TSC10: Blue and Brown and at least one Stampsmith Stamp

This is my contribution to the current challenge at Stampsmith. I just adore this set of stamps: "Life is a Balancing Act": both for the images themselves but also for the truism of the words.

This tag has combined some drawing and painting to set the background. The acrobat is pieced to give a little more definition and set slightly proud of the paper to give extra dimension. I too am rather partial to the blue/brown combination.

Wendy Vecchi Group: 1 Stamp Set Tag

There is now a group called Everything Wendy Vecchi Yahoo Group, which I discovered by reading Hels' blog.

This weeks challenge is to make a tag using just one of Wendy's stamp sets. I can never remember the names of sets but this is the one I used. All these elements did come from only one set.

I joined, as I have a few of her stamp sets and 1 of her books, no 2. I wanted to use the stamps more and felt this was the perfect solution. I do like the results from her stamps and gives a different look from some of the other things I make.

The challenges may well be taken from her books so there are probably some challenges I will not have access to until I buy more of the books?  I shall have to wait and see?

Artistic Stamper: Spring has Sprung

Watch out, watch out

Kitty's about!

I do hope 2 Sticks are safe from Kitty? I would hate to loose these 2 fellows.

This is similar to another recent make but I have made changes too. It just makes me smile seeing 2 Sticks jumping with springs. This time I have added hair which is shooting upwards as they jump.

I was re reading the recent TH word stamps and felt this one was absolutely perfect for this scene.

I am entering this into the March Artistic Stamper Challenge. Hope you all enjoy and brings a smile to your face.

Sunday Stamper : Brown

The Sunday Stamper ,over on Hels' blog, this weeks challenge is based on the song Brown Eyed Girl, hence the colour brown. I decided to go through my stamps which I had not used for a while and came up with this teasel head. I enjoy seed heads such as these. I think it is their structure and distressed quality I am drawn to especially when they are quite dry.

I coloured a stamboard with Old Paper ink and the edges with Brushed Corduroy. The stamp itself is quite a lot longer so I selected the area I wanted and laid a piece of Stampboard over the section of the stamp I wanted once it had been inked up with Sepia ink. I further scratched into it with a scratchy tool, to give further definition. Then it had its edges sanded so it looked more like a tile. Out came the TH papers and the piece was layered up and edges distressed and inked. The frame was sanded back and a very light application of Bronze paint was added.

SDC26: Animal, Insect or Birds

The challenge this week at Stampotique is not limited to using their stamps. So I have taken this opportunity in using an Artistic Outpost stamp instead. Both Stampotique and Artistic Outpost stamps are available from Happy Daze and The Stamp Attic in the UK

I have made this card to say a big Thank You to a special friend. Rather embarrassingly a bit belated but I wanted to make something rather special for her. I hope she likes it. This is for you Ali. It is in the post.

Simon Says: Metal

Just playing this afternoon and came up with "Hope"

I thought I would enter her into Simon Says since I have used metal for her cart and her hanger headdress.

Just a bit of fun!

Sunday Stamper : Mother Nature

This week for the Sunday Stamper I have made a collage of papers for the background of a tag. I used off cuts from other projects so it also incorporates recycling. I really liked these grungy nature colours together, so I am pleased with the result. As for the little inchie of a wren; this is on a piece of stampboard that has first been lightly coloured with Scattered Straw and rubbed off to give a very pale colour. Then weathered wood was applied through sequin waste. Most of the ink was taken off first to give a pale background. Finally the wren was stamped.

I love little Jenny Wrens. I find they are very recognizable with their little pert tails always pointing upwards. Tiny, shy little birds but i always feel honoured when I see one. There used to be one in our garden, before it became more built up behind us. She made a nest just behind John's forge in the stone wall of the barn. She would fly in and out of the nest to feed her young and was not at all bothered about John banging about with metal by the forge. Perfect for Mother Nature!

Play Date Cafe-Challenge-pdcc71

The Play Date Cafe this week has a splash of colour. I decided to play with my new Claudine Hellmuth stamp duos and stamp them onto fabric with acrylic paint. Then I put some wadding behind and added some free machine stitching on top.  Created this tag with various embossing folders and voila! Clean and simple but a bit of fun.

Art Journey Challenge #7- You Used WHAT??!!

You used WHAT????

I am sure you can guess!
Corrugated card, painted with acrylic and stamped, twice with contrasting colours. The tissue paper back, background is double stamped lightly with bubble wrap.

I have used 3 Art journey stamps. Film Boy, which I just adore, hope and a ring binder edge. I have used free motion stitching so that the stitches are not regular and also mended a tear in the tissue paper with stitching which I think is rather fun.

This challenge was set by Jo Capper-Sandon for Art Journey. I encourage you to take a look. See what you can come up with for unusual backgrounds.

Sunday Stamper: Parisian Walkways

The theme this week with Sunday Stampers is Parisian Walkways
I decide to create 3 grungy Parisian tags using TH's stamps as they reminded me of luggage tags. There is the Moulin Rouge, the Eiffel Tower of course and a bumbling vintage car, as the map behind is French. I like to think the map is from the outskirts of Paris with the car travelling towards Paris.

SDC25: Faux Barnwood Technique (Group 4)

The challenge this time at Stmpotique is to use the faux barn door technique of distress. I have used this once before and I rather like the effect it gives. There are links to details of how to do it on the Stampotique site.

I have used a couple of stamps from Stampotique which were designed by Jo Capper-Sandon. As the bees are obviously collecting nectar I have teamed them up with the flower stamp and added the words Sweet Dreams are made of this which I felt were more than appropriate for nectar collecting.

Get to Work with Gingersnaps

This week on Gingersnaps the theme is "Get to Work".
I have had this wicked stamp for awhile and it felt just right for this challenge. I loved the image of the woman from a certain age rushing to get to work, especially during this age it was fairly unusual for women to work particularly in professional roles. She certainly looks like a professional woman and a bit of an eccentric, which I tend to love. I could enjoy sharing a drink with her.

See what modes of transport you can come up with for this challenge.

2 Things I love

Well 2 things I love are 2 Sticks and Scraplings so what a perfect opportunity to combine the 2. So here is my contribution to the Stampotique Challenge 24 Valentine or Love.

I am also entering this into The Stampman Challange, Hearts Theme, as I love its clean fresh simplicity and it makes me smile each time I look at it.

Hope you enjoy!

Crowns with Gingersnaps

I have not been posting much just recently as I have been busy completing 2 fabric items for an exhibition. A fabric picture and a fabric book. I will share them with you in time. I just find I am chasing my tail just at the moment and am trying to catch up.

This is my make for Crowns with Gingersnaps and I have used the Queen of Life. I have cut her crown from some gold metal and also one for one of her cherubs. The other has a more playful princess hat for her crown. The background has been made using  my acrylic inks. 

There are some great makes by the other designers and players. Hop over and take a look and hope you find time to play along too!

Circles with Tag Tuesday

Art Begins with a Vision

This is my circle tag for Tag Tuesday. The words are on some card I had painted which also included Moonglow inks. These have created a sheen which the light is now bouncing off and the words do not show up too well in the photograph, so I have titled this piece so the words can be read. I have continued playing with paints and inks to create the background to this tag. I have also adhered some die cut circles from the same card as the lettering has been stamped on to. 

Card Positioning Challenge with Stampotique

There is a sketch challenge on the go at the moment with Card Positioning Systems  combined  with Stampotique. Well I just had to play along. 

This is the sketch to work from. So I rotated it and this was my interpretation on the theme. The little fellow  in the window felt like the typical teenager, not cool to show enthusiasm, so he is there saying "Whatever..."

T

Stampotique Orange and Turquoise

This is my Turquoise and Orange contribution to the current Stampotique Challenge. I must admit they are colours I am rather partial to so it suited me just fine. It also allowed me to continue using my acrylic inks to create the background papers. and my 2 most favourite Martha Stewart punches.

I adore 2 sticks and find that they are just so versatile. These colours are so spring like I just had to have them jumping for joy amongst Jo Capper-Sandon's flower stamp, at the thought of winter coming to an end.

New Art Swap at Gingersnaps

There is a new art exchange started over on Gingersnaps and the theme is to combine coasters or beer mats with hearts. This is one I created to start you off. There are more details over on the Gingersnap site so hop over and take a look. It would be fabulous if people felt they could join in. The more the merrier. There are 2 posting options. A US address and a UK address. So there is no need to post over the Atlantic. You just need to make 4 coasters all different, join the Gingersnap Creations Yahoo Group and apply by April 1st. (More fool you if you don't join in, as it is April Fools day, LOL)  

Welcome Fantastic Stampotique Design Team!

I have used the Stampotique Quail cube for my creation to welcome the new Stampotique design team. What an awesome team. Wow!

 I love these Quail birds. They are so sweet and full of character. I love their quiffs as well. The way in which I have used them felt as if they were greeting each other with a French welcome kiss on each cheek. So I created a card using the Welcome sign cut out of the door stamp which I hung above them.

I have recently been playing around with acrylic inks to create my own backgrounds. I am thoroughly enjoying this process.

I liked the card so much I decided to upgrade it and I had the perfect frame in which to place it after distressing and painting and rubbing and painting etc, until I was happy with the look. And because the quails are kissing in welcome I added the Mwah! stamp and added 3 golden kisses by the side, which I gilded

So here is the upgraded card!

Tag Tuesday: Valentines

This is my Valentine tag for Kard Krazy and the Tag Tuesday Challenge. I created a sewn and stuffed heart to apply to the tag which had been coloured with various media such as Moonglow inks, acrylic inks and various sprays like glimmer mist. I was rather pleased with it as I like the combination of fabric, sewing and paper.

Winter Distress

Tag Tuesday theme this week is Winter and The Stamp Man Challenge is Distress. I decided to combine the two this time. Something I don't usually do. I had a good old play with this one. I used Adirondack spray misters onto thick water paper. Once dry I cut out the Tim Holtz die snowman and further splattered it with white paint. I have had some Tattered Angel embellishments that was a give away for sometime, and for once I actually remembered the appropriate adornments at the right time from the room of stash. and actually found them!

These were given the Tim Holtz distress ink covering and further blitzed with Tattered Angel sprays. The icicles also had white acrylic paint added to the points.

PDCC 65: Quentin Blake: The BFB

At the Play Date Cafe this week the inspiration is an illustration by Quentin Blake. I just love his drawings and what is even more magical is that he illustrated many of the Roald Dahl stories. So my inspiration turned to the two of them. This is a tribute to them both. Here we have the BFB rather than the BFG. Yes you have got it. "The Big Friendly Bird". I hope you enjoy my quirky sense of humour.

This was the colour inspiration to work with.

Try it on Tuesday: Robbie Burns

The theme this week on Try it on Tuesday is to incorporate some poetry into your make. So I have added these very famous lines from Robbie Burns. As I made a tag I decided to just add the first line and the most quoted.

Tea Bags: Gingersnaps

The challenge this week over on Gingersnaps is Tea Bags. There is a template you can use but I decided to make my own wallet that could be used to carry tea bags of your choice around in your handbag. It is along the lines of a matchbook but resized for tea bags. There are some fabulous examples on the blog to get you started. Hop along and take a look preferably whilst sipping a cup of tea.

Stampotique Masking Challenge

This is my make for the Stampotique Masking Challenge. The stars are gilded with gold leaf and the words and mushroom masked so they show up better. I just love Moongirl sitting on these mushrooms, and the words are just such a wonderful thought.

Tuesday Taggers: It's a Man's World

What a fine piece of work is David. Perfect for a tag about men! I love this stamp but have not used it much so it was great to get it out and put it to use. I rather like the scale of the face sitting on this tag, it really brings him out as the focal point. This is my contribution to Tuesday Taggers: It's a Man's World

Tag Tuesday : A Bit of Fabric

Here is my contribution for this weeks Tag Tuesday : A Bit of Fabric.

I have created a leaf print by hammering it onto fabric. I did this in the autumn when they were turning colour. I do find them rather beautiful. I stitched this onto a tag with the words "amour" pasted above. The lace is old and which I had previously space dyed.

Clean and simple.

Sunday Stamper: Diamonds

This is my contribution to the theme "Diamonds" with the Sunday Stamper. I revisited one of Hels' workshops I attended with this make, combine embossed metal with a plaque base. As it was Hels' challenge I felt it was appropriate to embrace her process and to share the fact that I did take away with me the techniques she showed us. But I did maybe cheat, if you see it as that. I cuttlebuged the metal instead of working it with tools.

Coffee Filters with Gingersnaps

I completely forgot to post this yesterday for the Gingersnap Challenge!

The coffee filters that I had in the cupboard were this shape. I was not prepared to buy others. And then it came to me that they actually looked like little bags. So I created a little bag. This one is actually an invite to Come for Coffee.

I thought it was a pretty neat idea.

Another Calendar!

Here is another calendar I have made from the "Relish Reading" plate from Rogue Readheads. All I have done is to replace her book with a cuppa as I felt  it went with the words well and to give the stamp a new twist. Have a hop over to the site. It is unbelievable how many different things have been created from this one stamp set. Truly amazing!

Tag Tuesday

This is the tag I have made for Tag Tuesday where a bit of mosaic somewhere on the tag was to appear. Mine is the stamped and coloured background.

It has been awhile since I have joined in this challenge, but now SCD has finished, at least for the time being, I seem to have a little more time to join in other challenges. Hence this tag about time and to say to Carol at SCD, well done for listening to your heart. It is always important.

Sunday Stamper and Charms and Men

I have made this tag for  Hel's Sunday Stamper which was to create something under the title "Charms and Men" The images are certainly men orientated...like the word orientated? links with journey, arrows and cars. I have used some metal embellishments as I thought they would be manly enough as charms. And of course the lucky button and ribbon.

Gingersnaps

Gingersnaps first challenge of the year is Hot Beverages. I love this saying as it is how I start every single day. From the very first sip of fresh coffee I can feel my body waking, tingling from my toes up. I just love that first coffee in the morning.

There are loads of creations on the site this week.I think everyone was eager to start creating again and wanted to start the year of full of energy and motivation. Take a look at the great variety of Hot Beverages.

Happy New Year Coffee Filter Bag

This is a new idea. A random quilted coffee filter bag with collage front with a Happy New Year Tag tucked inside. Just playing around this morning. The handle is crotched twine. There is actual wadding between 2 coffee filters with another to make up the back of the bag after. Hope you enjoy it.

Rogue Redhead starts the New Year

How about this idea to start the New Year with? A handy little date reminder that could be hanging up to remind you to live your life to the full. These are some of the Rogue Redhead stamps from the plate Relish Reading. They are available to see and to buy from the Rogue Redhead blog where there is a link to the Etsy shop.  Follow the link and see loads more ideas of things to make from the stamp sheet.

The Stampman Blog Hop

I have been looking over many of the makes from last year. It was hard to choose my favourite but I think it will have to be this one.

It is an item I made for last years One Heart One World mega blog hop to give away. I really enjoyed making it and it houses some of my favourite stamps on the frame and the wonderful Book of Life in the middle which is triple embossed to create a tile effect.

I really enjoyed last years blog hop with The Stampman so I am looking forward to being part of this years. So here is my contribution.

The Stampman Anything Goes Tag

For The Stampman - "Anything Goes Tag" I have decide to submit this Noel Tag on the lines of one of the Tim Holtz tags from last year. I hope you enjoy it.

Merry Christmas Tag

This is the last week of tags with SCD this year. We will be having a short break over Christmas to be back with vigor in the New Year. Another year sped by. So I think this tag is self explanatory and just to wish you all a very Merry Christmas and thank all of you for playing with us at SCD. It has been great to share all the artwork that has been created. I will just let you know that I will not be leaving comments for this challenge until after Christmas but I promise to catch up then.

Have a good one!

Die Cuts and 3 Colours

I am entering this make into 2 challenges. The first is a Christmas theme with The Stampman where you are to use 3 colours. Mine are red, green and gold.

Secondly I am entering it for the Stampotique challenge which is to use die cuts and punches.My die cut is the tree, the star and the reindeer. The punch I used is a hole punch which I used on metallic red card to create the baubles on the tree.

I rather liked the double meaning of the word Noel. Noel for Christmas and obviously it must be the elf's name as well.

The Magi

  

You know when you make something and although it is very simple it just brings you joy. Well this little tag is it. I don't know why it satisfies me so much but it does. I have given the Magi, the three kings, a printed acetate overlay that had to include the words "Time for Love". If you did not already recognize these little figures, it is a Stampotique stamp called 2 sticks. Ok I had to stamp one a second time to get 3 and then added crowns to make them into kings. The background, a paper scrap, left over from some Cosmic Shimmer, Glimmer mist paper I had created previously reminded me of the sands they may well have crossed while following the Star that led the way.

Looking forward to visiting your Christmas Characters this week at *SCD*  and see who you create. As ever the design team have some fab examples to start you off. Follow that star and take a look.

White Glitter with Gingersnaps

Gingersnaps this week the challenge is to use White Glitter. I decide to use my white glitter as snow and stamped this snowy scene to add it to. I love the way it actually looks as if the snow is falling from the sky.
As you may have discovered it is quite tricky to photograph white glitter to show its qualities. Photographing at a slight angle may help to catch dimension or sparkle? Try it. See how you get on. Any tips please share. I have also included a close up which may show it better.

Bling Bling Christmas Morning!

This is my contribution to the Stampotique challenge to use a bit of bling. I decided to depict Christmas morning with Moon Girl dressed in gold with her gold crown on her head. Moon Girl has a crystal gem on her heart front. Neither her crown or her gem have shown up too well in the photo. The moon is gold leaf. The present have been coloured with sparkly Sakura pens and a touch of puffy snow added to the scene.

Book Plate from the Relish Reading plate.

Here is another idea for using this stamp sheet, "Relish Reading". As you can see by all the makes on the Rogue Rehead Design blog it really does lend itself to so many makes. I thought this may be a nice addition when giving a book to someone to make it even more personal. Perfect for Christmas or Birthdays or just those giving days.

Tags and Trees with SCD

A new month and a new challenge at SCD this week. Artyjen, Sioux, has chosen Trees which may be interpreted seasonally or not, as you choose. I decided to do seasonal and have added presents and the snow flake border. All the team have created some wonderful tags. Sioux has created the most wonderful tag which reminds me of Narnia. It is so lush. It just transports me into the book.

I am sure you will create some wonderful tags. Can't wait to take a peep.