More Aurora Wings Colouring

 Back in February I entered this card into an Aurora Wings Challenge on Facebook. Amazingly, I was lucky enough to be a winner! As a part of my prize I chose this image called Calla Lily Sprite.
The first one I coloured with be Creative markers and used papers on my card from the Artylicious cd Butterfly Bliss and Filigree fusion (I think - it is a while since I printed them out!) The pale gold card is pearlescent, and I used a  gold gelly roll stardust pen for the centres of the lilies.

My second card is one that I did as a sample for Be Creative's Hochanda shows last Friday. I used paper from their Nature's portrait paper pad. The bottletop and glitter glue are also from Be Creative.
Hi there to my new followers, Teri, Kate, Jo and Trudi. Great to have you here! I aim to have some Follower candy soon, as I head back to 300 followers (I got there just before Google had the clear out and wiped 14 off my total (Grrrr!)
Today I have enjoyed my belated Mother's day, with Meg being home for her Easter Holiday. I was treated to breakfast in bed, a beautiful bunch of flowers...

and some amazing home baked biscuits called Gypsy Creams (I think these might be a Dumfries and Galloway delicacy, taken from the cookbook we bought from New Abbey tea Rooms last summer)


I consider myself a very fortunate Mum!
Thanks for looking!

Colouring faces

 I've been colouring some different images over the past couple of weeks. Different  in that I don't normally go for this style of image!  I downloaded the flower maiden from Aurora Wings etsy shop and gave her a pastel look with my be creative alcohol Markers. I added glitter glue and liquid pearls to her hair too - here's a close-up...

 The base card is covered in paper from Be Creative's Vintage collage paper pad. I have to say it was a joy to colour her and I will definitely be buying more of Mitzi's images. There is a sale on at the moment too!

 My second image is another digi download, this time from Lavinia. Again I coloured her with Be creative alcohol markers and added liquid pearls and glitter glue. The base card was covered in a gelli print made some time ago with pearlised paints and a stencil. Here she is at a different angle so you can see the sparkle on the glitter glue.

Whilst I am showing you digis, can I please make a plea to you all. If you want a digi, go to the artist and buy it! Please avoid those sites that seem to think it is okay to steal,  or give away images without the artist's permission. I know several artists who spend hours, sometimes days producing images to sell for a very small price compared to rubber stamps. They need to sell at least 15 to 20 of those images to buy their child's next pair of shoes, or pay for that guitar lesson. If, like me, you teach workshops involving colouring, it is common courtesy to ask permission too. I have found artists are very obliging when it comes to letting me use their images at workshops, and if it helps to spread the word on how lovely their images are then all the better. Just keep in mind they need to make a living too. Rant over - thanks for listening!

Another teenage Birthday

Meg's Friend Sam celebrated her 13th Birthday at the weekend, so I made her a card. Her favourite colour scheme is red and black, she loves ugg boots, skirts and jazzy tights, so this digi from Mo Manning was perfect for her. I coloured it with Promarkers. The red paper is stamped with a music swirl from  the Rock star inkadinkado clear set. I made the rose on the corner using the left over backing paper and a bit of added embossing powder.
Sam loves drawing manga and has recently become a huge promarker fan after using mine, so we bought her some of her own. I'm definitely throwing myself into encouraging the next generation of crafters!
I'm entering this into the DU2Digistamp challenge where the theme is 'Anything Goes'. Thanks for looking!

Tag You're it Challenge #5 - Butterfly kisses

Here is my entry for this week's Tag you're It challenge where the theme is butterfly kisses. I have used a Hero digi stamp for the butterflies, coloured with promarkers. The background was made with  Distress inks on crumpled wet paper, over-stamped with Graphicus oriental grasses(one of my birthday presents) and a crafty individuals fern stamp. As well as being the theme on Tag you're it, Butterflies are the theme on this week's Alphabet Challenge Blog (Thanks for the Nudge, Lesley) So I'm entering it there too.
I bet you are thinking 'what is she doing posting on a Thursday morning when she should be at work?'  Well, as well as having Monday off for May day, School is a polling station, so I've got today off too! I would love a three day week every week!!! Now I can't say I've got a lot to show for it though. I'm surrounded by lovely stash and I don't know where to start! I've not been totally idle. There is a carrot cake in the oven, which was requested by my boss when I asked 'what sort of cake shall I make?' I'll post a picture to make you all hungry! Thanks for looking and I hope you enjoy your day!

Valentine's Day

Here's my Valentine's card for Steve. I saw the Digi image on Fred She Said and had to have it! It comes with the sentiment You are better than chocolate... but to be honest it was a tough call! It's probably a bit girly but I really liked the humour.
I coloured it with promarkers and did the background with the Hero Arts Leaf Flourish (again!). I really must put it away and use something else!

Zebras

I've had the promarkers out again. This time I used a digistamp from Teri at Delicious Doodles. I bought it and then thought 'Zebras don't need colouring!' It only took a few minutes to think about colouring the background though, and it could be done in virtually any combination of colours. I'm thinking of trying a purple sunset next. The background paper is made with a stamp by an American called Katy Widger and I bought it from Blade Rubber stamps on a visit to London. The stamp company is Rubber Poet. If anyone knows a stockist of these in the UK please let me know, because I'd love some more. I used Kaleidacolor creole spice ink, a Martha Stewart punch and the Victoria cuttlebug embossing folder and some brilliance gold ink to burnish the edges. Thanks for looking x

Dare you to Digistamp Challenge - Buttons

This weeks challenge at DareU2Digistamp is Buttons. I've been busy with the promarkers this week, so I put them together and added a few buttons. Both cards are for young ladies. The first is for a daughter of a friend and the second for a young neighbour. The digistamp on the first is from Sassy Studios and the gorgeous teddy is a creation of Vince and a freebie from his blog - check it out, because he is a very talented guy! Thanks for looking!

Allsorts Challenge week 34 - a sketch

Here is my entry for this weeks Allsorts challenge. Emma has created a lovely sketch and the theme is entirely up to us. To celebrate Digistamp Boutique becoming a regular sponsor you get two chances if you use one of their fabulous digistamps, so I have. This is Bernard. I coloured him with promarkers and I think he goes very well with these MME papers. The flower stamp is also MME, joining the punched leaves. I used some tulip paint and some flat back pearls in the centres. Thanks for looking!

Been a bit quiet doing lots of colouring!

Just realised I've not posted anything since Wednesday. Most evenings I've come home and got the promarkers out. I almost ranted when Meg's school was shut again, but I coloured instead. Thursday was interesting. We took my class swimming for the first time. Sixteen came to school that day, and all went smoothly until we got back on the bus to come back to school. The road outside the leisure centre was sheet ice and the bus slid sideways across the junction, coming to rest against a road sign! The children were very calm and quiet. There was one comment of 'Are we going to crash again, miss?' which was answered with 'Let's be nice and quiet whilst the driver concentrates'. By the time other motorists had got out of the way and left us with room to manoeuvre we were half an hour late getting back to school. Every child thanked the driver on the way off and several told him he was wonderful, bless 'em! He was filling up!  There have been no injuries on the playground and our school has been open every day. I'm sounding a bit self righteous now aren't I?!! Sorry!
Anyway, onto the cards. All three are digistamps. The tiger is from Crafts U Print, the monkey is from Dustin Pike and the Beautiful Hydrangea is from the lovely Teri at delicious doodles. They are all coloured with promarkers. Thanks for looking!

Brother's Birthday

We have several family members who have birthdays very close to Christmas and the New Year, and my brother is one of them. I saw this lovely image of a Golden Eagle when I took part in the Tuesday Taggers Blog Hop and thought it would be perfect for him. It is from Delicious Doodles by Teresa Sherman - isn't he stunning?  I coloured it with promarkers. I used shades of warm greys on the rocks and Mustard on his feet and beak. Then I used a mixture of sandstone, tan and caramel for the paler areas and cocoa, cinnamon, burnt sienna and walnut for the darker feathers. I used my blender pen to lighten the area at the edge of his wings too. the background papers have been in my stash for at least 5 years and I didn't have much left, but I think the one on the left is a PSX one. I used a martha stewart punch, my oval nesties and a sentiment stamp by Clarity stamps. Those Christmas presents are getting some good use! Thanks for looking!

Grab a plate...

...and help yourself to a mince pie fresh out of the oven. My mince pies aren't the prettiest, but they taste fine! You could have some ginger cake too, although some is a gift for a friend. The hamster card (featuring a Mo Manning digistamp) is for the same people - we 'hamster sit' for them a few times each year. The Turkey card (Dustin Pike) is for my dear friend Julie who came to my rescue when the oven packed up on Christmas day last year and I had the whole family coming over on Boxing day and a gigantic turkey to cook! The last card (also Dustin Pike) is for Julie's daughter and Meg's best friend, Sam. I've done all my cards, but time is running out and I won't have time to post Meg's and Steve's cards. I had intended entering Allsorts and Tuesday Taggers, but cooking is going to have to take priority!
So, here's wishing each and every one of you a wonderful Christmas. I hope you are surrounded by those you love and that Santa brings you everything you want!
Merry Christmas Everybody!

Dare U 2 Digistamp? - last minute Christmas cards

It has been a while since I've managed to enter DU2DS challenge. It isn't that I haven't had a go. I know for a fact there are two half finished cards on my craft table! Anyway, I couldn't let last minute christmas cards go by without making an effort to post some!
The two mice are from Digistamp Boutique and coloured with promarkers. the patterned paper is from Funky fairies. These two doubled as money wallets with a flap on the inside with notes tucked in! The first snowman was a freebie from Dustin Pike some months ago. Again I coloured with promarkers. The Paper was some from my stash (Dovecraft I believe) and the sentiment was from Craftwork cards.
The second snowman was another freebie, this time from Cuddly Buddly Crafts. The backing paper is more old stash from Dovecraft and I used my nestie snowflakes and another Martha Stewart punch. I'm on a roll now... about 7 more to go I think! Thanks for looking!

AAAaaaaaahhhhhhhh!!!!!!!

Here are the last few remaining birthday cards I had left to do for December. I can get on with finishing the Christmas cards now! I am only managing to blog these because a friend has lent me her dongle. I have no landline and no broadband at the moment. It went off yesterday and it won't be back on until tomorrow night at the earliest. I'm not a happy bunny. On the up side my boss has returned to work and this week is a lot less stressful.
The cards are all digistamps except for the 3rd. The top one is from CraftsUprint, the second is from Dustin Pike, the third has stamps from the Funky flowers plate (available from The Stampman) and the last is from Christine Dark. They were all coloured with Promarkers except for the 3rd which was coloured with sakura stardust pens and a water brush. Off to do more Christmas cards now - Thanks for looking!

Allsorts Challenge - Purple advent

There's a bit of a theme going on here, principally because back in September I bought a pack of these purple Christmas sentiments (Craftwork cards) and then discovered a pack of papermania 12 x12 papers that I bought thinking they would be pink and purple only to find they were more like pink and grey!
I saw the theme on Allsorts and coloured these over the weekend. The first is a Mo Manning Digistamp and the second and third are Pink gem design stamps. I used promarkers, cos I've got the whole set now thanks to Brenda's husband! If I had to choose one for Allsorts, it would be the last one (even though it is a bad photo). That snowman is so jolly!
Thanks for looking - I hope you're Christmas preparations are going well!

A mad dash mid panto!

Here are a couple of cards I've thrown together over the past few nights. I've been burning the midnight oil again, but I've no choice at the moment. It's panto week and I've been at school from 7.30 am to 8 pm two days on the trot. The head is off sick too, so I've been in charge. Anyway, I've NEEDED to craft (stress relief!)
The top card features a digistamp from craftsUprint, a site I discovered at the weekend. I have a friend who loves tigers and this was perfect for her birthday card. I coloured it with promarkers. Do tigers have green eyes? I'm not sure, but I think it looks okay.
The second card is for one of Megan's friends who plays the piano. I've used a digistamp from Digisparkle, coloured with promarkers and mounted on papers from the Funky Fairies 'lets get Traditional' range. I am so going to have earned my shopping trip to Sir Stampalot's demo day on Saturday with Lynne and Brenda! And those Promarkers too!

Allsorts Challenge - Buttons

 Allsorts challenge this week is to include some buttons on your project. I've used a Mo Manning digistamp and word processed the first two lines of  'Twas the night before Christmas.The buttons, and lace are from my stash. The papers are from Dovecraft (stockings) Papermania (stars) and Funky Fairies (snowflakes).
Yet again I am unable to take a photo without flash as the weather is so miserable! It has been raining quite heavily all night, and although it has eased now it still looks like it could tip it down at any moment. I hope the weather is better for you. Thanks for looking!

Two challenges

Here is my entry for this weeks Tuesday taggers, where the theme is red green and gold, and Dare you to Digistamp, which is glitter. I used Sophie from Digistamp Boutique and coloured her with promarkers. I used gold glitter on the punched snowflakes and holographic glitter on the image. the paper is from my stash and I have had it for a very long time. Finally I managed a photo without using the flash!
Let's hope the weather improves for everyone, particularly in Cumbria.

Thanks for looking!

Passion for promarkers - Burnt Umber and Marsh Green

Here is my entry for this weeks Passion for promarkers. Besides the challenge colours of Burnt Umber and Marsh Green I used Pastel Blue, Ivory, Blush, Dusky pink, Terracotta and Pumpkin. The image is from Digistamp Boutique, and the papers from MME and Funky Fairies. I foolishly waited until Saturday to try and get a decent photo in daylight, so I'm probably to blame for the awful weather!
Thanks for looking !

Allsorts Challenge: For a child

Here is my card for this weeks Allsorts challenge which is a card for a child. The stamp is from Pink Gem and I fell in love with it when I saw it. I almost put googly eyes and a pompom for the nose, but opted for glaze as my googly eyes were a bit large! I used my promarkers to colour him and added a bit of diamond stickles. The papers have been in my stash for ages and the sentiment is from Craftwork cards.

While I was tidying my table I found this lovely image that I had coloured with promarkers ages ago. It is a free download from here. I quickly made it up into a card and I'm rather pleased with the result. Very summery and warm! I also found half a bar of Galaxy which put me in an even better mood!!! The weekend has got better and better as I have bought Brenda's promarkers from her and arranged to meet up with her on 5th December at Sir Stampalot's open day. We had a lovely chat on the phone  - it feels like I've known her for years! It's just like Christmas already!!!

Where did this week go?!

Here is my card for this week's Tuesday Taggers (no patterned paper) and it follows the sketch for this weeks Passion for Promarkers. I used marsh green and burgundy(again) with cool grey 1, 2 and 3, blossom, ruby, cinnamon and pastel blue. The digistamp is from Digistamp Boutique and there was much use of my nesties and cuttlebug. Not my best colouring, and I think it is something to do with the card I printed on. I can't seem to get the 'In 2 crafts' stuff any more. Wilkinson's have stopped selling it and are now doing the stuff from create and craft which is thicker and allows more 'bleeding'.
This week has been completely mad. There has been lots of staff absence at work, with those of us that were there  having to cover. There were three trips besides the usual swimming. We are rehearsing for the school panto and I've had two new children start in my class. I haven't seen the house in daylight all week and my craft table looks like a bomb has hit it. I've made three cards this week and none are up to my usual standard. I would love a three day weekend so I could just catch up a bit! Off to do some tidying... I might make a better job of that!
Thanks for looking!