CD Sunday Challenge Blog

Well I'm not quite sure where this last week has gone - I know I've been out and about a bit making the most of the late summery weather.  I think I might just about be in time with an entry for the CD Sunday challenge which is 'Winter Wonderland' and for this I used an image from Polkadoodles Magical Winter CD, printed a couple of times and layered for a bit of dimension - had to add a bit of glitter for the snow as well. The background paper and sentiment are from the same CD and I cut out a toning label using a Nestability die, embossed and sanded to show up the dots which I think look like snow.

Forgotten Friday 34

I've gone way, way back this week for Judith's Forgotten Friday challenge because earlier in the week I was searching for stamps to use on another challenge and dug out a set by Paper Artsy which was given away as a subscription gift with Craft Stamper years ago.  I cannot remember actually using this large stamp before so decided to give it an inking today to make a 'man' card..  Background paper is from a Basic Grey pad which I've also had for years and this was overstamped with bits and pieces from  the Paper Artsy set.  The ticket was die cut using a Tim Holtz Sizzix die and that was stamped with words from Imagine that - the wings were made using a stamp from Maya Road.  This challenge is brilliant for making me look through my stash for neglected items to make sure they don't remain completely forgotten.  Take a look at Judith's blog for some great inspiration with both forgotten items and really new things like the Christmas stamps (and others) from Chocolate Baroque as she is a member of their Design team.

Make My Monday week 17

This is the last week on Make My Monday challenge for the steampunk theme and I'm way outside my comfort zone with this one which was 'anything but a card' because I rarely venture into this sort of work much as admire what other people achieve.. I've been mulling this over since I read the post and eventually decided on altering a picture frame.  I called into our local shop where everything is one economical price and fortunately they had this square frame with a wide area to decorate.  I sanded the surface slightly and applied some gesso and then a coat of acrylic paint, finally sponging with Distress ink.  The image of the penny farthing was a free digital download from BTFC, distressed with dusty concorde  ink.  Various stamps from Kanban, 7 Gypsies, Paper Artsy and Chocolate Baroque were used (the flower is from CB Steampunk Christmas set). I also cut out some cogs using a Sizzix die and embossed them with more cogs using a Cuttlebug folder, again using Distress ink.  I can see that I could have made this much more elaborate, especially if I had a handy supply of watch parts and other bits and pieces which are on my ever growing wish list, but at least I had a go.

Funky Hand Monthly Challenge

The folks at Funky Hand are looking for something with a birthday theme this month which figures because a Happy Happy Birthday CD has recently been launched.  I used papers from the Sunshine Birthday collection to make this card, simply adding a Top Note die cut from Sizzix, a scaled down piece of the backing paper cut using a Nestability die, a stamped and punched greeting (Stampin Up) and some flowers using a Marianne die and an X-cut punch.  Just for luck I added a butterfly using a Sizzix embosslits folder (also SU). A bright and cheery result.

Bah Humbug Week 38

The challenge from the ladies at Bah Humbug this week is to produce something on the theme of 'Rudolph' so nothing too taxing. The image, sentiment and backing papers have come from Polkadoodles Magical Winter and I also used a Sizzix die for layering.  I try to keep some of my christmas cards quite simple because I find people are reluctant to pay  much for the cards and also don't like having to put extra postage for dimensional cards this time of year. I will be adding some glitter to his nose but didn't want to wait for the glue to dry before posting to the blog and if no-one wants to buy this card I will add some dimension with real buttons and a sprig of holly.

Forgotten Friday 33

When I saw the Midweek Motivation post on the MMM challenge I remembered that several years ago I'd bought a reel of this DIY aluminium tape and that it was somewhere in my craft stash (certainly not purchased for DIY). Believe it or not I actually knew where it was so I dug it out to use for Judith's Forgotten Friday challenge this week - it certainly qualifies because it hasn't seen the light of day for many years. I stuck a piece of it onto some card and then cut out a small birdcage using a Tim Holtz Sizzix die - this was coloured using alcohol inks.  The robin was cut out with a Stampin Up two step bird punch - another item which probably hasn't been used for a couple of months - I cut an extra wing in red to turn it into a robin.
Background is a piece of Kraft card stamped using a lovely brocade stamp from Chocolate Baroque - again a neglected item.  The clock die cut was sent to me by a very kind friend and I sponged it with Distress ink and then rubbed some Treasure gold on to show up the pattern on the centre which I'd put through a Cuttlebug embossing folder. A ticket style Christmas Greeting from Cuddly Buddly and there it is a sort of vintage meets steampunk Christmas card.

Less is More 1000 challenge

I hope Suzi B will forgive me for copying her idea of making a bookmark to enter into the Less is More challenge this week. She has had this great idea of using scraplings( which are the pieces of card left over after you've cut a square card blank from a folded A4 sheet of card) to make bookmarks.  I cut a mask using a sticky note and stippled some distress ink, then stamped a Retro flower from a set of Chocolate Baroque stamps.  A one layer clean and simple result and another entry towards their target.