Let's Get Messy

Hello everyone, I hope you are well, I am so looking forward

to the clocks going forward next week. 

Today we begin a new challenge at Cardz 4 Guyz - 

chosen by Caz (me) - #216 Let's Get Messy.

Please pop over to the blog to see the few details. You also

need to see the fabulous inspiration by the design team.

I love making a mess,  all the stamps are from several

sets by Sheena Douglass in the Just For Men series - from

Crafter's Companion

Distress Inks Abandoned Coral and Fossilized Amber.

I hope you like my messy card.  I'm still a rock chick at heart!!

Autumn/Fall Leaves

Hello again, thanks for your visit, I love comments.

Today we begin a new two weekly challenge at 

Cardz 4 Guyz

Sue has chosen for us a very apt topic

Autumn/ Fall Leaves

Please pop over to the blog to see what the design team have

been up to and to check for the details. 

I coloured a piece of card by blending many autumnal colours.

When dry, I stamped various leaves and some acorns onto the

coloured sheet. They were then fussy cut.

I blended a corner and the edges of a 6" sq card. with

autumnal colours.

The fussy cut leaves were then arranged and glued to one 

corner. The sentiment is by Stamps by Me. 

The leaves are by Sheena Douglass.

Stitching Real or Faux

Hi Today sees the start of a two week challenge over at 

My Time To Craft (MTTC).

The challenge, chosen by Jo is 

Stitching - Real or Faux

Please check out the creations by the Design Team.

I, obviously have gone for Faux stitching, I have such 

problems these days with real stitching, which was once a great 

joy for me, so I have hand drawn all my stitches on this card. 

The two main corsets are from Creative Expressions  - 

Vintage Lingerie.

Other embellishments include stamps by Crafty Individuals and

Debbie Moore Shabby Chic Haberdashery CD.

All papers are leftovers in my stash.

Have fun in your crafting. 

E is for Embossing Folder

hi, welcome to my blog, thanks for yoru visit.

Today we begin a new challenge at Alphabet Challenges

for the letter E - Embossing Folder. 

No explanation needed, simply use an Embossing Folder, 

any style, any purpose, anything you choose.

 Please pop and take a peek at the gallery from the DT. 

I used black card, with an Embossing Folder from Sheena Douglass.

I gently rubbed on Metallic Gold Wax over the proud embossed areas.

Matted onto gold mirri card then onto a black folded card. 

Thinking of you is from my old stash.

I hope you enjoy the challenage. Stay walm and well. 

April Showers and Birthday Prize

Hi everyone, today starts a new challenge at Ruby's Rainbow

April Showers

Well,  at home yesterday we certainly had showers, of every description.

We had rain, hailstones and snow - all in one day, on and off, and it was so cold.

I am hoping all of my readers are in fairer and warmer weather today,

Back to the April Showers, please do pop over to the blog to check the details, 

and of course to see the wonderful inspiration from the DT. 

My card was  blended with a few of TH blue toned D. Inks. 

Stamped with a large sentiment stamp, with raindrops and umberellas

from Sheena Douglass. The girl in the raincoat is from a set of 

Stick Girls from Debbie Moore an old favourite of mine. 

**************

Two weeks ago was the 5th Birthday of Ruby's Rainbow,

Along with the blog and several of the Design Team we individually had

a prize to draw. Sadly whilst I had several comments on my blog, as was required, 

none are eligible to win the prize I have on offer.

I am so sorry for I would have been so happy to send this prize to a winner. 

A is for Apples

Here we are at Alphabet Challenges beginning another trip through the alphabet, with the letter A - , didn't we all learn our ABC beginning with A is for Apple?  This being the  fifth turn of the alphabet I was surprised to read this is the first time we have gone for A is for Apple. For my main image, the apples, I went back to an early stamp from Creative Expressions, drawn by Sheena Douglass. The script stamp  is from a See D set of Oriental flowers. The hessian butterfly is from Poundland. I coloured the background with Disress inks. The apples were coloured with Promarkers. 

Technique Time Tuesday

Caught in Crystal

I love to pop into Mynette's challenge blog Technique Time Tuesday , I am interested in learning new techniques whenever possible, however, for this particular challenge I have made cards using this wonderful technique before, so had to have another go to enter into the challenge. It is one of my favourite techniques and one the ladies of my class always enjoy, because until your project has dried and you turn it over, if you can be patient enough to wait, you never know what it is going to be like - it's always a surprise. 

White and black card stock

Acetate

Stazon ink

D - Dragonfly Botanical stamp from The Stampman

Purple mesh and lilac grosgrain ribbon, 3 purple gems and four brads

Tumble Glass, Dusty Concorde and Peeled Paint DI

A secret ingredient  - not Glossy Accents - see
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FaAi_cxKMH0
Hope you enjoy the video Mynn - thanks for giving me this technique to play with - love it!

Addicted to Stamps # 6

Addicted to Stamps and More are for this week challenging you to be Addicted to STAMPS # 6. Please do pop over to the blog for more inspiration from the amazing design team and for more information. For my DT project I used a technique called - Caught In Crystal - it's an old stamping technique but with a modern twist, as seen on this You Tube video presented by Sheena Douglass.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FaAi_cxKMH0   I stamped onto heat resistant acetate with Black Stazon using Indigo Blu stamps, I also used H2Os . The floor polish worked a treat, the results close up are very satisfying. I do encourage you to try this technique I'm sure you'll have fun. 

 We are pleased to be sponsored this week by 

Addicted to Stamps & More - Theme Challenge

I hope everyone have had a super Christmas, that Santa was kind to you and maybe you have some new crafty bits your longing to play with. We at Addicted to Stamps and More have had a super break, I wish all my visitors a very happy New year. It is now time to get back to crafting and challenging, thank goodness, for I do enjoy these challenges and to visit your blogs, glad to get back to normal. 

We are starting 2013 with our Theme Challenge, amazing how quickly time goes this is # 5 - Nature, such a broad subject, we are bound to get a wide variety of entries. We are thrilled that we are being sponsored by

http://www.bugaboostamps.com/

My card is my version of a beautiful card which was featured in a recent Craft Stamper magazine. I coloured the main white card and randomly stamped the swirls . Distressed further a piece of corrugated card. coloured white card with TH Distress inks Mustard Seed, Spiced Marmalade and Wild Honey, distressed the edges. Stamped bees from a Sheena Douglass stamp set, a background stamp with small swirls, the main 

image of the plant is from Indigo Blu stamps. Tied with a piece of twine and a button. 

Some of the design team have used Bugaboo Digi Stamps, others have used a varied collection of sources.

Have fun, I look forward once again to paying you a visit over the next week. 

Fat Pages - December

Since October 2011 I have been hosting a Fat Pages Swap on the ATC Forum on Do Crafts Website. Sadly the regular numbers over the time is starting to dwindle. So I have decided to open up the swap, however if your aren't already a member of Do Crafts you don't need to be. If you wish to join in then all you need to do is follow the rules, I will add a page above, and post to me before the closing date. 

The participants in turn get to choose a monthly theme, our next few themes are 

January Words and Music, February - Butterflies and march is childhood Memories.

The above are pics of my December swap - Christmas Fairies.

TH Distress Inks Broken China and Chipped Sapphire, Sheena Douglass- Pinescape stamps and Fairy stamps. Silver red and green glitter, applied with a Quickie glue pen. 

What are Fat Pages? See above on the Pages list. I would be thrilled to welcome some new participants. 

Oh! Christmas Tree

Not many more card making days left before the Big Day. We at CD Sunday Challenges would like you to create something with a Christmas Tree. We are thrilled this week to be sponsored by the

THE ART OF CRAFT

who will provide the winner with a £10.00 voucher to spend in the on-line shop.

So ladies, don't miss this opportunity of being in with a chance of winning yourself an extra craft delight.

Once again the team have excelled in providing us with lots of super inspiration. Here is my card.

I made an 8" x 8" card,  with a relative in mind. The lowest backing paper is from a LOTV Frosty Christmas Paper Pad.  The white card has been embossed with snowflakes. The main image is from Christmas Scenes by Maria G Designs. I was so lucky many years ago to get a number of these from E Bay, which all consist of copyright free images.  The added Merry Christmas sentiment and the snowflakes  were embossed with silver Bells Wow! EP

Snowflakes from Sheena Douglass  - Ornate Snowflakes 

Merry Christmas Sentiment - Katy Sue (Flowersoft)
Also entering into Try It On Tuesdays for Christmas Sparkle.

Make My Monday - Vellum

At Make My Monday during November we are asking you to continue the theme of AUTUMN - To use up your bits of stash and for this week, we would like to see some VELLUM.  Please pop over to our blog to see some wonderful examples from the Design Team and to check out our few but essential rules.  For my card I first created a coloured background with TH Distress inks . I then dried it,  sprayed with water to get the diffused effect. Enlarge the pic and you will see all of the technique close up. I then sprayed with 3 mica sprays, Cosmic Shimmer Golden Fish, Desert Moon Spray - Horny Toad Teal and Sprinky's - Antique. Dried it all again. I stamped with Black Memento the ferns and grasses along with the seeded plant (?) from Indigo Blu. I stamped Sheena Douglass butterflies onto Vellum, then stamped again with a very small scroll stamp from La Blanche to provide a pattern. The sentiment is from Lyndsay Mason's tattered Butterfly set. Who says you can't mix up your stamps, for me it's remembering where to return them  to after I have finished with them. Not many seem to be enjoying this month's theme, I suppose it's because we are all making Christmas cards, I do look forward to those who have have made the effort to join us once again.

Less Is More - Houses

(2nd. Post today)

It's been a while since I had the time to enter into the wonderful CAS blog Less Is More. Congratulations to Mandi and many good luck wishes on your new venture of entering into the retail world. Welcome to Chrissie's new helper, Jen, I am sure you will have great fun working alongside Chrissie during Mandi's sabbatical.  This week the theme is Houses - and it is One Layer Week, I actually prefer the one layer week, a case of stamp it and colour it. The houses and toadstools on each end are from Lavinia Stamps and the fairy is from Sheena Douglass Hidden Fairies set. The greeting is from a Hobby Art Greeting set.  All coloured with Promarkers with the obligatory glitter for fairyland.

Kraft and Twine @ MMM

Another month, another theme, with four weeks of  challenges to look forward to, at
MAKE MY MONDAY.  These were all chosen by our lovely Suzanne B when she was still on the Design Team, but due to other commitments is no longer with us. We all still miss her. The Theme for the month is AUTUMN - FALL,  no great surprise you may think, but for the coming weeks a few surprises are ahead. For our first week the topic challenge is

 KRAFT CARD and TWINE. 

Here is my card. 

I stamped leaves on my Kraft card and rubbed around the edges with Pumice Stone and Black Soot Distress Inks. Tied with a piece of garden twine. To complete the rustic look, I coloured a piece of torn card from a box, which had been stripped of it's cover to show the corrugated area. I then stamped 3 leaves from the Autumn leaves stamp set from Sheena Douglass. I used several DI direct to the stamps. Cut them out and placed onto the corrugated card. The sentiment is from the same stamp set. I look forward to visiting you to see your creations for our Autumn (Fall) - KRAFT & TWINE. Have fun everyone. 

It's Bingo Time

Hello and once again it's time for a Bingo challenge at Addicted to Stamps and More. Here is your card

Bingo # 4

and here is the card I made

the line I chose is Orange - Black and Dies.

I used 3 colours of TH Distress Inks to colour the background of the card, Dried Marigold, Wild Honey and Spiced Marmalade. Two label dies for the stamped sentiment from an Indigo Blu stamp set. The swirls and dragonfly are from Sheena Douglass - Flying Colours. I stamped the dragonfly with Versamark and used Black Twinkle WOW! embossing powder. I again stamped the wings to add a second layer, coloured the dragonfly with 3 Promarkers, Peach, Honeycomb and Burnt Orange.  I look forward to visiting you to see which bingo line you have chosen and how you have interpreted it. Most importantly have fun and yes, if you can experiment, it can be even more fun.

Wimbledon Dessert

Of course your right, what else could it be but Strawberries (Red/Dark Pink), Cream and of course mustn't forget the lawns (Green). We, at Make My Monday, are having a colour challenge, during our June Events, this week it is for Wimbledon and the delicious dessert colours, delicious if your not allergic to them.

RED, CREAM or White and GREEN

Here is my card, just to show how much I love poppies, I have two cards in a row on my blog using poppies, sorry, I didn't realise this would happen, but if you love poppies I'm sure you won't mind. I first stamped the poppies stamp twice -from Sheena Douglas Poppies and Daisies set. I then coloured the remainder of the card with DI Peeled Paint, around the edges a little of Shabby Shutters.  I dried the ink then splattered water over it, leaving it for a short while for the colour to disperse,  dried again with my heat gun. Stamped the sentiment which is from the same set. I coloured in the poppies with Promarkers. Added a shrivelled cream bow and a red button to embellish the card. I edged it with a thick black marker rather than mount onto black card. I am really looking forward to visiting you this next week, I apologise for not being able to visit as many this past week but, I am hoping to put that right this week.

Doodling Away - Zentangles

This card, for a change, isn't for a blog challenge, I have been a member of a Yahoo swapping cards group for many years and this card is the last in our ABC of cards over the past two years, -Z for Zentangles. I've only done this once before, check it out on my labels list. I started out using a pear stamp designed by Sheena Douglass for Creative Expressions, then the doodling began. I even added a little butterfly for fun and a border. i do hope my partner likes this card which I  will be posting tomorrow.

More detail here or click for a close 

I have decided to add this to the Charisma Cardz Challenge for the Masking Technique, I did mask the standing pear to stamp the lying down pear. Hope it is acceptable.

Make It A Guy Thing

For the next two weeks, at Fashionable Stamping Challenges, we would like to see a project for a guy. It could be a Valentine card, or any other card or project for a guy in mind. Our sponsor Cottage Crafts is now offering the overall winner a chance to choose their own prize to a limit of 7euros. Please pop over and take a look at the amazing catwalk.  The Fashionettes have again produced some amazing pieces for your pleasure. My husband adores the great outdoors, he is a keen bird watcher, so the type of card I usually make for him is of the countryside. This card is not only using Sheena Douglass's stamps but is similar to one she recently made on C&C TV.  The stamps are the Faith set in the Sketchy series. I used TH Distress inks to add all of the colour, by blending, directly stamping and as a watercolour. I look forward to visiting your blog to see your projects for the guys in your life.
Remember, STAMPING must be a main feature and be clearly seen.  Have fun, thank you to any who visit and comment on my card, your ocmments are always appreciated.

Fantastic News

I have been so excited and thrilled, and can now share my news. I have long admired the challenge blog Alphabet Challenges, so when I saw there was a DT call, I crossed my fingers and applied. I am so delighted to have been offered a place on the Design Team. Many thanks to the team and hello to my fellow new team members this week. We are coming in for the last letter of the alphabet Z - for Zoo Animals. I am always so happy to get an opportunity to use one of the four large aninal stamps I have from La Blanche bought ages ago on QVC. This is of the leopard. I added some corrugated card to the main card, to give a rustic background. I watercoloured the card with TH Distress Inks Peeled Paint and Shabby Shutters. I then stamped with Memento Rich Cocoa, the large stamp of the leopard and leaves. I used watercolour pencils to colour the leaves. I then made two leaves (Sheena Douglass) to add to the end of the card, to place the Scrabble type letters. I re-stamped the animal again, coloured the light areas with Distress ink Old Paper. Tore and distressed the edges and adhered to the corrugated card with silicone. I do hope you like my Zoo animal, I am so looking forward to visiting your blogs to see your Zoo Animals. Please be sure to pop over to the blog for the DT have made some fabulous cards, to inspire you.

I am also entering this crd into the Animals challenge at Dream Valley Challenges

Flowers and Leaves at MMM

Continuing our theme for January, which is NATURE, this week we are asking for Flowers and Leaves, at Make My Monday. I'm sure this will be a popular choice. As long as it has flowers and leaves, you can make any project, with any medium, we don't ask for anything other than this, other than you having fun. Please pop over to the blog for the team have made some very pretty projects. I used a favourite old stamp from Elusive Images, as was, now Chocolate Baroque, the script and rose stamp. I stamped flourishes behind and used Vintage Photo to stamp the rose, I did a little watercolouring to add some shading.  The leaves on the horizontal panel are from a leaves set from Sheena Douglass. I covered the white card with Frayed Burlap to make it all look more Shabby Chic. I look forward to visiting you over the next week.