So Happy for You

Today I have a card inspired by two challenges.... firstly, Inspired by All the Little Things #53 - I love the soft shades of the little bows - so I created a background using them with Distress Inks and the smooching technique and also to colour the flowers.  Secondly the Muse challenge #213 - casing a lovely card by Kay Miller - I love the layout with the feint background stamping, the colourful posy and a sprinkle of sequins.  Thanks for taking a peek

 

At the going down of the sun.....

..... we will remember them

As it was ANZAC day yesterday, I decided to try my hand again at a little artwork.

I stamped my poppy image in the foreground and then watercoloured a sunset scene behind of a poppy field.  I am enjoying trying to combine my love of stamping with watercolouring.

I am posting my artwork to ARTastic April challenge - 'Pops of Red'   Thanks for taking a peek

CRITERIA - Pops of red

Birthday Wishes

Another of my card creations using photographic paper and Distress Inks - swiped onto my plastic sheet in stripes, lightly spritzed with water and press on the card.  Then I used two different stamps with purple inks to create a silhouette garden.  Mounted my front panel on white to frame it and light purple as a background.  To finish I added a floral die cut and stamped sentiment.  I am posting to Watercooler Wednesday WWC115 - CAS Spring and Happy Little Stampers April challenge - Anything Goes with Dies.  Thanks for taking a peek

 

Field Poppies

Earlier this month I had a friend over for a creative session.... Jean is from England and likes to paint with acrylics, so I was inspired to dabble a little further with my Brushos... she gave me lots of helpful hints as she tried her hand at Watercolouring too. I used watercolour card and also my stamps with Distress Inks to get my tree line and then painted in my flowers.  Then when they were all dry I filled in my foreground and sky. I am really a card maker but I am enjoying trying my hand a small artworks.
I am posting to ARTastic Challenge Blog   with the Criteria - Pops of Red and photo inspiration of Kenneth McQueen below.  Also to Happy Little Stampers Watercolour April challenge  Thanks for taking a peek


CRITERIA - Pops of red

Happy Birthday

My friend Vikki and I had a fun time making card backgrounds yesterday.... we were really only experimenting, we don't use some of our stuff enough ..... and so we decided as we didn't have any Yupo paper or gloss card to use photographic paper - well it react quite differently to what we'd seen.  I've used Brushos just a few sprinkles on a plastic sheet, water spritzed and the photographic card placed on top - I tried moving it to spread the colour but it reacts really quick and the Prussian Blue was too dark.  I added more water and ended up sopping up the ink remains with a sponge and filling in the gaps - the more water helped to draw off some of the dense colours and they 'mingled' quite well I think. I cut my panel in half and mounted it on a stitched die cut rectangle and 3D mounted it to a tall card.  To finish I've added a die cut floral and a stamped sentient strip.  

I am posting to CAS(E) this sketch #218 which I used for my layout and also to Creative Artiste Mixed Media April challenge #25 - Anything Mixed Media Goes (I'm not sure if my three elements - Brushos, diecuts and stamping fit the rules)   Thanks for taking a peek

"Anything Mixed Media Goes" 

Happy Birthday

My second card from my quiet week is for Seize the Birthday challenge with Toppings - Two Patterned Papers.

I used the no line stamping technique for this floral image and water coloured it with Brushos.  I used a stitched rectangle die to cut around the image and found two matching patterned floral papers for the background.  To finish I stamped the sentiment on a mini stitched rectangle.  Thanks for taking a peek

 Our "Toppings" option this time is...

"Two Patterned Papers"

Christmas, the magical time of the year

I did have a peaceful and creative week while the rest of the family were on holiday and managed to complete a few cards.  This card is for 52 (Christmas) Card April Technique challenge - Shaker.
Used a die to cut a fancy window frame and made a little cellophane bag to hold my snowy glitter. I stamped a small village onto a background panel, added some sky and colours to the buildings. I used some texture stamps on the 'wall' and added some die cuts... a black cat, some holy and flowers and a tag to hold my stamped sentiment.  Thanks for taking a peek

  

Merry Christmas and 'Tis the Season

I have created two Christmas cards this week using the inspiration at Merry Monday #243 - Create a Scene.  With the first card I painted the background using my Brushos with some help from a YouTube tute. ... using the tops of my tree stamps over a mask for the hilly slopes after the sky and slope shading was dry... I love this technique as you can multiple stamp the trees in different shades and pull the ink around with a wet brush. To finish I stamped and coloured my Santa, fussy cut and mounted him with 3D tape, then added a stamped sentiment.
For the second card I wanted to use these newish tree dies - after I cut them on textured card I swiped some darker green ink so the perforated branches would show a bit and dabbed about with some white gel pen.  For the background I stamped this village scene (forgot I had this) and cut away the top so I could use the bottom to mask off the snowy field.  I sponged Distress Ink in blues and grey and spritzed it with Perfect Pearls to create this lovely sky. When it was dry and stamped in the village and coloured the houses and added some shading on the slopes. To finish I mounted the panel onto a contrasting layer and added my trees and a stamped sentiment.
I am also posting to Happy Little Stampers Watercolour challenge for April - Anything Goes and to Holly and Ivy Christmas challenge #3 - Anything Goes.  Thanks for taking a peek

Happy Easter

I stamped my cutest bunny hug stamp in brown onto a panel of designer paper with a tree up one side (one of those papers you always wonder 'what am I going to do with this'... well I thought it worked well with the stamp.  I used pencils to colour the image and sponged the edge before I layered it on a matching panel and a dark card.  To finish I stamped the sentiment using two different stamps sponged the edge and 3D mounted it to the card.  I am posting to Simon Says Monday challenge...Hip Hop.  I think the grand daughters will love it along with a few mini eggs. Thanks for taking a peek

Simon Says: Hip Hop

May the Music of Christmas warm your Heart

A quiet Good Friday here at my house with my men heading off to visit our parents for a week...so I've pretty much had a relaxing day. And found some time to make this vintage style Christmas card for a couple of challenges.  The April theme at 52 (Christmas) Card challenge is Musical Notation and Happy Little Stampers April Christmas challenge would like some Embossing.
I found this great piece of designer paper in a pad and some matching card to layer it onto. I decided to decorate one edge with some lace and ribbon and to finish I stamped and embossed my sentiment onto banner with sponged edges and then added some die cut foliage in three shades of green and added three little burgundy pearls.  I am also posting to Holly and Ivy Christmas challenge #3 - Anything Goes.  Thanks for taking a peek

    

Challenge # 3

Life is Beautiful

I was inspired by Time Out Challenge #80 and Simon Says Monday challenge to create a card with a rainbow....  and this little scrap of blue card was begging to be used... so I've hand drawn on my rainbow with pencisl and stamped my tree silhouette over the top.   I painted the rainbow with Perfect Pearls so it is all sparkly. Then to finished I added a stamped sentiment tag with the edges inked in pale blue and 3D mounted.  I am also going to post to Addicted to Stamps and More #236 - Anything Goes challenge.  Thanks for taking a peek

Time Out challenge #80 - 'Inspired by Words' challenge. Our words are:

When it rains look for rainbows, when it's dark look for stars'

Simon Says: Make A Rainbow

Man's Best Friend

Noticed this afternoon I had just a few hours to make a tag for the Tag You're It!  #68 challenge... such a cute 'dog tag' by Gayatri.... I knew I had a pre-stamped dog in my stash and after some digging I found this cute black and white spotty dog... the white mortar in her brick background caught my eye too so I die cut a tag from striped card with glittery white stripes. I cut a larger blue tag to frame my tag and added my sentiment with a paw print to hold it.  I finished off with a few strands of thread and 3D mounted my fussy cut dog.  Thanks for taking a peek

April Fools Day Boo Boo

Today I am playing along with Darnell and her April Fools Day Boo Boo challenge. I am re-posting a card I made a few weeks back.... with not only one booboo but two.... I was struggling with all the red and green and decided to leave off colouring the candy canes till I decided what background I was going to use....  Then I got busy with the shaker bit, cut my frame from the only matching red card scrap I could find and proceeded to assemble it all... totally forgot the uncoloured canes, too busy trying to keep all those sequins and sparkles in place and once it was all stuck down saw the mistake.... but then I also realised the frame was on backwards... see the faint gold stamping on the red... that was the back!!!  I need a lesson on making shaker cards.... all my mini bits get stuck around the edge.. Help!  and then you should have seen my fingers after I tried using a red marker to colour the white edges of the 3D tape..... a 'fun' time was had anyway and the card is still going to be used.
Thanks for taking a peek .... and never mind the imperfections, others don't notice.