Holiday Destinations

Time for another challenge over at Crafty Cardmakers - and this week Jack would like to see projects that depict or are inspired by a holiday destination. This doesn't have to be somewhere you have been, it can be somewhere you would love to go. Please explain where you have chosen and why in your blog post and please please to keep things fair for everyone make sure you read those challenge rules as you don't want to lose your chance to win a prize from one of our two fab sponsors - CRAFTS AND ME and THE PAPER SHELTER.

 Onto my project - a long time ago I went to Italy. (Be warned this post is pic heavy!!)

I visited Rome, Pisa and Venice. 

I adored Italy - the culture, the art, the food(LOL), the wine (LOL) and well - just about everything! 

I have promised myself that I will return again and it's on my ever increasing list of 'things to do before I become too old and decrepit to enjoy them'!!  

So it was an obvious choice for me to choose this as my destination.

Instead of a card, this week I have altered a slide mailer. 
The mailer was inked with Dusty Concord DI before adding the papers (which are from Crafty individuals).

The pic with the Colosseum in the background - from a time when 'visiting Europe' was only something done by rich and privileged families seemed perfect to use. 

On the front I added a small fabric leafy flourish (cut off something or other!) and a metal camera charm. I popped a die cut in the top corner after colouring randomly with the same DI.
 
Inside another image, a bit of stamping, some ribbon,  and lace and a fabric flower died with DI. 

Under the slides are two more Italy images - of course no visit to Italy is complete without a trip on a venetian gondola or a visit to marvel at St Peter's Basilica.  
I used some tiny beads at the top of each one.

Same papers were used on the back.

I hope my project has inspired you to come and join us this time - we love seeing all your creations!

Challenges -
Our Creative Corner - Captured Memories
Crafts and Me - Anything Goes
Dutch Dare - Photo Inspiration (please visit their blog!)
Crafting by Designs - Anything Goes
Simon Says Stamp - Anything Goes
Cards und More - Travel/Adventure  
The Cheerful Stamp Pad - From the Past
Lexi's - Summer Holiday 
seemacrafts - Holday/vacation

Thanks for visiting! x
 
   

I am Woman

I adore Da Vinci's drawings of women's heads. All of them seem to have a serene ethereal quality about them and I confess to having used them many times when I've been 'fiddling about' (which is what my OH calls what I like to call creativity!)

So this ATC - which is one I made earlier (LOL)- uses one of my favourite 'heads' - it also happens to be the same head that Jeanette over at So Artful has challenged us to use this week.

The ATC is a paper collage overstamped with a script stamp and fibres added and was made for no other purpose other than I wanted to!

Free day!

I have today taken advantage of a day free from any paperwork or bowling! Please note I have also taken yet ANOTHER day off from housework too..................... I had one of those ' I refuse to spend my free day cleaning' moments this morning... the moment has lasted all day.

So on to making messy - and boy did I make a mess. I have had three attempts at doing a project as shown in this month's Craft Stamper magazine. It looked relatively straightforward thing but I have struggled so much you wouldn't belive - no matter how hard I tried, I could not transfer all the ideas and colours whizzing round in my head onto the slide mailers! After 2 failed attempts (both of which ended up in the bin!), I finally managed to complete a double slide mailer and a single one. The single one I will post at a later date and I really shouldn't be posting this as I'm probably going to give it as a gift in the future but I was so pleased to have finally finished it (and be satisfied with it!) that I took the pictures and here it is!

I am a little disappointed about how the pictures of the inside have turned out as the colour reproduction is not as vibrant as in real life - surrounding the two stamped images on the slides is a green background which has decided to show up as grey in the pic!

Tuesday Taggers have a theme of swirls and curls this week and as the fibre on the front is curly and there are stamped flourishes on the back I have submitted this for this week's challenge!

One I made earlier!

I have had major problems the last week accessing my blog! Had tried absolutely everything... (well not quite... I DID manage to resist the 'resort to hitting PC with hammer' urges.....JUST!) The darn thing let me open the page but not sign in.. and then when it let me sign in, it locked the PC.

After much frustration and a few more grey hairs OH said it might be the playlist.... apparently there is some legal dispute going on in USA about the playlist ..... so finally we managed to get onto the blog dashboard long enough for me to delete my much loved (by me) music. Since the playlist has gone I've had no problems.... so am hoping that OH can find another music gadget for me to add (I know some of you find the music annoying, but some people have said they like it!) and also that I have no more problems getting on the blog!

Right that's enough explanation of my absence.... (bowling season still busy too....) and I have spent the last hour trawling through the challenge sites to see what I've missed - which is a lot!

My friends at Flickr will have seen this ATC before - but as the theme on So Artful was 'gypsy', I decided to post this on my blog and enter it into June's challenge!

Still alive and kicking!

I received an e mail today from a fellow blogger who asked if I was OK as it was over a week since I posted anything on my blog! I'm flattered that I've been missed!

I suppose everyone (me included) has been used to me posting so frequently during the winter months that it's only natural they wonder what I'm up to during the summer!

Although the weather took a downward turn the bowling doesn't stop - we played in Yorkshire last Thursday (cold, windy but dry), had a visit from a Welsh ladies touring team Friday and Saturday at Manchester and Southport (cold and raining), played in a County Pairs event on Sunday morning and afternoon at Southport (windy, dry but cold), then went to my home Club in Bolton to play in a National Mixed Fours (windy and cold), went to watch some of the men from my Club play last night (freezing cold) and today - well today I have had a much needed day off. You may have detected the theme here though - cold is not what kind of weather I want in June!!!

I have done some crafting in between - I started a project at the beginning of last week and finished it today. I cannot post it though as it's a birthday present and I wouldn't want to spoil the surprise! So once the recipient has opened it I will put a pic on here then you can all see I haven't been 'craft-less'!

In the meantime, here's a card I made for a friend using oriental papers and tags.

Da Vinci's Dreams

Theme Thursday's challenge was 'Famous Faces'

I have done a paper collage ATC in a tribute to Da Vinci.

Although Mona is a beautiful portrait, I think Da Vinci was an amazing scientist as well as a fabulous painter, and definitley born well ahead of his time!

Tea Time!

Not much spare time again this week to craft but have made a couple of ATC's to stave off the crafting withdrawal symptoms!

'Glamour Girls' is the challenge at this week's Theme Thursday.

Here's my entry!

(I have been unable to post my link on the Theme Thursday site - don't know why!!! But I confess to feeling a little frustrated about it this morning!" Never mind, at least I got to take part in the challenge even if no one from the site can see it!)

The Tragedie of Macbeth

Fellow blogger June has started a new blog... it's called Art Freebies. She is running a challenge every Wednesday where you have to enter a piece of artwork using that week's image.

So here is my entry!

I thought this image represented Shakespeare's tragedy so well. I am not an expert on Shakespeare (far from it!) but from what I remember Lady Macbeth was a strong willed woman who (along with the 3 witches) goaded her husband into murder and thus achieved her ambition to become the Queen of Scotland. She then suffered terrible guilt, began sleepwalking and eventually committed suicide.

This ATC is a paper collage and I used some red embossing powder for the blood dripping from the dagger!

Why don't you go visit June's blog - there's some great free artwork for you to use - and whilst you're there, have a go at her challenge!

Rainbow in Paris!

I recently received some Paris themes ATC's as a result of a 'lottery' on the NI group. I have lots of themes that I like and Paris is included in the list! Consequently I have had some Paris themed ATC's from one to one trades in my album too.

It seems such a pity to own these little works of art and not have them on display so I decided to start putting them on 'Themed' canvases with the idea being that I put them on the walls in the 'den' and display them in rotation.

So here is the first of the themed canvas project which is entitled 'Parisienne Rainbow'! The background is chalked and stamped, with some beads and other embellishments added and the finished piece measures 15" x 12".

Margaret set us a challenge this week of 'Birds' on MAMMA's Monday Musings. I have to confess this ATC took me ages to do - and the finished product is really only a paper collage with a feather! I found the composition difficult - put it down to this dreadful cough making my already bad neck even worse!

As usual, finding the images took me an age.... good job I found the birdie pic last - poor old song sparrow would have well fallen off his perch waiting for me to find the music sheet...will somebody please come tell me why I put a music sheet into the 'hobbies' folder when I have a folder specifically for music sheets? Not that there's many in the hobbies folder............ they're obviously filed somewhere else too! Used Basic Grey paper for the background, Sparrow image came originally from Flickr as did the Music Sheet. Distressed the papers with Antique Linen distress ink, stamped a few musical notes around sparrow and added the feather.

Gentlemen

Here is my ATC made for this weeks MAMMA challenge. The theme was 'Men'.
I reprinted the background paper to less than 50% of it's original size as I liked the design but it was too big for an ATC.
I stamped the 'real gentlemen' image with Stazon onto a kitchen work surface sample (part of an extensive collection from a local DIY store when I couldn't make my mind up about what worktop to have in the kitchen!). I like the effect of the stamp as it has turned out with a 'mottled' look instead of just perfectly flat and smooth.

Vintage Tags

Maggies challenge this week was the theme of Vintage Tags. Time has been at a bit of a premium so although I love vintage, I had to make these in a hurry. Suppose it's a bit early for a remembrance one, but then really rememberance should be done all year round not just on one day. The ATC sized tag is a vintage paper collage , with a skeleton leaf, a photo of a soldier and a made vellum envelope. The poem 'Flanders Fields' always brings tears to my eyes, and after making the vellum envelope I popped in a copy of it. The paper poppy is secured with a black brad.

The other tag is again a paper collage, added a few bits of lace,ribbon and a little crocheted flower secured with a pearl brad. Isn't her hat very grand?!!!

Have been out in the garden today. Needed to take advantage of the beautiful weather! So have done a bit of tidying, pruning etc at the lawn and borders nearest the house. The large middle lawn is suffering from the wet weather, moss appearing and the shrubs on the left are desperate for a hair cut! So maybe I will manage to do another border tomorrow as the forecast is good. I made this ATC last night - inked and stamped background, paper collage and an embossed border - am going to have a crafty messy evening tonight as I have a new stamp!