Ribbon or Lace Challenge

Crafty Boots Challenges is currently running a “Ribbon or Lace” challenge.
In the past, I would have loved this one and found it really easy, I used to love using ribbons, bows, lace, you name it, as long as it was girly and pretty.  I seem to have lost my Ribbon and Lace mojo!  So it really has been a challenge to make a card with ribbon, I wanted to leave it off, I had other ideas, but I put on the ribbon, and a nice big bow!

Still not entirely happy with it though, I think I will make it again without the ribbon….Lol 🙂
Below is a list of the gorgeous goodies I used to create my card.
I hope you will pop on over and check out what the rest of the Design Team have been creating, and share your own project with us too.
Happy stamping!
Chris

 

Pattie’s Creations Challenge 112

Theme – Make a Splash: Water MUST be part of your Image!
For this month’s challenge with Pattie’s Creations I have chosen Pattie’s wonderful Mallards image.

I just loved colouring this image, and of course have used my Copic Markers.

I decided to keep the card very clean and simple so that the image was the highlight of the card, and also decided to leave it blank without a sentiment, although it could be used for just about any type of card.
I hope you will join in the fun this month, create something with a water theme, or just that has some water somewhere, and share it with us at Pattie’s Creations in July.
Happy Stamping!
Chris

Washi Tape Challenge

The new challenge at The Male Room, for the next fortnight, is a stash challenge.  It’s time to use all that wonderful Washi Tape that we have in our stash – be as creative as you like.  Just remember, your project must have a masculine feel.  You can make a card, scrapbook page, tag, 3D project – just use Washi!!!!

My card uses a variety of different Stampin’ Up! Washi Tapes, in some lovely bright colours.  The “happy” has been cut out of the black layer using one of the Dies from the Hello You Thinlits Dies.  The Washi Tape is adhered to the layer below so that it shows through.

 

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The “Birthday” word was stamped onto some white cardstock and cut out with the Word Window punch then layered onto some washi tape which was adhered to a strip of white cardstock and then the flags cut into the ends.

This is my final challenge as Guest Designer with the team at The Male Room, so a big thanks for having me along during May.
Happy stamping!
Chris

Sketch Challenge

It’s my turn to host the challenge this week at Crafty Boots Challenges, and for the next two weeks my challenge to you, is to use this sketch to make a project:

There are one or two additional rules for our sketch challenge:
  • you can rotate the sketch and you can re size the elements if you wish.
  • do not move the elements around too much, the original sketch layout should still be recognisable.
  • you can use any materials you like to make anything you like, for example, a card, a box top, a gift bag, a scrapbook page, an ATC, an inchie, etc.  Just as long as the original sketch design is obvious in whatever you make.

I have made two cards this week, the first a Clean and Simple card:

and secondly, a more vintage style card featuring some different patterned papers and some lace:

I thought the teddies in this paper series were just too cute, so had to make them in to a card.  For this card I have turned the sketch side on, and used the teddy pattern on the papers to represent the circles of the sketch.  So you can see, there are heaps of ways you can use this sketch, and we would love to see your projects, at Crafty Boots Challenges.

Happy stamping!
Chris

 

 

Creative Ladybirds Challenge Reminder

Just a reminder to join us for the current Creative Ladybirds Creations Challenge, there are great Digital images to be won from our sponsors.
I have created a couple of extra cards for this post.

This card uses an image from Lacy Sunshine stamps called Daisy Delitte.  Isn’t she gorgeous? 🙂

And a masculine card featuring the Pocket Watch image from Ikes Art, and using some gorgeous retired Stampin’ Up! papers.
So do please share your projects with us, we love to see what you have been creating!
Happy stamping!
Chris

Message In The Bottle

Another “Under Water” card today, for the challenge at The Male Room.
I like this challenge, this one had me thinking of all sorts of things to try out!  For my card today, I have used a Digital image from Make It Crafty, of a message in a bottle.

The image has been coloured using Copic markers, and then to make it look more like it was underwater, I have layered over the top, an Acetate Photo Filter Frame from the Project Life “Let’s Get Away” Accessory Pack. The photo filter adds that blue, green, yellow colour over the colouring and gives it a little more depth and interest.
Behind the main image, I have stamped some tiny fish and starfish (which are a little difficult to see in the photo), using the Stampin’ Up! Sea Street stamp set.

Happy stamping!
Chris

 

 

Spring Challenge Reminder

A quick post today with a reminder about the Crafty Boots “Spring” Challenge.

My card features the beautiful stamp set from the Stampin’ Up! Occasions catalogue called Indescribable Gift.  It is a beautiful stamp for colouring, I think I might have to try it in some different colours too 🙂  The circle with the coloured image has been layered over some of the Irresistibly Yours Specialty papers from the Sale-a-Bration catalogue.  The photo hasn’t shown the background paper up very well, this is one card that is definitely better in real life than in the photo!!

Hoping you will share some of your spring projects with us, at Crafty Boots Challenges – we love to see what you have come up with.
Happy stamping!
Chris

Clean and Simple Cards

I have two cards to share with you today, along with some instructions on how to go about making them.  Both cards use some of the gorgeous images from Make It Crafty.

The first card features the adorable “Penny Sitting with Rose” digital stamp which I have sized to fit into the bottom corner of a piece of white blending cardstock.  I have then cut the cardstock to 9.5 x 13.8cm.
The image has been coloured using the following Copic markers: Hair: 100, N2, N4, Skin: E21, E11, E00, E000, R20, Clothing and Rose: V09, V06, V04, V01, V000, Leaves: G94, G21.

The words “thinking of you” have then been stamped using black Memento Ink in the left-hand corner.


I have then coloured three flat-backed pearls using the V04 Copic Marker,  (You could use a darker shade if you wanted a darker pearl), and allowed them to dry.

 

 

Next step is to adhere the dried pearls onto the left-hand corner.

Then I have taken a black marker and drawn some random lines around the edge of the card, linking the pearls, and the words along the way.  There doesn’t have to be any rhyme or reason to this, just draw freehand and add a couple of swirls to make it interesting.

Then, just adhere your coloured panel onto a coloured panel – I have used a very dark purple, then onto a white card base.  Or you could leave out the middle layer and just put it straight onto the card base.  And here is the finished card:

Lots of nice open white spaces! I have to admit to being really unhappy with her hair, but it is something I am practicing, so hoping it gets a lot better over time!!

The second card I want to share with you today, uses the new Dandelion Digital Stamp, which of course can be used combined with heaps of other images and ideas, however I decided to use it on it’s own today.

Again, I have started off by printing the digi stamp onto some blending cardstock, and then cutting the cardstock at the same dimensions as the card above. (Please excuse the slightly shadowy photos, of course it decided to cloud over just when I was in the middle of doing this!!)

Next, I started on the grass.  I have used the brush end of Copics G94 marker to flick in some darker shading on the larger leaves.

 

And then come over the top of this with a lighter green, in this case I have used G21, but you can choose which ever green you like! 🙂

I haven’t been too fussy with my grass, since grass can be quite, well, messy sometimes! 🙂
Next step is to colour the Dandelion flowers.  I have used a Y13 marker, however you could go a little darker.  For shading I have just come back over the first layer of yellow and added some more colour.

Next come the Dandelion seed heads (fluffy things, as we call them!).  You could leave them blank, and not add anything to them and it would still look fine.  However, I wanted to add a little texture and depth to mine, so I have used a broad tip Uniball Signo White pen, coloured the centres with it, and then placed dots of white all over.

Next comes a sentiment.  I have used a bright yellow ink for mine, and I do hope that you are able to be a bit more accurate than me, and manage to get yours straight! (It will teach me a lesson for not using a stamp positioner!!)

Then I have added a few embellishments for some added interest.  Firstly, some lines of paper piercing along the bottom.

Then some flags using some scraps of patterned paper, with a cute little birdy clip.  But you could use a button with some twine, or even some stitching along the top.

And last but not least, layer it over some bright yellow cardstock, and there you have it!  If you are a bit of a perfectionist, you could always re-stamp your sentiment onto a piece of scrap white cardstock, punch it out and adhere.


These cards have been made as an entry for the Make It Crafty CAS Design Team call:

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I hope you will have a go at making some Clean and Simple (CAS) cards, they can be scary with all that wide open space, but actually they are lots of fun!
Happy stamping!
Chris

Quick Butterfly Cards

A couple of quick and easy cards made with the beautiful Butterflies Thinlits Dies today, as a reminder about the current Crafty Boots Challenge.


I have kept them  nice and simple today, just some pretty papers and some Baker’s Twine.  The card on the right is a little different, the butterfly has been cut out of the entire front panel of the card, so that there is a hole in the front when the card is open, and the butterfly is adhered to the inside of the card and can be seen through.
Make any project you like, as long it has butterflies on it, and we would love to see it!

Happy Australia Day to all the Aussies, I hope you had a great day!

Happy stamping!
Chris

Butterflies, butterflies and more butterflies!

This week’s Crafty Boots Challenge is to use butterflies on our projects, so I have! It was a good excuse to use the gorgeous new Butterflies Thinlits Dies – not that I really need an excuse 🙂
My first card uses some of the Painted Blooms Designer Series Papers, which are just sooooooo beautiful.  I didn’t really want to cut it up, but if I don’t it will add to my ever growing stash!

I have cut two butterflies, one from white cardstock and then the top layer from the blue watercoloured paper in the Painted Blooms DSP.  The sentiment comes from the new stamp set (which is bundled with the dies) called Butterfly Basics.

Then I did some colouring with Blendabilities, and decided to make the coloured image into another card with lots of butterflies 🙂

This gorgeous image is from Art By MiRan, the papers retired a loooong time ago, and the flowers are from the above mentioned large stash of crafting goodies, and of course, the butterfly was another cut with my new Thinlits.  Oh, should I mention Faux Stitching?? 🙂  It hasn’t featured a lot recently, so I thought I high time to bring it back!
I hope you like them, and hope they inspire you to join us with your own butterfly creations at Crafty Boots Challenges.

Happy stamping!
Chris