Bramble and Burdock

A lot of family birthdays and various celebrations came up recently, and I managed to make a few cards to give. Here are two of them - a Father's Day card featuring a little rabbit in a balloon... ...and a Mother's Day card with some flowers (I haven't decided whether they're poppys or roses!) I made these for my partner's parents who are Spanish and therefore celebrate the occasions on different days than we do here in the UK. With both cards, I used some cutouts from magazines as part of the image - the balloon is actually a photo of an old bronze plaque, and the centres of the flowers are silver door handles. The basket below the balloon is also made from a small piece of fabric swatch which I had lying around. Looking for images in old magazines is a great way of getting inspiration for your cards or art, and incorporating them into the work can be really good for adding some depth and texture.

Today I made two new fabric cards. These have an added twist to them in that they are "upcycled". This is because I made them using fabric samples which I received when I was choosing the colour of my new sofa! So as well as being quite cute, they're thrify and good for the environment as well! I'm not sure what made me go for "woot!" over the more traditional "hoot!" owl call... but it seems cuter somehow!

Carrying on the theme of animals wearing clothes, which seems to have become a mini obsession of mine recently, here's my latest handmade card - a polar bear in dungarees! He's looking very thoughtful, chewing on his pen - maybe he's composing a little poem to write in his notebook. Yet again, it's attracted the attention of the local wildlife... I made his dungarees out of some lovely hand-dyed fabric which I got from the marvellous Etsy shop of therainbowgirl . I also made another version of my dapper fox card today, so all in all quite a productive afternoon! You can see closeups (and of course buy them if you're feeling generous!) in my Etsy shop ! These are now sold - yay!

Today I was more productive than usual and made a new card for my shop from start to finish! (Normally I start something, leave it for a bit and come back to it when the urge takes me - procrastination is my middle name!) Introducing the dapper young gent about town... He's certainly attracted the attention of one of the toy foxes that (inexplicably) wander about these parts! I made his snazzy waistcoat using a bit of gold/olive fabric which I had left over from a previous project, and I think the effect is quite good. He's now available in my Etsy shop sold!

Searching through the layers of leaves, this little piggy found a new friend! This is a greeting card which I have been making for a work colleague. The card itself is also made up of different layers so that it has a slightly 3D effect, as shown in the photos - so it was perfect for this week's Illustration Friday theme of "layer"! Whilst I was photographing it, another curious piggy came over to investigate...

OK so it's a while to go before Valentine's Day, but for those who like to plan ahead I have some new cards in my shop just perfect for sending to a special person. I made three altogether using watercolours and pencil to give them a nice soft, muted feel. I'm particularly happy with this little fella. Check them all out over at Etsy !

I have now opened a shop on Etsy selling some of my greeting card designs - printed and handmade. I'm planning to add some other bits and pieces in the future too (once I get my crochet skills up to scratch..!) www.knightstour.etsy.com In the meantime, why not pop over and have a look...?!

Soon to be sold at a charity stall on behalf of Cats Protection , these slightly weird looking cats are part of my first batch of greeting card designs, printed by Moo ! The original pictures were made in pen and watercolour.

It's very difficult to concentrate on making Christmas cards when cows keep wandering across to see what you're doing...