CAS Mix Up Challenge .........

Happy Sunday .....

It's the first of March ..... and this is going to be a busy month!
There's a few birthday's coming up ..... including mine!  We've got Mother's Day and of course the first day of Spring ..... yeah!!! 
And only 9 days until we pick up the motorhome ...... not that we're counting.

A new month always means new Blog challenges ....... more fun themes for you all to play along with.
First up, it's the CAS Mix Up Challenge and guess what? It's our birthday this month ..... whoo hoo!!

Yes CAS Mix Up is 4 years old ..... can you believe it?  And we're celebrating!
There's some special birthday prizes up for grabs ........

a $25 Gift Certificate at Simon Says Stamp for the Challenge Winner 

and ..... a $25 Gift Certifcate at Simon says Stamp for one random draw from all the entries

(you must follow the challenge rules to be eligible for the prizes - check out the CAS Mix Up Blog for details)

OK, this month our host is Jenny  and the theme she has chosen is ...... Acrylic Paint 

There's loads of different acrylic paints out there and lots of fun ways to use them. 
If you need a little inspiration don't worry, check out the fab links on the CAS Mix Up Blog, to some great videos.

One way of using acrylic paints is on a Gelli Plate.
I must confess the Gelli Plate was one of those things that I had to have, in more than one size, but ...... they don't get used very often (shame on me!)  Saying that, when I do use them they are so much fun.
I haven't done anything amazing on the Gelli Plate but, just playing with a few colours of paint, a couple of stencils or stamps you can create some fabulous backgrounds.  And the good thing even if you're not completely happy with your results .... don't throw them away!  Use them with your dies or punches or, like I've done here for this card ........ stamp onto them, fussy cut and paper piece.

I've used one of my favourite stamps from ALL&Create.  I simply stamped it using a black ink, directly onto a card base, and again, onto a piece of card from my stash, coloured using the Gelli Plate.  I also heat embossed the images using a clear powder

I then fussy cut sections of the coloured one and paper pieced onto the image on my card.

If you're not that keen on colouring in your stamped images, this is a nice easy way of adding colour. It also gives a little bit of texture too.

I added some words onto the bottom using a co-ordinating ink. 

So .... that's Acrylic Paint - check!  Rubber stamping - check!  My Choice ..... paper piecing (or it could have been heat embossing) - check! 

I do hope you join in with our birthday celebrations.
We have a fabulous Guest Designer too ...... the lovely Betty (created by bjk) is joining us this month so please stop by and say Hello.

Thanks for popping by ...... enjoy what's left of your weekend.
It's Sunday lunch at the Walmsley's today, the whole family round the table plus a couple more ... just the way I like it.  Good food, nice wine and great company .......  what better way to get March started!

Cheerio until next time ......

Products used:
Stamps: Hexagonal Stem #256 (Tracy Evans for ALL&Create); Bloom - for the words(Tracey Hey) 
Inks: Versafine Clair - Nocturne, Charming Pink
Other: Gelli Plate background from my stash made using acrylic paints; Clear detail embossing powder (WOW!)