Created by Hand Challenge

So I'm hoping this post works. I set it to post on October 6th, while I'm away enjoying the sights and sounds and tastes of Paris! We left Nova Scotia Sept 26th. After Paris, we're on our way to the south of France, then to Rome...exploring and eating and sipping our way through our travels. Aaahhh, retirement is wonderful!

Sooo...the challenge this week over at Created by Hand is to use stencils...one of my very favourite artsy tools...so I made several! (lol) This first card uses Dreamweaver stencils with Glitter Ritz, double sided tape and one of the brand new stamps over at Quietfire Design. I stamped the sentiment with Versafine Black Ink, then thermal embossed with Ranger Super Fine Clear Embossing Powder.

For this next card, I used another new Quietfire stamp also uses a Dreamweaver stencil (Swirl Background), wet embossed with white embossing paste. I first stamped on a scrap of paper, cut a mask, then stamped and thermal embossed the same sentiment on cardstock, masked it, then paste embossed over the masked image. I cut it with one of the new Spellbinders Nestabilities (Labels Six), then layered it with dimensional foam squares onto black cardstock, previously paste-embossed with a Dreamweaver Thank You stencil.

Here's another one, using the Cypress Tree Dreamweaver stencil with two sided tape and Glitter Ritz again, with the Spellbinders Scallop Ovals and a Quietfire Design sentiment stamp. I posted this one for an earlier TGIF challenge too. :)

This last card was just for fun. The stencil here is the small square Spellbinders Shapeabilities Fleur de Lis pendant die, cut and embossed with gold mirror cardstock, then cut in half and affixed to the top and bottom of a Spellbinders Nestabilities Labels Six die, paired with another one of Suzanne's beautiful new rubber stamps.

So, that's it for this post. If you'd like to read more about using stencils, here's a link to an article I wrote, which was published in Stamp and Scrap Art last year...also posted on the Quietfire website. Thanks again for visiting today! I wish you a happy and creative week!

TGIF challenge # 104

The current TGIF challenge is "wonderful trees." Here's mine, done with a sentiment stamp from Quietfire Design and a tree using a Dreamweaver brass stencil, Sookwang double sided tape, and glitters.

Thanks for stopping by today!

Challenges

Oh my, I am SO enjoying this late summer/beginning of fall weather! I don't enjoy artsy endeavors during the heat and humidity of the summer, so I'm spending hours and hours in my happy room these days.

Today's challenge over at Created by Hand is to use stitching on your work. This first card uses machine stitching over a watercolour-resist with Ecoline inks, and the second uses hand stitching. Both cards use Quietfire Design stamps. The last card for the CBH challenge is a birthday card I finished this morning for a dear artist friend, hand stitched corner scroll with Kaisercraft pearls. I think the stamp might be Stamp It Australia, although the name on the tin box is long gone.

The challenge over at Our Creative Corner is to use stars and stripes. This card uses an old stamp from Peddler's Pack, and a sentiment stamp from Impression Obsession. The sentiment stamp is the one on the bottom, which actually says "Merry Christmas to a Special Hero," but I masked out the Merry Christmas, and added a computer generated "Happy Birthday" above the stamped image instead.

This card is for the Crazy Amigo challenge...hats! The image stamps is a House Mouse, the hat is All Night Media, and the sentiment is Quietfire Design.

Thanks so much for stopping by today.

Impression Obsession Designers' Challenge!

Oh my, it's been three weeks since I posted here. I've been enjoying long, lazy summer days at the lake, where internet is forbidden (lol).

Today, the IO designers are posting challenges to use stamps for "other than their intended purpose." Well, hmmm, I think I interpreted this a little differently than other designers did. Because I'm a card maker, MY feeble brain interpreted the challenge as "Don't make a CARD Deborah." So I didn't. Ummm...I used the tree...as a tree! (lol) BUT...I did use it on a different project though, so I hope the IO gals will let me away with it.

I used this beautiful tree to design a votive candle shade. After creating four panels from green cardstock with Nestabilities scalloped and square dies, I stamped the image on vellum, colouring the stamp with a green watercolour marker, then added accents of Aleene's "True Snow," and sprinkled Aleene's clear glitter over it while it was still wet. Then I rummaged through my bead stash and fashioned bead strings to sew on to tiny organza bows, and added paper roses to hide the stitching. I just LOVE this particular little tree!

If you like trees, Impression Obsession has five full pages of them for your pleasure, starting here.

The first image is unlit, the second shows it with a battery operated flickering candle inside.

Thanks so much for stopping by today! Be sure to take a few minutes to see the beautiful work from the other talented Impression Obsession designers...you'll find links to their blogs on the right sidebar here.

Welcome to Paris!

Next month, my better half and I will be travelling from Nova Scotia to Europe with several friends. These friends form a group of eight; we often enjoy dinner parties with one another, and our tradition is to spend every New Year's Eve together. So I wanted to create a little "purse-something card" to give the gals at our "Pre-vacation dinner party," coming up soon. We'll be visiting Paris, Nice (French Riviera), Cinque Terre (Italian Riviera) and Rome over a period of nearly a month. Our dinner party's theme is "all things Paris."

Although one of the challenges needed some distressing (which is ALWAYS an extra challenge for me!), I had such FUN with this project! I created four of these, three for gal-friends, and one for a local paper crafting shop.

Sooo...I browsed through all the current challenges, and decided on these:

The Crazy Amigo challenge is "welcome" (to Paris!)
The Cuttlebug challenge is to create a "scene" card (Eiffel Tower)
The Wednesday Stamper challenge is "paisley" (inside pocket)
The Ready Set Stamp challenge is to use the following ingredients: cork, the colour blue, a monument, the Cuttlewax technique, and a metal embellishment

Isa's done an easy tutorial on the Cuttlewax technique, on a post dated Aug 12th. (An added bonus is a pic of her "favourite helper elf," her little daughter Melissa)

So, this is what I did: I used a piece of the new Basic Grey lace medallion paper first.

It was actually nicely distressed as it was, but I Cuttlebugged the Swiss Dots folder on waxed paper, then ironed it onto the lace medallion (sandwiched with another piece of cardstock), then distressed it with Tim Holtz Broken China ink.

Then I stamped this Crafty Individuals stamp on a piece of cork paper with the same colour ink, mounted it on the Basic Grey lace medallion, then mounted that on another cork panel. Crafty Individuals stamps lend themselves so well to distressed work. The tower image is very faint, which is just what I wanted. I used some pretty ribbon from Michael's, the Fleur di lis emblems are glittered with rust...very pretty! I picked up the rust again with a small circle of rust textured paper underneath the stamped image. I added a Fleur di Lis metal embellishment from Frost Creek Charms.

I stamped and embossed a couple of paisleys on an inside pocket, coloured with a little Sakura Glaze ink, added some note paper and a pen, then a greeting on the back...et voila!

Thanks so much for taking the time to visit today.

Created by Hand Challenge

The current Created by Hand challenge is to use a favourite background. I'm enjoying glitters with brass stencils these days, so here's one I did for a young friend, who's just recently started card making. I used a Dreamweaver brass stencil with this double sided tape, and a mixture of different Glitter Ritz glitters and Martha Stewart glitters, along with a Quietfire Design sentiment stamp, some crystals and pearls, and a Martha Stewart border punch.

Thanks so much for visiting my blog today.

Challenges!

Well, it's been two weeks since I posted anything here. I've been enjoying visiting grandkidlets, and haven't spent any time at all in my happy room, so it was fun to get back here.

This project was created to meet several challenges, but the initial conception was about my little grandson's current obsession with spiders. Connor is three years old, and this will be going in the post to him later this week. It's designed to hold a battery operated flickering candle.

Here are some pics of three year old Connor (wearing green and red shirts) with his five year old brother Avery, at White Point Beach in Nova Scotia last week. They're such FUN little boys!

So, on to the challenges! I started this one a couple of days ago with the current Gothic Arch challenge, which is Edgar Allan Poe (the ravens reflect that). The current Saturday Surprise challenge is to use a different shape. The Papertake Weekly challenge is to reflect the seasons, so here's fall and Halloween! Over at Our Creative Corner, they want us to comemmorate harvest time, and at SAWO, the challenge is to use texture paint.

I started with a 12 by 12 piece of chipboard, cut the three arch shapes in a continuous fashion, gessoed and painted them with Lumiere Burnt Orange, then used the Dreamweaver spider web and spider templates with Dreamweaver Black Matte embossing paste. I paste embossed the spiders on acetate and glued them to the inside Spellbinders-cut ovals. Then I thermal embossed the Quietfire Design crows and word with Tsukineko Black embossing powder, added lots of glitter and little wooden buttons which were painted with gold Lumiere for feet...and it was finished! I made one of these for a favourite local paper crafting shop too..."The Cutting Garden." They're such FUN to do!

Thanks SO much for taking the time to stop by today!