So That Was June!!

Hello.  Welcome.  Just a quick post for my entry to The Craft Barn calendar challenge.  This month the theme was lavender and butterflies.  

I cut my pages from lavender bazzill dot card and then added some patterned papers that I ripped to expose the bazzill card.  I stamped Paperartsy dragonfly on the same bazzill paper using Distress Dusty Concord and fussy cut.  

Joining the fun at
The Craft Barn Calender Challenge - June

Thanks for your visit.  Hugz

Remember This

Hello.  Welcome.  A busy day here today.  Finally spring, tomorrow summer LOL.   The last day of May already.  Juggling a bit of craft with gardening and taking care of the animals.  Here's the May pages of my heart shaped calendar for The Craft Barn Challenge.  This month the theme was Magenta and Flowers and I came up with this.

I have used plain card for my base cut using Sizzix Scaloped heart die.  I decided to go with the Rubber Dance Challenge colours so edged the hearts with Butterscotch paint.  I used Dreamweavers yellow embossing paste and Stamplorations Happy Flower stencil.  I stamped Unity Stamp Co. Beach Girl and watercoloured her.  I stamped Rubber Dance Stamps sentiment from the Happy Dance set in purple on yellow patterned paper. 

'Go Where The Music Takes You'  Good idea......

Joining the fun at

The Craft Barn Calendar Challenge May

Rubber Dance May Colour Challenge

STAMPlorations Flash Stencil LinkyParty

Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge - Anything Goes
HIMCR Challenge 201 - Freestyle 

Thanks for dropping by.  Off to enjoy the sunshine.  Hugz

April Showers Bring May Flowers

Hello.  Welcome.  Hoping the showers will stay with April and the May flowers will bring sunshine with them.  Here's my April calendar pages for The Craft Barn challenge.  This month the theme was umbrella's and blue.  Well I love blue and umbrella's immediately made me think of Umbrella Man.  And here he is......

Here's my little heart mini-book/calendar.  The hearts were cut using Sizzix Scalloped Heart dies from some patterned paper.  This was baby themed paper so I avoided the baby and cut to encompass the lovely clouds, some of which are embossed and glittery.  I cut Umbrella Man from flowery MME paper and then sponged on black ink.  I tried to get a gradation from dark to light.  I wanted it to look like he was coming out of shadow into the light.  Very pleased with the effect.  

I cut the butterflies using Cheery Lynn Mini Dimensional Butterflies die from the same floral card and backed them with dark blue paper.  I have edged the hearts and the calendar tab with Salty Ocean distress ink.  

I love that the flowers can still be seen through the black ink on Umbrella Man's back.  

Joining the fun at
The Craft Barn Calendar Challenge April
Cheery Lynn Designs Challenge 182 - Anything Goes 
Dream It Up - Showers of Showers
Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge - Anything Goes 
Scribble and Scrap Challenge 43 - Anything Goes 


Thanks for dropping by.  Wishing you sunshine and mojo.  Hugz

5 Carat Love

Hello.  Welcome. Managed to get my March calender pages together before jetting off to the UK. I was a little short of time so I kept it simple.

Looks like it's going to be a die cut calendar.  I used Go Create bunny die.  Old as the hills but NBUS.   About time he got some action.   I cut my calendar pages from MME patterned paper using Sizzix scalloped heart die.  I cut the bunny and lots of carrots and paper pieced him.

Joining the fun at
The Craft Barn Calendar Challenge March
NBUS Challenge 4
Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge -Anything Goes
Papertake Weekly - A Cut Above
Ett Trykk Vi Jubilerer Utfordring 11

Thanks for dropping by. Have a great day and don't forget to link up your NBUS projects.  Hugz

Corrugated Cupid

Hello.  Welcome.  Today northern Norway is playing with a hurricane and we are getting the edge effects.  Windy, rainy, with occasional high speed hail storms.  Definitely a day to stay in and craft.  I've been working on my February pages for The Craft Barn Calender Challenge where this week the theme is the colour red and hearts.  I figured I was half way there since my calendar is heart shaped LOL.  

I decided to start with patterned paper again.  This is Making Memories Cherry Blossom Love Notes.  Thought it was kinda applicable.  

I added some Cheery Lynn Small Tea Rose die cuts to some of the flowers and also some flourishes cut using Cheery Lynn Celtic Fire Oval die.  I cut the cupid and arrow using a Sizzix die from corrugated card and added a wink of stella clear.  I used that on the roses as well.  Then I cut lots of tiny little white hearts using Fiskars Hearts border punch, stuck them together and added some red glitter glue for the body.  A butterfly for every rose.  

Joining the fun at
The Craft Barn Calendar Challenge - February
Cheery Lynn Designs Challenge 170 - Add A Flourish
We Do Doobadoo Challenge 3 - Hearts and Flowers
Papertake Weekly - Anything Goes 
Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge - H is for......hearts

Thanks for dropping by.  Hope you aren't having too much weather.  Be safe.  Hugz

The Decision Made

Hello.  Welcome.  Over at The Craft Barn they are doing a calendar challenge, with other fun in between.  Two years ago I completed this calendar, also in response to a challenge set at The Craft Barn.  I gave this one as a Christmas present and it was very well received.   Looking back, I have decided I really liked the heart mini book format.  It's a good size, not too big or too small, and I like that it is free standing.  So at the risk of starting a tradition I decided to use the same format.  Actually fitting for the time of year..........

The themes for January are Aqua and Snowflakes.  Here's my snowflake stamped and embossed aqua card cut into shape using Sizzix scalloped heart dies.  

I cut Die-namites Festive Owls and Floral Deer from textured black card.  The owls are usually close together but I wanted to put one on each of my calender pages so I cut them apart and cut some extra foliage to fill in the gap.  I backed them with vellum.  I coloured the beaks orange.  I was going to add some more colour to the eyes and breast but decided they looked pretty cool as was.  I added the deer.  The calender tab I printed out using the link provided by The Craft Barn.  I inked the edges of my pages with black archival, punched some holes and added my book rings.  

I like the semi-translucency of the vellum.  You can see a shadow of the embossed snowflake through the owl on the left.  

Joining the fun at
The Craft Barn Calendar Challenge - January
Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge - Anything Goes 
Bunny Zoe's Crafts Challenge - Hearts 

Thanks for visiting.  Have a great weekend.  Hugz

The 2013 Calendar

Hi.  12 weeks ago The Craft Barn started a challenge.  A page or a calendar a week for 12 weeks.  It seemed like a grand idea at the time so with trepidation and enthusiasm I took up the baton.  Some weeks were easy, some weeks were hard, some weeks were a bit late, but never too late! 

I chose to make a heart shaped mini book and have each week of my calendar over two pages.  It's not so mini.  It has become quite a fat little calendar and the 25mm book rings are straining to contain it's exuberance.  The only pages I haven't already posted are the front and back covers which you can view here now, along with a photo of the whole and also a recap of the photos that have been posted over the last 12 weeks on this blog.  I hope that you enjoy it.  It's been very inspirational and I would like to thank The Craft Barn for stretching my creativity and their generosity for giving us the opportunity of a 15% discount each week throughout the challenge.  Also one of us will be rewarded for our perseverance and creative genius with a voucher to spend on some extra crafty must haves.  Good luck to us all.  

So here it is and of course I am entering The Craft Barn Calendar Challenge Grand Finale  

The 2013 Calendar

 

The Pages

Here is a recap of the pages.  The captions are linked to the original posts.  

January - Theme Candles

February - Theme Vellum

March - Theme Felt

April - Theme Doodles

May - Theme Trees

June - Theme Bright

July - Theme Circles

August - Theme Teal, Rust and White

September - Theme Children/Cute

October - Theme White/Yellow/Green

November - Theme Paper Tape

 December - Theme Embossing

The Back Cover

Thanks for looking.  It's been fun. 

Front and Back

This is just a little post to explain how I made the front and back cover of my calendar for The Craft Barn Challenge

The front cover was made using Sizzix Bingo embossing folder.   I coloured the embossed card using dew drop ink pads and then inked the raised areas with Memento Tuxedo black.  I used a Sizzix alphabet Ida Lou's Flower Box to cut the 2013 and Memory Box Serafina Heart in gold mirror card.  

The back cover is a figure from Panduro unmounted stamp set 'Filurer' stamped with gold ink.  Then the saying and the moon and star doodles are freehand with a gold pen. 

Unbelievable

Hello friends, followers, everyone.  Welcome to the end.  This is my post for the final Calendar Challenge in a series of 12 posed by The Craft Barn.  If you have been following closely then you are probably taking part, and if you aren't Why Not?  Actually when I started this I thought it would be a long and difficult project but it's been great fun and the time has flown by.  I'm not saying it hasn't been a challenge.  Some of Izzy's themes left me floundering and perplexed but we got there in the end.  This being that end........

So here it is.  December.  All sparkle and reindeers.  I used Crafty Individuals Christmas Tree Stamp CI-368 with Dew Drop Brilliance stamp pads - Rocket Red, Galaxy Gold and Starlight Silver which I clear embossed.  The background is a mix of Distress inks - Barn Door, Pine Needles and Shabby Shutters, splashed on and squidged around.  Then I took my already inked christmas tree and dabbed it over both pages.  It didn't quite sparkle enough so I dabbed a bit more Starlight Silver around.  The two small reindeers are Double Do diecuts and the large is Sizzix reindeer with bonus embossing folder.  Cut, embossed, some black ink and glitter sticker highlights. 

I am entering this for The Craft Barn Calendar Challenge Week 12 - Embossing

Creative Craft World have just posted a new challenge on their challenge blog so I am also entering Creative Craft World December/January mini-challenge (each page of my calendar is 13cm x 13cm)

There will be a final post regarding this challenge when I will display the complete calendar.   I am really looking forward to seeing everyone's projects as a single post.

Have a great weekend everyone. 

Lily T. Elephant packs her trunk and wonders what sort of jungle is this?

Hello hello.  Greetings, velkommen, nice of you to drop by.  I'm playing catch up with The Craft Barn Calendar Challenge where Izzy has already posted the final weeks challenge, but this is my week 10 tab.  Nothing forgotten, I've just been a bit slow with this one.   Hopefully it is worth the wait.  What do you mean you weren't waiting!  Just me then.  I have wheeled out a few of my trusty friends to help with the theme - Trees. 

I wanted to use my Sizzix original tree die so was looking for a green/leafy background and found this paper in my stash.  Haven't got any details on it but it's banana leaves with rain drops printed on it.  Amazing, and it photographed quite well too!  So I cut two scalloped hearts (Sizzix framelit die) from the background paper and two trees from various handmade papers.  The elephant is also a Sizzix original cut from Soesterens Grene lily leaf paper.  I did some detailing with a black pen and added a googly eye.  That's May.  Elephants in the jungle.  Of course.   

Entering for The Craft Barn Calendar Challenge Week 10 - Trees

Be safe, be warm, be happy but most of all leave Lily a comment cos she's feeling a bit lonely.  Maybe there's a friend just around the next tree.  A stranger is just a friend you haven't met yet. 

Just snow you know

Wednesday it snowed all day.  It was snowing when we got up and when we went to bed and all the hours between.  Lots of snow.  I've lost one of my free ranger rabbits.  I hope she is just hiding under all the snow and hasn't taken advantage of the fact that the top of the fence is not as far away as usual.  I'm sure if she has made a break for freedom she will find plenty to eat.  Unfortunately, there are also more things which might take the chance to eat her.  Here's hoping she has been a sensible rabbit and made herself a cosy place under the snow.   

This week at The Craft Barn the calendar challenge theme is circles.  That's nice and easy.  I just need to think of some round things for my heart shaped world.  

 

I wanted something bright.  Luckily I have Sizzix Framelit circle set so I selected four handmade papers in bright colours and cut two sizes of circles.  Then I stuck them down so they overlapped to give the background.  Then I wanted some round sentiments to fit in with the circles.  Searched the stash and found..... nothing!  Had some very nice fish for tea.  Checked out a few blogs.  Played some cards.  Ohh, inspiration.  Have Word, can print.  DIY embelies.  Sometimes I think we are too dependant on popping to the shop for that perfect something.  So I printed the sentiments I wanted in a suitably roundish font onto some cardstock and then cut them with the framelits set.  A couple of butterflies cut using Cheery Lynns mini butterfly set, the calendar tab and another month closer to complete. 

So this is my entry for The Craft Barn Calendar Challenge Week 11 - Circles

I've got one week that I need to catch up on and Izzy will be giving the final challenge on Sunday and the 2012 calendar will be complete.  Hurrah.  It seemed such a big idea, twelve projects, twelve weeks, but almost done now.  Time flies.  

Take care, thanks for dropping by.  If you have time please leave a comment.  Your kind words are marshmallows in my hot chocolate.   
 

Wag the Dog

Hello, friends and followers, those who are and those who may be.  Apologies for the time since my last post.  I brought an unexpected hitch-hiker back from England and have spent the last week under the influence of a nasty little virus.  Sunday I would have been happy to have had my head cut off but am relieved now I didn't succumb to that particular impulse since it probably would have further delayed my return to blogland.  So here we are, better, but not 100%, but so many things to do so can't let the nasties keep us down.  Luckily I don't get sick very often, although I think that did make me a particularly pathetic patient.  Best wishes to anyone suffering at the moment from all those nasty little bugs that are doing the rounds.  May we all be fresh and healthy for Christmas. 

So I've missed a few challenges I was hoping to play along with but the joy is there are always more.  Today I managed to complete another page of my calendar for The Craft Barn Challenge.  This is getting quite exciting now because next week is the final challenge.  As I am a little bit behind this is my week 9 entry when the theme was teal, rust, white.  Lovely colour combination and it allowed me to use a beach theme that I had been hoping to incorporate.

I inked the pages in a patchy sort of way with a teally shade of blue.  I used Sizzix decorative strip "A day at the beach" for the phrase, chair and parasol.  The beach is some yellow paper that I have embossed with blue snowflakes.  OK, that's a bit strange for my August page but maybe they could be starfish, or sand dollars, or some other exotic crustacean.  This is art, luverly, art.  We hope!  The young Victorian (who incidentally also looks like she has dressed for a cool august visit to the beach) is Crafty Individuals stamp CI-158 stamped in rust ink.  The two images are from CI miniatures book 'People and Places'.   A hint of a tint of blue on the calendar tab and the job is done, although there is a chance I may have to change the parasol colours.  It looks a bit not quite right.  Maybe, maybe........

Entering this for The Craft Barn Calendar Challenge 9 - teal, rust and white

Take care, keep well and watch this space for our next exciting instalment.......

Don't forget to check out the  Art With No Boundaries Ezine  Great projects and tips.  

Last of the summer flowers

Hello everyone.   I am still on my yearly visit to the UK.  It's been lovely to see the family but I must admit that now I am looking forward to being home again.  In a few days I shall be reunited with my man, animals, garden and craft stash, but until then I will just have to be happy plugging the gap in my calendar for the Craft Barn Challenge.  I am looking all the way back to week 3 when the theme was white/yellow/green.  I must admit that I have had to stretch the brain cells for this one but am quietly pleased with the result. 

For the background I have used a fab technique I discovered in Craft Stamper April 2012 in an article called Pressed Petals.  Basically you collect some fat juicy leaves and flowers, layer them on paper and run them through your die cutting machine and ..... WOW!!  Actually I didn't really think this would work but it does.  It's pretty amazing.  You get loads of juice oozing out of the sandwich and an instant flower paper.  I love this effect.  I have never had the patience to press flowers but here it's almost instant and no need for sealing the paper cos you only have the impression and the dyes from the flowers, not any actually organic material.  The only funny thing was the red begonia flowers gave a blue impression!!  A bit strange.  The technical amongst you will probably assure me that it's all something to do with light reflectance or the way the eye sees colour or red flowers are actually blue we just see them as red....... Whatever, it's a great trick and gave me a great white/yellow/green (with a bit of blue) background for these pages.  The birds and the saying are chipboard pieces by Basic Grey.

I have just spoken to my man and he says there is 50cm of snow in our bit of Norwayland and the chickens are on strike.  Brrrrr.  At least it's seasonal and I might be able to get my head into Chrimbo mode.  At the moment I am still hoping for some sunshine!!  Ah well, there's always cake.  

Be warm, take care, thanks for dropping by. 

I am entering this into

 The Craft Barn Calendar Challenge Week 3 - White/Yellow/Green
Artful Times Challenge 18 - Anything Goes

Under a Blue Moon

Hello everyone.  Hope you are having a warm and snugly Saturday.  Here's my latest offering for the ongoing Craft Barn Calendar Challenge where this week the theme is children/cute.  These are my September pages using my mini heart book which, as a re-cap for those who have just joined us, I cut using Sizzix Framelits Scalloped Heart dies.  I call it a mini-book but must admit that during the course of this project it has become a rather fat mini-book!  Luckily these were low calorie pages!  

I have used two stamps from Cornish Heritage Farm, Sweet One Collage and Little People Collage.  I used Memento Ink, Tuxedo Black with the stamps and then London Fog to colour the background, leaving the girls white.  I added some iridescent glitter glue as highlights and the calendar tab for September.  Definitely children, hopefully cute. 

I am entering this into  

The Craft Barn Calendar Challenge - Children/Cute 

Artful Times Challenge 18 - Anything Goes

Start with a bang

Hello everyone.  Just a quick post tonight.  The calendar challenge at The Craft Barn this week is candles.  Uhhhhhhh.  That's a tricky one.  Anyway, after much thought and rummaging through the stuff here's my offering.

That amazing background, which actually photographed pretty well, is some printed vellum.  The candles are peel-off stickers mounted on flower paper with some glitter highlights.  The sentiment is more peel-off stickers.  That's January.

I am entering this for the following challenges
 The Craft Barn Calendar Challenge 7  
Paperminutes - # 243 Calender Page

Me and the White Rabbit

Well when I saw The Craft Barn calendar challenge for week 5 was paper tape I thought "Hurray, I've got some of that".   So I checked out my stash and found this black and white diamond design.  I thought it would go great with the distorted harlequin mask I was lucky enough to receive as part of the prize in the Tando Creative Birthday Bash Design Team Blog Hop.   So this started with an idea, struck a few hurdles, went a little bit sqwiffy, started to shape up but needed a little something.  Then I saw this fab project by Gez.  The finishing touch for my night in November. 

I used texture paste and the Tando distorted harlequin mask for the central design.  I splashed some Distress Ink Broken China and Chipped Sapphire around.  I cut the paper tape into sections and arranged them across the two pages.  At this point it looked like a cold, dark, brrrr night in November.  It needed a figure of some sort, in black and white because all colour goes at night doesn't it.  I have used Sizzix embosslit Hello Kitty and highlighted with black ink.   I added the calendar tab and then I was a bit stalled.  I didn't want it looking so gloomy but luckily Gez posted her fab firework project and problem was solved.  Thanks Gez.  It's November, it's fireworks!!  Some glitter glue and the night sky comes alive.  At least mine will be around for longer than the real thing.  Thanks for visiting.


I am entering this into The Craft Barn Calendar Challenge Week 5

Tweet, So Tweet

Gosh, another post.  Things are coming together.  At last.  Week 6 of The Craft Barn Calendar Challenge and the theme is felt.  I'm sure I've got some of that around here somewhere......  But life is too short.  I found a lovely piece of white and brown cow pattern felt in town.  I'm sure this will make a great giraffe? cow? cat?  Maybe not.  OK, lets check the bits box.  Ah ha....

March.  Spring is in the air and the birdies are singing.  I cut two hearts from this funky scribble paper from Soestrene Grenes.  I added a heart brad and wobbly eye to each felt die cut bird.  The fabric flowers have a felt brad center. 

I am entering this into The Craft Barn Calendar Challenge Week 6 and because I am entering in the week the challenge is posted I can get a voucher for 15% off an order at the website.  I feel a shopping trip coming on.....  

Thanks for looking.


 

It's a doodle

Hello everyone.  I am playing catchup with the The Craft Barn Calendar Challenge.   Week 4 and the theme was "Doodles".  Uhhhhhhh.......?#!!??  (hope that's not a swear word in blogland!!)  OK so here's my first attempt at planned doodling.   

  

It's April, it's Paris, love is in the air, the flowers are blooming. I cut two hearts from a sheet of My Mind's Eye double sided cardstock.  I stamped CI 260 - Travels to Paris and used a CI image from People and Places miniature book.  Using a gold pen I doodled faux stitching around the edge of the hearts, on the die cut flowers and also doodled the stems. 

Time flies

Hello again and so soon!!  Well here's my second contribution to The Craft Barn's Calendar Challenge.  Izzy already uploaded my emailed image (thanks Izzy) but here you can read all about it.  

Calendar Challenge 2 was Bright Colours.  I have hopped to June in my little heart mini-book.  The Tando Creative Online Classes helped with this as they showed a technique using wax crayons to create a marbled effect.  So, I melted some wax crayons to give the background.  Nice bright colours.  I have used a layered sticker from My Minds Eye that came in a goody box.  The little girl is from CI mini book "People and Places 2" and the butterflies from CI mini book "Natures Beauty".  That's it.  

I am entering this in The Craft Barn Calendar Challenge Week 2

OK, from here on it might be a bit erratic as I will be playing catch up a bit due to life getting in the way of craft.  Keep watching this space.......

Crafters block

Hi everybody, I hope you are having a great weekend.  I'm having a little challenge with some projects I am working on.  You know how it is when things won't come together.  So while I am waiting for the fog to clear I thought I would do a bit of backposting.  I have been joining in at The Craft Barn with their Calendar Challenge.  This has already been running a few weeks and I started by emailing my entries to Izzy but now my blog is up and running I thought I'd blog in arrears in case anyone wanted the details on my little project.   Anyway this is my week one calendar.  The theme was vellum. 

I decided to make a heart shaped mini-book using my Sizzix Framelit scallop heart set.  I am using two pages per month (so maybe not so mini a book!!) and here's February.  I used Sizzix embossing folder "Always Forever" for the sentiment and coloured with Distress ink barn door and walnut stain.  I cut two vellum hearts from the second die in the framelit series and embossed them with Sizzix "Rays"embossing folder.  I cut the one so it fitted around the phrase.  I cut more hearts from plain and heart printed vellum using the smallest framelit die, embossed them then added some barn door for a bit of colour.  I have arranged them in pairs as butterfly wings and used the new Crafty Individuals (CI) butterfly die to cut the body which I coloured with various Pebeo prisme paints.  The two images are hand torn from CI miniature books "People and Places 2" and "Christmas".  The calendar is a web download with a hint of barn door.  I am using a couple of book rings to keep it all together.

I am entering this in The Craft Barn Calendar Challenge 1