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

Staying at home ......

Happy Friday ......

Not sure what to say really.  It's been nearly two weeks since I blogged and since then the whole world has changed so much ..... it's scary!

I hope you're all safe and well, that you're able to get what you need and that you're coping with social distancing as best you can. 
Our little island is now in lockdown with only essentials available.  It's so quiet .... we haven't really been anywhere in the last two weeks except to shop for a little bit of food, and we nipped to the garden centre yesterday.  Not really an essential purchase I suppose but we needed a lawn mower ...... our gardener, bless him, can't work so hubby is going to have to do it.  At least it's excercise!

We're doing OK ..... hubby's working from home although that means I don't get much done. 
We haven't seen the kids properly in two weeks expect for video calls ...... Mother's Day was tough, I think it was the first one ever that we hadn't all been together. 
The 'party' on Tuesday night was interesting ..... a four way video call at one point, with us all in our homes watching YouTube and drinking wine!!  The headache on Wednesday wasn't great!  And then Lauren did pop by the other day ....... we had a coffee in the garden, me at one end of the patio and her at the other! It's all very strange.

My crafting is suffering too at the moment ....... I don't know about you but, I just can't seem to settle.  I think my mojo is keeping it's distance.  My craft room is feeling very neglected.  Hopefully normal service will resume shortly.
I thought I would have a change today see if that helped ........ I'm in the motorhome!
I've had my lunch,  caught up with Facebook and emails and now I'm blogging!

Well ...... Remi's been sat on the drive since we brought him home, poor thing so I thought I'd spend some time in here.  It seems to have paid off ....... I've actually got a few things done so I might be in here more often you never know.
One thing I've done is my monthly Brand Ambassador post on the Uniko Studio Blog.  If CAS floral designs are your thing then pop over and take a look.

Thanks for stopping by ...... enjoy the rest of your day and have a nice weekend.
It looks like the weathers being kind at the moment so maybe our new lawn mower will get it's first use.  Might even fill the hot tub too ........ #socialdistancinginthesun

Take care everyone ..... stay safe.  We will beat this!

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)

Is Perfectly CAS your style? .......

Hello there ......

Me again!  I hope you're having a nice day. 
It's been raining all day here, not very nice at all ...... poor Remi (motorhome) is getting wet!!!

Anyway, it's time to get the next Perfectly CAS Challenge underway ...... you know the one, where we want you to create CAS cards using only one third (or less) of the space on your card

This month the challenge is to use Die Cuts .......

CAS ..... using the top third of my card ....... with a cute little die cut scene.

I cut a piece of white card to measure 7x5 inches,  and then used a die to cut the cute little scene across the top

I added a little colour using Distress Inks, and stamped my sentiment underneath.

Onto the actual cardblank I sponged some fluffy clouds in the sky across the top, using Distress Inks and a handmade stencil ......

and then I attached the die cut panel over the top using foam tape for dimension.

Thanks for popping by ..... enjoy the rest of your weekend.
We've got the little man overnight so it's pizza and a movie for us I think.

Cherio until next time ......

Products used:
Stamps: Sentiment stamps from a freebie set (sorry not sure which one!)
Inks: Distress Inks - Tumbled Glass, Peeled Paint, Fired Brick; Versafine Clair - Paradise (to stamp the sentiment)
Other: Stitched Spring Landscape Die (CUTp;lorations by STAMPlorations)

Uniko Brand Ambassador Blog Hop & Giveaway .......

Good morning .......

Happy weekend! I hope you have a good one.

Because there are no new releases coming from Uniko this month, Bev and the Brand Ambassadors are having a Blog Hop today.   We're featuring the gorgeous Pure Florals - Gerbera stamp set.

I do love this set ...... it's full of beautiful, large blooms, in both solid images,  so if you're not that keen on colouring in your stamped images, you can stamp the flowers using different coloured inks. You also get the outline images which allows you to colour using markers, pencils, inks, whatever is your favourite. You also get some great words and sentiments in the set too.

I've used the outline stamps to create my card ...... simply stamped in black ink and then coloured using Distress Ink and a water brush.

I also used the stamp on a piece of co-ordinating coloured card, stamping with a similar colour of ink and masking the flowers as I stamped, to create a pretty all over design .....

I attached the stamped coloured panel to the front of my cardblank.
I die cut the bottom of the white panel using a stitched edge die, and attached that over the top adding a cute little twine bow

I stamped my sentiment and finished with a few dots of Nuvo Crystal Drops.

As with all the Uniko Blog Hops, there is a Giveaway.  To be in with a chance of winning this gorgeous stamp set all you have to do is visit the blogs in the hop and leave a comment ...... simple.
You've got until midnight (GMT) on the 22nd of March. 
Your next stop on the blog hop is the lovely Rahmat ........ Happy Hopping!

Thanks for popping by ..... enjoy the rest of your day and have a lovely weekend.
Mine's going to be spent playing with our new toy I think.  Getting to know the motorhome a little better .... in other words reading all the manuals that came with it!!

Cheerio until next time ......

Products used:
Stamps: Pure Florals - Gerbera (Uniko)
Inks: Versafine Clair - BlueBelle, Nocturne; Distress Ink - Mermaid Lagoon
Other: Fancy Stitched Edge Die (CUTplorations by STANMPlorations); Nuvo Crystal Drops, White twine