Spiderman

Masculine cards are always a challenge ( do I hear a collective sigh of agreement ? )

If in doubt, I try and find a hobby/interest/theme pertinent to the person I am making the card for - not everyone appreciates an abundance of flowers and frills

This card was for my daughter's boyfriend Ben, who is into all manner of interesting topics, this year I decided to opt for Spiderman and used an old Cuttlebug embossing folder for the textured background

The sentiment is a Stampin' Up one

Simple but effective I think

xxx

Happy birthday dad

For one of the special men in my life, 

the very first special man in my life, my lovely dad

I had this vintage style map paper in my stash, it's been there quite a while as it is one of those that I like too much to cut up.

I was searching for inspiration for dad's birthday card and trying to get out of the blues and browns rut that I have fallen into with masculine cards

And as I looked at the world laid flat on paper the quote came to mind - perfect for dad as he does, indeed, mean the absolute world to me

I computer generated the sentiment as I wanted to play around a little with the fonts and size

Hope you have had a lovely birthday dad, love and miss you

Tracey

xxx

Happy birthday Colin

If you read yesterdays post, you will know the last card I made was for my lovely neighbour Mary, this card was made for her hubby Colin. They both have their birthdays in the same week as Neil so I have been a very busy girl this week

I loved Colin from the moment he popped his head over the garden fence to introduce himself just after we moved in

He has me in stitches every single time I see him and he is such a lovely bloke

You will always find Colin tinkering, usually with the cars on his drive, but he can turn his hand to almost anything and always has wise advice to share and has helped Neil and I on many occasions 

I used dies by Nellie Snellen and Marianne, the birthday stamp is by Hero Arts. I have no idea where the paper is from or who it is by, it is one of those random sheets that I have been saving for years, knowing it would be perfect for someone, that someone is Colin, with his love of cars and mending them

Love and good neighbours

Tracey

xxx

Happy Birthday Neil

Happy birthday to my gorgeous hubby

I have been saving these papers for someone special, my lovely friend Jan and I split a pad between us and I have been keeping them aside ( why do we buy papers that we love and then hoard them rather than use them - the mind of a crafter is a scary place !)

The papers are My Minds Eye, I used dies by Nellie Snellen, Spellbinders and Cheery Lynn, the stamps are both Stampin' Up

We have a special date night planned, we will be enjoying an evening late night shopping, followed by a meal at Prezzos and the cinema to finish

Hope you have a lovely day Neil, love you

Tracey

xxx

Sweet Sixteen

On the 25th of this month, my youngest, AJ turned 16

Sixteen is a big thing to me and I think for our generation and even more so the generation before but it doesn't appear to have the same impact for AJ's generation. Or maybe it is just my son's laid back attitude to life in general

He didn't want any fuss or big party, mind you neither did the other two kids

This is the card I made him

I concentrated on texture and a strong graphic element, nothing too girlie or themed

AJ opted for a quiet meal at home ( Chicken New Yorker, followed by Carrot cake) and then met his mates for a couple of hours afterwards

We had worries when we first moved here, that at the age of fifteen and at a critical point in his academic career, AJ might struggle. But he has settled well and has lots of new friends, he is happy and very chilled and loving the new surroundings.

Love and sweet sixteen kisses

Tracey

xxx