Bee Nice

Hi all.  Bees are nice and very necessary for pollination and of course the yummy honey they produce.  I have lots of papers which I had with a magazine quite a while ago and had not been used, and I have seen this fragmented card technique a lot lately so thought I would combine the two.  The magazine was the first in a series called Diary of an Edwardian Lady and also has quite a few stamps, a few dies and an embossing folder, and it hasn't been used very often, in fact the little added bees were having their first flight...lol.

I started with the papers choosing two different ones from the pack which I thought went together well, and I decided on a 6" square card and the central piece a hexagon for a slightly different look, cut from a snippet of green card.  I have seen several versions on Pinterest using a hexagon and just a single piece for the background, and this card by Di on her blog here using snippets in two different patterns, for which she used a die, made me decide to try a version from scratch, and thought that by placing the hexagon on the piece of card and laying down the strips temporarily I would be able to take the edge of one of the papers and mark the shape with a pencil, adding a bit on for safety.  This is basically what I did but I didn't want the different pieces to overlap one another so there was a lot of extra pencilling and cutting to get the shapes butted up but still covered by the green 1/4" strips..these were snippets too.  After finally cutting all the pieces I put the card together, and I decided to add a second green hexagon over the top from another snippet of green card, and before placing it I added the sentiment heat embossing it with WOW Metallic Gold Embossing Powder.  I then decided to stamp and cut out two of the little bees to embellish it and I also used snippets of white card for this.  I stamped them with Versafine Clair Nocturne Ink and coloured them with my alcohol pens ( you should use Memento with alcohol pens but as this was minimal colouring it was OK) and added some Clear Wink of Stella Pen on the wings for a bit of sparkle.   I then added a little foam square on the back of each to give them a bit of dimension.

In conclusion, I enjoyed the challenge but can see the worth of buying a die to do this as it was very time consuming and I nearly gave up several times, but having spent a lot of time on it I was determined to finish it.  I think that if I could make templates for the shapes for this card with the hexagon in the middle so that it simplified the marking and cutting it would be easier, but for a different shape and position of the centre, and a rectangle not a square, it would mean starting from scratch again and frankly life is too short for it to be worth the effort.  The only way I would do another from scratch is if it was just one piece of patterned paper with the shaped centre and added strips over the top. 

I am entering the following challenges:

Snippets Playground Challenge - No, 491 Where we use our snippets of card and paper etc.  (All the green card and some white for the little bees were snippets).

Love Those Pretty Papers Challenge - Oct. '24 Anything Goes/Halloween Colours/Papers.

Allsorts Challenge - Week 802 Anything Goes/Magical, Myths and/or Legend.

NBUS Challenge - No. 67 Where we us our Never Before Used Schtuff.

I am also joining in with Darnell's I.D.E.A.S., a challenge she has set herself but says anyone can join in.  This is Week 2: D = Dies. (Just the hexagon shape in the centre, actually doubled up so cut twice).

Turtley Terrific

Hi everybody.  This is a card for a terrific couple Chris and Marianne who have just completed a journey around the globe which has taken more than four years in a small motorhome which they call Trudy, and whose adventures we have been following via there Youtube channel.  Since their return they have had various meet ups so that anyone who has been following them and would like to meet them in person could do so, and they were having one not that far away from where we live so we thought it would be lovely to meet them. 

This card with a turtle is significant in that not long after they set off from Ironbridge in Shropshire the pandemic struck and they were in Turkey for more than a year until things began to open up again and they were able to continue their expedition.  They did a lot of travelling round Turkey in that time and they met a lady who with her son was trying to protect the turtles that nested on a local beach.  She had given up her job and every day went up and down the beach picking up rubbish, marking the nests and putting up signs and was trying to alert the locals to the plight of the turtles as unfortunately some locals and tourists were driving their cars right onto the beach and lots of the nests were damaged and the baby turtles were being killed, as well as the mother turtles as they laid their eggs at night, and also the loggerhead turtles are considered to be vulnerable and the green turtles endangered, so they need all the help they can get.  Chris and Marianne decided to set up a charity funding page to help raise money to set this lady up with an observation centre on the beach, so she could invite the local children along to teach them about the turtles and also general conservation of the beach area including plants which grow there, and they have now raised more than £40,000 which is amazing and the local authorities have got on board with it and no driving on the beach is now allowed.

I stamped the Pink Ink turtle using Versafine Smokey Gray Ink and coloured with a few Distress Inks including Vintage Photo, Walnut Stain, Spiced Marmalade and Peeled Paint.  I then cut it out, and turned my attention to the background.  I used Salty Ocean, Blueprint Sketch, Peeled Paint, Vintage Photo, Crushed Olive and Mustard Seed applied with blending brushes.  I also used my finger and dabbed some water on it, along the bottom and then some bits further up to remove some ink then applied a bit more of the green and brown and blue over it and also added some first and second generation stamped underwater foliage using the green, and coloured some but not all of it.  I finally used a fan brush to make a few smaller white marks, more at the top of the piece to give the impression of light shining through the water.  I finished by adding it to a 7" square card and then added the turtle using Glue Gel.  

P.S.  We have since been to the get together and found them to be just as lovely a couple as we thought they would be and she loved the card, and kept touching the turtle which has lots dimension with the glue gel used behind it.  Marianne sends out an online weekly newsletter to subscribers, and much to my surprise considering we were only there yesterday, it was included in this week's copy with a lovely thank you.  Their website is called Tread the Globe and they have links to their Facebook, Instagram and Youtube on there.  If anyone would like to see the work done by Seher out in Turkiye here is the link to DEKAFOK and there is a link for donations there too if anyone feels inclined.  

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

I am entering the following challenges:

We Love Stamping Challenge - Oct. '24 Anything Goes/Autumn.
Stamping Sensations Challenge - Oct '24 Anything Goes/Autumn Colours.
Allsorts Challenge - Week 802 Anything Goes/Magical, Myths and/or Legend.

Simon Says Wednesday Challenge - Add Some Texture.

I am also joining in with Darnell's I.D.E.A.S., a challenge she has set herself but says anyone can join in with.  This is Week 1: Ink/Colour Mediums.  

Autumn is here

Hi everyone.  A more autumnal card today using a Lavinia stencil called Laurel and using the Stencil Monoprint technique which is the theme of this month's Group of Seven Cardmakers, and also featuring a leaf print which I made using a real leaf.

I started with the background and the stencil monoprint which means that you ink the stencil itself rather than inking through it, which in this case meant the leaves were inked but if inking through the leaves would have been white and the surroundings coloured.  I decided to ink it up with a set of Lyra Aqua Brush Markers and a couple of different greens.  When I had got ink over the whole stencil I spritzed it with water and turned it over onto a piece of white card with a piece of kitchen towel over the top to mop up any leakage from under the sides of the stencil which helps to get a clearer print.  I was happy with the coverage, there were a few areas where it could have done with a bit more water but fine, and I cut it down to fit a 5" x 7" card.  

I then turned my attention to the leaf.  I had collected several leaves when out on a recent walk, and I decided to experiment with inking the leaf to get a print.  The leaf was still green and I wanted a more autumnal look, so I used the same Lyra Pens and used a green, orange and red pen to give the look I wanted.  I then spritzed it and placed it down onto another piece of white card and again put a piece of kitchen towel over it and rubbed it well.  It actually was a better print than I expected but there were some gaps.  I wanted to cut it out so I placed the leaf back down and pencilled around the shape and fussy cut it out and finished by ink blending over the areas where the ink coverage was a bit thin using Mowed Lawn, Ripe Persimmon and Walnut Stain Distress ink applied with a brush, and glued it down over the leaf background cutting it to fit as it was a large leaf.  I finished the card with the sentiment stamped using Versafine Vintage Sepia Ink and placed it over the leaf for a different look, and the background being less busy it shows up better.

Thank you for coming to visit my blog today and I'll see you again soon.

I am entering the following challenges:

Stencil Fun Challenge - Oct. '24 Anything Goes/Halloween.

Allsorts Challenge - Week 801 Falling Leaves/Anything Goes.

Try it on Tuesday Challenge - Autumn Magic.

We Love to Create Challenge - No. 9 Anything Goes.

Seize the Birthday Challenge - No. 292 Celebrate.

I am also joining in with Darnell's I.D.E.A.S., a challenge she has set herself and has said that anyone can join in.  This is Week 5: Stencils.

Cogs Galore

Hi all.  I have a masculine card today using some cogs which I recently bought as they are great for male cards and I didn't have any cog dies at all, and this is their first outing.  I decided to do something a bit mixed media with them and this is the result.

I started with a piece of white card and decided to colour it with Brushos in Sea Green, Moss Green, Orange, Brown and Black, and sprinkled some of each onto a piece of white card and spritzed with water, using some kitchen towel to get rid of any excess water.  I added bits of different colours as well as a sprinkling of gold mica powder which I then spritzed so that it mixed in with the colours and it did give a lovely shimmer to it.  I must admit that it did end up with a mainly golden glow and not much of the other colour was noticeable, but it was a good base to put the die cut cogs onto, which I did, glueing then down in a random pattern. 

Next I got out a set of metallic acrylic paints in gold, silver, bronze and copper and using a brush I painted these onto the cogs including the silver as I had eliminated the silver and decided to put some back..lol, and I also used a green which had the colour of verdigris and also some black for shading round and in some of the spaces in the cogs themselves, and also around the edges of the piece.  I wasn't sure whether the paint would come off so I sealed with some Matt Modge Podge. 

I was going to leave it in one piece but decided to cut it into three and to make the dimensions easier to calculate I ended up cutting a little off the outside edges and cut it into three pieces, each 1.25", though the last piece does look a smidgen less.  I then placed it onto a piece of black card which measures 4.25" square, and I decided to add a couple of gold cogs over the gaps placing them towards the top and bottom, and I finished with a gold die cut sentiment. 

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

I am entering the following challenges:

Allsorts Challenge - Week 800 Anything Goes.

Seize the Birthday Challenge - No. 292 Celebrate/Anything Goes.

Simon Says Wednesday Challenge - Anything Goes.

We Love to Create Mixed Media Challenge - No. 9 Anything Mixed Media Goes.

NBUS Challenge - No. 67 Where we use our Never Before Used Schtuff.

Ring Out Those Bells

Hi everyone.  I have a Christmas card today and it is the Rudolph Days Challenge which runs from the 25th to the end of each month, and this is my card made using this die cut Bell which came with the Crafter's Inspiration Magazine No. 6 which is getting its first outing.  Every time I went to the supermarket I saw this magazine but couldn't decide whether to get it or not, and on the third visit when it was still there on the shelf I knew it had been waiting for me to slip it into my trolley..lol.  I also used the embossing folder from the set and some dies which I have already used on a couple of card from a magazine by John Next Door, and also some papers which came with that magazine which I haven't used before.

I found a snippet of silver mirri and cut the bell, and then I found a snippet of blue and cut it from that too.  The pieces all stayed in it luckily as I wanted it like that but I just added several pieces of the blue over the silver to highlight bits of it. 

I decided to use a round card which I was going to use as the base of my last card but in the end decided against it so thought I would use it here.  I laid the largest circular die I had over the join placing it at the top, and then when cut I cut a small piece off the bottom to make it stand properly  

I got out one sheet of the paper which had strips of the different patterns on it and cut the strips and decided to make a sunburst pattern with them so cut each strip in half and cut diagonally across each of the strips.  I decided to work towards the middle with each strip and found when I got to the last one that the space was a little narrower than the strip so had to overlap this one a bit but it looks OK.  I then found another snippet of a lighter blue card and cut a circular mat with it and embossed it with the leaves and berries EF.  I then cut the leaves from more snippets of white card and added a bit of silver gilding wax to highlight them a bit.  I finished it with the die cut sentiment cut from another snippet of silver card.

I haven't tried the sunburst pattern before but it is a great way of using up papers, and these John Next Door ones are quite pale and are perfect to add a bit of interest without being too much.  

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

I am also entering the following challenges:

Snippets Playground Challenge - No. 489 Where we use up our snippets of card and paper etc.

Simon Says Wednesday Challenge - Anything Goes.

Allsorts Challenge - Anything Goes (congratulations on your 800th challenge).

Merry Little Christmas Challenge - No. 58 Anything Christmas Goes.

Peace on Earth Christmas Challenge - No. 72 Anything Goes.

Love Those Pretty Papers Challenge - Sept. '24 Anything Goes

NBUS Challenge - No. 66 Where we use our Never Before Used Schtuff.

Join the Party

Hi everyone.  I have a card today for a family member who will be 17 shortly, and I was a bit stumped as to what to make for her, and then I remembered I had some Penny Black stamps which I was lucky enough to win quite a few years ago, and they were on wood but storage of these is difficult so I took them off the wood a year or more ago and they have been forgotten about, and this particular one I have never used.  The stamp has 2010 on it so obviously not one that is around any more, and is called Join the Party.  I decided to frame it using an Altenew Doily Frame stencil which I have had for a while and also has never been used..tut tut!

I cut a square to just under 6" and using a brush and some Salty Ocean Distress Ink I inked up the frame, with the central piece in place, on the piece of white card.  I then stamped the PB image and unfortunately it did overlap the frame just a little top and bottom, but I carried on and coloured it with my Lyra Pencils hoping the colours would be strong enough to cancel out the blue background, and fortunately I think there is a hint of it but not enough to spoil it.  I finished by adding the sentiment using Versafine Clair Nocturne Ink heat embossed with WOW Clear Gloss Embossing Powder.

I then decided that perhaps it would look more interesting cut into a circular shape before adding it onto the card, so taking a deep breath I very carefully cut around the shape.  I did start with my small decoupage scissors, but realised that it would probably be easier using larger scissors that I could keep moving round the curves to get a better finish, and luckily this worked pretty well.  I finished by using some foam on the back for a bit of dimension.  A simple card really, and just hope she likes it.

Thank you for coming to visit my blog today and I'll see you again soon.  

I am entering the following challenges:

We Love Stamping Challenge - Sept. '24 - Hand Coloured Image/Anything Goes.

Stamping Sensations Challenge - Sept. '24 - Anything Goes/Animal Magic.

Stencil Fun Challenge - Sept. '24 - Anything Goes/Fall Frenzy.

Allsorts Challenge - Week 798 - Something Fishy/Anything Goes.
Simon Says Wednesday Challenge - Make Your Own Background.

Vellum Mix

Hi all.  I have another card using vellum.  I decided to colour and dry and heat emboss it, and another card to join in with the Group of Seven Cardmakers who are focussing on this technique this month.  I also used an embossing folder called Tied Together by Couture Creations, and also a Pinkfresh Studio butterfly stamp and die which came with Creative Stamping magazine quite a while ago but one I have only just got around to using.

I started with a piece of quite heavy weight vellum and I coloured it with my alcohol pens using a coral pink and a mid blue.  I scribbled on the vellum and moved the ink around with some alcohol and then I embossed it with the Tied Together EF.  I read somewhere that adding a piece of copy paper under the vellum helps to stop it cracking.  This one I used is an ordinary folder so less likely to crack the vellum, but I did put a piece of paper in with it anyway.  I decided that perhaps the ink did not show up well enough on the back of the vellum so once again used the two pens and some more alcohol and I think because of the embossing it did stick to it more and was brighter.  I couldn't make up my mind whether to use the other side, but in the end decided to go for the side with the embossing which has a whiter look.  

I then die cut the butterfly using a piece of white card and stamped the front layer on another piece of vellum and heat embossed it with WOW Opaque Bright White Embossing Powder.  I was going to leave it all white but felt that the whole card could do with a bit more colour so used the coral coloured pen to colour the under layer and added some pink gems down the body of the butterfly.  I thought maybe this made the butterfly too bright, but it is toned down by the vellum top layer so OK I think.  Finally I cut a piece of white card to fit the 6" square card and cut a circle aperture and placed the vellum beneath it, and finished the card with a sentiment using Faded Jeans Distress Ink and heat embossed with WOW Clear Gloss EP.

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

I am entering the following challenges:

We Love Stamping Challenge - Sept. 24 Hand Coloured Image/Anything Goes.

Stamping Sensations Challenge - Sept. 24 Anything Goes/Animal Magic.

Allsorts Challenge - Week 797 Autumn Colours/Anything Goes.

AAA Birthday Challenge - No. 65 Background Focus.

Triple B Challenge - Sept. 24 Birds, Butterflies and Blooms (any one, two or all three).

Simply Clean and Simple Challenge - Anything Goes/Signs of Fall.

NBUS Challenge - No. 66 Where we use our Never Before Used Schtuff.

I am also joining in with Darnell's I.DE.A.S., a challenge she has set herself but has said anyone can join in with.  This is Week 2: Dies.