My photo
A very warm welcome to my teeny, tiny part of the huge world of blogging. This is where I share my passion for making hand made greeting cards. So - why "Always with a Heart"? Well this is for two reasons. Firstly, it is because every card I produce carries a heart on it somewhere. This can be big and bold or small and almost hidden - the fun sometimes is just trying to find it! Secondly it is because I put my heart into everything I produce. I hope that any visitors enjoy seeing what I post. If you drop by then please leave me a comment so that I know you called. It would be nice to know that you have found my heart in what I do.

Thursday 30 May 2013

ECARTE, SPLITS, PIROUETTE

Hi Everyone

Happy Thursday .. .. I hope your day has been good.

Mine has been nice and productive on the old order/wedding front and then this evening I have been to my lovely Sister's salon and changed the stationery on display in the wedding cabinet and took some more general cards for the stands.  It was lovely to see everything in place all shiny and bright .. .. note to self .. .. must do this more often!! 

Back home now and just time for a quick post of a card I made earlier.  This is for a lady who wants to write her own message inside .. .. hence the lack of a sentiment on the front.




This used:

Image:  Penny Black "2361K" Ecarte, Splits, Pirouette
Backing Papers:  Pink Petticoat "Vintage Stars" and "Pretty Little Hearts"
Josy Rose:  Nail Heads
My Trust Sewing Machine
Diamond Stickles
ProMarkers
Ribbon, cord and charm from my stash box

and that is me for today.  I was up at the crack of dawn creating today so I think an early night is in order.

Catch you again tomorrow.

Love

Wednesday 29 May 2013

HAPPY WEDDING ANNIVERSARY

Hi Everyone

I hope your day has gone well.  We have been treated to more of the "wet stuff" today.  

Just been down to the greenhouse to check all is well in there and the barrels we have for collecting rainwater are just about full again .. .. that's after us emptying one at the weekend!!!

So if this much water has been collected from one small part of my garden just think how much has fallen across the whole country. Such a shame there isn't a clever way of diverting it to those countries that really need some.

Well I needed a card in a hurry for a friend today .. .. funny how cards you throw together quickly can sometimes appeal more than those you spend ages on.  I will definitely be making this one again .. .. 





This used:

Backing Paper:  Nitwits "Romance and Roses"
Sentiment:  Computer generated using fonts "Benjamin Becker Extra Light" and "Monterey"
My Trusty Sewing Machine
Woodware Punch
Lace and ribbon from my stash box

and that is it!

Off back to the craft pod now.

I had a lovely "happy couple" come and sign their stationery samples off this afternoon so life has just got a whole lot busier in the old House of Hearts.

Lots of weddings over the next few months!!  I hope the weather is going to pick up for all those special days that are looming.

Enjoy your evening everyone.  

Catch you again tomorrow

Love

Tuesday 28 May 2013

DITSY ROSE PAPERS

Hi Everyone

Sorry for the "no-show" yesterday .. .. I ran completely out of time to do anything with my blog!!  

But on the good side I got all of my ironing out of the way, managed a bit more gardening and then spent the afternoon and some of the evening on commission work.  Not a bad day's work!

So I am here nice and early to make up for my blogging slackness of yesterday!




This used:

Image:  Digistamp Boutique:  "Dress and Mannequin Set"
Sentiment:  Computer generated onto those scrummy Digistamp Boutique "Simple Tags"
Backing Papers:  Digistamp Boutique: "Ditsy Rose"  -  I just love these papers!!
Woodware Craft Punches:  Daisies in various sizes
Martha Stewart Punch:  Frond
Josy Rose:  Nail Heads
Diamond Stickles
Brad, Eyelet and ribbons from my stash box

and now it is time to knuckle down and get lots of wedding work done!!

I love these bank holidays but they do play havoc with my routine.  Weren't we fortunate with the weather!  Unlike today.  Back to dirty wet weather here today .. .. but at least I don't need to water the plants we put out at the weekend!! LOL!!

Have a great day.

Love

Sunday 26 May 2013

SUNDAY SNIPPETS

Hi Everyone

Well .. .. what a fabulous Sunday.

Beautiful weather .. .. and lots of gardening done in the old House of Hearts!!  

Really pleased with all the planting and digging we have done but none of it helps with my ever increasing "do list" eeekkkk!!

What I would like to know is how come hubby and I spent exactly the same amount of time outdoors and he now looks like he has spent a few day in the Mediterranean and I am still super pale and un-interesting!!!  It's not fair!!!!  LOL!!!

But once indoors I knew exactly which stamp I wanted to play with because I had been thinking about it all day.. .. we have dug up so many dandelions this one just had to make an appearance!!  Though none of ours were ready for blowing their seeds everywhere .. .. we have been pulling the buds and flowers off as they have appeared prior to having time to dig them up.  There is a weird and strange feeling when you dig a dandelion up and get the whole of the root!!  (or is that just me?).

Was anyone else told as a child that if you pick a dandelion flower you would wet the bed?!?!  LOL!!

Anyway .. enough waffle .. .. here is my share for taking along to Di's Crafty Snippet Challenge:




As always I am lazy with my posts on a Sunday and don't list my ingredients .. .. but ask away if you want to know anything I have used.

Have a good evening everyone and a great Bank Holiday Monday tomorrow.

Love

Saturday 25 May 2013

IS SPRING HERE?

Hi Everyone

Wow!!  What a super lovely day .. ..all that lovely sunshine.  So what do we do?  We wander around IKEA for over 3 hours .. .. and that is when our Son had an idea of what he wanted.  I dread to think how long it would have taken if he had gone with no ideas!!  LOL!!!

So we got his goodies home and assembled some .. but then we gave in and left him to it.  He is on half term break from college now so he has plenty of time to get it finished and arranged how he wants it!!

But for me it meant no crafty time :-(

So today has to be a make I made in the week that I wasn't intending posting as it is similar to something I made a while back  .. .. but then I decided I would .. .. whilst hubby is fetching us a Chinese as our reward for a  hard days driving, walking backwards and forwards around the store and manual labour!




This used:

Backing image:  Elusive Script
Flower and Swirls:  Sizzix/Hero Arts Framelits "65776" Floral
Sentiment:  Elzybells (sadly no longer trading)
Josy Rose:  Nail Heads
Distress Ink:  Wild Honey
My Trusty Sewing Machine
Ribbon from my stash box

and that is it.

Time now to go and get the plates and glasses out as hubby is due back any minute.

Enjoy the rest of the day and the bank holiday weekend.

Love

Friday 24 May 2013

HAPPY FATHER'S DAY

Hi Everyone

What a dirty old rubbishy day weather-wise .. .. one minute lovely sunshine (but only for a minute) and then rain, rain, rain and more rain.

But at least we are in for a bank holiday weekend which will hopefully bring something a bit nicer.

We need some decent weather to get out into that garden and get some planting out done (and weeds pulled up if the ground isn't too waterlogged!!).

I am here with another quick and easy Father's Day make today.. .. ..




This used:

Image and Sentiment combined:  Pink Petticoat "Mr Moustache"
Backing Paper:  Pink Petticoat Colour Collection "Mr Moustache" and "Little Polka-Dots"
Nestabilities:  Octagons
My Trusty Sewing Machine
Buttons and Twine from my stash box

and that is me for today.

I need to run down the garden to the greenhouse in-between showers but am also waiting for a delivery .. .. I just know that if I try to "run the gaunlet" I will come back to a postcard saying "sorry you were out when we called" LOL!!!

I think I'll stay indoors a little longer .. .. I want the delivery!!

I hope everyone has a lovely Bank Holiday weekend.

We are heading out to IKEA tomorrow to get flat packs for our son's new flat.  Having been there three weeks now he has had chance to move what furniture he currently has countless times.  He has "sort of" decided what he wants so has measured up and made his shopping list .. .. and I will gain some "cast offs" which will hopefully fit in to my craft pod (aka tardis) where nothing matches in the slightest!!  In fact they will be "third hand" by the time I get them .. .. but as they say .. .. beggars can't be choosers.

Catch you soon.

Love

Thursday 23 May 2013

SOMETIMES YOU'VE GOT TO TELL PEOPLE

Hi Everyone

Flying in and out with a share today that uses a stamp set that I only bought for the gorgeous sentiment .. .. .. being the soppy person I am I just love it!!

But of course I couldn't warrant just using a sentiment from a stamp set (no matter how beautiful)  .. .. so I came up with this little creation using one of the images from the set:




This used:

Image and Sentiment:  Docrafts "Wellington" 8 x 8 Clear Stamps
Backing Papers:  Docrafts "Wellington" (I am definitely getting lots of mileage out of this paper pack)
Josy Rose:  Nail Heads
Distress Ink:  Tea Dye
Nestabilties:  Rectangles
ProMarkers
White Gel Pen
Twine and wooden embellishment from my stash box

and that is me for today.

I am once again meeting myself coming backwards .. .. but gosh it is fun!!!!  Having said that though one big clean up is needed in the old craft pod and that isn't so much fun!!  

Catch you again tomorrow.

Love

Wednesday 22 May 2013

CONSTELLATIONS

Hi Everyone

Happy Wednesday.

I hope you have had a good day.

My share today carries on a little with yesterday's theme.  I loved the black and white gingham so much that I used it again today .. .. along with the second stamp I ordered with my prize voucher.  I have loved this stamp for ages and have always been swayed away from it by the cute Penny Black mice or hedgehog stamps LOL!!!.  But I have noticed recently that it isn't quite so readily available anymore .. . so I decided the time had come for me to nab it quickly before it becomes a rarety!!

So pleased it is now part of my collection.




This used:

Image:  Penny Black "3867K" Constellations
Sentiment:  Pink Petticoat "Tiny Blooming Sentiments"
Backing Papers:  Pink Petticoat "Gingham" and "Pinstripes"
My Trusty Sewing Machine
Nestabilities:  Classic Ovals Large and Classic Scalloped Ovals Large
X-Cut:  Butterfly Punch
Martha Stewart Punch:  Traditional Scallop
Black Versafine Ink Pad and Clear Embossing Powder
Ribbons, button, pearls from my stash box .. .. .. and a bit of bleach from the kitchen.

For this card I decided to have a try at bleaching my image a little.  To do this I stamped my image using a Black Versafine Inkpad and embossed this with clear embossing powder.  Then I mixed a tiny bit of thick bleach with some water and painted the flower head.  The embossing kept most of the bleach solution where it should be .. .. but some has leaked over :-(  

Next time I think I will work on small areas and try it with my heat gun as I go along and see how that works.

So that is me for today.  Just time for a quick bath and then off to catch up with The Apprentice!!

Enjoy what is left of your evening everyone.

Love

Tuesday 21 May 2013

POLKA-DOT SPRIG

Hi Everyone

I hope you have had a good day.  I am well late this evening with my share .. .. .. so I will just get on with it!!  LOL!!

This share uses a stamp I chose as part of my prize from Sketch Saturday (thank you ladies!! xx).  It arrived today and I just knew I had to play with it before the day was out.

Not quite what I have in mind for the stamp .. .. but no time to do any more than this today .. ..




This used:

Image:  Penny Black "4304H" Polka-Dot Sprig
Sentiment:  Elzybells (sadly no longer trading)
Backing Papers:  Pink Petticoat "Gingham" and "Waterfall Hearts"
Josy Rose:  Nail Heads
My Trust Sewing Machine
Ribbon from my stash box

I am entering this into Di's Crafty Snippet Challenge as everything came from my snippet drawers  .. ..  I hope the playground lights are still on LOL!!!

Catch you again tomorrow .. ..  hopefully a little earlier!

Love

Monday 20 May 2013

THE WANDERER RETURNS

Hi Everyone

Well the wanderer has returned!!  I hope you all had a great weekend.

We headed off to London early Friday morning and arrived back home last night.  

So the packing case is now empty again ready to go back in the roof and my "do list" has increased in size whilst my back was turned .. .. but what a wonderful few days away.

It certainly re-charges your batteries to escape.  

Evita was brilliant!!  I loved it!!  

The ticket was my birthday present from my oldest Son and his wife (thank you again kids for such a special weekend xx).. .. and they tricked me into thinking I was sitting pretty near the back and that I might not be able to see Marti Pellow very well but I would be able to hear him.  I was happy with that.

Little tricksters .. . I was sitting 4 rows from the front!!  I could see the sparkle in his eyes and that fantastic smile.  He certainly got the loudest cheers at the end of the performance .. .. I wonder why??!!!  No cameras allowed though so no snaps on my phone .. .. he will just have to stay a wonderful memory.

As soon as it had finished I could have watched it again.  I really enjoyed it.  

But now I am back to earth with a bang.

Last week was all rush in the build up to going away .. .. this week is going to be all rush to catch up.  But with recharged batteries I am sure this is going to be a very productive week.

Today's share uses the Sketch Saturday Challenge sketch  -  just perfect for a card I needed to make.




This used:

Image:  Pink Petticoat "Happily Ever After" (don't think this is still available )
Sentiment:  Computer generated using font "P820 Script"
Backing Papers:  Nitwits "Romance and Roses" FQB
Josy Rose:  Nail Heads
Diamond Stickles
Ribbon and cord from my stash box

I'll be back tomorrow and hopefully catch up with everyone's blogs over the next couple of days but in the meantime if you fancy playing along with the challenge here is the sketch I used:


Have a good day everyone.

Love

Saturday 18 May 2013

HAVE I GONE TO LONDON TO VISIT THE QUEEN ?

Hi Everyone

The House of Hearts has temporarily relocated to our capital city .. .. I am having fun in London today with my eldest son and his wife .. .. but there will be no meeting up for tea and cucumber sandwiches with the Queen.

I will be going to see one of my heart throbs from years gone by .. .. .. and I have to admit to still fancying him a bit!!!  LOL!!  (Yes, I am old enough to know better but I just know I will struggle to take my eyes off the lovely Marti Pellow .. .. I hope he will be on stage lots!!!).


I dread to think how many years it is since I saw him in Wet, Wet, Wet !!  Gosh time flies!!!

So no card to share today .. .. I am being a slacker!!!  Shame on me!!!

Have a lovely Saturday everyone.

Love

Friday 17 May 2013

A LITTLE BIRDIE TOLD ME

Hi Everyone

Sorry for the no-show last night .. .. .. all rather hectic in the House of Hearts with unexpected visitors and missions to complete and they all threw the normal routine completely out of the window!!  

One day I would love to think I could have lots of posts all ready and waiting .. .. but that seems a mission impossible at the moment.

But never mind .. .. I am here now and here is my little share for today




This used:

Image and Sentiment:  Digistamp Boutique  "A little birdie told me"
Backing Papers:  Pink Petticoat "Fluffy Clouds" and "Little Polka Dots"
Nestabilties:  Classic and Scalloped Circles
Josy Rose:  Nail Heads
ProMarkers
Glamour Dust
Cord and Charm from my stash box

Last month I was lucky to be randomly drawn as the winner of the £15 gift voucher from the Digistamp Boutique challenge blog and I had great fun spending my lovely winnings last Sunday morning.  Gosh that prize went a long, long way and I now have lots more lovely images to play with (so more to follow).

No themes or missions .. .. just showcase anything you have made using a Digistamp Boutique download and you have a chance of winning!!!  Couldn't be easier!!

Time to run .. .. and apologies for my lack of visits at the moment .. .. but I will catch up "I promise".

Have a good day and a lovely weekend.

Love

Wednesday 15 May 2013

A WOMAN OF FEW WORDS

Hi Everyone

Well I suppose a super quick post is better than nothing .. .. so here we go LOL!!




This used:

Image:  Penny Black "2863J" Lovin' and Huggin'
Sentiment:  Penny Black "1743F" It's your Birthday
Backing Papers:  Pink Petticoat "Isabelline"
Go Kreate Die:  Scalloped Squares
ProMarkers
My Trusty Sewing Machine
Cord from my stash box

and there we go .. .. the fastest blog posting by me EVER!!!

Chasing my tail big time so I'm off!!!

Have a good evening.

Love