Watch out! Here comes another week!

Morning readers,

Hope you all enjoyed your weekend - I nipped across to meet a pal in Swindon, we met at Snazzy's where, as per usual, Val was most welcoming and her hubby kindly made us coffee too!. Once we'd had a shop and a natter, it was off for lunch and further natter.

In the meantime, I've managed a foray to the Table of Craftiness, now, I DO love to layer stamps and today's make is no exception - check it out below

My Artist Trading Card

And a closer view of the image panel detail

Materials used:

• ATC blank
• Snippets of card in navy and orange textured card and plain white
• Nesting rectangle and banner dies
• Inks used: Versafine Clair twilight, Memento dandelion, tangelo, rosebud and London fog
• Stamps used: StudioLight Grunge #5, CardzTV "Just Sayin", Craft Emotions 130501/1237 "Herbs and Branches" and Creative Expressions CEC851 "Inspiring Edges" - I can't use these chevrons enough, so very versatile!

And these were my snippets

I'll be entering the above make for the following challenges:-

1. Pixies's Crafty Workshop - challenge No. 355 - USE SNIPPETS
2. Crafting With An Attitude - challenge No. 52 - ANYTHING GOES
3. Penny's Paper Crafty Challenges - challenge No. 435 - ANYTHING GOES
4. Lil Patch of Crafty Friends - challenge No. 108 - ANYTHING GOES
5. The Corrosive Challenge - challenge No. 6 - ANYTHING GOES

And, whilst I had the Craft Emotions set out on my desk ....

My card .... a CASE of Cornelia Wenokor's work - see credit below

 

The front, back and inside of my card along with the front and back of my envelope

Materials used:

• White A2/C6, 250gsm, card and matching sized envelope
• Two pieces of white card cut to fit
• One piece of yellow card, cut to mat
• Low tack tape, to mask off my panel ... and, yes, I deliberately made my edges at those angles and my sentiment too!
• With my masked area secure I applied Distress Inks in squeezed lemonade, spiced marmalade and picked raspberry, using a mini blender
• Removing my tape from the top of my panel I stamped my Craft Emotions images (from 130501/1237 "Herbs and Branches" ) using comparable inks - in this case Memento canteloupe. tangelo and rosebud
• I replaced my tape across the top of my panel and applied a quick spray of Crafters Companion Seal and Shine, to protect those water based Distress Inks.
• I stamped my TCP sentiment (from S-5845-CL) using Versafine Clair twilight ink, I chose the blue as I thought black would be too stark against the "tone on tone" panel

I so much admired a card made by Cornelia, for Katzelkraft, on facebook recently and it inspired me to put my own twist on her idea ... I'd like to think Cornelia won't be thinking I've directly copied her and have actually just used her card as a spring board. Do pop along and check out her stunning card here. I wish I had her talent and, often, her fab collection of images too! Since the germ of inspiration was Cornelia's rather than my own, I won't be entering this for any challenges.

Sunday and an unusual day for me to be posting

Morning readers,

Been a while since I posted on a Sunday but .... my excuse is that I was out pretty much all day yesterday so didn't get to my usual Saturday challenge until later in the evening. It was far too late to post then so .... I'll share my stash shopping from yesterday and then, below that, my crafting make

 

I shopped here ... and bought this little lot

Right, on to the crafting make .... if you think the sentiment is on the wonk ... it's actually straight IRL

My ONE LAYER CARD

 

The front, back and inside of my card along with the front and back of my envelope

Materials used:

• White 5" x 7", 300gsm, card and matching sized envelope
• Dutchdoobadoo stencil (470.715.129) through which I applied Memento rhubarb stalk ink, using an Aldo stencil brush
• Studio Light image (grunge5 SL341) and TCP sentiment (S-5845-CL) stamped using Versafine Clair nocturne ink

I'll be entering the above make for the following challenges:-

1. Simply Less Is More - challenge No. 398 - SPOTS + the dreaded OLC
2. Creative Friday - challenge No. 233 - CAS (Clean And Simple)
3. Alphabet Challenge - June 21st - GRUNGE or GLITZ ... no prizes for guessing which!
4. Crafty Catz - challenge No. 467 - ANYTHING GOES + (optional) CIRCLES
5. Moving Along With The Times - challenge No. 100 - CAS (see above)

Saturday and another chance to craft!

Morning readers,

After a pretty soggy week ... I'm HOPING for some sunshine but .... will I be disappointed?

I have had NO CHOICE (honestly, well ... that's my excuse and I'm sticking to it) but to spend more time crafting and reading - it was that or shop online for a snorkel and flippers!

My Artist Trading Card

A closer view of the image panel

Materials used:

• ATC blank
• Snippets of card in lavender (DCWV textured) and white
• WRMK nesting rectangle dies used to cut the ATC and image panels
• Before die cutting my image panel I blended Distress Inks in squeezed lemonade and picked raspberry before selecting the section I wanted to use and die cutting my panel
• Dylusions sentiment (from DYB65401) stamped using Versafine Clair purple delight ink
• Craft Emotions foliagae (from 130501/1143 "branches") stamped using Versafine Clair nocturne ink
• Paper Artsy cross hatched border (from JOFY12) stamped using Memento grey flannel ink
• Finally, a quick application of Crafters Companion Spray and Shine - to protect the water based Distress Inks in transit

I'll be entering the above make for the following challenges:-

1. Crafty Sentiments - June 18th challenge - ANYTHING GOES
2. Through The Craft Room Door - June 18th challenge - ANYTHING GOES
3. Everybody Art - challenge No. 449 - ANYTHING GOES
4. Happy Little Stampers - June challenge - ANYTHING GOES - WITH DIES .. hard to imagine but this is my 4th entry!
5. Addicted to Stamps - challenge No. 346 - ANYTHING (stamps) GOES

  

TGIF - the weekend starts here!

Morning readers,

Well ... not literally HERE but ... you know what I mean! I hope you all have something nice planned for the weekend. We've a quiet one planned but then, last week's was busy so a quiet one could be just the ticket.

I'm still trying to use up some patterned papers/card and those pesky snippets too! I was delighted to be able to use one entire piece of card from a rather fabulous DCWV glittered stack - honestly? Some of them were so nice that I've just had them in my collection as being too nice to use! NO MORE! ALL I had left of this piece was a strip about 1cm wide, I can live with throwing that away, but don't think I DIDN'T consider adding a strip horizontally but I figure that might actually have spoilt it.

My card

And a closer view of my image panel

 

The front, back and inside of my card along with the front and back of my envelope

Materials used:

• White A2/C6, 250gsm, card and matching sized envelope
• Two pieces of white card cut to fit
• One piece of designer card (DCWV "Indian Summer" glittered stack) cut to mat
• Snippets of card in white, dark brown the check card
• WRMK nesting banner and rectangle dies, MFT faux stitched nesting rectangles
• CAS-ual Friday sentiment (from WTF - acquired March 2015 so well over one year old) stamped on to white snippet using Versafine Clair nocturne ink before die cutting in to a banner and matting on dark brown card
• Penny Black image (3138D "Gentle Gaze" which is WELL over one year old!) stamped using Versafine Clair nocturne ink
• Distress Markers used to add just a little colour to the vase and bloom
• Diamond stickles to bling up my image

I'll be entering the above make for the following challenges:-

1. Retro Rubber - challenge No. 113 - ANYTHING GOES (but MUST use an image more than one year old)
2. Penny Black Saturday Challenge - June challenge - ANYTHING GOES + (unused) option of PARTIAL STAMPING
3. Creatalicious - challenge No. 165 - ANYTHING GOES + (unused) option of SPOTS or STRIPED
4. Die Cut Diva's - June challenge - BIRTHDAYS + MUST use dies
5. Crafting By Designs - June challenge - HAPPY BIRTHDAY

And now for an ATC - I seem to be on a roll with my "using up snippets"  - this one uses no less than THREE! If you look at the process listed below it sounds like a lot of work for such a little piece of art but I do love to layer up inks and stamps .. it's become kind of my "thing" - I love the abstract nature of it.

My Artist Trading Card

And a closer view

Materials used:

• ATC blank
• Snippets of card: two (different) pieces of the fabulous Costco double sided 12" x 12" collection and white
• WRMK nesting rectangle dies
• With my Stamplorations "bubbles" stencil placed over the white card and, using an Aldi stencil brush, I applied Memento rosebud ink. On removing the stencil I decided the white part was just too white so I applied a layer of the rosebud over the entire panel
• With my Dutchdoobadoo squares stencil (470.715.609) I applied Ranger Archival majestic violet, using the same method as above
• VLV sentiment (from plate #925) stamped using Versafine Clair nocturne ink, which I left a minute or two, to dry
• Inkadinkado stamping gear numbers (65.32008) image partially stamped twice using Memento grey flannel ink
• Creative Expressions chevron (from CEC851 "inspiring edges") partially stamped three times using Memento rosebud ink

My materials

I'll be entering the above make for the following challenges:-

1. A Place To Start - June challenge - STENCIL ME IN (use a fave stencil)
2. Addicted To Stamps - challenge No. 346 - ANYTHING GOES
3. Crafty Creations - challenge No. 392 - ANYTHING GOES
4. Crafting From The Heart - challenge No. 245 - ANYTHING GOES
5. A Bit More Time To Craft - challenge No. 94 - ANYTHING GOES

Earlier this week I realised that I would be celebrating my blogversary ... which happens to be TODAY! I was chatting electronically with friends and we shared a few pix from "the early days" and I thought I would share them with you too - how my crafting has changed in those nine years! Looking back at those early posts was a real trip down memory lane - you ever go back to the early posts on your own blog?

 

Cards of mine, from June and July 2010 - OMG! Look at all that patterned papers!!

 

I was way more active with my scrapbooking in July and August too

Thank you to all my readers, followers and commenters over the past nine years too

Wonderful Wednesday

Morning readers,

Hold on to your hats ... today's make has NO STAMPING on it!! WHATTT! Nope, no stamping ..... none at all! I don't use dies very often and, recently, headed in to the MFT boutique at Eustis and bought a shaker kit, including the pouch - nothing for it but to use some dies!

My card

The inside of my card, also only using dies!

Materials used:

• White A2/C6, 250gsm, card and matching sized envelope
• Two pieces of card - one DCWV textured hot pink and the other white
• Snippets of card in black and hot pink
• Stamplorations cutplorations "HAPPY" and "BIRTHDAY"
• MFT cocktail glass shaker die and co-ordinating pouch
• Cosmic Shimmer holographic "glitterbitz", for my "shaker"
• I ran the snippet strips through my Xyron sticker maker before die cutting, to apply an adhesive over the entire sentiments
• Double sided adhesive foam for attaching the hot pink card front to my card blank

 

 

I'll be entering the above make for the following challenges:-

1. Crafting From The Heart - challenge No. 245 - ANYTHING GOES
2. Pammie's Inky Pinkies - challenge No. 1924 - ANYTHING GOES
3. Happy Little Stampers - June Dies challenge - ANYTHING GOES WITH DIES

Also found out I was a lucky winner over at Aloha Friday for their challenge #144 "For the guys", thanks peeps