20/20 vision

This is my card for the June postcard swap on UK Stampers. We have a new host this month and for her debut theme, Jill chose "numbers".

It's absolutely not what I was planning but it evolved from stuff on the desk when the original plan scored a bit fat fail. The idea of 20/20 vision survived from the original thought and I tried to bring out her eyes to tie in with that. Her face has pale Copic colouring with just a little bit of blush on her cheeks and lips.

I used Memento Luxe to stamp the face and I'm happy to report it performed beautifully on the large solid area (the hair) as well as with the Copics. The oddity is that the wet ink on the stamp looks completely different to what you expect -this is Espresso Truffle and it was a sort of greyish, murky, mid-brown rather than the deep, rich black coffee colour you'd expect from the name and way the pad looks. So, if you're using Luxe inks: don't panic when you ink up, it will be fine once it's on the page!

Stamps:
Jane by Indigo Blu
A&P Numbers by Ma Vinci's Reliquary (retired)
Alphanumber backgrounder by CHF (retired)

Ink:
Memento Luxe by Tsukineko - Espresso Truffle
Brilliance by Tsukineko - Graphite Black
Tim Holtz Distress ink by Ranger - Tumbled Glass

Other:
Copic markers

The swap's just finished but if you fancy joining in for July, the details will be up at the start of the month - just make a card that can be sent "naked" through the post and you'll get one in return. It's a fun size to work with and it's nice to rise to the challenge of making something that can be posted with no protective envelope.

Thanks for stopping by!

Camper van!

We had a camper van when I was a kid - not quite like this one (ours wasn't old enough to have the split screen) but near enough for this stamp to bring back some memories of family holidays in Devon/Cornwall and Scotland. I thought that might make it a good choice for a father's day card for my dad.

I went for clean and simple with just the stamped image (coloured blue since that was the colour of our van) and some stenciled chevrons.

I added just a touch of textural interest by using Grunge Paste through the stencil and then colouring over the raised bits with Copics once dry and cutting out the body of the van and raising it a tiny bit on some gel glue over the same image stamped on the card base. I added a tiny bit of doodled detail on the coloured chevrons, too.

Stamps:
VW Bus by Deep Red Stamps
Father's Day Centers by CHF (retired)

Ink:
Brilliance Graphite Black by Tsukineko

Other:
Hearts and Arrows stencil by The Crafter's Workshop
Grunge Paste by PaperArtsy
Copic markers
Fineline marker
Pinflair Glue Gel
Corner Chomper

Thanks for stopping by!

Funky flower birthday

A quick birthday card for my sister-in-law eased me back in to some crafting after a holiday in France and the inevitable creative slump that seems to follow a fortnight away from your craft supplies!

I flicked ink onto a card blank to start and while that dried I stamped and cut out the flowers and leaves, using two ink colours and the rock-n-roll technique for the stamping. I stamped a few dots in the paler green to balance the background and added some black enamel accents to the stamped flower centres for a touch of texture.

I have no idea why but it was surprisingly difficult to get a decent photograph of this - not sure I've succeeded even now!

Stamps:
Funky Flowers and Big Day Today (both Waltzingmouse Stamps)

Ink:
Tim Holtz Distress ink by Ranger (Picked Raspberry, Shabby Shutters, Peeled Paint)
Adirondack dye ink by Ranger (Cranberry)
Brilliance by Tsukineko (Graphite Black)

Other:
Enamel Accents by Ranger
Corner Chomper
Pinflair glue gel

Thanks for stopping by!

Anniversary olives

It was our wedding anniversary at the weekend. I chose to focus on something hubby loves (olives) rather than a lovely-dovey theme when I sat down to make a card. I hunted for an anniversary sentiment that would look right and in the end I opted for this quote - not an obviously anniversary-related one but I think it's a nice thought to celebrate a marriage.

The Mixed Media Challenge at Splitcoast this week is MariLynn's "smash" technique. I used Memento
markers in three shades of green and although I think the Pear Tart has come out as the dominant one, the fact there's a mix lends some subtlety and depth to the background. I was aiming for a sort of abstract foliage feel!

I stamped the image with grey ink and coloured with a mixture of Copics and coloured pencils. I gave each olive a tiny highlight with a Posca pen.

Stamps:
Olive Branch by Serendipity Stamps
Sentiment by CHF (retired)

Ink:
Soft Granite by Hero Arts
Brilliance Graphite Black by Tsukineko

Other:
Memento markers - New Sprout, Pear Tart, Bamboo Leaves
Copic markers
Prismacolor and Colour Soft pencils
Fineline black marker
White Posca paint pen

Thanks for stopping by!

Kaboom!

Kids' birthday cards are always a challenge for me for some reason but when Claire at Waltzingmouse stamps brought out this stamp and die combo I thought it would be perfect for the plethora of boys I seem to have to make for!

I usually resist dies that match a particular stamp (I'm happy with a pair of scissors!) but this word just looked like too much fun to pass up and I caved in - it would be difficult to cut by hand, I think.

This kind of card also represents one of those rare occasions where the font Comic Sans is actually appropriate! I printed off the sentiment, cut it into individual words and outlined the boxes for that comic book feel.

The die cut is raised on some gel glue to give the whole thing a bit of dimension. I coloured with Copics and then gave it the Wink of Stella clear pen treatment for a bit of razzle dazzle without being too girly. That's a bit difficult to capture on camera but the detail shot might give an impression of it if you click through to make it bigger.

Stamps:
Kaboom by Waltzingmouse Stamps

Ink:
Brilliance Graphite Black by Tsukeniko
Distress Mustard Seed and Spiced Marmalade by Ranger

Other:
Kaboom die by Waltzingmouse Stamps
Copic markers
Printed sentiment
Corner Chomper
Black fineline marker 
White Posca paint pen
Clear Wink of Stella pen
Pinflair Glue Gel
Corner Chomper

Thanks for stopping by!

All the eggs in one postcard

OK, maybe that's not quite the saying but Sam asked us to go with the theme of "eggs" for the postcard swap on UKStampers this month.

I decided to have a little play with eggshell mosaic. I've tried bending it etc and it's quite stable so I'm quietly optimistic that it will survive the post. I used lots of ModPodge to stick the shells on and it's been coated over with both Mod Podge and then a satin varnish as well as I wanted a bit more egg-shellish sheen.

I also cut egg shapes from the mosaic piece but that may be harder to spot as I ended up chopping them to make "hills" instead.

Some sponging over torn paper for a background, stamped feathers and sentiment, black enamel accents and doodling with black and white pens finish it off.

Stamps:
Bird Notes by Craft Secrets (retired)
Big Inspiration by CHF (retired)

Ink:
Adirondack by Ranger - Pool and Stream
Archival by Ranger - Manganese Blue

Other:
Egg shells (cleaned and membrane pulled out)
Copic ink refills (any alcohol ink will do)
Copic multiliner
Posca paint pen
Enamel Accents by Ranger
Mod Podge Matt
Satin Varnish by PaperArtsy

Thanks for stopping by!

Altered Grunge Paste!

The current theme at PaperArtsy is "altered Grunge Paste" - Leandra's hoping we'll try out something other than simply using paste through a stencil.

I was super-lucky and Random pulled my name out of the virtual hat on the last challenge so I had a lovely time wandering through PaperArtsy's online shop, choosing my prize goodies. A big thank you to Leandra and to Darcy for organising it.

Grunge Paste sounded intriguing - a bit different to most texture pastes - and so I popped a tub in my prize basket. Hearing Leandra describe it as "almost clay-like" had me wondering whether a DIY substitute for StampBord might be doable with Grunge Paste taking the role of that clay layer on the board.

I cut an inchie-plus (1.5" square) from scrap mountboard and "buttered" it with a layer of Grunge Paste. Once it was thoroughly dry, I used a sanding block to give me a silky-smooth surface. As you really want colour that doesn't soak in, I sponged Stazon over the top and then stamped the daisy heads (also part of my prize package so another thank you!) using Brilliance. Then the moment of truth - adding those scraped back white highlights with a pin.

I think it looks very much like Stampbord but, if you want to mail it, has the advantage of being lighter and thinner and of course you could do any shape you wanted as long as you could cut it from a substrate with enough rigidity to stand up to the Grunge Paste layer.

The finished square got a super-simple mounting on a scrapling with just a bit of doodling to frame it.

Stamps:
Hot Pick 1203 by PaperArtsy
Sentiment from an ancient HOTP set (one of my first ever stamping purchases!)

Paper:
Off-white laid texture cardstock
Scrap mountboard

Ink:
Teal Stazon
Graphite Black Brilliance

Other:
Grunge Paste by Paper Artsy
Cuttlebug square die
Corner Chomper
Copic 0.3 Multiliner

Thanks for stopping by!

Birthday butterfly

My friend's daughter is at that age where she's no longer really a little girl but she's not old enough to be into "teen" things just yet, either. So,  I decided to throw a bit of sophistication into the mix this year but kept a girly pink and gold colour scheme and personalised it since I think kids tend to like that.

I got  new laptop a wee while back and it had a protective film over the keyboard area.  I used that as a stencil with a couple of Distress ink colours for an ombre effect.

The stamped butterfly was sponged with the same inks - I've added hot pink glitter to the spots on the edges of the wings and used water to lift off some of the colour in the large spots. The body was filled in quickly with a Copic and I used my usual trick of stamping just the antennae on the card and adding the cut out butterfly over the top rather than attempting to cut round anything really fiddly!

The sentiment was stamped with Flitter Glue and then flaked and the die cut lettering got the same treatment. It makes photography more difficult but it's a nice rich gold effect in real life!

With hindsight, I think I should have put her name just a wee bit higher up for better overall balance of the design but never mind, she liked it!

Stamps:
Antique Engravings and Essential Messages (both Hero Arts)

Ink:
Brilliance by Tsukineko - Pearlescent Chocolate
Distress by Ranger - Spun Sugar and Picked Raspberry

Other:
Font One dies by Spellbinder (both upper and lower case)
FlitterGlu
Chariot of Fire Megaflake
Hot pink glitter
Corner Chomper
Film from laptop keyboard used as stencil

Thanks for stopping by!

Postcard Time

It's been ages since I managed to play along in the regular postcard swap at UK Stampers but I've finally managed it this month.

Because the clocks go forward this month, Sam chose "time" as our theme.

Postcards go "naked" to their recipient so light and flat is good. I've gone totally single layer with this one - just stamps and ink using some basic masking and then a tiny bit of Copic coloring for her lips, eyes and some shadows to give things a bit of depth. I have ready-cut masks for everything I used here (I just keep them in the CD cases with the stamps any time I cut a mask and use it until it falls apart!) so it came together quickly.

Stamps:
Molly by Beeswax Stamps
Time to Stamp by CHF (and it's one of the sets that's available from the "new" CHF)

Ink:
Brilliance Graphite Black by Tsukineko
Soft Granite by Hero Arts

Other:
Copic markers
Corner Chomper

There are still a few days to play if you fancy getting a time-themed postcard on your doormat - just make a card and post a picture to the thread and come the 25th, Sam will tell you who to send it to and who will be sending you one in return.

Thanks for stopping by, hope everyone has a lovely weekend!

Deconstuction - PaperArtsy

The current challenge theme at PaperArtsy is "deconstruction" - all the details and some great inspiration starts here.

I let a few thoughts brew for a while and eventually settled on a plastic bottle and a net bag as the basis of my project. I eventually threw in some toilet paper (deconstructed with water and glue, nothing more radical!) for good measure.

The toilet paper got used to make a paper cast of the sentiment. The cast worked OK but the words "and" and "wait" were missing a couple of high spots and since I wanted to dry-brush (making height difference crucial) I used a tiny paint brush and some glue to build those areas back up.

I cut the top off a plastic bottle "on the wonk" and then Mod Podged some torn netting bag onto it. Some texturising medium, spots of glue and the paper cast sentiment provided the texture and I heated one side of the bottle to get it to collapse a bit.

The whole lot got a couple of coats of Prussian Blue acrylic paint. Once that was dry, I dry-brushed with Mermaid and then Snowflake Fresco Finish paints and finally glued on the fish charm and some glass "bubbles". The charm started life as a brassy gold so that got a coat of Prussian Blue acrylic and then some silver Rub n Buff so it tied in better.

I'm not sure if this is destined to be a wee vase or a pen pot. I shoved some rosemary prunings in to take the photo but we'll see.

Supplies:
Clocks Plate 3 by PaperArtsy
 Empty plastic bottle
Netting bag from garlic
Toilet paper
PVA glue
Prussian Blue Americana acrylic paint by DecoArt
Mermaid and Snowflake Fresco Finish paint by PaperArtsy
Texturising Medium by DecoArt
Mod Podge Matte
Silver Rub n Buff by Amaco
Glass bubbles
Fish charm

Thanks for stopping by!