Winter Is Coming

 Good morning and a very happy Monday. Today I'm over at the Ink Art Designs Stamping Playground with an art journal page.

Oh I do miss Game of Thrones (no not that terrible ending, no one misses that!) and dragons will always remind me of it.

I started by stencilling a background and adding the Lavinia Dragon Verse.

Then I stamped and coloured my lovely Crafty Individuals New Beginnings stamp.

I stencilled another background with my flames and a Lavinia stencil, then I added my hatching dragons. The sentiment is from Carmen's Veranda.

Dot has a fabulous range of Crafty Individuals, Carmen's Veranda, and all things Lavinia here in the store. 

I hope you like it, and that you join in with our challenge. Just use any stamps from the ranges that Dot sells for a chance to win the stamp of your choice.

Thanks so much for looking, take care, and have a very happy week x

Spirits Take Flight

 Good morning and a very happy Wednesday. Autumn is certainly drawing in now and Halloween is filling the shops. With this in mind, I've made a non-spooky All Hallows Eve journal page using my Lavinia stamps for Ink Art Designs.

I started by making my background with Distress Oxides and stencils on some watercolour paper.

Then I just built up my design using lots of little stamps as well as the large ones. I love this tiny one, as it's a little bit like paint splatters but not as risky lol.

I've stamped the bird from the Crow set onto tissue paper as there was too much texture on my moon to get a good image. It also means that you can reverse the image too. On the right, I've stuck it down with decoupage glue, and the one on the left is decoart ultrafine glitter paint. The paint actually blurs the tissue better than the glue.  The sentiment is also a Lavinia stamp, I've just added an extra 's' to the 'spirit'

I added a few Tim Holtz bats - nothing says Halloween better than bats!

And we're all done! I hope you like it and that you join in with our monthly challenge. As always it's Anything Goes, you just need to use stamps from the ranges that Dot sells here in the store. 

I'm also entering my page into this months Lavinia challenge which is All Hallows Eve. 

Have a very happy week, and thanks so much for looking x

We're Having A Hashtag Challenge At Ink Art Designs

Good morning and happy Saturday. We're having a fun challenge over at the Ink Art Designs Stamping Playground, and I'll let Dot explain!

The Ink Art Designs Animal Challenge is as follows:

~ Create any project (card, art journal page, canvas etc) using the theme ANIMALS.

~ Stamping must be the highlight of your piece.

~ The Animals theme can include birds, sea life and insects.

~ Use stamps only from the companies available through Ink Art Designs.

This includes Rubber Dance, Visible Image, Stampotique, Art Journey, Crafty Individuals, Art By Marlene, Katzelkraft,

That’s Crafty and Lavinia.

~ Share your project on social media using the following hashtag: #IADAnimalChallenge.

Your project, with the hashtag, can be posted on Facebook, Pinterest or Instagram. 

For more details about the challenge, the prize package as well as the discount code for all participants, visit our Ink Art Designs #IADAnimalChallenge post here.

Here's my piece using Lavinia stamps which can be found here 

 I started by sponging my background with acrylics in blue and silver. Then added some stencilling with Izink Ice and Diamonds.

 This is the glittery Diamond.

 And this is the Ice!

 And this is the gorgeous Sebastian, he's one of my favourite Lavinia stamps.

 There's also loads of Lavinia stamps in the background, and this is also one of her sentiments.

More Lavinia tiny seahorses!

Now it's your turn!

The challenge runs until the 8th of May and Ink Art Designs will select a random winner for a grand prize package which will be announced on the 9th of May.

Don't forget to check out the amazing prize here and then join in!

Have a great weekend, and thanks for looking x

I'm adding Sebastian into the Lavinia 'Blue and Silver' challenge. Take care x

Dance With The Fairies

Good morning and happy Saturday - welcome to the weekend. I don't think there will be much fairy dancing done this weekend, more like wind and rain dodging! 

In an attempt to add a little bit of colour to my world I've made a journal cover for the Lavinia stamp challenge Beneath The Moon.

I started by making my background with some spray inks.

 Then I added my moon with some gesso and a Gelli plate.

Do you remember these - Pan Pastels! Mine have been sitting in a box for longer than I care to remember, but out they came and they've been added to my background.

 I love this quote, we should all talk to the moon.

And it all fits perfectly on my journal so that's a result.

I'm also joining in with the Simon Says Stamp Wednesday challenge which is Add A Sentiment, and to the Craft Stamper TIMI challenge for February.

Have a great weekend, hope you stay dry, and thanks so much for looking xx

Never Too Old For Fairy Tales

Good morning and happy Monday. Today I'm over at the Ink Art Designs Stamping Playground with a card that I've made using stamps by Art Journey and Lavinia. 

I started by making a circle on my round gelli plate, then stamping the Lavinia Spiral of Spells.

I added more stamping with Lavinia and Art Journey stamps.

And added colour with Distress Inks, and sparkle with Brusho's.

I finished off with some white splatter - I got a bit carried away at this stage lol.

I hope you like it, the stamps can be found here in Dot's store. Have a look around and then join in with our challenge. The rules are very simple, just use stamps from any of the ranges that are in the store. 
Speaking of stamps there's a massive 20% off the wonderful Darkroom Door stamps, so thats always worth a look.
I'm entering fairy woodland into the Simon Says Stamp Wednesday challenge which is 'Anything Goes' and also the
Stamping Sensations 'Feminine' challenge.
Have a very happy day and thanks for looking x

Follow Your Dreams

Good morning and happy Friday - welcome to the weekend! For my second project for the Ink Art Designs Stamping Playground I've been using my Lavinia stamps. I'm very late to the Lavinia party, but I really like their mythical stamps, and after watching demo's on Hochanda, decided to give them a try.

I started by making an inky background with Distress Oxides and inks. I also added some sparkle with the Brusho Sprinkle It's. I love the sparkle, but next time I will save it until the end as the little 'gritty' bits were a mare to stamp over.

I made a moon by using gesso and a round gelli plate. I used a brayer for the gesso as I wanted a textured background.

Then I stamped my Pegasusses/Pegasi/winged horses,  and dragon together with the Background Script, and fairy orbs.

This gesso stamped orb had gone a little bit pink, so I thought 'I can fix that' Oh No I hear you scream, it's not really broken so don't try and fix it. 

So after I'd nearly rubbed a hole in the paper trying to fix a non existant problem I had a real problem.

So I stamped the medium sized orb on a second sheet of paper and punched them out. The punch was a little bit smaller than the stamp but I was in no position to quibble.

So all my orbs now have die cut and glittered bigger orbs. I like to think that the moon now has many satelights.

I still needed to finish the card, but didn't have any Lavinia sentiments, so I stencilled one.

So please remember the golden rule If it isn't broken don't fix it. AND if it's only a little bit broken no-one else will notice, so just walk away!

Squillions of Lavinia stamps can be found here in Dot's store, and you still have another week or so to join in with our challenge.

I'm entering this into the Lavina challenge which is Moonlight Magic.

Have a very happy weekend, and thanks so much for looking x

Time To Take Over The World

Good morning and happy Wednesday. I'm back over at Ink Art Designs today with my second piece of the month, and I've decided that it's time to take over the world.

 I started by die cutting a huge tag shape. This one is by Tonic. Then I coloured the background with Distress and Distress Oxide inks. The stars are from the Studio Light Art By Marlene range, and the words and orbs are from Lavinia

Then I added some Portfolio pastel dots through a stencil just to knock it back a little and add a bit more texture.

 I stamped my handsome Alice Palace turtle for Crafty Individuals onto some scraps of gelli plate prints.

 They look so determined and I'm sure they could take over the world. This fun quote is by Rubber Dance. 

Just click on the logo to be transported to Dot's store where you can find all of these stamps and more!

Have a very happy day, and thanks so much for looking x

Get Your Groove On

Good morning and happy Monday. Today I'm over at Country View Crafts with my second 'Under The Sea' piece. 

I'm really enjoying this challenge as I love the sea colours, and what's not to like about pink fishes and multicoloured seahorses!

I started by making inky backgrounds on 3 tags and an 8x8 piece of watercolour card. I really like how the old distress inks and the oxides work together. 

Next I added some stencilling and embossing with white embossing powder.

Now time for my sea creatures. The tiny stamps are by Lavinia, and the bigger ones are Art By Marlene, as is the sentiment. I really love my seahorse, he's been stamped on a piece of mop up card - oh how I love easy colouring!

Until I was typing this up I hadn't noticed my 'deliberate' error. Look at the small tag - there's a bit of upside down swimming going on! I'll just go and sort that out then I'll be right back!

What a numpty! THIS is how it should look! It's a good job I haven't told anyone!

So I hope that you join in with our fun challenge - you can have your fish swimming whichever way you like, I'll not notice!
I'm entering this into the Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Stamp It challenge, and the
Craft Stamper TIMI September challenge which is Anything Goes.

Have a very happy week, and thanks so much for looking xx

An Underwater Anniversary

Good morning and happy Sunday - wow where did August go!! So September is here already and we're hurtling toward Autumn, though if the temperatures of Bank Holiday Monday were anything to go by it could be a hot one. There's a fun new challenge over at Country View Crafts, and this is Under The Sea.

Quite unusually for me I started with a paper pad that I've had for well over a year. I usually make my own backgrounds but these papers fitted perfectly with what I wanted to make.

I wanted a shaker card with a large aperture, so I made a whole unit that I could just stick onto the base card, rather than cutting into the card and weakening it.

I drew an area onto my base where my creatures could go without being hidden by the frame.

The pink sea horse and the heart are 

Art By Marlene stamps, and the blue one is by Lavinia. I can't call them male and female as according to Google these are both male stamps, and Google is never wrong!

This is how they look in their frame with their seaweed and sequins. 

The friendly puffer fish is also by Marlene.

And we're all done. The sentiment is a Memory Box die and this was so fiddly 'cos I didn't leave myself much room for it. I tried stamping a sentiment but it got lost as this is a big card, it's 10 x7 inches.

I really enjoyed making this, but I was glad when it all came together.

I hope that you join in with our challenge. Please remember that it's an Under The Sea theme so this must be the focus of your entries.

Have a very happy month, and thanks so much for looking xx