BOO!

Over at my Facebook Group The Joy of Sets we are running a Hallowe'en card swap. Hallowe'en is a much maligned festival - with the true meaning lost in the Hollywood hype.  It's only recently become popular in the UK as it is in the US but people still don't send Hallowe'en cards.  For me it is a time for remembering those members of my family who are no longer with me - and sadly I have quite a few.

My card for the swap though was a bit more of a traditional Hallowe'en style using a very old set from SU called Bitty Boo.  This is more than 10 years old but it is the only set I have with Hallowe'en style images so I thought it deserved an outing.

I started off with some samples of SU Designer Series Paper and cut them out with a small square stitched frame.  The Hallowe'en images were stamped onto white card stock in Memento Ink and SU Tangerine Tango.  The orange ones have a layer of Spectrum Noir Sparkle in Harvest Moon. I've just bought this set of three coloured sparkle pens from Spectrum Noir and they are perfect for Autumn cards.

I layered them onto some black card stock and added a touch of Washi Tape in the middle.  I cut out the bat and added some yellow rhinestones.  The black was then layered onto some Crushed Curry Cardstock.

I'm adding this into the following challenges:

Watercooler Wednesday #wwc240 - Occasions
Retro Rubber 120 - Anything Goes
Make My Monday - Shapes

 

SWEET STAMPIN - CELEBRATING PEACE DAY

Welcome to another Challenge at Sweet Stampin. Today, 21st September, is Peace Day and we are celebrating it. It is also my Wedding Anniversary - 34 years - and at the moment I am away in Wales celebrating with darling hubby.  

I have just found a new stamp company called Visible Image who also hail from Wales so it's fitting they have provided the stamps for my card today.  The set is called Mindful Moments.  I am also a Reiki healer and will be doing a selection of similar cards that I can give to me clients after their sessions.

I started out with some water colour paper and Tim Holtz Distress Oxide inks building up the colour till I was happy with it.  I added a mask of the image of the girl as I was originally going to keep her white but it looked too start.  I embossed her first in silver embossing powder and then  used lots of dark ink to add texture and you can just faintly see trees stamped also to keep her grounded.  I added some Tim Holtz Fossilized Amber around her to look like an aura coming off her.  The stars were embossed with white embossing powder.

 

TRY STAMPIN ON TUESDAY #TSOT426

A great sketch today from Try Stampin on Tuesday with the added challenge of adding some leaves! Right up my street as I love autumn!

I started off with some Very Vanilla and used a lovely stamp set from Clearly Besotted that has lots of lovely leaf images called Fall Flowers.  I chose to use all the skeleton type stamps.  The colours I used are SU Really Rust - A very old ink but still going strong - Crushed Curry and Old Olive.


I used the framelits from Colourful Seasons to cut out my two leaves and sponged the edges of the skeleton leaf with Really Rust.  I added it to a background of Crushed Curry that had been embossed with a Kaisercraft Embossing folder called Tiny Floral. I used the stitched framelits to cut both pieces of card stock out.  I added an extra leaf to stamp the sentiment on which is from the same stamp set.  I then added some SU Baker's Twine in Old Olive and a button from the Regals collection.

 

STAMPIN UP ONLY CHALLENGE - DESIGNERS CHOICE #SUOC232

We get to choose our own theme this week at Stampin Up Only challenge -would you be surprised that I was drawn to leaves and autumn again? I did warn you a few posts ago lol!  Anyway - it's a good way to show the diversity of various stamps and inks!

I've used the Seasonal Layer thinlets which co-ordinate with Colourful Season stamp set by SU.  I stamped in Versamark and then used the copper embossing powder to make the leaves.  I added this to some retired DSP and added a touch of bronze thread behind one of the leaves.  The inside includes a sentiment from Colourful Seasons inked in an old SU colour Really Rust.  I added some buttons from the Regals collection to finish off the cards.

We recently did a Joy of Sets Blog Hop with the theme of Tri-Fold cards and I think this was still on my mind when I made this one.

 

JOY OF SETS BLOG HOP - TRI-FOLD CARDS

I'm delighted we are holding another Blog hop for the Joy of Sets Facebook Group. My thanks to Andrea Parr for once again organising us all - not easy when we are all over the world!  If you would like to join our Facebook Group click on the logo above.  Our theme is tri-fold cards and, as is usual with Joy of Sets, we allow all products to be used - although a lot of members are Stampin Up Demonstrators.

I went for a slightly different type of tri-fold with mine and it just sort of evolved as I was doing it.  I started off with some black card stock which is unusual for me.  I wanted to use the lovely Mosaic DSP from Stampin Up - I adore mosaics especially Roman ones and we have a gorgeous one in our local Iron Age Museum which dates back over 2,000 years.

I cut the piece of cardstock 10" x 5 " and scored at 4" and 7 3/4" - I still work in inches and always will!  On the left hand side piece I used the framelit from Colourful Seasons to cut out the edging and added some of the DSP layered onto Mint Macaron.  I added some pearls just to define the edge.

I used the butterfly framelit from SU Watercolour Wings for the butterfly and used the same DSP.  I actually cut half of the butterfly out of the black card stock and this is what helps to keep the card closed as the left hand tucks in behind the butterfly's wing.  The little butterflies were cut out with the framelit from That's the Tag.  The sentiment inside is from Kinda Eclectic and I used a retired butterfly punch to cut out a butterfly in the same DSP.

Have fun hopping around the blog and visiting all the wonderful projects - do stop by and say hello - we love to read your comments.  Why not join in with our next one and be part of the group?

To go to Annette Ball's blog click on the button below:

 To be taken back to Andrea Parr's blog - click on the button below:

Here is a full list of all those who are participating in the blog hop including links to their blogs:

Fiona Whitehead - You are here

Annette Ball

Kaylin Krawczyk

Jane Allmark

Tricia Butts

Angie McKenzie

Libby Fens

Susan Simpson

Rebecca-Jo Unwin

Linda A Moore

Andrea Parr

           

AUTUMN DAYS

Autumn is my favourite time of year - I love the colours and the hedgerows bursting with fruit that I can forage and turn into chutneys.  So just a little warning that there may be lots of autumnal type cards on my blog in the next few weeks!  I hope you will forgive me!

I'm starting with a very old set from Stampin Up - It goes back to 2009 eek!  It's called Autumn Days and it is one I will never part with - in the part of Hampshire where I live in the UK we have lots of pheasants roaming around - they are the lucky ones who have escaped from the shoots that happen a lot around here.  

I wanted to drag this set into the modern style but I think I must have still been in nostalgia stage as it looks quite old-fashioned to me.  How strange that crafting can have an age!

I started off by embossing the bird in some very old Rust Embossing Powder from SU - from around about 2009 also.  I then made a mask and stamped the various grasses around the bird using a mix of Really Rust, Old Olive, Mellow Moss and Crushed Curry.  I used the tag framelits to cut out the piece and a backing piece in Cajun Craze.  The backing paper is not SU but a lovely green piece I found in my stash and I ran it through the Big Shot with an embossing folder which shows pine leaves.  I love how it came out - the white popped through and has such a lovely texture.

I added some Jute Trim from Docrafts to the bottom.  I cut out some leaves with the Colourful Seasons framelits and sponged them in Old Olive and Crushed Curry.  I added a bow of baker's twine in Old Olive and a few buttons from the Regals collection.  The little thank you is from another old SU set called That's the Tag.  I turned it into a Thank You card with Thanksgiving on my mind.  Although we don't celebrate that holiday here in the UK I did enjoy it when I lived in the US.  The brad is from my stash.

I love how this turned out and am going to enter it into a few challenges:

Retro Rubber - #rrcb119 - Fall Colours  
Inspired by - Signs of Fall
Addicted to Stamps - Holiday
Male Room - Autumn