Catching up with homework ....

... for my on-line class with Glenda Waterworth.  Last week's lesson was about types of backgrounds and how to create them.  And I hadn't done any of the homework until this evening!!  So I've had a very quick play - I've done two tags using the direct to paper method, and two brayered backgrounds.  I found that the tags needed to be much more matte in finish - but I'm reasonably pleased with the result - not sure what I'm going to do with them though.

As for the brayer technique - I did try using a brayer for my daughter's birthday card, and it wasn't totally successful.  However, this time I used some Big and Juicy ink pads (wonderful stuff) and some glossy card.  And it worked like a dream.  I love the finish that I got.  I added some black peel offs to complete the exercise - I'm really pleased with the result and will be making some cards with them both.

 

I've also been busy today working on my entry for the October Blog Hop with Waltzingmouse Stamps - check back on 17th October - that's when it goes live!

No crafting today ...

... just because very busy with family stuff.  I suppose I do have to make sure that the family unit works too :)  Heard from my Mum today that she's going to be moving house soon - very excited for her. 

But I had to post a quick thank you to all who have visited my blog yesterday and today.  I've had a huge number of visitors - thanks you so much. 

Anyway, that's all for now, it's time for bed and I'm absolutely shattered.  I'll be back tomorrow.  Hopefully with another card to show you.

Crazy crafting day ...

...  well, that's what it's felt like, as today is my weekly craft class.  We were all very busy, but we had great fun this morning.  All of us were working on different projects - making cards for a Church sale, doing some knitting, making Christmas cards, sorting out quilling patterns and I was busy working on two challenges.  I was planning my cards for the Waltzingmouse Sketch Challenge WMSC18 and for Clean & Simple FTL110 - both sketches shown below.

FTL110



WMSC18
















For the Clean & Simple challenge I turned the sketch on its side.  I made the backing paper myself using the wonderful Chrysanthemums from Waltzingmouse Stamps. 

FTL110 - Birthday card for my Mum

Stamps:  Waltzingmouse Stamps - Big Blooms - Chrysanthemums, Frame It
Inks: Distress - Spun Sugar, Worn Lipstick, Barndoor; Versafine - Onxy Black; Memento - Tuxedo Black
Promarkers: Poppy, Lipstick Red, Cocktail Pink, Grass, Apple, Meadow Green
Spellbinders: Fancy Tags
Paper: Pink Hammered Card from stash

For the Waltzingmouse Challenge, I used all my lovely new stamps - they are fab!!  Initially I'd thought of doing some lovely Christmas trees using the Teeny Trees set, but Julia beat me to it!!  Her card is so beautiful.  So I gave it a little more thought and decided to use my new Poinsettia stamps.  I also used one of Claire's lovely text stamps - so pretty, along with a greeting from Compliements of the Season.

WMSC18 - Christmas at last

Stamps: Waltzingmouse Stamps - Big Bloom - Poinsettias, Text It, Compliements of the Season

Paper: Papermania Blue Vellum; Anita's - Classic Christmas Blue Papers, Silver card from stash
Spellbinders: Labels 10
Ink: Versafine - Onyx Black
Accessories: Red glitter, Silver detail embossing powder

I'm really pleased with both these cards.  I love the effect of the silver embossed text on the blue vellum - and it's so easy to do.  I'll be able to make quite personal backing papers with the Text It set.  And I love the poinsettias - I decided to do the large image flat on the paper and decoupage the two smaller images - they are so easy to cut out.  I added a little red glitter to the centre - you've got to have bling at Christmas!!

I notice that I have another follower - welcome!!  It's so exciting when I check my stats and followers, and I love to read all your comments.  I do try to answer them too.  If I haven't got back to you - my apologies.

And that's all for this evening.  I've got to get back to my OU course - still working on my assignment.  I am making progress - honest!!  Back again tomorrow.

OLW23 - Heavy Metal ....

.... that's the brief we were given by Susan for this week's challenge on Simplicity.  I had lots of ideas of Christmas themed cards, but then I realised that Heavy Metal - could be a music theme, could be a chemistry theme (sorry, that's the nerd in me creeping out to play).  Or it could simply be a card for a teenage boy - perhaps someone like my son Ben!!  He won't thank me for saying that though.  So here's the card I came up with.  It was actually really quick to make.

Card:  Black A6 from stash
Stamps: Waltzingmouse Stamps - Free Spirit - Boy; Free Spirit - Sentiments
Ink: Versamark
Embossing Powder: Stamp'n'Stuff - Detail Silver

I've noticed that many people have watermarks on their cards - and that's only right and proper, afterall the image and card belong to them.  So I've been playing - all afternoon - with GIMP to try and come up with a watermark of my own.  It's not too bad, but I think I still have a bit of work to do.

And that's all for this evening.  I'm off to watch the new detective show on Sky - Jonathan has it on pause for me at the moment.  I'll be back again tomorrow.

My 10th follower ....

... thank you Vicky - you've made my evening!  I've been out all day and this has rounded off a brilliant day.

We've been out since 8am this morning - first to a local music and arts festival - Gwyl Fama - which was brilliant.  We got to listen to lots of young bands, singing in English and in Welsh.  They are all so talented, and some of them are scarily young - one lad was only 12 and a young lady only 13 - both brilliant.  Jonathan and the camera club took loads of photos, while I had the pleasure of such joyful company and wonderful music to listen to.  A good end to the week.

Then it was a quick drive to one of the local pools where the Flintshire Cubs were having their annual swimming competition.  It was great fun.  The children gave it their all.  Sadly our Group didn't finish in one of the top three positions, but they all had a good time competing.  I was very proud of them all - particularly my Kathryn. 

And I logged on to check out my blog - it get sort of complusive (or maybe that's just me) - and I'm delighted to find that Vicky has joined my band of followers - it's so exciting. 

And tomorrow I'm going to spend some time in my craftroom.  I got my new stamps from Claire of Waltzingmouse Stamps- so quick!!  And I can't wait to play with them.  I'll be back tomorrow.  Good night all. 

Stars in my eyes ....

.... sadly nothing very exciting.  I've been going through my assignment and playing with a lovely bit of computer software called Stellarium.  It's great, you can travel through time and see the positions of stars and planets in the past and future!!  Awesome!!  It's all relevant - honest :))))

It's no brighter now though.  I had hoped that the sun would come out during the day, but it's so dull and grey.  It's reasonably warm, but I think it's too late for sunshine now.  I'm keeping my fingers crossed that the grey clouds are not going to drops loads of rain on us this evening.  Our Scout group is going for a shortish hike to a local castle and we're going to cook in the open.  This should be a real challenge for all my Scouts - and also for me :)

Hopefully, I'll get chance to play in my craft room tomorrow; I've got some homework to do for my class with Glenda. 

Finally, I've got 9 lovely people who've chosen to follow my blog - thank you so much ladies, I really appreciate you taking time out to check in.  Only one more to get to 10 - that would be wonderful.  Is it going to be you??

Bye for now, see you tomorrow.

A dull start ...

... to the day.  I'm sure the weatherman on TV last night said that it'd be a nice day!!  Well, there's time yet.  This is going to be a quick post as I've got to get ready for our Scout adventure this evening.  We're taking them out to a local castle to do some cooking.  So I'm really, really hoping that the weatherman was right.  I don't fancy rain!!

For a change I'm showing you a card that I made just because I could.  This was the first time I tried out the bleaching technique.  The image is by Glenda Waterworth - Elusive Images - the set is called Texture Blocks.  It's a set of six stamps with some really lovely images. 

I stamped the image, using Versamark and silver embossing powder, onto some green card from my stash.  Next I dipped my paint brush into some bleach - boy did it smell - and applied carefully.  I was amazed as the bleach dried to watch the colour fade from the card.  As it was my first attempt - I kept the bleaching to a minimum, but was really pleased with the effect. 

I am pleased to say that the card was sold earlier this year in a fund raising event for our Scout Group. 

That's all for today - I think I'd better try and do some housework, otherwise we're going to end up living in a pit!!  :) 

Well that was fun ...

... I've just finished the new launch Blog Waltz from Waltzingmouse Stamps - these ladies are truly awesome.  I highly recommend a visit. 

I've had such fun - ordered my new stamps and now have to wait until they arrive.  So excited.

Bye for now - see you tomorrow.

Another challenge done ...

... WMSC17 is finished - at last!!!  It's taken me all week to get this one sorted out.  When I first saw the sketch I thought easy, a nice big background stamp, but when I started working on the card, it just didn't work.  

So I've had to give it a lot of thought, and it's not been easy.  I used a variety of stamps on the card - which led me to the greeting, and considering the colour, it's reasonably appropriate :)

Inks:  Distress - Wild Honey, Aged Mahogany, Tattered Rose (background squares), Rusty Hinge, Spiced Marmalade, Barn Door, Fired Brick, Victorian Velvet - (not in order)
Paper:  Waltzingmouse - Victorian - tan; Copper embossed paper from stash
Stamps:  All Waltzingmouse - Asian Gardens, Oven Fresh Gingerbread Joy, Rescue Remedies, Say it with Style, Victorian Frippery
Greeting:  Computer generated and coloured to match

I'm not entirely happy with how this has turned out.  Thoughts, suggestions would be welcome.

And that's all for now.  I'm about to visit Watlzingmouse Stamps - Claire is launching her new stamps this evening.  Yeah!!!

Thinking cap on ...

... because I really have to finalise my OU assignment.  It's really interesting - I'm doing an astronomy course.  It's only an introduction, but there's a lot to read - and the picutres of stars, galaxies, planets are so beautiful.  The use of computers and colour enhanced images really makes it as lovely to look at, as it is interesting to read.  Sorry, tend to waffle on about the course :)))

So, I thought I'd show you a few more cards that I made earlier in the year.

I made this for my sister-in-law, Charlotte.  I'd already made her a card - see 4th October post - but that was from Kathryn.  This one was from Jonathan and me.  It was reasonably quick to make.  I used the Spellbinders star dies to cut out stars in various colours and sizes, I then ran them through the cuttlebug to give a rose impression.  The flourishes were made using some holographic card from my stash and two different Marianne dies.  The backing paper came from a pad of pink paper from Papermania; I used the Doily Lace punch to make the borders.  Finally, I added the Craftworkcards greetings and some ribbon.

I like this layout - it's a nice simple design and can be adapted for all occasions.  This time I needed to make a card for a little boy who'd just had a new baby sister.  Obviously, there would be lots of cards in the house welcoming the new baby, and I thought that Ewan should have a card just for him - as the "Big Brother".  The image is from Pink Petticoat and is coloured with pencils - I added some glitter to the mane.  I used Spellbinders Labels 3 to cut the layers; the papers were free from craft magazines.  Finally, I used a Sakura stardust pen to add the hand drawn borders.

As I said - this is a good layout!  This time it's a card that I made for my brother-in-law.  I couldn't decide what to do.  Then I found these wonderful Smirk men!!  And I found "Superman" - I just had to do it.  I used Labels 3 to cut the layers and Waltzingmouse Stamps to add the dotty frame.  I coloured the image with Prisma pencils and used peel offs for the greeting.

That's all for now, as I'd better get back to my assignment.  I'll be back tomorrow.

I've done it ....

...  the one layer card for Susan Raihala's challenge on her blog - Simplicity.  This week Susan wanted us to make a card with the theme of gratitude to a mother figure - could be your mum, or someone who's acted like a mum to you.  It's been so hard thinking what to do for the card.  I had lots of ideas, but they were not clean and simple, and certainly had more than one layer!!  As I said, one layer cards do not come naturally to me.  Then just after dinner this evening - it came to me in a flash.  I'm going to post the card to my mum tomorrow - because I love her and the card should go to a good home.  This is it:

Stamps:  Waltzingmouse Stamps - Roses in Bloom
Inks: Versafine - Onyx Black; Distress Inks - Barndoor, Spiced Marmalade, Peeled Paint
Card: 5" x 5" pearl white (from QVC)

I did think about colouring in the roses, but decided that the clean lines of the image worked just fine as it is.

Claire Brennan of Waltzingmouse Stamps is launching her new range of stamps on Thursday 7th October, and I've spent the last couple of days checking out the blogs of her and her design team.  Claire's stamps are beautiful and the team have created some really beautiful and varied cards.  All the blogs are well worth a visit - happy viewing.  I think I'm going to be shopping on Thursday evening.

Finally, it's been another lovely day here - I can't believe that October is still so warm.  But we've been making the most of it. 

And that's all for this evening.  I'll be back again tomorrow.

So warm today ...

... it's really tough to decide on what to wear in the morning.  First thing it was rather dull and grey, but by lunchtime it was fabulous.  Really blue skies, sunshine and warm!!  I'm not complaining at all - in fact I'm loving it.

We had craft class this morning and I've been busy working on more bits for my Christmas cards.  I haven't actually got any finished ones yet, but I'll get there.  It was fun this morning - we all caught up on the local news and shared tips.  It's a lovely way to spend the morning.

As I've not made any new cards today, I thought I'd go back to showing you some of the cards I made earlier this year. 

My sister-in-law, Charlotte, shares her birthday with her brother, they're not twins; she's 7 years younger than Jonathan.  So it means that April is a busy time for me.  Kathryn decided that she'd like to send her Aunty a special card, and instead of doing one herself Kathryn asked me to make one.  I don't need a second invitation - I had a great time deciding what to do.  This was an easy card to make.  It was an A6 pink glitter card onto which I mounted the topper I'd made.  I used a Nellie Snellen Rectangle die to cut the silver frame, and the black card insert.  On the black card I stamped this lovely cupcake image which comes from Inkadinkado Boxed Wishes.  I added a cupcake topper that came free with one of the magazines, but was just so right for the card.  And finally, I added some glitter - we always need a little bling.

Kathryn was very pleased with the card - so was her Aunty.



As I said above, Jonathan shares his birthday with his sister, so Kathryn also need a card for her Daddy.  Consequently, I was rather busy. 

I love this Forever Friends teddy - it was just perfect for a card from a little girl to her Daddy.  I coloured the image with Prisma pencils and mineral oil (to blend the pencils).  It was the first time I'd used the technique and I was rather pleased how well it turned out.  The backing papers came free with one of the craft magazines - not sure which one, but they were just the right colour for the card and image.  The happy birthday greeting was from Craftworkcards, and the words "Dad" and "It's your Day" are from Waltzingmouse Stamps - Free Spirit Sentiments, and really worked with the card.

Jonathan loved the card which, of course, delighted Kathryn.  I was quite pleased too - I got to play with new techniques and please my family - a win/win situation. 

Right, I've got to get back to the OU books - not long until the assignment is due in.  I tend to find at this time that TMA (tutor marked assignments) avoidance techniques creep in.  And that can involve anything from crafting (always a good idea) to doing housework!!  So I'll say good night for now, and I'll be back again tomorrow.

On a roll ...

... I just completed another challenge card.  The old mojo seems to be working just fine this evening.  This time the card is for the Clean and Simple Stamping Challenge - FTL109.  I've had the sketch in my notebook for a few days, but suddenly this evening I knew exactly what the card should be. 

I realised that the Martha Stewart Deep Edge Daisy Fan punch was perfect for the edge, and once I'd got that sorted the rest just sort of flowed.  I coloured the Clarity Corset with promarkers to match the edging and card, and added the flourishes to finish it off.  The greeting should keep my husband guessing!!!

Stamps: Clarity - Corset; Waltzingmouse Stamps - Sweethearts; Personal Impressions - Swirls & Flourishes

Inks: Memento - Tuxedo Black, Lilac Posies, Lulu Lavender, Angel Pink

Accessories - Martha Stewart Deep Edge Daisy Fan Punch

Paper: Mondi IQ 160gsm White; Purple Mirri Card; Card blank from QVC

Promarkers: Maroon, Cerise, Pink Carnation

I'm really pleased with this one.  And that really is all for this evening.  I'll be back again tomorrow.

One for two ....

... by that I mean, one card - two objectives.  I've submitted the card below for my final assignment on Glenda's course at MCC and also for the challenge at One Stop Card Challenge.

Stamps:  Creative Impressions - Floral
Inks:  Distress - Tumbled Glass, Spice Marmalade; Kaleidacolor - Blue Breeze, Fresh Greens; Versamark
Paper:  Blue holographic paper from stash; White hammered card base
Embossing Powder: Detail Silver
Greeting:  From a set with Large initial C and little images and words - can't remember who made it, but I'll post details if I can find them.

I used all three of the stamps from the Floral set, using the largest with the distress ink and stamped the background.  Then I overstamped with the smaller flowers using shades of Blue Breeze.  I mounted the topper onto some blue holographic paper from my stash.  Next I used the largest flower image on some watercolour paper, stamped with Versamark and embossed it with detail silver embossing powder.  Then I wet the paper and added inks from Blue Breeze, allowing them to merge.  I used Spice Marmalade for the centre of the flower.  I used the same technique for the leaves.  I used my stamp-a-ma-jig to help me position the greeting so that it lined up with the edge of the topper.  For the greeting I used the darkest shade of blue in the Blue Breeze inks.

I'm really pleased with how this card has come out.  It's a very simple congratulations card - can be used for just about anything - new job, passed an exam, wedding; a useful addition to my stash.

That's all for today, I'll be back tomorrow.

We had a great time ...

... at my Stampin' Up! party yesterday.  My guests and I had a great time and I'd like to send my thanks to Nicci for doing such a nice demo about resist techniques.  Nicci gave me the card she made as a Thank You for inviting her.  It was entirely my pleasure, not sure about the bank manager though!!  The card is so pretty and feminine, I love this set of stamps, they come from Flight of the Butterfly - contact Nicci to get a catalogue.  This is the card she made for me:

We all made a lovely Christmas Card featuring a super bauble stamp from the new Stampin' Up! catalogue - Contempo Christmas.  This set, and several others, are on my order list.

I'd completely forgotten that yesterday was World Card Making Day , but we all took part after all!!  We had such fun.

That's all for now - I'm off to my craftroom to have a go at a few challenges.  Back later.