Wishing you Peace, Love and Joy

Here's another Christmas make.  No colouring on this one, just stamping & embossing using an Altenew stamp set.

I didn't have cardstock to match the blue ink, so I rubbed the ink pad over some plain white card to get the colour I needed.  I love this sentiment and have used it loads - it's from a Wplus9/Simon Says Stamp collaboration set.

This was the first chance I had to play with this stamp set but I quite fancy trying it with gold ink on black or  navy cardstock.

Back soon with another Christmas card!

xx

Merry Christmas!

Hope you've had a lovely Christmas. I thought I'd share a box card that I made using the gorgeous MFT stamps which were released recently.

Apologies for the photos - a combination of poor light and the boxes being a bugger to photograph!

I'll be back soon with some more Christmas makes.  Enjoy the rest of the holiday.

xx

Challenges entered:  Allsorts Challenge Blog - Anything Goes
                                  Merry Little Christmas - Anything Goes
                                  Stamping Sensations - Anything Goes

CaSS - Critters

Not long until the big day now!  I can't say that I've got all of my cards made but there's a fair few in the pile, in part due to my Christmas at Sweet Stampin' makes.

Our theme this month is Critters, so we'd like to see animals or birds on your creations.  I used this sweet Lili of the Valley digi for my DT card

I coloured the sweet reindeer with my Copics and cut out the image with a Lil' Inker stitched square die.  The DP is the last from a much loved pad which is so old that I've forgotten the brand!

This card is my last for Christmas at Sweet Stampin'.  Having been there from the beginning it will be a bit strange not being involved, but it's the right time to move on. I've made some amazing friends for life through CaSS and Sweet Stampin' so they will always have a place in my heart.   I'll still be in blogland, though and hopefully I will have more time to spend on crafting generally rather than mostly making Christmas cards!

I do hope you can join in the fun at CaSS.  All the challenge details are here.

Merry Christmas!

xx

A Christmas Cracker

I've been looking through a box of stamped images and came across this cute James the Bear.

I cut the mats from my new Waffle Flower dies - love these dies for getting evenly spaced cardstock layers.  I coloured James with my Copics and added white and gold Glamour Dust for some Christmas sparkle.  A touch of Glossy Accents on his nose and job done!

Have a great weekend!

Messing about

I've been experimenting with ways to use up my unloved stash of glitters and embossing powder and decided to try something different with this wood block trees stamp.

The first card features a combination of embossing powders to create an image in alternative Christmas colours.

For the second card I experimented with frantage - I've got pots of the stuff and haven't used any of it in ages.  The photo doesn't do it justice but I was pleasantly surprised at how the card turned out.

Not entirely sure what to do with the remaining ton of powder but at least this is a start!

Tracey

Stay Cosy

Just for a brief change from Christmas cards I thought I'd share a card I made for my mum-in-law. 

I love the autumnal colours in the papers and tried to match the red-brown with my Copics.  I sometimes find the smaller Stamping Bella images a little tricky to colour but this one was a joy.

Christmas preparations are underway here: cakes and puddings are made (one of each for us, one of each for mum and dad) and so is the mincemeat.   Was feeling quite virtuous until it dawned on me that I haven't started shopping for presents yet.  Oh well, there's always next weekend.

See you soon with another Christmas make.

Tracey xx

Colour therapy

I can only go so long without going back to my favourite colour combinations.  This little cutie from Lili of the Valley was just crying out for some bright green and pink!

My Copic YG21, YG23 and YG25 are almost always in use and I love them with the RV pinks in either the 20's or the 50's and 60's.

Another Christmas card done.  Or at least, it is now.  I forgot to colour the penguin's nose before I took the photo!

Tracey

Quick and Easy Cards Part 2

Following on from my post about using up my rub on and sticker stash,  here are a couple of cards I made with some more Anna Griffin rub ons.

I was tempted just to apply the bold sentiments directly to a card base but instead opted for a layered look and some sequins.  The Ho Ho Ho card actually features an ink-blended mat gone-wrong but the rub on covers the dodgy blending really well.

Quick, easy and perfect for a crafty fix when I'm late home from work.

Tracey

Lovely as a Tree

Some stamps just don't date.  This one, Lovely as a Tree from Stampin' Up, is one of my all-time favourites.

I love black and gold, especially for Christmas and other celebration cards.  Plus heat embossing for a CAS look is perfect when time is short and you want to get some batch card-making done.  I used Lawn Fawn gold embossing powder to emboss the tree and the Wplus9 sentiment.

And talking of batch card-making, I made some in red, too.

Have a great weekend.

Tracey

Where I make mistakes... so that you don' t have to

Now here's the thing.  I adore Jennifer McGuire.  I watch her videos and she makes everything look so do-able.And not so long ago, she did something with glitter and stencils and I thought: "I can do that".

I was wrong.

I did, eventually, after  much tearing up of cardstock, scrubbing of stencils to remove glue and, I'll admit, more than a little unladylike language, come up with this.

The link to how this process is meant to go, à la Jennifer, is here.  Who wouldn't want to use up the ton of glitter that is taking up valuable new stamps space?  I had everything I needed, apart from some new stencils, so I remedied that and bought some, including this one by Pretty Pink Posh.

The idea is that you cover your paper in double sided adhesive, lay the stencil on top and pour on your glitter.  Then you remove the stencil and put another colour of glitter over the remaining adhesive.  Which is fine if you can get the ****** stencil off the paper.  Which I couldn't.

I had a dreadful time with some double sided stuff that I'd had for ages - no idea of the brand.  Couldn't remove the stencil at all without ripping it and had to soak the thing off.  As I had opted to try several stencils at the same time I ended up with a sink full of soggy cardstock and glitter.

I did slightly better with Stick It but it's a bit patchy, especially on the second layer of glitter.  I didn't want to waste my one and only moderately successful attempt so I cut the card at an angle to remove the worst bits and tried to clean up the other dodgy areas with a craft knife and a white gel pen.

I adhered the glittered cardstock to a card base and stamped a sentiment with some Gina K red ink.

I really like the red glitter on white but in the interest of my sanity will be using glimmer paste to recreate the look.

Off to lie down in a darkened room.

Tracey

Quick and Easy Part 1

When I first started making cards, I used rub on images and sentiments, and Doodlebug stickers.  A LOT.  Then I discovered Copics and stamps and that was me, hooked.  But with that came a feeling of somehow cheating if I used anything from my sticker and rub on stash.  Not so much the sentiments as I still have some Pebbles Christmas rub ons which I love and use all the time.  But the images, well, I certainly wouldn't post what I had made with them.

But that's nonsense, isn't it?  Why be precious about how much work you've put into a card and what you've used when you can create something lovely - and quickly - with minimal supplies?

I found some gorgeous Anna Griffin rub-ons which are donkey's years old and it seemed such shame to leave them unloved in a drawer.  So I decided to start working through the ancient (in crafting terms) stash and here's what I made

I applied the rub on bauble directly to a fog card base and stamped a Pretty Pink Posh sentiment in Versamark ink so that I could emboss it in gold.  The card took less than 10 minutes to make and I rather like it.

I then got quite carried away, so there'll be more of my quick and easy cards to come!

It's Snow Time

Here I am again working my way through the cards I've yet to post.

I love this Mo Manning image and she is a dream to colour.  I opted for colours I rarely use for her clothes, choosing the tans and oranges in my Copics rather than my go-to reds and greens.

The dark sky seemed like a good idea at the time but the blending isn't nearly as smooth as I'd like.  I got fed up in the end and went for Sandy Allnock's tip of adding snow to disguise imperfections but frankly I should probably have created bigger snow!  In a certain light it looks like she's walking through woodland but who am I kidding, that's more luck than judgement!

Enjoy the rest of your week.

Tracey

Christmas flowers

I've been making an effort to find some crafty time and have managed to actually finish some cards other than my CaSS DT ones.  I'm dreadful for stamping images, colouring them and then not using them, or even stamping and cutting the images out, then leaving them in a box "for next weekend".  Having said that, I'm excellent (though I say it myself) at buying stamps... and dies... and, more recently, stencils...

So, my mission now is to post some of my makes.  For starters, here's a Christmassy version of a floral bouquet I made a while back

I used Wplus9's hellebore and rose layering stamps and cut them out with coordinating dies.  The background was cut with an Altenew cover die from woodgrain paper and I added some sequins and a sentiment from a Lawn Fawn set.

Once the stamping and cutting out is done these cards are pretty quick to put together  and if you don't use foam tape for the layering they aren't too bulky to post, either.

I  hope to be back later on this week with another post.

Tracey

Challenges entered:  Allsorts - Christmas Flowers

CaSS - Trees

Hi everyone

We're getting closer to Christmas and if you haven't already started your Christmas cards, Christmas at Sweet Stampin' is here to give you a nudge!

Our challenge theme this month is Trees so you need to feature a tree or trees on your projects.

I made quite a few cards because I can't resist tree-themed stamps for any time of year, only to spend ages trying to decide which one should be my DT card.  In the end I opted for this one which I made using a Neat and Tangled stamp set.

Those wonky trees are so lovely to colour!  I used a bit of white acrylic paint to make some snow and added a Pebbles Inc rub-on sentiment.

I hope you can play along this month.  Why not grab a cuppa and hop over to Christmas at Sweet Stampin' to see the fabby inspiration projects my teamies have made.

Tracey x

Stars at CaSS

Hello!

Less than 3 months to Christmas, crafters!  Over at Christmas at Sweet Stampin' we're encouraging you to add some cards to your Christmas pile with another new challenge.  We're still an Anything Goes at Christmas challenge, but with an optional theme.  This month the theme is Stars, so here's my interpretation:

I used one of my favourite Lili of the Valley stamps to create the image, colouring it in with Copics and adding sparkle with some Glamour Dust and a little bit of gold glitter.  The design paper is by Maya Designs and I added some roses from my stash to add a little extra something.

I do hope that you can join in the fun at Christmas at Sweet Stampin' this month.  The DT have made some lovely projects to inspire you and you'll find them all here.

Have a lovely crafty month - I'm certainly hoping to get some me time with my Copics during the half-term break.

Tracey xx

Christmas Decorations at CaSS

It's September already! Time to up my game on the Christmas card-making front!

Over at Christmas at Sweet Stampin' we are starting a new challenge.  We are still Anything Goes at Christmas but we now add an optional theme; this month we'd like to see any sort of Christmas Decoration.

I've gone for bunting, largely so that I could use this sweet stamp

I've coloured the cutie from Hanglar & StAnglar with Copics but I paper-pieced the bunting to add a bit of extra interest.  A sprinkle of Glamour Dust added a wee bit of sparkle.

We'd love you to join in the fun at Christmas at Christmas at Sweet Stampin' - it's a great motivator to add some more cards to your collection.

Tracey x

Snow People!

It's new challenge time at Christmas at Sweet Stampin'. 

Our optional theme this month is Snow People. Sometimes it feels a bit odd making Christmas cards during the summer months, but given the weather we're currently experiencing here in the UK it's perhaps not too much of a stretch to imagine ourselves in late autumn!

I used my favourite snowman stamp from Lili of the Valley

I used some Magnolia paper that I've had for years to cover an A2 card.  The image was coloured with Copics and a shimmer pen for a bit of sparkle.  I completed the design with a die cut frame and a rub-on sentiment.

You can find all the challenge details and the fab inspiration projects the CaSSettes have made here.  Hope you can play along with us!

Tracey

Christmas in the Sun

As I write this post the sky  is dark grey, the rain is lashing down and we've had thunder and lightning.  Welcome to summer in Scotland ;o)

Interesting, then, that our (optional) theme to complement the Anything Goes at Christmas challenge at Christmas at Sweet Stampin' is "Christmas in the Sun".  I'd just like some sun, please, don't mind what time of year it appears!

I really struggled with this challenge theme, having no appropriate stamps (or so I thought until I saw some of the brilliant, out-of-the-box makes from my teamies).  Then, out of nowhere, inspiration struck...

I blended some soft yellow ink in the centre of my card panel and over the top of this stamped the sun rays using a Wplus9 stamp and some distress oxide ink.  That's my "in the sun" bit.  The sun glasses were cut with a Paper Smooches die from black glitter card and some plain black card. I adhered the pieces together before coating the lenses with glossy accents.

I stamped the holly using some accessory stamps from a My Favourite Things Christmas set (the Elves) and coloured them with Copics.  Finally, I stamped the sentiment from another MFT set, cut a banner and put the whole lot together.

I do hope you can play along with us this month.  You can check out the challenge details and the brilliant inspiration projects the CaSSettes have made here.

Here's hoping for some sunshine for all of us.

Tracey x

CaSS - Non Traditional Colours

Hi there

We have a new challenge starting today over at Christmas at Sweet Stampin'.  Our theme as always is "Anything Goes at Christmas" but we are adding the optional element of using non-traditional colours this month.

I went for one of my favourite colour combos: purple and lime green.

The image is one of the Tiny Townies from Stamping Bella and I coloured her with Copics, adding Glamour Dust to her hat for some sparkle.  I used some Sakura clear glitter pen on the little baubles for some extra shimmer.

I hope you can play along this month.  Do hop over to Christmas at Sweet Stampin' to see what the other CaSSettes have made to inspire you.

Tracey x

CaSS - Anything Goes with optional Snowflakes

Hi there

Another month has flown by and I'm back with my DT make for Christmas at Sweet Stampin'.   So much for my goal to make/post most regularly - life really does get in the way of your hobbies sometimes, doesn't it.

We now have optional themes for our challenges and this month it's Snowflakes.  This was a bit of a challenge for me as I struggled to find something appropriate in my stash.  Then I remembered my Mama Elephant Joy/Ornaments set and made this:

And, being nearly half-way through the year and playtime in short supply, I made a few more while I'd got the stamps set up in my Misti.

Do head on over to CaSS to check out the DT's inspiration projects.  Hope you can play along with us this month!

Tracey

CaSS - Anything Goes with optional mono

We're a quarter of the way through 2019 and for the first time this year (at the time of writing) we've had our first sunny and fairly warm day.  Long may it last!

However, at CaSS we're all about Christmas preparations and with a new challenge starting today I thought I'd share my DT make.  The theme this month is still Anything Goes but with the optional theme of Monochrome.  I went for black with gold embossing:

I used a Wplus9 floral stamp for my main image and found a sentiment which fits perfectly in a Pretty Pink Posh stamp set (the one with the bird and the postbox).  I resisted the temptation to add sequins or other bling so the card was actually quite quick to make -  if you ignore the time spent obsessively flicking a tiny paintbrush on those pesky stray bits of embossing powder that just seem to get everywhere!

I hope you'll be able to play along with us at Christmas at Sweet Stampin' this month.  You'll get the challenge details here, plus a look at the fabby inspiration projects my teamies have made.

Hugs

xx

CaSS - Anything Goes with an optional theme

Hi there

It's that time again - a new challenge over at Christmas at Sweet Stampin'.  As ever, we have our theme of Anything Goes but there is an optional (and easy) additional theme this month: Use Stamping.

Here's my DT make:

I actually made my own template (à la Gina K Designs) for the wreath.  It was a bit fiddly but once laminated it was sturdy enough, held my card in the Misti and above all worked as I turned the card to stamp the images repeatedly in a circle.  I've since treated myself to the Gina K template as I got  hooked on stamping this design - it's great for using those tiny accent stamps that I tend to ignore.

The die cut sentiment is from Simon Says Stamp and was cut in Schoolhouse Red cardstock.  I tried to keep the look fairly simple so just added some glossy accents and tiny clear droplets to add a bit more interest.

I hope you can play along with us this month.You can check out our challenge details and the CaSSettes' inspiration projects here.

xxx

A challenge and a lot of black ink!

Hello!  It's time for a new challenge at Christmas at Sweet Stampin' - the second one of 2019 already!

As always, our theme is Anything Goes at Christmas and I decided to take a non-Christmassy stamp and give it a bit of a twist.

It took several stampings of black ink for the background of this Concord and 9th stamp.  Normally I'd stamp this in pigment ink to get the best coverage, so for a good deep black I used Versafine black - a lot of it! Thank goodness for the Misti.

For the flowers I used red and green dye inks by Gina K Designs.  I bought a small selection of the mini cubes from  Simon Says Stamp, just to try, as you do.  They really are the most fabulous inks.  Maybe someone in the UK will be able to stock them?  Please?

The sentiment is from a MFT mini set and was stamped in Versamark and heat embossed in Hero Arts white.

Come and play along this month and get a start on those cards for Christmas 2019!  You can see all the details here and also check out the fabby inspiration projects the CaSSettes have made.

Not doing very well with my resolution to post more...  still, it's only February, plenty of time for me to catch up!

Hugs

xx

Happy New Year (and a Christmas card)!

Happy New Year!  I'm back with my first Christmas card of 2019 as it's the start of a whole new year's Christmas prep over at Christmas at Sweet Stampin'.  As always, our theme is "Anything Goes at Christmas" so even if you aren't quite ready to start up your Christmas card-making just yet, you can still enter those cards you didn't get chance to post before the holiday.

Here's my DT make

 I had to wait a while to get my hands on this fabulous Altenew layering stamp set but I'm so happy to have it in my collection now!  The stamps are surprisingly easy to line up considering the detail in them and I love the slightly shabby/vintage look they give.  I used Altenew inks and a couple of clear droplets, so once you've got your stamps lined up on your Misti/stamp positioner you can make a number of these quite quickly.  Most definitely considering this for my Christmas cards this coming December.

Do join in the fun at Christmas at Sweet Stampin', where you'll find the challenge details and the brilliant DT projects that the CaSSettes have  made to inspire you.

I hope you all had a fabulous Christmas and that 2019 brings you all lots of love, good health and crafty goodies!

Thanks so much for stopping by.

Tracey xx