MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

Christmas is but a few hours away, friends, and there is just enough time to stop by and wish you all a very Merry Christmas. The weather isn't brilliant today: cold, windy, wintery showers. We are at home warm, dry and huddled in front of the fire. And I hope you are enjoying this Christmas with family and loved ones.

I didn't go to my craft room today but here are a few tags I made recently. Probably my last Christmas show and tell for the year.

You'll find these tags over at:
Make It Monday #171: AG
Challenges 4 Everybody #36: AG
Sentimental Sunday #186: Anything Christmas


And one last thing....allow me to introduce the newest member of our family. Friends, meet

Peanut

She is a boisterous, energetic, playful little minx. Just look at those doe-eyes! Hard to believe that this little shortcake rearranged our tree almost everyday. We adopted her from the animal shelter. She's a 2 year old Teckel-Portuguese Podengo cross breed. Never a quiet moment with this little rascal. She's always up to something, when she's not up our Christmas tree... and we love her to bits.

Thank you so much for stopping by today. And on that happy note, we wish all of you a truly Blessed Christmas. There's a miracle out there just waiting to happen!

Beijinhos!

Mojo Inspired Sparkle

It's the Eve of Christmas Eve and things are heating up here at Casa Martins. It's icy cold outside but we've got the fire going inside. We spent the last hour or so rearranging our tree....again. Yep the little minx is turning out to be quite the tree climbing ball-basher. (Get that image out of your head! LOL) I have half a dozen broken baubles to try and put together, bits of tree to throw into the fire and somehow reclaim our a dining table which has all but disappeared under wrapping papers, ribbons and unwrapped presents.... I have never been this disorganised. So what do I do?  I make a card, of course!

Here it is:

This really is a super simple card. I'm using pale blue CS to make this 4-1/2"  square card.  The greeting and image is from Clearly Bessotted's Merry Little Christmas set. I stamped the greeting with Memento Blue Danube. The snowflakes are die cut using SB's Create a Flake 5, lightly inked with TH's Broken China for a hint of colour. I coloured the snowman with Promarkers and cut him out with CB's coordinating die collection. 

Using Versamark ink, I stamped some snowflakes on the background and added a blue bling on the biggest flake. And for texture I cut out some sparkly white fun-foam to make a snowy scene. I really didn't have the time nor the emotional strength to fuss about with buttons and ribbons etc, so this will have to do.  It's my interpretation of this week's Mojo sketch.

I hope you'll join me and my snowman at these challenges:

Mojo Monday #325 - sketch
Make It Monday #171: AG
CHNC #156: Last Minute Card
Hobbycutz #30: AG
The Squirrel & The Fox: Christmas / Hanukkah - Christmas
Cutie Pie Challenge #60: Only Snowmen Allowed
Get Inky #20: Winter Snow
Parade Your Craft #11: Christmas / WInter

That's all from me today. I have a ton of things still to do. Hope you are all warm and cozy and enjoying these last few hours at home and not stuck in traffic or in a queue at the mall! Thank you so much for stopping by and have a  very Merry Christmas. I'll be back tomorrow to reveal the naughty little addition to our family. Got to go...I hear the baubles tinkling... again!

Beijinhos!

Upright Christmas Trees

Almost the end of the week... almost Christmas. Is your tree up yet? Ours has gone up and down more times I care to count. Why? It seems we have adopted an arborist whose singular mission in life is to conduct a careful study of our Christmas tree. I made this card a couple of weeks ago for the doggie fund-raiser, at a time when I was convinced trees stood upright!

Still cruising CAS Blvd, this is as simple as it gets for me. The greeting is a die cut by
Britannia and for the background I did some embossing with the Swiss Dots folder. Embellies: red bling, gold star, lashings of Stickles for the tree in the middle and some
Doodlebug Christmas twine.

The trees are from Clearly Besotted's Signature Christmas and Signature Christmas Additions,
stamped with Memento Bamboo Leaves, Rich Cocoa and Cottage Ivy.

Taking this card to the following challenges:

Tuesday Morning Sketches #229 - sketch
Make It Monday #171: AG
Cute Card Thursday #300: Celebrations
Milk Coffee Challenge: Any Christmas Creation
Charisma Cardz #49: AG
The Paper Shelter: Christmas AG
CCEE #1359: Oh Christmas Tree
Aud Sentiments #96: Christmas
Simon Says Stamp - Wednesday: Bling It On


That's all from me today. It's very cold, windy and generally very unpleasant to be outside. Wrap up well, stay indoors and craft on. Me? It's very likely that, later this evening, I'll be picking up baubles and bits of tree from our living room floor. The little minx will be named soon. Thanks for stopping by!

Beijinhos!

Season's Greetings

Hello my friends! Hope you're well and staying warm. I haven't been paying much attention to my blog or friends. Life is a little crazy over here...I don't know if I'm coming or going. One thing's for sure, I don't know how to say no. Which is how I ended up making another batch of cards. At least it's for a good cause!

Not terribly imaginative but they'll do when you need to knock up a few in a hurry. Incredibly, I made 5!

This card came together very quickly. The greeting and poinsettia are from Clearly Besotted's Pretty Poinsettia stamps. The greenery is from the Leafy Accents set. I used TH Barn Door to stamp the poinsettia and Peeled Paint for the leaves, which I also used to sponge the SB Deckled Rectangle before stamping the greeting with Memento Tuxedo Black.

With CBS's Coordinating Die I cut the flower and adhered it with thin foam tape...same deal with the greeting. Some stitching, bling, twine and little dots of Stardust Stickles to seal the deal. Can't leave out the sparkle on a Christmas card!

Taking this card to these challenges:

Make It Monday #170: Anything Goes
Happy Camper #25: Christmas
Cute Card Thursday #299: Christmas Catch-up
Delightful Sketches: Red & Green
The Sisterhood Of Crafters: All That Glitters
Inkspirational #45: Photo Inspiration - red, green, white, leaves
Creative Card Crew #51: Holly Or Poinsettia
Paper Minutes #299: Typical Christmas Symbols


That's all from me today. Thanks for stopping by and I hope your Christmas preps are going according to plan. Don't ask about mine... sigh!

Beijinhos!

Tuesday Throwdown #176: What Christmas Means To You

Here we are, my friends! It's the last Tuesday Throwdown challenge for the year and .... I want to say something profound meaningful but all I can manage right now is "Aaaaargh! Where has the year gone?!!!"

What's it like in your home? Peace and  Joy? Or, as it is in our home: Panic and Mayhem. If it's the latter, a little creative interlude may help. Why not play along with us. Our theme is: "What Christmas Means To You".  Our sponsor is MelJens, the purveyor of the cutest festive images. You have to check out their on-line store: MelJen's Designs. For my project, I'm using this adorable image called Christmas Star Snowman, the greeting is called Let It Snow and the sentiment inside is called Looks Like Christmas.

I'm using scrap papers from Papermania's Animal Frolic. This 8x8 pad has been in my stash for 3 years or more. It's probably out of print now!  SB Circle and Scalloped Circle to cut out the image and SB Label 4 for the greeting. 

I coloured the snowman with Promarlers and applied lashings of Icicle Stickes... what else?!

Sticking with all things trad on the inside too.

I'm taking Frosty to these challenges:

Make It Monday #170: AG
Fashionista #4: Winter
Paper Playtime #25: Winter Fun
Make My Monday: A Frosty Theme
C...is for Challenge #12: Traditional Christmas
Incy Wincy Designs: Let It Snow
Lexi's Creations #105: Snow
52 Christmas Throwdown: Pick Past Challenge - August Theme: Carol / Hymn
Use It Tuesday #69: Finale - Winter Holidays - hoarded patterned paper.

That's all from me today. Why don't you head on over to the Tuesday Throwdown Challenge Blog and take a spin around the rest of the DT for ideas and inspiration. I hope you'll play along with us. There's plenty of time because you can link up your entries until 3:00pm (PST) on 31 December 2013.

Thanks for stopping by and I can't wait to see what you some up with. Stay warm everybody!

Beijinhos!

PolkaDoodles #49: A Gift For Christmas

Polka Doodle Friday!!! Are you looking for some home-made gifts? Then, this is the challenge that will inspire you. Our brief this week is to "Make A Gift For Christmas" but if you can't think of something then "Anything Christmas" will do.

I made a cute little purse to house 3 Mon Chéri chocolates. These make lovely little stocking fillers or favours at Christmas parties. I'll be distributing these to my choir buddies... just what the ladies need after an evening of carolling.  

With twenty to make, I'm keeping this simple. The paper and image are from PolkaDoodle's "Home For Christmas". I printed it on thick paper - 180 GSM. This makes the purse sturdy enough to house the chocolates and to hold its shape.

For embellishments - again, simple things: some red bling, Liquid Pearls and bakers twine tied in a bow to close the purse. I used thin ribbon to make the handles.

It's the perfect size for three little nuggets.

Using thick paper really helps the sides hold its shape so that the goodies don't fall out.

Here's a mini tut on how I made. I'll give you the bare-bone and go wild with how you choose to embellish this purse. This time I'm using a paper from the Angelberry CD - another great Christmas CD by PolkaDoodles. (Click on each picture for a better view of details.)

2. Crease well on all score lines.

1. Start with a 6" x 6" piece of paper and
score as shown above.  

3. With the patterned side down 
fold in the 2 side.

4. Pinch and squash down as shown above.

5. Make sure the sides meet as shown. 
Press down. Do this on all 4 sides.

6. Squash down well. The base of the 
purse is ready. Dress it up as you wish.
Keep the bottom of your purse
crease-free for a neat finish. 

I hope you give this a go. It really is super simple to do and makes a fun little gift. I'm grabbing my purse and heading off to these challenges:

Craft My Life: Anything But A Card
Crafty Ribbons #73: Spots or Stripes - large spots with stripes inside
Delightful Challenges: You're A Gem - red gems
Paper Crafting Journey: It's Christmas Time
Bastel-Traum: Christmas
Crafts & Me #143: AG
Feeling Crafty #23: Christmas
Kreativeinkauf #9: Weihnachtsmann und Helfer
Make It Monday #170 - AG

That's all from me. Thank you for stopping by and I look forward to seeing all your project over at the PolkaDoodles challenge blog. Have a creative Friday everyone!

Beijinhos!

Christmas Tweet

A super quick card to show you. I made 5 of this last week for my doggie shelter pile and apparently they were sold out "within seconds". Wonderful news! So happy that this year's fund-raiser went well.

The bird is from Clearly Besotted's Merry Little Christmas set. I coloured him with Graph It markers. The background is embossed with the Swiss Dots folder.

The bird is sitting on a branch from Clearly Besotted's Leafy Accents set, stamped with Memento Bamboo Leaves and cut with coordinating die.

The sentiment is from Waltzing Mouse Seasons of Love stamped with Memento Tuxedo Black and cut with Spellbinder Label 4.

Sending this festive birdie to these challenges:

Make It Monday #169: AG

365 Cards Day 338: Feathered

Use It Tuesday #68: AG

Addicted To Stamps and More #74: Clean and Simple

Divas By Design: Feeling Festive

Paper Take Weekly: Anything Goes

Bearly Mine Challenges #115: Christmas Sentiment

Flutterby Wednesday #264: Any Winged Creature

Word Art Wednesday #109: AG with Uplifting Sentiment

That's all from me today. Over the next few days I'll show you the rest the cards I made for the shelter. Thank you so much for stopping by and have a wonderful Wednesday.

Beijinhos! 

Let It Snow!

Hello my friends! It's really cold today and all I want to do is put on my granny PJs, grab my hot water bottle and crawl under the covers. But before I do that, here's my wintery snowy Mojo card. Can you feel the chill?!

No patterned papers. For the background I stamped snowflakes with Versacolor Silver ink and little dots of Liquid Pearls.

The die cut snowflake in by SB Snowflake 5, with lashings of Stardust Stickles and some clear I also dry embossed some light grey CS with the D'Vine Swirls folder. The greeting is from WMS Compliments of the Season, stamped with Versacolor Silver and heat set with Holographic Silver EP.  

I've also added some sheer white ribbon to the light grey panel. Finally, all the panels are tied down with some silver ribbon.

On the inside: sentiment by WMS and the innies from the snowflake die-cut. 

You'll find this snowflake at these challenges:

Mojo Monday #322 - sketch
Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge: With a Flourish
House of Cards: Photo Inspiration
Glitter n Sparkle #61: Add Some Sparkle
Make It Monday #169: AG
Opus Gluei #171: Brrrrring It On
Allsorts Challenge #235: Inspired by A Song / Carol - Let It Snow!
52 Christmas Card Throwdown: Pick A Previous Challenge - Theme Challenge #4 Snowflakes

I'm ready for bed, but before that I'll be doing some long-overdue visitations! Thanks for stopping by and enjoy the rest of your Monday.

Beijinhos!

Christmas Card Club #23: Oh Christmas Tree and another

Hello my friends! It's official - Christmas has begun, the anticipation, the excitement and with all that comes anxiety and panic! Busy times ahead, my friends! LOL.

I owe a huge apology to all my loyal blog-buds for your continued custom, especially since I have been errantly absent. We've had a hectic few days in the Martins household: Church, Family, Friends, and our customary Advent trip to the Sanctuary of Fátima. It's only an couple of hours drive away but we got home late last night / early this morning...it's all a sleepy blur.  And today is another long long long day. We have Mass, Advent fair and Choral recitation. I'm hoping we can be back by 9pm tonight. Beauty sleep is imperative. I'm beginning to look like the old hag who lives in the woods.

Speaking of woods, the theme this fortnight for the Christmas Card Club is Oh Christmas Tree. I made half a dozen of this card for my doggie shelter pile. Definitely one of my favourite Christmas stamps. It reminds me of our dearly departed kitty Xiara and our ageing doggie André.  

Red card base. The stamp is from Chocolate Baroque's The Gift of Christmas. The greeting is from Chocolate Baroque's Warm Christmas Greetings. Embellishment: Gold Liquid Pearls, Crystal Stickles, Red Bling and baker's twine by Doodlebug.

I heat embossed the image in black and some colour on the tree using Promarkers. There is also some dry embossing with the Swiss Dots folder on the cream panel.

This sentiment is also from Chocolate Baroque's Warm Christmas Greetings.

Challenges for this card:


Make It Monday #169 - AG
CHNC Extra Christmas Challenge - December - AG
Come And Get It - Christmas Challenge
52 Christmas Card Throwdown November Theme - Pick a Previous Theme - Challenge #21 Christmas Tree
Inspired by #98 - photo
An Inky Situation #19 - Trees

*************************

I've got another card to show which I meant to post yesterday. This one's for our Church's Advent Sale to feed and clothe the less fortunate members of our parish. I made half a dozen of these...which itself is a miracle!

I embossed the green panel using Checkered folder and the white vellum using the Swiss Dots folder. Embellishments: sheer white ribbon, clear bling and white Liquid Pearls. The image and greeting are from Chocolate Baroque's Christmas Cheer.

I heat embossed the bell on some light grey CS using Silver Holographic EP,  fussy cut it and adhered to the image. I coloured the leaves with Promarkers and applied white Liquid Pearls on the mistletoe berries. I also inked the edges with TH's Vintage Photo.   

Challenges for this card:

Deconstructed Sketch #128
Colour Throwdown #270
Crafty Ribbons #72 - AG with Ribbon

That's all from me today. Thank you so much for sticking with me. I have to rush off and get ready for Church but will try and drop my later today. Have a blessed Advent Sunday, my friends. Stay safe, stay warm.

Beijinhos!

Sing a Song of Christmas

HAPPY THANKSGIVING

to all my American friends!

Just a quick post from me today. I meant to show this to you yesterday but I fell asleep editing the photo.

Woke up this morning in bed....and I have no idea how I got there. As a single young woman I was naturally freaked out...I wanted to scream. Then I heard a familiar snore beside me and I realised; I am neither single nor young....and it's his turn to make breakfast. Life is good!

Several hours before that frightening visit form the ghost of Christmas past, I made this card.

Background: Pine Green CS, snowflakes from Chocolate Baroque Family Christmas and Versacolor Sage Green.
Music panel: Cream CS, torn music sheet from Chocolate Baroque Music Fanfare, Memento Rich Cocoa.
Embellishment: Red gingham ribbon.

Bird: Chocolate Baroque Family Christmas, Memento Tuxedo Black, Promarkers Lipstick Red & Berry Red
Sentiment: Chocolate Baroque Christmas Song, Memento Tuxedo Black, TH Vintage Photo, SB Circle and Scalloped Circle
Leaf: Clearly Besotted Leafy Accents, Brilliance Pearlescent Ivy, CBS Leafy Accents dies.

Some challenges for you to play along too:

Tuesday Morning Sketches #226 - sketch
I Love Promarkers #196 - AG with Promarkers
Addicted to Stamps and More #73 - Holidays
Divas By Design - Use Some Red
Crafty Ribbons #72 - AG with Ribbon
Cute Card Thursday #297 - AG
Word Art Wednesday #108 - AG Inspirational
Simon Says Wednesday Challenge - AG
4 Crafty Chicks #170 - Christmas


That's all from me today. I have a gazillion things to do and my nose is completely blocked! That is especially annoying to me because (on a day like this) I crave the smell of coffee. An allergy or the start of a winter cold...too busy to care, really. I hope you have a great day. Stay warm. Thanks for stopping by.

Beijinhos!