Love Is In The Air

Kristen has chosen the theme this week at Stampotique, and she's gone all romantic on us 

February 14th is Valentine's Day, so why not create something that is surrounded by hearts and love?

Why not indeed!

I started with a Brusho background, and bleached stamped Daniel's Hearts  over the top.
My 'go to' romantic couple Courting by my teamie Janet Klein was stamped and watercoloured.
I think that Love and Laughter is the perfect sentiment, it goes with every occasion.
Finally just a bit of stitching around the edges to hold it all together.

I hope that you can join in, remember there's a chance to win a $30.00 gift certificate.

IMPORTANT REMINDER:

Please read ALL RULES on the linkz page before linking your creation.

If you didn't follow the rules posted, you may have been deleted.  

Feel free to relink your creation with the correct information for a chance to win.

I hope you like it, and I'm wishing you loads of love and laughter.

I'm entering this into the following challenges

Stamping Sensations anything goes

The Artistic Stamper love and

Pan Pastels love is in the air

Thanks very much for looking x

If I Only Had A Brain...

It's Anything Goes over at Stampotique this week, 'cos it's our 100th challenge and the wonderful Kim has chosen this for our theme. So time for a bit of fun ...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nauLgZISozs  I love this film and this is the song that sticks in my memory.
No prizes for guessing I've used Scarecrow, Cowardly Lion, and Tinman, but there will be a $30 gift certificate for two lucky winners this month, so grab your stamps and come and have some fun with us. 
I'm also entering this into this months Words challenge at The Artistic Stamper.
Thanks very much for looking x

Flowers Flowers Everywhere...

It's the first week of the new term over at PaperArtsy, and first up is the wonderful Sue. She's given us lots of inspiration and this is my take of what she did on her last day. I followed Sue's directions and painted it all up in greens but it looked awful!! I only have a couple of greens and they did NOT go together lol. 
So it was out with the snowflake and then start again. I've used pink (not like me) as my base colour and gone over the top with Claret and then Hey Pesto.

Lots of lovely shine from the Treasure Gold. The was a real fun piece to make, so thank you very much Sue.
Thank very much for looking and enjoy your weekend x

I'm also entering this into the 
Country View Crafts  challenge How Does Your Garden Grow
Artistic Stamper - Words, 
Our Creative Corner - Anything Goes, and 
Fashionable Stamping Anything Goes.

Oh Mr Darcy

I've been having a play with my new Indigo Blu stamps (if you're looking Neil they're not new - had 'em for ages', cos you know I'm sticking to my spending ban right?!!) Ahem so... little play, and I made a hangy whatsit.
The hanger has been painted with lots of Fresco paints in neutrals, browns and blues, then out with the stamps.
I've randomly stamped the crackle from the Alice plate in white, then the netting and lace from Mr Darcy along the top and bottom. The swirl from Poppy Meadow has been embossed over the top in Distress EP. It's been a LONG time since this came out of it's box, but it's given a great shabby feel. Birdcage lady and silhouettes have been stamped onto tissue paper.

My beautiful wooden love birds are from        Crafty Emblies and have had a touch of gilding flakes. It doesn't show up too well here 'cos guess what - no sunshine again! The sentiment is from the same stamp set and has also been gilded. 
The rose is from Crafty Emblies and it's far too nice as it is to alter.
So this is me getting in touch with my feminine romantic side :-)
I'm entering this into the following challenges;
Indigo Blu Words and Phrases
Crafty Emblies Anything Goes
Artistic Stamper texture

Thanks very much for looking and I hope that the sun is shining where you are xx

Pass The Pastels

I'm loving the challenges on the Paper Artsy blog, and the tags that Helen Chilton have made this week have been stunning. I've made mine with water soluble pastels from the Early Learning Centre. My children are now 22 and 19 so you can guess how old they are :-). I blended them with a baby wipe and am quite happy with the result. I sponged Snowflake paint through a stencil, and then 'bumped' with Zesty Zing and Autumn Fire.
The Lynne Perrella (LPC004) have been stamped on acetate. I love Helen's tip to paint the faces in white on the reverse, but my favourite idea of hers is to use paint chips scraped from a craft mat - brilliant!!
I'm also entering these into The Artistic Stamper's challenge which is to use your favourite stamp. My favourite stamp changes daily, but for today it's the LP strip stamps.
Thanks very much for looking xx

Moments In Time

I was having a little play at making my own backing paper 'cos heaven knows three crates full just isn't enough, and I decided to try and make a 'vintagey' type card. I love the vintage look that others create, but I'm just rubbish with frills and ribbon and lace and the colour pink! Anyhow here it is. The main images are a mixture of The Stampsmith, and Darkroom Door stamps, and the background are Tim Holtz, Stampin Up, TPC, and a set of clear stamps that I've had for so long the packaging has completely gone! I've loved Stampsmith stamps for ages, but this is the first time my Darkroom Door has seen ink and WOW. They stamp so crisply - need more!!  The Eiffel Tower and Sacre Coeur have had loads of Rock Candy Crackle applied, so there's a bit of shabby going on. I hope the guys who built the original tower didn't have as much trouble getting theirs to stick down as I did mine, a hammer and nails was the only thing left to try!The fleur de lis has been glossy accented (no thumb print - hurrah), together with the stamp on Sacre Coeur.

The seam binding is a rose colour, not salmon pink, - must read my camera manual,  and the rose has been inked with Old Paper Distress Stains, just to take the newness off. Pink and hatpins too, how girly am I lol.

The sentiment has been stamped on velum - I'm loving my velum lately, and the fragment has a Timmy stamp underneath.

I'm entering this into the following challenges

Frilly and Funky - I'll Take Your Word For It

The Artistic Stamper - Ribbons and Lace

The Stampman - Vellum

Moving Along With The Times - Shabby Chic/Vintage

Thanks very much for looking x

Happy Easter

Happy Easter everyone, I hope the bunny has been round and left lots of chocolate :o)
Here's a wooden frame that Ive altered with my new fabby Inca Gold paints. I sooooo like these - they're just grown up finger paints (though I think you're meant to use cut n dry foam or something).
The frame's been painted with the Inca, then overstamped with a Wendy Vecci background stamp.
The inside is sticky backed canvas which has been sprayed with Dylusions then sprayed again with water to create a faux bleach effect. Trust me it's there but David Bailey I am not!
The Wendy Vecci flowers have been layered on Grungepaper, and the butterfly is more sticky back canvas.
I'm entering this into the following challenges
Happy Daze - something wooden
Artstic Stamper - layers
Sunday Stampers - wings
Simon Says Stamp and Show - favourite Tim technique - (faux bleach)
Thanks very much for looking x

The Stampman Challenge - Embossing

Had a little play yesterday and made an ATC for the first time in ages. I  was actually popping the grungeboard letters out so that I could use the waste as a mask when I thought may as well use the letters as well :o)
The background has been stamped with the SU friendship stamp, then I've masked and sprayed with Dylusion sprays in lime and vanilla custard, and a homemade perfect pearls and DI one.
I've stamped the TH bird stamp in black then in brown as close as I could to it just to blur the edges a little.

The grungeboard letters were coloured with black soot DI, then tripple embossed in Moon Glow Two Toned Morning Glory/Azure Teal. This looks really nice where it has bubbled and the black soot is showing through.
I'm entering this into The Stampman embossing challenge, and    
The Artistic Stamper Layers challenge.
Thanks very much for looking and enjoy your Sunday x

Steampunk ATC's for the Stampman Challenge

I've fianlly got round to making my Steampunk ATC's for this months Stampman challenge.
When I first saw steampunk I did not get it at all, and I didn't like it, but it's really grown on me, and now I still don't get it but I DO like it... a lot.
Here are my efforts, the stamps are a combination of Scrolls Work, the Artistic Stamper, and 7 gypsies. The watch parts are from e-bay, and the chipboard cogs are from Eco Green.
I hope whoever gets mine likes it, and thanks very much for looking x

Breaking Us In Two Just For Fun Challenge 1

No I'm not in a bad mood with Neil (well no more than usual :o) it's just that I've been listening to the brilliant Joe Jackson on YouTube, and this is one of my favourites. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6C-xazgqpPc. This is for the first challenge on the new Just For Fun site, and the theme this week is Heartfelt Wings.
My usually loving couple are from Paper Artsy, the wings are a Heidi Swapp clear stamp, and the arrow is from Scrolls Work Stamps.
The wings are stamped on Core-dinations, with That Special Touch Of Gold embossing powder, then  embossed through the Cuttlebug. Finally I sanded it all down to reveal the core. It seemed a real shame to sand the gold embossing 'cos it really was like liquid gold, but I quite like the 'shabby chicness' of it now.
The red glass heart as also been gold embossed in patches, just to take the shine off a little.
If you play the song to the end, you'll see that they get back together (he must have appologised lol), the bird flies home, and they all live happily ever after SO I'm also entering this ino The Artistic Stamper  challenge, which is love.
Thanks very much for looking x

Can I Have A Blue Peter Badge Please?

I got these Paper Artsy stamps before Christmas, and I've finally inked 'em up. The Stampman has a Distress challenge, and Big Bird has been distressed to within an inch of her life. In true Blue Peter style I started with a toilet roll tube and painted it with Eco Green paint in green patina.

The base is a beer mat that I stamped and tripple embossed. Big Birds body(s) have been cut out of chipboard, and coloured with acrylic paints, then stamped with the bodies. I've added some silver metal to the smaller wings.Everything has been coloured with Distress Inks and bits and bobs of Tim Holtz hardware added, and the odd swirl with a white gel pen.To distress the old bird even more she's well coated in distress stickles in mustard seed and rock candy. My scissors now have a new place to live.

I'm also entering this into the  Artistic Stamper monthly challenge which this month is Things With Wings.

Thanks very much for looking x

And Here's Another..

There's a new challenge blog in town, so I had to have a little play. It's called 'Take a Word' and each week we are to be given one word to take inspiration from - never mind words gimme lots of pictures and detailed instructions :o)

The word of the week is 'Time', so here's my 2nd journal page. The background is a mixture of Starburst Stains from The Stampman. These are beautiful, such rich colours - these are from the Autumn collection. There's also lots of moon glow embossing going on in the corners with the Heidi Swap damask and clock stamps.
The main image stamps are from The Artistic Stamper - again beautiful stamps which I seem to be adding to weekly! If I buy any more the cat will have to go on e-bay. Only joking mog - or am I..... :o)
I struggled with this page and it's still a work in progress, but then I never did know when enough is enough lol.
Thanks very much for looking x

I Can Sing A Rainbow

....but only if we were being burgled 'cos my singing would make anyone flee :o)
The monthly challenge over at the Artistic Stamper is Rainbows, so here's my piece.

I covered a piece of mountboard with canvas then stamped the Tim Holtz stamp and covered with tea dye distress ink.

I then took 8 microscope slides and coloured them in the colours of the rainbow - maybe I took the challenge a litttle too literally, I'm just not very good at thinking outside the box.:o(

These were stuck down with Glossy Accents, and then taped around the edge when dry.

The stencil is one of Tim's.

I really enjoyed making this AND there's not too much of a devistation to tidy up wayhay!!

Have a great Sunday and thanks for looking x

Simon Says Layer It

Can you believe it's September already, where did August go??? Seems like ages since I've trashed my craft room, :o) but a fortnight away, then the washing,  then Leeds Festival (no not for me, for DS,who came home smelling of camp fires and hot dogs) and that's a month gone by.
Anyhoos I've been catching up on the new challenges that have started without me lol. This weeks Simon Says Stamp and Show is Layer it up, so here's mine.

Firstly big thanks to Sharon for her great tute on how to make a shaddow box. As I'm not the sort of gal to measure in 1/4 inches I've started with a piece of 12x12 and taken it fom there.

My background has plenty of layers, paints, inks stamps, and a ****** great blob of  green glimmer mist!!! Really needed to cover this up so I stamped a text stamp with bleach. Scared myself silly when I stamped it for the first time, but I love it :o)

I forgot to photograph it before I stuck anything down, but I was really chuffed with my background.

Then lots of stamping, and cutting out. My Gears in the background is from The Artistic Stamper, and I know that this is going to be a favourite. All the others are from Artistic Outpost, from the Stampunk and Paris Exposition sets. Thanks Happy Daze, If I just send you my salary will you drip feed me with more of their stamps :o).

The fab papers are Graphic 45 Steampunk Debutante. I chose the 8x8 pad 'cos there's 2 sheets of each so I can use 1 and keep 1 for ever and ever and ever and ever.... They are gorgeous, so I cried a little inside when I had to cut 'em up.

My lady on the microscope slide thingy is by Itkupilli. I love her images, but this is the first time I used anything this size and it looks fab in real life.She's hanging on for dear life to the flying fish???                     The gears thingy is one of Tim's (I call him Tim - he doesn't call at all).... and it's nice and layed 'cos I chopped the end off my foamy paint  brush and it fits perfectly. Alas poor Stumpy....

Just to prove I've done the layers lol

I really enjoyed this challenge, and it's good to be back in the blogosphere x

Thanks for looking. x

Lots To Do Challenge - Architecture

Better late than never, here is my entry to this weeks Lots to Do challenge which is architecture.
Lots of paint and ink for the background, the main images are stamps from the Artistic Stamper. I've dug out my Perfect Pearls from the bottom of a tote bag. These were my favourite thing a couple of years ago, but once they got put away they never came out again. They give quite a nice patina affect around the shirine/temple/thingy, and that's what my god and godess are stamed in.
My handsome gargoyle is from Stamp Camp, and the Bricks and Mortar is from Paper Artsy.
I am ashamed to say that history passed me by at school, so I don't know if I have mixed my Greeks and my Romans lol.
Thanks for looking, it's back to work tomorrow - where do Sundays go ?......

Swirly Bird Wears a Crown

Here is my entry to Theme Thursday's challenge which is 'Hats or Crowns' I've painted my ATC background with Ranger acrylic dabbers in Misty Blue, Cool Piri and silver. The background stamp is from Stamp Camp, and the swirly bird image is by Hels Sheridan and can be bought from Artistic Stamper.
Sorry about the picture quality, I tried to scan it and the result was just scary!! Have you ever seen a swirly bird on steroids - very butch but just wrong lol.
My family are all coming over this weekend for my Grandma's 95th birthday, we're not a huge family but we'll certainly fill my place -should be good fun.
Thanks for looking and have a great weekend.