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‘L’ for Lady

So what on earth is a girl to do when home from long day at work, hubby still away? Yep – make another card!. I had a look through the Paper Playful challenge web site, and came across three I could enter with the same card.

The first inspiration was from Just Add Ink, with the theme of using an element which began with the letter ‘L’. The second was from Seize the Birthday with the theme of black and white, and the third from Cards in Envy with the theme of black and white and one other colour.

The use of black and white to me, was to create a silhouette, and what better die set to use than that of the Tonic ‘Chepstow Bonnet’ die set. This die set has a couple of bonnets with the lady die, including a fascinator hat, but I liked the look the bonnet gave with the lace around the head.

I used an 8 inch square white card base, and added a slightly smaller layer black layer, cutting it with my Sue Wilson pierced squares die, and then cutting one slightly smaller in white card. Even though the white card had some pattern to it anyway, I embossed it with the Crafters Companion background script embossing folder for extra interest.

I die cut the lady and bonnet in black adding her to the card with one layer of mounting foam, and added the bonnet on top of her head. The sentiment is from another set of Crafters Companion dies, cut in black, and attached with the Stick and Stay spray – also from Crafters Companion.

I thought I had finished there, then remembered that I had to add one colour for the Cards In Envy challenge, but I didn’t want too much colour. I hunted through my ‘bling’ drawer, which has brads, and sequins, and gems, and came across these. They are red, but such a deep red, they almost shine black. I thought they would be a good addition to the card, and also thought they would enhance the bottom right corner – which seemed a little empty.

That’s it. Card done. Today’s playtime over………but there is always tomorrow!!

 

 

 

 

 

Using a stencil for vintage

I’ve just a fun and quick time making this card. The inspiration is from 2 challenge sites that I have entered this card into –  ‘Just Us Girls’ with a challenge to use stencils, and ‘Creates and Makes’ to have an optional vintage theme. My initial thoughts were that I had so many stencils, where do I start? I also have stencils I have never used before. I viewed the examples from the design teams, and the one made by Chris on ‘Just Us Girls’ caught me eye. It brought to mind my Tim Holtz stencils, as Chris had made some tags, and Tim is famous for his tags.

So I went to my stencil drawer, looked through my Tim Holtz stencils, and found the ‘Doily’ stencil. This is a lovely lacy/floral design, which I thought would add some great detail to the background. I was going to use a texture paste, but thought the design was so cute and floral that I just went with my distress inks.

I wanted to create a vintage and aged look so went through my stencil with Frayed Burlap and Walnut Stain, moving the stencil about three times around my 7×7 inch piece of card. I liked that you can’t see where I moved it each time, which shows how detailed and delicate the design is.

I wasn’t quite sure how I was going to put something on top. I was thinking some flowers, a sentiment, how would I matt and layer it without losing the stencil detail on the back. Again, looking around my craft table, (my table is never tidy and neat) and my eyes fell upon my IndigoBlu stamp set – Word Block #1 – and decided to use that set. My only decision here was which words to use out of the 6 available in the set.

I went with ‘Faith, Hope, Love, Thanks’ as you can see, leaving out ‘Celebrate’ and ‘Beauty’. For these, I stamped them in my Ranger Perfect Medium, and used a Cosmic Shimmer Dark Bronze Lustre embossing powder. Once they were embossed, I thought the colour wouldn’t really match, and was ready to try another colour, when I decided to shade the squares with the same two distress inks I had used on the background.

These two inks took away the glare of the white card and matched the background well, but I still inked the edge of these with the darker ink – Walnut stain – so they stood out as little more from the background. This meant I also didn’t have to use a piece of card as another layer.

Then how to add them so they were even and square in the card base…..I used a square Sue Wilson stitched edge die that was 6 inches square, stuck it to the background centrally, and then just stuck the squares in the corners…..talk about thinking outside the box!

I added this onto a brown/Kraft 8 inch square card, and liked the whole monochrome and vintage effect it gave. I was thinking of adding some embellishments of some sort, but decided to leave it as it was. To say the card quite quick and easy to make, I do like the overall effect it has given. Even using the brown inks doesn’t make it drab at all, and I have tried to take a photograph showing how shiny the embossing powder is.

JUGS Blinkie

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Ink and sketch

 

I have waited a few weeks to play with the new additions to my crafty stash. I like Lawn Fawn, and I also like the way a lot of their dies co-ordinate with each other – the same curves, same width of die, and the possibilities for using them individually or together.

My usual crafting style has changed – I don’t have a ‘usual’ style now. I’ll have a go at anything – as you can see from my previous posts.

On this particular card, I saw the sketch from ‘Just add ink’ and immediately thought of my Lawn Fawn sets which included the houses and the road. I was going to add some trees behind the houses, but decided against it.

I used a base of the water colour card from Crafters Companion, and inked my sky and my grass. I added some water to the card to make the ink spread a little easier – I don’t have the patience to wait and wait and ink and ink. I found adding just a little water made the inks spread easier and faster. I used Tim Holtz distress inks – three blues, and three greens for the grass from Altenew. Both of those inks are an absolute pleasure to work with – whatever the crafting you are doing. They blend well, and are very forgiving. I splashed some water onto the background for a more mottle defect, but found the water colour card had a texture to it which I also liked, so left it possible to see that texture through the inks.

The houses were from Lawn fawn ‘Little Town Border’ and the road was a ‘Road Border’ lawn cut. This die has the middle holes cut into it, and I added some yellow card hind it from the accompanying die to create a more dimensional road with a middle line. Thinking on it now – why did I use yellow? Our middle lines are white…….oh well! Creative license!

The sentiment was stamped combining two sentiments from Altenew ‘Birch Land’ stamp set, curving it slightly as I didn’t want any straight lines. I inked that piece up with some distress inks, but in hindsight, I’m not sure it that works or not……

I added the water colour card to a green layer, then a white top folding base card.

 

 

 

Lotus layering

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On arriving home from work I thought I would have a little focused play with a set of layering dies. I have used them before, but decided to play a little more. The inspiration for this card came from another challenge – Make my Monday weekly craft challenge.  The challenge is to use at least three of the colours of the rainbow listed – red, orange, yellow, green, blue indigo, violet.

I decided to go with blue flowers, and only used two layers of the lotus stamps, along with green for the leaves. I wanted them to hang over the edge of the white card, as some flowers do seem to go wild (not lotus flowers, I know, but here is my creative license). I was wondering what to do with the other colours, as I didn’t want to create a lot to go with the flowers, and was considering stamping the sentiment in one of the other colours, then my eyes fell upon a little bee that I had stamped and coloured for another project. I thought the little bee could add the yellow, and add a little quirkiness to the card. Therefore, I have used blue, green and yellow. Hey presto. Sorted.

Then to decide what sentiment, in what colour. Should I try another of the colours? How do I tie it all in? Again – as I don’t really clear my crafting desk away completely (who does?) –  I saw this sentiment from the Altenew set of the same name. I decided to use it as the challenge had inspired me to create the card, and decided to stamp it in blue. The blue I used was actually a mix of two blues, both from Catherine pooler – Something Borrowed and Fiesta Blue. Each of them didn’t work alone, but when I inked with one, then the other it seemed to tie in quite nicely, I thought. Then a blue base card.

Compared to my previous couple of days crafting with mixed media, very little adrenaline, no fear, just all seemed to work.

 

Photo challenge

I have been having another play with layering stamps. Yet again. Trying to get my layers right, trying to get the colours right. Deciding if I want to use all the layers available, or only some of them. Do use black as an outline? Do I use a stronger toning colour? All the choices – which is probably why I struggle with them so much.

For this card, the inspiration was from another challenge blog. This one is called ‘Just Us Girls’ challenge 382. A photo challenge, with a gorgeous growth of red tulips, snow, and some green grass.

I decided to use my Altenew Lotus stamp set and matching die set. I used the die to cut some masking shapes so I could stamp the leaves as though they were coming out from under the flower. I only used two of the layers, when there are three for the two variations of the lotus, as I couldn’t match the reds so well with all three layers. The base colour is from Altenew ‘Red Cosmos’ collection, with the second deeper red is actually from Catherine Pooler inks – ‘Rocking Red’. Even though the flower isn’t a strong deep red, it certainly is stronger in real life than the photos depict.

The main flower I stamped and cut out separately, and layered it onto the small smaller flowers with 3D glue, inserting some of the leaves underneath it. I like the layered effect, though the card is still quite simple.

The sentiment is from another of my Altenew stamp sets, and I am certainly liking the painted effect these word stamps give, and I added a few sequins for some added effect, but did resist using my Spectrum sparkle pen this time!!

The card itself didn’t take long to make, but it did take me at least an hour to play with different colours, the different red inks I have, and having a search on YouTube and Pinterest – and I went my own way in the end. I get frustrated quite easily with layering stamps if I don’t manage to crack to code I mentioned on a previous blog post – and yet I carry on, and on, and on……

 

JUGS Blinkie

Adore you and smile

After a fairly decent day at work, I wanted to craft and play with some of my starry and shiny water colours.

Once again I have turned to the Altenew stamp set ‘I Adore you’ for a variation on a background. Again I stamped one image several times in Ranger Perfect Medium, and embossed the outline of the flowers with a copper embossing powder. I felt this particular flower had a lot of detail in it, and I liked the way it looked when stamped in different directions.

I also stamped some of the smaller flower/bud images in a couple of places where I felt it needed something extra, or there was too much white space. The flowers themselves I coloured in my Gansai Tambi starry colours to add some depth and sheen, using the white gold shade for  a lighter look which didn’t detract from the copper embossing on the flowers. I decided to change from colouring the background, and instead wanted the flowers themselves to be the centre of attention.

The sentiment is Altenew ‘Half Tone Smile’, stamped and embossed in copper, and cut out using the matching die, and added some sequins which seemed to match the colour tone, and one black jewel for the dot above the ‘i’.

I seem to be enjoying stamping and embossing at the moment, especially creating my own backgrounds, with a simple sentiment. Sometimes a card doesn’t have to say a lot to mean a lot. If you know what I mean.

I’ll be entering this card into the Simon Says Stamp Wednesday challenge, with a theme of Anything Goes.

Hunkydory Layering Flowers

I am a great fan of layering stamps, but it takes me a lot of time to think of which colours, and which tones to use with them. I try to search through You Tube and Pinterest, but my efforts never seem to be anywhere near as good as anyone else seems to be able to do. I use the same stamps, the same inks, try water colour card, try stamping card – never turns out brilliant – only ‘OK’. And yet I persevere…………or is that being obstinate? Pig headed? Stubborn? I think it’s that I will one day crack the code. Until that time, I use the images in a variety of different ways.

This card came from a Hunkydory stamp set a bought a few weeks ago. It’s called ‘Layering Flowers’. The set comprises of two different size of flowers, with three layers for each flower, along with some leaves, and ferns. A lovely set from the ‘For the love of…stamps’ range.

I started by stamping the smaller outline to cover most of the background, and instead of using all three layers for the flowers, I used a very light ink from Altenew, called Buttercream on the base layer only. My thought on this card was for a very simple card, not many layers, and only a hint of colour.

I then looked for ways to fill-in the white spaces, and looked for smaller shapes I could insert quite easily, and therefore turning to my Catherine Pooler sets. She has quite a few stamp sets, and many of them have a lot of smaller elements, ideal for filling spaces in with. I chose this little flower, and stamped it all over the white spaces in the same Buttercream shade. I didn’t want them to show up, really, but just wanted them to add something extra.

For an additional point of interest for the flowers – yes, you guessed it – I used my clear Spectrum sparkly pen. I ‘found’ them again, and now I can’t put them down! The sentiment was stamped onto a piece of white card, and then attached to the card base, and I also added a few small gems in a toning colour.

I like the apparent simplicity of this card, even though there is a lot of detail when it is broken down into the steps taken to make it, and may make a bunch of similar cards for Neurocare, as they have asked me recently for more everyday cards to sell.

 

Painted jellyfish colour challenge

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Another part of my delivery which included quite a few Altenew products. I particularly liked these jellyfish stamps, which come with the two dies. I was searching through the ‘Paper Playful‘ web site looking for a challenge to use this set. Paper Playful is a web site of the current challenges around, and whilst I may not always enter the challenges, they do give quite a few ideas and inspiration. I sometimes go off on my own little tangent, which means I can’t enter challenges as the rules are usually quite clear, but it does mean I get to play with my crafty goodies.

The challenge for this card came from the ‘Just add ink‘ challenge blog. The challenge is to use just the four colours listed – Mint Macaron, Pear Pizzazz, Perfect Plum, and Rose Red. These are all colours within the Stampin Up range. I have two of the colours in ink pads, and two of the colours are in my Stampin Up pens.

I used water colour card, wet it down fairly liberally, then added the Mint Macaron and Pear Pizzazz colours in a wash effect, creating a mellow background which I wanted to look like the sea. The jellyfish are several layers which you add on top of each other to create the effect, and using different colours works out quite nicely. (I know, I’m trying layering stamps again!!)

I stamped the outline of the two jellyfish on some normal white card, using my Perfect Plum pen, and then stamped the outline again in Rose Red for a deeper and more varied outline. The next couple of layers I used the two green colours, also mixing them up, and again mixing the red and plum together on one layer to get a deeper colour.

The overall effect is nothing like the colours listed in the challenge – but they are the only colours I used, despite them coming out different as I mixed them up a little.

I stamped some fronds/sea weed from another stamp set by Hero Arts – Layering Goldfish – in the plum colour, wanting it quite distressed looking, which I think I achieved. The sentiment is from the jellyfish stamp set. And yet again I used my Spectrum sparkle clear pen on the jellyfish – I may do a card with it it at some point……….and used green card as a card base.

I did think about adding some bubbles, or clear dots, or sequins – but I left it alone for a change.

 

Altenew ‘Amazing You’

I had a delivery yesterday day from ‘Seven Hills Crafts’ which included a lot of Altenew stamp and die sets. Immediately – which do I use first, how do I decide, what am I going to make…..? All those questions, and I found it very difficult to decide. I started by using Pinterest and YouTube to search for images, when I should have really gone straight to the Altenew web site. Really, I should have, would have saved me a load of time!

On the Altenew web site, they have challenges, and it made me decide, and answered all my questions. The February inspiration challenge is from a beautiful picture taken by the host Aga – lovely colours, bright and cheerful. There we have it – it certainly inspired me.

I started by using the ‘Amazing You’ stamp set, and stamped three of the flowers and stems onto a smooth white base. Once I had stamped them in black, I was also spoilt for choice on how to colour them. I knew I wanted to use the bright pink and the green – but which pens, or water colours, or inks to use…..?

Whilst I was looking round my craft room at all my choices, my eyes lit upon my Spectrum Sparkle pens – and a sparkle certainly lit in my eyes. Sparkly pink for the flowers, and sparkly green for the leaves. Sorted. Then, another conundrum. (Will these never end?) How do I decorate it? Which sentiment do I use? My goodness, I was again spoilt for choice.

I ended up using the sentiment which came from the stamp set, and I thought it was quite fitting. ‘Hello Beautiful’. Lovely. Then I decided to add more sparkle by splashing my pink Spectrum Noir sparkle pen at the picture, and added even more sparkle by splashing my clear sparkle pen at the picture.

The photograph which shows the sparkle is taken at an angle to try to show how really, really, sparkly these pens are, so forgive the amateur photography. I will be entering this card into the Altenew February challenge, as the picture inspired me so quickly, and Simon Says Stamp Wednesday challenge.

As I mentioned earlier, I have had quite a delivery today, so hopefully I can play to my heart’s content in the next few days. I hope you like what I come up with.

Thinking about you

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I finally managed to upload the cards I made yesterday so I could add them here. Seemed to take forever…..

These little notelets are from a pack I bought from a craft show near me recently. By using these packs, I don’t have to worry about making envelopes to fit them, and so they end up being quite cheap to make. I will be giving the set – I made 16 of them altogether – to the charity for them to sell.

They are generic, and can be used for all sorts of occasions, or even just because you can. The stamp set is from Stampin Up called ‘Avant Garden’, and it includes a few flowers, some leaves. This stamp set was free as part of an order I had made. I love that the stamping looks as though you have water coloured it, leaving the effect quite sketchy.

I didn’t use any layers – apart from the sentiment – and stamped straight onto the card base itself. The colours are from some Stampin Up inks I have, and the card in the top left corner has been stamped off, giving the effect of using two different colours.

I thought the sentiments were lovely. The ‘lift me up’ sentiment is from another Stampin Up set of the same name, and ‘you’re in my thoughts’ is from yet another stamp set.

I added a few sequins – because I could! No other particular reason, they just added something extra which I thought was missing.

I am really having fun creating my own backgrounds, and have a few stamp and die sets from a recent order from Stampin Up (Shell Bower being my local independent demonstrator) Shell has also hosted a couple of craft days for me and my friends. 6 of us getting together to make cards, a Christmas cracker, a box – loads of fun and laughter throughout the few hours she was with us. Even the none crafty people found it interesting to know what we did.

I have a few spare evenings this week, so I am planning a few more cards using my recent new purchases, and I look forward to sharing them with you.