Evening, 

I don't know about all of you, but I have not been feeling particularly creative over the last few days.

I think Christmas prep probably got on top of me, and so today I decided to try and get back into the swing of things by finishing off a stack of cards. They only needed inserts and envelopes, but it is amazing how long it all takes. I keep promising myself that I will do it as I go, but the resolve never lasts, and so I inevitably end up with a pile of cards that need that finishing touch. Amongst the pile were a couple of boxes of cards that I made as Birthday prezzies.

I made a box and then filled it with cards to cover various occasions.
The lid was covered with a panel created from scraps left over from the cards inside.

Evening,

One of the major benefits of being retired, is being able to stay with the Grandchildren for an extra day after the weekend, because you don't have to get back for work.

It was lovely taking them all to school this morning, and then picking them up at the end of the day. Chloe asked if we could go for our treat at Costa. So we had a hot chocolate before coming home to read books and do homework.

This is a card that I made with one of Jane's fabulous floral stamps.
I rarely know exactly what I am going to create when I start making samples,
so I often end up with extra bits and pieces to make another card.
I did quite a bit of fussy cutting
and die cut some panels,
and made one card for Creative Expressions, and another for my box.
They are very slightly different,
because I hate to make the same card twice.

Evening,

I hope that you have had a good day. I have had a lovely relaxing time in the company of good friends. Plenty of coffee, biscuits, chat and crafting all thrown into one. What a great way to spend a Saturday.

One of the consequences of my recent period of instability and the chaos around moving, is that I have missed soooooo many birthdays and other special occasions.
Before things descended into chaos, I did get to make several cards using some of my fabulous LOTV Digi print images.
I do love these, they are such a fabulous way of making a card quickly.
I printed out various coloured images and then raided my stash of background papers and card for simple matt and layering.

I really must get some cards written and sent tomorrow, before I miss any more special days. If I missed yours, I really do apologise. Let's hope I get to do better in the coming weeks and months now that I am a little more settled in. I do hope so, especially as Christmas card writing is not very far off. How quickly that comes round each year.

Thanks for stopping by,

Happy Crafting and Hugs

Kimx

Evening,

I had another rather special card to make just before Christmas.

A special card for Andy's brother David and husband on their Wedding Day.
I matched the colours as best as I could to the suits and ties that the boys were all wearing
and the cascading hearts mirrored the wedding invitation that had been sent out.
I added extra silver hearts 
and a few flowers, but I don't think it made it too girly.

Evening,

In any stamp range there is always one design that seems to become a firm favourite.

That was definitely the case with the fabulous agapanthus stamps from Stampendous.
I used versamark ink and decorating chalks to create a soft stamped panel,
which I chopped up and then matched with some Bazzill cardstock and vellum.As well as the single flower head, there was also this spray. Definitely in my all time favourite stamp selection.

Evening All,

Another scorcher today, although it has thankfully ended with a bit of rain. Not as much as I would have hoped with the thunder rumbling around, and certainly not enough to affect the temperature at all. I'm not sure that I will cope if the whole of the summer is this hot.

I hid indoors on Sunday and finished off cards from Saturdays classes on Jane's fabulous Festive Bubble stamps.
They are a marvelous way of using up all those odd gems and glitter glues that you have kicking about.
I also used the die that is available to cut faux candi from the same silver card stock that I used for the matt to the panel.
Although this stamp is part of the festive collection, I'm sure you will agree that it works for any occasion.

Evening All,

One of my favourite new products from 2019 was the Alcohol Lift ink pad. A fabulous product which not not only lifts an image from a piece of alcohol inked background, but also enables you to stamp the image onto another piece of card stock. A twofer.

Long before it came on to the market it was possible to create and lift an impression from a piece of alcohol inked background using an archival ink pad.
Unfortunately this technique does not result in a twofer, but it does give you some fabulous results.
These cards were made using alcohol inked acetate. The floral images were stamped onto the inked side of the acetate using Archival ink which is then removed with a piece of  kitchen paper or a cloth. This removes the alcohol ink, although the images can sometime look a little grey from the archival ink.
This final card was made using a piece of photographic paper stamped with images that were then cut out and layered onto a card over a fancy die cut.

Evening All,

I have been rather looking forward to the rain that the weathermen have been promising us for today, and at 8pm on the dot it arrived. I know that it sounds mean, but I really don't cope very well in the heat, so I am really hoping that it takes the temperature down a bit. And of course the gardens all need it so it isn't all bad.

Here are the last couple of cards from the class on Resist and Distress Oxides.