Are you YETI for Christmas?

Hi Friends! Hope you all are well. Today, I'm sharing my first Christmas card for this year. I took a step and get into the Christmas spirit before Halloween and Thanksgiving! I simply couldn't resist! 😅 I played along this week's MFT Sketch Challenge #506 and here is my take...  

I colored the cute little yeti and gift boxes from the BB Beast Friends stamps set using distress ink. I then used the coordinating die set to cut them out. According to the sketch, I cut out a layer of card with scalloped border using the Stitched Mini Scallop Rectangle STAX Die-namics set from MFT.

On the layer card, I used Cracked Pistachio, Evergreen Bough and Salty Ocean distress inks to create a winter-snowy-scene. First, I cut out a small circular piece of masking paper and place it on top left corner of the layer card to create a 'moon' image. Then, I started blending the distress inks and filled the background. To have a snowfall effect, I splattered the card with water and let it dry. I love this sentiment from this set and thought it would be perfect for first Christmas card. I stamped the sentiment and heat embossed with white embossing powder. Finally, I adhered all together on the base card.

I'm also entering the following card in the following challenges:

Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge (Use your Favorite Stamp)

Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge (Humorous/Fun)

Hope you like my card! Thanks for stopping by.

Wishing you all a great day!
Valliam 

You Are A True Friend

Hi Everyone! Hope you all are doing good. After taking a long break, I'm back and making cards again! Sometimes, we have to take a break from work and for me it happened right after my second son was born. I was making card occasionally, but it was quite challenging for me to manage him and maintain the social presence. I get lost in the daily grind! So I decided to put crafting on hold. The updates are on my Instagram page.

Here is my card for this week. It's a very simple and quick one to make! I play along in the MFT Color Challenge #147. The fall colors immediately got my heart!

The kitten is from MFT Furever Friends stamps set. This set include some nice friendship sentiments and I used one of them. I colored the cute kitten using distress ink and cut it out using coordinating die cut. I used the Small Brick Wall stencil from MFT for the backdrop. Initially, I planned to make a one layer card, but later on, I decided to mount the kitten image on to the bricked wall just to add dimension.

Hope you like my card! See you all with more cards!

Thanks for stopping by and have a nice day.
Valliam 

Guest Designing at CASology #295 - Believe

Hi There! I’m so excited and happy to be guest designing at CASology this week. I had won the Abstract Challenge and was kindly invited to guest design. It feels so great to be a part of the challenge that I look forward every week. Thank you so much for having me over! :) The cue word for this week challenge is BELIEVE

I love to create sentiments using alphabet dies and today, I am sharing a cute CAS card with just the sentiment 'believe' using MFT Die-namics Little Letters dies.

Using a sentiment as the focal point makes a great CAS design!

I usually layer the letters to have a little dimension on the card. So, to create the first layer, I adhered a red chevron washi tape on a white card and die cut the letters. Then, to add a shadow effect, I die cut the letters from a black card and adhered to the patterned letters.

Next, I stamped and colored the bear from MFT Bitty Bears set using distress ink. I replaced the letter 'I' with this cute little bear. Then, I mounted the letters and image on a white panel card which I made earlier using MFT Wonky Stitched Frame die. Finally, I adhered the finished panel on a black base card. That's all! :)

I hope this card inspired you! Do stop over at CASology this week for some awesome inspiration from the DT and join the challenge! Can’t wait to see how this cue inspires you!

I’m also playing along in the following challenges...
HLS April CAS Challenge - Chevron
AAA Cards - CAS Game #112 - A Favorite Technique

Thanks for stopping by and have a wonderful day!
Hugs! :)
Valliam 

Be Happy

Hi There! Today, I'm sharing a quick card which I made for the current MFT Color Challenge #90. I love the combination of the soft colors and here is how I used those colors on my card.

First, I inked up a white card stock with the Abandon Coral distress ink. Then, I used the happy sentiment die from MFT Cause For Celebration to die cut the word. Then, I layered it on top of another piece of happy word with Hickory Smoke distress ink. That gives a little dimension and gray shadow to the word. Next, I moved on to stamping the little birds from MFT Happy Hippos stamp set. I directly stamped the images using Memento Tuxedo Black ink and colored them with Copic Markers.

Then, I pulled out the Be Happy sentiment from the same stamp set and stamped it on top the word Happy. For the background, I simply inked it with Salty Ocean distress ink. I finished off the card by adding some sequins and some details on the word and birds using white gel pen. That's all! Hope you like this simple CAS card.

I’m also playing along with the following challenges...
AAA Cards - CAS Game #111 - Use Only One Third
Addicted to CAS Challenge #132 - Birds
Simon Says Wednesday Challenge - Anything Goes

Thanks for stopping by! 
Hugs! :)
Valliam 

It's time to party! - Birthday card

Hi There! I’m playing along with the MFT Color Challenge #88 and MFT Wednesday Sketch Challenge #374 today. I kept away all my dies and made this simple one layer birthday card featuring adorable bears from MFT BB Bitty Bears. This particular set is one of my most favorite and I really enjoyed playing with them. I did a simple masking technique for my card! So, here is my take!

First, I drew a frame on the base card and lined the bear stamps. I picked all the birthday themed bears to add extra fun to the card. Using my MISTI tool, I stamped and colored the bears with Copic Markers. Next, I inked up the background with Salty Ocean distress ink. I combined two sentiments from the Bitty Bears set and stamped directly on the base card. That’s all for today!

I’m also playing along…
CASonFriday #127 - One layer wonder
Simon Says Wednesday Challenge - Anything Goes
Addicted to Stamps and More - Anything Goes
Seize the Birthday - Anything Goes

Thanks for stopping by! Have a great week ahead!

Hugs! :)
Valliam

MFT Creative Olympics - Speed Cardmaking

Hi There! I'm so happy that I managed to make a card for the final round of MFT Creative Olympics - Speed Cardmaking. YAY! It was a great challenge and it's totally FUN! I made this simple best wishes card in 17 minutes and 5 seconds. Here is my take!

For this card, I picked a polka dots pattern Paper from Recollection Paper Pad and cut it out using the MFT Wonky Stitched Border. Then I inked the edges using distress ink. Next I die cut two different sizes of circles using MFT Stitched Circle die set. For the sentiment, I used the 'best wishes' die from MFT Cause of Celebration die set. I die cut the sentiment twice and adhered them together for added dimension. I finished off the card by adhering the sentiment on the stitched circle frame. That's all!

Check out the making video of this card on my IG @niftycrafty I'm so happy and proud to participate in all four events of MFT Creative Olympics! Best wishes to all the participants and huge thanks to MFT for hosting such a fun and challenging event!

Thank you so much for stopping by! For more information, check out MFT Blog. Have a nice day!

MFT Creative Olympics - Crafty Biathlon

Hi There! I'm back with a card for the third event of MFT Creative Olympics - Crafty Biathlon. I decided to make a shaker card with masking technique. For this card, I used the fun yeti images from BB Beast Friends stamp set.

First, I stamped the yeti on the right and masked it. Next, I stamped on the other yeti and colored them using Copic Markers. Then, I did a partial die cut using the MFT Stitched Circle die to make a little window for them to stand. I placed the coordinating die of the yeti and run through my die cutting machine to just cut the top part of it. Since, I did a little masking this part was little tricky for me. Therefore I had to die cut them one at a time. I'm so happy that it did work!

Then I used the MFT Stitched Rectangle Scallop Frame die to cut the front card and inked up the frame with distress ink. To make a shaker card, I adhered a piece of vellum on the back of the front card. Next, I inked the center part of my base card with distress inks. I placed some sparkling sequins on the inked area and adhered the front card on to the base card with foam adhesive. As I used vellum for the window it kinda mutes the background color. But I love the minty iridescent look through vellum. Then I fussy cut a piece of white card to make a snow base for the yetis and inked the edges with distress ink. Finished off the card by stamping the sentiment from BB Beast Friend stamps set. That's all. I hope you like it.

Thanks for stopping by! For more information, check out MFT Blog. Have a good day!

MFT Creative Olympics - Freestyle Winter

Hi There! I'm sharing a cute birthday card which I made for the MFT Creative Olympics second event. It's a freestyle round and it has to be in winter theme. I used this week's sketch from MFT Wednesday Sketch Challenge #372 for inspiration. Here is my take!

I stamped and colored the cute bear and little gift box from BB Bitty Bears stamps set using distress inks. I die cut the images using their coordinating dies. Then, I stamped on the tree from MFT Modern Trees stamp set on a piece of card and heat embossed it with white embossing powder. Next, I inked the background using distress inks. I used the blending tool to blend the three soft colors and create a wintery sky ombre.

Once done with the background, I used the MFT Wonky Stitched Rectangle to cut out the card. I also inked the same colors on the base card. Then, I adhered the bear next to the tree and stamped the sentiment directly on the card. I used the 'A little something for you' sentiment from the BB Bitty Bears stamp set. I love this sentiment as it goes well with the bear holding a small gift on his hands. To finished off the card, I used the glitter pen to make the ground filled with little snow. That's all! I hope you enjoyed my card.

Thanks for stopping by! For more information, check out MFT Blog. Have a great day!

MFT Creative Olympics - Stamping Slalom

Hi There! Time to have more fun with MFT goodies! I’m so happy and excited to take part in the MFT Creative Olympics Challenge - Stamping Slalom. It’s a special challenge where you have to make a card with three or more of MFT stamps set. That's sooo fun!! I made this card as soon as I saw the post on their blog. But it took some time for me to update here due to few errands. Busy mommy! :P Here is my take on the first event!

First, I stamped the little teddy from Playful Pups stamps set and masked it. Then, I stamped the girl with gift box from Pure Innocence Happy Birthday to You stamps set followed by the balloons from BB Happy Hippo stamps set. I heat embossed all the images with clear embossing powder and colored them with distress inks. I did little paper piecing on the gift box ribbon using pattern paper from MFT True Blue Houndstooth paper pack.

For the sentiment, I create an ombre background on a white card stock using Festive Berries and Spun Sugar distress ink. Then, I placed the birthday die cut from the MFT Cause for Celebration dies set and cut out the word. To give a little dimension, I made another piece of it using pink card stock and layered the ombre word on top of it. Then, I picked the Happy sentiment from BB Bitty Bears stamp set and stamped it on top of the card. I adhered the birthday sentiment and finished off the card by adding some dots on the balloons using gold and silver gel pen.

Thanks for stopping by! For more information, check out MFT Blog. I’m hoping to make one for the second event too! :)

I'm here for you...

Hello! Hope you all had a great holiday. Wish you all a happy new year! :) We are blessed with a baby boy recently so I took a little break from crafting and blogging. Here I'm back with my first card for this year!

I colored the two little bears from MFT BB Bitty Bears using distress inks and cut them using coordinating die. I used the sentiment from the same stamps set. Then, I create a frame using the Stitched Rectangle Scallop Frame die from MFT. It's one of my most favorite die frame which was in my wish list for a l-o-n-g time. I just had it recently and here I'm using it for this card :)

Next, I create a rainy background by blending distress inks and splashed few drops of water. I trimmed out a yellow color side panel and used the Staggered Hearts stencil to create a background full of hearts. I picked  a similar color of distress ink to fill in the the little hearts. I love how it turned out. Looking so lovely :)

That's all for this card. Hope you like it! :)

I used the color palette from the MFT color challenge and the sketch from MFT Wednesday Sketch challenge. But, now it's too late to post this card on the sketch challenge as it was over. Anyway, I'm still in the color challenge :)

Entering my card in...

MFT Color Challenge #85
Challenge #124 Love - Make a card for love/valentine's day
HLS January Challenge - Anything Goes with Dies

Thank you so much for stopping by! :)

I Believe in You

Hi friends! I'm back with another card after a short break. I created a simple card featuring stamps and dies from My Favorite Things. I enjoyed making this card inspired by this weeks MFT Color Challenge. Here is my take!

For this card, I create a sunset background using the distress inks. This is the first time I'm using four different colors. I love this technique a lot, but hardly tried on my cards. I'm still practicing and learning on ink blending. But, I'm really happy on how it turned out for this card.

Next, I die cut the base card with the Wonky Stitched Rectangle frame from MFT and cut out a circle in the center using the Stitched Circle from MFT as well.

I used the Modern Trees stamps from MFT to set a scene on the bottom of the card. These tree stamps are so cool and its perfect for all season.

I finished off the card by stamping the sentiment from the BB Beast Friends stamps set and I die cut the word believe using Die-namics Little Letters from MFT. I felt it would be the perfect sentiment for this card. Hope you all like it.

I'm playing along...

MFT Color Challenge #81
HLS November Challenge - Anything Goes with Dies

Thank you so much for stopping by! Happy crafting! :)

Surprise Happy Birthday

Hello! Hope you all had a great week. I'm playing along the My Favorite Things Sketch and Color challenge. Here is my take. 

This cute little girl stamp is from the MFT Pure Innocence Happy Birthday to You stamps set. I just adore her! She is too cute with a big gift box. I enjoyed coloring her and can't wait to customize her with other colors. I used distress inks to color her.

The speech bubble is from the Penny Black Chat Bubbles die set. I stamped the sentiment on the speech bubble and inked the edges using distress ink. Hope you like it!

I'm playing along...

MFT Wednesday Sketch Challenge #353
MFT Color Challenge #78
Addicted to CAS #121 - Favorite Stamp

Thank you so much for stopping by my blog! Have a great week ahead! :)

Ruff Days Are Easier With Friends

Hi There! I’m sharing this card which I made for this week’s My Favorite Things Sketch challenge featuring cute puppies :) I used the color palette from this week’s Color Throwdown challenge. I just love the colors. Yes! Fall colors! Love the combo of Rust, Orange, Green and Aqua.

To begin with, I stamped the puppies from MFT Playful Pups stamps set and colored them using distress ink. I cut them out using coordinating dies. Next, I cut out a base card using MFT Wonky Stitched Border die to create a scene. I inked the background with distress inks and adhered the colored images. Then, I stamped on the sentiment from the same stamps set.

Once I’m done with the scene, I cut out a round frame using Sizzix Circle dies and stamped another sentiment from the MFT Happy Hippo stamps set. I thought it would add more fun to the card by pairing the sentiments from two stamps set. I enjoyed making this card! It's so true. Rough days are easier with friends! :)

I'm playing along at the following challenges:

MFT Wednesday Sketch Challenge #352
Color Throwdown #462
CAS on Friday Challenge #117 - Dies
Simon Says Stamp Wednesday - Anything Goes
Always Fun Challenges #25 - Anything Goes

Thank you so much for stopping by my blog! Have crafting :)

Big, Huge Thanks!

Hi friends, I’m joining the MFT Stamps 2017 Card Design Superstar contest! Click here for more details.  Amazed and overwhelmed to see all the entries. So many talented crafters. I’m glad to be a part of this fabulous contest. I’m taking part in the Clean and Simple Genius category. I hope I did my best. 

I used the MFT Happy Hippo stamps set and MFT Little Lowercase Letters Dienamics for this card. I used the color palette from this week’s MFT Color Challenge #77. I was not sure if I could post my card for the color challenge this week as this contest is currently on going. So, I just used as my color inspiration for this card. (And also to keep me more focused on completing the card :P)

I stamped and colored the hippo using distress inks. This is my most favorite stamp from the stamp set. How happy he is! :) I used the MFT Wonky Stitched Rectangle die to create the border and adhered it to a sky blue cardstock. Next, I planned the alphabet die cutting. I did ink blending using two different colors of distress inks to give more depth to each letter. I used Broken China and Salty Ocean. Then, I die cut the Big, Huge Thanks sentiment. I die cut the sentiment again on a pink card stock and adhered to the coordinating letters to give little dimension to the letters. 

Finished off the card by adding some embellishment. I got this tiny flower confetti dot from a local craft store and I think it’s so perfect for this card. That’s all for the card. I hope you enjoyed it.

Thank you so much for stopping by my blog! :)

We'll Always Be Friends!

Hello friends! Hope you all are doing good. I'm so in love with this Happy Hippo stamps set from My Favorite Things. So here is another card featuring adorable happy hippos. I'm playing along this week's My Favorite Things Sketch and Color challenges. Here is my take on this week's challenges.

First, I die cut the beautiful arched window using the Memory Box - Grand Madison Arched Metal Die. Next, I masked the window and stamped two hippo images on each side of the window and colored them using distress inks. Then, I used the Grassy Border from Lawn Fawn to make the bushes in front of the window. I stamped on the sentiment from the Happy Hippo stamps set. I die cut the word 'friends' using the My Favorite Things - Little Lowercase Letters Die Cut. I added some dimensional dots from EK Success - Rainbow Dots and finished off the card.

I'm entering my card in the following challenges:

MFT Wednesday Sketch Challenge #348
MFT Color Challenge #76
Addicted to CAS Challenge #118 - Friends
AAA Cards CAS Game #97 - Masking
Simon Says Stamp Wednesday - Anything Goes

Oh ya! Hope you all are ready for The Daily Marker 30 Day Coloring Challenge by Kathy Rac :) :) :) Yay! I'm super excited! Do check out her blog for more details and have fun coloring! 

Thank you so much for stopping by and happy crafting! :)

It's Your Birthday!

Hello! Hope you all had a great weekend. Today, I want to share a birthday card for the My Favorite Things Sketch Challenge. I used the color palette from this week's Color Throwdown challenge. But unfortunately I couldn't enter in this week's challenge as I was little late for the submission :( Such a beautiful color combo. I missed it! Anyways, here is my take!

To begin, I stamped and colored the hippos, balloons and cute little bow using distress inks. They are from the My Favourite Things - Happy Hippo stamps set. I love playing with these stamp. They are darn cute! Next, I cut them out with their coordinating dies. I used the sentiment from the same stamp set.

Next, I die cut the word ‘birthday' from the My Favorite Things Die-namics - Cause for Celebration set. This set has gorgeous script font dies for all celebration. I adhered few layers of the dies together to give some dimension. The semi-circle frame was created using Sizzix Circle die cuts and the patterned papers I used for this card are from American Crafts - Pebbles Phrase Cards.

I'm entering this card in the following challenges:

MFT Wednesday Sketch Challenge #347
HLS August Anything Goes with Dies Challenge
Seize the Birthday - Anything Goes

Thank you so much for stopping by and happy crafting! :)

Happy Hippo Bird-Day!

Hello! Hope you all had a wonderful weekend. Today, I'm sharing another birthday card inspired by this week's My Favorite Things Color and Sketch challenge. I had a fun time making this card. I'm in love with the adorable hippos and birdies from the Happy Hippo stamps set from MFT. Can't wait to play with the rest of the stamps! Let's move on to the card.

It's been quite a while since I used patterned papers on my cards. So, I had to look on my patterned papers stash to pick the right matching color patterned papers for this card. I used wonky stitched die from MFT to create a border. Then, I colored the hippos and birds using distress inks and cut them with coordinating dies from the stamps set. Next, I used circle dies to cut out few frames and made a round window for the bird to peek through and view the scene. Finished off by stamping the sentiment and adhering the images using adhesive foams.

I'm entering this card in the following challenges:

MFT Color Challenge #75
MFT Wednesday Sketch Challenge #345
Simon Says Stamp Monday - Happy Birthday
Happy Little Stampers - Anything Goes with Dies

Thanks for stopping by and have a great week ahead! :)

Adorable Snuggly Cuddly Puppies

Hi friends! I always love coloring adorable critters. So, I was excited to play with this darling snuggly-cuddly puppies from the My Favorite Things - Playful Pups stamps set. Actually, I thought of making one layer card with this pups. Later, I decided to use a background and did some layering. I used the color palette from last week's MFT Color Challenge.

I watercolored the image using distress inks and cut it using coordinating die cut. I used one of the sentiments from the same stamps set which suits perfectly for this image. I heat embossed the sentiment and adhered it using foam adhesives. I wanted to have a nice weathered background for this card. So, I inked up the stitched background card with Weathered Wood distress ink and layered it on a navy blue card. Then, I finished off the card with few enamel embellishment.

I'm entering this card in the following challenges:
Simon Says Stamp Wednesday - Anything Goes
MFT Color Challenge #72

Thanks for stopping by! :)

Love You Floral Card

Hi There! First day of the month! I have a card to share with you all. This is a simple card using some floral stamps and most of them are from the Simon Says Stamp - Hello Friends stamp set. It's my first attempt in creating a wreath design. It took some time for me to start building the wreath using small stamps. I wanted to try something which is out of my comfort zone. So, here is my card for today. 

I stamped the images and water colored them using distress inks : Cracked Pistachio, Wilted Violet, Broken China and Shaded Lilac. I had no idea how it will turn out as I never tried water coloring on my previous cards. It's a great experience playing with distress inks and it was challenging too! More to learn :)

The sentiment was gold embossed and adhered to the center of the wreath. Overall, water coloring is therapeutic! I enjoyed making this card and love the way it turned out. Hope you like my card. I would love to hear your feedback.

I'm entering this card in the following challenges :

Simon Says Stamp Wednesday - Anything Goes
Case this Sketch #179
My Favorite Things Color Challenge #48

Thanks for stopping by and have a great day!