It's Paper Playtime Digi Monday Again!

I know I may sound a bit boring but time really flies...

It's Digi Monday again at Paper Playtime! It seems like yesterday when I posted my first DT card for this lovely challenge and here I am again!

This month it was really funny to make this card. The theme was red, white and blue but for those DT members living outside the US it was allowed to use the colors of our Country.

As you probably know the Italian flag is green, white and red... colors which I find not particularly good for a card but since we could choose our own digi, I found a perfect image for those colors.

Here's my card:

My sponsor is Delicious Doodles and I chose this lovely owl couple and thought about an anniversary card, influenced by the fact that in March Italy celebrated her 150th birthday.

I colored the owls with my watercolors and added distressed papers in soft green, cream and red which I found in a magazine. Then I used satin ribbons in the exact colors of our flag.

Don't forget to check the other creations from the DT here and have a happy Digi Monday!

It's Summer... For My Blog Too!

School is over, sun is shining, holidays are being planned and I find less time to blog.

I have a couple of Custom orders to finish and all my inspiration goes there.

I've just started my "Spring Cleaning"... a bit late this year, I'm usually done in June but we had to wait for the painter... we needed a fresh coat of paint on our walls and we are both too lazy to do it ourselves.

The fact that my daughter was at home the day I cleaned and decluttered her bedroom was a great thing: she worked the whole day sorting books, toys, clutter, dedusting, washing, finding a new place for things...

She was so proud in the evening and she keeps saying that she loves her room!

As prize for her good job and for a fantastic school year, yesterday we had a trip to an amusement park: just the two of us. We had a great time and I'm thinking about going to Venice with her soon (well, Venice is just an hour or so away from my town, so it's not a long trip!).

For all these reasons, I am finding it difficult to blog. If posts are not as frequent as before for the next couple of months it's just that I'm taking a little time for my daughter, for the family, for the home and hopefully for some travelling.

I'll have my posts for the Paper Playtime digi Monday challenge (don't miss the June Challenge on Monday 27) and maybe I'll be able to make some new cards when Spring Cleaning is over and I'll manage to sit down and spend some time crafting with my daughter. She looks forward to it: in summer, we usually take in a table we keep on our small balcony, open it in the living room and craft while watching inspiring TV craft programs or romantic movies.

 I'll be back soon with more frequent posts, refreshed and hopefully inspired.

My 100th Post!

I can't believe I've reached my 100th post!!!

But here I am!

Again, one week later than my last post....

I'm definitely a bit... lazy? No, not lazy, busy. Yes, busy...

I only have one Custom order to prepare and I'm working on it but it's still in my head, I don't manage to put my ideas into something "real" and this makes me angry.

School is finishing in four days and this means that swimming, ballet and English lessons are also coming to an end.

Things are coming from school and need to be sorted, cleaned, washed and put away until September.

Last week it was hot enough to wear summer clothes which needed to be tried and sorted as well.

We had a first Communion to attend and the end-of-the-year ballet with related dresses to be prepared (and now to be washed and put away).

I still have some wool sweaters around (this week is less summer and more autumn...) which need to be washed...by hand...

And I actually have little time to sit down and enjoy some crafting. I don't even list weekly challenges that I'd like to enter because I know I don't have time to prepare cards.

But yesterday, while washing some sweaters, I had time to prepare at least one card:

I've used this Strawberry kid - digi which we were given as participants in last week challenge at Hambo Hoedown: it's part of a lovely new realease of fruit kids. Have a look at them in the shop here.

The Challenge was to use this digi and buttons... I love buttons and it's always hard to use them and let them go...

I notice from the picture that the boy isn't glued to the glittered cardstock behind him. I finished my super glue and I used an ordinary one but, despite several attempts, it doesn't work. I'd better go out and buy a new glue!

 Of course, I'll enter this card in Hambo Hoedown Challenge # 18.

Four days to the end of the school means the last four days of silence. Then, for the next 3 months silence will be something to long for...

Why Always at the Last Second?

When I was given this image as participant in last week Challenge at Hambo Hoedown I was really Over The Moon for I immediately had an idea on how to use it!

But...

Challenge closes in a few hours and I'm still here, writing my post.

Well, here's my card:

I love this moon and I decided to paint it lilac and light purple with my watercolor pencils. If you like this image, you can find it here.

Maybe the color of the shuttle is not a perfect match, but I bought them fron the UK last year (I don't have a cutting machine) and this green was the best match among the three available.

Of course, this card will be entered in Hambo Hoedown Challenge # 17 "I'm Over the Moon".

Thank You Hambo for these lovely digis!

It's Paper Playtime Digi Monday!

I'm so excited!

This is my first post as designer at Paper Playtime Digi Monday Challenge!!

The theme is Wedding/Love and this is the card I created:

This lovely ladybug is from Delicious Doodles: I colored her with a red watercolor pencil, glittered the frame of the heart and embellished it with a pink pearl.

The card was made with printed papers, a white doily and a paper heart embellished with baker's twine and two rhinestones. I also added a heart charm.

You won't miss to have a look at the other wonderful creations from the DT: it's a great team of designers and we have had the chance to work with lovely images!

It's Summer Here but...

...I've just finished a Christmas card!

We are having a very very hot end of May here in Italy: windows wide open, t-shirts, shorts and sandals... it seems like July!

But I wanted to take part in a challenge and I decided to make a card for Christmas.

First of all, here's my card:

I've used this lovely image from Doodle Dragon Studios and I want to enter the Pike's Playground Challenge which has "Shades of Green" as theme this week.

Green inspired me of Christmas and I thought it was perfect for this funny image. I don't remember where the paper came from and I've used to corners I found in a scrapbook paper pack bought in an after-Christmas sale. The digi is colored with watercolor pencils and I added green rhinestones here and there. Instead of using a ribbon, I decided to glue punched trees with 3D dots.

I'm also entering ABC Christmas Challenge - K is for Kids: I think this image is so sweet and funny that's perfect for kids!

Well, it's almost lunchtime and I'd better go and prepare something for my hungry family!

Time for Another Hambo Challenge!

It seems that my posts are always for Hambo Challenges!

I've so much to do these weeks that I absolutely don't manage to prepare but a few cards.

Today, after I finished my first card as DT memeber at Paper Playtime, I finished the one for Hambo Hoedown Challenge # 16:

This Sumo digi was given to all participants in last week's challenge (but you can find it here).

The Challenge is to use this digi, one of the sentiments coming with the digi and some chipboard.

I glued a white paper with black dots on a black card and added some touches of red. The sumo wrestler is colored with pink and red watercolors. I also added a ribbon, brads and my chipboard accent is the star which I painted red to match.

This image makes me smile everytime I look at it!

What a Week!

The last couple of times I tried to sign in Blogger there were problems... I hate technology when it does not work. For me, computers and everything related should always work and never have problems or be slow... It makes me really furious!

Anyway, my birthday party decorations are almost done! I'm preparing them little by little because I don't have enough space to glitter 45 tags all at once and let them dry so I do them in groups. Everything has some glitter (of course...) and everything needs to rest for a while before being touched or packed.

While waiting for some bigger pieces to dry, this afternoon I made a card for two of my favorite challenges: I used the image given by one of them and the sketch given by another... Perfect!

But let's start from the beginning.

This is the card:

The digi was given by Hambo as participants in last week challenge and the layout to follow was this one from Sweet Sketch Wednesday:



This card will be entered in the following Challenges:

Hambo Hoedown Challenge # 15: in addition to the image, the request was to use bright colors and paper piecing. I paper pieced the basket (is it the correct word?) and colored the digi with my watercolor pencils. The background paper from an old Sizzix stash is maybe not too bright but I used brighter and bolder colors in the other elements of the card. I loved the idea of lightness and movement the bubbles give to the card!

Sweet Sketch Wednesday Challenge # 101: they gave us the lovely sketch.

Karen Doodles Challenge: they asks for Bold and Bright colors.

I adore this little girl on flying in her baloon! A really great image, isn't it?

How Busy!

As you know I've just been chosen as a DT member in Paper Playtime Digi Challenge and I'm really honored and happy to be a part of my very first team.

I'm already planning my first card due at the end of the month but I'm surprised at how much work there should be to coordinate a DT team. Our coordinator is great in sending messages and keeping track of all the things we need to know and do!

I'm also making some samples for another DT call and I'm still working on the party decorations for my Customer. Add some Custom orders to prepare...

It's really a busy period and that's why I have so little time to enter other challenges. I still list them hoping to find some time to make a card and actually I did find a couple of hours yesterday to make my card for Hambo Hoedown Challenge # 14:

This sweet chicken seems a bit sad, that's why I decided to make a "Miss You" card.

We were given this stamp and asked to use dots and stripes: I dotted the card with white paint and made stripes on the punched circle. I wanted the two yellows to match perfectly.

I love this summer yellow!



I'm a Design Team Member at Paper Playtime!

I've some great news:

I have been chosen to be one of the new Digi Design Team Members at Paper Playtime!

My very first Team!

Have a look at the other great members of this Team here and don't forget to join in for our fun challenges at

Paper Playtime Challenge Blog

I'm really excited and I'm already planning my card! Wish me Good Luck!