Did you see it?

Did you watch Oak House Studio on TV this morning? I thought the programme went well with plenty of time on the products and demos. Several of my cards were shown and my metally pen pot - as it has an M on the front then that's an early birthday present for Martin!!!

For those of you who like clematis then here are a couple of my cards. The first is just a very simple Thinking of You/Sympathy card. The Clematis Tower was embossed on a section of white card, and then embossed a few more times to give other sections for decoupaging on top of the main image and for behind the sentiment. This stamp has 6 flowers so can be cut in various different ways to provide several layers.


The next card is a gatefold, wrap over card or a blouse card as I call it as the clematis look like the ruffles on the front of a blouse. I used the 'mopping' technique with Kaleidacolor inks and a gold mica spray to create the papers - the first sheet I embossed the Clematis Tower three times in gold and the second sheet I used more of a watery spray to create a lighter colourway for the insert.


If you missed the programme it's going to be repeated tonight at 10pm and tomorrow at 5am and Lynnda will be on TV again on April 16th I think.....watch this space!

Clematis

Well its been better than I thought it was going to be - even been outside pottering in the garden, clearing away the winter clutter. The early daffodils are well and truly out and I can just about see the flower heads on the tulips.
So my thoughts turn to the clematis - it's not really a spring flower but I've decided one would look good on my back fence. But which one and what colour? Maybe purple with a pinkish centre....

Here's a section of my Thinking of You/Sympathy card - if you want to see it all, then you'll have to watch Freeview 36 on Tuesday at 11am. Hopefully it'll get shown but if time runs out, then I'll put the full version on here next week.
I've used the Clematis Tower stamp embossed in Midnight Sparkle and painted with Aquash. The beauty of this stamp is it's size - a nice big focal stamp that can be used whole or cut into various different sections and decoupaged.
Hope you like it and hope you enjoy the show! Tell me what you think......if there is anyone out there......

Spring ... maybe!

I'm not sure the weather can make it's mind up - this week has been dull and wet (it even thundered last night) but then there are times when the sky is blue, the sun comes out and the daffodils are beginning to enjoy a little warmth... like now. So that's the inspiration for this card below.

The stamp used is the Clematis Corner which has been embossed in gold and watercoloured with Aquash - bright yellow with a touch of orange and green card just right for Spring. If you want to see all of it then you'll have to watch Lynnda on Freeview 36, Tuesday at 11am.
Bearing in mind the weather forecast for the weekend is more rain, then I may well get chance to post another card before then.

Enjoy your weekend.

Next TV Show

Just to let you know Lynnda will be on Create and Craft Freeview 36 on Tuesday 30th March at 11am. So guess what I've been doing this last week - inking and stamping and dithering...sorry, being decisive about colour schemes for new samples.

The main feature of the show will be a pair of pen pots. Now you can use them as pen pots; that'd be fine, nothing wrong with that. But to the crafter they are great for altering or decorating - they come flat packed so they are easy to paint, cover with papers etc. Here's a little sneak of my version for a man's desk but watch the programme for more ideas.


Stamps are also on the show - the Clematis Tower, Sunflower, Clematis Corner with the English Garden Text and the Get Stamping kit. Come back later in the week and I'll post another photo or two.

Wakehurst Place

I think Spring is definitely here, in fact, today my computer tells me its 16 degrees!!! Bit of a shock to the system all this sunshine and dry weather. We took advantage of this on Sunday and went for a walk around Wakehurst Place, along with half of Sussex I hasten to add. We had to park in the overflow to the overflow car park, but the gardens are so vast there are always quieter routes. Not only was it my Mother's Day treat with the first ice cream of the year but we were also ensuring my daughter walks her new boots in.

The snowdrops were still out and there were swathes of purple crocuses but not a lot else. Looking at my diary from last year the daffodils, magnolia and some rhododendrons were in flower so I think we are a bit behind.



So this week I've been getting on with the housework having purchased a new vacuum cleaner and doing a little crafting - ATCs for Craft Stamper mag, birthday cards etc.
Next job is to start on samples for the next TV show - Lynnda will be on Create and Craft Freeview 36 at 11am on Tuesday 30th March - so write it on your calendar now!

Mothers Everywhere

As promised here is a photo of my Mother's Day card - it's on the journey north and I think it's safe to post it as my mum's not a silver surfer!

It uses the Pansy Pot stamp embossed in silver and guess what, painted in purple with yellow splodgy centres like the vast majority of pansies. In this instance I used twinkling H2Os to give the flowers a little bit of bling but then this contrasts with the chalk inks used on the Hessian stamp for the plant pot.
It's such a versatile stamp - nice and big so it's the focal point but it can be coloured to suit and set on any background. If you watched the TV show one of the samples shows it in front of a window which was very effective. It can also be used in scrapbooking with the flower half of the stamp inked to edge the pages.
Anyway I'd best go do some motherly jobs and wish all mothers out there a Happy Mothers Day for Sunday.

Kiss Stamping

It's a while since I wrote but like everyone life gets in the way. I've also been kept busy with my 'day' job helping out in the local school with the exams.

If you read my last post I did make a start on the spring cleaning and a few corners got cleared out but today my hoover has gone on strike....well died I think! It was sounding a bit strange so I carried on until I saw the stream of smoke/dust puthering out and the red fiery sparks flying. At that point I turned the power off and threw it outside just in case it decided to set itself on fire!!


So 'unfortunately' I've had to give up hoovering and do a little crafting. Oak House Studio sell various stamps suitable for kiss stamping - hearts, rounds, tags etc.
This one is stamped with Colour Chemistry pigment ink and the photo is probably the third image so the tag and dragon's tail are both faded. The kanji symbol is then stamped on afterwards.
Its one of those techniques that needs practise - every image is different and its a case of sitting with a stamp in each hand inking and stamping!!

Anyway, best go wash my stamps and then I have a Mother's Day card to finish - I'll post a photo later in the week.

First Day of Spring

Well it may not officially be the first day of spring but it certainly feels like it ..... the sun is shining, the birds are twittering in the trees and the crocuses are coming up everywhere. Its good to feel the sun on my face although I can assure you a jumper and coat are still a necessity as its still cold and frosty outside.
So what to do today? The problem with sunshine is it makes everywhere look dusty and the windows show all the marks so maybe some housework ........ but maybe I'll start in my crafting corner, put everything away, re-sort the boxes etc. Oh and then I could make a card - I have birthdays and mother's day coming up.
Did you watch the TV show yesterday? The viewers seemed to like the pansy stamp and hopefully the Get Stamping kit will encourage more people to stamp. I think I'll use the pansy for my mother's day card and yes, I'll probably paint it in shades of purple. I know pansies come in many different colours but ....... I'll post it when it's finished!