More Sweet Poppy samples .......

Happy middle of the week ......

How's your Wednesday going?
I'm off out for lunch with Lauren and then we're popping over to the garden centre.  I need a few bits and bobs ..... yes, me ..... gardening!!!  When I say gardening I mean I have bulbs to plant and I need new pots.  Bulbs are easy, the flowers are already in there they just need planting! 
It also happens to be their Christmas launch today ......... I know it's only October but, it'll be here before we know it.  And you all know how I love buying new Christmas decorations!

Before I go I want to remind you that Lucy is back on HOCHANDA tomorrow with lots of new Sweet Poppy Stencil Designs ..... some festive, some not so there's something for everyone.

I shared quite a few festive designs with you on Monday but if you're really not into making Christmas cards just yet, or you're one of those really organised people who have all theirs done by now ...... there's something for you
How cute is this little guy ........ the new Fairy Seahorse

Designed for Sweet Poppy, by the lovely Tracey Dutton from Lavinia .... he's gorgeous! Just look at all the detail

I found a Brusho background in my stash that was perfect for him ...... used the white paste through the stencil and then sprinkled with glitters ......

I added the pretty new Forest Stem along the bottom .....  used the stencil with the paste and glitter and then cut using the matching outline die .... makes great seaweed!

Instead of a card I thought he deserved to be in a frame. 
I decorated an old photo frame with black gesso and metallic waxes and added a few shells and art stones to the bottom

A few drops of Nuvo Crystal Gaze give the look of water droplets .......

and I also added some to the glass

The sentiment is one from my stash ...... fits perfectly don't you think!

Another of Tracey's designs is this beautiful Indian Moth .....

Again just look at the detail ......

On this card the stencil does all the work ..... pale blue paste onto black cardstock, sprinkled with crystal glitter.
A few splatters of gold and silver ink in the background  along with a few dots of white acrylic paint

finished with a stamped and embossed sentiment ...... job done!

Don't forget Lucy's shows are tomorrow (Thursday)  at 12 and 4pm on HOCHANDA
If you're a Lavinia stamps fan too then you're in for a real treat ...... Lavinia AND Sweet Poppy on the same day ..... back to back shows actually, I think.  I'll be watching!

Thanks for popping by .... enjoy the rest of your day.

Cheerio until next time ....

Book the sofa, grab the remote ..... Lucy's back on our screens

Happy Monday ......

A busy week coming up.  I thought I'd start it by letting you know that the lovely Lucy and Sweet Poppy Stencils are back on our TV screens this week ..... yeah!! 
Put the date in your diaries, book the sofa and the remote control, or set your box to record.

When? ...... Thursday October 18th 

What time? ...... 12pm and again at 4pm

Where? ....... HOCHANDA (Sky channel 673/Freeview 85/Freesat 817)

There's some brand new stencils, designed by the fabulous Tracey Dutton from Lavinia Stamps, all with dies to match.  And of course, all the other fab Sweet Poppy products will be available ..... pastes, glitters, stamps.

Here's a little look at a few of the samples I sent off to Lucy last week.
There's a little bit of Christmas ....... with the beautiful Holly Tree

A gorgeous Christmas tree, so full of detail.  Looks stunning in classic black and white .......

This is simply glossy white stencil paste, sprinkled with crystal glitter and finished off with a sentiment heat embossed on the bottom.

It's perfect for CAS Christmas cards ......

I added a pretty ribbon bow to decorate the tub .......

And why not make your gift tags too .....

Glossy white paste again with green glitter this time, and a touch of red for the berries .... very festive

Use the stencil with your inks too, to create fab backgrounds ......

The perfect backdrop for all your festive sentiments ...... 

All the sentiments used above are from the Sweet Poppy stamp sets .... Noel and Joy and Peace

It's not going to be all Christmas designs though ....... there's some gorgeous new foliage.

There's a pretty Large Fern ....... great detail on this 

Looks great over all those inky backgrounds.
And the matching die is fab ...... cut's beautifully too!

I've simply cut the ferns from plain cardstock and then heat embossed them with various metallic powders ...... very Autumnal!

One of my favourites from the new designs is the Forest Stem ..... how pretty is this, it's so delicate

I've used the stencil onto my inky background with a green Distress Oxide ink  (the stamp that I've also used is from the Sweet Poppy Stamp set ..... Season,  stamped, second generation using a Sepia Versafine ink)

I've then used paste through the stencil onto black cardstock, added glitters over the top and used the matching die to cut it out ......

When I first saw this design, I must admit I immediately thought ..... mistletoe!!  I think it's perfect.

Distress Oxide ink ...... white enamel accents for the berries (you could use tiny pearls or even Liquid Pearls) 

A touch of gold and silver splattered in the background, and a festive ribbon bow 

Finished with a sentiment ..... love it!!!

Maybe it's just me but ..... I also saw a Christmas tree too ....

I think I'm getting in the festive groove now don't you ...... that's one excuse I suppose!  I can't blame the Christmas spirit yet ..... Sober October continues!!! (only 16 days to go)

Thanks for popping by .... enjoy the rest of your day. 

There's a couple more designs to show you but I'll leave those for a little later in the week.

Cherrio until next time .....

Happy Birthday CAS Watercolour challenge!

Happy weekend .....

It's a very wet and windy one here ..... a good reason to stay cosy and warm indoors.

I'm playing along with another blog challenge today ......  the CAS Watercolour Card Challenge.
It's a special month this month .... the challenge is celebrating it's 2nd Birthday!!

Congratulations ladies ..... WOW! doesn't time fly when you're having fun!

This month's theme is all about colours .....  Orange, Green and Brown to be exact.

What a perfect combination for this time of year .....

The Autumnal shades turned my thoughts to leaves .... something we have plenty of at the moment.  all over the lawn!!!  If it stops raining long enough and the wind dies down a little they need to be cleared.  A job for next week's To Do list I think!

Anyway .... back to my card.  I started by stamping the leaves onto a piece of Bristol smooth cardstock.   I've used the gorgeous Leaf Canopy stamp set from Altenew.  You get the outline image of the leaves and a seperate stamp for the full leaves.  There's also some really nice sentiments on there too.
I stamped the full leaves using the required colours in Distress Oxide inks ...... I do love the Oxides, and I can't wait to get my hands on the final 12.

I then stamped the outline over the top and heat embossed in gold ......

I used the same colours of ink around the edges only this time I used the regular Distress .... I think it was Dried Marigold, Carved Pumpkin, Peeled Paint and then a touch of Gathered Twig,
I gave it a little splatter with water, and mopped up the excess ..... I never get tired of using this technique, love the effect

I also splattered some gold ink over the top and finished with a sentiment from one of the Penny Black T for Transparent sets ..... stamped in Gathered Twig Distress Oxide ink

There's a few drops of Nuvo Crystal Glaze here and there too.

Happy 2nd Birthday CAS Watercolour Challenge!

It's been a busy few days here ..... lunch out, then a fab crafty get together yesterday which was fun.  I didn't actually do anything but, I think I have decided on one of this year's Christmas card designs which is a start.  Carol made a birthday card though, which was lovely and I helped a little bit!   
I made a great start on the Christmas shopping the other day  though .... I managed to get just what I was looking for, plus a few little extra bits too ..... ooops!  I just have to remember where I've put it all when it comes time to wrap it!! I'm not used to being THIS organised in October.  I've even ordered the festive feast ..... well, some of it anyway. 
Oooh! and look what arrived the other day ...... a little something just for me!

Yes I finally gave in and decided to order a new die cutting machine.  I've been toying with the idea for a while now.  Don't get me wrong, I still love my Big Shot (both of them!!), I just wanted something that's a bit easier to use.  Plus,  I got a great deal on it, so that helped!
Although, then came the decision, do I go for the big Gemini, the Gemini Junior, or the new Gemini Go?  Well ...... in the end, I went for the big one, on hubby's advice. 
He said if I bought one of the smaller ones and loved it, I'd only wish I'd bought the big one, which he's probably right ....... I'll let you know if I've made the right choice!

Thanks for popping by ........ have a lovely weekend. I hope the weather isn't too bad where you are.
I'm off to put my feet up, and browse the latest Stampin Up! catalogue ..... this could be expensive!

Cheerio until next time .....

CAS Mix Up ......

Good morning, Happy Thursday ......

How's your week going?
I've been busy in the craft room, and I think I've done everything that needs doing this week.  DT stuff done, samples all done and ready to post for next week's Sweet Poppy TV shows, I've even cleaned my desk!!!
It's time for me to play now and join in with a few of this month's Blog Challenges I think.

First up, is October's CAS Mix Up Challenge ...... one of my favourites. 
This month the challenge is being hosted by Mac (The Sweetest of Peas), and the theme is ....... Metal

 
Hmmm ....... had to think about this one.  In the end I decided on a faux metal look, using Gilding Waxes, along with one of the 3D Texture Fades Embossing Folders from Tim Holtz (that's the 'your choice' part ...... embossing)

I've used the Botanical Design on black cardstock ...... it's such a pretty design and embosses so well. Just look at the depth of the embossing, and all that detail ...... gorgeous!!

Using my fingers, I gently rubbed a couple of shades of Treasure Gold Gilding Waxes over the top of the design to bring out all the detail and give it this pretty metallic look .....

I did struggle to photograph it though ...... the colours and the beautiful metallic sheen are so much more intense in real life .......

A simple stamped (the other challenge requirement), and heat embossed sentiment (from one of the Penny Black Snippet sets) finishes it all off.

I love how this has turned out ..... it looks so elegant, even if I do say so myself!!
It's the first time I've used this embossing folder ...... but I don't think it will be the last!

Thanks for popping by .... enjoy the rest of your day.
I'm off out for lunch later with hubby.  We're going to one of our favourite seafood places ..... the Little Fish Cafe, down by the quay in Douglas.  Not only is the food delicious, they do fab cocktails too ..... but, I won't be having any of those today ...... Sober October and all that!!  I'm off into town afterwards too so it wouldn't be a good idea anyway.

I suppose I could say ..... Today IS the Day ....... I'm making a start on our Christmas shopping!!! 
Yes, you read that right ...... Christmas shopping, in October ...... not like me at all.
We've got a lot going on at the moment and I need to be organised so ...... Ho! Ho! Ho!  I'm hitting the shops, armed with a list.  Wish me luck. 

Cheerio until next time ......