Smiffy's cards...The Taming of the Glue

WOYWW

2010-11-10T06:23:00.004Z

A very good morning one and all. Thank you to everyone who left advice about my meeting at work last week. I have arranged for a union rep to be with me but it's still quite nervewracking.

I had an OHS appointment on Monday and he thinks that I'm still not fit for work which is good to know....at least one person who doesn't think I'm having time off for fun!

Anyway, here's my desk this week....not very exciting I'm afraid! I've been working on some projects for the workshop on November 27th at Martell Press so I've had to take my "experimenting" head off and put my "sensible" one on! I've come up with 7 Christmas projects all using different techniques so if anyone lives in the area, please get in touch with the shop to book a place.

This is one of the projects which I'm afraid doesn't look anywhere nearly as nice in the photo....looks very washed out but it's actually quite vibrant!

I've used the Ivy set of stamps from Particraft for this one and stamped the 3 sizes of flowers several times onto patterned paper, cut them out and layered them onto a Nestie which has been stamped with the Ivy leaves.

I also randomnly stamped some of the flowers onto the background paper. The edges have been distressed with Tea Dye ink (also available from Particraft). The message is from the same set of stamps.

We're off to lunch today as an Anniversary treat. Been married for 9 years, a record for both of us, so definately something to celebrate!! Better than tomorrow as we have our appointment for the Yellow Fever injections ready for the cruise! Still, no pain, no gain!!

That's about it for today. The craft club is still running so pop along if you can. The new candy will be on here very soon so do look out for it and enter. Until next time..............keep crafting!!

Candy Winner

2010-11-08T07:28:00.004Z

Firstly a big thank you to everyone that took part in the candy draw but unfortunately there can only be 1 winner (otherwise I'd be bankrupt!!). I do promise that if I ever win the lottery (which can only be a matter of time...surely!) I'll give everyone a prize.

Anyway, without further ado the winner is .............................................................................................................

......................................................................................................

Karen. Please e-mail me with your details and I'll get the Xmas bling in the post.

Don't worry if you didn't win....there will be another candy posted on here very soon and there's still a chance to enter for Sue's Particraft candy. She is soooo nearly at her target for the draw to take place and just needs a small final boost so help her out. The link is on my sidebar for Particraft.

The piccie is of an unfinished card but I just wanted to show you a technique. I ran a piece or acetate through a Xyron machine and using a teaspoon, sprinkled Cosmic Shimmer Glitter randomly over the sticky side. After covering the acetate, pat the glitter down with your fingers and you have a gorgeous glittery panel which can be run back through the machine and stuck to cardstock. It makes a fab background and if you use heat resistant acetate it can be stamped and heat embossed. The acetate and glitter are available from Particraft where there is still free p&p.

One other piece of news to share with you. The demo at Martell Press was a huge success and I've been asked to run a one day Xmas card workshop there. It's taking place on November 27th and the cost is £25 including a light lunch. The numbers are strictly limited to 12 so if you're interested, please contact the shop in Cliftonville and book a place.

Got to go as I have a medical at work today and need to sort myself out. I wish they would leave me alone and just believe what my surgeon and GP say but they disagree with the diagnosis even though they've never asked for my medical records and certainly weren't present at the operation! Oh well, better comply with what they want! So until next time....................keep crafting!

WOYWW

2010-11-03T06:17:00.005Z

A very good morning to all and welcome to my bombsite!

I've been in the throws of a massive Christmas card making operation and still haven't got very far. I'm too easily distracted and I see other things that I want to play with!

Anyway, on my desk are a pile of Nesties, Craft Stamper mag (for inspiration!) some Copics, punches and a gorgeous pad of K&Co Xmas papers.

Which brings me neatly on to this Xmas card which I made for my brother and sister in law! I used the papers from the pad to make the roses and also for the background and the sentiment is from Winter Wonderland unmounted stamp set from Particraft. I've used Cosmic Shimmer Aqua Twinkles on the roses for a bit of bling.

I did say on my last post (sorry about the gap but a lot of "stuff" has been happening) that I was playing with a shadow box and would post a piccie of the end result. Well, here it is! It looks so much better in real life but you get the idea! I tore up pieces of scrap paper to cover a frame I made and distressed to my hearts content!

On to the "other stuff" that has kept me away from blogging! I've been waiting for my disciplinary meeting at work about my sick leave for the operation (I won't bore you all with that again) and they set a date which I was terrified about and then they cancelled it with less than 24 hours notice and have reset it for November 16th. I feel as though the Sword of Damocles is hanging over my head. I also did the demo day at Martell Press and if any of the lovely customers who came are reading this...thank you all for coming and making me so welcome. There's exciting things happening at the shop for crafters so watch out for a mail shot and keep November 27th free!!!

We've also had visitors staying and you know how much work that involves (even if they are your nearest and dearest) Suddenly the whole house looks dusty and there seem to be cobwebs everywhere you look so we had a marathon "Winter Clean". Well, that's all my excuses for not being on here these last 2 weeks but hopefully I'll be a bit more regular now.

I'll definately be here on November 8th to draw the blog candy so if you haven't entered yet, there's still time!

Better go as I really need a top up of my morning cuppa! Until next time........keep crafting and many thanks for visiting!!!

WOYWW

2010-10-20T13:58:00.005+01:00

Oh boy, have I had trouble getting this to upload today! Anyway, better late than never. Many thanks to everyone who visited last week and for leaving such kind comments.

On to this week...I started to make a shadow box with one of my birthday set of stamps, it's just about finished and I'll put the piccie on here next time. Obviously there is a pile of Distress Inks..don't think I can manage without them!

This is the "working"end of my table...good job you can't see the rest of it which is piled up with samples for the demo on Saturday.

Talking of which...if you're in East Kent on Saturday I'll be at Martell Press, Northdown Rd, Cliftonville from 09.30 til 17.00 so if you're in the area, pop in and say hi!

This is another sample I've made for the demo. I've used stamps from the "Partridge in a Pear Tree" set. I inked the pear stamp with Tumbled Glass and Dusty Concord Distress Inks then heat embossed with Aurora Sparkle powder (Cosmic Shimmer). The message was stamped with the Dusty Concord ink after colouring a piece of card with both colours and then I heat embossed the whole thing. I ran a piece of card through my die cut machine to dry emboss it, then used direct to paper technique to give it some dimension. The only other thing I've done is to add a shadow around the pear. It's a very quick and easy card to make but looks quite effective. All of the stamps and inks are available from Particraft.

In other news, my grandson has just found out that he has passed the 11+ exam so he can go to grammar school next September. I'm so pleased (not to mention proud) for him as he had set his heart on passing and I know how hard he has worked.

Sue only needs another 40 followers before she draws the candy on her Particraft blog so do pop over as it's well worth winning. I've also got some candy on offer so have a look at the previous post if you'd like to join in. Well, that's all for now...got to get ready for craft club this evening so until next time........keep crafting!!!

Candy and Samples

2010-10-15T20:06:00.006+01:00

Hi All...here I am at last with the new candy. Many apologies for the wait but I was distracted by all those cruise workshop packs which are now finished!!! Yes, all 1,120 of them! Now I've just got to do the packs for the next cruise and I'll be bang up to date...still, there's only 500 of them to prepare!

Anyway, the candy is Christmas themed again and includes: a pack of 50 glitter ties, K&Co Embossed Stickers and Rub-ons. a pack of 8 rolls of pearlised silk tape, 3 packs of Papermania sparkling trims and a pack of 3d stickers. All very useful with Xmas just around the corner! As usual, all you have to do to enter is become a follower of the blog and leave a comment after this posting. For 2 entries, link back to your blog and each time you leave a comment in the future you get extra entries....simples!! The draw will take place on 8th November at 5am.

Apart from putting the packs together I've been working on some samples for the demo at Martell Press on 23rd. I love this technique so I'll definitely be showing this (also like it as it's very fast!!)

I've used Broken China, Faded Jeans and Dusty Concord Distress Inks to create the landscape. For the hills, I tore some copy paper and stippled the ink. The stamps are from the Stylish Christmas 3 stamp set from Particraft.

Did you catch Jo's show on Create and Craft today? She was showing the Christmas Topper set of stamps which look fab. Check out the Particraft on-line shop as there is free p&p and they are only £9.99 for the set. I'm looking forward to November 13th as I'll be going up to Creative Expressions in Kettering where Sue is running a workshop using the lovely Vintage Postcard set of Xmas stamps. There's still a few places left so if anyone is interested have a look at her Particraft blog for details.

Anyway, off to watch Corrie...hope Graham will be OK!!! Until next time.......keep crafting!!

WOYWW

2010-10-13T05:50:00.005+01:00

Morning All.....happy WOYWW. For anyone that hasn't heard of it Wednesday is the day that we can have a look around other people's workspaces. If you'd like to join in I have a link on my sidebar. Many thanks to everyone that visited and left comments on here last week. I managed to get around 90 blogs and apologise if yours was one I missed.

This is my stamping and general heat things up area including the kettle which is a vital part of my crafting....no caffeine, no mojo!

I'm working on some samples for the demo later this month using Cosmic Shimmer Fibres and Films. The card in the background is one that my grandson is making. Bailey is 10 and has just discovered the joys of heat embossing. He's getting quite experimental and mixing all the powders on the stamped images. Move over Tim Holtz...there's a new kid in town!!!! Well, I can dream, can't I ?

This is one of the cards that we'll be making on the cruise in January.

The stamps are from the Sundae and Cup Cake sets from Particraft. I'd forgotten they were in the drawer so I was pleased to find them as they were just right for this project. Mind you, after stamping both images out 40 times and then running the message through the Sissix with a Nestie 40 times, I think they can go back in the drawer for a while!!!

The new candy will be on here in the next couple of days...promise! In the meantime, don't forget that Sue has some amazing candy on her Particraft blog. So until next time....keep crafting!!!

It's That Time Again!

2010-10-08T06:45:00.002+01:00

Morning everyone! Well, it's that time again when I draw the winner of the blog candy so without further ado (and without a safety net!) the winner is.............................................

.........................................................................

...................................................

Mariella.

Many congratulations and I hope you have a lot of fun with the goodies. Please e-mail me your address. To everyone else, commiserations! However, there will be another chance to enter for some more candy in the next few days so please keep watching this space.

The packs for the workshops on the cruise are coming along well and I've now completed 23 projects which works out to 920 packs! I'm mid-way through project 24 and will finish it this morning. After that my lovely OH is taking me to Faversham to visit a craft shop called Pickleberry Crafts and then taking me to lunch. We don't usually do this but it's a sort of special day (although one that I keep trying to forget) as it's the dreaded birthday. Think I'll just admit to 31 plus VAT with variable rates! I've been a very lucky bunny though....10 new stamp sets to play with!!!! My family know the way to my heart!!! And a ticket to Sir Tim's workshop in Feb!!! Maybe these birthdays aren't so bad after all!!!

Anyway, onto the card at the start of this posting. It's from the Winter Wonderland set of stamps from Particraft and I've stamped it in Faded Jeans Distress Ink onto gloss card. Then I've placed some sequin waste over the top of it and sponged the ink through. Thought it looked like huge blue snow falling....oh dear...I seem to have lost the plot again! Anyway, you know what I mean...it's a different way of creating a background!

Have a great day everyone and until next time.................keep crafting!!!

WOYWW

2010-10-06T06:57:00.006+01:00

Here we are again with another weekly round up of what's on each others workspaces. I do love this, it's a great chance to have a mosey around the world and see some fantastic artwork.

If I didn't get to your blog last week I apologise (again!) and will try harder this week. If there's anyone reading this that hasn't taken part yet, you should give it a go!

Anyway, onto my desk which looks as though a bomb has hit it. As you can see, I'm a very fickle person and still can't decide between Copics and Promarkers so of course had to have some of each! There's my Yummy Mummy mug which was a pressy from my daughter a couple of years ago and apart from making me smile, it holds a serious amount of caffeine!

The reason for the mess is that I was in the middle of putting 40 packs together for a workshop on the cruise but before I can start sorting them out, I have to "test drive" each project to make sure that they can be done by a beginner in under an hour. That means that I have to stamp every image for them and cut everything to size. This is the 20th project which means that I have put 800 packs together now...only another 320 to go!!! Still, while I'm cruising up the Amazon I'm sure that it'll be all worth while!

I went back and took another

piccie of the finished project and here Ethel is, in all her glory!

I just love that sentiment! The stamps are all from Particraft and there's free p&p if anyone is interested in getting their hands on them! Just got to cut everything to size for the passengers now and put all the bits into individual bags!

On other news, if anyone is in the Cliftonville/Margate area on October 23rd, I'll be demoing Creative Expressions stamps at Martell Press for the whole day so do pop along and say hi. The craft club meets again this evening and we'll be getting down and dirty with some Distress Inks!

Don't forget the blog candy draw takes place at 5am on October 8th so there's still time to enter. You'll find it under older postings. Sue Wilson is slowly getting to her next target to draw her fantastic blog candy and it is an amazing selection of goodies. Pop over to the Particraft blog for a look if you haven't found your way there yet.

Think that's all...this is just delaying going back to the cabin to start chopping and stamping! So until next time...........keep crafting!!!!

WOYWW

2010-09-29T06:55:00.004+01:00

It's Wednesday again and time for me to have a good snoop around other crafter's desks!!! If you haven't joined in yet, where have you been? I have a link on the side of my page to the WOYWW blog so pop over and have a look.

I must apologise for not getting around as many blogs as I wanted to last week but we left for Ally Pally on Thursday. I'm aiming to do much better this week and want to thank everyone who left such lovely comments last week.

So what's on my desk this week? Well, Lynsay gave me a whole load of MDF panels and I wanted to plat straight away (think I've overdosed on cards!) So you can see some of my Distress Inks and Tim Holtz stamps, glues, water and the project I was working on.

Which turned out like this! I love the sentiment and thought it would be a great wall hanging for the cabin!

If you're sure you don't mind some more Xmas cards, here's another one I made for Ally Pally. The stamp is from a set called "Cute Characters" and I've stamped him 4 times and coloured the images with Copics. I stamped the message and cut it out with a Nestie....never could cut out a circle! The stamps, ribbon and all the Distress Inks are from Particraft where there is free p&p...whoopee...means I can buy more!!! Anyway, that's all for now except to say a huge hello to everyone who came to see me at the show...it was lovely meeting you and now I can a face to some of the names on here.

So until next time.................keep crafting!!!

Ally Pally

2010-09-27T20:06:00.003+01:00

We had a great time at Ally Pally and thank you to everyone who took the time to come and say hello...it was lovely to meet you all.

Here's the Particraft team ..Lynsay, Lynn, Maria, Michelle, Viv and me. This was at the start of the day...we were all looking a bit more frazzled by the end!!!

I hope you enjoyed the demo's and managed to pick up one or two goodies. Of course, we only bought what we really needed; just a few vital supplies! Roll on next April and we can do it all over again!

This was another card that I made as a sample for the show and is probably one of my favourites. I've used the Winter Wonderland stamps by Sam Poole and have stamped them onto Nestabilitie tag shapes with Distress Inks. The backing paper is a double sided A4 sheet from Creative Expressions and the ribbon is from Particraft.

I punched the flower out of the same paper, shaped it into a Poinsettia and added some vellum leaves.

As I made about 60 samples for the show I won't put them all on here (I really wouldn't inflict that on you!) but I do have another couple that I'll add over the next few days.

Anyway, just a quick catch up so until next time..........keep crafting!!!

WOYWW

2010-09-22T06:37:00.002+01:00

I can't believe that it's Wednesday already...where did this week go!

So, here's my workdesk this week....covered in samples for Ally Pally this weekend. I've been very organised and put the samples from each stamp set into separate plastic envelopes. The "stuff" next to the samples are all the bits and pieces that I'm going to need to demo with. When I say all I of course mean nearly all as I'm sure that I'll think of a couple of other essential items that I need! I haven't put my Distress Inks there as I can't bear to be without them and will only pack them at the last possible minute!!

I thought I'd also share a sample that I made yesterday. The tree is from the Festive Village set of unmounted stamps from Particraft. I've stamped the tree onto cream card with Perfect Medium and embossed with Bright Gold. The tree was then coloured with Cosmic Shimmer Watercolours. I painted the snowflake stamp with the watercolours and stamped that randomly onto the card. After that, it was ripped around the edges, Perfect Medium applied and then dipped into the gold embossing powder and heated.

The background was made by painting the watercolours onto my craft sheet, spritzing with water and then "splooshing" the card around into it. Yes, I know "splooshing" isn't a word but it does seem to sum up what you do!! I could say "place the cardstock down onto the watercolours and move it around to pick up the colour" but I prefer to "sploosh!" I stamped the snowflakes again with the watercolours. What you can't really see in the picture is the sparkle from the Cosmic Shimmers...they really are fab...such a lot of mica in one small pot of yumminess!!!!

I'm teaching this afternoon at the residential home and then it's craft club tonight. I'm so pleased that there has been a lot of interest...began to think I was the only crafter in town! Don't forget to enter for the blog candy...it'll be under the "older posts" So until next time...............keep crafting!!!!

Nearly Recovered!

2010-09-20T18:35:00.006+01:00

I had a great weekend teaching at the workshop and hope that Jayne, Helen, Sylvia and John had as much fun as I did!

We managed to complete all 12 projects in the time I thought they would take (my planning abilities are getting MUCH better!!!)

Here's a couple of piccies of the gang working very hard. The cabin looks a bit different to how it looked in the photo I took on WOYWW. Just to prove that it often looks very messy but it is a great workspace.

Steve was fantastic and kept everyone fed and watered and even made his fab raspberry flapjack....that's started a riot! His daughter has said that it isn't fair as he didn't make one for her. Looks as thought he's going to be in the kitchen a bit longer.

I've been back to normal (whatever that is) today, getting on with the samples for Ally Pally. I had to be in the cabin by 8am as Sue had a live show on Create and Craft with those terrific Nesties. I just love her samples. Karen Lines has made some stunning samples for the show as well and they are such a joy to look at. Hope some of you managed to catch a show over the weekend.

Finally, here's one last photo of all the completed projects from the workshop. All of the stamps we used are available from Particraft. We covered: Faux Brayering, UTE, Cosmic Shimmer Watercolours and Mica, Distress Inks, Acetate and Alcohol Inks, Box making, Flower making, Eco-Green Acrylic paints, Tag cards, Masking, Gift Wallets, Stamping with pens, Folded cards, Embossing, Ripping and Tearing, Nesties, Sanding and probably a few other things! Having read that, I think I'm going for a long lie down in a darkened room!!!

Anyway, back to the sample making so until next time.....keep crafting!!

Festive Village

2010-09-17T10:29:00.003+01:00

This is just going to be a very quick post as I'm putting the finishing touches to the cabin for the weekend workshop which starts this evening.

Thought I'd share another sample that I made for Ally Pally yesterday. It's from the "Festive Village" set of unmounted stamps from Particraft. I've stamped it in Black Archival ink and heat embossed in clear then coloured in with Copic pens. I've used some papers from my stash and black ribbon. I found the holly berries in a sale last January and have been waiting to use them! Didn't use them before as I had forgotten about them....I think we've all done that!!!

Looking forward to Sue's show at 12pm...she's demonstrating some new Nestabilities and if her samples are anything to go by, I'm going to need them! Jo Channon will also be on Create and Craft over the weekend so watch out for her shows. Hope some of you are coming to Ally Pally next weekend. If you do get there, please come to the Particraft stand and say "Hi". It would be lovely to meet you and be able to faces to names.

I won't get a chance to blog over the weekend but I'll be back on Monday with piccies of the workshop. Don't forget to enter for the blog candy...you'll find it under older posts and remember, the more comments you leave, the more entries you get!

So until next time...................keep crafting!!!

All Ready for the Workshop!

2010-09-16T18:09:00.004+01:00

Can't believe how organised I am! I've got everything ready for the weekend workshop and can't wait to get going. I keep thinking that I must have forgotten something but if I have, I sure can't remember what it was!! Never certain if I'm having a "senior moment!"

The craft club started last night and those that could make it enjoyed it (I think). We just messed around with Distress Inks and did some basic stamping techniques so thank you to Megan and Nicky, see you next week!

Here's another sample I made for Ally Pally. I just love this set of stamps so you'll probably get fed up with seeing them! I made a collage background after colouring a piece of white card with watered down Distress Ink in Dusty Concord and Broken China.

I stamped the pear with the same inks and heat embossed then distressed around the edges. I managed to make 5 samples today which wasn't bad as I also had to go and teach a class at the residential home in the village!

My gorgeous, lovely, wonderful, generous, kind hubby has booked me a ticket to go to the Tim Holtz workshop next February. I was number 17 on the waiting list so didn't think that I stood much of a chance but got the e-mail to confirm my place today....yipee!!!!! Bring on that Distress Ink!!!

Well, better go and do something useful like vacuuming...what a glamorous life I lead! Don't forget that Sue has a lot of shows on Create and Craft over the next few days. She has some amazing samples on her blog. So until next time........keep crafting!

WOYWW

2010-09-15T09:19:00.005+01:00

As it's "What's on Your Workspace Wednesday" I thought I'd show you what's on mine! There are 5 spaces set up for tonights club plus all of the equipment we're going to need for a Distress Ink project. Can't show you what it is in case any of the ladies are reading this and I want it to be a suprise!

In the background is my Cricut machine plus card stock. The brown drawers hold my unmounted rubber stamps. You can just see the bottom of the noticeboard which has colour charts hanging from it as well as lists of what I need to make for various workshops.

It actually looks quite organised....you should have seen it yesterday... 40 waterfall card packs spread out with various components needed to make them!

My eldest daughter, Michelle, had her first riding lesson for 15 years yesterday. She was like a kid on Christmas morning and couldn't stop squealing with excitement. Luckily she calmed down before she got on the horse. He is her "new best friend" and is named Bruce! She's actually cantering in the photo although it looks as though she's in walk. She's now desparate to book another lesson and has been asking mummy if she can have a pony! Mummy has said NO...she had her own horse when she was younger and Mummy knows how expensive they are to keep!!! Her son, Bailey, sat the first part of his 11 plus exam yesterday (2nd part is today). He's desperate to pass as he wants to go to Chatham House Grammer School next September but we keep on telling him that as long as he tries his hardest, that's what counts. He's also just been elected Student Chairman of the School Council....a rather grand title for a 10 year old!!!

Anyway, enough rambling...got to get on with some projects and go shopping for supplies for this evening. Check out Sue's Particraft blog, she's got quite a few shows coming up on Create and Craft starting this Friday. Until next time..........keep crafting!!!

Craft Club

2010-09-13T06:53:00.003+01:00

Really looking forward to Wednesday when the Craft Club is opening for the first time. I think we'll be up to the maximum that the cabin can hold fairly soon. If anyone is in the Dover area and wants to come you're more than welcome. We're starting at 7.30pm and it'll be on for a couple of hours so drop in even if you can't stay for long. E-mail or phone for the addy.

I've been asked about 1 day workshops and will hopefully be running one mid October, just got to get the dates sorted out.

Made some more samples for Ally Pally in between putting a few of the packs together for the cruise and organising Thursday's lesson at the residential home! What do you think of this one? As you know, I do love my grunge and Distress Inks!!! I used a chipboard tag which I covered with scraps of torn paper that I'd previously stamped and embossed with stamps from "Partridge in a Pear Tree" I also stamped some of the foliage that is in the same set with Distress Ink (think I used Frayed Burlap). Obviously the background has also been distressed!! It's one of those cards that looks so much better when you see it "for real"

The cat is much better, many thanks for all your kind thoughts. He's due back to the vets today and will hopefully have the stitches removed which means that his lampshade might be able to come off. We're keeping our fingers crossed that he'll have the all clear to be able to go outside. He really does miss his favourite spot in the garden.

Well, that's all for today...don't forget the blog candy draw and also have a look at Sue's Particraft blog where she has another amazing blog candy up for grabs. We'll hopefully be bringing you news of the challenge blog very soon so watch this space. Off to the cabin to finish the triple tier pop-up card packs (lots of stamped images to do!) Until next time...........keep crafting!!

Poor Old Cat!

2010-09-11T07:41:00.006+01:00

It's been another busy week down at the cabin! I don't think I leave there for more than an hour a day at the moment!

I've put together the first 5 projects for the cruise in January which means making up 40 packs of each of them...200 so far! Only another 23 projects to go...I didn't know I knew so much!

On top of that our poor old cat, Taz, had to go to the vets last Friday for an operation to remove one of his eyes. He's had a problem with it for the past 2 years and we've been putting eye-drops in twice a day but it started bleeding and they found a massive tumour growing just under the bottom eyelid. He's looking very sorry for himself but enjoying all the extra fuss. Thankfully, since the photo was taken, the drainage tube has been removed and the vet has said that he's making a good recovery and healing well. Hopefully he'll have the stitches out on Monday and be allowed outside again. He keeps standing by the kitchen door and waiting to be let out but we just can't let him at the moment. He's 15 years old so it was quite traumatic for him but we all felt that he could have a good quality of life for another few years if we went ahead. A few people thought we were mad spending that much on an elderly cat but my view is that if you take on an animal you have a moral responsibilty to ensure that they have as good a life as possible. I'm not sentimental about animals and don't believe in keeping them alive at all costs. In fact we've said that if the tumour grows back then we won't have him operated on again due to his age, but you've got to give them a chance...or am I a bit daft?

Anyway, didn't want you to think I've been slacking on making the samples for Ally Pally. I was pleased with this one and it was a really simple and quick technique.

I've used gloss card and masked off an area with sticky notes. Then I've applied 3 shades of Distress Inks...the lightest colour goes all over the area (mask where you want the moon after applying this colour), then the next colour goes on 2 thirds of the area and finally, the darkest colour on the top 3rd. All of the colours were applied with Cut 'n Dry.

After that I stamped the gorgeous tree from the "Winter Wonderland" with Black Archival Ink. This is such a fab set of stamps and I've had so much fun playing with them. If you only buy 1 set of stamps this Christmas then these are the ones to get!!! They are terrific value too from Particraft at £9.99 for the set with no p&p. Mind you, the other set that I love are the "Partridge in a Pear Tree" so better make that 2 must have sets!!!

Better get back to the cabin...lots to do and these samples won't make themselves so until next time.................keep crafting!!

Christmas Candy Time!

2010-09-08T07:05:00.004+01:00

Yes, I know it's only September but by the time I draw this we'll all be getting our Xmas cards done!

Here's the blog candy as promised. There's a set of acrylic stamps from Creative Expressions, 2 packs of 3d toppers, some jewel trees and snowmen, a small pack of glittered gel borders, a pack of silver, white and blue embellishments and a pack of gold foiled pictures and messages.

The same rules apply as always...to enter please leave a comment. If you link me to your blog you'll be entered twice. If you leave a message after any posting, you'll get another entry. The draw will take place when I reach 300 followers or very early on 8th October so entries close on 7th October. Hope that all makes sense...I'm never sure this time in the morning, especially when I haven't finished my first cup of tea of the day!!!

This is another of the samples I've made for Ally Pally. I've used the "Partridge in a Pear Tree" set of stamps. The pear has been inked with Tumbled Glass and Faded Denim Distress Inks and the message was stamped with Coffee Archival Ink. All of the products are available from Particraft. I ran the brown card through my embossing machine and sanded it to make the snowflakes pop. I love blue and brown together and think I might use this colour scheme for my own cards this year.

Anyway, off to the cabin for a hard days crafting!! Putting all of the packs together for the weekend workshop...just got 1 more to do. Then I had better get started on the packs for the cruise....just found out that I'll be teaching 28 (yes, you read that right...28) workshops in 42 days. Plenty to keep me busy and definately don't have time to go to work!!!

So until next time..............keep crafting!!!

Bunkfest!

2010-09-07T07:44:00.006+01:00

We had a great time at the "Bunkfest" this weekend and for once, the weather almost behaved itself! There was a fair bit of rain on Sunday morning but it brightened up and Saturday was glorious.

The card stall was very popular and we had lots of sales....good thing too...needed to clear out some of my stock so that I've got a bit more room! They weren't all my cards...3 of us made them and ran the stall. It kept me out of mischief while Steve was filming the bands. The music was great, didn't get to see any of it but could hear it clearly as our stall was next to the marquee.

It was a real "Folk festival" with Morris Dancers from all over the UK
You could always find at least one group outside (or inside) a pub!

There was even a group of Belly Dancers performing but I didn't manage to get a piccie of them...think I was serving at the time!

If you are ever free the first weekend in September it's a great way of passing a few days and it's totally free. Not often you can say that anymore! Have a look on the web for Wallingford Bunkfest.

There were steam trains and boats doing trips with performers on board (you did have to pay for those) and all sorts of steam driven vehicles around the place.

Anyway, enough festival talk....I'll be announcing the new blog candy tomorrow so pop by and have a look. Sue is on Create and Craft at 9am today with some great stamps from Particraft. Sheena is being very mysterious on her blog....what is she up to! Anyone got any ideas!!! So until next time..........keep crafting!!!

Candy Winner

2010-09-01T06:57:00.003+01:00

Here I am, as promised with the winner of the candy so without further ado, the winner is .....................................

........................................................

..............................

Christine B.

If you can e-mail your addy I'll get the prize in the post. I apologise in advance if I'm late sending it but we're off at lunchtime to another festival and won't be home until Monday pm.

Many congratulations to the winner and so sorry to everyone else but there's always next time!

I'll be posting the new candy next week....it'll be Christmas themed!

I've added a piccie of one of the Ally Pally samples I made yesterday. I just love this stamp from the "Winter Wonderland" unmounted stamp set, it's so versatile and is fantastic with Distress inks.

I've stamped it with Peeled Paint and Frayed Burlap. The Frayed Burlap tree was stamped once onto a piece of waste paper before I stamped it for the card as I wanted to make it look as though it was in the background. The edge of the card has also been distressed with Frayed Burlap and Peeled Paint. I love these colours, they're great for a more subtle look.

Anyway, have to go and pack. Got to load up all of the cards for the traders stall that we're having. I just hope that the weather holds...the forecast is good but when can you believe them!! Sue has nearly reached her target of 1100 followers on the Particraft blog so if you haven't registered for a chance to win the candy (which is awesome!) there's still time. Don't forget that she'll be on Create and Craft on Monday and it promises to be a great show.

Until next time...............keep crafting!!!!!!

More Samples!

2010-08-30T05:47:00.005+01:00

You know how some days you can just sit looking at your stamps and not have a clue what to do with them? Well, I've pretty much had a week of that but yesterday I couldn't stop coming up with ideas! The downside of that was that I had to stop at 11.30am as we were meeting up with Steve's children for lunch. It's his son's birthday on September 2nd and as he lives and works over an hour away we don't get to see him very often.

It was a lovely afternoon with lunch at a tea room called "Lathe Barn". After lunch some of them went to play mini golf but I didn't think that was an option for me with the shoulder still being fairly painful so Dominic's fiancee and I bought some bags of food for the animals and went to make some new friends!

Obviously as it's a Bank Holiday weekend, it rained! We got home at 4.30pm and had to go out again at 6pm to meet up with his daughter and her fiance to celebrate her promotion at work. I'm pooped.....haven't been out so much for ages (apart from festivals and they don't count!!)

Anyway back to the card! The star and message stamps are from the "Winter Wonderland" unmounted stamp sets from Particraft. I love that the message fits the oval Nestabilitities so that you can make it the main feature of the card. I've stamped the message with Black Archival in and heat embossed with Cosmic Shimmer Clear. The stars were stamped with an Aqua Adirondack Ink Pad and embossed with clear powder. I've used an old corner punch that was in my stash and added a bow. It really doesn't need anything else and it's such a quick card to make if you have a batch to do.

I'll be drawing the blog candy very early on Wednesday morning as we're leaving for the next festival lunchtime that day. If you're the winner, try to let me have your details asap so that I can catch the post before we leave. If not, I'm afraid that I won't be able to post it before next Tuesday so many apologies in advance. We'll be working at this festival so need to get there early for Steve to help with the rigging of the cameras and lights. I have to get the stall set up so we'll both be very busy. Not too busy to make a few cards though!!

Back off to the cabin before the ideas get lost in the mush I call my brain!! Until next time........... keep crafting!!!!!!!!!!!

Just a Quick One!

2010-08-28T07:44:00.004+01:00

Just a very quick posting as I have to get quite a bit done today...lots of candles to stamp for the stall at the festival next week as well as getting some more samples done for Ally Pally.

This is one of the samples that I made yesterday. I had so many scraps of Xmas papers and vellums that I thought I should use some of them up. I think that we're all guilty of hoarding even the tiniest bits and pieces "just in case!"

The stamp is from the "Festive Village" unmounted stamp plate from Particraft. I've stamped it 4 times onto vellum with Perfect Medium and heat embossed with Cosmic Shimmer silver powder. The tree has been cut away into sections and mounted with 3d foam pads to give a decoupaged look. You really need a good quality vellum for this so that it doesn't crinkle too much when you apply the heat.

The first layer was stamped onto a circle cut out using a Nestability shape. As the glue showed through when I stuck it onto the black scalloped circle, I punched some holly leaves to cover the marks then added some red self adhesive gems for the berries. Hope you like it!

Anyway, time and crafting wait for no man (or woman come to think of it!) so I'd better get a move on. Until next time..................keep crafting!

Playing Catch-Up

2010-08-26T16:37:00.005+01:00

I woke up in a blind panic this morning after having a serious re-think about the project for this afternoons workshop at the residential home.

I scurried down to my cabin and put a new project together (which involved cutting everything to size!) and felt a lot better. I'm so glad that I did!!!! Having just got back I know that what I had first planned would have been far too difficult and that everyone who came had serious dexterity problems. I'm so pleased that they all enjoyed it and are now looking forward to the next one. In fact one lady said what a joy it was to make something and how therapeutic it was. I didn't take any photos as I thought that they might want their privacy and as the project really was just sticking things in place, there's not much to show you.

However, here are 2 samples that I've made for Ally Pally using the same stamps. The stamps are from "Santa's Elves" unmounted stamp plate available from Particraft.

For the first card I stamped all of the images and have used 3d foam pads to mount some of the images. The elves in the 2nd card are the same ones but I've cut them into squares. They look so different using them this way. I've coloured all of the images with Copics.

In between all of that I've been making some cards to sell at a festival next week where my friends and I are having a stall. As it's 2 whole days we're going to need quite a bit of stock...I've resorted to getting out some old kits that I bought when I first started cardmaking to make some really quick Xmas cards! The cabin looks as though a bomb's hit it...paper all over the tables so that I can make a quick decision on what to use!

Anyway, better get back to it as I still have all the candles to stamp and make gift boxes for so until next time..................keep crafting!

Not as Soggy!

2010-08-25T06:12:00.003+01:00

We survived another festival, this time without getting wet until the last night!

Although it wasn't exactly blue skies we did manage to sit without being smothered in waterproofs. Here's a piccie of our friends....as you can see, we do like to make an effort with the headgear!

The music line-up was very differnt to what we ususally listen to but it's good to get away from your "comfort zone" every so often. Boy George was good but the best acts of the festival were 10cc and Bjorn Again (an Abba tribute band). There's just 1 more festival to go before the end of the season and that's 3rd-5th September at Wallingford in Oxfordshire. I think I'm pretty much "festivaled out" now so I'm not sorry to give it a rest until next year!

I did manage to get a few card samples made for Ally Pally and loved this one.
I've stamped the tree from the Winter Wonderland unmounted stamp set with Faded Jeans and Dusty Concord Distress inks. I was pleased with the way the colours blended together on the stamp. If you do this, always make sure that you apply the lightest colour first so that you don't contaminate your ink pads.

It really didn't seem to need anything else apart from some matting and layering. The inks and stamps are available from Particraft and there's free p&p in the UK.

I'm preparing some packs ready for tomorrow afternoon when I'll be teaching at a local residential home. It'll be the first time I've taught there so I'm not sure what the level of dexterity will be so will have to keep cutting to a minimum until I can see what everyone is capable of. It's going to be a weekly class so that'll keep me busy!

Anyway, better get on with it! Don't forget the candy draw takes place next week and the more comments you leave, the more entries you get. So until next time........keep crafting!

Another Festival

2010-08-19T13:02:00.006+01:00

Sorry I haven't been on here for a few days but I've been working my socks off getting samples ready for the Big Stamping and Scrapbooking Show at Ally Pally in September.

I had a lot of fun making this one....the background is from a set called "Seasonal Snow" and the other images are from "I Believe in Santa", both available from Particraft.

I stamped the background with Perfect Medium and heat embossed with clear powder onto white glossy card. I used Cut 'n Dry to apply Faded Denim Distress Ink over the top then buffed it with some kitchen towel. The chimney was stamped 3 times onto gloss card and coloured with Copic pens after being embossed. I inked up the top part of the Santa stamp and cut off the hat so that it looks as though he's disappearing down the chimney. The "Ho" stamps are also included in the set and I've used the Nestabilities to mount them on. Hope you like it!

We're setting off in an hour to another festival...this time it's in Henley-upon-Thames and it's the 80's Rewind Festival. Very different to the usual festivals we go to but a lot of fun. Top of the bill on Saturday evening is "Boy George!" There's loads of acts from the '80's appearing including Rick Astley, 10cc and T'pau. Hopefully the weather will be a little kinder and I'll be able to take some photos!! Failing that there's a comedy tent and I'll hibernate in there!!! Of course, I have my usual supply of crafting goodies to keep me amused between music and as we're going with 2 of my crafting buddies I'm hoping to get quite a bit done.

I'd better go and help pack the campervan....just to make sure all the craft bits get packed!!! Bak on Monday so until next time............keep crafting!!

Very Soggy Crafter!

2010-08-16T12:02:00.002+01:00

I'm back at last and slowly drying out! The weather at the festival was awful, I don't think that I have ever been as wet in my whole life! It was so bad that even the waterproof clothes and plastic poncho didn't work!

I'm afraid that I didn't take any photos as I was worried about water getting into the camera.

In spite of all that, we had a great time and heard some fantastic music. I'm so pleased that I've finally seen Status Quo live!! The best act of the featival (apart from Fairport Convention) was a group called Bellowhead. If you've never heard of them please check them out, they are brilliant.

As we didn't have any electricity on the campsite I was a bit limited with the crafting but managed to make the Flying Santa card. I've used the faux brayering technique for the background (Big 'n Juicy Inkpad) and stamped the images with Black Archival Ink on glossy card. The stamps are from the Particraft range called "Stylish Christmas"

Talking of Christmas cards, check out Sue's Particraft blog....she's got some beautiful samples of the new Vintage Christmas stamps designed by Sam Poole.

I'm busy making samples for Ally Pally. I can't believe that it's come round so quickly, I really don't know where the year has gone!

We had a phone call from our agent just before we went away and have been offered a 6 week cruise to Brazil and Venezuela next January. The best news is that there is no flying involved so I can pack as much craft kit as I like!!! It's probably for the best as there will be about 22 workshops for me to teach!

Anyway, better get on with the samples, don't forget the blog candy and until next time.....keep crafting!!!

Just In Case....

2010-08-06T17:45:00.003+01:00

Just in case I don't get a chance to blog tomorrow before we leave for the next 2 festivals I thought I would do it now.

I made this card today and was so pleased with how it came out.

I've used the willow tree stamp from "More Trees" unmounted stamp plate designed by Sheena Douglass.

It's been stamped in a mix of 2 different Distress Inks...Shabby Shutters and Forest Moss. If you do this, always stamp with the lightest colour first otherwise you'll contaminate the inks.

I've distressed around the edges of the white scalloped circle and also the border with the Shabby Shutter ink. The embossed background has been run through a Sissix machine and sanded. I've used a message stamp from one of the Foliage stamp sets designed by Sue Wilson.

All of the inks and stamp plates are available from Particraft and it's free p&p.

Plans are well underway for the challenge blog and it will be starting in September. It'll be a mix of sketch and photo inspiration challenges. There won't be many rules except that the main stamped image must be a Particraft stamp. More news on that towards the end of August.

While I'm away don't forget to enter for the blog candy draw and I'll be back in the land of the bloggers on 16th August! I'm just trying to decide which craft stuff I can't live without for the next week so that I can get it packed.

That's about it for now so until next time...............keep crafting!!

Just a Quick One

2010-08-05T06:35:00.004+01:00

This is just a quick post with the piccies of the other 2 stamps on the unmounted Christmas Ladies stamp plate. It's available from Particraft and there's free p&p in the UK. Not only that, but the prices on the A5 stamp sets have come down from £10.50 to £9.99!

I've coloured them both in with Copic pens and used white liquid applique on the hat to make it look like white fur. I've also used Cosmic Shimmer Twinkles, after all, they are Xmas cards so there has to be some glitter somewhere doesn't there? It's almost the law!!!

I ran the silver mirri card through an embossing machine. It looks as though I've used gold but it's the way the light is reflecting. My bad photography strikes again!!

I spent yesterday making some cards for a stall some friends and I are having at the Wallingford Bunkfest in September (yes, it's another festival!) There are 3 of us frantically making enough stock to sell over the 3 days of the festival. After that, I'll be making up some samples for Ally Pally in September, getting the final bits sorted out for the weekend workshop, running a weekly class at a residential home and making more cards for the big coffee morning on September 28th! I really don't have time to go back to work!! In fact, I'm not sure how I fitted it in!

Anyway, enough of my ramblings, these cards won't make themselves!! Don't forget the blog candy on here and also on the Particraft blog. Until next time...............keep crafting!!!

Here's the Candy!

2010-08-04T05:51:00.005+01:00

I've finally found the candy and here it is! There's over 30 alphabets, a peel off folder and a set of Daisy and Dandelion clear stamps. I know that alphabets are always handy and there are some useful sizes included whether you're a cardmaker or a scrapper. Some of them are foiled and the others come in all sorts of colours. The usual rules apply....leave a comment and the winner will be drawn early morning, usually 05.30 on September 1st or sooner if I get to 300 followers. I'll give an extra entry to anyone that links to their blog and also extra entries each time you leave a comment.

I did make a couple of cards yesterday and as it's now August, thought I'd better get started on some Christmas ones! This stamp is from the new set of unmounted Christmas Ladies available from Particraft. There are 3 stamps in the set and I'll be showing them all over the next few days.

I've coloured her in with a mixture of Copic pens (for the body and hair) and Sakura pens to give her dress a real glittery look. The beads have been coloured with Cosmic Shimmer Twinkles.

I've matted and layered the image onto mounts cut from the Nestability Rectangle set.

I found the message on another set of Particraft Xmas stamps that I bought last year and it seemed just right for this image!

We're off to another 2 music festivals starting this Saturday. The first one is a local folk festival that's been held in Broadstairs for the past 43 years and we leave there on Wednesday to travel to a village in Cropredy, Oxfordshire for the Fairport Convention 3 day festival which starts on Thursday. The headline act for Thursday evening is Status Quo!! If that doesn't get everyone jumping then nothing will!! It'll certainly bring back memories of a mis-spent youth!!

Have you been over to the Particraft blog yet? Sue has another amazing offering of candy which will be given away when she reaches 1100 followers so spread the word.

That's all for now, have a great day and until next time.............keep crafting!

It's Finished!!!

2010-08-03T18:42:00.003+01:00

I can't believe it, the cabin is finally finished and everything is now in it's right place....except we still have to put the tables together but that's tomorrow's job.
I just wanted to get in there and start playing. Steve did raise an eyebrow when he realised how much stuff I had accumulated over the years, I'm just suprised that I managed to get it all into 1 very small room! No wonder I couldn't find anything!! The pine table will be going when I get the workshop ones in there.

The brown drawer units contain most of my unmounted stamps, there's a few more folders on the shelves (memo to self....you do not need anymore stamps...yeah right!!)
I probably don't need anymore card and paper either but I've never let that stop me!

This is the stamping area...lots of power sockets and great light (despite what it looks like in the photo)

I've also found a home for my melt pot at last!

I spent the afternoon playing with my Cosmic Shimmer misters and haven't managed to re-decorate the walls yet but there's still time!

This is only a quick update on the cabin and I'll be back tomorrow with candy and some finished cards so until then.......keep crafting!!!

It's Candy Time!

2010-08-01T06:17:00.002+01:00

Well, it's that time again to announce the winner of the candy so without further ado (and only a small roll on the drum), the winner is.............................................

.........................................

...................................

..........................

Bernietom47. If you could e-mail me your details I'll get the package in the post tomorrow. Many congratulations to the winner and sorry you couldn't all win. It does prove though, that the more comments you leave, the more your chances improve! There will be another candy on here in the next couple of days so do please check. It'll be posted as soon as I can find the prize ...it's somewhere safe in the cabin!

Talking of the cabin, I now have shelves (which are full!) and a kitchen cupboard all fitted and bolted to the wall. The first aid box and fire alarm have also been fitted which just leaves the security lights. I'm not being paranoid, but I don't want to take any chances at a workshop or craft club!

The card in the picture was made while we were away at the festivals. It's been done with my favourite technique...you guessed it....Distressing! The stamps are the Wildflower set from Particraft, they're so versatile that I find I use them a lot. I promise to do something different when my poor worn out hubby moves his tools out of the cabin and I can get to my table to do some craft.....hint, hint if you're reading this!!!

Anyway, that's my lot for today except to say.....does anyone know how to get rid of the white box that has suddenly appeared on here and how do I get my background back!!! I am a complete computer numpty and shouldn't be allowed anywhere near one. If not, I'll have to call in my grandson (he's 10) as he reckons that it should be "dead easy" to sort out!

Keep checking for the next candy (it will include a set of stamps) and also the Particraft challenge blog which is coming soon. Until next time............keep crafting!

Flat Pack Furniture

2010-07-30T06:47:00.006+01:00

Thought I'd start with another view of the cabin....obviously not finished! I'm still wondering how I managed to cram it all into a tiny single bedroom!! No wonder I could never find anything. Steve tried to put both of the cupboards up yesterday and it was all going quite well until he opened one of the door packs and found that it had the wrong contents.....don't you hate that about flat pack furniture!!! I don't think we've ever had any that didn't have things missing or things that were wrong. Anyway, he should be able to finish them today and also get the shelves up. I want to get everything organised before the tables are delivered on Tuesday. The cupboards have a kitchen worktop so that it'll be great for stamping and using UTE on.

Due to the lack of a heat gun last week in the campervan I stuck to a lot of distressing and faux brayering.

I made the background for this card using a Big 'n Juicy inkpad (I think it was Hydranga). I used gloss card which works so well with this technique but as I didn't have a heat gun it took quite a while to dry, worth it though I think. All of the Big 'n Juicy inkpads are available from Particraft with no p&p...always a bonus.

I've used some Tim Holtz stamps and turned the tree upside down to fill in at the top. They've been stamped with Black Archival Ink (also from Particraft)

Just found out this week that another work colleague has torn the tendons in her shoulder due to the job. My employers are still saying that the work has nothing to do with the injuries. If it isn't the job, I'd like to know what it is...bit of a coincidence otherwise!!

Anyway, that's all for today...the blog candy draw takes place on Sunday and I'll announce the winner early morning. Until next time...........keep crafting!

Crafting in the Campervan!

2010-07-29T06:52:00.003+01:00

I didn't want you to think that I had been lazy on the crafting front just because I was away at festivals! I managed to make a few cards in the van but we didn't have any electricity, just the leisure battery and you have to be careful not to run the power down! Anyway, here's a card I made using the Wildflowers stamps designed by Sam Poole and available from Particraft. I've used white gloss card and picked up 3 different colours of Distress Inks on a bristle brush then swirled the colours onto the card. I overstamped the flowers with Black Archival ink where there were yellow patches of colour. The small thistles in the background have been stamped with Distress Ink. The message was stamped onto white card which was torn around the edges and distressed. It's different from my usual style but I was quite pleased with how it came out.

While we were away I was invited to a craft club in Wantage and had a lovely evening there. Thank you to all the ladies who made me so welcome. I'm looking forward to seeing you all again next time I'm in the area.

This is another view of the cabin....it's my little working area. It won't look like this in a few days as I've now got some cupboards with a worktop to go where the table is and some floor to ceiling shelving for the corner....no, the shelves didn't get put up yesterday but the fire extinguisher is mounted onto the wall, the smoke alarm is up and a display board is in position!! I've also put some door mats down and we've measured to see how many paving tiles we need for the path so things are getting done. I'm very impatient and just want it finished so that I can get some serious crafting done!!!

Don't forget that the blog candy draw is on Sunday so there's still a few days left to enter. Sue has managed over 1000 followers on her Particraft blog which is an amazing achievement, many congratulations to her. If you haven't visited yet, there's a link on my sidebar...well worth a visit.

That's all for today so until next time..............keep crafting!!!

Felt Picture

2010-07-28T14:27:00.005+01:00

As promised, here is the photo of the felt picture I made at the festival. It was good fun and I've bought some more Marino

sheeps wool to have another try.

For those who are interested, here's how it's done.....

Take a quantity of white fleece and tease it into layers on a tray, across, up and down and across again. Use coloured wool for the design. Place an old net curtain over it and pour some warm water onto it. Add washing up liquid and work it in. Do that twice. Take the net off and place the design into a bamboo place mat (the wool should now have formed into felt). Roll it up in the place mat and roll it back and forth. Do that in all directions until the water has been squeezed out. Rinse thoroughly in clean water and leave to dry.

The move into the craft cabin is going well. We went and bought some cupboards and more shelving today as well as a few other essentials...door mats, fire extinguisher etc. I'm hoping that Steve manages to get the shelves fitted today so that I can start to put things in some sort of order. I've put this piccie on here so that you can see my blue washed bookcases and shelves in situ! The tables have been ordered and they should be here on Tuesday so it's all going well. I'm really looking forward to the workshop, it's such a great room to craft in!!!

Did you catch Sheena's show on Create and Craft today? It was fab as always and Sam's new Xmas stamp designs are fantastic. Another must have!!

Anyway, better go and see if I can help with shelves! Back tomorrow with more photos of the cabin. Until next time.....................keep crafting!

Festivals

2010-07-27T07:44:00.003+01:00

Hi All...back at last and trying to wade through a pile of very dirty washing!!
The weather wasn't too good for some of the days so a lot of the clothes have got a fair bit of mud on them!!
Despite that, we wouldn't have missed either festival.....the music was amazing and the atmosphere was fantastic.
The first one we went to was The Larmer Tree festival in the South of England. I still think that Jools Holland was the best act there, especially when Alison Moyet joined him on stage. There was a great comedy tent as well and we saw some terrific stand up including Rich Hall and Russell Howard.

The festival was held in beautiful grounds and there was always something to look at!! There were peacocks wandering around and every evening some macaws flew over

There were craft workshops and I managed to get to a couple of them. I made a 4ft willow flower for one of the displays in the gardens and also learned how to make a felt picture. I'll take a photo of it and put it on here tomorrow.

There was a "Dress up as your Favourite Book Character" day. I just loved this white rabbit holding a can of beer and a cigarette! We also saw Peter Pan and Tinkerbell dancing with Captain Hook! The 3 little pigs were in a party with the Mad Hatter and The Incredibiles.

Anyway, off to the craft cabin to sort some more bits and pieces out and hopefully make a card or 2! Don't forget that Sue is on Create and Craft today at 9am...it's sure to be worth watching. Lastly, I just want to thank the ladies from the Wantage craft club for making me so welcome when I gatecrashed their meeting last Monday! I had to get a crafting fix and many thanks to them for supplying it!!!

Back tomorrow so until then.....keep crafting!

What Happens If......?

2010-07-13T19:46:00.004+01:00

Being a curious type of a person I wondered what would happen if you mixed the Eco-Green Acrylic Paints with shaving foam?

I squirted some foam onto my craft sheet and added some blobs of Peony and Buttermilk paint. I swirled them around with the end of my paintbrush and placed a piece of gloss card on top of it. This was the result...a funky and textured background! I'm going to try lots of colour combinations and I'm thinking that blue would be good for Xmas cards. I also want to try distressing around the edge of the card. Didn't have time today as I've been continuing with the move to the cabin.

The air conditioning is up and running...thank goodness with the heat we're having. All that's left to do is weather treat the outside and lay a path from the house. I've probably put away 70% of my stuff but have to stop for a couple of weeks now as we're off to two music festivals. We got the campervan back this afternoon with a new water heater fitted so hopefully we'll be able to have some warm showers. I've packed my clothes and craft stuff so we're ready for the off at about 8am tomorrow.

I won't be able to post while I'm away but I'll take some piccies and try some techniques to show you when we get back, if all goes according to plan that will be on 26th July so watch this space!

In the meantime, don't forget about the blog candy and Sue's Particraft candy. Until next time.......keep crafting!!

Coming Soon.......

2010-07-12T07:42:00.004+01:00

I'm still packing up my craft room and moving things into the cabin so this really is going to be a quick post...I know, I say that and then ramble on but this time it's true!!!

I wanted to give you advance notice that in September we are launching the "Particraft Challenge Blog" Hurrah!!!!! I'm not telling you too much about it for now but it will be a fortnightly challenge and there will be a prize. Watch this space for more details!

Now onto the picture...why the Vaseline I can hear you ask!!! Well I'll tell you, it's for a peeled paint effect. First of all you need to cover a piece of card with Eco-Green Acrylic Paint (a darker colour is best). Dry it and them thinly smear some Vaseline in streaks onto the card. Apply a lighter shade of paint over the top and dry again. You'll see the Vaseline start running as it gets hot, this is normal and nothing to worry about! Once the paint is dry, rub over it with a piece of kitchen towel and the paint will lift from where you put the Vaseline. The Eco-Green paints are brilliant for this technique as they will buff up and give a lovely polished surface. You can then stamp over the top. Hope you like it and do give it a try as it's great fun to do and you can get some amazing effects.

Don't forget to enter the blog candy draw which can now be found under "older posts" and Sue still has her brilliant candy up for grabs on the Particraft blog.....really handy to win that lot to enter the challenges!!! There are still a couple of spaces left for the weekend workshop in September so e-mail me if you're interested. It's going to be technique based and a lot of fun!

So, off to do some more packing and until the next time................keep crafting!!!

Where do I start!

2010-07-11T07:47:00.004+01:00

I thought I'd start with a lovely, peaceful image of some lillies!

I love this stamp but again, had forgotten all about it. Sometimes moving things can pay dividends! I think this must have been the first stamp set that I bought from Particraft and it's on the unmounted A5 Bears set...the bears are cute as well!

I've used some Distress Ink to tone down the background papers as they weren't quite the right colours and also to distress the edges of the stamped image. It's an image that could be used for so many occassions from weddings to sympathy which makes it a really useful stamp to own.

That's the peaceful bit over with! We went to Bexhill yesterday for the demo and had a lovely time....many thanks to all of you for making us feel so welcome. It was such a shame that the weather was so glorious as it meant a lower attendance but I hope that everyone who came enjoyed watching me make a mess! The traffic was awful and it took us over 2 hours each way to drive 80 miles! I'm looking forward to seeing some of you again in October and the traffic should be much better then....shouldn't think that there'll be too many people heading for the beach!!

The electrician has finished work in the cabin and I now have power and light. The air conditioning unit is due to be fitted tomorrow and the outside of the cabin sprayed with a wood treatment. I'm slowly moving things down there...it looks like a jumble sale at the moment...stuff all over the place. What I really want to do is clear a path through the dining room!

We're off to a festival on Tuesday (it starts on Wednesday) and won't be home for 10 days so I'm trying to get as much moving done before then as I can, hence the where do I start question!

Anyway, those boxes won't move themselves so until next time...........keep crafting!

Another Technique!

2010-07-09T06:45:00.004+01:00

I seem to have my technique mojo back at last and the stamps from Particraft really lend themselves to playing!!

I made this sample up yesterday and it's one that I'll be doing at the demo tomorrow. It's a really easy one to do and the results look like a watercolour painting.

I've used a stamp from the Cottage Flowers set designed by Sheena and the message is from Autumn Foliage which Sue designed.

The first step was to spritz the Cosmic Shimmer watercolours with some water to activate them (I've used set 4..Summer). I chose 3 of the colours and painted the flower stamp in each colour and stamped it with the darkest colour in the centre. The colours I chose were purple and 2 shades of pink. The next step was to dry it off with a heat gun (because I'm too impatient for it to air dry!!) When it was dries you can really see the sparkle from the mica in the watercolours. It's a shame that it doesn't show up too well on the photo but trust me...it's there! I've stamped again with Tea Dye Distress Ink just to the side of the flowers to give a shadow effect.

I mixed up some of the watercolours onto my craft sheet and picked them up on a scrumpled cellophane bag which I've dabbed around the edges. Once I'd dried it I went around the edges again with Tea Dye Distress ink to give it a vintage look.

I've stamped the message with the Tea Dye ink then overstamped it with Black Archival. I just added a bit of ribbon and would add a bow to finish it properly but I didn't want to obscure too much of the card for the demo.

I think this technique is great for floral stamps, what do you think?

Now onto other things! Are there any takers for a challenge??? Please let me know and if there's enough interest I'll try to sort it out.

Did you catch Sue's show yesterday on Create and Craft....what a fantastic idea with the flowers! Of course I had to rush to the garden to try and find some heads I could pick then realised that I only had an electric die cutting machine! I've never let a little thing like that stop me so I picked a very small flower head and some leaves and gave it a go (after putting some paper down first to catch the mess!). It does work but would have looked better with a larger flower. Looks as though I'll have to dig out my old die cutting machine again as it's a technique that I would really love to include on my cards. The numbers are creeping up on Sue's blog for the candy draw and it's fab...I know that I would love to win it!! I thought my candy was big until I saw that!!

We're going to watch a TV programme being recorded this evening in London. It's a comedian called Count Arthur Strong (don't know if you've ever heard of him) and he is very funny, great quirky sense of humour. I've got so much to do today...got to finish the samples for tomorrow and get my bag packed. I live in dread of forgetting something vital!

The electrician arrived and fitted the lights and most of the cabling is now done. He's coming back today to finish wiring it to the mains and to fit the air conditioning then we'll finally have power in the cabin. More to the point, I can finally start moving in! Well, that's all for now, let me know about the challenge, enter for the blog candy etc. Until next time.....keep crafting!

Techniques!

2010-07-08T09:32:00.008+01:00

I feel as though I've been a bit lazy on the crafting front and haven't really challenged myself. I can only put it down to the fact that I had packed so much of my crafty stash that I couldn't find it! However, as I'm doing a demo on Saturday I thought I should dust off the boxes and get cracking!!

Did any of you watch Sheena's great show on Create and Craft this week? She used the Art Nouveau stamps which I must admit, I had forgotten about...doh! I loved her technique so much that I'm ashamed to say that I've copied it. Well, it is the sincerest form of flattery! I've embossed the image with Cosmic Shimmer Lapis Black powder and coloured her with the Big 'n Juicy Foliage Ink Pad. Sheena is just soooo brilliant.....I never thought of using that ink pad for a skin tone!

This second card was made because there was quite a lot of ink left on my craft mat! Seemed a shame to waste it so I picked it up on a piece of white card and stamped this gorgeous image onto it. I stamped her again onto a piece of plain white card , cut out the dress and stuck it on top. The stamps on the side and corners are from the Art Nouveau set.

Finally, I thought I'd have a go at a landscape. I just cannot master the brayer, I wish I could but it isn't to be! I've done this with Distress Inks and a brush instead and I think it looks quite effective. I tore some copier paper into the shape of hills and used 4 different colours of inks, gradually getting lighter to give the appearance of distance. The colours were (if anyone wants to know!) Chipped Sapphire, Faded Jeans, Broken China and Weathered Wood. The trees are from Stylish Christmas 3 stamp plate. It's a fantastic set with trees in lots of sizes which is ideal for this technique. Let me know what you think.

Onto other matters...would any of you be interested in a challenge on here? If you are, please let me know and I'll try to sort something out...providing I can work out how to set it up!!! I am a computer numpty!!! Don't forget that Sue is on C&C at 10am with new stamps and fantastic techniques. Also there are the blog candy draws on the Particraft blog and on here. All of the stamps and products I've used for these techniques are available from Particraft and even better, there's still free p&p! Of course, if you'd like someone to come and show you how to do them and get a free A4 set of unmounted stamps, then book a party. You'll also receive 10% commission and have a lot of fun!

That's about it for now...waiting for the electrician..still! So until next time.....keep crafting!

Poppies!

2010-07-07T07:09:00.004+01:00

Another quick posting but this time about a card with a "story"

While I was waiting for my shoulder operation I decided to stamp a lot of images so that I could colour them with my arm in a sling. Little did I know that I wouldn't be able to move it at all, let alone wield a pen!

I stamped quite a few images from a set of Elusive Images designs including this poppy. If you could have seen me trying to colour left handed you'll realise what I was up against but I couldn't go 6 weeks without doing any crafting! I will admit that this wasn't my first left handed attempt...they were unusable!! However, this one wasn't too bad so I kept it and promptly forgot all about it.

While I was packing up my craft room ready for the move to the cabin, I came across it again and decided it was too pretty not to use so here it is!

I coloured it with Copic pens and used the Nestie circles to cut it out. I cut a mount with the scalloped circles in red card and mounted the image onto it. The white background was cut to size and run through an embossing folder. It was a bit too big so I lined it up and ran it through twice to make sure the whole card was embossed. I've matted and layered it onto some patterned paper and added a red bow to finish it off.

I was quite pleased with the finished effect and even more proud that I managed to colour it with my left hand!! Now that's desperation for you!!!

We're taking the campervan to the garage this morning to have the water heater fixed. It's got to be done as we're going away in it for a couple of weeks and we'll be camping in a field without showers and I an NOT going to like cold ones!

That's all for now so until next time.........keep crafting!!

Sugar Nellie Challenge

2010-07-06T09:51:00.003+01:00

Another very quick post! I was having a look through some of the blog challenges and found a lovely sketch on the Sugar Nellie blog. I've turned it around so that the main image fits but it was a gorgeous sketch to work with.

The main image is a Sugar Nellie stamp called "Demure". I've stamped her onto white card and coloured her with Copics. I stamped her again onto Henbury Lane papers and cut out the dress; it makes a change from colouring the whole image.

Have you seen the blog candy on Sue's Particraft site? It's MASSIVE!!! If you haven't become a follower yet, where have you been!! I'm also looking forward to Sheena's shows on Create and Craft today, she'll be showing some of Sam Poole's fab stamps including the new kitchen set.

The cabin is coming along well....Steve has just finished sanding and varnishing the floor and the electrician is coming tomorrow. I can't wait...just want to move all my stash in there and find the dining room again! Anyway, that's all for today so until next time........keep crafting!

The Bookcases!

2010-07-05T07:30:00.005+01:00

Ok, this really is a very quick posting but, as promised, here are the piccies of the bookcases (they're both the same so only took photo of 1 of them!)

As you can see, the original wasn't terribly inspiring so I thought "What can I do with these" Thanks to Julia Andrus and her amazing work with Acrylic paint I came up with the idea of painting and distressing them.

I painted them first with Antique White Gloss then when that had dried, I went over them with a diluted acrylic paint in a pastel blue. I deliberately left the brush strokes showing to give them a more weathered look. I dont't know about you, but I love the difference it's made.

They just look so much more cheerful. Mind you, by the time I've put all my stuff on them I don't suppose I'll even know what colour they are!

It was a bit of an experiment but as I only paid £5 each for the bookcases I didn't mind if they didn't work out. My plan B in that case was to paint them again in white!

I'm in the middle of sorting out the bits and pieces I need for the demo on Saturday in Bexhill. It's taking me a lot longer than usual as I've got stash all over the house and can't find anything. I just can't wait to move into the cabin and get everything put in place.

Well, that's all for now...hope you like my altered art!! Don't forget to enter for the candy and until next time......keep crafting!!

Whiff of Joy Challenge

2010-07-04T14:56:00.003+01:00

I haven't had much of a chance to make any cards this week but when I saw the terrific sketch on the Whiff of Joy Challenge Blog I just had to go and make one!

The stamp is from WoJ (obviously!!) and has been coloured with Copics. The swirls are also from WoJ and the flower stamp is one I had in my stash. I've cut the mounts in the middle of the card with Nesties and got the curve on the paper on the left by drawing around a tea plate. I've used papers from K&Co and rounded the corners on the main piece of patterned paper. I've added a few pearls to finish it off.

I've finally finished painting the bookcases and shelves...picture to follow...still waiting for the paint to dry!! Steve is in the middle of sanding and varnishing the cabin floor. I do feel sorry for him, it's so hot today and there's nothing much I can do to help.

Don't forget to enter the blog candy draw and that every time you leave a comment on any of the posts, you get another entry. Also have a look at Jane's Lovely Cards, she's running her Friday Flowers competition and this weeks flowers are stunning. I meant to put a piccie on here but forgot...oops! Had a lot on my mind this week!! You can go straight to her blog by clicking the link on here.

That's all for today. Got to make Steve a nice, long, cold drink before he melts. Until next time..

keep crafting!

Mega Blog Candy!

2010-07-03T09:35:00.006+01:00

As promised, to celebrate the log cabin finally getting put up, here is the mega blog candy.
I've taken 2 piccies as there was too much to put on one!
There's a HOTP pop-up card kit, a Sissix texture plate, a set of floral acrylic stamps from Creative Expressions, some Debbi Moore pictures, vellum tape, sticky dots, wooden flowers and ladybirds, fabric flowers, crochet flowers, gorgeous butterflies, lace tape and a pack of Wac a Tac adhesive sheets. Nearly forgot, there's also a Woodware scrapbook in a tin and some little gem butterflies and dragonflies!
.
I think that there's probably something to suit everyones taste!
It's the same rules to enter, become a follower and just leave a comment for 1 entry, link to your blog for 2 entries and for multiple entries, leave a comment after each post. Every comment equals another entry. You get the idea!!
The draw will take place when I reach 250 followers or on August 1st, whichever comes first.

The shelves came out really well with the distressed look and I've just started on the bookcases. I'm doing the same with them as I like the effect so much...very sea-sidey which is just right given where I live!

The weekend workshop is nearly full...just 2 more places so if you're interested drop me an e-mail. The Taming of the Glue is definately ready for some seriously fun crafting!!!

As I can't actually use the cabin yet, I've left the essentials in my craft room. I've doing a demo day in Bexhill-on-Sea on July 10th so need to get to some of my stash to prep. If anyone lives nearby, you'd be more than welcome to come along.

That's all for now, bookcases to sand and paint! So until next time............keep crafting!

Ta Da!!

2010-07-02T10:27:00.005+01:00

Well, at last it's finished! Nearly anyway...just got to have the wood treated and the electricity wired up and the cabin will be completed.

Other than that, we need to build a step and landscape around the outside. Steve is in the process (well, he will be when he gets back!) of making a pathway from the house to the cabin and we're putting solar lights along the length of it. We're also putting a security light on the garage so that it will come on immediately when I start walking down there. This is the really exciting bit now, trying to plan where everything will go!

At the moment there is 1 very lonely paper rack.....I put some paper on it so it didn't look as forlorn! It's very frustrating that I can't move more things in there but I have to wait until the electrician has finished his work. Spoilsports.....I can't see why he needs room to work...he should have tried my old craft room! This rack used to dominate the room and now it looks so tiny.

I've been busy painting shelves, cheating really as I used a spray paint. I'm going to put a blue acrylic wash on top of the antique white paint. I don't want blue shelves, just a hint of it. Then I'm starting work on the bookshelves...going to distress them and maybe do some old fashioned decoupage with varnish over them. My aim is to turn it into a place where there is a real crafty vibe that hopefully will inspire anyone who comes in there. It's been a dream for so long that I have to keep on pinching myself to make sure it's actually happened!

Anyway, there's no more Dora, Flora or Arfur.....Today it is officially "The Taming of the Glue"
If you're ever going to be in the Dover area, drop me an e-mail and come for a visit. It would be lovely to finally meet you fab people who leave such encouraging comments on my blog.

So, that's all for today...off to try a wash technique (don't know if it'll work but faint heart and all that). Until next time............keep crafting!

The Winner Is....

2010-07-01T09:35:00.005+01:00

Without further ado I am pleased to announce that the winner of the blog candy is....................................
...........................................
................................
Messi Jessi.
Congratulations, let me have your address and I'll get the stuff off in the post to you. My e-mail is stephen.smith870@ntlworld.com

As you can see, the cabin is coming along nicely. I can't call it Dora anymore so today it shall be named Flora......much the same reason as yesterday..........a floor'd be very nice!! To be fair, I do have the insulation down and it's just the tongue and groove flooring to be put in place.

The electrician also came yesterday and it's all ready to be wired up next week. I've decided on a 6ft strip light down the central beam and 3 directional spots on each of the other beams. I've also requested daylight bulbs...not very picky am I!!! He asked what I would be running of the mains so rather than explain, I went and got some of the equipment (heat guns, die cutting machines etc) He looked a little bemused, think he was expecting a music system and TV!

Here is a piccie of my dining room at the moment...do you think I might have a bit too much stash? Unfortunately, this isn't all of it! There's more in my craft room and in the living room not to mention the 12x12 floor to ceiling wire paper rack that is currently sitting on my patio! Oh well! Shouldn't have to go shopping for a while...yeah right!!!

I got signed off from physiotherapy yesterday as I've pretty much got full mobility back (just a few positions that are still very painful). Now it's a case of building up the strength in the arm and shoulder. I managed to get there without any crashes or even near misses!

Have you seen the Particraft free hostess gift for July? It's a sheet of A4 unmounted stamps with the most gorgeous frames and messages. Have a look on the website, definately worth booking a party for! Also check out Sue's fab blog...lots more samples of the cute Xmas stamps that were on Ideal World.

I'll be running another candy draw in the next few days (as soon as I can find where I've put everything!) Hope that you'll all take part again as I'm planning a goodie to celebrate the cabin so watch this space. Until next time.....keep crafting!

Dora!

2010-06-30T08:04:00.006+01:00

Another very quick update (well, I did promise photo's of the progress) Here is the cabin after 2 days work and today I have named it "Dora". That's because a door'd be nice!
I now have a fully insulated roof (just the shingles to go on) and a door frame. I think that the plan today is to fit the door and windows and hopefully make a start on the floor.
I hope they get it done fairly quickly...I now can't get into the dining room as I've been bringing down my craft stash and I'm beginning to take over the living room as well. On the plus side, I did find the magnetic sheets that I knew I had but couldn't find...hurrah!!

Still managed to find enough stuff to make a card...can't let the addiction slip! I bought a set of Debbi Moore acrylic stamps as I loved the funky images and this is one of my favourites. She's a real goth fairy which would be great for a teenagers birthday. Even my daughter thought that she was cool! I coloured the image with Copics (haven't packed them yet!) and distressed the flowers with Black Soot after stamping and embossing them on red paper. I've also added some Cosmic Shimmer Aqua Twinkles to the image. I didn't want her too sparkly so these were ideal as you can really control the amount you use.

I'm off to physiotherapy this morning and am going to have to drive myself there. Luckily it's at the local hospital as it's the first time I've been behind the wheel of a car in nearly 5 months. I'm very excited about it but if I'm honest, a bit nervous too. So if you're in Dover this morning at 09.45 I'd get off the road if I were you!!

Anyway, that's my update. Don't forget that the candy draw takes place tomorrow. I'll be back then with the winner and an update on Dora, hopefully with a new name! Until then....keep crafting!!!

Day 1

2010-06-29T06:17:00.004+01:00

Just a very quick update to show you Arfur! I'm calling the cabin Arfur just for now as I have "arf a cabin!!!" No, the jokes don't get any worse than that so stay with me!!

Anyway, the guys worked really hard yesterday, and in sweltering heat, and I now have something that I can almost move in to. Well, I could if it had a floor, windows, door and the rest of the roof. Still, they've said that they should get nearly all of that done today and that will just leave the verandah and the electrics to be sorted out. For those at the workshop, there will be air-conditioning (not just an open door and window!) I can't believe how quickly it's taking shape and I'm busy planning the layout of all the storage. Having brought most of my paper and card downstairs to the dining room I've made a mental note that I really DON'T need any more. If I stacked the boxes of A4 card they would reach from the floor to the ceiling of the dining room...no more trips to The Paper Mill Shop for me for a while! I'll have to start moving it before Steve gets back otherwise I might find a ban on buying!!

Did you catch Sue's show on Ideal World yesterday at 6pm? If not, look for the repeats and have a look at her Particraft blog. The stamps are adorable and her samples and techniques are terrific.

Only 2 days to the candy draw so if you haven't entered you still have time. Off now to pack a few more bags of craft stuff...I'll probably get distracted and end up stamping something but never mind! So until next time...............keep crafting!

Can You Tell What It Is Yet!!!

2010-06-28T10:35:00.005+01:00

Have you guessed....This is the cabin. Looking at the pile of wood I'm so pleased that we said the company could erect it for us. I don't know about you, but we struggle with flat pack furniture! I've been assured that they can have it up and finished in 4 days. It would take us 4 months and it still wouldn't be right.

The guys arrived at 9am this morning and got cracking straight away. As soon as there is progress I'll take another piccie to keep you up to date.

I'm slowly moving my craft room down to the dining room (well, just the bits I can live without for the next few days). Everytime I come downstairs I bring a couple more things and woe betide anyone who comes upstairs because they get lumbered as well!

Steve phoned this morning to let me know that they are on the canal boat and about to set sail (or whatever you do on a canal boat) They hope to reach their destination on Friday and he should be home on Saturday. I've told him he doesn't need to bring the craft room furniture down until Sunday...I'm just too nice to him sometimes!!

I bought some Sugar Nellie stamps at the sale on Saturday (£1.50 each...bargain!) I thought that this one went really well with the sunflower stamp from the hostess free gift. I've coloured all the images with Copics and layered a couple of the sunflowers.
It must be the glorious weather because I'm definately going through a very bright colour phase!!

Anyway, that's it for now...don't forget that Sue is on Ideal World at 6pm with some fantastic Xmas stamps...they are lovely and her demo's are always superb.
So until next time...............keep crafting!

Been to the Sales!

2010-06-26T14:53:00.003+01:00

For those who have booked so far for the workshop, you'll be pleased to know that you now have some comfy, padded chairs to sit on! One of the craft shops fairly nearby had a sale this morning and were selling off the chairs that they had been using for their workshops as they're now being held in a hotel. I am also the proud owner of a coat stand so you won't have to hang your coats over your chairs!!

The log cabin was delivered Friday afternoon and the team are coming Monday morning to assemble it. It's all getting very exciting. Once that's up I can sort out the tables and storage. I'm hoping to have moved in by the end of the week! Oh, forgot to say that I also got some 12x12 paper storage racks, perhaps now I'll be able to see what I've got!

Thought I'd put a card on here that I've just made. The very kind lady who had a Particraft party last week allowed me to borrow her hostess gift stamps (in exchange for mounting them for her-you know who you are!!) My sister-in-law has fallen and broken her hip so I thought these beautiful sunflower stamps would be just the thing to cheer her up. I've coloured them with my trusty Copics and the message stamp is from Personal Impressions. I much prefer to make my own backgrounds, at least that way you always have a match!

Anyway, Steve is off to help his brother move his canal boat from Banbury to their home which will take about 5 days (sister-in-law was the other crew member!) so I'll have the place to myself except for my youngest daughter who is menu planning for me. I think she thinks I'll get so carried away moving into the cabin that I'll forget to eat!

That's all for now, don't forget the blog candy draw on July 1st (you'll find it under older posts). The Particraft blog site now has over 900 followers and Sue is planning something special when she reaches 1000 so keep an eye on that as well. Until next time.............keep crafting!

Whiff of Joy Challenge

2010-06-24T07:45:00.004+01:00

I just can't resist joining in with the Whiff of Joy Challenge! This time it was to take inspiration from a photo and so I used the colours that were in it. The main stamp is from Whiff of Joy and she has been coloured with a mix of Promarkers and Copics. I've stamped her twice...the first time onto a Nestability Oval and then again onto a piece of card which I've cut out and mounted over the original stamped image with 3d foam pads.
The flowers have been stamped onto patterned paper and coloured with Peeled Paint Distress Ink. I've used 2 different Martha Stewart border punches and also the butterfly punch. Although the original stamped image has her catching leaves, I've cut those off and thought it would be more fun if she was trying to catch butterflies! Must be that visit to the butterfly farm!!

Now onto the Acrlic paints!!! These are just a few in the range by Eco Green and aren't the colours just glorious. Even with the bad lighting you can still see how vibrant they are.

Under the paints are some of the bits and pieces we made at Julia Andrus' workshop last week. I love the embedded technique using an acetate picture. It was fascinating to see just what these paints were capable of including a watercolour wash technique. I'll try and put something together to show you next time.

I'm off for my last session of hydrotherapy today....hurrah! I'm certainly getting more movement in the shoulder and now just need to build up the strength...must have lost it when the surgeon cut through the bicep muscle (on purpose, it wasn't a terrible mistake!!)

So that's all for now...just a quick reminder about the blog candy. Last few days to enter, the draw will take place on July 1st. You can still find it under older posts. Also don't forget the workshops and if you'd like a Particraft party and get a free set of stamps, you know what to do!

Until next time................keep crafting!

Blues on the Farm

2010-06-23T06:35:00.008+01:00

Ah..the glamour of show business! We're back after a fantastic week working at the Blues on the Farm Festival which is held every year just outside of Chichester.
Although the Blues isn't my favourite type of music there's nothing to compare with hearing any music live.
My favourite act from the whole 4 days was Connie Lush. She has a terrific voice and the band were great. Here's a picture from the side of the stage (backstage passes are great for taking photo's from strange angles!)

Of course, we couldn't do all of this without our home away from home! Our trusty old van came into its own again and kept us warm and dry. You might be able to see that we are parked one van away from the artistes loos! You certainly don't do this for the luxurious surroundings! We must have enjoyed it though as we're off to work at the Warwick Folk Festival next! We don't even get paid!!! We just have a great time with friends and get to hear some fab music.

It wasn't all work though...a few of us managed to sneak away to visit the Butterfly Farm. I was so pleased with how this photo came out of the wing of one butterfly that we saw there. The other side of the wing was the most beautiful blue colour but it was detail on this side that appealed to me. Of course, a couple of us did manage to fit in a little bit of crafting!! I think I may even have converted another member of the team after giving her a crash course in rubber stamping!!

I had a marvellous day at Creative Expressions last Tuesday at a workshop given by Julia Andrus. She is an amazing lady and has a great range of Eco-friendly products. I particularly liked the Eco Green Acrylic Paints which you can find on the Particraft website. I meant to take a photo of some of the things that we did but I forgot. I'll get them done and post them next time. It was lovely to catch up with some of the team there and also to get to know the rest of them. I'm off to a craft sale on Saturday and am trying to decide whether to take cash (a limited amount) or just take the debit card!! I know what the answer will probably be!!

I think that's just about all of the news for now...trying to catch up with all the washing from the festival as well as planning another workshop project with the paints. So until next time...............keep crafting!

Last One for a Week!

2010-06-13T05:44:00.005+01:00

I already feel like a World Cup widow and the whole thing's only just started! I wouldn't mind if the TV only showed the game but oh no...instead of that, we have hours and hours of men dissecting every decision and possible playing formation. It's relentless and I can only be thankful that we're going away for a week (although we're taking a TV in the campervan with us)
I'm hoping that we can get some sort of reception so that I can watch Create and Craft on Thursday and Friday morning to see the new Eco-paints being demonstrated. In exchange for that, Steve can watch another game!

That brings me on to why we're going away! I'm off to Creative Expressions on Tuesday for a training day with the paints and can't wait! I've seen Sheena using them and they look fab. I can't wait to get my hands on them and try some of the techniques.

After that we're going straight off to Chichester for the "Blues on the Farm" Music Festival. Steve is helping out a friend with the filming and I'll probably have a go on the tilt and pan camera and the mixing desk...anything that I can do without using my right arm too much! I'll also be the tea lady, I know my place! Although the festival doesn't start until Thursday we need to get there the day before to get the screens and cameras set up. I shall be packing a small bag of crafting necessities, can't imagine going a whole week without doing some sort of craft!

Now onto the cards! The first one was made for a craft fair I had a stall at yesterday. It wasn't too well attended but I did meet a representative from the local adult education services and they think that they would like me to be a tutor for them, running some card making courses. They're going to send me a form to fill in then there will be an interview and if all goes well I could be on their books for 2011! Making this card I realised that I hadn't done any decoupage for ages and it was relaxing just getting back to some cutting out. Of course, I then had to add some rubber stamping and find a use for my Nesties!

The 2nd card was so much fun to make. I must admit that I got the idea from the Creative Expressions website (many thanks to them). The flower is made from the Large Scalloped Circle Nesties and I've also used Cosmic Shimmer watercolours not only to paint the flower, but also for the background. In fact I had such a good (and messy) time making it that it's going to be a workshop project for September. This workshop is getting messier by the minute! Hope everyone has old clothes (and maybe a sou'wester and wellies!)

Anyway, that's all for now. I'll be back on Monday 21st so will post as soon as possible after that with piccies of the festival etc. Just a quick reminder about the blog candy on here and also on the Particraft blog. So until next time.......keep crafting!

Jungle Stamps

2010-06-10T07:01:00.006+01:00

Good morning All! Thought I'd show you a card I made using stamps from a couple of the Jungle series available from Particraft.

I love the giraffe stamp, he's so cute! I've used the masking technique to stand the giraffe behind the boy and all of the images have been coloured with Distress Inks. I've used the leaf stamp to make a frame around the main image and sentiment. The sentiment stamp is also a Particraft stamp but it isn't with the Jungle stamps.

The background paper is made from copy paper and I was so pleased with how it came out. It's not always easy to get matching papers and this is a really effective technique to make sure that you always have matching paper for your projects.

I'll be teaching these techniques at the workshop in September so do get in touch if you'd like to book.

I thought that I'd turn it into a tri-fold card with a difference (hence the 2 pictures). I like cards that open in different way and have a bit of interest.

Anyway, hope you like it!

I'll post some more piccies of cards soon....got a fab flower one that I can't wait to show you!

The log cabin plans are coming along beautifully. This is the site and the piccie shows it all levelled out....it looks tiny but it's 5mx4m plus a verandah! Since then, the concrete base has been laid and is drying out. Hopefully the cabin should arrive in the next couple of weeks and then the real fun will begin! We decided to get a team of experts in to assemble the cabin...I've seen us trying to put flat pack furniture together and it's not a pretty sight! Once the cabin is up the electrician can get to work with power points, lighting and an air conditioning unit...luxury! Steve is going to lay a path from the house to the cabin and we're going to have solar lights along it. I'm so excited...can't wait to get inside it and start planning where everything is going!

Off for another dose of hydrotherapy this afternoon...I just get the shoulder settled and it's time to go again! Still, no pain, no gain! Anyway, that's all for now...just a quick reminder about the blog candy (check out the older posts) and also the Particraft candy. So until next time.......keep crafting!

Blog Award

2010-06-09T07:26:00.004+01:00

Many thanks to Messi Jessi who nominated me for this fab award!

It seems that all I have to do is to tell 6 outrageous lies about myself and 1 outragreous truth (or the other way round!) and then nominate 7 creative writers and post a link to their blogs and let them know! Simples!!! Well it would be if I wasn't a computer numpty!! Anyway, here goes....

1. I've cycled from London to Brighton

2. I've appeared as Lady Montague

3. I was adopted

4. I've applied to be cryogenically frozen when I die

5. I was asked to launch a ship

6. I used to be a fashion writer

7. I was chosen for the Olympic equestrian squad but had to

withdraw as my horse was injured.

Ok, now all you have to do is work out which one is true!

Now on to my nominations....

1. Craft2gether by Lynne......always fab ideas

2. Teri Louise Crafts........a fab enthusiastic crafter

3. Maria at Imagine, Create, Inspire.....love her work

4. Cupcake cards by Lynsay Lou........an inspiring blog with great ideas

5. Make a day cards.....great ideas again!

6. Piddawinkle....great altered art

7. Jane's Lovely Cards....I bow to her use of colours.

Thanks again to Messi Jessi (who also has a fab blog so check it out!). I hope I've done this right!

I'll be back later with cards etc but wanted to get this done....so until next time.....keep crafting!

Challenges

2010-06-06T14:21:00.003+01:00

I don't know about you, but some days I haven't a clue where to start with making a card and that's where Challenge Blogs really come into their own! You can usually find a sketch of a theme to give you inspiration and quite often to re-discover stamps (and paper) that you'd forgotten about. I made the first card for the Whiff of Joy challenge where there was a simple sketch idea but a design I hadn't made for ages. I've used Fancy Pants paper for the background which I've stamped with a WoJ swirl stamp. The main image was coloured with Promarkers and the wings painted with Cosmic Shimmer Pearl Mica Powder. The flowers were stamped and distressed with Dusty Concord Ink.

I've made the 2nd card for The Pink Elephant (TPE69) and Creative Inspirations challenges. The theme for both of them was Summery and Bright. This stamp of Ethel has to be one of my favourites (as is the sentiment!)...it always reminds me of why I don't wear a bikini!!! I've had the paper in my stash for ages but it's wonderfully tropical so seemed ideal. The palm tree and flowers are from a set of stamps that was a Particraft hostess gift some months ago.

Talking of challenges, I've just found out that at least 4 other people have torn their rotator cuff muscles at work. It really peeves me that my employers knew there was a problem with the working conditions yet did nothing about it....aaargh!!! All of the pain and the operation could have been avoided. Still, some good came out of it...it made me get my plans for workshops moving and become a demonstrator so as one door closes, a window opens as they say.

That's all for now, don't forget to enter for the candy. Until next time....keep crafting!

Friday Flowers

2010-06-05T10:43:00.003+01:00

A very good sunny Saturday to you all.

Just a quick post to let you know that there are Friday Flowers on Jane's Lovely Cards Blog. I have a link on my sidebar so do pop over for a chance of winning.

The men turned up yesterday to make a start on the foundations of the cabin. The area has now been levelled and the planks of wood are in place to pour the cement. All of the ballast, cement, flooring and insulation were delivered as well. If all goes well, the base should be finished on Tuesday! It's all getting very exciting!!

Have a great weekend!

I won some candy!

2010-06-04T11:38:00.004+01:00

I had a lovely suprise a week ago and found out I'd won a stamp on the Whiff of Joy Challenge Blog! It arrived yesterday and so naturally, I had to start playing with it!! It's such a cute image and one that I had been looking at. I've coloured her in with Copic pens and also stamped out the daffodils again as embellishments. I've had the background paper for ages and it's got such a nice fresh spring feel to it that it seemed ideal.

Ever since the training day I can't stop doing the faux brayering technique! This one isn't strictly that but I started it the same way by squishing the Big 'n Juicy inkpad onto my craft mat, spritzing water and then swirling the cardstock on it. I've used the Mountain Meadow inks for this card then added some Cosmic Shimmer Mica Powder in Tropic Red. The swirl stamp is by Sheena Douglass and is available from Particraft. I could play with this technique all day! The results are totally different each time and it just makes superb backgrounds.

The plans for the cabin are coming along...the hardcore is being delivered this afternoon and the concrete base is going down on Monday. Once it's up I can order the chairs and tables for the workshop. I can also have a look at my storage and see what else I need. I'm definately going to have some shelves!! I'm working in an attic room that has a sloping roof and there's no room to put any up at the moment. I can't wait...I might actually be able to find things at last!!

The hydrotherapy sessions are brilliant but I pay for it the next day. If I ever wondered what doing 10 rounds with Mike Tyson felt like, I've now got some idea! Still, the main thing is to get the shoulder moving and I can finally see some progress even if it is slow.

Don't forget to enter for the blog candy and also have a look at the Particraft blog where this is a bumper selection of goodies up for grabs. If you're interested in the upcoming workshops, please e-mail me at stephen.smith870@ntlworld.com for details.
That's about it for today so until next time................keep crafting!

Blog Candy is Back!

2010-06-01T16:02:00.005+01:00

A new month and a new candy! This time there are a pack of acrylic stamps, 6 large silk Flora Doodle flowers, 40 sheets of 6x6 papers, a pack of embossed cards and envelopes and a selection of ribbons. Most of the papers are themed to match the stamps and will also match the flowers and ribbons. Gosh! I co-ordinated it this time!!
To be in with a chance of winning, make sure that you are a follower and if you link me to your blog you'll automatically be entered twice. For more chances of winning, leave a comment after any postings I make....the more comments, the more chances! I'll make the draw when I get to 250 followers or July 1st, whichever comes first.

Creative Inspirations have a weekly challenge on their blog and this week it's distressing so as well as entering the challenge
I thought I'd give you a sneaky peak at one of the projects I'll be teaching at the weekend workshop in September. I thought it would be nice to do something different. As much as I love making cards it's good to do something else for a change and a photo frame is always useful! I've used the beautiful Wildflower set of stamps which are available from Particraft and lots of Distressing! If you'd like to book a place for the workshops, drop me an e-mail to
stephen.smith870@ntlworld.com There is accomodation available (at a very reasonable price) nearby. The dates are 17th-19th September and numbers are limited to 8.

I thoroughly enjoyed Sue's show on Create and Craft yesterday and have tried the faux suede technique...it does work! The samples with the Wine plates were gorgeous, if you missed the show have a look at the Particraft blog and there are some samples there. It's Sheena's turn tonight and tomorrow on Ideal World with some fab Spellbinder dies. I shall be glued to all of the programmes!

The log cabin company phoned today to say that they are going to be starting work on Thursday. I'm very excited...can't wait to move in and finally have some space for all my stash! I might even be able to find things!!!

I've spent the day putting colour swatches together of embossing powders, glitters, Distress Inks, glitter glues etc and am now covered head to foot in glitter...look like I'm off to a disco!!
Anyway, that's all for now. I'm going to try and get some of the glitter off...will probably need to be hosed down in the garden.....there's a picture to leave you with!!!
So until next time.........keep crafting!

Candy Draw Winner

2010-05-31T06:35:00.006+01:00

Hi! Sorry it's been a while since I posted but I have been sooo busy!
I had my training day for the demonstrator job on Tuesday in Kettering and it was fab. I could watch Sheena demo all day and by the time we had finished I couldn't wait to get home and start playing with the faux brayering technique she taught us. We'd been doing it with the Big 'n Juicy ink pads but I thought it might be fun to try it with Cosmic Shimmer watercolours. I've used the metallic set for the first card on here and the stamp is from the Create-a-Scene Pub set. I cut one of the Frameability dies twice, embossed and sanded them, them painted over them with the CS Gold watercolour. I love the way they change colour depending on what colour card you're using.
I haven't just been playing though...Sheena has a pick of the day on Ideal World (starting 9pm Tuesday night) and I was asked to help make some samples for the show. No pressure, but they had to be in the post to reach Creative Expressions by 9am on Tuesday! As there's a bank holiday today, it meant that to be sure they got there I had to post them Thursday lunchtime. So between Wednesday morning and Thursday midday I managed to make 14 samples, all using either the Spellbinder Frameabilities or the labels. I woke up on Friday morning with more ideas so made another 3 samples which I'm hoping will get there in time. If they don't, here are 2 of them! This 2nd one is using the labels and the flowers are from two of the frame sets.

Now on to the winner of the candy................................
..................................................................
...........................................
Teri Louise
Congratulations, please e-mail me your addy to
stephen.smith870@ntlworld.com
so that I can get the goodies in the post. Thank you to everyone who entered and there will be another blog candy on here within a couple of days.
The guys from the log cabin company came on Friday to measure out where it's going in the garden and they should be back within 2 weeks to get the concrete base laid. They reckon that it will only be 4 weeks before I can move into it! Watch this space....there will be photos!!
The plans for the first workshop are well under way, I've sorted out all of the projects for the Saturday and have pretty much got Sunday's in my head. I've decided to limit it to 8 places as I think it's better to have a bit more room to work. As I have 2 willing victims already, that means there are only 6 places left! If anyone would like details, just drop me an e-mail. There will be faux brayering!! There will be lots of ink!!! It will be messy!!!!! But most of all, it will be a lot of fun!!!!!
Anyway, that's about it for today...must tidy up the craft room....can't even see my table! So until next time, keep crafting!

The Taming of the Glue!

2010-05-24T05:58:00.004+01:00

A bit of a strange title for today's blog so let me explain!
A while ago I said that I was getting a log cabin in the garden to use as a craft room. Well, I had another idea....I'm still getting a log cabin but it's going to big enough to run workshops and have a craft club.
The log cabin people are coming on Friday to do a survey and hopefully, they'll be starting work on it within a couple of weeks. I aim to get it up and running by mid-September with the first workshop over the weekend of 17th -19th September.
It's going to be a whole weekend of fabulous crafting with the emphasis on stamping techniques.
I thought I'd make it a weekend workshop so that if anyone has to travel any distance they can stay at the B&B which is 3 doors away. I'll supply the lunch, tea, coffee etc and it'll be great fun.
So, back to the title...I've decided to call the workshops and craft club "The Taming of the Glue"
I've always loved acting and Shakespeare so why not combine it with crafting!!
If anyone is interested in coming, please drop me an e-mail at: stephen.smith870@ntlworld.com
The spaces are strictly limited (due to cabin size) to a maximum of 10. I'll be announcing other dates soon.

Now onto the cards...the first one was made using the Kingfisher stamp from Sheena's fabulous "Create -a-Scene Canal" set of stamps. I stamped the main image and embossed it with clear powder then coloured it with Copics. The background was embossed with Denim Distress Ink. I matted and layered it onto another piece of card which had been run through an embossing folder. I highlighted the embossed area with the same Distress Ink.
The second card was made with the "Vintage Sewing" set of stamps by Sam Poole. I fell in love with this set as soon as I saw it and knew I NEEDED it!!! The main focal point of the card is the central stamped image which was stamped with Dusty Concord Ink. I stamped it twice and cut out the tailors dummies which were mounted on 3D foam pads to give the card some dimension. The ruler is another stamp from the set as are the buttons, cotton reels, zig zag stitching and so much more. The row of buttons was made from a smaller stamp which were stamped next to each other. To get the faded effect, I stamped onto a piece of paper before stamping a 2nd time onto the card. I thought it would make a change to do a vintage card in Dusty Concord and Denim instead of the more traditional colours.
The party on Saturday was fab...what terrific hosts...and we finally got to bed at 03.45!! Who said we "oldies" don't know how to party!!
We're setting off today in the trusty old campervan to head for Kettering. I am so looking forward to tomorrow's training day. Can't think of anything I'd rather do than craft all day and learn lots of new amazing techniques!
I'll post when I get back and let you know how it went...might even take the camera and try to get a few piccies (time permitting)
Anyway, better go and pack my craft bag. Don't forget the candy draw takes place on May 31st so there's still time to enter and do please e-mail me if you're interested in either the workshops or the craft club.
Until next time.........keep crafting!!

Another Day......

2010-05-21T09:19:00.003+01:00

Another day, another challenge! This time it's the Whiff of Joy challenge blog that enticed me!!

The challenge this week was to make a card using brown and yellow with one other colour of your choice. I didn't think I'd ever made a card with that colour combination so had to try...any excuse!! The only other rules were that you had to use a WoJ stamp and that you could also use neutral colours (ie white).

I started by looking through my book of K&Co double sided papers and found this one which fitted the bill perfectly. I stamped the image and coloured with Copics. The background for the stamp has been cut using Nesties and the white mat has been embossed with a Cuttlebug folder.

I found the butterfly, flowers and ribbons in my stash and punched the green leaves (my 3rd colour) from Bazzil card. I've used one of the WoJ message stamps on the background just to give the whole thing a bit of balance with the colours (it was too yellow on one side!!)

I'd love your comments as brown and yellow aren't colours I'd naturally go for.

The hydrotherapy went well yesterday but I'm paying for it today!! I think I was a bit over enthusiastic with some of the movements!!

We're off to a friend's 60th birthday party tomorrow. It looks as though she's going to be very lucky with the weather. She's hired a yurt and a jukebox....a yurt is like a big round tent (I think!) Steve has been asked to take his guitar along so it looks as though a sing song may be planned. Luckily, they have a very large garden so we're taking the campervan to sleep in. It saves worrying about driving home and means we can both have a glass or 2 of wine.

We still haven't decided when to leave for Kettering (training day). I'd leave Sunday if I had my way as I don't want to be late!!!

Anyway, that's my lot for today...off to play with the canal stamps designed by Sheena. They are beautiful and as my brother in law has a canal boat, they'll make ideal for cards for him.

Don't forget to enter for the blog candy.

Until next time.............keep crafting!

Simon Says Stamp!

2010-05-20T11:01:00.002+01:00

Another challenge on the Simon says Stamp challenge blog that I couldn't resist having a go at.

The challenge this week was to make a tent card and add a charm. If you're not sure how to make a tent card there is a very good explanation (including photo's!) on the blog.

I've used K &Co papers and made the aperture using Nestabilities.

As it had to go through 2 layers (I glued the paper onto the card before cutting) I ran it through the die cutting machine twice.

I cut the aperture using the large circle and made a scalloped frame to fit.

The pink border at the bottom has been punched with a Martha Stewart border punch and distressed. The stamped image is a Whiff of Joy stamp which has been coloured with Distress Inks and I've used flowers from Wild Orchid and some ribbon from my stash to finish it off. Luckily I found a gold heart charm in a box I had nearly forgotten about. That's the great thing with these challenges...they have you hunting around for bits and pieces that would have lain undiscovered!

I'm off to my second hydrotherapy appointment this afternoon so that means an early lunch as I have to be there at 1.15pm and the hospital is 30 minutes away if the traffic behaves itself! I don't mind the sessions but I do hate putting on a swimming costume! It's OK when you're on holiday as no-one knows you, but in a hospital, where you have to return every week it's not so good!

Anyway, just a short post today so until next time................keep crafting!

Meet Matilda!

2010-05-19T06:11:00.009+01:00

We went up to London at the weekend to meet our new great neice, Matilda Daisy and even though I'm biased (just a little!), she really is a cutie!

I thought that instead of a card for the new very proud grandparents I would make a mini album for them with some of the "newborn" photos they sent us.

As Matilda is such a beautiful old

fashioned name I stuck to a vintage theme
for the album and used the Oxford Impression stamps that I bought a Ally Pally (any excuse to get them out!!) It was also a good reason to use the Distress Inks as well!

I cut some A4 card to measure 6 x 7.5 inches for the pages and to make the spine, I cut a piece of A4 card at 6 inches across the length. I folded this piece at 4cm into a concertina. I know, I'm jumping around between inches and centimeters but sometimes you just have to! I scored the pages 1.5 inches in to slot into the concertina folds. Before assembling the book, I decorated the pages with photos, stamps and embellishments. Once the pages were put together, I slid them into the folds and glued them into place with Cosmic Shimmer glue. I don't think I've ever used such fab glue....it seems to hold everything and dries so quickly (it also dries clear which is essential if you're as mucky as me!) Once everything was in place, I puched 2 holes in the spine with my Crop-a-dile and threaded ribbon through.

The grandparents were thrilled with it and I think that I may have a new convert to scrapbooking (even though she doesn't know it yet!!)

Anyway, hope you like it...I haven't put all the pages on here, this is just to give you an idea of the finished article and a good excuse to show off my new great neice!

I'm busy playing with a new stamp set and hope to have some finished designs to show you soon.

Don't forget the blog candy...draw takes place on May 31st so until next time........keep crafting!

Simon Says Stamp!

2010-05-14T18:11:00.003+01:00

This is going to be the quickest posting ever!

I saw the sketch on the Simon Says Stamp challenge blog and had to have a go at it (especially as it was using Whiff of Joy Stamps!)

I must admit that I usually like to take a little more time but what with medical appointments and getting the van ready for tomorrow, time is one thing I haven't had!

I used 2 WoJ stamps for the main image....I thought she would look cute sitting on the swing! I made my own background paper with a lovely little WoJ flower stamp which I've inked with a Distress Ink (one of the new blue ones...not Cloudy Sky and really can't remember what it's called Doh!!) The flowers are from my stash as is the lace which a lovely lady, Hilary, sent to me. Thank you once again!!

Anyway, have to go and pack a bag for a couple of nights so that we're ready for a fairly early departure in the morning.

Don't forget to enter the blog candy draw.

Until next time..........keep crafting!

First Hydrotherapy Session

2010-05-13T15:57:00.004+01:00

Went to the hospital this afternoon for my first hydrotherapy appointment. I have to say that the water was a fantastic temperature and I really wanted to swim. No such luck! Just lots of arm exercises which have left me really achy. Still, it's all for the best and I'm working so hard at getting full movement back that it can only be a matter of time.
I made this card a couple of days ago. Before we set off on the cruise, I rubber stamped some images and took my watercolours with me so that I could craft on the plane. This was one of the pictures I coloured in whilst waiting at Manchester Airport for the flight! The stamp is from the Creative Expressions range of unmounted stamps and I do love the elegant image. Wish I was a bit more like it! My mother always said that I walked like a farmer...whatever a farmer walks like! I used some of the Whitewash cardstock for the background which I put in an embossing folder and ran through the Sissix. I really don't miss using a light box at all!! After embossing the card, I sanded down the top layer so that the core colour came through. Just a nice simple card that's really quick to do.
Talking of Creative Expressions....I am so excited!!!! I'm going to be joining them as a demonstrator and have my training on May 25th with Sheena Douglass. We're going to have a lot of products to get through but I can't wait. I'd be happy to craft all day, everyday!!!
We're off to London in the trusty old campervan this weekend as Steve's neice has just given birth to the latest member of the family, Matilda and we're going to coo and fuss over her. I've made the proud new grandparents a mini scrapbook as we'll be meeting up with them as well. I'll take some piccies of it and put them on here next time. I'm not very good at scrapbooking, keep putting it off and the mound of photo's keep on growing!
Anyway, this is just a quick update. Don't forget to enter for the candy on here and also on the Particraft site. Nearly forgot, Maria (see the link on the right) also has candy (gorgeous rubber stamps). So until next time.............keep crafting!

New Blog Candy

2010-05-08T07:38:00.005+01:00

I'm back! I know I said that the blog candy would be posted yesterday but I spent the day sorting out a pile of paperwork from the solicitors about my injury. It looks as though my employers are going to try to dismiss me for poor attendance so I'm taking precautionary action! My point is that I injured the shoulder through doing the job and my employers are saying "tough".

Anyway, back to the main topic of this posting.

I have a set of clear birthday stamps, 2 packs of Papermania glitter ribbon, a pack of A5 silver and gold paper and some slide folders up for grabs. I think this time I'll do the draw on May 31st so to enter, leave a comment after this posting and for 2 chances, please link me to your blog. I still haven't heard from Sheila for the last candy so if

you're reading this, please contact me.

Here's another card I made with some new stamps I bought at Ally Pally. They're from a company called "Oxford Impressions"

I must admit that I'd never heard of them before the show but their stamp range is so unusual that I couldn't resist.

A lot of the stamps are vintage photos (like the one on this card).

I've stamped the image with a Coffee Archival Ink Pad. It was definately the best one for the job as it was able to pick up all of the fine detail. I've coloured the background with Distress Inks. I used Mustard Seed, Vintage Photo and Spiced Marmalade. I've randomly stamped images from the same stamp set (Le Jardin) onto the background for a collage effect. The message is from the same set and I think the words are lovely.

Onto other matters... Particraft have a new A4 unmounted stamp set as a gift for anyone who books a party (as well as 10% commission on sales). It's a really cute set with quilting as it's main theme. Have a look on the Particraft home page and there's a piccie of it. I meant to upload it onto here but I forgot so save it as a picture and I'm still a computer numpty!

There's also the blog candy on the Particraft site...last time I looked they were at 750 followers so they just need 50 more for the draw to take place.

I think that's all for now so until next time.....................keep crafting!

Whiff of Joy

2010-05-06T17:47:00.003+01:00

I thought that I would enter the challenge on the Whiff of Joy site as I needed an excuse to use one of the new stamps I bought at Ally Pally!

The challenge this week is to use a sketch that Jane has prepared. She is such a talented cardmaker and has a fantastic blog (Jane's Lovely Cards) It's well worth taking a look at for inspiration.

The main image and the flowers have been coloured in with Copic pens. They are still my favourites but I am getting on a little better with the Promarkers.

I've used K&Co double sided paper to cover the card along with some green Bazzil card which I had in my stash.

The punched lacy edge was done with a Martha Stewart punch and obviously the good old Nestabilities came out to play! I stamped a flower 5 times, cut them out and mounted them, some flat and some raised. Again the flower stamp was a WoJ one.

I stamped the swirls (again WoJ) with one of the new Distress Inks (Sage Green) and also distressed the edge of the oval with it.

The white ribbon and the coloured pearls were from my craft box.

Hope you like it and do look in tomorrow for details of the new blog candy.

Until next time...............keep crafting!

Congratulations!

2010-05-05T11:05:00.004+01:00

It's the 5th of May which can only mean one thing.....blog candy draw day!

Thank you to everyone that took part, I'd love to give you all a pressie but unfortunately I'd be bankrupt....still, if I ever win the lottery I might just do that! However, the winning name out of the hat is........................

.................................................................

.........................................................

...........................................

SHEILA. Many congratulations and please e-mail me with your address so I can get the candy in the post. The e-mail is:

stephen.smith870@ntlworld.com

On my last post I had a photo of Steve fishing and was asked if I had made a fishy card. Well, here's one of them. I made quite a few for the Particraft stand at Ally Pally using the 3 new stamp sets (Dive Right In, Mermaid & Friends and Sea Life)

I made the background for the card with Adirondack ink pads and Cut 'n Dry foam as I couldn't find any paper in the colours I wanted. I really enjoy making my own backgrounds, I think I just like getting messy with the inks!

Saw the surgeon yesterday. He was pleased with how I have healed but concerned about the stiffness in the joint. It's now just more physiotherapy and keep working at getting it moving again. He's hopeful that I should have 80% mobility back in about 9 months. I've also received his report which has been sent to my employers stating that the injury could only have occured because of the job. I don't feel so guilty about all the time I've had to take off now! Unfortunately the surgeon also wrenched my arm up, down, around and any other way he could so today I'm really feeling the pain!

Anyway, off to sort out the next candy and thanks once again for taking part.

Until next time....................keep crafting!

Planes, Coaches and Automobiles!

2010-05-03T07:05:00.004+01:00

We're finally back after a fantastic cruise that nearly didn't happen thanks to the volcano and all of its ash!

We set off for Gatwick Airport at 06.30 on April 15th and was in the process of checking in when we heard that our flight had been cancelled.
We phoned our agent and he said that we should go home. Got a taxi and was 20 minutes away from home when the phone went. It was the agent asking if we would mind driving to Manchester Airport as there was a flight leaving the next day. The cruise company hired a car for us which was delivered to our house and we set off for Manchester at 6pm. They had also arranged a hotel for us and we got there just after midnight.
Up again at 05.30 to get to the airport where we were told that all Manchester flights had been cancelled again. We were told to return to the hotel to await further instructions.

At 10 am we had a phone call asking us to get back to the airport straight away as there would be a fleet of coaches to take us and all of the passengers to Glasgow Airport as there would be a flight later that day.

Left Manchester just after 1pm and arrived in Glasgow about 5.30pm. Finally took off at 8pm and arrived in Barbados at 1.30 am local time on April 17th. I think we had been travelling or waiting to travel for 48 hours by the time we arrived!

As always the ship and all of the crew made it all worthwhile and you can't praise the shipping company enough for all of their efforts to get everyone away.

The craft workshops were great fun and to any of the ladies that attended, I just want to say a big thank you for coming and hope you had as much fun as I did.

Steve's talks were very popular and he had an audience for all 9 of them of over 200. He was even asked to do an evening cabaret spot. I'm now married to a megastar!

I've put a few photo's of the workshops on here just in case any of my on board crafters would like to see them.

Also added a photo of Steve on one of the excursions in St. Lucia doing a bit of "bottom fishing". It was his first time and he was so pleased with himself catching this fish. All of the fish caught were returned unharmed to the water.

Anyway, back to reality now with all the medical appointments that are lined up! Don't forget that the blog candy draw will take place on 5th so there's still a couple of days to enter.

Particraft have more fantastic candy on their blog so do please pop over there and enter.

All for now as I still have a mound of washing to get through. Until next time........................keep crafting!

As Promised!

2010-04-13T16:30:00.005+01:00

Back again with the blog candy. This time it's a set of "Made By" rubber stamps, a pack of chipboard labels, a pack of rub-ons and 3 gorgeous big fabric flowers. I think they're all really useful bits of stash and I hope you like them. To take part just leave a comment and if you put a link to your blog, I'll enter you twice. The draw will take place on May 5th when hopefully, I'll have had good news from the surgeon.

I made this card with one of the new stamps I bought at Ally Pally. It was a nightmare having Whiff of joy there. I wanted everything they had! I stamped and embossed the image with black archival ink and the Cosmic Shimmer clear powder then coloured it in with a mixture of Copic pens and Promarkers. I love the Pear Green in the Promarker range but can't do without the flesh tones in the Copics! I used 2 papers, one was by Anna Griffin and the other was a K&Co. I cut the circles with my Nestabilities (what did we do before they came along!) The green and brown buttons are from the new range available from Particraft and are in the Spring supplement and the red ones are from my stash. I distressed around the scalloped circle with Walnut stain. Hope you like it, I had a lot of fun colouring in today after spending most of yesterday mounting my new stamps.

Had another physio appointment this afternoon...he always looks so disappointed with me and I really do try to lift my arm up! He is quite concerned by my lack of mobility and now I'm going to be having hydrotherapy. I've promised to spend a lot of time in the pool on the ship doing doggy paddle. Obviously my favourite stroke is out of the question...no more backstroke for me for a while! I'm still not allowed to drive so I'm a bit hacked off about that. I had a letter from work on April 6th telling me that my pay would stop on April 7th....plenty of notice. I wouldn't mind except that it's the job that caused the problem in the first place.

Anyway, off on the cruise on Thursday. We're leaving here at 06.30 and have spent the last couple of hours packing and trying to keep the weight down. Even with an extra baggage allowance, it's never enough. By the time I've packed all of the equipment and packs for the workshops plus clothes it soon adds up!

Well, that's all for now. Don't forget to enter the draw and I'll be back on here May 2nd to let you know how the cruise went. Until then.........keep crafting!

Ally Pally

2010-04-12T17:43:00.002+01:00

What a fantastic weekend at Ally Pally, it flew by and we met such lovely, enthusiastic crafters. It was great to catch up with some of the other Particraft demonstrators and I want to thank them all for making it such fun. I'm sure that the other stands must have wondered what we were on with the amount of laughter coming from ours!

From left to right the team ....Michelle, Lynne, Terry, Me, Lynsay and Maria.

It was also fantastic to see Sue, Sheena and the rest of the Creative Expressions team. We launched the new Spring supplement at the show so if you didn't manage to get to Ally Pally and would like a copy please order one.

We (my OH and me) travelled up in the faithful old camper van and were planning to park it in one of the car parks and sleep in it. We didn't realise that Audley Harrison was fighting on Friday night and that all of the car parks had to be cleared. Luckily the staff at Ally Pally took pity on us and let us camp in the exhibitors car park! It was very handy for getting there by 8am each morning! Thought about turning up in my pj's with a mug of coffee and a toothbrush but decided it was probably not one of my better ideas!

I managed to spend far too much (again) but in my defence I can only say that there were so many lovely things and I NEEDED them!

I will post again tomorrow with a picture of the new blog candy, haven't had time to take a piccie today, trying to catch up on paperwork, physio exercises etc. It will contain a set of stamps though so do have a look and enter.

Almost time for dinner so better go. Until next time.....keep crafting!

Candy Draw Winner

2010-04-12T07:33:00.002+01:00

Just wanted to post this really quickly so that I can get the prize off in the post asap. Quick drum roll ........and the winner is...............
.................................
.......................
JAN.
Please e-mail me with your addy to:
stephen.smith870@ntlworld.com
Many congratulations and thank you to everyone who took part.
I'll post properly later today with a new candy and news from Ally Pally etc.

Oops!

2010-04-08T17:24:00.003+01:00

Oops! I was so excited this morning going on about Ally Pally that I forgot to post this card for the Whiff of Joy blog challenge! The challenge was to use a sketch by the very talented Jane...see my sidebar for Jane's Lovely Cards (and they are!)

This is my effort and it came out quite well. I like the individual strawberries which I've stamped and coloured and then coated with Glossy Accents. I cut them out and mounted them with 3d foam pads....I thought it would make a change from the flowers and butterflies that I usually use. The main image has been coloured with Copic pens (what would I do without them!) cut out and mounted with the foam pads. I stamped the strawberry off the edge of the card with the image on to give it a bit of a frame.

The background is pale pink card with some swirls, strawberries and sentiments stamped randomly with Distress Inks. I stamped onto paper first so that the images would be faint. Hope you like it...back after Ally Pally with piccies etc.

2 Days To Go!

2010-04-08T07:52:00.003+01:00

Just 2 more days before Ally Pally and I'm busy putting the finishing touches to the samples I'm taking with me for the Particraft stand.

The cards I've posted on here today are from one of the new sets of stamps that will be available at the show (and on the web). They are so versatile and lend themselves to such varied techniques. The first card just used 1 single small flower stamp and the message from the set. I made the background with Adirondack inks (Watermelon, Sunshine Yellow and Orange) The colours were randomly rubbed onto the card with Cut 'n Dry and then blended together with the lightest colour. I inked around the edge with Frayed Burlap Distress Ink to bring the colour down. The single rose stamp was spritzed with water and stamped onto the background to remove the colour and leave a faded out effect. I stamped the rose 9 times onto another piece of coloured card, heat embossed them with Cosmic Shimmer Clear and cut them out and mounted them into the corner building some of them up with 3d foam pads. The message was stamped and embossed onto the same colour card and I stamped the rose a couple of times going over the edge of the card. It was all mounted onto black and gold cardstock and it really zings out (well, I think it does!)

This second card is from the same set but this time I used the rose bush as well as the single rose and message. I created the background with scraps of paper I had. I can't bear to throw them away and this is a great way of using them up. I cut a base of white card 132cm sq and nine squares of co-ordinating paper 4.4cm sq. I stuck them down onto the white card and stamped with a stitch stamp that I had in my stash. There's a great stitch stamp on the new Vintage Sewing Set by Sam Poole (have a look on the website) After that, it was just a case of stamping the rose bush, single roses and message and colouring them in. I hope you like the cards and that they've given you a few ideas. It's great that 1 set of stamps can be made to look so different.

I finally went out last night for the first time since the op (apart from doctors, surgeons and physios!) We went to see a friend in the play "Outside Edge" It was very good and it's made me realise how much I miss acting but I don't miss learning great chunks of scripts and the feeling of dread just before I went on stage! I do miss the applause though!!! Steve (the OH) is a fantastic actor and we have only managed to appear in one play together. We played a married couple (Ruth and Charles) in Blithe Spirit a few years ago. It was great fun but we don't seem to have time to do it anymore.

Don't forget that I'll be drawing the name for the blog candy winner on Monday so there's still a few more days left to enter. Just leave a comment on the relevant posting.

Hope to see some of you at the show...do come over and say hi!

Anyway, enough of my rambling. I still have a few more samples to get ready and the trusty old campervan needs sorting out before tomorrow. We've decided to take the van and sleep in it this time. Let's hope they don't chuck us out of the car park at Ally Pally!

Until next time.......keep crafting!

Whiff of Joy Challenge

2010-04-01T14:59:00.004+01:00

I thought that I would do something that I don't usually do and enter a blog challenge. The challenge is from Whiff of Joy and it's to make a card using one of their images with 3 papers, 2 buttons and 1 ribbon. It's one of my favourite stamps from their range and I really enjoyed making the card. I like sketch challenges, I don't enter them but make a note of the sketch then when I get stuck for ideas, I look at my notebook and pick a sketch to design around. I think that we all hit a patch when we run out of ideas!!

I must thank Laura who won the last blog candy for the beautiful card that she sent me and also the stunning tag using the picture of my gran that I posted. I was so touched...aren't crafters lovely!

My desk was getting very cluttered so I decided to mix making samples for Ally Pally with making a desk tidy. I cut some A4 white card to size to make 2 different height containers. After scoring them I coloured them with random splodges of Adirondack Inks in 3 different colours, then distressed them around the edges with Walnut Stain. I used the large swirl stamp and the Vintage Child stamp set to decorate them. I used Cosmic Shimmer glue to put them together and also to glue the 2 containers together. I must admit I was getting quite carried away and would have happily kept on making them but that would have defeated the purpose and my desk would just have been cluttered with tidies!!

Anyway, best get on...don't forget to enter the candy draw. Until next time......keep crafting!

Making Jewellery

2010-03-31T07:04:00.005+01:00

I thought that I would try my hand at a bit of jewellery making. It's something that I haven't tried before (apart from Grungeboard bracelets which are a bit addictive...thanks Sheena!) I found some Stamping Board in my stash and it was just the right size for this pendant. I heated 2 colours of Cosmic Shimmer UTE
mixed with a little of the clear in a tin foil cake holder, which I have to say is a great reason for eating cakes and pies! When it was molten I poured it over the stampboard and while it was still hot, took an inked stamp (this one was from the Butterfly Collage Set) and pressed it into the UTE. The flower was made from Grungepaper. This time I inked up the flower shapes with Perfect Medium and then tipped some of the UTE powder over it and heated it. It took 3 applications to get the enamel effect I wanted. It's important to heat from the back as the powder will blow everywhere if you try from the front. The flowers were glued together with some Crystal Lacquer and then glued onto the pendant. I punched a hole for the ribbon with my trusty Crop-a-Dile and voila, a pendant! The great thing about Cosmic Shimmer embossing powders is that it looks totally different depending on the light.

Here's another picture I took with the light from a different angle so you can see what I mean.

I don't wear a lot of jewellery but I'm going to wear this as I'm so pleased with it and I know that no-one else will have one!

On my previous blog I put a photo of my grandfather. I didn't want my gran to feel left out and I love this picture of her. It was taken when she was about 18 years old. She was so pretty that I can see why my grandad fell in love with her as soon as he saw her over a garden fence! She had bright red hair, green eyes and a gorgeous complexion that she never lost, even in her 80's.

I saw the physio on Friday and he's still not pleased with me...what can I do to please him! I have moved onto exercising with a very large yellow elastic band which is progress. He wants me to get my arm up higher and it just won't go. Believe you me....I want my arm to go up higher as well. Until it does, he won't let me drive and that is driving me nuts. I really miss my freedom.

Don't forget that there is a draw for some fantastic blog candy on the Particraft blog. There's an amazing array of goodies and it will be drawn when they reach 700 followers so the more people that sign up, the quicker the draw will take place. If you want to enter the draw for my blog candy, just leave a comment in the blog candy draw posting (the one before this) I'd love to hear from you about the pendant though, so please leave comments on this posting as well!

Thank you to everyone who follows this blog, it's great to know that I'm not talking to myself!!

Better go as I'm still making samples for Ally Pally. I hope that if you're there you come up and say hello. I'll be on the Particraft stand where there will be some great demo's going on.

Until next time.......keep crafting!

Back with Candy!

2010-03-26T12:40:00.006Z

Oh Boy! That's another week that's just whizzed by! I've been so busy making samples for Ally Pally that I really have lost track of the days. I think it's because it takes me so long to make a card at the moment.
Anyway, as promised, here is the new blog candy. It's the Majestic Impressions Embossing Board from The Glitter Girls and 3 sheets of Honey and Hugs stickers and rub ons. All very useful and the board is fab to work with (don't forget to rub a tumble dryer sheet over the cardstock to make the embossing tool glide more easily)
I'm going to pick a winner on April 12th or when we reach 200 followers, whichever comes sooner. Just enter in the usual way by leaving a comment on this posting. If you put a link on your blog, you get 2 entries.

The reason for choosing April 12th is that my OH and I are off on another working cruise on the 15th for a couple of weeks. At least we've had a few weeks notice this time! Luckily, I already had 4 workshops worth of packs made up ready for the short cruise in May so I haven't had to do any preparation. I'm hoping that after a couple of weeks in the Caribbean, my shoulder will allow me to make replacement packs. If not, Steve is going to be VERY busy! He's been so good, not only washing my hair, cooking, driving me to medical appointments etc but also mounting and cutting out some new stamp sets!

I made this card using a stamp that I've had for ages (it is still available from Particraft) and had forgotten about. It would make a great Christmas card in the lovely icy colours. I brayered the background using one of the Big and Juicy ink pads then stamped over the top with Perfect Medium and heat embossed it with Cosmic Shimmer silver powder. I mounted it onto white and black card and used 2 different backing papers. The message is from one of the A5 unmounted stamp sets.

I found this photo of my grandfather taken when he was 16 years old (1916). I've been busy "doing" the family tree and it's made me realise that I really do need to crack on with some scrapbooking. I'm full of good intentions but there's always something else that needs doing. I think we're all guilty of that! Anyway, that's all for today...going to see the Marquis de Sade this afternoon (or the physiotherapist) so until next time...........keep crafting!

And the winner is.....

2010-03-18T07:06:00.004Z

Whoopee!!!! The sling is off!! I feel nearly normal (whatever that is) and still can't move my arm more than a couple of inches. I keep looking at it and willing it to move but it just won't go. Ah, the power of positive thinking, if only it would work!

Anyway, onto far more important matters. The winner of the blog candy draw is...........................................................

...................................................................

.................................................

..................................................................................... LAURA.

If you could e-mail me with your address I'll get the goodies in the post as soon as possible. My e-mail is stephen.smith870@ntlworld.com Thank you to everyone who took part and the correct answer was Sam Poole.

The card at the top of this blog was made from the Vintage Ladies set of stamps and the sentiment is from a set that was a hostess gift a few months ago. I just thought they went so well togther...it makes her look as if she has a "bit of a past!" The image and message were stamped in Black Archival Ink and heat embossed with clear powder and the woman was coloured with Copic pens. I used my Nesties to cut her out and for the scalloped frames. The paper and frames have been distressed...what did we do before Tim Holtz! The main image and message have been mounted with 3d foam and I just added a bow for the finishing touch. As I've been out of practice for a while I was quite pleased with how it turned out. I've made it as a sample for the Ally Pally show next month (along with quite a few more....there's no stopping me now!)

Wasn't Sue great on Create and Craft yesterday. I loved her stamping show...so many great techniques...and of course she was brilliant on Ideal World in the afternoon as well! I feel so lucky to have her at the helm of Particraft as she always comes up with such great ideas for demo's that we can teach at parties. Plus of course we've got so many great products to play with!

I'm organizing the next candy draw and it will be to celebrate being a Particraft demonstrator for 2 years...can't believe it, where has the time gone! So keep looking and I'll have something on here within the next couple of days. Don't forget the Particraft candy draw as well.

Anyway, coffee is calling so until next time......keep crafting!

New Stamps

2010-03-15T07:29:00.003Z

Wow, it seems like ages since I've blogged but here I am again with some news and updates.

First off, hope you like the card. I had a lot of fun making it with one of the new stamp sets by Sam Poole. I masked an area for the sun with a circle cut from a sticky note and brayered the blue and yellow background with Adirondack Inks. The images were all stamped, coloured and cut out then mounted onto the background. The palm tree is from a set of stamps that was a hostess gift last year. The final touch was to stamp the shells around the edge. Don't forget that if you book a party, not only do you get to spend 10% of the sales value, you also recieve a free A4 unmounted stamp set which changes every month. There are demonstrators all over the UK and we're happy to visit clubs as well as private houses. It's all good fun and you get the chance to see how to use the products as well as having a great time.

I made this card (and several others!) to take to Ally Pally next month. I'm playing with the Time and Butterfly stamp sets at the moment and having great fun trying to come up with new ideas with them.

I saw the surgeon on Tuesday and he's quite happy with the progress so far and have to see him again in 8 weeks. The physiotherapist who I have now named the Marquis de Sade, isn't quite as pleased with my progress and seems to think that I should be able to raise my arm a lot higher without any pain. He keeps on trying to lift it over my head and I keep on screaming as it just won't go....we have reached an impasse! Oh well, I'll just keep on with the exercises in the hope that I'll be able to suprise him when I see him again in 2 weeks.

Now onto the real reason for this post....The dratted sling can come off on Thursday!!!! I've been told that I'll probably still need to put it back on to rest the arm every so often but I don't care. If it wasn't for that, I'd be tempted to have a ceremonial burning in the garden!! Anyway, sling off day means blog candy draw day so if you haven't entered, you only have a few days left. Just add you name to the draw posting to take part.

Talking of blog candy, I hope you've all entered for the Particraft draw. The amount of goodies Sue is giving away is awesome!

Anyway, enough rambling from me. I'll be back on Thursday to do the draw and until then....keep crafting!

Made a Card...Yippee!

2010-03-08T10:58:00.003Z

I've finally been able to make my first card since the operation (don't tell the surgeon!) I can't tell you what a relief it is to be able to do a bit of crafting again. I admit that it took me 2 days to make it as I had to keep on stopping and starting but that really didn't matter. I used the ripping and tearing technique as it was a lot easier than using the paper trimmer but I did manage to get the Distress Inks out and distress the edges using the applicator tool...it was easier to control than using just Cut 'n Fry foam.

There's no stopping me now and I'm aiming to make a card a day. I want to have lots of samples ready for Ally Pally in April. I'll be on the Particraft stand so if any of you are there please come and say hello, it would be lovely to meet you.

I'm off to see the surgeon tomorrow so hopefully he'll be pleased with my progress. I'm not too sure after the physiotherapist tried to wreck my repair. He really didn't seem to know what he was doing....I got worried when he tried to take the sling off over my head without undoing it. Still not sure how I stopped myself screaming as he wrenched my arm up over my head! Going back to see him on Friday so not looking forward to that.

Anyway, that's all for today and hopefully I'll have lots of new cards to put on here soon. Don't forget the blog candy on here and also on the Particraft blog....nearly at the target of 600 followers for the draw to take place and it is fantastic candy.

Until next time......keep crafting!

All New Blog Candy!

2010-02-25T08:07:00.002Z

OK....here it is, the brand new blog candy as promised. There's some lovely stuff in there including a Cuttlebug embossing folder and a set of Hero Arts word stamps. As well as that, there's a pack of cards and envelopes, ribbons, buttons, bows, toppers and brads. I thought that an assortment of goodies always brightens up a miserable grey day!

When is this weather ever going to let up....I need some sunshine!

Anyway, to enter the draw I would like you to do something different this time. Particraft have a new set of unmounted British Widflower stamps for sale and I would like you to tell me who designed them. The answer is out there! On top of that, if you link back to your blog I will enter you twice. I'm going to hold the draw on Sling Day! I thought it would be a great way of celebrating the sling coming off for good. Unfortunately I don't yet know when that will be so watch this space!

I'm off for my first physiotherapy session this afternoon and can't tell you how much I'm looking forward to it. No really, I am....it's the first step to getting the arm mobile again and I don't care if it hurts..I just want to use it! We managed another bath yesterday and though I say it myself, we're getting pretty good at it. My youngest daughter (she's 26) asked in a terrified voice whether she'd be needed to help with the operation and I can't tell you how relieved she looked when I told her that we could manage without her assistance! I think it would have cost me a fortune in therapy bills if she had to join in!

Anyway, that's all for today. Good luck with the draw and don't forget Particraft is running a blog candy draw as well. Until next time........keep crafting!

Talent Spot

2010-02-18T09:13:00.004Z

I was thrilled silly yesterday to receive a copy of the Docrafts Creativity magazine in the post and see my cards on the talent spot page. I was asked to take part in December and was sent a kit to play with to come up with 3 designs. I have to say that it was quite a challenge as I wasn't allowed to play with any other items so out went my Nesties for a start (not to mention my beloved Distress inks!) Anyway, I came up with 3 very different designs which I was pleased with and sent them off. It seems ages ago and so it was even more amazing to open the magazine and see my ugly mug looking back at me! If anyone is interested, it's issue 20, the March edition and this is one of the cards that I submitted.

As if yesterday couldn't have got any better, I decided to try and have a bath. It was a bit naughty of me as I'm not supposed to take my sling off yet but I really couldn't bear another day of sitting next to me! I had a couple of "dry runs" getting in and out of the bath with the sling on and then with it off and it seemed to work so we went for it. Steve changed into his bathrobe and gamely got me in and I can't begin to tell you how fantastic the water felt! He made a first rate job of washing my hair even though he didn't ask me where I was going on my holidays! The most difficult part was getting back out so we let all the water drain away and then I turned onto my knees whilst keeping my right arm tight against me. I managed to drape my left arm around Steve's shoulder and he hoiked me out of the bath. If he can still love me after seeing me contort into a lot of not very flattering positions, then we're obviously meant to be together! After all of that, I was exhausted and needed a long lie down in a darkened room!! Thankfully, he didn't record the moment for posterity...I'd have hated that turning up on You Tube!

The 2 youngest grandchildren are coming over for the day so I'd better go and get ready for them. Until next time......keep crafting.

Happy Pancake Day!

2010-02-16T17:17:00.004Z

Just a quick post to let you all know that I'm still here! Had some lovely pancakes for lunch that my daughter cooked for us and really enjoyed them. I still think that the only way to have pancakes is with lemon and sugar...I'm very traditional!

The dressings came off on Saturday (I'm so impatient) as they were getting itchy and I needed to get some air to the wounds. The girls say that they look like bullet wounds so I may have to make up a story to support that, it'd be a lot more interesting than what actually caused the problem!

This is another card that I made before the op...how organised was that to still have new things to put on here! I watched the amazing Sheena Douglas using these stamps on Ideal World and showing different techniques with them so had to get them out and have a go. The stamps are from the unmounted Butterfly set which is available from Particraft and it's a fabulous set that you can do so much with. The alphabet panel has been stamped with Distress Ink then spritzed with water so that it runs. After drying it, it was stamped again with Archival Black Ink. The edges of the panel were distressed then the whole thing was covered with UTE and heat embossed. I put 3 layers of the Ultra Thick on as it gives a much glossier finish. To finish the panel I inked the edges again with Perfect medium and added some Cosmic Shimmer embossing powders in 2 colours then heat embossed it. I was so pleased with how it turned out...it's my favourite bit of the card. The background was stamped with Perfect Medium and I used my Cosmic Shimmer Mica Powders to brush over the images. I also played with some more UTE which I melted in a small foil cake dish (another great tip...thanks Sheena!) I added some normal coloured embossing powder to the clear UTE, inked up my stamp (it's a close up of part of a wing) with Perfect Medium and when the UTE had melted, tipped it over the stamp. When I was able to release the stamp, I put a small amount of Mica over it just using my finger. The main butterfly was stamped and cut out then layered onto the card. I curved the wings to give the impression that it had just landed. Anyway, hope you like it. I had a lot of fun making it and using so many different techniques.

I've just put together my next blog candy and will take a photo and put it on here in the next few days so do please keep your eyes open for that. I think that's about all for now so until next time......keep crafting!

More Snow!

2010-02-12T07:34:00.004Z

I can't beleive how much snow we've had over the last 2 days. At one point it was like looking at a blizzard. Steve looked like he was setting off on an Arctic exploration yesterday when he walked to the shop to buy a newspaper! I don't suppose it would be a good idea for me to go out in it in case I fall over (and I did promise the surgeon that I wouldn't!) but I do love the snow, especially when I'm the first person to walk on it. It's very tempting as the garden looks so beautiful and I really want to make a snowman!

The arm is progressing very slowly. I think this is the first morning since the operation that I haven't woken up desparate for my painkillers.....I managed to last a whole hour! That really is progress!! I've also been able to take my arm out of the sling for a few minutes so that I can exercise my elbow. I can't tell you how fantastic that was...such a feeling of freedom. I had the dressings changed on Tuesday and was told that I'm healing really well and can take the dressings off for good on Sunday...another milestone! I am so looking forward to washing my hair, I'm sure that I'll feel much better when I'm clean! Well when I say that I'll wash my hair I mean that poor Steve will be playing hairdressers. The next thing I'm looking forward to is a shower, baby wipes just aren't the same! I've got my first physiotherapy appointment booked for Feb 25th and I'm hoping that I'll be allowed to take off the body belt for good then.

Did you see Sue's fantastic show on Create and Craft this week? I love those new sets of stamps and of course, they have gone on my wish list. Have a look at the Particraft blog...Sue's put loads of amazing samples on there. I've just seen that Sheena has a 2 hour show on Monday as she's designed 2 new stamp sets as well. Something else that I know I'll HAVE to have!

Hope you like the card at the top of this posting. It's a lovely Sarah Kay stamp that I've watercoloured using my Adirondack ink pads. The papers are from K&Co and the frames have been cut using the Nestabillities.....what did we all do before they came along!

Sorry the postings are a bit sporadic but I have to do this on good days when I'm not in too much pain. Even typing with 2 hands now....got to keep the fingers exercised so thought that this might help!

Anyway, cup of coffee calling to me so until next time........keep crafting!

Left Handed Blogging!

2010-02-06T08:27:00.002Z

Hi Guys, well I survived the operation and now have my right arm firmly strapped to my body for the next 6 weeks. Wouldn't be too bad except that I'm right handed! Hence this will be a very short posting. I do want to thank you all for your good wishes and prayers...it does make a difference when you know that people care.

I made up a little stock of cards before the op so that I'd have something new to put on here. I've used another of the Whiff of Joy stamps for this card and the image has been coloured with my Adirondack ink pads. I think they make wonderful watercolours and there's such a lovely selection to choose from. The complete range is available from Particraft and any of our demonstrators would be happy to show you how to get some great results using them...even me in about 8 weeks! The paper is from my K&Co pad and I thought that the raffia finished off the jungle look. The little green butterfly has been punched with an Anna Griffin punch.

Anyway, I think that's enough for today. Do please stick with me over the next few weeks and when I'm armed and dangerous again I'll be having another candy to celebrate! I look forward to reading your comments so please leave some (even if it's to say you don't like the card!)

Until next time.........keep crafting and do some for me!

I Can't Believe It!

2010-02-02T07:42:00.005Z

You guys are terrific! Thank you all so much for helping me reach the 150 target that I set myself. If there was any way I could give you all a piece of candy, I would but that would need a lottery win. Don't hold your breath on that one....I never seem to manage more than 1 number!

Anyway, enough rambling, it's time to let you know who won. I did it really scientifically this time. I put all the names on strips of paper (as usual) but this time, instead of asking OH to draw them, I threw them up in the air and tried catching them in a small cup. As I never made the rounders or netball team at school this seemed the fairest way! Each time I threw them I missed some and kept on doing it until there was 1 name left in the cup (sort of elimination rounds!) I just wish that I could have taken a video to put on here....I must have looked a bit demented to anyone seeing me do it....ah, the things we do for our love of crafting! Oh yes, the name.........

.........................................................

...............................................

.....................................

............................

Congratulations to Aunty Sue. Would you e-mail me at stephen.smith870@ntlworld.com so that I can get your goodies in the post asap.

I was having a lot of fun running around catching names so it came to me in a flash that I should have a runners up prize. It should be a small suprise piece of candy and you won't know what it is until it arrives. I'm pleased to announce that the 2nd prize goes to............................

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......................................

Queen La Rubba (Rach) so again, please e-mail me your address so that I can post it....don't get too excited, it really is only a little consolation prize for landing in the cup so many times!

A little bit about the card at the top of this posting. The stamp is one of the lovely Whiff of Joy range and I've coloured her with Adirondack Inks. The paper is K&Co and as it was designed as a collage, I really didn't need to do anything else to it. I'd forgotten how wonderful the Adirondack inks were to watercolour with (been a bit obsessed with ny Copics!).

I'm all set for Thursday, been practicing putting on my socks with just my left hand (something else that's worth videoing....just for the entertainment value!) I'm now pretty good at making coffee, tried to make scrambled egg but missed the inside of the jug so had runny egg going down the outside...I'm sure that I'll improve. I've always wanted to be ambidextrous so here's my chance!

OH has said that if I can't type he'll take dictation so that I can stay in touch and I'll be using the time to start planning the next candy so do pop by every so often to see what's new. Better go, I'm still trying to master unloading the dishwasher left handed...I'm accurate, just not very fast!

Until next time...keep crafting!

No Excuses!

2010-01-31T13:31:00.003Z

I really don't have any excuses for not posting this week, I think that I've just been playing with my stamps and time has slipped by (again).

I would like to thank Lorraine and the lovely ladies who attended her Particraft party on Tuesday evening for making me so welcome. I hope that they enjoyed it as much as I enjoyed demoing for them. This is one of the cards that I showed how to make and as it's a bit messy and involves alcohol inks I just love making them. I also think that the set of Nature stamps are fab and so useful for lots of occasions.

Sue looks as though she's having a great time at the trade show in California. I can't wait for her to get back and tell us all about the new products. The pictures on her blog are such a tease!

I can't believe that we're so near to the target for the blog candy draw. I'm really hoping that we get there before Thursday so that I can get the parcel in the post. Talking about blog candy, I hope you've all become followers on the Particraft blog...all of that candy up for grabs and, as the Lottery always says...It Could Be You! Also, if you follow my link to Jane's Lovely Cards blog, she has one of the new Whiff of Joy stamps to give away as candy. As always, her blog is such an inspiration with fantastic cards to look at and drool over!

I'm starting work on putting together the teaching packs for the next cruise which is in May. It's only a 6 night one but there are still 4 workshops and I do like to get everything organised. I usually leave it a bit later to start them but as I'm not sure how long it'll be before I can use my arm after Thursday, I thought I'd better crack on.

Just one more thing to report before I go, I'm due to be in the March edition of the Docrafts magazine on the talent spot page. I'm so excited about it and have made my OH promise to rush out and buy a copy as soon as it hits the shops. The downside is that they wanted a photo of me and I hate having my photo taken (I think you can guess that from the photo I chose for this blog....long distance with other people there!) Anyway, if you do read the article, promise you won't be too scared by the piccie!

That's all for today, so until next time......keep crafting!

Where did this week go!

2010-01-24T07:03:00.006Z

Thought I'd start today with a butterfly card...something to remind us that Spring is just around the corner. It's also thanks to Susie (one of my crafting friends who came to play for a few days this week) that I remembered I had this stamp tucked away in a corner of my craft room.

I've used K&Co papers which have been torn around the edges and distressed with Tea Dye ink. The Butterfly stamp is the large mounted stamp available from Particraft which I've stamped onto white card in black and heat embossed. The butterfly was then coloured with my favourite Copic pens...what did I do before them! I stamped the butterfly again onto good quality white vellum with a Perfect Medium ink pad and them heat embossed it with the Cosmic Shimmer True White embossing powder. The Copic pens were used again to colour the 2nd butterfly from the back of the image and they are terrific on vellum. After that, I cut out both butterflies and stuck the one in card onto the base card. I curled the edges of the vellum butterfly's wings and attached it to the other image using Cosmic Shimmer Dries Clear Glue. The emellishments were some that I had in my stash. I have to say that I was quite pleased with how it came out....what do you think?

This is a side view of the card...as you can see, it's only the body that's been attached so that the wings can float freely. I would give one tip though...if you're stamping and embossing onto vellum, make sure that you dust it with an anti-static bag first. It makes such a difference.

Now onto medical matters! I had the pre-assessment for the operation on Friday and the good news is that I'm fit to be operated on! I know that surgeons have to be cautious when they give you a prognosis but I left there thinking that it would be a waste of time! He was very sweet but after hearing that the repair will probably tear again and that they might have to re-operate, that I was at a greater risk of infection due to having psoriasis and that although he's never ripped a major blood vessel during surgery there was always a first time, oh and that I may be left with a lump on my arm that will look like one of Popeye's muscles, I was beginning to go off the whole idea! Anyway, it's going ahead on 4th February as scheduled so the blogging might be a bit hit and miss after that. Definately no card making, I've been warned, and only typing with my left hand. I've been practicing but it definately has a life of it's own and just won't do what it's told. Bear with me while all of this is going on and I promise that I will try to update even if they are very short postings.

Don't forget the blog candy, the numbers are creeping up and also the Particraft candy.

I'm off to demonstrate at a party on Tuesday evening which I'm really looking forward to as I'll be using the Walnut Hollow metal kit and Alcohol inks...very messy and great fun. I'll let you all know how it went on my next posting. Until then.......keep crafting!

Here it is!

2010-01-16T16:00:00.005Z

I know, 2 postings in one day but I promised I'd get the next candy on here asap. So, what's in it I hear you cry. Well, there's a book of K & Co paper purses, 10 sheets of 12x12 papers, 3 A4 printed acetates, 2 packs of mulberry paper tulips, a pack of mini foam dots, a pad of Hot off the Press Classic Colour Block papers, a large pack of mixed embellishments including chipboard , tags and flowers, 3 sets of alphabets, a HOTP metal lock and key, a pack of epoxy stickers, a pack of Laura Ashley Ribbon Stickers, a pack of Petaloo Sweet Petite flowers, a pack of Field House plastic embellishments and some ready cut lace strips (not lace as in the fabric but lace with an accent over the e!) I think that's everything but it's definately worth winning. I've made it a big one this time as I've set the target at 150 followers. I know it's a lot but I won't be able to round stuff up for a blog candy for a while after the operation so I wanted to make it a good one. The same rules apply, just leave a comment after this posting to enter and if you're not a follower already then become one. If you put a link on your blog then you get 2 entries into the draw.

On the subject of blog candy, do enter the Particraft draw as the candy there is fantastic.

As I've outdone myself today with 2 postings I'm going for a long lie down in a darkened room so until next time..........keep crafting!

Whoopee!

2010-01-16T08:02:00.009Z

We're there! Reached the magic 100 last night so attacked my bleary eyed hubby as soon as he surfaced this morning to draw the winner! I don't know why he puts up with me! Anyway, without further ado and after cueing the drum roll and fanfare.......the winner is.....

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................

Joe's Craft World.

Congratulations to Joe and sorry I can't give you all a piece of candy but do try next time.

So Joe, could you e-mail me your addy to stephen.smith870@ntlworld.com and I'll get the goodies off in the post.

I'm in the final stages of putting together the next batch of candy and it should be on here later today so do stop by for a look. I've put this card on here for a bit of fun! I love the Jungle and Safari stamps and the zebra is gorgeous. It's such a simple card to make but would be great for a boy. I started by stamping the zebra at the front. I stamped him again onto a good old post it note, cut out the image and used it as a mask over the first zebra then stamped him again to the left of the first one. Using the same mask, put it over the 2nd zebra then stamp a 3rd one behind the 2nd. I made another mask and placed the 2 masks over zebras 1 and 2 and stamped the boy with the net behind the zebras. Before you know it, you've got a herd of them (zebras, not boys!) The paper was from my general stash but was perfect for this card. I've coloured in the images with Copics and used a very pale blue pen to outline the stamped images...it helps to bring them out from the card and give definition to them. Hope you like it. Be back later with candy but until then, don't forget that on the Particraft blog there is a mega offering of candy up for grabs. See you later......

Making the most of it!

2010-01-14T16:58:00.007Z

What a miserable, grey day. I don't think it's stopped raining all day so what else is there to do but go and make cards! That's my excuse anyway!
I'm demonstrating at a party on January 26th and the hostess wants to see the Walnut Hollow metal kit in action so I thought that I should have a practice. It's a great kit and contains everything that you need for some impressive results.
I used the textured roller to create the border and stamps from the Autumn 1 and mini swirls and flower sets. Sue gave me a great tip for embossing onto metal when using stamps...if you put a self adhesive adress label onto the back of the metal and stamp onto that, it makes it a lot easier to see the outline of the stamp and also stops you from going through the metal. It really helped a lot especially with the smaller stamps.

I used 3 colours of alcohol inks to colour the metal which I applied with the dabber. The colours used were Ginger, Espresso and Oregano. After colouring them I cut them out and used the Cosmic Shimmer glue to stick the pieces together. The stamp is from Whiff of Joy Summer 2009 set and the papers are K&Co. I've also stamped a large swirl onto the background paper with Tea Dye Distress Ink. I really enjoyed making this and it does make a change from paper or fabric flowers. Great for a vintage look. I've tried to take some photo's of it in close up but the light was terrible (again!)
I'm so looking forward to next Monday as 2 of my friends are coming to "play" for a couple of days. We're going to have a crafting marathon and I'm going to try and teach them as many techniques as possible in that time. I owe it to them really as I got them addicted to cardmaking in the Summer. To be fair, I did warn them that it could take over their house and lives! I don't think they believed me at the time! That'll teach them!!
After they've gone I have to get the packs made up for the cruise in May as after the operation I won't be able to use my arm for a few months. There's only 4 workshops on this cruise so it's not too bad.
We're up to 95 followers now, I can't believe it! Thank you all so much and I'm planning a really good blog candy for next time. I'll be back soon but until then........keep crafting!

Wow!

2010-01-13T06:32:00.005Z

I can't believe that we're so nearly at the 100 target I set to draw the blog candy. Thank you all so much for keeping me company on this blog. It's nice to know that someone's reading it...you can feel a bit daft posting on here otherwise!
I thought I'd have a play with my Distress Inks again. I love the way you can alter a plain piece of white card and it can make such a difference to patterned paper in your stash. I thought that this card would be great for a man (we all know how difficult they can be!) I've used Weathered Wood, Pine Needles and Tea Dye for the distressing as I wanted it to be the colour of the sea. I started by colouring a piece of ripped white card the size of the stamp with the Weathered Wood. I always use Cut 'n Dry Foam...you don't waste ink that way! I then went over it lightly with the Pine Needles and finally used the Tea Dye around the edges. To finish it, I used the Black Soot ink but this time just inked the very edge direct from the ink pad. I spritzed some water onto my fingers and flicked it onto the card, it gives added texture to the background. The stamps are from a collage set that I bought quite a while ago and the papers are from Paper Pizzaz. I've used the same Distress Inks to tone the papers with the stamped image. Hope you like it...I was pleased with how it turned out.

The next card is from the Whiff of Joy Summer 2009 set. I finally caved in and bought some. I love the cards that Jane makes and regularly look at her blog (Jane's Lovely Cards...there's a link on my sidebar and it's well worth a look). I've coloured the image with my new best friends (my Copic pens) and have used the Weathered Wood, Tea Dye and Broken China Distress Inks to distress the paper which is from Kim & Co. The oval background has been die-cut using the Nestabilities and then embossed. I've added some swirls from the Particraft unmounted Mini Swirl stamp set and stamped them with the Tea Dye ink. I also coloured the lace with the same Distess Ink. It's a totally different look to the man's card but just shows the versatility of distressing.

Finally, if you haven't been over to the Particraft blog...what have you been doing! Sue has the most amazing blog candy on offer and all you have to do is sign up as a follower and leave a comment. It couldn't be easier and the goodies are amazing. I've got a link on my sidebar to the blog so it's easy to find. The draw will take place when she reaches 500 followers so tell everyone to sign up!
I'm planning my next blog candy giveaway and although I say it myself..it's great! So until next time...keep crafting!

New Candy!

2010-01-10T17:06:00.004Z

As promised, I have new candy for you. I'm sorry that the picture isn't very good but with all the snow and overcast skies, the light has been terrible for taking photos. I've included an A5 set of Particraft unmounted stamps, some U-mount, a pack of 6x6 papers, a set of English Paper Company 2x12 paper strips, some handmade paper toppers and some Forever Friends products including a pack of embossed cards with envelopes. A nice, varied mix of goodies to play with!

I'll do the draw when we get to 100 followers and to enter, just leave a comment on this posting. For a double chance of winning, link me to your blog. All very straight forward. On the subject of blog candy, don't forget the Particraft blog which has some fantastic candy up for grabs.

I had to hit the sales and bought some lovely new stamps including this one called "Dressing Up" It's from the Sugar Nellie range of stamps and I couldn't resist it. The papers are from K&Co and I've distressed the edges with Frayed Burlap Distress Ink.

The flowers are from Hobbycraft and I've had the mesh for ages and was relieved to finally find a use for it! I've cut the mounts using the Nestabilities dies...what a terrific idea they are...wish I'd thought of them!

I'll be back soon with more cards and ramblings. The nearer it gets to the operation, the more ramblings you'll probably get so be warned! Until next time.....keep crafting!

We're There!

2010-01-09T16:08:00.006Z

How fantastic...checked the blog this afternoon and we'd made it to the magic 75! All the names were written onto slips of paper and as always my poor despairing husband had the unenviable task of drawing the winner (that's so you can blame him and not me!)

So without further ado and with a great big drum roll and fanfare, the winner is.......

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............

Doreenobrn.

Many congratulations and if you'd like to e-mail me your address I'll get the candy in the post as soon as we can get to a post office! Please send your details to:

stephen.smith870@ntlworld.com

I'm busy planning the next candy and will have a photo on here within the next couple of days so do please keep on checking in.

I've been playing with the cupcake unmounted stamp set as I haven't had those out for a while. I coloured the images with Cosmic Shimmer watercolours and added Glossy Accents onto the cherries. The icing of the cupcake has Cosmic Shimmer Twinkles painted on. I found the cupcake paper amongst my stash and the image on it is perfect...not often that happens! Maybe that's just me and perhaps I've got too much paper. I'll now go and wash my mouth out with soap and water...what was I thinking...did I say too much paper. We all know you can NEVER have too much!

Thank you to everyone who took part in the draw, congratulations to the winner and good luck to the rest of you for next time. Until then......keep crafting!

9 More Needed!

2010-01-08T10:14:00.006Z

We're very nearly at the target of 75 followers for the draw to take place for the alphabet blog candy. I'm planning the next one and have quite a lot of goodies lined up including an A5 stamp plate....now I'm teasing you!
Anyway, just another 9 followers needed and the draw will take place.

I 've been playing with a lot of my old stamps recently (how easy to put them away and forget about them when a new one arrives!) I found this one, it's an unmounted stamp called Greta and she is fabulous used with a masking technique. The Eiffel Tower stamp is from the unmounted Travel Plate. Both of these stamps are available from Particraft.

To make the card the first thing is to stamp Greta in the foreground using the Black Archival Ink. You then need to stamp her twice more onto post-it notes. Cut these out but on one of them also cut out the dress (you'll just be left with the body and coat). Put the complete post-it cut out over the original stamped image. Decide where you would like the moon and place a circle of paper in position. Stamp the tower so that it is in the background of Greta and partially over the moon. Next place the cut-out post it over Greta so that her dress is showing and using a small stamp, use Adirondack inks to stamp a pattern over the dress. Remove the masks and watercolour the coat with Adirondack Inks. I used a stipple brush with the Archival Ink to create a shadow effect around the moon, under the tower and also to give Greta something to stand on. I hope that I've explained clearly how to do it but if not, leave me a comment and I'll get back to you.

We finally had some snow in Dover and the garden looks beautiful...if I could lift my arm I'd love to go out there and make a snow angel. Probably not a good idea with a torn muscle! Thought I'd show you a piccie of the garden, it always looks better under snow, can't see the weeds! That's all for today, I'll be back soon with some examples of watercolouring with Distress Inks. Since I've had my Copics I'd forgotten what lovely effects you can get with them. So until next time.....keep crafting!

Happy New Year!

2009-12-29T07:39:00.006Z

I hope everyone had a Merry Christmas and that Santa brought everything that you wanted. He was very generous this year (I must have been a VERY good girl!). I am now the proud owner of a Gypsy and have had a lot of fun quietly playing with it in the living room while the chaos of visiting children and grandchildren went on around me! I also got the Creatopia machine from Xyron so now want to stick and emboss everything in sight!
It's my youngest daughter's birthday on 31st December and I'm taking her birthday shopping tomorrow for a new pair of jodhpurs. I've got her a few other things that she doesn't know about as well. It's the eldest's birthday on January 3rd (bad planning on my part!) and she has a necklace from Tiffany's. The eldest and her husband are flying off to Mexico for a fortnights holiday on 2nd so we're driving them to the airport at about 5am....not looking forward to that!
One of my oldest friends is coming to stay for the New Year and it's also his birthday on 31st so we'll be having a small celebration and no doubt some champagne at midnight.
I've spent the last couple of days playing with some old stamps that I had forgotten about. Now that I have my Copic pens it's made such a difference to my colouring...I can't paint to save my life but these have made it so much easier. I'm getting in as much crafting as I can over the next month before the dreaded operation.
Anyway, here's a couple of the cards I made with the old stamps (they are all available from Particraft). Hope you like them. I also got some vouchers to spend at Hobbycraft so I feel a shopping trip coming on! Don't forget the blog candy and have a look at the Particraft blog for some fantastic candy on offer. Hope you all have a very Happy New Year and until next time....keep crafting!

New Blog Candy

2009-12-18T15:17:00.005Z

OK Guys, here's the next blog candy, lots and lots of alphabets in all different fonts and styles. There are some card, chipboard, glittered and lots more. I'll draw the winner when we get to 75 followers and to enter, just leave a comment. For 2 chances to win, link my blog to yours...couldn't be easier and you don't need to have a blog to enter.

I thought I would dig out some of my old stamps and have a play with them. I'd forgotten about this one and really enjoyed stamping with it. It's from a set of 3 unmounted stamps from Particraft. I have to admit that since getting my Copic pens, I'm enjoying colouring in a lot more. I'm still practicing with them and hopefully I'll eventually get the hang of them but in the meantime I'm just having fun!

Anyway, just a quick post to announce the candy....check out the Particraft blog and Maria's blog for more superb candy up for grabs. Off to tidy the spare bedroom ready for the influx of visitors next week! Until next time have a very merry Xmas and a great New Year and....keep crafting!

Reached 50!

2009-12-17T20:04:00.003Z

A Christmas card to you all!

Yay, we're there...reached the magic 50 today so drew the winner. Wanted to take a photo of the momentous occassion but I forgot to recharge the camera battery...oops!
Anyway, congratulations to the winner and everyone else can blame my long-suffering husband who I made draw the name out.

And the winner is .............

..............

Drum Roll.......

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........

.......

Maureen (Docrafts)

Congratulations Maureen....please e-mail me your address so that I can get the parcel in the post. My e-mail is stephen.smith870@ntlworld.com

I'm planning the next candy and should have details of it on my next post. Just thought I would get Christmas out of the way first.

Thank you to everyone who took part and can I just wish you all a very merry Christmas and a fab crafting New Year. Here's to health, wealth and happiness to each an every one!