Wednesday 30 October 2013

What’s on Your Workdesk? Wednesday #230

Well here we are again. If you’re not quite sure where that is, then pop over to Stamping Ground the blog of our lovely WOYWW leader Julia where al will be revealed.

A quick one from me today. Here’s the desk. A different view to usual.

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This is what I am doing just now. It is likely going to be seasonal (!), it may be bunting and it may be the November giveaway. I haven’t quite decided yet. I’m summoning up the courage to cut that lovely green cardstock cos I only have just enough for what I have in mind but once I get that far it won’t take long to finish. After hand cutting those letters from templates I can see the advantage of one of those clever electronic cutting machines. I was thinking I would make more than one but frankly, the time that took to do has put me off already.

So that’s all, will be touring very early or very late as I am back working every Wednesday. My choice, but I do like to fish for sympathy.

Would love to hear from you!! Happy WOYWW.

Monday 28 October 2013

Monochromatic Purple at Crafty Cardmakers

It’s time for our next challenge, hosted by Fiona, who has chosen the theme of Purple.  She would like to see cards and projects that are all or mostly purple. Hair/skin colours are also allowed

I wanted to make a little gift for a crafty friend who has recently moved and is avidly awaiting her new craft room being open for business! A thought a small hanger would be appropriate as it won’t take up too much space and so this is what I have made as my DT sample for this fortnight’s challenge.

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The base is an old Maya Road (I think) greyboard shape. I coloured it with Dusty Concord DI then stamped and embossed some flowers and flourishes to add interest to the background. The flowers and embellishments were stamped and cut from a mix of grungepaper and card. The butterfly was made with film and angelina fibres. A chain and a favourite quote finished it off – and I added some rock candy and glossy accents for extra sparkle and shine.

For more inspiration pop over to the Crafty Cardmaker’s Challenge and join in!

REMEMBER TO FOLLOW THE THEME!! 

We are sponsored for this challenge with prizes from DI'S DIGISTAMPS and by HOBBY ART more details over at Crafty Cardmakers.

Sunday 27 October 2013

October winner is.....

KRISHA. (Hope that link works, blogger went all weird on me).

Anyhow just need to know what you would like me to put on it to finish it off.

Haven't done much crafty stuff this weekend - been too tired. Even the extra hour today didn't help. But I've tidied up in my craft room, my usual thing when I don't feel up to much. Let's face it it always needs doing!!

Have a good week, will put the November giveaway up shortly and here's a clue, it is going to  be Christmassy!!

Saturday 26 October 2013

Tags of 2013 - October

I read this month’s 12 tag's post with a sinking heart because I don’t have distress paints or distress glitter. I’m going to have to think outside the box, round the corner and into the wardrobe for this one. But hang on a minute, what really are the techniques? Make something glittery on a grungy background – yeah, I can do that!!IMG_0941[1]
I decided I’d do a pumpkin for my centrepiece. I have been cutting out three layer pumpkins at work today for a Halloween make and take with the kids next week so I did the same using smaller circles and grungepaper. Then I coloured with ripe persimmon, added glossy accents and some stellar flash which I’ve had lying around for a while – well it may not be distress but it’s a bit different to ordinary glitter!!
Similarly I cut out a frame using a decorative spellbinder die along with one of the standard circles. Just to be different I covered one in black embossing powder, then silver tinsel glitter.
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  But somehow it wasn’t glittery enough so I heated it again and dropped in ordinary black glitter. I quite liked it but I did the second one with just glue and glitter. Then I realised I did in fact have some black glitter paper and I could have die cut it straight out. Never mind, that wouldn’t have been messy enough would it?
I looked through my dies to find one I could use to make the ‘stalk’ bit for the pumpkin and I confess this time I used the glittered paper!!
OK, now to smoosh that background - IMG_0944[1]my favourite and most successful technique (NOT!). I used inks as I don’t have the paints.
Oh well, at least they aren’t complete mud.
A little better after some extra inking and stamping?? IMG_0945[1]
And here are the final tags (two each month, because there will be a complete set to give away in January), I used a nylon ribbon and gave it a blast with the heat gun to get a really crinkly effect.Do you like my purple bats? They are the cut out bits from the frame!!
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And now everything is covered in glitter. Oh well, it is only 60 days till Christmas!!
 Happy Halloween!!
ps OCTOBER GIVEAWAY CLOSES SUNDAY ‘ 9.00 PM.

Thursday 24 October 2013

More Steampunk Spells…

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Haven’t had time to upload this project but I love it. It is an MDF moneybox from the MDF Man basically just prettied up with G45 papers ands embellishments.

 

Keeping this one for myself!!

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That’s all folks!!

Wednesday 23 October 2013

What's on your workdesk? Wednesday, # 229

Sigh, I am missing you all but have been so busy with work work work once again, I have just not had time to do much of anything at all. (oh don't go there, we've been privatised and then sold on again in less than 2 months - just so fed up with it all) So would really appreciate some crafty love this week!!!

So here's my desk which kind of sums up about how creative I feel today.


LOL, I really do have an obsession with glue and scissors. (How many different methods of adhesion are there in this picture?!! I counted 14) The disgusting chopping board is where I  place things while I am heat embossing -  it has become pretty grungy over the years. The arch is still there from 3 weeks ago and I've just finished a project (see post below), haven't tidied up and have no idea what I am going to do next. Hopefully it will look more active by next week!

GOOD NEWS: Final total for MacMillan fundraising was £365 which, when you add in the gift aid and the matching scheme from my employers (well they are now my previous employers, just squeaked in before it changed) made it well worth doing.

Wondering what WOYWW is? Go here for details!!

I shall be at work so may not visit many of you till the evening - see ya soon!
 

Tuesday 22 October 2013

Something wicked this way comes……Halloween at TioT

I am not a big fan of halloween challenges. It’s not that I dislike it, quite the opposite, In fact some of the greatest things I see are quite ‘dark’ (Check out Laura Carsons blog for starters!!) but I just don’t really get it, it’s not the kind of stuff I buy and I never know what to make. So I was wondering what on earth I could do as my DT entry for this fortnight’s challenge at Try it on Tuesday that would pass muster. And then ………
…….I fell in love with Graphic 45’s Steampunk Spells papers. Serious, serious, obsession. So although I wouldn’t call my project overly halloweenly, it will have to do. (Warning: Picture heavy post follows!!)
Having bought some of the papers and stickers etc, I resolved that for once I would actually USE them rather than stroke them. It’s actually quite liberating to take the plunge and cut into those papers!! After looking around the Graphic 45 blog I came across this gorgeous mini tag book ‘tutorial’ by Annette Green. There are two parts to the tutorial – watch them both BEFORE you start if you want to follow all of Anne’s instructions, especially regarding construction – believe me it does make a difference!! (From that I guess you can work out I didn’t do that!!)
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I recycled a damaged children’s board book for my project – I can usually lay my hands on these quite easily at work and it makes for a very substantial base. I copied Anne’s staggered look – the board book was already this shape so that was quite easy. The front cover is quite simple, I used one of the topper cards, made up a flower and added a ‘Halloween’ embellishment I had in my stash (so now it qualifies – so  there!!).
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The next page we have a kind of double spread. The little book is a removeable accordian book and   uses some of the small elements in the papers. I cut some other bits from the papers and did a little stamping. There was supposed to be a removeable tag tucked in the other side but guess who glued the ‘love potion’ plate on all four sides? (No, there are no prizes.)
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The next double spread has a little pocket with some removeable tags, and an extra page with a photo or journal block. Turn this over and and we reveal another tag and a journaling block folded over and secured with a metal spinner. This is something that Annette had in her mini and I just had to try it out – fantastic!! IMG_0935[1]
Here are the next pages – another insert attached to the right hand side tag.
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Are you still with me? Turn it over and discover a little pocket and tag on the reverse.
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The final spread has some bunting and another journal block.
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Sometimes I have a hard time just making things if I don’t have an idea who they are to go to, or what their purpose is. I have no idea what this is for, and although there are journaling spots and places where one could add photos I doubt I ever will - but I don’t care. One of the things Annette said in her video when explaining one of the delightful little details on her project was ‘it’s just fun… there’s no purpose, it’s just fun’. It really struck a chord with me and I think I need to adopt this mantra and not worry about why I am doing things so much!!
So there we have it, it certainly was fun to make and I am really pleased with it - I hope that maybe it will inspire someone else to just create for the fun of it. But whatever your Halloween make is, we’d love to see it over at Try It On Tuesday so go on over and join in!!

Challenges:
Dream Valley Challenges - Halloween
Country View Crafts  - Something SpookyMake my Monday  -Halloween

Tuesday 15 October 2013

Try It On Tuesday – How Much Texture is enough?

Or alternatively, knowing when to stop!! The current challenge at Try It on Tuesday is TEXTURE and no, you haven’t got the dates wrong, I am adding my DT piece mid way through the challenge to hopefully give you some additional inspiration if all the DT yumminess last week wasn’t quite enough.
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IMG_0882[1]I’m still trying to emulate that Finnabair style and this piece has been several colours from completely white (it looked so nice I couldn’t decide what colour to add) to pink and finally sort of greeny brown. I haven’t quite captured the look for this one but I had great fun playing with my texture paste, stencil, paints, chipboard, die cuts and buttons (don’t you just love that cute flower button?) and of course flowers and I like it so that’s the point really. It really is amazing what you can do with just some paper and paint.
The base of this frame comes from Any Crafts a Pound and did, in fact cost me a £1. A £ well spent in my opinion. It needed a little re-inforcing on the bendy bits but otherwise is a great little greyboard frame – I shall pick up some more when I see them next at a show.
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And of course the little beauty in the frame is my darling Chelsey. Thank goodness there is someone in the family who is photogenic!! (I must really like this photo, just realised I have used it before!)
So now it’s over to you to make something for the challenge at Try It On Tuesday. Remember we would like you add textures to your project.  The choice of what you do or use is up to you,  if you could tell us what you used that would be great.
This month our Sponsor is -
Smeared Ink
who are offering  a $10  prize to our  October winner.
So go on, join in!!

I am entering this piece in the following challenges:
Dream Valley Challenges #67 – Buttons
All Crafts Challenge - Anything but a Card
Natalie & Amy - Shabby Chic


Monday 14 October 2013

Shabby Chic at Crafty Cardmakers

This wasn’t what I had originally intended to do for this challenge, I had something a whole lot quicker  in mind but at some point in the last month or so I became aware that an artist whose style I had long admired was giving classes in the UK – Anna Dabrowska aka Finnabair. Of course this was after the event so to speak, and even if I had known I might not have got a place but to say I was miffed to have missed her is an understatement. So I thought I would have a go at a couple of pieces in her style, one of which was destined to become  my DT entry for the current Crafty Cardmakers theme – Shabby Chic.IMG_0907[1]
IMG_0902[1] The base for this project is an IKEA mirror frame – for some reason I decided to fill in in the mirror bit because I had this idea that I wanted a huge butterfly exploding out of the centre panel. If I had known the difficulties that butterfly would give me I would have stuck to the mirror!! I painstakingly chose some lovely shabby papers and covered the whole thing  - and then proceeded to obliterate it all with paint, ink and gesso!!
I loved using my new new ‘peacock’ stencil with artists spackle to give some texture – yum!!
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I was really pleased with my diamond ‘relief’ – they are the waste from some trellis die-cut I have. Obviously I had to stick each one down individually but the finished effect was pretty neat.
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Tried out the Kroma Crackle for even more shabbiness.



And of course there had to be flowers – these are made of UTEE using a mould.
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The problem with the butterfly was I didn’t have a stamp big enough so it had to be digital – I tried several ways of colouring and printing it but it kept turning out either too strong against the background or more matt and dull than the background. In the end I found using a Golden glossy gel medium lifted it enough without being too brash. The layering of paint and gesso to create depth takes time as you need to let them dry between applications so this was not a quick project but quite a rewarding one!!  


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Well I might not have quite nailed the look but I hope my take on the Shabby Chic theme will inspire  you to join in with to the Crafty CardMakers Challenge. This fortnight it is hosted by BettyC, who would like to see any creation, scrapbook page, altered art, or card that is 'shabby chic'. There’s lots more DT loveliness over on the blog to inspire as well.
PLEASE BE SURE TO CHECK OUT THE RULES BEFORE ADDING YOUR CREATION AND CHECK IT MEETS THE THEME. 
We are sponsored by
MILK COFFEE DIGITAL STAMPS
WITH A PRIZE OF 5 DIGIS FROM THEIR STORE
And also by SIR STAMPALOT
with a fabulous prize:-
So go on, get  crafting!!



Friday 11 October 2013

Commission Cards..


Got asked to make a couple of personalised cards when everyone was round on Monday..
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Here’s one with a bit of paper piecing.
I’m liking this style card, very simple but deceptively impressive!!



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Someone’s dad is having a landmark birthday.

And the final one is a non traditional card for a non traditional couple who’ve been together for years and years and who are getting married very quietly next week with NONE of the trimmings. Or should that be trappings?
Anyhoo the brief was not overly romantic or traditionally weddingy. So I opted for this dressing gown topper from a Kanban kit as the main image. It’s an easel card and there's a bit of embossed detail on the background which my poor photography skills haven’t quite captured.
Hope this suits, as I doubt I’ll have time to make another one!
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Wednesday 9 October 2013

What’s on Your Workdesk? Crikey is it really Wednesday??!!

I’m terribly terribly late, really have lost the plot being at home. Had no internet yesterday which hasn’t helped, and only realised it was Wednesday when I posted the October giveaway (post below, do join in!!)

Anyhoo, here’s the desk.

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Been prepping things to make tree ornaments for a Christmas fair in about 4 weeks – chipboard birds and stags. While I had the gesso out I did a little arch thing, not sure where that’s going yet. Also did some little roses made from UTEE – aren’t they adorable? They are probably going to be used for the December giveaway together with that little bird – get me, give me a few days at home and I’m all ahead of myself. Shame I don’t know what day of the week it is. And the blue hearts – trying to get the Kroma crackle right but I’m not sure about this product – takes far too long to dry for an impatient Annie like me!!

What else? Well had my Macmillan Open House Monday, so far have raised just over £300 which is going to be ‘matched’ by my new employers John Laing so really pumped about that. I’ll let you know the final total as soon as I get it – I just have one or two more things to come in.

Anyhow, I don’t expect I’ll get many visits joining in so late but I’ll pop by and see a few of you and reciprocate to those that do visit me.

Happy (what’s left of it) Wednesday!! Oh yeah, if you’re new go here – it explains it all!!

October Giveaway – Hang about, what do you mean I have to finish it myself?

Well only a little bit!!IMG_0889[1]
Here it is, I have made a little door hanger using my Julie Nutting art dolls and some Papermania Capsule papers (Spots and Stripes Festive). Here’s one side:
and here’s the other.
IMG_0890[1]But here’s the thing, I couldn’t decide what to write on it. So I thought rather than stress about it any longer the winner could decide what they want, so it could be their name, someone else’s name, ‘Keep Out’ or ‘Only enter if bearing coffee’ – you get the drift. I might even add a few flowers but I thought I’d  better hold off till I knew how long the word(s) might be.

A simple little make this month but hey, it is what it is and I have been busy. Will try and do something extra special for November. If you want to be in the draw, leave a comment here (with your desired captions if you have thought of them, but not essential) before 9pm on Sunday 27th October.


Overseas players welcome, and if you let me know you have posted on your own blog I will put you in the hat twice.
That’s all folks!!

Thursday 3 October 2013

Are you bored yet……..

IMG_0868[1]More cards to sell. There is some more interesting stuff coming along (promise!) but it takes time and I’ll be finished with my card making marathon by next Monday so you won’t have to suffer many more!!

 

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Meanwhile this is what I have been up to.Using up some bits left from a Hunky Dory kit and other odds and ends. Still keeping it simple.

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And just a few more frou frou cards……..

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Tuesday 1 October 2013

CD Crafting – more cards for MacMillan

Thought I really ought to make use of some of these CDs and digikits I keep buying. And the cards you can make with them have the advantage of being very quick if you want them to be!!

Here are a few made with the ‘Bloke’ collection from Serif (Not sure who the artist is but I’m pretty sure they do a lot of girly images as well – I have a mug and some rubber stamps in the same style). These are so simple it is almost a crime to call it card making but I think they turned out OK. Because I felt guilty they were so simple I put a matching insert inside each one.

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I bought the original ‘Frou Frou’ papers and toppers and loved it so much it is one kit where I used every single scrap up. I was really pleased to see a CD brought out by Crafters Companion earlier this year with lots of new art work as well as the original. (I don’t think the original card kit wasunder license to Crafters Companion but I could be wrong).

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The digikits loaded easily onto my Craft Artist programme and are a piece of proverbial to work with. There are some really lovely images (I have barely scratched the surface) and I have done very little to them apart from the odd bit of layering and decoupage and (of course) girly bling!!

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Hope I am not boring you with my cards – sorry, there are more to come!!

What's On Your Workdesk? Wednesday # 798

  Morning deskers, welcome to our weekly Wednesday Blog Hop WOYWW which  is now being hosted at Sarah Brennan's blog. Here's the lin...