CCM 105 Clean and Simple

Our challenge at Crafty Cardmakers for the next two weeks is clean and simple or CAS. I struggle with this sort of card, as I always feel as if there is something missing when I go down this route, but I have seen some stunning examples with next to nothing on them. I’m beginning to feel quite inadequate. I cannot do that overly shabby chic style with everything but the kitchen sink on it, cos it really does look as if I threw all the embellishments up in the air and randomly caught them on the card, and I struggle with the cleaner style too!

We are sponsored by Di’s Digistamps with a fabulous $10 gift voucher, and also by The Stampman with a £10 gift voucher.

Anyhow, for my CAS card I used a House Mouse stamp which I love called Knitariffic.

I had the devil’s own job getting it roughly centred! Normally I wouldn’t have to worry because I would be able to cut it out and mat and layer it, but I was going for a One Layer Card version of CAS, so had to try and be reasonably accurate. I can tell you I have a few card blanks, or rather no so blank, now awaiting covering with patterned paper!

Anyhow after I had got it down and coloured, copics and promarkers, then I thought what on earth can I do to finish it off. I remembered I had this large set of Xcut (20 I think) dies all about haberdashery. Well bearing in mind the ‘minimal elements’ requirement of CAS I didn’t want to die cut balls of wool, knitting needles etc. but there were a couple of stitch dies amongst them and I thought they might make an interesting border. That was okay, but the dies were too long to be able to match them up! So I did something very naughty! I broke the end two stitches off the die……. do you think I will go to Die Hell for this?

Anyhow the die now fit perfectly. The stitches are, of course, going in slightly different directions, but there was no way round that. Also with the holes now in it, it needed a different coloured card underneath to show them off, which had the added bonus of covering up the ink that had bled right through the card.

I am entering this into the following:-

Addicted to CAS – #28 Pet

Amusing Challenges – Anything Goes

Cards Galore – November Animals

CAS on Sunday – #22 Winter Theme (the mice are knitting winter woolies - if this is too cheeky please yell out)

Catered Crop – Animal House

Crafty Ribbons – #71 Stitching Real or Faux

Digistamps4Joy – #80 Stitching Real or Faux

House Mouse Challenge – #158 My Favourite Things (I love to knit)

Sparkles Monthly Challenge – #50 Animals

The Outlawz Sunday’s CAS – With a Mouse