Butterfly Butterfly... - Saturday 9th August 2014

Good Morning Friends,

Thank you all for popping over and leaving a comment on Sam's blog on Tuesday, well I think you know how much I appreciate your comments on my posts both here and there! I was feeling guilty that most of you were leaving a comment on Tuesdays both here and on my actual post, which is why I just put the link this week...so thank you! I think that particular card was a real labour of love, I absolutely had so much fun creating it. It had been a while since I had used acetate in that way and I actually wondered why had it been so long... I was quite chuffed when Sam said it had her rushing for the acetate!

All my samples have been packed up and sent to Sam now for her shows on Create & Craft on 16th August.

Have you all had a good week? We have had a 'busy' one...I am very wary that September is looming and for some incredibly mad reason (so mad I don't even know why), I have landed myself with organising three events in the first two weeks of the month at work - what I would do without my wonderful volunteers at the moment I have no idea! It's all very well having this ideas but all the work in publicising  them and then hoping people will come is quite stressful.

We are also on holiday later in the month of September(I think we'll need it as Tom has been working harder than ever!)...not going far this year (to think this time last year I was getting so excited about seeing my family in California again!!): the kitchen is being fitted and I'm sorry, but everyone keeps saying 'ooh lovely, bet your excited about that' - well I'm not, I'm really not!:)

Tom had to go to London for two days this week, so I did some late night crafting, working on designs for our next workshop...more of that today. I also spent a little bit of time out in the craft barn (should call it 'hut' really!) doing a bit more painting. I am so pleased with the way my Halloween Lantern is shaping up, but I am going to hold off until at least mid-September to post it! 

I did actually intend to do a lovely visit to everyone's blog Tuesday night, but I couldn't comment on quite a few, same on Wednesday. I thought it was an internet problem, but other sites were fine, so it must have been blogger...I ended up catching up with Pinterest instead, I hope I am up to date with you all now!

Today's card is a butterfly card I made for Paola, who is a family member and very dear friend (we got on from the first time we met so many years ago), she is just the most lovely person.

 I brayered the card to create the background using Spiced Marmalade, Wild Honey and Ripe Persimmon distress inks. The leaves are a stamp by Clarity, which I coloured with a water brush using mica powders. It is actually so much more shimmery than the photo shows.

The butterfly is by Lavinia and was again coloured with distress inks and micas.

The inside of the card:-

Inside I stamped the butterfly off the card and added a sentiment from a set by Dreamees


Here is a photo of Tom and I with Paola (next to me) and her daughter Ilaria, at Tom's uncle's restaurant in Vicenza, Italy a few years ago

That's it from me today...I have already spent over an hour giving the coop it's weekly 'deep clean' honestly, they are cleaned out every day and get a thorough clean every week...more than the house gets, lol...speaking of which I now need to do that dreaded housework before I can craft!

Love and Hugs
Carole  X

Fairy Fleur - Monday 9th June 2014

Hello Friends,

I hope you all had a good weekend and the sun shone! I had a busy one, helping out at the Julia Watts demo day on Saturday and yesterday we picked up Tom's parents from the airport (they've been on holiday in Italy) and then all went to lunch.

Today's card is another card made using Lavinia Stamps fairies: we are basing a special Chipping Sodbury Festival workshop on a fairy theme in a few weeks time (because the festival theme is Disney), so I have been playing with my stamps for examples and to decide on the card my group will make.

We were asked to put on a special  festival workshop last year, where the theme was The Beatles and Amy and I  had great fun basing cards around Beatles lyrics. This year the theme was originally to be First World War commemorations and we had great ideas with poppy stamps...then it got changed to Disney!

Although we aren't totally going down the Disney route with our cards, we have to give a nod to the theme,  so  we decided to  use the mystical fairy silhouettes that Lavinia produces. Actually from what I've read about the movie and the photos I've seen, I think the images Lavinia creates will fit in nicely with the new Disney movie Malefficent, so we're right up to date!

I was playing with the background more than anything with this one, so if I decide go with it, I may change the fairy to one that looks more 'traditional'. However, I do really love this stamp.

I am working on a  selection of cards using Lavinia stamps and for a few of them I created my backgrounds using a brayer. But this wouldn't be practical in the workshop at the moment, so for others I just used inks and cut n' dry.

I inked this one using 2 colours: Dusty Concord distress ink and Purple Twilight adirondack. I used Cut n Dry to apply the inks. To create the moon, I die cut a circle and used it as a mask. For the mountains I tore copy paper into sheets and also used it as a mask. Using both colour inks to create depth.

The Vine stamp is also by Lavinia, but the ferns and quote are from the Dandelion Wishes set of stamps by Creative Expressions and the tiny butterflies are by Majestix. The main fairy is 'Fleur' by Lavinia.

I coloured  'Fleur' in with the inks I used to create the background, just painting in with a brush. I also added glitter to Fleur and a little to the ferns (you have to have glitter with fairies!).

Inside the card I stamped the greeting from Phill Martin's Birthday Verses stamp set for Creative Expressions (another Ally Pally buy and very useful!) I stamped the vine leaves in the corners and the little starbursts.

That's all from me for today, I'll be back tomorrow with this week's Sam Poole DT post, meanwhile enjoy the rest of the day!

Love and Hugs,
Carole X

Wedding Anniversary - Thursday 19th September

Hello Friends,

Today  is our wedding anniversary, so the card I'm sharing is the one I made for Tom. We have a shortish drive to a town called Los Alamos today and we are very much in the central Californian wine country. Normally I would make a large card, but because we were away, I made a smaller one and a little different to my usual style..something a bit dreamy and mystical!

Last night we stayed at an hotel we last stayed in 20 years ago...a themed hotel. The Madonna Inn, San Luis Obispo. Last time we stayed in The Caveman Room, the most popular in the hotel...this time it was The Captains Bridge...decor was like the captains cabin in an old ship...we had a lovely meal in their very pink restaurant. I'm having problems getting my photos up at the moment, but our next hotel is 2 nights so I'll get it sorted hopefully!

Now to my card: I brayered the background using several inks and created the 'mound' with a paper mask. The stamp is by Lavinia Stamps and I typed the sentiment.

Our hotel for the next two nights is called The Victorian Mansion: it's a quirky bed and breakfast that only has 6 suites, all of them themed like our previous hotel (but that was massive!). I couldn't get the Egyptian or the Gypsy rooms as they were booked, so we are carrying on the nautical theme with our room here.

Los Alamos is in the heart of Central California wine country in the Santa Barbara area, so we are going to be doing some wine tasting whilst we are here. A  short walk from The Vick is Babbis Tasting Room, the tasting venue for Casa Dumetz Vineyard...more of that tomorrow after we have visited.

Thanks for stopping by,
Love,
Carole X

Sunday Stampers Wk 273 - Friends - Wednesday 4th September

Good Morning Friends,

Well I've been missing a few days, prepping for this week's Out of the Blue craft class, still working on those last few presents to take away with us and still not getting to grips with forthcoming craft fair cards!

Never mind! Some months ago, we used these Indigo Blu stamps in one of our craft classes, so I thought I would revisit the stamps for this week's Sunday Stampers. This time Hels Sheridan has set the theme of 'Friends' - full deets here

Back when we did our class I made a silver version of this card, so this time have chosen browns and golds. It's a very simple card:  I stamped the image using a coffee  archival ink and heat embossed with clear embossing powder.

For the matting and layering with the gilding flakes I used double sided tape and finished off with a knotted ribbon.

That's it for today...well what could be better than an evening with good friends and good wine?!

Love and hugs,

Carole X

Good Morning Blog Friends!

Well December is here and it's time to panic (not that I wasn't already- lol). At least today has started bright and sunny here and the hens are having a great time scooting about the garden in some dry weather at last!

Thank you for those who visited and commented on my ribbon wreaths yesterday, they were fun makes...hopefully tomorrow I will be posting my new seasonal door wreath..that's if I get it photographed!

I hope I got around to most of you yesterday, it was all a bit of a rush..I did some housework in the morning in preparation for putting the tree up today, then I had to get the bus to Bristol. There is  a lovely shopping area in the centre by the University. I had a wander up there (it's on a steep hill), bought some little stocking fillers (mostly foodie) in a gorgeous shop called Bristol Guild (of Arts and Crafts) and a few other shops, then met Tom when he'd finished work...we had pizza and then walked down the hill to the Hippodrome theatre where we enjoyed an evening of opera, Cosi fan Tutte. Tom had a 95 year old man sat next to him, he was with his nephew, said they had come up from Bridgwater and were making the trip again tonight for La Boheme! Hope I'm that willing and agile if I get to 95!

Anyway, for the card....I made this one for my friend Trish, who has  just become a Grandma (she seems so young, it's scary!)  Luckily I knew that her daughter and husband were expecting a boy, so I could make it a week or so in advance! 

Trish and I have been friends since about 2009, when we both joined Twitter. It's a long story, but when we realised we both lived close enough to meet in Bath and after having said 'hello' when we attended the same concert, we met for lunch and have been friends ever since (it was Trish I went to the Christmas Market with last week)...so it is possible to actually make real life friends via social media! Trish and her husband Alan now even keep a few hens too..see it's catching!

This card is made using an LOTV stamp, coloured with Promarkers. I made the background paper by using a polka dot mask and inked the edges with distress ink. The layer beneath the image was made using an M-Bossability.

Thanks for stopping by...off to put the tree up now!

Carole Z X

Birthday Girls - Saturday 6th October

Good Morning my lovely blog friends...another weekend is here, wonderful!

Thank you for all your comments on my Steampunk Robin card, I loved reading them all - Steampunk certainly divides us crafters doesn't it? I like it because it is basically masculine, but can be as edgy or feminine as you make it. I love that you can virtually do what you like with it, so it gets my creative juices flowing!

You've all seen my more feminine Steampunk cards - these tend to be more appealing to anyone who just doesn't like Steampunk and also gives us girls a bit of 'edge' !

My pet hate (and I suspect I'm not alone) is making cards for men - I get commissioned for cards featuring sport, especially football and my heart sinks, but if someone asks for trains or engines the light bulbs in my brain light up, because Steampunk masculine I relish! I came to card making through a love of art, inherited from my dear Dad, sadly no longer with us. He was a Signwriter by profession and a darn good one too! He trained in Canada where he lived from about 12 years old and whilst he really appreciated all art, he was very influenced by the impressionists and graphic artists (he actually worked on cartoons for a local paper in Canada for a while when he was a student). Dad and I spent many hours in the Bristol Museum and Gallery when I was a kid, I loved it! On trips to London, where I had some aunts and cousins at the time, my highlight was visiting the galleries and museums with dad, whilst the rest of the family did the shops!

I was wondering what got you all card making..what were your paths? What types of cards do you really like to make? I have to say, I love to mix it up...I love making cute cards with the stamps of LOTV, but I relish using edgier steampunky and arty stamps by such designers as Sam Poole, Wendy Vecchi and of course, Tim Holz. So, as you see I like to mix it up - that is, when I get the time, because I can't generally do that with commissions.

My inspirations in the art world today are many, I love the rich, colourful symbolism of Klimt, the highly expressive works of Klee and my favourite contemporary artist is probably Tracey Emin, controversial yes, but her quilts, scrapbooks and videos are amazing. Tom had to drag me out of her exhibition on the South bank last year, I had been in there so long! Probably my favourite artist is Frida Kahlo, again her exhibition in the Tate Modern a few years ago captivated me.I love the colours, symbolism and angst she created in her work.

 My favourite art collection is the Peggy Guggenheim in Venice. It is somewhere I have visited many times and I can stay for hours. I think my favourite piece of art is in that gallery: Magritte's Empire of Light. The one in the Guggenheim is one of several versions by Magritte..it just speaks to me on so many levels  The concept of time...so much mystery! I won't even start to interpret it here or you will all be nodding off, lol :)

Finally, my other love is graphic art and illustration (again thanks to Dad). I didn't study art, I didn't think I was good enough, although art history should have been my path, but I did study Film and that medium speaks to me in so many ways.  I have to say that I have always been in awe of Tim Burton. I think his illustrations are amazing and Nightmare before Christmas is one of my favourite movies still, today! Have you seen his website? Amazing! The link is here if you are interested.

But enough of the chitter chatter(when is she ever going to get to the card I hear you saying!) and after all that talk of expressionism and steampunk, today's card is none of those! It was made this week,  as a commission for a long time customer of mine. It's especially nice when creating a card for someone who's likes and dislikes I have got to know over the years. The lady works with Tom and we have never met, but it would be good to one day!

However, this card was actually made for my customer's friend to give to her daughter-in-law and I was given no likes or dislikes. Quite hard when you have no idea about the recipient, isn't it? So I went for elegant feminine without (I hope) being too girly.

The card is 8x8, covered with a gold patterned paper from stash (I just have to take advantage of the season at the moment!).  I stamped three antique dressforms from the Creative Expressions stamp set on to Oatmeal coloured card, using clear embossing ink and then heat embossed them all in black before cutting each out.

I cut a black back panel and three rectangles using the oatmeal card,which I edged with wild honey distress ink. I then typed up the greetings and die cut  the Happy Birthday one using a Labels Four Small. I slipped this under the black layer so that only half showed.

The ribbon used is a wide, deckled edged burnt orange organza and I used the Anemone Flower Topper   for the flower, cut using a yellow vellum. 

Thanks for stopping by and reading my waffle! Happy crafting folks,

Carole X

Sunday Stampers Week 223 - Ribbons!

Good morning lovely blogger friends!

Thank you so much for dropping by and looking at my creations - and especially for leaving a comment, I do read and appreciate them all and I also love to visit your blogs too, I think we learn so much from each other, don't we?

My DT project is now up on the Fantastic Ribbons site (Kirsty had left the 'e' off my name, but I'll let her off this month!), so please hop over there and leave a comment and take a look at the other lovely DT projects as well, washi tape is really fun to use and very effective. I don't know if any of you are already following or know of Kirsty Wiseman, but take a look at her blog. She is one of the most amazingly inspirational bloggers I have come across, as well as being a brilliant crafter and fantastic photographer.

Anyway, another crafter and artist who is a continuous inspiration to me is Hels Sheridan. I am so pleased we are seeing more of her on Create and Craft because she creates absolutely brilliant projects ( and I was lucky enough to win a card!).I love trying different  ways with stamping and the kind of art and craft that Hels creates is just my cup of tea, so to speak!

So, despite being on our hols, I didn't want to miss a Sunday Stamper ....but being as I am not getting much done in the way of crafting at the moment, I have created another simple tag as my project for this week.

It's simply a parcel tag, covered with some mottled dark purple paper and inked at the edges with Aged Mahogany distress ink. Using the same paper, I stamped one of the bodices from Creative Expressions Vintage Lingerie set, using Perfect Medium and then heat embossed it in black. I then punched holes where the ties would be and used some irredescent purple wired ribbon to tie it in a criss-cross. To finish off I added the same ribbon, plus some lush velvet pearled ribbon across the bottom and for the tie.

I may have another post later today, it's our wedding anniversary, so if I get time I'll post the card I made for Tom - it's a bit of fun! There will be a scheduled post tomorrow and then we are off to London, with a day at the stamping and scrapbooking show at Ally Pally on Saturday..Yay!!!

Happy Crafting Friends!

Carole Z X