A lovely blog award

Huge thanks to the lovely Doreen for this blog award

The rules of this blog award are to link to the person who gave it to you and to pass it on to 12 other people - now thats the tricky part. I've only been blogging since the new year and I've 'met' so many good friends and found so much inspiration its been hard to choose 12 but  here we go:

Kerri, her blog is fab and she makes the most gorgeous candle jars

Tess who's has a real 'knack' with colour and makes some beautiful cards

Marilyn: who has fantastic ideas and make some amazing cards

Janet: a really talented stamper, you need to see her fab backgrounds too

Ann: who makes wonderful cards but is also a gifted artist who produces gorgeous digistamps,

Jenny : who makes stunning cards and has a wonderful eye for detail and composition

Michelle: who produces fab digistamps and I'm sure must have a window to fairyland as she captures the magic in her images beautifully

Tammy: gorgeous cards and seriously clever colouring

Samantha: I've only just 'met' Samantha - her cards are amazing and she has inspired me to try and learn to crochet - try being the operative word lol

Alison: another amazingly talented crafter with a really wonderful blog (and gorgeous pets)

Adele: more fantstic cards and real whizz with her copics

 and last but not least, Christine whose work is a real treat and who also introduced me to blogging

Hope you are all having a good week and this blog award brings you a little sunshine - we certainly need it in the UK :)

Claire xx

A pressie for MIL

We've already celebrated Mothers Day here in the UK but my MIL has her birthday this week (sssshhhhh don't tell anyone but she'll be 70). I made her birthday card ages ago but thought I'd make her a little pressie too so I've made a little beaded flower pin and a gift box using an image from Michelle Perkett

The box is recycled, it came with some beads in and was plain black so I stamped it with an elusive images background stamp using versamark and brushed cosmic shimmer golden pear over the top. I printed Rosie out onto pearlescent card and coloured her with promarkers and attached her to the card with silicone for a bit of dimension. I added red grosgrain ribbon around the box with a couple of little bows.

Here's a pic of the open box with the beaded pin.Its made using size 6 red seed beads and size 11 black seed beads and is stitched in brick stitch. I made one when I first started beading classes and MIL liked it so I thought I'd make one for her.

I'm entering this into the following challenges:

Michelle Perkett Studio: Mothers Day

The Pink Elephant: Mommy I love you

Raise the Bar: For Mom

Stamp something: Birthday somethings

Tuesday Taggers: Recycled

Thanks for looking

Claire xx

Anything but a card

This weeks challenge at Karen's Doodles UK Challenge Blog is 'Anything but a card', I decided to make a desk caddy but wasn't sure which image to use until Jean at Just Scraps challenged us to make a 'yellow' project and use up some of our scraps too. I'd seen this tutorial ages ago and really wanted to have a go at making one .. here is the result:

I've used yellow bazzil bling card for the base, scraps of various yellow papermania papers to cover the square sections inside and out. I used a lovely freebie image from Karen's Doodles printed on to pearlescent paper 4 times and coloured with promarkers. I'm not usually much good at folded projects but I'm pleased with the way this has turned out.

I'm also entering it into the Alphabet Challenge which is 'B' is for butterflies

Thanks for looking

Claire xx

Under lock and key....

I was really struggling with an idea for this weeks challenge from Frankie at Dragons Dream Tag it on until I noticed my fairy door and remembered how fascinated my friends little girl is by it. She has a little story about the fairy door being locked to keep humans out, they key is on the other side of the door in fairy land where only the fairies can reach it.  I decided to make my tag based on this little story so I made a green fairy door using some wood effect card from my stash and some heartwarming vintage hinges and lock. Inside I created my vision of fairyland using my brayer and dye inks
Here is the outside

I stuck the door to one side of the tag so it would open and here is the inside

The waterfall stamp is from Non Sequitur and the fairy is from elusive images. I brayered the background and then stamped the images.I removed some of the ink with water and added a little more colour with promarkers. The fairy wings and spray from the waterfall are glittered with prisma glitter but it hasnt picked that up very well in the photo. The key is another Heartwarming Vintage sticker, attached to the card with some narrow ribbon and a dragonfly brad.

I'm also entering this tag into the following challenges:

Daring Cardmakers: Emerald

Crafty Calendar:The Great Outdoors (optional extra - insects)

Crafty Creations: Magical

Thanks for looking

Claire xx

Here comes the sun...

This weeks challenge from Pollycraft is 'Here comes the sun' and as I've had this image a while and not used it I though I'd make a 'sunny' card for this weeks challenge

My mojo has been AWOL all week so I was pleased to see this weeks challenge from Allsorts was a nice easy one. I've used a K&Co backing paper, some cuttlebugged yellow pearescent card from my stash and some glimmer misted flowers (from a huge pack of white flowers for a quid in poundland) with fb pearls in the centre. The image is printed onto pearl card and  coloured with promarkers with some sakura clear stardust on her wings. I've added some background colour with cut'n'dry foam and kaleidacolour inks. The elusive images sentiment is cut out with a nestie and mounted with foam pads.

This card is also for the following challenges:

Dare u 2 Digistamp: Anything goes

Corrosive challenge: Celebrate (happy birthday Janet)

I love promarkers: Wings

Flutter By Wednesday: Open challenge, of course with a butterfly angel or fairy

Thanks for looking

Claire xx

Stormy weather

On this card and here too this weekend. Its an awful morning - cold windy and rainy, where has spring gone? I've used lots of moonshadow inks on the background to this card and the moonlit mulberry is the most gorgeous colour. I haven't used that one much before but I love it. As usual it doesn't like its photo taken though lol. I love making my own backgrounds so I had to have a bash at Cynthia's challenge at Rainbow Lady's Challenge Blog where the theme is open but is to include your own background. 

The inspiration for this card came from the lastest Gingersnaps Chestnut Theme Challenge GC53 which is 'Read' in celebration of National Crack a Book month. At the minute I'm reading The Red Wolf Conspiracy which is about the disappearance of an ancient and magical ship so this image from Digital Two for Tuesday was perfect for my project. I printed the image in sepia on some cream pearlescent card but for some reason it looks purple lol. The waves and stars are highlighted with sparkle EP. The 'scroll' is made from inked cocktail sticks and greaseproof paper stamped with text. The edges of the scroll and the background are distressed with sepia versafine, this weeks challenge at Crafty Cardmakers is distressing. I decided to follow the fab sketch from this weeks challenge at Papertake and decided I 'd use some nautical knots at the bottom of the image and along the side. I wasn't in the girl guides though so had to bodge some knots using garden string which I'd coloured with moonshadow ink.

Thanks for looking,

Have a good weekend

Claire xx

The Three Graces

I've made this card using another beautiful image from Michelle Perkett called 'The Three Graces'

I've had a few disasters making this card (cutting the first image totally wrong and ending up with 2.5 graces lol and having gremlins in my craft room who've run off with my box of lace!) so its not quite how it was planned but hey ho, thats crafting.

The image is coloured with promarkers and I've just added 2 shades of pink glitter card, some little paper rose and white satin ribbon. I've followed this weeks sketch from Sketch Saturday and I'm also entering this card into this weeks challenge over at Incy Wincy designs where the theme is 'Anything Goes'

Back to work for me today :( but at least its a short week

Thanks for looking

Claire xx

THE most gorgeous blog candy

Wow, have you seen this gorgeous lot of stash?

Isn't it AMAZING? Check out Lynn's blog Trash to Treasure Art for a chance to win this delicious blog candy. Lynn's work is truly inspirational so its well worth checking out her blog

Claire xx

Get well soon Herbert

Poor Herbert is feeling under the weather but his best mate Bigsby is nursing him better lol. I love this cute image from Karens Doodles but I've never made a card with it so I though it would be just the job for this weeks Karen's Doodles UK Challenge which is 'Animal Magic'

I love making easel cards but thought I'd have a go at a shaped easel card for this weeks challenge from Daring Cardmakers  and C.R.A.F.T where the challenge is to make a shaped card. The image is coloured with promarkers and i've added glossy accents to the eyes, thermometer, the tea in the cup and Bigsby's little nose. I used a 'Get well soon' clear stamp from HOTP which I curved to stamp around the oval. The easel is supported by another oval stamped with a crafters companion sentiment. A few tiny buttons finished the card off.

I'm also entering this card into the following challenges:

Alphabet Challenge : A is for animals

Secret Crafter Saturday Challenge: Friendship

Papertake Challenge: Do something different (oval easel)

Tanda Teaser: Paws for thought

Allsorts Challenge: Animals

Paper Sundaes: Red, Yellow and Green

Thanks for looking

Claire xx

Spring Thaw

As soon as I saw this lovely scene from Lynne at Stamp-n-Doodle I thought it should be framed - such a beautiful image, it hardly took any colouring at all. I made a frame using a dreamweaver embossing stencil and some magitac paste on some pale green card and then brushed over the embossing with some mica powder. The image has a little colour added using my promarkers and to finish off I embossed the puddle with clear EP

I mounted the frame with 3d foam tape to give it a bit of dimension and then the finished image has been mounted onto a small card blank.

I'm entering this card into Lynne's challenge - Share your Creation

Thanks for looking and have a good bank holiday Monday.

We are having traditional British weather for the bank hol - lots of heavy showers so the puddle is quite appropriate ;)

Claire xx

Amazing Blog Candy up for grabs

At Karen's blog Crafty Goings On - what a yummy bundle of goodies for some lucky crafter this months

Claire xx

Distress it!

I'm usually rushing at the last minute to finish my tag for Frankie's challenge but for a change I'm a bit more organised for this weeks Dragons Dream Tag it On challenge which is 'Distress it!!' (Frankie also has some fab blog candy up for grabs )

I've covered my tag with some card from DCWV and distressed it with brown ink before adding a copper eyelet.I stamped the ladies faces (from Elusive images) onto the card base and sprayed them with Jolly Roger Red Moonshadow Mist. It looked a bit plain so I decided to have a play and made some frames. I cut the oval frames from plain cardstock and covered them with some tin foil (left over from this mornings baking) and coloured them with expresso, ginger and cranberry alcohol inks. I then put them through the cuttlebug - one embossed and one debossed just to see how they turned out. They are a lot darker IRL than they are in the pic. I'm quite pleased with the way they've turned out :)

 The little pic is a chipboard sticker also from DCWV which I've triple embossed. I made the little scroll with some greaseproof paper stamped with the text stamp from the Stampman's nautical themeplate and then rolled it up on some inked cocktail sticks. The grungeboard key has been embossed with gold ep and overheated to give an aged look.I added a couple of deep red roses to finish it off.

I'm also entering this tag into the following challenges:

My Time to Craft: Ruby, ruby ruby

Quixotic Challenge: How distressing

Gingersnap creations GC52 Colour challenge: Kraft

Sunday Stamper: Use a key

Lots to do: Faces

Thanks for looking

Claire xx

Moonrose Fairy

Moonrose Fairy is another gorgeous digi from Michelle Perkett and I've made this card for this weeks challenge at the Michelle Perkett Studio Challenge Blog where the challenge is either use your favourite image or follow the sketch. Its so hard to choose a favourite so I've used the sketch :

I've coloured the fairy with promarkers and added lots of sparkly highlights with a sakura clear stardust pen. The black backgrounds are make by stamping grasses on the lower panel and stars on the top panel and embossing with silver EP. I've also added some flowers and stars stamped in versamark and brushed with mica powder but they don't show up too well on the pic. The purple oval is made using the 'Caught in Crystal Technique' which is one of my favourites as it is sooooooo messy. The acetate is painted with radiant rain daubers, sprayed with glimmer mist and firework ink. I've added silver stars, silver microbeads and glitter before adding the floor polish and tissue paper to hold it all together. I love the finished effect but it doesn't like its picture taken lol. The sentiment and moon are from the same digital image.

This card is also for the following challenges:

Crafts and Me: Sparkle

Cute Card Thursday: Make your own (i've made my own bps)

Crafty Creations: Create your own paper backgrounds

Thanks for looking, I hope the weather is kind to you today, it looks like its going to pour with rain here so I won't be venturing much further than my craft room

Claire xx

I can't believe its May 1st

At this rate it will be Christmas before we know it. I'll be ready this year though as here is another Christmas card:

I've used 'Snow Goddess' a gorgeous digistamp from Michelle Perkett, coloured with promarkers and clear sakura stardust highlights. I've also used glossy accents on her eyes and to highlight the little holly berries on the wreath around her shoulders. She is matted onto a cirle of glossy card coloured with Big'n'Juicy hydrangea inkpad and then onto another circle of silver card. The snowflake bps are make using Tim Holtz snowflakes stamped in versamark on glossy card and brayered with the same inkpad. I've tried to fade the colour towards the centre and I'm quite pleased with the result. I've matted the bp squares onto silver card, added a couple of bows and attached a tiny bell with jump rings.

I've made this card for the following challenges:

Bah Humbug: Snowflakes

I love promarkers: A lovely sketch this week, perfect inspiration for this card

Fab's Big Christmas Challenge: Wreath and glossy accents

Corrosive Challenge: Lucky charms (does my little bell count as a charm?I hope so)

Thanks for looking

Claire xx

Alice in Wonderland

Cynthia has set us all a fab challenge over at Rainbow Lady's Challenge Blog this week, the theme is Alice in Wonderland. When I first thought about the theme, I didn't think I had any stash that would fit the bill, then I remembered I had saved some tiny perfume bottles which would be perfect for a 'Drink me' project. I googled 'Drink me' and found a fab site with loads of free original illustrations here. I decided to make a shadow box for my bedroom wall so I used a blue and sepia colour scheme. This morning's sunshine has vanished and its a very grey day here now so I've struggled to get a pic but here is the result:

I coloured both sides of the canvas with pale blue acrylic paint and then added some shimmer with Bucanneer Bay Blue Moonshadow Mist and a couple of starburst stains. While that was drying I made a frame to cover the staples around the canvas with some hammered card, coloured it with the same spray and then stamped with some SeeD's stamps before distressing with brown ink. I used beeswax to  make a collage inside the frame, layering up the main image,some cups, bottles and looking glasses (which I'd stamped on tissue paper), blue glitter and some toadstools. I then added some silver microbeads and stars. The little bottle is filled with water and blue ink, I addeded some wax to run down the neck and attached it with silicone glue.

I'm also entering my little shadow box in to the following challenges:

One stop craft challenge: anything but a card

Digital Tuesday: also anything but a card

Raise the Bar: My Retreat

Thanks for looking, I hope you are enjoying the bank holiday weekend

Claire xx