The Gordon Arms Hotel

The weekend is almost here, this week seems to have flown by, but this is probably because I have been out most days and crafting time has been a little scarce.  :(

However, I do have another Christmas card to share with you today.  As you no doubt know, the current challenge at Crafty Boot Challenges is 'Christmas in July' and I have stumbled across some wonderful wintry scenes which are just perfect for Christmas cards.

This image is from Delicious Doodles and it is called 'Snowy Stop-Over'.  I have used my F&C polychromos pencils to colour the image - these Delicious Doodles images seem to be made for pencils and I have had so much fun colouring them.

I added some twinkle to all of the snow with a clear Wink of Stella Brush Pen.  All of the papers used on this card are Papermania's First Noel pack.

I have actually made three similar Christmas cards using these papers and Delicious Doodles images, come back tomorrow and I will share another one of them with you.

Dionne

Christmas Lights

The current Crafty Boots Challenge theme is 'Christmas in July', when the challenge started we were experiencing a mini heat wave but this week it is much easier to believe that Christmas is on its way.

After an awful lot of soul searching, I recently treated myself to a set of Faber and Castell polychromos pencils.  They were horribly expensive but I have tried other pencils over the years and none of them have ever given me the results I was looking for however I am delighted with my new pencils.

The last couple of weeks I have been experimenting with my pencils and I think I am ready to start sharing the results with you.

This adorable image is from A Day for Daisies and is called 'Christmas Light Fairy'.  I coloured her with my new pencils and then added Glossy Accents to the bulbs, to make them appear like glass, and clear Wink of Stella brush to the fairy's wings and dress, so she twinkles.

The papers I have used for this card are all from a Dovecraft's Back to Basics Christmas pack.

Don't forget to enter your Christmas cards into this Challenge and good luck.

Dionne

Wishing Laughter, Joy and Love

Another week almost over and only another week left of this month, where does the time go?

I want to say a big thank you to all of my regular visitors for all of your support and encouragement, you have no idea how much I cherish your visits and treasure each and every comment you leave.  As you know I have recently been experimenting with a different style of card, one which uses punches and dies and not stamped images, I have also been trying out created backgrounds instead of using pre-printed papers.

For this card I have used the sheet of paper I patterned with some red Ecoline ink following a process I saw on one of Pamellia Johnson's amazing YouTube video's.  I really regret not taking a photograph of the paper before I cut it up.  I used a Martha Stuart punch to create the 3D hearts and Memory Box's Sylvan Corner die.

I used some blue ink to dust around the edges of some white textured card.  I also used a black pen to mirror the corner in the bottom corner.  The sentiment is from my Kanban Crafts stash.

I hope that you have a great weekend.

Dionne

A Hunting we Shall Go

I had a fabulous day out at the seaside yesterday, I went to visit a very dear friend who lives by the sea.  We had a really lovely day and I was reluctant to come home when it was time to leave.

Oh well, back to reality and more catch up posts, this is another of the cards I made for the recent Crafty Boots Black and White Challenge.

The image I used for this cards was a recent freebie from Gecko Galz, which I obtained from the blog of my good friend and fellow team mate, Mrs Beez.  As you can see, I mounted the image on some black and white card and added some black ribbon to the bottom of the card.  If you look carefully you will see that I added glitter to the white card, either side of the ribbon, using double sided tape.

I hope you have a great day.

Dionne

Bauble and Bow

The sun is shinning brightly and I am off to the seaside for the day, so obviously the current Crafty Boots Challenge is 'Christmas in July'.

(My apologies for the rather 'iffy' photo, I made this card during the evening and took the photograph as soon as I finished it, I am afraid it came out a little on the dark side.)

This started out as a quick and simple card.  The lovely sentiment image is from Bugaboo Stamps, it is called Winter Circle Sentiment.  I coloured it with my Promarkers and added glitter to highlight the stars, snowflake and frost.  But that did not seem to be enough sparkle for me, so I then sprayed it with Iridescent 'Spray 'n Sparkle.  It is now lovely and festive but you cannot really make out the original glitter highlights!

The gorgeous backing paper is from DoveCraft First Noel paper stack.  The big ruby coloured bow is actually from the Christmas crackers we had last Christmas - my family and friends are use to me going through the Christmas rubbish for bits to recycle.


Dionne

Wishing You Happier Times

A few days ago I posted a card - Sylvan Corner, which some people thought would also make a good sympathy card.  I agree, and was actually thinking that as I made the birthday card, so I have made a second card, but this time using my Memory Box Butterfly Exhibit die.

I decided to ink the edges of the card with blue to give the card a little colour relief, I then mounted it on black pearlised card and inked in the corners of a frame using a marker pen.

The sentiment is from my Kanban Crafts stash.

Dionne

Christmas in July

It is time to announce a new Crafty Boots Challenge, the theme for the next two weeks is one of my favourite challenges - 'Christmas in July'.

I must confess that when I sat down to make this card I was not feeling very festive, the temperatures have been pretty warm for the past few weeks, although it is even hotter in main land Europe, whilst I know that Design Team colleagues in Australia are enjoying their winter.  I would love to know where you are and what the weather is like at the moment?

The image is one from my vintage rubber stamp collection, I have managed to find the stamp on the internet, it is a PSX stamp called Poinsettia in Watering Can Mounted Rubber Stamp K-2373 Christmas Flower.  I coloured my image with Promarkers and I added some Glossy Accents to the holly leaves to give them  more of a waxy finish.

I mounted the image on green glitter card and some silver mirri.  The designer paper is from the DoveCraft First Noel paper stack and the flower and berries are from Wild Orchid Crafts.  The holly leaf trim is from my stash.

The lovely ladies in the Crafty Boots Design Team have been very busy making Christmas cards, please drop by and take a look.


Dionne

Sylvan Corner

I'm still trying to catch up with my posting, here is another of the cards I made for the recent Black and Crafty Boots White Challenge.

This card features another of my new Memory Box dies - the Sylvan Corner.

I started with a sheet of textured card and applied a light dusting of black ink around the edges.  Then I cut the corner die from a sheet of black pearlised card and placed it in one corner, I used a black fine line pen to add an outline in the opposite corner.

I had a few tiny dies left over from another project and I popped these on the card to add balance.  I mounted the card on some more black pearlised card before attaching it to the card blank.  The sentiment is from Kanban Craft.

Have a good day and thank you for taking the time to visit my blog.


Dionne

Classic Wedding

My lovely neighbours recently decided to tie the knot and I wanted to make them a special card to celebrate the occasion.

The digital image is from A Day for Daisies and it is called 'You May Kiss the Bride'.  I coloured the image with Promarkers and covered the bridal gown and veil with glitter.

I recently purchased a lot of digital background images from Esty, this was one of them - a match made in heaven.  I mounted the image on silver mirri and black pearlised cards.


Dionne

Butterfly Exhibit

Welcome, I hope you had a wonderful weekend.

We have reached the midway point in the current Crafty Boots Challenge.  The theme of the current challenge is 'Stars of Stripes'.  The last DT card I shared with you featured stars, so today I decided to go with stripes.

I have been splashing out quite a bit of late and invested in some new crafty bits, including this Memory Box die.  Regular visitors will know that recently I have been experimenting with creating my own backgrounds, I have gone a little further here, I created the design for the paper I cut the butterflies from.  Another recent purchase was a set of Ecoline inks and a some pipettes .  I used the red ink from the set and drizzled it over some heavy paper, I then sprayed some water on it and chased the little rivulets around the paper with my heating tool.  I got this idea after watching one of Pamellia Johnson's fabulous YouTube video's.

As you can see, I dusted a little ink around some texture card and added the butterflies to the centre, I then mounted the card onto some black pearlised card and, finally, I attached the whole thing to some striped paper from Dovecraft.  The butterfly sentiment is from Kanban Crafts.

We have two very talented Guest Design Team members joining our regular ladies this week, so don't forget to pop over the the Crafty Boots Challenges blog and take a look at their gorgeous cards.

Dionne

Daisy Chain

It is a beautiful day here and I want to make the most of it, but before I rush off I have a very quick post for you.

I have been experimenting recently with making my own backing paper.  I created this one with Stampin' Ups Night of Navy ink.  I put some ink on my craft mat and picked it up with a wet paint brush and brushed it onto a sheet of white card.  I then dipped my brush into the very tiny bit of Cherry Cobbler ink and splashed it onto the card.  Once the card was dry I stamped it with one of the stamps from the Tim Holtz 'Stampers Anonymous - Papillon' set using more Night of Navy ink.

I mounted the whole thing on some Night of Navy card before adding this lovely daisy chain lace and the sentiment - which is from Kanban Crafts

I hope that you have a fabulous weekend.


Dionne

Zentangle Dream

I am a great admirer of the amazing Zentangle art I see on Pinterest, but I never realised just how skilled these artist are until I tried it for myself.  The recent Crafty Boots Black and White Challenge gave me the idea to try my hand at Zentangle.

I sat down with a plain sheet of card and discovered my first problem, where to start and then I needed to find suitable patterns for my design.  This is actually my second attempt, I tried to cram too much into my first design, too many patterns and the overall effect looked like a lot of chicken scratches.

For my second attempt I took my inspiration from some of those artists on Pinterest and some of my other ideas came from my collection of stencils,  I think I need to practice more, but it is sometimes good to push ourselves outside our comfort zones - or so I have been told!

I layered my finished design onto white card and black pearlised papers.


Dionne

Once Upon a Time

The British summer has arrived, it's Wimbledon fortnight, last week we had record breaking highs and this week cooler weather and occasional rain is forecast.  Some things never change.

On the other hand, it is time for change at Crafty Boots Challenges with a new challenge starting today.  For the next two weeks we are asking you to share your projects containing either stars or stripes ... or both.

For my Design Team card I have gone with the star option, if you know what I mean.

The image is called 'Talking With the Moon' and it comes from A Day for Daisies, I coloured it with Promarkers and added glitter and sequins.

I mounted the image on pearlised paper.  The star themed backing paper is by DoveCraft and the wooden star shaped buttons came from my stash.  The 'Once Upon a Time' sentiment is a rub-on from Royal & Langnickel Brush.

My fellow team mates have been busy making inspirational pieces, please make sure you check out their designs when you enter your project into the challenge.

Good luck.


Dionne