Time Out ... Guest Designer!!

Exciting times ... win a challenge and be asked to Guest Design for a future challenge!  No hesitation from me this time in saying yes to Sandie, at TIME OUT Challenges, when I was invited to design for this week's challenge.  However, I really need to learn to wait until I know what the theme is before jumping in ... anyway here goes!

This week is an 'Inspired by words' challenge and the words are:

'A woman is like a teabag - you can't tell how strong she is until you put her in hot water'  by Eleanor Roosevelt

I decided to go with an encouraging quote as the focal point for my card to encourage strength and belief:

I've been using my gel plate to create background papers and die cut a section from one of my prints to create this panel and also die cut the butterfly from the same paper.

Now it's your turn to take TIME OUT and join the challenge ... you need to get your skates on as this week the challenge is only for one week ... so no time for procrastinating but enough time to create!

Enjoy!

Happy pink birthday ...

A quick post ... just a card:

A clean and simple card - I masked the square and stamped and heat embossed the chrysanthemum in white before water colouring with zig clean colour real brush markers.  I then cut the panel using a square stitched die, cut multiple 'happy' words which were stacked and adhered to each other before stamping 'birthday' at the bottom of the panel.

I would like to enter the following challenges:

Addicted to Stamps and More #187

STAMPlorations Anything Goes CAS Challenge

Enjoy!

Polka Dotty ...

As another storm passes over Oxfordshire I'm sat looking out at my broken fence and thinking ... 'I really should do something about that!!' ... maybe tomorrow!

It's holiday time again for me ... with school closed for the two week Easter holiday, there is plenty of time for family and crafting (and the odd bit of housework!).

To start the proceedings I have a card for this week's challenge at "Less is More" - the theme this week is 'Polka Dots'.  The only polka dots I could find in my stash were (in my head) Christmas colours so what kind of card could I make? A Christmas card? No!  Although I promised myself not to leave my Christmas cards until the last minute I just wasn't in the mood for Christmas!  So with polka dot paper that wasn't inspiring the only option left was to create my own polka dots!  This is not something I would recommend if you need a card in a hurry!! 

First I created a panel using alcohol inks and Yupo paper and left it to dry.  Then taking a regular hole punch I created loads of dots! I marked out a card panel and adhered the dots one by one to create the pattern and left it to dry!  I added a strip of the waste down the edge of the card, stamped a sentiment and added the dotty panel to the card base using foam adhesive.

Enjoy!

Faux Mother of Pearl ...

Good evening ... a quick post to share a card that's been quite a time in the making. 

The squares are from a piece of card which I coloured to create a faux mother of pearl effect using cling film, distress inks and pearl drops - there are a number of videos explaining the technique on You Tube.  The poppy image has been die cut three times and glued together to create a chipboard-like image.

I used:

Distress inks - Spun Sugar, Picked Raspberry and Seedless Preserves.

Die-namics - Inside/Out Stitched Squares

Memory Box - Prim Poppy

I'm entering the following challenges:

Happy Little Stampers March CAS Challenge

"Less is More" Challenge 268 - "What's outside your window" (you can use your imagination or your dreams).

I appreciate that this card takes a stretch of the imagination to fit the challenge but let me explain.  You see I hate the dull overcast weather when the world outside my window just looks grey and dreary, when it is hard to distinguish between morning, afternoon and night.  I long to look out and see bright cheerful colours ... not so much grey!  Hence the bright pink and who doesn't want to see poppies!  Apologies to then LIM design team if I have strayed too far.

Enjoy!

Edit:  Just popped back to enter this card into another challenge - Darnell suggested that the design fit the challenge at Freshly Made Sketches - so I thought I would give it a go!

Daffodil Delight ...

Mondays are my least favourite day of the week ... it is so long before the weekend!  I must stop wishing my life away!  On my return from work I have managed to create this:

This is a top folding card combining stamping, embossing, water colouring and die cutting - so many stages for such a simple card.  I've been concentrating on sentiments for the last two cards I've made so this evening I decided to let the images do the talking! Daffodils are all about Spring and Easter for me ... and sunshine yellow can't help but make you smile.

I used:

STAMPlorations - The Birds and the Blooms

Lawn Cuts - Stitched Rectangles

Dienamics - Inside/Out Stitch Squares

Distress Inks - Squeezed Lemonade, Scattered Straw, Spiced Marmalade, Twisted Citron

Stampendous White Detai Embossing Powder

Stampin Up - Gorgeous Grunge

I'm entering the following challenges:

Addicted to Stamps #184 Clean and Simple

Stamping Sensations March Challenge - Flower Power

CAS Mix Up

STAMPlorations Never Ending Anything Goes Challenge

Enjoy!

Popped back this evening to link up to the current STAMPlorations CAS challenge


Keep Enjoying!

Sunbeams and Raindrops ...

Sunday evening already, where does the weekend go to!!

Today's contribution

the card isn't really wonky ... just a bad photograph!

I'm not totally happy with this card ... it seems to lack something, it needs more dimension but it is only one layer and I couldn't think what else to do to it.  I have used clear texture paste over the raindrops to add shimmer but it still needs something!

I used:

STAMPlorations - Typographia: Encouragment

                             ARTplorations: Droplets stencil

Distress Inks - Squeezed Lemonade, Scattered Straw, Spiced Marmalade, Tumbled Glass

Cosmic Shimmer Texture Paste - Clear

I'm entering the following challenges:

"Less is More" One Layer Sentiment

STAMPlorations - Never Ending Anything Goes Challenge

Enjoy!

Live, Laugh, Love ...

Good evening, I hope you have all had a good week ... mine improved as the week progressed ... and now it's the weekend and I've had time to create!

This is my first card of the weekend - inspired by this week's challenge at "Less is More" it is back to one layer week with the theme of "making the sentiment" the focal point.  This is my first attempt:

A simple card using:

Distress inks -Festive Berries, Squeezed Lemonade, Spiced Marmalade, Twisted Citron, Blueprig Sketch, Chipped Sapphire, Dusty Concord.
Simon Says Stamps - Lots of Dots
Indigo Blu - Live, Laugh, Love
Cosmic Shimmer Black Embossing Powder
Versafine Onyx Black ink

I said at the start of this post that my week got better as it progressed ... well the highlight was Thursday when one of my cards was a winner at TIME OUT card challenge.  I'm chuffed to bits! Thank you so very much to the design team at TIME OUT for choosing this card

... as a winner, I'm honoured.

Enjoy!

Spring daffodils ...

Since my earlier post we have lost the sunshine ... it's been replaced by overcast skies and hail!!  The type of day that makes it appealing to stay in and craft ... I did pop out this morning for Mother's Day coffee with my son and to treat myself to a new laptop!!  I usually do the ironing on a Sunday morning but in celebration of Mother's Day I decided to save that fun until tomorrow ... it makes it feel like a days holiday (well, almost!).

Another citrus card ... using leftovers from my earlier card.

I used the positive die cut left from my citrus smile card for the circle background (check out my earlier post for details).  I stamped and heat embossed the daffodils before using distress inks to water colour them.  I then used a stitched die to cut the square panel before adhering it to the main panel using funky foam to add dimension.

I used:
STAMPlorations The Birds and Blooms
WOW Embossing Powder
Distress Inks - Squeezed lemonade, Scattered straw, Spiced marmalade

I'm entering the following challenges:
"Less is More" Colour challenge - CITRUS
TIME OUT #51 Easter and/or Spring with the optional extra of masking
STAMPlorations


CAS Mix Up Card Challenge - a new challenge


Enjoy!

Citrus Smile ...

Chilly morning today but the sun is shining ... Happy Mother's Day to all mums in the UK, today is your day!!

Another day, another card ... I seem to be stuck in 'OK' mode at the moment - my cards are OK but seem to lack the 'WOW' factor.  Please don't get me wrong I am mostly happy with the cards that I create but they don't make me run around the house with excitement - mind you, it takes a lot to make me run anywhere, I'm more of a walker!!

Anyway less of the drivel! Today's card is all about colour and Spring.

I love circles so yesterday, when I accidentally (!) found myself in my local craft shop, I spotted this new (to me) Sizzix die and I knew I just had to have it.  Add in my new obsession with alcohol inks and an idea was born!!  I first created the coloured paper using a selection of inks lovingly placed (actually ... just randomly dropped and spritzed) onto some Yupo paper.  I die cut a piece of card first, then die cut the background paper and set to placing all the coloured pieces back into the outline die - very fiddly but very satisfying!!  I stamped and heat embossed the sentiment onto a small strip of vellum.  I sponged around the edge of the card base to add a little colour before popping up the panel with fun foam and adhering it to the base.

I'm going to enter the following challenges:

"Less is More" It is colour week - CITRUS
TIME OUT #51 - Easter and/or Spring with the optional technique twist of masking 
STAMPlorations March CAS Challenge


NBUS #6 in support of the wonderful blogger, Darnell.  If you haven't visited Darnell's blog yet I suggest you get over there super quick!


Enjoy!

Mother's Day ...

It is Mother's Day in the UK at the weekend, so I thought I would share the card I have made for my lovely mum (she does not do internet so there is no danger of her seeing this before the day!).

This is the first outing for this stamp ... it has been resting hidden amongst lots of other unused stamps ... as my mum grows sweet peas I thought it was ideal for her card.  I've water coloured the flowers using Inktense pencils, die cut the panel with stitched rectangle dies then put it back together adhering it to the base with different thickness of foam tape to add some dimension.

I'm entering the following challenges:

NBUS Challenge  #6 - Darnell is a super lady, fabulous card designer and inspiring blog writer! NBUS stands for "Never Been Used Schtuff" - it is Darnell's idea to encourage us all to get out all the stuff that has been waiting to be used!!

Penny Black February Challenge "Anything Goes a stamp and a die"

Stamping Sensations February Challenge  Anything Goes

Enjoy!