We're All Going On A Summer Holiday

Good morning and a very happy Thursday. We're halfway through the month already, so it's time for a new challenge at Rubber Dance, and in keeping with the warmer weather, we've chosen Summer Holidays. Here's my holiday postcard.

I started by colouring a postcard with sprays and Distress Oxides. This was my first real play with the DO's and I was very impressed.

Then I started with the stamping, I've used Retro Beach and some bubble wrap and gesso for texture.

Obviously a postcard needs a stamp, so I've used a Norwegian one from Bibi that was on the envelope that my stamps came in. The postmark is from Artfully Stamped

These images are all from Retro Beach. I've made a Distress Oxide background, then stamped in a DO and sprayed again with water. I really do like the vintage effect.

Here they are all sewn down.

This is the nearest you'll ever get to a holiday postcard from me - it used to spoil my holiday thinking what to write on a card - a phone call is much easier :-)

So please get in the holiday mood and join in with our challenge, you may win some wonderful Rubber Dance stamps. 

As always the stamps are P&P free on orders 15 Euros and above by quoting SDFreeShip. Have a fun day, and thanks very much for looking x

A Birthday Sausage

Good morning and happy Wednesday. I had to make the dreaded male card recently, and as everyone had crazy cats and dogs last year, I 'needed' a new stamp - it's my excuse and I'm sticking to it! Here's what I made.

He just made me smile as I was colouring him in (tongue out of course) and I promise that he wasn't harmed when I had to cut him in half to get him on the card.
You can't really tell from the photograph, but the 'doggy panels' have been recessed into the card.
That's Crafty have a 'dog eared' challenge running at the moment, so I'm entering 'Sausage' into that. It's a Crufts sort of thing ;-)
Have a great week - rumour has it the sun may make an appearance, and thanks very much for looking x

Love Rocks

Good morning and happy Tuesday. I'm still in romantic mode and hearts are the order of the day over at Country View Crafts. Here's my second lurrrrrrvely card.

I started by making an 8x8 background using Dina Wakley acrylics, various stencils, and a wet wipe.

I added more colour with red Amsterdam paint, and the Tim Holtz Heart Struck layering stencil. Then I added white through Dot Fade.
I then stamped some Dyan Reaveley heart stamps at the edges.

I stamped the same stamps on some scraps and stuck down.

The main images are also Dina's stamps. The two in the corner have been stamped directly to the card using the Tonic Stamp Platform. I'm not much of a gadget person but I LOVE this. It really does what it says on the tin! It's easy to clean, and you can repeat stamp if you've missed a bit.

The main hearts have been popped up on foam tape and have some twizzly wire behind them.

So that's anniversary card number two made, so I'm a very happy bunny. 
There's still lots of time for you to play along, so please get hearty and join us. Thanks very much for looking and have a happy week xx

Summer Sun (In the Rain)

Good morning and happy Monday. Well I'm back from my week away in Sunny Scarborough - who am I kidding, it rained every day, and when it wasn't raining it was blowing, and when we got really lucky it did both! Still we managed to walk loads so my step counter was very happy. 
There's still time to enter the colour challenge over at Rubber Dance, and so to celebrate Summer, I made this.

I've used Owl Do Good, Retro Beach, and Giraffe.

I've also added lots of rain! These owls are so cute, I think they are definitely sheltering from the weather. If you would like them to wing their way to you, don't forget to use SDFreeShip on orders of 15 Euros and over.

I'm entering my rainy owls into the Happy Little Stampers Die Cut challenge.
Have a fun week, and thanks very much for looking x

Three Little Birds

Good afternoon and happy Monday. It's the first Monday of the month, so it's time for a new challenge at Lost Coast Designs, and this month we've chosen Postcards. Here's mine

This has been made with 3 Birds, the branch from the Fish and Hearts Set, and Fly from Carmens Veranda's clear stamps.

Please pop over to the Portal of Creativity for lots more inspiration, and then join in yourself. Anything 6x4 is perfect!

We are away for a few days in Scarborough, and the weather forcast doesn't look too good. My pedometer is all charged up, and Neils raring to go lol - hopefully we won't get too wet!

Thanks very much for looking, and I'll catch up when I get back xx

Let's Hear It For The Cats

I love cats! There are no two ways about it, cats rule! I'm not an either or person, I like dogs too - it's just that cats are better. (I can hear the sound of dog people walking out and slamming the door lol). So when I saw that That's Crafty had a cat challenge I know that I had to enter. So next I had to choose a cat stamp, but which one? In the end I decided to go with a selection...

This is an A3 board that I painted and stencilled. I thought it would take all of my cat stamps - not even close lol.
My name is Sue and I'm addicted to stamps...

I have Dyan Reaveley cats...

Lost Coast Designs cats...

Stampotique cats...

Smug cats...

Tim Holtz Crazy cats....

Brett cats....

Donna cats...

and the very first cat stamp that I ever bought. She knows she's my favourite but don't tell the others.

So according to Wiki, we now have a 'pounce' of cats. They've all been watercoloured with Spectrum Aqua pens, and Derwent watercolour pencils and crayons.

I'm also entering my mass of moggies into the MMM challenge A Year of choices - I'm going with put a stamp on it.
SSS Wednesday - anything goes,  Happy Little Stampers watercolour challenge, and 
Craft Stamper Magazine TIMI anything goes.

This was such fun to make, and it got the usual response of 'what is it, what are you going to do with it' from Neil, so all is well with the universe.
Have a great weekend, and thanks very much for looking xx

Lazy Days of Summer

Good morning and welcome to my second post for today. It's still the 1st of the month, so it's also time for a new Rubber Dance colour challenge. 

This is our mood board - doesn't it make you want to go there. NOW!

I started by roughly gessoing my chipboard page, then adding some bead texture gel and some Deco Beads in sandy colours.

When this was dry I added washes of colour with acrylic paints, and stamped the Public Bathing Notice from Take The Plunge and the net from Retro Beach a few times.

Then, as it's June, and Summer, I added some sunshine through a stencil - if only you could do that in real life!

The polaroid frame is a die cut that I've colour with Distress Oxides. The 'holiday' is also from Retro Beach. I love how these stamps look like they've been made on a label maker.

The lovely lady has been coloured with Inktense watercolour pencils, and more words from Retro Beach added.

So I now have a double seaside page in my chippie album.

There's lots more inspiration over on our blog page, and if any stamps should happen to fall into your basket whilst you are there, don't forget to quote SDfreeShip on orders of 15 Euros and above.
Have a fabulous June, and thanks very much for looking xx

My Heart

Good morning and happy June! Wow this has come around so quickly after a verrrry long Winter. So... a new month means a new challenge over at Country View Crafts, and our hostess this month is the lovely Hazel, and she has chosen 'hearts'. I'm still needing a few cards, so this is what I've made.

I'm not very good with pink, or hearts, so this was a real challenge for me lol.

I started by rescuing some of Di's papers that had been in my box for far too long, and die cutting them. My theory was that if they're from the same range they should work ok together.

Next I chose my stamps, these are Paper Artsy ones by Sara Naumann and Darcy. at this point I'd still no idea where I was going with this.

I got my base sheet planned out and did a bit of stamping with the text stamp for Sara's set.

Then stamped the topper from Darcy's set for placement.

Time for some paper piecing and colouring with a chrome pen.

I added a few more layers, and some metallic hearts for bling, and I now have an anniversary card good to go.

To say I'm not a pinky hearts sort of person I really enjoyed this once I got going. For their next anniversary they'll get the Brett zombies lol.

I hope you join in with our challenge, it doesn't have to be mushy hearts, they can be angst ridden broken ones if you like!
Have a very happy day, and thanks very much for looking xx