Winter Blues!

Came back from a short break staying with some friends at their wonderful place in Italy - from lovely warm weather to frost and cold! Skies here though are as blue today as they were when we were in the warm sunshine so we are off out for a wander round a local Artisan Market.

My share for today is not Christmas or Autumn themed either but a card made for a friend who is not into frilly or fancy.

I used basic white linen card for my base and stamped the Altenew Rose direct onto the card then silver embossed.

Brush inked the bottom with some Tumbled Glass DI.
I stamped/embossed the Altenew Rose again onto an off cut of the linen card and fussy cut the leaves and the flower head, then added some glamour dust.

Popped them all up on foam pads for extra dimension.
Rather pleased with how it turned out as it really is sparkly in real life without being too over the top!

Embossed the sentiment and added a few little sparklies.
Job Done!

I am sharing over at
Pixies Snippets Playground
Daring Cardmakers - Glitter
LIM - Dimension
Allsorts - Pearls/Gems
Creative Knockouts - Embossing

Thanks for looking - shall be round to visit you all later today. Hope all is well in your part of blogland. x
 

Normality?

Don't like housework (who does) but there's something very satisfying about putting everything back where it belongs once you've taken down your Christmas Tree! That's how I spent my morning after my hour walk on the treadmill....
So after the flurry of morning activity I escaped to the craftie space and satisfied my 'sit down and do something' craving!

I am continuing with my 'CAS' phase I think - am finding it very therapeutic during my 'me' time, although I do still have a thing for vintage shabby!

Played with the MISTI again too - have had these flower stamps from Clearly Besotted for a while but have struggled to get them lined up with the dies - the MISTI does do what it says on the tin and am eternally grateful to my lovely husband for the bestest Christmas present!!

Had a bit of fun with the window ledge - it's actually the bottom of a window die - was going to use the whole window but put inky fingermarks on it so had to cut the actual window frame off and just use the bottom bit!

Stuck onto the brick embossed background with some 3d foam - stands up really well and am pleased with the dimensional effect.

The red vase was mounted using some thin foam whereas the blue one had some really thick foam so it overlaps the red one. Same for the flowers and the leaves.
Popped little pearls in the same colours into the flower middles. 
Left a sentiment off this - it's just one for the stash box so when I come to use it will decide what I'm going to put on it!

All snippets used for the vases/flowers so I am paying my first visit this year to the Playground!
Am also popping over to Less Is More where their challenge is 'Dimension' and to Dies R Us where Anything Goes with Dies.  
Thanks for looking - coffee now in hand am into blogland to see what you've all been up to! x

Paint

Not much time to craft at the mo and Mr Mojo has been AWOL anyway but managed to find a little window and sat in the craft space experimenting with inks and colours, and also stamped up a few images for colouring later on.
This share is one of the 'experiments' - I bought some Brushos ages ago and to be honest I have never mastered them - I use too much of the stuff or too much water and all my efforts were not fit for human consumption!
But had another go and finished up with this - which although not the best I think is fairly passable!

Not very awe inspiring but at least it shows that I'm trying. 

The challenge at Less is More this week is the dreaded one layer and the theme is WATER.
(And believe me if I'd have scooped up all the water after all my attempts with the Brushos there'd have been enough water to have filled a small lake!)
I added a few tiny sparklies which were supposed to resemble little drops of water. Not sure I've pulled that one off either!

 Other Challenges -
CAS on Sunday - Cheer Up
Crafty Catz - CAS
Crafting by Designs - 1 layer
SOS - Big and Bold (and colours don't get much bolder than Brushos!)

Thanks for having a look today - off for the mop to get rid of the water!
Have a great week. x

Splatters of Joy

Spent today catching up with some paperwork then had a pleasant little wander round blogland.
Have struggled to find any enthusiasm for anything over the last couple of days after a meeting the other night where tempers in certain quarters became somewhat frayed - got me to thinking that there is rather more to life than aggravation!

Onwards and upwards though so forced myself to actually 'do' something this afternoon - found a couple of challenges and here's the result -
Yep - the dreaded 'one layer' card and not only one layer but CAS and all stamped!
Well out of my comfort zone - no papers, no embellies, (although I MIGHT add a couple of sequins at a later stage - LOL), no nuffink 'cept stamping!

Used a Memory Box 'Whisper Print Geranium' stamp as the centrepiece and simply stamped over it with a variety of different silhouette foliage stamps from different sets.

The splatters are all from a Visible Image set inked in Festive Berries DI.
The sentiment is an old one and one of my favourites - even if I'm not feeling much joy from certain quarters at the moment! I am being reminded by the other half that their dreadful nasty attitude is THEIR problem not mine  -and I have to reluctantly agree!!
Challenges -
Less is More - Splatters
Fantasy Stampers - CAS
Frosted Designs - Splatters
ATSM - CAS

Weather here has taken a turn for the worse after the beautiful week we've had - think we're going to get wet at the Club's Summer Opening Day tomorrow! Just typical!!! Enjoy the rest of your weekend whatever you're doing. x

Friends

Have been a little bit under the weather in the last 36 hours, thankfully today am feeling a bit better but still not 100% and I think the fact that I wasn't up to doing much reflects in this card.

Now I look at it, I think I should have used textured instead of plain bright white card as although I know the idea with CAS is lots of white space there's too much uninteresting white space for my liking.  It didn't turn out quite the way I thought it would in my head - so it may or may not find it's way into the stash box!

The trellis design embossing folder used behind the die cut circle is an old and much used one.
I watercoloured the die cuts and popped a tiny green pearl into the centre of the largest flowers. And as there were just 3 left on the sheet I used them up!

The challenge at Less is More this week is 'Friends' and I have a feeling that I may have another go if I have time....

Other Challenges-
Dies r us - Embossing and Dies
Ladybug Crafts - Say it with Flowers
Uniko Studio - Love & Friendship
Quirky Crafts - Through the Window (Aperture)

Am away now back to the sofa, hot water bottle and fleecy blanket! Hope you are all having a good day and if you've left me a comment I really appreciate you taking the time xx

Some watercolour practice and a disaster!

Before Christmas I was lucky enough to get my grubby mitts on the 'Bloom With Hope' set (thanks Sylvia!). I made a card using one of the stamps but hadn't used any of the others, so yesterday with a couple of hours to spare I decided to make a one layer card and make the bright shiny stamps a bit inky!

The only thing with one layer cards is that if you make a mistake when stamping you're (to put it politely) knackered! And invariably the 'one layer' ends up becoming two.
Sadly I couldn't even do that with this one as I would have had to chop off too much - I stamped the bottom left of the card perfectly well, masking flowers as I went along.

Felt just a teeny smug as apart from one little smudge all appeared just fine. Turned my attention to the sentiment and placement - decided, stamped and again - just fine.

I left it alone for a while to give the ink chance to dry and then sat and spent a relaxing time using some new watercolours. Was happy!

The I decided (foolishly) that the top right looked a little bare - so I stamped again using just the smallest flower- fine. Masked over the stamp to add the tiniest bit of leaf and the damn mask slipped - hence what can only be described as the jumbly ink mass in the top tight trying to be disguised with watercolour. I was SO mad!

OH said it looks fine so have bitten the bullet and shared it. (Not before adding a couple of sequins and two of the tiniest gems!)
 Challenges -
Less Is More -  1 layer/New beginnings
Quirky Crafts - CAS
Virginia's View - Clean Slate
Simon Says Stamp - New
Happy Little Stampers - watercolouring (CAS)

We're still being battered by very strong winds here - the moor top certainly can whip up the worst winds I have ever experienced! But there's something about being all warm and cosy when the wind hail/sleet is battering against the windows isn't there! Thanks for calling by - stay warm and safe wherever you are. x

A change

2 posts in 2 days has to be a bit of a record  - I used to be able to join in with all the challenges at Less Is More but last year with so many other things going on things went a little bit astray and I didn't get to enter as often as I would have liked.
When I saw the challenge this week of 'Black, Metallic and 1 other colour', I had a 'light bulb' moment and remembered I had seen

something on Pinterest (where else?) that I had sketched into the 'Ideas' folder -and which fitted the challenge!

A bit of a change for me using black cardstock as the base and I was tempted to put it onto white card first but changed my mind.

The frame and the never before used die cut sentiment both cut from odd scraps of gold metallic card - it has a lovely sheen and is not quite so 'in your face' as mirri card.

Stamped onto bright white, popped it behind the frame and I simply had to add the 3 tiny gold pearls......!!!!

Other challenges -
Pixies Playground Week 158
Top Tip Tuesday - Keep it Simple

Am having another couple of hours in the craft room today -weather here is alternating bewteen massive hailstones and brilliant sunshine!
Thanks for looking. x

Texture and Stitching

Is it cold where you are? It's freezing here!
This week's challenge at Less Is More is to 'use beads'.
Dreaming of warmer weather probably planted this little seed of an idea which surprisingly fitted the challenge theme.

  
I used to wear these wooden beads (very hippy chick - LOL)  and having a clear out a few years ago I put them into the craft stash with the usual crafters mantra - 'they may come in useful'!!

Cut myself a piece of hessian type stuff from the material bag and tacked it onto a dark piece of material.

Stitched the wooden beads on and then stitched the wooden charm onto a piece of 'cheetah skin' ribbon threading some small coppery seed beads through as I stitched.

Then sewed it onto the backing 'mat.

The wooden bark heart was from my stash.

The words and zig zag where computer generated and I printed out onto cream hammered cardstock.

I considered embossing round the 'mat' but in the end left it plain as I rather liked the 'tatty' and 'rough' texture mix and didn't want to 'formalize' it.

I have a friend who loves all things to do with Africa so no doubt this will be sent to her very soon!!

Am really disappointed with this pic though - it looks so much better 'in real life' - spent ages trying to get good reproduction of it but in the end the grey skies defeated me!

Thanks for calling in - enjoy what's left of your weekend. xx

Kraft and Cream

It's amazing how quick the time goes by - this week is the second birthday of Less Is More - doesn't seem 2 years that I have been trying to improve at making CAS and one layer cards! (Sometimes it feels like 10!!! LOL)
So Happy Birthday LIM!

This week's challenge is Kraft and Cream (and NOT one layer - wooo hoo!!LOL)

I took the opportunity to use up some pieces of kraft left over from Christmas which were in the 'odds and sods' pack.

Just cut them into four equal sized squares, stamped a variety of backgrounds in Versafine Sepia, distressed the edges a bit, inked them with Tea Dye DI and matted onto some small pieces of brown card.

The flower stem is a Memory Box die I cut out two, one in brown card and one in kraft. Used the brown one as the focal point and cut odd bits off the kraft one!

Two pearls glued into the flower centres. 

Wrapped a bit of string round the bottom square and put the flower stem through it.
Finished with a 'thanks' sentiment. 
For a change, I am reasonably happy with this one!

And - as it uses up my scraps am off to the playground to join in Pixie's Crafty Snippets this week again too!
Other Challenges -
Hotshot Crafts - Clean and Simple
Southern Girls - Get Krafty 
Creative Moments - Neutral colours

Dark and dismal day here - hope you have sunshine in your life wherever you are even if the skies are grey! x

CAS Sketch

It's week 104 at Less is More and this week were were given a CAS sketch to follow. I have never been very good at interpreting sketches but what could go wrong with this one?

Quite a bit if you're me!
  
The rules were -

we ask that the card stays in this orientation ie that the band remains in the horizontal plane, in the lower part of the card and that it takes up no more than 1/3rd of the height of the cardbase.

Simple eh??? Not for me it wasn't - I have absolutely no idea why I made such a mess of this - perhaps my mind wasn't quite on CAS today - I have two rather fussy and fancy things half finished on the desk and all kinds of  other 'bits' relating to my life in general whizzing round in my head - in truth, the finished article doesn't bear any resemblance to how I imagined it to be and to cap it all I then didn't make a good job of stamping the sentiment which looks a bit blurred despite me using Versafine ink!

One of the problems with LIM is when you look at all the 'wow' creations that people produce every week, yours look just naff!!!
But naff or not am sharing it anyway!! 

I used cream linen textured card and an embossing folder from the Oriental set I bought a long time ago for the main background. 
I also embossed a border die onto the same card. 
Crimped some maroon cardstock and put it behind the cream border die, added a bit of maroon ribbon to define the flourish and finished with a button from my stash.
Matted it all onto maroon cardstock.

The pic is not the best either - the light here hasn't been very good since we lost the sunshine at lunchtime - I may have another go at this week's challenge as I've just had another 'light bulb' moment!!

Bosom Buddies!

I have sat here for a couple of days trying to come up with something for this week's Less Is More challenge - which is 'Friends'.

I have quite a few stamps that would have fitted the theme but it was one of those - 'well they're OK but....' !!!
And I just wanted something that was a bit different - 
then I remembered these stamps - which were bought for 'Pink Day's' fundraising  - and this sentiment included the word 'friends' which scored another point!

Quick notelet card, basic layout with the stamp decoupaged and coloured with promarkers.

I added a tiny black pearl to the centre of the bra - and it's likely that I'll end up adding either a thin pink ribbon, or a pink line round the edge or more black pearls somewhere!

I made a few of these and think they would be good as little notelets so will make a small co -ordinated box and then pop them into the 'Pink stash'.

I've been a bit of a 'tidy or use it up' freak this week and haven't a lot of snippets to show for my projects - I roll from being uber uber tidy after finishing each thing to leaving piles of stuff laying about on the desk leaving me with the traditional 6" of space to work in and this week I had my 'tidy up' head on - so the little bits of card used for the notelets I hope will qualify me for my first entry to the Playground this week - have missed the snowball fights! LOL

If you've made anything from leftover scraps this week (card scraps that is not food scraps-!!) come across to Pixie's Crafty Workshop (the playground) - and bring your mittens!! LOL