My journal's almost full ...........

Happy Thursday .......

How are you? ...... I hope you're enjoying your week.

It's done nothing but rain here ...... all week!  Perfect weather for staying warm and cosy in the craft room.  Even though we're out of lockdown I have absolutely no desire to go anywhere!

I mentioned in the previous post that I'd spent last week taking part in an online workshop with the lovely Tracy Scott.

Oh my goodness ..... what a fabulous fun week it was.  We were creating layered backgrounds, and I did all mine in one of my large Dylusions journal (which is nearly full now ..... I'm so excited!!)

Here's a few pictures of my end results .......

Day 1 ..... lots of paint, stenciling and stamping

Day 2 ........  loving using the bright colours

We even managed a bonus page ......

Day three ..... rainbow colours 

Day four ...... I loved how this turned out, there's so many layers on here.  Collage papers, paint.  Stencils, stamps and mark making.  Pen work, splatters, you name it, it's on here.

And finally Day five ...... wasn't sure about these pages when I started but, I stuck with it and I'm happy how they've turned out.  

I do love Tracy's use of colour, and her journaling style. Check out her Creative Cafe page on Facebook there's loads on there, and maybe try one or two of her workshops.

It's STILL raining out there ....... not only do we have the hot tub at the back, we now have a lake, and it's getting bigger

The flamingos are hubby's idea ..... nothing to do with me!! (I don't really go for plastic garden ornaments ..... if that's what you can call them!!)  

This is what happens when he's bored and looks on Amazon!

At least they match the fabulous new Distress colour from Tim Holtz ...... now these I am looking forward to receiving!

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

Cheerio until next time .....

A quick reminder for this month's CAS Challenges ........

Happy Sunday .......

It's been a busy weekend for blog posts.

Time to remind you about this month's CAS Challenges ...... first up CAS Mix Up .
March is a special month for us ..... we're celebrating our 4th Birthday ..... whoo hoo!

To mark the occasion there's prizes to give away ........

a $25 Simon Says Stamp Gift Certifiate for the Challenge Winner

and ....  a $25 Simon Says Stamp Gift Certificate for one random draw from all the entries

(you must follow the challenge rules to be eligible for the prizes)

Our host this month is the lovely Jenny and the theme she's chosen is ........ Acrylic Paint

We all have them ..... we don't always use them though, especially for card making.  But, all those bottles and tubes or tubs of pretty coloured paints can give amazing results and effects.
Still not convinced ...... then check out the CAS Mix Up Blog for links to some really useful videos full of tips and techniques.

I've used my acrylic paints to add colour to the flowers on this design .......

The piece was originally done for one of my workshops where we were using a faux bleaching effect.

The background was coloured using Distress Ink applied directly from the ink pad onto the card and then swiped across using a wet wipe

Once the ink was dry, I stamped and heart embossed the flower bouquet using a white embossing powder.  Then with a water brush and a paper towel I 'bleached' out the colour from the stamped image.  Simply paint with water over the flowers and leaves and then dab away the colour with a paper towel.  This removes the colour from the image allowing you to paint over the top with pencils, or markers, or in this case acrylic paints

I used opaque Fresco Finish Chalk Acrylics from PaperArtsy and mixed them with a little water to make them easier to paint with.

I added a simple stamped sentiment to finish.


Are stencils your thing?  Then how about playing along with the CAS Stencil Challenge .....

This month's theme is all about using your stencils with Heat Embossing

I've simply used Versamark ink through my stencil design ....... applied using a sponge ....... and then sprinkled gold and silver embossing powders over the top and heated in the usual way.

If you wanted a little more dimension to your stencil design, use stencil paste instead of the Versamark, sprinkle with embossing powder whilst the paste is wet, and leave to dry.  Heat the embossing powder once the paste is dry.  This also creates a little more texture too.

I die cut the word star from three snippets of card, layered two of them together and covered the third with Versamark ink and used the embossing powders again.  I did this a couple of times, to create a thicker embossed layer

I attached the embossed word on top of the others and then inlaid it into the stenciled panel.
Finished of the sentiment with a little stamping.

Another fun way of using your stencils.

See you in the gallery!

Thanks for popping by ........ enjoy the rest of your weekend.
We've got the family coming round later ..... don't think they're here to see us, they want to check out the new motorhome I think!

Cheerio until next time .......

Products used:

CAS Mix Up
Stamps: Hello Lovely (Concord & 9th); Simply Said Blocks (Uniko); Tiny Words (Simon Says Stamp)
Inks: Distress Ink - Picked Raspberry (background colour); Versamark;
Acrylic Paint: Fresco Finish Chalk Acrylic - Wisteria, Lavender, Magic Moss, Granny Smith, Lemon Meringue (PaperArtsy)
Other: White Embossing Powder (WOW!);

CAS Stencil
Stamps: Written in the Stars (MFT)
Stencils: Shooting Stars - Funky Fossil
Inks: Versamark, 
Other: Gold & Silver Embossing Powders (WOW!); Shining Stars Die (MFT)

Let it Snow Artist Trading Coins .........

Happy Wednesday .......

A very wet, and very windy Wednesday here in the Isle of Man .... or as we say over here 'it's blowing a hoolie!!'  I have to go out in it later too, not looking forward to that!

Let's quickly talk Artist Trading Coins again shall we ......... circular pieces of artwork, measuring two and a half inches in diameter, and like ATC's (Artist Trading Cards) they are made to swap.
If you haven't made any yet, trust me when you do you'll be hooked!

Here's set number three ....... Let it Snow! made for a Christmas Swap that's currently going on on Facebook ...... 

They're made from little MDF circles, painted with PaperArtsy Fresco Finish Acrylic Paints, and then I've stamped and heat embossed the snowflakes (from Tim Holtz Swirly Snowflakes) using a sparkly white embossing powder ......

The words (from the Happy Little Stampers Let it Snow stamp set) have been stamped using Black Versafine ink and heat embossed in clear, so that the ink is set and won't smudge

And I've finished off by adding a few dots of White Enamel Accents onto the backgrounds

Why not check out the Facebook group and join in the Christmas swap.

I'm also sneaking in before the deadline for November's Country View Crafts Challenge which is all about Artist Trading Coins.

Thanks for popping by ...... enjoy the rest of your day. 
I'm off into town shortly ...... I won't be staying long!  Well, I have a date with Mr Buble and this to decorate when I get back ...

It's been up since Monday so I think it's time it was filled with pretty baubles don't you!

Cheerio until next time ......

My first AT Coins for the Craft Stamper Challenge ........

Happy Friday folks ......

Not quite sure what happened to the rest of the week but heyho! ........ it's the weekend!!!
It's the first Friday of the month so that means it's time to get the latest Craft Stamper Take It, Make It Challenge underway.

The theme as always is Anything Goes.  Just make sure that there's some actual rubber stamping somewhere on your project.

I'm quite excited (it doesn't take much!) because I've made my first ATC's .... coins that is.

I love making Artist Trading Cards ..... those little miniature masterpieces, but it seems the craze at the moment is to create Artist Trading Coins.  Cute little 2.5 inch discs, decorated with anything you like.

I've had these MDF discs for a while, just never got around to playing with them.
So, after my recent craft room tidy up ....... mind you, if you looked in there this morning, TIDY is the last word you would use to describe it.  Well .... it's been a busy week!  There's been Design Team stuff to do, Birthday cards to make, little man had a homework project to finish off, and I have a Christmas workshop to prepare.  There's that much glitter and shiny stuff on the floor it looks like backstage at Strictly Come Dancing ..... talk about sparkle!!!

Anyway ..... we were talking Artist Trading Coins.  I could get addicted to these ..... they are so much fun to do.

As I said mine are MDF but you can use cardstock instead, the size needs to be 2.5 inches in diameter that's all.
I gave mine a quick coat of white gesso then painted them using PaperArtsy Fresco Finish Paints.  I think it was Smurf (blue) and Granny Smith (green) ..... don't you just love the names!

I then stamped onto each one using just one of the images from the JOFY13 set of stamps, and heat embossed using clear embossing powder.

I used more Fresco Finish Paints to add colour to the daisies ......

Splattered the backgrounds with a little bit of Snowflake White paint ...... and added a few dots of Clear Nuvo Drops

The words are from the same stamp set ..... stamped onto white card and then fussy cut before gluing them on each of the coins

I decided to make the AT Coins into a pretty wall hanging by attaching some simple twill ribbon to the back.

If you fancy more inspiration for this month's challenge check out the Craft Stamper Blog and see what the rest of the Design Team have created.

As always there's a prize for the Challenge Winner ....... and this month it's an absolute cracker!!

Yes, that's right ......... it's the Sizzix Scoreboard XL Die - Wrapped Journal by Eileen Hull.  Told you!!
Fancy getting your hands on that?  All you have to do to be in with a chance is to play along with the challenge.  You could even be our next Design Winner and have your project published in the magazine.

Speaking of the magazine .... the latest issue is on the shelves today, and you'll find a little something from me in there this month ........ mwahhahaha!!!

Thanks for popping by .... enjoy the rest of your day and have a lovely weekend.
It's the Happy Stampers Festival at Port Sunlight tomorrow, and unfortunately I'm not going to this one ... sigh!  
It's a bit of a risk on the ferry in October, it can get a little bumpy.  And I must admit the forecast for weekend is not great so maybe it's just as well I'm not going!
If you are though, have a great time ..... spend lots and say Hi! to everyone for me.  I'll be there in May next year.
I have got a busy day tomorrow though.  I'm out with Lauren in the afternoon.  We're off to do a bit of creative gardening,  in a Succulent Terrarium Workshop which should be fun.  We'll be creating two terrariums each ..... is that the right word? filled with pretty succulents and ornaments and stuff.   I'll share the results with you ..... if I can keep them alive long enough! 
Then in the evening hubby and I are off out for dinner with friends.  This is one of the dates that we had booked BEFORE we decided to go Sober for October so for the only night this week there will be a little glass of wine or two I think. 

Cheerio until next time .....

Do you like to doodle ......

Hello there ...... I'm back again

It's been a busy day ....... and it's not over yet! That'll teach me to go galavanting at lunchtime.

It's time for another blog challenge this evening ....... do you like making ATC's? If you do you're in the right place ....... it's time to get this month's Happy Little Stampers ATC challenge underway.

The theme is Doodling ....... do you doodle?
I must admit it's not something I do a lot of however a little bit here and there can give a project a real fun look.

My ATC's have got a bit of a floral theme going on but there is doodling on there too ......
They started out as plain Kraft card and each one has been given a coat of pretty metallic paint from Sweet Poppy ....... Persian Blue

Bamboo .....

and Strawberry Sorbet .......

I then stamped the flowers (from PaperArtsy EEG14) over the top using a black ink and heat embossed them with a clear powder.
Each one was then coloured using PaperArtsy Fresco Finish Acrylic Paints  ..... these paints are fab and cover brilliantly

Spotted the doodling? (sorry!)  I added the dots to this flower, using a white gel pen

More dots on this one ...... ditsy groups of three, I love how this looks.

and stripes on the last one.  All of my ATC's have the faux stitching around the edges and a handwritten word on the bottom

I suppose you could say the painted dots are also doodled ...... I didn't use my usual brush to splatter the paint, instead I picked up the colour with the tip of an embossing tool and dotted the paint around the blooms

What will you doodle? .... I can't wait to see.

The challenge is sponsored by the HLS Store  and the winner will receive a $20 Gift Certificate to spend on their next order .... get doodling!

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

Cheerio until next time