Rudolph Days - February 2021

Hello there,

I'm here today with this month's offering for the 'Rudolph Days' challenge.  I've used the same Chocolate Baroque stamp that I used last month but in different colours.  I love this stamp and once again, I've really enjoyed water colouring it, it's so therapeutic! 

As I mentioned last month, I'm going to try much harder this year in entering this super challenge....so far, so good!

That's all from me for today but I hope to be back with you all again very soon xx

I would also like to add this card into the following challenges:

The Holly and Ivy Christmas challenge - Anything Christmas Goes

It's Nellie & Ellie

Hello there,

I'm sharing another one of my CI samples with you today and this time it's the fabulous new elephant stamp.  All of the new stamps this time around were drawn by a talented young lady by the name of 'Ellie Mulligan' so Jean hardy decided that she would call this stamp 'Nellie & Ellie.'  I love how their trunks entwine, it's so sweet:

I started by creating a background with Brushos, then stamped out the lovely elephants before using white embossing powder.  To make the elephants stand out a little, I used a make up sponge with some Teal Zeal ink to highlight their bodies and this was the closest that I could find to match the background colour.  The small stamps that I've used in the background are also by Crafty Individuals.

Message for Magic Maggie

So please that you’ve had your first COVID vaccine.  I’m not in this round but hopefully I won’t have to wait too much longer as I can’t wait to spend time with my grandchildren.  Many thanks for your continued support.  Take care of yourself and stay safe x

Thank you for your visits today and I'll be back again on Thursday with my card for this month's Rudolph Days challenge, so until then, stay safe and take care of yourselves xx

Animal Parade

Hello there on this chilly Saturday morning.

Just a quick post from me today to share another of my most recent samples made for Crafty Individuals.  This card features stamps from two of their new set which should hopefully be on their web site some time next week.  Anyone who knows me well will know how much I love using silhouette stamps, so these were right up my street.  I created the reflections by stamping versafine ink onto acetate, then pressing it onto the card.  The bacground was created using Distress inks.

Take good care of yourselves and I wish you all a very happy weekend xx

Going Wild Today

Hello there,

I do hope that you managed to watch Crafty Individuals shows on Hochanda TV last Friday.  They were superb with lots of sell outs too, so Jean and Malcolm will definitely be busy for the next couple of weeks.  As I promised, I'm here to share another sample with you and here it is:

I though that it would be good to create a larger card so that I could use both of the large animals and also use the smaller silhouette stamps too.  All was going swimmingly until I realised that I didn't have a card that was big enough for me to mount it on......plan B then! :)  I then set about finding some cardboard and some black card to make a frame.  I decided to use black to give a more dramatic look to the finished project and I was pleased with the end result.  The new stamps will be added to the CI website shortly.

Well, the sun is shining here in the UK and it's lovely to finally have a day where it's a few degrees warmer.  Let's hope that it lasts a while as it definitely makes you feel that Spring may soon be on it's way.

Okay, that's all from me for today and I'll be back to share more of my most recent samples with you very soon but until then, take care and stay safe xx

Crafty Individuals Are Going Wild

Hello there,

I'm being a good blogger so far this year, let's hope that it lasts! :)

I'm here today to let you know that lovely Jean Hardy from Crafty Individuals will be back on telly again this Friday, 12th of February.  Her shows will be on Hochanda at 10am and 2pm, so don't forget to put your recorders on.  The stamps, once again are fabulous and the theme this time is Wild Animals.  There are some gorgeous new stamps by Ellie Mulligan and of course, Jean will be having some great deals on her paper packs, which always sell out in no time.  As we are now only a couple of days away, I'll be a bit cheeky and share one of my samples with you but shhhhh, don't tell anyone :)  Here it is:

Now isn't this zebra a beauty, he's definitely one of my favourites from the new collection and a good size too. as this card is A5.  I stamped the zebra, then masked him off with maksing fluid before adding Brushos to the background. Next, I used the Brushos as paints to add some colour to the zebra himself.  This allows you to use the Brushos in a more controlled way.

Okay, that's all from me for today and I do hope that you can tune into the shows.  Who knows, you might even see this card on there.  I'll be back over the next couple of weeks to share more of my samples with you but until then, stay safe and take care of yourselves xx 

Love Is In The Air

Hello there,

I know that I said I wouldn't be back until Wednesday but I decided to enter a couple more challenges while I have some spare time on my hands and I'm enjoying having a play with my stamps and inks.  Here's the card that I've made:

I absolutely love this beautiful stamp by Crafty Individuals, it's so romantic and just perfect for Valentine's Day or for an anniversary.  Unfortunately, it's now retired, so no longer available, which is a shame.    For this card. I stamped the couple, then masked them off before creating the sun with a circular stencil and putting the hill in place.  Once these were done, I then added the trees and foliage in the foreground.

I'd like to add this card into the following challenges:

Try It On Tuesday - Falling In Love

Moving Along With The times - Valentines/Love

Simon Says Stamp Blog Challenge (Wednesday) - Love Is In The Air

CAS Thank You

Hello again,

Look at me posting twice in two days!

I'm here to share another CAS card that I've made for the 'CAS Mix Up February Stencil Challenge' and this time their theme is 'Stencil Heat Embossing.'  I had to think long and hard about this one as I don't have a huge collection of stencils, so while die cuttting a small butterfly for another project, I had an idea.  I used the negative part of the die cut to make my own stencil.  Here's my card, then I'll talk about what I did to make it:

I started my colouring my stamp using some brush marker.  I used my stamp press for this job as it makes everything so much easier as you can build up the colours gradually. I then water coloured the poppy pods before adding a darker red over them to make them stand out a little.  The stamp is by Chocolate Baroque and the sentiment by Stampin Up.  For the butterfly, I used some masking tape to keep everything in place, then I brushed some colour over it.  Next, I used a Tim Holtz stencil to add a little pattern for interest.  Finally, I sponged some embossing fluid over my butterfly stencil, then lifted the tape before adding some clear sparkle embossing powder and heat embossing.  I'm not sure that this photo shows it very well but it does have a lovely sparkle to it.

That's all from me for today but I'll be back with you on Wednesday for a catch up and a few sneaky peeks.

Enjoy the rest of your weekend and I hope that it's a happy one xx

CAS Christmas Card - February 21

Hello there,

Just a quick post from me today as I'll be back with a longer post later in the week when I'll share a few of my sneaky peeks for Crafty Individuals next Hochanda show on the 12th of February.

I'm here today to share a card that I've made for this month's 'CAS Christmas Card Challenge' and their theme this time is 'Dogs and/or Cats.' 

I've had this stamp for years but this is actually the first time that I've used it, although it is very sweet.  I bought it from 'Make Your Mark,' which is a lovely little stamp shop in York.  I always pop in whenever we have a day there, which until lockdown was quite often.  I do miss our trips to York as we always enjoy our time there.  The sentiment is by Inkylicious.

That's all for today but I'll be back tomorrow with another CAS card...... get me! :)  Don't worry though, I'm off to do what I really love now which is getting really inky :)  

Enjoy your weekend xx