Just Us Girls GDT - Light

I'm super excited to join Just Us Girls as their October Guest Designer. Thank you so much to the JUGS team for the invitation to join. I love playing along with their challenges, and super excited to have the chance to share some inspiration with you all. Hope you will join us for the fun "Light" theme this week.

I thought I would go for a moon and starlight theme for my magical creatures and Distress Inks for the background. I started by cutting out two circular masks, one bigger and one smaller. I inked through the larger circular mask using Squeezed Lemonade distress ink onto my card front in Neenah Solar White card. Then I switched to the smaller circular mask which I centred within the circle I had inked and continued to ink in Mustard Seed and Spiced Marmalade. Next, I masked out the whole big circle and inked in Wilted Violet, Dusty Concord and Chipped Sapphire Distress ink, adding more colour around the edges of the card, and keeping the colour lighter the closer to the circle I got. I also inked a piece of card in Hickory Smoke and Black Soot, as well as another in Twisted Citron and Mowed Lawn. Then I splattered water onto all the cards I inked, and I used a wet brush to blend the colours of the moon. Next, I die cut the mountains from the inked grey card using Lawn Fawn Stitched Mountain Border, the green one using the Grassy Border die, and I used the Forest border die to cut a piece of black card. I also used the Starry Skies die to cut out the stars and shooting star, adding yellow and pink card behind the card front for the yellow starlight to shine through. Last, I stamped the castle, dragon and unicorn from Critters Ever After, coloured them with Copics and die cut the matching dies. Then I attached all the different layers of the background and the critters in the foreground, lastly adding a sentiment from the Party Animal stamp set. I had forgotten how much fun it is to create backgrounds using Distress Inks and to splatter water onto them, watching the ink fade away under the water droplets!

Card: Neenah Solar White card, scraps of black, yellow and pink card
Ink and colouring: Tsukineko Memento Tuxedo Black, Tim Holtz Distress Ink Hickory Smoke, Black Soot, Twisted Citron, Mowed Lawn, Wilted Violet, Dusty Concord, Chipped Sapphire, Mustard Seed, Spiced Marmalade, Squeezed Lemonade, Copics
Stamps: Lawn Fawn Critters Ever After and matching dies, Party Animal
Dies: Lawn Fawn Stitched Circle dies, Starry Skies, Stitched Mountain Border, Forest Border, Grassy Border

BYOB - Bring Your Own Bone

 

I'm suffering from severe post-holiday depression. I've only been away from work since Tuesday but it seems like a month. It's been such a wonderful few days in good company, not to mention wonderful weather (apart from today). Now I have to deal with going back to my overflowing inbox and all the problems I have pushed out of my mind, not to mention getting back to the diet and exercise regime. How I wish I would win the lottery and never have to go back to work again. 

Today I have spent most of the day in the craft room, creating and stuffing my face with sweets. I had so much fun making this card, which was inspired by the H is for Hounds challenge over at the Sisterhood of Snarky Stampers. I was also inspired by the fun Punny Time challenge over at Lawnscaping (this is my second card for this challenge). I'm also linking up with the Simon Says Stamp Wednesday challenge where the theme is Make for the Border as I used quite a number of border dies on this card, not to mention adding the scalloped border behind the scene and with Simon Says Stamp Monday challenge where the theme is Summer Fun.

I got out my Gansai Tambi watercolours and started by colouring bits of watercolour paper for the background die cuts - blues for the sky, yellows for the sun, reds and oranges for the tree border and a darker and lighter green for the two grassy backgrounds. After the backgrounds dried I die cut pieces using the Lawn Fawn Forest border, Stitched hillside borders, Grassy borders and Stitched rectangle dies. I also die cut the sun and cloud using Spring Showers dies. Next, I stamped the dogs and accessories in Versafine Onyx Black, coloured using watercolours and die cut with the matching dies. I also stamped and die cut the letters for the sentiment in Stampin' Up inks. Last, I die cut a piece of Perfectly Plaid in colours matching the scene using a Scalloped rectangle die and stamped the sentiment inside the card.

Card: 300 gsm linen textured card, 190 gsm watercolour paper

Stamps: Lawn Fawn Critters at the Dog Park and matching dies, Owen's ABCs and matching dies, Party Animal and matching dies, Clare's ABCs

Ink and colouring: Versafine Onyx Black, Stampin' Up Daffodil Delight, Tempting Turquoise, Real Red, Pear Pizzazz, Kuretake Gansai Tambi watercolours

Dies: Lawn Fawn Stitched Rectangle dies, Scalloped Rectangle dies, Forest border die, Stitched Hillside die, Grassy border die, Spring Showers die

Penguin under Northern Lights

For a person who originates from a country that other people travel to to see the Northern Lights, it's rather ironic that I've never seen them. But I love the magical photos showing those dancing lights. And I love the techniques used in crafting to re-create the magical feeling of the Northern Lights. Just google Norther Lights crafting video, there are plenty of great tutorials out there.

I started by creating the northern lights backgrounds. For the first card I used Distress Inks in Squeezed Lemonade, Peacock Feathers, Mermaid Lagoon and Cracked Pistachio, and for the other I used Seedless Preserves, Abandoned Coral, Fossilized Amber and Peacock Feathers. I used foam pads to ink the coloured inks in a diagonal pattern across the card. Then I added Chipped sapphire, covering some of the coloured bits to create more of an illusion of the magical dancing lights. Last, I added Black Soot ink around the edges, smudging it gently over parts of the coloured bits. When I was happy with the way the sky looked, I added some stars using a white gel pen. Then I die cut the treeline from black card, and die cut the Northern Lights panel and black treeline panel using a Stitched Rectangle die.

Next, I stamped the super cute little Winter Penguin onto white card and coloured with Copics, doing the same with the sheet of ice from Critters in the Arctic. Then I die cut both images using the matching dies. Next I stamped the sentiment from Lawn Fawn's Happy Everything in Versamark and heat embossed in white embossing powder. After attaching everything onto the front panel, all that was needed was to die cut a mat in matching colour using the next size of Stitched Rectangle die, and attached onto white card. I absolutely adore these little happy penguins, skating under the Northern Lights. 

I would like to contribute to the following challenges:

Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge - Anything Goes

Time Out Challenges - Be inspired by "Snowflakes are Winter's Butterflies" where I was inspired by the winter theme
Craft Your Passion - Anything Goes
Crafty Hazelnut's Christmas Challenge - Die cuts or punches 
Crafty Hazelnut's Christmas Challenge Extra - Anything Goes
52 Christmas Card Throwdown - Sponging or Brayering
Crafting for All Seasons - Brrrr It's Cold Outside

Card: 300 gsm white card, Hobbycraft 160 gsm white card, 240 gsm black, purple and turquoise card
Stamps: Lawn Fawn Winter Penguin, Happy Everything, Critters in the Arctic and matching dies
Ink and colouring: Tsukineko Versamark and Memento Tuxedo Black, Tim Holtz Distress Inks Abandoned Coral, Cracked Pistachio, Fossilized Amber, Mermaid Lagoon, Peacock Feathers, Seedless Preserves and Squeezed Lemonade, Copics 
Other: Lawn Fawn Forest Border and Stitched Rectangle dies, Papermania Seafoam White embossing Powder, Signo White Gel Pen

Autumn Alpaca

The small things in life that make me so happy - picking an apple off the tree and eating it. Even better, transforming the apples into apple crumble, and having it with vanilla ice cream and home made salted caramel sauce (in case you feel tempted, I used this recipe from Brown Eyed Baker. The thing is, when you make salted caramel, I think you have to keep tasting it every step of the way. Just to make sure. I wouldn't want to serve my Culinary Consultant sub-par caramel sauce. The downside is I only have half of the caramel sauce left after all that tasting... But it did turn out very delicious!

Today's card is inspired by several autumn themed challenges. As I love love love love looooove (I think you are getting the idea here) the Lawn Fawn alpaca stamp, and I thought he would be adorable with a little cap to go with that lovely scarf he is wearing. And I thought he would enjoy an outing in the autumnal woods. 

The layout of the card was inspired by the sketch over at Fusion card challenges and the autumn coloured inspiration pic. I'm also linking up over at Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge where the theme is Autumn is in the Air, Time Out challenges where the theme is Autumn... the year's last, loveliest smile, Stamping Sensations where the theme is Colours of Autumn, Cupcake Inspirations where the theme is Forest Friends and Lawnscaping where the theme is to make the sentiment your focal point.

To create the background and the hills I started by dabbing some Distress Paints in Barn Door, Festive Berries, Spiced Marmalade and Mustard Seed onto my craft mat. Then I spritzed it with plenty of water, and dabbed pieces of card in the mix of colours. Gradually, I added more water to get a lighter colour and to use up all the colours on my craft mat. I used the brighter coloured cards to die cut the rolling hills and the lighter for the background which I cut with the Lawn Fawn Stitched Journaling card die. I stamped the trees, the alpaca and the mushrooms in Memento ink and coloured them with Copics. Last, I die cut the sentiment in kraft card and inked it with Vintage Photo distress ink. I stamped the leaf (the only(!) leaf stamp I seem to own) from a Hero Arts set in Versamark and heat embossed in white. I stamped the leaf and mushrooms in Versamark onto kraft card and adhered the front panel using foam tape.

Card: kraft card, 160 gsm Hobbycraft white card
Stamps: Lawn Fawn Winter Alpaca and matching die, Joy to the Woods and matching dies, Critters in the Arctic and matching dies, Critters in the Forest, Hero Arts Layered Flowers
Inks and Colouring: Tim Holtz Distress Paints Barn Door, Festive Berries, Mustard Seed, Spiced Marmalade, Distress ink Vintage Photo, Copics, Tsukineko Versamark and Memento Tuxedo Black
Other: Lawn Fawn Forest Border, Stitched Journaling Card, Stitched Hillside Borders, Scripty Hugs dies, Papermania Seafoam White embossing powder