Flowers in my Hair

Today I'm back again with another lovely girl from Prima "Blooms Collection" but I don't know her name.

I stamped the image twice onto watercolour paper and starting with her face, coloured her using my watercolour pencils and my Aquash water brush.

To finish I went around the edge with a grey pencil to give a shadow effect.

I'm not sure whether I'll colour the other image or leave it as you see it.

Thanks for the loan of your stamps, Jenni, much appreciated!

Happy Crafting!

APC Challenge - Week 20

This week's Altered Playing Card theme is thinking about hearts and love.

These two cards have paint, splatters, patterned hearts - both hand-stamped and hand-drawn, washi tape, words, borders and dots.

I started off by painting both the cards and putting aside to dry.  With the card on the right, I started off with a lime green background followed by a blob of pink which I then wiped off again, leaving the background sort of soft & dreamy looking.

 

 

I started by stamping a border around all four sides on the first card.

I stamped the heart (Stampotique) and wings (Craft Stamper freebie) onto patterned paper and cut them out.  I then stamped the words (Craft Stamper freebie) onto white card and cut them out individually.  The 'wings', 'heart' and 'love' are all popped onto dimensionals, with 'live' & 'laugh' glued directly on the playing card.

After the paint background was dry on the second card, I added some splatters using a stamp (SU) and a red brush marker.  While that was drying I drew two hearts on the back of the patterned paper and cut them out.  I then outlined the hearts on the correct side with a black Posca paint marker.  As I don't have any plain black washi tape, but I did have a snippet of lacy washi paper, I added it at the bottom.  I then stamped the tiny words over the top.  The hearts were added next, and to finish off I added dots of red Liquid Pearls on the edges.

(I only realised when I photographed this that one of the dots has smeared - oops!)

 

These two playing cards were easy and fun to make ........

Happy Crafting!

 

Butterflies

Yesterday, I decided to have a play with a couple of stamps that my friend Jenni loaned to me.  I sat and studied them for a bit while I was having my lunch before deciding on "Sharon".

"Sharon" is a Prima stamp from the 'Bloom Collection'.

I stamped "Sharon" on watercolour paper and then went in search of my tin of 36 watercolour pencils.  I was lucky enough to find these in a pre-loved book sale and grabbed them before anyone else had noticed them and they appear to be brand new.   My other tin has 24 colours so this gives me more colours to play with.

I started with her skin, then moved on to her hair and finally the butterflies.  I blended the colours with my Aquash water brush.

I was pretty happy with how this turned out, as the stamp itself is quite big and so the colouring area is more than I'm used to doing.

I stuck it into my art journal, added the date to the bottom and a few notes to the top.

I'll probably stamp this a few more times so I can play with different colour combinations before giving it back to Jenni.

Thanks, Jenni, I really enjoyed my afternoon colouring this lovely girl!

 

Happy Crafting!

 

APC Challenge - Week 19

The theme this week for the

Altered Playing Card Challenge

was "Steampunk" using glitter paper, cogs & wheels etc.

I searched for my glitter paper in all the places I could think of but to no avail.  I had packed up my craft things for Christmas and haven't quite worked out where some of them were put.

I started off both backgrounds using a TCW stencil "Mini Gears" and 'black soot' Distress Ink.  The card on the right also has some 'broken china' Distress Ink added just for some extra colour.

 

 

Looking through my stamps, I came across Graphic 45 "Steampunk Spells" with the Witches Brew bottle and wings.  Both were stamped in 'jet black' Archival Ink and coloured with 'broken china' and 'peeled paint' Distress Inks.  I attached the wings with dimensionals and then added two layers of dimensionals to the bottle for extra height.  To finish I added glimmer to the wings using my Wink of Stella pen.

For this card, I looked through the Graphic 45 "Steampunk Spells" paper pad and found the cut image of the winged lady waiting patiently, and she was just the right size for the playing card.  Again I attached her with dimensionals and trimmed a smidgen off the edges to fit.

So although my cards don't quite follow the guidelines this week, I'm happy with them nevertheless.

Thanks for visiting .........

Happy Crafting!

 

Musical Notes

I was looking through my bits 'n' pieces yesterday,

and found this interesting stamped image.

The image had been a bonus which had been included in the ATC swap that I participate in, a couple of months ago, and I thought it would fit in perfectly with this weeks

Wicked Wednesday Challenge.

The theme this week is "Pink & Black & White".
  

I started off with a black base, followed by a piece of leftover Kaisercraft paper.  

I then cut around the image leaving a little white border.

(I think this image is from Stampotique, but I've had a look and can't see it,

so if anyone knows what it is called or who designed it, can you let me know?)

I stamped some musical notes down the side, and as usual, popped it up on dimensionals.

I know this is a fairly simple design, and it was certainly quick to make,

but I rather like it.

If you want to play along with this challenge, you can find details here:

Wicked Wednesday ATC Challenge

Thanks for visiting .......

Happy Crafting!

   

Spots n Dots

This week on the Tagalong Challenge, the theme is 

Spots n Dots

so, with that in mind, I thought I'd play along.

I started by colouring the tag with a combination of 'squeezed lemon', 'mustard seed' and 'spiced marmalade' Distress Inks.  I then sponged 'broken china' through a Memory Box stencil "Bubbles".  To add a bit more background, I sponged 'spiced marmalade' and 'picked raspberry' through a TCW stencil "Mini Tile Texture'.  Although you can't see it in the photo, I added some glimmer to the bubbles with my Wink of Stella pen (love that pen).  To finish off the background, I added little white dots around the border with my white Posca paint pen.

I stamped "Mela" from Stampotique 

(Mela was one of the first stamps I bought and is still a favourite) 

onto a leftover piece of background paper, fussy cut her out and popped her onto dimensionals 

(I just realised how much I used dimensionals [SU] ).

I then stamped her dress onto a piece of dotty paper from Kaisercraft, cut it out and glued it directly onto the image.

I added a small piece of glittery lace washi tape to ground Mela, stamped the quote from Darkroom Door "Essentials 10 Collection" and to finish, stapled a folded length of washi tape to the top.

 

This tag would be perfect for the following challenges:

 

Tagalong Challenge ~ Spots n Dots

Stampotique Designers Challenge ~ Punny and/or Funny

Craft Stamper Challenge ~ Take a Stamp

 

Be sure to come and visit again soon .......

Happy Crafting!

 

Fondest Wishes

....... getting back to Craftanoon (ahem!), 

the other challenge for the day was to create a scrapbook page, card etc from the sketch provided.  As you would probably have guessed from this blog, I rarely scrapbook, so I made a card.

I decided on a biggish square card using Graphic 45 "Time to Flourish"

papers that I had left over from the book I'd recently made.

I turned the sketch upside down as the little bird on the nest was looking up.  This square is popped onto dimensionals, while the other small squares are lightly sponged with Distress Ink and glued down flat.

I was quite happy with the finished card.  There were half a dozen or so entries in this challenge and it was hard to choose which one to vote for.

Thanks for looking today .....

Happy Crafting!!!

 

APC - Week 14, 15, 17 & 18

I've been having a bit of a play this afternoon to try to catch up with the Altered Playing Card challenge, which is now up to Week 19!  I am very pleased to say, I have almost caught up!!

Week 14

 A bit of embossing, some paint, torn foreground, snowflakes & deer.

Week 15

 Texture paste, stencils, sprays & stamps.

Week 17

 Paint background, black gesso, stencils, stamps, washi tape & quote.

Week 18

 Paint background, stamped background & foreground, one coloured, one left white.

If you are wondering where Week 16 went, I actually got it done in Week 16!!!

I will try to get Week 19 done tomorrow and then I will be up-to-date again - PHEW!!!

Thanks for coming to look .........

Happy Crafting!!!

Cute as a Caterpillar

Craftanoon always has a couple of optional challenges, which of course, are entirely up to you whether you wish to enter them or not.

I thought I'd play along so have a look at this cute little chap.

When we arrived at Craftanoon, waiting at each place at the tables was a little paper bag with some goodies inside.  This challenge was to make something using one or more of the contents.

I started off with an ATC size piece of white cardstock (3 1/2" x 2 1/2")  which I thought was just a bit big for this cute little caterpillar (Stampotique) so I cut another piece of card (3" x 2") which was just right.  I stamped him in 'jet black' Archival Ink and coloured him with watercolour pencils.  I went over him with my Wink of Stella pen to give him a lovely shimmer.  I edged around the card with blue Distress Ink, then tied the blue check ribbon (from my goodie bag) around the bottom.  Next I popped this onto dimensionals, then adhered this to a piece of gold cardstock which in turn was adhered to another piece of folded white to make a nice little gift card.

Lastly I added the three little gold hearts, which were also in my goodie bag.

I'm entering this little chap into the Craft Stamper Challenge - take a stamp

Thanks for coming to look today.

Happy Crafting!!!

Believe

I had a lovely day yesterday at the first Craftanoon of the year, which is held at a community centre in Caringbah.  Twelve hours of crafting from 10am - 10pm!!!  Well, not quite .... I got there a little late and we left to come home around 9pm.  By the time we have dinner (take-away pizza) I've run out of puff and am more than happy to pack up and head off.

So, what to take?  I try to make a list and take only what I need, although sometimes I realise I should have packed "X" and just have to make do.  Yesterday, I knew I had to make some ATCs for a swap that is due to be posted by tomorrow!  I'm good at waiting 'til the last minute to make deadlines!  I won't show you these until I know the recipients have received them, otherwise it spoils the surprise!

So, what did I make?

I thought I would make a tag using one of my new stamps from Visible Image
"Tala Catching Dreams Set".  

I started by cutting a tag from Coulture Creations "Plaid & Music" and distressed around the edges.  I then sponged around the edges with 'pumice stone' Distress Ink.  I inked up the word 'believe' in 'peeled paint' Distress Ink and stamped it in the bottom corner.  I also inked up the symbol in 'vintage photo' Distress Ink, stamping it off once for a faded look.  The postage image you can see was part of the 'Plaid & Music" paper.  For a little more background, I stamped a bit of splatter (SU "French Foliage") using both green and blue inks.

Next I cut another tag from ivory cardstock and coloured around the edges with 'peeled paint' Distress Ink. I then spritzed it with water to age it.

I stamped Tala onto white cardstock, fussy cut her and coloured her with watercolour pencils.   A paper tab was stapled onto the bottom tag before attaching the top tag at an angle and Tala was popped onto dimensionals.

This tag is also my entry in the following challenges:

Tagalong - postcards/letters

Craft Stamper - take a stamp

Thanks for coming to look.  I'll be back again soon with a couple of other things that were made at yesterday's Craftanoon.

Happy Crafting!!!

Celebrate

A few weeks before Christmas, one of my good friends asked if I could make a

50th Wedding Anniversary 

card for her parents upcoming celebration.

So, to get some ideas, I thought I'd browse Pinterest,

did I just say BROWSE Pinterest, oh boy, once you start the hours just roll past!

Anyhow, I settled on a pop-up box and found instructions on SplitCoast Stampers, which is always a source of inspiration and ideas.

I started with a white card base with a lovely brushed gold cardstock for each panel.  

I put each of the top panels through the Cuttlebug using a smallish floral design.

Using chipboard numbers, I glued the gold cardstock to each, and carefully cut around each before putting them through the Cuttlebug as well.

The hearts were all punched using various SU punches.

The little decorative edge you see on the bottom of the box is sticky backed which makes it so easy to attach - no messy glue.

The word "celebrate" is a Paper Smooches die called "birthday words".

I also put the underneath white top panels through the Cuttlebug so when it is folded it would look less plain.

Thanks for looking at what I've been up to ...

Happy Crafting!!!

Magical Moment

As I mentioned in my last post, I packed all my delicious new stamps to play with while I was relaxing on my little holiday, but would you believe I only made ONE tag?

So, which stamp to choose first?

As you can see, I decided I'd have a play with "Ponytail" which is a rather cute stamp from Roc Nicholas who is one of the Stampotique designers.

Firstly I cut the tag from an A4 sheet of card that I had previously painted and gessoed using a stencil, that had found its way back into my pack of white A4 cardstock.

Well, that was an easy background, wasn't it?

Next I stamped "Ponytail" onto a leftover piece of Kaisercraft designer paper 'Mix & Match Collection - Postage Stamps', the wrong side of which is striped.  I stamped him again another 3 times as I wanted a 3D look, then I fussy cut each piece layering as I went.

 

The background stamp is from Memory Box called "Bramble Sunrise" which I had bought a few months ago and totally forgotten about, oops!  I then stamped it again onto another piece of pre-sprayed background, punching out the 'sun' and glueing it directly onto the background.

When I had visited Pages 2 Scrap (my favourite store on the coast) the day before, I had picked up yet another washi tape (they keep it on the counter just to tempt me!) and this made a perfect little border for "Ponytail" to stand on.  I also used another piece for a tab on the top of the tag.

The top third of the tag needed a little something, so I inked up the words 'magical moment' which are on another Stampotique stamp by France Papillon.  Two torn strips of washi tape beneath the words and my tag was finished.

I was rather happy with how this tag turned out and having used washi tape on it, I can enter it in this weeks Tagalong challenge - "use washi tape".

Thanks for taking a peek at what I've been up to .......

Happy Crafting!!!
 

Birthday Book

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Wishing you all a CRAFTY and ADVENTUROUS year ahead!

  
 I've just spent a lovely, relaxing 5 days away at my home away from home on the lovely Central Coast of NSW.    My BFF invites me to stay with her family each year during the first week of the new year.  We go for drives and find new things, we watch movies and episodes of Midsomer Murder, we spend time at home crafting - me with papercraft, she with quilting, but the best thing is we get to spend time with each other!

Before I headed off last Friday, I hunted through my 'project' box and found a little book which was in need of decorating, so along with some new Graphic 45 'Time to Flourish' paper and ALL my new stamps and other bits 'n' bobs, my craft bag was packed ready for playing.

Then I packed my clothes, got to get the priorities right!!!

 Front Cover

I think this needs a title and a little bit of embellishment, but until I find exactly what that may be, I'll leave it just as you see it.

Inside Cover & January

I guess this could be a 'birthday book' as each page has a calendar which is sitting in a pocket.

February & March

 April & May

The page that May & June are on is actually clear perspex and so you can see through it to July.

  June & July

Looking at June, you can see the April page.  The July page is made from canvas.

August & September

August is also on the canvas page.  September is on two closed envelopes.

October & November

October is on the back of the two envelopes while November has a side tab.

December & Inside Back Cover

 Back Cover

This was lots of fun to make, the pages have been made using the 8 x 8 pad, and the covers were made with 4 sheets of 12 x 12 papers.

Thanks for looking ......

Happy Crafting!!!