Cute and Furry at Crafty Cardmakers

Evening Everyone
Today we are starting a new challenge over at Crafty Cardmakers.
Our host is Jackie, who has chosen the theme 'Cute and Furry'. She would like to see the main focal point of your creation be something that is cute and furry. It can be a digi stamp, stamp, photographic image, but must have fur and be cute.

I seem to be in Christmas mode at the moment so my little cute and furry creature is an old Penny Black image that I have had for ages. 
The background papers are from a Lili of the Valley 8 x 8 paper pad and I have stamped and embossed a large Woodware Christmas Background down the left hand side of the card.

I did some Grid Masking around the little mouse, a technique that I learnt from the wonderful Barbara Gray many years ago. The panels that the masking has created have been stamped with numerous snowflakes from my collection. I think most of the images are by Stampendous.

The large snowflake and snowflake border are Joy Craft dies which I have then  covered in Shabby White Frantage powder.

Of course it wouldn't be a Christmas card without a bit of bling so I added some Glitter Domes and a little bit of glitter glue.
We are sponsored this time by DI'S DIGISTAMPS and also THE STAMPMAN who stock all of the Stampendous and Woodware products. 
Don't forget to stop by and show some love to the rest of the team, and get out those cute and furry images.
Happy Crafting.
Hugs Kimx

Happy Birthday to a lovely lady

Hi All
I hope that you have had a wonderful weekend.
We had another fabulous class at Davina's yesterday, and there was also plenty of cake and bickies as it was the lovely Sylvie's birthday. It is actually her birthday today, but I think we can be forgiven for treating her like the Queen.

We made her blow out the candles although we did draw the line at the bumps lol.

This is the card that I made with the panel that I created in class to show them the technique that we were playing with.

I didn't pick the best colours to show up the Water Stamping technique but everyone seemed to have fun and they made some fabulous creations.

The strips down the right hand side of the card are Woodware Masking Tape (Faux Washi Tape) which I have stamped onto.
I also added some matching Card Candi.
I hope that Sylvie has had a lovely day today, she deserves it,
Hugs Kimx

A Fruity Image at The Friday Mashup

Evening Everyone
Have you had a good day?
The latest challenge over at The Friday Mashup is to create a project using a fruit image.

This is a card made using some fabulous Pear stamps, pigment inks and an Embossed Resist technique.

The pears have been inked up using the pigment inks and then stamped onto white card stock. Once they have been heat embossed with clear powder the pears have been stamped again to the side of the previous image, without re-inking the stamp.
The words have been added at the end and then the entire panel has been wiped over with kitchen paper to remove any traces of excess ink. The embossing acts as a resist and makes the wording appear to be in the background of the panel.

I do like to remember the envelope as it makes a card much more fun to receive.
Hugs Kimx

Stamping with Water

Hi All
Wow, how did the weekend manage to sneak up on me again.
I'm teaching at Davina's again tomorrow so that will be good fun, some how it never seems like work.

Several of the ladies missed the class earlier in the year on Distress inks and stamping with water so we will be revisiting it in class tomorrow.

At least it means that I don't have to write new instructions which should free up the morning.
You never know I might even get a card, or two, made.
Have a great weekend.
Happy Crafting
Kimx

Another Little Birdie

Evening All
Just a quick post tonight as the time has really got away from me.

 This is another Christmas card that I made with the lovely Stampendous Bird.

I stamped and embossed the image, coloured it using Distress Inks, and then cut it out using a Nestie.
The greeting was from my bits box, but I have a feeling that it is by Penny Black.

The Fir Branch has been stamped and embossed, and also stamped in bleach.
I love this little birdie he is so cute.
hugs Kimx

Thinking of you All

Evening All
Unfortunately my day has started with the need for yet another sympathy card which has brought with it memories both good and bad.
An old Friend of mine lost his Dad yesterday evening, which comes only days after I learnt of the death of someone else that I know. I am only hopeful that this sort of news doesn't come in the usual cluster of threes.

Here is one of the cards that I will be sending.

Thank goodness for my 'Bits Box' I say, it is amazing what half made creations lurk in there lol.

All of the pieces that went into making this card where all part of previous classes or play sessions.

The bow is probably the only thing that I had to make from scratch, but that doesn't mean that the card is any less well meant. My thoughts are with them all.
Hugs Kimx

A Bit of Bargello

Evening Everyone,
Jane, and the Girls at Davina's will be pleased to know that I have finally been reunited with the last of my boxes from the Retailers Training days.
Jane dropped them to me at work on Monday when she finally came home, but things have been a little hectic and so I only managed to get them collected tonight. So I have finally tidied away and am ready to make more mess, of the creative variety of course lol.

This is another of the cards from my drawer that is going in the post box this week.It was made using a piece of Bargello background made in a class at SirStampalot.

 I stamped on it using a Woodware stamp and Black Versafine ink.

The Card Candy is home made using a small circular punch. Of course there had to be some Faux Stitching in there too.
Hugs Kimx

As if by Magic

Hi All
Have you had a good day?
I have been inspired today, to make a card for a specific challenge over at Woodware where the Girls are all playing with Pen Score Magic Stamp by Clearsnap.
This was a bit of a 'blast from the past' as it has been around for years, in fact my card is made using some images that I captured in the moldable foam blocks, some of them over 13 years ago when my first Granddaughter Megan was born.

The background was created using the Magic Stamped images of Megan, Saskia and Ciaran's hand and foot prints.
The Magic Stamp is a moldable foam block which you heat with a heat tool and then press onto a dimensional object to create a stamp. In this case it was my Grandchildren's hands and feet at around 10 days old.

My Daughter did get a little nervous at the thought of her new precious little bundle being scarred for life by her evil Grandmother but I made an impression of my hand first just to prove to her that it wouldn't hurt the baby, and after she had tried it herself she agreed.
You see that is the beauty of this fabulous product if you don't like the impression, or you get fed up with it, you just reheat and hey presto you can try something new.
Or in this case you can keep it as a permanent, but useful reminder of just how small they once were.

I added to my collection when the twins were born, but somehow Reece managed to get left out when he was tiny so I have his prints taken at the same time as the twins only his are a little larger since he was 5 at the time lol.
I kept the card fairly basic, using Francoise fabulous FRS238 Huge Baby stamp which just screamed out for some Paper Piecing.
I thought that I would enter this into a few challenges, as I haven't done that in a while, so here is the list.
Craft Your Passion - No coloured in Images (I hope that Paper Piecing will be OK)
Stamps and Fun = Creativity - Baby
The Paper Girls - Make Your Own Stamp
Here Come the Boys - Baby Boy
I will have to play with my Magic stamps again, but not before I have safely tucked these precious ones away somewhere safe, they are definitely not for reheating.
Hugs Kimx

With Love in Black and Red

Evening All
I hope that you have all had a good weekend. I can't believe how quickly Sunday evening has come round.
I have managed to have quite a productive time, I have even managed to get ahead with a DT card for next week. It can't last lol.
This is a card destined for a pillar box in the next couple of days.

 It was made a while ago using Sticky Embossing Powder and Gold Leaf.

The floral panel is actually red acetate that has also had Gold Leaf added to the back of it using double sided  sticky sheet.
The recipient of this particular card always makes cards that are a little bit different, so I hope that she will appreciate this one.
Hugs Kimx

Five Flower Panel

Evening Everyone,
Just a quick post tonight, and another card that has been painted using bleach, I do love it.
We had a great time playing with it at Davina's this afternoon.

This is a very simple card using a lovely old Magenta stamp that I bought from SirStampalot which has been stamped and embossed onto pearlescent card stock and then painted with thin undiluted bleach.

The red background card has been spritzed with bleach and then I have embossed around the edges of the panel. The background paper is from my stash.

Of course the stamp was perfect for a little bit of bling, my friend Gill will be so pleased with me.
Hugs Kimx

Christams Poinsettias

Hi All,
Well it's Friday again, and I am happily sorting things out for my class at Davina's tomorrow.

We are going to be playing with bleach, which is quite a favourite of mine.

These cards have all been made using pieces that I painted last time I did this class, and as it is a repeat class I see no reason why I shouldn't take them along with me.

I stamped and embossed this lovely Poinsettia image onto various colours of card stock, and then painted it using thin neat bleach, the resulting panels made several Christmas cards to add to my stash, which is just as well since I have not been very good over the last couple of months.

This panel I also painted using Distress inks over the bleached areas.
Try out a little corner of your coloured cardstock first since the bleach won't effect all card.
So that's another 3 cards to add to my stash, getting there very slowly this year

Revisiting Bleach

Hi All
Remind me not to go visiting people (my Mum) without phoning first as this will save the feeling of panic when I let myself in (I have my own key in case of emergencies) and the place resembles the Marie Celeste. The lights are on, and the TV, for the cats!! but no sign of Mother.
Thankfully we didn't find her in a heap on the floor anywhere, and a phone call to my Sister-in-law, who lives just around the corner revealed that Mum had gone for a walk in the rain and drizzle. Not quite as batty as it sounds, she actually had a Doctors appointment, as I discovered when I caught up with her at the surgery.
So panic over, but that will teach me to make sure that I give her a ring before I visit. I had planned to, but time just got away from me, you know how it is.
In fact that is rather what has happened to me again this evening. I'm still trying to get sorted out after my few days away, and I can't finish that properly until Jane drops in my boxes next week.
She had other commitments up north, hence my trip home on the train, but will be bringing my shopping and my work boxes to me on Monday so until then I feel a bit in limbo. I did manage my basic tool kit and guillotines in my suit case, I couldn't be without them, but I can't seem to get back into the swing of things at the moment, isn't it stupid.

On Saturday at Davina's we will be revisiting Bleach as several of the ladies missed it the first time round.
Although the technique itself doesn't really vary, there are always new stamps to use, and so those that have played with it before have indicated that they are more than happy to play again lol.
My card tonight has a little bleach work down the left hand side, so I thought it appropriate to share as a reminder of what we will be doing in class.

It was actually made for one of the Woodware catalogues, and althoughthe card itself  is currently roaming the countryside with the lovely Jane (it's in my boxes in her car), I have the stamp, so I'm sure that people will be able to manage with a couple of photocopies and the rest of the bleach cards that I have in my card stash.
Only one more day till the weekend, although this feels like a very long week even though I have only been at the garage for a couple of days.
Time for bed now, I've had enough of tiding up.
Hugs Kimx

Skinny Vases

Hi All
Back to 'normal' at last after a fabulous, if tiring few days in Yorkshire for the Woodware Retailers Training Days.
We were thoroughly well fed and watered, in fact I have eaten far too well so diet and exercise had better start now!!

My card tonight is from my class on Monday where they all got to play with the fabulous new Mix'd Media inks. I made them try some embossed resist to create their own 'background paper' which surprised a few of them.

They also got to try the inks out on metal and the Burlap squares,

The stamp we used was Francoise Skinny Vase, and as you can see I had to make my samples in several different colourways.

One of the ladies, Scrappyjen, only does Scrapbooking so this was her take on my card, as a Scrapbook page. Unfortunately the light wasn't terribly good.

I travelled home from Skipton on the train with Francoise, and we have been talking new stamp designs already, so I think that I had better get on top of everything so I am ready for sample making.
But before that I need to catch up on some sleep, I never sleep very well when I am away, and you don't realise how tired you are until you sit down for a few moments lol.
Hugs Kimx

Home at Last

Hi All
I hope that you have all been having a wonderful week.
I'm afraid that I am only touching base tonight, no pictures, as I have just got back from the Woodware Retailers Training days and I am shattered. And I have to be back at work tomorrow.
Crafting never feels like work somehow, even though everyone worked really hard.
It was an amazing few days with fabulous, talented people, but now I need some sleep.
Of course it didn't help that I had booked a Stampin Up party for this evening, so an early night was out of the question
I'll do better tomorrow, I promise.
Night night.
Hugs Kimx

Winged Things at Crafty Cardmakers

Hi All
Today is the start of a new challenge over at CraftyCardmakers where we are looking for Winged Things.

 Here is the card that I have made using the lovely little bird by Stampendous.

I have had limited time and Internet access over the last few days so I am going to edit this post with more detail when I get back home on Tuesday.
So for now you will just have to forgive me.
hugs Kimx

Musical Bedrooms

Hi All
Have been having a fabulous time here in Yorkshire, but the real work starts today.
Hopefully by the time you read this we will be well and truly stuck into our first class, in fact we may even be having a well earned tea break.
We had to move accommodation last night as all the local Band B's were fully booked. So having transferred to Judith's home we walked into Grassington for a meal.
I really think I earned my dinner, especially as I was not exactly kitted out for a 3 mile round trip, all done in high heeled boots lol.

They will be playing with the new Surfacez Inks today which work on metal, fabric, acetate and a whole host of things.
This is the project that they will be working on. Not a very good picture I'm afraid but it was so difficult to photograph.

We have to change rooms again tonight, so it won't be quite such a long walk for dinner. Not that I'm complaining I just might need to invest in a box of plasters for my poor blistered feet.
Have a great day.
Hugs Kimx

A Gilded Tree

Hi All

Set up day here in Yorkshire so we will be busy lugging boxes and tables and all sorts. Hopefully I will have had a chance to shop at the warehouse. They let me loose with a trolley last year which was rather dangerous for the bank balance, but it just had to be done lol.

This card was made with a fabulous Stampendous stamp. It was one of those ‘I have to have’ purchases as soon as I saw it in the catalogue. I love trees and leaves they are so versatile.

I have used sticky embossing powder and Gildinglitz on the tree and then background papers from my stash.

Have a great day.

Hugs Kimx

Amendment to blog post - Slight change of plan as we can't get into the hall until tomorrow, so I have just been shopping for England and lugging those boxes around lol

Another Road Trip

Hi All
Off to Skipton today, so I hope that by the time you read this we will have stopped for our first coffee and are now well on our way to Yorkshire.

These are a couple of cards that I made after last years Retailers Workshops. We had a fabulous time playing with the Magic Stamp, which can be used to create amazing backgrounds.
This year it will be something different, but I won’t share till after the event.
Hugs Kimx