A Krafty Wedding

Hello there,

Please welcome my two newest followers......Linby and Babs, thank you both for joining me :)

I hope that you're all enjoying this lovely, long Easter weekend, and we did get one wonderful day of sunshine, followed by lots and lots of rain.  I guess that's why the weather in the UK is never boring!

I've had a wonderful couple of days and I've been able to make a few cards, so just a quick post today where I would like to share with you a matching card and box set that I made a short while ago:

Rudolph Day - March 16

Hello folks,

Before I start today's post, I'd just like to say 'Hello and Welcome' to my latest followers.....Kate Curry and Cara,  thank you both for joining me :)

It's the 25th, which means it's  the 'Rudolph Day' challenge!  I love entering this friendly challenge and it's great to get ahead with Christmas cards, so here is this month's offering:

I enjoy using Kraft card for Winter scenes as the snow really stands out and makes the image look more dramatic than it does when using white card.

I started by masking off the snow into layers and I used an Ink Duster to brush on the white ink.  I used a white pen on top of the snow and on the tree to accentuate the snow.

All the stamps that I've used are by Inkylicious and were stamped using Versafine Black Onyx and Distress Ground Espresso.  I stamped the branches at the top, first with black ink and then again with white ink and used a crystal embossing powder to give it some sparkle. The sky was shaded using Distress Stormy Sky and Hickory Smoke.

Thank you for visiting today and I hope that you enjoy your weekend. I'm looking forward to visiting your blogs too x

FSC Butterflies

Good Morning all,

I hope that you're all enjoying a happy, relaxing, crafty weekend :

The time is just flying by and it's time today for a new challenge over at 'Fashionable Stamping Challenges.' The theme this time is 'Butterflies' and has been chosen by my lovely teamie Dot.  Dot is an amazingly talented artist and I can't believe how lucky I am to be on the same design team. :)

Here's the card that I've made for this month's challenge:

I started by stamping two Creative Expressions butterflies in two different sizes with VersaMark and then heat embossing them both in silver.  One of the main reasons I did this is because it acts as a barrier to stop the colours from bleeding into each other.  I then painted the butterflies with Starburst Stains, Ramblin Rose Pink and Lucky Shamrock green.

For the background, I painted the same Starburst Stains onto a sheet of copy paper and then scrunched it up to blend the colours and to create a crinkled look to give the piece more interest. I also used a piece of the paper to stamp the sentiment on using Versafine Black Onyx. The sentiment stamp is by Lindsay Mason. I used a Tim Holtz die on the paper to create the lattice work around the main focal point.  I then decided to add smaller butterflies around the edge,  These were made by using die cuts.  As I had embossed the main butterfly in silver, I used silver holographic card to the smaller butterflies to make them a little more dramatic. All the pieces were then mounted onto black card as I felt that this gave the best contrast.

Thank you for visiting my blog today and I wish you lots of happy crafting x

The Tide Recedes

Hello,

I'm here today to share with you a card that I've made for this week's challenge at 'Less is More.' Their theme this week is a 'One Layer Sentiment.'

Before I start, I'd like to give a warm welcome to my newest follower.....Sid. and say thank you for joining me.

Here's today's card:

I've kept the card CAS and left plenty of white space as required by all the Less is More challenges.

The sentiment is by Inkylicious and the silhouette stamp was free with a 'Creative Stamping' magazine.  The sentiment and image are both stamped with Versafine Black Onyx.  I masked off the sun and used Ink Dusters to give a sunny haze using Adirondack butterscotch.  The sea was coloured with Distress Stormy Sky as a water colour and the sand was sponged with Memento Desert Sand. I used a white gel pen to create waves on the sea and then finished the card by using Woodware Fluffy Stuff to create the waves.

I'll be back again tomorrow as we have a new challenge starting at Fashionable Stamping Challenges but until then, I wish you a lovely evening x

Spring

Hello there,

I'm not sure Spring has finally sprung yet but I'm really enjoying looking at all the Spring cards that are being made.  I always think the colours look so clean and fresh, and it's such a lovely time of year when you start to see all the buds on the trees.

I started this card by using a stencil and then brushing over it with Ink Dusters using Adirondack Butterscotch and Distress Twisted Citron inks.  I used the Butterscotch to gently brush round the oval die but I don't think it shows up too well in the photograph.  The flower is by Stampin Up and was coloured using the Citron and Lavender Sachet by Ranger and then mounted onto a snippet of card using a Spellbinders die. The sentiment is one that I've had for a very long time and is by Hero Arts.

Vintage Beauty

Hello my friends, followers and passers by.

I've had a lovely day today, watching the snow fall from my craft room window while I've been card making.  I hope you've all manage to get through the day safely.

Before I share today's card, I would like to welcome my three newest followers.......Rahmat, Lisa and Lia. Thank you all for joining me and I've very much enjoyed visiting your blogs.

I was inspired to make this card for the challenge over at 'Try it on a Tuesday.' Their theme this time is 'Feminine and Fancy' and here's my card:

The stamp is brand new and is from Flonzcraft.  I thinks she's absolutely beautiful and the stamp is so detailed, especially the hair. I stamped her using Distress Walnut Stain and then gently water coloured the hair and then stamped over it again to add back the detail. I sponged around the edge of the oval frame with Distress Tea Dye.  To make the card look a little fancier, I used a die cut by Tim Holtz and then rubbed over it using gold gilding wax. The oval die is by Spellbinders and and the Ivy and butterfly are by Memory Box. I tried lots of different colours in the background before making my final choice but I found the the red made it look quite opulent against the gold..  Finally, I made the rose using Spellbinders Rose Creations.  I find this is a great way of using up any scraps of card.

Thank you for visiting today and I wish you all a happy crafting weekend :) x

NBUS Challenge - March 16

Hello my crafty friends.

I'd also like to to say Hello and welcome to my latest follower.....Sandy.

Before I get on with today's post,  I'd just like to remind you all that there's still plenty of time to enter this month's 'Fashionable Stamping Challenge.'  This is my first choice of challenge as a new DT member and I'd really love it if you could show your support and join me.  The theme is Sunrise/Sunset. You don't need to create a scene, you can just use sunset colours and the rest is up to you. Please use the link below to visit the blog:

http://www.fashionablestampingchallenges.com/2016/02/14/challenge-108-sunrisesunset/

On with today's post now and I'm here today to share a card with you that I've made for the lovely Darnell's 'NBUS' (Anything Goes) challenge.  I think that we crafters are all guilty of buying stuff that we  need and then not using it for ages; or indeed; not at all!  It's a great Idea for a challenge, and also a challenge for us to dig that that unused stash from the back of the cupboard and have a play with it. I know that I tend to always reach for my favourites, so this is a great chance to try something new.

The stamps that I've used today are by Crafter's Companion and are from a set called 'Poker Face.' I bought them a while back from yet another craft shop that was closing down and as they were half price, I couldn't resist.  Here's the card and also a photograph of the brand new, unused stamps:

I stamped the image with Versafine black Onyx and then heat embossed it in black to avoid the colours running.  The image was then coloured with Spectrum Noir markers, cut out and then mounted onto a piece of wallpaper from a sample book.  I stamped and heat embossed the mirror in gold and then added the sentiment.  The gold chain was a peel off from my stash.

Having finished the card, I really like it and hope that you do too x