Stampotique challenge - Clean & Simple

Clean and simple is the theme for the latest Stampotique Designers Challenge and here is my effort. We could use any stamps this time, but I have used two by Stampotique on this card together with one of Artemio's modern grasses. I have to admit that 'clean and simple' is out of my comfort zone and so I found this a REAL challenge!!

Something old, something new...

... techniques that is! Here are a couple of cards I have recently made, one using shrink plastic which I haven't used for ages, and the other using a technique I've never tried before - stamping on glass. On the first card I used a brayer & torn paper to create the background and then stamped the trees. The boy in the foreground was stamped onto shrink plastic.

I was inspired to try stamping onto glass after reading an article in Craft Stamper a few months ago. I had some Ranger Memory Glass slides that I bought simply ages and ages ago but had never used!! Anyway, I dug them out and had a go - I've tried two different techniques here, both using alcohol inks on the glass.

Trouble in Blogland!

Hi everyone... I'm sorry I haven't posted anything on my blog for such a long time. This has been partly due to holidays and being busy, but also I've been having trouble actually getting into the blog! I would log in and then a minute later I kept getting a message to say the page couldn't be opened and then I got thrown out!! Anyway, fingers crossed it seems to be OK today.
I have been busy making cards.... Christmas cards! I know May & June seem just a tad early to start, but having recently been asked to set the course programmes for my card making classes in the autumn term, I thought I'd start making a few examples using the various techniques. I made a Halloween card and a couple of Diwali cards, then started on Christmas. You know what it's like - as soon as I began I got completely hooked and just carried on. I think I've made about a dozen or so Christmas cards by now, so at least I'll have some to send out in good time.

Hopefully I'll have something to show you next week as long as I have no more probs.

Swatch Book

I loved Linda Elbourne's project in the latest edition of Craft Stamper - to make a colour swatch book of your distress inks, and couldn't wait to have a go and make my own. I am only just over half way through my collection of DIs, but it is something that can be added to at any time.

Vintage Text Moo

Here is my moo for the latest challenge on the Make a Moo or Two blog, on theme of vintage text. I used some of the new Distress Stains by Ranger on the background and used stamps by Viva las Vegastamps, Stamper Anonymous and PaperArtsy.

Craft Stamper e-zine

Did you know that Craft Stamper magazine now has a FREE e-zine that you can download at: www.craftstamper.com/ezine

The e-zine contains twelve of the best projects from 2010, as chosen by readers.

This was one of those projects in which I had no plan whatsoever, it just evolved as it went along. Another product I purchased at the NEC was Fresco Finish chalk acrylic paint by PaperArtsty, I bought two bottles - Vintage Lace and Moon Light. So this card started off when I thought I'd try them out. I painted a piece of card with the Vintage Lace and when it had dried I randomly sponged on Moon Light. I then tried a variety of stamping onto the surface, some of which disappeared completely when it dried! Anyway, I carried on with darker inks and this is the finished result. I decided to use the text stamp (by Tim Holtz) as I thought it was quite appropriate, especially the bit about "not quite knowing what you're doing"! I made the big flower by die cutting pages from an old book and then painting each flower with the acrylic paints. The smaller flowers are die cut card coloured with dusty concord DI and then overstamped with the small spatters stamp in the acrylic paint. I felt it needed something to lift the whole thing, so I have added some gold accents... yes, using the Inka Gold again.