Festive Penguin

 Good morning all. Not long to go now 'til it's Christmas, just under 4 weeks!!! If you are like me that is too soon as my prep is no where near ready! Anyway if you need an excuse to step away from the stress of shopping or you need a quick card for your stash, perhaps the new challenge at Cardz4Guyz will suit. We would like to see your masculine cards on the theme of:-

FESTIVE CREATURES

Here's a really quick CAS make.

I simply took a linen effect white note card, added a strip of DP, NitWits, from the stash and this cute LOTV digi that was already in my printed off to be coloured box.

After colouring him in his festive attire, I fussy cut him and popped him up on pads over the DP. The sentiment is a really old Woodware one, simples. I do love a festive penguin and have lots in my stash, especially from LOTV. It started when my Son in Law mentioned he liked penguins, so I usually try to incorporate at least one into his Christmas card!

There's plenty more inspiration from the rest of the team over at Cardz4Guyz if you need it and hope you have time to join in this challenge.

I'm joining in over at:-

Favourite Christmas Critter

Who wouldn't love this festive penguin sporting his Christmas hat and scarf and bringing you a little gift too?!

Christmas

Watercolour Poppies

 Morning all. I'm up over at Uniko with a little bit of watercolour painting using the newly released Remembrance stamp set. 

I've used my favourite liquid masking and cling film technique to create this card.

Pop over to Uniko for all the details.

Joining in over at:-

Color Hues #76

Afternoon all. 

Halfway through November already, these weeks are whizzing by and I'm nowhere near sorted with my Christmas card stash. Well the new Color Hues pairing has given me the opportunity to make a least one more card for the stash! Here's my take on the new duo.

My inspiration for this card was one I saw on Pinterest using a Gina K stamp. I loved the bauble effect, so decided to make my own version of it using my Uniko stash.

To begin, I drew around a circle die cut lightly with a pencil to create the bauble on a panel of red card and then stamped an arrangement of snowflakes with in it. I tried to keep it symmetrical but it is slightly off! Each stamp was inked with Versamark then the image heat embossed with Metallic Gold EP. To infill the spaces, I used a WOW embossing pen and more gold EP. 

To make the image complete, I used a freebie stamp and freehand drew the string and bow with the WOW pen before heat embossing with gold EP.

I had envisaged a one layer card but I ended up trimming the panel down before adding some ink blending around the edges to put the bauble in focus. I used a mix of red DIs, Festive Berries, Fired Brick and Aged Mahogany.

So where will these new festive colours take you, you don't have to go down the Christmas route but it would be a good excuse to expand your Christmas stash!

For more red and gold inspiration why not check out the rest of the Color Hues team here along with our GD Claire.

Joining in over at:-

Get ready for Christmas

Use Red (Thanks Chris for the heads up)

Sheep in the Meadow

Good morning, time for a new challenge at Cardz4Guyz. This time we would like to see masculine cards that feature:- 

A WINTER SCENE

When I saw the title of the new challenge, I knew straight away that I should give some love to a very old Hobby Art stamp that's been in my stash for over 10 years and hasn't been used much at all! 

I bought it because of the subject matter and have used it for a couple of the OHs birthday cards but I think this is the first time since it's first inking that I've used it for a winter scene. 

I first stamped my image with Altenew's Obsidian Pigment ink on some textured off white card, as I wanted to watercolour the image. The colours were washed in and then when dry a fine mist of white gouache was added with an old toothbrush to suggest snow and then the panel was cut using an MFT die. 

My panel was then added to a matching top fold card and the Uniko sentiment added in Industrial Graphite ink. I hope we don't have snow like this this winter!

So that's it from me but if you do need more inspiration then why not check out the rest of the team here. We're looking forward to seeing your makes in our gallery.

Building my Christmas Stash

Good morning all. The weather is a little better today but the last couple of days were a bit dreary, cold, damp and grey. Well it is the second week of November, even if I am STILL eating this years tomatoes! Yes last week I cleared all the tomatoes from the greenhouse and brought them inside to finish ripening in the pan drawer. Last year I put them in another drawer less frequently used and completely forgot about them! This summer's crop have been superb and I even got a few outdoor ones, kept the blight away but the birds eventually found them and then they were dashed by the gales in September :( .

Anyway, I digress the reason I'm posting is to share a card made for the current AYLI and JUGS colour challenges using the technique hi-lighted by the Group of Seven card makers, stencilling over heat embossing. What with all the rain, I decided to have a play in the craft room and here is one result.

It combines a Papermania background text stamp, STAMPlorations stencil and a die from The Works plus a Uniko sentiment.

My white card panel was stamped and heat embossed with white before stencilling over it in DI. The Joy die cut was cut from red mirror card and the sentiment stamped in black on a scrap of white card added over the Joy on pads. Everything else was layered up flat for postage!

I did make another panel but I'll share those cards another day.

Joining in over at:-

 

Traditional or Non-Traditional Christmas colours

I like making Christmas cards in both colour ways but when it comes to foliage cards it just has to be traditional colours.

I'm not asleep, I'm just thinking!

Good evening.

It's always a busy time in the craft room at the beginning of the month and here is another DT post, this time for HLS Birthday. Late October is also a busy time for birthday's in our house and this is the card I made for my OH.

My Dad always said he wasn't sleeping,  just resting his eyes as he lay back in his recliner after Sunday lunch quietly snoring, but we knew differently, still my OH has been known to do the same but in his case he says he was thinking!

So far I've not found him asleep like this but he is often to be found with his feet up with a bit of paper and a pencil thinking through a problem. He retired some time ago but can't seem to stop problem solving, once an engineer, always an engineer! So this image from Mo Manning was perfect for his card. I've used Copics to colour and recreate his study down to the colour of his bin which is just how it usually is with pieces of crumpled paper dotted around as he's missed it, however this desk top is much tidier than his!

After colouring the image, I fussy cut the top half out die cut the bottom edge and popped the panel up on pads over a piece of DP and stamped the sentiment, Uniko, on a panel of white below. The whole lot was then mounted onto an A5 base card.

So what delights will you share with us in the gallery this time, we do love seeing all your birthday makes. The DT as usual have some fab makes to inspire you here.

Joining in over at:-

No option for me unless you consider 'blue sky thinking' an option!

Color Hues #75 and Uniko BA Inspiration

Afternoon all. 

It's a new month so it must mean a new colour combo at Color Hues.

This time I chose quite a wintery palette, so chose a wintery stamp to go with it!

I've used the Snowflakes Framed stamp from Uniko, simply stamped with Versamark then heat embossed with detail white EP on a panel of white card.

Once cooled down, I added the colour, blending Wilted Violet and Salty Ocean DI across the panel. After stamping my sentiment on a scrap of white card, I fussy cut it and raised it up on pads, adding a few PPP sequins for some sparkle.

All in all a pretty simple, almost one layer design, perfect for batch making.

So where will these new colours take you? We'd all love to see your take in pour gallery and if you need more inspiration please check out the rest of the DT here.

Over on the Uniko blog, I've got another idea using the same stamp but a different colourway, why not check it out?

Don't forget the GIVEAWAY for the release in review at Uniko, a chance to win a £20 eGift code to spend in store. Commenting will close for the giveaway at midnight GMT Sunday 5th November 2023 and Bev will randomly select a winner and announce on Monday 6th November.

Joining in over at:-

Contemporary Christmas Colours

Embossing Wet or Dry