What a lovely long weekend .........

Happy Easter Monday ......

I hope you're enjoying the Easter break ..... its been lovely here.  The sun has been shining all weekend and we've had a fabulous relaxing few days, sat in the garden most of the time.  I've even managed some time in the craft room. 
I was supposed to be tidying up in there, ready to start on new projects this week but I got a little sidetracked.  It was also a little too warm in there so I didn't stay that long ...... making the most of the sunshine has been top of the list this weekend. 

I did stay in there long enough to join in with this months Happy Little Stampers ATC challenge though

Whilst I was 'tidying' I came across some unfinished MDF Artist Trading Coins.  I haven't made any in a while so I thought it would be fun to use April's challenge theme ........ Pretty Papers (something else I haven't used in a while!) and play along

A set of three, decorated in a beautiful vintage paper, which I think was from IndigoBlu many moons ago.

I simply glued the paper onto the coins, and used an emery board to trim off the excess

I added word stickers to each one .....

And finished off with a dot of Liquid Pearl

I also painted around the edge of each one using a gold paint so they do actually look like coins

Thanks for popping by ..... enjoy the rest of your Easter break.
I think it's time for a glass of something chilled and an hour in the sunshine now ....... living the dream!

Cheerio until next time .......

Products used:
MDF AT Coins (That's Crafty); White Gesso; Glue and Seal adhesive (Ranger); Decorative paper from my stash (I think it was from IndigoBlu); Chit Chat Stickers (Tim Holtz); Rose Gold Liquid Pearls; Gold Acrylic paint

CAS Mix Up Challenge ......

Happy Wednesday ......

Brrrr ....... its a chilly one today.  The sun is shining at the moment, but we did have a litle dusting of snow overnight. No need to batten down the hatches just yet though ..... it's all melting where we are!

I'm playing catch up this week, with some of my favourite Blog Challenges.  Time is running out though, so I'd better get on with it. 
First up is ........ the CAS Mix Up Challenge ......  always fun.

As you can see, January's theme is ...... Bokeh
That fabulous photographic technique that is surprisingly easy to create, using a whole variety of products from your craft stash.  Check out the CAS Mix Up Blog for links to some fab videos to follow if you've never tried this technique before.

I suppose I've cheated a little on this one ..... I've used a Designer paper (not something I use very often!) that already had a beautiful Bokeh design on it ......

 

The paper is from Stamping Up! I think, and it's so pretty. 
I simply covered the bottom section of a 7x5 inch cardblank with a piece of the paper .......

I then die cut a fancy edge across a piece of white card and attached it over the top

The sentiment is from Inkylicious ..... stamped in Gold metallic ink

And I finished off with a few sequins ......

Very CAS ....... I've used the Bokeh element, rubber stamping and my choice is the sequins.  That's one done!

Thanks for popping by ..... enjoy the rest of your day.
I will be back later with another Blog Challenge entry, but first I have to finish the mountain of washing and ironing from the weekend ....... such a glamorous life!  We were only away for two nights, why I'm on my third load of washing, who knows!

We did have a lovely time though.  The wedding venue was perfect ...... this was the view from our bedroom window, the morning after the wedding ..... everywhere white over with a heavy frost

  It was so nice to have the whole family together for such a happy occasion.

Hopefully when I sort through the photos ..... although I didn't take that many ...... I'll have a few more to share with you.

Cheerio until next time .....

It's the little things ........

Happy Monday evening ........

What happened to the weekend?  Mine seems to have gone by way too quickly ......  one good thing though, the boxes are piling up nicely, and we've already had one car load go to the re-cycling centre! Yes, the packing is well under way .... I've even made a start on the old craft room today.  That's going to take a while so we'll say no more about it!

It's time to get the Happy Little Stampers Mixed Media challenge underway this evening.  This month the theme is ......

I quite like tearing paper and card, depends on the project of course but it does give a nice sort of shabby chic look to your designs. Add a bit of ink to the torn edges and you get a nice worn look.

For my inspiration piece this month I've made a little fridge magnet from a tiny 4 inch by 4 inch canvas that I found in my box of  UFO's (unfinished objects!)

The canvas had previously been coloured using Brushos and I wasn't that happy with the result so .... I covered the canvas with a scrap of decorative paper, tore the edges a little and pulled them back so that the colour underneath just peeps through ...... adds that little bit of extra interest.

I then stamped the pretty butterfly from the HLS Especially For You stamp set directly onto the paper and then again onto scraps of coloured card from my stash.  These were then fussy cut and over laid onto the canvas ....... stamping the butterflies onto the paper first means that you have the antenna already there ....... no need to spend time fussy cutting around them ..... way to fiddly.

I added a few rub ons around the edges to add a bit more detail .......

And splattered a little bit of black paint here and there ......

To finish off I stamped the words onto a piece of vellum and heat embossed them in white.  I then tore around the edge and attached it to the front of my canvas

A piece of magnetic sheet glued to the back and you're good to go .... a cute little fridge magnet!

Don't forget the challenge is sponsored by the Happy Little Stampers store

And the winner will receive a $15 discount to spend in the shop .

Check out the HLS Blog for all the challenge details.  You'll also find more inspiration on there from the rest of the Design Team.

Happy stamping!

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

Cheerio until next time .....