Have a Hoot of a Day

Sorry it's such a rubbish sneaky peak but it's raining again - surprise!!
If you get chance please check out the full card at Sam Poole's Creative Studios 
Hope you like it, and thanks very much for looking xx

Feline's Feelin' Fine

This week Tanya is hosting the Stampotique Designers Challenge and she has chosen monochromatic. Here's what she has to say.
Hello crafty fellows, today it's my turn. I selected the theme monocromatic. Well, in fact it's a big challenge to myself.  I actually prefer it a little more colorful. But restrict myself to work tone in tone? First let's see the projects from the amazing Stampotiue Design Team. And now... Come on up! I'm longing to see all your stunning monochromatic artworks. 

This was a real challenge for me too Tanya, 'cos my eyesight is rubbish and I really struggle with picking out colours (hence my projects are sometimes a bit on the bright side lol) I've recently got Roc's beautiful Feline and knew I wanted to see her in purples, though according to my daughter she's pink! Mmm when does purple become pink - debate lol.
I started with a MDF coaster - love you MDF Man, and painted in lilac and purple then stamped and masked Feline. I over stamped in Versamark with Spiraling Out of Control and Vintage Script, then applied Pan Pastels over the top.
Feline is coloured in Distress Markers, and her wings and crown have had Glossy Accents blobbed in.
It then had a quick burst with cheap hairspray to seal the PP's and a generous coat of matte varnish to keep it all nice.
This has definitely had the seal of approval 'cos Neil says it's nice and I should make some more, rather than his usual 'what is it?' :-)
I hope you get the chance to join in with our challenge and go with the monochrome. Remember there's a chance to win a $30 gift certificate, but please - no digi's, and remember to put the number of the challenge when you link up.
Thanks very much for looking x

Express Yourself !

The wonderful Ellen Vargo is back at PaperArtsy this week and she has brought her fabulous new stamps with her and used them with Lin's limited edition paints. I don't have Ellen's stamps, but I do have the paints, so I tried to follow Ellen's technique to see how nicely they worked together. They really are gorgeous and will definitely be well used.
I was going to make 4 cards, but decided that they look nice together so I made this instead.
Hope you like it, and thanks very much for looking x

Be A Good One

It's been a few month's since I've entered the Tim Holtz  tags challenge so I was really pleased to get this one finished in the correct month lol.

Being as it's February's we still have a lurve theme going on. As usual I don't have most of the 'ingredients' so there's a bit of improv here (which I quite like)
I've followed Tim's directions 'cos he seems to know what he's talking about (just joking the guys a genius) I like the way that at each stage you think 'this is awful, should I bin it now' but then it all comes together at the end.
I didn't have the Tim stencil or stamp, but I do have a full house on the inks. Some things I just buy as soon as they come out :-) 
The stamp is by Artistic Outpost, which I've highlighted with a page pebble.
The trim is washi tape that I though fitted in nicely with the stencil.

I was in a messy mood, so I made a love potion, and blinged up a piece of hessian ribbon with ink and embossing powder. It literally took me 2 days to get my fingers clean :-)
This was great fun to make and I now know how far one drop of re-inker goes!
I'm also entering this into the Artistic Outpost Feb referral. Thanks very much for looking and enjoy your weekend xx

Beauty Everywhere

Much fun and inky paintiness was had making this for Sam Poole's Creative Studios. Hope you get chance to pop on over and have a look xx

Some Acetate For Stampotique

Hi, it's Stampotique Wednesday again and we have a fab new look over on the challenge blog so please pop over and check it out.
Corrie is our hostess this week with a clearly fun challenge:

Hello and happy Wednesday to you. Now, if you are anything like me, you will keep all wrapping paper, cardboard and of course acetate (clear plastic). We all get lots of it : packaging. I particularly like acetate to use in my projects, whether it is to stamp on or use it in any other way. I just love it. So this week I would like YOU to use a bit of acetate. Let your imagination run wild and surprise me !!! 
Here's mine

I started with a painty background. I sprayed watered down Fresco paints,then stencilled, and finally stamped my new favourite Text Block 3 and embossed in white.
Now time for the acetate.

Femme Collage has been stamped and embossed onto acetate, then covered on the back in gilding flakes.

This is my mop up sheet that I used for my flowers. Note to self, photograph before cutting out lol. The flowers have been stamped with another favourite, Fax to Wolfgang.
Thanks for a great challenge Corrie, I really enjoyed it and I hope you will tear yourself away for the Olympics and join in, remember there's a chance to win a $30 gift certificate.
Thanks very much for looking x

PaperArtsy Tags

The wonderful Julie Ann is in residence this week at PaperArtsy Towers and she has made a beautiful altered suitcase. I knew I wouldn't have time to make one of these, but I really liked the technique she used to make the tags. I've never used paint as a spray before so today was the day.

I stared by mixing and spraying Inky Pool, Mermaid, and Blood Orange.

I liked these very much but the colours were a bit too strong for delicate tags like Julie Ann's.

So I decided to use the mop up tags.
I stamped the leaves from Nature Plate 2 and the text from I&TD Clocks 1 using Wendi Vecci inks. I didn't think I needed more inks but these are really nice.
I'm also entering these into the Country View Crafts  challenge Painty Pleasures.
Right now back to the speed skating (watching not doing) lol.
Thanks very much for looking x

Oooo Mr Darcy

The challenge over at Indigo Blu this month is From The Heart, and this is what I've come up with.

I followed a Leandra  YouTube tutorial, so went from this 

To this.

Lots of embossing paste and Fresco paints. I then stamped the Crackle stamp from the Alice plate together with the Script Background and embossed so that I could then go over with Treasure Gold.

I liked how it looked but it needed a bit more definition so I stamped the script again in black and  embossed.

I do love script stamps :-)

My romantic couple and quote are from the Mr Darcy plate.

I couldn't photograph it last night 'cos of flash blindness so I though I would wait for some daylight - it may be June before we get some! 

I'm also entering this into the Fashionable Stamping challenge which is Build it Up, and

Country View Crafts Painty Pleasures

I can't believe Elise Christie has been disqualified again in the speed skating, the poor girl must be distraught!

I need to surgically remove the remote from Neil, it's taken until now for him to get over the London Olympics finishing and we're going to have to go through his withdrawal symptoms all over again at the end of these games lol.

I hope you like my heart, and thanks very much for looking.

Have a great weekend x

Where There Is Love

Here's a sneaky peak at this weeks card for Sam Poole's Creative Studio's. Hope you like it, and thanks very much for looking x

Perfect Pairs

Hi, it's the lovely Kathi's turn to play hostess this week at Stampotique towers, and she has chosen 'pairs'. Here's what she has to say.

It's almost Valentine's Day. Valentine's Day makes me think of couples, so my challenge is called Perfect Pairs.

Use two (2) of an item so that things are in pairs. This can be two stamped images, two embellishments, two layers of patterned paper, two colors, etc.

See how many pairs you can use in your project. Just be sure to use at least one perfect pair and have fun!

Considering the fact that I have more cardstock and paper than you could shake a stick at, I don't make many cards, and when I do it's last minute, and just the one I need. I did try batch making once, but that was just boring. I've often though I could make two cards as quickly as one as it's the thinking about what to do that takes up the time (plus the getting out and putting away) rather than the actual 'making' of a card. So when I saw this challenge I though 'right, I'll make a pair of cards the same but different' :-)

So here we are, the same, but different lol.

Ok, hands up who loves these gorgeous new (to me) stamps.

I was very brave and stamped Happy Birthday straight onto the card. Give The Dog A Bone has been coloured with Prisma pencils. I had to Google how to make his tail wag that's how bad I am a drawing!

Tulip has also been coloured the same way. You know when they say in crafting you can have a 'happy accident' (it usually means file it in the bin under the desk and start again) I'd just coloured the doily with distress inks and was sticking foam pads onto Tulip when I realised I'd splodged him on the same bit of craft sheet as the wet yellow ink. It was like a scene from a movie, I shouted 'NOOOOoooooo' in slow motion, picked it up, turned it over and though 'that's quite nice' so I splodged it a bit more - you can see it just along the bottom :-)

So thanks to Kathi I now have two cards ready to go - I even put insert in how good am I! They may not be perfect, but they are a pair.

I hope you'll join in with our challenge but don't forget the rules. 1) no digi's and 2) please put the number of the challenge you are entering when you link up, for instance this is SDC 134. And that's it, simples.

Hope you like my cards, and thanks very much for looking x

Love Is In The Air

Yep it's that time of year again, the shops are full of Valentine's cards, and lurve is in the air (not so much in Yorkshire where the cries of 'how much!!' can be heard around the card shops and florists lol) Anyway the theme at Stampotique this week is to put a heart in you art, and here's mine.

I turned to my trusty PanPastels for the background, in pinks, purples and the gorgeous metallics. 

Lots of stencilling and stamping, I love how the golds and coppers shine through.
I've used
Hanging Hearts
Daniels Hearts
Text Block 3
Flying Heart

Out came the stamp positioner for a bit of double stamping with Heart Vine

My new Altered Alpha stamps LOVE 'em.

and finally Roc's Stacked Love.
Many hours had now passed since I started on this, I just kept coming back and colouring in a bit more lol, but that's a sign that I was having fun :-) 
I'm entering this into the PanPastel challenge which is 'Use a Stencil'
Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge Love Notes
SSS Wednesday Challenge Have a Heart, and Kate's monthly journal challenge.
Hope you like it, and thanks very much for looking xx

I'm Late....

No time to say hello goodbye I'm late, I'm late I'm late....
No surprises there then. Here's my entry for this weeks PaperArtsy challenge  inspired by Gillian.

I really liked her bloom board and wanted to make my own, despite not being able to find my PA postcards (they are in a very safe place somewhere!!) So I turned to my bag of 'don't need now but too nice to throw away' bits, and came up with these.

A few coats of Fresco's later and I had this.

I then stamped Darcy's heart border around the edges and painted with a mixture of London Bus and Blood Orange. I stamped her large heart onto the board, and twice onto some fabric.

I stuffed it with a bit of cotton wool and hand stitched. I will never make a plastic surgeon lol.

Follow Your Heart is also one of Darcy's stamps, and the metallic heart came from the pound shop and has been Treasure Golded with a touch of Rub n Buff. I really enjoyed making this, I sat and messed about with it for hours, and me doing hand sewing - unheard of.
Need to hit the send button, hope you like it and thanks very much for looking xx
I'll be blog visiting tonight - Top Gear is back so no-one in our house will notice that I'm missing :-) xx