The Flower Challenge #47 Add Sparkle Reminder

Its already time for the reminder for this months Challenge over at The Flower Challenge Blog and of course it is nice and Sparkly cause thats my second name.....

If you follow my blog or Instagram then you know I love the big floral background stamps and use them as often as possible. The Ton Rose Closeup

I have silver heat embossed onto Multimedia cardstock and used my  Karin watercolour markers very lightly with lots of water. Then I have gone over the whole flower with Nuvo Aqua Shimmer.

I trimmed the image slightly as I wanted to add to a silver glitter background. Finished off with a Magical silver glitter die cut and a diamond for the 'i' dot. No actually I wish it was a diamond but it is a wonderful gem that comes in all sizes and sorry I cannot remember where from.

Okay ladies and gentlemen you have 10 more days to get making, don't forget to go and check out the cards made by our amazing Design Team.

Thank you so much for dropping in and I hope to see you again soon

Crafty Hugs

Aileen

 

Catching Up - Three Birthday Cards

 

This post is just about catching up on using my coloured images. Its terrible when you get into a filing, tidying frenzy and realise just how many images you have coloured through the last half dozen Colouring Challenges and haven't used them. Mostly individual images but there are also lots of backgrounds, bulk colouring of images that were cut on the scan and cut. Scenes and ideas.

Then you realise that you have probably the biggest collection of stamped and printed images waiting to be coloured in the world. And after a year of not making cards well you were so busy colouring older images or your favourites that you now how an unbelievable amount of Never Before Used Stuff that is crying out to you ' ink me, ink me, please just ink me'.

The images on these cards were all coloured quite a while ago so you might have seen them during the colouring challenges but here we go I have die cut and added to coloured card bases. I have kept them simple just so I could get lots done. Three cards in half an hour, no procrastinating. 

This little sweetie is a rubber stamp and sorry I cant remember where I got here.

I have coloured her and the background with Copics and kept the background very loose with many of the lightest colours going into the sky colours. The sentiment is from Make It Crafty and I decided to leave it natural. Make It Crafty are no longer in business.

I added Glossy Accents to the balloons and silver pen to the beads hanging on the front of her dress. The die cut frame is a new one from the Greetery and I love it so you will be seeing lots of cards featuring this. Added to a lovely lilac card base.

This beautiful card with the Hibiscus bouquet was also coloured some time ago. Copics in tropical colours.   That same die cut frame again.

Best Wishes sentiment is cut in gold mirror card and the background in vellum. A few pretty green sequins and a very soft pale green card base.

My third card is a Digital image from Mo's Digital Pencil, coloured with copics and very lightly outlined. Same die used one size smaller and it has a centre that is slightly different top and bottom to the other die cuts.

I have added her to a blended background that I made from Tim Holtz Distress Oxides

that just glide on. Cant remember the colours I used.

Finished her off with a gold mirror card die cut 'best wishes' and a gem substituted

for the 'i' dot.

There you go, three birthday cards to add to my pile and hoping to do the same again on Friday. Not tomorrow as thats Nanny and Koby day and if I dare to get on this computer and I know there will be little hands darting here and there trying so very hard to add to my thoughts for the day.

So lovely to have you come visit and I do love when you comment. I am slowly getting into the habit again of looking at blogs and commenting instead of just instagram.

Crafty hugs to everyone out there.

Thought for the day.

I know how important masks are in battling this terrible pandemic but I also know that for Elysha and myself one of the hardest things for us is not being able to lipread what people are saying. So just a thought for all those who are deaf/hearing impaired/hard of hearing/ elderly and loosing their hearing.

Remember not only are the elderly becoming more isolated by restrictions on visiting because of their age and health they are even more restricted and isolated when they see people staring at them and they can hear sounds but really have no idea what is being said.

I have found that as time goes on and people are being interviewed on the TV with masks on, if I didnt have captions (and let me tell you watching the news with live captions can be so funny at times as words are spelt wrong, they get the wrong word all together or when it drops too far behind a whole section can be missed) but without it I would have no idea what is going on. 

Just a little food for thought.

The Flower Challenge #47 Add Sparkle

This has  got to be the easiest challenge ever - ADD SPARKLE, I love Sparkle, you can never have enough Sparkle.  

I have watercoloured this stamped image from The Ton it is an amazing stamp set with lots to choose from and like many of my stamps not used enough as I have so many.......

I stamped on watercolour paper and coloured with my Zig watercolour brushes and lots of water

to keep the colours really light. I had to force myself to stop as you know I like (love) vibrant colours but I am trying to get myself to go lightly as it too is beautiful.

I then decided to add a silver mirror cardstock frame. I wanted to make it look like a picture on a wall so looked for pattern paper I felt worked with the image. I found this amazing shimmer paper that is black but has a dark maroon colour as well. It is in a Chinese style pattern and I felt it was perfect for this card.

I also added the framed image crooked as I like this look

not having to worry about correct line up ( and I thought it should look like

all the paintings and photos on my walls that all hang with this crooked

look that to my eye looks straight and John has despaired of correcting).

Ok so nows it time to go check out what the Design Team have been up to and I am sad to say that this is to be Karen's last challenge with us. Karen is one of the originals that I asked to join us with this challenge and like all the other original members totally shocked me when she said yes. Karens style is amazing to see and I love that she shares how she makes her cards and offers tutorials. Life takes us all in different directions constantly and for now it has moved Karen in a different direction. We will miss your cards, your kindness and relaxed easy going friendship in the Design Team Karen.

This month our Guest Designer is Darnell Knauss. 

When you go to Darnell's  blog go prepared to be entertained. Darnell has a knack of entertaining through her wonderful posts and has a wonderful following that reads every post and often comments. She was one of the first blogs I followed and helped me get the confidence to have a blog and post my cards rather than just Flickr (yes before Instagram). Darnell always left the most encouraging comments and helped me learn set up etc for the blog and pushed me to go in challenges. She has been and continues to be a great influence in the card community. 

Thank you so much for coming to check out my card, please take the time to leave a comment so I know you have been. I love reading comments and always appreciate the positive wonderful things people have to say.

See you again soon I hope

Crafty Hugs Aileen

Happy Birthday Archer

We went over to visit my grandson who had recently turned one. We were unable to get to his original party as we were in isolation, so it was planned for the next week, no our isolation had been extended due to  Health Department  error. The next week Archer got sick so one month later we finally got to celebrate with him and his family.

This card is made using another of Mo's Digital Pencil images coloured with Copics. Archer had

a cake smash the same as his brother and sister so the card seemed perfect for that.

I added  a one die cut from silver glitter paper and his name in banner form (first time used) and I just added a piece of string across the front of the card then added the little banners with a bit of glue on the back of them. I die cut the image with another new die from The Greetery.

Family Time

I have a pile of photos I wanted to share with you from Archers birthday and also the brilliant gift my husband made for him which I must say has been a great success.

We had a lovely time though we did have to keep our distance a bit as Archer is not use to seeing us and bolts to the comfort of mum's arms the minute we get too close. 

It was so nice to see them all and heres hoping we can see a bit more of them soon.

 These first photos are the gift John built for Archer. Mel and Dale asked if he could make this and he did. It's for inside use and under supervision. Can be up one way as a rocker or turned over and used for climbing or a tunnel. Sophie sent me some photos after to show how she liked using it. She had it set up as a rocker but with some cushions on it so she could lay back and play with her iPad nice and relaxed.

next is Archer enjoying I think Cake number 4 in all his celebrations. Loves to have everyone sing to him and the next photo on is his Cake smash celebration. Cake made by his dad.

 
I couldn't resist these three cause I just love the look on his face as he listened to his mum. the protection of mums legs and now walking pretty steadily.

This last is the cake my son, Dale made for Archers party.

Who does he take after......I love that he loves doing their

cakes each birthday just like I did.

That is all blue icing and the amount of blue that went into that well everyone was very blue after eating some cake.