Thank you with a Flower

Hi there!

I'm here again to share a last minute card I had to make. A request from my Husband, who needed a Thank you card to give to his Line Manager, who is moving forward to a different role.

 I wanted to make something simple, but cute and bright at the same time. I haven't used any patterned paper this time, something I have actually quite enjoyed!!! I have also created the background myself, using different colour inks and a circle-cut shape to create it. I'm very pleased with it.

The image I've used is the Dollar Flower bug from Bugaboo stamps, which I coloured with Promarkers and Flexmarkers.

The sentiment is a freebie from TLC creations.

Card Recipe

7 x 5 card blank

bright pink card stock

Promarkers and Flexmarkers to colour the Bugaboo digi

Martha Stewart butterfly punch

gems

flowery ribbon

different coloured inks for background, made using a die-cut circle

I'd like to enter the following challenges (in no particular order)

Crafty Catz #306 - Flowers

Aud Sentiments #146  - Thank you with a sentiment

Inspiration Destination #67 - Anything goes

Crafting with an attitude #11 - Anything goes

Art by Miran #49 - Anything goes

2 Creative Chicks - Anything goes

Crafty Enjoyments #3 - Clean and simple

Inkspirational #99 - Thank you with something new (digital stamp and background technique I used are new)

Not just cards #28 - January always anything goes

Where the heart is #5 - Anything goes

Digichoosday #1 - CAS Clean and simple

Everybody-Art challenge #350 - Anything goes

Little Red Wagon #323 - Thank you card

As you like it - Anything goes

Moving along with the times #11 - Spots and dots

Brown Sugar #180 - Anything goes

QKR Stampede #173 - CAS

Let's color Saturday Linky Party - Anything goes with something colored

Sweet Stamping - Flowers

Morgan's Art world challenge #1 - Anything goes

Glitter n Sparkle #170 - Tic Tac Toe (gems, digi image, ribbon)

Thank you so much for stopping by! Don't forget to leave a comment and follow me if you want to get updated on my new makes!

Until next time!

Cute and Grunge!!!

Hi!
I hope you have all had a lovely weekend! Here in the Diaz-Kaleem household we are back to our post-holiday routine.... Alaia is back to nursery today and hubby is back to work. I'm just trying to get in the rut again.... (not happening yet...) I guess I have a bit of post-holiday blues... all the pre-Christmas excitement, preparations... it all went too fast!!!! And I've made the point of not taking my Christmas tree down yet..... In Spain today it is still Christmas!!! although we don't celebrate it here in the UK, in Spain The 3 Wise Men brought the presents to children last night... So I can't really take my Christmas down until at least tomorrow.... I say with a very very sad face..... I wish it could be  Christmas everyday! (this is now turning into a song...)

So on to today's card!!!!!

I really love the card I'm showing you today...

I've tried a new style for me, "grunge". I hope I have accomplished a grunge look! when trying to achieve a look, there are so many things to consider, and so many interpretations! I distressed a lot, I went a bit crazy!!! I got the Tim Holtz Paper Distresser for Christmas and I love it! and for me, in cardmaking, Tim Holtz = grunge! More Tim Holtz in this card: the Weathered clock die, and the Distressed Ink pads in Tattered Rose, Tea Dye and Old Paper. Some of my new crafty goodies! (not all presents, some I got on the sale)

I used a cute image... can you do cute grunge? I guess so...if not, too late for me!!!! It is Bunches by Mo Manning. I've had it for a while, used it once before, and I thought it was time to use her again....

And I am so proud! for this card, I only used scraps of paper! I didn't use a brand new sheet at all! for me, this is a big thing.... some of them are from my K&Company paper pad and from First Edition ....

I coloured Bunches with my Promarkers.

Raw Sienna, Sandstone and Buttermilk for her hair, flowers and boots.

Frosted leaf for the leaves in the bunch.

Vanilla, Almond, Ivory and Blossom for her skin.

For her clothes: Blossom, Pink Carnation, Cornflower, Powder Blue and blender pen.

Another first for me, which I am really happy I made and I will make again and again is the Grunge looking flower....  I followed a tutorial I saw on how to make a Christmas Poinsetta by Chelsea Le at Crafting Life Pieces. I adapted the tutorial to make my flower.

I used 16 leaf die cuts (I used the leaves from Marianne Creatables English Rose).

I cut them from Watercolour Paper. I soaked them in water, and rolled them. 

I left them overnight to dry. In the morning, I unrolled them, used some Distress inks at the edges and glue them together: 8 leaves at the bottom as a base, and then 2 layers of 4 leaves. I added a rhinestone in the centre... 

I'm really happy how it ended up! perfect for this type of card I think....

The sentiment is from a Ribbon reel I've had for years. 

The buttons are from Papermania and Gorjuss.

The brown dots ribbon and brad are from local shops.

I'm entering this card into the following challenges:

Mo's DP2 challenge - Anything goes w/Mo Image
Crafting Musketeers # 9 - Grunge
Moving along the times - Thank you
Crafty Catz #212 - Thank you
The Pink Elephant #232 -  Thank you
Brown Sugar #75 - Use ribbon or twine
Totally Gorjuss #217 - Ribbon
Alphabet challenge - X for xtra-ordinary (handmade flower is xtra-ordinary as it's first time I've made it!) (2nd entry)
Delicious Doodles #69 - Layer up
Left of Center #22 - New Beginnings (new craft dies and technique) 2nd entry
A Gem of a challenge #110 - something new (new craft stash - Tim Holtz die and inks)
Come and get it - Something new  (New style, craft tools and handmade flower)
Crafting from the heart #4 - Anything goes/use pearls of buttons
All sorts challenge #240 - Free and easy (2nd entry)
Incy Wincy - 3 favourite embellishments (ribbon, flowers and buttons)
Polkadoodles Digi Choosday wk 11 - Anything goes
Polkadoodles challenge wk 1 - Anything goes
Crafting by Designs - Anything goes (2nd entry)
613 Avenue Create #53 - Anything goes
Through the Craft Room door  - Anything goes
C.R.A.F.T. #240 - Anything goes (2nd entry)
Crafty Hands #5 - Anything goes
Sweet Pea stampers - Anything goes
Creative Craft Challenge #26 - Anything goes
Glitter n Sparkle #66 - Anything goes
Challenges 4 everybody #37 - Anything goes
Digi Sketch - Say it with flowers (T)
Crafty Boots - Anything goes
Creative Card Crew #52 - Anything goes (3rd entry)
Open-minded crafting fun #1 - New tools or new techniques (Tim holtz weathered clock die is a new tool)

I hope you have enjoyed my card. If you have, please leave a comment, I read and appreciate each and every of them... and don't forget to follow me! :)

Until next time!

Clean and Simple challenge!

Hi! welcome to my blog!

As you may have already read on my last post, we went to Dublin for a little break last week. It was actually a work trip for my husband. Having a meeting in Dublin on a Thursday meant we could join him and extend the trip to the whole weekend!

Dublin was amazing! we visited Temple bar (the whole area was so full of character and culture!), Trinity College (we couldn't get into the Library as it was a bit late, but it was really nice just walking around it), Dublin Castle, The Guinness Storehouse (a whole building just about Guinness!). The last day we just walked around the city centre, mainly Grafton Street. we had lunch at Bewleys Cafe (one of the oldest cafes in Dublin, a massive place and so busy!). We really enjoyed our weekend. I also met great people like my husband's work colleagues. I made this card for one of them, the manager at the Premier Inn Dublin Airport, and the whole team. They gave us such a warm welcome and took care of us with anything we needed.

And what a challenge I set myself with this card, CAS (clean and simple), really??? when making cards, I love lots of embellishments, flowers, different papers... etc. I really had to stop myself and stay simple. This is the best I could do!!!! I tried to compensate all the whiteness with a pop of colour in the cupcakes and flowery paper...

I decided to use cupcakes on this card, as the card is for a bunch of people and we all like cupcakes, don't we?  I've had these clear stamps for such a long time, one of the first ones I ever got, I think they came with a card-making magazine. 

They were 3 different stamps. I used the masking technique (another new thing for me, not sure why I've never done it before?), to make the cupcake tower. 

I coloured the cupcakes with my Promarkers and used some of Anita's 3-D gloss on the cupcake toppings. 

I embossed white card stock with the Cuttlebug dots embossing folder, die cut a scallop circle and put some flowery scrap paper underneath. 

I printed the greeting on the computer (I really love this font, it's called 1942 report). 

and finally, I added a blue button and some paper string. 

That's all!!!! CLEAN AND SIMPLE!!! I really hope it's CAS enough!

I'd like to enter this card into the following challenges:

Crafty Cardmakers #105 - Clean and simple

Parade your crafts #9 - Thanksgiving / Thank you card

Crafty Creations Challenges #250 - Thank You

Love Rubberstamps #80 - Give Thanks

Creative Card Crew #50 - Sweet Treats

Polkadoodles Digi Choosday wk 6 - Give thanks

Crafty Sentiment Designs - Anything goes

Bearly-Mine #114 - Anything goes 

I love promarkers #196 - Anything goes

Cute card thursday #297 - Anything goes

I really hope you like this card. If you do, please leave a comment below... 

and don't forget to follow me if you don't want to miss any more of my cards!

Thanks and until next time!

Fabulous Geek: A Thank You card

Hello!!!! Welcome back to my blog!

It's weekend! This weekend we've decided to have a "lazy" one.... we've been so busy lately that we really want to stay home. For me it will be spending  time with Alaia and Gul; and of course, making at least one card!. Alaia also loves making cards with mummy. She's a "mini-me"! We also love doing jigsaw puzzles together, she's really good at them and I'm happy that she plays and develops her brain at the same time... We'll try to do a bit of everything I guess!!!

So today I have a beautiful THANK YOU card to show you.

I've used an image by Saturated Canary called "Violet Vintage". Isn't she great? Saturated Canary had a discount on a few images the other day and of course, I couldn't resist to get my hands on a few of them! (so watch out, I will be making more cards using Saturated Canary images soon!)

I used this sketch by Maria Therese from Saturated Canary.

I hope I made it justice! 

The papers I've used are from the Material Girls Collection Pack by G.C.D. Studios (the XO paper at the back, it's very difficult to see in the picture, but it has a fabric-like  texture), and from my K&Company paper pad.
The Doily is from Trimcraft.
I've distressed all the edges of the card stock and papers with sandpaper and the Tim Holtz Distress Ink in Antique Linen. I used blue ink to distress the doily.







As usual, I used my Promarkers to colour the image.
For the hair I used Mustard, Buttermilk and Sandstone.
For the lips: Antique Pink and Dusky Rose.
For the face and body: Sandstone, vanilla and blender pen.
For the clothes, socks, boots and handbag I used: China Blue, Cornflower, Powder blue, tulip yellow, mustard, buttermilk and blender pen.











I used Anita's 3-D Gloss for the stars, Scrabble letter tiles and glasses.


The flowers and pearl brads are from Wild Orchid Crafts.
The Twine, bead, rhinestone and feather are from local shop.

I'm entering this card into the following challenges:

Saturated Canary Challenge #56 - Sketch by Maria Therese

Passion for Promarkers #223 - Geeks

Love to Create #90 - Color Inspired

Incy Wincy - Ribbon, Twine or Fibres

Shopping our Stash #126 - Thanks
Scrap-Creations - Give Thanks
Sister Act #32 - Anything goes
Daring Cardmakers - The other occasions and reasons
Alphabet Challenge Blog - "T" for twine
Brown Sugar #67 - Anything goes
Stamp and Create - November: Feathers or Leaves
Party Time Tuesdays #145 - Thanksgiving / Thank you notes
Penny's Challenge  #152 - Lots of Layers


If you like this card, I'd love you to leave a comment. I really love reading all the lovely comments.
And if you don't want to miss my blog posts and all my new cards, you can follow me through bloglovin', google friends connect or google +. The link buttons are on the side bars.

Thank you very much for taking a look and until next time!