Clear as Mud!

There's a new challenge today at Sweet Stampin'!  It's "Clear as Mud" - we'd like to see projects made using brown + 1 other colour!  The fabby DT has come up with some real corkers to get you thinking - hop on over here to take a look.  As always, there are prizes up for grabs - this time a £10 voucher from Bunny Zoe's Crafts and also digi stamps from our monthly sponsor, Whimsy Stamps.

Here's my attempt at a brown + 1 card.  I went for Pink Petticoat papers and one of my new Lili of the Valley stamps, which I coloured with Copics.  I edged the papers with Stickles and added some bling which I got in a sale, but can't remember where (poor old soul!).  I added a strip of American Crafts ribbon and flowers from Wild Orchid Crafts plus my image got a good shake of Glamour Dust over her wings and antennae.

Unfortunately I really struggled to get a good photo and the Stickles look very blobby.  I'll be so glad when the weather improves so that we get some decent light!

So many of my cyber-world friends seem to have had a pretty rubbish time this week.  Me, too, actually.  However, onwards and upwards, a new week is on the way and hopefully it will bring better times to all of us.

Lotsa luv and a great big hug,

Tracey xx

Some of my favourite things

The Just Magnolia and Hanglar Challenge this week is asking for cards which show your favourite items.  I absolutely love this stamp although I don't often get the chance to use her.  However, we have a special event this week for a colleague at work and I thought it would fit the bill perfectly.

I used Magnolia papers on a Bazzill base and stamped my hAnglar girl onto white cardstock from Craftwork Cards.  I coloured her with Copics and used a Magnolia swirl stamp and Victorian Velvet distress ink along the edges. I put some Glossy Accents on the little hearts the girl is holding and they catch the light quite well.

The image was mounted on Bazzill Swiss Dots card which I'd punched with a Martha Stewart PATP.  I put tiny Papermania gems at the end of the swirls and placed flowers from Wild Orchid Crafts in the centre of the swirls.  Finally I cut a Sizzix heart from Coredinations Whitewash pink card, covered it with Glossy Accents and poured loads of Glamour Dust over the top.  I think I've managed to use nearly ALL of my favourite things in this project!

I'm putting this into the Just Magnolia/hAnglar Challenge (My Favourite Things) and the Stamp Something Challenge (Anything Goes).

On the subject of challenges, Sweet Stampin' have a great new challenge this week - you need to add a photo.  It's the turn of Carrie's team  and they have made some FABULOUS creations to inspire you.  Hop on over here to see more!

Have a great week!

Hugs

Tracey xx

Sweet Stampin' Challenge - Try Something New!

Over at Sweet Stampin' we have a FABULOUS challenge for you this week!  We would like you to try something new - a new technique, maybe, or perhaps Santa brought you some new crafty kit that you haven't been able to play with yet?  Now's your chance!

For my first ever DT card (can you tell how excited I am ... still!) I decided to dust off the old sewing machine.  Once upon a time, when I was just a poor student, I used to make my own clothes. Later on I used the machine to make curtains and cushion covers - nothing too complicated, just straight up and down stuff!  Apart from that, the old machine has been languishing, forgotten, in a cupboard ... until now! 

I used Bazzill for my base and Memory Box Mistletoe papers matted onto more Bazzill. I stuck the paper down with d/s tape before I stitched it and apart from a couple of dodgy corners, managed to get the stitching reasonably straight.  A little crafty tip - don't drink red wine while trying to do anything which requires a straight line!

My little hAnglar girl was coloured with Copics; I cut her out and only put a strip of tape in the middle of the image so that I could bring her feet forward a little bit.  Apart from that, I just added some adhesive pearls and roses from Wild Orchid Crafts.

My lovely teamies at Sweet Stampin' have made some beautiful cards to inspire you, so hop on over here to have a look!

Have a wonderful weekend!

Tracey x

Glittery and White

First day back at school after the Christmas holidays and it was lovely!  It was good to catch up with my friends and to find out what the kids had been up to during the break. 

Today I've got a white, glittery card to show you.  I love the idea of an all-white card and I've seen some real beauties, but in reality I found it quite difficult to do. 

I decided on a shaped card because I didn't want the finished thing to look too plain.  I added some white embossed border strips from Craftwork Cards and put Diamond Stickles all along the edges.  The image is from Whiff of Joy and didn't need much colouring, just some skin/hair tones, a little very pale grey for shading on her top and the palest possible green on the flower stems.  I cut her out with a Nestie die before giving her a good dose of Glamour Dust.  I used another Nestie to cut a slightly larger shape which I then embossed and edged with Stickles.  The flowers are from Wild Orchid Crafts and look a bit dark in the photo - they are actually ivory, so not quite white, but almost!

I'm going to enter this into the following challenges:-

Cupcake Challenge ... White is White
Bunny Zoe's ..............  Sparkle and Shine
Stamp Something ......  Glitter

Time to throw something on the table for tea - thank's so much for stopping by!

Hugs

Tracey x

An Early Christmas Card!

Just when you thought it would be some months before you saw another Christmas card, here's an early one for Christmas 2011!  Actually this is for the Spoonfull of Sugar Challenge, which is to make a Christmas card and I thought I'd also put it into the Just Magnolia and hAnglar stAnglar challenge, which is Anything Goes.

I got this hAnglar set on Ebay and it's one of my favourites to colour. I used my Copics on the girl and boy but stamped the images again onto Memory Box Mistletoe papers and cut out the triangles for the bunting.  The background has been distressed with Walnut Stain ink and I used some Stickles on the pompoms.

The background paper is Basic Grey, the flowers and pearls are from Wild Orchid Crafts.  I used a Magnolia Doohickey die to cut the lace strip and tag; the sentiment is an Anna Griffin rub on.

Had a lovely "last night of the holidays" with Gregor - we snuggled up on the sofa to watch "Up" on DVD.  It was lovely and cosy with the fire roaring and the dog snoring away in the background.  If you haven't seen it, I thought it was a fabulous film for kids and adults alike.

I'm going to try to get to bed at a reasonable time so that I'm ready for school tomorrow.  I wonder what this term will bring?

Night night

Tracey xx

Happy New Year!

Today seems as good a day as any to show you my card for the Lili of the Valley Challenge, which this week is "New Beginnings".  I made this card for friends who recently tied the knot after a few years together - it was so lovely to be able to make a wedding card as most of my friends are settled with kids and likely (I hope) to stay that way.

I so enjoyed making this! I chose white Bazzill for the base with Magnolia paper on top.  I used a Lili of the Valley die cut for my image - I'd been hoarding this for ages in the hope that I'd get the opportunity to use it - and I went round three of the sides with my Martha Stewart lacy PATP.  I went over bits of the image with a Quickie Glue Pen and put some Glamour Dust over the top. 

The sentiment was just done on the computer and mounted on a scalloped Nestie rectangle, with a tiny gem in each corner.  The flowers are from the one and only Wild Orchid Crafts and they got a squirt of pearl Glimmer Mist to give them a bit of sparkle, although it's not really showing up in the piccie.

And that's my card!  I've finally finished getting the house back to normal after last night's do.  We had a lovely clear night here - one of those nights when the stars all seem really bright - so we all went outside at midnight and set free some wishing lanterns.  I was amazed at just how high they went and the kids were fascinated by them.  I'd only ever seen them on TV before so it was lovely to watch them floating over the fields until they became tiny brightly coloured dots in the sky. Definitely one of those moments you know you'll remember forever - aahh!

Hope that 2011 is memorable for you, for all the right reasons!

Hugs,

Tracey xx