A little Embossing

Today I have a really simple card to share that showcases my new, all time favourite, embossing folder.

The folder was lightly inked with a brayer on the flat side before embossing. If it works, you get this lovely soft colour backing the white embossing. The other really great thing about this embossing folder is that it hasn't cracked the paper once and I have used it loads of times now.

The little bird branch was cut from co-ordinating paper along with the sentiment. Absolutely no stamping, that's what makes it quick and easy. It is also easy to emboss the envelope flap with this folder, as there is no right way up.

The sun was actually shining when I took these photos, which was a mixed blessing.

I was so pleased with my first attempt that I made 2 more in different colours. Which is your favourite, peach, yellow or pale grey? I am pleased that I have been using my Christmas presents, well some of them anyway! I have got lots more in my NBUS basket as I bought from the post Christmas sales too. Sometimes it is just too hard to resist! Now I am trying to delete the emails without looking at them first.

Today is my youngest daughters birthday, she is 42, that is so hard to believe. I made her card using another Christmas present, perhaps I will share it soon.

*Happy Birthday Alice*

I am sharing the first card at:

Mix it up Challenge #63 - anything goes with the option of no stamping

Can you handle the pressure - Anything goes with a twist of dots. No twist for me today unless the flower centres can count as dots!

NBUS #46 - The folder and the die cut branch are NBUS

Supplies:

Ink: Catherine Pooler bellini, chiffon, mint to be

Embossing folder: Spellbinders Flower Frenzy

Dies: Spellbinders sealed birds; Altenew essential sentiment strips

Thank you for taking the time to visit my blog today, I really appreciate it. 

We love Stamping January Reminder

Today is the 18th so time for a reminder for the current challenge over at We Love Stamping. The challenge where you can showcase your stamps and your skill at using them.

This month our theme is:

** Favourite Colours**

Today my colours are bright and bold

I started by blending distress oxides onto a background and then I used a stencil to add interest. Once that was dry I heat embossing a script background stamp in white.

My flowers were stamped in black, heat embossed in clear, coloured with polychromos pencils and die cut with coordinating dies. The sentiment is also heat embossed.

This card came together quite quickly and easily, just for a change! I hope you like it.

Don't forget there is always a prize to be won and this month the prize has been kindly donated by ALL and Create. Actually there are 2 prizes stamp set #453 and  stencil #117. Why don't you head over to the challenge blog to check it out? The prize winner is selected randomly and in addition the DT will choose one entry to join us as a guest designer for a future challenge.

I hope I have inspired you to join us this month, all you have to do is follow the prompt and ensure stamping is the main focus on your card. The challenge will close at noon (UK time) on Wednesday 1st February.

I am looking forward to seeing you in the gallery.

I am also sharing this at:

NBUS #46 - It is the first time I have used the background script stamp and the coordinating dies

Make My Monday #192 your favourite theme of 2022 - #171 Use a Stencil

Supplies:

Cardstock: Cardbase Hunky Dory Adorable scorable coated card; Card panel and flowers Strathmore Bristol smooth (I have recently acquired this and I love it)

Ink: Distress Oxide saltwater taffy, twisted citron and cracked pistachio; versafine onyx black

Stamps: Background script and flowers Uniko; Sentiment Birch Press Designs

Dies: Coordinating dies for flowers and frame die by Lisa Horton

Thank you for taking the time to visit my blog today, I really appreciate it. 

Year in Review Give Away

I am afraid I have been a bit slow in sorting out my give away from the year in review blog hop that published on 30th December, you can find the post here. 

I did enjoy putting together my selection of cards from 2022, none of which had been shared previously. Thanks to everyone who called by and left me a comment. Currently the post has 28 comments, 26 of which were left by the deadline to be included in the draw (5th Jan).

Here is the draw:

Comment number 18 was from Michele at I Card Everyone.

Congratulations Michele, I shall be in touch and will be putting a little surprise in the post to you.

Thanks again to everyone who took part.

As this is rather a boring post, I thought I would share a couple of pictures from a lovely walk I had with a friend on Monday.

The sun was shining and the sea was calm. This is an old lighthouse on the Essex coast at Dovercourt.

This is a picture of Felixstowe port taken from Harwich beach.

Happy New Year

Thank you for taking the time to visit my blog today, I really appreciate it. 

A Little CAS Card

Just a quick one today. I have this little CAS card that was made a while ago for one of the CAS Mix Up challenges that didn't happen. I thought I would share it today.

To create the background I have used gesso through a stencil and then inked over the top once it was dry. The rest of it is pretty self explanatory, I think.

You can see the effect of the gesso on the close up picture below. I wasn't very happy with it when I first made it, but I really like it now. Funny how that happens.

I am sharing this at:

Allsorts week 708/9 - CAS

Mix it up Challenge #63 - Anything goes

Thank you for taking the time to visit my blog today, I really appreciate it. 

December Card Chain Challenge Reveal

Today is 2nd of the month so time for the Card Chain Challenge big reveal. This month 26 card makers took part and I sent my card to Brenda in UK. 

This month our options were contained within a tic tac toe grid.

I chose the diagonal line from the top left, green, bird, friendship, splats and silver.

I started by using my Catherine Pooler refills to lay down a pale green wash on some watercolour paper. Then I took my stencil and used the same ink (I think, can't remember what colour it was either!) to create this lovely flowery backdrop. Then I stamped the branch and leaves onto the panel. The layered bird stamp was stamped onto white card and cut out with my scan n cut. I cut it 3 times and stacked it for some dimension. Thanks to Faith at daffodil cards for encouraging me to use my scan and cut for cutting out images, it worked really well so I hope I will use the technique more often. I am very bad at getting out my cutting machine and then regret that I don't use it enough!

Once I knew the position of the bird I stamped the legs directly onto the panel. The stencilled circle was roughly masked while I splattered the edges with a darker green. For some reason the splatters at the top of the card are larger than those at the bottom. I cannot explain that! The panel was matted on some silver mirror card and then mounted on a green cardbase.  i finished it off with a few silver and green sequins. I was quite pleased with the result, hope you like it too.

I received my card from Gundi in Germany and it was extra special as she enclosed so many extra little goodies too. Thanks so very much Gundi, your card is a real beauty and you are so generous too.

I must apologise to Gundi as my original post said I hadn't received my December card. I somehow got myself in a muddle. I think it was because I have received so many Christmas cards too. Mind you, it doesn't take much these days to muddle me up!

My November card from Dee in Kenya arrived on 10th December, perfect timing for Christmas.

If you would like to take part in the next card chain challenge, you have until 6th to sign up here.

Supplies:

Cardstock: watercolour paper; green heavy weight card base; silver mirror card

Ink: Catherine Pooler (I didn't make a note of the colours)

Stamps: Hero Arts layered bird; sentiment is by Concord & (th

Dies: stitched rectangle

Stencils: Funky Fossil

Thank you for taking the time to visit my blog today, I really appreciate it. 

We Love Stamping January Challenge

Happy New Year, can you believe that we are now in 2023? The time just flies by and here we are on 1st January, which just happens to be the first Sunday in the month, so time for a new challenge over at We Love Stamping. The challenge where you can showcase your stamps and your skill at using them.

This month our theme is:

** Favourite Colours **

If I am asked what my favourite colour is, I will always say green, but in reality I like all colours and also I like them to be bright although today I have a rather grungy looking green card to share.

I started with the background by covering the watercolour panel with a green was. I then blended some darker green and added the stencilled leaves and flowers before stamping the image in versafine clare ink and clear heat embossing it. I cut the panel with a crinkle edge die and matted it onto bright green card and then again onto darker green card.

I thought it looked a bit flat so I tried to liven it up with some white gouache splatters.

Don't forget there is always a prize to be won and this month the prize has been kindly donated by ALL and Create. Actually there are 2 prizes stamp set #453 and  stencil #117. Why don't you head over to the challenge blog to check it out? The prize winner is selected randomly and in addition the DT will choose one entry to join us as a guest designer for a future challenge.

I hope I have inspired you to join us this month, all you have to do is follow the prompt and ensure stamping is the main focus on your card. The challenge will close at noon (UK time) on Wednesday 1st February.

I am looking forward to seeing you in the gallery.

Supplies:

Ink: Catherine Pooler; Versafine Clare

Stamps: Chocolate Baroque; Uniko

Dies: Crafters Companion

Stencil: imagination crafts

Other: White gouache for splatters

Thank you for taking the time to visit my blog today, I really appreciate it.