There's still time to play along with this month's CAS Challenges .......

Happy middle of the week ......

We've had another lovely sunny day here, and I've done absolutely nothing!!
I did go into the craft room this morning, put a few things away, moved stuff around a little bit on my desk, and then walked straight back out again ....... it was too nice to be in there.  Instead I grabbed my laptop and Kindle, a bottle of sun cream and headed outside.  It's been lovely catching up on emails, watching some FaceBook Live craft videos, and just enjoying this nice weather.  Might even go in the hot tub later!

First, I have got a quick reminder for you, about a couple of this month's CAS Challenges.
We like to give you a few more ideas mid way through the challenges just incase you need a little bit of inspiration.

First up ..... the CAS Mix Up Challenge, where the theme this month is Bleaching

Don't forget to check out the links on the CAS Mix Up blog to some useful videos on using this fun technique.

You might think using bleach on your cards is not for you.  I know I'm not that keen on the smell, and even though you can get odourless ones these days there are other ways of achieving the same look.
I like to use plain old water, and Distress Inks, it works a treat. 

I stamped the flowers across the centre of a piece of white cardstock, heat embossed the image in gold, and then blended Distress Ink over the top.

Using a paintbrush and some clean water, I 'bleached' out the colour from the leaves.
I simply painted the water onto the leaves and then mopped it away with a piece of paper towel removing the Distress Ink too.  The more water you apply, the more colour you will remove

Once it was dry I fussy cut around the bottom edge and then attached it to the top the front of a card blank, leaving white space at the bottom to show off the fussy cut edge

I stamped a sentiment on there and finished off with a few sparkly gems

Next up .... the CAS Stencil Challenge
This month the theme is Gilding Flakes. Not a product known for using with stencils but, they work.

I've gone for a 'less is more' approach on this design with just a touch of gilding flakes on the stenciled detail in the background.

I smooshed a little Distress Ink onto the centre of a white cardblank using a piece of acetate, and then stenciled over the top with some texture paste.

Once this was dry I placed the stencil back over the paste and used my finger to apply a little bit of glue to the surface ...... not too much, and I wasn't that careful about applying it as I wanted a sort of grungy look, I didn't want to completely cover the texture paste.

I removed the stencil and then applied the Gilding Flakes.  A gentle rub over to make sure they had covered all the glue, then I took a sponge and rubbed away any excess

I stamped the butterfly onto a piece of mop up card and added a touch more colour to it using some coloured pencils before fussy cutting around the edge

He was attached onto the card, and I finished with a sentiment

 I think we could all do with some happy thoughts right now!

There's still plenty of time to get your entries in for all the CAS Challenges, and if you need more inspiration then check out what the rest of the Design Teams have been up to.

Thanks for popping by ..... enjoy the rest of your day.
I'm off to create something in the kitchen now, not quite sure what yet.  I'm thinking a chilli maybe with a nice bottle of Malbec.  Well it is World Malbec Day on Friday this week ..... we've already booked our special menu for Friday night, freshly prepared and delivered from our little place in town ...... looking forward to that.

Cheerio until next time ........

Products used:

CAS Mix Up
Stamps: Precious Peony (Altenew); Special Sentiments (Penny Black) 
Inks: Distress Ink - Picked Raspberry; Versamark Ink; Versafine Clair - Nocturne
Other: Gold Embossing Powder (WOW!); Clear Glitter Gems

CAS Stencil
Stamps: Flutters 2 (Inkylicious); Happy Thoughts (Penny Black sentiment)
Inks: Versafine Clair - Nocturne; Distress Ink - Picked Raspberry
Other: Tim Holtz Stencil - Stripes; Texture Paste (Ranger); Flitter Glu, Gilding Flakes (IndigoBlu) 

CAS Mix Up Challenge .......

Hi there .......

A pinch and a punch for the first of the month ........ welcome to April folks!
I hope everyone is managing to stay safe and well.

If you could do with something to take your mind off things for a little while then, why not join in with this months CAS Mix Up Challenge ........

Loll is our Challenge Host this month and she would like us to use Bleaching on our projects.

There's a few ways of doing this technique ....... using simple household bleach, which we all probably have lots of at the moment.  I must admit it's not one of my favourite products ..... I don't like the smell!  It does give some great effects though, depending on how you use it, and your cardstock can also make a big difference.
Check out the CAS Mix Up Blog for some great video links using this technique.

Another way is faux bleaching, which is what I've used here.  I've created that bleached out look using Distress Inks and water.

I love this stamp from Simon Says Stamp ...... it's called Flora Background and it was part of their STAMPtember release last year, and would you believe, it's the first time it's been inked!!!

I stamped the design onto a piece of watercolour card and heat embossed in gold

I then blended a couple of shades of Distress Ink over the top of the whole piece of card.  I went with blue but you could use whatever colour you like ....... the darker the colour, the more of a contrast there will be.

To create the bleached effect I simply took a paintbrush and some clean water and painted over the petals.  The water reacts with the Distress Ink and you can dab away the colour using a paper towel ...... the more water you use, the more colour you can 'bleach' away

It looks so pretty.

I cut down the design to fit the front of my card blank, added a die cut frame and stamped a sentiment underneath .....

Now you know me, I don't like to waste anything so .........

 ...... this was one of the pieces I cut off,  way too pretty to throw away so, I made it into a matching tag!

One of the ways of using actual bleach, is to stamp onto black or dark coloured cardstock and then use the bleach as you would a paint to colour in the image.  This then bleaches the colour out of the cardstock.
I did try this but I think the bleach I have in the cupboard has been there forever, and it just didn't do anything so, I took a white watercolour pencil and coloured in the image instead .......

I think it looks a little like the bleach effect ...... what do you think?

See you in the gallery!

EDITED
Oh My!  I can't believe I missed this!! ...... thanks for the heads up Loll!
I'm so excited to see the fabulous NBUS Challenge is up and running again, with it's own special website ......

I'm ashamed to say I have a whole box of NBUS ...... Never Before Used Schtuff, but now I have a reason to use it, and the time to play.  Hopefully this will help to get my mojo back too!

Because the stamp I've used on the above designs has never been used before, I'm linking up to this month's challenge. 

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

Things are still a little crazy around here ...... I just can't seem to settle down at anything.  Sleep patterns are all over the place too.  I think everyone's the same.
There was so much that I was going to do ...... things around the house, catch up on stuff in the craft room like all those online classes I've subscribed too but, it's just not happening. 
I have cleaned  a couple of cupboards out, and sorted through the freezer.  I even tried moving the furniture in my craft room and clearing my desks to see if that would help with the old mojo ..... now I just can't find anything ...... well apart from the new stuff that's arrived this week (ooops!)

I also treated myself to a gorgeous new Archer & Olive journal ....... not sure what I'm going to do in there but, it's noce to look at!!

Oh well ...... time for a glass of wine I think ...... well it is Wednesday!

Stay safe everyone.

Cheerio until next time ........

Produsts used:
Stamps: Flora Background (Simon Says Stamp); Sprinkles & Smiles (Penny Black) - sentiment
Inks: Versamark; Distress Inks - Faded Jeans, Chipped Sapphire
Others: Gold Embossing Powder (WOW!); Paintbrush; Clean Water; Stitched Rectangle Frame Die

Smile ...... it's Friday!

Good morning!

Happy end of the week folks ...... hasn't it soon come around!

It's time for a quick reminder about this month's Craft Stamper Take It Make It Challenge ... have you played along yet? Don't worry, there's still time.
And if you're looking for a little inspiration, how about giving this technique a try .....

Faux bleaching, using Distress Oxide inks and water ......... the technique  I used on last weekend's workshop.  I love how this has turned out.

I stamped around the edges of a piece of watercolour card using stamps from Altenew's Beautiful Day and a Versamark ink pad, and then heat embossed with a WOW! Fine Detail White embossing powder.

Starting from the edges and working into the middle of the card, I applied Salty Ocean Distress Oxide ink over the white embossing.

I built up the colour around the edges keeping the center of the card quite pale ...... drawing your eye into the middle
I did the same again this time with Blueprint Sketch Distress Oxide over the top to add some darker shading to the edges
The embossing acts as a resist to the ink so the more ink you apply and the darker the colour gets, the more the white will show through.
Once you're happy with the colour take a clean paper towel and just polish over the top of your embossing to remove any excess ink and the white will pop even more

Then, simply taking a paint brush and some clean water I painted the flowers where I wanted to 'bleach' out the colour.
The Oxide inks react so well with water ....... when you simply paint over the top with a little bit of water and then let it dry, you get a pretty chalky finish to the ink (see the leaves)
If you apply a little more water, let it sit for a few seconds and then dab it away using a paper towel the effect is a little more dramatic (see the flowers)
Depending on what sort of cardstock you've used, the effects will be slightly different, and of course will determine how much water you can actually use.  Watercolour card is perfect, mixed media cardstock will all work well as it can take a lot of water ..... just  play around with what you've got in your stash.

I added a sentiment onto the center of the card and finished off with some glitter glue and a few sequins. And then I also did a panel for the inside of the card .....

Same stamps, same colours, same techniques. 

Our challenge sponsor this month is the fabulous Skull and Cross Buns

And the prize for our challenge winner (randomly chosen) is two super cute stamp sets ....

Don't forget ....... we also have a Design Winner, chosen by the DT.  If you fancy having your project in the Craft Stamper magazine, being a Guest Designer on a future challenge and having a Winners Profile on the CS Blog, then why not give it a go.  The theme is Anything Goes, as long as there's rubber stamping on your project somewhere ...... easy!

Happy stamping!

Thanks for popping by .... enjoy the rest of your day and have a lovely weekend.

I've got a great one coming up .......  Port Sunlight tomorrow with the crafty girls ..... looking forward to that

Early night tonight .... we're on the 7.30am boat tomorrow so I'll have to be up at some unearthly hour.  Better get my bag sorted today!  If you're going along to the show I'll see you there!

Cheerio until next time .....

This week is flying by ......

Happy Wednesday .......

It is Wednesday isn't it ........ I never know what day of the week it is after we've had a Bank Holiday!

It's full steam ahead in the craft room too ...... talk about multi-tasking!  I'm trying to get things finished before the weekend.  I'm off on my little trip across on Saturday, for the Happy Stampers Festival at Port Sunlight and I need to take some stuff with me. It'll be a long day ..... but so worth it!

Last weekend we had our monthly crafty get together. We had a lovely day ..... we spent most of it chatting, mainly about what we're all going to be buying at Port Sunlight!!
We did manage to get some cards done though.  Here's a quick look at what we were doing ......

We were playing around with a faux bleached look .... using Distress Inks and Distress Oxides and plain old clean water.
You know, I never get fed up with how these inks react with water, and depending on what cardstock you use the effects can be quite different.
This was Oxides on watercolour card ...... I love this chalky look that you get.

There was quite a bit of stamping, and heat embossing going on to begin with ......

Then the big decisions on what colours to use over the top .......

Then it all went quiet for a while whilst they did the 'bleaching'.
Once you've stamped and embossed, coloured over the top (emboss resist technique) then it's time to start taking some of the colour away.

You can use actual bleach ..... not the thick stuff that you might use down the loo ...... you need cheap, very thin bleach, and use it with a paint brush like you would a paint to colour in your stamped image.
And again depending on your card stock it will react differently.  Dark card obviously will give the most dramatic effect.
I like to use simple plain old water  though ...... you don't get the terrible smell, and you don't ruin your best jeans when you spill it either!!!

Here's a few of my left over sample pieces .... you never know these may actually make it on to a card eventually!

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

It's back into the craft room for me ....... I'm playing with stencils, pastes, and glitters today. Along with rubber stamps (oooh!) dies, paints and lots of ink.  Yes .... the craft room is getting messy!
Could it be that Lucy's back on our TV screens very soon ....... hmmm ..... new Sweet Poppy Stencils maybe.  Sorry ...... you'll have to wait a little bit longer!

Cheerio until next time .......

Water ..... Water .... everywhere

Happy Sunday,

And a Happy Mother's Day to all you mum's in the UK.

I've had a lovely weekend ...... what with my birthday yesterday and Mother's Day today it's been a fabulous two days.  I've been wined and dined (twice!) Lauren cooked a fabulous meal with all my favourites ...... scallops, fillet steak and lobster ..... yum! (a girl could get used to this!!)  And then this morning I had these waiting for me .......

Thank you to everyone for your birthday wishes and all the beautiful cards .... they truly made my day! And thanks to my family for making this weekend so special ...... love you all!! xx

But ..... it's time to get some work done now ..... the gin and tonic will have to wait a little while longer!

It's actually tomorrow (Monday) in the Happy Little Stampers part of the world and that means it's time to launch our Mixed Media Challenge for March.

This month it's all about using WATER on your projects.

You know me .... I love splashing water around, especially with my Distress Inks, they react so well with water and depending on which techniques you use you get some really cool effects.

One thing I like to do is colour my backgrounds with Distress inks and then spritz or flick clean water over the top, let it sit for a while and then mop up the excess water, which also removes some of the ink leaving a fabulous speckled effect behind.  I did a little bit of this on today's inspiration piece for you .......

See how the background has this subtle mottled look to it ..... that's the splashed water.  Water also makes the colours blend together really well too.

I simply cut 4 squares of white card and then used a blue and a green Distress ink direct to the card from the ink pad.  Once I was happy with the depth of colour I then spritzed over the top with clean water, let it sit for a while then mopped up the excess with a paper towel

I also flicked some larger drops of water onto the card to get a more defined splattered look in places.

Once this was dry I stamped the butterflies (HLS Butterfly Birthday) onto each square and embossed them using a clear powder.
Using more clean water, and a paint brush I painted over each of the butterflies and used a paper towel to dab away some of the Distress Ink, leaving behind this pretty bleached look ......

How cool is that!!

I finished off with a few splatters of white acrylic paint here and there ......

And stamped and embossed my sentiment on the bottom ...... Bold Birthday Sentiments for the 'Happy' and Everyday Sentiments for the 'Birthday'

There's more of those pretty butterflies inside the card .....

This time stamped, and coloured using the same blue and green inks as on the front only this time mixing the inks with a little water and painting with them

Now it's over to you.  Pop over to the HLS Blog for full challenge details.  You'll also find lots of fabulous inspiration pieces from the rest of the DT and our lovely Guest Designer this month ..... Autumn (from Sew Paper Paint)
There's also links to some fab video tutorials on using water with various products to get different results ........ pencils, paints, gelatos, pigment powders the list goes on.

As always the challenge is sponsored by the Happy Little Stampers store

I'm really looking forward to seeing all your entries this month ........Happy stamping folks!

Thanks for popping by ..... enjoy the rest of your day.
I'm off now to finish my weekend with a gin & tonic ...... ice and a slice, and an evening in front of the TV catching up with the latest season of The Walking Dead .....

Cheerio until next time ......

xx