Wednesday, December 28, 2016

Winners of the December "Christmas" challenge

 Hello!!
Thank you so much for playing the December "Christmas Challenge".
I am overwhelmed by all the submissions!! It was almost impossible to choose a winner!!
THANK YOU  so very much for coming back month after month to play my challenges. 
When I started a year ago, I never imagined it would be such a great success!!!

Next month is the 1st anniversary of Paru's Card Making Challenges!
In addition to the two sponsored prizes (which are just fantastic!!), 
I will be personally giving away two prizes as a special thank you.

So make sure you come back to play on the 1st of January 2017

And now...
Here are the winners!

For  the free digi from 






I just couldn't resist that cute little reindeer!!

and
For the $25 gift voucher from 





I love everything about this card...the fabulous background and,
most of all the fantastic wreath made with the Fresh Cut florals stamp set.


Many many congratulations to the winners!!

Have a wonderfully crafty New Year 2017
and lets together make Paru's Card Making Challenges a huge success once again!!

Remember...

Our 1st anniversary challenge will be live on 1st January 2017 at 12 am IST, 
and,there are loads of fabulous prizes to be won!!

Thank you so much for stopping by!
Have a great day!!

Paru Mahtani

Thursday, December 1, 2016

December challenge

Hello everyone! 

Welcome back to all of you who have played my challenges before 
and a big welcome to those who are stopping by for the first time! 
I hope you have great fun playing  along!

Last month saw some fabulous submissions and I'm hoping we will get even more fabulous submissions this month.
Let's end this year with a bang, people!!!




HOW TO PLAY

Make a card or tag using the theme given. 
Take a photo of your creation and link it up below.
If you have a blog, write a post about our challenge and link it back to our challenge, including photos of your card or tag.
Please display this storyboard prominently in your blog post so that others may be inspired to play.

ALSO, please display this logo prominently on the sidebar of your blog so that others may join us.


FOLLOW/JOIN  THIS BLOG
 FOLLOW US ON FACEBOOK AND INSTAGRAM AND TAG YOUR SUBMISSIONS ON SOCIAL MEDIA WITH THE TAG
#PCMCHALLENGES

If you don't have a blog, post your photos on social media and TAG them with #PCMCHALLENGES
If you don't tag them, we will not see them on social media.

Link your blogpost/social media post to the linky below.


Now for some inspiration...

This month our sponsor is 

They have two adorable digis with us to show case.

The cute cow






and the adorable penguin.






To make the above cards and tags, I printed out the digis onto white card stock and die cut them using the stitched circles and stitched squares dies from Simon Says Stamp. 
I then coloured another copy of the digi , fussy cut it and paper pieced it on to the die cut base. 
This way I didn't have to cut around the fiddly bits like the tail or the bow.


I added hand drawn doodle lights to the background of the cute cow tag to add some interest. I did the same for the card too and added a red die cut circle to add further interest. 
I then added a gold embossed on vellum Christmas sentiment from Hero Arts to card.
I finished off the tag and card with green and white bakers twine and a little bell for fun.

For the adorable penguin card and tag, I added embossed backgrounds, bakers twine and a bell for interest. Here too the sentiment is from Hero Arts.


Here is some more inspiration for you from the absolutely fabulous 


She was my first guest designer this year and,
thanks to her encouragement and support,
 I have been able to keep this challenge blog going for the whole year!
A big THANK YOU Neha!


Hello friends,
I am excited to be here as Guest DT as this is one of my favourite challenge blog. Kudos to Paru! She is doing amazing job at making the challenges interesting and giving away some fabulous prices every month.
Today, I am sharing a card and a tag made using Kitty bee designs. They are cute holiday themed images which are fun to colour.



I printed them on a white Neenah Solar card stock, coloured  them with copics.
I made the snow dune using Ranger’s sea foam white embossing powder and Martha Stewart white glitter. Back ground snowflakes are embossed in white. Sentiment and snowflakes are Jane’s Doodles stamps. I fussy cut the roly poly penguin and mounted with 3d foam tape.
Here is the close up of glistening snow.



For the tag, I cut image with circle die.
Cut the tag for green CS and stencilled some stripes with distress ink. 
Sentiment is from Paper trey ink . 
I had fun making these cuties. 
Give it a try, I am sure you will enjoy it too! 
Thanks Paru for giving me this opportunity. Big Hug!




THE PRIZES

As always, we have  fabulous sponsors lined up for this month.

Up for grabs are...

 One free digi from 



and 

a $25 gift card from The Heart Desires


I hope that you have been inspired
 to create some fun tags and cards for the CHRISTMAS season
 and to join in the challenge!

The winner will be announced on the 28th of December, so don't forget to stop by!

Please link up your creations below.

To be eligible to win a prize, please follow all the instructions carefully...
you will find them above and in under 'how to play' in the right sidebar.


Thanks so much for stopping by...
Have a great day!

Paru Mahtani



Monday, November 28, 2016

November Challenge winners!

 Hello!!
Thank you so much for playing the November  'Cards for children ' Challenge.
I am blown away by all the submissions!! It was really really hard to choose the winners!
I hope you will come back to play again next month too!

Here are the winners!

For  the 3 images from MHK designs




I love the neat, clean and crisp card made by Parul! Perfect for any kid!

And
for the 
$25 gift card from





I think the motifs are arodable and I love the use of the maps and the water patterned papers!
Would make any kid perfectly happy!!

Many many congratulations to the winners!!

Thank you so much for stopping by!
Remember...
a
A new challenge will go live on December 1st at 12 am IST.
Don't forget to drop by and play!

Tuesday, November 1, 2016

November Challenge

Hello everyone! 

Welcome back to all of you who have played my challenges before 
and a big welcome to those who are stopping by for the first time! 
I hope you have great fun playing  along!

November 14th is the birthday of our first Prime Minister Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru. 
As he was very fond of children, It is celebrated as Children's Day in India.
Therefore, the challenge for the month is to make a card or tag for CHILDREN.


HOW TO PLAY

Make a card or tag using the theme given. 
Take a photo of your creation and link it up below.
If you have a blog, write a post about our challenge and link it back to our challenge, including photos of your card or tag.
Please display this storyboard prominently in your blog post so that others may be inspired to play.

ALSO, please display this logo prominently on the sidebar of your blog so that others may join us.


FOLLOW/JOIN  THIS BLOG
 FOLLOW US ON FACEBOOK AND INSTAGRAM AND TAG YOUR SUBMISSIONS ON SOCIAL MEDIA WITH THE TAG
#PCMCHALLENGES

If you don't have a blog, post your photos on social media and TAG them with #PCMCHALLENGES
If you don't tag them, we will not see them on social media.

Link your blogpost/social media post to the linky below.


Now for some inspiration...

This month our sponsor MHK designs 
has shared some beautiful digital papers and stamps with us,
which we  have showcased.

I started with the papers from the Autumnal Accents digital paper pack
 and added the digital stamps from the Butterfly wisdom set.
I coloured the butterfly to make it pop, using faber castell colour pencils and then added the sentiment which I printed on vellum.
I finished the card with some MayArts jute ribbon.



For this tag, I used the same papers and stamps as above and
 added a dry embossed panel and some self adhesive gemstones for interest.
I finished the tag with charcoal bakers twine from the Twinery.





For the Instagram inspired shaker card, I have used the papers from the
I created the shaker element by die cutting  and stacking multiple circles using 
Simon Says Stamp Stitched circles die .
I added some silver and gold star confetti and closed the shaker element using the same patterned paper as the background. 
I added a spellbinders nested heart and 
a speech bubble from Simon Says Stamp 'Talk bubble' die set.
The birthday sentiment is from Stampendous.


I really enjoyed using these beautiful bright colours on the cards..I think kids would like them too!

For more inspiration...

We have La Von Hall over as our guest designer this month! 
La Von and I became friends through Flickr, 
where she runs an awesome group and challenge every month. 
Do drop by and leave her some love!





I am so very honored to be chosen as the guest designer this month for Paru's Card Making Challenge. Thank you very much, Paru!  The theme for this card is children because the birthday of Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru is celebrated as Children's Day in India. India's first Prime Minister, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, was born on November 14. Apart from being known for his skills as a statesman, Nehru was also immensely fond of children.

The card I created for Paru's Challenge is a shaker card.  I think children of all ages like shaker cards.  The wonderful sponsor that Paru has chosen for this month is MHK designs. All of the digi images, sentiment and even the patterned papers are found at the MHK designs.  I used the "Hardy Party" digital paper pack and "Eat Your Cake" digital stamp set.




Making a shaker card is simpler that it may look.
  • I colored the image with Copic markers and added a touch of shimmer using a bit Multi Media Matte with clear glitter.    
  • I cut the frame 6 times, 5 times from plain cardstock and one time from the patterned paper.  The five cardstock frames are glued into a stack to create the well for the shaker mix.   
  • Place the stacked frame over the colored image where you like and trim off any excess.  Glue the frame over to the image using the Multi Media Matte. 
  • After the glue is dry you put in the sequin mix.  
  • Next you will cut a piece of plastic or acetate cut to size and adhere this over the window.  I like to use a strong double sided tape like SCOR-tape to adhere the acetate to the frame and the patterned paper.  It seems to work the best. 
  • Then adhere the assembled shaker to your card.  
I was have such a great time with the pretty papers from MHK that created two tags for the challenge.  After making both I couldn't really decide which I liked best so I am sharing both here.   Both of my tags use a die from Hero Arts.  I will list my supplies below.
I was have such a great time with the pretty papers from MHK that created two tags for the challenge.  After making both I couldn't really decide which I liked best so I am sharing both here.   Both of my tags use a die from Hero Arts. 





I hope that you are inspired to join in the challenge this month to celebrate children.   Thank you, for stopping by my blog.  Your comments, questions and suggestions are always welcome.






THE PRIZES

As always, we have  fabulous sponsors lined up for this month.

Up for grabs are...

 3 items of the winners choice from 



and 

a $25 gift card from So Suzy Stamps




We hope you have been inspired to create some beautiful cards for CHILDREN!
Can't wait to see your creations!

I will announce the winner of this challenge on the 28th of November, so don't forget to stop by!

You can link up your creations below.

To be eligible to win a prize, please follow all the instructions carefully...
you will find them above and in under 'how to play' in the right sidebar.


Thanks so much for stopping by...
Have a great day!

Paru Mahtani



Friday, October 28, 2016

October Challenge winners

 Hello!!
Thank you so much for playing the October 'Hint of Gold' Challenge.

Here are the winners!

For  the Rs.1000 gift voucher from CraftAdda


The gold frame is a the perfect accent !



And


For Two 6"x6" paper packs from Nakshatra Designs


The gold embossed sprig is a perfect hint of gold!!



Many many congratulations to the winners!!

Thank you so much for stopping by!
Remember...
a new challenge will go live on Tuesday November1st at 12 am IST.
Don't forget to drop by and play!




Saturday, October 1, 2016

October Challenge

Hello everyone! 

Welcome back to all of you who have played my challenges before 
and a big welcome to those who are stopping by for the first time! 
I hope you have great fun playing  along!

October is a month of festivities here in India...we have the 10 day festival of Dussehra (which celebrates the victory of good over evil ) and the festival of lights, Diwali, 15 days later!
All month we celebrate by wearing bright colours which will always have a 
hint of GOLD!

So taking this celebratory theme forward, our October challenge is to make a card or a tag which has just a HINT OF GOLD!



HOW TO PLAY

Make a card or tag using the theme given. 
Take a photo of your creation and link it up below.
If you have a blog, write a post about our challenge and link it back to our challenge, including photos of your card or tag.
Please display this storyboard prominently in your blog post so that others may be inspired to play.

ALSO, please display this logo prominently on the sidebar of your blog so that others may join us.


FOLLOW/JOIN  THIS BLOG
 FOLLOW US ON FACEBOOK AND INSTAGRAM AND TAG YOUR SUBMISSIONS ON SOCIAL MEDIA WITH THE TAG
#PCMCHALLENGES

If you don't have a blog, post your photos on social media and TAG them with #PCMCHALLENGES
If you don't tag them, we will not see them on social media.

Link your blogpost/social media post to the linky below.

Now for some inspiration...

This month, I have made a set of 6 notecards with a Diwali theme.
I have used the brand new Diwali stamp set from Craft Adda, Henna Elements stamp set from AveryElle, Gold and white embossing powder, and Tim Holtz distress inks, and Sakura Koi watercolours.

To make this card, I first gold embossed the rangoli pattern on the card. Then I masked off half the card and used Tim Holtz distress inks to colour the other half. I added the paisley design from Altnew's henna elements stamp set. I finished the card with a gold embossed sentiment from Craft Adda's diwali stamp set.



 For this card, I stamped the rangoli design in black and and coloured it using sakura koi watercolours.


I have used the same stamp for this card too..heat embossed here with clear embossing powder and watercoloured using Sakura Koi watercolours. I finished the card with a gold embossed sentiment on a vellum panel.



Here I have gold embossed the lantern on one half of the card and masked and blended the other half.  I used one of the elements  from Altnew's Henna Elements stamp set on this card too.


I have used the emboss resist technique for this card. After the watercolour dried, I ironed off the embossing powder to create a soft look. I finished the card with a god embossed sentiment on vellum.


Here, I heat embossed the lanterns and then blended Tim Holtz  distress inks. I splattered some water on the distress ink to create some interest.
I finished the card with a god embossed sentiment on vellum  and some burlap string from Mayarts ribbon.


GUEST DESIGNER

Please say hello to our fabulous Guest Designer this month

Priya Sondhi



Hi all! This is Priya from Priya-N-Papers. I am super duper excited to be invited at Paru's Card Making Challenges. I am a software engineer Team Leader by profession but at heart I am a full time paper crafter. I am from India but currently living in US for past 4 years because of my job.

From the childhood I was into crafts. I used to craft with my super talented sister. But during collage, I lost my touch and fell totally into academics. Roughly 6 years back when I was sitting idle in office, I stumbled across Martha Stewarts crafts. That's how I was introduced to paper crafts. I found it very interesting. Slowing I discovered craft blogs of many talented crafters from India like Tejal, Kavitha, Bhavana, Karuna and many more. I was totally inspired by them and followed their blog and started crafting myself. One fine day I started to blog to share my crafty process.

My all time favorite craft technique is creating backgrounds using heat embossing and distressing with distress inks. Now a days I am hooked to watercoloring.

For the October challenges, the challenge is to add a hint of Gold. There are alot of ways to add Gold into your creations like foiling, embossing, Gold paper/washi tape/sequins and even using gold watercolors. For my inspiration, I have used gold foiled paper for card and Gold embossing powder for the tag.

Diwali Card :
I love making Diwali cards! Since it's already October I took it as an opportunity to make one. I used Fringed die from MFT and die cut strips of cardstocks in warm colors. I also diecut a strip of Gold foiled cardstock and added in between to add a touch of gold. Then I adhered all the strips to create an Ombre effect.
I also heat embossed Diya Stamps from Mudra's new Diwali release. The sentiment is from Varna's Diwali stamp set which they released last year.


Here is a closure look at the gold + Ombre effect. 


Best Wishes Tag :

For the tag, I diecut a watercolor cardstock using Avery Elle Bookmark die and then used Gansai Tambi watercolors for some rainbow effect. I heat embossed the Lacy circle stamp from Waffle Flower using white embossing powder.  For the gold, I heat embossed Honey Bee's Zen Floral Stamps on vellum with gold embossing powder from Ranger and fussy cut the images and created my own bouquet. I added some sentiment and Twine to finish off my tag. It's an any occasion tag which you can use for birthday's, anniversaries, Diwali, etc.


A closer look at the gold effect. The gold embossing on Vellum looks fabulous!


That's it from my side. I hope I inspired you a little today to make some festive projects with a pinch of Gold. I can't wait to see what you guys come up with!

Have a great day!
Happy Crafting!
Priya Sondhi


THE PRIZES

As always, we have a fabulous sponsor lined up for this month.

 A Rs.1000/- gift voucher from CraftAdda


and 

Two 6"x6" paper packs from Nakshathra Designz




We hope you have been inspired to create some beautiful cards with a HINT OF GOLD!
Can't wait to see your creations!

I will announce the winner of this challenge on the 28th of October, so don't forget to stop by!

You can link up your creations below.

To be eligible to win a prize, please follow all the instructions carefully...
you will find them above and in under 'how to play' in the right sidebar.


Thanks so much for stopping by...
Have a great day!

Paru Mahtani