Rudolph Day June 16

Hello,

It's the 25th today which can only mean one thing, yes, it's Scrappy Mo's 'Roldolf day'. It's such a friendly challenge and one that I always try to join in if I can.  Also, It's really good to know that I'll have some Christmas cards ready, rather than having to scramble and make them all at the last minute. Here's the card that I've made for this month's challenge:

The main focal stamp is the Deer Flourish stamp by Inkylicious. I can't remember if I bought it online or at a show but it's actually the first time I've used it. I had planned to make my Christmas cards with it last year but then I found the 'Winter Cabin' and I just loved it so much that it became my main Christmas stamp last year.

I started by masking off with the Inkylicious oval stencil, then with the Mountain Valley stencil so that I was just left with the area that I would be dusting. I cut out a small circle to mask off the moon. I used Ink Dusters to add colour with Memento Dandelion, Rose Bud and Adirondack Denim. When I was happy with the sky, I added the trees in the distance. I then added the Flourish Deer so that the flourishes were just kissing the trees. This then left the perfect space to add the sentiment. I finished the card by grounding the Stag on a hill that matched the sky and I used the Valley stencil to create snow drifts and then added jewels to the Stag's flourish. All stamps used on this card are by Inkylicious.

Before I go, I would just like to say 'Hello' to some new followers: Maria Carr and Martina Hess. Due to Blogger showing errors when I click on your profiles, as it does on my own these days, I don't know if you have your own blogs. If you do have a blog, then please let me know so that I can update this post so that people will be able to visit you.
My next new follower is an absolute stamping wiz and as Hughie Green would have said........ "I mean that most sincerely."  (Only people over 50 will know who I mean:) She's a new blogger but not new to crafting, it's Emma from Inkylicious. I really enjoy watching Emma's demos on TV as she creates her cards faster than the speed of sound! I love her fresh approach to stamping and her use of beautiful, vibrant colours, which are a perfect reflection of her personality. I was lucky enough to have a sneaky peek this week as some of Emma's samples for the next Inkylicious show on Hochanda on the 6th of July, and trust me, you're in for a real treat! Emma's definitely inherited her Mum Deby's talent for creating stunning cards. Welcome to all my new followers and I hope you'll visit often :) X

Thank you too for passing by today and I hope you call again soon. Crafty hugs, Sandra X

Designs by Georgina

Hi there,

Before I start today's post, I'd like to welcome my new follower Cheryl. If you get chance, please pop over and take a look at Cheryl's blog. Thanks for joining me Cheryl and I hope you get to visit often.

I was really lucky to win last month's monthly challenge prize at 'The Craft Stamper' so I'd like to say a big thank you to Craft Stamper and to their hard working design team, and also to Georgina Ford for being kind enough to sponsor the May challenge with her own collection of stamps and stencils.

I've been quite busy recently and so I only really got my first chance to have a play with them today and here's the results:

I had great fun doing this first one as it's the first time I've tried this technique.  I cut out a square of card and added several layers of Cosmic Shimmer ultra thick embossing powder.  Once I felt it was thick enough to take the imprint, I stamped into Black StazOn ink before pressing it into the red hot, liquid embossing powder.  As there wasn't a great deal of contrast between the stamped image and the now solid embossing, I gently rubbed over it with gold Gilding Wax.  This made the flower pop, so I then mounted it into gold card and then again onto a black Spellbinders die cut.

For my second card, I just used one of the stencils. I coloured it first in yellow with a sponge dauber and then I gradually used darker colours from the inside out, ending with a dark red in the center. I used the same stencil around the edges to create a border and to frame the image.. 

For my final card, I used one of the stencils to create a background before using the matching stamp which I stamped with Versafine Black Onyx and then sponged the center of them with the same colour that I used for the center of my background stencils. 

Here's a photo of the goodies that I won:

I've enjoyed having a play with my new stamps and stencils today and the possibilities are endless so I'm looking forward to having a play again with them soon.

Whatever you're doing, enjoy the rest of your Sunday evening and thank you for passing by :) X 

Let's Get Colourful.

Hello there,

I'm here today to show a few more of the cards that I made for Inkylicious. It was great having a play with the Dream stamp.  I tried so many different combinations and colours but this one was my favourite of them all. 

This bird stamp has now definitely become one of my all time favourites.  There's just so much that you can do with it.  It looks great just stamped in black against a colourful background, or you can do what I've done on this card and bling it up with some colour and glitter.  It also works well in a Vintage style and is such a great stamp for making the masculine cards that we can all struggle with at times.

This one is one of my personal favourites, I just love the colour combination and the sense of peace

that I get from looking at this card:

I'm aware that I've posted rather a lot of my samples lately and I hope that you're still enjoying seeing them as much as I enjoyed making them.

Stay Happy :) x

FSC Beautiful Blooms

Hello there,

Before I move on to today's post, I'd like to welcome my newest follower.......Dianne Vynne.  Thank you for joining me Dianne :)

It's time for another new challenge over at Fashionable Stamping Challenges.  The theme this month is 'Beautiful Blooms.'  I have so many flower stamps that I was spoiled for choice on this one, so I thought that I'd try something a little different, so here goes......

I started by stamping five of the Gibson Girl in a rough flower shape.  I did this twice before cutting them out and using a bone folder to shape and dimension. I then mounted them onto each other and used a rose that I made using Spellbinder Rose Creations for the center.

I created the background using stamps and stencils, and I also used some sequin waste to create the little dots that you can see.  Once I was happy with the colours, I used a flourish stamp by Inkylicious to decorate around the edge.  I then heat embossed it in gold to make it look a little more opulent.

This Gibson Girl is one of my favourite stamps by Flonz Craft and I've enjoyed making her into a Beautiful Bloom!

Inks used were:
Impress: Garnet,
Distress: Cracked Pistachio, twisted Citron

Spread Your Wings

Hello my lovely crafty friends.

I'm here today to share a couple of cards with you that I made for today's Inkylicious shows on Hochanda. You may have already seen some of today's samples previously on my blog or on Pinterest so I won't post those again.  Here are the cards that I'd like to share with you today:

I've had the 'Dreams Come True' stamp for quite a while now and this stamp really lends itself to beautiful backgrounds.  I've made this one quite feminine and used Spectrum Noir markers on the back and then dispersed them on the acetate with dabs of surgical spirit on cotton wool. I originally left it quite plain but felt that it needed something adding and so I used some Spellbinder Edgeabilities with black card as a border.  I felt that the border suited the theme of the card and I was much happier with the end result.

The 'Spread Your Wings' stamp was new to me, and what an absolute joy it's been to use.  I could have done dozens of samples with this one.  I have done a few in different colours, just to show how versatile this wonderful stamp is.

I hope that you got to see the fabulously talented Deby and Emma on Hochanda today doing their amazing demos.  If you didn't manage to catch it, then you can always use Catch up on Hochanda for the next week or so.

There's a new challenge starting on Sunday over at Fashionable Stamping Challenges so I'll be back then to share with you what I've made.  Until then, take good care of yourselves and stay happy:) x

A Little Sneaky Peek

Hello there,

I hope that you're all enjoying your weekend.

Thank you so much for the lovely comments that you've left for me about my last post, I really appreciate each and every one of them.

Inkylicious have a two new shows on Hochanda on Thursday the 9th of June at 11am and 3pm.  There will be some gorgeous stamps on and lots of fabulous demonstrations by Deby and Emma, so make sure that you tune in or put your recorder on.

Here's a sneaky peak at one of my samples for the next shows.  Deby's already posted the picture on the Inkylicious Facebook page so I'm not letting the cat out of the bag.  Here it is:

Isn't that bird stamp stunning, I've really enjoyed using and it was an absolute joy to work with.

I have a few new followers who I'd like you to meet, they are: Mary H,   Lucy Woods,  Pen Sunshinepen,  Stella, and Elaine. Elaine, I couldn't find your blog through Blogger, so if you have one, please let me know so that I can add a link on here for you.  Thank you all for joining me and I hope you'll visit often :) X

I'm having some real problems with Blogger lately.  Whenever I follow a new blog, It's not showing my usual picture and details, so apologies for this.  I've tried everything that I can think of and I can't seem to change it, which is a real pain.

I hope you all enjoy the rest of the weekend and get lots of time for crafting x