Sparkly Protea

Hi all.  I got this Protea stencil from Funky Fossil a while ago and this is its first outing.  I needed a speedy card for a family birthday and I thought this would be good.  

I decided to use Iced Spruce and Tattered Rose Distress Inks blended through the stencil, and I finished the flower with a bit of Clear Wink of Stella.  I added the sentiment using Versafine Smokey Gray ink heat embossed with WOW Clear Gloss Embossing Powder and matted on to a piece of light grey card before adding it to my usual 6" square White card.

Thank you for visiting me here today and I'll see you again soon.

I am entering the following challenge:

NBUS Challenge - No. 21 Using our Never Before Used Schtuff.
Allsorts Challenge - Week 603/4 Sparkle and Shine.
Simon Says Wednesday Challenge - Sparkle and Shine.
AAA Cards:CAS Game - No. 180 Made in Minute (no optional twist).

Happy Christmas - Scenic Baubles

Hi everybody.  I am showing two more cards that I made with the Sweet Poppy Stencils Winter Bauble.  I used both Distress and Versafine Inks, and stamped the scenes inside both using some freebie stamps which came with a recent magazine.  

For both I stencilled on to a piece of white card 51/2" square, and for this first one used Festive Berries and Pine Needles DI for the stencilling and added the scene using the Pine Needles for the trees and Versafine Olympia Green for the deer family, although having stamped them twice using my stamp positioner it looks more like black.  I finished with the sentiment using Versafine Satin Red and matted on to red card before adding on to a 6" square white card.  On both cards I used my Mono Sand Eraser to take the ink off the paper to whiten just enough to make it look like snow around the scene in the bauble.

On this second one I used Salty Ocean DI all over it and then to shade a bit I added Blueprint Sketch DI.  I used Versafine Majestic Blue to stamp the cabin and trees, masking the edges of the bauble as the stamp overlapped a bit.  I also stamped the sentiment using the same blue Versafine ink and matted it on to blue card before adding it on to the same sized white card as above.

I would like to wish all my followers and visitors a very HAPPY CHRISTMAS and hope that the coming year will be a much better one for all of us.  Thank you for all the views and comments I have received which I really do appreciate.

Christmas Plaid

Hi everybody.  I had been trying to finish my Christmas cards but was not feeling inspired, so was searching for inspiration looking at lots of cards, and I do love what Karen Dunbrook does...she is ace at background making.  I saw a card of hers which I have CASEd and which you will find here if you are interested, but she did hers using masking tape which she inked to get the stripes of colour and using different red and green inks and a different snowflake stamp.  I did try using the masking tape and it did work OK, but I chose rather pale colours and have made  a card using it but am not sure that it will get an airing here, the jury's out.  I have made two different cards both using Distress Inks..one in red and green, and one using blue and purple, and this is the one I am concentrating on.  I also used a Chocolate Baroque stamp called Big Bold Background Snowflake Outline.

 
I started by making the background using Broken China and Dusty Concord DIs on a snippet of white card.  I decided to add the stripes of colour to make the plaid background using my brayer as I thought it would be quicker, just inking about an inch or so to one end of it, and rolled this across my square piece of white card in alternate stripes of the blue and purple, turning the card and doing the same in the other direction.  I had to go over some of them with a bit more ink to get a more even coverage, but it worked fairly well.  I dried it with my heat tool and then added the lines, again in both directions, using a black Sharpie pen, first broken lines through the middle of every stripe in one direction, and then doing the same but with a solid line in the other. 

Making sure it was thoroughly dry and using an anti static pad, I stamped the Outline Snowflake using the Versamark and heat set it with WOW Opaque Bright White EP.  I then matted it on to a snippet of light blue card and added it to the 6" square white base card.  I finished with a banner sentiment using another snippet of the same blue card and embossed it with the Opaque Bright White EP.

Just before I go here is the other card I made using Fired Brick and Cracked Pistachio DIs and a slightly different configuration of black lines, and matted on to dark green card.  

Thank you for visiting me here today and I'll see you again soon.

I am entering the following challenges:

Pixie's Crafty Workshop - No. 393 where we use our snippets of card, paper etc. 
Country View Challenges Dec. 2020 - Anything Christmas Goes.
We Love Chocolate Baroque December Challenge - Anything Goes.

Sparkling Snowflake

Hi all.  I made a card with this this large snowflake die which I recently acquired at a local store, but it seems to be sold out at present.  I also used some Creative Expressions Pixie Powders which have a lovely Mica shimmer to them and also used some gold acrylic paint which I bought ages ago but have only just got around to using.  Snowflakes of any sort are a favourite of mine and don't need any excuse to use them.

I started with the background using blue, green and gold powders which I sprinkled on to my glass mat and spritzed with water before laying my piece of card over the top, and I kept adding extra in the same way until I was happy with the depth of colour.  When dry I die cut the snowflake out of this piece of card and put it to one side.  I then painted another piece of card with the gold paint and die cut the same snowflake from this too.

I then cut a piece of double sided sticky sheet to just a little larger than the snowflake and peeled back one side and attached it to my white base card and peeled back the other side and adhered the top layer to it, minus the cut out star, being careful to get it in the right place before pressing it down.  I then stuck the gold layer star in to the aperture and finally glued the top layer over that using some wet glue and which now stands proud.  With hindsight I should have put the tacky sheet on the back of this before I cut out the snowflake which would have made it much easier to adhere.  I thought that the gold layer would show around the edges of the top snowflake but not sure it has made that much difference, and it would have been fine just to use white or maybe the blue card instead.

 

I finished by adding the sentiment on to a piece of dark blue card using Versamark Ink and then heat embossed it with Silver Metallic Embossing Powder, and cut it into a fishtail banner.

Thank you for looking at my blog today and I hope to  see you again soon.

I am entering the following challenges:

ABC Christmas Challenge - "Y" is for Your Favourite Things and "Z" for Zzzzzz (a sleeping image)
Christmas Card Throwdown: December - Pick a Previous 2020 Challenge Theme (I have chosen June's theme of Snowflakes.
Merry Little Christmas Challenge - No. 29 December: Anything Christmas Goes.
The Holly and Ivy Christmas Challenge - No. 85 Anything Christmas Goes.
Winter Wonderland Challenge - Anything Christmas Goes (end of year challenge)
Allsorts Challenge - Week 602 Got to be Christmas.

Winter Anniversary

Hi everybody.  This is the last anniversary of the year that I make for, and as it is winter I decided to do something with the season in mind.  I recently bought this Crafter's Companion set of silhouette foliage stamps called Festive Foliage (I bought the set in a local store and it seems to be unavailable now)  and I used a Sweet Dixie heart die.

I got the idea from some recently released stamps from Penny Black and one has foliage in a heart shape, so I decided to use this idea and stamped a selection of these stamps in a heart shape on a piece of kraft card using Tea Dye Distress Ink...this was a colour close to the colour of the card and I wanted to be able to colour over the top.  I first used the largest heart die from the above mentioned set with a pencil to mark out the shape...I wouldn't say it is the perfect heart but not bad.  I then coloured with a waterbrush using my Inktense Pencils which having lots of pigment work well on kraft card.  When it was dry I rubbed out the pencil line  and matted this on to a piece of dark green card before adding it on to my white 6" square card.

I finished by adding a die cut heart within the heart backed with a piece of foam to give it dimension, and I
stamped the sentiment using Versamark Ink and then heat embossed it with WOW Metallic Gold Embossing Powder.  I then added some sparkle on the berries using a clear Wink of Stella pen.  It looks a bit strange in the photo, just as though there are white specks, presumably just the way the light has caught it.  It is a new pen so a bit over juicy I think.

Thank you for visiting me here today and I hope to see you again soon.

I am entering the following challenges:

Crafty Creations December Challenge - Anything Goes.
NBUS Challenge - No. 21 Anything Goes with your Never Before Used Schtuff. 
Pixie's Crafty Workshop - No. 391 Sorry it's so last minute!  Where we use our snippets of card, paper etc. ( I used a couple of snippets of kraft card for the topper and heart and also a snippet of green for the matted layer)

Winter Robin

Hi everyone.  I have a card today featuring the Winter Robin by Hobby Art Stamps,  which I notice is unfortunately out of stock at the moment, and was intended as one half of my Twofer entry, but sadly the second never materialised.  I'm afraid my mojo is somewhat spasmodic and the spirit is willing but the flesh is a bit weak at present..lol.  The compensation is that this can now be my entry for the Rudolph Days Challenge run by the lovely Mo, and of course is the last one for this year, and great that I managed to finish on a high note there where I have sadly failed with others.

 

I stamped it with Versafine Majestic Blue Ink and heat embossed it with WOW Clear Gloss Embossing Powder.  I had intended to do it in shades of blue but then I decided after all to use these colours of Distress Inks which I applied with a waterbrush.  I didn't think it made that much difference to the finished look as the blue is very dark in real life, although looks a little more blue in the photo.  I then added the gold stars using a freebie stencil which I have had for a very long time, using Brilliance Galaxy Gold Ink, also used for the sentiment which I heat embossed with WOW Clear Gloss Embossing Powder.  I also added some white gel pen to highlight the snow and holly and berries, and added in a few shadows using coloured pencils.

I layered it on to a piece of gold mirri card before adding it to my 6" square white card.

Thank you for visiting my blog today and I'll see you again soon.

I am also entering the following challenges:

The Holly and Ivy Christmas Challenge - No. 84 Anything Christmas Goes.
ABC Christmas Challenge - 'W' for Winter Wonderland (my choice) and 'X' for Xtra Special.
Merry Little Christmas Challenge - No.28 November Anything Christmas Goes.
Sparkles Christmas Challenge - No. 118 Gold or Silver or Glitter.  (used gold for stars and sentiment)
Winter Wonderland Challenge - Festive Things With Wings.
Christmas Crafts All Year Round - November Challenge Family and Friends.
Simon Says Wednesday Challenge - Anything Goes.
Uniko Challenge - Tis The Season (optional twist Sparkle)
Krafty Chicks Challenge - No. 535 All Occasions.

Rose Blush

Hi everyone.  I have a card to show today made with the pretty Rose Blush stamp by Indigoblu.  This card was made with the CAS Mix Up Challenge in mind which this time is a Watercolour Challenge with the theme of Off the Edge. 

I stamped the image using Versafine Clair Nocturne ink and then watercoloured with my Inktense Pencils and a waterbrush, sometimes laying some pencil down on the image and the moving the colour round with the brush, and then I also added extra colour by lifting from the pencil on to the brush and painted it on. 

I finished by adding the sentiment again using the Versafine Clair Nocturne ink and then added it to a 6"square white card.  

Thank you for visiting my blog today and I hope to see you again soon.

I am entering the following challenges:

CAS Mix Up November Challenge - Watercolour - Off the Edge.
Seize the Birthday Challenge - No. 203 1,2,3 or Anything Goes.
Sweet Stampin' Challenge - Your Favourite Stamp (this is definitely one that I love).
Love To Craft Challenge - No. 52 November Anything Goes.
The Coloring Challenge - The Daily Marker Coloring Challenge.

 

                                  

                                                                                                  

It's A Bright Sunshiny Day

Hi there everybody.  I have a birthday card to show today using another pretty bird stamp from Crafty Individuals called Bluebird and Branch with Berries.   This may seem an odd choice of colours but as well as some other challenges I wanted to enter the Colour Hues Challenge and kraft and yellow were the colours for this...not colours I would normally have chosen but it's good to step outside your comfort zone sometimes.

I cut a piece of kraft card into a square and stamped the bird onto it using Versafine Vintage Sepia Ink and then heat embossed with WOW Clear Gloss Embossing Powder.  I then used my set of Inktense Pencils to colour the bird in browns and the chest of the bird in yellow.  I also added some hills in the background and some yellow on the horizon taking it up a bit to to add more interest.  I also added a very little orange to the horizon and on the bird but it is basically yellow.  I decided to use the pencils without any water as the kraft card isn't the easiest surface to work on and I thought that they worked better used without as I didn't want to dilute the colour too much.  

I added a yellow background mat and the sentiment in the Vintage Sepia Ink and heat embossed with the Clear Gloss EP.

Thank you for stopping by today and I hope to see you again soon.

I am entering the following challenge:

Watercooler Wednesday Challenge - WWC297 All About Occasions.
Crafty Calendar Challenge - Anything Goes.
Crafty Creations Challenge - No. 415 Anything Goes.
We Love to Create Mixed Media Challenge - Wk 11 Anything Mixed Media Goes.
Colour Hues Challenge - No. 5 Yellow and Kraft.

Long Eared Owl

Hi there.  This card was made using a NBUS (never used before) Crafty Individuals Stamp called Owl on Branch with Berries and the background was coloured using Brushos.  I stamped the owl with Versafine Vintage Sepia Ink and coloured with Derwent Inktense Pencils.

I started by placing some Ultramarine Blue and some Leaf Green Brushos on to my glass mat, roughly where I wanted them to be and spritzed with water.  I then laid the card over it and ended up with the basic background.  I then painted with them using a waterbrush and finished the scene with the distant hills in Purple and the sun using Yellow, and I did darken it with a bit of yellow Inktense Pencil at the end as I thought it looked too pale.

I then stamped the owl onto the background scene using the Vintage Sepia Ink and coloured just the branch, and extended it a bit to take it off the edge, using the Inktense Pencils, and then again onto another piece of the glossy card and coloured, and fussy cut out just the bird and added it over the top of the original to give it more dimension.  I finished by adding a sentiment using the Vintage Sepia Ink and whilst wet heat set it using WOW Clear Gloss Embossing Powder.

Thank you for visiting me here today and I will be back again soon. 

I am entering the following challenges:

Cardz 4 Guyz Challenge - No. 257 Birthday for an Adult Male.
The Crafter's Cafe Challenge - No. No. 254 Anything Goes.
Crafty Animals Challenge - No. 44 Anything Goes with Animals, Birds, Bugs, Bees or Insects.
Mix It Up Challenge - No. 43 Anything Goes + Making Your Own Background.
NBUS Challenge - No. 20 Where we use any items not previously used (Never Before Used Schtuff)
Fab n Funky Challenge - No. 501 Anything But Christmas.

Nature Flowers

Hi all.  This card was for a 70th birthday, and I decided to use a snippet left over from my brayered background that I did here on this card.  I added some flowers from a set by Art Journey called Nature Flowers, using Versafine Imperial Purple and WOW Opaque Bright White Embossing Powder and I also used another stamp which is in the background called just Ripples Small, with Picked Raspberry Distress Ink.

To finish I added the sentiment and numbers using WOW Metallic Platinum EP.  

Before I go I have a new follower to introduce called Gundi and you will find her lovely blog here, and if you haven't visited before I'm sure she would be delighted to see you.

Thank you for stopping by today and I will see you again soon.

I am entering the following challenges:

Pixie's Crafty Workshop - No. 390 where we use up our snippets of card and paper etc.
We Love to Create Mixed Media Challenge - Wk 11 Anything Goes.
Simon Says Wednesday Challenge - Anything Goes.
Try it on Tuesday Challenge - Embossed.
Seize the Birthday Challenge - Texture (white heat embossing).

Snowflake Bauble

Hi everyone.  I have made a Christmas card using the Sweet Poppy Stencil Snowflake Bauble, my first card using it, and also the Crafty Individuals Bluebird and Branch with Berries stamp within the bauble.  I have also used Distress Inks in tones of blue and orange to enter the Colour Hues Challenge, and the CAS Christmas Challenge has the theme of Christmas Birds.  I used Tumbled Glass, Salty Ocean, Blueprint Sketch and Spiced Marmalade. 

I started by using a very light layer of Tumbled Glass all over and then used the Spiced Marmalade on the ribbon and berries and shaded with a very little Blueprint Sketch, and the Salty Ocean on the foliage and to darken around the edges of the bauble as well as just a little of the Spiced Marmalade.  Inevitably there was some mixing of the colours in a few places which has made darkened the colours a bit, but I think over all it turned out OK.  I added the bird within the bauble using Spiced Marmalade, masking that side of the bauble as the stamp was a little large to fit the bauble, but I do love this CI bird and thought it would look pretty inside the bauble.   The sentiment was stamped using Versafine Habanero ink and heat embossed it with WOW Clear Gloss Embossing Powder.  The colour is a little more red than orange but DIs don't work so well for stamping sentiments.  I also added some snow on the branches and in the sky around the bird using a Signo White Gel Pen, and I glossed the berries with some clear gloss.  I then added it to a 6" square white card.

I would also like to welcome two new followers ..  Lynne K who makes beautiful cards and also takes wonderful photos of the area around her home in Scotland, and then Aimeslee who is a fun lady and who also makes some terrific cards in a very varied style, so please if you haven't come across these two ladies before please do go and visit them...you won't be disappointed.  

Thank you for visiting me here today and I hope you will do so again soon. 

I am entering the following challenges:

CAS Christmas Card Challenge - Christmas Birds.  (so pleased to be chosen as the winner)
Colour Hues Challenge - No. 4 Blue and Orange.
NBUS Challenge - No. 19 Where we use our Never Before Used Schtuff.
ABC Christmas Challenge -  U & V are for?  Up in the Air and Vixen/Reindeer.  (I have a bird in my bauble so hope this counts).
Merry Little Christmas Challenge - No. 27 Anything Christmas Goes.

Meadow Hare

Hi everyone.  This is a card for my *great niece who has just become a teenager.  I was going to buy a card as at first I thought that probably the sort of cards I make are not what a teenager would like, but then I thought of this Pink Ink Meadow Hare which I was pleased to get as a sale item several months ago and which hasn't been inked yet, and thought it was time to do so.  I love hare images and this is quite cute as are all the creatures depicted by Pink Ink, so I hope she likes it.

I started with a piece of card just about the right size for this image as it is very large and wanted to get it on a 7" x 5" card, it fits with a tiny bit of the foliage missing at the bottom.  I decided to cover the card with a wash of colour with a waterbrush, and used Crushed Olive Distress Ink, just to cover the card.  I then stamped the hare using Versafine Vintage Sepia Ink and using mainly Vintage Photo mixed with Spiced Marmalade I coloured the hare again using a waterbrush, leaving some of the Crushed Olive as highlights.  I then used some Mowed Lawn, Peeled Paint and some more Crushed Olive for the foliage and a tiny bit of Walnut Stain in a couple of places.  I then used some Shaded Lilac, Dusty Concord and Wilted Violet on the butterfly and caterpillar, and also the harebell type flowers.  Naturally as the under colour is yellow the colours are not true to tone, but I like the overall look of it.  I must say I did use the same sort of colours as appears on the packing as I like the bright look of the hare, rather than just a mid brown the orange peps it up a bit and all the little dots and leaves over it are also done with the Spiced Marmalade.

I finished by adding a sentiment using Versafine Olympia Green which I heat embossed with WOW Clear Gloss Embossing Powder, and then used some of the Crushed Olive to blend around the edges before adding it to the card.

Thank you for dropping by today and I hope to see you again soon.

*Just to correct myself, I suddenly realised that I had missed the 'great' out of the equation..lol, a senior moment and it has only taken me two days to realise that it was wrong and after lots of people had actually said niece and I still had not picked up on it.  I will put it down to the fact that I have had some family things going on which have distracted me recently.  Thank you all for your lovely comments too which I greatly appreciate.    

I am entering the following challenges:

Uniko Challenge - No. 61 Anything Goes (optional twist: Thanks)
NBUS Challenge - No. 19 Where we use our Never Before Used Schtuff.
Watercooler Wednesday Challenge - No. 292 Anything Goes With a Feminine Twist.
613 Avenue Create October Challenge - Anything Goes (optional twist: Winged Things)
Crafter's Cafe Challenge - No. 252 Anything Goes.
AAA Birthday Challenge - No. 18 Photo Inspiration (I have chosen the yellows, greens and orange tones)

CAS Mix Up October Challenge - Guest Designer Spot

Hi there everybody.  I am so pleased and excited to be the Guest Designer over at CAS Mix Up Challenge this time and thank you to Loll, Bonnie and the team for inviting me to join them this time, and it is the turn of stencils to take the spotlight.  The challenge was set by Viv and she has chosen 'Tone on Tone'.  If you want some inspiration do pop over there and see what all the very talented team have come up with, and there are also some You Tube video suggestions for even more ideas.  

 Anyway on to my card for which I have used a new to me stencil by Funky Fossil called Abstract Flowers and three bright Distress Inks - Seedless Preserves, Picked Raspberry and Ripe Persimmon, and finished with WOW Clear Gloss Embossing Powder.  Techniques: stamping, ink blending, heat embossing, dry embossing and die cutting.

I started by covering a piece of white card with the three bright distressed inks using a blending tool working diagonally across it.  When this was dry I dusted the card well with my Anti Static Bag and laid my stencil over and used each of the inks in turn covering each coloured portion of the card with the stencilled image in the same colour as the card beneath, and working the ink well in for maximum coverage.   While the ink was still wet I covered the stencilling with the WOW Clear Gloss EP and heat set it.  

Finally again allowing plenty of time for everything to dry I then used a square stitched die to cut it down a bit and then I ran it through my machine to dry emboss it for more dimension.  I then added a sentiment stamped on to a piece of white card using Versafine Clair Nocturne Ink and cut around it and added some of the pink ink left on the blending tool to the edges.  I then added a piece of foam to the back of the panel and the sentiment before mounting it on to a 6" square white card.

I have really enjoyed being the Guest Designer and the tone on tone was fun to do with a stencil and I hope you will join in with the challenge which is open until the 24th October. 

I am entering the following challenges:

Simon Says Wednesday Challenge - Anything Goes.
NBUS Challenge 19 - Where we use our Never Before Used Schtuff.
Stamplorations October Stencil Challenge - Always Anything Goes.

 

Seasonal Wreath

Hi there everybody.  I am using this Sweet Manhattan stamp for the first time.  Sherie the owner has an Etsy shop and this particular stamp is here.  I was lucky enough to be sent this as a thank you for some help I gave her.  I thought it was about time I got on with my Christmas cards and decided to make  a card for the Rudolph Days Challenge as I have missed a few this year.  It is run by Mo at Scraps of Life by Scrappymo and runs from 25th to the end of each month,  and there are only two more to go this year...can you believe it! 

I started by stamping the wreath using Versafine Olympia Green Ink and I heat set it with WOW Clear Gloss EP.  I then coloured with Distress Inks and a water brush using Festive Berries, Pine Needles, Mowed Lawn and Vintage Photo.  I also added a bit of Pixie Powder in Gold mixed with the red for the baubles, but not sure that you will be able to see it here.  I finished by adding the Pine Needles to the sentiment in the centre.  I then splattered very lightly with  both the red and green before matting it on to red card and then on to my 6" square white card.

I am entering the following challenges:

Rudolph Days September Challenge - Anything Christmas Goes.
The Holly and Ivy Christmas Challenge - No. 80 Anything Christmas Goes.
Merry Little Christmas September Challenge - No. 26 Anything Christmas Goes.

Trees for Two Seasons

Hi everybody.  I've been trying to get some Christmas cards done but haven't got very far, but I made this one with CAS Christmas in mind as they are asking for Trees, and made a second different card using the same trees so I could enter the Twofer Challenge where we have to make two different cards for two different occasions using the same stamp, stencil or die, and have made it by a whisker for both challenges.  

Here are the two cards together for the Twofer Card Challenge entry using Tree Trio by Crafty Individuals.

 

For this first card I stamped on to a snippet of white card using Versafine Clair Nocturne Ink and then added the blue sky using Stormy Sky Distress Ink smooshed for a watercolour look, and then with a waterbrush I added some well watered down Picked Raspberry DI to the horizon, not showing up too well in the photo.  I then embossed with a snowfall stencil and added some white liquid pearls over the top of the embossing, and a few more as well..I think I got a bit carried away so instead of gently falling snow it looks like a blizzard..lol.  

I then added some white acrylic paint to the foreground and stippled it a bit to give it a nice covering of snow, and also ink blended around the edges of the sky with Adirondack Stonewashed Ink before adding the sentiment again using the Nocturne Ink heat embossed with WOW Clear Gloss Embossing Powder.  I decided to add it on to a snippet of silver mirri card before adding it to the slimline card.

I am entering this card into the following challenges:

CAS Christmas Card September Challenge - Christmas Tree (this isn't as CAS as I first intended so hope this will be acceptable.  This is a very late entry so please ignore it if it doesn't fit into the CAS category)
Pixie's Crafty Workshop - No. 387 Where we use up our snippets of card and paper etc.
The Holly and Ivy Christmas Challenge - No. 79 Anything Christmas Goes.
ABC Christmas Challenge - 'S' for Snowy or 'T' for Tinsel.
Merry Little Christmas September Challenge - No. 26 Anything Christmas Goes.

 

This second card started with the background using some more autumn colours, and made with some Brushos - Lemon, Orange and Emerald Green, and Pixie Powders  - Gold and White Pearl which have given it a lovely shimmery finsh but it doesn't show up in the photo unfortunately.  I then die cut the square from the centre using a stitched square die and stencilled the Funky Fossil Leafy Mandala to the corners using Ripe Persimmon Distress Ink.   I added the CI trees to the stitched square, minus a little bit at the bottom, using Versamark and heat set with WOW Metallic Copper Embossing Powder and stamped the sentiment using Versafine Vintage Sepia Ink heat embossed with WOW Clear Gloss EP.  I put it all together on to a white 6" square card and inset the tree topper into the background.

I am entering this card into the following challenges:

Watercooler Wednesday Challenge - No. 290 All About Occasions.
The Card Concept Challenge - No. 140 Fanciful Fall.  (I have used the Mixed Media Style with stamping, stencilling, heat embossing, die cutting and watercolouring)
Stamping Sensations September Challenge - The Great Outdoors.
NBUS Challenge - No. 18 Using our Never Before Used Schtuff.  (My CI Tree Trio stamp and the Leafy Mandala stencil are both getting their first outing)

Thank you for visiting the blog today and I hope to see you again soon.

Shades of Purple Dragonfly

Hi all.  I have had this stamp for a while and decided to us it for this masculine card.  It is designed by Lisa Horton for Creative Expressions and called Dragonfly Background.

I thought it would lend itself to using the inks straight to stamp, so I positioned the piece of card in my Misti and stamped it with three different Distress Inks, the  lightest colour Shaded Lilac used all over, then the darkest tone Dusty Concord on the dragonfly wings and the chevrons, and lastly I added the bright mid tone Wilted Violet over the word plate.  I managed pretty well to get each colour of ink where I wanted it but there are just a few stray bits but it all blends in fine, and I was pleased with the finished look.  I then added some WOW Clear Gloss Embossing Powder all over and took it out of the Misti and heat set it, but decided that it would be better with a thicker covering of the gloss finish, so placed it back in and restamped with Versamark and heat set it again, and this brought the colours out and gave it more punch, especially as the style is of a distressed sort of pixelated look which muddies the design a bit. 

Anyway I hope you like it and I think this works well for a male birthday, but I guess it would work for a female birthday too, what do you think?  Thank you for visiting today and I'll see you again soon.

I am entering the following challenges:

Less is More Challenge - No. 428 Shades of Purple.  (I hope this is considered CAS enough for the challenge)
613 Avenue Create Challenge - Anything Goes (optional: use a charm on your project).
NBUS Challenge- No. 18 Where we use our Never Before Used Schtuff. 
AAA Birthday Challenge - No. 17 Animals and Critters.

 

CAS Embossed Heart Anniversary

Hi everyone.  This is a card for a family anniversary made using the embossed die technique which is the theme of the CAS Mix Up Challenge this time.  I used a Nellie Snellen Multi Frame Heart die set which I have had for years, and I don't think they make this one anymore, and the stamped flowers are from a set by Creative Expressions called Bouquet  which I got from a local outlet so think it is probably another one not produced anymore.

I have a Gemini machine and up to now have tried to emboss dies but have failed dismally, as either the sandwich was too thin or else it impressed to hard and cut through, or scrunched the card around the die, and once it bent the die a bit, luckily I did manage to straighten it, so I didn't have high hopes.  I think this die is quite thick and with the normal two clear plates and a silicone mat it did it perfectly, luckily proving me wrong..lol.  As an afterthought I decided to put it through again with added Versamark then heat embossed it with WOW Metallic Platinum Embossing Powder.   I used my Anti Static Bag and managed to line it back up pretty well, just a little bit out but good enough, and with a little tidying up of the stray powder again it worked well.

 

I then stamped the smaller flowers from this Creative Expressions set and again heat embossed with the Platinum EP and coloured the flowers with my Staedtler Water Brush Pens and a waterbrush.  Why is it when you take the photo it shows up those things you can't see with the naked eye, although I think I do need better glasses..lol, as I can see some white patches on the flowers..aaagh!  Too late as I have already sent the card.    I also stamped the sentiment and again heat embossed with the same Platinum EP.   I finished by ink blending with Ripe Persimmon Distress Ink around the edges before adding this to the 6" base card.  

Thank you for stopping by my blog today and I hope to see you again soon.

I am also entering the following challenges:

CAS Mix Up September Card Challenge - Embossing With Dies.  (Techniques - heat embossing with the die, stamping, watercolouring, and ink blending).
Allsorts Challenge - Week 589 'I Love.... Belated Birthday Celebrations.  (I love bright colours, flowers, stamping and heat embossing).
My Time to Craft Challenge - No. 440 Embossing (Wet or Dry).