Guest spot at StampNation... critter challenge/chalkboard technique

Over at StampNation today the latest challenge is up.  It's an Either or Both challenge.

Option 1: Critter Challenge- Use some sort of bird, animal, creature or critter on your card.
Ideas: Deer, Mouse, Cardinal, Fox, etc.

Option 2: Chalkboard Technique: Use a piece of black cardstock with white or colored ink for a chalkboard technique.


This first card is for the Option 1:  I used a bird

 I pulled out my Birdcage and Bird die from Tim Holtz and die cut it with a some white card.  I used red Distress inks to sponge the bird.  The PP is from Rosie's Studio "Home for the Holidays" I trimmed around the holly with my craft knife and slid the cage and bird underneath.  The sentiment is from Hero Arts and is white embossed.  I stamped and die cut the holly leaves and berries (SOA Candy Cane Lane) and added a bow die from Impression Obsession.

And just because I could... I made another card using Option  - Chalkboard technique.

A real CAS card.  I took a piece of some black cardstock and white embossed the Hero Arts Vintage Poinsettia and matched it with a sentiment from SOA Candy Cane Lane.  I used a Faber Castell white pen to smudge around the flower and the sentiment.   I added some white enamel liquid dots.

Hope you week is doing well.  Tomorrow is my work Christmas lunch...we are heading about 45 minutes away at a pub out in the country.  Should be a fun afternoon.

A Classy card at StampNation

I'm back again with my Guest Designer card for StampNation this week.  Our challenge is to make a Classy Card.   As I'm busy making Christmas cards, I've made not one but two Classy cards.

My GD card is this one

My inspiration for this one came from Pinterest.  I've used some metallic shimmery card to make this.  Ive used dies from Spellbinders, Cheery Lynn Designs and Couture Creations.  I used stamps from Catherine Pooler Designs SOA  Candy Cane Lane collection.  I used a Copic marker to colour some white pearls.  I added a bit of dimension on the card with some embossed lines.

And while I had my shimmery card and the dies out, I made another Classy card

with this one, I used a smaller Spellbinders die for focal point and stamped it with the sentiment - again from the SOA collection.  It's hard to see but I have embossed some little stars around the sentiment.    I used the same embossed lines and the Spellbinders Poinsettia die and the Couture Creations Holly Flourish

Thanks for stopping by today.  If you are a member of StampNation, do come join us, and if not... please consider joining us. 

StampNation Candy Cane Christmas

It's weekly challenge time over at StampNation and I'm a Guest Designer.  Our challenge was to make a sweet card using SOA Candy Cane Lane Peppermint Stick background and candies... or as an alternative instead of candy you can do any sweet treat: cookies, cakes, pie, cocoa etc. or even a sweet sentiment or sweet image.


I was lucky enough to get hold of the Candy Cane Lane collection and here is the card I made

I have used all SOA Candy Cane Lane Collections stamps.   The background is the Peppermint Stripe stamped in Altenew Coral Berry.  I used Ruby Red ink to stamp the candy canes.  I used the coordinating dies to cut them out as the holly and leaves.  The sentiment is stamped in the Coral Berry ink.  Finished with a satin ribbon.


If you aren't a member at StampNation, I can highly recommend it... There is so much inspiration from all the members.  See all about it here.

thanks for stopping by.   

Labour Weekend fun

Hi there... It's been a long weekend here in NZ with Monday being a public holiday to celebrate Labour Day - the beginning of the 40 hour working week. We headed up to Mangawhai Heads with our friends. Being the long weekend I took a box of crafting stuff with me... I spend all of Saturday crafting... Got 4 cards made. One was very involved and took nearly 2hrs to make. For me this was a long time as I tend to make much quicker CAS cards. So here is it is.........................

This card is made with freebie stamps from a magazine I got this week.  I copied the sample in the magazine using a Z-fold card.   Just changed up the colour and position of the flowers and used a different die for the sentiment.  Lots of fussy cutting involved in the making of this one.  I used Zig Markers to colour the flowers. 

So my next cards were definitely more CAS.

This is an Easel card made using a Kaisercraft Die set that I picked up for $5.00

 

It lets you cut a half circle and then a little half circle tab and make an easel card as well as a flip card.  I used some Penny Black stamps to decorate and some tartan PP.   Added a little die cut bow from SOA set. 

The next one was a CASE of a card by Ally at StampNation and used all SOA Candy Cane Lane stamps and one of the borders from Catherine Pooler's Yay Stripes.

 Here is Ally's card.  

I used the red at the base of the card and masked off the central sentiment before stamping the branches in two different greens.  Added some red berries and then some blue stars to pull in the colours that Ally used. 

And finally a very CAS Christmas card using some more of the SOA Candy Cane Lane collection.  This one uses the Crooky Tree - first time using it. 

My tree was stamped in the two layers with different Altenew inks.  I stamped the sentiment in some grey Altenew ink.  The edge of my panel was embossed with an edge folder.  

Well if you made it this far, I thank you and I'll leave you with a few photos of the rest of weekend.

 these two are taken on our walk at Te Arai Point. 

And this was dessert on Sunday evening... Lemon Meringue Pie made by me, with Mango Sorbet made by Yvonne.   Yummy!

thanks for stopping by.

Playing with Poinsettias

Today I got to spend some time playing with Hero Arts Poinsettia and some cheap shimmery watercolour paints I picked up for $4.99 the other day.  They are such pretty soft colours.  There are 28 colours in the set (See it HERE)

My first card started out life as an ATC that I thought would look good on a card.  I made the card a smaller one.. 3.5" by 4.5".

I used some Close to My Heart watercolour paper for the ATC panel and white embossed the poinsettia.  I did a wet on wet paint technique by wetting the image before adding the paint.   The sentiment is from another Hero Arts set.    I dragged some of the paint out around the flower.
Entering this into the Challenge at Hero Arts 

My second card is a full size A5 size and uses the same technique for colouring the Poinsettia.

I started by stamping the Stampin'Up text in 2nd generation using Versafine Vintage Sepia ink.  Once the flower was coloured I masked it and sponged Tumbled Glass distress ink all over the card.  I then added watered down Golden Glitz ink and some of the pink paint.   The sentiment is from a set in the SOA Candy Cane Lane collection.

and for my last card I chose a different colour for the flower

I started by stamping the poinsettia in a light grey Altenew ink.  I used cream and fawn colours.  I added a pale grey Copic marker round the outside and then around some of the petals.  The sentiment is another one from SOA Candy Cane Lane  collection.

Today is hubby's birthday - the big six-0!  We had a great party last night - catching up with a lot of old friends and relatives.

thanks for stopping by.  Hope you are having a great weekend.

Marathon card making weekend....

WARNING - PHOTO HEAVY POST 

Well my marathon card making weekend is coming to an end... hubby will be home in a couple of hours... it's going to take that long to tidy up the dining room and table

I've had a great weekend - even managed a few chores... this morning washed all the floors and went out to get meat from the butchery.    And a total of 10 cards made since Friday evening.  '

Today I've been on a Christmas card blitz.  Started by using MISTI to stamp a pile of SOA Peppermint Stick backgrounds in lots of colours.  Then with help of MISTI again did a few panels for the fronts

All the stamps and the die are from the SOA Candy Cane Lane Collection.

And did you know you can use the Peppermint stick background to make a plaid!  Well you can...

The blue ink went down first and then I turned the card 90 degrees and stamped in the red.  I die cut it with the little scallop die from one of the earlier SOA collections.  My mini perfect layers made it easy to add a little white mat around it.   Clear embossed and die cut the deer's head.  Cut the Merry in a few colours before deciding on the white one.

I also stamped some envelopes with some SOA goodies for my Christmas cards


My final two Christmas cards were both inspired by cards made by Gayatri Murali over at Winnie and Walter's rerun challenge.  I have the stamp set being highlighted and Gayatri's cards got my creative juices going.

I used the bigger of the pennants to make my pretty pastel trees.  Paired them with a sentiment from the SOA collection.  I embossed it so love the bold black against the soft pastels.  Entered into the challenge at Winnie and Walter.

and for my second one I went monochromatic

Used the smaller pennant and stamped it in the three greens from one of the Altenew inks sets.  Added some tiny die cut gold stars and some sequins from Lucy's Little Things.  The sentiment is made up of three from the Hero Arts Peace stamp and die set.  I used a Lil' Inkers die to cut the panel and to emboss the card base.   This one is going into the challenge at Winnie and Walter as well.
I am also entering it into the Geometric challenge at A Blog Named Hero.

Whew!!!  If you made it this far... Thank You.    Despite all of this creativity my mind is still churning with lots ideas for cards and I could keep going for ages... but reality sets in when I realise I have to clean up and get ready for work tomorrow.    Thanks for stopping by. 

Elegant Christmas card plus a colourful playful one

Two more Christmas cards using the SOA Candy Cane Lane Collection.

The first one is an elegant one that uses the Peppermint Stripe background stamped in a beautiful dark green ink

I used the Merry Labels die - look at that beautiful embossed detail on it.  Stamped the holly and berries as well as the sentiment from the Merry and Bright stamp set.  Coloured the holly with Copic markers.   

Entering into the the "Anything Goes" Challenge at Simon Says Stamp

My next card is a fun playful one - again using the Peppermint Stick background,

I stamped the background with a rainbow ink pad by Colorbox.  I then used the colours from ink pad to make the candies and the little stars on the frame which was made using the smaller Merry Label die.    Entering into the Pastel Challenge at Southern Girls Challenge.

World Cardmaking Day is tomorrow - but there is lots happening over the entire weekend.  My first official duties as a Guest Designer at StampNation are over the weekend. 

Here's a little sneak peek of what's coming up 

See you over the weekend.

It's Offical.... I'm a Guest Designer over at StampNation!!!!

Yep, little old me.  I was very excited to be asked to guest design for October to December.... starting with Word Card Making Day this coming weekend.  So look out for some inspiration from me for the challenges during the day (or should that be weekend!)

Anyway to celebrate I have started by using some the the Stamp of Approval Candy Cane Lane collection.

This one uses the Peppermint Stick background stamped in Delicata Golden Glitz and clear embossed.  I used this with my Sizzix Flip Card die to make the base.  I then stamped and embossed the deer (Hip Holiday) before die cutting with the matching die set (Hip Holiday dies).  I used the Merry die (Merry Labels Die) to cut some of the stripy background. Off set it with some black card so it would pop a bit more and added the Christmas (Merry and Bright Boughs) sentiment.

and a second card I did and posted at StampNation

I used a piece of the golden stamped background from the first card to added down the side of my card and then used a few of the leaves, candy canes and peppermint lollies  and little bitty bits from the Candy Cane Lane stamp and matching die sets and the Hip Holiday stamp set which is where the sentiment came from.  A thin piece of gold mirror card finished it off before matting onto the red card and then the white base.

I'm having such fun with this Collection and if you set a chance to purchase it over at cpstampofapproval.com   I can recommend it.

Thanks for stopping by and I hope you can share my excitement with me for the next few months.