SNOW!

This is what we woke up to this morning, it all looks so pretty.
It is rare to have snow this early in the year in our area (or any at all!).
I am so pleased though, I do love snow!

10 week till Christmas challenge - 4 cards

I have been playing catch up (and I'm still not there!), so these 4 cards span 2 different weeks.

This first card is for Week 4 (7 weeks till Christmas), 3rd card :

The challenge was for letters or numbers stamped in the background. I don't know how clearly you can see the letters in the background (the card has come out a bit pale in the picture).
I have used Distress Inks - weathered wood and milled lavendar.
The stamps are from Inkadinkadoo and Elusive Images.



Next I moved onto Week 5 (6 weeks till Christmas) Card 1:

This was a sketch as seen below


I went for a more unusual colour scheme (as you can see), using the beautiful cream and black paper by Kaiserkraft.
The funky Christmas trees and background swirls are by PaperArtsy, and have been stamped and embossed with clear embossing powder. I have added some texture and sparkle by colouring in bits of the trees with black stickles and Rock Candy, both by Ranger.
The words are stamps by Francoise Read.


Card 2 of week 5 was dry embossed background. The snowflake embossing and die cuts are from Cuttlebug, and the white snowflake stamp is from Stampington&Co. and have been embossed with white embossing powder.

Finally the challnege for the 3rd card for week 5 was unusual colours for Christmas. The tree is from Katzelkraft, and has been stamped with white paint (adirondak dabber). The swirls in the background is also from Katzelkraft. The die cut snowflakes are cuttlebug, and the papers are Bazzil.

Thank you for looking, and for your comments, they are most appreciated.

Gingerbread House Cake

It was our good friend Emily's birthday yesterday. As she loves gingerbread, I decided to make her a gingerbread house for her birthday. It was great fun, and very frustrating to make!

Front

Back

7 weeks till Christmas - Card 1 and 2

Well, having just put our house on the market, and now having little time for anything other than cleaning and tidying, I have fallen behind. Never mind, I'll catch up... I hope :)
2 cards for last week's challenge. ..

The first is the sketch

I have used Adirondak espresso and Distress Antique Linen with cream card as my colours.


The second is a "shaker" card. This was a bit of a challenge! I loved making the frame, which is by Crafty Individuals. I painted it with Gesso to create a key, then used the Viva Terra paint, which I stamped into, to create texture. I rubbed Viva precious metal gold paint into the writing grooves, and painted over all of it with Adirondak Bottle Green dabber paint. This technique is one of many I learnt on the ArtsyCraft weekend.
The WinterWonderland stamp is byKatzelkraft, the swirls on the right corner are Crafty Individuals, the lamp and trees are by Mariette Verhees and the Rejoice is by Hero Arts.


Thank you for looking, I hope you like them

7 weeks till Christmas - Special K

I started this week off by doing the Special K challenge first instead of last. I was intrigued by the technique - bleach.
We were to spray bleach onto coloured card to create a dappled effect. I did the red card in the background.
The bird stamp is from Inkadinkadoo, as are the swirls around the edges. The bird is then coloured with Adirondak Red Pepper ink.The words are Francoise Read.

Thank you for looking, and for your kind comments.

8 weeks till Christmas - Special K

Last week's Special K card is finally done.
The spec was for a background made of tissue paper, then coloured.
I made my background with kitchen towel, painted with Adirondak Red Pepper and Gold acrylic paint. I then stuck it to a piece of card. When it was dry I cut it in half and used the crop-a-dile to make holes for the ribbon.
The background card has been smeared with embossing ink, and embossed with gold.
The NOEL (from KatzelKraft) is stamped and then embossed in gold detail embossing powder.
The stamped swirls on the sides are from Basic Grey.

8 weeks till Christmas - WEEK 3 - Card 2 and 3

I have been busy again today - 2 more cards for the 10 weeks till Christmas Challenge.

The first card's challenge was "a card with stars".
I have made a more modern card, using the luscious SEI Winter Song papers, cuttlebug for the circle and stars, and PaperArtsy stamps for the trees. I coloured the trees with Pearlescent watercolours, so the shine beautifully (well, not in a photo lol!).
The words are Francoise Read.



The second card is "white with a touch of gold".
I have used an embossed frame that I bought at the Craft Barn. (I can't remember what it is called.)
The candle stamp is Mariette Verhees, and embossed with gold embossing powder. The words are Francoise Read and also embossed.
All the edges and the snowflake are done with gold Krylon pen

8 weeks till Christmas - WEEK 3 - Card 1

The final card I made this weekend was the first for this week's quota (I am catching up!)
I flipped the sketch on its side and made a simple card with one of my favourite Christmas stamps - he has such a lovely face..

Thank you for looking

9 weeks till Christmas - WEEK 2 - Special K

The Special K challenge - the soot technique. I am still using the wonderful Katzelkraft Wonderland sheet of stamps.
This was quite fun, you stamp onto glossy card with versamark. Then heat set very well, finally burn the glossy surface with the flame of a candle. It turns all black, but when you wipe the soot off you get the lovely smokey contrast.

9 weeks till Christmas - WEEK 2 - Card 2 and Card 3

I have been working hard this weekend to catch up with the challenge, and I have finished 2 more cards for last week.

First up is the pop-up card, with the pop-up inside. The stamps are from Katzelkraft and Basic Grey. The lovely papers are SEI Wintersong, and what you can't really see is the glitter, foil and velvet on the papers - SO yummy!

Second is the blue and silver card, still with the beautiful KatzelKraft Wonderland sheet. The white card has been embossed with the cuttlebug, and I have used Distress Ink Faded Jeans

9 weeks till Christmas - WEEK 2 - Card 1

I have fallen way behind with my 10 weeks till Christmas challenge, so I need to start catching up again. Card 1 was a lovely sketch (see below).
I chose Gold, red and black as my colours, and I have used one of my new KatzelKraft Christmas stamp and words. The background swirls are Basic Grey stamps.
Thank you for looking.

ArtsyCrafts Weekend

Last weekend I attended the ArtsyCrafts weekend with LB Crafts and PaperArtsy, and it was fantastic! Lin and Leandra created a wonderful experience, great fun, and we learnt so much. The weekend was packed with ideas and techniques. The theme for the weekend was "time", so each project relates to time.

First up is the clock. This was the main project and rather daunting to start with! Step by step we learnt how to create each part, and the end result is rather spectacular (well I think so anyway). This is going up on the wall.

Next we made a "winged thing", learning a new way with UTEE (and my first play with grungepaper)

Then a mini book with mad birds

Finally we made a time box

RSS challenge 8 & 10 weeks till Christmas Special K

Two challenges on one card! I am rather proud of this one.

First there is the RSS challenge 8:

Then 10 weeks from Christmas Special K :

- Dry embossed background

- Tags

Here is my card : I have coloured the background with Milled Lavendar (not that it shows much in the photo), and embossed snowflakes with the cuttlebug. I then coloured the embossed shapes with silver ink.

The stamp on the skinny is from Inkadinkadoo.

The C for Christmas is painted with viva silver crackle paint (and although it does not show well in the photo, it is crackled)

Today I am off to Milton Keynes for the ArtsyCraft weekend, and I just can't wait! Next week I will hopefully be able to show you the wonderful things we make on the weekend.

Thank for looking, I hope you like my card.

10 weeks till Christmas - WEEK 1 - Card 3

Another card done... and this one comes with a bit of a story. I was going to do 2 challenges, the 10 weeks till Christmas "sewing" and the Winter Wonderland "Gingerbread". I decided this on Saturday. The only thing I didn't check was when the challenge on Winter Wonderland changes (uh, Sunday...). So they are on their next challenge. Just the one challenge then!

I don't have any gingerbread stamps or dies, so I used my cookie cutter, and just traced around it and cut it out.
For stamps I used Basic Grey Winterland and Cleary Impressed Christmas Found Elements.
The paper is Basic Grey Fruitcake.

Thanks for looking, I hope you like it.

10 weeks 'til Christmas - WEEK 1 - Card 2

10 weeks 'til Christmas - card 2

Yay, I have finished the 2nd card for this week. The challenge for this one is "make a transparent card". I hope my interpretation is okay.
The main stamp is Glastonbury Abby, stamped with Stazon Ultramarine.
This is coloured around the edges with Adirondak Denim.
The background is also coloured with Denim, then stamped in Denim with Inkadinkado Snowflakes. The card is white and has also been stamped with Inkadinkado Snowflakes.
Finally I have attached a piece of acetate (my transparent layer), which has been overstamped with Stazon Opaque Cotton White and Hero Arts Snowflakes. It has then been attached with white brads.

Thanks for looking, and for your comments.

RSS challenge 7

Well, I really got crafting this weekend, and have made another card. This one is for the Ready Steady Stamp challenge 7.
The picture seems a bit over-exposed, sorry about that (I'm still learning). Anyway, the background is done on glossy card, using distress inks (scattered straw, spiced marmalade and brushed corduroy) as per the ingredients below.
The tree is from Katzelkraft, and stamped on cream card.
The copper metal leaf is done with the cuttlebug, and the other leaves were just in my drawer!
The hessien is from he garage, last containing peanuts for the birds...

Thanks for looking.

10 weeks 'til Christmas - WEEK 1

I have finished the first card for week 1. I hope you like it...

Blog Candy

I wanted to let you know about some Blog Candy. It's over on Linda Elbourne's blog A Crafting Journey . Linda's blog is great fun, as she has a wonderful wacky sense of humour.
Her crafting is also brilliant, and she has been chosen as the first DT memeber for LB Crafts (and we all know how amazing Lin's work is!)
Pop on over, and read her blog, look at her art work, and try win some candy :)

10 weeks 'til Christmas

I have joined a new Christmas challenge called 10 weeks till Christmas (gulp, only 10 weeks????).
The forum is run by the very talented Beatrice Katzel from Katzelkraft and looks like it will be great fun! There are even prizes to be won...
Come and join in, the site is French, but the challenge is written in English as well. I speak NO french and have registered and set up a forum thread already, so if I can, anyone can :)
If you need more details, have a look at Isabelle Norris' website here and get the details of how to join in.

Another autumn card

I am not sure about this one. I made the background first, and it turned out very busy. It has taken me weeks to finish the card, trying to tone the background down, whilst not losing the effects.
I have used resist technique on the background (with Adirondak Caramel and Distress Ink Spiced Marmalade over clear embossing powder), then sprayed it with Autumn Leaves Glimmer Mist, and finally over stamped with black swirls.
The stamps are Crafty Individuals (the bird), and Isabelle Norris' Katzelkraft word stamps (in French) which you can buy at The Craft Barn.


Please let me know what you think of the card.

Craft Barn Competition

The Craft Barn is running a competition at the moment (it started yesterday, and runs for the week). Have a look at their blog here. The prizes are : first prize craft goodies worth over £100, second prize a £20 gift voucher, third prize £15 gift voucher.
All you have to do is check the blog each day, and follow the instructions to collect letters and numbers hidden on the website.
A great game - come and play!

RSS challenge 6

So here is my entry for the RSS Challenge 6, and just in time... the challenge ends tomorrow!

For the background I used a Tim Holtz mini mask, with Tattered Rose Distress ink and VersaColor Sky Grey throughout the card.

The stamp is from Crafty Individuals, the B is grungeboard (painted white and embossed with Stardust embossing powder).

Thank you for looking, I hope you like it.

Autumnal cards

Well, autumn has officially arrived and I love the autumn colours as the trees turn, so I have made 2 cards using these colours.
The birds are stamps from Katzelkraft, as is the french quote (although created by Isabelle Norris). I am not sure who the swirls are from.
I have used a mix of Adirondak and Distress Ink to create the background. Thses are used over another swirl stamp (Judikins) using the emboss ink resist technique.
The leaves are metal, cut with the cuttlebug.
Thanks for looking.

Helicopter pilot

For Dave's birthday this year I bought him a 20 minute taster lesson in a helicopter. We went up to the airfield yesterday, and he had great fun learning the controls, and flying the chopper.
He is now looking to buy a helicopter on eBay... only kidding (I hope!)
In the photos Dave is on the left.

Today I went on a knife skills course at Jamie Oliver's shop Recipease in Clapham Junction.
It was 2 hours of chopping (and a bit of cooking) under the guidance of a chef (Leigh in this case). It was great fun and I learnt a lot. We made a coleslaw (loads of chopping there), with fresh mayonnaise, and then a tomato bruschetta. After the course we relaxed with a glass of wine and ate some of our food (the rest was packaged up to take home). I recommend it to anyone who wants to learn how to chop properly!

RSS challenge 5

I have finally managed to make a card! The study (partly my craft room) is still empty, with various construction/redecorating going on. It still needs to be painted and carpeted, so I will be crafting from the dining room for the foreseeable future. Actually, it's a great place to craft, the only down side is that all my craft stuff is now stacked all over the house... I will add some photos of the chaos in another post.
So, I finally settled down and made a card, and decided to make something for the latest Ready Steady Stamp challenge.

The 5 ingredients are:
1) Flowers and butterflies
2) Green
3) Buttons
4) PVA resist technique
5) Lace

I have managed to incorporate all 5 into my card, and hope you like it.

The beautiful collage stamp is from Katzelkraft. The inks are all Adirondak or Distress Inks.
The paint is Gouache paint (mixed with PVA glue).