Two more Awards

Well actually it's the same award, but given to me by two people. Thank you very much to Lynne and Sue for this honour. The conditions of this award are:

Step 1 - Make a post linking back to the person who gave you the award!
Step 2 - Share 7 random things about yourself.
Step 3 – Award 15 recently discovered bloggers with this award.
Step 4 – Contact these bloggers and tell them they’ve won the award.

Well, here goes with the seven random things.
1. I've been card making for nearly 20 years.
2. My first stamp was a little Hero Arts Santa Claus, and I still have it (and still use it!).
3. My favourite flowers are pansies.
4. When I was about 12 I played the piano on Yorkshire TV - in sound only! (It was a filler between schools programmes.)
5. I used to collect paperweights. (Had to stop when I ran out of space!)
6. I'm a Yorkshire exile (born in Leeds).
7. I once drove a Formula Ford single seater racing car.

I'm afraid I don't have time right now to find 15 recently discovered bloggers to pass on the award to (I think it is a bit unrealistic to expect people to do so with that many) but as and when I come across deserving blogs which are new to me I will pass it on then. Or if I have commented on your blog for the first time recently, please help yourself to the award.

Less is More Week 4

The Less is More Challenge is going from strength to strength and I'm loving it! Week four asks for three squares. Sounds simple, but it isn't! Not for me, anyway! The problem is knowing where to stop. You wouldn't believe the trouble I had with this one, or how many attempts went in the bin. First of all I stamped three frames, and then three different flower squares inside, but the frames didn't look right. Too heavy. I tried a different frame. Same problem. So on the next try I hand-drew some wiggly frames. Getting better. I stamped a sentiment, but the script was too heavy for the frames. So I found another sentiment (Crafty Individuals) which was more in keeping. At last, I thought! But somehow I still wasn't happy with it. I left it in disgust and went off for my tea. When I came back and looked at it again, I knew what was wrong. I put it in the bin and started again. This time I used the same flower (Inkadinkado) in each frame, and I don't know why that should have made so much difference, but this time it worked! Or, at least, I was happy with it! Couldn't be much more CAS really!

Essence of Spring

For week three of the Less is More Challenge, the theme is Spring. It was a doubly hard challenge for me this week, as I'm away staying with my daughter and family for the week, and the only supplies I have to work with are those in my "crafty box" (as my grandson calls it), which I keep packed with a microcosm of my stash for travelling.

It is, admittedly, quite a large box, but in comparison with my total stash, the amount it holds is extremely small! So it really was a challenge to find something in it to fit the theme.

Anyway, here's my card for the Less is More Challenge. And since it's all made from punched scraps, it will also fit Jules's Crafty Snippet challenge. (Sentiment by Inkylicious.)

I'm having a great time up in Dumfriesshire with my grandsons. They're keeping me busy, so I haven't been able to get round many blogs this week. Will try and catch up when I get home. The weather has been very grey and wet all week, apart from about an hour when the sun broke through the clouds this afternoon, but it hasn't bothered these two cool guys!

Less is More Challenge Week 2

Getting back into challenges is helping the lack of mojo I've been cursed with over the past few months, I think. I'm loving Less is More.  For week 2 they would like to see one-layer cards with a flower or tree. Apart from the fact that I do like the clean and simple look, I also like the fact that it doesn't take long to make! My entry for this month's Sir Stampalot challenge (see previous post) took me all day yesterday to produce. This one (randomly sponged background, Hero Arts tulip and Darkroom Door sentiment) took less than five minutes!

All Creatures Great and Small

That's the title of the Sir Stampalot February'11 Challenge. Of course, for me that had to mean butterflies. I have very few other animal stamps. Here I've used the huge Elusive Images butterfly, on an 8" x 8" card. The background is sprayed with Glimmer Mists (after masking a circle for the sun) and then stamped with Hero Arts grasses and some tiny butterflies from Crafty Individuals. The text stamp is by Katzelcraft.

To colour the big butterfly, I laid the uninked, unmounted stamp on the paper and drew a faint pencil line around its outline, and filled it in by sponging with various pigment inks. Then I stamped the butterfly on top with Versafine Onyx Black ink. Had I stamped first and then coloured, the black would have been subdued. I could have stamped first and embossed with clear powder to protect the black before colouring, but I think it would have been more difficult then to get a smooth blending of colours. I was pleased with the result, anyway. Hope you like it too!

An Award!

Well, not only two posts in two days, but now two posts in an hour! I may have to go and sit down to recover!

The reason for this one is that I have been given an award by the lovely Sally. It's very special, not only because she thinks I deserve it (and I'm thrilled to think that my blog might have attitude!) but also because the recipients get to qualify for a free digi stamp from Digi's With Attitude!

In order to qualify for your $5.00 Digi's With Attitude! Gift Certificate you must state 3 things that make you different from everybody else and nominate 5 other blogs. Lastly you need to display the Blog Award Badge (above) in your sidebar and link it back to the  Digi's With Attitude! Challenge Blog.

So, now I have to tell you three things about myself.

1. I can write backwards, a la Leonardo da Vinci.

2. I can't bear the taste of celery, and can't eat anything with it in.

3. I once met Gandalf (Sir Ian McKellen) before he was famous!

Now to nominate 5 other blogs.

1. Lisa (Mess 2 Magic)

2. Lesley (Craftimamma)

3. Debbie (Made With Love)

4. Craft Stamping Quartet

5. Sir Stampalot Challenge

All of which are inspirational and definitely have attitude!

Sunday again!

How did it get to be Sunday again so quickly? I'm sure time goes faster the older one gets. Even so, I managed to make a scrappy card for Jules's Sunday Scrap challenge.

I've mostly used up scraps of plain paper and card, except for the embossed bit at the bottom, which is by Papermania. It has a very pale pink and white pattern on it (hard to see in the photo).  Stamps are all by Waltzing Mouse, except for the writing in the background which is by Hero Arts. I used VersaMagic and Versacolor inks to stamp the background, and the same inks to colour the roses.

And that's two posts in two days! Must have too much time on my hands! (Or maybe I should go and tackle the ironing instead!)

Less Is More Challenge Week 1

The new Less is More Challenge has begun this week, and the theme for week 1 is Pink, Black and White. I love the clean and simple look, but it is not easy to do! And pink doesn't figure on my list of favourite colours, so I certainly did find this challenging. Not that that's a bad thing! Anyway, having just received my second order of Waltzing Mouse Stamps, I couldn't wait to use them, so here's what I made.

That gorgeous border is a good seven and a half inches long. Unfortunately I don't have an acrylic mount that long, or so I thought until I realised that my Cuttlebug C plate would do the job. The border tessellates beautifully. I stamped it in black, and again in white above the black, although the white doesn't show up very well on the photo. Bearing in mind the clean and simple brief, I thought it wouldn't need anything else besides a Nestability lacey circle and the Waltzing Mouse sentiment, but it didn't look right. I tried adding a ribbon, putting something behind the circle, and other bits and pieces, but nothing worked. I was ready to throw it in the bin. As a last resort, I punched out a little butterfly and stuck it on. Believe it or not, that tiny thing made all the difference. I'm still not sure I like the finished card, but that's probably because of the colour.

I definitely enjoyed the challenge, though, and am looking forward to the next one.

Jules's Sunday Scrap challenge

Just made it in time to join in with Jules's Sunday Scrap challenge. Jules has set herself the task of making something each Sunday using only pieces from her scrap box, and invites anyone to join in. So here's mine.

I've punched the flowers from scraps of coloured vellum, and given them glitter glue centres. Unfortunately the colours don't show up very well in the photo. The leaf is left over from yesterday's card. The background papers have been in my scrap box for so long I can't remember where they came from, but I think the patterned paper is by Hot Off The Press. The girl stamp is by Innovative Stamp Creations, and the border is one of my new Nestie-compatibles from Waltzing Mouse. The sentiment is by Katzelcraft.

I found this quite a difficult challenge, but I've got so many bits to use up, I'd better have another go next Sunday!

Got new stamps

Ever since I bought my first set of Nestabilities, I have thought that there should be stamps to go with them. Since then I've found that there are some companies making some. A while ago I bought a few Just-Rite stamps, but I'm not impressed, either with the designs or with the fiddly mounting system. But last week I discovered Waltzing Mouse! Wow! What a revelation. Just what I have been looking for! The company, based in N. Ireland is owned by the wonderful Claire Brennan, who designs all the stamps. To get some idea of her genius, check out not only her Nestie-compatible (and other) stamps, but also the "Secret Stamp Set", the idea behind which is quite simply brilliant! You need a password (provided) to see it! The website also has a fabulous gallery of inspiring samples.

The problem was which to order first! I settled on sets to go with my Labels 2 and Labels 10 Nesties, but then couldn't resist the "Rescue Remedies" set, so I will now have to buy the Nesties to go with the stamps!

I used Ella Blue papers (by GCD Studios) as a background for the stamps, which I had to cut around, not having the dies. (Yet!) The sentiment, I think, is an old Craft Stamper freebie.

The next card has the Waltzing Mouse border stamps on the Nestie die-cuts, Basic Grey Cappella papers, and an Impression Obsession sentiment. There is a bit of glitter glue in the flower centres and butterfly body, but it doesn't show up in the photo.

I have two more of the stamp sets already on order. I don't think they'll be the last!