Happy Shiny Tag

Good morning blog followers and friends.  A special hi to Tracy who has just joined the following.  We have been having some amazing thunder and lightning storms the last few days.  At least it has cleared away the humidity.  I wasn't sure whether it was the heat or the humidity that makes me feel so uninspired.  Anyway it's cooler, wetter and greyer.  A good excuse to be in and craft.  

A few sites are looking for tags, oh goody I love tags, and also there are a lot of summer themes around.  What better way to spend a grey wet day than making a summery tag?  

There's quite a lot of 'new' in this project.  I finally got around to using my new for me Stampotique's Birdie Up stamps.  He's so cute.  I've coloured him with PaperArtsy Fresco paints, newly acquired, Limelight and Inky Pool with some additional colour from American Crafts Galaxy Markers.  I am not the world's greatest colourer, is that a word?, but I am quite pleased with how this birdie turned out.  My tag is Bazzill card embossed using Sizzix Rays folder and then embossed with gold embossing powder.  I have been meaning to try this double embossing technique for a while, so another newby.  I have a bit of powder in the wrong place or missing but I think it works well with the distressed folder look.  

I was looking for the perfect tag tie and had some lovely black fringe ribbon but couldn't find a gold to contrast.  Then I spotted this.....

Uhhhhh, what dat den? I hear you cry.  This is my pot full of stripy pipe-cleaners.  Amid other stuff.  Perfect, maybe?

OK, so it's a bit of an exotic top.  I used a Sizzix original Sun #2 cut from some gold packaging, old chocolate box I think.  Then I went a bit mad with a couple of the yellow/brown pipe-cleaners.  They were a bit indistinct so I doodled with a black marker.  That was a bit of an adventure.  No return for mistakes there.  I think it sort of worked.  Then I added a metal flower from Korthobby and a decorative brad.  Oh yeah, I grounded Birdie using a stamp from Woodware Angels set and a bit of doodle dots and then smudged a bit of DI Walnut Stain because it needed it.  So no, that's not accidental smudgy fingerprints.  That's intentional smudgy fingerprints ROFL.

OK, no holds barred on your comments.  I think Birdie is definitely going to get the lion share of comments but if anyone is brave enough to comment on the fluffy embellishment top then speak your mind, I can take it.  

My fluffy top tag is going to join the fun at
Stampotique Designers Challenge 110 - Tag You're It 
Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge - Anything Goes 
Korthobby Utfordring - Fargerikt 
ALBC - Summer Sun 
Papertake Weekly - Anything Goes 

Thanks for dropping by.   I really appreciate the time you take, your comments and your support.  Have a great day everyone. 

In My Dreams....

Hi and welcome.  The craft is sure flowing tonight, uhhh, this morning!!  Ah well, today is another day and bright the sun may shine.  Hey, I can wax and wane all over the place at this time of night.  Talking of waxing and waning over at Altered Pages the challenge is Dreamy Nights.  Not sure that my dreams are as organised as the DT pieces suggest but to me it's blues and blacks and moons.  And when the moon is full don't you just got to get howling........

Is that in focus??  Maybe it's just me old eyes complaining of too much screen time.  Anyway, I used various acrylic and distress inks on the base card over crumpled tissue paper.  The Raven is a Crafty Individuals stamp coloured with DI which started about ATC size and then got seriously distressed.  I stamped the ravens head on an Eco Board Inchie from Altered pages, coloured and then added glossy accents.  Over on the left the coyote is a homemade mask inked in black with Tando Distorted Harlequin mask below.    The butterfly wing is Altered Pages Jar Fairies Wings Collage Sheet 1008D.  I thought it fitted perfectly with the colour scheme.  I printed the words a la me, cut and paste. 

Joining the fun at
Altered Pages Challenges - Dreamy Nights
Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge - Anything Goes

Thanks for joining me.  Again.  Always a bit crazy at the end of the month.  And when the moon is full.  Or there's thunder and lightning.  Take care.  May all your dreams be sweet.  

Inspired by Francis Picabia

Hi and welcome followers, friends, fellow bloggers.  Back again for a last minute post over at Tando Creative.  This one has been a major challenge, in the end a lot of fun but definitely well up there on the out of your comfort zone scale of 1 to 10.  The challenge is Favourite Artist.  Now I had an idea a while ago but that got sidetracked so I decided to consult the book Modern Art 1890 - 1918 by Jean Clay.  Modern huh??  Everything is relative I suppose.  Maybe I should mention that I am very bad at drawing.  No, I mean very bad.  This was a big challenge.  Anyway I was really taken by Francis Picabia Portrait of Mme Robbie de Massot.  If you want to check it out you will have to look it up cos I didn't want to upset any copyright laws.   Anyway this is my version.  The original is definitely worth a look and has eyebrows that don't look like Groucho's!!

I used coffee filters in white and brown for the face and hair.  Button eyes, a metal key from Korthobby tinted with black paint for the nose, Tando Creative mini leaf for the mouth and  two pieces from Work of Parts Come Fly With Me for those amazing eyebrows.  More charms from Korthobby in the hair, card candi, Mowed Lawn DI, white acrylic paint and Pebeo Porcelain black outline for the line.  It's art lovely.  Thanks to Francis Picabia (1879 - 1953) for the inspiration.  Mona Lisa eat your heart out.....

Joining the fun at
Tando Creative Challenge 
Eclectic Paperie e-team picks challenge - Kitchen Papers - I used coffee filters
Korthobby Utfordring - Fargerikt

Thanks for dropping by.  Take care and remember get out of your comfy chair and craft on.......

For the Love of Pink

Hi blog followers and friends.  Welcome to my little bit of blogland on this, the last day of July.  Where is the year going??  Zooommmm.....   It has been too long since my last post.  Not quite sure what happened there because there are a lot of projects I'm working on but I don't seem to have got things finished and posted.  6/10, must try harder.  Anyway, something finally came together and it's for the LOTV and Eclectic Paperie challenges.  Now I have been wanting to join in with the EP challenges for a while because they have such lovely themes but this is the first time I have got it together. Over at LOTV it's pretty in pink and Eclectic Paperie wanted us to make a collage using paper from the kitchen!!   The first thing that came to mind was kitchen roll but after a little hunt through the drawers I found these two contenders.  

I have a few lonely napkins left over from when the pack is almost finished.  This one is Paris themed and pink so ideal for the LOTV challenge.  The other item is a cupcake case from IKEA.  They do some funky colours and although it had never occurred to me to use them for art it worked out quite well.  I can see a collection of funky cupcake cases joining the stash....

So I split the three layers of my napkin, glued it to pink cardstock to get a pink tint and added this lovely pair of young and in loves.  These have been cut from LOTV True Love art pad and mounted on sticky pads.  Such a cute pair.  

 

I cut the cupcake case into strips and made a double rosette.  I added a Papermania pink ribbon brad and an organza bow.  The hearts are from Tando Creative Hearts Minis that I coloured using Pebeo English Red Fantasy Prisme.  

Joining the fun at
LOTV Challenge - Pretty in Pink
Eclectic Paperie - Use Kitchen Paper  

Thanks for dropping by.  Have a great day. 

A Very Special Lamb

Hello, hello, blog followers and friends.  Yesterday I got happy mail which worked fabulously with a layout I was putting together for the Imaginisce Challenge.  

This is the sketch for the July challenge.  

This is what I came up with.  I remember this day quite vividly.  The sheep and I were up the mountain.  I was working.  He was enjoying himself.  I always got the impression he was on holiday which was why the Imaginisce Travel Stacker Stickers seemed perfect for this layout.  It was a lovely sunny day, late May, hot and hazy.  I remember seeing this view and asking him to jump on this rock, which he did, and then asking him to stay there while I walked far enough away to photo this glorious scene.  Amazingly he did stay put.  I think he knew home was down the hill and since I was going up the hill to take my photo he knew I would be coming back.

I used Imaginisce Animal Crackers Step Right Up double sided paper as my base 002798.  I was kicking myself a bit cos the other side is full with circus themed tickets, which was why I bought it, but this side was perfect for the layout.  I thought the little triangles looked like a pine forest.  The main picture is the one I took which I had made into postcards.  The image is printed in black and white on the reverse side and I thought it was nice to use the repeat image under the colour one.  It also gives me my Sibbe at Work May 2011 caption.  

I used Imaginisce Travel Stacker stickers 003387, the postcard, the tourist first class tag, cos he was a first class tourist, and the customs declaration, which was a great place for my title and also a bit of journalling about Sibbe.  I added some twine to the tags.  

I really wanted to use my i-Top tool but didn't think brads would fit in.  Then I decided to use the 34mm brad punch for this great spiky shape and some of the packaging from other stacker stickers which had the same triangle design.  This gave me my arrows and I used some other elements from the stacker stickers to add some interest.  The trees are cut using Memorybox Frosted Christmas Tree die.  This was my happy mail!  It's one of their newly released dies that I was lucky enough to win as part of the Memorybox Holiday Release over at A Crear Se Dijo.  Fantastic die.  I cut and embossed some green card and then used DI Mowed Lawn to highlight the embossing.  They fitted perfectly to continue my Norwegian forest theme.  The flourish is Sizzix Flowers and Vine #3.  

For this layout, for my memories of this day and my Lamb in general these papers and embellishments couldn't have been more perfect.  I haven't done many layouts but I am really pleased how all the elements work together to give me a very special frozen moment.  I suppose that is what it's all about.......

Joining the fun at
Imaginisce - July Challenge
Country View Challenges - Summer Sizzler
Stamping Sensations July Challenge 

Thanks for dropping by.  Please leave a comment to let me know you passed this way.  Have a great day. 

Little Sailor

Hi everyone.  Glad you could join me.  Just a quick post for a cute little card. 

I do so love those Leane Creatief owl decoupage.  I've used the little sailor owl with his cute little boat.  The card is embossed with Sizzix Cracked embossing folder and then coloured with DI Salty Ocean.  I've added the die cut birthday sentiment on top of a Korthobby silver metal embellishment.  A cute card for your little sailor. 

Joining the fun at
Korthobby - Bryllup eller Bursdag
Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge

Thanks for dropping by.  Hope the heat isn't keeping you from the craft room.   

Queen of the Universe

Good morning blog friends and followers and a very happy sunny Sunday to you.  So why am I sitting indoors crafting??  Taking advantage of a cool breeze that's blowing and funneling it in to my very warm crafty place.  Definitely feeling like a desert nomad at the moment!!   It's Sunday so of course it's my last minute dash to get my PaperArtsy project finished.  Carol Quance has been inspiring us this week and I wanted to try everything, so I have a few things on half, and then ran out of time and have to choose one thing to finish.  So this is it.....my version of Carol's acetate card

I stamped modern girl from PaperArtsy LPC022 onto my inky background using colorbox Plumeria chalk.  It is new and very juicy so I stamped her again without reinking.  Two for the price of one!  I cut the image out, distressed the edges, mounted on black and then on my second inky background.
 

I tested my acetate to check it wouldn't just melt then used Sizzix Flowers and Vine #3 to cut my flowers, and also the green flourish.  I shaped my flowers, coloured with Raisin, Caramel and Ginger alcohol ink and decided to use a little pearl brad to mount them on the card.  The swirls frame her face and suggested a round cut so I got a bit fussy and then mounted on green textured card from docrafts, tinted with Brilliance Galaxy Gold and some gold outline stickers.  My acetate was a bit thin to make a card from and also had a bit of a tint to it.  Will have to try and find some a bit heavier weight.    

Joining the fun at
PaperArtsy
Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge - Green
The Artistic Stamper - Ladies Day
Paula Holifield Crafts - Die-ing For It

Have a great Sunday.  Thanks for dropping by.  Off to enjoy the sun.......