Family and friends

A journal page for Try It On Tuesday challenge which is Friends/ family.  I have used one of my favourite family photos which is special because the whole family is on it, usually there is at least one missing who was taking the photo, I think my Brother-in-law took this.  Sprayed inks for the background and stamped all over with some Hero Art stamps ( sorry to admit that some of them had never been use and were still wrapped in cellophane in their box)  I have added seven flowers as there are seven of us in the photo and three butterflies to represent the three who are no longer with us. Added some chit chat stickers to finish off. I'm new to Art Journals but I did enjoy making this.

Poppies

Today is my sister's birthday and this is the card I sent her. I thought this poppy stamp by Inkylicious was appropriate for Armistice day too.  Coloured with water colour paints and the sentiment is from a freebie set. I'd like to enter my card into

Allsorts Challenge - Poppies/ Red

Make someone smile

I love this little Penny Black Lookout Stamp, who could help but smile looking at the cheeky grin on his face . It's my next door neighbours 86th Birthday tomorrow and I had been using this stamp to make a card for her. Her cat sits on her window sill like this but it's really not a very nice cat having bitten her several times but she loves it, I just give it a wide berth ! I'd like to enter my card into Penny Black and more challenge - make someone smile

Pile It On Challenge - Pets

Follow the star

I expect everyone is busy getting on with making Christmas cards, I seem to be struggling to get going this year however it's time for a new challenge at Stamping Sensations and we are asking for your Christmas cards/projects this month.  As we are a stamping challenge we MUST see stamping and it must be the focal point of your project, any entry not meeting the rules of the challenge will not be eligible for the prize or top three places. This month we are sponsored by Swedish House Crafts.
For my card I have used a mixture of stamps, the house is Hobby Arts, trees and deer are Inkylicious and the rabbits are Cardio.  Hope you will join us in our challenge this month.

Pretty Poinsettias

Time for a new challenge over at Christmas Sparkles and Debs has chosen the challenge of "show us some embossing."

I haven't bought any new Christmas stamps this year so I'm digging out some old ones to re use . The poinsettia flower is one of oldest ones but I have used it loads over the years, this time I gold embossed it and water coloured it using Koh-In-Noor brights.  Used a new embossing folder for the background (free with a magazine last week)The die cut squares are fancy nesting squares from Craft Making Magic.  In hindsight I should maybe have used a darker green on the embossing folder but I'm still quite happy with this card. Hope to see you entering our challenge and adding to your Christmas card stack !

Thankful

Time for a new challenge at Try It On Tuesday and this time it is "Thankful" this can be anything you are thankful for, a thank you card or note, harvest thanks or for our American friends , Thanksgiving.

For my card I have used an Artistic Outpost stamp for the main image, background stamping is Stampin Up French Foliage and I think the leaves were Inkylicious. Hope to see you at our challenge

It's Rudolph Day Time Again

I don't know where  the time goes these days, I seem to get less and less done although I am busy doing something all day. I'm really trying to get cracking with my Christmas cards but I feel like I am fighting a losing battle. I did make a few of these last week using up some inky papers and a new to me 6x6 holly die from Craft Stash. it cuts out beautifully and I like the fact it has a separate outer die .The stamp is, of course, lovely as a tree from Stampin up, my go to Christmas tree stamp for the last few years. The sentiment is an old stamp from Butterfly Kisses. I'd like to enter my card into Maureen's Rudolph day challenge ( only one more to go after this) 

Trick or Treat 2

I thought I had already posted this but seems I haven't.  There is still time to enter the challenge over at Try It On Tuesday where there are plenty of spooky creations ! I have used a mixture of stamps on here, Lavinia, Crafty Roo,Graphic 45 and Stampendous.

I'd like to enter these challenges

Simon Says Stamp Monday challenge  - Halloween
and
Unicorn Challenge - Autumn or Halloween

Chinese lanterns

I grew Chinese Lanterns when I was a child from some seeds that a neighbour gave me but I have never been able to grow them anywhere else since. I bought a plant on a market a few weeks ago but it doesn't look very happy now in my garden.  I have had this Penny Black stamp a while now, it was a gift from my sister and I have not really used it before. This time I used my Misti to stamp it with several different colours and think I've finally managed a halfway decent card with it !

There is still plenty of time to enter Stamping Sensations Autumn colours challenge but don't forget your entry MUST have stamping as the focal interest to be considered for the prize or top three.

Trick or Treat

A new challenge at Try It On Tuesday and this time it is Trick or treat- It's Halloween. For my card I have used a new Crafty Individuals stamp I bought at Port Sunlight stampers festival earlier this month. I must say I spent ages making a journal page for this but in the end decided it was far too fussy and started again with a much simpler card.The moon and background are done with pan

pastels,the bats are a mini set from Crafty Roo and the twiggy bits are Inkylicious. The verse from Edgar Alan Poe's Raven poem is also from a Crafty Individuals set, a bit small to read on here.

The team have some fabulous samples over on the challenge site so hope you will pay them a visit and then join in our challenge.

Messy journal page

I am fairly new to art journalling and I must admit I am not finding it as easy as I thought I would be!
I really wanted to play with this raven stamp from Crafty Individuals that I bought at Port Sunlight show. I got a bit carried away with the background and then found it was too dark when I came to stamp the raven so had to use a bit of bleach and give him a golden glow ! I'm sadly lacking in inspiration again right now, I really need to get going with Christmas cards but can't summon up Mr Mojo to give me a nudge !

Shades of Autumn

The new challenge at Stamping Sensations which starts today is "Shades of Autumn"   For my card I have chosen to stamp an autumn wreath using lots of little stamps which were free with Creative Stamping magazine.  We are sponsored this month by Stamp Addicts.

As we are a stamping challenge your entry must feature stamping as the main image of your project, we want to see more than a small sentiment or a last minute added butterfly for you to be considered for the prize or top three. If we do not comment it is because your entry does not meet the challenge theme or it is on Splitcoast/ Flikre/Facebook  etc as not all the design team can access these sites.

Black and white and one other colour

Time for a new challenge at Try It On Tuesday and this time the challenge is to use black and white plus one other colour. For my card I have used a Crafty Individuals stamp and a couple of small Artistic Outpost stamps. This is not at all what I had intended doing but not been feeling very well this last week so didn't get any crafting done.   Hope you will visit the challenge blog and see the lovely samples by the design team.

Card for a child

Can't believe it's October already and it's time for a new challenge at

Sparkles Christmas

This month Sybrinka has chosen the challenge and it is to make a card suitable for a child.

My card is a 10 minute make as I had forgotten to do one !  The image and papers were a magazine

freebie, probably last year, I just found them in a stack of magazines I had been clearing out.

Hope you will join us in our Christmas challenge.

Season of mist and mellow fruitfulness .......

Been trying to sort out some drawers full of wooden stamps with the idea that maybe I could get rid of some of them, needless to say they have gone back in the drawers with hardly any exceptions.During this I came across this pear stamp which is an old Anita one.  It made me think that Autumn is not only about leaves but the harvest of fruit and grain etc.  I got out my "proper" water colour paints for this one which is something I should do more often, just added the little punched leaves in the corner as it looked a bit bare.  Challenges entered

Ellibelle's crafty wednesday - signs of Autumn

The Sisterhood of crafters - Fall is in the air

That's crafty challenge - Forever  Autumn

Moving along with the times - Autumn/fall