Mouse Sparkler

I love sparkles and glitter on Christmas projects, so I've made a sparkler themed Christmas gift tag using an adorable image from Lili of the Valley using my Crealies XXL gift tag dies, and added lots of ultra fine glitter. I love making these large gift tags to add to parcels when I'm gift wrapping.

Designed for: As You Like It Challenge

Happy crafting
Annette
xx

Fashion Girlie

We're looking for your favourite fabric embellishment today (twine, lace etc), and by a long shot mine is ribbons. I have several shoe boxes full of reels and reels of different widths and textures, and my favourite way to use them is to make double bows to frame my image. On today's card, I've used a 6mm satin ribbon to cover the join in my patterned papers, and a 15mm organza ribbon in the same purple for the double bow.

Designed for:
As You Like It Challenge

Card Recipe:

• Image by Lili of the Valley
• Water-coloured on Ecoline Watercolour Card with Ranger Distress Ink Reinkers
• MFT Dienamics Stitched Circle Stax
• Flat Backed Pearls
• 6mm Satin Ribbon
• 15mm Organza Ribbon
• Nitwit Collections Papers
• Cherry Blossom
• Open Roses
• Mini Rosebuds
• MFT Happy Birthday Circle Frame

Happy crafting
Annette
xx

Doug the Bear

I'm not a huge sports fan, but one thing that does get my heart pumping amd muscles aching is gardening. We have a vegetable plot and have grown veggies in the past, but I admit this year I've not dedicated the time to it, so mostly I've just been weeding, rather than enjoying the garden.  I would very much like to change that next year, so we can enjoy picking and eating our own food again.

Designed for:
As You Like It Challenge

Card Recipe:

• James Gardening by Lili of the Valley
• Water-coloured on Ecoline Watercolour Card with Ranger Distress Ink Reinkers
• 6mm Satin Ribbon
• Nitwit Collections Papers
• Tattered Lace Happy Birthday Die

Happy crafting
Annette
xx

Purple Watering Can

It's a Halloween colour theme this week at As You Like It Challenge, and although I don't tend to send Halloween cards, I do enjoy putting up decorations for the Trick or Treaters who come to visit by the dozen each year. However, although today's card is not Halloween themed, I have used my favourite Halloween colour which is purple.  I am not a fan of orange and green, but purple is right up my street for any time of year!

Designed for:
As You Like It Challenge

Card Recipe:

• Image by Lili of the Valley
• Water-coloured on Ecoline Watercolour Card with Ranger Distress Ink Reinkers
• MFT Dienamics Stitched Circle Stax
• Flat Backed Pearls
• Nitwit Collections Papers
• Cosmos Daisy
• Open Roses
• Purple twine
• Watering can shaped cardbase cut with my Silhouette cutting machine

Happy crafting
Annette
xx

Deckchair Kitty

I've had kitties my whole life, and my house wouldn't be a home without a feline companion. I currently have 2, a brother and sister, who are naughty troublemakers, but I wouldn't be without them. I'm rarely alone and the little boy cat in particular is usually only a few inches from my ankles or demanding cuddles on my lap!

Designed for:
As You Like It Challenge

Card Recipe:

• Jack Patch and Puss Relaxing image by Lili of the Valley
• Water-coloured on Ecoline Watercolour Card with Ranger Distress Ink Reinkers
• Typed sentiment
• Nitwit Collections Papers

Happy crafting
Annette
xx

Bunny Tag

I love making large gift tags to decorate presents, and these supersized Crealies tag dies are my favourites.  They make a present look much more special and I really enjoy making them.

Designed for:
As You Like It Challenge

Card Recipe:

• Bunny image by Lili of the Valley
• Water-coloured on Ecoline Watercolour Card with Ranger Distress Ink Reinkers
• 15mm Satin Ribbon
• Nitwit Collections Papers
• Cosmos Daisy
• Open Roses
• Crealies Crea-Nest-Lies XXL65 Double Stitched Circles

Happy crafting
Annette
xx

Bear with Watering Can

My favourite season is Summer, when the days are at their longest and warmest. I really don't like the cold, wet weather of winter, and Autumn and Spring are still a little on the cool side.

Designed for:
As You Like It Challenge

Card Recipe:

• Bear with Watering Can by Lili of the Valley
• Water-coloured on Ecoline Watercolour Card with Ranger Distress Ink Reinkers
• Whimsy Stamps Birthday Word and Shadow Die
• Nitwit Collections Papers
• Enamel dots by Hobbycraft

Happy crafting
Annette
xx

Moo-velously Simple

Although I often add a lot of fancy embellishments to my cards, I do actually enjoy making clean and simple cards which keep the focus on the image, especially if it's a cutie!  

Designed for:
As You Like It Challenge

Card Recipe:

• Cow digi image by Lili of the Valley
• Water-coloured on Ecoline Watercolour Card with Ranger Distress Ink Reinkers
• Nitwit Collections Papers
• Enamel dots from Hobbycraft

Happy crafting
Annette
xx

Daisy James

I've had a bit of a rummage through my craft stash and reaquainted myself with some of my older dies. I really love this daisy border die which creates such an effective frame around an image, adding a lot of interest and texture while still keeping it fairly flat for postage!

Designed for:
As You Like It Challenge

Card Recipe:

• James with Daisy from Lili of the Valley
• Water-coloured on Ecoline Watercolour Card with Ranger Distress Ink Reinkers
• The Paper Boutique Thank You Square

Happy crafting
Annette
xx

Bouquet Bear

Christmas would usually be my favourite crafting occasion, but as it's January I'm not feeling the festive vibe at the moment, so I've switched my allegiance to birthdays for the first challenge of 2026 at As You Like It Challenge.  Today's card is for my Auntie, whose birthday is next week.

Designed for:
As You Like It Challenge

Card Recipe:

• Teddy Bouquet Digi image from Lili of the Valley
• Watercoloured on Ecoline Watercolour Card with Ranger Distress Ink Reinkers
• Flat Backed Pearls
• 15mm Satin Ribbon
• Nitwit Collections Papers
• Cherry Blossom
• Open Roses
• Mini Rosebuds
• Crealies Crea-Nest-Lies XXL65 Double Stitched Circles
• MFT Happy Birthday Circle Frame Die 
  

Happy crafting
Annette
xx

Flower Bunny

I love a lot of cute and furry critters, but bunnies are one of my all time favourites.  I used to have a pet bunny when I was younger, and love to see them hopping around in the wild. I've used a bunny with daisy image for my card today which reminds me of Spring when the days are starting to get longer and warmer!

Designed for:
As You Like It Challenge

Water-coloured on Ecoline Watercolour Card with Ranger Distress Ink Reinkers

Card Recipe:

• Rabbit with Daisy by Lili of the Valley
• 6mm Satin Ribbon
• Nitwit Collections Papers
• Lawn Fawn Puffy Clouds Border

Happy crafting
Annette
xx

Pirate Bear

Square cards are my favourite standard shape cardbase. I caveat that by saying I still love a fancy shaped card, like an apron shape for a food related image, or snowflake shaped cards for Christmas, but for my go-to cards, it's always a 6" square. Maybe it's the symmetry of them, but there's plenty of space for an image, pretty papers, and some fancy bits.  Today's card is for my Brother-in-Law, so I've kept the fancy bits limited to some fonts with a personalised typed sentiment.

Designed for:
As You Like It Challenge

Water-coloured on Ecoline Watercolour Card with Ranger Distress Ink Reinkers

Card Recipe:

• James Pirate image by Lili of the Valley
• Nitwit Collections Papers
• MFT Stitched Border Die
• Typed sentiment

Happy crafting
Annette
xx

Flower Mouse

We're asking for your favourite season at As You Like It Challenge this week, and although I love Christmas crafting, I'm not a fan of winter and cold weather, so my favourite season is the summer with the long sunny days and warm weather.

Designed for:
As You Like It Challenge

Water-coloured on Ecoline Watercolour Card with Ranger Distress Ink Reinkers

Card Recipe:

• Mouse with Daisy from Lili of the Valley
• Nitwit Collections Papers

Happy crafting
Annette
xx

Teddy Birthday

I've made this card for one of my lovely teamies at As You Like It Challenge.  I really love this little bear and I've used him a couple of times this year because I love the image so much. I've kept the design layout simple, but added a personalised sentiment to make it a little more special.

Water-coloured on Ecoline Watercolour Card with Ranger Distress Ink Reinkers

Card Recipe:

• James Bouquet image from LOTV
• Typed sentiment

Happy crafting
Annette
xx

Kitty Cats

This week at As You Like It Challenge we're wondering whether you're a cat or dog person.  It's no question for me, as I've always had cats, currently two 2-year olds who are extremely efficient at keeping me on my toes.  One's a baby angel and her brother is, well, let's just tactfully say he's 'a handful'!  One moment he's rocketting around the house stripping the silicone out of our window frames, and the next moment he's demanding snuggles and is the sweetest cuddlepants possible.  It's a good thing I'm a cat person, because he's landed on his furry paws with us!

Designed for:
As You Like It Challenge

Water-coloured on Ecoline Watercolour Card with Ranger Distress Ink Reinkers:

Card Recipe:

• Image from Lili of the Valley
• MFT Dienamics Stitched Circle Stax
• Smooth White Card 160gsm
• Nitwit Collections Papers
• Cherry Blossom
• Open Roses
• Mini Rosebuds
• Ribbon
  

Happy crafting
Annette
xx

Bunny Tag

I really like making oversized tags which make gifting presents even more fun.  I enjoy wrapping and making the present look pretty with my tag tied on with ribbons and bows.

Designed for:
As You Like It Challenge

Water-coloured on Ecoline Watercolour Card with Ranger Distress Ink Reinkers:

Card Recipe:

• Bunny image from Lili of the Valley
• MFT Dienamics Stitched Circle Stax
• Violet Plain Card 290gsm
• 6mm Satin Ribbon
• Nitwit Collections Papers
• Cherry Blossom
• Open Roses
• Mini Rosebuds
• Crealies Crea-Nest-Lies XXL Tag No.12 (with stitching)

Happy crafting
Annette
xx

Bear-ter late than never

This fortnight at As You Like It Challenge we want to know if you like adding sentiments to your cards or keeping them blank, maybe so the recipient can keep them on display longer as a piece of art.  Many of my cards don't have sentiments on them, but I do actually like making my own sentiments, usually mixing different fonts, which is what I've done for today's card which I'm a little late sharing!  However, it demonstrates 2 pretty fonts which I've overlapped slightly to make the words look like they fit together better.

Designed for:
As You Like It Challenge

Water-coloured on Ecoline Watercolour Card with Ranger Distress Ink Reinkers:

• Fur: Antique Linen, Brushed Corduroy, Vintage Photo, Gathered Twigs, Tea Dye, Tattered Rose
• Grass: Twisted Citron, Mowed Lawn, Rustic Wilderness, Peeled Paint, Forest Moss
• Sky: Tumbled Glass
• Purples: Milled Lavender, Dusty Concord, Wilted Violet, Villainous Potion

Card Recipe:

• Rosy & Cosy by Lili of the Valley (retired image)
• Violet Plain Card 290gsm
• Typed sentiement

Happy crafting
Annette
xx

Easter Chickie

I know Easter has gone, but I forgot to post this sweet chickie Easter card so better late than never!

Card Recipe:

• Chickie by Lili of the Valley
• Typed Sentiment
• Water-coloured on Ecoline Watercolour Card with Ranger Distress Ink Reinkers.

Happy crafting
Annette
xx

Easter Egg Galore

Happy Easter Everyone

Water-coloured on Ecoline Watercolour Card with Ranger Distress Ink Reinkers

Card Recipe:

• Easter Cuties Easter Tree image by Lili of the Valley (retired?)
• Bubblegum Pink Card 170gsm
• Nitwit Collections Papers

Happy crafting
Annette
xx

50th Birthday Boy

This fortnight's challenge at As You Like It Challenge is to decide whether you prefer clean & simple, or fussy & fancy in your crafting.  I do tend to swap between styles, with some of my more feminine cards being festooned with flowers, ribbons, pearls etc, but I also find it satisfying when a beautifully coloured image takes the centre stage.  Today's fuss-free creation is a special birthday card for someone who's been a good friend during the past 30 years.  He's recently discovered the joys of dog-walking, albeit his sister's dog, but this image felt right when I was picking one for his card.

Designed for:
As You Like It Challenge

Water-coloured on Ecoline Watercolour Card with Ranger Distress Ink Reinkers:

• Fur/Hair: Antique Linen, Brushed Corduroy, Vintage Photo, Gathered Twigs
• Skin: Tattered Rose, Tea Dye, Worn Lipstick
• Grass: Twisted Citron, Mowed Lawn, Rustic Wilderness, Peeled Paint, Forest Moss
• Fence: Antique Linen, Frayed Burlap, Walnut Stain
• Sky: Tumbled Glass
• Blues: Stormy Sky, Faded Jeans, Chipped Sapphire
• Wall: Hickory Smoke, Black Soot

Card Recipe:

• In The Country by Lili of the Valley Stamps
• MFT Stitched Basic Edges
• MFT Stitched Basic Edges 2
• Smooth White Card 160gsm
• Nitwit Collections Papers
• Typed Sentiment

Happy crafting
Annette
xx