SNG - Journal page ...

.... Hello. I hope everyone has had a good weekend.  We've had a really fun time.  I spent yesterday afternoon in my craft room working on an art journal page.  It was actually quite nice not to make a card or anything remotely Christmassy!  It's my turn to host our post at Sparkle and Glitter, where we showcase Rick's fabulous digital art.

Stamps: Rick St Dennis Digi - Batty Bettina; Dylusions - Doodle Parts, Shrooms; Stampers Anonymous Tim Holtz - Stuff to Say; Stampers Anonymous Brett Wedele - The Presenters
Inks: Versafine - Onyx Black; Memento - Tuxedo Black; Archival - Leaf Green, Emerald Green, Carnation Red, Violet, Jet Black
Accessories: Dyan Reaveley Art Journal Page; Copic Markers; Wink of Stella; Stencils; Clear Embossing Powder

I created the background of Dylusion sprays and leaf stamping at one of the classes I took with Dyan Reaveley in October.  In my stash of Rick St Dennis images that I have printed off, I found this super fairy.  I coloured her with Copic markers and cut her out with a scalpel.  I stamped some of Dyan's fabulous mushrooms on white card, coloured and cut them out.  Then I had lots of fun planning the layout and stamping various words and images on the background.  If you look closely you'll see wings randomly stamped round, some words about those wings and a rose too.  I finished the page by stamping the main words in Versafine and heat embossing with clear powder.  I stamped the words a number of times allowing the images to get fainter and fainter.  Here's a close-up photo of Batty Battina (who you can find at Rick's Zibbet shop).  She's a very sassy girl:

Sadly you can't see the pretty shimmer on her wings and the mushroom dots, which you would, if the sun were shining!!  That's all for today.  See you tomorrow.

SNG - Give Thanks ....

.... Hello again!  It's my turn to host a project over at Sparkle and Glitter where we showcase Rick's fabulous digital images.  I've made a fun card for Thanksgiving:

Stamps: Rick St Dennis Digi - Patriotic Turtle; Stampin' Up! - For All Things
Inks: SU - Early Espresso
Accessories: White Lustre Card; SU DP - Crushed Curry; Copic Markers

This is the Patriotic Turtle and would normally be coloured in red, blue and white for the 4th July celebrations, but I think that coloured in autumnal shades he works perfectly for a Thanksgiving Turtle.  I've used the colours from Colour Q - cQc#318 and and it also fits with our theme of Thanksgiving/Thanks over at The Male Room - TMR#24-15.

I printed the turtle on white card, coloured it with Copic markers and cut it out.  I cut a panel of design paper slightly smaller than the card and adhered it flat to the card base.  I added the finished turtle and finished the front with a suitable greeting.  On the inside I cut another mat of design paper and on the white panel added some acorns.

You can find the Patriotic Turtle and his friends at Rick's Zibbet shop.  Not only are there turtles, but there's lots of images for Creepmas (check back in December for more of that) and also for Christmas!

I think that really is all for today - I'm off back to my craft room to make some more cards which will be on show tomorrow and over the weekend.  See you soon.

SNG - Merry Christmas ...

....  Morning!  It's a beautiful morning here in Northville - a marked contrast to the grey and rain that we had yesterday.  I've not been in my craft room much this week - well that's not entirely true, I did do some tidying up earlier, but today is the first time I've made a card all week!

Stamps: Rick St Dennis Digi: Christmas Party Hat; Stampers Anonymous - Tim Holtz Crazy Talk
Inks: Versafine - Onyx Black
Dies: PTI - Wet Paint Holiday; Lawn Fawn - Stitched Hillside Borders
Accessories: White Lustre Card; Kaisercraft DP - Home for Christmas; Green Mirri Card; Copic Markers; Wink of Stella - Clear

I'm submitting this card to Muse: Christmas Visions - MCV#29, where I've CASEd Betty's beautiful card.  I've used the colours, the foliage is in my background paper and this lovely hat, and the layout.

I think that by now you all know that I just love Rick's wonderfully elegant Hat Ladies.  This lady is perfect for a Christmas card with the roses and holly in her fabulous hat.  I printed her on white card, coloured with Copic markers, cut her out and added sparkle to the fur and feathers with a clear Wink of Stella Brush.  I used a border die to cut the curve on the design paper and adhered it flat to the card.  I found some really dark green textured mirri card in my stash and die cut the word "Christmas" from it.  I stamped the word "Merry" in black, using my stamp-a-ma-jig to position it.  On the inside I cut a mat from another piece of the design paper, and on the white card I added a border and a greeting.  The only stamping I did on this card is the word Merry!!!

You can find this elegant Hat Lady at Rick's Zibbet shop, along with lots of her friends.  Rick has over 1,200 images at his shop ranging from the elegant ladies, through cute little mice, to fun Halloween, and on through to quite scary Halloween and Creepmas images!  Not only can you get single digital images, but Rick has also produced several colouring books.  If you like rhinestones, furs, elegant ladies - then have a look at Chapeaux a la Mode, it's full of wonderful images and super quotes.  If you fancy something a little more on the dark side, then you'll like Rick's latest addition - Creepy Creepmas.  Hopefully, my copy should arrive today!

Now, I've got to get back into my craft room as I've a few more projects to make.  So, that's all for now.  As always, thank you so much for stopping by and for leaving comments - I really do appreciate it.  Bye for now!

SNG - Birthday Boy ....

Hello!  It's rather chilly here in Northville - autumn has arrived with a vengeance.  Yesterday was very grey and windy - so much so that I put the heating on!  It was also World Cardmaking Day yesterday and I spent the day playing - lots of fun.  Today, I'm the host over at Sparkle and Glitter and I'm sharing a sweet birthday card that I made using the fab Birthday Turtle:

Stamps: Rick St Dennis Digi - A Tortuga for Frings Turtle; Uniko - Label Love Birthday
Inks: Versafine - Onyx Black; Stampin' Up! - Soft Sky, Night of Navy
Dies: Die-namics - Double Stitched Square Stax #2 and #5
Accessories: White Lustre Card; SU Card - Night of Navy, Soft Sky; Gold Holographic Mirri Card; Copic Markers; Wink of Stella - Clear, Gold

I used this turtle last week to make a feminine style card. This time I've made a guy card with the turtle.  I printed him on white card, coloured him, cut him out and edged him with black.  I cut off the bow and tassels  on the hat which gives the image a more masculine feel.  I used my Gold Wink of Stella brush on the bow and his cake - the ink is translucent which allows the details to show through.  I've used the colours from this week's CAS Colours & Sketches - CASC&S#144.  I cut a panel of gold holographic card - it's got birthday balloons to match the turtle - and adhered it to the card.  I cut some square in blue and added a birthday greeting to the white square.  I ran the turtle through my Xyron to make it self-adhesive and attached it to the card.  On the inside I used some more of the gold mirri card for a mat layer and added some more balloons and a birthday greeting to the white panel.

If you like this fun turtle you can find him over at Rick St Dennis's Zibbet shop - not only will you find A Tortuga for Frings Turtle, but you'll also find lots of his pals!

I hope you're all having a good weekend - that's all for today - at least I think it is!!  See you soon.

SNG - Happy Birthday ....

..... Morning!  It's my turn to host a post over at Sparkle and Glitter - where the EDT share Rick's wonderful images in a variety of projects.  Last Sunday I shared a Hanukkah card that I'd made using a turtle image by Rick and I posted it on my Facebook page too.  Charmaine left me a lovely comment and then asked whether Rick had a Birthday Turtle.  So I asked for one, and here's my first card using this sweet little turtle:

Stamps: Rick St Dennis Digi - A Tortuga for Frings Turtle; Stampin' Up! - Occasional Greetings, Raining Flowers
Inks: SU - Riding Hood Red, Daffodil Delight, Tangerine Tango, Lucky Limeade; Memento - Tuxedo Black
Dies: Spellbinders - Fleur de Lis Squares (S4-318) #4, Squares Sm (S4-128) #7
Accessories: White Lustre Card; SU Card - Riding Hood Red; SU DP - Riding Hood Red; Copic Markers; Wink of Stella - Clear

I was absolutely thrilled that Rick drew this turtle espcially for me.  I had to play with it immediately.  I've used the colours from this week's Colour Q - cQc#310 - I think they're just right for a birthday card.  I printed the turtle on white card, coloured her with Copic markers and cut her out with a square die.  I finished the image by grounding her on a hill and adding lots of sparkle with a clear Wink of Stella brush.  I layered the image on my favourite ornate frame and adhered it flat to the card.  I finished the front by stamping a birthday greeting on each side.  On the inside I cut a mat layer of design paper and added a simple flower to the white panel.

I also took a close up picture of all the fabulous sparkle - it really does shimmer in the sunlight.

I can't quite believe just how fast this week has gone by.  It's been busy!  And that's all for now.  See you tomorrow.

SNG - Happy Hanukkah ...

....  Morning!  It's my turn to post at Sparkle and Glitter, where we share Rick St Dennis's wonderful digital images and the projects that the Elite Design Team make with them.  I think you know that along with Rick's lovely Hat Ladies, I'm rather fond of his wonderful Turtles and have made a few cards featuring them - see below.  Today I've made a card to celebrate Hanukkah, also known as the Festival of Lights.  Here's my card:

Stamps: Rick St Dennis Digi - Channukah Turtle
Dies: Lil Inkers - Dual Stitched Squares #2 and #4
Accessories: White Lustre Card; Silver Mirri Card; Dawn Bibby Design Paper; Copic Markers; Wink of Stella - Clear; Sakura Stardust - Silver

The new challenge over at Jingle Belles - JB:15:20 is to celebrate one of the non-Christmas winter holidays , for example Hanukkah, Winter Solstice, New Year, Kwanzaa and there are more.   Now I've had this guy for a while and finally got to colour him in.  I printed him on white card, coloured him with Copic markers added some clear sparkle to the candles and silver to the Menorah.  I used a stitched die cut to cut him out, edged the panel with some blue and layered it on silver mirri card.  I decided not to add a sentiment to the front of the card.  On the inside I cut a panel of blue striped design paper.  I printed the sentiment on the computer, cut it out with a stitched die and then inlaid it on the white panel.

I took a close up of the Menorah to show the sparkle .  I'm really pleased how this one turned out.

I mentioned that I'm rather fond of the turtles - well, here they are:

Halloween Turtle, Valentine Turtle and Christmas Turtle

 Artemis, the Sunday Painter, Easter Turtle and Rare Turtle

Steampunk Turtle

I think these guys are just fabulous - you can find them all at Rick's Zibbet shop and if you click on the link you find full details of each of the cards when they were first posted.  There are two more turtle images that I've yet to colour - and you'll see them soon!

I'm off to the regular monthly meeting of Scrappy Chic Kitchen Roll Stampers group today.  The club got together after Dyan Reaveley came to Scrappy Chic in March this year.  We all enjoyed it so much that we decided to have regular meetings.  This month is special as we're making a Tag Book for Dyan - she's coming to see us all again in October!  That's all for now - see you soon.

SNG - Sending Big Hugs .....

.... Good morning all!  I'm rather late with this post today.  We had a fabulous holiday in Arizona and Nevada last week, but since coming home both Jonathan and I have come down with the cold that Kathryn had.  We've both been feeling really awful, and I can only say that Kathryn was a real trooper last week, as I don't think I'd have managed to cope.  And that's part of the reason this card is late.  Feeling rough and constant coughing has led to lack of mojo!

However, this morning, I think I'm feeling better - at least the mojo is back and I finished my card - it's quite quick, clean and simple:

Stamps: Rick St Dennis Digi - Daffo Dill Fairy; CAS-ual Friday Stamps - Calm & Loving
Inks: Stampin' Up! - Daffodil Delight, Baked Brown Sugar; Archival - Leaf Green; Distress - Mustard Seed
Accessories: White Lustre Card; Kaisercraft DP - Secret Admirer; Copic Markers; Wink of Stella - Clear; SU Marker - Basic Black

I've had this cute little flower fairy printed for some time, but hadn't got around to colouring her in.  I'm flying back to the UK tomorrow and will be in Wales on Tuesday - the national flower of Wales is the Daffodil, so I decided to make a card featuring Daffo Dill!  You can find her on Rick's Zibbet shop.   I printed her on white card, coloured her with Copic markers, cut her out with a scalpel, ran a black marker round the edge and then added lots of sparkle to her wings with a clear Wink of Stella pen.  I've based the layout on this week's Freshly Made Sketches - FMS#192.  I cut a piece of damask design paper and rubbed on some yellow ink at the edges and wiped off the excess, love the subtle hint of yellow.  I adhered it flat to the card.  I did turn the sketch upside down to work better with my image.  On the inside I cut another sheet of design paper, and on the white panel added a sentiment.  On the little image you can see the sparkle of her wings.

It's not been an easy week for us not only have we had awful colds, but the weather here has been ugh.  Heavy thunderstorms earlier this week and a night spent in the basement.  And today, my last full day in the States for two weeks, I tried to open the garage door to take Kathryn to a friend's house and to go shopping, and the door WON'T OPEN!!!!  I'm so frustrated - I've so much to do, but can't get out of the house!!  Hopefully, it'll be fixed in the next hour and I'll be able to get on. Sorry about the rant!!

But there was some good news this morning - the US Supreme Court have ruled that same-sex marriage is legal in ALL 50 states - and about time too!  So pleased for everyone - and in particular several of my friends.

That's all for now.

SNG - Mon Amie .....

.... Good afternoon.  It's Mother's Day here in the States and that's why this post is rather late!  I should have had it up first thing this morning, but instead I spent some time with my family.  Full story below!!  I've had a super time today and managed to get into my craft room earlier this afternoon to finish this card.  I've used one of Rick's wonderful Randi Dandi images for a card with a tropical feel:

Stamps: Rick St Dennis Digi - Mardi Gras Beads; CAS-ual Friday Stamps - Mon Ami
Inks: Versafine - Onyx Black; Memento - Tuxedo Black
Dies: Lil Inkers - Dual Stitched Rectangles #3
Accessories: White Lustre Card; Kaisercraft DP - Say Aloha; Copic Markers; Wink of Stella - Clear

Our weather over the last few days has been distinctly tropical with high temperatures around 30°C, lots of humidity and thunderstorms.  So I had to play with the Mardi Gras Beads image, available exclusively at I Brake for Stamps.  I used the colours in the design paper to colour the image.  I coloured the image with Copic markers, cut it out with a stitched die and then added sparkle with my Wink of Stella brush.  I coloured her mask and the jewellery.  I also added lots of little gems to the necklace and earrings.  Accordingly, I'm submitting this card to this week's Left of Centre Challenge - LOC#77 where the DT would like us to use bling!  On the inside I used another piece of the tropical design paper for a mat layer and on the white panel stamped a fabulous lotus like flower and a sentiment.

I've got a bit of a confession.  This card would have been up first thing this morning, if I hadn't made a really silly mistake.  I have lots of Wink of Stella brushes including the colours.  If you look a the photo below I think you'll see my mistake:

It was really hot this morning and I woke quite early, so I went to my craft room and coloured this image.  I was so pleased how it turned out.  I reached for my clear Wink of Stella and started to add sparkle to the mask and jewellery.  I couldn't work out why the mask suddenly looked really dull - until I realised that I'd picked up the WHITE WOS brush!!!  I couldn't remove the colour and didn't have time to do another image before going out with Kathryn!

That's all for now - Kathryn is cooking dinner for us this evening - so I'm going back into my craft room to play some more!  I hope all my US friends have had a wonderful Mother's Day.