Skull and Crossbones

My new Tim Holtz Components Skull stamp arrived this morning, just in time to make a birthday card for my nephew. I stamped it onto K&Co Antiquity Tan Parchment DP in Saddle Brown StazOn. The sentiment (Hero Arts Anytime Messages) was stamped the same. They were then mounted onto pale blue card. The Denim DP is from Me & My Big Ideas, run through the Cuttlebug with the Houndstooth folder, again backed with pale blue. I made a pale blue square card and topped it with DP downloaded from the Canon Inkjet site. I finished it off by adding a button to the sentiment.
I am entering it in the following challenges:
Cooking It Up With Katie - brown, checks and boys card
Papertake Weekly - Just one (one button)
Sketch and Stash - I used my brand new Tim Holtz stamp

Colour Horribilis' Challenge

Over on The Playdate Cafe they are having a Colour Horribilis Challenge. You have to use the colours Navy Blue, Hot Pink and Mustard! Well, how could I resist, LOL. I made a square card blank with Navy card and then topped it with a square of mustard card that I had run through the Cuttlebug using the Script folder. I stamped the flower images (Paper Artsy Petals Plate 2 for the large image and Paper Artsy Asian Plate 4 for the smaller images) and the sentiment (Stampscapes) in Midnight blue StazOn onto pink card, then mounted them onto Navy card. I used the sketch from PolkaDoodles who also challenge you to use only 3 colours.

All sentimental

Its ages since I did a Z-fold card and I decided to make this for my daughter's birthday tomorrow. I used a Fiskars Emboss and Punch to edge the top of the card (A Dozen Roses), then added Paper Mania Amethyst Infusion DP to each panel. The sentiment is a stamp called Just for Today and the only thing I know about it is its got the identity number K-230 on the packaging (if anyone knows who the stamp is by I'd love to know). I stamped it onto some bg card I had made with Versacolour Wild Berries ink pad, squirted with water and hen sprayed with Tattered Rose Glimmer Mist, cut it with Nestabilities Labels Ten (and matted it with the same Nestie), then added some Debbie Moore pearls. The butterflies were cut and embossed from the same bg card using Cuttlebug Butterflies, and again more Debbie Moore pearls added. I can't believe my baby will be 26 tomorrow, LOL.

I am entering my card in the following challenges:

Craft Your Days Away - with wings (butterflies)

Lexi's Creations - Emboss it (embossed butterflies)

Pollycraft Monday Challenge - Add a little nature to your card (butterflies)

One Stop Craft Challenge - How Sentimental (sentiment)

Scraplings

I have joined in my first swap at Gingersnap Creations. For this swap you have to make Scraplings which are made using the strip of card left over from making a square card out of an A4 piece of card. You also had to use paint samples on your little cards.
For my first scrapling I used a Paper Artsy Stamp from the Wings Plate 3 over some purple paint chips. The second one was using Hot Off the Press Botanicals which were stamped onto pink paint chips and then paper pieced (using more of the pink paint chips) and I then added punched flowers and pearls.
Number 3 Scrapling was using a stamp from the All Night Media Japanese stamp set. I kept the words on the paint chips as they were appropriate. I also coloured the flowers on her dress with white gel pen and added a little bit of silver border. The last one (my favourite, lol) uses Tim Holtz Components, Vogue stamp over cream paint chips. I added a bit of paper measuring tape, a scrap of material with a safety pin and a button.

Video Inspiration - Crafty Cardmakers Challenge 28

This week over at Crafty Cardmakers the challenge is Video Inspiration with a video by Lady Gaga. Our sponsor this week is Susie Sugar from Die Cut Dreams who is offering some fab die cuts. It's a great video and gave me loads of ideas. I decided to go with White and Silver for my card cos they are favourites of mine. And of course I had to have a bit of bling! I started with a square card blank, then added some star sequin-waste down one side. I embossed a piece of white card using the Cuttlebug Star Folder. Then I coloured a Papermania heart brad with a silver marker and topped it with some bling and then threaded some irridescent silver cord through it and added it to one side of the card, then layered it on siver card. The swirls are cut using a Sizzix die (Decorative Flourishes) with (yep) a bit more bling. The word and crown (Sizzix Man Oh Man and Cuttlekids dies) should have been cut in PVC but I didn't have any so I tripple embossed them with UTEE to make them shine.

I am entering it in the following challenges:

My Time to Craft - Glitter and Glitz

Totally Gorjuss - Star

One Stitch at a Time - Say it with Shapes

Creative Card Crew - Sparkle and Shine

Blues and Greens

Oh I have had fun with this. I started with Soft Goth Night from Sweet Pea stamps and coloured her with Distress Inks (Tattered Rose, Spun Sugar, Shabby Shutters, Crushed Olive, Wild Honey and Tumbled Glass), adding a bit of Sakura Stardust to the moon. then cut and mounted her onto pale blue card The circle background is painted with Sarburst Stains in Azure Seas and Sea Mint Green, then this was mounted onto pale green card that has been Cuttlebugged with the Divine Swirls folder and all then mounted onto pale blue card. The flourishes are die cut (Sizzix Decorative Flourish Set) with little pearls added and Wild Orchid roses that have been sprayed with Kiwi and Riptide Glimmer Mists. The tiny little sentiment is half of a stamp from a Penny Black set and the ribbon and pins are from my stash. I'm not saying I got messy making this but you should see the colour of my hands, LOL.

I am entering it into the following challenges:

Crafts and Me - Petals and Pearls

Sweet Pea Stampers - Swirls and Flourishes
Fussy and Fancy Friday - Sketch

Mum to the rescue

My son and his wife are currently living the life of Riley between Italy, Belgium and England. Unfortunately my son is driving his lovely wife up the wall because he keeps loosing his SIM cards (which always have credit on them) and has to buy a new one each time they change country! So Mum to the Rescue. Inspired by my friend Lucy, who made me a gorgeous Passport cover from Grungeboard, I came up with this SIM card holder. I only had Grungepaper but it worked out just fine. First I sponged it with Distress Inks (Tumbled Glass, Broken China and Fired Brick), Then I stamped inside with Stamp Attack's Crackle background and a post mark stamp from Crafty Individual in Walnut Stain. The outside I stamped with a map and camera (from Personal Impressions) and the CI Post Mark in Walnut Stain and then a Post Mark from Clear Art French Mail in Broken China. I sewed the flap up to make pockets to hold little folders for the SIM cards. I threaded ribbon through a button and eyelets to make a fastener. I hope this works!

Crafty Cardmakers Spotlight Spotlight

This week over at Crafty Cardmakers it's Spotlight week. And this week we are spotlighting the Spotlight technique where byyou highlight a small section of your card in some way. I have this great sentiment stamp that says 'You are unique' and it gave me the idea for my DT card. I stamped the Penny Black animals (from Critter Party) onto white card and then watercoloured one with Whispers Pens (and a bit of Sakura) and gave it a Nestability cut frame to Spotlight it. I backed it with blue card which has been punched with Martha Stewart Scallop Dot punch. The DP is from Papermania Venetian Skies, the blue flower from my stash and the white flower from Wild Orchid.

I am entering this card in the following challenges:

Crafty Catz Weekly Challenge - Animals

Papertake Weekly - Something old (Penny Black stamps), something new (Martha Stewart Punch), something borrowed, something blue (DP paper and card)

Simon Says - Summertime Blues

Chunky Alphabet Swap - C

Letter C turned out to be a bit Ooh La La! The background is mauve card, stamped with little stamps from See Dee's Vintage Morsels in Brilliance Pearlescent Lavender and Brilliance Graphite Black (stamped onto scrap paper first to get rid of some of the ink) and the border is from Hot Off the Press Edges and Borders and then the finished background was run through the Cuttlebug with the Textile folder. The Corset (Hampton Art Clear Expressions ATC Corsets) was stamped onto pearlescent purple card and then clear embossed, then lace was added. This was mounted onto a 'mirror' made with Nestabilities Labels Ten. The chipboard C was covered with Doodlebug Beetle Black Sugar Coating and the rose (from Wild Orchid) was

originally white but I coloured it with a felt pen and then added Sugar Coating.

Chunky Alphabet Swap - B

For my letter B page I decided to use Joanna Sheen's Blackcap stamp (from the Mushrooms Wildlife Collection). I'm glad no-one could see me working out how to do the background on my computer, lol. First I copied out the description of the bird and changed the font to grey. Then I printed it out on scrap paper and placed my stamp. Then I went back to the computer and line by line took out the words behind where the stamp would go. Then I printed it out again but this time onto watercolour paper. I'm sure there is an easier way for those who are computer literate but this worked for me! The image is coloured with Distress Inks and I also rubbed Distress Ink round the edge. The word Blackcap was printed onto acetate and then eyelets were added and the image mounted onto black card.

Chunky Alphabet Swap - A (inspired by Lynne)

My first page for the Chunky Alphabet swap was inspired by my friend Lynne. She has this amazing blog called Adorn that I'm always checking out for inspiration, so when it came to do my first letter it was easy to choose A for Adorn. My problem was trying to get 'Essence of Lynne' onto a 4 x 4 inch page!!! Of course for true Lynne I should have had vintage images, more layers, paint, beads and fabric but there just wasn't room. And although she does like a bit of pink, the shade I've gone with is a bit too bright. I stamped my DoCraft lace stamp in Brilliance Pearlescent Orchid onto cream card and also used the same ink for the Anna Griffin Filigree Alphabet A (which was also clear embossed). The frame for the letter A is made with Nestability Labels One which was then run through the Cuttlebug Swiss Dots folder and cream lace was gathered up and sewn round the edge with more sewing round the edge of the cream stamped card. All was then mounted onto pink card and the whole thing finished off with a button tied with pink ribbon, 3 rosebuds from Wild Orchid and the sentiment cut out from an old dictionary.

Out of my tree!

On one of the groups I'm on the challenge was to use scraps of paper and eyelets and I had this strange idea. I stamped the tree (an Encaustic stamp) in Distress Ink Walnut Stain and clear embossed it. Around the edge of the square of cream card I then added this pretty butterfly border (Hot off the Press Edges and Borders) in Timber Brown StazOn (I wanted to use the Distress Ink but as the stamp is polymer and new the ink went all sort of blotchy!). The leaves were cut out of scraps of Papermania Secret Garden paper with the Cuttlebug leaves die and then embossed with Forest branches and then attached to my tree with eyelets. My DD is not too sure about this card but I like it, LOL.

I'm entering it in the following challenges:

Cute Card Thursday - Tree-mendous

The Play Date Cafe - Fab colours and photo this week

Yummy

My DD asked me to make a card for her friend and this is what I came up with. I used a great digi image from Sharon B printing it out 4 times so I could decoupage it. I coloured the cake case with Whispers Pens, next layer was the pink glitter icing, and then the top layer with the white glitter icing. I just used the cherry for the last layer that I'd printed onto the pink cardstock. Finally I finished the cake with a sprinkling of beads (free from a magazine) held in place with Glossy Accents. The DP is from PaperMania Sweet Nothings and I cut my own card blank.

I am entering it into the following challenges:

Donna's Den - Something sweet

Prarie Fairy Fun Friday - Frame it in a circle

Pocket full of Posies - All that glitters

Oh La La - Spots and Dots

Oh I do like to be beside the seaside

I had an idea for a card using my shell stamp (Personal Impressions Scrapbooking Clear Stamps 27279) so I stamped it in StazOn Rusty Brown onto parchment paper and mounted it onto white card with little brads and then onto some Terracotta coloured card. I used a white card blank and added a square of cream handmade paper from PaperMania (again with brads) and then strung white seed beads between the brads.

I am entering it into the following challenges:

Playdate Cafe - colour challenge

Simon Says - Sing it Baby (Oh I do like to be beside the seaside)

One Stop Craft Challenge - Summer Fun

Totally Papercrafts - By the Sea

Pink and Grey

I entered a swap that required you to use Pink and Grey as your colours and this is what I came up with. I used the lovely Tilda Standing in the Sea and coloured her hair, flesh and background with Whisper Pens. Her dress, bows and hat were paper pierced - a first for me and the bows were really, really, really, fiddly! I then cut her out with a round nestability and matted her onto DP with a scalloped nestability. The DPs I used were downloaded freebies from Canon Injet (they have loads of freebies). The grey shiny paper strip was run through the Cuttlebug with the Curls and Swirls folder. The sentiment, brads and flowers were from my stash and the pearls are from Debbi Moore.

I am entering it into the following challenges:

The Stampman - Take Two Colours (Pink and Grey)

Creative Card Crew - Cute and Girly

Die Cut Dreams - Gingham

Magnolia Down Under - Birthdays

One Stitch at a Time - Sketch and a bit of pink (I may have overdone the pink, lol)

Bunny Zoe - Summer Days

Lexi's Creations - Paper Piercing (hat, bows and dress)

Hopes and Dreams

A friend gave me this digi image from Create with TLC who has some fantastic images (thanks to Ildz the Crafty Witch for finding where it came from) and I decided to age it by rubbing on Distress Inks (Old Paper, Antique Linen and Frayed Burlap). I then added a bit of colour with Whispers Pens. It was then matted onto brown card (using Nestabilities Circles). The DP is from Laura Ashley Velvet Papers which was again matted onto brown card and then onto a creamy/yellowish square card blank. I added the sentiment (Crafty Individuals) giving it the same treatment as the image. The ribbon and brads were from my stash, the flourish is a Sizzix die (Flourish 11) and the gorgeous roses are from Wild Orchid.

I am entering it into the following challenges

Pear Tree Designs - Sketch

One Stop Crafts - Patterns

Dutch Dare - Anything Goes

The eyes have it

I got this fabulous stamp free with Craft Stamper this month and couldn't wait to use it. I stamped it in Jet Black Archival ink and coloured the eyes with a green Whisper pen. It was then matted and layered with green and black card. I cut a white square of card and stamped the swirl (from Funky Doodles Swirls and Twirls) in the same ink as a background. Added a nice bit of ribbon and some black sparkly bling from my stash.
I am entering this card in the following challenges:

Play Date Cafe - Black, White and a Splash of Green

Stampavie - Black, White and one other colour

Papertake Weekly - White an Bright
Tuesday Taggers - Lots of Lovely Black

Punches Spotlight

This week is a Spotlight on Punches over at Crafty Cardmakers (one week there is a themed challenge and on alternate weeks a Spotlight to highlight the use of a craft item or technique). I decided to go with the Punches Spotlight as I'd seen a great tutorial over on Inspirational Tips, Techniques and Tutorials for making a flower using a border punch. First I stamped the cute little mouse from Penny Black Critter Party and coloured it with Whispers Pens, cut it out and mounted with Nesties. The DP is from a K&Co Tim Coffey pad (Daisy) which I edged with my Fiskars Punch and Emboss punch (A Dozen Roses). Then I made the large flowers by punching a strip with the same punch, running it through my paper crimper and sticking it to a circle of card (see tutorial - it's really good). Then I punched a smaller flower with an EK Success punch (Retroflower) and topped it off with a little button. The smaller flowers were made with a multi punch (Woodware Sunflower) and have White Opal Liquid Pearls for the centres. I topped it all off with a piece of yellow organza ribbon and a cute little heart charm.

I am entering my card in the following challenges:

Creative Inspirations - Animals

Fab 'n' Funky - Buttons and bows