Sepia-effect colouring --- A Man's Card

Hi everyone! Is there anywhere where it isn't raining? Here it's been wet every day for the last week or so, and it's been constantly raining all day and all last night! Not that I mind, I actually like the sound of rain falling, but I'm wondering whether to start building an ark, he hee.

Sorry I haven't been visiting many blogs recently - I've been feeling really wrecked and I log in with good intentions of dropping in on lots of buddy's blogs, but run out of energy too quickly and have needed a lot of rest again. I'm hoping to get round over the next week.

It's been a week of blunders for me....firstly, I hit myself in the face hard by opening a wardrobe door too quickly whilst bending over to pick up my shoes (idiotic); then I forgot to cancel a grocery shopping delivery and ended up with 2 deliveries in one evening (expensive and idiotic); and thirdly, I was reading a book on a Kindle, got to the end of my page and.......picked up the Kindle and turned it over like a page!!!!!! (inexplicable, lol). I assure you, I'm a perfectly intelligent woman most of the time but this week I've turned into a part-time buffoon, lol.

Anyway, this is a card I made for a special man in my life whose birthday it was recently. The image is one that I purchased specifically for this card: it's called Dare and it's by Mo Manning - isn't she a very talented illustrator? The papers I bought specially to use with this image, so for a homemade card it was pretty expensive! 

As the chap in the image looked like a pilot or a driver from a bygone age, I thought I'd have a go at colouring him in a sepia monochrome theme. I chose the E40's family of Copics because there are 7 available shades in that group and I luckily had them all. First of all I did a rough colouring on printer paper with a 6B pencil to get an idea of the tonal values I'd use, then I printed out the image on colouring paper and got to work with the copics. This is the rough colouring next to the finished one:

The 2 papers are from Prima's Almanac pack, and I distressed the edges using a distressing tool. The quote by William Hazlitt comes with the Dare image, so I printed it out and aged the paper with some distress ink. The 'Expedition 1910' diecut is actually from a clothing label which was already deeply distressed. I simply used a nestie die to cut out a label shape and added some more distress ink around the edges. A chipboard cog from a set called Gears Galore by Make It Crafty, which I heat embossed with black powder, finishes it off.

The card has gone down very well - I even sang him Happy Birthday in Welsh, lol. Here's a couple of close ups of the sentiment and diecut:

I'd like to enter this in these challenges:
Anything Goes Challenge - Time or Steampunk (I went for a Steampunk look)
Aud Sentiments - Anything Goes
Bling It On - Monochrome
Copic Marker Europe - Monochromatic
Crafts & Me - Embossing (heat embossing on the black gear wheel)
Crafty Catz - Anything Goes
Crafty Mess Challenges - Distressing & Embossing
Creative Inspirations - Anything Goes
Here Comes The Boys - Hobbies (flying/driving)
Lollipop Crafts - Anything Goes
Kaboodle Doodles - Emboss It (heat embossing on the black gear wheel)
Poodles Parlour - Anything Goes
Simon Says Stamp - Anything Goes
That Craft Place - One For The Boys
Truly Scrumptious - Distress & DieCuts/Punches (my die cut is the Expedition tag)
Wags N Whiskers - Distressing
Whimsy Inspirations - Distressing

Thanks so much for dropping by today - I hope you like my card, and I look forward to seeing you on your own blogs in the next day or so. Happy Crafting!

I've had a bit of a makeover!

Hi everyone, I hope you noticed that I am sporting a new look. You didn't notice? Haven't you had your coffee today yet? LOL.

For ages I've wanted to make my own banner and apart from lacking the energy to get round to it I was also lacking the knowhow. Then I found Brenda's blog where she shared how to make one and.......ta da! It wasn't too hard at all, but I had to be quick as Picnik, the photo editting site she recommends, is closing down tomorrow. 

Anyway, let me know what you think - do the pics in the banner look bright enough? 

Favourite Colour Combo at Sundays With Crissy

Hi all, today I'm showing my card for the latest challenge at Sundays With Crissy, which this month is Your Favourite Colour Combo. Whatever colours you love combining, show us on your project and you could win your choice of some of Crissy's images.

One of my favourite colour combos is pink and green - I tried some different shades of these colours on my card. I chose a darker pink and a more muted green and I really liked the resulting combo.

I used Crissy's sweet Newborn Joon again, this time merging it with her Meadow Background.

Images: Newborn Joon and Meadow Background, both by Crissy Armstrong

Colouring: Copic markers

DPs and tag: Prima Annalee

Dies: Spellbinders Lacey Circles and Magnolia DooHickey Rose Leaves

Flowers and ribbon from my stash

I'm entering this in these challenges:
Cardmadfairy's Digi Days - Die cuts and/or punches (die cut leaves, circle and lacey circle)
Divas By Design - Anything Goes
Do You Stack Up Challenges - Friendly Critters
Little Darling Challenges - Outside
My Mum's Craft Shop Challenges - Easter or Animals
Partytime Tuesdays - Flowers
Top Tip Tuesday - Easter and/or Animals
Wags 'n Whiskers - Say It With Flowers
Whimsy Inspirations - use ribbon on your cards

I hope you like my card today and that you might join us this month with your fave colours.

Happy crafting!

Tilda flies her flag

Hellooooo everyone, hasn't the weather been lovely? It's very spring-like here, and it's just the right temperature for me - warm enough not to need to wrap up all the time yet still cool enough for a hot water bottle at night.....perfect!

I have a Tilda card to show today, it's been a while since I made one. It's actually a gatefold card which is also a little image wallet and I thoroughly enjoyed making it, once I'd coaxed my mojo out from it's hiding place.  I chose very spring-like colours of pink, green, yellow, blue and white.

This little rubber stamped Tilly is one I've never done before, she was a gift from everyone's fave crafting gent, Kevin, so I'm not sure what she's called. I chose the spring colours and portrait layout especially for the TOMIC challenge (which had ended by the time said mojo would deign to make an appearance...doh!), but I managed to include some other challenge themes in there too.



Tied closed, but I havent pulled it tight so it's fallen open a bit



This is what the right side looks like, it's mostly covered when the card is closed

The 3 gorgeous papers are all from Prima's Annalee pack, there's the main green paper, some pink paper which I used for matting, and some floral paper which was actually a little scrap piece. I made a tag from the papers too which you can see on the front of the card. 

All the papers were handstitched, and because the card is a smaller one than my usual (C6 sized) I scaled the stitches down to a smaller size.

The inside is decorated too, and you can see I've put some ready-coloured toppers in the wallet for the photos.



The wallet contains some toppers



A Prima leaf, some roses, a butterfly, some pink ribbon and some white lace finish it off.

Even the back is decorated!

Not often I decorate an inside, let alone the back of the card!

A long project but I really like the finished result - I'm not usually one for pretty pastel colours, but I think that is June's influence rubbing off on me.

I'd like to enter my card in these challenges:
CES, Crafty Emma - Photo inspiration (I used the colours, butterflies and roses)
Creative Card Crew - Spring (spring colours and flowers)
Divas By Design - Stamp something (Tilda is a rubberstamped image)
Just Magnolia & hAnglar - More than One Fold (my gatefold card has 2 folds)
Little Darlings Challenge - Outside
Lollipop Crafts - Anything Goes
My Mum's Craft Shop - Stamp it (rubberstamped image)
Partytime Tuesdays - Anything Goes
Simon Says Stamp - Anything Goes
Sweet Stamping - Anything Goes
Truly Scrumptious - Use Lace
Truly Madly Crafty - Colour inspiration


That's it for me today. I haven't got any work in progress to show any time soon, so my next post will probably be my DT card for Sundays With Crissy. So till then, enjoy the weather, and Happy Crafting!

Tea anyone?

Hi everyone, are you glad it's Friday? Thanks for the lovely comments on my gift box.....yes I do handstitch any projects with sewing on them - I don't have a sewing machine so I've no option, but to tell the truth I enjoy doing it. It's relaxing and absorbing and really therapeutic.

I notice I have some new followers....thanks so much for visiting and following, I really appreciate it!

So on to my project today.....Ok, this isn't my usual sort of thing, but you have to have a play sometimes, don't you? And I was so inspired by the gorgeous teapot cards I saw from some of the DT at Top Tip Tuesday that I just wanted to have a go too. Check out their cards, they are much better than mine (I'm hoping you won't look too closely at mine, I am rubbish at cutting out with a knife. I have cunningly placed my watermark over the wonkiest areas ha ha.).

Most of this was cut out with scissors, but the handle had to be done with a knife....a big weak point of mine!

The template for making this card was made by Deneen and you can find it on the challenge blog.

I had been hoarding this paper by Laura Ashley for several years, but when I saw this project I knew I had to use it - it reminds me of the patterns on blue china. I don't have a craft room and lots of products, so I just used what I had to hand....so the ink round the edges isn't quite the right colour, and I don't have any label dies so had to use a pre-printed sentiment, but as I said I was only playing. I might make another one of these - after I practice cutting in a neat line with a craft knife of course!

These are the challenges I'm going to enter my little teapot in:
By The Cute & Curly - In The Kitchen
Craft Your Passion - Just Sentiments
Creative Inspirations - Anything Goes
Lollipop Crafts - Sentimentally Yours
Rainbow Lady's Challenge blog - House & Home
Top Tip Tuesday - Mothers Day/Craft Buddy

That's 2 consecutive projects without colouring! I have been doing some colouring this evening, so hopefully I'll have a card to show soon. Till then, happy crafting everyone.

Mothers Day Gift Box

Hello there, I hope everyone is well today. Thanks so much for the great comments left for my St Patrick's card, I just saw that I won a Top 3 at Inky Impressions with that card, which makes me doubly happy cos it was the first card I've put in a challenge for some months. I mentioned that I felt 'off my stroke' with my colouring on it because I felt I could have done it better. You know what it's like when things don't turn out quite as you'd expected! It wasn't a bad colouring, just wasn't what I'd pictured when I started out. But why do we have to get three quarters of the way through a colouring before we realise it isn't gonna work out as planned? I don't have enough energy to be a perfectionist anymore so I never scrap an image, he hee.

Anyway, as it was Mothers Day last Sunday, I made this little gift box - it's just big enough to hold 6 little wrapped chocolates.

It's a recycled project because I made it from one of those box blanks that chemist's use to put blister packs of tablets in - I just ripped off the label and decided to use it in crafting as it was in mint condition. Here is the 'before' photo with the papers that eventually were attached to all the sides:

I used some Papercellar paper and cut rectangles to fit on all 6 sides of the box. Then I aged them with distress inks in Tattered Rose and Weathered Wood, and handstitched around all the edges.

Only the top of the box is decorated....I used some rose ribbon in white, and I quite liked the lacy fabric that the ribbon was attached to so I didn't cut that off and instead let it overhang the edge of the top side. Then I took a rigid epoxy sticker bearing the word 'Mother' that I found lying forgotten in a box, and tried to age it a little. I didn't have any ink pads with the sort of ink that would dry on smooth surfaces, so I took a copic marker and used that instead to add a faint bit of ink around the edges. Then I used a darker copic marker to colour a silvery metal flower and added this in the centre. The flower had lost it's original gem centre, so glued a pearl bead in the flower centre. A Tim Holtz adage ticket saying 'Love', a sequin heart with some co-ordinating ribbon, some pearls from a spray and some liquid pearls finish it off.

It was an easier project in one way because there was no colouring involved (although I did still manage to use my Copics, he hee) but in another way it was harder as it took a great deal of time to handstitch all the papers and decide on a layout. I'm happy with it though and it's nice to spend time on special projects.  It was hard to photograph, so here's one final shot of the box:

The card that accompanied the box is my May project for Sundays With Crissy, so I can't show it to you yet (wink!).

I'm entering this box in these challenges:

Bunny Zoe's Crafts - Shabby Chic/Vintage

Craft Your Passion - Just Sentiments

Creative Inspirations - Anything Goes

Glitter Geeks - Mothers Day

Lollipop Crafts - Sentimentally Yours

Moving Along With The Times - Special Lady

Papertake Weekly - Bingo (Gems - Free - Lace)

Sentimental Sundays - Metal (the flower in the middle)

Squirrel & Fox - Love

Top Tip Tuesday - Mothers Day

Till next time, keep smiling!

Make it Crafty is recruiting...

Hi all, no card to show today, but I wanted to let anyone that is interested know that our beloved leader at Make It Crafty (Zoe) is having a DT call, woo hoo!

This is not for the Design Team at the colouring challenge, Make It Colourful, but for the store, so you don't have to be a top colourist or copic whizz - it's for anyone that uses and loves Make It Crafty products and would like to help promote the rubber stamps, chippies and 3D kits. I can tell you this would be a great DT to be on, not least because Zoe is a lovely lady and a fantastic boss, plus the products are absolutely fantabulous!

You can read about the DT call HERE.

Will be back in a couple of days with a project......here's a sneaky peaky:

Bye for now!