Would you care to dance?

My day started today, much the same as every other day.  I got up, went to work, (oops correction I did get showered and dressed in between as well), made myself a cup of tea and sat down to read Barbara's daily blog.  I love how she shows us step by step how her artwork is produced, don't you?

To my surprise there was my artwork, so I thought when I got in from work tonight I'd better create a blog showing you it and telling you how I created it.

I loved how Barbara referred to it in her comments as it looked like Laurel was throttling Douglas when in actual fact she is dancing with him.  Well that was my intention when I created the card anyway!

Materials used:

Stamp - Laurel

Stamp - Douglas

Stamp - Laurel hedge

Stamp - shard

Adirondack ink - latte

Archival ink - coffee

Promarkers

Krylon gold leaf pen

Nestability - scalloped oval

Instructions

1. Mask off the sections at the top and bottom of your card blank with low tack masking tape.
2. Stamp the Laurel hedge, tessellating across the panel with coffee archival ink.
3. Taking a make-up sponge drag the latte adirondack ink in around the edges of the masking tape, starting lightly and increasing the depth of colour.
4. Colour in the leaves with a green promarker and remove the masking tape.
5. Stamp the shard across the centre of your card blank using the coffee archival ink and colour in with promarkers.
6. Stamp Laurel onto a separate piece of card using coffee archival ink.
7. Create a mask by stamping Laurel onto the sticky end of a post it note and place over her.
8. Stamp Douglas onto the card so that Laurel is draping her arms around him.
9. Remove the mask and colour in both characters.
10. Place the nestie over the top and die cut making sure that you avoid any limbs that are outside of the shape.  They won't be able to dance without a foot...

To cut a shape outside of a nestie, place the die onto the card and make a pencil line where the object will fall outside of the shape.  Remove the die and hand cut around the shape by hand extending it just slightly either side.  Place the die back in place but ensure that the piece that you have cut by hand is over the top of the nestie (to avoid being cut off) and then die cut as normal.

xx Happy crafting and glittery hugs xx

Sweet Cherry Blossom

It's the weekend, so that means it's craft time!!

It's a busy time of the month in my craft room as I prepare for my next workshop and begin my samples for the next Clarity shows, but it's also an exciting time as I get to play with new products too.

If you would like more details about my workshops, please visit my workshop page at the top of this blog for more details.

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Today I'm going to show you the card I made for the Clarity New Design Club (issue 82) and give you the step by step (unfortunately without pictures) of how it's made for those of you that are not in the club.

However if you'd like to join the club, it's just had a facelift and is looking fantastic with it's glossy step by step tutorials by Barbara herself.  If you would like to learn more about the benefits please visit the Clarity website.

Here's the stamp that came out with issue 82:

And here's the card that I created as inspiration:

Materials used:

Theuva card

Stamp - NDC cherries

Stamp - NDC thank you

Adirondack ink - lettuce & black

Promarkers

Flexmarkers

Post it notes

Instructions:

1. For this one we're using Theuva card as we're going to be doing some Promarker work, Promarkers also mean Adirondack ink so that your line art doesn't bleed.
2. You need masks for this project too, so grab your post its and stamp the image at the sticky end and cut it out four times.  You will also meed a mask of the largest flower for the centre.
3. Ink up the largest flower only with Black Adirondack, making sure you remove the ink from the rest of the stamp with a wet wipe or kitchen roll, and place this in the centre of your card. Cover with a mask.
4. In up the whole stamp, and using the mask as your centre point, slightly overlap the stem of the branch onto it.  If you think of the image as a clock face the image will be at five to the hour.
5. Repeat as above this time stamping at 25 past the hour, ten past the hour and lastly at twenty to the hour.
6. For the next layer we need to mask what we've already stamped.
7. Ink up your stamp and blot onto a piece of copy paper.  Stamp your image between two of the images already on your artwork.  This is using the second generation of ink and will appear as though it is further away.
8. Repeat for the other three branches.  Remove all masks.
9. Colour the cherry blossom using flexmarkers (Pale Blossom, Tea Rose & Sorbet) using the lightest colour all over and graduating the darker colours towards the centre.  Remember to use a light touch and don't "flood" (use too much ink) your work.
10. Colour the leaves using a combination of Promarkers and Flexmarkers (Bright Green & Chartreuse) shading as above.
11. Colour the stems with Promarkers (Caramel).
12. Ink up the brayer with Lettuce Adirondack and roll onto the Splodgemat to even out the ink on the roller.  Cover all four corners and the edges graduating colour towards the centre of the work.
13. To add depth to the colour add Black Adirondack ink to your Splodgemat and repeat the step above.
14. Mould the "Thank You" sentiment to reflect the shape of your artwork and, using the Black Adirondack, stamp in the bottom right hand corner.
15. Mount onto red card.

I hope you have fun trying this card or just reading about it.  Why not leave me a comment and a link to your blog so that I can have a look at your artwork.  You give me so much inspiration browsing around your blogs.  I LOVE CRAFTING!!!

See you next time xx

Never Ending Calendar

Welcome to Monday crafters...

Are Mondays good or bad for you?  Monday means leaving my craft room and going to work, but then without work I wouldn't be able to buy more craft goodies so there's got to be some good in it too, hasn't there?

Are your new years resolutions still going strong? Did you promise to keep off the booze, keep fit, loose weight or give up smoking?  Or was it something more interesting?  Mine was to blog more regularly and I think I'm doing quite well with it so far!

My project today is for the Clarity Challenge blog.  We run monthly challenges with a different theme each month giving you the chance to win a £50 Clarity voucher or be picked in the design teams top 5. Now how do you fancy that?  All you have to do is follow the theme, use your Clarity stamps/products only, enter the challenge via your blog or email us and then sit back until the end of the month with your fingers crossed to see if you've won.  Simples...

The theme for January is 'new beginnings' so I chose to make a never ending calendar.  It doesn't matter what year we're in you can always use it.  I've given this to Mark, my partner, for the desk in his office so have kept it very masculine.

Materials used:

Stamp - letterbox sentiments

Stamp - letterbox set

Stamp - artist set

Stencil - circle dots (7"x7")

Archival ink - coffee

Distress ink - dried marigold, wild honey, walnut stain,

scattered straw & vintage photo

Distress marker - vintage photo

Promarker

It's great to make something you can give as a gift and that can be used daily.  If anyone would like the measurements for this project, please let me know and I can get a project sheet made up for you.

xx Happy crafting and glittery hugs xx

May all your dreams come true...

Hi de hi crafters

I've just finished my first full week back at work after the Christmas and New Year break and of course my fortnights holiday before that. So I've come back down to earth with a huge bump.  I'd forgotten that there were two 6 o'clocks in a day, but have been reminded of it this last week with the alarm going off at 6am.  Never mind it all goes towards the next holiday so it won't be long before the brochures come out and we start planning our next adventure.

My card today is using the outside mask from the Paris skyline which was shown on Create and Craft last weekend.  This enables you to create a silhouette of the skyline and then using a piece of copy paper and a make up sponge create the illusion of depth with shadows at the edges of each building.

I achieved the reflection by placing the mask onto my splodgemat and running over it with the brayer loaded with espresso ink, then pressing the card onto the splodgemat to pick up the ink.  Move it to your card matching this up with the reflection, re-ink your brayer and run over the mask again.  You should have the perfect mirror image with the reflection slightly faded.

For the clouds you can create these out of a piece of paper or easier still you can use the Clarity cloud mask and after strategically placing your sun in place and using a make up sponge, gently drag the colour onto your card.  Remember you can always add it but you can't take it away.  You can almost hear Barbara saying that can't you?

The water effect requires a brayer and a scrunched up piece of copy paper.  Load your brayer with stonewashed adirondack ink, run it over your scrunched up paper and it will pick up the pattern from the paper.  Place your sun mask in place in it's mirror image and run the brayer over your card once. Don't keep running over the card or you will lose the effect, and voila you have your rippled water.

Now all you have to do is add your sentiment...

Materials used:

Mask - Paris skyline

Mask - clouds

Stamp - may all your dreams

Brayer

Splodgemat

Adirondack ink - stonewashed, espresso & sunshine yellow

I hope you have fun with the techniques above and playing with your new masks, stencils and stamps if you ordered them at the weekend.



xx Happy crafting and Clarity hugs xx

Time To Reflect

Welcome to my first blog of the New Year, not too bad as it's only the 6th!!!

Who has made their New Year's resolutions?  If you have, what are they and have you broken them already or are they still going strong?  Mine was to blog more on my personal blog.  I know I run the Clarity blog, but that's not the same as showing you my artwork on here is it?

Well this year it's going to be different.  Can you tell I'm crossing my fingers behind my back?

How many of you watched the Clarity shows yesterday (Sunday)? There were loads of sellouts!  Were you one of the lucky ones who managed to buy one of the fab stamps from the show.  If you missed it, there's a reminder for you on the Clarity blog.

The card below used one of the stamp sets shown on Create and Craft and highlights the flexibility of having an alphabet set within your stamp collection.  You can create any name, verse or quote you want as simple as anything...

Materials used:

Stamp - letter box set

Stamp - large kissing couple

Stamp - small birds in flight

Stamp - cherry blossom

Clarity card

Adirondack ink - stonewashed & sunshine yellow

Promarkers

Twine

Card Candi

To get the reflection of the letters in the water you can either stamp the letter onto the blank letter square (provided in the set) and then stamp onto your card or alternatively stamp directly onto your splodgemat and press your card onto the splodgemat.

If you were using the coated Clarity card with the second method you would have to be careful not to move the card or the letters would smudge.  I used the first option and hopefully the letters look as though they are floating with the ripples in the water.

xx Happy crafting and glittery hugs xx