CAS-ual Fridays Stamps - March New Release - Preview Day #2

Well, I finally did my first 'lockdown' trip to the supermarket and it scared the crap out of me!! Everyone was very good about staying away from each other and they only let 30 people at a time in but I was so nervous about what I was touching etc I kept dropping stuff and was sweating profusely....was so glad to get it over and done with, hopefully for at least a week. When I got home I left all my food in the garage (some in a cooler bin), stripped down to my underwear (left a robe out for myself) and ran inside to have a shower. Fingers crossed that did the trick. These are such scary times!!

Its Day 2 of the CAS-ual Fridays Stamps New Release and we are showing off the another one of the stamp sets. Introducing 'Terrific Flowers': 

This is actually an updated version of an older floral stamp set. Its such a good size for a card and of course is perfect for colouring, which is what I did with it on my card:

Its not very often I do any colouring on coloured CS but thought I would give it a go as these flowers were screaming 'lavender' to me.

I started by using the second largest die from the 'Bubble Box Fri-Dies' on some lavender CS. I then white heat embossed the flowers and coloured them with Altenew Artist Markers. When I had finished I put the panel on some white foam for dimension.

I wanted to keep the sentiment very simple too, so I used a circle die from Couture Creations with some green CS and gold heat embossed the sentiment (from the same stamp set), putting it on foam tape and gluing on some Neat and Tangled sequins.

I'm going to link this to the Simon Says Stamp - Wednesday Challenge where their theme is 'Anything Goes'. This is my fourth entry.

All four of the New Release stamp sets are available to purchase right now and if you use my special code you can save yourself some money to buy something else!!

I'm so glad you came by and hope you love this stamp set as much as I do. Don't forget to check out the CAS-ual Fridays Stamp Blog to see what the rest of the Design Team created with this set and there is also the chance to win some goodies.....See you here again tomorrow!

Please stay safe
Shona
 

CAS-ual Fridays Stamps - New Release - Day 1

Hi everyone!! We are on Day 4 of our whole country lock down and so far I haven't run out of things to do. Luckily I've had a lot of New Release's to get organised for and lots of cards to make. And I even downloaded Tik-Tok on my phone so Phoebe and I can learn dances together, which is fun and embarrassing at the same time.

Today is the start of us showing off the New Release from CAS-ual Fridays Stamps!!  All of the new stamp sets are available to purchase right now. And we thought we'd share some ideas on how to use them over the next four days. 

For Day 1 we are introducing 'Hot Mama': 

It has the coolest '80's vibe' font and the largest sentiment fits a card front perfectly, so of course I had to try that one out first with my card:

 
 As you can see I was inspired by the 'hot' part of this stamp and wanted to try and create some heat with my colours.

I started by adhering a panel of black CS to the card front and then a panel of yellow CS over top, leaving a tiny frame around the outside. Using a piece of Tim Holtz Yupo paper I blended Ranger Alcohol Inks 'Flamingo', 'Lemonade' and 'Salmon', adding Blending Solution where needed. Once I was happy with the pattern I left it to dry.

On a piece of white CS I stamped the sentiment 3x with Versafine Onyx ink and clear heat embossed to give a glossy finish. I fussy cut around it and added white foam to the back. I used the largest of the 'Bubble Box Fri-Dies' to cut out the alcohol ink and put it on a piece of black foam. I glued the sentiment on top as well as some pearls from Studio Katia.

As I mentioned the stamp sets can be purchased right now, so if you feel like doing some shopping don't forget to use my special code to save yourself 15%, as every penny counts these days.

Thank you so much for coming by and don't forget to check out the CAS-ual Fridays Stamps Blog to see what the rest of the Design Team have created and there may also be a giveaway......

Please stay safe and I'll see you back here tomorrow with a look at stamp set #2.

Shona
 

Funky Fossil Design - New Release Day!!!

Hi everyone, hope your all doing well and coping with your self-isolation. I've spent today doing some baking, cleaning the bathroom/toilets, washing the dog, laundry and a bit of gardening. At this stage I certainly don't have any trouble keeping busy but after a week or two I'll see how I feel.....

Its a very exciting day because the Funky Fossil Designs New Release stamps are all available to purchase right now!!

At this stage I think Sarah (the owner) is still able to post out orders, however if your like me where your in total lockdown, the postage may take a little longer. 

To celebrate I made a card using two of the new stamps sets, along with one from the previous New Release:

I'm always looking for different ways to use my stamps and dies (because every dollar counts these days....), so I was excited when I came up with this idea to create a tree.

I started by stamping the owl from 'Quirky Owls' on white CS with Gina K Amalgam black ink, coloured with Altenew Artist Markers and fussy cut out. I also did the same with the flower and leaves from the 'Funky Florals' set.

To create the tree I took the long 'paint brush swipe' images from the 'Distressed Elements' set and stamped them in Altenew 'Dark Chocolate' ink along a panel of white CS. I alternated the shapes and kept 'tree bark' in my mind as I did it. When I finished I then blended Distress Ink 'Gathered Twigs' over top, going past the stamped images slightly to show the outside of the tree. I blended some 'Salty Ocean' Distress Ink for the sky and then realised I needed somewhere for the owl to sit. So I simply stamped one of the strips for a branch.

I needed some colour so I adhered some pink CS to the card front and put the panel on some white foam. I stamped the sentiment (also from 'Quirky Owls') with Waffle Flower 'Safe Choice' ink on white CS, backed with black CS and put on foam tape, along with the flower and leaves. I finished off by putting the owl on foam tape on his branch and gluing on some pink and green pearls from Studio Katia.

I'm going to link this as my third entry to the Simon Says Stamp - Wednesday Challenge where their theme is 'Anything Goes'.

Have fun shopping and I'll see you back here in a few days with some more cards using the new stamp sets. And don't forget to check out the Funky Fossil Designs Blog  to see what the rest of the Design Team have created for you. 

Stay safe
Shona

Funky Fossil Designs - New Release Preview Day #4

Hello everyone!! Hope your all doing well and coping in self isolation. Its the end of Day 2 for us in New Zealand and its rained all day. This is the first time its rained this year and I've been dreaming of having a rainy day at home, not having to garden and spending the day crafting. Max loves a rainy day inside too and he was going to take a sneaky day off with me when it happened. We have talked about it every day for three months and today, when it finally happened....it just wasn't the same. COVID-19 ruined it (along with many other things and lives....). I saw an advert the other day with someone saying 'Coronavirus is a dick'.....I second that!!

Its the last day of New Release stamp previews for Funky Fossil Designs and today is all about flowers. Introducing 'Funky Florals':

This is a larger A5 stamp set with so many separate images, along with one big gorgeous bunch of flowers. Its perfect for colouring, which is what I did a lot of for this card:

This is the second floral image I've coloured after finishing Kathy Raccoosins' Online Card Class 'The Colouring Roadtrip'. It really does open your eyes to a new way of looking at your images and colouring itself. I so recommend it!!

I started by stamping the large image with Gina K Amalgam Black ink on white CS. I first coloured with Altenew Artist Markers and then added lots more shading and details with my cheap Faber Castell pencils and a white gel pen. Unfortunately I made a HUGE mistake on the very central flower. Luckily the same flower image is a singular stamp in the set, so I stamped and coloured that and put it on top with foam tape. It adds a lot of dimension which looks really cool in person. And you can't see the horrific 'non-blending' of bright purple and blue underneath.....

Once I was finished (I also went around the outside of the image with grey markers....), I fussy cut it out and added foam tape to the back. To add some interest behind it I used the 'Leafy Mandala' and 'Mowed Lawn' Distress Ink on the card front and glued the flowers to the side. Since this set doesn't come with any sentiments, I white heat embossed one on black CS from the new set 'Cupcake Crazy'. And finished off with Studio Katia Pearls.

I'm going to link this as my second entry to the Simon Says Stamp - Wednesday Challenge where their theme is 'Anything Goes'.

One more sleep to go and the stamps are available for purchase...yippee!! To find out all the details and see what the rest of the Design Team have done with this new stamp set, pop over to the Funky Fossil Designs Blog. And I'll see you back here tomorrow for Release Day!!

Take care and stay safe
Shona
xxxxx

Funky Fossil Designs - March New Release - Preview Day #3

Hi everybody, we are close to finishing Day 1 of our Countrywide Lockdown in New Zealand. It feels very strange not being able to visit my Mum or whip to the supermarket...which I'm sure is the same for many of you around the world. I'm trying to relax and even stayed up till 2am this morning working on some Diamond Art pieces and watching a totally recommended new series called The Outsider. Its based on a Stephen King book and has me completely hooked!!

I'm really excited to share another stamp set with you all from the Funky Fossil Designs New Release and being a cat lover (as well as a dog lover) I instantly fell in love with this one. Introducing 'Cattitude':

These images are so brilliant and fantastic to colour too. I wanted to use them all right away but managed to spread them out over a few cards. This first one makes me smile every time I look at it:

I couldn't resist mixing some rainbow colours into this party scene, adds to the fun!

Firstly I stamped the two cats using Gina K Amalgam Black ink on white CS, coloured with Altenew Artist Markers and fussy cut out. I needed another party hat for the 'dancing' cat so I stamped the head of the other cat, coloured and fussy cut out and glued in place.

I laid the Funky Fossil Designs 'Retro Starburst' stencil over a panel of white CS and blended Distress Oxide inks in random spots. While the ink dried I adhered some black CS to the card front and then popped the inked panel on a piece of white foam. The cats and heat embossed sentiment were put on foam tape for dimension and I glued Studio Katia 'Arctic Breeze' pearls to some of the background stars.

I'm going to link this one to the Simon Says Stamp - Wednesday Challenge where their theme is 'Anything Goes'.

We have one more stamp set to share with you tomorrow which will blow your socks off and then they will all be ready for purchase on Saturday. Don't forget you have the chance to win the whole New Release by leaving a comment on any of the New Release blog posts by the Design Team, Funky Fossil Designs Blog and their Instagram New Release posts too.

Stay safe and I'll see you back here tomorrow.

Shona 

Funky Fossil Design - March New Release - Preview Day 2

Hello there!! As New Zealand heads into completely lockdown I must say I'm so glad to have card making as a hobby. Not only are crafters such a supportive group but they create so much entertainment with their blogs, YouTube channels etc, so I definitely won't be lacking any inspiration over the next four weeks!!

Its our second day of previewing the New Release stamps from Funky Fossil Designs and today will not disappoint, especially those who love mixed media. 

Introducing Distressed Elements and Happy Words:

 All of these strange shapes and images made me immediately think of cool backgrounds and since 'happy' is one word we probably all use a lot on our projects, its great to have it in different fonts. And of course for my card I had to use them both:

I don't usually put things on an angle (which also made it hard to photograph standing up) but it was so fun to do something different....got out of my comfort-zone!

Firstly I grabbed a rainbow of Waffle Flower inks and my MISTI. I was immediately drawn to this splatter image and stamped it in rainbow colours on a white CS panel. I also decided to stamp the sentiment 'directly' on to the stamped panel, yet another thing I never do. I used Versafine Onyx Black as it always gives such a crisp end result.

Once this had dried I adhered it to a slightly larger panel of black CS and then glued to the white CS base on an angle. To finish off I glued on some Studio Katia Pearls.

I hope your loving the stamp set reveals so far and you even have the chance to win the entire New Release. One person will be randomly picked from comments left on all the Design Team and Funky Fossil Design Blog and Instagram 'New Release' posts. All the details can be found on the Funky Fossil Designs Blog. 

Thank you so much for stopping by and I'll see you back here again tomorrow with a set for animal lovers.....

Take care everyone

Shona
 

 

Funky Fossil Designs - March New Release - Preview Day 1

Hi everyone, I hope you are all safe and well in this crazy time. We are a few hours away from a complete country shut-down (New Zealand) and I've spent the past few days finishing off work and getting my family, my Mum and others ready for 4 weeks of self isolation. Its so scary and I'm petrified of my Mum getting sick (she is 80 yrs old). My son Max is 13yrs and was born with damaged lungs and a terrible immune system, so I'm doing my best to keep him and the rest of my family safe from harm.

In doing so this email should have gone out last night so I do apologise to you all who came to my website from Funky Fossil Design to find no New Release post. I've got everything up to date now and four weeks to craft and hang out with my kids. Its my dream come true but not exactly how I wanted it to come about.....

Anyway, on to a much happier note!  As you will have seen by the title of this post Funky Fossil Design are releasing new stamp sets this Saturday 28th March and they are gorgeous!! We are doing 4 days of previews and then a big release post for Saturday. I'm sure you will love the sets as much as I do!

Introducing today's preview - Cupcake Crazy:

This is such a fantastic 'sweet' set and the cupcakes are the perfect size for cards and scrapbooking etc. For my card I wanted to use all three cupcakes (because I'm greedy, especially with cake....):

 

Don't you just wish these were real??! I haven't had any dinner so could possibly still eat them, paper and all....

I started by stamping the cupcakes using Gina K Amalgam black ink on white CS, colouring with Altenew Artist Markers and fussy cutting out. I wanted to use the same images for the background but have it be more 'subtle', so I stamped them on the card front using Waffle Flower 'Safe Choice' pink ink. I popped the cupcakes up on foam tape, along with the white heat embossed sentiment and finished off with Neat and Tangled sequins.

There is also a GIVEAWAY!!! One lucky person will win all of the 5 New Release stamp sets randomly picked from comments left on any of the New Release posts, which includes blog and instagram posts of the Design Team. That's one fantastic prize and all the details are on the Funky Fossil Designs Blog.

Thanks so much for taking the time to stop by. Thank goodness for the internet at a time like this, (so glad I don't get charged by the hour for Netflix) and I'll see you back here very soon with our second day of previews.

Take care of each other
Shona
 

CAS-ual Fridays Stamps - Girl Friday post #2 for March

Hi everyone, what a week its been for the whole world. So much turmoil and the great unknown for all. We will certainly be part of the history books with nothing like this having happened for 100yrs but I'm sure we are all wishing we didn't have to go thru it at all. I hope you and your families are all well and safe, and your keeping an eye on those who don't have anyone else to look after them.

I'm on the CAS-ual Fridays Stamps Blog today with this card I'm going to create in different colours and get in the mail asap to friends around the world who definitely need a good hug right now: 

I wanted a card that was bright, happy, fresh and bubbling over with love. Hopefully you can all see that in this design!!

I started off by using Waffle Flower ink with the 'Smile' from the 'Sassy Smiles' stamp set and stamping it across a panel of white CS, alternating the colours. I then adhered it to the card front. I did it this way because sometimes the ink bleeds thru and I didn't want it to be seen when the card was open.

I stamped the flowers and leaves from the 'Pretty Posies' stamp set on watercolour CS using Gina K Amalgam black ink. Using my Zig Real Color Markers I very quickly coloured the images, not wanting a neat result, wanted the colour to be more messy and free-flowing. Once they had dried I fussy cut them out and using double-sided tape and Gina K Connect Glue, I adhered them to the card front. I also used the same blue ink to stamp the sentiment (from the same Pretty Posies set) on a strip of white CS backed with black and put on foam tape. To finish off I added some pearls from Studio Katia.

I hope this card has given you a little boost and made you smile. If you haven't seen these sets before and might do a little online shopping, don't forget to use my special code to save yourself some money.

Thanks again for stopping by.  Look after yourself and your family, and I'll be back here again soon with some more designs to make you smile and maybe they will get you crafting as well!!

Take care
Shona
 

Reminder: TIME OUT Challenge #157

Hi everybody, really hope your all coping well with the virus outbreak. It certainly is a crazy time and not knowing what will happen next month let alone next week is quite unsettling. I hope your all safe and well, and maybe enjoying your time at home, perhaps even doing a bit of crafting too.

We have a very special theme for the current challenge at TIME OUT. We are celebrating our 6th birthday which is just amazing!! I joined the team only a few months after the challenge began and I'm over the moon with how much it has grown in popularity. We have so many wonderful, generous Sponsors and even our Design Team has increased.  And it makes me so happy to see so many entries, especially from people who join us every fortnight, sometimes more than once. Thank you so much everyone for supporting our challenge and here's to many more years to come!!

Our Sponsor for this birthday challenge is Stamplorations who have been a HUGE Sponsor from the start!! The owner Shery was also part of our Design Team for a very long time, so we have an extra-special relationship with her company. She is giving a $40 gift voucher to a random winner picked from people who use the challenge 'Optional Twist - die cutting or fussy cutting'.

For my card I wanted to do some colouring and to create a background using some floral stamps:

 

The is a dogwood flower, reminds me of the five dogwood tree's we had along our fenceline. They were gorgeous when flowering but never seemed to grow, so we had to remove them. Such a shame....

Using a panel of white CS, I stamped the Stamplorations 'Dogwood - Large', trying to get the images close together. I wanted a really soft coloured look, so decided just to use my Faber Castel basic pencils, using three shades of pink, a light blue around the outside and a pop of yellow for the middle. I used a MFT Stamps waffle-edged die from the 'Blueprints 27' set. I then decided to do something different for the sentiment. I used a Uniquely Creative 'Stitched Nesting Rounded Rectangles' die towards the bottom of the panel.

I cut a panel of light blue CS and adhered to the card front. I then put the floral panel on some white foam. The die-cut piece was glued into the die-cut hole. I white heat embossed the sentiment from Stamplorations 'Balloons and Banners' on some pink CS and put on foam tape. I then finished off with some Studio Katia 'Lemon Burst' pearls.

You have until Wednesday 25th March to link your projects to the TIME OUT Challenge and if your needing any inspiration, pop over to the blog to see what the rest of the Design Team and our fabulous Guest Designer Christine of Experiments in Craft have created for you. Can't wait to see all your birthday projects in the Gallery!!

Take care
Shona
 

Reminder: The Flower Challenge #42

Hello there!! How are you all coping with all the 'virus' action going on?? New Zealand now has one of the strictest border controls with anyone arriving in our country having to go immediately into 14 day isolation. Its a huge hit for the tourism industry but I think its such a good idea. We even had an Australian guy who was tested in Australia and then travelled to NZ to then find out he's positive.....he should be arrested!! So I hope your all fine and healthy and its the perfect time to stay home and craft!

I'm popping in today to remind you all about our current theme at The Flower Challenge which is everyone's favourite 'Anything Goes'. You can create whatever project you like, as long as it has a central 'floral' theme. And we already have some spectacular entries in the Gallery.

Our Sponsor for this challenge is our very own Rachel of Rachel Vass Designs. Her store on Etsy sells the most incredible digital floral images drawn by herself. She is giving two digital images to the winner of this challenge and has also given them to our DT to use for our cards. She is such a sweetheart!

Way back in January I purchased an Online Card Class  'The Colouring Challenge Roadtrip'. Its an 'online version' of Kathy Racoosins' 'Roadtrip' classes she does around the US. Her colouring skills are spectacular and I need all the help I can get. I finally finished the 3-day classes last week and coloured my image for this card. It was scary but I have to say its the best colouring I've ever done and totally recommend the classes to everyone:

This image is the 'Poppy Spray' from Rachel Vass Designs and it was perfect to try out all my new tips and tricks from Kathy.

I started off by printing the image on to white CS. I then 'Color Plucked' a light, medium and dark colour from my Altenew Artist Markers and 'Color Mashed' them on the image, which basically means blending the colours but not getting to intricate. I then spent quite a while adding shading and details with my very basic Faber Castell pencils and a white gel pen. This is what it looked like before the pencils were added:

 
I don't know what possessed me to try a red marker for my first go with these techniques, it was incredibly hard to blend and I thought I had ruined it all. However, using a dark brown pencil to add the shading (a colour I would NEVER have thought to use) added warmth to the red and it worked out okay.

Once I was finished with the image I used the largest die from the Uniquely Creative 'Cross-stitch Circle Frame Die Set'. It cuts the middle circle and also a frame. I wanted the frame in black so die-cut it twice more from black CS and glued them together. I used a white CS 5x5 inch card base and adhered a piece of dark teal CS. I glued on the black frame and then popped the image up on some black foam. To finish off I added a white heat embossed sentiment (from Studio Katia 'Floral Wreath') and some 'Ripe Persimmon' pearls also from Studio Katia.

I'm going to link this to the Simon Says Stamp - Wednesday Challenge where their theme is 'Use some Green'. Hopefully my dark teal (which is a blue/green combo) will be allowed.....

You have until Wednesday 25th March to link your projects to The Flower Challenge and pop over to the blog to see more Rachel Vass Designs images coloured by the Design Team. 

Take care
Shona
 

Reminder: TIME OUT Challenge #156

Hello there! I'm excited to say that I went gardening today for the first time this week. I've been home with Max (who turns out has a very bad sinus infection) all week and it was so good to get out in the sunshine and my hands in the dirt. He's back at school on Monday so will be able to get into my normal routine then....although knowing my luck someone else will get sick or it will rain all week (I wish!!).

Our current theme at TIME OUT  is a photo inspiration. There are so many different colours in the photo and different shapes with all the frames, table etc....the design ideas are endless!!

Our Sponsor for this challenge is Altenew and they are giving a $20 gift voucher to the winner. I'm so jealous!!!

For my card I was immediately drawn to the bright colours but I also loved the frames on the walls, so tried to show all of that with my design:

I really do enjoy die-cutting as I'm such a clutz with ink, paint etc. Although I'm sure that one of these days I'm going to chop my finger off with my Tim Holtz Trimmer (guilotine). Its small but so sharp!!!

All of the products I used (except the embellishments) are from Altenew, and boy do I have a lot of them.....

I started by die-cutting the circle frame from the 'Create-a-Wreath' die set from yellow CS and 3x more from white CS. I then die-cut the 'Spring Shower Cover Die' from white CS. There is a white plate on the wall in the photo that has a cut out pattern around the edge, I wanted that within my frame. I glued a white CS circle behind the yellow one and then glued it over the floral die-cut and cut off the excess. I then glued on the other two white circle frames behind it to add dimension.

The wall in the photo is a gorgeous turquoise blue, so I die-cut the same circle frame die from some turquoise CS. I adhered the inner circle piece to the card front and then glued the yellow frame over top.  To capture some of the pink I die-cut the 'Thanks die' from pink CS and twice more from white CS. These were all glued together and then to the frame.

The rest of the sentiment (from the 'Frosted Garden' stamp set) was white heat embossed on a strip of black CS and popped on some foam tape. To finish off I glued on some Studio Katia pearls and added Glossy Accents to the 'thanks' die.

I'm going to link this card to the Simon Says Stamp - Wednesday Challenge where their theme is 'Something Feminine'.

You have until Wednesday 11th March to link your projects to the TIME OUT challenge. If your needing any help with ideas, pop over to the blog to see what the rest of the Design Team and our fabulous Guest Designer Maria of Riesling Mama have made to inspire you. Can't wait to see your projects in the Gallery!

Take care
Shona