THE HOLLY AND IVY #190

I've gone for a CAS Clean and Simple feel to my card this week for Holly & Ivy.  I used an old holly stamp by Tim Holtz for the border and used the watercolour technique to create this soft look.  I used Perfect Paint Distress Ink direct to the stamp then added Festive Berries with a Tim Holtz marker pen to the berries then spritzed with water.  It gives this lovely watercolour effect.

The sentiment is a new one I was gifted and I loved it's bold sentiment. Some touches of Spectrum Noir Sparkle pen and green Stickles gave the card a Festive shine. 

THE MALE ROOM - CATS AND/OR DOGS

Welcome back to another challenge - our 200th challenge at The Male Room.  We are asking for your dogs and or cat cards this month.  

I chose to use my trusty Tim Holtz Snarky cats again.  The background was made with a gel press and one of Tim's very old stencils. It's almost falling apart I've used it that much.  I used some cog die cuts to sit behind the cat and used a couple of the sentiments from the set.  I added some washi tape and some background stamping. 

HOLLY & IVY CHALLENGE #186

Welcome back to another challenge here at The Holly & Ivy and as usual it's Anything Goes.

This card took a while for me for it to come together - I knew I wanted to use the robin from Indigoblu but I couldn't find something for him to sit on.  I finally found my old set of stamps from Tim Holtz called Winter Watercolor which had some gorgeous foliage and this card was born.

The background had previously been created on one of my gel press play times with Peacock Feathers making an appearance so I decided to use it for htis card.  I stamped a mixture of all the foliage from the Tim Holtz Set for the background.  The bird was stamped and cut out with a stitched die and then extra foliage added.  I added touches of red with a Prismacolour Pencil  and used these too to colour the bird.

I added some touches of white to the foliage and added extra musical background stamps.  A simple greeting from Tim Holtz for the sentiment and some doodling around the edges and a touch of Spectrum Noir sparkle pen finished off the card.  I love how it turned out in the end. 

I'm adding this into the following :

Simon Says Stamp Wed - Fur Feathers 

Colouring with Pencils 

Peace on Earth

Lets craft and create - AG 

Polkadoodle - AG 

Outlawz Festive Friday - Christmas 

Krafty Chicks - Christmas 

CREATIVE ARTISTE MIXED MEDIA CHALLENGE

Welcome back to another Mixed Media challenge at Creative Artiste.  

I've made some vintage style slides.  I'd had this little die cut for ages and never really used it and finally got to have a play with it.  I used a variety of stamps, washi tape and ephemera for my little slides.  I even got those old brads out for all the corner.  Keep a thing for 20 years and you finally use it.  

THE MALE ROOM - MONOCHROME

Our challenge for you this month at The Male Room is monochrome.  To me this means shades of one colour or black and white so I went for black and white. 

I created the background by adding Tim Holtz Black Soot Distress Oxide ink to my paper then I used a Tim Holtz stencil to remove some of the ink.  The stamps are all from Tim Holtz The Professor CMS373 and the sentiment is from one of his Ideaology books. 

LOVE TO CRAFT CHALLENGE - JANUARY 2025

I'm delighted to be on the design team for Love to Craft Challenge for January 2025.  What a great way to start the year.  In case you haven't played with us before we are an Anything Goes challenge and not just cards and we are also every other month so plenty of time for you to join in. 

As with my previous post - please bear with me as I'm still in Christmas mode and wanted to share this Santa card made with Tim Holtz products.  This is just the quintessential Father Christmas in my mind and Tim Holtz has captured him just perfectly.   I let the stamp have pride of place with some gentle background stamping of foliage behind him and the lovely smattering of stars above.  The Santa was coloured with Tim Holtz Distress Inks. 

THE MALE ROOM - KINETIC CARDS

We hope you have fun with our challenge this month at The Male Room which is to make your cards move - however you like.  I've gone for a type of side slider card where you can see the panels move in and out of the card.  I had great fun playing with Tim Holtz Professor stamps and lots of lovely grunginess.  The inks are Unchartered Mariner and Walnut Stain and Vintage Photo.  I used some of the Watercolour Pencils to give more of a vivid intensity to the Unchartered Mariner.

I'm  not normally a lover of trying to make cards move but I did enjoy making this one.  

I'm adding this into the following:

Creative Fingers - AG 

Word Art Wednesday - AG 

Stamping Sensations - AG 

We love 2 create - Mixed Media 

Inkspirational - Layer it 

CHRISTMAS REDS

One of my recent purchases was the Doodle Greetings 2 set CMS286 by Tim Holtz. It has one of my favourite Christmas sayings of Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas as my favourite Christmas film is Meet Me In St Louis when Judy Garland sings that song.  I watch it every year! 

As the sentiments are so big I wanted them to take centre stage so did a selection of red cards with each of the sayings embossed in different colours.  The darker reds are the same red cardstock which have been inked up with some black ink.  It's very effective.

I'm adding these into the following challenges:

Colourful Options - Red 

Creative Fingers - AG 

The Outlawz Challenge - Christmas 

Krafty Chicks - AG 

Simon Says Stamp Wed - AG 

The holly and the Ivy - AG 

PEARLY SPARKLES - ANGELS

Welcome back to Pearly Sparkles Challenge and our theme of Angels.  Not something I thought I had in my stash and then I remember a very old Tim Holtz stamp set I have which had this lovely angel and the three wise men in it.   All stamps used here are Tim Holtz. 

I inked my background with distress Oxide Ink in Chipped Sapphire and Fossilized Amber.  I stamped a music stamp from the same set gently in the background.  When all the ink was dry I used Versafine for the Angel and then used gold embossing powder to make it shine.  The Special Delivery stamps are also Tim Holtz as is the sentiment which was embossed in white powder.  I added some stars also in white embossing.

I'm adding this into the following challenges:

IncyWincy - AG handmade Christmas background 

12 months of Christmas AG

Merry Little Christmas - AG 

The Holly and the Ivy - AG 

CHRISTMAS ROBINS

I've taken the sketch from Inspire Create Challenge blog to create my little robin card.  The robin stamp is from Creative Expression and the sentiment is from Woodware called Loving Christmas.

I started by inking my background with Tim Holtz Bundled Sage Oxide Ink. I then stamped the robins in Versafine Pinecone.  The pine trees are an old stamp from Tim Holtz which come with their own die.  I inked tem in Versafine Shady Lane and then sprinked them with Tim Holtz Fresh Balsam Mica Stain to give them a sheen and a shine.  I used a Tim Holtz stencil for the trees in the background and used the same Bundled Sage just to give a subtle look.

The robins were coloured with Distress Watercolour Pencils - these are fast becoming my favourite way to colour especially as you can determine how vivid the colours are.  I added a touch of Spectrum Noir glitter pen to their bodies.  A splattering of snow from a white Posca pen completed the card.

I'm adding this into the following challenges:

Inspire, Create - Sketch 

Allsorts Challenge Blog - AG 

Inkspirational - Winter 

As You See It - I love using the Distress Water Colours 

Creative Fingers - AG 

The Outlawz - Christmas 

ADDICTED TO STAMPS - BIRTHDAY #478

Welcome back to another Birthdays challenge here at Addicted to Stamps and More.  I've used a lovely stamp by Tim Holtz on my card.  The background was made with a colour wash of various Tim Holtz Distress Inks to give a summery feel.  Not that we had a summer but I must still have been hoping for one when creating this card!

I added a script stamp to the background then added white embossing powder to make it pop. I stamped the stamp and cut out a further butterfly to add on top to give further interest and dimension.  

CREATIVE ARTISTE MIXED MEDIA CHALLENGE #108 - MEET EDWIN

Welcome back to another month of Creative Artiste Mixed Media Challenge.  Please remember to use at least three different mediums on your piece to qualify as mixed media.  

I'm using the Professor stamps by Tim Holtz for my card today.  The background was created first with a gel press and Tim  Holtz Distress Oxides.  I then added some Texture Paste through a Tim Holtz gothic stencil and added paint over the top.  Background stamping was also added.  The image was stamped and then cut out with the light bulb set behind the hat which is slightly raised. 

I added a paper cog cut from Tim Holtz old die cuts and a metal die cog and a pen nib.  Some extra die cut paper was added to the bottom.  I added the sentiments from TH Idealogy clippers sticker book, including the name of Edwin which I think suits him!

I'm adding this into the following challenges:

Simon says Stamp Wednesday Challenge 

Krafty Chicks - Stamps 

As you like it - to layer or not to layer - I just adore layering - I was so  happy years ago when I found the art technique of Mixed Media which allows me to layer to my hearts content! 

The Outlawz - AG 

Welove2create - AG 

I've been a bit lax in adding my monthly calendar pages for my own calendar I'm making so here are June, July and August just to catch up.

THE MALE ROOM CHALLENGE - FUN FOLDS

Welcome back to another challenge at The Male Room where we want to see your fun folds.  I saw this technique on Pinterest and loved the simplicity of it.  Some fold cards are just too complicated for me and I try not to do complicated so this was just up my street.    

 I didn't really measure the fold - just folded the front piece of the cardstock down and then added my papers to fit the measurement I had.  The background papers were all done on a gel press with Tim Holtz Distress Oxides.  I added some texture paste over a stencil to create the circles.  

The stamps used are Tim Holtz Ringmaster Blueprint CMS151 - the choice of stamps on this set are going to be great for male cards.  The little clock was in my stash of possible Idealogoy pieces and the sentiment seemed perfect for the theme where a great moustache can take time.  That word moustache always reminds me of that oh so catchy tune from the film A Million Ways to Die in the West - once it gets in your head it's hard to get it out! 

PEARLY SPARKLES - ALL THINGS PINK/PEARLS AND/OR SPARKLE

September is a special month here at Pearly Sparkles as we remember Traci who created this challenge blog.  September is Traci's birthday month and we are remembering her with Traci's Recipe Challenge :

PINK, PEARLS AND/OR SPARKLE - use at least one of these

I started my card by using a colour wash of Tim Holtz Distress Ink in Kitsch Flamingo and Spun Sugar.  I then stamped my image which is a Tim Holtz rose in Versa Fine Clair Chianti.  The added stamping of the dots and the stars is also a Tim Holtz Stamp and I finished it off with some added Nuovo Crystal Drops. The sentiment is from Tracy Evans.

I'm adding this into the following:

Simon Says Stamp Wednesday - AG 

Shopping our stash - just because 

Tuesday Taggers - make it feminine 

Inkspirational - CAS 

HAND STAMPED SENTIMENTS IC432

Welcome back to another challenge at Hand Stamped Sentiments #IC432.  We have a gorgeous board for your inspiration.  

I started by masking off my card stock which I then filled in with Distress Oxide in Victorian Velvet - one of my most favourite colours of this range.  I then took an old rose stencil and went over it again with the same ink.

The stamp is from Tim Holtz Flower Shop CMS401 and I stamped it in Versafine Clair Chianti and Shady Lane.  I added some background stamping with an Tracy Evans stamp in the same Chianti ink.  I added some drops of the Victorian Velvet around the outside and added some water droplet embellishments and a stamped sentiment.