forgotten Friday

Firstly massive appologies for the total lack of activity on my blog recently. The weeks leading up to the end of term are always a whirlwind of activity especially as this was the last year of my eldest daughters primary school. She starts secondary school this September which is really scary as it only seems five minutes since she started reception class ! Plus I have been having the usual technical difficulties with cameras and scanners which I won`t bore you with.
Whilst my three were busy making salt dough yesterday I actually managed to sneak off and make a card. I would like to link it to Judiths blog over here Every Friday she makes a card or project using forgotten stash. You know those stamps that you just had to buy at the time or that must have thing that then gets sadly neglected when the next must have is bought ! My stamps are Paper Artsy hot picks (the text on the butterfly) and Wendi Vechi (the lady). I bought both these sets ages ago and have not used either of them before. I don`t know about forgotten stash though, its been so long since I last did any proper crafting I was worried I would have forgotten how to stamp Lol.
I used sunshine yellow alcohol inks on a glossy card for my background , then sponged mustard seed distress ink through the negative left from dyecutting a butterfly. I then overstamped the text with Ranger black archival ink. The lady was stamped onto glossy card with sunshine yellow alcohol ink as well then cut out and stuck to the front. I`m quite pleased with the results, yellow is not a colour scheme I would normally use but I like the contrast of that yellow with the black.
Thanks for looking x Vinny

jff zentangle

well the challenge over at Just for Fun this week is doodling or zentangle. This is something I have never tried before so it was with some trepidation that I have had a go. I stuck to black and white, first stamping my Koi Carp image then using a template to draw circles round it. That was the easy bit, the hard bit was the doodling to fill them in ! I`m not really enthralled with my end result either, I think I could have done with a fine liner pen instead of the black gel pen which was all I could find. However time is running short to join in as per normal for me so first effort it is then.

wall hanging

I went on Saturday to Art from the Heart in Harrogate and did two taster workshops. I had a really lovely time and came home with some fab new ideas. One class was with Kate Crane and the other with Dyan. I bought a few new stamps of course and this is using one of them. Its by the Octopode Factory. Its one of those stamps that I just had to buy as soon as I saw it because it just really tickled me and I have a few ideas for her off the top of my head already. Now, I have to say I am getting really bored lately with just doing cards and really wanted to start using more quirky stamps which I think this is. So, I decided to make a wall hanging for a change. I`m not sure just how clearly the photo came out but it says `If I can`t see it, I can`t buy it !` so in the spirit of my saying the only new purchase for this project was the stamp. I used cardboard from a Catfood box for the actual hanging, you know those sturdy boxes that they sell pouches of catfood in. It actually has a nice texture to it as well. I painted it with Paper Artsy fresco paint, then a layer of the crackle glaze, and a lighter layer of fresco paint over the top. I used distress inks in scattered straw, broken china and worn lipstick for the colouring on my backgrounds. The stamp was also coloured in with distress inks. I`m quite pleased with how it came out for a change and think I shall be trying many more different things in future. I would like to enter this for two challenges , one the Jff challenge which you can find here, the theme this week is eyes so I hope this qualifies. The second is the gingersnap challenge which you can find here, their theme is `at the Mall`. Thanks for looking x Lavinia

distressed tea cards

The challenge over here this week is tea cards. Mine are distressed tea cards because of both the stamps I used (Tim Holtz) and the state I got in trying to create them ! Oh boy they may only be small but trying to create them with the white border round them caused me no end of problems. The first mask I made was too flimsy and broke, then I tried mounting onto white card but cut the whole bottom off accidently like you do and so it went on. Anyway by the skin of my teeth I`ve finally managed to create three using distress inks and the forementioned Tim Holtz stamps. I`ve used bitty grunge for the background overstamped in the same shades of distress inks and another micro set from QVC overstamped in black archival ink. I do like the way the white border makes them pop against the bright colours but I shall be investing in some very thin masking tape that I know Chocolate Baroque sell in the near future ! I appologise for the blurred photos, I really need to use a better camera than this one. Thanks for looking Lavinia

cowboys and cowgirls

I decided to try a completely different challenge this week. I have been meaning to join in with the challenges over at Gingersnaps
for ages but as usual kept missing the boat !. The challenge I have done a card for is Cowboys and Cowgirls with a wild west theme. Unfortunately I don`t posess any stamps with that theme in my collection. Not to be detered I went along the theme of Saloon girls as I figured this stamp could be taken as a sassy saloon girl. I ran a piece of chocolate covered card through my Cuttlebug using the textile embossing folder to make it look like tooled leather. I did try running my versamark inkpad over it and embossing with clear embossing powder as in the article in Craft Stamper but just couldn`t get the powder just on the raised bits. Whether its because of the particular embossing folder I chose I don`t know. I used my distress inks to make a coloured background before stamping the lady over the top, the stamp is an inkadinkadoo one that I`ve had for ages and confession time, never used. I had also never tried bleaching before but gave it a go today and was pleased with the results. I think I`ve probably been a bit heavy handed with it, she possibly looks like she has vertiligo poor love but I couldn`t find a finer brush. I really enjoyed trying something completely different and hope I can join in with a few more different things. I`ll try to show a close up before I sign off

Thanks for looking x Lavinia

an award !

I`ve been given an award ! Its from one of the ladies in the Chocolate Baroque guild - Jean. She awarded it to me the other week but as usual life kind of gets in the way of crafting and blogging doesn`t it ?. So, I am supposed to give you 7 random facts about myself and pass the award on to 7 blogs. Right, 7 totally usless and random things about myself
1. I hail from Essex originally though I live in Peterborough now.
2. I cannot stand anything with cooked bananas in it though I like raw bananas.
3. I have three daughters, the eldest of which will be going up to senior school this Sept eeek, where did that time go ?
4. I am afraid of heights, seriously I cannot even stand on a chair.
5. I love my distress inks, truely, madly, deeply.
6. I have a very grumpy cat who came from the Cats protection league but is he grateful we gave him a permanant home, no he isn`t !!
7. Before I had children I used to think I was pretty organised but now I seem to be a state of semi chaos hence everything seems to be done at the last minute.

The 7 blogs I am passing this award onto are
1. http://messymeblogspot.com/
2. http://thepanachepixieblogspot.com/
3. http://margaretsartybits.wordpress.com/
4. http://craftshedgirl.blogspot.com/
5. http://vroncards.blogspot.com/
6, http://poppycottage.blogspot.com/
7. http://molly-diddle.blogspot.com/

Phew, think thats it. Now I need to try and fit in some crafting before work this afternoon. I had all good intentions this week but I`m lapsing. x Lavinia

bah humbug challenge

The challenge over at Bah Humbug this week was either to use something recyled or shades of green. I chose to go with shades of green. I used alcohol inks in bottle, oregano, lettace and sunshine yellow. I used the alcohol monoprint technique whereby you dribble the inks onto a craft sheet and swoosh your glossy cardstock through it. I must admit that I have tried this technique before but not being all that happy with the results. This time however, it didn`t come out too bad.The bird stamp I think is a Penny Black one. The large flourish in the corner is from Chocolate Baroques` Butterfly Dreams themeplate embossed with a moss green powder. I should really know better than to attempt such an ivory card though - I am just far too messy ! does anyone else find bits in their embossing powder when they tip it out like the backing off of those tiny foam pads or is that just me ? So there you go, shades of green but in no way a traditional Christmas card but I quite like that. I know I am too late now to submit this to the Bah Humbug blog but I tried to post this this morning but Blogger was having a hissy fit. Never mind, I still need to make my pile of Christmas cards grow. Thanks for looking x Lavinia