April

Here's my April tag for The Craft Barn Calendar Challenge where the theme is to use Paper Tape.

I wasn't sure which month to do but then I got an email from my nephew to say he's getting married next April in Amsterdam so I went with an orange theme  - colour of the Netherlands and tulips!  Anyway the bright background is a mix of Spiced Marmalade, Barn Door and Mustard Seed Distress Inks spritzed with water and mopped up with the tag, edged with Barn Door and stamped with a Hero Arts sentiment. 

Now to add Paper Tape!! It's not something I possess and I didn't have any standard masking tape...... but then I suddenly realised I had some Eclipse Masking Tape which is nice and white.  I've stamped it with Oak House Studio's Mack Rose in Vermillion Archival and stuck the strip down the side of the tag.   It's just finished with some ribbons and the calendar of course.

Really enjoying this challenge - the 5 I've done so far are all so different but hopefully will make a nice gift come Christmas.  Next job is to tidy all the backs up and maybe create a space for writing notes.

Thanks for looking once again!!

Snowflake Trio

The challenge on the Less is More site this week (91) is to follow the sketch below:

I decided I really need to make a start on my christmas cards so chose a wintery, christmassy feel. 

The snowflake is from Tim Holtz's Mini Blueprints set - I've stamped and silver embossed it three times and egded the squares with French Blue Colorbox Fluid Chalk Ink.  The background strip is just pale blue card, lightly spritzed with Colour Chemistry Spode Blue Spray Ink and then randomly stamped Tim Holtz's snowflakes again in French Blue Chalk Ink.  I've matted this on some silver card and fastened to the linen card base.

I may well add a sentiment at a later date but i love it's simplicity for the moment.  Anyway thanks for looking and for any comments you leave!!

September

Here's my next tag for The Craft Barn's Calendar Challenge week 4 with a theme of DOODLING.

I don't really doodle these days as the laptop gets used too much and I couldn't decide what to do that had any meaning for April.  I have a few ideas for other months so I've just plumped for a Doodling September!!   

I've clear emboss the dots and checks from Tim Holtz's Bitty Grunge set and the Rosette stamp from Oak House Studio and then inked over this with Salty Ocean, Broken China and Evergreen Bough Distress Ink spritzed with Faded Jeans Re-inker.  I've doodled around the edges and added a tag so my daughter can add her doodles too!!  It's just finished with the calendar and some distress inked seam binding.

Loving this colour combination with the white stamping and black doodles - thanks for looking!!

Honey

Here's a tag for Hels Sunday Stamper challenge week 228 where the theme is Honey Colours/Honeycomb.

I decided that I'd try and make some christmas cards in the challenges but really Honey and Christmas don't really equate in my head.......so what to do??  I'm still eyeing up Tim's Mixed Media set of stamps with the honeycomb stamp, I have no bee stamps and so I've just used Wild Honey Distress Ink.

The background is Wild Honey and a smidge of Aged Mahogany swooshed onto a craft mat and mopped up.  When it was dry I took my annoyance at the weather out on the piece and splattered it with Wild Honey Distress Stain - made me feel better and my tag looked better too!!

I've stamped the Poppy Heads from Elusive Images/Chocolate Baroque with Versafine Olympia Green, edged the piece with Aged Mahogany and added a ribbon and Oak House Studio quote.  Not my usual colour scheme but I quite like it.  

Thanks for looking!!

Autumn

Here's a card for the Less is More Challenge week 90 where the theme is AUTUMN.
 

I couldn't decide what leaves to use etc but in the end used the heart as I love Autumn and it's many colours.   The background is swooshed with Distress Inks - Pine Needles, Barn Door, Vintage Photo, Spiced Marmalade and Mowed Lawn  - to create a nice mixed autumnal colour.  I've clear embossed the Heart Palette Stamp from Oak House Studio over the top and then blended Pine Needles over the top to make it stand out.   It's just finished with some gold dabber around the edges, matted onto gold paper and a rub-on added.   Apologies for the photo - it looks a bit hazy!

I do love this time of year when it is cold and sunny and the trees are looking beautiful.  This weekend has been grey and rainy and today the forecast is mist, cloud, mist and then fog......joy!!

Anyway I thought I'd stay in and get inky instead - thanks for looking!! 

Spooky Twinchies

I've been having a play today and made three Twinchies for the Show us Your Twinchies Challenge number 8 where the theme is to make something SPOOKY!
 

I don't really do Halloween but I thought I'd buy Tim Holtz's Mini Blueprint set of stamps so that I do have some spooky stamps (and I used the autumn ones last time!).  For the first one I've swiped some gloss card with Faded Jeans and Stormy Sky Distress Inks leaving a pale circle for the moon, but then inked it a little so it looks a bit cloudy.  I've just added a bat inked with Silver Brilliance.

The second one is the spiders web again stamped in Silver Brilliance.  I've sanded the edges of the black gloss card and inked it with Vermillion Archival.  Sorry for the fuzzy photo of this one!!

The last one is the skull stamped in Jet Black Archival and cut out.  I've used the tails from a Butterfly from Tim Holtz's Fairytale Frenzy set inked in Vermillion Archival to represent dripping blood.  Think I like this one the best!!
It's a great way to use up your scraps but beware they are addictive.

March

Here's my March tag for The Craft Barn's Calendar Challenge week 3 - the theme is to use WHITE, GREEN & YELLOW.

Well they're the right colours for Spring but I have no daffodil or tulip stamps - besides my daughter is not really a flowery girly-girl.  So I've resorted to going with Mad March Hares - a free stamp with Craft Stamper magazine.

The background is Sunflower Yellow Stazon and Mowed Lawn Distress Ink swiped across the tag to give a good coverage.  I've then overstamped this with the sun ray stamp from Tim Holtz in Sunflower Yellow Brilliance, the Hares in Onyx Versafine and the edges of an Oak House Studio winter Beech Tree in Pine Needles Distress Ink to create a bit of grassy texture.  It's just finished with a white calendar matted onto green card and some green fibres.

Hopefully I'll get to finish all 12 and it should be a nice bright calendar.  Anyway thanks for looking!!

Spread your Wings

Here's a One Layer card for the Less is More challenge week 89 where the theme is WINGS.

Wings covers so many things - aeroplanes, birds, butterflies etc - so I went searching my stamps to find inspiration.   I love this butterfly stamp from Tim Holtz's Fairytale Frenzy set so inked it with Vermillion Archival - a Red Admiral maybe!!   I added the sentiment underneath then stamped the Ivy Corner from Oak House Studio in Thyme Brilliance.  I'm not sure it's quite right but i'm going to blog it before I turn it into More than Less!!

Thanks once again for looking and for your comments - they are much appreciated!

Plato's Jalopy

Here's a tag made for Hels and her Sunday Stamper Challenge week 227 which has the theme of METAL.

Well I had no idea what to make until I found some metal charms in town this morning.....when I saw the chequered flags, I knew it would be motor racing themed.

The background is Distress Inks - mopped up Mowed Lawn spritzed with Bundled Sage  and then Pine Needles blended through a Tando Creative Distorted Harlequin Mask to represent tyre tracks. Unfortunately I don't have any racing car stamps so used Tim Holtz's Jalopies inked with Archival.  Do you think Jason Plato would be happy in his blue car number 99??   It's just finished with some chequered ribbon, the chequered flag metal charm and Hels's favourite saying - Go Plato Go! 

Guess we'll be glued to the TV on Sunday then - motor racing is an accepted sport in our house!!  Thanks for looking.

Snowflakes

Here's a card for Hels Sunday Stamper challenge week 226 where the theme is SNOWFLAKES.

Well I did distressy style snowflakes last week for a calendar challenge so this week I thought I'd do something a little different.....and start my Christmas cards at the same time.

I've used an ATC sized stamp from Tim Holtz's Holiday Collection (note the snowflakes in the background) and inked it with Mediterranean Blue Brilliance.  I've silver embossed the edges, matted it onto navy and silver mirri card and added some tartan ribbon and fibres.  One down, fifty to go!!

Thanks for looking and for any comments you leave - they are always much appreciated.

February

Here's my February tag for The Craft Barn Calendar Challenge week 2.   I was going to do snowdrops but the theme was for BRIGHT so that's what I've done.

For the base I've used Colour Chemistry Spray Inks (Regal Claret and Precious Purple) mopped up with the tag and then inked through a Tando Creative Distorted Harlequin Mask with Dusty Concord Distress Ink.  The edges are blended with Picked Raspberry to continue the pinky/purpley theme.   It's just finished with some turquoisey blue ribbon and the calendar.

Hopefully it'll brighten up a dull February day!!

Silver & Squirrels

Well on this gloomy afternoon I thought I'd make something silvery to cheer myself up so here is a card for the Less is More Challenge week 88 where the theme is the colour SILVER.

I've silver embossed the Calligraphy Stamp from The Artistic Stamper and matted this onto lilac card.  The Thanks is a metal word from Making Memories, again added to lilac card, and it's finished with a flower and filigree brad.  Very simple, but pretty I hope you agree.

Couldn't help including this photo too.  I haven't seen a squirrel in my garden for years and yet over the last couple of weeks this one has been feeding on the peanuts.  The funniest thing is watching a pigeon try and copy the manouevre by standing on the top and trying to bend himself in two - needless to say he fell off before I could get my camera!!

Thanks for looking!

Autumn Twinchies

Just had a quick play and made a couple of twinchies (2" by 2") for the Show us your Twinchies challenge no 7.   The theme is anything goes but as it's getting autumnal I thought I'd go with that.

The background is an oddment of green card swooshed through some leftover ink on the mat - Vintage Photo, Spiced Marmalade, Mowed Lawn and Barn Door Distress Inks spritzed with water.    I cut them to size and then gold embossed the images from Tim Holtz's Mini Blueprint set.  Luckily all the stamps on this set are less than 2" square so I'm sure they're all going to come in really useful!!

I've finished by blending some ink round the edges and adding a little more colour to the images with a waterbrush.

Hope you like and thanks for looking.

January

My crafting has been so sparse of late I thought I'd better make an effort to enter a few challenges.  Just started is The Craft Barn Calendar Challenge (a month a week!) so here is JANUARY - the challenge was to use VELLUM.

I thought I'd make a tag for each month, fasten with a jump ring and give it my daughter for Christmas - it'll be small and light enough to hang on her pin board at Uni.

So for January I've gone for Snowflakes!!   The background is a swooshy mix of Faded Jeans, Stormy Sky, Broken China and Chipped Sapphire Distress Inks and I've overstamped this with fir trees from Tim Holtz's Reindeer Flight stamp set.  I've also used the snowflakes from the same set, stamped with Snowcap Dabber on the tag and on the vellum.  I've used Snowcap Dabber to edge the vellum (and hide the glue) and rubbed some Faded Jeans Distress Stickles in the sky above the trees.  I've just finished it with some silver ribbons and a calendar. 

I'm still looking for a nicer calendar so that bit may change but overall I'm happy!!  So with a happy heart I'm going to enter this for Hels Sunday Stamper week 225 challenge too!!

Thanks for taking the time to look.