Finish it Friday 16, its a circus!

Good Morning!

Thanks for popping in.

Friday again, so here goes...

I thought I'd use up a nice easy mop up piece!

Trimmed it to about 14cm, and used Black and Cornflower archival inkpads to stamp the various elements from one of Leonie's new Circus stamp sets.

Chop it into four pieces, edge in black sharpie pen, and mount it on another matching mop up piece, done!

Gotta run, need to set up for class this afternoon, pack for Catterick tomorrow, buy birthday cake, grab lunch with my boy, and I might just have time to brush my hair lol!

Groovi Tuesday 12 and a winner

Good Evening!

Busy day, busy couple of days, but I'm here now.

The project for this week didn't really want to be photographed, but I did get a half decent close up of the frilly bit.

The frill was on one of the new arrival plates designed by Linda Williams.

I used a couple of the newer perforating tools, Lozenge and Teardrop. I'm still building my confidence with multi needle tools, but I'm getting there.

I also promised to tell you who won the black and white FIF card.

The winner, as drawn out of the hat (plastic bag more like it, but hat sounds posh) 

Barbara W from Worcestershire

Congrats Barbara and thank you for all your lovely comments.

Ok, gotta go, husband is on his way home from work so I better go and wash my many coffee cups, otherwise he will think I've done no work all day, shhhh!

Maria x

Speed Craft Sunday 12

Morning!

And Happy Easter to those who celebrate it, Happy Bank Holiday weekend to those who don't.

Speedy project today involves reviving and old custom ink pad, created with Distress ink re-inkers.

I stamped the sentiment and covered it with a mask, then used the custom coloured inkpad to stamp the mix of leaves and flowers. Would be rude if I didn't add some winged creatures too!

I like all the white space on this one, but you could trim it and make it a smaller card instead.

Time to make, 10 minutes max once I'd selected the stamps.

I'll be back tomorrow to announce the winner of the FIF card.

Have a great day whatever you are doing.

Maria x

Finish it Good Friday!

Hello!

Thanks for popping in, hope your Easter weekend has started well. I took Tillypops to church! Well sort of, it was an outdoors service today, so I thought why not, and she was very good, except when she had a pee in one of the flower beds right in front of the reverends wife! #badassjackrussell.

Now if you remember, I said I would be giving away this weeks FIF project, so here is the project...

 I actually really like this very much, might make a nice class card.

 I started with a couple of white diecuts, and a piece of card that was sprayed with silver aquatint around the edges, that piece was left over from a aquatint class about 3 years ago.

I embossed the mannequin with my Mountain Ash stencil then brushed it lightly with a black ink to pick up the texture.

The aperture of the large cog was a good size to stamp one of the floral round stamps. and a few cogs stamped for extra interest.

See the shimmer in the sprayed frame?

Ok so you have one more chance to win the card, all you have to do is leave me a nice comment, and if you are a follower then you get an extra entry into the draw. I'll count up everyone's comments from the week and announce the winner over the weekend some time.

Ok, I have laundry to do now-I'm all rock and roll you know!

Maria x

Midweek Mix, telly demo!

Hello!

I gotta be super quick, not for usual shortness of time reason, but because my battery is probably going to die!

So before that happens, here is the window scene card I did on telly at 12pm today.

Not easy to photograph with the acetate!

The Merlin stencil would work fantastically in the window too.

The stencils are on the Clarity website and Hochanda website, go get em!

Don't forget I'll be giving away my Finish it Friday card on Friday, leave me some nice comments for a chance to win, and follwers of my blog will get an extra entry in the draw.

I'm back on Hochanda at 4pm, if you have time to watch.

Gotta go!

Maria x

Stencil Saturday, pass the cake!

Good Morning!

Stencil Saturday then...

I used one of the Circus stencils desighned by Leonie Pujol.

I placed a post it note on my card then sprayed Oxides through the stencil.

Sprayed a bit more on some spare card so I could stamp and cut out the cupcake layers (club stamp). And a little strip for the words from Leonie's Whatever stamp set.

A few little splashes and some sequins to finish off!

Oh and I glazed the cherry.

Hope you like, thanks for popping in, I appreciate it.

Off up a motorway to play with alcohol inks now.

Maria x

Finish It Friday 15 and a little giveaway

Evening!

Better late than never, its been a crazy old week, but I was determined to find time to dig in that box today.

So this is what I started with...

A piece of gel plate print using stamps, sequin waste and a lid off something or other. Another gel plate piece that has a little touch of the same teal sort of colour. A little kraft tag that was clear embossed with Leafy Swirl stamp and then inked over with teak ink. And finally a die cut border strip, that's been in the box for many years since I worked for a different company (horrible man) I launched that set of Spellbinders on another tv channel (horrible people some of them) I was sent the dies about 36 hours before taking them to tv for 10 live hours, what a cock up!

I added a couple of die cut leaves and flower that were also lurking in the box. The stamped butterfly looked quite blah blah blah on the tag, so I cut around it with a knife to pop it up, and added glossy accents-its still wet in the picture.

Thanks for popping in!

I'm hoping to get back on track a bit now.

Next week on Finish It Friday I will be giving the project away to one of you, all you have to do is comment on as many of my posts as you like between now and then, your name will go in the hat once for each day you comment, and you'll have a bonus entry if you are have clicked follow my blog.

Maria x

Mixed Media Monday

Evening!

I'm scrambling a bit this week, busy time, but I thought I'd try to find something to blog while I'm waiting for the dinner to simmer (eating at 10pm is getting to be a habit)

I found a frame I did ages ago by covering it with swatches of embossed card, painted with black acrylic paint and then did a bit of the old dry brushing with Inca Gold.

Then it sat there for aaaaaaaages… then I picked it back up a while ago and added another embossed piece of card (Leafy Swirl stencil) then in front of that put a lurvly die cut, do you recognise that one? its the 

Happy Couple Fresh Cut die.

Right, I gotta go, I'm now in the kitchen again, and it could all go wrong if I don't focus!

Thanks for popping in, normal service soon I hope x

Finish it Friday 14

Morning! I'm a bit late today, had a bit of a lie in, tired this week, but I'm on coffee number 2 now so normal service will follow shortly!

Today's FIF project is one I did a short while ago when I did a little batch, that way I have emergency projects for when time is not my friend, like today. It's also nice to have a whole session with my 'use me up' box.

I started with an inky piece, created with stencils and ink sprays, don't even know what stencils because they are so old. And the little tile was created with some board covered in paperclay, some mica powder and a cool floral tile Claritystamp. I chose these to go together because of the colours, good match?

And very easily they became this...

Another for my little pile, I only have a couple of birthday this month.

Ok go and get your scraps out and make something!

I have to do some cleaning up, finish the last bits for my tv prep for tomorrow (12pm and 4pm on Hochanda) Then I need to pack everything, then check Iv'e packed everything, then load the car and check again to make sure I haven't forgotten anything-yes i'm serious. And then I can go for late lunch with my lovely Pete-a Friday off work for him, unheard of!

Thanks for popping in, not sure if I'll manage a Stencil Saturday tomorrow or not, I leave for Peterborough at 6.15am, will be home at about 9.30pm.

Oh remind me over the next couple of days though, give away on bloggy next week, just for fun.

Maria x

Groovi Tuesday 11

Happy Tuesday to you!

Time for another Groovi project then.

I thought I'd show you one of the projects I did on telly the other week...

I wanted to do a sampler piece to practice various techniques on a smaller less intimidating  scale.

So there's some gentle white work, geo pattern with perforating grid, and some perforating and cutting.

Plates used are Tina's Fun Collection

And the new Mini Starter kit

Thanks for popping in, have a good one!

Maria x

Mixed Media Monday 7

Good Morning and welcome to another ole week, hopefully it will be a good one for us all!

Mixed Media then, my two favourite things to alter are clocks and mirrors...

This is one I did for Leonie a few weeks ago using her Natural Beauty stencils.

I have it all going on, paint, stamped ink, stencilled ink, and a bit of clear paste.

Only a couple of embellishments, sometimes I prefer a cleaner look.

I also used the Journal stamp set, its one of my 'go to' sets, and also a touch here and there of the new layering stamps that our Paul had on Hochanda at the weekend.

Hope you like!

Have a good one, whatever your'e up to, and watch out for April Fool pranks!

Maria x

Speed Craft Sunday 11

Afternoon, hope your Sunday has been a good one. 

I have been lucky enough to spend time with both my kids, Mothers Day has mixed emotions for me, but what I take great comfort from is that both Steve and Amber did actually WANT to be with me today. Im sure I dont need to tell you that not everybody was born to good decent nurturing parents, you would have to drag me by the hair to get me in the same room as either of my biological parents, yep I just said that out loud, deep breaths.

Lets get on to Speed Craft Sunday quickly!

I started with coloured card for a change, I love Black and Yellow.

I stamped the large butterfly and small butterfly, then placed a piece of acetate over the card to position the small butterfly on the other side-there would still be ink on the stamp so you can end up marking your card while trying to achieve the correct postion.

Then I covered the butterflies with masks and brushed black ink around the edges, next I inked up a piece of bubble wrap with the same black ink, this bubble wrap has little bubbles, then lay the wrap over the card and rub lightly in the central area only, this gives a softer random spread of pattern.

Remove masks and then add little accents with white pen. Create two matching strips to stamp Line Sentiments onto, and mount everything up on a 7 inch card blank.

Time to create, about 18 minutes.

Thanks for popping in, I appreciate it.

Stencil Saturday in a rush

Mornng! Actually feels like more like middle of the night, but hey ho.

I have to blog mega fast, .so I can get out the door and on the motorway, so here is one of my cards using the new Circus stencils,and Whatever text stamps, you can find them over on the Claritystamp website.

Ok, gotta run!

Maria x

Finish it Friday 13

Morning!

So Iv'e had my usual Friday delve through the mounds of rejected and abandoned bits and bobs in my box...

The bird piece jumped out at me, it was using one of the lovely A Little Bird cutting dies, I cut a lot of the design away, but it didnt look how I expected so it was banished to the box! I decided to pair it up with the Treescape die.

An inky background is what is needed!

I marked the card at  the corners of the aperture die, so I knew what was going to be visible.

And voila!

Now I like it.

Thanks for popping in!

Im off now to get packed for Catterick class tomorrow.

See you tomorrow hopefully for Stencil Saturday.

Midweek Mix 1

Hello, and thanks for popping in!

Time for a new feature on the bloggy, Midweek Mix, which basically means I can blog anything I want!

I have one more day to create a feature for, Thursday, I already have another nice and different idea lined up ready.

 I've worked hard to come up with my own feature ideas to make my blog individual to me, I'm very happy for other crafters to be inspired to try designs on my blog and even join in with a daily feature, BUT I hope other bloggers are respectful enough to come up with their own feature ideas,  our blogs are personal and should reflect the author, don't you think? 

So after a little scout through my pics, I thought we could have a little look at some hearts and birds...

This one is using the Bird Heart Sprig cutting die and some lovely Indian Summer paper.

The 3 way stamp set is quite cool too, I cut a little aperture mask so I could stamp into the heart.

And another one using the cutting die, this one is actually a shaker card with tiny burgundy beads.

Hope you like!

Maria x

Groovi Tuesday 10

Good Morning and thanks for popping in.

The weeks are flying by aren't they, week 10 of Groovi Tuesday already.

I think the Unicorn and Dragon plates are great for kids, with nice bright colours, especially with the Indian Summer papers.

I coloured this one with Pergacolour pens, more vibrant than pencils.

And I even used up one of my many many many many paper scraps, just use a decorative edge punch and away you go.

That's it for today, Lots of work to do, and then I am being taken somewhere (no idea where) to see something (no idea what)????? 

Dress code, a nice frock.

Never a dull moment with Pete, wouldn't change him a bit!

Maria x

Mixed Media Monday 6

Hello! Monday again, hope you had a nice weekend.

The project today is also a Finish it Friday project, but I thought id use it today.

The triple panel is a gel plate pull using paint and then ink with some mdf cogs.

Die cut cogs and swirls would go well I thought...

Maybe a bit of paper weaving...

And a little stamped sentiment!

I really should get my gel plate out more often.

Hope you like it!

Come back tomorrow for a very clean Groovi project.

Maria x

Speed Craft Sunday 10

Morning! Only just, I know, I had a nice sedate pace this morning, tired after telly!

So while still in my pjs I spent 12 minutes at my desk...

I stamped the entwined hummingbirds in Cornflower archival ink and covered the circles with masks, luckily they are the perfect size for the woodware 2 inch punch, so no cutting involved.

I then inked up the script stamp from the Journal set, Buttercup archival all over then Sap Green just around the edges. Stamp it across the middle.

Stamp again, above and below. Sponge a little yellow ink around the circle masks. I pondered putting the yellow into the circles instead but that would have involved cutting an aperture mask-not gonna do that when my lovely hubby is cooking my breakfast downstairs, Im starvin!

Hope you like!

I havent linked to anything, breakfast is ready, but everything is on the Clarity website, not my breakfast though, thats mine.

Thanks for popping in!

Maria x