Miss December 2010

Ah my dear friends, do I have a treat for you this evening! 

First, by way of a short introduction, do you remember Miss Blackpool 1945?

And can you recall the amount of effort Maude put into looking so good?

Well, I'm pleased to announce that it all paid off because Maude Doodlebuns has been selected to star as 'Miss December 2010' in the latest Pirelli (Spare Tyre) Calendar!  How's about that for an old girl, eh?  And I was delighted when Maude sent me a copy of her starring moment:

Image: Just Inklined, 'Maude Merry Christmas'

Paper: Cosmo Cricket

Doesn't she look grand in her winter outfit?  Look at those beautiful ... features.  She is a vision in red, isn't she?  Bet Santa can't wait to fill her stockings!  (Oooo-err Missus!)

I just couldn't wait to play with this hilarious image.  As you can see above, I've developed something of a soft spot for Maude, she being such a glamour-puss and all, just like me! So I was delighted when Jak and the team released this bit of gorgeousness. 

There are some smashing new images over at Just Inklined, both Christmassy and otherwise, so why not check out the blog for some fabulous inspiration from my Teamies.

Right, bed time - late again!  It was my Dad's big birthday today (I'm not saying how old he is but he's got a year to go before he's 71!) so we've eaten late and I'm still stuffed so I don't know how much sleep I'll get, but my Kindle beckons in the meantime.

Happy crafting.

xx

Ooops! But Please Read!

Today was supposed to be my 'Oldies But Goodies' post for Karen's Doodles, but I had a bit of an accident with a hot cup of tea when I was trying to craft at silly o'clock this morning and poor Princess Kitty got the lot!  So you'll have to pop back later in the week to see what she should have looked like!

So as not to disappoint those of you who are looking for my Karen's Doodles post today, here's a rather special card - it's not an 'Oldies But Goodies' but, once you've heard the story, I hope you'll agree that it's definitely a 'Goodie'.

Here's the card:

Image: Karen's Doodles, 'Superboy'

Papers: October Afternoon

Coloured with my Copics (of course) and with a little shading with my Prismas, this little guy is destined for another very special boy.

And here's the story:

Earlier this year, my incredible sister-in-law, Claudia, was instrumental in setting up a new charitable foundation, 'Children of War Foundation'.  The Foundation is dedicated to identifying and treating children that have sustained devastating injuries as a direct consequence of war, regional conflict and/or displacement. I urge you to visit their website and/or their Facebook page, to learn about the wonderful work the Foundation is already doing and aims to continue into the future.

This handsome young man is Hashim, the first of their young patients.  Hashim was caught in a terrible car bomb blast in Iraq early in 2010.  He suffered an horrific head injury and was in a coma for 55 days, staying in hospital for 70 days in total.  Thanks to the Children of War Foundation, Hashim is now undergoing treatment at the Children's Hospital in Los Angeles.  He is a happy, uncomplaining and totally cute young boy and he loves superheroes!

This card is for Hashim, to wish him well for his next surgery, which is scheduled for early November.  He is, indeed, a Superboy.  Please hop over to the Children of War Foundation website to find out more about this fantastic organisation and, if at all possible, donate a little (or big!) something towards their work. 

Okay, end of story, and just a quick reminder of the card:

See you later this week, with Princess Kitty.

 Happy crafting.
xx

Guest Designer for Crafty Cardmakers

Happy Monday everyone - hope your week has got off to a good start and that you're not suffering too much from Monday morning blues.  Obviously, I'm full of beans because I'm having a day off, although I have to say that I'm enjoying going to work again these days. 

So, today I am delighted to announce that I have been invited to be a Guest Designer for the 'Spotlight On ...' feature over at the Crafty Cardmakers challenge blog.  This week's spotlight is falling on digital stamping - right up my street, as you will know!  So, without further ado, here's what I came up with:

Images: (from left to right) Mo's Digital Pencil, 'Cheshire Cat', 'Hatter', 'The Dormouse' and 'Alice in Pencil'

Papers: Graphic 45, 'Halloween in Wonderland'

I adore the whole collection of 'Wonderland' images over at Mo's Digital Pencil, and, to be honest, I could have carried on merging forever, but my printer is limited to A4 paper!  However, I have another idea up my sleeve for future reference - my printer at work prints A3!

This is a close-up of the complete scene.  I merged the four images in Paint.net (free image software that you can download here) but something was missing.  So I drew a table and 'wonky' cake and scanned them into my PC, then brought the resulting image into the merged image, just to complete the scene.  I ended up paper-piecing the table cloth and I'm really pleased with the result.

Here are close-ups of the individual digis, starting with 'Cheshire Cat':

Here's 'Hatter'...

...'The Dormouse'...

... and, finally, 'Alice in Pencil'

It really isn't difficult to merge images to produce a scene like this and there are various tutorials, for all the most popular image software, all over the internet.  If you've never tried it before, give it a go.  It takes a little time but the end results are great (as I hope you'll agree). 

The Graphic 45 papers were just perfect for this project (obviously, as the name suggests!!!) and I kept the layout simple so as not to overpower the final image.

I added Sakura glaze to all the cups, etc., and a little glitter to the icing on both cakes, just for fun really. 

So, why not hop over to the Crafty Cardmakers challenge blog and see what the design team have come up with.  Then it's over to you to join in the fun and show your creative streak.

A big 'Thank You' to Lin and all the girls over at Crafty Cardmakers for inviting me to take part - this has been a hugely enjoyable project for me and I hope you've enjoyed the end result.

Happy crafting.

xx

'Wreathed' in Smiles!

Tonight's quick post is my entry for this week's Scrap-Creations challenge - their theme is 'Christmas' and, with perfect timing, of course, I had just made a few Christmas cards towards my stash.  So I thought you might like to see this one - another fairly traditional image but made modern, I think:

Image: Just Inklined, 'Christmas Wreath Pinecones''

Paper: Graphic 45

I'm ridiculously pleased with this card - I just love the rich purples and I'm delighted with the bow!  Aaaah, small things.  But it works so well together and, strangely, I hadn't really anything in mind when I set out to colour this one.  It just sometimes works that way, doesn't it - a happy accident, almost.

I'm up late tonight, making the most of not being at work tomorrow!  I've been making little house gift boxes (see my previous post) today again as I need quite a few for small gifts for work.  As they will only contain sweeties or biscuits, just a token gesture, I thought it would make it all a little more personal and interesting if I made the boxes.  I'll post them when they're all done. 




Right, I'm off to have a light supper whilst watching telly, before popping to bed with my Kindle. I feel very rebellious being up past 10.30 on a 'school night'!!!!

Happy crafting.
xx

Home Made for Christmas

I don't know about you, but I love making my own packaging for Christmas.  A nicely made and decorated bag or box can make even the smallest present look impressive.  So I've started today with this adorable little house box:

Template:  Lauren Meader, 'My Timeless Templates' for Papertrey Ink - 'Home Made'

Paper:  Scenic Route

Here's the 'back' of the house - aren't those little dormer windows cute?

The windows are quickly hand-drawn, somewhat wonky (on purpose, honest) windows - the house looks lovely with perfect stamped or measured windows and door but I wanted something a little more casual and quirky.   I've just drawn them on kraft and coloured them with white gel pen. No rulers, no measuring, just wonky!

Here's the 'front' with the top removed.....

and the back!  This would be wonderful filled with biscuits or cake - the sort of gift you might give to neighbours to share with their family.  The box isn't large (only about 6 inches wide/high) but it would make such a pretty little gift.  I shall be making more of these before Christmas - they're so easy, thanks to Lauren's hard work, and I just love the finished product.  I might even make some 'proper' doors and windows!

I used some Snow Writer and glamour dust for a bit of wintery sparkle, just here and there so as not to overwhelm everything.  I may be could have added a little more to the dormers and the peak but, hey, it's okay as it is.

 

And don't you love that roof?  It comes as a digi stamped set with the template - how cool is that?  I've added some extra dimension by shading around the shingles with a warm grey copic. 

This is going to be my entry for this week's Sweet Stampin Challenge, where the theme this week is 'Anything but a card'.- I hope the roof will qualify as the (digi) stamped something.  

Back tomorrow with another Christmas offering - a card this time, though.  And on Monday, I've something special to show you, so don't forget to check back.

Happy crafting.
xx

Mo's Dream Team First Anniversary Blog Hop

It's time for a celebration at Mo's Dream Team - it's a whole year since the Dream Team Blog began and what better way to celebrate than with another fantastic blog hop?!  This month's theme is 'Frogs and snails and puppy- dogs tails, that's what little boys are made of.'

And this time, in honour of our first birthday, we're inviting you to join in by uploading your card via the link on the Dream Team blog.  Just use one of Mo's images and show us your best boy - we'd love to see what you come up with.

So on with the hop - if you've arrived here from Jak's blog, then you're on the right track.  If not, why not hop over to Kerttu's blog and start from the beginning because you won't want to miss the wonderfulness along the way.

So, without further ado, here's my offering this month:

Image: Mo's Digital Pencil, 'Monday's Child (B)'

Papers: Cosmo Cricket

Wordart: Create with TLC 'The world is mud-lucious and puddle wonderful'

I adore this little chap - what a sweet little face - who could be cross with him, mess or no?

And I love the sentiment, too - it's a quotation from the (weird and wonderful) poet e. e. cummings (and yes, it is all in lower case!! Don't ask!) - and it's perfect for this image, methinks.

I have to say this reminds me of my friend's little boy - a blond curly-haired little angel if ever there was but just as likely to get covered in mud.  Boys!

So, on with the blog hop and next you'll be wanting to go to Debbie's blog, where I just know there will be something wonderful waiting for you.

And don't forget to join in with the fun - the more the merrier to help us celebrate.

Happy crafting.
xx

Oldies But Goodies at Karen's Doodles

It's time (already?) for some more 'Oldies But Goodies' inspiration over at Karen's Doodles and this week I've chosen one of my absolute favourites for another project:

Image: Karen's Doodles, 'Tango'

Papers: October Afternoon

I adore this image - always have done since the first time I used it (and believe me, it gets used a lot!).  This one is coloured in exactly the same palette as I've used before but with some bright, fresh papers it has a totally different look and feel.

This image is a joy to colour and it works in almost any palette.  I'm going to try a sepia version next - hopefully it'll have the feel of an old 1930s movie - how great would that be?!

I'm going to enter this one for this week's Daring Cardmakers Challenge, where the theme is 'Dance'.




Check out the rest of the OBG Team's creations on the Challenge Blog - they're sure to inspire.

And don't forget that we're still running our usual Monday challenge - this week the theme is 'distressed'.  We always look forward to seeing what you create.


Happy crafting.
xx

Bella Loves Christmas

Mmmm, not exactly a snappy title tonight but, hey, it is what it is.  Long day at work today and I've spent this evening making Halloween party invitations for our friends' children.  They bought some foam die cut ghosts and had the brilliant idea of using them as invitations - but please could Aunty Peri write them?  So I've done my task and they've been despatched to three excited kiddies.

On to my post for this evening.  This is for this week's Scrap-Creations challenge, where the theme is 'Christmas'.

Image: Mo's Digital Pencil, 'Bella Loves Christmas'

Papers: Basic Grey, from last year's stash!

Wordart: Create with TLC

I did some digital paper piecing this this one.  I brought Bella into Paint.net and then added a digital paper for her dress.  Once I'd printed her, I went in with lots of Prisma shading to define the pleats and folds.  I'm quite pleased with how she turned out, actually - all those folds! Aaarrgh!  All other details were coloured with my Copics (I'm just waiting for some new ones to arrive!!!) and, of course, as it's Christmas, I added plenty of glitter here and there.

So, bed time now.  One more day at work then I'm off for a few days of serious crafting - can't wait!  Mind you, my poor boss isn't too happy about being 'abandoned' for a few days!  Bless!

Happy crafting.
xx

Shy

Mmm, short title today peeps as this is a really quick post before I go and make Sunday morning bacon sandwiches.  We've had a surprise visit for the weekend from Daughter and her boyfriend and I promised bacon butties before they drive off again.

This morning's card is my entry for the following challenges:

Papertake - 'Use three of something' (there are three rows of scallops)
Simon Says Stamp - '3 Embellies, 2 patterned papers, 1 image' (bow, button and pearls)
Mo's Digital Challenge - Sketch
Sweet Stampin' - 'Ribbon'
Scrapbook Sisters - 'Flower Power' (papers)

And here she is:

Image: Mo's Digital Pencil, 'Shy'

Papers:  Digital papers from Scotty Girl

Ain't she just adorable?  She's such a little darling and Mo has captured that childhood shyness just perfectly, of course.

Coloured with my Copics with added shading and 'glow' added with my Prismas, I loved colouring this little sweetie. 

I wanted to keep this card pretty so chose these gorgeous papers by Scotty Girl.  And as I've never used layers of scallops before, I decided that might be fun too. 

A few embellishments and she was ready and I'm soooo pleased with her. 

Right, a quick link up and then bacon beckons.

Have a good day.

Happy crafting.
xx

Dear Santa

We visited friends last night, whose small children are excitedly preparing for a Halloween party.  But then we got to talking about how close Christmas is getting and, of course, once the Halloween party is over, the children will quickly turn their attention to what Santa might bring.  Of course, this depends on them being good - although there appeared to be quite a few definitions of what 'good' would mean!

Which leads me quite nicely to today's card:

Image: Kenny K, 'Xmas Hottie'

Papers: Cosmo Cricket

I thought it was about time I tried another Kenny K - I love his images yet I don't seem to have used them much.  This one really caught my eye - and I know exactly who it's destined for!!

Coloured with my Copics (of course), with some Prisma shading, I thought it would be fun to lace the card to match her boots.  And, of course, there's that wonderful sentiment - I just love it!

This is my entry for this week's Kenny K's Crafty Girlz challenge.  Did you check out this challenge yet?  The DT work is superb and it's such fun seeing Kenny's images brought to life.

We've a busy weekend ahead - lots of visiting, eating and laughing to look forward to.  Hope yours is a good one.

Happy crafting.

xx

'Oldies But Goodies' at Karen's Doodles

It's Thursday and that means it's time for another 'Oldies But Goodies' showcase over at Karen's Doodles. 
This week, I've gone all Christmassy - here's my card:

Image: Karen's Doodles, 'Santa House'

Papers: Pink Petticoat digi paper (spots); Cosmo Cricket

Isn't this an adorable image?  Santa is very lucky to live in such a sweet little cottage. 

I wanted to keep the palette quite light for this one as I didn't want the image to become 'overworked'.  A few pale highlights on the snow helped give a frosty feel, and some 3D glitter gel for the roof and trees completed the look.

I love turqoise/teal/pale blue and red so this combination of DPs works really well for me.  Apparently, it's quite 'in' at the moment, too, if you follow the trends!

Check out the rest of the OBG Team's creations on the Challenge Blog - they're sure to inspire.


And don't forget that we will still be running our weekly challenges on Mondays and this week's challenge is a recipe: 3 embellishments, 2 papers, 1 image.   Why not join in - we'd love to see your creations.


Happy crafting.
xx

An Altered State

Ooooh, Halloween will soon be here and I was talking to the young daughter of a friend the other day, who is planning a Halloween party with her sister and younger brother.  So I thought they'd appreciate today's project:

Image: Just Inklined, 'Bub Zombie'

Label: generated on my PC

This is my entry for the following challenges:

One Stop Craft Challenge - 'Alter it' (and see below for how this project started!)

Everybody Art Challenge - 'Halloween'

The Creative Cottage Challenge - 'Halloween'

I've been waiting for ages to get dear old Bub coloured up. He's a sorry old sight, isn't he. Poor thing - he doesn't look well! (He-he.) I chose to colour a first layer of pale yellow and then to use warm greys to add all the shading - I reckon it gives him a really zombie-like pallor.

So, want to know how this project started out?  This is the beginning:

Yup, that's right - two empty sticky tape reels! These are exactly the same diameter.  See what happens next ...

With a piece of acetate I created a tube that would sit inside both reels - one at the top, one at the bottom, like so:

  

I didn't attach the acetate at this point - I needed to work on the reels themselves.  I coloured the edges of the reels black, with a chisel-end black Copic then covered the reels with black paper/card.   The bottom one is covered to the exact height of the reel; for the top one, I cut a piece of card twice as deep as the reel, plus a little for the punched edge.  I punched the edge before attaching the card to the reel so that it created a deeper rim. 

Then I cut two circles from black card, which were stuck to the reels to form a bottom and a lid, like this (this is the bottom). 

I popped the acetate back in place and secured it to the bottom with a couple of small pieces of double-sided tape, tucked just inside the base of the container.

I bought the eyeball chocolates from a local grocery store and filled up the container.  But it looked a bit bare, even though it was full, so I thought I'd try coming up with an appropriate label: 

If you want to use it, feel free - I'd appreciate a credit and a link back, though, if you'd be so kind.  (Just click on the image to enlarge and then save.)

 So with the label applied, it was time to add Bub to the container to finish off and I hope you'll agree that this makes a great Halloween gift for three very gruesome children!

(Whew - what a long one that was!  Sorry for the strange layout - I can never get Blogger to put my photos where I really want them to be and this new uploader crashes Internet Explorer almost every time I use it!  Thanks for persevering to the end!)

Happy crafting.

xx