Month: October 2018

Christmas Dreams…..

Hello again. As I finally managed to get my head around the Lawn Fawn ‘Reveal Wheel’ – I can’t get enough of it. It’s a good job I need a few more cards for the charity sale of Friday………..here is one using the Lawn Fawn ‘Christmas Dreams’ stamp and die set:

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I used two shades of blue Distress Oxide for the background this time, making it a little darker at the top, and backed the reveal wheel portion with some Stampin Up DSP I found in my stash. I don’t used patterned paper very often, but have a bunch of it – I might need to look to YouTube for ideas how to use it more.

I stamped the images and coloured them as you see – laying them down for a cute scene inspired by the current challenge at Just Us Girls – a photo challenge – and went with the reds and the fireplace.

Again – colouring not my pleasure, but these images were so cute I made another card, with a slightly different background and lay-out:

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You may notice that some of the layers are slightly out of order – the tree should be in front of the mantle swag, the cat should be on top of the presents – but hey………..a girl has gotta go with what she has. I was so into the colouring and the layering that things got away from me……………

The first card will be entered into the following challenges:

Just Us Girls – photo inspiration

The Holly and Ivy Christmas Challenge – anything goes Christmas

Crafty Hazelnuts Christmas Challenge – anything goes Christmas

oooohhh – just realised I didn’t complete the sentiment on the first card…………….pretend the same one is there!!! It will be – before Friday!! 🙂 🙂

Altenew Playful Blooms

Here is a bright and sunny card:

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These flowers really are a playful stamping. The outline is quite thick – which I like – and the base and detail layer are quite unusual – they don’t fit neatly into the black outline. No – I didn’t do it wrong – I followed the guide, was a little sceptical – then took the matching dies………and they don’t follow the black outline either.

I must admit, I was wondering what I had done wrong…….but the dies actually match the base stamping layer, not the outline. I am assuming that is the playful part of the stamp name – and the fact the stamps are very solid for each layer.

Or maybe it’s playful because it almost makes you think you did something wrong – then hey – surprise! You actually did it right all along………………

The three coloured strips are ink pad direct to card to match the colours of the flower, and die cut with a wavy border. I didn’t want straight lines as the flowers are quite fun and playful – the lines ought to be too…….

The colours for this card was inspired from the current challenge at Addicted To Stamps and More, and the sketch layout is from the current challenge at CAS Colours and Sketches.

A winter Wonderland

Hello everyone. An early posting as I am excited to be the visiting librarian for the new Library Challenge beginning today.

Marina asked for some book suggestions from people who played in this challenge previously, and this was one of my suggestions. I was supremely excited when she asked if I wanted to be the ‘visiting librarian’ and create a card for this challenge, and I very gladly accepted – then spent the next couple of weeks grappling with it! You’d think it would be easy, wouldn’t you?

Here is the book cover:

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I toyed with a door in the middle of tress, but then found my Heffy Doodle ‘Ad-roar-able lions‘ stamp set and used one of those lions:

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The base is glimmer card, with an extra piece I used to colour blue using Distress Oxides – who knew that would work!! – and die cut the middle with an MFT tag die to represent the doorway.

The lion is welcoming you through the doorway into the winter wonderland, where I placed a Christmas tree. Again, my thoughts turned to more trees, a variety of trees, but – you know – I kinda like the simplicity of this card. It looks like fun to me. It was certainly fun creating it. 🙂

I hope you join Marina and I for the challenge, and I look forward to seeing what you create with this marvelous theme.

Best wishes to you all. 🙂

Wanna build a snowman?

Hello everyone. I mentioned the other day about the Lawn Fawn ‘Reveal Wheel‘ and that I was off to play with it………..here is my second (!!!) attempt:

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You could say I had fun creating this…….but I wouldn’t exactly agree in the first instance! I made a few beginner errors, and watched the Nichol Spohr YouTube video at least 10 times, and watched the Lawn Fawn/Kelly Marie Alvarez video the same amount of times. I added the brad the wrong way, I added the foam pads too near the wheel, and to the wrong panel – at least my first attempt was out of plain white card so I could get the hang of it!

And that’s without all the stamping, and colouring, and die-cutting, and layering…………

I still love using the Crafters Companion Illustrator markers – but not particularly on such small images. I actually stamped all five of these images 6 times (I know!!) and coloured them all in.

I now know that I find so much colouring, and small creature/animal colouring very tiresome. I don’t particularly enjoy it, and use it to make cards, not for the joy of colouring in itself – though I am going to try larger images in the near future. Maybe that’s the issue. Maybe………….

The colours on this card are from the current challenge at Color Throwdown – dark teal, rust, cream. The teal sky is from an Altenew ink which I blended into the background – ‘Teal Cave‘. This came out a little lighter than I had planned, but I like it all the same. The rust – I don’t have anything called ‘rust’ but I used a dark red/brown crafters companion glitter pen. It actually looks less like red in ‘real life’.

Have you noticed the penguins (mostly) have their feet hidden? That’s because I couldn’t use orange! I know – crafter little blighter, aren’t I?

The words on the wheel are stamped in a rust-like Catherine Pooler ink.

I shall be entering this into the following challenges:

Color Throwdown – Dark Teal, Rust, Cream

Watercooler challenges – holidays

Alphabet Challenge – ‘P’ for Penguins

I am well on my way for a stock for the charity sale next Friday………….and I’m going to keep going. 🙂

Scenic Christmas

Hello there. I have been doing some practicing with scenic cards – totally inspired by Nichol Spohr and the Lawn Fawn videos. I have a way to go to get anywhere near their skills – but I’ll keep trying, listening to the hints and tips – and practice, practice, practice.

Here is a very simple scenic card inspired by the current challenge at AAA Cards:

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The theme is moonlight…..I started with a die cut circle and blended Distress Oxides using the circle as a mask. I then added some glitter pen to the white moon and it actually smudged some of the circle – but I liked the look. It gives the moon a whispy look – so I carried on and smudged it more to get the effect you see here.

The owls are from Clearly Besotted, and it is me trying again to use Crafters Companion Illustrator alcohol pens to achieve a dimensional colouring look. I think I succeeded – and liked the way they turned out.

The glitter card is a couple of die cuts using stitched border dies – I think I’m at least getting the hang of doing them.

I tried a couple of sentiments, but I didn’t like how they looked – so I left them off. I am sure the recipient will know it’s a Christmas card……!

I’m now off to try my new purchase of the reveal wheel set of dies – wish me luck!

Lime Rickey Baubles

Hi there. A quick posting to add a card I have been thinking about for several days – and finally got to finish. And – yes – it’s a simple enough card so I have no clue why it took me so long:

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I used the stamps and dies from the latest Catherine Pooler ‘Stamp of Approval’ collection – which also included WOW! embossing powder to match three of her inks. How fabulous is that?

So – I stamped the baubles with Lime Rickey, then also embossed with Lime Rickey. The bows are also stamped in Lime Rickey – but not embossed.

The sentiment is from the same collection stamped in – you guessed it – Lime Rickey. Have I said that ink name enough?

I shall be entering the following challenges:

Freshly Made Sketches – sketch

Addicted to Stamps – CAS

Crafty Hazelnuts Christmas Challenge – anything goes Christmas

I have also been playing with some alcohol markers. I have bought some Crafters Companion Illustrator pens – then went back the following day for more colours. I am currently going through YouTube videos at a rate of knots to get as much information about them as I can. I am – actually – enjoying colouring and blending, which is highly unusual for me. I am sure I will be posting some creations soon…. 🙂

Wreath and bells

Hello everyone. I have spent some time crafting this weekend and making some Christmas cards ready for charity. Also – of course – having some fun…..

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This card was inspired by the current challenge at Color Throwdown – to use Green, Kraft, and white.

It turned out to be a completely Altenew card – except for the sentiment – using an older stamp and die set, and a couple of new ones.

I used Altenew inks, and changed the greens a little for the second card. I didn’t add all the detail to the bells, quite liking the simplicity of them as they are. I was toying with letting the bells dangle on some string or such like, but added them as you see instead.

The sentiment is from a new stamp set I have yet to play with from Clearly Besotted ‘Hang Around‘ and has baubles and bows. I thought the French sentiment suited the card for some reason – so I went with it.

I have decided that I will be making several of each Christmas card ready for the charity event, I’m probably going to stick with the more clean and simple card. I say that a lot – then go and make things a little more complicated.

Anyway – it’s all about enjoying yourself, isn’t it?

Have a great day – catch you later. 🙂

Colourful and blingy

Hello again. I have been playing with colours, and trying to create a scenic card, and a second card which made me smile as I was colouring it.

First is the scenic card:

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and a close-up of the silver bling:

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The base is water-colour card and blended blues from my Distress Oxide collection. I then took the die cut from Avery Elle ‘Let it Snow‘ and cut the little holes/stars into it. I then splashed it with Gansai Tambi ‘Starry Colours‘ for some extra shimmer.

The Santa Clause and Reindeer are from the same stamp set as the two critters – Lawn Fawn ‘Winter Skies‘, stamped in black and heat embossed.

The hills and little town are cut out of silver glitter card, and again cut using the hillside dies – both from Lawn Fawn – and layered out of sync – so they create some dimensional hills.

The two little critters are coloured with my Zigs, as are the trees.

The second card:

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This is a cheshire cat stamp from Visible Image. stamped first and masked off, then using a stencil to create a weird background…….then coloured with my Zigs.

This card will be entered into the following challenges:

Daring Cardmakers – pets

Time Out Challenges – colourful

The first scenic card will be entered into the following challenges:

Just Us Girls – celestial elements

52cct – Christmas and silver

I now have three days off work, and I plan to craft and craft and craft to get a substantial stock of Christmas cards – but as I have also received a bunch of the new Altenew stamps – there may be some general cards too…………you can’t have too many of them, either, can you?

Simple Christmas

Hello everyone. I have remiss in my blogging recently, as I have been busy with work and family ‘stuff’. I have doing a little colouring and playing the past few days, and trying to build a stock of Christmas cards for a charity thingy in a few weeks.

Here is an example of one – including my attempt at alcohol marker colouring! (I think I need to get the grey’s a little less blendy!)

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I used the Lawn Fawn ‘Quilted Backdrop‘ die for the – well – backdrop……and layered with foam pads to create a little dimension.

The little hippo is from Clearly Besotted – ‘Hippo Christmas’ – and coloured with Altenew Alcohol Markers. I love these markers, but am finding a problem with colouring of animals – browns and greys etc…….I may have to invest in some Copics! Any ideas on colours I should purchase?

I am not a huge fan of colouring, and actually struggle with sitting down to do it. I have quite a few hippos and deer and penguins stamped – just not coloured. I don’t know why I don’t just get them coloured – maybe it’s because I find colouring a ‘task’, and not something I would think to turn to for relaxing……I’ll keep looking at the YouTube videos and keep trying…..

I shall be entering the following challenges:

Addicted to Stamps – Holiday

Allsorts Challenge – Christmas

The Holly and the Ivy Christmas Challenge – anything goes Christmas

Christmas at Sweet Stamping – anything goes Christmas

loopyloocards