All is revealed

This is my second post of the day as this month the first day of the month also happens to be a Friday! Welcome to our STAMPlorations Theme & Sketch Challenge for March,
 the theme and sketch are:

As usual you can either follow only the Theme or the Sketch, or use both!

My card is all about the Finding Coffee stamp. If you love playing with pen, pencils or watercolours this image is great fun to use. Little by little the flowers and coffee cups are revealed and in turn reveal what lies next to them. Not something you should hurry up but enjoy at leisure. I coloured this one with watercolours, using both waterbased markers and pencils with a water brush.

Once I had finished the image I didn't want to cover it or distract from it in any way, so I just allowed a little bit of trimming to bring the image to the proportions of my mats and card base. For the card base I used the Crazy Double Running Stitch Rectangle Nesting Dies.

To finish I added a sentiment from the After Coffee set, white embossed on vellum, again with the aim of hiding as little possible of my Finding Coffee image...

Check out what my teamies did following the Theme or Sketch on the STAMPlorations blog and do join us by linking to the challenge. If you do you could win a prize...

Whenever you shop for STAMPlorations products you can get 20% off with my code: STAMPGIRLCRAFTY

Thanks for coming by,
I am entering the SSS Wednesday Challenge challenge.

     

The deep blue sea

This month at Country View Challenges we have a theme of  Black & White plus another (your choice of 1 more colour), chosen by Sue. With Valentine's day coming up the colours pink, red or even gold will be popular choices but me I'm thinking of summer and the deep blue sea...

My background has been embossed with Tim Holtz/Sizzix 3-D Texture Fades Folder - Lumber.

My focal image is a stamp from the set Little Boats by Picture This. I simply placed a "wave" mask before stamping the boats and painted the sea and sky with watercolour pencils and a water brush.

I added appropriate words from TH Sizzix Thinlits Vacation words and Adventure Words Script sets to finish.

Clean and simple... I hope you are inspired to enter the challenge, and if you do you could win a £20 voucher to spend in the Country View shop!

Thanks for coming by,
I am entering the Addicted to stamps, Paperbabe, SSS Wednesday, Fashionable Stamping and Craft Stamper TIMI challenges.

Big wishes

If you need more inspiration to enter the STAMPlorations Theme and Sketch challenge this month, here is my take on the sketch AND the theme. Don't worry you can choose either for the chance to win a prize!

I used double sided paper to create the shape on the sketch and the balloons and stars from A Snarky Birthday to You stamp set, stamped with coloured inks.

To colour the images I used watercolour pencils and a water brush.

The star of the show is the BIG Birthday Wishes Phrase Die - CUTplorations, which I die-cut from glitter card.

Still 2 weeks to enter the challenge, and yes I know it's a busy period but take some time out and enjoy some stamping, colouring or die-cutting. Check out today's post on the STAMPlorations blog for more inspiration, for this challenge and all other STAMPlorations December challenges.

Whenever you shop for STAMPlorations products you can get 20% off with my code: STAMPGIRLCRAFTY

Thanks for coming by,
I am entering the That's Crafty, Craft Stamper TIMI  challenges.

   

Thankful

Welcome to a new Stamplorations Theme & Sketch Challenge! Our theme and sketch are:

For my card I used the sketch only and since our US crafters prepare for Thanksgiving, I thought I would use the Thankful & Blessed in their honour.

I created a panel with Prima Blooms sprays and stamped one of the flower clusters with Memento Fog grey, which I coloured with watercolour pencils and a water brush. The sentiment stamped with black Versafine is from the same set.

I die-cut the panel with my ever useful Crazy Double Running Stitch Rectangle Nesting Dies  and layered it on a piece of printed vellum.

You'll find more inspiration from my teamies  along with the linky for your entries to the challenge on the STAMPlorations blog and all the prize details... did I mention there are prizes?!! All the more reasons to play with us!

Whenever you shop for STAMPlorations products you can get 20% off with my code: STAMPGIRLCRAFTY

Thanks for coming by,
I am entering the Addicted to stamps and SSS Wednesday challenges.

   

Behind the door

Hello crafters, thanks for visiting my blog today, I have something to show you that has been on my mind for ages... I think since I got this door die!

The closed door gives a bit of mystery to the card and, hopefully, generate some excitement!

An easy start of the crafting year

New year, new hobby or new supplies? To ease you in gently, even if you are a beginner, I made this Clean And Simple (CAS for the initiated) card and you can read how I made it on the Craft Barn blog.

A card and a bonus tag

Welcome to my second inspiration post for the Stamplorations Theme and Sketch challenge.

Bear in mind that to enter the challenge you can choose to follow either the sketch, or the theme:

 

 

I made card following the sketch and a tag that follows both the theme and the sketch.

For the card, I stamped the bird from the Trendy Birds 2 stamp set with Distress Oxides inks in Salty Ocean and Wilted Violet. I then used the mask from the ARTplorations Stencil Some Birds
to protect the bird when I stamped the leaves from the Trendy Leaves set with Versamark.
I took the mask off and used Wow Embossing powder in Fairy Tale, which is a gold with holographic glitter.

The sentiment is from the same Trendy Birds 2 set and has been embossed in white.

The glint and multi coloured reflections of the embossing powder are hard to capture on film but here goes:

On my left it looks blue... and
on my right, it looks green...

Beautiful in natural light!




For the tag, I stamped and embossed a flower from Dee's Artsy Impressions - Smile set  and masked it with masking fluid (liquid frisket, rubber cement or similar).

Using the Retro Circles stencil I applied Distress Glaze to create a resist before spraying with water and sprinkling powders on top (Brushos). When dry, I removed the masking fluid to reveal the flowers and stamped the sentiment from the Shery Russ Designs - Fond Expressions 2 stamps set.

You still have time to enter the Theme and Sketch challenge so hop on over to the Stamplorations blog to get more inspiration from the DT. Your make only need to follow either the Sketch or the theme and there are lovely prizes to win...

Thanks for coming by,
Also entering the The Artistic Stamper, That's Crafty and Craft Stamper TIMI challenges.


           

Winter birthdays

Spare a thought for those December babies... forever overshadowed by that most famous of babies and somewhat neglected when it comes to their birthday. Some can feel quite prickly about it.... (no names here but I know someone very close, ahem, in that case).
With this in mind I designed this birthday card especially for the December born.

Supplies:
Succulents stamp set: Craft Emotions stamps
Starlight paints - Imagination Crafts
Brilliance inks
Glitter card - Art-C
Water soluble pencils: Derwent
Enamel accents Ranger

Hop on over to the Craft Barn blog to read my set by step.

Thanks for coming by,
I am entering the Craft Stamper TIMI, Penny Black and more, Fashionable Stamping, We Love To Create, Creative Artist challenges.

Oops I did it again!

I do hope I've just popped that song into your head for the rest of the day...

Sometimes a crafter is in need of a card to say sorry and, believe me, better be prepared with one so you only have to write and post it. Creating with the pressure of an immediate deadline is so stressful!

With this in mind, I have been making some "Oops" cards, using a new stamp from USA based Joggles, who produce quirky stamps new to the Craft Barn.

Supplies:

Joggles Quirky Bird No3
Distress Oxide Fossilized Amber
Inktense pencils
Chicken wire stencil
Memento black ink
Stampendous alphabet stamp set (very old!)

Do pop over to the Craft Barn blog for a step by step.

If you have noticed my visits to your blogs have been haphazard of late, know that this isn't me ignoring you. I have been dealing with a family situation which hasn't left me a lot of time for crafting or blogging and I have focused on my existing DT commitments. Soon, I hope, with a routine established,  normal service will resume...

I have acquired some new followers recently (I so wish Blogger sent notifications!) and I'll take this opportunity to welcome them.

As always, thanks for coming by, and for those on an extended weekend, enjoy!!

I am entering the SSS Wednesday, Addicted to CAS, Stamping Sensations and Addicted to stamps challenges.

Dictionary challenge

The latest Letter of the Craft Barn dictionary challenge is V (no twist) and I chose Vintage. Before you think Vintage images, lace, Victorian, distressed... no not this time! There are many meanings attached to the word and Vintage is both a noun and an adjective. Here is the complete dictionary definition if you're interested, but for space purposes on my pageI have only printed my chosen meaning.

I have used a single stamp set from the magazine Creative Stamping (at least a year old if I remember correctly) and black Versafine.
I coloured the images with watercolour pencils (Stabilo) and a water brush.

The stamps are acrylic and do not stamp well if not "prepared", which I did, with a light sanding of the top surface. But considering how cheap they work out they were a good buy for a theme I am not going to use regularly and I would recommend them for a beginner to dip in the stamping waters.

So Vintage done, only 5 letters to go...
Thanks for coming by,
Also entering the That's' Crafty and Stamplorations CAS  challenges.

Dictionary Letter G

Having chosen a Giraffe to illustrate my R word last time, "Ruminant" for those who missed it, I now find myself devoid of imagination for the latest Craft Barn Dictionary challenge, the letter G.

Back to a predictable word then, I give you... Garden!

The focal image is a stamp by Crafty Individuals (CI-415 ) and the sentiment is from Paper Artsy (ELB02 set).
I have coloured the garden with watercolour pencils and I have used water to soften the colours mainly on the bigger pink blooms.

The G is a rub on, chosen for its size as I was running out of space on this page!

Thanks for coming by,
 

Cardinal

Today I am guesting over the Rubber Dance blog and I am honoured and delighted!

I made a card following this month's challenge colours, using one of their newest stamp which I couldn't resist.... and I'm not a bird person! ** I still haven't fallen prey to TH Crazy Birds **

Anyway, for a full description of how I made this card you will need to visit the Rubber Dance blog here but without further ado, here it is:

Ingredients;
All stamps: Rubber Dance
Dies:           Memory Box Corner and tree branch, Joycrafts leaves
Embossing powder: WOW Pearl Blue
Watercolour: Winsor & Newton
Watercolour pencils: Faber Castell


Thanks for coming by,

Also entering the WOW Embossing powders and Penny Black and more challenges.

Drawing faces

It's face off at Paper Artsy this fortnight and I felt duty bound to join in since I ducked out of the fabric challenge last time...
I don't do faces normally so this was a real challenge for me, and I was planning a whimsical feel to hide any anatomical and perspective errors. Along the line I lost the whimsy, apart from the big eyes, and there are a few odd looking bits but since I didn't model my face on a real person I won't get any complaints there...

I used watercolour pencils and crayons for the both the drawing and the colouring and I softened everything with a water brush.
I couldn't think of anything clever to stamp on/around my face and stopped tinkering as it wasn't getting any better!

Faces aren't my favourite but I'm pleased I managed to finish my drawing,
Have a crafty weekend!

Also entering the Simon Says Stamp challenge.