Purple and Gold ...

At last we have had a whole day of blue sky and sunshine, long may it continue ... it brings out the smiles!   This morning I was up and on the go quite early (well, early for a weekend!) washing done and out on the line, dinner planned and still time to create before meeting my friend for lunch and a chat!!

This is the first card I finished:

I promise you that the colour is purple ...

I've been struggling with many things recently and designing cards has not been easy ... mainly indecision about what to do!  This morning I decided that if I began with one of my all time favourite stamps maybe, just maybe inspiration would pay a visit ... I think it did ... this is the first of three cards I created.

I used:
UNIKO -  Pure Florals: Gerbera and Simply Said Stamp sets
Zig Clean Color Real Brush Markers - Violet and Light Violet
WOW Metallic Gold Rich Pale Embossing Powder
Versamark Ink
Die-namics Stitched Square Dies

I'm entering the following challenge:

Inkspirational Challenge


Enjoy!

Return of the Gerbera ...

Good afternoon! The days are getting longer but my holiday is fast disappearing ... it's back to work on Monday ... so I need to get as much done as possible over the weekend.  

I'm trying to create some mixed media pieces but I am struggling - I have four tags in the making at the moment but I don't know what to do next.  So if you get stuck what do you do? Me?  I return to my comfort zone ... I created a CAS card for this week's challenge at "Less is More".  I blame my choice of stamp on Bev at UNIKO - she is celebrating UNIKO's 5th birthday this week and has been showcasing some of her favourite makes, Of course the Gerbera stamp set featured and if you regularly visitor to my blog you will know how much I love this set.

I heat embossed the gerbera before water colouring with distress inks.  I used the matching die to create a mask so that I could stamp the dictionary definitions around the image.  I adhered some orange card to the card base before popping the image up using fun foam. The theme at "Less is More" is the alphabet - I hope it is OK that my alphabet is all jumbled up into works!!

I used:
UNIKO - Pure Florals: Gerbera
Kaisercraft - Dictionary meanings
Distress Inks - Carved pumpkin, Mustard Seed and Twisted Citron
WOW Bright White embossing powder.

I'm entering the following challenge and link up:

Time to get back to my mixed media attempts.

Enjoy!

Stacked gerbera ...

Another post, another card ... this time back to the gerbera!

I stamped and masked the gerbera to create this stack of flowers and then water coloured them with distress inks. I then trimmed the panel and fuzzy cut part of the flowers then attached it to the card base with foam adhesive to add dimension and finished off by stamping the sentiment.

I used:
Uniko Pure Florals: Gerbera
Simon Says Stamp - Handwritten borders
Distress Inks - Festive Berries, Spiced Marmalade, Dried Marigold, Mustard Seed and Squeezed lemonade.
Versafine Onyx Black

I'm entering the following challenges:

AAA Cards #69


Uniko Challenge #34


Enjoy!

Sizzling pink and purple ...

A quick post this morning before I head off for a quick visit to Lincolnshire!

I love it when a couple of challenges fit together as if they were made for each other - when one card so easily fits.  This week at AAA Cards they would like us to use 'one stash favourite' - if you've been following my blog or are a regular visitor you will know that I am obsessed with the Uniko Gerbera stamp set so it seemed a natural choice!  Also this month the challenge set by Bev at Uniko has the theme of ... Flowers ... another great reason to use this stamp.

The colours are more vibrant that the photograph shows

I stamped and white heat embossed the gerbera across a piece of card before water colouring the blooms with distress inks.  I then selected part of the image and die cut a panel.  I then die cut a piece of vellum and stamped and heat embossed the sentiment.  The vellum is only attached by a few spots of liquid adhesive behind the lettering - this adds some dimension as the edges of the vellum panel lift up.  The panel was then attached to a card base using foam pads to add some more dimension.

I used:
Uniko Pure Florals: Gerbera
Distress Inks - Picked Raspberry, Wilted Violet
CUTplorations (STAMPlorations new dies) Stitched Rectangle Dies
Kaisercraft Clear Stamps - Today

The challenges are:

AAA Cards #69 


Uniko Challenge #34


STAMPlorations The Never-ending Anything Goes Challenge
As I've used one of Sherry's new CUTplorations die set I thought I would enter this ongoing challenge that showcases STAMPloration products.

Have a great day and keep cool!

Enjoy!

Gelli Gerbera ...

To say that it has been raining today would be an understatement ... so no gardening and no garage sorting!  It is such a shame I had no option but to craft all day!  I've started lots of different things but only managed to finish one card.  I really must learn to concentrate on one thing at a time but today I've flitted between three different projects - some I may share later either on my blog or with the recycling bin!

Anyway less chat on to my card:

This card started with a piece of a gelli print left behind from another card which I stamped with the gerbera stamp before die cutting with the new matching die (thanks to Bev at Uniko, I'm not a fan of fussy cutting!!).  I cut a small panel and spread some molding paste to add texture before sticking a few die cut bricks.  The thread is from some hessian.

I used:
Uniko Pure Florals: Gerbera
Golden Light Molding Paste
Crafters  Workshop Mini Rustic Paint Stencil
Marianne Design Brick wall die
Versafine Onyx Black Ink
Galaxy Gold Ink

I am entering the following challenges:

Uniko Challenge #24 Summer with the optional twist of using this photograph for inspiration


Addicted to Stamps #159 Clean and Simple

Enjoy!

Black and white gerbera ...

When I'm stuck for ideas I usually turn to my favourite stamp set to see if I can find inspiration - and today is no exception!  I'm supposed to be designing a card for my lovely son's birthday on Monday but ideas are sadly missing!!  I'm not sure that he would appreciate receiving this card:

This is the gerbera from Uniko Studio and I love it!  This time I have stamped it in onyx black ink and then shaded it using a fine micron black pen - I've seen this technique used before but cannot for the life of me remember where!! 

I'm going to enter the following challenges:

Uniko Studio Challenge 22 - Anything Goes with the optional twist of a masculine card.

Addicted to Stamps and more Challenge 148 - Clean and Simple

Enjoy!

Happiness is ...

This week seems to have passed by so very quickly and as for February - where did that month disappear to??  The year seems to be speeding by but at least it means that Spring is on the way - lots of sunshine today but it is very windy.

I started my weekend by creating a card for this week's challenge at "Less is More"  where the theme is 'This makes me happy'.  There are many things that make me happy - my family, my friends, sunshine and lots more.  However there is one other thing that makes me happy and that is having the time to craft, time to try out new techniques or revisit old ones. So this card combines my love of getting messy with inks, one of my favourite stamp sets (Uniko Studio - Gerbera) and for once mastering the 'ironing-off' embossing technique.  You can't help but be happy using these vibrant colours!

My original plan was to create a card using the Bokeh effect which seems to be 'on trend' but the image I chose was too large (and my dream was greater than my skill level).  So this is what happened:

I stamped the first gerbera and heat embossed using clear embossing powder and then coloured the whole of the panel with Dried Marigold distress ink.  Once the first layer was dry I stamped and heat embossed two more gerbera and then covered the panel with Spiced Marmalade distress ink.  When this layer was dry I stamped and heat embossed two further gerbera and then covered the panel with Ripe Persimmon distress ink.  When all was dry out I ironed off the embossing between pages of a telephone directory.  This is how the panel looked:

All I needed to do then was to decide how to use the panel - I can't tell you how long it took me to decide what to do with it!!  I think I'm happy with how it turned out!

I'm going to enter it in to the following challenges:

"Less is More" Week 213, This makes me happy

Uniko Studio Challenge 18 - Birthdays

Virginias View Challenge  #13 - All things embossed

Enjoy!

Framed Gerbera ...

My second post of the day and this one has to be quick.  The idea was inspired by the current sketch challenge at STAMPlorations (see the sketch below).  I had stamped and coloured the image previously (here) but hadn't actually created a card from it but now I have!

I extended the stencilled splodges onto two frames created using Sizzix dies and then layered the frames with dimensional adhesive.

This is the STAMPloration sketch:



I am also going to enter the Uniko Studio Challenge where Anything Goes.

Enjoy!

Pink Gerbera ...

I couldn't resist returning to my very favourite stamp - the Gerbera - for another card.  Apologies to my wonderful followers for the repetition but I still have love this stamp and believe it or not I have even more ideas!!  I also wanted to enter another card in the Uniko Studio challenge and it just seemed appropriate to use my favourite stamp.

I've been a bit of an idiot as I've struggled to create pink with my water colour paints and moaned because I didn't have the 'right' pink in a stamping ink and all the time I had a JOFY Limited Edition set of PaperArtsy Fresco Finish Chalk Acrylics which includes two shades of pink!!  I think I need to remember to think outside of the box and repeat '.. all resources can be used to create cards ... all resources can be used to create cards ..."

I began by white embossing the image on water colour card, then painted the image with the acrylics, cut a panel to go on the top with a 'window' opening and stamped a sentiment.

I'm entering this card into these challenges:

Uniko Studios


Inkspirational - Bloom

Enjoy!