Different seasons

Here is a simply coloured SU image for the challenge at CAS Watercolour.

I stamped the image, masking off the sentiment, so that I could add my own. I used Watercolour pencils and a waterbrush to add colour and made a sentiment on the computer with a font to reflect that of the newsprint in the image.

This next one is for the challenge at ABC Christmas

The image is from A Day for Daisies, and as the teddy is inside the stocking, I thought that it would qualify for the 'I for inside' part of the challenge.

It was simply coloured with alcohol markers (I say that rather than using any particular brand name , as I have had many different sets of markers, some of which have dried up over time and been tossed, so I mix and match the brands to try to get the colours I want.)

I added a little Fun Flock to the band on the stocking for a little more interest, so I am also entering this into the TEXTURE challenge at Addicted to CAS

New Technique Old Stash

When I saw the challenge at CAS Mix up, bells began to ring as I seemed to think I may have had some Gelatos. I rummaged to find a set, bought a long time ago and hardly touched. After spending a little time on You Tube trying to find out what to do with them, this is the card I came up with (after several abortive efforts.).

I chose to use a colour block technique and overstamped a section of the card with some Stampin' Up stamps which I've had for probably longer than I've had the Gelatos. A Sizzix die cut leaf (also rubbed with gold Gelato) and a sentiment from Clearly Besotted completed the card. I did use a little black Gelato around the edge of the rectangle, pulling the colour in with my finger. I fixed the panel with a squirt or two of hairspray.

Missing Mojo

I have been trying to get some cards made but the success rate has been rather low! I have a couple here which sort of do something but there are so many incarnations in the bin!

This one is for the sketch at Happy Little Stampers and is a fairly literal translation of it as you can see.

I stamped the sentiment is Versamark and embossed in white (the clear version didn't fare so well). After this I applied drops of Aqua Tint Inks with a fairly large watercolour brush, which I spritzed with water to allow the colours to bleed into each other and the surrounding card.

The panel was then mounted on some toning card and die cut with the holes.

I kind of mis-recalled a sketch for this one... I omitted a fundamental element of it and then, because of the image I had chosen, couldn't manage to add that element to the card, so I'll have to start again with that challenge. This is however for the challenge at Casology - News, the Springtime challenge from AAA cards and Addicted to Stamps Clean and Simple. The stamp is from Stampin' Up.   

               

Less is More Theme

At "Less is More" this week the challenge is to make a CASE of one of the DT cards!

Here's mine!

I've liked this sentiment for a while so when I saw it on sale recently I was quick to buy it. It's from Penny Black and I feel it is so true. How precious those moments are.

The flowers are from Stampin' Up. The panels, cut with a Sizzix Framelit square and reduced in size somewhat, are raised on dimensional pads.

Today I shall be at the NEC craft show with Anne and hopefully we'll catch up with Sarah too!

Quite an occasion! All the LIM DT together!

I shall be carrying my Less is More tote bag... if you're there and you spot it come and say Hi!

Colours and Sketches

At Colours and Sketches this week, the chosen shades are...

It just so happens that I had all three in my stash...unusually!

I have some new Art Impressions watercolour stamps and was having a play and came up with this!

In order to achieve a slightly darker shade for some leaves, (with no other colour allowed) I inked the tiny stamp with the Cantaloupe before inking with the Coastal Cabana.

It's mounted on Die-namics pierced rectangles and accompanied by what I believe is Simon Says Stamp die-cuts.

Casual Friday's challenge this time is for a masculine card with the addition of ribbon!

Here are more Art Impressions stamps gently water-coloured. The sentiment is a tiny one from Stampin' Up.

Once more a Die-namics  die was used to cut the mount, this time a pierced oval.

So long!

Casual Friday's challenge this week is for a long thin card with a farewell theme.

Here's mine. I little alligator from Stampin' Up's Zoo babies, stamped, embossed, cut out and mounted on dimensionals. The little heart footprints were stamped with one heart from the stamp in SU's Confetti set.

The sentiment was computer generated in Sunshine Poppy font.

The theme may be so long, but this is sort and sweet!

Another couple of cards!

I saw this sketch at CAS(E) this sketch and loved it immediately. I love how the sentiment encroaches on the main focal image.

This is my version using Stampin' UP stamps.The background is Off the Grid, the butterflies are Papillon Potpourri and the sentiment is Curly Cute... all stamped with Pool Party ink. I stamped the butterflies and clear embossed them before masking them and then stamping the background.

The sentiment was cut using an SU Framelit die.

This one was made on a whim. I thought this little smiley face was so cute so I cut out the pieces on my Silhouette and coloured them in yellow and black with Copics before adding Anita's 3D Gloss.

The sentiment is from SU's Geometrical set on a little tag using eyelets and a length of ribbon which was cut from a sweater. I can't stand it when those darn things show, popping out of the neck of jumpers etc.

It's for a couple of challenges

  

                         CAS.ology BOLD          &      Dynamic Duos  Black and Yellow

This evening we are dining with friends and today hopefully we'll be able to meet up with our son and his wife in Worthing where they are once more house hunting. There have been complications with the house they had intended buying and he starts in his new practice in 2 weeks time... as yet they don't have a house to go to... I think his mother-in-law may well have some lodgers for a spell!

Craft Stamper Challenge 7

There has been a bi-monthly challenge on the Craft Stamper Blog for some time, but from now on you're going to have the chance to enter a NEW challenge each month!

Great stuff!
This time it's to use a small stamp several times to create a pattern or background or main focus of the card/tag...whatever.

Here's my CAS (as ever) contribution!

It's another take on a card I made last week, but this time I used my new ink from Stampin' Up called Pink Pirouette and it matches my Paper Mill pink cardstock perfectly.

The stamps are all from Stampin' Up and  the tiny banners were punched with an SU punch. The stitching is faux I'm afraid, drawn with a Gelly Roll Clear Star pen.

Why not give it a go this month!

Recycle it

I love the effect of kraft card and so my supplies seem very special to me. This is why, when stamping goes a little awry, I turn over the card and use the other side, as happened here. There was a tiny gap in the line around the label image and so I turned over the card to use the other side before die-cutting it. I don't suppose too many recipients disassemble their cards to find that there is sometimes apparently  random stamping on the back of some elements.

Here Stampin' Up images have been embossed with white detail embossing powder and the sentiment is from a Cuttlebug die.

It's for the Paper Players  recycle challenge and it looks as though I'm just getting in under the wire.

Retro Sketches

I found a challenge called Retro Sketches... I haven't been keen on following sketches of late as many seem totally over the top as far as components are concerned, but this one appealed to my CAS style.

 I decided to use some of the Stampin' Up DP which Mandi gave me recently, to mount the central panel.

 It was quite a job to find a blue ink which matched the paper, so the image was inked with a couple of different inks to tone in with the paper... it almost works!

I embossed the top layer with what I think may be a Sizzix embossing folder decorated with palest blue pearls.

The tag was made with a Spellbinder die which I extended slightly to fit the Kaisercraft sentiment. The flower, which has an edging of Glamour Dust, is superimposed by a Memory Box Fuchsia die cut. 

I do find getting a decent image of a mainly white card quite tricky, this is about the best that Picasa could do with it!

A bit of bling for "Less is More"

A very 'me' card for "Less is More"... a little robin with a bit of twinkle in his beak!
We've had our grandchildren staying for a few days during our daughter's house move... they are wonderful... but very tiring, so this post s going to be very short... I have to grab moments for blogging when I can!

This is a trifle more blingy, using a fab SU set... Delicate Doilies and a bunch of embossing powder!
Sorry this is short and sweet but I need my beauty sleep...  I need to schedule this as I'll probably have my hands full with little ones in the morning!!
DO join in our challenge..we love to see your creations!

SU Only Leaves

I came across a challenge blog today... as you do when hopping from creation to creation... which is for Stampin' Up products only and their theme this week is leaves. Well this was right up my street as I love leaf images and I love Stampin' Up, so here is a CAS card using the  French Foliage set, which I have to admit is one of my all time favourite stamp sets.
The squares were cut with Nesties and mounted on a rectangle the exact width of the card which was hand embossed both above and below the panel. The card was similarly treated either side of the ribbon.
I'm just about to cut my husband's hair... we must have saved so much cash over the years by my ministrations in this department... all the more for my stash fund!
SU Only Challenges - Leaves

Less is More One Layer Hearts!

When I came to think about what I was going to do for this challenge, I realised that although I have heaps of heart stamps I usually never make them into ONE LAYER CARDS... it set me thinking! Those girls at Less Is More certainly know how to pose a challenge!
Using kraft card is also something that I have never really previously embarked upon. The other day Mandi gave me quite a few samples of kraft card and this is one of them. This is SU's crumb cake and I think I like it best of all the ones she gave me.
I masked with Post It notes leaving a section which I then coloured with SU Whisper White ink applied with a sponge dauber. I stamped with the SU stamp, the set from which it comes has escaped me and coloured it with Copics. These pens had a really odd effect on top of the ink, so in order to jazz it up a little I added some Glossy accents. The sentiment is one I've had for ages, never used and forgot I had, until it turned up in a rummage today.

This one is a simple ONE LAYER sort of... there's actually a hole in the front of the card and the panel is sitting on a piece of acetate inside the card.

You may be able to see this more clearly here!
The heart is from SU the flower from Inkylicious and the sentiment from Studio G

This last one is just a bit of fun with a digi image from Bugaboo!

I printed both the image and the computer generated sentiment directly onto the card and coloured it with Copics.

The font is Viner Hand ITC.

Have a great weekend and don't forget to join in the fun at "Less is More".

My new tag die

It seems ages since I covered the whole of the front of a card with paper. I tried a bit of an experiment here, by stamping a strip of teal coloured card with Versamark and then clear embossing it, followed by rubbing over the embossed image with metallic rub on paste. I stamped the background piece with the same SU Bella Toile background stamp, this time using Weathered Wood Distress ink. I thought that this was a similar shade to the metallic paste, so giving a positive and negative effect.
I also rubbed the Spellbinder's fancy tag to give it a metallic sheen, but this doesn't show too clearly in this picture.
The sentiment is also from SU and cut with another Spellbinder's tag which I lengthened in order to accommodate the whole sentiment.
A little inking of the edges and a few pearls at the top and I was done!
Off to have my hair chopped this morning, it's much too long at the front so that will be a great relief... I have restrained myself from taking the scissors to it myself, for which I'm sure that the hairdresser will be eternally grateful!
Anything Goes - Use die cuts or punches.

Autumn

Here's another of the cards I like to make messing about with inks and embossing powder.
The stamp set I used is French Foliage by Stampin' Up.
I began with the splodges which I stamped with Versamark and embossed with clear EP, then came the sponging using Adirondack Cranberry and Caramel Inks, followed by the stamping of the leaves and text in a variety of autumnal coloured inks.
I then chopped the square panel into 4 smaller squares, inked the edges of each and mounted them on a couple of backing sheets. I decided to add one wayward leaf, just floating off the square.
I love these colours.
Today I have a touch of vertigo... I tried to do the Epley manoeuvre myself and made it worse, so I'm off to see the doctor this afternoon.
Crazy 4 Challenges (I don't really do Halloween, so this is Autumn)
House of Gilli - Fall
Woodware USA - Fall
Crafty Catz - Autumn

CASE...Copy And Selectively Edit?

This week on "Less is More" one of Blogland's shining star crafters submitted a fabulous card which I just had to CASE.
She and I have the same taste in stamps I think, as French Foliage from Stampin' UP is a firm favourite of us both. Her name is Vicky, I'm sure lots of you visit her already and you can see her card here.
Her blog is full of inspirational ideas and we can all learn so much from her.
I hope you don't mind me case-ing your fabulous card Vicky!
The tiny tags are Cuttlebug and the heart is SU. The sentiment is from Hobby Art.
Little Red Wagon - Use Die-cuts

Simply Stampin'

I made a  card for this challenge the other day and forgot to photograph it before going to lunch with friends.
I think I must have popped it into my 'Cards for Sale' box and taken it with me as my friend needed to buy some more cards. I can only assume that she bought it along with 15 others, as when I came to look for it, it was nowhere to be seen.
Anyway here is Mark II.
I'm really fond of this particular sketch and use variances of it on many occasions.
The image is from Pocket Silhouettes, double stamped without re-inking, in Pear Pizzaz. The sentiment is from a Sale-a-bration set from last year... I can't remember the name at the moment I'll have to look on the box.
The colours are taken from CR84FN this week.
Simply Stampin' - Sketch
I have to rush off to Bath today to take a gazebo, a plug-in cool box and a folding table to my daughter's. My grandson's baptism is on Sunday and these items will be needed for the ensuing celebrations. We won't have time to take them on Sunday as the service is at 9.30am and we'll have to make an early start to get there anyway. I must be back for choir this evening as we have a concert very soon and I need all the practice I can get, one thing is in Russian and other in German, neither of which is my forte!

Kissing Just us Girls!

Just us Girls is asking for kissing with a twist... what's that? I hear you say... in fact it's just that. The kissing technique is where you ink up a plain stamp and then press another inked stamp onto it using a contrasting colour, before stamping onto the card.. The 'twist' this time comes from the fact that the second stamp is not merely pressed onto the first, but twisted too.
On this card you can see the panel I started with was inked in Baja Breeze, and then the little flower from the  SU Simply the Best set was stamped in Crumb Cake both straight and twisted.
Once prepared I then huffed a little onto the stamp to ensure that the first ink I used hadn't dried out too much and stamped directly onto my card.
After making this backdrop, I added a few butterflies from the SU Embosslits Beautiful Wings, complete with a few appropriately sized pearls, finally adding the sentiment also from Simply The Best.
The sun is shining and I'm off for a spot more retail therapy this afternoon.

W for White +1

How clean and simple can you get?
This is probably just about as far as you could go.
A simple stamp and sentiment. The sentiment is a little clear stamp from Personal Impressions.
The image stamp is from Stampin' Up, I bought a couple of sets of retired stamps from an eBay seller in the US.
The package value was the equivalent of £18.43.
 It was selected by our Customs people and I had to pay £3.83 VAT and... wait for it ... £8 handling charge.  Apparently my package was worth 43p more than the accepted allowance and so the charge was incurred. On a different day, with the fluctuation of the exchange rate it may well have been within the parameters of acceptability, but not on this occasion. I did wonder about ringing them but decided to save myself the cost of the phone call, as I probably wouldn't have got anywhere anyway!
Hey Ho! I shall remember the limit the next time I make an overseas purchase!
Alphabet Challenge - W- White + 1

Making up for lost time!

I made this card a couple of days ago and it just happens to be an inverted version of the sketch at Cards and Things this week. Someone thinks on the same lines as me!
The flowers were stamped with a SU wheel and the butterfly is from the SU Punch Pot pourri, stamped with Soft Suede and then heat embossed with a little Crystal Sparkle embossing powder.
The border punch is also from SU but the sentiment is Personal Impressions I believe!
I kinda like it!
ABC Challenge - R is for Ribbon
Anything Goes - Pearls
Claudia & Company - Monochromatic