LOVE IS ALL AROUND.

Well, I suppose it was inevitable that I'd have to make a lovey dovey card at some stage.  Almost as bad as Christmas cards I think, pmsl.  Anyway, the theme at I ♥ PROMARKERS this week (#153) is love and our fabulous sponsor is MARIANNE DESIGN.  I was going to use Mo's freebie (the love thief) but as I figured there'd be shed loads of them floating around, I went for something completely different.  This is very CAS for me, but I actually quite like it.

I cut the Marianne die twice, one black one white and layered them atop a black mat, border cut with a Martha Stewart punch.  It's all mounted onto a white card base. The stamp is an old wood mounted one I've had for years.  I cut each letter square out and mounted them with 3D sticky dots.  There's a minimal amount of Promarker colouring on this and I applied diamond glaze to the letters and that, as they say, is that!

Entering into:

GINGERLOFT #56 - Love is in the air.

ABC #14 -  Valentine's day.

ARTISTIC INSPIRATIONS #26 - Love/Anything goes.

CRAZY AMIGO - Red, black and white.

DIE CUTTING DIVA'S #100 - Anything goes (must use a die cut).

SHOPPING OUR STASH #87 - Love, Red.....etc.

TUESDAY ALCHEMY #49 - Anything goes.

CREATIVE CREATIONS #2 - Keep it simple.

MAKE IT MONDAY #125 - Anything goes.

CREATIVE INSPIRATIONS PAINT - Anything goes.

JUST CHILLIN'

Ooooh, I'm a bit late with my I ♥ PROMARKERS card this week.  I've been busy scrapbooking and looking after my mum.  It's challenge #152 and it's an Anything Goes week.  We have a new sponsor too, and that's J & C CREATIONS with a £10 spend for our winner.

I used 2 digi images from the fabulous Make it Crafty.  Whimsical log and Sitting Jane.  Jane is added with 3D foam pads.  Papers are Basic Grey Kioshi.

Entering into:
MAKE IT MONDAY #124 - Anything goes.
SIMPLY CREATE TOO #29 - Anything goes.
STAMPIN' FOR THE WEEKEND - Something Girly.
HAPPY CAMPERS #9 - Flowers and something digital.
PAPER CRAFTING JOURNEY - For a girl.

LAYER IT UP

Well, another week gone by already.  Time really is zipping past.  My gorgeous Grandson was 3 yesterday and it still seems like yesterday that he was a babe in arms.

This week's I ♥ PROMARKERS challenge #151, is to use lots of layers on your projects.  Shouldn't be too difficult, as most of us do anyway, lol.  Our sponsor is DI'S DIGI'S with a $10 spend for our winner.

For my card I used a brand new LaBlanche stamp. I stamped twice and cut out some bits to layer up.  I've had a couple of these stamps for absolutely ages but never used them, so this is a first outing for this one.  I have one with a horse on that's still in its wrapper too.  I really must stop buying stamps just to put in the drawer, lol.  The papers are from the gorgeous Glitz 'Vintage Blue' pad,  a M.S. deep edge punch, my own sentiment and lace and pearls from my stash finished it off. I used a limited number of Promarkers on this, but they match the papers perfectly.

Entering into:
DIVA'S BY DESIGN - Make it girly.
MAKE IT MONDAY #123 - Always anything goes.
CRAFTING FOR ALL SEASONS #43 - Something new.
CRAFTS AND  ME #116 - Something new.
FRESH BREWED - Anything goes.
FRILLY AND FUNKY - Follow your muse.
ONE CRAZY STAMPER - Anything goes.
TANDO CREATIVE - Feeling blue.
CRAFTERS CAFE #12 - Anything goes.

TWEET TWEET!

My crafting buddy Lynda, sent me this adorable little bird house as part of my secret santa.....

 .....so, using a combination of Marianne & Cheery Lynn dies, Americana paints, crackle mediums and distress inks, Promarkers and Marvy's..this is my altered version.

The house was painted with Americana Milk Chocolate acrylic paint.  When dry, a coat of Americana Weathered Wood Crackle medium was applied.  When that was dry, a coat of Buttermilk was applied and when that was also dry, I inked it gently with Walnut Stain distress ink.

The bird on branch is a Marianne die.  I cut them on Grungepaper and then inked the bird with Fired Brick distress ink.  The branch was coloured with a brown Marvy pen and the leaves with a Forest Green Promarker.  The fence and flower are Cheery Lynn dies.  The bird at the front has been doubled up, cut off the branch and then attached with a double height foam square so he's 3D'd.

To do the roof, I painted it with a couple of coats of  Deep Burgundy.

  When the 2nd coat of paint went on, I used my heat gun to help dry it and blister the paint in places.  

When dry, I applied a small amount of Ranger Picket Fence crackle paint and finally swiped with Walnut Stain ink when it was all dry.

I really enjoyed doing this.  It's not often that I actually use my crackle mediums but I might use them more often now.  I really like it.  Hope you like my little house.

Entering into:

613 AVENUE CREATE #2 - Anything goes.

ANYTHING BUT A CARD #10 - Things with Wings.

CHALLENGES 4 EVERYBODY #11 - Anything goes.

DREAM VALLEY CHALLENGES #48 - Anything goes.

THE SQUIRREL & THE FOX #35 - Anything goes.

ALLSORTS #189 - Dies and punches.

INSPIRE ME FRIDAYS #91 - Anything goes.

DIVA'S BY DESIGN - Anything goes.

CRAFT MY LIFE #3 - Anything but a card/LO.

TIM HOLTZ TAGS - JANUARY 2013

I've been meaning to join in this for the last couple of years but this year I'm determined, so I sat down this afternoon and did this one for JANUARY.  You've gotta love T.H. and you can see his tag HERE.  Most of the stuff I've used is Tim Holtz, but my sentiment  is Zettiology and the hand is Indigo Blue.  The distress ink pads I used were Faded Jeans and Crushed Olive.

NEW YEAR FROM HELL!!!

Happy New Year to all my blogging buddies out there.  I really hope you had a better start to the year than I did, lol.  Today is the first chance I've had to catch up with a bit of blogging or anything else really.  My 2 year old grandson came down with the Noro Virus.  My mother swiftly followed and then me the day after.  The noro knocked mother for six and I had 3 ambulance visits and they finally took her into hospital for a night on the third visit.  She's diabetic and hadn't eaten as the virus had weakened her so much so she had 2 hypoglycaemic attacks too.   Anyway, had to get the doctor out to her again yesterday as she's so weak and she's now in bed with a hight temp and a chest infection.  As for me, I'm finally feeling OK, ha ha.  God help me if that little lot's an omen for the whole of 2013!!!!

Anyway, on to the matter in hand.  A secret santa and the ILPM challenge.  A couple of pics of a cantilever box that I made for my crafting buddy Tina as her secret santa.  I filled it with all sorts of goodies too...from socks  to sewing thread to die cuts and ribbons.

 This weeks challenge #150 over at I ♥ PROMARKERS is all about tags.  Either a standalone tag or a tag on a card.  I pretty much threw this one together on Monday afternoon, just to get one done.  We have a new sponsor this week and that's POLKA DOODLES.  The prize is an amazing CD with shed loads of stuff on it.  Take a look HERE to see the details.

ENTERING INTO:
DIVA'S BY DESIGN - Anything goes.
MIDWEEK MAGNOLIAS #43 - Tilda on a Tag.
PENNY'S PAPER CRAFTY #109 - Anything goes.
THROUGH THE CRAFTROOM DOOR #52 - Anything goes.
CRAFT YOUR PASSION #144 - Vintage/Shabby Chic
CREATED WITH LOVE #23 - Anything but a card.
CREATIVE CREATIONS #1 - Anything goes.
MAKE IT MONDAY #122 - Anything goes.