Distress oxides

X is for ‘XOXOXO’

Hello once again. The Alphabet Challenge has reached the letter ‘X’, Dawn is hosting, and we want to see your ‘XOXOXO – Hugs and Kisses’ cards. Here is my card:

Onto a Distress white heavy-stock panel I ink blended some pink Distress Oxides – I find I can blend them better than the inks – then splattered with metallic acrylic paints in gold and silver.

I took another white panel and ran through through s Spellbinders embossing folder, adhered it to a card base.

Once the ink blended and splattered panel was dry, I used a Time For Tea designs ‘Stitched Hearts’ cover die – I think you can just make out the stitched hearts around the pink edges – and also used inner rectangle to cut out the middle.

Out of that pink cut-out piece, I die cut two hearts and added them to the card as you see, and also cut out the x’s and the o’s, after putting the strip onto double-sided sticky tape, then adding them to another white strip – trying very hard to keep them aligned……

I hope you can come and join us. I’m looking forward to your take on the theme. xx

I shall be entering the following challenges:

Inspiration Station – photo inspiration – inspired by love and hearts

Here is a place to start – anything goes – option to pick a palette not taken

Lil Patch of Crafty Friends – anything goes

Crafty Gals Corner – add a heart

Papercraft Challenge – hearts

CAS – Circles

Hello there. I was lucky enough to be chosen as the winner for AAA Cards Challenge in January 2023 with this card here – and so was invited to be Guest Designer for an upcoming challenge. I accepted of course……

The theme is ‘Circles’, and it must be CAS. Here is my card:

This is the third card I made – the theme was a real struggle for me. I went through the CML app and searched ‘circle’, looked through what came up, and came across this stamp set from Uniko which I haven’t used in absolutely ages…..

Onto a white card base, I first stamped the sentiment – a CAS sentiment – then took my newly delivered ‘Lost Shadow’ Distress Oxide ink, and my ‘Salvaged Patina’ Distress Oxide ink, and stamped what you see here. I used two of the smaller stamps in the Uniko set, and I did use my Misti when stamping.

Even though Distress Oxides stamp better than the inks – I still feel a second or even a third stamping gets a better impression.

I am loving the ‘distressed’ look of the stamps, and when I first stamped them I thought they were faulty – but no – just the way they are.

The teal and grey are also a good match for each other.

I hope you can come and join in the AAA card challenge with ‘CAS and Circles’ as the theme – I hope to see you in the gallery over there. xx

I shall be entering the following challenges:

Krafty Chicks – CAS

Crafty Catz – anything goes – option black, grey and one colour – black, grey, teal

Cardz 4 Galz – Halloween or Halloween Colours

Hello once again. Cardz 4 Galz has started a new challenge, and Pamela has chosen the theme of ‘Halloween or Halloween Colours‘. I don’t celebrate or doing anything with Halloween, so I chose the Halloween colours of purple, black and orange:

I used a technique learnt from Gina K during some virtual events over the past couple of years.

Onto a white card panel, I ink blended orange and purple Distress Oxides – a smoother blend in my opinion. I have taken to ink blending quite a lot recently – and I think the ink and the card stock are what makes the results worth doing – learning by previous mistakes!

I then stamped the silhouette image in black. Once dry, I splattered some Lawn Fawn shimmer and let that dry too.

I die cut this blended panel, a white panel, and also a black panel with some nesting circles, and stuck them all together.

On another piece of white card I dry embossed using an old – very old – Sue Wilson embossing folder, and adhered that to a card panel, adding the circles with 3D foam.

The sentiment was created with a die cut, and then the ‘birthday‘ white heat embossed onto black card.

I added some silver gems for some extra interest, and thought they would tie-in with the splatters.

I hope you can come and join us with your ‘Halloween – or Hall ween colours’. xx

I shall be entering the following challenges:

MMM Challenge – birthday wishes

A Perfect Time To Craft – anything goes

AAA Birthday – birthday and favourite technique (ink blending)

Give a Crafter a Cookie – Halloween inspiration photo – using the colours

Let’s Have A Brew

I’d like to share a card using some new products from Time For Tea Designs here in the UK:

I die cut the scalloped slimline using Mama Elephant dies, and used the white inner to create a cloudy background and grassy base using a Simon Says Stamp stencil. The stencil comes with a flower part too – but I just ink blended the grassy part. I ink blended the clouds darker at the top, and lighter towards the grass.

I then stamped the images, coloured with Copics, and used the matching dies to cut them out – some white gel pen to add interest to the cup.

The sentiment is from the same stamp set,. but I cut it out using a speech bubble die – I think that’s Mama Elephant too but not sure.

The scallop and cloudy piece were stuck down with glue, the panda, the sugar cubes, and the speech bubble were raised with 3D foam.

I found some little sticky hearts in my stash which matched the green and blue, and also attached some small silver gems with them.

I shall be entering the following challenges:

Color Throwdown – yellow, green, aqua, Kraft

Cut It Up Challenge – summer themed – include a die cut

Crafty Animals – anything goes with an animal

Colour Crazy Challenge – week 28 – anything goes with colouring

Here Is A Place To Start – anything goes – option of balloons and flowers not take

TTCRD – anything goes

Birthday Bloom

Having recently received a new die set from Altenew, I decided to play with it:

I die cut all the layers for the flower out of previously made Distress Ink smooshing pieces of card. The leaves were die cut from a panel I had created during a virtual mixed media class with Seth Apter, and I’ve been waiting for a time to be able to use that piece – lots of inks, even glitter paint, and texture paste which I think shows up on the second photo.

If I remember rightly, we also did a lot of scoring and scratching into that panel, used a few of his inks and pastes – and it created an overall shiny piece of card.

Onto a white card base I stuck down a panel embossed using a Spellbinders embossing folder recently received as part of the Maker Mania 5 weekend.

I then splattered Distress Oxide sprays onto it to match the colours of the flower.

I stuck together all the layers of the flower and leaves and created the spray as you see.

The sentiment is from an older MFT stamp set. As I had stamped the sentiment in black, I added some black enamel dots to the background to bring it all together.

I shall be entering the following challenges:

Tuesday Taggers – add some texture

Everybody Art Challenge – birthday

Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge – add a die cut

My Time To Craft – embossing – wet or dry

We Love 2 Create – anything goes mixed media

Creative Artiste Mixed Media – anything goes mixed media

You Are The Best

I have managed to play in my craft room today – trying to ignore all the battering winds and rain.

I’m currently loving using Pinkfresh Studios sets – the stamp, stencils, and die sets are so much fun to use. I decided to use a new set to me to create this card:

I started by stamping the image, then used the layering stencils to colour. Even though there are three layers for the flowers, I only used two Distress Oxide colours – but the lightest one I used for two of the layers so it appears darker on the second layer, then a dark blue for the third layer.

I decided I wanted the leaves brown, so I used Vintage Photo (I think!) again for both the layers, so the second layer gives a darker tone.

I then die cut the branch and turned to the card base.

The embossed layer is using a Simon Says Stamp 3D embossing folder, and cut down to smaller than the card base, and adhered using 3D foam.

I then stuck down the branch with some smaller pieces of 3D foam, stamped the sentiment and did the same.

For the colours at Color Throwdown I had to use a darker green, so after thinking about more leaves, stamping the sentiment in green (I really didn’t like that idea) or Nuvo drops, I actually found these green gems in my stash, and placed them as you see – 3 larger and 3 smaller.

I shall be entering the following challenges:

Color Throwdown – light blue, dark blue, forest green, brown

Can You Handle The Pressure – embossing folder – option to use pink (not taken)

Allsorts Challenge – I love……? (layering stencils currently!)

Creative Fingers Challenge – anything goes

Happy Everything…..

Hello – some fabulous crafty time this past couple of days. I have created a card for a few challenges:

I’ve been playing with some layering stencils recently, and this stencil from Pinkfresh Studio caught my eye as I loved the tumbling leaves, and that the flowers you create are all cut individually using the matching die, so you can out them wherever you want to.

The stencil is slimline size – as is the die and stamp set. Once I had stamped the outline, I used the colours from the current challenge at Color Throwdown to create some pink tumbling leaves at the top, but used green for the leaves around each of the flowers. The Altenew ink sets are perfect for layering colours.

Once I had die cut them, I just played around with placement, making sure I left space at the bottom for the sentiment.

The background stencil piece is from my stash – a previous crafty playtime using an Altenew stencil and a gold shimmer paste. I still have a few pieces left from creating that day so you will be seeing that in the future.

The sentiment is from Time For Tea Designs, which comes with matching dies. The word ‘Happy’ was stamped using a pink and purple Distress Oxide, and multiple stamping to create a two-tone word.

I shall be entering the following challenges:

QKR Stampede – anything goes

Color Throwdown Challenge – pink, purple, green

Addicted To Stamps – Make Your Mark

Crafty Catz – anything goes – option flowers

Time Out Challenge – inspired by the quote –

Mix It Up Challenge – anything goes – option foiling (option not taken)

N for No Layers

At The Alphabet Challenge we have reached the letter ‘N’, and Veronika has chosen the theme of ‘No Layers’. None. Zilch, Zip. Nada………

Here is my card:

I have taken a liking to stencils, particularly layering stencils. I struggle with them – I usually get some black ink on the layers somewhere – whether or not I’ve used black ink. Goodness knows where it comes from. And usually one of the colours I use ends up in the wrong place – handy for sequin placement – but this time I couldn’t use one due to being one layer.

I recently attended another virtual crafting weekend, and one of those classes was using a layering stencil, but also masking parts of that stencil to use different colours…..so I thought I’d try with this one from Simon Says Stamp.

I also decided I like to use Distress inks for smaller openings, and Distress Oxides for larger areas.

This particular stencil involved quite a bit of masking to get the different colours on the leaves and petals -those small sticky note arrow thingies work well for that – and small blender brushes too.

Hopefully you can join us in our new challenge – no layers. I look forward to seeing your creations. xx

I shall be entering the following challenges:

The Sisterhood Of Crafters – stencils

Addicted to Stamps and More – die cuts and/or stencils

Stamplorations October stencil challenge – anything goes with a stencil

S for Stencil, T for Two

Hello. The ABC Christmas Challenge has reached the letters ‘S’ and ‘T’. Our prompts for these letters are S for Stencil, and T for Two. As long as they are Christmas creations and follow our theme, then you’re good. Here are my cards:

The first card is using several stencils actually. It didn’t start out that way, but that’s how it went. The central poinsettia image and the background image are stencils from Uniko. It involved a lot of masking – a lot! I also used a Hero Arts alignment stencil for part of the masking process too.

I first used the alignment tool to make the square on the card base, then added the poinsettia stencil. then masked around it, then used Distress Oxide to create the purple flower in the centre.

Some change of the masking, I then did the green – but when I finished the card I didn’t like the green – which is why there is a frame around the flower…..

All sorts of masking, using itty bitty pieces of post-it notes as these gave me the angles and the movement I needed. In the end I also stenciled the background, using the little square mask from the Hero Arts stencil set – and even more post-it notes for the bottom edge.

As I didn’t like the green, I created a frame using some stitched square dies, then ink blended the same pink oxide so it matched.

The second card has an ink blended background, splattered with water, then when it was dry I stamped the Hero Arts ‘Winter Swirls’ background stamp with white pigment ink.

The snowmen are from Hero Arts also – coloured with Copics, some white detail for the scarves, and placed as if they were in a blizzard……..

I hope you can come and join us for our Christmas themes this time round – I hope to see you in our gallery. xx

I shall be entering the following challenges:

Snowman card:

Creative Fingers Challenge – anything goes

Jingle Belles Rock – photo inspiration

Crafty Hazelnuts Christmas Challenge – anything goes Christmas

Krafty Chicks Challenge – occasions

Poinsettia card:

52 CCT – Christmas and stencils

Christmas Craft Creations – Christmas and non-traditional colours

Winners - please take this to share on your blog

Color Throwdown – Winter Scene

Hi guys. I am lucky enough to have been randomly chosen featured stamper for a recent Color Throwdown Challenge, and so once again I am Guest Star Stamper for the new challenge.

Here are the colours for this week:

And here is my interpretation of those colours:

I started by ink blending two shades of blue Distress Oxides onto a piece of Bristol Smooth card stock. This card is a new purchase for me, and I can certainly see why this is a favourite for ink blending – I am sure I will use this again and again.

Once blended, I die cut the Forest Backdrop in Concord & 9th ‘Dove’ card stock, as well as die cutting all the other elements in that same colour – with some white for the house roof, the underneath of the trees and the moon.

I stuck down the backdrop, then added all the elements, with either foam squares or directly with glue, and then added some glitter oen to all the white areas.

I also added some of the stars in grey and white for the sky – adding the glitter pen to them all.

The moon is actually two die cuts placed together to create a shadow effect. I did contemplate shading the die cuts with a Copic marker, but I struggle with that – unlike Nichol Spohr – but I will keep practising – just not with this card….

I enjoyed the challenge of using these colours to create a card, and I hope you can join the team this time round. xx

I shall also be entering the following challenges:

Crafty Hazelnuts Christmas Challenge – anything goes Christmas

Lil Patch of Crafty Friends – anything goes

Crafting Happiness Challenge – anything goes

Time Out Challenge – coloured card base

Jingle Belles Rock – photo Inspiration