Here it is.. my first competition in a craft magazine!




This is Issue 45 of Card Making and Papercraft Magazine, in the shops on the 2nd October but subscribers will have received it this weekend. It's pretty exciting to see my papers all laid out. I advertise regularly in mags but it's different when it's not just an standard advert. I hope you will try out for the competition! I'm giving away 11 sets of all 5 of my CDs they are already sitting here waiting to be sent out to the lucky winners at the end of the month!

I have a super busy week ahead of me..and I hope I will have some exciting news to share with you next weekend..we shall see! Ian is working away at the moment fine tuning the new version of my website which hopefully will go up this weekend, it has a great new look and customers will be able to create an account and track orders they place. With this new website I will be able to start to move into lots of new areas like downloads etc..so keep your eye out for all the changes over the next few days!

I am hoping to be able to get some crafting done this afternoon, if I do I will share my creations later. Enjoy your weekend!

I received my new Bella stamps last week and today is the first chance I have had to play properly. I couldn't resist this 'Click-a-Bella' stamp when I saw it as I'd like to think this is just how I look when I am designing!! (I wish!) She's even left handed just like me!!



The image is stamped with black ink and embossed with clear embossing powder then I coloured it with Twinkling H20 paints (that never really show up that well in a scan) The backing paper is from my CD V Funky I inked the paper and the image and added chalk around the edges to grunge it up a bit. The ribbon has been attached with a brad from a set that I won on Ebay last week. I don't know who they are by but they have a little ring off the brad head where you can tie the ribbon through. I was a little fiddly but I like the effect!

I had an entertaining morning this morning as I was helping out a friend who needed a lift to get his car to a garage to be mended. I needed to visit our local Hobby craft..as you do.. and Neil was kind enough to let me go there before dropping him back home. He'd never been in a craft store before and I was worried that he might be really bored. Actually I think he quiet enjoyed it.. though I don't think I will be getting a new card making buddy just yet! I spent rather a large amount of money on stash that I 'needed' of course. It's getting a bit stupid in my craft room at the moment I can hardly move! Right I had better to get back to it my other Bella stamps are calling me and I need to clear up before Ian gets home!!

I know you have probably all done it. Started a craft project with lots of excitement and enthusiasm only to want to throw your project in the bin after two hours of crafting from hell!! This morning I decided that I was going to try Iris folding for the very first time. I am not the most dexterous person ever as I have a dodgy right hand but I convinced myself that as long as I took my time it would be OK. All I can say is it's a good job there are no children in this house..the air has been blue all morning!!
I didn't give up but I really wanted to! Here is the result of about two hours hard labour.



I'm not particularly proud of it but as I have wasted most of my morning trying something new I thought I would share it with you. I think I need to have some late lunch and chill before trying to go back in the craft room again today!!

Two posts in one day..what is coming over me?!! I couldn't resist taking part in this weeks dare over at Daring Cardmakers as I am in the middle of making sample cards and this fitted in just perfectly with what I was working on!

Here's the dare:
This week I dare you to use a Word as the main focal point to your card. It can be a name, a greeting or just a word that inspires you. You can use other text but only one word as a main embellishment. So dig out your dictionaries, die cutters, alphabet stamps, rubons or download a funky font and show us what you can do!

Here's my card..



At the moment I am working so hard that coffee is pretty much what's keeping me going!! The paper and letters are from my updated CD 'It's Funky Too' which will be available at the end of October. The ribbon is by Dovercraft and the flower is a Prima (of course!) the large brad is from K&Co and it actually says 'Time' as it's not that clear on the scan. You know what..I think it is coffee time, bye for now!!

Hey I've been tagged by Samm

I haven't ever joined in with a tag before but I have decided not to be so boring!! and join in with this one. Thanks Samm!

1. YOUR ROCK STAR NAME: (first pet & current car) Joey Smart (not very rock and roll sounds like I should be singing in the local working mens club!)


2.YOUR GANGSTA NAME: (fav ice cream flavor, favorite cookie) Chocolate Ginger (once again not much of a cool 'Gangsta' more local council ASBO!)

3. YOUR "FLY Guy/Girl" NAME: (first initial of first name, first three letters of your last name) Amcn (Errr!!)

4. YOUR DETECTIVE NAME: (favorite color, favorite animal) Green Cat (Sounds more like an evil villain name to me!)

5. YOUR SOAP OPERA NAME: (middle name, city where you were born) Marie Birmingham (oh dear more daytime telly soap that primetime I think!!)

6. YOUR STAR WARS NAME: (the first 3 letters of your last name, first 2 letters of your first) Mcnan (Is that the same as having a Mc-Job? A Mc-Nan is that just a really rubbish Grandma??)

7. SUPERHERO NAME: (2nd favorite color, favorite drink put "The") The Black Cherry Beer (Ohhh Super!!)

8. NASCAR NAME: (the first names of your grandfathers) Denis Eric (Cool!)

9. STRIPPER NAME: ( the name of your favorite perfume/cologne, favorite candy)Eternity Thorntons (Oh I think I would be working in a pretty high class place with that name don't you?!)

10.WITNESS PROTECTION NAME: (mother's & father's middle names ) Ann William (Good name for not being noticed..ever again!!)

This was fun! Now I have to find some friends to tag..hopefully I'll be back!!

Here is a digital scrap page that I pulled together this afternoon when I should have been designing! It was inspired by the No5 September Challenge over at Just Bex the challenge was to make a card or layout including stripes, spots and waves.



The stripes and spots are papers from my CD V Funky and the waves are digital ric rak.
The picture is Ian and I a few years ago when we visited our friends in the US for New Year..we were a little worse for the wear in this picture as we had partied into the early hours on New Years Eve!!

I am trying to emulate some fab layouts that I have seen on a few American Digi scrap websites where less is definitely more. It's hard to leave spaces and I think I still have alot to learn but I'm relatively pleased with this attempt!!

I had the lovely opportunity to actually make cards over the last few days and today has been no different. Ian's brother moved to America with his wife and two boys earlier in the year and finally they have been able to buy a lovely house to live in. This card is for them to congratulate them on their new purchase. Luckily for me it tied in nicely to the little extra challenge over at Daring Cardmakers Here's this times requirements

Big & Little We'd like you to use items in pairs of Big and Little - so you need to have both sizes on your card ie big & little buttons, big & little die cuts, big & little hearts, big & little circles etc The theme of your card can be whatever you like this time, so that's nice of us, isn't it?



The papers used are both from my newest CD V Funky and the little house is cut with an original Sizzix die. The two pink buttons are my 'big and little'

Things are just as busy here as ever and I am frantically working on new designs to update a couple of my older CDs. I am hoping to be able to tell you about some really exciting news I had today soon but I think it is going to have to wait for a few more weeks.

Oh! I hear Ian shouting downstairs seems England have scored in the match and Michael Owen has got them both as he's a big Newcastle United fan that is extra good obviously!! I think I will just hide up here and craft a bit more till it's all over!!

I have been in such a good mood the last few days..I think it must be because the weather has been so nice. It could also be because my designing is going so smoothly..watch me jinx it now!! I have been working on up dating some of my CDs with extra items to improve them and I have been really pleased with the outcomes! Luckily for me I had an opportunity to use some of them because Ian's nephew, who now lives over in the USA, has a birthday. I made this card to send to him.



The large letters are one of the new additions to my CD 'It's Funky Too' but they wont be available for a while. I will post here and on my website when the updated version is available. Meanwhile I get to play with them all by myself!!

I can't believe it..I never make Christmas cards before late November, but todays challenge on Daring Card Makers was to do just that!
Here's the challenge: So, we'd like you to make and show a Christmas card which,incorporates the following: Some Paper Tearing,The colour Purple AND It has to have at least one hole somewhere in the design!

I knew I wasn't mad designing Christmas papers in purple and lilac I knew they would come in handy one day! I am not altogether happy with the scan of this card it really needs to be photographed as you can't see the sparkles etc..but I bought an all new, singing and dancing camera a week ago but I still can't get it to work yet!! I have to set some time aside to get it sorted..when I do I will take better photos of this card but until then you have to imagine that it does actually look better than this!!



The papers used are all from my Christmas themed CD Yule Be Funky The sentiment is one I bought last year which is cute as it is silver embossed writing on a foam pad which gives it real texture. I added a piece of shaped purple wire which took me a while to get in a smooth curl but I love messing with wire it's just attaching it to the cards that's the hard part!! The extra snow flakes are cut with a punch I have had since I started card making and had forgotten all about and found hiding in the back of a drawer!!

I have just had a delivery of stash arrive so I am all excited about my new goodies! I have bought a mini craft sewing machine so expect to see more stitching from me in the future..but if it's anything like the camera..you might have to wait a while!!

Well I have finally made some time this afternoon to catch up on some cardmaking for family birthdays. Once I had completed this one I realised that I could use it as a VERY last minute entry to this weeks extra challenge over at Daring Cardmakers

The challenge was "You Big Softie" We want you to use something soft on your card feathers, velvet paper, fluffy fibres all that soft, strokable stuff counts for this one and that's it, easy-peasy, lemon-squeezy!



You might not believe it looking at the scan but I have got some lovely fibres wrapped around the topper that were a nice little extra that was added into my order of stash that arrived last week from Craft Obsessions The papers used are from my CD It's Funky Too and the big letter is from some new additions I am working on to upgrade the CD, I think they have turned out quite well!! The rest of the letters have been printed on vellum and attached to the card with a brad. To finish off I've added two Prima flowers. The Grandma in question is actually Ian's and she is going to be 94 years old at the weekend! She's a very stylish lady and always loves things to be matching and toning..hopefully she will approve of my card!!

Now I had best get back to my craft room as I have a little boy birthday card to make and then get in the post to the US, nothing like leaving everything to the last min eh!!!

There has been so much going on lately here at Funky Hand Towers that I really don't know which way to turn!! I keep hinting at exciting things that are in store over the next few months and finally I can tell you about a couple of them.
First off, I would like to welcome Samm Livett to the newly created Funky Hand Design Team. There is so much happening at the moment that I am not able to produce enough examples of cards and scrap pages on my own so Samm has kindly agreed to join me and help out. Visit her fantastic blog By Samm and see why I am so pleased to have her on my team, she is a fantastic card maker and an all round lovely lady!

Card Making and Papercraft Issue 44

My second bit of news is about a competition that I will have running in the next edition of Card Making and Papercraft Magazine.(Issue 45) I'm really excited to be offering sets of all five of my backing paper CDs to eleven lucky winners who answer a simple question correctly and send it into the magazine on a post card. It's very exciting to have the opportunity to offer my products to the readers of this magazine and if you want a chance of winning, the edition with the competition will be on sale on the 2nd October.
I have a few other exciting things under my hat at the moment but I will have to save them for later! I had best get back to work or I will never get everything done!!