Thursday, April 30

Mirror Mirror!

girl bluea

The challenge on Cute Card Thursday is all about using something shiny this week!

I have used Stampotique and Stitchels stamps Girl Blue together with some flock paper from the Rock Star stack!

To qualify for the 'Something Shiny' challenge I used Silver Mirri board to matt and layer and Metalic Dew Drops in a fab Turquoise blue.

The Stampotique image is coloured with Pro Markers and for the Stitchels I used Dusty Concord and Broken China distress inks!

I am off to play with a CD now ... See ya's!

Wednesday, April 29

No Crafting Today!

Tina09a

I know it will come as a shock to a lot of you ... but I have n't done any crafting today!!!!

I have been busy busy busy out and about ... you Tina09 know what it's like and I am off out again this evening ... so no time for challenges today either :0((

In my determination to blog every day I thought I would share a card with you that I have made for a couple of my friend's birthdays. Don't worry I did n't expect them to share it ... I made two!!!

This is another 8x8 card ... so nice and large and details of the stamps I have used are here! Details of the Stitchels are not in that post ... but yes ... no surprise there ... the flowers are my favourite, Stitchels :0))

Tuesday, April 28

A Spoon Full Of Sugar!

ally pally 4

This is the first time I have entered the Spoon Full Of Sugar Challenge ... but I have been watching it for a while and thought I would give it a go! ally pally 3This week the theme is Green and Blue!

This card is coloured exclusively with Distress  inks. Broken China [Just for a change :0))] and Peeled paint. All of the stamps are Stitchels and the background card was given a bit of interest with sequin waste.

This is a larger card and measures 8 x 8. Sorry about the photo quality ... I am not sure what happened there ... Hey Ho!

Ooooh I nearly forgot to say that I used distress stickles too ... both in Peeled Paint and Broken China!

Hope you are all having a good Tuesday!

Monday, April 27

One Card; Two Challenges!

PTW 27a

I don't generally double up on my challenges ... but this week I kinda had to!

The Papertake weekly challenge is spots and PTW 27 stripes and after rooting through my crafty stash I could only find these two papers that went! There was n't much of them either I can tell you!

Anyways in my blog sidebar I noticed a very lovely sketch from the team at Mojo Monday ... which has enabled me to use the papers :0))

I have n't had Tilda out for a while ...  well at least a few hours anyway :0)) so I thought I would give her an airing.

I just realised this is the second day I have managed to post twice! ... quick find me a flat surface! ... I need a lay down!!!!

I've Been Driving in my Car ...

ATC 285

... It's not quite a Jaguar! It's a Stitchel's car :0))

The sun is a Stitchel's too and the houses and text are from Paper Artsy!

I have gone for bright and sunny in the Car challenge on TMTA this week!

It is far from bright and sunny here - more windy, wet and cloudy :0((

All images are coloured in with Pro Markers and the ATC background is broken china edged with gold krylon!

Sunday, April 26

Time after Time!

ss26a

It's Sunday which means the Sunday Stamper challenge!

The theme this week is Time after Time. My first thought when making my tag was a clock and then it occurred to me to use all the other bits and ss26 pieces that I have used time after time!

So out came the Dusty Concord and Broken China distress inks. T!mmy's clock and Stitchels flowers also needed to be included and the Art journey butterfly of course!

This was a fab challenge ... if you want to see more Time after Time interpretations then just click here!

Have a good week everyone!

Sunday Post Card Art!

PCart 26

I can't quite believe that I am still up and blogging at this time of night ... but I am!

I could n't get into any of the films that are on tonight so I decided to craft instead.

The challenge over on Sunday Post Card Art this week is Butterflies.

I have used lots of different stamps on this one ... Artistic Stamper text and chequer pattern, Tim Holtz clock, the Lost Coast Persian skull, Build-a-swirl from Prima Marketing and Art Journey Butterflies.

You can see that Broken China and Dusty Concord were still on my craft desk from earlier :0))

Phew ... now it really is my bed time!

Saturday, April 25

Penny Black Saturday!

PBS 25a

It has been a while since I have found enough time to join in the Penny Black Saturday challenge so I thought I would give it a go today.

The challenge this week is "Anything goes!" I took PBS 25 a Stampotique stamp, a Penny Black sentiment, some Stitchels flowers and a bit of bling and this is what I came up with!

The very lovely young lady is embossed and coloured with Pro Markers [No surprise there then!] and the Stitchels flowers are coloured using Timmy's distress inks in Broken China and Dusty Concord.

The paper is from the yummy Rock Star stack [8x8] which is the perfect size for most standard cards.

Wednesday, April 22

Oops!

Josh18a

I just had to make this post because it will make my mate Hels smile! Last week we were discussing my Pro Markers ... that I may have mentioned already once or twice ... and Hels was thinking about getting a set!

Anyways I said to her ... "Oh I would n't bother Josh18 getting the whole set ... there are far to many greys and the black is really black so I can't see that we would ever use them ... Ever!

As it turned out ... and luckily for me ... it was cheaper to buy the whole set rather than faff about buying individual colours!

So why is that lucky for me? Well if you look closely at my motorbike card ... you can see that I have used about 9 different shades of grey and ... erm ... the black .... Oops  :0))

Tuesday, April 21

And Finally ...

papertake 20044 I have actually done a different sketch! This one was courtesy of Dawny P on the Papertake weekly challenge.  You can view the original sketch here!

The lady in the card was inspired by a sample card that I saw at Ally Pally. This is another of my older stamps and I had not used her in a while ... but when I saw her coloured and decoupaged up ... I just had to give it a go!

I am ashamed to say I don't know the ladies name Papertake 2004 that gave me the inspiration but I can tell you she is at all the shows and mainly sells Penny Black stamps ... Her samples are always stunning!

Anyways if you recognise this fabulous description :0)) Please  let me know her name and I will give her the credit in this post!

Enough waffling ... the black and gold were really hard to photograph so sorry for the poor quality piccies ... I actually made the card last night and in daylight I can see areas that require a bit of touching up ... but hopefully you will get the general idea!

Edit: Apparently the very talented lady that inspired me is Julia - so Thank you Julia

Monday, April 20

Think Monday Think ATC!

ATC 284

Well it is Monday again already and that means a whole new challenge from TMTA!

This week is all about foil and alcohol inks ... which together is something that I don't think I have tried before! There is an excellent link to a good tutorial here!

Anyway ... here is the result. The photo has come out a bit dark I am afraid... the effect is much prettier in real life!

The stamp is an oldie from Tin Can Mail.

The experts among you will see that I used metal flakes rather than foil. And what a mess I made!

I stuck the acetate to the metal flakes using Ten second studio Humungo killer tape ... which is absolutely fabulous stuff!

Have a good week!

Sunday, April 19

Ally Pally!

allp pally 2

I have just had the bestest day at the Stamp and Scrapbooking show at Ally Pally in London!

I managed to spend more than a tenner :0)) and I got to see some of my work on display for the very first time which was really really exciting. Oh and I had good company too ... so plenty of laughter!

This is one of my cards that was shown. It is an 8 ally pally 1 X 8 card and all the stamps are from the Stitchels range ... which I love love love!

The backing paper was made with distress inks and giant sequin waste which is now one of my other new favourite things!

The distress inks are peeled paint and broken china - I usually always forget to tell you that bit!!! I finished the flowers off by glazing them.

Have a lovely evening people ... I am off to soak my aching feet :0))

Edit: Oooh Oooh ... I just had to pop back and tell you ... if you click here and squint at the piccies - you can see my card in situ :0))

Wednesday, April 15

The Backside of a Postcard!

WS PC1

The challenge this week on Wednesday Stamper is the back side of a postcard. Well this is definitely a first for me ... and I reallWS PCy enjoyed it!

The postcard was written on and was of the Tate  modern so I felt my design needed to be a bit arty!

Not sure I achieved it ... but this is today's favourite stamp! It only arrived this morning and Boy do I love it! It is the wild haired girl from Zettiology!

I did some masking and a bit of swirl layering and hey presto ...

Tuesday, April 14

Nature is the Art of God!

ATC 283

Not my words ... I think it is a Latin quote ... but it is my ATC!

The challenge on Crazy Amigos today is nature and I have made an ATC.

The dandelion clock is in fact embossed in silver and looks quite striking in the flesh ... but it does n't show up too well in the image I am afraid ... so please feel free to use your imagination :0))

If I get a better picture tomorrow in daylight I will change it ... then you won't have the first clue what I am talking about ... no change there then :0))

Monday, April 13

Perfect Pastels!

Tilda 16

Bearing in mind my current obsession, the challenge this week on Papertake is rightTilda 15 up my street!

Perfect Pastels is the theme ... so I went for lilac and blue and erm ... yes ... TILDA!!! :0))

I did manage to stay away from her for most of the afternoon! Honest!

I am now going to find a challenge with a card sketch ... see if I can come up with a different layout ... for a change.

Having said that ... I still really like this one :0))

Have a pleasant evening everyone and for more Perfect Pastels just click here

Think Monday Think ATC!

ATC 282

The challenge this week is Eyes on TMTA.

I have so many stamps with beautiful eyes it was a tricky choice but in the end I used this Hampton Art stamp together with the Stampendous Agapanthus accent to create my design.

The butterfly is Art Journey.

A bit of white pen to make the eye pop and Voila!

And I did n't mention Tilda once ... Doh!

No More Apologies!

Tilda 13

That's right! I have decided I will make no more apologies for the fact that I am addicted to stamping, cutting out and colouring Tilda!

Did I mention my full set of Pro Markers :0)) Huh? Did I?

I know I am addicted; I lay awake at night thinking Tilda 12about what embellishments I can use!

But you can't tell me that you are not addicted to buying stash ... yes you!

Can you?

And I would never dream of asking you to apologise :0))

So that is it ... I am not sorry that I have used Tilda again and again and again [I won't blog them all :0)) promise!!!]

I hope you are all enjoying your Bank Holiday Monday! I am off to do some non Tilda crafting ... well I am going to try anyway!

Thursday, April 9

Chocolate and Marshmallow - Yummy!

Tilda 8

I have been looking at the Cute Card Thursday challenge for a few weeks now and not actually got around to making a card ... so eventually here it is!

The theme is Pink and Brown and I have used Tilda and Stitchels to make it look cute!

Sorry it is the same design of card yet again ... I am stuck on this LO at the moment and can't seem to make a Tilda card without it ... at least I have changed the style of bow ... and the papers ... and the colour and ... nope that's it!

I shall try and do something different next time :0))

Wednesday, April 8

Bella Italia

WS Italia

I have to admit the Wednesday Stamper theme had me stumped this week!

I have been racking my brain for most of the day trying to think up something Itallian with a lack of Itallian stamps ... plenty of Paris but almost none on Italy ... perhaps I should invest in some ... just in case :0))

Anyway while I chomped on pasta for my tea ... it came to me ... I suddenly remembered dear old Puccini's muse. I have had her for yonks and the poor old girl has been sat in a drawer for an absolute age! Well here she is in all her glory mounted in the colours of the Italian flag.

She is in fact a Hampton Art stamp and the little butterflies are Art Journey.

Tuesday, April 7

A T!m Tag!

Holtz Tag

When I saw the challenge on Crazy Amigos this week I just had to join in!

I have been meaning to have a go at T!m's tutorial since I got the stamps at Christmas and just never got around to it!

Well, there is no time like the present ... I have had to improvise in a few places as I don't have all T!m's goodies ... nearly ... but not quite :0))

Oh and the Pro Markers are all here ... WOO HOO!!!

Monday, April 6

Brothers in Arms!

ATC 281

The challenge this week on TMTA is Togetherness.

I went for these two cheeky little boys!

In my experience two boys together with such big smiles usually means they have left a trail of chaos behind them!

So I have tried to create a chaotic background with Adirondack inks.

The ATC is edged with gold krylon and the boys are coloured using my nearly complete [but still not quite - arghhhh!] set of Pro markers!

Saturday, April 4

More Wall Art!

metalart 1

I had a great day with my mate Hels on Thursday. She always finds us something fun to do when I visit and this time was no exception.

I tried metal art for the very first time... and boy was it fun!

I did n't quite get my piece finished and by the time I got home my new stitchels had arrived metalart 2 so I finished the 8X8 art board off with a metal and canvas stitchel flower. Claudine Hellmuth sticky back canvas of course ... which reminds me ... I must order some more!

A big Thank you to the Lots to do challenge for having the theme of art today ... it spurred me on to complete my piece.

Not bad for a first attempt me thinks ... but then I did have a wonderfully kind, patient and talented teacher!

Friday, April 3

A Crazy Background!

crazy 1

The Saturday work out is crazy backgrounds!

You don't get much more crazy than this one of Tim's!

Sadly I don't have the new bright Adirondack inks yet! But I had great fun recreating the effect all the same.

Tim's demo is here if you want to try it too. crazy 2

This green one was done with a can of air like Tim uses. I made that yesterday with Graham's can of air at Hels' ... but please don't tell him because that is a secret!

The top one was done with a straw and a bit of puff ... see ... not the right inks or equipment and I still managed ... How crazy is that :0))

Now I am not sure whether to turn them into cards or not ... I may just frame them ... I like the effect that much!

Dare 47: Life

dare april09 b

Rebecca set the challenge for April over on Aussie Dares this month and the theme is Life!

I decided to make some wall art that reflected why Life has got a lot busier (and very exciting) this year for us.Dare April09

  My daughter, Samantha got engaged at midnight on New Years Eve to her lovely boyfriend, Cecil.

So 2009 started with an engagement and will mean a very busy and exciting 18 months ahead. They will marry in 2010 at Belvoir Castle.

The young are much more romantic than they were in my day which is why my Life theme is Paris ... she was at the top of the Eiffel tower at the time.

If you get time do pop over and check out this monthly challenge blog ... I would love to see what life has in store for you at the moment!

Go on ... I dare you!

Wednesday, April 1

2 X 4

2x4

Is n't is funny how your mind works? ... Or is it just me?

The theme on Wednesday Stamper today is 2 X 4!

That is pretty straightforward I thought!

As I am cutting my mount board I keep thinking 2 X 4 and then I think a bit of wood ... you know 2 by 4. By the time the mount board is cut I have moved from wood to plank and then walking it!

All this left me no option but to use Pirate stamps!

Oooh-aargh!

The First of the Month!

CJ10

Blimey - that came around quickly!

The first of the month means I get to post March's Circle Journal on and then sit on the doormat waiting for April's to arrive.

This particular journal is all about quotes and although I did n't use a vintage quote I think the results fit with the strictly vintage theme.CJ12

I love this quote:-

You don't choose your family. They are god's gift to you, as you are to them.

                                    -Desmond Tutu

I just hope the final recipient likes it.

I am really enjoying working on each journal and I like the fact that the journal has a deadline, otherwise I would probably be sitting on three books by now :0))... actually, probably only two ... I would n't have even started mine :0))

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