Paint stripes?

Hi Everyone, I hope you have had some lovely sunshine as we have had. So good to sit out again in the sun and warmth, after having Autumnal weather of late.

My card today came about after seeing a video by Toni Darroch and me thinking I can do that! well, it's not as intended in the video, but my version. I thought I'd use different colours to what I usually use and here it is. I painted stripes, not as straight as they should be! in the matching colours. I stamped the image and the sentiment with Distress ink, painting out a little of the stamped flowers and then clear embossed. I finished with Crystal drops

stamps - Made With Love, Stamps By Me

distress inks - Antique Linen, Old Paper, Frayed Burlap, Tea Dye, Vintage Photo

Nuvo Drops

brown card - stash

Home and hobby!

Hi Everyone, I had to show you this,  my #3 brother gave me this orchid last December, it was in glorious flower, but just a week later they all fell off and as my previous experience with orchids was dreadful,  I thought that was the end of it, but I talked nice to it, fed and watered it and leaves started appearing, then a side shoot and this week it rewarded me with a beautiful flower and a promise of more to come I am so thrilled. I feel like I have won the lottery, well maybe not, but you know what I mean LOL.

Here it is. 

The orchid spurred me into action, I have had a digital die file for quite a while and have been trying to get floristry wire and tape to make it. Last week I finally bought them after lockdown. 

The file was quite daunting, but had good instructions, I cut all the pieces out, actually cut more than I needed, but they were all used in the end. I put them all in sizes on my desk and that was it, I got too afraid to start! Yep! how silly is that? 

Anyhow next day I inked the edges of each flower and buds and the leaves as a starter.  I read the instructions and started putting it all together, in the end it wasn't as bad as I thought, why do I get overwhelmed like that? They say face the fear, I did and it has worked out well and I like it! It took a few hours with great concentration, well I am getting older! Here's the result although for some reason the inking of the leaves can't be seen, the flowers are not much better, I really don't know why, unless it was the light I took it in, (not good!) they look great in real life. It's 15 inches high.

I tell you what those flower centres are tiny!

the wonky flower open bud has been corrected.

Creative Inspiration In the garden

Penny's Paper Crafty Challenge ATG

Graduation

Hi Everyone, it's drizzling again and quite another Autumn day, although there is a sun break every so often that reminds us, there is sun behind those heavy dark grey clouds. We've been having too many of them, after being spoiled in Lockdown with great weather I miss it. I hope whatever your weather it is keeping you happy.

I was thrilled to hear our GNephew has graduated with a 2-1 and starts his Teaching in September. Of course I had to make a card and this is it.

I decided to use vinyl to add the design, for a change, after having freebie digital cut files to use which were perfect. Quite a simple card, I added paper to the card that has a silvered design then applied the design onto the paper, after having my Cameo to cut it out, the yellow "tassell" has been added twice to raise it a little. You just about see the sheen of the vinyl in the photo.

design freebie - Printable Cuttable Creatables

black vinyl - Greenstik

yellow vinyl - MDP

paper - a few years old! Papermania

this image can actually be used as a cut file or as a printed file, 

I decided to use it in it's printable form on the insert.

Outlawz - Monday Greetings

Pony Love

Hi Everyone, my card is the third of my horse/pony cards, I am spreading out for you. I had to have this image and the Niece it's for, adores her beautiful horse and as it's white, I decided this image had to have a white horse too.

I printed it out and painted with Distress inks. I added it to pearl card with a sheen. I added the horseshoes which I had cut out, you can see in this card, and added gloss to the hearts. 

Very simple, but I have to say I really like these horsey cards I've done, the images are adorable. 

image - Hetty Clare digital stamp

coloured in Distress inks

sentiment my own - font, Lovely Heart

horseshoes - my cutouts

white card - Hobbycraft

red card - Centura Pearl, Crafters Companion

black card - Dovecraft

here's her beautiful horse and Yep! she loves her.

Outlawz - Monday Greetings

Selfie Santa

Hi Everyone, I'm so behind in blog posts, I can't seem to get anything done, plenty of inspiration, but nothing working for me. Until I saw a challenge and a light went on! About time too. Here's my offering.

I printed the image out onto ordinary white card that I'm finding I can paint with my Distress inks. Watercolour card at 300gsm is far too heavy for my printer. I keep promising myself a new printer to print heavy card, but have seen  varying reviews about them.

I went looking for Christmas papers and found what I liked in amongst my files. I printed and cut them with dies and also printed out some sentiments in the files. I then cut the image and as I had printed it too big for the die, I cut it with Santa's boot outside the frame. The image and sentiments were added and 3d'd. I love the happy image. After finishing the card I decided that some 3D gloss would be good on the sentiments, boots and eyes. Well, Santa would polish his boots and his eyes would be sparkly don't you think? 

image - Dr Digi Selfie Santa

coloured with Distress inks

white card - Hobbycraft

papers & sentiments - Gina Cabrera

The Spot Creative Challenge

Ikes World

TCP Tuesday

The Paper Girls

Outlawz Monday Greetings 

SAW!

Hi everyone, I so appreciate your visits and don't say it enough. My card today is one I had in my files and hadn't made, like so many others, (I'm a collector not a user!)

Anyhow, I cut the image and embossed and run an ink pad over the handle and added mirror card for the actual cutting piece, I added some ink over the edge of the saw for a bit of aging. After doing all this I thought it too small for a card on it's own, even though I had made it larger.

I didn't know how I was going to use it and it took me over 2 days to put this together! Yep! 2 days, with a lots of trying and rejecting, I added it to a DL size card and I looked through a paper pad and found one paper that I liked. I dry embossed it and added a pen line to make a shadow under each line. I die cut the sentiment matching the lines of the paper and cut 4 layers of white card to add a little lightness to the sentiment. Voila card finished - but I was still not satisfied! so I added a printed sentiment inside the saw, which can be lifted before opening the inside and seeing the birthday greeting. 

saw card - Silhouette Design Store 181264

birthday die - Cut & Make

embossing folder - Modern Stripe Craftwell

embossing folder - Woodgrain Crafters Companion

paper - Craft Sensations

saw saying - computer generated

Here you can see the embossing and what looks like a shadow, I'm quite pleased with it.

this is the saying inside the saw itself.

Creating Crafting Uncles

Stencil

Hi Everyone, my card today is a stencil I cut from acetate on my Silhouette, I got the file from the Design Store and cut! I had just had the new colour ink pad from Ranger so I decided to use that on it's own, no shading, I saw a card design on Pinterest that helped me with the design.

I coloured the stencil layer, then added a glue pen to the centres of some to add glitter, I die cut snowflakes for the corner, heat embossing the larger to match the sentiment, then cut the top one out of silver mirror to add a little contrast, I added some ribbon, I was able to find that matched the colour exactly, so lucky to have done that. They were all added to silver mirror card and onto the main card.

I'll try adding different colours and see how they come out, I'm a newbie to blending through stencils, or anything else actually LOL. I also cut others, which I haven't used yet. I'll post it here as usual when I have, here's the image on the screen while getting it all ready to cut.

here's the card

stencil - Filigree Star card ID #236941

ink - Distress ink Tumbled Glass

sentiment stamp - Crafters Companion mag freebie

embossing powder - Altenew Antique Silver

dies - unknown

ribbon - stash

'orsey!

Hi everyone, I told you recently I would keep a few "horse" cards back for when I didn't have anything else, well here's one of them!

I cut the stencil out on the Silhouette 3 times, I used 2 glued together of the 300gsm cut card, as an embossing folder and one for a stencil, I kept the off cuts to add to any card I use with either of them.

Because it was my intention to make more stencils, I decided to buy some brushes, I bought the cheap ones and they came with a case, I had seen on Youtube that a T square ruler was being used to get images, stamps etc straight, so what the heck, I bought that too. Now all I have to do is remember to use it!

The card is stenciled with the the EF I made. Then red pearl card added in strips and added to the sentiment to mimic the poles? Well, it was when I made it LOL. I think a great belated birthday or a forgotten celebration of some kind?

digital stamp - Pony Whoops by Hetty Clare

coloured with Distress Inks 

as was the stenciled horseshoes and the individual horseshoes. 

red card - Crafters Companion

Creatalicious Challenges  ATG

Creative Moments Challenge 194 ATG

Mixed post

Hi everyone, well after 5 months I have had my hair cut today, it was January when I had it cut at the hairdresser, they went into lockdown as I was due a cut! (hubby had taken an inch off the back though.) It was all done so well, with a mask given, although I had my own, my temperature taken and a hand sanitiser for me to use too. I think she is a great stylist, but I always wash it as soon as I am home, as I don't like how she, or any hairdresser, styles my hair after a cut. Fussy so and so aren't I?

 On to why you are here! after doing my comments and emails, I thought I would just browse my files. I have seen quite a few digital stamps and paper used recently and as I didn't feel like doing much on a very wet afternoon I decided to see what files I had, (forgotten about!) There were a LOT! 

I came across this lovely watercolour pineapple and background paper, I decided to use them and this is the resulting card. I added them to a shape in my Silhouette Design page and added a digital die to the centre, then after cutting them all out, I added them to a card and also the sentiment. The centre pineapple is layered 3 times. I wanted to print and cut the image, and also to cut it out on one page of paper, it took me longer to adjust them to fit on the page that to design it! LOL

pineapple and paper - Creativefabrika

digital die - Silhouette #14365

Nuvo Drops - Tonic 

sparkle pen - Spectrum Noir 

Yesterday morning I looked up into the sky and saw a plane trail, but not only that it had a shadow! There was another trail not far away but that had no shadow, I had to take a photo of it. It's like I did a shadow in Photoshop, (I didn't), it was originally on the right of the trail but gradually moved to to the left of it. It was a  duunnn dunnn... duuuunnnn duun... duuunnnnnnnn dun dun dun dun dun dun dun dun dun dun dunnnnnnnnnnn dunnnn. moment!

This is how it started

A closeup of it

This is where it had moved to the left and was still a trail,

 where the original had almost disappeared! 

The smaller trail had also nearly disappeared.

EDIT - After Shirley's comment I went to Google and found this explanation, seems it's not common, so was thrilled to get a photo of it. 

Contrail shadow

Keep safe everyone.

CD Sunday  Digi - Yep!

LiL Patch of Crafty Friends ATG - Yep!

Scrappin4fun Challenge  Birthday - Yep!

Poppies

Hi Everyone, I have another "watercolour" card today, I used watercolour card to use the stamps. I sprayed the inked stamp and stamped, then stamped the second layer with black ink. A very simple card, but I am enjoying doing this, such fun seeing the result. The first poppy bled a bit further than I wanted, but I think it adds to the watercolour effect. (I hope so). The top of the card also looks wonky, I assure it isn't, I don't know why it looks like it. Camera levels I expect!

stamps - Altenew. a Magazine freebie SC&P issue 194

black layer stitched die - Card Making Magic

I thought I'd add here the harvest we had this week. It's the first time we have planted potatoes for at least 30 years. This year I decided to order some seed potatoes and they have been great. Here are some piccies before and after.

their planted with Runner Beans - yummy.

just dug up one plant 3lb of yummy potatoes

washed, they have no peel to speak of and it came off just moving with a finger tip. Boiled with butter and a little mint oh! so yummy, their taste was fabulous. Now all we have to do is wait for the beans and a perfect dish for me with boiled ham and parsley sauce - heaven.

I hope all your harvests come to good fruition too, whatever they are.

Thank you all for your lovely comments I don't thank you enough, for visiting and appreciating what I do. It's much appreciated, believe me.

Have a Great weekend.

Sport TMR #140

Hi Everyone, Welcome to our 140th Challenge

we have a change from today, in that the challenge will be

 every First Wednesday of the month

our first monthly challenge is 

 I think we all have lots of sport stamps, digis etc. This is my offering, I had inspiration from my magazine and the one that supplied the stamps as freebies. I'm pleased with it, as I wouldn't have attempted this kind of one layer stamping otherwise. The hardest part was finding card to match, I wanted something bright for Summer and orange is bright!

I did a paint swipe for the background and then stamped the helmet and gloves in a light and dark orange and went for a turquoise to compliment the orange. I have just realised it's the same colour combo as yesterday's card, but done at different times.

freebie stamps - Creative Stamping Magazine issue #56

background - Distress ink

stamp colours with very old inks - Whisper, I think they could be Papermania

card - Dovecraft texured

Creative Moments 

The Paper Fun Day Challenge

Fab & Funky Challenges

water stamping?

Hi Everyone, a little more stamping, I saw a tutorial on craft TV and decided to try it, I don't think it was successful, but I thought why not show you? Anyhow, the technique was to use distress inks and spray water on the stamps before stamping, which I did, but I didn't have a fine spray and I think a little too much water spread further than I wanted, but as hubby liked it (he may be biased LOL) I decided to use them as cards. I added them to a DL size card. I have SO much to learn about stamping! I wonder if I have the patience? On a wet, windy, wintery day in July seems I do!

I didn't know what colours to use, so decided to have a look on the web at what colour combos people used for this stamp, I found what I liked HERE, 

stamps - Altenew Majestic Blooms 

inks - Distress inks

carved pumpkin, ripe persimmon, rusty hinge

tumbled glass, broken china, mermaid lagoon

sentiment - magazine freebie

We had a visitor this week, he has been a visitor before and stays a long time, nearly half an hour a time. Yep! we have a lot of ants in the lawn, his favourite snack I believe. It's the Green Woodpecker.

AND, our clematis didn't flower in the Spring as usual, however it's decided to give us a wonderful Summer show, with plenty of buds to come again.

The Flower Challenge

Creative Fingers Challenge

Colour Crazy Challenge

A Place to Start

Stamp and stencil

Hi Everyone, before I go into my work, I just want to say Hello to my new followers, I'm so grateful you think I'm good enough to follow, there is no link to visit you, so if you would be kind enough to comment on something you like, I will get back to you. 

I bought the new Altenew Magazine and had stamps, dies and stencil and papers in it, it's been a while since I had it and thought it was about time I used it. I was excited to receive it, but it just sat there, you know how it is.

Anyhow, this is the card using everything, except the papers. I stamped just the main layer of flower and leaf stamp onto card I have, then I stencilled the background of the main card. The light has been like Winter the last few days, so this was the best I could do with the photo. I think I will be more confident to use these stamps with their layers, I wonder if my VERY old ones will work? We'll see. 

flower & leaf stamps, stencil - Altenew magazine

coloured with Distress inks

sentiment - magazine freebie stamped and heat embossed

paper spots and gingham card - Hunkydory

glitter drops - Papermania

Crafty Cardmakers Challenge #260

Penguins and news

Hi Everyone, I have been asked to be on the DT of 2CCC, I was thrilled and said yes. Although a correction here, as far as I was aware I was GDT last month, then read the blog and it seems I was full DT all the time, oh! old age!

This is my card for the 40th challenge of 

2 Crafty Critter Crazies

I really couldn't make up my mind which image to use of Jan's Digis, so I used 2, one ready coloured and one I coloured myself. Such fun to do. Both sentiments are in the set, with others. I used dies and my Silhouette to add the mistletoe and snowflakes and to print and cut the images. I added a dp paper to the card and added the images cut out 3 times, then added the details. I used fluffy stuff to the one penguin and 3D gloss to the beaks after layering 3 pieces of them. I also used a silver sparkle pen to the lettering of the sentiment on the right card.

Under the Mistletoe - Jan's Digi Stamps

left card - ready coloured

right card coloured with - Distress inks

mistletoe - Deedees no longer available, I doodled the string

snowflake dies - unknown

fluffy stuff - Cosmic Shimmer

silver sparkle pen - Uniball

Silhouette Cameo 2 to cut out images and mistletoe.

Also Wonderful news

Jan's Digi Stamps

has a 25% off SPECIAL SALE

on all her Christmas sets, throughout the entire month of July

how is that for an offer?

Sheepski Design Challenge

12 months of Christmas Link Up

Jan's Digi Stamp Challenge

Crafty Animals Challenge

QKR Rose

Hi Everyone, my second post for today and it's for the
 New challenge at QKR and it's my DT card

http://qkrstampede.blogspot.com/

We will select two winners each week 1 using QKR Stampede

 or Eureka Stamps image and 1 using any image!

We have changed our challenge to the 1st of every month for the Summer,
 on a trial basis but, it's still Anything Goes.

Anything Goes every 1st of the month

My card today is using a beautiful rose, I added 3 digital  roses to make the arrangement, printed and coloured them. I then painted a shadow around the arrangement and die cut them. I added a stamped sentiment and cut that as an oval. A patterned paper was added to the card and everything placed. A few sequins added voila! 

image - 3 of the Fine Art Rose 

coloured - Distress inks

dies - Tattered Lace oval pin dot 

patterned paper - Craft Sensations

stamped sentiment - Simply Made Crafts (mag freebie)

sequins - stash