Friday 21 June 2019

Smile

Hello sweet bloggers,

Here is another leafy card made today. The leaves were cut from super thick packaging material and as I shared in my last post, I marvel at how I kept running my Cuttlebug over and over again. Lol.

I coloured the kraft side of the packaging with water colours and a plastic bag which I wore on one hand like a glove and put colour on the palm. Water was sprayed on the paint and I went over the packaging sheet with this.  
Green, blue and a fluorescent yellow were used to obtain this result. I learned of this plastic bag technique on Pinterest. A zip lock bag is what was used in the tutorial but I chose to use a humble plastic bag as I did not deem fit to spoil a zip lock bag. I actually wash my zip lock bags and dry them before reusing them. That is how far my love affair with the environment goes. My children laugh at me but it is okay. Lol. Coming back to the card, the die cut black sentiment was also cut from packaging material. I used a square die to cut a window on the top layer. I quite like this simple beauty.



Ellibelle's corner  - summer scenes, treats or colours

See you soon,

Monica 

Thursday 20 June 2019

Thank you to a special teacher

Hello sweet bloggers,

Soon my younger one will go to Middle School and here is a card I put together for her class teacher. I also repurposed a box to house little tokens of gratitude. On this card is gold matte paper from India. I really like it's crushed texture and the white oval die cut was also packaging material in it's previous avataar. The sentiment is a die cut as well and I popped up the white nestie on foam dots and added a gold cord for interest. The cord goes all the way inside and ties into a pretty bow. This teacher was such a lovely and kind soul and I quite like how this simple thing came about.



I will enter this card in:

Monica 

Wednesday 19 June 2019

A very green hello

Hello dear bloggers,

Here is a very green card to show you today. The leaves were die cut using packaging material some of it so thick that I had to go over it a million times in my cuttle bug. To add to that there was lamination on the sheets so it took me even longer. I wish I was as persistent in areas where I need to be. Lol. 
I coloured the paper with water colours and an acetate sheet before die cutting it. I tried to be creative with the photo but I know there is too much empty space on the top. Too late now.



I will participate in the following challenges:

http://happylittlestampers.blogspot.com/ - anything goes with dies

Happy card making,

Monica 

Tuesday 18 June 2019

Partly recycled for a man

Hello dear bloggers,

Here is my card to show you that was made a few months ago. I have used a yoghurt lid to die cut the tools and the jagged edged paper is handmade from India and quite shiny in real life. It looks like coal, as my older one remarked. The birthday sentiment is a sticker. I quite like this simple piece of mine. 



I will enter this card in:
Happy card making,

Monica 

Friday 14 June 2019

For a 96 year old


Hello dear bloggers,

Here is a commissioned card for a 96 year old. I have used pearly cream paper as the background and the heart has been die cut using hand made crinkled matte gold paper from India. I stuck very pretty crystals on the heart and the numbers have been die cut using the same matte gold paper. Very simple but much appreciated but by the person who bought it. It could have been a better picture if I had used another backdrop.



I will participate in the following challenges:




Happy card making,

Monica

Thursday 13 June 2019

Peacock feather card

Hello dear bloggers,

I just completed an order of 21 cards in 10 days or so. First the lady ordered 15 cards and topped it up with more and more cards. This was the first time I had to make multiple cards with the same kind of design which was easy but not so creative. Anyway the good news is that I have begun to raise money for the abused women's shelter. So am feeling grateful.

This card was stamped with a peacock stamp with a pearlescent beige brilliance stamp pad. Over that I went over with my Sakura metallic green. For the centre of the feather, I used pop up fabric glitter glue and Sakura metallic pens in gold and blue. I also used glossy accents to give more interest to the feather. Finally the stamped white card was stuck on the crushed matte gold paper handmade in India. And yes, the customer was suitably impressed. She ordered two such cards and topped them with another three. 



I will enter this card in the following challenges:

http://craftygalscornerchallenges.blogspot.com/ - masculine (I hope it qualifies)


Happy card making,

Monica 

Wednesday 12 June 2019

Sizzix wild flowers

Hello bloggers,

Here is my very bright and cheerful card done with water colours to show you today. 
It wishes you happiness, good health and plenty of laughter. 


I will enter this card in the following challenges:


Happy card making,

Monica


Monday 10 June 2019

Yellow rose of Texas

Hello sweet bloggers,

Here is a simple embossed card where the roses have been coloured with distressed ink while the leaves I have used a Derwent water colour pencil. The background is a water colour paper which I coloured with water colour pencils.



Happy card making,

Monica 

Friday 7 June 2019

Leaves and more leaves

Hello dear bloggers,

Here is a card made with an embossing folder and coloured with milled lavender. The die is a Kaiser craft one and I did smoosh and many other techniques to colour the paper before die cutting it. The bright blue background is a canvas that Aleeza and I painted with acrylics. It is bright as you can see.



I will enter this card in:


Happy card making,

Monica 


Thursday 6 June 2019

This is bright!

Hello bloggers,

Here is my card to show you today which has been die cut from one of my new Sizzix dies (which comes in a set) using a paper on which Aleeza made a design with her magic markers. The sentiment has been die cut with the same paper using Kaiser craft dies. The rectangular paper has been given a smoosh ombre wash. 



I will participate in the following challenges:


Happy crafting,

Monica 

Wednesday 5 June 2019

For CAS watercolours - blue

Hello sweet bloggers,

Here is my card to show you for CAS watercolours which is all about using blue and water colours. My background has been done with watercolours in various shades of blue and some amount of purple may have secretly crept in as well. The die is from Sizzix and I have been sitting on it for a while now. Simple card but quite effective I feel.




https://caswatercolour.blogspot.com - blue water colour background
http://ttcrd.blogspot.com/ - anything goes
http://colouringinscrapland.blogspot.com/ - anything goes or water colours


Happy card making,

Monica

Monday 3 June 2019

Colourful card with magic markers and acrylic paint

Hello sweet bloggers,

Here is my card to show you today for which the credit goes to both my lovely girls. Zeenya who is 19 and in University made the purplish blue design with Hamley's magic markers. Aleeza made the design on the leaf with the same pens and I die cut the leaf with a Sizzix die. 
The green background for which you need really dark sunglasses has been painted by me with acrylic paints in yellow and green on water colour paper. On the sides of the green card, I have used magic markers to cover up for the green card. I am quite pleased with the way this card turned out.






Singapore is an amazing place, where all festivals are celebrated with much fanfare. On Wednesday, is the Muslim festival of Hari Raya and down below is a decoration of the chocolates bought for the staff in our complex. 16 families got together to contribute and I put it all together. I loved it!



I will enter my card in the following challenges:


Happy card making,

Monica 

Saturday 1 June 2019

Strawberry nice

Hello dear bloggers,

This is a card that for which I have to give credit to Aleeza. She hand drew the strawberries as a background on white paper and coloured them with pencils. When I asked her if I could use them on a card, she generously let me and even fussy cut them for me. This is what I made with them. The oval nestie has been die cut using a paper that was sent to me nine years ago by Terry. Terry doesn't blog anymore but she is one of the kindest people I know in blogland. I miss her and her lovely comments.

This card is for Less is More and CAS on Sunday but I maybe late for the former.




I will also participate in the following challenges:
https://colourcrazychallenge.blogspot.com/ - always colouring and anything goes
http://qkrstampede.blogspot.com/ - always anything goes


Happy card making,

Monica


Sunday 26 May 2019

For less is More

Hello sweet bloggers,

As some of you may know, I run an initiative on meditation, wellness and all things positive. This month we celebrated three happy years and now the focus is to share this further. 
Coming back to my card, I have used used florist paper to die cut the flower. The inner flower was made many years ago and a tiny gem was put in the centre to complete it. I embossed two nesties together and stuck the flower on it.

I will enter this card in Less is More where the theme is embossing.


Beside Less is More, I will also enter this card in:

https://craftycatzweeklychallenge.blogspot.com/ - anything goes with optional twist - monochrome


Happy card making,

Monica 

Friday 24 May 2019

Fluorescent feather

Hello dear bloggers,

Here is a card that I made for an order of 12 cards. The funds will go to support a shelter for abused women.
Yaay! I am so happy. I created the background with  fluorescent pink from Maala and the red was a Sakura acrylic tube. I did a smoosh with them and it was great fun. The sentiment was die cut from the same paper and I used a brick embossing folder. The embossed paper has been propped up on foam dots for added dimension.





Down below are rest of the cards in almost similar design.



I will enter the cards in the following challenges:

https://creationsinpink.blogspot.com/ - anything goes in pink



Happy card making,

Monica 

Wednesday 22 May 2019

Colourful card

Hello dear bloggers,

I have been busy with an order for 12 cards from a kind lady in our complex. Hence I could not be too active on the blog. I will surely show off the cards in my following posts. I am raising funds for a shelter for abused women in Singapore as I may have shared earlier.

Here is a card that Aleeza designed and stamped. The colourful paper is actually soft tissue paper that we coloured many years during an experiment with milk, vegetable colour and liquid detergent. I quite like how it turned out and tried to get creative with the photo as well though I think the vases may be bigger than the focal point. Lol. 





Happy card making,

Monica 

Tuesday 7 May 2019

White on white for CAS on Sunday

Dear bloggers,

Here is a card I have made for the challenge at CAS on Sundays which is white on white. I do like white on white challenges - easy and so elegant as well. The Kaiser craft fern die cut is my new buy from Spotlight while the frame has been die cut using two square frames. The sentiment is a die cut as well. 



I will enter this card in:


Happy card making,

Monica 

Sunday 5 May 2019

For CAS(E) this Sketch

Hello sweet bloggers,

Here is my card to show you today which I made a few months ago. The bee has been hand drawn on a scrap piece of paper and the inspiration was a video on Youtube. Aleeza made her bee and I made mine and we had loads of fun colouring it with colour pencils. The outlines were done with a black Sharpie. I quite like the way mine turned out. The flourishes have been made from die cuts and I had to add them to follow the sketch.




I will enter this card in the following challenges:

Happy card making,


Monica

Thursday 2 May 2019

Appreciate the little things

Hello dear bloggers,

Here is my card to show you which I made a few weeks ago with dies. The flowers are handmade by yours truly and coloured with distress inks. The leaves have been coloured with distressed ink too and the swirls were die cut out of paper smooshed with food colours. 

The sentiment is a wooden rubber stamp which I love. It is a reminder for me to remember to be grateful for all the mercies I am blessed with instead of looking at the challenges. Blessings and not lessings!


I will enter this card in:

Happy card making,

Monica 

Tuesday 30 April 2019

Hello Spring - partly recycled

Hello dear bloggers,

Here is yet another recycled card to show you made with a brochure I found in a hotel as a give away. I have used Vibe II papers under the brochure which I cut carefully to fit on the designer paper. The flowers are handmade using shiny paper. The bead in the centre is actually a natural lentil like nut which grows on a tree. I just love this nut or whatever it is called.

I am also feeling grateful to the school shop at my younger one's school for accepting to sell my cards. I am hoping they do well. The staff at the shop is so kind and I always bless them from the bottom of my heart. 


I will enter this card in the following challenges:



Happy art and craft,

Monica 

Sunday 28 April 2019

Aleeza's owl card inspired me to make one too


Hello sweet bloggers,

Here is a simple card that Aleeza made with very sweet owl toppers which we picked up while we were in Spain a few years ago. 
She completed it with a Happy Birthday stamp and sparkly washi tape. 


Down below is my card which came about as a result of inspiration from her.



I will enter this card in the following challenges:

http://allsortschallenge.blogspot.com/ - mother's day/feminine


Happy card making and happy everything,

Monica 

Wednesday 17 April 2019

It is always spring here

Hello sweet bloggers,

Here is my card to show you which was made last summer. The die cuts have been coloured in with water colours. My cards are more saleable when there is no sentiment on them hence the reason why I leave them this way.

I may have mentioned earlier that I have had a sale of 2 cards in the school shop so far and I am so happy. Every little drop counts as they say.


I will enter this card in the following challenges:


Happy art and cards,

Monica 

Friday 29 March 2019

Partly recyled

Hello dear bloggers,

I have great news to share. As I may have mentioned in one of my previous posts, the school shop allowed me to place my cards there and two cards sold. Yes, two and I am very grateful for it. They do take a mark up yet I am happy that I have a platform to sell. I will also find out more about bazaars and take a table there to make my presence felt. Beside, I am thinking of opening a dedicated face book page talking about my recycled as well as other cards. Lots to do and much excitement too.

Back to my card which is partly recycled. I cut out the image from a birthday card that is 20 years old and popped it on foam dots. The flowery strip you see has been cut from the card as well. Under the strip is another nestie that I cut with a paper cutter.  

The crushed pearlised paper below is handmade from India. I stuck it on white card stock covering it totally. I am telling myself to hoard less and use more. This paper has been with me for 15 years and only a card maker would realise what I am talking about. Lol. 



I am going to enter this card in the following challenges:



Happy card making and happy everything,

Monica 

Tuesday 26 March 2019

Baby boy card

Hello sweet peeps,

Here is a card I have made for CAS on Sunday. The theme is baby. I think the blue pot seems to have taken over the entire photograph. I have used two kinds of ribbons and that is pretty much it. I hope you like it. 



I will also enter this card in:
https://creataliciouschallenges.blogspot.com/ - anything goes / monochromatic

Happy everything,

Monica 

Wednesday 20 March 2019

Bee happy

Hello dear bloggers,

You know I really miss my old followers since the time I began blogging in 2010. I have come across such a lovely community of people here. So kind and so generous and so encouraging and so loving and so so so. It could go on and on. I am grateful for my friend, Aparna who suggested I start blogging when I lost my dad and I was facing some personal challenges. 

Back to this card - the bee has been hand drawn and coloured by Aleeza, who is 11 now. She made it on printer paper and I had to give it much backing to make it suitable for a card. But use I had to since the bee is so cute. I wrote a hand written sentiment some 10 times only to give the idea as a sentiment did not fit with the layout. I have popped the embossed background on foam top as well as the nestie with the bee. The washi tape on the left completes the card. I doubled it to make it look more striking.

The background here has been water coloured on water colour paper by me.


Down below is the same card on a black and white background - which one do you fancy?


I will enter this card in the following challenges: 



Happy card making,

Monica 

Monday 11 March 2019

Yellow rose of Texas

Hello sweet peeps,

Here is my card to show you today which was embossed and coloured with chalks a few weeks ago.  

The yellow ribbon is from my stash and I have used pop up foam dots to adhere the layer with the roses on to the card.


I will participate in the following challenges:



Happy crafting,

Monica

Wednesday 6 March 2019

Hello toucan + good news

 Hello sweet peeps,

I have some good news to share today - the shop at my younger one's school agreed to keep my cards. So I handed them 33 cards in all. 

Now to the cards below. The first one was made by me while the second one was done by Aleeza. The green strip on the left was coloured with food colouring while the Sizzix die cut was painted with water colours pencils.





Down below is Aleeza's card. The strip on the left was done by Aleeza with acrylic paints. The die cut was painted with water colour pencils.





Happy card making,

Monica 

Tuesday 26 February 2019

Peacock feather bookmarks

Hello sweet bloggers,

Here are 36 bookmarks I made at the request of my mum who was visiting from India. She wanted to use them as give aways to friends. I have used glossy accents on most of them which I have to add made them look rather nice. The image was stamped first and a metallic gel pen was used to go over it. Glitter glue was used on some of them in the centre of the feather to add dimension. I used glossy accents to seal the metallic gel pens since their shine reduces after a while.

For the base card, I had these rectangular cards lying with me which were the extra trimmings from a larger piece of card stock I had bought in Mumbai some 14 years ago. Talk of hoarding!!! Anyway, my little bit of recycling for the day. The gold ribbon is from my stash. And that is my story. All in all a very lovely experience because I love peacock feathers so.





I will enter my card in the following challenges:



Happy everything,

Monica 

Monday 11 February 2019

Thank you, dear Shirley-Anne

Hello sweet bloggers,

Here is a quick card I made with the sweet embellies that Shirley-Anne sent me in the mail. Thank you so much, dear blog buddie. I am grateful for all the support I have received from blog land in the past and present. Coming back to the card, I finished it off with washi tape, my inseparable buddy and a Happy Birthday stamp.



I will participate in the following challenges:
http://countryviewchallenges.blogspot.com/ - black and white and one more colour

Happy crafting,

Monica 

Friday 25 January 2019

Hi there

Hello dear bloggers,

Here is my card to show you made with fabric tape and an Alte new rose die cut. I have used handmade papers from India. The paper at the bottom has been upcycled from packaging material. 


I will enter this card in the following challenges:
https://craftingfromtheheartchallengeblog.blogspot.com/ - anything goes



Happy crafting,

Monica 

Monday 14 January 2019

Upcycled from a Merci chocolate box

Hello lovely bloggers,

Here is my latest card to show you which was made from the packaging of Merci chocolates. I stuck the merci sentiment on foam dots for dimension and added a sparkly gold washi tape to add glamour. 



I will enter this card in the following challenges:

http://welove2create.blogspot.com/ - anything creative/mixed media


Happy crafting,

Monica 

Friday 11 January 2019

Hello lovely bloggers,

A very happy and blessed new year to you all. My older one is visiting from university and my mum is here too so it is a nice warm feeling to have them with us. For Christmas we went to a Thai restaurant and that was pretty much it. I must be really maturing because simple pleasures seem to mean so much to me. 

My card below has been made with diecut butterflies from the American School of Bombay (ASB). There was scrap paper lying in the art room there so I went for it and I have had this since 11 years. The washi tape is from my stash. The clay mushroom you see behind was made by Aleeza in art. The little plant in a tea pot came from a very dear friend.



I will enter this card in the following challenges:


Happy blogging,

Monica 

Friday 14 December 2018

Sweet chick

Hello sweet bloggers,

Here is a card I put together with a cute image that Aleeza drew free hand and coloured it in with water colour pencils without using water and I rested it on another nestie. The background paper has been coloured with food colours in green and egg yellow. The tag you see under the round nesties came from a garment and the green embroidery yarn is from my stash. The sentiment is one of my faves and I wish I could recall the wooden stamp. 


Happy everything,

Monica


Monday 3 December 2018

December already!

Hello dear bloggers,

Here is my card for CAS(E) this Sketch made with stuff that was lying around on my pretty messy table. 
I have used a sizzix die cut and Aleeza water coloured it. It was slightly longer than the card so I folded it in and stuck it on the inside. 
The porcelain plate is over 53 years old and it belongs to my mum who generously let me have it. 

My mum copied it on a bottle and painted it with oil colours many years ago.


I will also enter this card in the following challenges:

http://4craftychicks.blogspot.com/ - anything goes
http://seizethebirthday.blogspot.com/ - birthday
https://aaacards.blogspot.com/ - anything


Happy crafting,

Monica 

Wednesday 28 November 2018

Stencils

Hello bloggers,

Here is a card to show you today against a background which looked pretty matching with the card in real life. In the photo, it went haywire. Lol. 
I have used a stencil and green distressed ink has been sponged in. The outlines have been coloured with a gold gel marker. This background was made a few years ago and when I found it, all the gold gel had disappeared like pixie dust all that was left was a brownish outline. I coloured in some bits of the sponged bits with a gold gel marker. Stuck a fancy gold washi tape and a ready made sentiment and the card was done.



I will enter my card in the following challenges:



Happy crafting,

Monica