London Calling...

The challenge over at Artful Times is A trip to Europe on a tag. So with this in mind I've gone to a very shabby looking London. I've had enough of the clean and shiny Jubilee type London, so though I would grunge it up a little.
I've started with some craft card and torn a tag shape. All the stamps are by Artistic Outpost, and are a mixture of the Loverly London and London Underground plates. I've just randomly stamped the words in blue, black and red and embossed. This has then been sprayed through a Special Touch mask with Perfect Pearls mist in Capuchino.

It's not looking too shabby at this stage but worse was yet to come lol. I stamped the Union Flag twice in red and blue, then assembled and ripped it a bit around the edges, screwed it up, then sprayed with the capuchino mist. The soldiers have just been stamped and torn around and edged in red and blue. 
It was so nice to be able to take it outside to photograph - no rain today - it's a bit gusty but that I can put up with.
I really enjoyed making this so thanks very much for the challenge.
I'm also entering it into 
The Artistic Outpost July Referral - anything goes, and 
Fashionable Stamping - Let's Get Messy and Inky - check - did that!

Hang On....

Jane over at Stampotique has chosen the theme of Sentiments for this fortnights challenge. 
I've chosen Jo Capper -Sandon's World of Her Own as mine, and embossed it in silver on to black card. A bit of Frantage around the edges, and I've stamped Jo's freebie from Craft Stamper onto shrink plastic, and coloured with silver and gold Krylon pens.
Jo's moon has been stamped and filled in with French Text, and embossed with silver and white.
Stella has been coloured with Prisma pens, and just sits upon the moon.
This was the easy bit done, next came the photographing - I tried it inside - too dark. Outside - too windy, under the car port - under the car port - too messy a background. I finally ended up in the greenhouse - the finished photo has been very carefully cropped lol.
Thanks very much for looking, and head over to the challenge blog for lots of fabulous inspiration x

It's Steampunk Jim But Not As We Know It

Over at Dragon's Dream Tag It On, my teamie Monique has chosen Considering Steampunk as her theme, and her recipe consists of fantasy, inventions and Victoriana.  I love steampunk, but I always seem to go down the same route of browns and dark greens, so this time I thought I would have a change. 
I started by stamping and embossing the ScrollsWork stamps in white. Then added lots and lots (and lots) of distress inks in yellows and blues. Then I just went a little mad with various smaller background stamps, clear embossing powder, and the odd spritz of bleach to add a bit of contrast. The muslin has been cut into a strip and had blue and yellow ink dabbed on it, then a spritz of the bleach again.

My lovely lady with the rather odd taste in clothing/iron work/household pets, has been Frantaged with blue mica flakes and old gold and white embossing powders. The rivets are cut from a Spellbinders die in PaperArtsy card on metal, then painted with black acrylic which was then rubbed off again, and finished with Frantage glass glitter in blue and green.

More of the Verday paints and patina topped with a little glass glitter. The pocketwatch face has been coated in glossy accents and look - no thumb prints for once. I actually made this tag over a few days. Each time I thought I had finished, then I just kept throwing something else on lol.

Another rusty old butterfly - I'm really liking these paints and patinas and did I mention my fondness for the glass glitters??
The quote is by Leonardo da Vinci and says
'For once you have tasted flight you will walk the earth with your eyes turned skywards, for there you have been and there you will long to return' Well said Leo, I think this sums up Steampunk rather nicely.
I really enjoyed making this girlie steampunk tag, and luckily I'd now run out of room or who knows what else would have been on it.
Please pop over to TIO and see my teamies wonderful creations, then come back with one of your own.
I'm also entering this into the following challenges:
Sir Stampalot - Crafty Passions - ink and anything Frantage at the moment.
The Craft Barn - Frantage
Tando - Texture
The Stampman - Bling It On
Simon Says Stamp And Show - Layered
Lets Ink It Up - All Girls


Thank you very much for looking x

Christmas In July

I guess resistance was futile, with so much Christmas around I have finally made a Christmas card! 
The image is from The Stampsmith, whose challenge is to use Summer colours. That would be grey then, and the colour of water streaming down the garden - bitter moi - oh yes!
This weeks Pan Pastel challenge is to use ice cream colours, so for my background I've used orange, lemon, green (pistachio) and my favourite pan of the moment - magenta, so that would be er blackcurrant :o) I've put it over some embossed card and die cut with a Go Kreate die.

I've used the sketch from Sparkles Christmas Challenges to give me a kick start. I find these really useful when I've not mad a card for a while.
The flowers are by Prima, and the lace is from Stampin Up. 
Making Christmas cards when Wimbledon is still on seems very strange, but I enjoyed it.
Thanks very much for looking and enjoy the tennis. I know I should be shouting for Andy Murray, but I've got a soft spot for Roger so I just hope it's a good game x

You've Been Framed

Over at The Altered Alice the challenge this month is red white and blue.
I started by gessoing then painting my little frames with Dylusion paints. I then stamped them with the tiny stamps from my Cherry Pie Art Stamp plate.
Note to self if I ever do this again, you can unscrew the little attachers before you start painting - this would have made cleaning them up soooo much easier lol.

Alice has been coloured in prisma pens.

The Queen has been stamped onto some text paper.

More prisma's for Tweedledum and Tweedledee.

Do you like my beautiful display stand, it started life in the kitchen as a mug holder, then made it's way into my craft room for me to hang my scissors from. I have about 6 pairs but could never find any, so mug tree to the rescue lol.

Head on over to The Altered Alice for lots more of the red, white and blue.

Thank you very much for looking x

Femme Fatale

 The design team over at  Stampotique are challenging us to think outside the box this fortnight, and create something different to our usual. This seems very harsh to me as I love my comfort zone thank you very much, and see no good reason to leave it lol. So, casting said comfort zone well and truly adrift, I had a rummage around in the top drawer, and right at the back, in an unopened box (why do I do this??) were some microscope slides  and slide mailers. So, never having done this before, should I just do a single one - no of course not let's start with a double, Doh!
I started by painting my mailer in bronze VerDay paint, then spraying with the patina solution to make it go all green and speckled, great effect on chipboard - not so good on your breakfast toast. This has then been over stamped with French Text.
The slides were put side by side then stamped with the Femme Collage in black stazon. I stamped the stamp again on acetate so that the patina would show through, then again on Paper Artsy metal card.

This is the outside, stamped onto the metal card again. I've stamped the 'femme' again on black with silver for a little bit of contrast, and a portion of the Beauty stamp.
This teeny thing took me hours to make, but it was fun, and it does look very nice IRL. As Neil said, another for the 'what are you going to do with that pile'. It's our wedding anniversary in the next couple of weeks, 30 years (all medals gratefully accepted and well deserved) - he may not make it lol.
I'm also entering this into Hels Sunday Stampers challenge which is 'silver'  Mmm David Essex ..... anyway have a great Sunday - Spain to win the footie tonight, and thanks very much for looking x

'Cos He's A Dedicated Follower Of Fashion

Here's a really quick post 'cos the deadline for the Artistic Outpost June referral is only hours away. I've know all month the theme was 'masculine' but I've been at a loss as to what to do. However Mr Mojo finally put in an appearance and here's my dapper gent, complete with sentiment, from the Steampunk plate. He's standing next to a huge (by comparison) Old Jalopy. My beat up banger has been cut in kraft card then it's gone through the ribbler (crimper to those not from around these 'ere parts). It's been painted in bronze and iron Ver Day paints and sprayed with the magic solution.  The iron parts have gone lovely and rusty which you can see best on the wheel hubs (you can even smell the rust - just thought I'd share that with you lol)
The trim is Tim's Kraft Glassine which has been well rumpled and painted with gold and copper daubers. I love how this is absorbed into the paper when you heat it up.
I'm also entering this into the Simon Says Stamp And Show challenge which is Depths of Distress, my car looks like it's about to fall apart, so I hope that's distressed enough!
Thanks very much for looking and enjoy what's left of the weekend x

Things That Make You Go Ooooo

This time over at Dragons Dream TIO Silvia is in charge, and her recipe is entitled Don't Fear!! She has chosen a scary image, a crowd of purple and textures. I have to admit this challenge has been the one that made me go oooh??
My only scary images (besides the ones used to make Christmas cards in June) are from my Cherry Pie graveyard scene.
The tag has been stamped with a text stamp, inked in Stampin Up inks in various shades of purple, then run through an embossing folder that has been inked in a lighter purple Distress Ink, then lots of Black Soot DI has been applied to the edges.
The graveyard and skull have been stamped onto tissue paper then stuck down with watered down pva. This has then been embossed with Frantage embossing enamel in white. 
The Nevermore stamp is also by Cherry pie, and  has been stapled down and further staples added to the edge and to close the skulls eyes (I must be a very disturbed person on some level lol). The moon has been embossed in white onto vellum.
Every scary tag needs a skull charm to finish it off, and some black organza ribbon.
Please head over to the Tag It On blog to see my teamies fabulous entries then make a tag and we can come look at yours!
As Simon Says Stamp And Show are asking for Depths of Distress I'm entering this over there.
Thanks very much for looking x