Pan Pastels again

Good morning Peeps, what a week it's been as apart from being back and forth to hospital ahead of next weeks op we have had no phones or internet since Monday lunchtime. Scary really as the world grinds to a halt without the technology we take for granted, so since we eventually got the connections back yesterday afternoon it's been heads down catching up with literally hundreds of mails in the office and not a moment to think about blogland I am afraid so apols to you all.

Onto our challenge at Allsorts this week where Wendy would like to see ribbons used in a different way, rather than just bows which is perfect as your sponsor is Crafty Ribbons.

I have used Pan Pastels and a selection of Lavinia, Inkylicious, Art Impression and Clarity stamps to create a little scene using ribbon threaded through eyelets down the spine of the card.

Happy weekend all.

Parisian sunset

Saturday morning and time for our new challenge at Allsorts and this week we would like you to share your 'Favourite Things' with us. Our sponsors this week are DigiStamp Boutique and My Mums Craft Shop.

Dilemmas or what, Distress Inks or Pan Pastels, flowers or a scene, well in the end the Pan Pastels won the day along with a Parisian scene and it's another take on the card I blogged last week as I am still in Parisian mode. Again I used the Clarity Parisian mask to create the background along with PP's then paper pieced a lady and grounded her with some darker PP's and a Stampscapes cobble stamp. The Oak branches are also Stampscapes and the grasses in the front are Indigo Blue.

When I showed this one to number one critique his comment was "will she or won't she" when I said will she what he replied "jump", I actually thought it gave the impression she was looking down over the City from a park somewhere on the outskirts, clearly he saw something different to me !

Happy weekend to you all and time allowing will be popping round over the weekend.

Out of the box and Saturday candy

At Allsorts this week Helene would like us to think 'Outside the Box' and give something a different use in life. And this week we are sponsored by DigiDarla.

For a week or two I had been thinking what I could so with a lovely corrugated box that was a gift at Christmas containing oil and vinegar..............I have a bit of a fetish for boxes, corrugated, carrier bags......get the idea I am a self confessed hoarder. Then a germ of an idea presented itself and this is what I made, I don't really know what you would call it, perhaps a sort of shadow box.

Anyhow, whatever it's called this is what I did. I cut a sheet of Centura Pearl to the size of the box and stamped (on the matt reverse side) the little row of children which is a Clarity stamp and repeated it three times, then added a couple of trees before creating some hills and sky with Pan Pastels. 

I then fixed the panel to what were the dividers between the bottles and fixed into place. Finally I added some Memory Box leaves and flowers made with Tonic Pick of the Bunch Carnation punch and stamp set and I even utilised the green raffia that was tied round the original packing, tying it round the whole box to hold the ends in place.

I can't wait to see what you all come up with this week, but I am thinking there will be a lot of recycling going on.

Nearly forgot to announce the winner of last weeks candy who is Rosie, well done please mail me brenda@ibas.co.uk with your postal addy.

This week I have a pretty set of Hero Arts stamps. As usual a winner will be selected at random from all comments left this week, if you visit more than once then more chances to win. All you need to do to be in with a chance is:

1) Be a follower 
2) Pop the Saturday Candy logo from my sidebar on your own blog

Have a lovely weekend everyone.

Poppies over the meadows

Morning Peeps, the sun is shining but will it last ? Yesterday was a real washout, we had it all hail, thunder torrential downpours but no sunshine.

A mega quick post here at I have to be at the AHT in Newmarket for 10am with Holly for her follow up appointment to see when they will operate. I am hoping it will be soon as she is a big girl now, at six months old she is almost the size of our grown up labs so her 'little problem' becomes more of as issue, especially at night when one puppy pad is jot not big enough if you follow my drift.

So a share of a card I came up with using Stamp Addicts rural stamp sets and Clarity poppies. A simple enough card stamped and inked through an oval mask and a little poppy in the corner created with Tonic Rose stamp and punch set. Most of the colouring is Pan Pastels with a little watercolour pencil to highlight.

OK, must rush now and will catch you all later.

Cooking up at Allsorts

A very Good Morning to you all, Saturday morning can mean only one thing, a new challenge at Allsorts and this week my lovely teamie Helene wants us to 'Use a Cooking Recipe'.

But first I want to tell you all about our second Birthday celebrations at Stampalot Challenge which kick off on 1st April. I've come me up with a little sidebar logo and hope you will help us spread the word. If you have any problems with this one.....it worked for some of the DT fine, but Blogger didn't want me to use it despite re-sizing it so in the end I did a low resolution one as well which is on by sidebar.

Now my DT piece and confessions here, I was really stumped at first, after spending hours trawling through my stamps I drew a blank with anything cookery orientated, not surprising I guess when most of my stamps are floral, botanical or fantasy. But then I had a flash of inspiration and came up with a recipe holder which I thought might even be useful for one of the girls.

I made the folder using a scoring tool and covered with some Kaiser DP's, decorated it with borders cut from Spellbinders and the letters are cut on the Cricut. I sourced the recipes on line, mounted them on to cardstock and did a bit of stamping using one of my tiny collection of just seven Clarity stamps......I really do 'need' more of them.

Have a good weekend.

Deep in the Fens

As is becoming the norm, a few quick shares, most of which could be outside my window, well with a bit of imagination as the cereal crops in the last one are still green shoots.

The one above has a background masked and brayered with Adirondcak inks to create an atmospheric sky then stamped with a mixture of Art Impression and Clarity stamps.

Another using this cute La Blanche image from Sir Stampalot and Cosmo Cricket DP's. I stamped the left of the base card with the top part of the stamp.

And this one good old Hero Arts silhouette grass onto a piece of watercolour card coloured with TH distress inks stormy sky and wild honey.

Brayered scrap attack

Hello peeps, I'm utilising my pool of secretaries again as I thought that there is no reason why I can't share a few pre-makes with you..............plus a couple of new ones I have made over the last few days.

Very slow going on the crafty front and the computer is still a no no for more than a couple of minutes.......takes longer to correct all the errors because I can't get my fingers to go to the right keys........but I think there is some progress. Still can't manoeuvre the brayer which is a real pain in the derriere so the ones using that technique in this post are 'old stock'. And the Royal 'we' are going to try and be clever and enter some challenges - this will a good test of my 'staff'......

The little minx above is one of the new Crafts and Me (link of sidebar) stamps called Lighting the Way. She is coloured with watercolours and the DP are pieces from the 'pink and green DP drawers' and because they are offcuts I have no idea of the make. But because they are offcuts it's one of my shares for the challenge Jules has set herself every Sunday. The green flower is made from inked tissue paper which was wrapped round some flowers.......how thrifty is that ?

Papertake weekly - Putting on the glitz

Magical Mondays - With love

Paper Sundaes - Pink, distres inks, flowers

Sparkles Challenge - Fairies

Crafts and Me - Spread your wings

This card is another 'snippets' creation, this time utilising all those annoying piece of bazzil that I never throw away, yet rarely use. Both stamps are Penny Black and inked with Brilliance. The cord is also odds and ends and the flower made from the offcut of bazzil. I thought the card matched Ashley, one of my Doulton figurines perfectly so I added her to the photo.

ABC Challenge - O for Oldfashioned (Cottage garden flowers)

Simon Says - Make your own embellishments (flower)

Creative Cottage - Fabulous florals

Now for some brayer, masking and sponging work from my stock pile of creations. On both the card above and at the top of this post, stamps are a mixture of Art Impression, Stampscapes and Clarity, all inks are Adirondack felt dye pads and of course the trusty Speedball brayer and gloss silk cardstock. For sponging I use round make up sponges which you can buy in packs really cheaply from high street chemists as they scrunch up nicely to form a 'ball' at the top to ink and avoid lines.

The brayered cards are for these challenges:

Top card:
Incy Wincy - At least two mediums (Adirondack inks and Copics)
Try it on Tuesdays - The sky's the limit

Bottom card:
Shabby Tearoom - Photo Inspiration (think this uses the colours)
Stamping Sisters - KISS - one layer card

Feels like snow

Hello everyone, how you doing ?

Is it cold or what, don't know about the rain they forecast, feels more like snow here so someone must have left the Fen gate open again....for those of you not familiar with the Fens, it's very flat and when the wind blows we know all about it. In the spring and summer we get the 'Fen Blows'.......the soil being so light here, it literally lifts off the ground in a good wind and blows like a dust storm and many a newly sown crop has been lost that way. When we get winter winds it's cold, it is verrrrrrrry cold. I could drivel on for England couldn't I ?

Dining room done, hall work in progress, slowly goes it but it's nice to have one room almost done and dusted. There were a few hairy moments on the ladder, but hubby stayed close and left me too it as he knew I was determined to do it. The body's not so sure of the wisdom today though and nothings working very well and I may just let someone else do the next room. But I think sometimes I have to do these things just to prove to myself I am not a total write off just yet. And I am really pleased with the room, I love the colours and now itching to get the new dining furniture in......I will share piccies when we get there.

My first card card is a but of indulgene again with Sweet Pea Fairy of the Night, stamped and masked to create a moon, then coloured with Copics. The glittered spotty DP is My Minds Eye and I embossed the bottom piece of bazzil with a new butterfly folder I bought at the NEC. I added crystal glityter the the fairies wings, some flowers and a pin which was silver so I coloured it with Copics to match. This card is for the following challenges:

Simon Says - Sparkle

In a Sweet Pea Dream - Flowers

My second cards one of my really quick and simple ones using a lovely Clarity Christmas stamp which I stamped with versafine black, embossed with detail clear onto a piece which I misted with Glimmer Mist timeless lilac then masked to I could ink the centre of the large letter using brilliance inks. Next I sprayed with Crafters Companion iridescent spray and sparkle and when dry stamped with one of the sections of Judikins Christmas cube. The DP is Cosmo Cricket. This card is for the following challenges:

Tuesday Taggers - Peace, love, joy

Fab 'n Funky - Forget me not (the cube stamp)

Anything Goes - Let it snow

Ladybug - Christmas sparkle