Everyone Should Have A Squirrel

Short and sweet, everyone should have a squirrel (or three), especially red ones!

I have used

CC Designs Rustic Sugar Snowman With Squirrels

Painted with Distress Inks (ReInkers)

Sentiment is Whimsy Stamps holiday mini sentiments

Background snowflake from a Personal Impressions set

Papers are Nitwits/LOTV Frosty Christmas

Snowflake punches are Martha Stewart and X-Cut

and a single pearl from stash to finish

Hugs to all for a happy Monday

Love

Squirrel xx

Personally, I think everyone should have a Jenson Button too - F1 is going to be poorer without him

Can't wait to see what he gets up to next!

I Knead You

Now then, I needed to make a thank you card for a fellow cat fan, so out came my two MFT cat stamp sets.  Then I went to have a look at the current MFT challenges and realised that I could combine all three elements!

So for this little cutie I have used

MFT I Knead You stamp set (for the boxed kitty)

Painted with Distress Inks (ReInkers)

MFT Die-Namics stitched scalloped frame die

MFT Grateful For You (word/die set)

MFT Cool Cat stamp set (pawprint)

Papers from my scraps box

and the two challenges are

MFT Card Challenge Wednesday - Sketch 308

and

MFT Colour Challenge 58

Hugs to all

Squirrel xx

One Of The Lads

I haven't attempted a post since Blogger went all weird and modern on us - don't they know how big a shock it is to do things like that without warning!

Anyhoo, a boy's card for you today.  My friend Pig's "little" lad turned 14 a couple of weeks ago.  I can't believe it, it only seems two minutes ago that he was chewing on my fingers, and now he's heading towards 6ft tall!

When CC Designs released this stamp set I had to buy it for this one image alone as it looks so much like Sam!

CC Designs Four Seasons stamp set - Boys

Painted with Distress Inks (ReInkers) with a smidge of Polychromos in his hair

Cloudy sky paper was a magazine freebie from Making Cards

Stitched landscape die from Poppystamps

Grass border punch from Martha Stewart

and the stitched fence die......erm, I can't remember

Sentiment from Clearly Besotted

Hope your Saturday is a good one.  Toad has gone out to look at a new car (for him, I'm left with our nearly 20 year old Toyota!) and this afternoon we're off to visit the Oldies to make sure they are behaving themselves.  Some chance of that happening, bless 'em.

Hugs to all

Squirrel xx

In The Pink (DT) Cute and Cuddly

When we went Christmas shopping last week, there were four penguins.  Real, fishy smelling, penguins.  Now, I love penguins, they are seriously cute, but I am not sure I would want to cuddle one, unless it has been bathed, in Chanel No 5.

Where is this leading I hear you ask, well, it is leading nicely to my DT make for IN THE PINK and our challenge is CUTE & CUDDLY.

So, I have used:

Mo Manning's Snow Pals from Stamping Bella

A lot of pink Distress Inks (ReInkers)

Papers from Nitwits

Crealies scalloped square dies

MFT Die-Namics Goo border die

Martha Stewart snowflake punch

and our fabbie sponsor for this challenge is

DIES TO DIE FOR

Hugs to all

Squirrel xx

😻

Out of my depth

Twice in one day.  Today I made a toad-in-the-hole for the first time in nearly 20 years.  To say I was nervous sounds ridiculous, I mean, I cook dinners every day of the week, so why should something as simple as a toad upset me?  Well, Mr Toad got his name from a passion developed over my mother's version of, yes, you guessed it, toad-in-the-hole.  My past forays into batter making have not been all that successful, apart from keeping the Winter Olympics supplied with ice-hockey pucks, so it was a somewhat scared Squirrel that shoved the big glass dish into the oven.

And the other out-of-my-depth moment was today's card.  OK, so maybe the card wasn't out of my depth but the challenge I'm entering is:

I made this to enter at

MFT Card Challenges - Wednesday Sketch No 307

For the card I used

MFT Polar Pals stamp set

Masked with Post-It Notes to create the row of bears

Painted with Distress Inks (ReInkers) and fussy cut

MFT Die-Namics double stitched rectangle die

Sentiment from the MFT Merry Everything set

Papers are all Nitwits (Winter Wishes sold by LOTV) except

for the kraft matting layers (which are a recycled envelope!)

Snowflake dies are Memory Box

Oh, and the toad-in-the hole?  Enormous but absolutely yummy!

Hugs to all

Squirrel xx

😻

Christmas for Vegetarians

Afternoon all, how are you today?  Toad and I have taken a couple of days off work (my last until Christmas itself) and yesterday we went and made a start on the Christmas shopping.  We did quite well, and I managed to get everything that I had on my list to get that day, so we came home feeling quite chuffed.

However, a day on the feet, pounding the pavements, has played havoc with my arthritic knees so we are having a quiet day at home today.

Having said that, Rosie had her six month check-up at the V.E.T. this morning.  I devised a plan for getting her into the carrier that involved a trail of Dreamies but seriously, that cat is not daft.  She munched the first few and then sat and looked at the box, so we had to resort to the grab and shove method!

So, Christmas for vegetarians huh, yes, well, I have a couple of vegetarian mates for whom the roast turkey dinner is certainly off the menu, which could be why this chap is looking so pleased with himself.

I'd been rummaging through some older stamps and found this one

Tom Turkey from High Hopes

Painted with Distress Inks (ReInkers)

Papers (some of which are glittered) are all from the

Dear Santa by Helz Cuppleditch (Trimcraft) collection

MFT Die-Namics stitched scalloped rectangle frame

MFT Die-Namics Merry Christmas word die

(the Christmas part is inside)

Whatever you are up to today, I hope it's a good start to your weekend

Hugs to all

Squirrel xx

😻

AYLI (DT) Favourite Christmas Colours

Hello peeps, happy Thursday, and of course that means it's As You Like It day.

For this new challenge our theme is

Favourite Christmas Colours (and why)

So, this was another challenge that had my scratching my head.  I love all sorts of colour combos for making Christmas cards, but for Christmas itself with all the decorations at home, I don't think you can beat the traditional red, green and gold for warmth and richness.  It just makes Christmas feel so cosy.

This little lass doesn't look too impressed with her Christmas jumper this year

Stroppy Girl - Christmas Jumper stamp from LOTV

Painted in red, green, and gold - Distress Inks (ReInkers)

Sentiment from Hobby Arts

Chevron die from MFT Die-Namics

Papers are magazine freebies from Making Cards

Red cardstock from Hobbycraft

The sponsor of this challenge is

Prize - £10.00 Voucher

digistampboutique.co.uk catalog

digistampboutique blogspot

Hugs to all

Squirrel xx

I should write things down

Aftenoon/evening all.

I don't know if I have too much going on in my head these days, or my memory is beginning to fail (it's never been brilliant).  I saw a challenge this week with a theme of Ombre.  At the time I thought "eeeek", but today I made something that would fit that theme.  But can I remember which challenge it was?  Can I heck.

Anyway, challengeless, here is the card:

So for this one I have used

MFT Polar Pals stamp set

Lawn Fawn stitched landscapes

Little Claire circular sentiment

Paper from Making Cards magazine

Oh, and a smidge or two of Distress Inks (ReInkers)

Hugs to all

Squirrel xx

PS.  Thank you girls for being so brilliant!
Addicted to CAS - Ombre

In The Pink (DT) Winter

Morning all, hope your day is full of Pinkness because it's a new challenge from IN THE PINK.  The theme this time is WINTER.

It's up to you how you interpret this but I read it as winter, the season, rather than Christmas.

Anyhoo, this is my make:

As this challenge is being sponsored by BUGABOO I thought I would try something a little different with one of their images.

This is Sunbonnet Fireman Fire Hose - I bought mine in the rubber version from Little Miss Muffet

It was a lightbulb moment for the shower of snowflakes

The snowflakes are made with a Lawn Fawn die set cut from BoBunny double dots paper

Image has been painted with Distress Inks (ReInkers)

Sentiment from My Favorite Things

Custom sized card base

As I mentioned, the sponsor is BUGABOO STAMPS

Wintery hugs

Squirrel xx

Not for Cuddling (Really)

Morning all, and here we go again for another Monday ........ phfft.

Anyhoo, I hope you managed to have a good weekend.  Ours wasn't too bad thanks, and Rosie coped with the fireworks with a little help from the vet.  In fact, she was so relaxed, I had to check that she was still breathing!

I didn't have an awful lot of time for play, but I did managed to squeak in a quick one with some happy mail that arrived on Friday (grin).

No, it's not your eyes, this isn't quite in focus - I am blaming the lack of daylight!

So, although these bears look sooooooooooo cuddly, it is not recommended

MFT Polar Pals stamp set

Painted with Distress Inks (ReInkers)

MFT Die-Namic stitched snow drifts dies

LOTV Circular Christmas Sentiment

Lavinia Stamps snowflakes

and one of my few remaining sheets of BoBunny Christmas paper

I think you might be seeing these bears a lot over the next few weeks

Hugs to all

Squirrel xx

Trekking through the snow

I've already had an argument with myself about how to spell treking - or is it trekking?  I've gone for two k's, so apologies if my brain-fade has it wrong!

Anyhoo, inspired by the Lili of the Valley Facebook colour challenge for November, I made this little card.

I wish I could remember the name of the stamp, but he's an old one in rubber

Painted with Distress Inks (ReInkers)

I think the sentiment is from HobbyArts

Snowflakes are Lavinia Stamps

and that's it.

Hugs to all

Vague Squirrel

xx

AYLI (DT) Fairies or Teddies

Now, the choice that AS YOU LIKE IT are asking you to make this week is which is your favourite, Fairies or Teddies ......

Having had a run of challenges where I have really struggled to make a choice, this one has been an easy decision.  With apologies to the Fairies, but if it is furry and huggable, then I am there, a Teddies girl all the way!

So this happy hula bear is by Lee Holland from Whimsy Stamps

Painted with Distress Inks (ReInkers)

Clouds are sponge inked with a homemade template

MFT Die-Namics double stitched circle die

Whimsy Dies double scallop doily die

Sentiment from Personal Impressions

Papers are Prima All About Me

Hobbycraft gold pearlised card

The sponsor of this challenge is

Dies to Die for

£15 voucher

I do hope you will be able to join us for this super theme!

Hugs to all

Squirrel xx

SNSRC #2 Midway Reminder

Morning all, just popping by with a midway reminder for Squirrel's Not So Random Challenge

One Colour (plus skin/fur/hair)

The Little Acorn who has made this is the adorable Sue (pop over to her blog for the details)

This festive little lady looks amazing in sepia, thank you Sue!

Come on guys, nothing to be scared off - and you still have until 30 November to enter.

Hugs

Squirrel & The Little Acorns