Halloween Night

 Hello everyone! Now that Halloween is over, and all cards have been handed out or delivered, I can start sharing my Halloween 2023 makes.

I made this Halloween Night scene card using a tutorial by Sam Calcott, and a few dies I have in my stash. 

I made the belly band using a couple of eK punches and the Boo die from Kat Scrappiness. The patterned paper is from Silhouette.

I printed another mat from Silhouette and placed it on the inside.  On it I adhered a moon with a couple of clouds and a few bats from the Haunted House die set from Spellbinders.  The Spooky Happy Halloween die set is from Kat Scrappiness.

The Halloween landscapes are all from Impression Obsession dies - Halloween Landscapes and Halloween Hilltown.

I adhered the message mat to the back. The Spooky Greetings die is from Creative Expressions.

I will be back tomorrow with another Halloween project.

Crafty hugs,

The Paper Shelter ~ 2023 Summer Break Challenge

   Hello friends! Welcome to our 2023 Summer Break Challenge at the The Paper Shelter. 

We have lots of inspiration for you today as both Team A and Team B are participating in this challenge.

   Our theme for this challenge is

~ Anything Goes ~

With it being Summer and me heading off to visit my family overseas and hopefully enjoying a few weeks on the beach, I came up with this card.  

When I saw this cute digi set, called Swimming with Friends, I knew that I wanted to make it move somehow.  Then I remembered a die set I purchase a few of years ago and thought it perfect 😀

When you pull the side tabs out, the dolphin moves to outwards too.

When you push the side tabs inwards, the dolphin moves towards the center of the card.  Here is a lil video that shows you how it works.  Sorry about the glare from the acetate.  Hubby helped while I filmed 😀

A close up of the inner center panel.

I uploaded the digi set to the Silhouette and then used it to print the images onto photo paper and cut them out.   I cut out a couple of each one.  This is the cute little fish.  I added a very thin mat to each image to make them pop.

I die cut the little strips from the same paper and placed one on each lil panel on both sides.

I also added seaweed and a few sequins, as bubbles, for a little added interest.

I computer generated the birthday greeting and added the cut octopus.  Not sure that it looks like he is holding the sign.  I think it looks more like he is taking a nap resting up against the sign. 😀

On the back I adhered my personal message panel.  I added a few sea plants and two of the cute little fish.

This 6" x 6" card, when closed, and fits snugly into a 6.25" x 6.25" envelope.

A quick and easy card, it is not, but since I made it with my grandson in mind, it was well worth all the time put into it.  My little guy loved it!  This is also the reason why I decided not to use the beautiful background that is included in this digi set  (see pic below)  It has beautiful shades of purple but my grandson's favourite colour is "ocean" colour 😀, so I decided to go with the teals instead.

Materials used to make this card:

The Paper Shelter - Swimming with Friends Digi set

Made to Surprise - 6"x 6" Terrific Towers

Creative Expressions - Aquatic Plants

Marianne Design - Wood Sign Post, Tropical Fish

Cottage Cutz - Under the Sea

Our Summer Break Challenge runs for 4 weeks but there is still a chance to win a prize.  The Paper Shelter offers a $30 gift certifcate for one lucky winner.  In order to get this prize, you must use a product from The Paper Shelter.  However, if you have not used a product from The Paper Shelter, you still stand a chance of winning 3 digis of your choice. 

 I will be back on the 30th of August with our challenge #565.  Until then take care, stay safe and enjoy your Summer.

Crafty hugs,

Dies R Us ~ Silver Bells

  Hello everyone, and welcome to our latest challenge at Dies R Us.

Challenge #181 ~ Anything Goes! 

(As long as you use a die sold at the Dies R Us store) 

I have another quick and easy card to share with you today. I really love these edge dies from Creative Expressions.  Add a pretty background and you're done. They are so easy to mass produce and I think look beautiful!

For my card I used a piece of  the Christmas Celebrations paper pack by Joy! Crafts. I cut out the Jingle Bells die out of white and silver cardstock and did a little bit of paper piecing so that I would have silver bells. I added a couple of tiny snowflakes made using an old punch. I could not find my tiny snowflakes dies, but I have listed the one I normally use, below.

On the inside, I just adhered a strip of the same background paper I used on the front, added the little bow and another few snowflakes.  And voila, another Christmas card done.

Here is the very small list of dies I used to make this card. I have linked each one

 to the Dies R Us store for your convenience.

Creative Expressions - Jingle Bells Edger

Impression Obsession - Small Snowflake Die Set

Thanks so much for stopping by today. I hope I was able to inspire you to create a project, and  play along with us at the Dies R Us Challenges for your chance to win a gift certificate to the Dies R Us Store.  A new challenge begins on the 1st and 15th of each month. Visit our challenge blog, where my team mates showcase their creations to provide you with

more inspiration.  Be sure to follow us on Facebook and Pinterest too.  

And don't forget to visit our sister store, Didi Crafts.  It has warehouses in the US and Canada. This means that our Canadian friends no longer have to worry about huge taxes or expensive shipping fees.  It has some products that are the same as Dies R Us, but in addition, it carries international dies,  and other crafty supplies for a variety of crafts.  Go take a peek and be pleasantly surprised!

Crafty hugs,

Dies R Us #159 ~ Winter Wonderland

 Hello crafting friends!  How are your preparations for Christmas coming along?

Being the 15th of the month means that a new challenge begins today at Dies R Us.

Challenge # 159 ~ Winter Wonderland

As I'm sure you already know, I don't like the cold, but do love to see snow scenes on postcards, movies, etc.  I recently purchased a couple of snowman edger dies, so I decided that this challenge was perfect to put them to use :-)

I love the look of these dies against pretty snowy background papers. I cut them out a few times out of different colour cardstock so I could do a bit of paper piecing to make the snowmen stand out more.

On the inside, I thought that this die I purchased a while back, during one of Dies R Us' international die sale, was just the perfect sentiment.  Remember, friends, the best way to know about these awesome special order sales is to subscribe to the store's newsletter.  

Here is the short list of supplies I used to make these cards:

Creative Expressions - Snowman Edger Die

Creative Expressions - Three Little Snowmen Edger Die

Marianne Designs - Warm Winter Wishes (Special Order Sale)

Thank you so much for stopping by today and sharing a little bit of your day with me.  I hope I was able to inspire you to create a project, and  play along with us at the Dies R Us Challenges for your chance to win a gift certificate to the Dies R Us Store.  A new challenge begins on the 1st and 15th of each month. Visit our challenge blog, where my team mates showcase their creations to give you a little more inspiration.  Be sure to follow us on Facebook and Pinterest too.

Before I go, I'd like to remind you that Dies R Us' sister store,  Didi Crafts, is now open. It has warehouses located in the USA and Canada.  It has some products that are the same as Dies R Us, but in addition, it carries international dies,  and other crafty supplies for a variety of crafts.  Go take a peek and be pleasantly surprised!

Till next time,

stay safe and healthy!

Lavinia World #27 ~ Sea Horse Edger Card

Hello crafting friends and welcome to challenge #27 at Lavinia World,
where the theme is always Anything Goes!



I'm loving the edger die collection from Creative Expressions. They have so many and they are lovely. They're also very easy to use,  and very versatile. These are always important things to me when I invest in dies.
So without further ado, let me show you how I created this card using the Sea Horse Edger die.

I started with a piece of teal card stock that was 6.5" wide and 10" long. I scored it at 5" making this a 5" x 6.5" (A7) card.  I placed the edger die on the front of the card and put it through the die cutting machine.

Then I created my ocean scene for the inside of the card. I began with a piece of white card stock which is  6 3/8" x 4 7/8". Next I cut a piece of nautical patterned vellum to the same size.  I stamped the various under the sea elements both on the vellum and on the white card stock behind it to give a more soft and distant look.  Looking at it now, I think that maybe I should have made the jellyfish a little darker. I will list all the supplies I used below.

Here is a closer look at the inside of the card.
I love this patterned vellum paper, by Paper Discovery. You can stamp on it beautifully, although it does take a little while to dry, and the glue you use to adhere it to the card, does not show through.

I needed a place to write my personal message, so I made this mat and adhered it to the back of the card.
It took a little while to put this card together but it was very relaxing and I enjoyed every minute of it. I think what took the longest was deciding what to stamp on the vellum and what to stamp behind the vellum :-)

As promised, here is the list of the supplies I used to make this card.
I have linked each one to the Lavinia World store for your convenience.

Sea Horse Edger die - Creative Expressions

Sea Creatures

Fairy Barnacle

Seaweed 2

Sea Bubbles

Memento Ink - Teal Zeal

Memento Ink - Lilac Posies

Memento Ink - Bamboo Leaves

Memento Ink - Pistachio

Memento Ink - Rose Bud

Versafine Clair - Morning Mist

Thank you so much for stopping by today.  I hope you enjoyed your visit and will make a project to come play along with us.  Although our theme is always Anything Goes, you do have to use physical stamps, either rubber or clear. 

 NO DIGI stamps allowed. 

The winner of the challenge will be able to proudly display our Lavinia World winner's badge on their blog, and receive a $15 gift certificate to the Lavinia World store.  Lavinia World offers the complete range of Lavinia stamps and papers.  Although Lavinia Stamps is from the UK, Lavinia World is a US based store that ships worldwide.

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Also, please note that we are not part of any other entity or Facebook group that carries Lavinia stamps.  ONLY the cards posted to Lavinia World Challenges will be entered into the drawing for the Lavinia World prize. Also note that the gift certificates are ONLY valid at the Lavinia World store. 

Till next time,

crafty hugs, 

Lavinia World Challenge #10 ~ Bluebell Fairyland

Hello crafting friends and welcome to challenge #10 at Lavinia World,

where the theme is always Anything Goes!

I have a whimsical birthday card to share with you today.

I always enjoy mixing my dies and stamps to create a project, and that is exactly what I did today, except that I added a piece of beautiful background paper too.

I started my card by cutting a black piece of shimmery cardstock at 11.5" x 5.75" and folded it in half. So this is a rather large square card - it measures 5.75" x 5.75". To cut out the front of the card, I used the Bluebell Fairy Edger die from Creative Expressions.

Next, I adhered the Midnight Haze background paper. On this paper, I stamped the Spiral of Spells over the moonlight glow.  To complete my scene, I stamped the Midnight Meandering bunnies, the Mini Snail and the Mini Slender Mushrooms, all using Versafine Nocturne ink.  To add to my scene on the top of the card, I stamped two of the Fairy Foragers, and to add a little more interest, I stamped the Small Whimsical Whisps, randomly on the edge of the paper.

In order to be able to write a personal message, I took a piece of lilac card stock and sponged the edges with Bahama Blue Memento Ink.  Then I cut a Doodle Square, from Marianne Design, and used that to frame the message that I will write.  To make it a little extra special, I stamped another couple of the Fairy Foragers.

I also sponged the corners of this 6" x 6" envelope with Distress Dusty Concord ink, and stamped another of the Fairy Foragers, just for good measure :-)

Thank you so much for stopping by.  I hope you enjoyed your visit and will make a project to come play along with us.  Although our theme is always Anything Goes, you do have to use physical stamps, either rubber or clear. 

 NO DIGI stamps allowed. 

The winner of the challenge will be able to proudly display our Lavinia World winner's badge on their blog, and receive a $15 gift certificate to the Lavinia World store.  Lavinia World offers the complete range of Lavinia stamps and papers.  Although Lavinia Stamps is from the UK, Lavinia World is a US based store that ships worldwide.

Also, please note that we are not part of any other entity or Facebook group that carries Lavinia stamps.  ONLY the cards posted to Lavinia World Challenges will be entered into the drawing for the Lavinia World prize. Also note that the gift certificates are ONLY valid at Lavinia World. 

 For more inspiration, visit our Challenge Blog and see all the wonderful and creative projects my team mates made for you.

We'd love for you to follow us on Facebook and Instagram too!

Till next time,

crafty hugs,