Pink Cow Parsley

Evening All,
I always find that I have a favourite when working with Jane's fabulous new stamp designs. A stamp that it is very easy for me to make samples with.
When Jane sends me the sets and kindly lets me have first choice over which ones I make my samples with, she has a bet on which ones I will choose...…………..and she is usually right.
I do try and reassure her that it is not that I don't like the other designs, it is just that with such a very tight turnaround I always go for the ones that I know I have an idea for, so that I don't have to think too hard.
This is one such stamp set. JGS684 Cow Parsley

This is actually the card that I sent to Creative Expressions for the catalogue.

Just simple stamping and embossing over a piece of alcohol ink mop up background.

As you will be able to see from the numerous samples, I certainly didn't have a problem playing with it.

This card was made using the 'Bump and Smudge' technique that is very much a favourite of mine just at the moment.

 It led to several pieces that were all very similar in colour,

 but that were mounted up rather differently.

 This card uses a piece of blended background using Distress Inks.

 I actually used black embossing powder on this one,

and this one, which is rather unusual for me. I much prefer black ink and clear powder, but it just didn't 'POP' as much as I wanted, so I reached for the black powder as well.

I don't have dies to go with Jane's sentiment stamps (she hasn't made any yet) so I just did a bit of fussy cutting.

This final card is also made using 'Bump and Smudge'. I did tell you that I liked it lol.

By happy coincidence Jane was on the TV while I was in Peterboro so we were able to meet up for a few minutes so that I could lend her these cards for her show. think she might be on again in February with her latest release, so I will have to get things in the post to her this time.
Better get some shut eye now.
Thanks for stopping by.
Hugs Kimx

Tim Holtz Embossing Folder

Evening Everyone,
Have you had a good day?
It's felt lovely and mild here, perfect for a nice long walk, if my foot would have allowed. Instead I settled for some crafty company, and a change of the four walls that I have been staring at for the last few days.

I always come back from my November 'holiday' at SirStampalot with a suitcase full of new goodies. This time it included a fabulous Tim Holtz 3D embossing folder.

I happened to have caught it being used on the TV before I went which accounted for my purchase, because to be honest the packaging didn't do it justice so it would otherwise probably have remained on the shelf.
I left this sample with Janice and Andy since it also featured another of my purchases, a rather fabulous Brush Stroke stamp from Penny Black.
That's another picture that I can file away as having been blogged, I'm on a roll here lol.
Night, night
Hugs Kimx

I LOVE Alcohol Inks

Afternoon All,

All this enforced sitting down has certainly been to the benefit of blogland, I can't remember the last time I posted so many days in a row.

As I told you yesterday one of the highlights of 2019 for me was my reaquaintance with all things alcohol ink.

I have always loved the effects that you can achieve on acetate, but using the Alcohol Lift Inkpad to 'pull' an image from it gives such a lovely clean print. Check out the technique HERE with Jennifer McGuire.

There is also a reinker which means that you can remove the colour from a piece of alcohol ink background using a stencil. Another link HERE

Again a lovely crisp image and you don't contaminate your inkpad.

Now I can't bare to waste anything, so I used the ink that I had pulled from the original piece

through another stencil for the backgrounds

to these last two cards.

I simply stamped and embossed over the top of this one, and then added a sentiment.

Another stencilled background using the same technique.

This time I used a Tim Holtz Alcohol ink pen to remove colour from one piece of background and then painted the stamped and embossed image on this piece. Another tutorial HERE

Sometimes the inks just blend together into a some what 'muddy' colour.

But you know me, I just couldn't waste it. A bit of gold embossing powder and a die cut sentiment. Makes a good card for a man I think.
Have a great afternoon. I need a walk to the kettle.
Happy Crafting and hugs
Kimx

A Highlight from 2019 - Alcohol Ink Blending

Evening Everyone,

One of the things that I have been working on during my enforced sit down, is trying to sort through a mountain of card photos so that I can blog some of them.

A favourite highlight from 2019 was being introduced to the Alcohol Ink Lift pad and Yupo paper which resulted in a wonderful reacquaintance with all things alcohol ink.

Just one of the techniques that I explored was the use of the Alcohol blending pen.

Ink from a prepared piece of alcohol ink background can be lifted from the stamped image, and then another image can be coloured in using this ink.

This is a wonderfully relaxing technique, although one of the things that I did learn about Yupo/Graffixart Craft Plastic is that it is not always the easiest thing to heat emboss.

In my previous post from September a friend asked what I did with the shrivelled plastic. The answer is that I covered it up with another stamped and coloured image and a bit of fussy cutting.
It was just too pretty to throw away.

The beauty of this technique is that you don't need a huge piece of alcohol inked background to colour with. Even a narrow strip trimmed from an image will give you enough usable ink.
Off to bed now, I need to rest my numb bum lol.
Hugs Kimx

A Job Well Done

Evening Everyone,
Well I have certainly managed to achieve something from my enforced rest, apart from a rather numb bum that is!! I have managed to sort out all of my LOTV Simply Print images.

I'm not quite sure just how long it would have taken me to do otherwise, probably till my very own retirement, but at least that is one rather major thing that I can tick off my 2020 To Do List.
It will certainly make card making easier when I can flick through a pile of pictures to find the image I require, rather than trying to guess what image a particular title will reveal.

And of course it will also make it easier to see just what images I need next time they have a mega sale :O)

Unfortunately the weather today would not allow this type of relaxation, but never mind that would probably have been too hot for me lol.

Now another thing that I would like to sort out are all of my dies, but as that would require me to stand up for rather a long time that will have to wait for much later in the year because that is definitely not something that I could manage at the moment.

Thanks for stopping by.

Happy Crafting and hugs

Kimx

Walkies, more like a Little bit of Rest and Recuperation

Evening Everyone,
One of the jobs that I have been tackling in my bid to become more organised in 2020, is that of sorting through my LOTV Simply Print images.

They recently had a fabulous sale, which of course I just had to take advantage of. It was however rather difficult working out which images I already own, so I am working on this for next time lol.

I've told you before that they are my go to for cute cards, so I really couldn't resist adding to my stash.

I had several rather special Christmas cards to make for a friend back in December so it seemed the logical place to start.

Much as I would love to be striding around, looking every bit as elegant of course, as the young lady in the first card. I fear that I am looking much more like Father Christmas at the moment.
Having spent the afternoon at the local hospital drop in clinic it appears that I have probably got tendonitus which requires rest, elevation of the legs and ice packs.
That is definitely not going to happen standing for 8 hours on a till, so I have had to admit defeat and be signed off work for at least a week. I don't like to have resorted to visiting the hospital, but as I could hardly walk and the first Doctors appointment available to me was 14th January I'm afraid that needs must.
Still I suppose the one thing that I can do during my enforced rest is sort out images on a computer, so maybe this is one task that I will finally be able to tick off on my list.
First job is to try and get some sleep though as I only managed about an hour last night.
Night, night
Hugs Kimx

A little more Bump and Smudge (with a link)

Morning All
It's a rather dull and miserable one here, so perfect for shutting myself away in my craft room and playing.

I'm also trying really hard to keep on top of some blogging.

I just have sooooo many cards to share with you, so I'm trying to be a good girl.

These are some more of the cards that I finished off after my 'Bump and Smudge' class at SirStampalot last year,

I will pop in a link to where I saw the original idea HERE as I have had a couple of comments from friends asking how I have done the technique.

These lovely little stamps helped me use up some bits of embossed card stock.

Not that it has made much of a dent to my stash. I think that I need another sort out.

The Grandkids school and nursery usually benefit from that. The kids love all the little bits of card and paper for the craft corner, although I will of course check with Mum first before palming her off with a 'bag full of my old tat' as it has often been referred to.

Remember one mans tat is another mans treasure lol.

Have a fabulous day.

Happy Crafting and hugs 

Kimx

A little sneak peek

Evening Everyone,
Hope you have had a fabulous day. I certainly have.

We had a wonderful class today playing with the latest stamps designed by the lovely Jane Gill.

Now I had assumed that they would have been released by now since I had to make the samples for them way back at the end of November/beginning of December.

However I am now not so sure so you may well be getting a sneak peek of one of them.

I had lots of lovely Creative Expressions products to work with this time, so this card uses a background created using various colours of Colour Clouds, a stencil and baby wipe to remove some of the colour from the central panel.
The flowers are fussy cut and coloured images from one of the new sets JGS705 Five Daisies.
Having spent a fabulous afternoon playing, we then continued into the evening with Prosecco, cheese and plenty of conversation.
What a wonderful way to spend a Saturday.
Thanks for stopping by.
Kimx

A little handmade wallpaper

Evening All
I obviously had rather too much fun with the 'Bump and Smudge' technique at SirStampalot.

Another fabulous find while I was there was a rather lovely little Magnolia stamp. I think it makes wonderful vintage wallpaper.

Of course a piece of wallpaper just screamed out for one of the lovely Magnolia images that Janice and Andy sell to sit in front of it.

But it does look just as good with stamped floral images,

and even floral die cuts as used in the next card.

I don't know about you, but I'm looking forward to a nice crafty weekend with good company and some fabulous Woodware stamps to play with.
Thanks for stopping by.
Happy Crafting and hugs.
Kimx

Bump and Smudge with Penny Black

Evening Everyone,
I think we all have favourite stamps and stamp companies, ones that we come back to time after time. Or a particular style of stamps that we are instantly drawn too.

For me it is the Brush Stroke style of stamps from Penny Black. Each new release provides a massive dent to my bank balance lol.

They are amazingly detailed when stamped out, even though they sometimes look as if they will just be a huge solid blob. The advent of the Stamping Platform has also made it much easier to do blended multiple layered stamping.

This card was created using the 'Bump and Smudge' technique and both brown and blue Distress Oxide inks.

Sometimes the image blurs rather too much when smudged,

but the beauty of using the platform is that you can just stamp the image again using the same colour, or an alternative to add back the definition.

Slightly less 'smudging' here, very Wedgwood :O)

This card shows just how much detail you can get from these stamps.
Thanks for stopping by.
Happy Crafting and hugs
Kimx