More Sarah Kay

Hi guys!  A little while ago I showed you one of the Sarah Kay cards that we made when I was last at The Craft Barn.  Here is the other one that we made as well, although to be honest the ladies only had chance to colour up one of the images as there is quite a lot of colouring to do with these little works of art!  I must say though that they did a really fantastic job!

I just love the Sarah Kay stamps as the detail is just incredible so as soon as I saw this image (which is called Eloise and Mimi Saying Hello) I just had to have it, although as it takes a little while to colour I don't think I'll be using it on my own Christmas cards this year!

The papers are by Bo Bunny (the brown one which I decorated by stamping snowflakes onto it with white ink) and Prima which I stamped with the wording and ivy using brown ink.  (The Prima papers are absolutely gorgeous - so pretty and pastel.  I want them all!!) The snowflakes and ivy came from the Personal Impressions Snowflakes and Candies clear stamp set and the wording and small snowflake is from Woodware's Must Have Christmas Words clear stamp set.

Here's a slightly closer look of the papers. As you can see I used my Martha Stewart Snowfall edging punch as well to add some decoration to the Prima paper. (Just love this punch set.)

As you've no doubt already guessed the image was coloured using Copic markers and then stickles was added to the snow area.  (Once again I'm afraid that I can't tell you the Copic colours used due to it being a class card but I chose markers that would match the papers.)

All products on this card came from The Craft Barn.  I hope you like it!

So how is everyone's Christmas cards coming along then?  I've only just begun to make a start on mine!!

Winter Fields

Hi guys. So have any of you (in the UK) had snow yet?  We have had a few flakes falling but nothing of any substance yet!!  However for our region they are forecasting blizzards for Tuesday and Wednesday so we have been out and bought snow shovels and rock salt in preparation!!  Which of course will mean that we won't see a single snowflake now that we are all prepared!  Even without any snow it is absolutely freezing here as the current temperature is -1c - thank goodness for our log burner!

So with snow (and cold temperatures) in mind I thought I'd show you one of the cards we made at The Craft Barn last Saturday using one of the new Christmas releases by Sarah Kay.  Isn't she sweet?  This one is called Francesca in the Winter Field and being that she is so lovely I had to have her!  The background papers are by Prima and Bo Bunny and the ivy and snowflake stamps are from the Snowflakes and Candies clear stamp set by Personal Impressions and the wording is from Woodwares Must Have Xmas Words.

The image was stamped using black Memento ink and coloured using Copic markers. (Sorry can't give you the colours as this was a class card!)  The brown snowflakes were punched using a Martha Sewart edging punch from the Snowfall set.

All products used on this card including the ribbon and the self-adhesive pearls came from The Craft Barn.

Here's a closer look at the colouring for you.  As you can see I opted to create a snowy ground by adding touches of blue here and there with the grass tufts peeking up through the snow.

Hope you like it!

Everything Goes

Morning guys.  Today I thought I'd enter the current Belles and Whistles challenge of Everything Goes.  The only rule is to use a Belles 'n' Whistles stamp in your creation so that's easy for me then considering how many of these cuties I have accumulated recently!

For this card I chose to use the Tea Time stamp by Belles 'n' Whistles.  Every time I see this stamp it makes me quite envious as I would love to be sat outside just kicking back whilst having a cup of tea and a biscuit!

In a way this stamp reminds me of when I was younger as my Mum took a picture of me of when I was about 4 years old, sat on a sun lounger with a big straw hat on (to protect me from the sun), eating my marmite sandwiches!

Anyway I am digressing..................back to the card!  The background papers are by Bo Bunny, the wording is from my Fancy Flourishes stamp sheet and the image was cut using a Labels Three Nestabilities die.

I stamped the main image onto Craftwork Cards Digital Smooth cardstock (which is just excellent to use with your Copics) in Tuxedo Black Memento ink and then coloured her using Copics. (I don't currently have the list of Copic colours with me but if I find some time I'll edit this later to include them.)  You might also just be able to distinguish that I add a slight shadow around the girl using a light blue Copic (B60), just to give a hint of sky around her.

All the products used on this card (apart from the Digital cardstock) are from The Craft Barn.

Watering The Flowers

Hi guys.  Sorry for being absent for a few days, but you know what it's like!!

Today I thought I'd enter this card into the Belles 'n' Whistles Warm Colours Challenge.  The main image is of course a Belles 'n' Whistles stamp called 'Watering', the papers are from the Double Dots range by Bo Bunny, the flowers are a mixture of Petaloo and punched out flowers and the flourishes and wording (stamped in Brushed Corduroy Distress Ink) are from my Fancy Flourish stamp sheet.

I tinted the paper Petaloo flowers using a light orange coloured Copic so that they matched the card.

I stamped the main image using a black Versafine inkpad onto watercolour paper and coloured her using Distress Inkpads - Antique Linen, Tattered Rose, Frayed Burlap, Walnut Stain, Bundled Sage, Shabby Shutters and Pumice Stone.

All of the products mentioned came from The Craft Barn.

Talking of Belles 'n' Whistles - for those of you who haven't seen it yet I have got a 4 page project in the (current) September issue of Craft Stamper using some of these delightful stamps along with Copic markers. The project concentrates on showing you different ways of grounding your imagery to give a more realistic result to standing/kneeling figures and in the next  issue  of the magazine (October), I have an article showing you a few more tricks on how to 'ground' sitting figures too.

Wishing Well Wishes

Hi guys.  This is going to be a quickish post from me today as I've just got back from the chiropractor and am supposed to be resting! 

Todays card is the other card we made back in June at The Craft Barn!!  Yes I know it's been a long time in coming!!  I still have lots of cards to show you from the June Extravaganza too!!  I'll get around to it sometime I promise!

Anyway back to this card. The papers are by Bo Bunny and I stamped on them using flourishes from my Fancy Flourishes stamp sheet.  (The wording is from this sheet to.)

The main image is a Belles 'n' Whistles stamp called Wishes and is coloured using Distress inkpads first with Copic Spica pens added afterwards for some subtle shimmer which you can't see from this photo.  You'll just have to take my word for it!

All products came from The Craft Barn.  And talking of The Craft Barn it won't be long now until their September Extravaganza which is being held on 11th and 12th September at both the Community Centre and The Victoria Club.  I hope to see you there!!

Milton

Well in my last post I introduced you to Mille so this time I felt it was Milton's turn!  This particular image is called Milton With Card and again he is by Wild Rose Studio.  The background paper is by Bo Bunny and is called Peacock Lane/Tweet, the flowers are from the Athena range by Prima, the leaves are a punch and the wording came from my Fancy Flourishes stamp sheet. The sheer ribbon was originally white but I coloured it with a Copic marker to match the rest of the card.

I stamped Milton using Tuxedo Black Memento ink and coloured him with Copics.  I added some sparkle to the Prima flowers using Platinum glitter glue.

Here's a closer look at the colouring of Milton so you can see that I added some texture to some of his fur to make him more scruffy looking than Millie. This was done by using a flicking motion using my second darkest fur colour of E33.

COPIC COLOURS
Fur - E35, E33, Y11, Y000 and E30
Inner ears - R20 and R22
Card - V15, V01 and V000
Ground - C5, C3 and C1
Dotty background - C1, V01 and V000

Millie

Morning everyone.  So sorry for my lack of postings this month!!  I do have loads of cards to show you I just keep running out of time to blog!  Anyway today I have managed to snatch a few minutes and thought I'd share this card with you that I made for The Glitter Pot when I was there demoing the other Saturday.  The stamp is from Wild Rose Studio and is called Millie With Pot.  I think she is so sweet!  There is also a male teddy bear called Milton who is just as adorable.  Infact Wild Rose Studio have just released some Christmas stamps featuring Millie and Milton and I can't decide which one I like the best!  Click here to see.

Anyway back to the card.............I used my Nestabilities Labels Twelve die to stamp Millie onto and two of my Martha Stewart punches edging punches - Floral Lace and Flower Patch to add some interest to the actual card.  The backing paper is by Bo Bunny and the punched out swirls were done with an EK Success punch.

I stamped Millie using Tuxedo Black Memento ink and then coloured her using Copics which of course I just LOVE!  I wanted her to look very smooth and neat (as if she takes pride in her appearance!) so I blended the colours really well to give her a nice smooth appearance.  (For the male teddy Milton, I actually made him more textured looking, in order to make him look more scruffy, which I'll show you another time.)

Here's a closer look at Millie so you can see how the colours blended together.  I think I am right in saying that I actually used 5 different colours to achieve this result.   As you can see I also added a soft background to her using the Copics.  Once I'd finished my colouring I used a few different colours of the Copic Spica pens to add some subtle shimmer and then applied some Stardust glitter glue.

COPIC COLOURS
Fur - E35, Y13, Y11, Y000 and E30
Inner ears - R20 and R22
Flower pot - C5, C3 and C1
Flowers and leaves - Y13, V15, V000, BG15, BG10, YG06, YG03 and G20
Dress and hair bow - V09, V15, V01 and V000
Ground - C5, C3 and C1
Spotty background - B00, B32, BG000, and V000

I hope you like the result!

Little Miss MissMatch

Hi guys.  I thought I'd share this card with you today that I made some time ago as part of my DT work for The Craft Barn.  I really like the colour scheme of this one as I thought the pink and aqua colours really complemented each other.  The main stamp is called MissMatch and is from the Ketto range by Stamping Bella.  Isn't she great?  The DP is from the Alyssa range by Bo Bunny which came from The Craft Barn - not too sure if they still have it now.  The stamped and embossed flower sprigs came from my Daisy Flutters stamp sheet.  The circles along the bottom of the card are the Craftwork Cards Card Candy.

I stamped Miss Match with Tuxedo Black ink and coloured her using my Copic markers. By using the lighter colours of markers I was able to give her a nice pastel look to go with the rest of the card. (Can't remember now which colours they were though!)  I then added lots of Stardust glitter glue to the card to give lots of sparkle. 

All products came from The Craft Barn.

Glitter and Pearls

Morning guys.  Well I must say that I am most impressed with The Glitter Pot's new premises as it is absolutely HUGE!!  The Glitter Pot team must have been working overtime as I couldn't believe how straight it was looking and how much stock they had got out and organised already - what an achievement!!  They still have lots to do to get it just how they want it with sorting out some of the other rooms and putting in a lift etc... but at least they are back up and running again.  Their new classroom is sooooo much bigger than their last one and has a lovely feel to it.

My thanks to everyone who stopped by my table yesterday and kept me company!  It is always lovely to see some friendly faces!

Well onto todays card and I thought I'd have a go at entering another challenge!  This time I'm entering the Belles and Whistles Glitter and Pearls challenge and have used a B&W stamp called Wishes. (As I think we all know by now I just LOVE these stamps and The Craft Barn now have all the latest ones in too and I'm definitely wanting them all!!)  The wording and background flourishes on the card were taken from my Fancy Flourishes stamp sheet.

You'll notice that I am getting some use out of my Martha Stewart punches too as I have used the Floral Lace Edging Punch and the Monarch Butterfly on this card.  The Sweet Pear paper is from the Double Dots range by Bo Bunny - just love these papers as they go with anything and are great to stamp over too!

I punched the Monarch Butterflies out from Tutu Double Dots Bo Bunny paper and added a little touch of colour to them using my Copic markers. Self-adhesive pearls were used for their bodies. I hand drew the wiggly frame around the main panel using the fine end of a Sepia Marvy Marker and then traced over it with Platinum glitter glue.

The wishing well image was stamped using Tuxedo Black Memento ink and coloured in using my Copic markers. You can't see it very well from this photo but I also added a delicate sky area around the Wishing Well too using Copic markers in B63 and B60. To add some glimmer I coloured selected areas using Copic Spica pens and then added touches of Diamond glitter glue.

The whole card was then sprayed with Iridescent Gold glimmer mist so lots of different layers of glimmer and sparkle happened on this card!  Everything used on this card came from The Craft Barn except for the Retro Flower punch and the Sepia pen.

Anyway hope you like it!

Scarlett In Pink

Morning everyone. First of all my thanks to all the ladies that were on my classes on Saturday - you all made it such a lovely day and each of you did a splendid job with your cards!  I do hope that you were pleased with them!  I am back at The Craft Barn again teaching on the 24th July incase anyone fancies it - more details for this can be found in My Event Diary on my sidebar.

Today I wanted to share with you a card I've made for the Stamping Bella In Pink theme that is being shown over on The Craft Barn's blog.  The rest of the DT have also made some beautiful cards for this. Click here to go and see!

Do you remember those Bo Bunny Double Dots background papers that I had to have a little while ago from The Craft Barn?  Well as you can see I used one of these sheets for my background along with a paper out of the 6x6 Porcelain Basic Grey paper pad which I bought at the same time!  They really work well together don't they?  I punched the Basic Grey paper with my favourite Martha Stewart punch (Floral Lace) - I just had to use this one as it went so well with the image!  I then used my mini daisy punch to punch out some extra flowers to go along the base of my card and added a self-adhesive pearl to the centre of each one. The wording came from my Fancy Flourish stamp sheet and I was delighted to find that the pink ribbon (from The Craft Barn) was an absolute perfect match for the paper!!

I used my Labels Twelve Nestabilities dies for the main image which I cut out using my Cuttlebug. Scarlett The Teacup Girl was then stamped centrally using Tuxedo Black Memento ink and then coloured using Copic markers. The background was also created using the Copic markers. As you can see I used those self-adhesive pearls again for the centres of the daisies in her hair.

Once I had finished all my colouring I used some Smooch Illuminate on the daisies,  (I've angled the card in this photo so that you can see the shine that this gives - fab isn't it!) and then used Stardust glitter glue around the edge of the die cut.  I hope you like it! 

Don't forget to head on over to The Craft Barn's blog too to check out the rest of the cards that the DT made. While you're there, if you scroll down a bit to one of the Extravaganza posts you can also see a really bad photo of me!! (And yes I was talking at the time - but then again when aren't I?? Lol!)

Never Enough Hours In The Day.........

Well I think that I am finally starting to make some headway and with a bit of luck by next week I will have caught up with everything that I need to do!!

So sorry that I've been a little quiet this week but I've been trying to get everything done that needs to be done - I'm sure you know how it is!!  Tomorrow I am off to The Craft Barn to take my classes using the Belles 'n' Whistles stamps so I thought I'd take this opportunity to show you one of the cards that I made for the Extravaganza Weekend using the Belles 'n' Whistles Cupcake stamp. (And no this isn't one of the cards we'll be making tomorrow!) 

Infact Belles 'n' Whistles have currently got a challenge going over on their blog to make a card using the colours White, Pink and Brown so I thought I'd enter this card for it.

The background for the card was made using Bo Bunny Double Dot papers in Almond Dot, which I stamped over using my fine flourish stamp off of my Fancy Flourish stamp sheet. (The wording also came from this sheet too.) As you can see I used my Martha Stewart Cupcake punch for this card to create my border and the whole of the card was lightly spritzed using Iridescent Gold Glimmer Mist.

I coloured my Belles 'n' Whistles image using Copics in shades of pink and brown and then lightly distressed around the panel using Antique Linen Distress ink and a blending tool.  I used the same inkpad to ink up the fine flourish stamp to create a border down the left side of the panel.

Here's a closer look so you can see the colouring a bit better of the image. You can't really tell from this photo but once I'd finished colouring the image with my Copic Ciaos I then used the Copic Spicas to add some shimmer here and there before using small amounts of Diamond  and Platinum glitter glue.  So all in all this is one very sparkly card!!

Scarlett The Teacup Girl in Aqua

Hi guys.  As you can see the blog has been tweaked a little now in order to add a little more colour to it.

Today I thought it would be nice to show you the other card I made using that same Scarlett The Teacup Girl stamp by Stamping Bella that I showed the other day - this time in a colour scheme that is far more me!!

I stamped and embossed two shades of Bazzill cardstock using two different sizes of stamps from my Daisy Flutters un-mounted stamp sheet using a Versamark inkpad and an old embossing powder that I had in my stash called Bridal.  Then I coloured the daisy heads using a clear Copic Spica marker. The wording also came from this same stamp sheet.  The daisy border was done using one of my new Martha Stewart punches called Doily Lace Trim which I thought was the perfect choice to go with the daisies on the image and the background!  The little snippets of paper you can see are from Bo Bunny, the flowers are Prima and the brads came from The Craft Barn.  Then of course there is my Labels Twelve nestabilitie dies that I used for my main image.  (See I do actually get around to using the stuff I buy - eventually!!)

And here is a closer look at Scarlett herself which I stamped with Graphite Black Brilliance and heat set before colouring her with both Copic Ciaos and Copic Spicas to add a little sparkle. To embellish her further I added some self-adhesive pearls to the centres of the daisies, that came from The Craft Barn and then made her sparkle even more with some Stardust glitter glue.  Unfortunately the photo doesn't do her justice!!

Anyway I hope you like her!!

Little Miss Missmatch

Morning guys.  Just recently I've been busy creating some cards with the Stamping Bella range of stamps as part of my DT work for The Craft Barn.  So today I thought I'd share a card with you that I created using one of the Ketto range of stamps called Missmatch.  Isn't she lovely?  She always makes me smile when I look at her as she looks as if she is practising her pirouettes - and in those boots too!!!

I used both my Large Oval and Scalloped Large Oval Nestabilities dies for my main image then for the actual card I used Bo Bunny Alissa Twirls background paper which I punched using my Martha Stewart Daisy Edger. The panel of pink Bazzill card was embossed using my Cuttlebug Daisy Pattern embossing folder and to keep the daisy theme going I punched out some daisy flowers using a tiny daisy punch.

As for Missmatch herself - I stamped her using Graphite Black Brilliance which I heat set before colouring her with Copics. Then added some Stickles here and there to make her shine!!

I hope you like it!

By the way don't forget that The Craft Barn are currently offering a £30 Goodie Bag and all you need to do to be in with a chance of winning it is to head on over to their blog and become a follower!

Whiff Of Joy GD Challenge

Hi guys!  I thought that I would be brave and have a go at entering Whiff Of Joy's GD challenge which is currently running.  I love the Whiff Of Joy range of stamps so to be able to work with them for a couple of months would be a dream job!

The challenge is to follow a recipe -
1 x cardstock, 2 x pieces of patterned paper, 1 ribbon and 1 button!  This was SO hard to do as I do like to embellish my cards with extra little bits but I am quite proud of myself as I followed this recipe to the letter.  (I did wrap my piece of ribbon around my card twice but I did only use one piece so hopefully this is ok!!)

The papers I used were by Bo Bunny (black) and Basic Grey (light blue).  As you can see I embellished my one piece of cardstock by punching it with my Martha Stewart Eyelet Lace punch that came from Stamp Addicts.  I also added a little subtle stamping to the background papers too by using my Judikins Mince Flourish stamp (also from Stamp Addicts) around the edges of the papers but I kept this very muted so that all the focus would be on the main image.  Then in two of the corners I applied some dots of Baby Blue Liquid Pearls

Here is a close up of my main panel which is of Willow With Flower Basket.  I stamped her with Graphite Black Brilliance and coloured her using Copics.  I also subtlety stamped that Mince Flourish again around the edges of the panel using a light blue inkpad and then overstamped the wording which came from the Tiny Phrases stamp set by Woodware.

Lastly I added some faux stitching with a fine black pen and then applied some Stardust glitter glue to parts of Willow, the grass area and around the main panel.

Fingers crossed!!!!!!!!!!!

Pretty Pastels

Hey guys!!  Well it is almost the weekend which means that it is not long now until I get my Dancing On Ice fix!!

This week I have been busy making a special card for my Auntie as she will be having a party this weekend to celebrate her 65th birthday and also her retirement.  It took me ages to decide on what to do for her and in the end I cheated and used one of my pictures from my Art Deco Ladies Clinton Cards calendar as I know that she likes them!  I'll load it up in the next few days and show you the result.  I have been days making this card as I wanted it to look just right and kept changing my mind on the layers of cardstock!  There is absolutely no stamping on the card at all or any colouring so it really shouldn't have taken me very long at all!!  I don't think that I have ever made a card with no stamping on it before!!

Anyway here is a card that does have stamping on it and colouring too!  This was made using the Sarah Kay Precious Moments stamp which is just so sweet and then coloured using Copics.  Everything that you see on this card (apart from the 'best wishes' wording) is available from The Craft Barn.  The background paper that you see is by Bo Bunny and the cut out sentiment is a Craftwork Cards Oh My Words message.

If you like this card you might like to hop on over to The Craft Barn's blog as they have some more Sarah Kay cards showing today too.

Here She Is Again!

Morning guys.  Today I thought I would share Lulu with you again but this time using a different layout and some different papers.  I actually show you how I colour Lulu in my Colouring Techniques DVD using Copic Ciaos and Copic Spica markers.

As you already know from yesterday's post, Lulu and the other Ketto stamps can be purchased from The Craft Barn as too can my DVD's.

The papers are by Bo Bunny and I honestly can't remember where they came from and the wording is one of the die-cut birthday messages by Craftwork Cards that I also purchased from The Craft Barn. 

This ended up being a very quick card to make as the only thing that was stamped here was Lulu and of course she doesn't take much colouring!!

Glitter Pot Demo

Hi guys. First of all a big thank you to everyone who took the time and trouble to comment on yesterday's post - I do appreciate it and am glad that you like the look of the new designs!

Well today I thought it was about time I stopped boring you all with talk of the forthcoming stamp sheets and have loaded up a card that I did for the Glitter Pot Demo Weekend. This was another one that I ended up not taking with me due to that Bo Bunny paper at the base of the card!

I really enjoyed myself on Saturday as I do love demoing and sharing my passion with everyone. I have most definitely missed demoing at the shows so far this year.

The flower and background stamps are by Penny Black and the bee has been stamped, coloured and shrunk on frosted shrink plastic and is from the Stampendous clear set of Flutterfly Friends. All the colouring was done with Coloursoft pencils, paper stumps and Sansador. I really like this method of colouring as you can get the colours to blend together seamlessly so well with very little effort. Anyway I hope you like it!!

All the materials used (apart from the Bo Bunny paper!) are available from The Glitter Pot.

At Last!! A Card!!

Hi guys. Just to prove that I have actually been working this week on making cards as well as the stamp sheets, here is one of the cards that I had made for The Glitter Pot but won't be taking with me tomorrow due to one of the papers being discontinued!

I hope you like it! The stamps I have used are all by Penny Black and are currently in stock although I don't know if they will be by the end of tomorrow! The paper on the left has been discontinued but was by Bo Bunny and the one on the right is by My Minds Eye. The type of shrink plastic that I used is 'frosted' which is pre-sanded one side and clear on the other.

Don't forget to call back over the weekend to see some of the new designs!