some of the wing segments.  The rest I embossed or pricked with a grid pattern.  The sentiment was traced from a Microsoft Word font and the whole then stitched to  the backing card with glass beads and then  a little sprinkle of Glamour Dust was added to finish.
The background is blue crackle from an Ooh La La CD.

Postscript:  We had a wonderful Workshop - as always - but the weather was horrendous.  I am so grateful to my friend Charmaine for doing the driving.  In some places you couldn't see your hand in front of your face for the rain. It was nice to meet Jacqui at long last.  Her first time working on embossing was awesome.

I hope you find this theme much easier and  look forward to visiting many Blogs.  Please drop me a line when you visit.  It is always nice to know you have called.
Carol
x

Ooh La La Challenge # 125 - Four Legged Friends

I am not sure if you could call a goat a four legged friend especially with a pair of horns like those but he does look friendly with the flower in his mouth and that slightly bemused expression on his face. This is another from the pack  of  farm animal stitch  patterns I purchased from here. I used the sheep in a recent CD Sunday theme.

I used Ooh La La Creation's  CD - A Carnival of Colour for two backing papers.  The deep copper brown was printed direct to A4 card and folded to A5.  The very unusual butterfly paper was printed twice - to card for a mat and then to  paper so that I could cut out some of the butterflies to 3D. These paper come from the Bonus Papers folder and like all Ooh La La CD's contain many lovely and unusual papers and patterns.


I hope you like the stitching.  I think next to parchment it is my favourite medium.
x

CD Sunday - Land of the Pharaohs

Second week of March and more sunshine than showers at last.  I am enjoying the milder weather now that I am able to drive out and about again.  I have had to accept some movement restrictions  as a consequence of my accident but I think my own Annus Horribilus is over.
Thank you for all the super entries in our Butterfly challenge last week.  This week the choice is mine - Land of the Pharaohs. I love all things Egyptian.  Have visited Egypt once and would love to go again but probably won't make it.
Here is my card

I have used a  Robert Addams CD - Ancient Egypt - for all of the card.  The card was printed using one of the backing papers and the matching topper was printed on parchment and embossed in appropriate places.  The sentiment says 'Happy Birthday' and I used the interactive heiroglyphic feature.
The top right and bottom left figures have been decoupaged and bronze mirri card used for the mat.
We have some wonderful cards from my fellow teamies on the Challenge Blog so please go and visit them and then we hope that you will join in with your own wonderful interpretations.
I have a little gift ready for the winner of my top three.
x

CD Sunday - Butterflies

Good morning .  It certainly has been a little warmer although I hear we are  promised another cold snap.  But to cheer us up we are asking for many many Butterflies from you all this week.

Caroline of Carolines Creative Stamps is making a welcome return as our Sponsor this month and is offering  Digikits or rubber stamps to the value of £10 to the winner to be drawn at random.  We hope you will join in with us for this theme.

Caroline kindly emailed each teamie  a file to use and this is what I have done with the one I received:

I tweaked the colour a little in MCS and did the simple matting and then printed it out to use on a 6 x 6 white card.
The central butterfly is 3D with a layer of good paper and then some parchment.  The stamens as antennae were fixed between the two layers and then gems added for the body.  Matching gems were added to the centre of the buttons.
I haven't added a sentiment so that I can use it for almost any occasion.  I love the soft colours - almost misty.
Please join in with us and good luck in the draw.

(I am healing well and off to see the surgeon for my check up on Monday.  Hopefully to have the staples out.)