Shiny Happy People.........and 'Bliadhna Mhathur'

Hello everyone sending my Best Wishes for 2014 to you all :-) and I hope that those of you who celebrated Christmas had  the most wonderful time. I really do apologise for my absence over the last few weeks, work has been so busy and I was crafting every night to make cards/gifts etc. 

To end this year and start the next year I am sharing my journal which was created at a Finnabair Workshop in Wirksworth, Derby at the end of November. It was a wonderful day of creativity.......extreme concentration for 9 hours.....but very worthwhile. Lots of fabulous techniques and amazing textures, which I love !!

Lots and Lots of wonderful layers of embellishments, most of which were provided in the kit and then you chose the layout and colours

The photographs are just random ones left over from when mum and I did the Finnabair Workshop at Damselfly in Glasgow.

I adore this style and hope you like it too. 

Well I am just finished work and off to get ready for 'The Bells' ringing out the Old Year and ringing in the New Year. Here in Scotland we call New Years Eve 'Hogmanay' or Ne'erday and I have posted some of the Traditional Greetings. It was also tradition to bring a piece of coal as a gift, particularly if you are the 'first foot' ( first guest to arrive at someone's house, usually a neighbour, after The Bells)

          Lang may yer lum reek (wi' ither folks' coal!)

Long may your chimney smoke (with other people's coal!) 

A guid New Year and mony may ye see.
Happy New Year, and many more may you see. 

May the best ye hae ivver seen be the warst ye'll ivver see.
May the best you've ever seen be the worst you'll ever see. 

And, if you're feeling really brave, go Gaelic: 

Slàinte mhath! (pronounced SLAN-jay vah)
Good health! 

Note: Slàinte mhath is a traditional Scots phrase you can use all year round when drinking (especially whisky) to say 'Cheers'. You can reply either with the full Slàinte mhath or just Slàinte.

Bliadhna mhathùr! (pronounced BLEEne vah OOHR)
Happy New Year! 

"Thank You" to everyone of my followers and visitors. I truly appreciate your visits and comments and wish all of you very warm wishes in 2014 from the bottom of my heart x

 Take Care and Crafty Hugs. See you in the New Year xxx

Travel Tag

Hi Everyone...........I am so happy to be joining in a couple of challenges - namely Fashionable Stamping Challenge and Our Creative Corner.

As many of you know I have been in Hamburg for several weeks, returning home last Sunday. My husband is doing really well in his recovery, particularly since we returned home. This week we have been attending the doctor and hospital so I was delighted to find some crafty time this afternoon.

Hamburg is a beautiful city and I have been fortunate to have been there on numerous occasions to visit family and friends. My Tag is reminiscent of our journey in Hamburg, which is a huge Port, where they continue with their ship building industry. There are also some fabulous buildings and many  stunning towers.

 For this project I recycled some CC cans, which I then die cut using TH Artful Dwellings Bigz Die. Once cut I ran them through the Bigshot again, using  TH embossing folders, then dabbed alcohol inks over the embossed aluminium.  

Using the wrinkle free distress technique I applied Gathered Twigs, Salty Ocean and Rusty Hinge DI to my craft mat, spritzing with water before swiping my large tag through twice. ( drying the layers before re-inking) I then picked up some of the blotches that were left and again dried them with my heat gun before edging with Walnut stain DI

Below you can see a close up of the aluminium. As I mentioned, Hamburg is a large Port, so I placed some fabric netting, a piece of bark and an anchor over the metal dwellings. These embellishments were picked up in a fabulous store  in Hamburg called Depot. ( think this shop is also available online ) The netting was in fact  a table runner and the anchor was part of some long twine ribbon used to decorate parcels or home decor. The bark was also for home decor but when I  happened upon this store I had some crafting in mind and knew I could use them differently. 

The stamped images are from TH Stampers Anonymous range and I used some twine to finish.

Over at Fashionable Stamping the Challenge is  TAG  TIME and at Our Creative Corner the challenge is to use the  RECIPE provided by DTM Jenny ( aka Buttons, whose blog you can find HERE)

For this project/challenge I have used Fabric ( A), Metal ( B) and Inks ( C)

Thank You so much for dropping by  and taking time to leave a comment. They  really are truly appreciated and I would also like  to say thanks once again for all the messages of support and best wishes received over the last month. 

Whilst I was in Hamburg I was thrilled to find that my Cabinet Die Card made the Top 3 at Stampotique Challenges.............Woohoo !!! 

Crafty Hugs

Having Fun !!!!

Hi Everyone....Just a quick post as this week has been very busy, both at work and crafting. Still trying to get rid of this horrible head cold too !! 

I just wanted to say 'Happy Easter' to those of you who celebrate it and as always I hope you all have a fabulous weekend whatever you are doing x 

Its a holiday weekend here in the UK and so I do not return to work until Tuesday.......Yipee !! 

Below is a quick look at some new stamps I have been playing with from LaBlanche. I first saw this stamp  on a tag made by the very talented Astrid McLean of Astrid's Artistic Efforts and she kindly informed me of the make.( When the stamp arrived I realised that I already had a LaBlanche stamp that my lovely mum had bought for me, but i had not got round to playing with it !!)  It's a silicone stamp and you don't have to put great pressure on it to obtain a clear image. Great if you have difficulty with dexterity. 

I used both of the stamps I have, inking up just some of the areas. Like I said it was great fun playing but now I have to go and catch up with chores that I cannot leave any longer. My craft room also requires a bit of a tidy up too.

Best Wishes and Have fun x

My Take on Tim's Tag February 2013

Good Evening everyone.................and a warm welcome to new followers :-)

This year I have decided that I am going to participate in all of Tim Holtz Tags of 2013 and below you will find my take on Tim's February Tag. I improvised on quite a few items as I did not have everything that Tim used. Its all about enjoyment and participation so here's the recipe I used.  If you would like to participate and find out how Tim created and inspired us this February click HERE

I did not have the Distress Stains that Tim used but I did have the Distress Inks, so I inked up my craft sheet with the Distress inks in the same colours and spritzed with water, smooshing my tag through several times until I was satisfied with colours.  If you have not done this before remember to dry each layer with your heat tool !

You can see the results below. I then followed Tim's tut for edging/distressing and inking my tag

As I did not have the Queen of Hearts blueprint stamp I decided to triple emboss one of my favourite stamps from Tim's Stampers Anonymous Classics SCF 007.

First I took black card stock and added clear embossing ink then Ranger  ultra thick embossing enamel. I did this several times before adding a few drops of various Ranger Perfect Pearls Powders.

I then inked the stamp up in  permanent Red Archival Ink and stamped in to the very hot enamel.

I was not happy with the result so took my heat tool and melted it again. You can see how the enamel melted but the image remained. 

I then added gold ink to the stamp and placed it in to the warm enamel once more.

I was still not happy and melted it again with my heat gun..............however, I absolutely love the look of my happy accident so decided to keep it for another project.... !!!!

I started again as before but this times used black archival ink  on the stamp and you can see that the outcome  of my triple embossing was what I hoped for :-). I cut around the stamped image and left it to the side to adhere later.

As I did not have the embossing folder Tim used I took some die cut letters from Tim's Sizzix Word Typepad die, placing them on a piece of card, which I covered them with Inkessentials metal foil.

I took my brayer, rolling it back and forth. I then took a ball tool and went around the edges of the letters, making them stand out even more.

I painted the piece with black soot and then sanded it to distress it.

Attaching it with some staples. 

I did not have a custom cash key so I inked the same stamp on some shrink plastic, colouring it with alcohol ink.

I have not used shrink plastic for a long time and forgot how fun it is to work with.

You can see the small embellishment below......................isn't it cool !!

I do have tissue tape and whilst I love  the way Tim has used it  I wanted to use some rag ribbon that was a gift from my very talented blog friend Anita, whom you all know as The Artful Maven Haven. 

I placed some Fired brick DI on my craft sheet  and spritzed with water, scrunching the ribbon around until satisfied with colour. I dried the ribbon with my heat tool and then decided to stamp the word love, using  Archival permanent waterproof ink.  

Anita also sent me some moustache gems, which I placed above the O, its kinda like an offset hairpiece!!!

The embossed image was adhered with silicone as I wanted it to be raised slightly off the tag.

A little chit chat sticker covered the word Patisserie that is on the stamp.

So thats my finished Tag. 

Now I wonder what have you been up to?

Whatever it is I hope you are enjoying the weekend. If you drop by please leave a comment and I shall get back to you as soon as I can. 

Take Care and Crafty Hugs

Getting Messy at SSSS

Hi Everyone and a huge welcome to new followers x

I had hoped to craft yesterday but could not find my mojo so i watched Tim Holtz's DVD's, which I have had forever.  An Altered Journey is the first one and then The Journey Continues........

They are amazing DVD's..........full of techniques, tips and inspiration.  I also enjoyed the bloopers too !!

 So here I am today.......playing with some of Tim's latest release dies and full of inspiration. This piece was made with the Simon Says Stamp and Show challenge in mind.  For this challenge you have to create 'Something Messy'.

The piece below is on a canvas board, which I inked with distress inks. I also stamped one of Tim's floral images and clear embossed it, which you can just see on the left. 

I took a piece of cardboard, stripping it here and there, then blended it with distress inks. 

I had some calico fabric and after ageing with DI's I then stamped the dragonfly, from Stampers Anonymous TH Classics, using Tim's new Distress Paint in Vintage Photo.........I know I am obsessed with Vintage Photo !!!!  Tim's paints were purchased from The Funkie Junkie Boutique and as a customer's of Linda's online shop you are able to participate in the Sunday Share.

I took Tim's new 'Stacked Artful Words' die and The Movers and Shapers Mini Clipboard die, rusted with CRafty Notions Acrylic Wax and Rusting Powder, which you spray with vinegar to activate.

You can see the finished rusting process below. I also used glossy accents in a bottle cap to make an embellishment that I placed on top of the bingo card. The  Bingo card and paper inserted in the bottle cap are from Tim's Ideaology Paperstash, Lost and Found.

Some lace, aged with distress inks, was also adhered at the top side of the cardboard and you can just about see it in the picture below.

The photograph above is a close up of the  Vintage Photo Distress Paint stamped on to the fabric.

Below you can see that I used alcohol inks on the metal clipboard on top of the Bingo Card, matted on to some cardboard. I also attached a small heart, which is attached with ideaology rings.

"Thank you so much" for dropping by and continuing to be a follower. I really do appreciate comments that you leave. I then know you  of you visit and can return the compliment.

To celebrate my first Blogiversary I am having a giveaway, which you can find on the sidebar on my home page. The draw will be made on the 3rd of March, which is my actual anniversary.

Take Care and Get Messy

Vintage Recycling

Well its almost dark here in Scotland and I have thoroughly enjoyed my crafty afternoon. Thanks for dropping by........your visits and comments are always appreciated.  

Below is a piece that originally started out to be a box for my stamps. Having two cats I have lots of these boxes that fit my stamps perfectly and I love to recycle items where possible.

First of all I covered the box in some papers that I have had in my stash for a long time. 

Once the papers were adhered I blended the corners/edges with  Tim Holtz Vintage Photo and Stormy Sky Distress Inks.

I recently purchased several Stamps from The Stampsmith and I decided that as this month their challenge was to Recycle I would use the gorgeous Ophelia Stamp. 

I stamped the image in Ranger Archival Ink ( SEPIA) and then placed it inside one of Tim Holtz Embossing folders. 

I then took my Vintage Photo and Stormy Sky Distress inks and blended them all over, paying particular attention to the embossed edges. I took the paper distresser and distressed the edges before inking with Stormy Sky to give more definition. I took some Treasure Gold wax in Renaissance to add some gilding to the embossing. The stamped image and embossing was then matted on to some brown card. 

By the time I adhered the image I decided to add some Ideaology Foundations Feet to the box and use it to store letters as I so loved this vintage appearance. The Foundation Feet were purchased from the Funkie Junkie Boutique, where I shall enter this project in their  Frilly & Funkie  Sunday Share.  

To complete I printed the word 'Letters' on my pc and adhered it to Tim's gorgeous Ideaology Ornate plates as well as one of his word bands, which is attached with twine.

Some vintage lace, purchased from a charity shop was stained with tea and adhered around the top  and just inside of the box with Ranger Wonder Tape. 

I placed some letters inside and I am so thrilled with the outcome, which is just my style..............!!. 

Over at Simon Says Stamp and Show the challenge is What are you known for ? I am known for Vintage and Distressed and I love something that is a little bit different !! At Frilly and Funkie the challenge is 'Spruce it Up'.

At the  Anything But A Card the challenge is Tie it Up, which this project meets as I have used twine on the Ideaology word band.

Hope you are having crafty fun wherever you are. Catch up soon xx

Inspirational Stamps

Hi Everyone..................today I am sharing an  8 by 8 easel card that was made for a 50th Birthday.

Like many of you I have   a huge amount of rubber stamps......some of which are over 15 years old !!!!
( Maybe older ) ( Yes mum I am now a hoarder of crafts !!!!  Just like you  x) 

Card making has improved so much over the years with inks/paints/dies /folders taking it to a whole new level. ( Off dreaming again off the new TH releases for 2013)

However back to my card......... the recipient of this card was going on a cruise and she is also a florist so I thought I would incorporate some of my old stamps with more recent products/purchases. 

I guess my inspiration was from the main stamped image................my Muse. This is an Inkadinkado stamp......in fact all of the rubber stamps used on this vintage make are  produced by Inkadinkado.
( love the name)

After making the easel card I swiped  all the edges with of course.....Vintage Photo Distress Ink.

I ran  the Tim Holtz Postcard folder through my machine and then distressed the edges with  the Tim Holtz paper distresser. Once inked with Stormy Sky Distress Ink I matted the embossed piece on to a brown background, which I had also distressed/torn around the edge. 

The  main stamped images were coloured in some areas with Distress markers and then inked with various Distress Inks. Again the edges were all torn with the  TH paper distresser as were the matted backgrounds.

  

The flowers were made from Tim Holtz Tattered Florals dies. ( I am now getting the hang of  making them ) Once cut they were stamped inked and then spritzed with Ranger Perfect Pearls Mist in Heirloom Gold.

The ribbon was in my stash as were the TH Ideaology embellishments.

Tim Holtz flourish die cutss were used to decorate the inside of the card as was a Marianne die. Journey and Memories are from Stamper's Anonymous Tim Holtz collection. 

I really enjoyed making this easel card and I hope you like it too. During the creating of this piece I had several challenges in mind and I am  submitting this make in the following :

Simon Says Stamp and Show - Embrace the old

Frilly and Funkie - Follow Your Muse

Vintage Stamping Challenges - Vintage

Fashionable Stamping Challenges - Surprise Us -Anything Goes

As always thank you for stopping by and I hope to catch up with you soon.

Dreaming of Paris

Hello everyone its been a very cold weekend here but so far no snow, though I believe there was some snow lying in East Lothian on Friday.

Can I just say a huge thanks to followers old and new who visit my blog  regularly and leave lovely comments. They are truly appreciated as I know it is a busy time for everyone.

Below is a birthday card  I recently made. The stamp is from Inkylicious, unfortunately I don't know whose background paper I have used as they were purchased in a pack that I must have discarded. I have certainly had them for some time !!. The flowers are Prima and were again purchased many years ago, so its great to use them. They are all white and I have inked them with vintage photo and tumbled glass DI's.
I used a flourish stamp inked with Archival Sepia on the actual card, which is 7" by 7". The same flourish was used on the background paper. Here I used Versamark and copper embossing powder, which was heat set. I used TH distressing tool on the edges then aged with vintage photo DI.

The edges of the main image were torn and inked with tumbled glass over vintage photo. The eyes and mouth were inked with  TH Distress Markers.

Best wishes was inked with DI then spritzed with water as you can see below. 

When piecing together I matted the background paper on to some light brown card and swiped some DI along the edges to give an aged look. 

I am entering this project in the following challenges

Simon Says Stamp - Anything Goes

Artful Times - Anything Goes

Lots of crafting to do over the next few weeks as I am not organised at all..... but I always get there. My craft room is an absolute disaster, however, this year I can close the door instead of using the dining table and the cats wont get covered in glitter like they normally do.

Take care and keep warm.   Catch up soon x

Special Friend Wedding Card

This was a very special wedding card for a close friend of many years. She sold her home, left her job, got married and moved to Mexico. Her invitations, which my clever mum made  were black and white, hence my theme. 

I used the autumn leaves mask from creative expressions and spellbinders dies. Sue Wilson has been a great inspiration in using spellbinders dies as she really gets the best out of all the dies with her creative mind. 

This was another A4 card that I created using Spellbinders frames and  TH glassine paper, which I ran through my die cutting machine, creating an embossed effect. I also used TH tissue tape, which I distressed and placed underneath my kraft glassine paper. I then distressed some punched out butterfly's and coloured some creative expression vintage ribbon, adding a button. To finish I added some scrabble letters from my stash.