Ivory Angels ATC's.

Black isn't always a color we associate with Christmas, but it is one of the colors I have chosen to pair with my Ivory Angels Collage Images to create a set of ATC's.  You could easily turn these ATC's into Christmas tags for your gift giving too.  Simply punch a hole at the top of each card and thread through some red ribbon.

I love tearing an assortment of coordinating papers and layering across my backgrounds for my ATC's and today it was some papers left over from the Graphic 45 Christmas Emporium Collection that caught my eye.   I used some Bold Stripes, Christmas Text, Music Score, Holly and a touch of Red too!

The Ivory Angels Collage sheet contains 10 different Angel Images and is available for Digital Download or purchase from Altered Pages.   If you are a lover of Angels like I am be sure to check out their full range of Angel Collage Sheets.

APC Week 3 plus a few other cards

Hi Everyone!  I have had a very lazy week since our return from overseas, reading and the odd bit of crafting here and there.

I am still nowhere caught up with the Altered Playing Card Challenge but here are my cards for week 3.

I am trying to follow at least the background techniques shown by Claudine each week.

The first card uses Alcohol Inks.  I only own three colors so used these with a little blending solution to create the background.  I then stamped some leaves and my sentiment onto the background with Black Staz On.  Coloring my leaves with a Memento Marker.  Before adding some butterflies that had been stamped on white paper and colored with distress ink and finished with a few rhinestonesbh.

My second APC has been colored with Mustard Seed, Rusty Hinge and a touch of Aged Maghony Distress Ink all blended with a baby wipe.  I also added a sand texture to this with a touch of sepia ink.  I then used this same color in archival ink to stamp my sentiment before adding my stamped leaf which was fussy cut and colored before outlining with a white gel pen.

All the stamps I used on these cards were from Unity Stamp Co.

Also this week I have made a start on my swap cards for a PAT (Pick a Theme Swap) over at ATC's for All.  For these types of swaps each participant (5 in a group) picks a theme they would like a card to be made for.  Everyone makes one card for each participant in line with the chosen theme and then sends them to the host who then sends them out.  This type of swap is great if you are collecting particular themed cards as you end up with four cards to add to your collection.

Here are the first two.  I am playing in the Mixed Media/Collage Catergory, the first card theme was Buddah's and the second was Vintage Halloween.

The buddah image is one I have in my stash as I love buddah's myself and have a great collection of them.  The background is a gelli print with some black stamping (a flourish) down one side.  I then took a selection of off cuts from my G45 Birdsong Papers and layered these before adding my buddah and some Cherry Blossoms cut from another collage image.  The Geisha Stamp Image was from a collage sheet by Joanna Grant and I edged one side with a touch of Gold Leaf (I think this is what is causing my camera to put a fuzzy blur down the side of the buddah).

For my Vintage Halloween Card I used this delightful collage image from an Altered Pages Collage Sheet and layered once again some G45 papers (Steampunk Spells) over a black painted background.

Trending Tuesdays - Making Moos

Yes another month has just flown by and its time for another Trending Tuesdays post with the Altered Pages Design Team.  All month the team at Altered Pages has been playing along with the themes over at Unruly PaperArts which have been Mail Art and Moos and their RAQ themes of Teacups and Tiaras, so the challenge for today was to make some Moo's.

You may remember I gave a bit of sneak peek in one of my earlier posts of my project for today.

I teamed up some bits and pieces from my Mailbox Muse - Alice's Utterly Mad Party Kit with a chipboard Tea Cup from the Leaky Shed.

I used the stamps in the Mail Box Muse Kit and the Moo Background Collage Sheet from Altered Pages to create my three Alice Inspired Moos.

I had someone in mind to send these to, so I mounted them onto a piece of the G45 paper which came as part of the Mailbox Muse Kit and decided to make a envelope with some of the other papers in the kit using my Quick Cutz Eyelet Die to house them in.

I painted my Chipboard Tea Cup from the Leaky Shed with Green Acrylic Paint before adding some more color with ink and a few extra details before adding this to the front of my envelope.

I stamped the Alice's Utterly Made Tea Cup wording onto my tea cup and then used a little bit of twine and a small piece of cardstock to create the look of a teabag to which I added some further stamping.  My completed project is already on its way overseas to it's new home.

Making these moos got me in the mood for making some more and I will be sharing my love for making Moo's a little later this week over on the Unruly PaperArts Blog if you'd care to take a look.

Thanks for stopping by today and happy creating!

Day 2 - Five Days of Flashbacks

Welcome back to Day 2 of Five Days of Flashbacks showcasing my crafting throughout 2013.

In March I used up some of my Gelli Prints that I had been madly printing throughout February to make ATC's playing along with the Postage Stamp-Athon early in the month and an Art-Athon over the St Patricks Day Weekend.at ATC's for All.

It would appear March was the month for ATC Making.  This one was using some of my new Australian Animal Stamps from Darkroom Door.

Cards were more in favor in April and I kick started the month with a fun male oriented card for the sketch at Cards in Envy

I used a canvas backwards to create a fun shadow box with my French Country Papers from Graphic 45 for my rooster mad sister whilst playing along with the Altered Pages Challenge.

I hopped as part of the team for the Robin's Nest with my Daisy Days Card.

  

In May I was back to making lots of ATC's participating in a number of ATC Swaps including one called Down by the Sea and a Bee themed one!

I made a Shoe themed banner for the Shoe Challenge at Altered Pages.

And I had a go at carving my own stamps while at a Class at Time to Create and over on the Design Memory Craft Blog I learned a great technique for using Vellum with Gelatos.  This had me almost falling back in love with Vellum.

These flashbacks certainly confirm that my style varies a lot doesn't it?  Thanks so much for stopping by today.

If you would like to see more of my assortment of art throughout 2013, pop back tomorrow for Day 3 of my Five Days of Flashbacks where I will be showcasing some of my work from June, July and August.

Itty Bitty a Day Challenge - Day 4 & 5

This week sure has gone fast and today I have two cards to share which complete the week of the Itty Bitty A Day Challenge over on the Unity Show and Tell Facebook Group.  Both of these cards were also inspired by the latest Be Inspired Challenge over on the Unity Blog and I am sharing this as my Friday Friends with Flair Post too!

But before I do that I just wanted to share my cute find in a local dollar store yesterday which I visited after having lunch out with Rod.  With all the renovating and fixing up of our old house to put on the market to sell, and my back problems its been a while since we have had our usual Friday Date Day out.

They are Tiny Burlap Flag Pins. And there was a whole range of other burlap items in stock including flowers, and rolls of burlap in assorted colors too.  I was restrained and only brought the flags and some more tiny baskets to store my ever growing stash of Gelatos.

Anyhow on to my cards.

Here's a look at my main source of inspiration for them.

Thursday's Card - Itty Bitty a Day Challenge
I am just loving this spotty Glitz Paper (okay the whole paper collection in fact) and my colors were inspired by Be Inspired Challenge above.

Supplies Used: 

On This Journey Together Itty Bitty by Unity Stamp Co, Bohemian Bazaar Paper by Graphic 45, Uncharted Waters Paper by Glitz.  Heart Trio Punch by Stampin' Up!, Memento Ink Tuxedo Black, Twine and Antique Linen Distress Stain.

Friday's Card - Itty Bitty a Day Challenge

The use of strips of paper was inspired by the latest Be Inspired Challenge Card Sketch and sort of evolved from there into this woven paper design.

Supplies Used: 

A Beautiful Sight Itty Bitty by Unity Stamp Co, Bohemian Bazaar Papers by Graphic 45

Stampin' Up! Scallop Border Punch, Gelatos and Memento Ink Tuxedo Black

There is so much Unity Goodness to be found on the net, so be sure to check it all out starting with the three links I have mentioned above.  

It's a beautiful day here today, so I am about to heading out to sit in the sunshine with a coffee.  Hope you all have a wonderful weekend.

Itty Bitty A Day Challenge - Day 3

Hi Everyone!  I hope you are all having a great week so far.  I was back at the Physio on Tuesdays and yesterday had hardly any pain so I got into the craft room early and played.  On Tuesday my Altered Pages Order arrived and it made an appearance (well the box did) in my photo yesterday for What's on Your Workdesk Wednesday.  I had some comments left stating they would like a closer look at the contents so I have another photo to share.

There is the New Color Sets in Gelatos, New Papers from Graphic 45 and Glitz, at the back is A Box of Rubber which is a mystery box of stamps, there is some Sari Silk Ribbons, Chipboard and a few other embellishments and Ribbons. 

So yesterday with all these items out I could not just put it away without playing a little.  I was due to make a card for Day 3 of the Itty Bitty A Day Challenge over on the Unity Show and Tell Facebook Page, so I did this with a with a couple of other challenges in mind too.

Wednesday's Card - Itty Bitty a Day Challenge

Supplies Used: 

 Dream Big Itty Bitty by Unity Stamp Co, Bohemian Bazaar Papers by Graphic 45,

 Eyelet and Scallop Border Punches by Stampin' Up!, 50's Diner Gelatos, 

Crystal Lacquer, Memento Ink Tuxedo Black, Trim and Rhinestones from Stash.

The latest color challenge at Color Throwdown was a perfect match to those colors in the new Bohemian Bazaar Papers from Graphic 45.  

Shopping our Stash was asking for you to use your oldest punches this week.  Hence my two Stampin' Up! Border Punches on this card.  These were the first two from my days as a SU Demonstrator back in 2009.

And over at the Songbird Challenge Blog (I only just found this challenge site), they were asking for you to use your favorite things.  As some of you know I love butterflies, and using my Gelatos so they were a definite must on this card.  I used the Gelatos to color my butterflies and their background, simply by drawing stripes and blending.  They are some of the new colors in the 50's Diner Pack above.

The Butterflies are from the Dream Big Itty Bitty Stamp by Unity so all of these elements made my card meet all four challenges this week.  

The Ric Rac/Scallop Trim was one I brought secondhand on Ebay along with a huge stash of other trims some years back, and I have coated my butterflies with Crystal Lacquer to give them some dimension and shine.

Delighting in the Little Things

I was browsing through some of the Collage sheets from Altered Pages when I came across this adorable collage image on the Vintage Chicken Collage Sheet. 

It reminded me to delight in the small things in life which as a child came so easily, but as an adult not so much.  I couldn't resist making this card using it.

You can read more about what other items I have used for this card such as the paper and embellishments by popping over to the Altered Pages Blog.

Altered Pages #8 Birds

Hi Everyone!  I hope you are enjoying your week and finding some time to create.  April has shot off with a bang here and is shaping up to be one crazy month with a bit of a roller-coaster week this week having celebrated both mum's birthdays in the past few days, and it being the anniversary of Rod's Dad's Death this Friday.  Our attentions are being pulled in all sorts of directions including finishing off the other house to put on the market and various upcoming medical appointments for everyone, family coming to visit and I am currently attending a 3 day workshop as part of our ongoing Foster Carer Training.  So needless to say I have been a bit quite on the crafting front but I do have my project for this month's Altered Pages Challenge to share with you today.

The theme is birds.  So I decided to use the Graphic 45 French Country Papers and it's lovely Rooster to make a shadow box wall hanging using a canvas.

I started by painting the canvas black both back and front and then adhering my desired papers using the back of the canvas to form the shadow box with Gel Medium.  Using a canvas in this way is something I had seen a few months ago on the internet and seems to be a growing trend in the Mixed Media world at the moment with some of my crafty friends having recently returned from a class with Finnabair having used this idea.

To finish I distressed the edges with some Distress Inks, fussy cut some stamped vines (Dylusions Stamps), which I placed over the sides I had covered with the chicken wire look paper and then used some of the elements from the French Country Collection as focal points and added a small wooden fence piece which I had also colored with distress ink.

My sister is rooster and chicken mad so this project has her name on it I just need to find a nice piece of rustic chain to attach to the back so it can be used as a wall hanging.

You are just going to love all the wonderful inspiration from the team this month so be sure to head over to the Altered Pages Challenge Blog to check them all out and we would love it if you would join us.

Altered Pages #4 - Glitter and Glow

Hi Everyone and welcome to my new followers.  Yesterday was wet hot and steamy here, and it looks like it will be a similar day today.  Our tanks are now full and all the plants around our home are getting a good watering so its enjoyable for this reason.  My husband however wouldn't agree.  Because we are in summer the rain combined with the heat sees the grass growing at a rapid rate which means he is mowing almost every week.

Today I have a Tag for the latest Challenge over at Altered Pages - Glitter and Glow.  I chose a tag as time was a bit scarce this past week.

Altered Pages Supplies used for this Tag: Manila Tag,  Eco Art Board Inchies, Paris Trunk Walnut and Gold Tiara Inks, Graphic 45 Christmas Emporium Paper.

Other Items used: Gold Metallic Dew Drops from the Robin's Nest, Victorian Lace from Stampin' Up!, Snowflake Stamp from Unity Stamp Co, Metallic Copper Ink It Up Ink, Gold Kindy Glitz, Medieval Gold Glitz Spritz from Lindy's Stamp Gang

Similar to last month we ask that you vote for your favorite inspiration piece from the AP DT and also play along for your chance to win a great prize pack full of Altered Pages Goodies.

For all the details and to vote head over to the Challenge Blog here.

Other Challenges I am entering this tag in are:-

Come and Get It Challenges - Tag Your'e It!
Quirky Crafts - Challenge #25 Christmas Tags
Stamptacular Sunday Challenge - #193 Anything But a Card!

Paper Scraps and Bottle Caps

Hi Everyone I hope you are enjoying your Sunday. We have another day of storms ahead, with thunder rumbling overhead as I type this. Yesterday we were lucky enough to be spared the severe storms that lashed around us both to the north and south, and I spent the afternoon watching a live stream from a Storm Chaser who was watching a Super Cell Storm Form over the Darling Downs in South East Queensland. Scary stuff indeed.

Anyway today I have a Christmas Tag to share with you all, created using up some of my paper scraps and a bottle cap. I am using some other goodies you can buy at Altered Pages also for this project.

I have been working on a number of projects for Christmas using the Graphic 45 Christmas Emporium Papers from Altered Pages and had some bits of these delightful papers left over so I thought I would make some tags. I started by taking a Manilla Tag and using this as a template cut out the same shape from a piece of the Blue Snowflake Paper. To this I have stamped and embossed some white snowflakes and added a small clear rhinestone to the center of each snowflake. I then inked the edges with some Paris Trunk Walnut Ink and adhered to the Manilla Tag. For the center of my tag I have layered some Gold Metallic Ribbon and Natural Colour Netting under a scrap of the Toy Paper.

To coordinate and add another touch of Christmas I have punched out with a 1" Circle Punch Santa's face from one of the images from the Santa Santa Santa AP-1111 Collage Sheet and adhered him into the center of a flattened Bottle cap using some Sakura 3D Crystal Lacquer to both adhere and seal the image into the center

Once dry I then added some gold glitter glue to the outer rim of the bottle cap so that it matched my metallic ribbon which I used as a tie for this tag also. And there you have it a Christmas Tag using Paper Scraps and Bottle Caps.

Thanks for stopping by today and I hope you have a great weekend!

PTT#57 - Anything Goes

Can you believe that another month is almost over?  Its already time for another Anything Goes Challenge over at Party Time Tuesdays.

For this weeks card I got to play with more bling and flowers from our month long sponsor Zva Creative and this cute fire breathing dragon from Paper Pretties.

Digi Image:  Drakei the Dragon by Paper Pretties

Paper/Cardstock:  Bo Bunny, Graphic 45 and Stampin' Up!

Other:  Bling Florishes and Flowers from Zva Creative, Ribbon from my Stash.

See how he is holding a sign, it is blank which means you can put any sentiment or wording you like on it.  I simply used 4 You.   In showcasing all of our wonderful sponsors products this week, I have a card which is a quite an unusual mix for me, as it has the fabulously cute image combined with some paper scraps and what one would class as more elegant touches such as the bling flourish which I cut into pieces to suit my desired placement.  I guess you could say that it captures the Anything Go Theme in more way than one......lol.

 For this challenge we once again have a great line up of sponsors and prizes up for grabs.

Our month long sponsors are:

Our week sponsors are

So are you set to play along with another fun Anything Goes Challenge?  For all the details and to see the fabulous creations from the other Party Planners be sure to head over to the Party Time Tuesdays Site.