Simon Says House Rules Challenge

More playing with Distress Stains, and I came up with this pretty little piece for Simon Says Stamp and Show House Challenge: I used tumbled glass, stormy sky and chipped sapphire with a little brushed pewter on this canvas, then added the bling, thickers and flowers. There are 5 groups of flowers - one for each of the 5 members of my immediate family; each with a different colour gemstone.
Thank you Simon Says for inspiring me with this challenge - this piece will definitely be on display in my house!

Sunday Stamper - Week 234

This week's Sunday Stamper is "Tags" - I missed last week due to a work function interstate, unfortunately. My tags have been made into a triptych, swooshed with Distress Stains (aged mahogany, tea dye and scattered straw), stamped with Pink Paislee stamps in Archival Inks; the butterfly was coloured with watercolour paints and then all three tags layered onto pistachio cardstock and onto a card blank. I'm still coming to terms with Distress Stains and their effects, so this was a good opportunity to play.

CSI Case File #48

I have just completed CSI's case file 48, which is my first attempt completed on time! Very, very plain I know - but the quote is so full of detail, that I really didn't want to detract from it with lots of flowers, butterflies or bling. I love the colour scheme.
This will be the title page for my inspiration album - with all of those awe-inspiring photos of places I would love to go, one day. An indulgence, but we have to have dreams for when reality becomes a bit too mundane...

Simon Says ... Thank You

More surfing for crafting inspiration led me to Simon Says Stamp & Show, and this week's challenge. We don't celebrate Thanksgiving as a special day in Australia, and it's not autumn/fall here either, so my creation is more reflective of spring than others.

This card was created over a number of weeks and for a number of reasons - the manila tag was one of my experiments with blending Distress Inks (I am particularly fond of this colour combination) which was overstamped in the same inks in an attempt to create a background effect; the butterfly was one of a number I made in a session with my daughter some months ago using Cuttlebug die and embossing folder, coloured with chalks and embellished with gems (we shared the butterfly colony - hers are spread around the house giving cheer wherever they are; mine are hidden away in a drawer waiting for the "right" project); the MM notepaper was ripped out of the pad months ago and has been sitting on the desk since then also waiting to be used.
And earlier this morning, the "right" project was born after checking out Simon Says! I stamped "thank you" in bark, embossed with clear embossing powder, added the Chatterbox ribbon, unknown flowers and bead ... and this is the result.Thanks for the inspiration, Simon Says Stamp & Show.

Sunday Stamper - Faces

Searching for crafting inspiration, and looking for techniques on the use of Distress Stains, I found Hels Sheridan's blog and last Sunday's challenge. I have one or two face stamps which I have never used, so I decided to take up the challenge and this is my creation. I used a tag sponged with Distress Inks, stamped my lady in archival ink and added background stamps, coloured her eyes and lips with watercolour paints, added a flower, some trinkets coloured with alcohol inks and beaded ribbon and volia! One of my first creations in a long time.
Thanks for the inspiration Hels.

[I have no idea why she is sideways ... I took the picture right way up, and it displays on my computer screen right way up but when uploaded here, she is sideways ... The ways of the computer.]

A New ATC Challenge

Week 1 of a new ATC challenge from the lovely ladies at Weekly ATC Diary was to create an ATC showing the meaning of your name. This is my contribution. Although some authorities give a fancy version meaning "princess" or similar, the Bible refers to Sharon as a plain in the Song of Solomon (Chapter 2, verse 1):
I am the rose of Sharon, the lily of the valleys.
This always amused me as a schoolgirl, sitting in assembly supposedly listening to a bible reading, and there was my own name in one of the least known passages. That memory brings a smile to my face. And now, my own Miss A is truly a rose of Sharon! How sweet it is.
Using glossy cardstock (or at least, the back of a new set of pencils I picked up just before christmas ...) I inked the background with different colours to create the sunset image, then printed the caption from my printer and finally stamped the Tim Holtz birds in black ink and layered this all on olive green bazzil, inking all edges with Pinecone. Plain & simple - just like my name, get it??
Thanks De and Liz for creating this challenge blog, and giving us some inspiration to create artwork.
Look out for next week's contribution - summer!

Chocoholic

Ok - 2 posts in the one day is absolutely unheard of, but I just had to share this layout. Unbeknownst to Mr10 and myself, whilst I was scrapbooking earlier today and he was playing the DS, Miss A found a bag of treat-size chocolate bars we had left out from our picnic dinner last night. 3 were missing. She will only admit to eating one. Wait till you see the evidence:
I had planned on using Basic Grey Porcelain for these photos, but I spied the box of Bittersweet papers instead - and couldn't resist! The colours are yummy and of course they're all about chocolates so it was absolutely perfect. The paper, rub-on, sticker, chipboard and brad are all from the Bittersweet range. I added Kaiser pearls, Dymo labeller and unknown ribbon and flowers. What do you think: does that face look like its had just one chocolate bar??

One Hand One Heart

As a youngster, my parents really enjoyed musical theatre. One of the local churches ran a musical society and we regularly attended all of the popular musicals of the 70s. As well, my dad had a reel-to-reel stereo and I vividly recall many soundtracks being repeatedly played. As part of growing older and more than a little nostalgic, I recently went out and bought some of these old soundtracks. One was West Side Story. When my dad died, I remember my mum spoke to me about his funeral and how if she had been brave enough she would have asked for "Somewhere" to be played, a reflection of her hope that someday, somewhere she will meet up with him again and rekindle their love. That's one reason this soundtrack has special meaning for me.
When I listened to it again recently after many many years, the song "One Hand One Heart" struck another chord with me, and how it encompasses all the wishes all couples have on their wedding day - one life together till death do us part. Thus came the inspiration for this layout. Here's hoping the parting stuff doesn't happen for a very long time ...
I have used LYB's Love Letters range of papers, cardstock and border stickers, and added Prima stamp, Bella journalling block negative, rub-ons from Basic Grey and 7 Gypsies, flowers from Imaginisce and Green Tara, Heidi Swapp chipboard clock, a pearl brad and Dymo labeller. TFL.

I'm Loving ...

These two guys:-
The 2008 school photos have been scrapped! Mr 10 looks so grown up - I can't believe how the time has flown, and in less than 2 years he will be at high school and even further on his journey out into the big wide world. And Mr 6.9 is so cheeky!! I hope he never loses his sense of humour. I'm really happy with these 2 layouts. They are still quite minimalist, but I have tried a few things I wouldn't have previously.
Love the colour combinations on both of them. Its hard scrapping these types of photos with the fuzzy background, but this isn't a bad look and the boys will be there in my album to look at forever! I've never used buttons much before, but received these Sassafrass lass buttons in a recent sale, and found a perfect use for them as soon as I took them out of the box!!
Now I have a stash of Basic Grey Marrakech and Porcelain crying out to be used - but I must say that Porcelain will probably all be used for Miss A and Marrakech ... well, I'm not quite sure how to approach that range! Will have to see how the creative juices go.
Enjoy the weekend, and don't forget Earth Hour.

Cool Canvas ..

Things have been a bit quiet on the scrapping front this past week - although I'm trying to set aside time on the weekend to get some scrapping done, sometimes it just doesn't happen! So last weekend, Megan from Allcraftz set a few challenge ideas for those of us lacking inspiration. One of her suggestions was an OTP project using paint, crackle or other medium.
I have 4 little 6x6 canvases waiting patiently for me to do something with them - I'm pretty sure I've had them for 12 months?? So thius challenge was the impetus I needed to get them out and start scrapping some OTP gorgeousness. And here's what I created:

I painted each of the 4 canvases in a different pastel colour - the first pink & green match the colours of Miss A's bedroom. The purple is my favourite colour, and the blue I thought would match the others for a fresh look. Then I found and printed onto canvas paper some Flower Fairies pictures (these are copyrighted to the Estate of Cecily Mary Baker) for added texture. I mounted the canvas prints onto Bazzil, inked the edges of the Bazzil and added a Prima silk flower and some Kaiser pearls in matching colours. They are very simple design, and easy to complete - best of all Miss A loves her pretty fairies!!
Thanks Megan for the challenge - just what I needed this past weekend.