Be a Mermaid ......

Good morning .......

It's Friday ...... we've got blue skies and sunshine this morning. It looks lovely out there.
I feel a bit bad saying that after the weather we had during the TT fortnight ..... never mind it's only 351 days until the next one!!!

It's been a busy week in the craft room ..... dare I say it but, the 'C' word has been mentioned!!!  Oh yes, Christmas is on it's way!
Don't worry ......I think I'll leave it a little longer before I go all festive.  I'm still thinking sun, sea and sand ..... I haven't had a holiday yet!!!

Anyway .... it's time to remind you about this month's Craft Stamper challenge.  There's still lots of time left if you'd like to play along.

The theme is Anything Goes as long as there's actual rubber stamping on your project, and it can be anything you like ...... a card or a tag, a journal page, or an ATC.  A scrapbook layout, a piece of jewellery, or even home decor ..... the choice is yours.

Speaking of sand and sea ..... do you belive in mermaids?

I love this stamp from the Lovely Legs range from the Colorado Craft Company. There's some real fun designs but this one caught my eye.
I simply stamped the mermaid onto a piece of watercolour cardstock and then coloured her using a mix of ZIG markers and one of the new Sparkle Glitter Inks from Specturm Noir ........

These inks are so pretty and really sparkly.  Give them a good shake before you use them then simply paint them on and let them dry.  The soft shimmer from them is beautiful .......

Not easy to photograph though .......

The sentiment, included in the stamp set, was stamped using a multi-coloured ink pad (something I haven't used in a long time!)

Pretty pearlescent shades of blues and greens.
And I finished off with a few dots of Nuvo's Jewel Drops ...... they look like real water bubbles.

There's a great prize for the Challenge Winner ...... this wonderful stamp set designed by our very own Donna Gray

Thank you to the team at Blank Page Muse for that.
And don't forget we'll also have a Design Winner chosen by the DT.  They get their winning design published in the Craft Stamper magazine, along with a winner's profile on the Blog, and the chance to be a Guest Designer on a future challenge.
To be in with a chance of winning either prize follow the challenge guidelines and get your entries in!

Happy stamping!

EDITED:  Ooops ..... forgot to do this bit this morning.

I'm also linking up my card to this month's CAS Watercolour Challenge where the theme is ... Something Blue.  I think my mermaid fits the bill.

It's workshop weekend tomorrow, so I'm off now to finish all the final prep.  It's going to be a fun one, we're playing with floating die cut frames inspired by the lovely Jennifer McGuire.  Lots of stamping, colouring, and die cutting ....... should be a quiet afternoon!!

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

Cheerio until next time .......

Products used:
Stamps: Lovely Legs - Be a Mermaid (Colorado Craft Company)
Inks: Versafine Clair - Nocturne; Brilliance Multi-Color ink pad Peacock; Spectrum Noir Sparkle Glitter Ink - Moonstone
Others: ZIG Clean Color Brush Markers; Jewel Drops - Sea Breeze (Nuvo)

CAS Christmas cards ......

Happy weekend .....

I hope you're having a good one.  So far we've done nothing ....... it's been wonderful!
No early morning starts ...... no dashing off into town with a list as long as my arm, and no plans made at all ..... makes a nice change.

I'm playing along with the current CAS Christmas Card Challenge today ...... I think there's still a couple of days left before the deadline.

It's all about Poinsettias this month ....... my favourite festive bloom.
I buy one every year and try my best to keep it alive for as long as I can.  You see, I'm not very good with plants ....... so, it's lucky if it makes it to New Year's Eve!  (I also have a fake one as a back up!!)
Anyway, enough about my not so green fingers ..... here's my card .....

Very CAS ....... lots of white space ...... minimal layers/embellishment ...... OK maybe not so minimal on the layers but, I wanted to really frame the pretty poinsettia.

I stamped the image (Perfect Poinsettia from Honey Doo Crafts) and heat embossed in gold and then coloured it using ZIG markers, blending the shades with a little water

I then die cut part of the image using a stitched square die and added a couple of layers of pain white cardstock to frame the image and make it 'pop' before mounting it in the centre of a square card.

A simple sentiment stamped and embossed underneath was all it needed

I did add a few dots of glitter glue to the centre of the flower, just for a touch of sparkle ...... well,  we all like a bit of sparkle at Christmas don't we!

That's another one for the festive box.

Thanks for popping by .... enjoy the rest of your weekend.
I've been having a bit of a tidy up in the old craft room ...... so far I've done all my stencils, my embossing powders and glitters (how did I get so many!!)  My MDF stash is looking so neat and tidy along with the basket that holds all my mixed media gels and mediums (it's quite a large basket!) 
My Distress inks are all sorted ..... making room for the new set of oxides which are on their way (excited or what!!)  And I even made a start on my dies ....... all the big ones are done anyway.
Next on the list are all the thin metal dies, and the stamp sets that have matching dies .... that's going to be fun!  It should keep me busy next week.

Time for another coffee I think.

Cheerio until next time ......

Something new from Happy Little Stampers ........ 'Spotlight on .......... '

Happy Thursday ......

It's almost the weekend .... not sure where the rest of the week went though!!  It's been a bit of a busy one but, I don't seem to have got very far.  At least the sun is still shining though .... for now.

There's something new going on over on the Happy Little Stampers Blog.  Each month, starting with July,  Kylie is going to be putting the Spotlight on one of the fabulous HLS stamp sets, and if any of the DT have got that particular set in their collection then we can join in with the showcase.

To start things off this month's Spotlight is on ....... the super cute Whimsical Friends

I love the little birds in this set, they're so much fun ......

Perfect for fun, CAS designs, suitable for many different occasions, and they're even great for those men in our lives

They can be any colour you like ....... I've used ZIG markers to colour these little guys in .....

With a touch of shimmer on their tails from a Stardust Gel Pen ....

One of the sentiments from the same stamp set ..... with a few added words from my stamp stash

And plenty of ink splatters to finish off .....

Use them on your die cuts too ...... they're a great size

Now this isn't a challenge post but, if you do have this stamp set and fancy giving it an outing you can always link up to the NEVER ENDING Challenge using HLS stamps, or .... if you fancy getting hold of this fun set then just click HERE and pop over to the Happy Little Stampers store.

Happy Stamping!

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

Cheerio until next time .....

How does your garden grow ......

Happy weekend .......

Well .... that's the first week of 2018 over .... it wasn't so bad.
Back to normal now though .... the tree and all the decorations are down and put away for another year, and the house is nearly tidy but hey! ..... I'm not too bothered about all that, seeing as we're moving again at the beginning of February! I'll be starting to pack boxes again soon ...... whoopee!!
There's never a dull moment at the Walmsley's ....... life is always an adventure.

I've got another Blog challenge for you this evening .... it's the turn of the Happy Little Stampers Mixed Media challenge

As you can see, the theme is ...... GARDEN
Now I'm not much of a gardener myself ...... I can't even keep a cactus alive!  But .....I do love a nice garden, that's why I usually pay someone else to look after it.
For the last three years we haven't actually had a garden as such because we've been in the centre of Douglas .... we have had the rather large square outside though which has been lovely .... all the benefits, none of the work.
When we move though, that will change.  There's a huge garden at the new place, with a patio area to put garden furniture, and I think it gets the sun all afternoon.  Better start looking for that gardener!

Anyway ..... back to the challenge.  One of the lovely things from a garden are the beautiful blooms that grow ......

I used the large bloom from the HLS Especially for You set, stamped it a few times onto white cardstock and then fussy cut the flowers, before colouring each one using ZIG Markers

The background is the faux wood grain technique.  There's a great step by step tutorial over on the Snippets Blog by Karen Dunbrook.  Check it out and give this a go ..... it's so much fun.

It's a really easy technique to do and depending on what colour of Distress Ink you use, you will get a different looks ..... I've used Weather Wood on mine.

Simply apply PVA glue onto a piece of white cardstock.  Don't cover the card completely, and apply the glue in lines, down the card.  This gives the best wood effect when the ink is applied.
When the glue is dry, turn the card over and score down the card at quarter or half inch intervals, depending on the size of your finished card (I think mine are quarter inch)

Turn back to the glue side of the card and apply Distress Ink ...... rub the ink directly from the pad down the cardstock.  You will begin to see where the glue was ...... continue applying the ink until you get the finish you are looking for.  I used just the one colour here, but you can use as many as you like .... depends on the look you want.

I attached the flowers over the top .... some flat and some with foam pads for dimension ....

A simple stamped sentiment ......

and a few dots of glossy accents finish everything off.

I also added a couple of the flowers to the inside of the card ......

How will you interpret the challenge theme? I can't wait to see.

There's a prize for the challenge winner ..... a $20 Gift Certificate to spend in the HLS store and .... if the winner (randomly chosen) has used HLS stamps on their winning project then the prize will be doubled!!
You might want to check out the HLS store ...... Kylie has been busy designing and there's some fabulous new stamp sets available for pre-order.  There's an amazing offer on them too .... if you order all six sets then there's 20% off the price! 

Thanks for popping by ..... enjoy the rest of your weekend.
I'm off to grab a take away, put my feet up, and catch up on some TV.  No G&T tonight though, not even a small glass of wine ..... I've decided I'm having a dry January.
So far it's been sparkling water with my lunch out yesterday, and then just a Fever Tree Aromatic tonic with ice and pink grapefruit when we popped into the Prospect.
Hubby is trying too ..... although he's going for more of a damp January rather than dry ..... no will power!!

Cheerio until next time ......

Little Monsters ......

Happy Thursday ......

Finally I'm feeling a little better today .... throat's still sore but at least my appetite is coming back!

I've got another challenge for you today ...... the STAMPlorations CAS Card Challenge

The theme is Anything Goes ...... it has to be CAS (Clean and Simple) though, and as always there is an optional colour twist.  To get 2018 started we've gone with ....... SILVER

I've got a little fun design for you this time ..... perfect for all our little monsters!

I've used both the Big Monsters stamp set (for the sentiment), and the Little Monsters for the cute little monster robot

I stamped and heat embossed the sentiment in silver onto a piece of white card ......

Stamped the little monster onto a seperate piece of card, heat embossed again in silver and then fussy cut him (or her)

I added some colour using ZIG markers and then attached him to the card just above the sentiment.
I used a small piece of folded acetate that acts like a spring so that the monster actually moves

A few stamped accents from the Little Monsters set add a little more detail to the background, along with a few splatters of gold and silver ink ......

The piece of card was edged with a silver pen before attaching it to the front of a 7x5 inch cardblank, and I had to add another little monster to the inside too ....

Now it's over to you ...... Happy Stamping!

You can find all the challenge details on the HERE on the STAMPlorations blog along with more CAS inspiration from the rest of the Design Team.

Don't forget there's still time to grab a bargain in the STAMPlorations New Year Sale, check out the website for all the details.

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

I'm starting to feel a little better today, thank goodness.  The bug is on it's way out I think .... I hope!
I've finally made a start on taking all the Christmas decorations down.  The kitchen, the dining area, the hallways and the doors are all done.  Just the tree to do now ..... this could take a while!

Cheerio until next time ......

Friends ......

Hello again .......

Happy New Year to all you Happy Little Stampers.
I've been feeling sorry for myself all day, curled up on the sofa with the remote control and a good book.  At least the lergy waited until after the celebrations before knocking me off my feet ... thanks for that!! 

But ..... the show must go on as they say.   Blog challenges to launch.   It's time to get the Happy Little Stampers CAS (Clean And Simple) Challenge underway.

So .... what exactly is CAS? Well .........

I love CAS but, it can sometimes be one of the hardest looks to create.

January's challenge theme is all about ........ Friendship 

I think the words say it all .... don't you.
This is one of my favourite stamps from Inkylicious, teamed with the cute little Penny Black froggy's.

I stamped the frogs onto smooth white cardstock and coloured them using ZIG markers .....

I stamped the sentiment directly underneath .......

and added just a touch of glitter to the water

There's even a little guy on the inside .....

There's a prize for the challenge winner ...... a $20 Gift Certificate to spend in the store.  Check out all the details HERE
And ......  new for 2018 ...... if our winner has used HLS Stamps, then the prize will be DOUBLED!!!

Happy stamping!

If you're a keen HLS follower you'll have seen that there are a few new names on the various Challenge teams ..... welcome to all the new Design Team members, you're going to love it here!

Thanks for popping by ........ enjoy the rest of your day/evening
It's PJ time for me, a hot drink and an early night I think.

Cheerio until next time ......