Mantle Village with Tic Tac Toe

Hi everyone we have a new Tic Tac Toe challenge board to play along with and I thought I would play with my new to me Mantle Village dies. I only bought the houses and trees but now wishing I also bought the accessory dies to hang under the mantle but I'm really happy how it all turned out. I used the picture on the die packet to colour up my images and also added Distress inks to darker the card stock and shimmer sprays to make "shimmery". I've used an embossing folder to add embossing and to also add "snowflakes" which was one of the criteria. I've used a die set from Newton's Nook to cut out my panels on the card.

The line I chose was the middle horizontal line: gems, dry embossing, snowflakes.

I'm also going to play along with Time Out Challenges "Happy Holidays" Challenge. Also Simon Says Stamp Wednesday challenge is to add some blue.

Supply List:
Stamps: Whimsical Trees (SU! - sentiment)
Dies: Mantle Village (SP), Frames & Flags (NN), Everyday Sentiment Banners (LF)
Ink: Cranberry (C9), various Distress inks to darken or shadow the card stock
Paper: Knit Picky 6x6" DSP (LF), Sahara Sand (SU!), Crumb Cake (SU!), Lemon Lolly (SU!), red, blue and green are all scraps of Spellbinder card stock
Other: Wintry 3D embossing folder (SU!), Gems: clear with gold dust (PFS), stamping foam 2mm, shimmer sprays

Challenge: TTTC#262, TOC#278, SSS Wednesday

I do love the sentiment on the stamp set and I sincerely hope "that the love of the season, warms your home and fills your heart".

Thanks for popping in and I hope you have time to play along with TTTC gang, if you're like me you are still making cards for Christmas as I never seem to have enough. If I'm honest I just like to share and give away as many as I can at this time of the year. This appears to be the last challenge for 2024 from Tic Tac Toe Challenges, so I'd like to personally thank everyone for supporting our challenge site and I look forward to catching up with you all in 2025. 

✿Karen✿

Let's Get "Striped" with Time Out Challenges

I am absolutely thrilled and delighted to be the Guest Designer for Time Out Challenges latest challenge. It's a real fun one too; to use stripes on your project. You have 2 weeks to have a go and you too could be a future Guest Designer for a challenge (if you want too) AND Lawn fawn are generously sponsoring this challenge so you could also win a $25 Gift Card to the Lawn Fawn store, how cool is that!

I'm using a card idea that Jenn Shurkus, taught me/us at a 2023 Virtual Art Retreat. I've modified her idea and am using a stencil and distress inks to make my stripes. Jenn loves making fab backgrounds. In her original class we made very loose streaks of colour using Distress Watercolor Pencils as our background then placed our dark grey Copic coloured image on top. 

I've used a stencil to re-create her look and working with my smaller blending brushes to blend in the stripes. As I am actually using a slimline stencil I die cut out a perfect stitched rectangle with Lawn Fawn's largest Inside Out Stitched rectangle die. But oops I'd been a bit messy and there was gold embossing powder on my plates and I had gold speckles on the RHS after running through my Big Shot. As this was my second go at doing the panel, I went into how to fix-it mode. So spritzed with shimmer spray and water and blotted but felt it needed some black splatters. I used my Licorice spray bottle to add a few drops by unscrewing and just tapping lightly the tubing for the nozzle to make controlled wee drops/splatters. When I sprayed it was much too dark on my practice run. 

My first panel I added a glitter paste through the stencil after ink blending and it looked fab but had a few funny reactions around some of the stripe edges which is why I tried again to make my striped panel.

Supply List:
Stamps and dies: Humbled and Grateful (PFS)

Distress Inks (RNG): Worn Lipstick, Kitsch Flamingo, Dried Marigold, Squeezed Lemonade, Twisted Citron, Salvaged Patina, Shaded Lilac, Wilted Violet

Paper: Hammermill white, Neenah #110, Black

Other: Versafine Clair Nocturne ink, clear embossing powder, Frost shimmer spray (imagine), Licorice Izink dye spray, distress mista bottle, small blending brushes (TE) and foam strips, Inside Out Stitched rectangle die (LF), Horizontal stripes slimline stencil (PFS), Warm Gray Copics (W2,4,6,8)

Well this is a fun, fun challenge and there's no doubting that adding stripes is really effective so hope you can join in as well but definitely check out the Time Out Challenge blog to see the the inspiration on show.

I'll also enter my card at Simon Says Stamp Wednesday challenge which is an anything goes challenge. I also see Just Us Girls would like us to use  a stencil so I'll also enter their current challenge.

Thanks for popping in.
✿Karen✿

Surprise Easter Card

I wanted to play along with CAS on Friday's Easter challenge plus combine with the elements from Tic Tac Toe too. So my card front is my clean and simple card for CAS on Friday:

I wanted to make a peek-a-boo window for my wee Easter chicken but I only own a square one from MFT so made my own using Just Stitching Double Circle dies (LF) and a circle die to make a window inside the double stitching.

Now I could have stayed with the CAS theme for Tic Tac Toe but I wanted to make a wee scene inside the card so I'm entering the inside of the card for TTT243 (Easter Eggs, pastel colours, grass). I'll also enter the inside of the card into the collaboration for "birds of a feather" with Time Out and Just Us Girls as well, plus Simon Says : Easter/Spring for their Wednesday Challenge too!

Aren't they just adorable, I've used an older stamp set from Lawn fawn called Chirpy Chirp Chirp and it has stamps to fill in the Easter egg and also the wee flower petals and wee butterflies, which made Copic colouring the chickens and bunny helmets easy.

I just grabbed 2 colour combos from my earliest blends I have, so nothing too fancy but I do like the peachy one a lot.

Supply List:

Stamps: Chirpy Chirp Chirp (LF), Eggstraordinary Easter Add-on (LF - sentiment)

Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black, Fresh Freesia (SU!), Pale Papaya (SU!), Sparkling Rose (PFS), Sunshine (PFS)

Paper: Neenah Solar White #110, Xpress IT blending, Flower Market DSP (LF - retired)

Dies: Grassy border (LF), Just Stitching Double Circles (LF), Sweet Stacks : Circles (HB)

Other: Copics

Challenges: CAS on Friday #279, TTC#243, TOC#259 , JUG#718, SSSW

Well that was a lot of fun combing a CAS card front with an Easter scene inside, hope you can find time to join in with one or all of the challenges.

EDITED 29/3/24: Very excited to say my wee card was chosen as the winner at CAS on Friday. I loved the card so pleased others agreed.

✿Karen✿

Birds of a Feather

Two of my fav challenge sites Just Us Girls and Time Out Challenges have for their current challenge a collaborative challenge "Birds of the Feather". 

Suggestions were birds, feathers and "birds" of course can be us ladies/girls too. I had an idea but when I saw this DSP covered in feathers in the Bird Ballad collection (SU! - retired) I just had to use it.

I decided I needed a biggish bird, so it was time to bring out the Bird Crazy set (Stampers Anonymous). When I use one of the crazy critters I like to add on an accessory from Crazy Things and as Easter is approaching fast I chose the bunny ears. I coloured them all up using my Distress Watercolor pencils. I've cut out the eyes to make it crazier, popped them up on foam and added some Crystal Glaze (Nuvo). The word-fetti comes from Let's Chill (EE). The yellow card stock is Honeycomb from Concord &9 as it kind of matched the Mustard Seed pencil .

Well that was a lot of fun, just looking at the card makes me smile! Thanks for popping in.

✿Karen✿

Overboard on green

I've been inspired by a few challenges for this card, Time Out Challenges latest photo inspiration is a GREEN frog as their challenge started on Leap Day (29 February), Simply CAS monthly challenge has the option of Green, Tic Tac Toe wants your "favourite colour" and mine is Lime Green (the line I choose also had "free" and CAS") so the stars seemed to be aligning and Lawn Fawnatics want Spring Cards. I always think of the colour Green when I think of Spring, new leaves and fresh lush grass; hopefully green frogs and green clouds are Spring-like - well my frog can do "springing too" and Simon Says Stamp Wednesday challenge has an Anything Goes.

As it's clean and simple I tried to keep it to minimal layers so used the double stitched circle die to add some interest to my card  panel. I then made a mask out of a 4.25" x 4.25" square of masking paper and die cut out a circle from the middle of the square that was slightly smaller than the stitched circles.

I placed this mask panel over the stitching and added a post it note top and bottom to protect the top and bottom of my panel. From the die cut circle middle I drew a "hill" free-hand which I cut out. I placed this bit back inside the circle mask and keeping with the GREEN theme did a very, very light blend of Twisted Citron to make my clouds. I placed the top of the circle back in and removed the bottom bit blended with Salvaged Patina to make my pond then splattered with a small paint brush some smooshed Blueprint Sketch ink. I felt it was too white at the end which is why I used my Master Layouts #1 to add a hint of a green mat.

Supply List:

Stamps: Toadally Awesome (LF), Hive Five (LF - wee trail)

Ink: Jet Black (LF), Versafine Clair Nocturne, Twisted Citron (RNG), Salvaged Patina (RNG), Blueprint Sketch (RNG - splatters)

Paper: Cilantro (LF), Xpress IT blending, Neenah Solar White

Dies: Toadally Awesome (LF), Just Stitching Double Circles (LF), Everyday Sentiment Banners (LF), Sweet Circle stack (WF), Master Layout 1 (GKD)

Other: Copics, mini cloud edges stencil (MFT), Masking Magic (GKD), blending brushes (TE), 1mm foam squares (SP), white Gelli roll pen 10 (Sakura), clear embossing powder

Challenges: TOC#258, TTTC#242, SCS Cards March 2024, Lawn Fawnatics #167 , SSS Wednesday #114

Well that was a lot of fun I'd better go sort out the craftastrophe as surprisingly for such a simple card it actually used a "lot of stuff"

✿Karen✿

Masculine Birthday Card

Doesn't the 3 words in the title make you grimace. It's my SIL birthday soon and he's a keen golfer so I thought I would play along with a few challenges to help get me started.  CAS Colours & Sketches has provided me with a sketch which was my starting point. CAS on Friday just wants boy/male and I'm getting ready to go away for a crafty weekend and I really wanted to acknowledge Time Out Challenges for celebrating their 10th anniversary/birthday, what a worthy achievement and definitely deserving a shout out!

The SIL is a keen golfer so I grabbed the SU! set I bought especially for him but went CAS this time, the last time I used it was 2 years ago and you can see that card HERE - it had a fun fold.

I've Copic coloured up the golf ball on the tee and made a background panel using an Argyle stencil and then matted up on a strip of Gray Granite card.

Supply List:

Stamps: Clubhouse (SU!)

Ink: Jet Black (LF), Poppy (C9), Sahara Sand (SU!), Gray Granite (SU!)

Paper: Sahara Sand (SU!), Gray Granite (SU!), Xpress IT blending, Neenah White #80

Other: Copics, Argyle stencil (PFS), foam squares
Challenges: CAS C&S #531, CAS on Friday #277, TOC #257

Well it certainly speed up the creativity block when you mention masculine adding some parameters from a challenge. Thanks for popping in.

✿Karen✿

CASE-ing Sarah Gray

Time Out Challenges have an interesting challenge on their blog at the moment to CASE one of their past DT Sarah Gray who now by the sound of it owns her own Stamp Company funky fossil in the UK.

We were given one of Sarah's cards as our photo inspiration. I really liked the big splat so thought I'd have a play. I found a stencil in my stash which helped me keep my Color Burst powders and Mysticals sprays under control. I found a few arty things amongst my AALL and Create stamps and this is what I came up with. I thought Sarah's splats reminded me of Sweet Mustard and brownish purple but I had nothing really like that but worked in similar but brighter shades, looking at the inspiration picture as I type my blog post I'm trying to work out how to add a tad of blue as I missed that detail when I glanced at the photo. Below is where I was before I thought there's blue in the inspiration.

Well it was really easy to add a tad of blue. I should have allowed it to dry naturally as it's a bit splodgy where I dabbed it to dry but it makes a huge difference adding the blue IMO to the overall balance of the colours.

Supply List:

AALL and Create stamps: Spread Your Wings #729, Power of the Word #754, Art Notes #906

Ink: Versafine Clair Acorn
Paper: Fabriano Artistico watercolour, Marmalade (C9 - retired), Natural White (SU! - retired)

Other: Solar Flare Color Burst powder (Ken Oliver), Gold Temple Mysticals (LAV), Pinkella Mysticals (LAV), Blue Blitz shimmer powder (Nuvo), no. 4 round brush and splat brush, 2mm foam squares (SP), watercolor wash freeform stencil (MFT), Master Layouts 2 (GKD)

Challenge: TOC #256

Well that was a really fun challenge I always like it when my desk looks like a craftastrophe as it means I've been having fun.

EDITED 22/2/24: I was chosen as the winner at Time out Challenges of this challenge which I'm not sure why but I am totally amazed that I could win a non-CAS challenge.

✿Karen✿

CASE-ing Gina K

Wow Time Out Challenges has a CASE the Designer this month and they asked the very talented and giving Gina Krupsky from Gina K Designs and of course she said yes, as that is what Gina would do!!

She is a legend and probably the first person sharing videos on how to stamp back in the 2000s on her Stamp TV before YouTube or Facebook Lives were a thing.

Gina's card is "so Gina" with masking, blending, and of course the famous tiny black border. Her masking paper is my favourite and I love her Master Layout dies for the perfect tiny border they give you and if you haven't watched one of her regular lives with her hubby Tom and herself you are missing out.

I took inspiration from her fabulous card (which I truly will CASE one day as it is so fab) the rainbow of colours and made a rainbow card. I thought I should think outside the box and not just "copy her card".

I used my Pinkfresh slim stripes dies which made making the strips/stripes easy and yes, perfect! I chose my Concord and 9th card stock as they were my most brightest rainbow of colours I owned.

Supply List:
Stamps: Rainbow of Happiness (SU!)

Ink: Poppy Parade (SU!), Bermuda Bay (SU!)

Paper: Poppy (C9), Marmalade (C9), Buttercup (C9), Parsley (C9), Oceanside (C9), Gorgeous Grape (SU!), Orchid Oasis glimmer (SU!!)

Dies: Brilliant Rainbow (SU!), Perfect Stripes (PFS)

Other: Clear drip drops (SCT), foam squares (SP)

Challenge: Time Out #231

There is still a week to enter plus there is a chance to win a $25 credit at Gina K Designs, so get your thinking caps on and be inspired by Gina's fab card.

✿ Karen ✿

More falling for you

Looking at the challenges at Allsorts Colours of Autumn and Time Out's thankful it was time to revisit my Taylored Expressions stencil set I received recently.

****Colours of Autumn****

I would like to see entries inspired by the beautiful colours Nature gives to us at this time of year, Reds, Yellows, Greens, Golds, Oranges, Browns.

When I did the class with Taylor in my Crop and Create Cardmaking delivered event I used my SU! inks closest to the autumnal shades she used so I made sure to use different shades this time and also add in a green. I have also done a light splatter with the gold Gansi Tambi watercolour paint again. You can see my class cards HERE if you are interested. This is a lovely stencil with so many possibilities for colour combinations.

Supply List:

Stamps:  Happy Harvest (TE)

Stencil: Falling for you triple slimline stencil (FOUR layers) and clear stamp combo (TE)

Ink (all SU!): Cherry Cobbler, Grapefruit Grove, So Saffron, Pear Pizzazz, Cinnamon Cider

Paper: Cherry Cobbler, Neenah White

Other: Gold Gansi watercolours, paint brush, blender brushes (TE)

Challenges: Allsorts #699, Time Out #225

Now Time Out is offering a Lawn Fawn $25 store credit voucher this week and it is All Sorts 700th challenge next week so they also have a wee prize to celebrate that milestone this coming weekend. So hope you can join in too, you never know you may win something as well.

 ✿ Karen ✿

Festive Reindeer Wee Gal

These tiny wee pure innocence girls from My Favorite Things I think are just adorable and they are fun and easy to colour up with my Copics. I just recently scored from Krafters Cart in Auckland MFT's PI Reindeer Games, I think this stamp is an old one as only a few stores around the world still stock it and even fewer have it's matching die. I was keen to try it out ASAP to see what my fussy cutting was like for it and even if I say so myself it is fine and I won't attempt to get the matching die unless MFT re-releases it "from the vault".

A couple of my favourite challenge sites had just the right challenge to use my stamp; The Paper Players had a sketch and Time Out Challenges wanted "festive" so hopefully I have filled the brief for both.

Supply List:
Stamps: PI Reindeer Games (MFT)
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black
Paper: Xpress-IT blending, Neenah Solar White, Garden Green (SU!), Sweetest Christmas DSP (SU!)
Other: Copic Markers, foam squares
Challenges: Paper Players 604, Time Out 221

Yah another Christmas card made, I know who is getting this card already!

✿ Karen ✿

Another Toi Toi beach sunset card

Time out Challenge have a fab image as our inspiration this week to play along with :

And I knew my very old rubber stamp from Rubbadubbadoo would be just perfect. I recently blogged using this stamp HERE and interestingly enough I went off to the Rubbadubbadoo website and the stamp is still available to purchase and yes it is called Toi Toi (large). If you're interested in getting your own stamp you can click HERE to see it at Rubbadubbadoo.

I emboss resisted this card two times. I first stamped the toi toi image on with Versafine Clair Nocturne ink and then added clear embossing powder and heat set it. I then made a mask using a border die. I then stamped the Gentle Waves stamp set with Versamark.  I then used ICE embossing powder which is a very old product from SU! which at the time we all believed to be a mixture of clear EP and dazzling diamonds glitter, but I think it makes good waves.

I then created my background with the mask and its reverse using distress oxide inks. I white embossed my sentiment on a scrap of black card stock and fussy cut it out.

Supply List:
Stamps: Toi Toi (Rubbadubbadoo), Gentle Waves background (SU!), Rain or Shine (HA - sentiment)

Ink: Versamark, Versafine Clair Nocturne
Distress Oxides: Antique Linen, Shaded Lilac, Dried Marigold, Fossilized Amber, Abandoned Coral, Tumbled Glass

Paper: Lavinia Multifarious white for the blending on, Calypso Coral (SU!), Basic Black (SU!) SSS white #120
Other: White, clear and ICE embossing powders. mini stampin' dimensionals, landscape borders die (Wplus 9), Gina K masking paper, A2 layering dies (Waffle Flower), blending brushes
Challenges: Time Out 219 - Photo Prompt

Thanks for popping in. 

Edited Really happy to report my card got "Honours"

✿ Karen ✿

Getting ready for Mother's Day

I've been meaning to ink up the "Miss Your Smile" stencil from Pinkfresh Studio for ever and it's mother's day in NZ next week so no time like the present.

 I love how my card turned out but shocked I don't have any Happy Mother's Day sayings. I've been too brutal in decluttering up my craft space now we are settled in our new home but the lovely sentiment is from Waffle Flower and I think it is just perfect. 

The stencil is a 4-step stencil, 2 for the flowers and 2 for the leaves. I've done the biggest stencil with the lightest ink and then the contrast with the darkest ink, I've also tried to blend darker in the centre of the flowers as I think the tips are lighter. 

Just some snaps whilst stenciling so you can see the "process"

It's also my first go at making a slimline card! I know some of us are slow of the blocks but truly I feel since Oct 2020 when we started getting my place ready to sale my crafting life has been on hold.

Looking online, a slimline card is a tall card that fits into a business size envelope. Cut your 8.5 x 11″ cardstock to 7 x 8.5″ and fold it in half the long way. The finished slimline card size is 3.5 x 8.5″

I had a piece of white card stock from a Simon Says Stamp monthly card kit in my stash which I believe is Neenah Solar White that everyone in America uses and its a real heavy weight and I was interested to see how my inks blended on it. I normally use SU! shimmery white but its not a true white. I was really happy how the inks blended, seemed easy and smooth.

Supply List:
Stamps: Essential Sentiments (WF)
Ink: So Saffron, Mango Melody, Pale Papaya, Grapefruit Grove, Granny Apple Green, Old Olive (Stampin' Up!), Versamark.
Paper: Neenah White, So Saffron (SU!), Vellum Card (SU!)

Dies: Slim Card Basics (ME - rectangle and scalloped rectangle), Essential Sentiments (WF)
Other: mixed Jewels from Taylored Expressions which are clear but look pinky orange as you move them in the light, blending brushes, dimensionals, Rose Gold Crisp EP (ALT)

Well I am a week early for Mother's Day but was wanting to enter the challenge at Time Out Challenges which is "Spring" and I knew I wanted to use this stencil as so easy to make pretty spring-like cards and it would be perfect as a Mother's Day card too.

✿ Karen ✿