Paper Hugs

 Unstampabelle's Challenge #115 is use a stencil background with a salutation.  With Christmas cards starting to fill my mind, I decided this was a great opportunity to add another to my stash. I used the poinsettia stencil, masked off about half way, and added the die cut JOY greeting.  Very quick, so I'm sure I'll be doing variations of this style again!

 I've just caught the post by Vicki for Unstampabelles - the challenge is called 'All About Me'!  Well, instead of a portrait of me, I have opted for a silhouette of my younger sister, created for her at Luna Park when she was about 14.  I figure, in place of a photo of me, I couldn't get much closer than my only sister. I've created this card with an old world feel as this silhouette must be almost 60 years old.  I hope I haven't strayed too far from the requirements, but I loved the chance to use this picture again.  With a bit more time, I may be able to use the silhouette on a journal cover for her. My sister

Like so many around the world, we in Victoria have been experiencing long periods of lockdown, as our governments try to capture Covid-19 and keep us safe.  The restrictions have been harsh and long (over 200 days in total for us here so far and continuing) so it has been a saviour for me to rediscover an old skill, and learn some new ones. while I was unable to travel or see relatives or friends.  One of those past hobbies was crochet - very simple baby blankets or lap rugs.  I'm still doing fairly simple rugs, but have learned a few new patterns from youtube, so that they are more interesting to do.  Below are some of these rugs. These traditional blankets were made for my youngest grandchildren, who live in Queensland but love to be wrapped up and cosy - Lucy (pink) and Georgia (blue) .  Update:  I had forgotten that I posted these when finished - but hey - they are still part of this story. I loved using the 'cake' balls of yarn as there was very little joining to finis

 With a big shout out to Kris, from Queensland, who shared how to make the very popular and impressive Arrow Card style card and make it fit an A2 card - or normal card! Here are the ones I made recently, but I'm sure I will be making many more, as this style of card does have an impact. These two card use the same two papers - so two for one! Because  I like to show the card off clearly, I add a stand to the back of the card so the point of the arrow is not on the surface the card is positioned on. The stamps used are all Stampin Up! but the papers are not.

 I have been enjoying playing with my hexagon dies lately, following Lauren Bassons tutorial, and used mostly strong, primary colours to create my designs.  However, a friend then requested a baby boy card, and so I tried the same idea with 'baby colours'.  My friend was delighted with the card, so I'm sharing it here for the Less is More current challenge, which of course is 'baby'!  I apologise for my hurried photo, as I have already given it away!

 Well, for me, that doesn't really mean ducks, but chickens!  Challenge number 435 at Less is More, is 'All in a Row - and I have chosen the older stamp from Stampin' Up! called Hey, chick! I needed to have one chick reversed, so stamped it onto a silicon mat and pressed it into position.  Voila! I'm looking forward to the new set which has a super chicken flat out or flying! Thanks for looking!