Stamping

Happy Spring

Hello everyone. I was thrilled to be the random winner for the November – December challenge at Christmas (or not) Bingo, and as such, invited to be Guest design team member for an upcoming challenge.

The new bingo board for March 1st is:

I chose to follow column ‘O’ – Easter/Spring/free/foil or vellum with this card:

I first created the vellum panel, by using a Spellbinders embossing folder, and set to one side whilst I then created the main image.

This stamp and die set is from The Greetery, and is called ‘Spring Crest’. It is a layering stamp set and I chose light colours for the florals, a sage green for the greenery, with a light brown for some of the other accentes.

I also used the ‘Bitty Botanicals’ stamp, stencil and die set to create some small florals to use at the bottom of the frame.

The first step was to add the frame to the vellum, then tuck the separate bitty floral in place. This way, I knew what I could add to the back of this arrangement to be able to stick the vellum down onto a white card base. The vellum is not, therefore, stuck down completely, only at the back of the arrangement on the front.

The final step was to stamp and die cut the sentiment – also adding more glue on the back of vellum behind the sentiment.

So quite a soft and ethereal make for me – obviously inspired by the Spring theme.

I hope you can visit the challenge and have a go at joining, the Bingo board is such a novel idea, and there are so many different ways of playing. The challenge runs from March 1st and finishes 15th April. xx

I shall be entering the following challenges:

Ellibelle’s Garden Party – anything in of from the garden

Sending Sunshine

Hello everyone. It;s been a fairly busy week, but I have time to create another CAS card:

For this card I used a stamp set from an SCT ‘Let’s Stamp Together‘ kit, I believe is from Taylored Expressions.

I first took a white panel and stamped the sun image, then stamped again onto some masking paper, cut it out, stuck it down on top of the stamped image, then stamped the rainbow image on top.

Once the sun mask was removed, the sun covers the cloud on the other end of the rainbow and looks like one image.

Once both images were stamped in dark brown amalgam, I heat embossed with clear, as I wanted to colour straight away, and didn’t want to wait until the ink dried. Even when I dry the ink with my heat gun, I find alcohol markers sometimes still smudge and smear the outline.

I chose to colour with Copics, adding a little shading, then stamped the sentiment, cut down the white panel slightly and adhered to a white card base.

Even though it is CAS, I don’t like that Copics will show through a card base if coloured directly onto it.

I hope I will have more time to craft these next few days, and so you may see more of my cards coming up. xx

I shall be entering the following challenges:

Addicted To Stamps & More – make your mark

Addicted to CAS – CAS – theme of weather

I’m A Lucky Duck

Hello and welcome. Cardz 4 Galz has started anew challenge, this time the host is Helen, and she has chosen the theme of:

Wings – butterflies, fairies, dragons etc

Here is my card:

For this card, I created my own background panel using techniques learnt from a Jenn Shurkus virtual event and Distress water-colour pencils. I loved this particular technique, and made several panels with different colours.

The technique consists of using a wet small brush, taking colour from the Distress pencil, then just scribbling a patchwork of colour down onto a panel….that’s it……

After the panel was dry, I spritzed with the dirty water from my little water pot thingy (I know – but as per Jenn Shurkus – it works well!!), then added a stamp of musical notes to the top – no idea why I chose that stamp – and you also use a wet distress pencil to colour the stamp – then stamp it. It gives a faint and blurry image.

This was drying to one side, and I die cut the ducks from a Simon says Stamp set, layering them together and adding small black gems for their eyes.

The sentiment was stamped and die cut using s trip die – I think it is two sentiments I stamped to make one – but I can’t find the second half of the sentiment now – this first half is definitely Lawn Fawn.

The panel was adhered to a white card base, th3e sentiment and ducks arranged as you see.

I hope you can come and join us with your creations following our ‘wings’ theme. xx

I shall be entering the following challenges:

Critter Crazy Challenge – anything goes with a critter

Crafty Animals – anything goes with an animal

Lil Patch Of Crafty Friends – anything goes

Addicted To Stamps & More – make your mark

Bunny Hugs & Kisses

Hello everyone. It is my turn to host at Cardz 4 Galz, and I have chosen the theme of:

Hugs & Kisses

Here is my card:

I first created the little bunny using a die set from The Greetery, which also included the little flower it is holding.

The florals to either side are a layering stamp and die set – also from The Greetery, and created using Pinkfresh Studio inks.

The background was created die cutting a panel out of white card stock using a cover plate die – I think from Pinkfresh Studio – then attaching that to a white card base.

The bunny and the florals were then added with thin 3D foam pieces.

The sentiment is from Heffy Doodle.

The final touch was to add some black gems as the eye for the bunny, and three more as you see.

I hope you can come and join us with your creations following our theme. xx

I shall be entering the following challenges:

Inkspirational – hugs & kisses

Critter Crazy – anything goes with a critter

Crafty Animals – anything goes with an animal

A Cut Above – anything goes with a die cut

T is for Texture

Hello once again. It is my turn to host the new challenge at The Alphabet Challenge. Having reached the letter ‘T’, I chose the them of:

T is for Texture

Here is my card:

For this card I chose to add texture by using an embossing folder and many layers.

The main floral image is from The Greetery, a layering stamp of a carnation, then die cut with the matching die.

The oval layers are also from The Greetery, and I stacked three of the layers on top of each other for dimension with the pattern adding more texture, stamping the words on the top layer.

The panel in the background was created using an embossing folder from Spellbinders.

The back layer was glued flat to the card base, then each of the oval layers added on top, the uppermost payer with thin 3D foam, then the floral image also added with more thin 3D foam pieces.

I hope you can come and join us with your creations featuring some form of texture. xx

I shall be entering the following challenges:

Crafts Galore – anything goes

Triple B – birds and/or butterflies and/or blooms

Lil Patch Of Crafty Friends – anything goes

Ellibelle’s Garden Party – anything in or from the garden

Beautiful Blossoms – anything goes with florals/flowers

Winter Cabin

Hello again. Here is a card I created using dies from the Concord & 9th ‘Winter Retreat’:

The cabins, mountains and clouds were die cut and assembled, then put to one side whilst I thought about the layout and what kind of scene I wanted to create.

I decided to go with a winter scene, with clear blue skies, so I cut the blue card and attached the clouds flat, then took some white glitter card for the ground.

I added some champagne glitter card for the tops of the mountains so they would look a little different to the snow on the ground.

The layers were all added, attaching the cabins and mountains as you see, before stamping and adding the sentiment.

I shall be entering the following challenges:

If You Give A Crafter A Cookie – inspiration cookies – cabin in the woods in winter

Crafts Galore – anything goes

Merry & Bright

Hello and welcome to the first challenge of the year at ABC Christmas Challenge. Helen is hosting, and for the letters ‘A’ & ‘B’, we have the Christmas themes of A is for Anything goes, and B is for Bright. Here is my card following the theme of ‘Bright’:

I created this card using this inlay die of Christmas trees, die cutting the whole panel in white, then used strips of coloured card stock to die cut the trees.

The white layer was then added to a piece of card with a piece of double-sided sticky sheet – leaving the opening for the trees sticky – then each tree inlaid.

The sentiment was stamped then die cut with the matching die and attached as you see.

I hope you can come and join us with your Christmas creations following one or both of our themes.

I shall be entering the following challenges:

12 Months of Christmas Link-Up – Christmas anything goes, option of snow people not taken

Merry Little Christmas Challenge – anything goes Christmas

Tulip Birthday

I have a card to share inspired by the current challenge at Festive Friday. When I saw their them was National Tulip Day, and aw the list to choose three items from the list, I remembered I had this die and stencil set from Waffle Flower that I have never used – time to play:

The first step was to die cut the panel, and then ink blend using the matching stencil set. I chose to use orange and yellow for the flowers, two colours from the provided list, but then I also added a backing piece of red paper which you can see behind the die cut panel.

Once all attached to a card base, I stamped and die cut the birthday sentiment – another item from the list – and adhered as you see.

I wanted the sentiment to be quite bold, which is why I chose black, so I also added some black enamel dots.

Quite a bright and cheery card to help get over this snow hump we are having in the UK at the moment. xx

I shall be entering the following challenges:

Festive Friday – at least three items from inspiration list – orange, yellow, red, birthday, tulips,

Lil Patch Of Crafty Friends – anything goes

CAS Baubles

Hello. I am venturing into the CAS realm again with this card:

For the image on this card, I ink blended the whole of the Waffle Flower Christmas Collage stencil, then chose this one image for this card. The other images will be used on another card.

I first took a A2 card base, and used Clarity Crafts embedders to create the impression. I have a DT friend who is on the Design Team for Clarity Crafts, and she does some fabulous CAS cards – you might want to check our her blog here. Anyway, she uses the embedders and has given hints and tips – which I try to follow – and this time I think it worked….

After using the embedder, I stamped the sentiment, then attached the image with glue.

I find it hard not to add plenty of things and not add dimension -but I will persevere with the CAS look sometimes – just for fun…

I shall be entering the following challenges:

Mix It Up – anything goes – option of CAS taken

Festive Friday – at least 3 items from the list – red, green, white, Christmas sentiment

Simply CAS – anything goes CAS – option to use reds and greens taken

Black & White Christmas

Hello again. The ABC Christmas Challenge has reached the end of the alphabet, and therefore this challenge is for the letters ‘Y’ and ‘Z’. The Christmas themes for these letters are:

Y is for Yummy (food) and Z is for Zebra (black & white or stripes)

Here is my card:

I obviously followed the black and white Christmas theme, creating what I think is quite a dramatic card.

I took an A2 panel and stamped some Gina K Designs snowflakes on a random pattern all over it, then cut it down slightly and matting with a piece of black card to create the edge.

The black banner/label for the centre is from The Greetery, and the die cuts out this filigree frame – but I decided I wanted all the details of the frame to stay in place, so I placed them all back in and applied some double sided tape to the back – keeping them secure.

The sentiment was stamped, then die cut with the matching die.