WOYWW- Happy 3rd anniversary!

Wow, 3 years of WOYWW! Congratulations to Julia and her Stamping Ground WOYWWers. Here's my desk today...... well it's not actually, this is the dining room table, to which I migrated last Friday when my crafting chums came round to play......and I haven't made it back to my desk yet. Mainly cos that would involve putting things away and generally tidying up......

Sparkly points for spotting.....

• Octopode Factory images
• The stamped and decoupaged panel for Dad's Father's Day card (how ahead of myself am I?)- for some reason I decided he'd like a lighthouse this year......
• Some fab snot green patterned paper that I was brave and cut into despite loving it very, very muchly
• The set of bizarre sayings stamps- picked up second hand for a song, which includes such gems as "The voices in my head may not be real, but they have some good ideas" and the incomprehensible "My mailman doesn't even own a gun!" If anyone can think of a use for that stamp they get an extra 100 sparkly points!!!!!

I'm sending a celebratory WOYWW ATC out there for the 3rd anniversary, so look out whoever's below me in the list.....

Beach huts

I'm motoring on with my Fat Pages for a swap I'm part of- this one is for the By the sea theme.

The background is made by dipping the card into Distress Inks that have been splodged and spritzed. Then the image (Michael Powell), is watercoloured with pencils. Spot of glitter on the water too.

Then I got a bit carried away with the seaside theme. More beach huts.

Thanks for looking!

Octopode friends

The Octopode Factory Friday challenge this week is Friends.

I went for these two. Fab aren't they? The background is cosmic shimmer sprayed, plus there's a bit of doodling on it too. Stamping the words onto tissue paper is my top tip- it's a great way of putting some detail onto a dark background where black stamping wouldn't usually show up.

Hunky

OOh, he's such a heart throb.....

Both ATCs up for swaps, anyone want one?

I'm entering them into the Stampotique Designers' Challenge blog- the theme is bright colours.

WOYWW. I think it's a desk.....

....not too sure, it's been a while since I cleared it.

Ooh is that a little bit of wood showing?

Sparkly points for spotting:

• Bits of red material and white felt left over from making my daughter's fancy dress outfit (Lilo from Disney's Lilo and Stitch)
• New Michael Powell stamps, I know everyone's got them, but I couldn't resist.
• Doodled bookmark.
• New Unity stamps.
• Hunk- the new love of my crafting life, such a handsome chap.
• Portobello Road papers, loving the red, white and blue

So, how did you do? For more WOYWW goodness, trip over to Julia's Stamping ground.

Oh I can't resist......here's a close up of Hunk.

Isn't he a dream boat?

PIAO- Pile it all on.

OK, so I'm not sure about this. Not my usual style, not even my usual style of not my usual style, if you catch my drift.

It's an aperture card- lots of paper layers, I used nesties, a MS border punch, distress inked the edges, heat embossed the cake, added pearls, threaded ribbon and generally piled it all on!

This is the inside image, slightly popped up with 3D foam. The swirls are stamped with Versamark and swooshed with Perfect Pearls in blush.

It's a commissioned card, so I hope I've fulfilled the brief I was given, and truth be told I quite enjoyed doing it all, I'm just not sure I like the finished card.......

I'm entering this into the following challenges:
Simon Says Stamp- Anything goes
Totally Gorjuss- Pink and green
Craft Room challenge- Emboss it

Summer sihouette

Fat pages are fun!

I'm really, really getting into making them. I know to those large cardmakers and scrapbookers out there they'll still seem really small (4x4inches square), but to an ATCer, they're huge! The theme for this one was summer flowers.

The background is brayered using a Big & Juicy ink pad, perfect for a summer beach sunset. The stamps are a discontinued Stampin Up set, recently acquired by yours truly and I'm so glad I bought them..... Mounted onto black card to make it pop and the words are on a scrap of tissue paper. Just to prove that I can do simple!

To a normal person it's rubbish, but to a crafter.....

..... it could be that little gem they're searching for. I have my children so well trained now that before they throw almost anything away they check to see if I can use it first. Well, not apple cores or banana skins, but interesting clothes labels or bits of string, you now- useful stuff.

Take these ATCs for example, hanging around half made for a while, but finished off on Friday. Let's play spot the tat.....

Old raffle ticket, bits from a menu leaflet from the pub, a left over stamped oriental stamp....

A ticket cut from some junk mail, random book page scraps, and the circle I punched to sponge ink round to make suns. The house was a left over from a card, poor lonely little thin house....

'50s lady from the pub menu, raffle ticket, cellophane from a packet of Jaffa Cakes, book pages, bit of zebra print tissue paper my mate Kay gave me as a little joke last crafty session.

Add doodling and some ink and it's all treasure! Now if I can just find a use for the little neon skull and crossbones patch that fell off my son's socks the other day.......

You'd think I'd have had enough by now, but....no......

.......I'm still inking up those monsters.......

Backgrounds are splodges of the new seasonal Distress Inks- squeezed lemonade is my new all time favourite colour......

The monsters are pro and flexmarkered. 

I needed some more music themed ATCs for a swap, and I know he's not really music related, but to be completely and totally honest, I don't care!

Baby cards

I needed a couple of baby girl cards, one for the parents and the other one for the new granny. I went for a sort of matching pair, well, I'd got the papers out already!

The image on this one is a really old Craft Stamper freebie that I always use for new baby cards, cos it's cute and simple and just works. The sentiment is a Lili of the Valley set.

The spotty paper on both is DCWV. The images on this one are Stampin' Up with another LOTV sentiment.

Awww, a baby girl, how sweet!

I'm entering this into the Papertake weekly challenge which is Cute, cute, cute.

WOYWW.......same old, same old....with a bit of new....

Same old mess, same old chaos, same old desk! 

New inks and stamps though......

Sparkly points for spotting:

• Which card has absolutely no stamping on, has been commissioned, and I'm really not sure of?
• My new Stampotique stamp
• Lots of precut mat shapes that I've had forever and not used one
• Pink ATG that needs refilling- really, how did I make a card without it? DST is sooooo fiddly
• Tissues, cos I've got a stinking, horrible cold
• Ooh and my new doodled panel- if you want to see it closer, go down to the next post.

Thanks for visiting- to see more desks go to Julia's Stamping Ground. All the best desks are seen there, you know!

Doodling again......

The challenge at The Cupboard Trilogy is to interpret the lyrics of Bette Midler's Wind beneath my wings. I chose a couple of lines and got doodling!

I accented various areas with Glossy Accents. Actually, now that I'm looking at it, it's not a brilliant photo, I might need to retake it tomorrow in better light.

It's worth a look at the Cupboard Trilogy blog, there's a fantastic Stampin' Up prize on offer.

Red. White. and......ermmmm, what the other one again?

ATC time! These are all for a red, white and blue swap. I'm kinda feeling these papers at the moment, they're from the Docrafts Portobello Road paper pack. I'm also really loving my new telephone box stamp- it's a bit Dr Who in blue......

This last one is made with Ferro paste, stamped into, then painted red and blue. The silver is Croco crackle effect.

Dorothy Octopode, a Tardis, flowers and some glamour........

..... bit of a mixed bag? Well there is a bit of a theme going on here, and it's ATCs with Octopode images on them.

This one fits the Octopode Factory Friday challenge which is flowers, so I'm entering it!

This last one is still ATC sized but I'm working on a few that are intended to be put together as an Art Journal, hence the date!

Happy birthday Jack!

My beautiful nephew Jack is 3 today. He's into what every 3 year old boy is into.....so a fireman card seemed appropriate.

This is a Paper Nation set I've had for ever, not really into decoupage, but I must admit, this looks great. The letters are tarnished metal- I'd forgotten I'd got them to be honest, but they fit the gap just right!

So, I know you can't read this, but Happy Birthday beautiful Jack, Aunty Li-Li loves you loads xxxx

Stamp Man DT time! Favourite technique!

The challenge at The Stamp Man this fortnight is to show a favourite technique. Oh boy. I can't choose just one........

I made a Fat Page for a swap I'm part of- the theme is water and this gorgeous Fran-tage mermaid from Stampendous just fit the bill perfectly. The background is sprayed inks (favourite technique #1). She's coloured with Twinkling H20s for added shine and cut out (not exactly favourite technique #2, but I do seem to do a LOT of cutting out) then layered up with torn vellum (tearing stuff- favourite technique #3).  Finally lots of bling (favourite technique #4.....well that's pushing it a bit, sticking gems on isn't really a technique, but I do love to do it!!!)

Actually, my all time favourite thing to do is stamp, so really, that's what I'm showing with this piece- and everything else I do, really!!!

Right, there's a Stamp Man voucher up for grabs and if you haven't headed over to the Stamp Man shop online recently, you really should take a look, there's 20% off loads of things and free UK postage for orders over £20 which is not to be sniffed at.

WOYWW.....how on earth should I know?

Haven't been near my desk for days.......

OK, slight exaggeration, but not since Sunday.

Sparkly points for spotting......

• A precariously perched mushroom on a part done journal page.
• My sons old football trading cards- using them to stiffen the back of floppy ATCs.
• A water themed Fat Page.
• My gorgeous nephew's 3rd birthday card- how is he going to be 3 already?
• Some Chocolate Baroque stamped house images.
• The scrap of card I've been using to mop up stray spray ink splodges.

Right, I've got washing to sort and a chilli to throw into the slow cooker before work! Other desks are available at Julia's Stamping Ground.

Purple hair? Why not?????

Another set of commissioned cards to show you today, for a set of twins.

Bit of a close up on the images- I borrowed some Copics to colour these- quite like how they came out, especially with me being a Promarker girl.....

I'm liking my new LOTV postmark sentiments. 

What do you reckon? I quite fancy purple hair for myself.....