Scrap-a-ganza

I managed to make this ATC for the Tilda & Friends Challenge before I shut down my craft room taking it easy wasn't working so yesterday I rested all day and was bored silly but it seems to have work. The challenge was to use scraps under a certain size, so out came my scrap box and a small square punch to make the background the stamp was inspired by Fran ATC to use the dress up stamp of magnolia which I used for paper piecing the outfit.

I've done 19 of this pages for the swap FairyKaren has arranged at Scrap-a-ganza the theme for Saturday night is black and pink with a bit of fluffy throw in but that is typical FairyKaren. I also made chipboard cover nothing fancy but it's nice to put everyones swap pages together.

I also made the the timetable and on the back I thought it would nice to print some photos and put in there as a complete reminder of the weekend.
Not sure I have all the correct photos but if not I will work something out at the time or when I get home, we're going to very busy with 9 classes and four make and takes.

Couple of Cards

Hopefully Jan has received her acceptance card and won't have a surpise when she reads my blog. I've used the CPS sketch 68 as a starting point then it went its own way, the word stamp is crafty indivduals or at least I think thats what its called because I've popped into my craft room and I can't find it and it was from the Craft Barn. The birds are pink paislee, I don't think it was that expensive but I can see it being very handy. The papers are BG the one with dinosaurs in, the ribbon is from Hobbyart.
Now on a Spoonful Full of Sugar they have a recipe 3 brads or buttons, 2 patterned papers and a flower, Ok so there was a bit of cheating with the flower but I reckon two halfs make one whole one. I've used inktense pencils, it was really hard being so used to my small tin, the first thing I found out there's no peach for the face and I seem to be a bit short on browns but I love how the colour really spreads out.

It's Ok found that stamp.

At last

Yes I've finally finished those swap pages with a couple of days to spare and I made a card for Ismaki Challenge 23. It did help that this little chap was already coloured so I it was really just following the sketch. The papers are doodlebug and the strip and circle words are stickers from Christina Cole which have been in my stash for such a long time.

I've now recovered from how much I spent at Craft Barn it doesn't take long to add up but I did buy Derwent Intense pencils, I knew roughly how much I could get them online and they were there at the same price, also that Jenny from Hobbyart was there helping me spend my money as usual.

Today I want to make the cover for the swap pages and a timetable plus its Wednesday so there will be a challenge up for Tilda & Friends ATC challenge blog

Missing

I'm exhausted, which is why I was missing yesterday and from today I must be careful not to overdo it since I'm at Scrap-a-ganza at the weekend. This is a card I made last week using Katharine sketch for Stamp Something, I love Katharine's sketches they always work well with what ever I'm doing. The ballerina stamp is Kerry's from Debbie Moore and the idea of using chalks was on Kerry's blog, I love the beautiful subtle colours. The papers are K&Co but the pink was a devil to match and the backing paper is wallpaper.

So the plan for taking it easy is check I have enough Father's day cards and B/day card for my Dad, need to make an acceptance card and I've still got to finish those 6by6 swap pages, I've still got to do K and L for my A-Z journal (many thanks Jan for the ideas) and I need to make a start on a CJ that I've joined on UKS plus make sure I've got everything I need for Scrap-a-ganza and take it easy!!!!!!!

Busy Busy Busy

Now the Tilda & Friends ATC challenge this week was for Sunshine, believe it or not I don't have a sun in my stamp collection but I used sunshine coloured papers. Looking at it now it looks like she wearing an all in one suit with a pinny on top.

What a great but exhausting day we had yesterday at the craft demo at the Craft Barn it was great if only a bit overcrowded. Names you see in the craft mags sitting demo-ing goodies that were in the shop. We had to queue ages to pay, lucky for me Sis waitted and I went to sat down. Then it was a drink and bite to eat in Miss Marples the coffee shop next door. Its not really called Miss Marples but it looks like somewhere where she would stop for tea.

Then my Sis decided to go onto the Glitter Pot since Nannette hasn't been, after a while I went to sit in the car, it was some time later they finally managed to drag themselves away from the rows of stamps.

Friday Sketchers #5

Yesterday's card was last weeks Friday sketchers and today's card is this weeks. Kim from Canada had designed this weeks sketch. I've used my favourite Tilda with the petticoats, this was probably my first Tilda. The papers are making memories, scrap bit of ribbon which has turned into a strange colour when I photo it. I still feel there's something missing still it looks pretty.

Sis has rang to say we're going to the Craft Barn, I was in two minds whether to go has I'm feeling the effects of the holiday but its demo day and it would be a shame to miss it.

Last Friday

Now that I'm back I checked out all the challenges I've missed and the Friday sketchers had this great sketch that I knew would work really well with this image. Its one of my Sis stamps that had no name but I think she got it from the US years ago. Sometimes when I'm at Sis I take some stamp images and my pencils and colour them in ready for a card which is what happened with this image. The papers are DCWV.

Looks like a busy weekend, my Sis is after going to the Craft Barn in Lingfield there's are a demo day and Sunday is Scrapbuddies and Monday off to Bournemouth to see MIL whose on her hols with a coach tour. And next weekend I shall be at Stratford at Scrap-a-ganza.

Sunny England!!!!!

I'm back, thanks everyone for commenting on my posts while I've been away, its going to be a while till I catch up.

My holiday started off calm and relaxing, last weekend is the Sardina Festival in Tossa de Mar, it starts off with hot rum and songs of the sea on the beach on Saturday and sardines and tomato bread on the beach too and free to all.

Now BIL very rarely lets people stay in his apartment on this weekend but because they were on the cruise a week early he said we could go. So when someone on Saturday shouted at me across the street and sounded just like KC and when I turned he was the spitting image of KC, it was only when my Sis popped up from behind the corner that I was certain it was them. Apparently he told Sis to pack a case on Friday night because they were leaving at 4am to catch the flight.

Then while waiting for Tapas at a bar on the front I looked through the garden to the hotel and my jaw just hit the floor my Sis still thought I was shocked from them turning up, little did she know that her son and his wife with her daughter and Sis's grandson had done the exact same thing to surprise her. So my calm relaxing holiday became very busy and spent so much time laughing, drinking and eating I now need a holiday to get over it.

I have to thank my DD for these amazing photos of my nephew who is truly a cheeky chappie who has only given his parents a couple of hours sleep since they've been there.

Where am I

You may have noticed that I haven't been blog hopping and leaving comments like I usually do this is because I've used the timed posts while we are on Holiday here in Tossa de mar on the Costa Brava so hopefully blogger has behaved and posted them. Many thanks to Samm for pointing the way to do it. All being well we should be back home today and I look forward to catching up with everyone's blogs and the challenges I've missed.

Friends

I love this stamp which I got from High Hopes, I've used Daisy Bucket papers which I very nearly run out of and the friend cuttlebug embossing folder. I used my nestabilities for the cirles and scallops.
I can't believe in just over 10 days I will be going to the first ever UK Scrap-a-ganza at Stratford upon Avon rubbing shoulders with the likes of Donna Downey and Lance Anderson but before them I have to make 19 6by6 pages for a swap so I really should get myself motivated to get them done.

Ismaki #21

The very talented Claudia has designed the sketch for this weeks Ismaki, I have slighty changed it a bit, for a start I flipped the sketch and the main image now looks like a tag and I angled it a bit to make it look a bit more interesting, the papers are K & co and the little fishes are magnolia's the ones I won from Tilda & Friend ATC challenge blog. DD has bagsy this one for our friend's birthday.

A spoon full of sugar.

There's a great new challenge blog using Sugar Nellies from Funky Kits this will include Sweet Ebony, Maggie and Hamish and Rachelle Ann stamps as well. I've used Sweet Ebony with Basic Grey papers I think its sultry range. I do find though that these stamps work better with watercolouring then prisms. I have a scary amount of stamps that I haven't even used yet, I must try to use them before I buy more.

Papertake Weekly Mens Theme

So for the Papertake weekly challenge is for a male card especially with Father's Day round the corner and my brother and my Dad both have birthdays round the same time. Lets be honest mens cards are so hard to do. The papers are dovecrafts which has been excellent for mens cards, the stamp is Sugar Nellies from Funky kits. I've been watercolouring with pencils recently simply because its a bit quicker.

CPS66

The sketch on CPS66 is circular which I find really difficult and they wanted a summer theme now maybe some people think sunflowers are more autumn but they seem to flower in August when its hot and sultry. August is the month full of children laughing and running semi naked in the garden where providing we're not on drought orders plenty of water is involved. The stamp is High Hopes which I got from Silly Monkeys. Not sure on the paper and I used watercolour pencils to colour.

Torn Tilda

Ask anyone who knows me and you would know that I don't do tearing paper and when I've gone to classes where I'm instructed to tear, you would either see me take out the deckle scissors or if I'm force to tear I will do so with my eyes shut. So the challenge on Tilda & Co is torn paper, I raided my scraps so it least if it looks really bad I've only wasted scraps but the square doesn't look too bad although the sky looks a bit stormy.

Living down South we had enough rain to last all summer yesterday or at least it felt like it, you would have thought I would have spent all day crafting, afraid not went to my sis and was trying to work out her video camera.

70th Pool Shark

So today is a bank holiday and the weather is doing what is usually does, it's raining hard. I've been struggling to make a card for a friend of ours whose 70 and its a fella. I decided to use the pool shark as the zero and made the chipboard 7 using cricut and mickey font and that was it couldn't think what else to do, then Saturday workout wanted you to use a resist technique so I made the bubbles using a hero arts stamps with random circles, versamark and clear embossing powder then using sponges I used distress pads to colour and make the bubbles stand out. Then on Friday Sketchers they had a sketch from Carol and suddenly the card was finished, I couldn't quite work to closed to the sketch had to turn bits a different way to work but without the sketch I probably would still be staring at it. Oh the papers are doodlebug.
Look what I got, cool award from Tracey, thanks.
If anyone fancy a trip to Hobbycraft in Woking I can firmly recommend it or at least till they sell out of stuff. The few times I've been able to get to Hobbycraft it was alway half empty but I suppose cos they've only just opened it was full. The card and scrapbooking making is upstairs but there is a lift at the back of the store. I find lots of scrapbooking stuff I hadn't seen before from American craft, K&co and Making Memories. Some of the prices are quite dear especially for gadgets circut and cuttlebug, yet some were quite resonable. But it was noisy there was quite load music by the tills of all places.

25th May

Yes its the 25th of the month and its Rudolph day. I've tried to use Di Hickman sketch May#3 but it sort of went wrong, I made sure you could read the sentiment then realised they should have read on the opposite sides to follow the sketch to where the penquins go but the principle is still there. The penguins are Penny Black which I cut out and the papers were some freebies from a mag but I think they are doodlebug, the sentiments were in a goodie bag from a craft day with Authors and Artists in Fleet last year.

So the second honeymooners are back today, I know this because BIL is cleaning carpets tonight with OH. These are some pics that my Sis sent to us on her phone talk about rubbing it in.

They had priority boarding, this was on arrival in Tiffany's lounge where Wine and a bit of lunch was served.Champagne and dressing gowns, don't you love the slippers.
On their balcony, it looks like it's large enough to have a party.

Hopefully OH is going to take me to the new Hobbycraft at Woking, it opened yesterday but OH was too busy to take me, I know the chains can be a disappointment but for essentials it could be handy.

Sunny Saturday

Had to use another of the Sweet Ebony stamps from Funky Kits, they're just so cute, the papers are chatterbox and I used my watercolour pencils. The sketch is from Paperworld, which suits theses stamps to a tee.

Now the challenge on Arty Girlz is recycling, now sitting on my desk is this box that had a circle tin sitting on top with birds in, from Prima. I had the box for ages and the challenge pushed me into doing something with it. So I decorated the top of the box.

And inside I made a little concertina book using Laura Ashley papers from Dovecraft.
And when you lift up the ribbon this is what pulls out, pictures of my brothers and sister with their other halfs, all dressed up in our posh gear for Damien and Rachel's Wedding last year.
Inside the bottom of the box is a blossom just to make it look pretty and I used the flourishes die from quickcutz and corner die for the cuttlebug.

Cute Card Thursday

On one of my blog hopping days I found this blog , Kerry draws her images and mentioned that Debbi Moore brought some of the images for stamps and last week they were at last on the shops website. Yesterday they arrived, quite surprised how large they are, so with a sketch for Cute Card Thursday from Katharine I couldn't resist to use them. The paper is papermania and I used my watercolour pencils and plenty of glamour dust.
I don't have any Halloween stamps, nor do I take pics at Halloween so why did I buy Halloween stickers from Poundland last year on my travels! At last, one of Kerry's stamps is of a witch and I just couldn't stop myself, the sketch is sort of based on Katharine's papertake weekly sketch and I used a piece of DCWV glitter card.
I'm such a lucky gal not only do I have some lovely bloggers who pop by my blog leaving some fabulous comments but they give awards too. This one makes me laugh, all I can think of is "Does my bum look big in this" and I'm pretty much sure my bum is that huge.

Thanks to Nikki (Bunny-Zoe's) and Beth for this great Circle of Friends award, everyone who visits my blog deserves it too, but a couple of Favourites Fran and Carole.

Really cute.

Birds of a feather is the challenge on Tilda & Friends ATC challenge, you have to use either a magnolia bird or feathers. Now I have these cute birds or normal looking birds from the spring club but lets be honest you can't beat cute. I regret not getting the magnolia wall which I hope soon will be rectified. So the wall is hand draw, actually I'm really please how it turned out. Had to put Two little dicky birds because I have two brothers called Peter and Paul and it used to annoy them when I used to sing it when I was little.
Isn't she gorgeous and we're not talking about my colouring but the stamp designed my Elisabeth Bell and turned into stamps by Funky Kits (they're waiting for more to be delivered). I thought they may be a bit fiddly for prisms and paper stubbs, so I got my watercolour pencils out. The hat cried out for layering and I use silcone glue so that its only slighty raised but enough to give it some depth. The papers are K & co and I used the amazing sketch from Katharine on Papertake Weekly, the border is matching paper using a Fiskars border punch which I had to blow the dust off after I managed to find them.
I've heard from the second honeymooners they're having a Fabulous time with champagne every day and Sis even managed to find a craft shop in one of the towns.