What's your Favourite?

Hi
Hope that you are all finding the run up to christmas not too stressful, I am.......  but I usually get there in the end. Anyway a few hours in my craft room (when I should really be doing other things helps) I feel more relaxed. Over at simon says stamps challenge the challenge is to share your favourites and my current favourites are dylusion sprays, distress inks,paint splats and the fabulous Stampotique stamps. I don't make loads of christmas cards but some of those I have made this year all feature Stampotique christmas characters. this card shows "Tree Topper". Sentiment is a Dylusions christmas stamp.



Stampotique tree topper



Anyway thanks for visiting my blog

Love

Amanda X

Don't get your tinsel in a tangle!!

Hi
Just a quick post this sunday morning before I head off to work."Don't get your tinsel in a tangle" when I saw this stamp by Stampendous it made me smile so had to buy it. I have teamed the sentiment up with the great Stampotique stamps "Oh tree", 1" ornament cube and "stringed lights" which I added to the tree by masking several times. Background has been created using Dylusions sprays and water. I have matted first onto black matt card and then again using black glitter card to add a touch of festive bling to the card.



Stampotique Oh Tree



I am entering this card into the latest challenge at Allsorts Challenge Blog where the challenge is "Oh Christmas tree" with the simple rules of show a christmas tree on your project.

Thanks for looking and I hope that you all have a better day than me, lol.
Love
Amanda x

Bling-Tastic at Crafts4eternity

Hi
The challenge this week at Crafts4eternity  is "Bling-tastic" and the rules are simple, use any sort of bling on your project be it glitter, gems etc. I have recently had to make a card for a golden wedding anniversary, so I had to clean anyway all traces of ink and paint (now that took a while) and set to with something quite away from my current choice of projects. Actually I quite enjoyed doing something a bit different for a change. It has quite a bit of bling on it, and the fact it is white and gold is quite blingy in itself. So with a bit of die cutting, butterflies are those purple dies and I can't remember who makes them and my silhouette to cut the sentiment (3 times and that was a nightmare to layer up)I made something a little out of my current style (you do have to cater for your recipients).

Inside of the card was cut with my silhouette and a nestibilities

So why not come over to Crafts4eternity and show us your Bling-tastic project for this weeks challenge.
Prizes this week include:-
1. Stamping All Day - 3 downloads
2. The Digi Garden - 5 digi stamps
Hopefully we will see you over there.
thanks
Amanda x
PS back to making Christmas cards now, I am glad that I don't make that many!!

Christmas Wishes

Hi
It's friday again, and I just dont know where this week has gone, December always flies by and I find everything just gets very last minute. I love christmas but dont enjoy the lead up to it, Anyway with it being friday it's time for our latest challenge over at Crafts4eternity and this weeks challenge, continuing the christmas theme (thankfully as these are the only christmas cards I have made so far) is Christmas wishes, making something festive using all or any combination of the 4 colours. Here is my design team entry


Indigoblu Funky circles tree

 My main tree image is Indigoblu Funky circles tree stamped with versamark on Kraft card and heat embossed in red and decorated with vintage buttons (I found some tiny weeny ones). Side panels made by stamping as I did the tree. Merry Christmas stamp is from my stash. Sides and sentiment have been matted onto gold mirri card all have been edge with vintage photo D.I.Backing paper is Graphic 45 again matted onto mirri card.

It is a funky stamp that I have given a vintage twist

So why not come and join us at Crafts4eternity and show us your christmas wishes

Thanks for looking and as always I really welcome and appreciate your comments.

Love

Amanda

Christmas Chaos

Hi
It's time for this week challenge over at Crafts4eternity and our theme this week is Christmas Chaos, which is ANY christmas themed project. The top 3 will be able to pick 3 digi stamps from the Crafts4eternity store. I think I might have taken the word Chaos too literally, lol, as I have thrown so much onto my card for my design team example!

I have used:-
Distress stains and inks
Pearl pearlescent liquid acrylic paint
white acrylic paint brushed on and stamped with
Tim Holtz grunge snowflakes stamps
Tim Holts rock candy glitter on large snowflake
Tim Holtz mini snowflake rosette strip die
Spellbinders 2011 snowflake pendant
small snowflake punch
Let it Snow stamp Stampendous
sheet music andLili of the Valley Krafty Christmas papers cut into strips.

So why not show us your Christmas Chaos and join us for this weeks challenge HERE.
Thanks for looking
love
Amanda X

Ever so Blue....

Hi
Just a quick post of a card I made several weeks ago for a blog challenge where the challenge was make your own tape, I never actually got around to entering my card so it has just been hanging around so I thought I might as well pop it onto my blog anyway.

My own tape that I made is just regular decorators masking tape that I have coloured with distress stain and then stamped on. Card backgrounds are made using both Dylusions and ranger sprays. Stamps I have used are Graphic 45.I have added white gel pen to add highlights to the images.
Thanks for looking
Love
Amanda

Believe.....

Hi
This weeks challenge at Crafts4eternity is "Midnight Magic" and we would love to see your projects with a night time theme. This week the challenge is being sponsored by Pink Gems Designs

Pink Gem Designs are offering one randomly chosen winner 4 Digital Stamps!

So why not pop over and join in this weeks challenge?

Here is my design team offering

Who comes at midnight? Santa does, well only if you have been good. I have used a Crafty Individuals stamp of Santa over the roof tops and the Believe stamp is from my stash (brand unknown). The background has been made using Distress Stains picket fence and faded jeans and then stamped with archival cobalt. Mat and layered on silver mirri card and a dark blue shade of card. I have blinged up the image with tiny jems and finally added some wooden calico stars that have also been coloured with faded jeans distress stains and perfect pearls.

So why not come along and join us this week.

I am also entering this card in this weeks challenge over at Daring Cardmakers where the theme is "Twinkle Twinkle"

thanks for looking

Love

Amanda x



Marvellous Music Challenge at Crafts4eternity

Hi
The theme for this weeks challenge over at Crafts4eternity is "marvellous music". the challenge is to create a project that has been inspired by or uses music related embellishments etc. This is my DT piece for that challenge.

I have used my favourite stamp of the moment which is "Twinkie" by Stampotique and stamped and heat embossed in black, I just love that little guy he is so expressive. I have created the background by printing some brick paper from Craft Artist, brushing a little gesso on it  then added the graffiti using promarkers and the promarker airbrush system randomly writing on the wall. Happy birthday sentiment and GettoBlaster stamp is from creative expressions Urban beats setand also stamped and heat embossed in black. The remaining sentiment has been created and stamped using a small alphabet set I have and stamped in black archival ink.
Why not come and join us over at Crafts4eternity and show us your music inspired creations. I look forward to seeing you over there.
I am also entering this card into fashionable stamping challenge where the theme is also music inspired.
thanks
Amanda x

Crafts4Eternity - My first design team entry

Hi
I am so pleased to have been invited to join the design team of crafts4eternity blog challenge. This is a weekly challenge blog run by the lovely Michele who owns  crafts4eternity craft shop based in Weston-Super-Mare or you can purchase online by clicking the link. All new challenges commence on friday at 8a.m. GMT. I join the team at challenge 97# Terrific Tags - Your challenge is to make something using a tag. Here is my very first design team offering....

Its a tag that I have displayed in an altered box lid and then added rusty wire to turn it into a wall hanging.

firstly the box was covered in torn book paper then coloured using a mixture of dylusion sprays, distress stains, distress inks and gesso. The tag was then coloured with all the inks left on my craft mat. Then with a dry brush I have painted gesso on the tag to give me a clear space to add my image which is from the fabulous Dina Wakley collection. Machine stitching and a wooden heart which has been stamped with a little of the main image in crimson archival ink finish the tag off. I have added some ripped corrugated card coloured in the same way for texture and painted some chicken wire with gesso to add more texture. Barcode and dotty srtip stamp are from urban beats & urban life by creative expressions. The sentiment is from the empowered words collection by Unity Stamp Company which again I have stamped in crimsom archival ink, cut up, and mounted onto black card, I have toned down the white card with distress ink. The ribbon is from Graphic 45 and the little bit of vintage lace from my stash.

Hope you like it and I have inspired you to join along with us this week at crafts4eternity with your tag creations.

thanks and hopefully see you over there

I am also entering into this weeks challenge over at crafts and me challenges where the challenge is to use RED on your project.

love

Amanda x

No Remorse

Hi
I am off work today, hurray!! after what has been a very long week!!  I need to do loads around the house but I am not going to bother at all. I am going to spend my day losing myself in crafty blissness. But before I do that I just want to enter this piece, I recently made as a gift for a friend of mine, in a couple of Anything Goes Challenges.

It's Anything Goes month over at The Artistic Stamper and the fortnightly challenge at Anything Goes Challenge Blog



Stampotique - Twinkie





This started life as a plain white frame and a cardboard lid. I covered the lid with dictionary paper (which you cant see now, then gesso, then added a selection of acrylic paints and liquid acrylics to complete my background. Then added a selection of embellishments including a love heart which I inked to make the lettering stand out more, some washi tape. Main image is Twinkie by Stampotique. As a backing to mount my lid on I stamped all over with Bla,Bla,Bla stamp - Stampotique. I then painted the white frame in black acrylic paint and when dry sanded it back to distress. I added the Bla,Bla,Bla stamp again to the frame by stamping on tissue paper and sealing onto the frame with ranger glue and seal.

My final touch was a large bottle top, painted with black acrylic paint then excess wiped off to distress it. Stamped and heat embossed in black another Stampotique quote. then filled with glossy accents and left to set (took 2 days) before adding to my picture.

There is a story around the composition that I wont bore you with, but my friend loved it, and it now hangs proudly in her kitchen.

If you are also having a crafty day have a good one.
Love
Amanda x

Nearly Halloween

Hi
With the onset of  Halloween tomorrow I can say goodbye to what has been probably the most unluckiest month I have had (and the most expensive) anything that could of gone wrong has gone wrong and the final straw was a blocked drain that could only be sorted by digging up my tiled, concrete kitchen floor. My catalogue of catastrophes are now sorted so I wont be sorry to see October end. With my luck I will probably turn into a pumpkin tomorrow. Needless to say all this upheval has impacted on my crafty time, which is normally quite limited to say the least. Anyway I have ended the month with a Halloween tag, which I am entering into the following challenges:-
crafts4eternity where the challenge is Ghouls, Ghosts and Goblins
fashionable stamping challenges where the theme is Halloween or use Halloween colours and
 Try it on a Tuesday also with Halloween challenge

 

I have had this skull stamp for a while so thought it fit the theme.

All have been coloured using Dylusions sprays, I have then used a water brush to remove the colour from the teeth to make them stand out. Added some Tim Holtz bits, extra bits from my stash including the netting from a bag of oranges, and some faux spiders web

Have a wonderful Halloween

Love

Amanda XX

Autumn is Here

Hi
Well it's a dreadful friday evening tonight, nothing new there then! So away to my craft room I went. I have recently bought the new Tim Holts"mini blue print" stamps so set about removing them from the packet and having a play. The set includes 4 Xmas, 4 Halloween and 4 autumn so with a couple of challenges currently set around leaves I thought I would have a play with the latter 4. The 2 challenges concerned, if you fancy making something with a leafy look are crafts 4 eternity where the theme is "lots of leaves" and simon says stamp and show where the theme is Leaf-spiration. I am entering this card into both challenges,



I firstly cut my jigsaw using the cuttlebug puzzle die, then holding it together with masking tape, stamped the 4 seperate mini blue print stamps with versamark and heat embossed with white embossing powder. I then embossed the word autumn through the middle with a stamp from my collection. I then coloured over the top with a selection of distress inks using the resist technique so the stamped inage just popped out.All the jigsaw pieces were then seperated and I inked the edge of each individual puzzle piece with walnut stain to make each puzzle piece stand out, then matted it onto scrunched up Tim Holtz Glassine paper (it is suposed to replicate a drying leaf) then matted again on white card edged in walnutstain distress ink. I then mounted it all on a kraft card base and added a bit of garden twine, hey presto card done.

I am probably going to be busy with other things this weekend as last weekend I listed many items on Ebay, including some old crafty stash I have never used, and it all ends tomorrow and sunday, so I think my weekend will consist of parcel after parcel and sadly sending not recieving (the worst part of Ebaying).

Anyway hope that you all have a lovely, rain free, weekend.

See you soon

Amanda X