Hello there!! Another week is zooming by, hopefully yours has been warmer than mine. We passed the shortest day last week and so the morning frosts are coming thick and fast. I have to start gardening later in the day so I'm not trying to dig thru ice!!
Funnily enough our current challenge theme at TIME OUT is 'Warm', which is what I'd like to be feeling right now!! You could be inspired by the word itself, the feeling of warmth or maybe places that are warm...its totally up to you!!
Our Sponsor for this challenge is CAS-ual Fridays Stamps and they are giving the winner a $25 gift voucher!! So lucky!
My thoughts the past few weeks have been with the thousands of children in America who have been ripped from their parents trying to cross the border. I can't believe that Trump and his government are allowing this to happen and for them to be treated like animals. If I lived in America I would be trying to do all I could for these children. Its so horrific its hard to believe its happening!! So with that in mind I wanted to create a card promoting warm feelings:
Creating this background took a long time but it gave me a chance to catch up on a few tv programmes at the same time!
I started off by cutting a panel of white CS slightly slimmer than the card front. I needed somewhere to put the sentiment, so before I stamped I added a strip of washi tape across it. I then used the small images from CAS-ual Fridays Stamps 'Peace Love and Coffee' and 'Bomb Diggity' sets. I used a variety of ink colours from Hero Arts, Altenew and Waffle Flower, stamping randomly over the panel.
The sentiment (from CFS 'Peace Love and Coffee') was heat embossed on the panel in gold and then it was popped up on a piece of white foam. I then glued on a few sequins from Neat and Tangled for a tiny bit of shine.
I'm going to link this to the Simon Says Stamp - Wednesday Challenge where its their popular theme 'Anything Goes'.
You have until Wednesday 6th July to link your projects to the TIME OUT challenge. And if your needing any ideas on how to use the theme word, pop over to the blog to see what the rest of the Design Team and our amazing Guest Designer Marieke have created for you. Look forward to seeing you in the Gallery!!
Take care
Shona
Hi there everybody!! I feel like I haven't made a card for ages. There has been ALOT of colouring going on for The Daily Marker 30 Day Colouring Challenge but no actual making of cards, so it was wonderful to create for this post!!
I'm up on the CAS-ual Fridays Stamps Blog today with this fun 'made a mess but it was okay' card:
I hardly ever make shaped cards but while looking at some of the blogs I follow lately, I kept coming across them so it definitely inspired me to get out of my 'rectangle card base' rut.
I started off with a top-folding white card base but needed it to be shaped. So I used the largest of the Bubble Box Fri-dies but only did a partial die-cut. I let the long side of the die sit over the folding part of my card so it didn't cut thru it. That meant that it was still top folding and the rest was shaped. I then used the same die to cut some navy CS and adhered over the base.
Using the same die-set, I used the slightly smaller die on a piece of white CS.
I grabbed Hero Arts Shadow Ink 'Navy', Waffle Flower 'Like a Pro', Waffle Flower 'New Fish in Pond' and Hero Arts Shadow Ink 'Bubblegum'. I was going to use my MISTI to do the stamping but it was taking too long, so used a stamp block instead.
I used the Bomb Diggity stamp set so I could create a background with the small images that look like splatters/dots. I just randomly stamped all over the die-cut, alternating the stamp colours and images. I'm extremely clumsy with my stamp block and accidentally got ink marks here and there which frustrated me. However, I realised it kind of added to the 'messy' look, so got over it quickly!!
Once I was finished stamping I heat embossed the 'fabulous' (from the same stamp set) in gold. I also used the Sassy Smiles set, heat embossing sentiments in white on black CS. These were glued in place and then the die-cut popped up on foam tape. And of course I had to finish off with some sequins from Neat and Tangled.
I'm going to link this card to the Scrapbook Boutique June Challenge where they have this 'dotty' mood board.
If your interested in any of the items I used today or any others from CAS-ual Fridays Stamps don't forget to use my special code to save yourself some money!!
Thanks so much for stopping by and will see you back here very soon!!
Take care
Shona
It has been the coldest day ever today and I'm off to bed soon to snuggle with my electric blanket. Its the shortest day tomorrow so maybe that has something to do with it, at least it means from Friday onwards our days will be getting longer and closer to warmer weather....yippee!!
I'm afraid I couldn't help myself (especially with The Daily Marker 30 Day Colouring Challenge going on...), with some images coloured in the past week I had to turn them into a card for The Cats Pajama's Challenge:
These bunnies from The Cats Pajama's 'Family Forever' stamp set are so adorable and I love colouring them!!
I stamped this image on some white CS and coloured with pencils. I then used an oval-stitched die from Studio Katia to cut them out. It looked a bit blank with no sky so I gently blended some Distress Ink 'Salty Ocean' around the top.
I wanted to die-cut the larger oval die (from the same Studio Katia set) to go behind it but didn't want to resort to patterned paper. So......I die-cut the larger oval from white CS and stamped the flowers (from the same stamp set) with Hero Arts Shadow Ink in Bubblegum. I then gently blended some Distress Ink 'Picked Raspberry' all over it. Kind of reminds me of olden day wallpaper. The smaller oval was popped on top with some foam tape.
The ovals didn't look right on a white card base, so I cut a strip of grey CS, adhered it to the card front and then glued the ovals in place. The sentiment (from the same stamp set) was heat embossed in white on black CS, fussy cut out and popped on foam tape, along with some sequins from Neat and Tangled.
I'm also going to link this to the Uniko Studio Challenge #47 where they have this lovely photo for inspiration.
My bed and iPad are calling my name. I'm catching up on Jennifer McGuire videos and watercolouring videos, trying to find more tips to make my painting look better. Think I just need to practice, practice, practice but its hard when it looks the same every time. Thank goodness for YouTube, so many incredible artists willing to share their knowledge!!
Take care
Shona
Those poor people at The Cats Pajama's Challenge will be so sick of my entries by the end of the challenge. I can't help it though, their stamps are so sweet and the challenge theme has lots of possibilities!!
The main image for my card was coloured over the past two weeks for The Daily Marker 30 Day Colouring Challenge and I realised it fitted 'nearly' perfectly into this frame die:
This cute little doggie is from The Cats Pajamas 'Just Let It Happen' stamp set. I stamped it on some white CS and coloured the letterbox, envelopes and doggie tongue. I die-cut it with a rectangle die from Couture Creations and then glued on the grass which was die-cut from a green paint chip with a MFT Stamps die. To add a bit of 'sky' I gently blended some Distress Ink 'Salty Ocean' around the top edges.
The frame from Paper Smooches 'Frames 2' was die-cut from some woodgrain CS and then twice more from black CS. I glued them all together and then to the card front. Because the image wasn't quite wide enough to fill the frame, I glued back in one of the black CS inner frame die-cut leftovers. The image was then adhered to that.
The sentiment (from the same stamp set) was heat embossed in white on a black CS circle (die-cut with a Couture Creations die) and popped on some foam tape, along with some gold and coloured sequins from Neat and Tangled.
I'm also going to link this to the Simon Says Stamp - Wednesday Challenge
where their theme is 'Frame it'.
Max has his friend Sven over and I'm just waiting for dinner to be ready. We are going to watch a dvd while eating...its a horror movie so hopefully the kids don't choke on their food!!
Take care
Shona
Hi there everyone, I'm just whipping in very quickly to remind you about our current theme at The Flower Challenge:
For this challenge we are asking you to choose a previous challenge theme to inspire your creation. My first card was inspired by our 'CAS' challenge, this time I'm going back to July 2017 where the theme was Embossing Heat/Dry:
I haven't been using my floral background stamps very much and really wanted to try out some colour blocking after watching a video by Lydia Evans where she colour blocked with a stencil. I loved the idea of colour blocking and even though I didn't have a stencil pattern that would work, my washi tape worked a treat!!
To start off I cut a panel of Strathmore Bristol Smooth CS and heat embossed the MFT Stamps 'Bundles of Blossoms' background stamp in white. Using strips of washi tape, I masked off different geometric shapes and used my mini-blending tool and Distress Inks to colour them in. When I had finished, I trimmed the panel down to fit on the card base.
For the sentiment I die-cut the 'Smile' from MFT Stamps 'Words for Friends' die set. I wanted to have grey CS behind the die-cut word, so adhered a strip to the card front and popped the coloured panel up on foam. The rest of the sentiment (from MFT Stamps 'Birthday Bears') was heat embossed in white on a strip of the same grey CS and glued to the card front, along with some sequins from Neat and Tangled.
I'm going to link this to the AAA Challenge #117 where their theme is 'Geometrics'.
You have until Monday 25th June to link your floral projects to The Flower Challenge and if your needing any ideas, pop over to the blog to see what the rest of the Design Team have created just for you. Can't wait to see you in the Gallery!!
Take care
Shona
I actually was able to get outside and garden today....yippee!! After three days inside it was wonderful to get all dirty and muddy, and be in the open air. The weekend is looking good for weather too, so might be able to tackle some of my own weeds if I'm lucky......
I've loved doing The Daily Marker 30 Day Colouring Challenge this month and it certainly helps with my card production. I have so many images ready to be made into cards and with two weeks left to go I'll have cards coming out of my ears!! It also explains why I have another entry for The Cats Pajama's Challenge!!
I coloured this card recently as part of the Colouring Challenge and finished off yesterday to turn into this card:
This is the sweetest stamp set and the sentiments are just as gorgeous as the images. Its from The Cats Pajama's and called 'Family Forever'. This card is made entirely from that set!
As this is a one-layer design, it was very easy to put together. I started off by stamping the bear and 'a bunch of baby ducks' on the card front. I coloured the animals with my pencils and then did something different.
The pencils I use aren't anything amazing. They are Faber Castell Watercolour pencils. I like them better than the normal pencils, they seem to have a nicer texture. I've never actually watercoloured with them but didn't want to 'pencil-in' the water. So....I scribbled with a blue pencil across the bottom of the card and then very gently with a big round wet brush, swished it a few times over the pencil. The card isn't watercolour CS so I had to be careful but after drying straight away and putting under some heavy books, it was a success!!
All I had to do then was stamp the sentiment and the raindrops, which I coloured blue as well. And I didn't feel the need to add even one sequin, which for me is unheard of!!!
I actually have another card to share using more TCP stamps and another one in the works, so they will be inundated with my entries again!!
Speaking of 'pajamas', Dave has just popped out to pick up 'Friday Night Pizza' so will go and put my pjs on so I can eat in comfort. I used to love Friday nights for the social outings to the bars, clubs and pubs but now I'm more than happy to get in my pajama's, eat pizza, drink a huge glass of Coke and watch a movie with my kids. Funny how things change.....
Take care
Shona
Hello there!! I've been stuck at home with rainy weather and a sick son for three days, so feeling a bit 'shut-in' at the moment. I took Max to get a Flu Vaccine injection on Tuesday morning and by Tuesday night he was feeling sick. Today he's feeling like, well....crap and his nose is so stuffed up. The nurse did say some people get a touch of the flu with it and unfortunately because his immune system is so bad he's developed more than a touch. But hopefully it will stop him from having week after week off this Winter.....
Our current TIME OUT Challenge is 'Holidays with the optional twist of 'one-layer'. You know I love a good one-layer CAS design so was very excited about this one.
Our Sponsor for this challenge is Seven Hills Crafts and they are giving the winner a goodie bag of stamps and dies from their store. I'm so jealous!!
I've been trying to use more of my stamps that haven't seen much love and with The Daily Marker 30 Day Colouring Challenge going on right now, I wanted to make sure I had some images to colour too:
The images and sentiment are all from an older Ellen Hutson stamps set 'Mistletoe and Holly by Julie Ebersole' which a friend gave me ages ago. I've only used it once or twice and with time whizzing towards December, I need to be adding to my Christmas card stash.
This was super simple to put together. I usually stamp images with black ink but thought I would try something different. I used Altenew 'Crimson' to stamp the poinsettia's and Waffle Flower 'Chirp Chirp' to stamp all the stamps and leaves. I then used my Faber Castell pencils to colour them in.
Once I had finished, I heat embossed the sentiment using Ranger 'Queens Gold' powder and glued on some Neat and Tangled sequins. And for a bit of dimension I added some Nuvo Crystal Drops in White to the middle of the flowers, knowing they would turn slightly red from the pencil colour underneath.
I'm going to link this to the Simon Says Stamp - Wednesday Challenge where their theme is 'Frame it', which is what my flowers are doing around my sentiment.
You have until Wednesday 20th June to link your projects to the TIME OUT challenge. And if your looking for a few ideas, pop over to the blog to see what the rest of the Design Team and our talented Guest Designer Ishani of Quillish have created for you. Can't wait to see your projects in the Gallery!!
Take care
Shona
Yes, entry no. 3.....it would seem I'm rather obsessed with the colour combo for this months Altenew Inspiration Challenge but that's not a bad thing, right??
I mean when you see this photo, how can you not get out your Altenew stamps and dies and not take part??!!
With The Daily Marker 30 Day Colouring Challenge going on this month, I've coloured all sorts of things, including some new die-cuts that I put to use on this card:
I received all of the stamps and dies I used on this card from my wonderful friend Coni recently, so wanted to try and use as many as I could!!
I started by die-cutting the leaves from Altenew 'Create a Wreath' from white CS and coloured them using Altenew Artist Markers. I then die-cut the circle wreath (from the same die set) from woodgrain paper by ARC Crafts and cutting an extra set from white foam. I glued the wood ring to the foam and then the card front. The wooden ring was then glued on the inside.
A lot of the leaves are already bent to go around a wreath but I wanted some to go in the opposite direction, so a bit of gentle bending went on. I glued them to the wreath, layering some as I went. I heat embossed the sentiment (from Altenew 'Frosted Garden') using Ranger 'Queens Gold' powder on white CS and fussy cut it out. I then popped it up on foam tape.
The pansy is a layered stamp from Altenew 'Pretty Pansies' which I stamped on white CS and fussy cut out. This was put on foam tape as well. And I finished off with some clear and purple iridescent sequins from Neat and Tangled.
I'm also going to link this to the Simon Says Stamp - Wednesday Challenge where their theme is 'Frame It'.
I'm off to hang my washing out, which will be a nice change from having it in my lounge room by the fire. I think clothes are much nicer when they have the sun on them and are dried by the wind but at this time of year, it doesn't happen very often. Will make the most of it while I can!!
Take care
Shona
Hi everybody!! Hope the week has been kind to you and the weather has been to your liking. Its been raining here for the past two days which means no work for me but time to work on cards and do housework (although probably more cards than toilet cleaning but can you blame me?????).
I just wanted to let you know that I'm up on the CAS-ual Fridays Stamps Blog today with this card. I also have a tutorial and a few photos so you can see how I put this together. So pop on over and take a look!!
Take care
Shona
I'm back!! Yesterday I shared with you all a card for this months Altenew Inspiration Challenge. I created it using a stamped panel, which I coloured for my Day 6 of The Daily Marker 30 Day Colouring Challenge.
When I stamped the panel I used my MISTI and actually stamped two panels the same. I coloured the 2nd panel last night as my Day 7 for the colouring challenge, once again using colours from the Altenew Challenge.
The colours are so beautiful and I find myself drawn to purple more and more at the moment, which is a nice change from pinks and blues:
The panel was stamped using images from Altenew 'Beautiful Day' stamp set and since its exactly the same panel again, I thought I better do a different design from yesterdays card. The panel was coloured using Altenew Artist Markers R702, R823, G715 and G702. On this panel I used the light blue B201 to go around the edge of each image.
First off I die-cut the circle frame from Altenew 'Create a Wreath' die set from the panel. I also die-cut it from some white foam. I adhered the panel to the card front, glued the foam into the die-cut space and then the coloured circle on top.
For the sentiment I die-cut a circle of black CS (using a die from Couture Creations) and heat embossed the 'thank you' from Altenew 'Floral Shadow' in white. The stamp has the words in a line, so I cut the words apart to fit in the circle. I also die-cut the same circle from foam, adhered it behind the circle and then to the card front. To finish off I added some purple and clear sequins from Neat and Tangled.
Its nearly dinnertime here (its Friday) and usually we have pizza for tea. There was a huge frost this morning so I put off going gardening till 10am and luckily the sun came out to warm everything up. I always look forward to Fridays as I don't have to cook dinner and at least I know everyone will eat it (I'm not cooking different things for everyone....). I have no plans for the weekend and the weather looks good, so will just see what happens!!!
Take care
Shona
Today is the 7th day in a row I've been colouring something for The Daily Marker 30 Day Colouring Challenge. As I've mentioned I've never made it thru the whole 30 days of colouring and I'm so determined to finish it this time around. I'm really enjoying it so far and I've got lots of images to make into cards which is a bonus!!
Last night (Day 6) I stamped two panels of CS with the same images. I then sat in bed watching Season 9 of RuPauls Drag Race and coloured one of them in. I turned this into a card today for the latest Altenew Inspiration Challenge using these colours.
These colours are so pretty and feminine, and I knew I had similar colours in my Altenew Artist Markers. So my floral colouring began:
This was a lot of fun to colour so I'm glad I made two of these panels!!
I started by cutting two panels of Strathmore Bristol Smooth CS. Using my MISTI and Altenew 'Beautiful Day' images, I stamped them across the whole panel using Memento ink. For my sentiment I wanted to use my new Altenew 'Caps Bold Alphabet Dies' and die-cut 'HUGS' from the panel. I then grabbed my Altenew Artist Markers G702, G715, R702 and R823 and went to town, colouring the letters with a background of light purple so they stood out.
I added some double-sided tape to the back of the panel and adhered to the card front. I then die-cut some white foam with letter dies, glued them to the back of the coloured letters and then into the holes on the card. For the rest of the sentiment (from Altenew 'Persian Motifs') I heat embossed it in white on a strip of black CS, popped it on foam tape and adhered in place along with some sequins from Neat and Tangled. Over the moon with the final result!!
I have three other challenges I would like to enter:
The Cats Pajama's Challenge #347
AAA Cards Challenge #116
Uniko Challenge #47
I'm off to bed shortly to finish off colouring the second panel and will share that as a card with you tomorrow. I was home today because it rained all morning and thank goodness it did because it was -3 degrees celcius. Yesterday was bad enough, my hands, knees and toes were screaming in pain because it was so cold. Funny thing though is I still enjoy my job and eventually it warms up. Supposed to be a HUGE frost in the morning so will see if I still feel the same way then......
Take care
Shona
I can't believe its June already, this year is going by so fast!! It also means its time for a new challenge theme at The Flower Challenge.
That's right, we want you to find an old challenge of ours that you loved and create a new card. Or maybe there was one you wanted to join but ran out of time? Its totally up to you!!
For my card I went back to a favourite challenge #14 - Clean and Simple. I was desperate to try out a new technique and thought that a simple design would work best:
About two weeks ago I had a Jennifer McGuire video marathon, catching up on her tutorials. I was overwhelmed with all her incredible ideas and techniques to try but one of them really stood out. She made one called Easy Watercolor Stamping Techniques and since my watercolouring skills aren't the best, I really wanted to give this a try. I was so happy with the results so you may see this on a few more cards in the future....
I cut a panel of Strathmore Bristol Smooth CS to fit my card front. Using my MISTI and a floral stamp image from Avery Elle 'Floral Bouquet', I coloured the stamp with mini Distress Inks 'Picked Raspberry', 'Mustard Seed' and 'Twisted Citron'. I stamped them at different angles on the corners of the panel. I then even went a step further and spritzed them with water to get the ink to move around a bit more. Over the moon with this technique, its so cool!!
Once the panel was dry I adhered it to the card base. To keep the design simple I die-cut these Simon Says Stamp 'Love' dies, the shadow from black CS and the script from gold CS. I glued them together and then to the card front. And I then added some co-ordinating sequins.
I'm going to link this to the Simon Says Stamp - May - Work It Wednesday Challenge where their theme is 'Summertime and Sunshine'. I thought my tropical coloured flowers would fit this theme.
You have until Monday 25th June to link your projects to The Flower Challenge and if your needing any ideas, pop over to the blog to see what the rest of the Design Team have created to inspire you. Look forward to seeing you in the Gallery!!
Take care
Shona
Do you have a particular type of card you make more than others?? I love cards with flowers and I make a lot of friendship/love you type of cards. I'm trying to make more birthday cards and ones for boys, as masculine type cards are not my forte, so its good to push myself out of the 'safety zone'....
This is the sketch for the current Your Next Stamp Challenge and as I had coloured a cute troll-boy from the 'Insanely Happy' stamp set, a boy birthday card was born:
The images from this YNS stamp set are so cute and I've used the troll-girl images before but not this little dude. I have a nephew who will have his birthday later this year, so used him as inspiration!!
To replicate the sketch, I found a piece of denim patterned paper from Chickaniddy Crafts 'Scrumptious'. I used a zig-zag border die from Pretty Pink Posh to create the shape and adhered to the card front. As he's playing a guitar I used the note stamps from the set to have his 'birthday song' floating up on to the card.
The sentiment (which is a little hard to see, not much sun on this rainy, dark day....) was stamped in black Versafine ink twice and then immediately heat embossed with clear powder. I than blended some Distress Ink 'Chipped Sapphire on it to suit the card colours. It says 'Have an insanely Happy Birthday'!!
I popped the sentiment and the boy up on foam tape and added some blue and gold sequins from Neat and Tangled for a tiny bit of shine. I hope he likes it!!
I'm also going to link this to the Simon Says Stamp - Monday Challenge where their theme is 'Masculine'.
Also the little troll-boy was coloured for my Day 2 of The Daily Marker 30 Day Colouring Challenge. I'm determined to do it every day this month. Are you doing it too??
Think I need to put some more wood on the fire. Unfortunately my craft corner is the coldest area of the house and my fingers are so cold and freezing while I'm typing this. Might have to invest in a little heater just for my area. Lately I've been taking my craft stuff and jumping into bed and making cards with my electric blanket on. So cosy.....
Take care
Shona
I'm so very lucky to have such wonderful friends that I've made in the crafting community. One in particular, Coni Longley of Which Craft?, has been so supportive and extremely generous over the years. She recently sent me a big package of stamps and dies, including ones from Ellen Hutson I was desperately wanting (but couldn't afford...), that I'm having a blast using at the moment. Oh how I wish she lived closer and all my other crafty friends, the fun we would have!!
I've already made one entry using this mood board for the Ellen Hutson May Pinsights Challenge but also wanted to make one with this other stamp set that Coni sent me 'Crafty Lady'. This is such a brilliant set and couldn't be more perfect for all the crafters out there:
I don't use purple on my cards very often but have loved having it for inspiration with the mood board. I kept imagining this design over the past few days and just had to make it so I could come up with something else. Does anyone else have this problem??
I started by stamping the Lady, coffee cup, scissors and tape runner with black ink on white CS. I coloured them with my pencils and then die-cut with the matching dies.
For the background I grabbed paint chips that were similar to the mood board and used the largest 'Sentiment Die' from Waffle Flower, and die-cut 3x from each colour. Using a piece of white CS, I covered it with adhesive and glued each strip down keeping them very close together. I then cut it out, popped it on a piece of white foam and adhered to the card front.
The sentiment (from the same stamp set) was white heat embossed on a circle of black CS and glued in place. I popped the 'Lady' on foam tape (with the tape runner in her hand) and adhered the coffee cup and scissors, along with some sequins from Neat and Tangled. This card definitely has to be sent to one of my crafty friends!!
This card also contains my Day 3 colouring for the current The Daily Marker 30 Day Colouring Challenge which runs for the month of June. Its such a fantastic idea and I'm so happy for Kathy who started doing this a few years ago. Its so popular now and she has gathered so many generous Sponsors for prizes.
I've got one more card to share with you today and then I'm off to create some more. Its a Public Holiday here in New Zealand (Queens Birthday Weekend) and its the most dreary, rainy, cold day you can imagine. Perfect for catching up with Netflix and creating cards!!
Take care
Shona
