I love Lilac!

Good morning to you! I do hope you are well. Well I need to update you on my poor little Mischief - she had her operation yesterday and is fine but rather woosy and very unimpressed with her lampshade she has to wear - I thought I must record this for my blog so here she is - poor love:

She's hiding out under my bed - she usually loves to sleep on top of it but I think she doesn't quite trust me just yet. Bless her - she's now housebound for 10 days whilst her wound heals and she has the lampshade for that long too. I just hope she can keep it on.


Back to the crafting. Todays offering I'm rather pleased with - it combines a heart from Indigo blu with crackles that worked from the Kroma crackle and some paint fusion - I used sheenas Lilac stamps on a canvas and the pebeo acrylic paints to paint them all in - The lace on the bottom makes the piece feel more vintage which is what I was after.

I started with my canvas then added on some bookprint and fastened it to the canvas with slap it on and painted over it with this too. The leaves and flowers were then stamped and painted with the acrylic paints. I added more backgrounds in using distress inks (my faves - particularly milled lavendar and dusty concorde) and acrylic paint. Finally I added the heart that I initially painted with black geeso then purple acrylic paint. Then added the kroma crackle liberally. Once dry I added lots of slap it on to prevent the crackle from falling off and more acrylic paint. the stamped sentiment is also from indigo blu and the background stamps are too. The butterflies are a combination of indigo blu and one that came free from craft stamper - bth have been stamped on paper from Crafty individuals mounted on mouldable film from studio 490.

I'd like to enter my canvas into the following challenges:

kraftyhandschallenge: Floral frenzy
Sunday stamperpinkleart: Vintage /old
The ribbon girlribbongirls: Lilac and lavendar
SSSS:simonsaysstampandshow Favourite ink: Distress
Cupcakecupcakecraftchallenges: Lavendar and lace
Countryview crafts May challengecountryviewchallenges: How does your garden grow
AGCBanythingchallenge: Handmade backgrounds

Thanks for looking today and for all the comments you leave - it really is wonderful to be part of this blogging community with so many lovely people!

Big Hugs

Rachel xx

Bingo at Creative Inspirations

Good morning Lovelies - I hope you are well. I'm fine but my cat has to go for an operation this morning - she has a sebaceous cyst on her face but the vet said there were some unusual cells in the fluid that she removed from the cyst so she thinks its better to operate - Poor Mischief - fingers crossed it all goes well and that she's fine and it is just a cyst.

At Creative Inspirations this week's challenge is Bingo!
You can select any line on the grid that you would like, horizontal or vertical.
However please state which one it is that you have chosen!

This week's prize is from us and is the chance to be our GUEST DESIGNER FOR JUNE!

I chose the line Pearls, flowers and blue and this is what I did:

The image is composed of two stamps from Crafty Sentiments - one is the staircase and the other is the girl and her books. You can get them here and here. I've coloured them with promarkers and added WOC flowers and spellbinders diecuts plus a dienamics diecut for the bunting. the sentiment is LOTV and the pearls came from a pack by creative expressions I think. The paper is from crafty individuals.

I'd like to enter my card into the following challenges:

Passion for Promarkerspromarkerchallenge: AG

Bearly Minebearlymine-challenges: AG

LEJ:lejdesignschallengeblog Diecuts and/or punches

Allsortsallsortschallenge: True Blue

Is anybody else having trouble with blogger? Links aren't working on my reading list and my blog feed is also not coming through - bit of a nightmare - so if I didn't get around to comment yesterday I'm sorry but I didn't know you'd posted! It was fine earlier in the morning but after that things went badly! Please let me know if you're having the same trouble and also whether you've found a way to fix it.

Hopefully I'll speak to you later!

Big hugs and thanks for visiting!

Rachel xx

Penny Black: Sew Special

Good morning all - I hope you are well rested and ready for another day. I've got a card to show you today that I made with the two monthly Penny Black challenges in mind. Its also my first ever crisscross card - not sure that I've done it right - just used pictures from blogs really! Here it is:

The card is quite small - measuring 5 inches square - but dinky can be good - especially for posting! The bobbin and scissors are both cut from spellbinders dies and the image is of course Penny Black. I've had this one a couple of years now - and probably this is her 3rd outing!!! Shocking! The papers I used came from a giveaway on Kaths blog - Buddy picked my name out of the hat - so thanks to Kath and Buddy. The lace is guipure lace from the ribbon girl. I've coloured the image in promarkers.

I'd like to enter my card into the following challenges:

pennybfriendssaturdaychallenge: Anything goes
Penny Black and Morepennyblackatallsorts: Sew Special
Card Crafters Circlecardcrafterscircle: Construction cards
Sweet Stampin CBsweetstampinchallengeblog: Doodles (faux stitching doodles)

Thanks for looking - I have to take my poor old puss to the vets this morning - she seems fine but has developed a lump the size of a pea on her face - I thought it was a tick at first but its definitely under the skin. I'm hoping its nothing - She certainly seems pretty normal is all other ways!

Thanks for visiting and crafty hugs

Rachel xx

DT for whoopsi Daisy: May flowers

Good morning all! I hope you are well. Hubby arrived back home safe and sound yesterday so we are all very happy now! Oh I did miss him!

Today is the start of a new challenge over at Whoopsi Daisy (cutedaisymay) where the theme is May Flowers. Here's what I did:

The image is from sheet 446- and you can find it here. The background paper is from Crafty Individuals, the lace is from the Ribbon Girl and the flowers are WOC. The image has been coloured with promarkers, fussy cut and mounted onto the paper.

I'd like to enter this card into the following challenges:
 songbirdchallenges: Bloom and grow
tuesdaythrowdown: Smell the roses
digistamps4joy-sa - spring has sprung
sparklesforumchallenges: Monochromatic
simonsaysstampschallenge: Flower Power
craftsandmechallenges: Use a digi
Totally Papercraftstotallypapercrafts: Diva
deliciousdoodleschallenge: Lace
Squirrel and the foxthesquirrelandthefox: Here come the girls
The ribbon Girlribbongirls: Lilac and Lavendar
Joanna Sheen:joannasheenchallenge Girls girls girls.

Thats all for today! Thanks for dropping by! Big Hugs rachel xx

Jamie's card

Hello Lovelies - well I'm writing this on Saturday afternoon - the cleaning is done - the party went well this morning and some faces were painted ....including Lucy and Penny's - here they are after a few hours of hard labour  lol ....

bless them - they have been good whilst daddy's been away - and Lucy's lost her 5th tooth and the tooth fairy came last night too. We had words about the tooth fairy earlier in the week - she's been asking questions so I thought I could let the cat out of the bag - anyway - she was very good at keeping the story alive for Penny - so thats good!

Today's card went to one of the party people - the party was for Charlotte and Jamie - a brother and sister - Charlotte is in Lucy and Pennys class at school and Jamie will be starting in September. Here's the card I made for Jamie:

The image is from the last LOTV release - love it and given that Jamie is a farmers son with a jack russell dog its perfect!!!! The image was coloured with promarkers - the card is from the pastels range of centura pearl and the die is a spellbinders die light - thanks for the use of that mum!

I'd like to enter my country gent into the following challenges:

LOTV ideastoinspire : Boy oh boy
ilovepromarkers: Simply does it
CCand CCchocolatecoffeecards - use a number
Polka doodlespolkadoodle: Pastels
craftycatzweeklychallenge - 3,2,1 - 3 colours (blue brown and green), 2 dies - squares and dielights, 1 image.
2sisterschallengeblog 1,2,3 3 colours (blue brown and green), 2 dies - squares and dielights, 1 image
sendasmile4kidschallenge: pastels.

Thanks for dropping by today - and just in case you were wondering - I've sorted out why my crackle weren't so good with the kroma - I was being too stingey. I've tried a thick layer and will let you be the judge of whether its any better once its dried!!! Its looking much better after 24 hours though - so fingers crossed.

Hugs

Rachel xx

playing with the majestic oak

Good morning all and how are you? Hope your Saturday is good so far and gets better all the time! I've got a hectic morning - so whats new - I'm face painting at a kids party that my girls are both going to - only Lucy has a ballet lesson this morning too - so I have to paint Penny's face, take Lucy to ballet, drop Penny at the party, get Lucy and go back to the party to paint the other faces! This afternoon we're on a tidying mission as hubby will be back tomorrow!

My card today is the result of watching Sheena on Create and Craft and then going off for a play - this is what I came up with:

I used the reverse of the centura pearl card and used DI black soot all over the card apart from a large central circle. Then I poured my radiant rain misters onto my craft mat and used sponge to sponge first blue, then purple, then yellow all over the card - but mostly in the balckened areas. Once dry I used cut and dry foam and added fired brick DI all over the card and when dry I stamped the tree in black archival and fixed with clear embossing paste. Then I used the aged beautifully stamp set to add the text and the crackles and the corners. After matting and layering I added this to pastel centura pearl card after tying a bow and added the wisdon sentiment. I love it! Thanks Sheena for continually bringing out fabby stamps and giving us all so much inspiration!

I'd like to enter this card for the male card challenge over at crafterscompanion and also the embossing ans texture challenge at stamping sensations.

Hope you have a great day and thanks for visiting! Hugs Rachel xx

resist -ance is futile!

Good morning happy stampers and goodly decoupagers. How are you today? I'm feeling better after taking it a bit easier yesterday - I missed my class - what a rebel - but will be running today so thats okay......I'm feeling a little worn out with hubby being away - he really does quite a lot in terms of children entertaining! Still he won't be too long now!

Onto today - well I was so happy when I came back from the show at the weekend - I had my kroma crackle that I was so excited about, my black gesso and even a heart shape to alter - so I got to work on sunday night - gessoed the heart and once dry painted with acrylic paint and then added some pan pastels and stamped some bits and bobs on to the heart - including some sheet music that I stamped in versa mark then covered with clear powder and heat set. I then added more colours to use the music as a resist. Finally, once happy, I added my kroma crackle and then began the long wait. Come Monday night there was no change - just a milky appearance to my piece. Come Tuesday night it was the same - on Wednesday night there were a few crackles - but nothing much. I applied my heat gun and made sure all was dry then added some stamped cracks from sheenas aged perfectly set of stamps. I must say I am disappointed with the crackles from the kroma crackle - I will read the instructions again very carefully and have another go - has anybody else had some fab success???? I finished off with some slap it on then decorated with leaves (crafty emblies) and butterflies (stamped and mounted onto mouldable film and heated to give dimension). I'm quite pleased overall but not with the crackles.

This bottom picture shows the white crackles off best. The sheet music stamp is from Do Crafts.

I think I've waffled enough!
I'd like to enter my heart hanger into the following challenges:
AGOACpinkgemchallengeblog: Things with wings
Sunday stamperpinkleart: Resist
Pan Pastelpanpasteluk: In the pink
Charismacharismacardz - no digis
MAWTTmovingalongwiththetimes: Colour challenge - purple, black, pinks.
Do Craftsdocraftsblog: Anything goes

Looking forward to a less busy day today - I've got running this morning and gardening club at lunch time - then I'm free until I pick the girls up at 5.30 to take them to jujitsu. They're off to a friends house for tea! Yipee! Hope you all have a wonderful day and thanks for dropping by.

Crafty Hugs

Rachel xx