Monday 31 December 2018

Milestones, Memories and Moving Forward

This is my 900th blog post and coincides with the last one of 2018.  This is the first calendar year that I have blogged every day, the year that my first DT samples were shown on Hochanda by Lou Withers (Royal Talens), the year I was asked to join the Clarity design team and have participated in too many challenges to count.  My second weekly art journal is only three pages away from completion and I have made many creative friends.   I have decided to pick a project from each month this year which shows my continuing journey.  All captions link to my original post.
January

Sunday 30 December 2018

Clean and Simple Birthday Card

Two of my friends have late December birthdays.  I decided to use a card design that I made at a workshop with Maria Moorhouse for one and finish a second card in the same style for the other friend.

Saturday 29 December 2018

From Empty Tin to Decorated Goody Box

I decorated one of these boxes at a workshop with Maria Moorhouse quite some time ago (see HERE) and decided to decorate a second box in a similar manner for my other sister.  Both boxes were filled with bath goodies as gifts.

Friday 28 December 2018

Trinket Box with Calendar and Post It Pad

To go with the birthday card that I made for my mum,  I created a matching box (or rather the box came first).  She will be able to replace the calendar at the end of the year and also the pad of Post It notes as they come to an end.  I'm not sure what she will decide to keep in the drawers, but I am sure she will find a use for them.  The box was started at a workshop held by Maria Moorhouse, but finished at home.  I loved her ideas for using the die and am tempted to get one of my own.

Wednesday 26 December 2018

Last WOYWW of 2018 (#499)

I hope everyone had a pleasant Christmas yesterday and didn't get too stressed out.  My 'desk' today shows the traditional after dinner family game of Mexican Train.  Brought over from relatives in Canada and now played by all off shoots of the family over here.
The other side of the desk shows the view last Thursday, when Eva came over for our last craft get together of 2018.  I grabbed a photo to share today.
She was busy finishing off a box that we started at a workshop with Maria Moorhouse earlier in December  (pop back on Friday to see mine).  Thanks to all my WOYWW visitors this year and please don't forget to visit our leader Julia over at the Stamping Ground.  The first WOYWW of 2019 will be a landmark 500 and the 10th anniversary of this weekly event will take place only 20 weeks later.  Happy WOYWW and Happy New Year!

Tuesday 25 December 2018

Candle Decorating using Tissue Paper and Stamping

I wanted to have a go at decorating a candle for a Christmas present.  There are lots of YouTube videos that show you what to do and as I already had wax paper and tissue paper, all I needed was a candle!

Sunday 23 December 2018

Minimalism: Have Less, Be More an Art Journal Page

The November prompt over on Nina Ribena's Art Journal Prompts and More was Art Movements.  Week 2 was anything goes, so I chose minimalism as my inspiration and also found a matching quote.  I don't think it will ever apply to crafters, as 'have less' is so hard to apply to our crafty stashes.

Friday 21 December 2018

Be A Unicorn in a Field of Horses

The mini mission prompt for December over on Mission Inspiration is Unicorn.  The rest of the alphabet prompts should be released before the end of the year too, so I can finish my tag journal.  I have completed all the mini mission prompts on #8 manilla tags and bound them together with a large book ring.

Thursday 20 December 2018

Wednesday 19 December 2018

WOYWW 498: Will I Be Ready

With less than a week to go until Christmas I wonder if I will be ready in time.  I will keep this brief fellow deskers, as I know time is precious.
My side of the desk shows cards received from Shaz  (Silverwolf) and Doug and Christine (Bishopsmate) and Peter.  Thank you so much.  I am not posting any cards this year, instead I am donating the postage to charity.
The other side of the desk this week shows fellow JJAMMMA (Junk Journals and Mindful Mixed Media Art) members at the meet up yesterday. Jane (pictured above) brought cake!
Sooooo delicious!
Paul did make it eventually Neet.
And Lou was trying to look enigmatic lol.
Kaz and Chris made it as well, but I forgot to take the camera out before they left. 
And so, friends, I wish you all a Merry Christmas and will be round to visit after work tonight.  Please feel free to visit everyone or link up your own desk via The Stamping Ground, where Julia has kept WOYWW going for nearly 10 years!

Tuesday 18 December 2018

Gift Jar for Christmas Fair

Staff were asked to fill a jar and add a tag for a stall at the Christmas fair.  I had previously made some mini Christmas gift tags and envelopes (see HERE), but had to make a tag and find a jar with a wide enough neck to hold the cards.  One of my Y5 French pupils ended up with my jar which I was really pleased about.

Monday 17 December 2018

Tag Journal Flick Through: Top 10 Pages

The first 20 pages in my ABC tag journal are complete.  I only have to complete U for unicorn and the remaining five prompts and it will be finished.  The prompts that I have followed to create the journal are the mini missions each month over on Mission Inspiration.  I have thoroughly enjoyed adding to the journal (a set of #8 manilla tags on a book ring) each month and look forward to taking part with the new mini mission prompts in 2019.  I have shared the step by steps on my blog previously and will add the link with each photo.  Here are some of my favourites.
See HERE

Sunday 16 December 2018

Same Technique, Different Colours, What a Difference

I had a set of Christmas cards to make for some friends and wanted them in the same style but each one individual.  I used an idea by Maria Moorhouse in a recent workshop as the starting point and the Night Before Christmas stamps from Claritystamp.  The colour of the mat makes a big difference too.

Thursday 13 December 2018

Festive ATCs

The theme for this month's ATC swap over on Junk Journals and Mindful Mixed Media Art was Festive/Winter rather than the usual letter prompt.  Once again I had fun with stamps and stencils from Claritystamp.  My partner should have received them by now so I am sharing them here.

Wednesday 12 December 2018

WOYWW 497: Where Does the Time Go?

I won't bother with the obligatory time flies comment, as I'm sure many of you will say it for me.  I have been up and in my shed at silly o'clock this week just to get on top of crafty Christmas gifts, cards, an ATC swap that I signed up for this month in a moment of madness, as well as my first samples for Clarity.  The deadline was brought forward to try and avoid the Christmas post so I have had to get cracking sooner than I originally intended.
The upshot is, that my desk contains the lid of my bit box with all my lovely mop up papers, as I cannot share anything that I was working on today.  The benefit of all this work, however, is that I will have plenty of projects to share over Christmas and the New Year without having to create any more.  Having posted the ATCs first class yesterday, I will be sharing them tomorrow, as I hope they will have arrived by then.
The bit box itself contains scraps of paper and card, perfect for matting and layering or die cutting as needed.  Nothing on the other side of the desk this wek either, as Eva is busy lesson planning for the final run up to Christmas.  If you'd like to see more interesting desks than mine, then please visit the Queen of links, Julia, over on The Stamping Ground.  There are desks from all around the world!  Happy WOYWW, I may not be able to visit this week until I have finished off a few more projects, but I will do my best to drop in.

Tuesday 11 December 2018

A Gift Tag for My Darling Using Ecoline Pens

As my husband's birthday is on Christmas Eve,  I took a rest from Christmas projects and made a gift tag for his present.  Once again I played with my Ecoline pens from Royal Talens and stamps from Claritystamp.

Monday 10 December 2018

Watercolour Pens on a Variety of Surfaces to Create a Christmas Gift Tag


Once again,  I had a play with my Royal Talens Ecoline water brush pens.  This time I tried them out on several different surfaces, from stamping card to a paper towel, both directly on the paper and adding them with a water brush.  From my play, came this Christmas Gift Tag.

Sunday 9 December 2018

DIfferent Effects Using Water Colour Pens Directly on Stamps

For this card,  I tried different ways of stamping onto watercolour card, having coloured directly onto stamps using the Ecoline water colour brush pens from Royal Talens.  All stamps used are from Claritystamp.

Saturday 8 December 2018

From Copy Paper to Christmas Card Topper Transferring Ink from a Stencil

I was playing around on copy paper, trying out a new technique.  The result became a Christmas card topper.  Without looking closely, you would never believe that it started as a piece of cheap copy paper.

Friday 7 December 2018

Monochrome Doodles Christmas Card

For my latest Christmas card, I decided to go in an entirely different direction.  Instead of using brightly coloured inks,  I kept the colour palette monochrome: black, white and pale grey.  I also enjoyed some relaxing doodling.

Thursday 6 December 2018

Wednesday 5 December 2018

WOYWW 496: Company Again

Hasn't the week gone by quickly?  I don't expect that I'm the only one who thinks so.  Christmas is less than three weeks away now and I'm starting to go into panic mode.  I took time out yesterday to do some crafting with Eva however, as we haven't had a proper chance to get together to craft for ages.
My side of the desk shows a birthday card I was working on using one of my Clarity Gray Sale purchases.  The second and last parcel was waiting for me when I got home from work on Monday so I had to have a play.  Pop back tomorrow to see the card, as I did manage to finish it off.
Eva was die cutting and using up lots of her inky backgrounds to create toppers.
To see other desks and wow at just how varied the crafting world can be, please pop over to Julia's Stamping Ground, where all the links are kept together.   I will pop by and visit after work tonight or in the morning.  Happy WOYWW everyone.

Tuesday 4 December 2018

Repeat Stamping: A Clean and Simple Christmas Card

After I made the journal page which I shared yesterday (see HERE),  I decided to use the repeat stamping technique to create a topper for another Christmas card.  With a change of colour scheme and sentiment, this card could be used for a multitude of occasions.

Monday 3 December 2018

Landscape Journal Page in the Style of Osnat Tzadok

As the first December prompt has been posted over on Nina Ribena's Art Journal Prompts and More,  I thought that it was about time that I finished the last prompt for October in my Journal.  I am now only three weeks behind, as I have completed the first November prompt.  The general prompt for October was 'In the Style of' and the final prompt was Landscapes/Seascapes.  Osnat Tzadok was one of the artists listed and I really like her repetitive, colourful style and the way she plays with reflections.  I decided to use a gel plate to create the reflections on my page.

Sunday 2 December 2018

Christmas Art Journal Page: Eight Steps, Three Colours

It is quite a while since I joined in with the main monthly mission over on Mission Inspiration, in fact my last page followed the September prompts.  However, I couldn't resist the December colours and prompts and, for the first time ever, completed my page on the day that the prompts were released.  The three suggested colours were Snow White, Ice Blue and Silver Sparkle and as usual there were eight steps to follow and a choice of five prompt words.

Saturday 1 December 2018

Christmas Card with Alcohol Ink Toppers

If you visited my blog yesterday, you saw two cards made with the off stamping from the use of Alcohol Lift-Ink on a piece of Yupo paper which had been covered with alcohol inks (see HERE).  Today I'll show you how I turned the two alcohol ink background toppers into a card.

Thursday 29 November 2018

Christmas Card Toppers: Mounting Makes a Difference


The decision how to mount up a topper can make a big difference to the look of the finished card.  From the size and layout of the card itself, to the colour used to mat and layer.  Here I have taken three toppers of the same size (3" x 5.5") and mounted them on three different sized cards (6" x 6", A6 and DL).  Each one works, but the effect is completely different each time.

Wednesday 28 November 2018

WOYWW 495: Secret Squirrel

My desk is a little short on detail this week.  Between working on samples for Lou Withers' Royal Talens shows that I needed to get ready to give her tomorrow, and making a start on my first Clarity samples which need to be posted in plenty of time for January, there is not much I can show you.  I am also trying to keep up with a project a day (except Wednesdays) to share on my blog.
My desk shows the start of a sample using the Ecoline pens to create a mop up background.  It is one of my favourite techniques, so I never throw my inky paper towels away.  You'll have to wait until the 9th or 10th December to see the finished piece on my blog as that is when Lou has her One Day Special shows on Hochanda.
I actually have something to show on the other side of the desk.  Eva made it over for a crafty day's play last Thursday so I took a photo while I had the chance.  We are going up to the JJAMMMA (Junk Journals and Mindful Mixed Media Art) monthly meet up in Stockport tomorrow.  I am looking forward to it as we haven't both managed to go together for ages.  She was very productive and finished lots of Christmas card toppers.


For more crafty fun and desks from around the world, please visit The Stamping Ground, where Julia keeps us all in line and lists all the links!

Tuesday 27 November 2018

Christmas Scene through a Window

I created a double layered tag using one of the Fresh Cut Window Aperture dies from Claritystamp.  I had previously used the Dove Window to create a Panorama Card (see HERE), but this time worked with the Candle Window.

Monday 26 November 2018

Sunday 25 November 2018

Pointillism Art Journal Page: Stag

It seems a while since I joined in with Nina Ribena's Art Journal Prompts and More.  I haven't yet completed the last page for the October prompts and this is the first page that I have created with the November prompts: Art Movements.  Week 1 was Pointillism and I enjoyed using my masks in a different way to help me create this page.