Skewed Squares

Hello again, I'm having a crafting day today, armed with my list of challenges and the raido keeping me company I'm crafting on my precious days off work!  I've done my share of entertaining my grand daughter and today and tomorrow are all mine....YAY!

This effort was started as the sketch but grew into meeting two other challenges, now I'm not entirely sure that the No Text theme over at Cute Card Thursday will allow newsprint....at least it's not me stamping a text, wonder if I'll get away with it. LOL  In fact, there is absolutely NO Stamping at all on this card!

in the big sheme of things it doesn't really matter, I had fun making this card and that's the MOST important reason why I craft in the first place, the sharing is an added bonus.

So this card is going into these challenges

Cute Card Thursday ~ Challenge # 161 - No Text

Jak-Inks ~ Challenge # 6 - Sketch

Sentimental Sunday ~ Challenge #52 - Let's get Punchy!

Masculine card

I don't often make masculine cards, perhaps once a month if that!  This colour combo called out for masculine when I went to make the card.

Keeping in with my promise to have all my stamp sets see ink, I've dragged another retired set out Artifacts.  

ColourLab - Challenge # 36  Poppy Parade, Early Expresso, Crumb Cake

Sketch Saturday ~ Challenge #150

Set Sail

Hello Blog surfers,  

Look at that!  Just there on the left side of your screen...... I've just tipped over 10,000 page views AND I now have 25 followers.... so I must be doing something right.   Seriously, this is a huge Thank you for stopping by and I'm glad you find my artwork interesting enough to follow.  Your comments make my day and put a lovely smile on my face to think that (almost) complete strangers take time out of their day to leave comments that inspire me to create more.  It's just lovely.

As I said in a recent post, my aim for the rest of this year is to ensure that all my stamp sets see some ink!  So, to make sure that happens, I'm dragging retired sets out and dusting them off.  Here is one that I just love and is perfect for Masculine cards.  Set Sail has this beautiful tall ships stamp and the sentiment is so nice.

I was going to enter this one into two challenges but I'm too late for the colour challenge so it goes into only one.

Craft Your Days Away ~ Challenge # 17 Use Spots and Stripes

Grunge Birthday

The colour challenge over at Play Date Cafe just called out for the Shaving Cream technique, as a few of my recent posts show, I'm having fun creating with this technique.

And this card is just loaded with Technique...lets see....two different sheets of paper using the shaving cream technique.  Dry Embossing, Big shot dies and layering, background stamping, layering of stamps oh and sponging....overdone?  Unfortunately, there is no heat embossing as my heat gun died and the toaster just doesn't cut it!

I've used Extreme Elements and Grunge Rock stamp sets, these two are made for each other for Teen and Male cards and you can get such different looks with the sets each time.  I've also used Brilliant Blue (retired), Tempting Turquoise and Garden Green along with Naturals Ivory which is one of my favourite neutrals.

Play Date Cafe ~ Colour Challenge #76

Valentine

Happy 'Australia Day' everyone!

This is my twist on a valentine card and is being entered into FIVE challenges! I thought this masculine colour combo would work quite nicely for a valentine card.

The base is Crumb Cake, layers are Cajun Craze and Peach Parfit DSP from the level 1 hostess pack. Then Rich Razzleberry and the Rich Razzleberry DSP, next layer is Cajun Craze and Crumb Cake stamped with the swirl from Baroque Motifs in Cajun Craze ink. Then the Circle is backed with Rich Razzleberry and topped with Whisper White. Hearts are in Peach Parfit, Cajun Craze and Crumb Cake with a rich razzleberry brad in the middle. The stamp comes from Word Play and was inked up with Stampin' Write Markers.



Paper Take Weekly ~ Sketch

Hand Stamped Sentiments ~ I {Heart} Hearts

Colour Q - Colour Challenge

4 Crafty Chicks ~ Ribbon, Brads, Patterned Paper

SU Only Challenges ~ Valentine

Another Masculine effort

Another challenge that I found was titled Clear as Mud, which was for combining brown with any other colour. I've taken a little bit creative liberty here and used two browns.

I was heading down the road of pretty, until I started to sponge the Presto paper (white check) it didn't sponge as nicely as the other patterns so I used Early Expresso, Soft Suede and Sahara Sand inks to give it a mottled appearance then I got out the Grunge Rock stamp set and Extreme Elements and stamped a few images over the sponging, layering images roughly.

I think this grungy look contrasted beautifully with the shimmery soft suede scalloped mat and then I went looking for a sentiment.....I was going to break the rules and go for gold embossing powder but at the last minute decided on white, with a really messy look. Then I scrunched and tore the card to get this look and off set the matting behind it. It's not my normal style but I had fun trying it out.


Sweet Stampin ~ Clear As Mud

Totally Stampalicious - Masculine

Masculine

The theme of Masculine is not that much of a stretch, because while I tend to have a romantic feminine style I do quite like to do textures and monochrome on my cards. I am combining three challenges for this card.

The black card has been spritzed with Champagne Mist Shimmer paint which gives a rich sparkle without being to prissy for a 'boy person' card. Then I've layered textures added a bit of paper piercing and a double ribbon, taffeta over grosgrain to make it wide enough for the little buckle to fit, this also highlighted the white edges on the taffeta ribbon.



Totally Stampalicious ~ Masculine

Easy Craft Projects ~ Black and White

Unscripted Sketches ~ Sketch with a piggyback of Masculine

Thanks for stopping to view my art. Feel free to leave a comment.

Happy Crafting

Kasey

Early start to the day

I woke early today and the creative urge was still strong so I made a cuppa and headed off to the craft room! Yay lucky me, apart from some washing I have no urgent jobs waiting to be done the house got a spring clean a few days ago.... so I'm free for most of the day until I pick up my little cherub this afternoon. I think we'll go swimming, Danielle (my 2 1/2 year old grand daughter) LOVES the water, unfortunately we can all be shrivelled up like prunes and she doesn't want to get out so there is usually a lot of tears, a bit of squealing and a little bit of bribery!



This card is working to a sketch and a theme. I've used Going Grey CS (ret), Basic Black, Basic Grey, Whisper White. Riding Hood Red DSP from the christmas special pack and Riding Hood Red and Basic Grey Inks. I've clear embossed the heart to deepen the coulour. The stamps are Word Play, Always, Punch Potpourri. I've also added a ribbon and some bling which wasn't on the sketch but.....meh.....I took creative license!

Fussy and Fancy ~ Sketch
Our Creative Corner ~ Colour/Bird


Ohhhh, I think another cuppa is in order and oh gee.....I'm going to head on back into the Den of Creativity! I might just be back to post again today.

Another challenge

I've managed to get two challenges out tonight so hence the second post.  Looks like it's a red black and white night!

This is my very first time playing on the Crazy 4 Challenges site.  C4C67 sketch I've left exactly as is and here is my entry

The red and black has been spritzed with Champagne Shimmer Paint which sort of shows up on the photo.  I used markers to ink up the salutation and then painted the bauble in champagne shimmer paint.  I've added yet more bling with some rhinestones.

Peacock Feathers

The picture for the Colour Q challenge inspired me to create this card.  I've also combined it with the Friday Mashup #21 sketch.

Using Soft Suede, Pacific Point, Tempting Turquoise, Wild Wasabi and Whisper White, this is my take on the colour scheme.  The soft suede ink made the white ribbon very dark which I'm not sure I like.  it was fun making the peacock feather but the whole thing is outside my normal style, still that's why I'm doing challenges, to step me outside my comfort zone!

Back to Challenges

I've been away for a week, luckily this work trip gave me a chance to catch up with some very special friends in Canberra.  Hello all you lovely people!  

I've missed my craft room while I was away and to get back into the swing of things I've checked out my favourite challenge sites and here is my dual entry for Mojo Monday and Curtain Call.

This card is using the sketch from Mojo Monday and the colours from Curtain Call.  Colours are Basic Black, Basic Gray, Concord Crush, Crumb Cake and Whisper White.  I've layered the strips of Black, Gray and White on a mat of Concord Crush and paced that on my Crumb Cake card base.  

Then I've clear embossed the flower on the Black and Grey and on the white I've embossed in Concord Crush.  Building up the layers, White circles with Basic Gray ink sponged on the edges, Concord Crush die cut shapes and clear embossed the same flower on the larger one and the sentiment on the smaller one.  Then I've used some punches to do the stars and circles and popped on some bling! (as usual)

Here is a close up of the sentiment and stars.  What do you think?

Unfortunately, there is so much moisture in the air from this 6 weeks of rain we've had, that the card curled up once all the layers were on, I've accidently put a crease in the top layer trying to uncurl it... Damn!

Medallion

Well the house has been quiet for the past hour or so since my cyclonic 2 year old Grand daughter went home so I decided to go play in the craft room, heres what I came up with.  I was inspired by a card I saw while "blurfing"  which I believe is the term for Blog Surfing!  at least a made up one by a lovely girl called Aly.

On her Stampin' Pretty blog, Mary Fish had a beautiful Green card which she said was inspired by a catalogue picture of a t shirt, thank you Mary for your inspiration for this card.  

I've gone further with the layers and used the Medallion stamp along with the Ornament Punch, Whisper White, Night of Navy, Riding Hood Red CS, Night of Navy Ink and an Antique Brad. 

I'm very happy with how it has turned out.  I didn't want a sentiment or anyother decoration on the front, I think this is enough.  I hope you like it.

Masculine Card effort

I've always been a bit hesitant to throw out the scraps left over from mounting the new stamp sets when they arrive. Now Stampin' Up! has the unmounted stamps, the idea came to me to make my own background stamp out of the scraps. I cut rough squares and rectangles out of the surrounding rubber and then placed them on a large acrylic block, inked them up and stamped the card front, I also stamped this one with sanded as well. The various slight differences in the thickness of the rubber gives you the variations in depth of colour. Don't be too fussy with completely covering the rubber with ink, it's meant to look rugged.