The Card Chain Challenge Reveal - April 2025

Hello and welcome! It's time for the April 2025 Card Chain Challenge Reveal!

 

All the cards exchanged this month used at least one of the following options:

 

Colour Palette Option

(Exact matching is not required.)

Sketch Option

(Orient as desired.)

Theme Options: Hats / Rabbit / Friendship

Product / Technique Options: Fabric / Vintage

Here's what I sent to Gail in Canada, and, yes, I had oodles of fun making this one to play our theme options of hats and rabbits.

I hope Gail doesn't feel 'short-changed' by the simplicity of this card, but I wanted a really CAS look so didn't add any embellishments. The stamp is Hoppy from Waffle Flower. The stencil is from Funky Fossil, and I have to warn you that I LOVE it and will be using it again and again and again! 

My sender was Daja in Germany and she sent me this stunning step card:

Thanks so much, Daja, I love it. 

If you want to join in the fun you can sign up for the Card Chain Challenge.  All sign ups run in advance, from the 7th of the preceding month to the 6th of the exchange month.  All reveals happen on the 2nd of the month after the exchange is complete.

Hope to see you there!

Dani Doodles

Hi there, welcome to another post showcasing the fun stamps created by Dani of Dani Doodles.

Once again, I teamed-up my fave Funky Fossil stencil with a yet another fun sentiment by Dani. 

I did a little masking and then reversed the stencil to get the effect of the orange bird doing it's own thing. I think this bird is a female... possibly about to turn 60, but trying to keep going and living her best life! 😉😜😜

You can see more of Dani's new stamps over on Facebook here or on Instagram here. You can shop the new release and purchase other sets here and don't forget to use my discount code: ddjo10 to get 10% off.

 

Have a happy day, guys. 

Dani Doodles - March 2025 Release

Hi there! It's time for me to share another card featuring new designs from Dani Doodles. 

 

I fell head-over-heels for this cute pup, and I think the illustration is based on Dani's little pug Maisie. What a sweetie, and just look how Dani has drawn that lil' face. 

This really is the most adorable little set for Easter - you can buy it here, but you better hurry as stocks are running low. 

My second card once again features sentiments from Sorry. The gorgeous birds were created using a favourite stencil from Funky Fossil. I've made another card using this stencil paired with Dani's stamps and I'll be sharing it next week.

You can see more of Dani's new stamps over on Facebook here or on Instagram here. You can shop the new release and purchase other sets here and don't forget to use my discount code: ddjo10 to get 10% off. 

Dani Doodles - A Little Pug Lovin'

Hi guys, here's wishing you all a very happy Thursday! 

I made another card using this set from The Ink Road and Dani's Dog Puns! 

Isn't this little cutie adorbs, and just perfect to pair with Dani's fun sentiment. The background bones stencil is from Funky Fossil and was coloured with Distress Ink. 

Don't forget, you can find all the info about Dani's stamps by heading here.

And I'm so happy to play along over at Addicted to CAS Challenge #277 where their code word is PET.

Happy crafting, everyone.

Playing at Lost Coast Design

I decided to have a little play with my new Funky Fossil stamps and stencil so I could join the fun over at Lost Coast Design's latest challenge.

I love red, white and blue as a colour combo and when I was a quilter I often used this colour palette for my quilts as it always looked so warm and cosy.

Here's what I made. I'm not sure whether to make this into a card or just leave it as is and have it on the shelves in my craft room. 

If you've never taken a look at Lost Coast Design I'd suggest that you head on over and prepare yourself for a treat! They have great stamps and a fab challenge blog where you can win prizes. If you're a fan of quirky and/or snarky sentiments then Carmen's Veranda at LCD is the place for you to shop as they have some truly fabulous stuff on offer.

Happy hump day, people!

The Sisterhood of Snarky Stampers Challenge #229 - I is for Ink

 

Hi there, we've got a great challenge on offer for the next two weeks at The Sisterhood of Snarky Stampers as we play I is for Ink. As you can see our very own Edna is way ahead of us all with the inkiness. 

I'm currently having waaaay too much fun with my VLVS images and couldn't resist inking-up this fab gal and this sentiment for the challenge. The background was made with a Funky Fossil stencil (such good value and quality) and a selection of Distress Inks. 

If you'd like to get inky with the sistahs why not come on over and join the fun!

The Sisterhood of Snarky Stampers - L is for Lindsey

As many of you will now know the Sisterhood are missing a very special lady as our dear friend Lindsey passed away towards the end of last month. We're struggling to come to terms with her loss and our hearts go out to Lindsey's husband, Burke, and to her family and friends as they miss her too.

In tribute to Lindsey the Sisterhood have created some beautiful cards, inspired by things that she loved, and also by the colour palette she'd chosen for a Color Hues Challenge. The Color Hues gals have been joined by Lindsey's teamies from Seize the Birthday for their own special challenge.

Lindsey was so loved by the stamping community and over the years graced many teams with her creativity, wit and warmth. I first got to know her when we rocked-up as newbies on the Naughty or Nice Challenges team in 2016. After a few months we were running the challenge together and emailing frequently.

Before taking very early retirement, Lindsey was a school librarian. In 2016 I was working as a librarian in a primary school and we quickly bonded over having experienced many of the same ups and downs in our careers. We also shared a love of books and often passed recommendations to one another. Our cats Duncan and Custard also chatted about their love of laps and warm blankets! 

Making this card has not been easy, however I knew which set I wanted to use quite quickly. Lindsey loved a glass of wine and a cheeky cocktail or two and so this idea came together.

The stamps are from Martini Time from MFT and the background was created with a cute Funky Fossil stencil.

When I was stamping the card I couldn't decide whether to put the sentiment directly on the card or raise it up on a banner. I decided to stamp it directly onto the background and then, if it didn't look right (I had a hunch it wouldn't) I could 'hide' it under a die cut banner. This is what happened when I stamped onto the card...

Somehow, I missed the 'i' off martini. 

Lindsey, would have enjoyed this and we'd have had a good chuckle over the error. 

Thank you for being my friend, Lindsey, and please know that you will always be the vodka to my martin.

More Inspiration for Let's Squash It! Challenge #18 - Emboss/Deboss

 

It's time for the final Inspiration post over at Let's Squash It! where we're playing where we're playing Emboss/Deboss. 

I've really enjoyed this challenge and have loved trying different ways of combining both sides of my EFs on the same card. It appears that this technique has captured the imaginations of our participants as we've got some beautiful, really inspirational cards in the gallery.

During this challenge I've been especially interested in trying to use the small EFs that I seem to have acquired along the way. I was messing about with a piece of watercolour card and a small EF from Sizzix; just flipping the folder backwards and forwards and running it through my Cuttlebug. I came up with this panel and thought it was perfect as a background.

Here's the folder in comparison with the card.

I'm so pleased with the texture and the pattern made with just this little folder to play with. The flowers were sent to me by one of my Card Chain Challenge buddies, Lucille. Aren't they lovely? She sent them all coloured and ready to use, so putting my card together was just so quick and easy. The sentiment is from a cute set by Funky Fossil called Small Print #2.

You've still got until March 31st to come and play along, so why not break out those EFs and come join the fun! 

Let's Squash It! Challenge #14 - Stencil and Emboss

 

I'm on the blog over at Let's Squash It! today to remind all you good people that there's still time to play along with our current, fun challenge!

A couple of weeks ago I decided to play around with this theme for our Technique Time post.

Here's one of the pieces that I produced by combining a Funky Fossil stencil and an EF from Creative Expressions called Distressed Lines. 

After having already done the creative 'stuff' it only took a few minutes and this sweet die set from Simon Says Stamp to produce this card.

We've got sixteen gorgeous cards in the linky gallery thus far, but would love to see yours there too, so why not come and join the party!

The Sisterhood of Snarky Stampers Challenge #194 - U is for Ugly

 

I doubt Edna's kitchen will be gracing the front cover of House Beautiful Magazine anytime soon, but who knows - styles change!

We are playing U is for Ugly this fortnight over at The Sisterhood of Snarky Stampers. 

I took a little while to get going with this one, but once I'd found the words I knew immediately which image I'd use!

The background is one I created a few weeks ago with my Gelli Plate. The stamp is from VLVS. I added some washi tape to look like she's sat at a table. The other stamps visible on the card are from Funky Fossil.

My teamies have created some amazing cards for this challenge, so please head over, take a look and play along!

Card Chain Challenge Reveal - September 2020

It's time for the September 2020 Card Chain Challenge Reveal! 

We had 30 fabulous participants who exchanged cards across the globe this month. Bringing the total number of cards exchanged thus far by Card Chain Challenge participants to an amazing 3,107.   

 

All the cards exchanged this month used at least one of the following options:

 

Color Palette Option

Sketch Option

Theme Options: 
Steampunk / Birds / Friendship
 

Product / Technique Options:  
Sequins / Shaped card (not a square or rectangle)

I went with the colours and the themes of birds and friendship for my card, which flew across the world to Elena in Ohio, USA. I love this sweet, bespectacled owl from Funky Fossil and hope Elena does too.

My sender for the month was Linda G in Michigan who is celebrating the wonderful Fall colours with her card.

If you'd like to take a look at the full Reveal or to join our October Challenge please head here. 

The Sisterhood of Snarky Stampers Challenge #160 - Y is for Yellow

Hi there crafters and welcome to another fun, snarky challenge from the sisterhood! As you can see Edna is decked out in full Southern Belle style and obviously about to head to her debutante ball.

I know yellow isn't everyone's cup of tea, but I'm definitely growing in my appreciation of this sunshiny colour!

I needed a belated birthday card so I inked-up this fabulous VLVS Wagnerian lady and paired her with a computer-made sentiment. The background is a fabby new stencil from Funky Fossil.

The inside looks like this:

I was inspired in my choice of stamp/theme by the current challenge over at Time Out Challenges:

There are some great cards in their linky gallery and the DT inspiration cards are fab.

The sisters have created some brilliant cards and we have a fabulous guest queen too, so why not head on over and take a look!

Stay safe!

The Christmas Kickstart Challenge #28 - Red

It's time for a new challenge over at Christmas Kickstart and the theme is linked to this month of romance as it's RED!

Anything red on your Christmas themed card will work just great, so it's Santas, hearts, holly berries, robins, Rudolph and his red nose etc etc etc.

For this month I'm joined by yet another very talented cardmaker: it's Samantha from Coykoi Crafting.

You'll love her super-stylish take on the theme.

Back in the 1980's when I was at college, myself and my then boyfriend bought a rather battered, old red mini. Driving Home for Christmas by Chris Rea always seemed to be on the radio at that time, and so the idea for this card popped into my head.

I really love this little car, and all of the images in the set So Mini Hellos from The Stamp Market.

Creating this little card has really transported me back in time and made me want to reach out with a special message for my former beau: 'You were a lousy boyfriend AND you still owe me £250 for the car!' True story.

My second card features a gorgeous stencil and an adorable fox from Funky Fossil. Funky Fossil have a brand new release just out - I had to buy the owl set as it's just adorable!

Don't you just love the illustrations of Kimma Parish from Le Petite Market? You can find more of her work in digital form here.

Here's hoping you'll come play along with Samantha and I for this fun, new challenge.

The Christmas Kickstart Challenge #9 - Christmas Bunnies.

A bunny is for Christmas not just Easter... Well, no, a bunny is for life, but it's a fun way to cue in the new challenge over at The Christmas Kickstart Challenge which is:

Christmas Bunnies

So break out your bunny stamps and come and play along! 

I surprised myself by finding two Christmas bunny images in my stash, otherwise I was going to 'adapt' an Easter/Spring bunny.

This little cutie comes from Purple Onion Designs and is the work of the very talented Stacey Yacula. The sentiment is also from POD. The background was created by sponging Versamark through a stencil and then heat embossing. It looks lovely, but was a bit of a faff to do!

My second card for the challenge features a sweet little Lawn Fawn rabbit out on his sledge.

My final card features some stenciling and is very, very different to my usual style.

I layered up two stencils and got all inky with my Distress Oxides. The rabbit/hare stencil is from fellow crafter Sarah G. She has an online store where you can buy her gorgeous stencils, stamps, cards and gifts, and I love just about every single thing she has for sale there!

Finally, let's wish Elf Gail (AKA Iona Bunny) a very HAPPY BIRTHDAY! She has a rabbit-related giveaway on her post.  

Please join Gail and myself as we celebrate all things leporid (bunny) in this new, fun challenge!

The Sisterhood of Snarky Stampers Challenge ~112 - Q is for Quotes

Lovin' Edna's 'Air Quotes' today!

For Challenge #112 the sistahs wish to see a quote on your creation!

I went with a favourite quote of mine. I know it isn't always possible to live your life this way but I do try. I made this for a blogging buddy who once said 'YES' to a trip down a zip wire, so it seemed appropriate.

So, break out your quotes (snarky ones VERY welcome) and come play along!