"I'm Free"

The day after Boxing Day, the start of the hiatus when suddenly Christmas is over and the world seems in a state of suspension....and boredom starts to set in. Not for the cardmaker however, particularly the lucky cardmaker who received bounteous stash for Christmas!

First things first, and the latest challenge from DCM.. This was to create a card using a magazine freebie: either a craft magazine freebie, or indeed any other magazine freebie, papers, embellishments, tools, etc. anything really, as long as it came from a magazine.

Now as an inveterate buyer of magazines, I have no end of free stash (in fact I sorted out a big pile to give to my stepdaughter yesterday), but I hardly ever use it. I definitely use the free stamp in Craft Stamper every month and sometimes the free papers from other magazines, but something usually stops me from using the rub-ons or card toppers. It's a snobbery thing I think. I want every card to be a labour of love and usually that involves stamping and colouring. But over Christmas, I saw the error of my ways. My mum always stores my cards and loves getting them, but even she didn't realise that the decoupaged festive scene she received had been painstakingly stamped three times and painted with Twinkling H2Os. She thought it was just stuck on bits and pieces.

So now I'm warming towards the fre embellishments and thinking perhaps it would be a whole lot easier to send everyone a handmade card if they didn't take so long to make.

To prove the point, I made two in less than half an hour. The pink one is entirely made of magazine stash. I added a ribbon to one of the presents. The Spring card uses a free stamp from Craft Stamper, free paper (the spotty paper) and a free title. So thanks DCM, I think you have broadened my horizons no end!