All in a Line

I have numerous small stamps that I find difficulty in incorporating into my card designs. So I decided last week to try and group a few together. I chose these -

 I drew a vertical line with a pencil on a piece of white card to make sure that I got the images aligned. ( rubbed out later)

I coloured them with Spectrum Aqua watercolour pens and then cut the card to size. This was then layered on the two more pieces of card.

I used my Mini Perfect Layers tool to make the cuts equal on all sides. This was then mounted on to an A6 card blank.


So when I visited Less is More and discovered that this week's challenge theme was REPETITION, I knew that this would fit the bill. A clairvoyant moment!

The stamps are from a  Crafters Companion box of little stamps that were given to me as a gift by a friend. I will certainly try to use them more in the future.

Take Flight

I recently purchased some Brusho pigment powders and have been playing with them today  - with a break to watch Andy Murray win the Wimbledon final.

I started by wetting watercolour card and then dropped the powders on to its surface.  The great thing with this method is that you never know what you are going to end up with. You are forced to take inspiration from the result.

I immediately saw a daisy like flower emerging so used a water pen and the fine tip of my Spectrum Aqua pens to delineate the petals.  I stamped a Sheena Douglass butterfly stamp with Versafine ink and then removed some of the colour from its wings to give an illusion of depth. The sentiment came with the butterfly stamp.

As I used yellow pigment and have included a butterfly and it is intended as a card for someone who is leaving behind her final school year and is moving on to a new phase in her life, I am entering it into the Butterfly Challenge where the brief is:

#57  Butterflies + Y is for Year with the additional option of  Y is for the colour Yellow. 

I know that there is no direct reference to a "year" but I hope that the inference is understood.

Latest Purchase

I am trying not to buy any more supplies until I have at least used some of my stock of unused resources - of which there are many.  But...I just couldn't resist owning Penny Black's Pure Iris cling rubber stamp.

I justified it by telling myself that it would help me with my watercolour painting.

This card is my first attempt. I used Spectrum Aqua pens to colour and stamp the image on to a white watercolour card panel. I then just moved the colour around with a water brush. I applied Distress Ink Old Paper to the edges before mounting on to a 6" by 6" card blank.

The result is quite basic but I hope to be more adventurous the next time I use it.

I'm entering it on to the challenge at Penny Black and More  where this month it is:
            ********Anything Goes with a Stamp********

It's also "Anything Goes" at Addicted to Stamps and More so it is on its way there too.

Just a Note

This CAS card has been somewhat troublesome in the making! The brief over at Less is More challenge was for a One Layer Card with the theme of 

Splatters

But... the "one layer" didn't register in my brain and I made a panel before attaching it to a blank card.

Now, "splatters" is one of my fortes, although they are of the unintentional sort, so..... this is my 4th attempt.

I applied Brusho paint medium to a feather stencil then over stamped  the matching feather ( HOTP) with black Versafine. The intentional splatters are from a set of Ink Splats by Visible Image. The sentiment came free with a magazine, as did the feather stamp and stencil. 

Phew ... off to the empty the waste paper bin!

Purple Butterflies

 It's COLOUR week over at the Less is More Challenge blog and the colour that has been chosen is PURPLE.

Here is my submission:

The leafy swirl stamp is by Clarity and the butterfly is by Visible Image which has been coloured with Spectrum Aqua Pens.
I used a clear sparkle pen on the wings( I'm a little addicted).

The sentiment is from Clearly Besotted.

I wanted to frame the image without adding more colour so embossed a line around the perimeter of the 6" by 6" card.

By the Sea

I have a passion for puffins so this evening my OH and I set off to visit  Fowlsheugh RSBP reserve, which is about 20 miles from us, in the hope of seeing some of these beautiful birds. The sun was shining but it was very windy. Being so close to the cliff edge, I was more than a little nervous. Unfortunately, although we witnessed thousands of birds returning to the cliff  face for the night, we thought that we had not seen any puffins.  It wasn't until we got home and looked at the photos that we discovered that we had indeed captured a couple.  (top left!!)

I don't have any puffin stamps but , staying with the watery theme, I rediscovered a fish that, until now, was unused. This has become the focal point for my entry to this week's Less is More sketch challenge.

The diagonal element was achieved by hand embossing bubbles from an embossing folder. A bit tricky but it achieved the desired effect. I coloured the fish with Crafters Companion watercolour pens and finished with CC clear sparkle pen.  This was then cut out and using 3D foam pads, attached it to the card.

Ahoy There!

This week's challenge over at the  Less is More blog involves a one layer card with a nautical theme entitled......... At Sea.


I love to be given the opportunity to make cards for children and I have used this Clearly Besotted pirate ship several times before. It is difficult of come up with different ways of using it so a one layer card was a perfect technique to get the brain working.

There was a lot of masking involved.   The ship took ages to cut out but using Zig Two Way Glue enabled it to be held in place securely and also easily lifted afterwards.
I brushed Stormy Skies Distress Ink for the sky with the cloud masked in the same way as the ship.   The waves ( Distress Inks Peacock Feathers), cloud and birds (Adirondack Slate) are from a Kanban set. I had to think carefully about masking to achieve the ship looking as if it was in the sea as apposed to on it.

Pastel Poppies

The weather in the north east of Scotland has been glorious  , so I ditched the housework for "gardenwork". I have a perennial problem with Welsh Poppies.  Their delicate yellow blooms were once a welcome addition to my borders but now they pop up everywhere and my other plants have to compete with the current invasion.

So, somehow, it feels a bit wrong of me to choose a poppy stamp  for my entry into the Simply Less is More  Colour challenge this week!

Pastel shades in a clean and simple style

Both the image and sentiment are by Clearly Besotted. I used Dried Marigold Distress Ink and Blossom, Marigold and Moss Spectrum Aqua pens, spritzing the stamps before applying to watercolour card. I gave the image a quick spritz after stamping to diffuse the colour even more.  The sentiment was stamped with Adirondack Slate ink.

To finish, I mixed blue mica powder with water and lightly splattered the background.

Less is More Challenge 274

This week's  Less is More challenge is to use -


            Designer paper in a CAS style.

I've been busy in the greenhouse this week - trying to make up for lost time because of  the recent poor weather - so I haven't had too much time for crafting.


Happily, I had just finished this card that I think fits the bill. 

The spotted paper is an offcut that has been lurking in my " still useful" box.
Other items used- embossed panel; Clearly Besotted stamps and dies; Personal Impressions sentiment; bakers twine; 3D foam pads; clear gems.







          

                                                        

                           

Japanese Dragon

I recently visited Japan on holiday and had searched my stash for anything  Oriental with the intention of making some scrapbook pages to remind me of my stay.  So, when I saw that this week's theme over at the Less is More Challenge blog was to include  Saints, Dragons or Heroes I knew had the perfect stamp at hand.  I purchased this stamp in 2008 and it had not seen the light of day until now!

 The background was created by wiping two Distress inks across a mounting block and spritzing it with water.


I stamped the image with black ink before heat embossing it.  I then coloured it with Spectrum Aqua pens.

The panel has been raised slightly using 3D foam pads.

A New Challenge

I used to enter several challenges in the past but not for a long while.

I have decided to join in with the challenge over at CAS(E) this Sketch,   This is the sketch for this week.

and here is my take on it:



.

I embossed the purple DCWV metallic textured  cardstock with a Darice folder before cutting the heart shape with a Sizzix paddle punch.  I glued a small piece of glitter card to the base card so that it would show through the heart aperture. 

Brrrrr....

After some lovely days last week, we have returned to some wintry weather up here in Aberdeen.  This was the scene in my garden yesterday.  The snow began to fall early in the evening and I had to scramble to protect the lettuce plugs that I had planted in the morning.

The snow has disappeared today but it is still very cold.

I took  the opportunity of staying indoors to make this card.

The stamp used is one from a  border set that I bought years ago ( not sure of manufacturer).  I decided  to use this as a base for my entry to this week's Less is More challenge:

                                           It's Recipe Week

and we would like you to include

a TAG on your project

 I just added a circular tag to house the sentiment.

Less is More Challenge - Thank You

The title of this blog looks as if I'm thanking Less is More.  I was going to change it but it occurred to me that I do have to thank Chrissie and her team for bringing back my mojo from where it was hiding. 


                                                    The  ONE LAYER theme 

this week is 

                                          THANK YOU! 

 

I have been (yet again) sorting out my stamps.  I really enjoy doing this because I forget what I own!  I came across a Hero Arts set - Scattered Leaves- that I hadn't used at all. I noticed that one of the leaves had a "Thank You" dictionary definition on the surface so I decided that this would perfect for the focus of my design for this challenge.

 

Accurate positioning was crucial in my design so I used my Fiskars stamp press to align the 3 leaves. I bought this from the internet and when it arrived I thought that it was grossly overpriced for what it was but I have found it invaluable - especially for lining up texts. 

The blue and purple inks are part of a collection of Duo Daubers that must be over 12yrs old. I am astounded that the ink is still wet!

 

The sentiment is from Stampin Up. The card blank is 6" by 6"

 

 

Sew and then Sew

 I've had the sewing machine out for the last few days.  I had a request to make some of my iPad beanbags and subsequently decided to look for new fabric to add to my stock. I came across this owl print - and I had to have it. 






So, when it came to the Less is More challenge this week, I decided to incorporate  the sewing machine in the creation of my design. Here is the theme:

                                           Three Colours

or 

Three Shades of One Colour

 

 

I keep all of my scraps of card in separate colour collections so I went for the blue hues folder.

I chose a Sizzix heart die set to cut the hearts out of card and funky foam. I originally had meant to use the hearts alone but I felt the need to add the central vertical card strips.  These were secured into place with a line of machine stitching.  All that was left to do was to add the sentiment.

Black Birds in the Sky

It's sketch time over at  Less is More this week.

 

I am not too good at thinking outside the box with sketches. I tend to stick to the same layout. Some crafters are very inventive with their interpretations and there are quite a few in this week's submissions to date.

 

Here is my card.

The chalks and the Spellbinders circle die were still on my desk from a previous challenge entry so I started there.  I really love the Clarity hummingbirds stamps (there are more than this one). The title of this post may be misleading but there is a space between the words and I have used Black Versafine ink to stamp!
 

I stamped the wing twice more and cut them out to add to the impression of flight. I then die cut a circle from card and used the aperture as a mask before applying chalk to create the sky. I then ran a pen around the aperture to link the two birds together.

I photographed the card in the garden (between showers) and looked up to see a buzzard circling above. As I had the camera in my hand, I took a picture.  Too far away to be clear but lovely to see anyway.

 



 



 

A Far Away Friend

A friend recently moved permanently to Harris in the Outer Hebrides. She was married on a beach there a couple of years ago.  How romantic is that?  I have seen many photos of the beautiful scenery that she wakes up to every morning.  I hope to visit her some day.







So when I saw the latest challenge at Addicted to CAS was.....

....I decided to play along and use Harris as my inspiration.

I used a brayer to apply Distress Inks ( Scattered Straw, Peacock Feathers, Peeled Paint) for the sand, sea and land, tearing paper to  delineate each section. I lightly applied D I Stormy Skies with a sponge to create the sky. The card that was used is from  Clarity Stamp which has a shiny surface and takes to ink well.  The finished image was mounted on to a 6" by 6" textured card.  No sentiment this time.

Up and Away

Such a lovely day here in Aberdeen.  I have been taking some photos in the garden that I will share with you. (The crocuses were photographed a couple of weeks ago).

I set out to make a one layer card today that would be suitable for the Less is More 166 challenge.
The colour challenge this month is:

A Touch Of Turquoise

 

I am also submitting it  to Virginia's View Challenge blog which requires the use of a stencil.

 

I had a die-cut that I had cut from card using my Silhouette so decided that I would use it as a stencil to create a background. The butterfly was stamped first before covering with a mask.  I used a natural sponge to lightly apply Peacock Feathers Distress Ink when the stencil was in place.

Sentiment - from a Hero Arts set.
Butterfly - from a Martha Stewart set

 

Round Again!

I promised myself that I would use the stamp that was the focus of my Less is More Week 165 Challenge entry again before it went back into the drawer.

This time I chose to stamp the image 3 times before paper-piecing with striped paper from a K & CO pad. I have never entered 2 cards in the same week before but...... here goes.

Round and Round We Go

Just remembered that it was April Fool's Day today.  Completely passed me by!



The theme for this week's challenge (165)  over at Less is More is.......................

ROUND and ROUND

 

I had seen the stamp used on the card in one of my latest tidy up sessions. I  can't remember which manufacturer it was produced by but it came to mind immediately I saw this challenge.  It has never been used before so I thought that this might justify its existence in my stash!!

 I paper-pieced some of the elements. added the sentiments and then mounted the "topper" on to an A6 card blank using 3D foam pads.

The stamp is still on my desk so I will use it again before it disappears into oblivion again!!

 

 

Less is More week 164 Challenge

It has been a long time since I entered a challenge so I thought that I would try to get back in gear and join my favourite  over at  Less is More blog.

This week the theme is to include      THREE  of something on your cards.

I chose a butterfly stamp from a Martha Stewart set that I recently rediscovered. This was stamped three times on card and then masked them before applying Peacock Feathers Distress Ink with Cut n Dry foam. I then spritzed water over the inked area to add texture.
I embossed couple of lines below and stamped the Hero Arts sentiment in the blank space.

I added a touch of glitter to the butterflies' wings but this has not shown up in the photos.

Another requirement for this week's challenge is to visit and comment on three other participants. 
 I'm now off to complete this pleasurable task!