Playing with SCAL

Good morning everyone on this lovely sunny start to the day.

Although I have now had SCAL for some time I haven't had much chance to play with it, so I played while I was off work last week! both of the frames on these two cards are SVG files from Penny Duncan

 I used this first one to frame a parhment Sizzix Daisy and the sentiment is from SU. I used an FF embossing folder on the edge of the card base but it soesn't show up very well here.

I used this one to frame my own flutterby photograph, and the little creatures are from a set of 40 tiny  stamps that rarely sees the light of day. I have played some more since then but haven't made the cards to show you yet :o)

Jackie xx

2 for the box

Good morning everyone, I hope you are all well :o)

These 2 cards are my last fling before going back to work this afternoon. I have been playing with SCAL again, it makes a big different when you put a new blade in the 

Cricut :o)

 For this one I used 2 svg files, cut with the Cricut.  The hearts from Penny Duncan and I am not sure where the heart tree one is from. Maybe you know and can tell me! I also used my new Marianne cut and emboss folder plus an FF sentiment and that is all there is to it, not much really.

For this one I used the scrap from the svg file used on the thanks cards I uploaded yesterday. I cut the swirl on the Cricut using the SCAL shape library. This is very simple and  I thought it would be suitable for a sympathy card :o)

Jackie xx

Playing with fonts

Good morning everyone, I hope you are all well on this lovely sunny Sunday.

I was playing with fonts yesterday resulting in the cards that you see here today. All cut on my Cricut.

I don't know why blogger has uploaded them in this order when I did the thanks ones all together, but so be it for today!

 I created the word in Scal using the Cityscape font, the leaves are and SVG file and I am sorry to say that I cannot remember where I got them from, if you know please rell me so that I can give them the proper acknowlegement. The same applies to the mushroom SVG file below

The spider and web are from the webdings font (b and c) with a smidgin of glamour dust added.

I really enjoyed the chicken casserole I made in my new oven yesterday.

Unfortunately my week off has come to an end BooHoo, I have to go back to work tomorrow. Still, I have enjoyed a wonderful day in Macclesfield crafting with friends, two sessions of retail therapy, painting my kitchen, or part of it, I have to do it in small doses as it is painful, and finally my new cooker. What more could a person want? :o)

Jackie xx

My new cooker arrived.....

..... and would you believe it, I had forgotten to take the chicken breast (for casserole) out of the freezer, so what was the first thing I did? I opened a tin of Baxters Italian tomato and Basil soup to keep me going because by that time - 3pm - I was starving!!!!!

Later I had cheese on toast because I was going out and didn't have time to cook anyway. Now I am sat sitting typing in to the delicious aroma of my chicken casserole cooking in my top oven. Yes, I think you all know by now that cooking and I do NOT mix so I went and bought a cooker with not one, but TWO ovens :o)

Anyhow, on to my card.

Yes, I am sorry it is yet another brayered card but I can't help it, I love them. At least I have 2 new Big & Juicy inkpads so there will be some different colours :o)

This time I used my Queen Anne's Lace stamp for both background and topper and the only embelishments are Sizzix leaves and Martha Stewart flutterbies.

Well it's nearing the end of my week off work so I am going to Byrkley Park after lunch for a last bit of retail therapy. Then it's back to work on Monday grooooooooooooooooan.  :o)

Jackie xx

Brayering + a few charity cards

Good morning everyone, lovely blue sky and fluffy clouds here at the moment, but as I type it is going a tad less bright!

Before I show you my cards I would like to cover a misconception about my brayering. I love to read your lovely comments about my brayering abilities, but I must 'fess up and tell you all that I am no good at what might be termed doing it 'properly'  I use a large brayer that is as wide as my Big & Juicy inkpads, (which are of course multi colours) and only go in a straight line across the card, which I have cut to the same width, and back again, then the same aagain at right angles, a big brayering no no! I have watched videos on the subject and can never get the wonderful effects that they do and they always end up in the bin! 

Okay, time to show you some cards before you all nod off :o)

These are all very simple 4x4 mini cards, the bottom 2 being recycled robins from last year's cards. Not much else I can say about them really, but I hope that the League of Friends of Ilkeston Hospital can make a few pennies from them :o) 

Jackie xx

A trio of silhouette cards

Good morning everyone. I hope you are all well or as near well as you can be.

I had a wonderfull day in Macclesfield on Tuesday but it was not good weather so we didn't get to the reservoir, instead we went out to Edgehill for some retail therapy. What a shame...NOT, LOL. I only bought 3 items, 2 Big and Juicy inkpads and a Martha Stewart goo edge punch. I used one of the inkpads for my first card and the other two were brayered using an old one.

Methinks I may become addicted to this type of card!

I used various stamps and various nested cutting dies and a smidgin of glamour dust.
Oh well, thats the enjoyable bit of my holiday done for now, I had better get back to painting the kitchen!!!!! My new cooker is being delivered tomorrow so that's another new toy to play with. What a shame that I detest cooking :o)
Jackie xx

A rare visitor to my garden.....

.....in fact it's the only time I've ever seen one so I had to look it up. It is a Comma flutterby and while they are not endangered, they are not often seen so I feel doubly priviledged to have got some photographs :o)

Isn't he/she just so beautiful? 

I am now on holiday and the weather is horrible, but I have never let it stop me enjoying myself before so why change the habits of a lifteime. Tomorrow I am off to Trentabank Reservoir in the Macclesfield Forest to see the heronry there and hopefully get some photographs :o)

Jackie xx

Just a quickie

I cannot believe how the time has flown since my last post!!!!! This has to be a quick post so I can try and leave a few comments before I go to work, but first I would like to welcome Mina to my list of followers. Hi Mina :o)

Meanwhile, here is one of the cards I made yesterday but I am not too certain of it but It is beginning to grow on me though a bit!

Sorry I have to fly now, unfortunately work is calling, but tomorrow night I break up for a whole week YAYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY :o)

Jackie xx

I like this one better

Good morning everyone, it's a little overcast and very windy here this morning but still very warm! I hope that you are all well.

I decided to have another go at a brayering/silhouette card and I am fairly pleased with this one. I bought this Lindsay Mason stamp set a few weeks ago and hadn't got around to using them until now.

Using a Big and Juicy inkpad, I brayered a strip of card and then used one end of it to stamp the fairy scene onto. The rest I stamped with SU stamps from a couple of sets and the magic is from the fairy set. I used a smidgin of glamour dust for the fairy dust. Basically it's a very simple card :o) 

Jackie xx
PS. My followers have returned to the fold.

It worked for a while + a card

Good morning Bloggers, it's a bit hazy here so far but it's warm. Well yesterday I was all fired up with excitement because I could finally see my followers at last. How long did it last? All of about 8 hours or so then they disappeared again :o( Still, I will carry on using firefox for blogging because it is much faster than IE.

Anyway, on to my card. Not the best I've done but it is my first silhouette card so I thought I would show it and hope that I improve as I go along :o)

 

I was at a friend's house on Friday night and she showed me how to do it. I might add that hers was far better than mine LOL. I used one of her stamps so don't know where it was from. I am going to have another try this afternoon so let's see what I can come up with :o)

Jackie xx

Two more from my photographs + success at last

Good morning everyone, I hope all is well with you :o)

Although I have success at last, I also have some frustration which I can't seem to sort out!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Firstly, I have finally taken advice - thanks to Christine and others - and downloaded Firefox and it's fantastic, I can see my followers for the first time in weeks and everyone else's too Yayyyyyyyyyyyyyy. What's more, all of your blogs are loading much faster :o)  

The frustration is that I cannot see my cursor so I don't know when it's there, or not as the case may be! I also  couldn't type in above, or in between, my photographs once I had uploaded them so I have taken them off and will now try placing them under this.

 No, it won't let me add them again so I will have to try later Grrrrrrrrrrrr!

Oh would you believe it, my cursor has just appeared out of thin air so maybe I will be able to upload now too, please cross your fingers for me!

OMG it worked. These cxomputers really do have a mind of their own don't they!

The first card is 8x8 and I took the gerbera photograph, and the roses below,  at Barnsdale a couple of weeks ago. The pearlised card mat looks brown on here but it is actually black.

 

 I opened both pics in PSP and gave them a soft frame, that is the only manipulation, the actual photographs are as they came out of the camera.  

The second card is 6x6 and much simpler and I have used green pearlised card for the basecard. I cannot believe it's taken me about 15 minutes to do this post with all the faffing, but I am hoping that the frustrating bits are ironed out now :o) 

Jackie xx

A few anniversary cards

Good morning all, it's quite overcast here so far but uncomfortably warm!

I have 1 friend with an anniversay this month and 4 next month so decided to get them all done yesterday.

This first one is 8x8 and I have used one of my photographs taken last week at Barnsdale Gardens

For this one  I used my new Sizzix embossing folder and a digi image from Delicious Doodles, coloured with copics. The sentiment is from my new set of Woodware word stamps. Both this and the one below are 7x5.

I cheated with this one, I made it weeks ago but added the sentiment and glamour dust :o)

This 6x6 was my first make of the day. I am sorry I casn't remember where I got the digi image from so if any of you can help me out I can give it credit.

All base cards are folded and cut by me.

I can't put the 5th one on yet as the recipients may see it :o)

Jackie xx

A few photographs.....

.....that I took ar Barnsdale Gardens last Sunday

I think that by now you all know that I don't like hot weather, and "by the goodnight" it was hot, but there is plenty of shade and lots of seats to rest a while :o)

This cheeky chappie was helping himself to the leftover crumbs

If these cherries had been riper then I wouldn't have been able to account for my actions :o)

I loved this clematis rooguchi, so unusual

What about these poppies? They were so gorgeous and about 4" across

These rose looked so beautiful against the Mediterranean blue sky. I took well over 100 photographs but these few are my favourites :o)

Jackie xx