Happy booday

A couple of days late I know, but....BOO!

It has some scary bits, but mostly it's kinda cute.

The hexagon die is fab :)

I'm entering it into the Allsorts challenge- masculine cards and

Crafty Cardmakers- cut it out challenge.

Trolley Dolly

This Tim Holtz stamp reminds me of a 60s trolley dolly. Love the style of it.

It fits perfectly with this sticky backed fabric- this is a little altered notebook.

Then I used the scraps and off stamps to make a couple of ATCs. Going to craft with some buddies next week, so I need a couple of swaps to take with me.......

February's journal calendar page

Circles, circles, circles.......

I started this off going for red, hearts, and valentines. Then it went a bit purple and dark, but I liked it so it stayed!

The swirls are from Stampin' Up, and the raven and spider are Tim Holtz.

The letters are on tissue paper, they kept ripping, but it all adds to the charm, right?

Ooh, I'd forgotten that I'd heat embossed some of the swirls, that's a fab embossing powder- Silver Pearl, really versatile.

These pages are great for using up snippets of paper for the days.

Wonder what I'll write on this month? I'm hoping for a WON THE LOTTERY scrawl in black marker across the while thing, lol.

Try it on Tuesday - guest design spot

A few weeks back I won a challenge on Try it on Tuesday, and this week is my chance to be a guest designer. It's card week and they want to see cards with Father Christmas on.

Here's mine!

It's a simple stepper card with some fabby Tim Holtz and Lavinia stamps on.

I'm entering this into the Sir Stampalot challenge, which is a bingo grid- I used stickles (snow on the roofs), pearls (red on Santa's hat) and ribbon.

The Stamp Man challenge- a Christmas ornament!

Ooooh, interesting challenge over at The Stamp Man this fortnight. Didn't know what to come up with for my DT project, until Tim Holtz came to the rescue! I came across the idea for this little beauty on one of his Tags of Christmas blog posts.

It's a little battery operated tealight with a diecut townscape round it. 

Thought I'd do a quick tutorial, cos these are so easy to make!

Die cut the Tim Holtz on the edge die using grunge board or thick card. It's got to be able to bend into a circle, but needs to be stiff enough to stay up. Cut off the end house (check the circumference of your tealight before you do this, make sure the die cut will fit round it) and sponge colour with Distress Inks.

Overstamp with a background stamp- I used a favourite script stamp in Aged Mahogany Distress Ink.

Use a Versamark pen or ink pad and white embossing powder to create some snow.

Cut some lengths of beading wire and bend into interesting shapes- these will be the smoke from the chimneys.

Glue on scraps of acetate or plastic packaging for windows- the fake tealight doesn't give off heat like a normal candle, so there's no fire risk. Add the wire smoke.

Finally, use redline tape to stick the whole thing directly to the tealight.

And.... voila!

Righto, your go! Try making a Christmas ornament and enter our challenge, there's a prize up for grabs as ever! All details on the blog here.

I'm going to enter this into the Artistic Stamper December challenge, which is Christmas.

Stamp Man challenge- Tim's tags- DT project.

There's a doozy of a challenge over at The Stamp Man this fortnight. You know those goooorgeous Christmas tags that Tim Holtz makes each year? Well we want you to pick one and then use it as inspiration for a project of your own!

I must admit to using several tried and tested "Tim" techniques and ideas on my tag- I dipped the tag base in distress inks that had been spritzed with water, I sploshed more water on to create an aged effect, I used Perfect Pearls and lots and lots of stamping!

The green Perfect Pearls really catch the light. I've loved this project, cos this year I'm already feeling extra Christmassy. We've been watching Christmas films with the kids (we have so many we have to start early to fit them all in, well that's my excuse anyway!), my job is more secure this year, and I've already done the major part of the pressie shopping. The plan is to relax and really enjoy it all this year. I can't wait!!!!

Lots of fibres and charms, most of which are salvaged from last year's Christmas crackers and choccy reindeers.

Right, over to you, there are some fabulous projects on the Stamp Man challenge blog to inspire everyone, along with all the rules, so have a go!

I'm going to enter this into the following challenges:

Happy Daze- explosion of colour

Fussy and Fancy- gift or anything but a card

Artistic Stamper- backgrounds

Try it on Tuesday- Wish you were here (bit of a cheat this one, but I do really, really, really wish Christmas was here!!!! I'll understand if it's too far wide of the mark, lol!)

Crafty Cardmakers- recycle

Sunday Stampers- use pine colours (lots of pine green in the background!)

The Stamp Man challenge- collage backgrounds

Ooh, the new Stamp Man challenge is right up my street. Collage backgrounds, lots of getting inky sticky and messy :)

I altered a journal with my background. It may eventually be personalised, but I haven't done it yet, in case the recipient spots it on here......

I used Starburst stain daubers on the background, with lots of sponging through sequin waste and embossing with moonglow 2 tone embossing powder. I stuck on scraps of book pages and red tissue paper.

Over the top I stamped a gorgeous Stamp Man swirl in Aged Mahogany and then used the Tim Holtz haberdashery stamps over the top in black. The journal letters are stamped onto black card with Brilliance Moonlight White ink. I've only got a little ink pad in Brilliance White, but I must invest in a full sized one, it's such a good white ink pad.

Lots of white gel pen and some ribbons on the wires and a Christmas present is born! 

If you fancy a go, head on over to The Stamp Man challenge blog, there's a Stamp Man voucher up for grabs !

Starburst Stain daubers - Canna lily burnt orange, Sweet violet purple teal, Marigold yellow orange and Ramblin rose pink

Moonglow 2 tone embossing powder - golden pumpkin blush

Tim Holtz stamp set- Haberdashery

Aspects of Design stamps - 40 Dragonfly dreams

Tim Holtz Distress Ink Pad  - Aged mahogany

Brilliance ink pad- Moonlight white

Stitch it at the Stamp Man

The new challenge over at The Stamp Man is to show us some stitching. We want to see real or fake stitches on your projects.

It was my wedding anniversary last week (and my birthday!) and my OH loves to read, so I made him a  bookmark to go with his present. I used my favourite Tim Holtz stamp- the gorgeous elephant. the background are sprayed inks and layered sections ripped from a book page.

My stitching is chenille thread. I made a few holes with my pokey tool and threaded it through in a blanket stitch.

I'm still busy making ATCs for the Docrafts Luffy meet in a week's time, so everything I make, I make an ATC as well! It's working quite well, I've got lots of swapsies :)

Ok, over to you, show us your stitching and you could win the prize!

I'm entering this into the following challenges:

Allsorts- Free and easy

Simon Says stamp and show- anything goes

New Stamp Man Challenge- Anything T!m

It's Stamp Man challenge blog time, hurray!!! This fortnight is bound to be a popular one- it's anything Tim Holtz!!! Here's mine......can you tell what it was?

10 sparkle points if you said a moisturiser pot. It's made out of white, slightly translucent plastic, plus....it smells nice- bonus!

I swiped it all over with alcohol inks (meadow, terracotta and lettuce), then stamped the lid and sides with text and foliage stamps (Tim Holtz Shabby Chic).

OK, now I have an admission to make..... I know all of you Sir Tim aficionados out there are grunge paper/board fans but I've not tried it. I know, I know, stop tutting at me.... it just seemed expensive and I couldn't quite see the point. Although I had at some point acquired some, cut with the Tattered florals die. 

So, Distress Inks (Peeled paint, Mustard seed, Spiced marmalade) and more stamping (Russet archival ink) later and I'm sold. I get it. You can all stop looking smug now.....;)

Ooh, and my absolute favourite thing about this is the little screw in the middle of the flower. I think I have a thing for salvaged metal...... this little half sheared off screw was just sitting waiting to be picked up and glued in. 

Actually, it's recycled stuff all round- the string round the edge was originally round some packaging. So, an ethically sound project all round, yippee.

There's lots more gorgeous DT inspiration on the challenge blog, so hop over for a look, and show us your projects!

I'm entering this into the Stampotique Designers Challenge- to use flowers.

The Stamp Man challenge- Men and Boys

Yay, it's Stamp Man challenge time again! This fortnight, Michelle is challenging us to make a card for a man or boy. I thought I'd get ahead of the game and make my Dad's Father's Day card. Now I vividly remember making last year's Father's Day card, so I can't believe where the time has gone to!

I went for a diamond topped card, which looks tricky, but is really VERY easy to make. If I get chance, I'll do a tutorial on how to make one later today.

The background sections are layered up with stamping and ink blending. The little tickets and the sentiment are bumped up on 3d foam. I'm particularly pleased with the vintage gold paper I used to mat up- I got a pack of about 20 sheets from Hobbycraft in the sale for 50p!

I'm entering this into the following challenges:
Fussy and Fancy Friday- Card for a man or boy
Moving along with the times- No DPs
Fab n funky- Whateva

Ingredients
Stamps- Aspects of Design 10- Men's, Aspect of Design 61- Butterfly beauties (sentiment), Tim Holtz stamps- Admit one, Hero Arts Old French writing, Tim Holtz Visual artistry French market (harlequin)
Inks- Vintage photo Distress Ink, Stampin' Up Rich Razzleberry
Card- Stampin' Up Rich Razzleberry, vintage gold paper, cream card
Stash- Gold eyelets, Foam pads

Kewt fringe!

I so enjoyed making this card. So much so that I nearly didn't give it away.

The background is sprayed with all different ink colours, with lots of squidgy runs. I then used a Tim Holtz music mask and various background diamond and circle stamps to create a lot of background. In fact, this card is more background than foreground. The paperclips stamp is a particular favourite, cos it is cute (kewt) and it cost 39p from a manky sale bin. Hurray for manky sale bins!!!!

The girl with the fringe is called Karin (I always say it in my head with an American accent!) coloured with pencils. Love that smile. 

I love it so much, I may make the person I gave it to give it back........ actually, if you're reading this.....send it me for my birthday, I won't mind that it's already written in.....

The Stamp Man- Ir-RESIST-able!

Oops, sorry, well all the other resist puns have already been taken......

This fortnight at The Stamp Man, we want you to use resist techniques. There are lots of different resist techniques and tutorials out there, so be as inventive as you like!

Here's mine- I used an emboss resist version, and it's soooo easy and effective.

I started off with a background that had been sprayed with inks, then stamped on the elephant, sun and tree with a clear embossing pad and heat embossed with clear embossing powder. It's then just a case of stamping and inking over the embossed images. I try to define the edges of the images with a darker colour so that they stand out a bit. 

Wipe any excess ink off the embossed areas, and then it's up to you- either leave the embossed areas glossy or you can get rid of the embossing for a matt look- that's what I did here. To remove the embossing, simply cover your work with paper- I used basic copier paper, and iron gently over the top with a hot iron. Take it easy with the ironing and you'll see the embossing powder melting onto the paper, and turning it translucent.

I didn't want to give my finished piece away, I really love it, so I've used it to cover one of my art journals.

Over to you! Show us your resist!!!

I used:

Tim Holtz stamps- Shabby French, Mini Muse and Purely Random

Clear embossing ink and powder

Distress Inks- Rusty Hinge, Crushed Olive, Mustard Seed, Spiced Marmalade

The Stamp Man ATC swap- Bird theme!

Oops, my apologies for running late with this one, I should have posted yesterday. Lots of excuses, but all boring, lol!!!

Our theme for April is Birds.

Oh dear, it all went a bit weird again............ but I quite like it! The bird is from a Sir Tim set, the background is a book page painted and then stamped over. There are bits of torn paper, some metal flowers and a dewdrop shaped gem that I salvaged from somewhere. The foliage stamp is another of Tim's that I picked up at the weekend, both sets are available from The Stamp Man. My beloved white gel pen brings it all to life!

Right, now it's up to you, get ATCing!!!

Stamps- Tim Holtz Shabby French, Tim Holtz Santa's Wish (branches) 

Surprise!........and a portrait.

I've LOVED making this card!

The challenge at the Stampotique Designers blog is to make a Triptych card. The front of mine has my favourite Kitty stamp glaring out at you.

....and here's the surprise! Now, who wouldn't want a bunch of skull balloons on their birthday?

I used a technique or two from the Tim Holtz Grungy Monday challenge- for more info check out the L3 blog! I love this cobweb mask, the background was inked first and then sprayed with cosmic shimmer misters. I picked up a new colour at the NEC on Sunday, Twilight Black, and no, I didn't just buy it cos I'm obsessed with vampires......well, maybe a little bit.......OK, OK, it totally influenced my decision and I am totally obsessed!

I've had a busy week and it has been tiring, but today was a lovely day- it was the Mother's Day performance at Miss 5 year old Little Legs' school- very sweet- big lump in my throat- all of the children had painted their Mommies, and this is how my daughter sees me......

......actually it's not bad, right colours, features in mostly the right places.....I love it!

CCC last challenge....and my name badge!

The Compendium of Curiosities Challenge over at Studio L3. The technique is from page 67 of the Compendium of Curiosities book, and it was just the inspiration I needed to make my name badge for the Docrafts Midlands ATC meet.

Whaddya think? Very me......

Lots of embossed metal, stitching and Sir Tim die cut letters, plus a grunge rose and some brads. What more could a girl wish for in a name badge. Now, all I need is a gold lame outfit to match (I jest). We always swap our name badges at the end, but I shall be a bit sad to see this one go. Soooooo shiny! You can even see a bit of camera reflected in the bottom left corner.

Now, should I pin, peg or ribbon?

The Stamp Man challenge- hearts. Show us some love!

Have you made your Valentine a card yet? The challenge at The Stamp Man this fortnight is Hearts, so it's the perfect excuse to spread a little love!

My card is made using a fabulous set from the Stamp Man called Artistic Elements. The winged heart is one of my favourites, and I decided to keep it simple and just stamp and emboss the image and the torn edge of the red card. I'm not apologising for my photography skills this time, I tried to catch the light on the embossed areas to try to show the different colours in the Moonglow embossing powders- I used Cosmic blue/mauve and it really changes colours when you move it.

The base card and the background to the main image is stamped with Tim Holtz mini stamps in Fired Brick and Barn Door. 

Now I just have to decide who to send it to.........

I'm entering this into the following challenges:

Stampotique Designer Challenge- Valentine or Love

Simon Says Stamp and Show......some embossing

Papertake weekly challenge- Show some heart

Crafty Cardmakers- Hearts

Ooh La La Challenge blog- For someone special

Let's ink it up- Romance/Valentine

Allsorts- Love love love

Crafts and me- Red
Stamp Something.....for your Valentine

Ingredients:

Aspects of Design 62 Artistic elements

Tim Holtz Mini ornates stamp set

Moonglow cosmic blue/mauve embossing powder

Distress Inks in Barn Door and Fired Brick

Red ribbon and gold key

February Stamp Man ATC Swap - Steampunk

I had fun with this one! The Stamp Man ATC swap this month is Steampunk. So get our your gears and sprockets and join in!

Background- acrylic paints and distress ink. Butterflies clear heat embossed. 

Background starburst stains (via Jill).

Apologies for the atrocious photography, but you get the gist! The stamps are all Tim Holtz, as are the die cut cogs and some of the bits of hardware. I also had great fun smashing up a cheap watch my son won on a tombola, so there are bits of that dotted about. I loved making these!!!

The Stamp Man Challenge 11- Take 3 colours Christmas theme

The challenge this fortnight over at The Stamp Man is to Take 3 Colours, and make something with a Christmas theme. As ever, there's a fabulous prize up for grabs and loads of inspiration over at the challenge blog. Just click on the link on the left!

I chose Red, Green and Yellow.

There were a lot of steps to making this card, but it was really enjoyable to do.

Step 1

I inked the card panel with Distress Inks in my chosen colours and then before it was completely dry I flicked some droplets of water over the page to create water marks.You can either leave them to dry naturally or chase them a bit with a heat gun if you're impatient (I am!).

Step 2

I stamped the pine trees from the Tim Holtz Reindeer Flight set in Pine Needles and Bundled Sage distress inks- stamping 2 or 3 times with each inking to create shadowed images for depth.









Step 3

Next I stamped over the edges of the card with Moonlight White using the swirl stamp from the set and stamped the top of some of the trees again with the same white ink pad to give them a bit of a snowy feel.









Step 4

I stamped the swirls again using black, and then stamped the lovely reindeer in the middle of the forest of trees.

I wasn't completely happy with the reindeer, he didn't stand out enough so......







Step 5

...... I went over some of the swirls on his body with white gel pen and then clear heat embossed him.











And the final card again, all mounted up and finished!

Ingredients


Stamps- Tim Holtz - Reindeer Flight

Inks- Distress inks in Barn door, Pine needles, Mustard seed and Peeled paint. Onyx Black Versafine. Moonlight white Brilliance
Stash- Red ribbon, white gel pen, clear embossing powder, gems