"Only Blue" #2

.......Well I did say that my favourite colour to use is blue!!!!.. so I have done another card for the second week of the STAMPOTIQUE only blue challenge. Isn't this Stampotique mermaid adorable!!!... her name is Smumanha.
 I did the background with the Memory Box "rings and puddles" stencil, then smudged it a little with some watery white paint, I love the effect and thought it fitting for a watery scene.

Only Blue

This weeks theme for the challenge over at STAMPOTIQUE ....(of which I won with the last Blue and Green challenge) was an easy one for me, the title is "Only Blue"...meaning use only blue on your work, .....well my favourite colour to use is blue....they say it is a sign of insecurity!!!...but who says that!!! lol. anyways, I love all shades of blue, especially the teals and turquoise's....oooohhh yummy. I have used Stampotiques cheeky little chappy, Buru, and also Daniel's hearts for the background.
Also over at THE ARTISTIC STAMPER, on their facebook site, the challenge is to "take a little colour", so I am taking my chances there too.

Blue n Green Stampotique

I have made another blue and green card here, to combine the STAMPOTIQUE "only animals" challenge...does a butterfly qualify as an animal???..well.. it is one of God's creatures....and my favourite image!!..so I would say yes!!!,  also for the COUNTRY VIEW CRAFTS "blue and green" challenge, and also for THE ARTISTIC STAMPER "anything goes" challenge. pheeeeew...i dont often get to do a card that combines 3 challenges, I love this card, with my favourite colour combination, my favourite butterfly stamp, and my favourite kind of background, book page, distress oxides, and a bubble stencil, my god I am gonna have to stop buying bubble stencils...I must have a circle obsession!!!... wonder if there is even a name for that..lol.

Oldie but Goodie!!

I am entering this card in two challenges this week,  Stampotique Designers Challenge...and the Country View Crafts challenge.  Stampotique are asking you to bring out an old stamp that you havent used in a while, but love!!..well.. that's not hard to choose, I love all the Daniel Torrent stamps, and Buru is one of my faves, I have also used the Giant Shroom stamp and the Daniels Hearts stamp too....which brings me onto the Country View Crafts Challenge where the challenge is to use hearts, sooooo...two birds, one stone...and all that!!!.

Twinchie Tiles

This weeks challenge over at the Stampotique Blog is all about "twinchies"...little 2x2" works of art. I had this idea of doing something on a 4x4" piece of card and then cutting it up into quarters to make a tile effect. 

I started off with stamping the Collage Journey stamp onto my card in portrait mode, then scraping acrylic paint with a bank card to tone down the wording. then I stamped the large Butterfly....(my fave by far butterfly)!!!  onto tissue, colouring it in and adding it to my card with matte media, then cutting it into four 2x2" squares. I made the base with the same Journey Collage stamp and some stitching, then added another tissue butterfly to the bottom. I then added the tiles, raised with dimensionals. 

I have to say I love this card....probably because it has my favourite butterfly on, but I also love the tile effect too, and the distressed effect of the scraped paint.  Is it wrong to praise your own work!!!! 

Eyelets and Staples and Brads..OH MY!!!!

for this weeks Stampotique Designers Challenge, the hostess is the fabulous Kathi Rerek, and she is challenging us to use attachers, the older the better.  Thinking of eyelets, brads, staples, etc.  Bonus points if someone uses all three.  Extra super bonus points if someone attaches Stampotique images to each other.
Wow!!! what a challenge, I mean.... I cannot think of  the last time my stash of these things saw the light of day!!!!...but hey.that's what challenges are for eh!!. I have to admit that I struggled with an idea for this though, apart from the one idea that stuck in my brain, but required a Stampotique stamp that I don't own yet, soooo save that idea for another time!!!  the image I used is the Daniel Torrent image called HUNK.  I am loving all the doodling going on at the moment in peoples artwork, so I spritzed some gold ink through a Lin Brown stencil on top of my Tim Holtz harlequin background, then doodled around the circles with my white pen, I kinda like the outcome but on reflection, feel it is a bit busy for this image, maybe better with a butterfly image.....grrrrr....there I go again with that damned butterfly obsession!!!.
I managed to use all three attachers, brads on the crown, even a beautiful jewelled one in the centre, eyelets on the bottom of the card, and staples on the sentiment. 

Ribbons and Bows!!

I do love to participate in the Stampotique Designers Challenge, and this week the amazingly talented Corrie Herriman is challenging us to use ribbon on our project. Well.... I'm not much of a ribbon girl....even though I have a boxful of the stuff!!!!!!!  you know...just incase!!  and I cannot bear to throw any away, especially the chocolate box bows...ooohh they are gorgeous, and already tied in a beautiful bow, I mean...how can anyone throw these things away!!!  But, like most crafters do, I hoard them and they take up precious space in my craftroom which is ever decreasing!!!!.....but back to this weeks ribbon challenge.
I have used the BOWTIE image and stuck him on my inked up stencil background, I already did a sentiment similar to this one another time,  I think it was  "I like big books and I cannot lie"!!  lol...one day I may use the original words!!! hee hee. Anyways, this is as girly as am gonna get with ribbons this week.

Just FLY!!

Astrid Stulemeijer is this weeks hostess over on the Stampotique designers challenge blog and she says...."Every stamper has a little Frankenstein in them.  Give a stamp without wings a pair of them.".  such a fun idea, it is great to try see your stamps in a different way.   I have used my favourite LARGE BUTTERFLY stamp for the TINMAN'S wings, stamping them on acetate with black stazon, then cutting them out. I used a quote from The Wizard of Oz to keep in with the theme. 
Simon Says Stamp's Work it Wednesday Challenge is all about Rainbows too so yayyyy you got to be in it to win it!!! 

Sex God!!

Just for fun,  and the sheer challenge of making a male oriented card!!!!.... I have made this card for the Sisterhood of Snarky Stampers  "D is for dudes" challenge. I have used the fantastic Carabelle studio XXL stamp for the backkground, it is huge, nearly A4 in size, and my "dude" is the Stampotiques  "Are My Pants Too Tight" image. I think I will give this card to my partners Son,.... he really is a Sex God!!!...(just as well that he is 30 years too young for me) !!!LOL.

Stampotiques 200th Challenge

For this weeks challenge at the Stampotique Designers Challenge Blog,  Kim Howard is the hostess and as it is their 200th challenge, she is asking us to create with celebration, anniversary, or best wishes in mind.

I have stamped the wonderful HUNK stamp, but cut off both his arms and legs and repositioned them so that he is waving and lifting one leg....hee hee!!! I know that I have added the numbers...and lets face it....nobody is ever gonna get to that age!!! well not in my lifetime anyways...unless they have a portrait in the attic!!! LOL... but I can easily alter the numbers or even have it as a Happy New Year card. 

All that Glitters!!!

this week Kathi Rerek is the hostess for the Stampotique Designers Challenge, and she says "create a project that literally shines" !!!.  I have to say that I made a few backgrounds before I settled for this one, brusho background, Memory Box stars stencil with modelling paste, then glittered the stars, I have used the LITTLE HO HOO image but masked off the owl friend that he is hugging and replaced him with a glittery star, then decoupaged his arms. I like altering images, it makes them so much more versatile. I am also entering this card in the "All that Glitters" challenge over at the That's Crafty challenges blog to hopefully win a voucher for......yup......more craft supplies!!!!!!

Favourite Stamp

Gez Butterworth is the hostess this week over at the Stampotique Challenge Blog, and she would love to see us use our favourite Stampotique stamp!!!!....well mine is the LARGE BUTTERFLY stamp, it definitely makes MY heart skip a beat....and I also have a butterfly obsession at the moment!!!  I have noticed that on the majority of times that I have used it, I always seem to stamp the image then cut it out and add it to my project with silicone glue to get some dimension, one layer cards are really hard for me!!!... anyways, this time I stamped the butterfly on the brusho background, added drywall tape, then stencilled the circles using the Paperartsy stencil and modelling paste, once it was dry I added stickles to give a golden glitter. I then stamped my butterfly onto gold vellum, added some green dylusions spray and clear star gelli roll pen for even more bling (shame that glitter never shows up on photo's...grrrrr) and guess what next.....you guessed it.... cut it out and added it to my card with silicone glue for dimension!!!!....I am nothing if not predictable!!!!  The That's Crafty Challenge blog is also having an "All That Glitters" challenge so I will enter my card in that challenge too. 

Little Hoo Hoo's tight pants!!!

I love playing along in the Stampotique Designers Challenge, and this week the deliciously gothic girl  Arwen McCullen has set the challenge to combine an animals head with a human body!!!! oooohh great challenge....except that I don't have any Stampotique animals...YET... but |I do have the LITTLE HOO HOO monster that is quite animalish!!! and also he is clutching an owl...so I thought that he would qualify...improvisation and all that!!!  Anyway, I have paired him with ARE MY PANTS TOO TIGHT, and just used half his body as Little Hoo Hoo already has arms. et voila!!!

Monochromatic Mama

The Sisterhood of Snarky Stampers are having a  challenge to make a monochromatic card, or a card with one dominant colour, and as it is Mothers Day in America, it has to be a card for Mom. Well I like doing lots of different layers on my cards now so this certainly was a challenge for me.... I mean... you cannot have layers of the same colour can you!!! in the end I made the background by spraying one of my stencils with pink ink spray, then laying the cardstock on top of it...background done!! then I just added the wonderful Moth Fab stamp by Stampotique and printed out the sentiment on my computer... which is absolutely true for me, or when I look down at my hands and see my Mother!!...not that it is a nice thing!!...she has horrid boney fingers, much like the wicked Queen from Disney's Snow White...freaky!!!!

Stencils

This week at the Stampotique Designers Challenge Blogspot, the amazingly talented Corrrie Herriman has set this weeks challenge to use your stencils,  use them with paint, ink, modelling paste, or even gesso!!. well....as usual, I have a huge supply of stencils, and like always, too much choice leaves me with brain freeze!!! and then...which fabulous Stampotique stamped image to use with which stencil???....oh my Lord...the options are endless!!!! I finally chose to use the Memory Box Honeycomb stencil on some corrugated card, I had a riot with spray ink, brushos, acrylic paint, until I got the desired look.  To place my Stampotique MEDIUM BEES on the very uneven surface, I stamped them onto tissue, then adhered them to my surface with matte glaze, then stamped the wings onto parchment paper, cut them out and added them onto the bee image. The sentiment is computer generated.

2.3.4..tell the people what she wore!!

I really look forward to Wednesday mornings because there is always a new challenge over at the Stampotique Designers Challenge Blogspot, and this weeks challenge set by Sam Read is all about polka dots!!!..... soooooo I know this is probably the first thing that comes into everyone's mind...and sorry for being so predictable..... but it did make me chuckle when I made the itsy bitsy teeny weeny yellow polka dot bikini for REAR VIEW MIRROR to wear. :) :) :)

SDC191 Circles

For this weeks challenge over at the Stampotique Designers Challenge the absolutely amazingly talented Magda Polakow.....(oh the wonderful art that lady can produce with scraps of paper and painters tape!!!).....has challenged us all to use circles in our creations.
My mind went immediately to the fabulous Lin Brown Paperartsy stencil that I have, a stencil with different size circles and circle clusters, it is gorgeous. so I set off by using the stencil with some texture paste, leaving it to dry, and then using a mixture of paints and spray paints. WOW!!! I cannot even tell you how many changes I have made to the colours of this card, it is a wonder that the card didn't disintigrate with all the wet layers it went through. I wanted to achieve a shimmer around the circles, sounds easy... and yes I used tons of shimmer mist, but then it affected all the other areas...GRRRRRRRRRRR. at one point I got so frustrated that I was going to screw it up and throw it in the bin!!!!.... but after all the sprays and paint layers I just couldn't bring myself to, and in the end I am glad because my perseverance paid off, I love the background now... so I added the LARGE SHROOM and the cute BURU character, then when all was matted and dried, I proceeded to take photo's of my work!!!! well all you crafters that try to take a clear photo of a very shimmery image will know my frustration....AAAARRRRGGGGGGGHHHHH. you will just have to take my word for how much more  beautiful and shimmery this card is in real life.

I'm in Stitches!!!!

I don't seem to be able to do a card now without adding some stitching around the edge with my sewing machine, it seems to help draw the card centre to the eye, so I was so glad when I saw that this weeks challenge at the Stampotique Designers Challenge Blogspot  is all about "stitches"....  Coby is the hostess this week and she says   "I love stitches in my creations, sometimes stamped, sometimes by hand, sometimes with the sewing machine".   so she is challenging us to use stitching in our creations.
I saw this quote and I thought it just perfect for this challenge, I do like to take things quite literally!!!, anyhow, I thought I would try it first on some copy paper that I have been using as a mat for a while so that I don't get lots of gunge and inks on my surface, I printed out the quote on the paper and then cut it right through the quote, crumpled up the cut edge slightly, then stuck the two pieces onto another piece of card, but offset the quote slightly, then hand stitched down the cut.  Well I liked it so much that I decided to use this "test piece" so I added the fabulous MOTH FAB image, then with my sewing machine I did some stitching round the edge. I love it when a plan comes together straight away instead of the usual three or four attempts to get it right!!!!...ah well...there is no such thing as a waste of paper, for every time I don't get it quite right, I just alter it with another layer of paint!!! I am so frugal when it comes to paper, I won't even let my partner throw away any waste copy paper he has.....and he always has loads with all the rubbish he is printing and making mistakes!!! ahh well...more for me.

Favourite Technique...(at the moment!!)

I am sooooo glad that this weeks challenge theme at the Stampotique Designers Blogspot is all about incorporating your favourite background technique, because this week I have just started playing around with alcohol inks on acetate!!!...I wonder why I haven't done it before now!! but I absolutely love it, even the frustrating randomness of it is quite appealing!!, I get the same feeling with the Brusho's color crystals, they are quite unpredictable but I am learning to control them to a point!!! even tho I like that they seem to have their own mind. Anyways, like I said, I have just started playing with my alcohol inks on acetate and just lovin the results, all very different, all gorgeous. I even run a couple of the acetate squares through an embossing folder before I dripped inks onto it, and I love that too. I have had my alcohol inks sitting in the drawer now for ages and ages not really sure what to do with them, but, I tell you...now all of a sudden I have to go for fresh supplies and new colors.....somebody stop me!!!!! LOL...all my crafting friends will understand.  I attached my inked up piece of acetate onto another Stampotique stamped background, journey collage, with tiny brads, then added the small butterfly stamp with stazon ink.

Neon Lights

Well...after a long rest...sun, sea, and way too much food and alcohol...especially alcohol!!!! I am back and itching to get back into doing some challenges, after all, if you don't use it, you loose it, and I feel that I haven't done anything arty for ages and my mojo is still in Lanzarote!!!! so straight back into it.
My first project is the challenge hosted by the talented Astrid Stulemeijer over at the Stampotique Designers Challenge Blogspot, she is having us thinking on the bright side and challenges us to use neon colours in our project. Well, I did use neon colours, they are fabric paints tho, and dont appear very neon on the photo, but in real life they are quite bright..promise!!! Also, I am  entering it in this weeks Tag Along Challenge cos I really wanted to support the fabulous Kay Wallace who is this weeks hostess, and she is challenging us to choose the theme of Angels. I adore my Stampotique stamps and so regret not having a Stampotique angel image...grrrr, definitely need to go Stampotique shopping very soon, especially with the gorgeous ones that kate Crane has just fetched out, they are adorable. Anyway, you have to work with what you have, so I have used the "Rear View Mirror" image and given her a pair of acetate wings taken from the "Large Butterfly" image...which is my absolute favourite butterfly ever!!!