The ones that made it....

Good afternoon, peeps! Are you all sitting comfortably.....? Well, I'll tell you a story about some little cards that got a TV debut yesterday and some that didn't.... of course I'm no different from the rest of the Clarity Stamp Design Team. If you were watching Barbara Gray's show on Create and Craft TV yesterday, you will have seen some amazing cards from my teamies but I just thought that today I would show you the cards of mine that got an airing. This was the first one that Dean (the presenter) picked up. The background is a great technique that I've used before with mica sprays but not with just dye inks. I wanted a delicate, misty effect for the background that would tie in with the little verse. This is produced by using a brayer to apply first one colour- my choice was Adirondack Terra Cotta, then another - Adirondack espresso for me, on to the Clarity Card, which is a coated semi-glossy cardstock. After the second colour application, you mist evenly with water all over the surface then layer cling film on top, pulling this into creases all over the surface and leave it to dry. When it's dry, peel off the cling film and you get this misty effect - I love it and you're bound to see it again on my cards. The rest of the card is just straight forward stamping of the images in the Espresso ink. The ribbon and dragonfly charm are from my stash. This was my offering for the Scotland stamp collection. I just used the reflection technique to create the reflected images in the water - all done with the brayer, then added the Nestie shape and the white heather from Wild Orchid Crafts - lucky it was in my stash already (sorry about the pun!). This was my take on the Morning Glory corner. I used the stamp to create a pattern that looks like one frame behind the other and then stamped the verse in the centre. I coloured the flowers and leaves with Copics and then mounted it on the Go Kreate frilly die cut shape. My final offering is this cottage scene. It takes a fair while to do this kind of picture building but it's worth it, I think. The main part of the colouring is done with the brayer and the rest by applying inks with a make-up sponge or using them as a water colour paint(on the cottage). Making the sky is interesting - you pull a cotton wool ball into a cloud shape and press it down, using the heel of your hand, on to a Versamark pad. Next you press the now oily cotton wool onto the card, again using the heel of your hand. Let the Versamark ink dry for a while then brayer across the sky area with Adirondack Cloudy Blue ink. This hardly shows up but it's still an essential part of the process. Next, brayer again with Adirondack Stonewashed ink and lastly, when this is dry, polish the sky with a piece of clean kitchen paper and watch the clouds really pop out. Barbara has demonstrated this technique on an earlier show, which, of course, is where I learned it!
Well, I said I was going to tell you a story....if you were sitting comfortably, you've probably got a numb bum by now!! Thanks for staying with me and I'll show you some more cards that you haven't seen soon.
Hugs

Digi Doodle Shop's Birthday!

Good afternoon, peeps and I hope it is a truly good one for you! This week is Digi Doodle Shop's first birthday so, naturally, the challenge for this week is 'Birthdays' and here is my offer:

The image I've chosen is called 'Happy Birthday Cupcakes' and you can buy it from the store here. As you can see, I've coloured it on to a banner that's been hoisted on to the tree by the two cuties who appear courtesy of the Prima 'Jack and Jill' DP! It's coloured with Copics and Promarkers with a little help from their friends the Prisma pencils but I'm sorry I don't have the colours for you because things have been really hectic here for the past week but more of that in another post. I was so short of time to get this card completed in time for the challenge that I just pushed the pens away as soon as the colouring was done. Anyhoo, I can tell you that the flowers are from Wild Orchid Crafts and the butterflies were punched with a Martha Stewart punch. It's rather a sad challenge for me because it's my last one for the DDSB Design Team since I've decided to step down because of pressure of other work. My teamies have been fantastic and I'm sorry to be leaving them and Judy and Joy, the owners of DDS but at least I know that I'll see them around Blogland. Thank you for looking today and I hope I'll see you all around Blogland, too. Enjoy the rest of your day!

From the birds

Good morning, peeps! The sun is shining, the birds are singing and I hope it's a wonderful morning wherever you are as well!

Speaking of birds, as you can see, they're involved in my sample card for this week's challenge over at Fussy and Fancy Friday Challenge this week. The challenge is actually to include either a feather or a zipper in your project and it's sponsored by Robyn's Fetish Digi Stamps who have provided the lovely bird house and flower image that's part of the little scene I've created. By entering the challenge, you could win 5 of Robyn's wonderful digi images or 4 images and 1 digi design paper so let's see your projects with feathers or zippers!
The DP on my card is from the Memory Box 'Gossamer' pad and the swirls are cut from a scrap of anonymous DP with my new Tim Holtz 'Elegant Flourishes' die that I got at the Harrogate Show. The images are coloured with Copics and Promarkers and I actually made a note of which ones, yay! so they're at the bottom of this post. The sky and clouds were created with Prismas and I also used the pencils to deepen the shadows. The tag and sentiment is another new purchase from Harrogate, this time from Lili of the Valley and it's from their new Additions range. The pearl brad that's holding the tag in place is from the Hobby House. The feather that the birds have dropped down for Tilda is from my stash and the flowers are from Wild Orchid Crafts. The chubby birds are a Magnolia image and they may be a little optimistic if they think they're going to squeeze their way into that bird house!
Well I think that's all from me this morning and I'm off to get my hair cut shortly then food shopping and back to work on Clarity design team cards for the show on Create and Craft TV on 3 April. Got lots to do on that front!
I'm doing a demo day at Samuel Taylor in Brighouse tomorrow so maybe I'll see you there.
Thanks for visiting me today and enjoy the sunshine if you have it!

Copics and Promarkers used:

Skin: E000, E00, E01, E21, R11, R20
Hair: E25, E33, E47, E49
Dress: Promarker Pale Pink, Dusky Rose, Antique Pink
Basket & shoes: E40, E41, E42
Birds: Promarker Tea Green, Grey Green, Copics Y00, Y02, Y21, R00
Birdhouse: E44, E47, E49, Y00, Y02
Flowers: V91, V93, V95, YG03, YG25 the same Promarkers as Tilda's dress and also Pear Green

Ribbons and bows

Good afternoon, peeps! Yes, that's the name of the challenge this week over at Digi Doodle Shop's Best so we're hoping to see lots of you joining in with the challenge to put lovely ribbons and bows on your cards. Here is my sample for the challenge and it's made using the the image 'Mouse Nap', which you can buy here in the store. Cecil is cuch a cute mouse and he looks very comfy here under his quilt. He's cut out with a Nestie shape and the DP's are from Crafty Individuals 'Springtime' pad - so useful for Spring projects. The distressing was done with Milled Lavender Distress Ink and the very appropriate sentiment is from Lili of the Valley. The lovely yellow satin ribbon is from my stash. I coloured Cecil with my Copics but I'm afraid I didn't keep a note of the numbers - sorry! I'll be back again tomorrow with another challenge but, in the meantime, thank you for looking today. I do hope you like Cecil and have a wonderful rest of the day!

....and here's some they didn't show!

Good evening, peeps! I hope you had a good weekend with lots of crafting time. I spent both Saturday and Sunday at the Harrogate Show. On Saturday I'd arranged to help Barbara Gray with her Clarity Stamps breakfast workshop and the plan was that afterwards I'd be free to shop. Firstly, I hadn't accounted for the crowds on Saturday - it was almost impossible to get on to the stands and secondly, the Clarity Stamps stand was almost overwhelmed so, Diane to the rescue and I stayed there helping for the rest of the day. WOW! can crafters shop!
Anyhoo, I thought I'd show you some of the other cards I made for the TV show this month but this time it's the ones that didn't make an appearance:

This was one with which I was quite pleased. It was made with just the Pear Tree stamp from the Village Kit and it was intended to show the four seasons in trees - I hope that's what it says to you as well. I was delighted to find that I had a charm (from The Hobby House) that was extremely similar to the tree. The ribbons were from my stash.

This was my treatment of the four Flower Boxes used together with one of the corner stamps to make a central feature. The ribbon and flower were from my stash.

For this card, I used the Honeysuckle Corner and stamped around in a circle to create a wreath, then I added flower buttons from my stash as decoration. Some butterflies punched with my Martha Stewart punch completed the card. I think the paper was from a K & Co pad I've had for ages.

For this one, I gave my Alcohol Inks an airing and boy, I really had to blow the dust off them....I can't remember when they were last used. Anyhoo, a simple card with just the Calligraphy Corner and sentiment embossed in silver. A few flowers from Wild Orchid Crafts and some loops of ribbon complete it.
OK, peeps - if you've stayed with me this far, well done!
I've got a really busy week this week - teaching a workshop tomorrow, proper work to do (I need the money after Harrogate!) and I have to make more Clarity cards for the next show on 3 April - those clever schedulers on Create and Crfat TV have bought Barbara's show forward a week - aren't they kind?! I feel like Corporal Jones on Dad's Army hopping around saying 'Don't Panic!!' repeatedly - I hope I'm listening to myself.
Thank you so much for visiting today and I'll see you all again soon. There's a fresh Fussy and Fancy Friday Challenge this week and I'm so pleased that my card for that is already made (polishes halo!).

As seen on TV

Good afternoon, peeps! I've been absent far too long again but at least this time it wasn't my own doing because I've been without Internet access for a while. I have to say that it felt dreadful, how we've all grown used to this cyber community!
Anyhoo, I thought I'd share with you some piccies of my cards that actually made an appearance of the Create and Craft TV channel last Sunday on Barbara Gray's Clarity Stamp Show. Martyn Parker, the show presenter didn't seem to show that many of the DT cards at all but the studio was full of amazing cards that the viewers had sent in for Barbara's birthday. I think the whole thing was quite overwhelming for Barbara.

This one was a fairly simple use of the Celtic Corners and the Flower Boxes. The DP is from Crafty Individuals and the leaves are a Marianne D die.

This was the one Martyn liked best. I created the sea with a brayer and a Kaleidacolor 'Caribbean Sea' pad then used a Versamark pen and white embossing powder to create the 'white horses'. The buttons were from my stash and tied on with hemp string to maintain the nautical look.
This was another card made with the Harbour Kit + the 'Oats' stamp from the Beatrice Kit. Much use of the brayer again!

The Harbour Kit again but using the houses and the small boat this time. It's hard to see the fish by the seagull's feet but it's embossed with silver.

Well I hope you enjoyed seeing them in close up although I'm sorry for the crooked photos - all taken in too much of a hurry I'm afraid. I'll return soon to show you some that didn't make their TV debut. I'm off to the Harrogate Show tomorrow - heling Barbara with her workshop first thing then getting in some retail therapy! I'll be returning to the show on Sunday as well but with friend and family this timeto help them with their retail therapy.

Fussy and Fancy Challenge #32

Good morning, peeps! Well after a week of no blog posts, it'll be a surprise to you that I'm here with another post two days on the trot but it's new challenge day over at Fussy and Fancy Friday Challenge and this week there's a wonderful sketch from my talented teamie Mindy. Thanks, hun, it's a great sketch to work with and here it is:

and this is the card I made following it:

Tilda looks a little bemused after reading all those great tomes she's sitting on but no doubt she's now full of knowledge! I'm afraid I can't tell you what Copic colours I used on her because she's been coloured a good while but the Copics were helped along by the addition of Prismas. The DP is from the Prima 'Fairy Flora' pad again (love those papers!), the ribbon and lace were from my stash and I've also used another of those wonderful circular sentiments from Lili of the Valley. The flowers are from Wild Orchid Crafts and I must stop buying those things because the drawers they live in are nearly at capacity! No surprise there then! It's nearly time for the Harrogate show too and I can hear my wallet screaming in agony from here!
I'm entering this in the Paper Pretties Challenge, which is to use ribbon on your project and The Crafty Pad Challenge, which is also to use ribbon.
Well I'm working on a workshop project today and then working towards samples for the post-Easter workshop programme but, whatever you've got planned, I hope it's a great day for you - don't forget to join us in the challenge, it really is a great sketch to follow!