A wedding card

A colleague asked me to make a wedding card for her niece. The wedding theme is herbs, which I thought was lovely, particularly as I grow lots! I really wanted to buy the Jane Shasky cd called herb garden that Joanna Sheen brought out a while ago, but it is no longer available! Time to stop kicking myself and start thinking!
Plan B was to find some herb like stamps amongst my collection and stamp something. this is what I came up with.

The sentiment and lavender stamps are from Inkylicious and the thyme and mint leaves are from Chocolate Baroque. I dusted the sentiment panel in faded lilac distress ink and embossed the sentiment with some lilac embossing powder that I have had for ages but rarely used! I added a ribbon and some liquid pearls. I think it is quite unusual for a wedding card, but I was pleased with the result, as was the lady who commissioned it.
Well, my dashboard seems to be fixed and is showing all the blogs I follow once more, thank goodness! Just when I have no more spare time and a busy weekend ahead visiting a university and preparing lots for work.
I hope I will manage a few minutes catching up soon
Thanks for looking!

Reading list issues

Seems there's a lot of people having the same problems as me with their reading list and the 'view more' button only showing one blog and not loading others..
 https://productforums.google.com/forum/#!category-topic/blogger/something-is-broken/TM9QlkTp6zc
Allegedly Google know about it - but fixing it isn't top of their list! Feel free to leave comments on the post above. If enough people do they might listen...
Okay, you can stop laughing and pointing at that pig flying across the sky!!!
I rely on my list to see who has updated, so I'm probably missing loads - please forgive me, but take a rant at Blogger! Just when I have a bit of time to look round it too. GRRRRRRRRRRR!

Cute snippets

I had a couple of little girl birthday cards to make, so I dived into my snippet box and found the images, already coloured on holiday last year! The little girl is from Sugar Nellie and the Dragon is from Wild rose studio. Both are watercoloured with distress markers and a water brush. The sentiments are from Little Claire.

The papers are all ones that have been in my snippet drawer for ever. The ones on the first card were from cuddly buddly I think. These strips needed using as they were looking a bit battered, which gave me the idea to go for a distressed look with some tea dye DI! Does the bottom one look odd with that strip of base card down the middle? I was going to use the ribbon down it, but forgot and had stuck it together good and proper before I realised! I have no idea of the make of those papers! Both of these are very much outside my comfort zone, so I may have to lie down to get over the shock of doing cute!I used up some peel-offs too, as 5 year olds quite like them!
I should be back in blog land a bit more now as I have finally finished my reports and the phonics check. Hope the girls in the snippets playground haven't forgotten who I am, I have been away so long! Sorry Miss Di! I will try and do better ;)
Thanks for looking!

Playing with my Birthday Stamps

Hi There! I'm dashing into blogland very quickly with a card I made a few weeks ago to say thanks to Lynne, who bought me this gorgeous set of stamps by Art Journey for my birthday. I ink dusted the background with memento teal zeal, bahama blue and seedless preserves DI. I stamped the teasel and pussy willow in archival black, and the tiny script (Inkylicious) in starlight black brilliance ink.

I added a bit of detail with a gelly roll white pen to finish it off.
I am an infrequent visitor at the moment, but I am almost half way through my reports now, so I am hoping to be back more regularly by the end of next week. Thanks for looking and for all your encouraging comments xxx

A walk at the weekend

Last Saturday Meg and I decided we needed some fresh air, so went for a walk at Teversal trails. Meg had been inside all week revising for her AS levels, and the rain had stopped me getting out in the garden too, so we grabbed our cameras and jumped in the car.  We did the same at roughly this time last year, but with such a mild winter I was hopeful we might see an orchid or two. We saw some Ragged Robin, a member of the campion family. Yes, they are really that tatty-looking, it hasn't been eaten!

Then we came across this beautiful briar rose...

Next we found this tranquil place.....

and guess what...Yes! we found orchids! Hundreds of them in that grass on the left! Okay! I will show you close ups.
Here are a few common spotted orchids

You can clearly see the spots that give it it's name on the last one!
Here are a few more...

 I think this one is a southern marsh orchid

 This is another common spotted

I don't know this one, because it wasn't spotty, but the flowers had common spotted markings! Orchids are a bit difficult to identify as they vary so much!
We also saw a few furry creatures too...
This one

 

and this one!  

 Hope you enjoyed the photos.

I can't tell you how much I am looking forward to the weekend as my dear friend Lynne is visiting and we will be going to Doncaster Dome for stamp magic! Are you  going?

Thanks for looking!

Animal antics at Stamping Sensations

It is the first Sunday of the month and time for a new challenge at Stamping Sensations. This month our theme is Animal Antics and we are being sponsored by Crafty Individuals.
For my card I used my Elephants stamp (CI - 390) on silk art card. I masked the elephants and dusted the background in lemon yellow and cherry pink impress ink, and persimmon Distress ink. I then removed the mask and coloured the elephants with distress markers in pumice stone and weathered wood. The panel beneath was sprayed with dylusions and glimmer mist before stamping with CI- 170 background stamp in Adirondack eggplant.

So, onto this months prize. We have a voucher for £35 worth of Crafty Individuals goodies of your choice! How wonderful is that? Especially when they have a whole load of lovely new stamps out! You can read all about them on Jean's Blog.
Do pop over to the challenge blog and take a look at the projects that my talented teamies have created. I look forward to seeing the wonderful creations that I know will be entered in this challenge. Just remember  that we are a stamping challenge. If you wish your entry to be considered for the prize it must include hand stamped elements, not just digis!
Thanks for looking!

Rudolf Day for May

I can't believe it is the end of May already! Every Month on the 25th I am trying to join in with Sarn's Rudolf day by making 2 cards ready for Christmas. This month I have gone with Christmas trees of a more ornate nature. This is the Inkylicious Christmas tree flourish in the small size. I also used the damask background on all the panels. The side panels are stamped and dusted in Bundled Sage DI and the main panel is Tea Dye for the background and vintage photo for the tree.

For my second I added a panel in Aged Mahogany DI to go with the bundled sage and Tea dye. I also stamped the base card with Holly Panel in Tea Dye DI. I edged the main panel by using the edge of the tree. Dots of liquid pearls in platinum pearl, Gold pearl and avocado finished it off.

Do Pop over to Sarn's blog and take a look at her Christmas cards for this month. She has made some real beauties again.
As I used up several snippets of silk art card to make these two, I am also taking them to the playground for Miss Di's snippet challenge.
Thanks for looking!

That Tree Again!

 I had another play with the Inkylicious Willow tree and lots of ink! The background paper was made with Adirondack colour washes in eggplant, denim, stream, lettuce and butterscotch. I made the background ages ago and have nearly finished using the pile of papers I made with just a few sprays! I over-stamped the paper with Hero Arts Silhouette Grass stamp and Inkylicious French style Script . I also used some sequin waste with my ink dusters and Adirondack eggplant ink.

Then I took an arch die (Once upon a stamp) and cut a shape from silk art card. I dusted this with memento inks in Grape Jelly, Bahama blue, Teal Zeal, with some crushed olive DI at the bottom - why I didn't use the same Adirondack inks as the washes I used for the background, I am not sure!
The willow tree was stamped with memento Tuxedo black, and the glitter added once it was all dry. I wasn't sure if this pale green glitter would work, but I think it does. The Willow Tree will be available soon! If you want a good look at all of the gorgeous stamps that Inkylicious produce, on 8th June they will be at Stamp Magic, Doncaster, or if you can't wait you could visit the website!
I have broken up for half term today, so I am looking forward to some rest and relaxation, although I have my reports to write so it isn't all fun! I am going to try and have a good look around blogland too, as I feel I have neglected you all over the past few weeks.
Thanks for looking and have a wonderful evening!

A mid month reminder at Stamping Sensations!

It is time for a mid month reminder at Stamping Sensations and time to reveal the mystery prize! I will keep you waiting a bit longer though, as I want to tell you about my card!  I have had a bit of a play with my H2Os and some washes/sprays I bought so many years ago I can't remember who made them! The stamp is from Sheena Douglass, embossed and painted with H2Os. You can see a bit of the sheen from this angle

I finished it off with a piece of lace and a biow made from Sari ribbon. I am quite pleased with the results - must play with my H2Os again soon!
Okay, now I will show you the prize!

 Loads of goodies! Do pop over to the challenge blog to take a look at all the fab creations my lovely DT buddies have made, and don't forget to enter your creations in the anything goes challenge.
Thanks for looking!

Owl be thanking you!

Thanks for all the lovely messages wishing me Happy Birthday last week. I spent a bit of my birthday money on this gorgeous stamp by Little Claire. I made a quick one layer card with it to say thank you to my friend Sarah for the money, and for buying lots of my cards too. The sentiment is from Inkylicious and the background is dusted with memento grape jelly, lilac posies and dandelion yellow. The image is stamped with versafine black. I don't think it looks quite so grainy in real life!

On the subject of owls I got a lovely treat a couple of days before my birthday. We had organised for a company called Hawks of Steele to come in to school to bring owls to the year 2 class who are learning about nocturnal animals. Knowing how much I love owls I got invited through to have my photo taken.

Isn't he a beauty? He was so friendly too. Not sure if it was this one or one of the others that was in Harry Potter (as an extra!)  You can read more about the wonderful work Hawks of Steele do on their website.
I will leave you with  a photo of  belated birthday flowers given to me on Thursday. I have never thought of hyacinths as a cut flower before, but they look and smell amazing!

Thanks for looking!

A Bluebell Walk

On Sunday we went for a stroll around Bunny Old Wood, famous for it's bluebells in Nottinghamshire. Here are a few photos, some by me and some by Meg.

As well as bluebells there were lots more wild flowers.

 Red Campion,

 Greater Stitchwort

and Arum Lilies.

The hawthorn hedges were dripping with blossom too. Thanks for looking!

Anything Goes at Stamping Sensations

It is the first Sunday of May so time for a new challenge at Stamping Sensations.

 It is an 'anything goes'  theme this month, so thought it would be the perfect opportunity to use some newish stamps! For my first card I used some paper that I had sprayed with dylusions and stamped crafty Individuals CI -182 in Gesso. I added a snippet border (CI -147) stamped in versamark and brushed with gold mica powder. The owl stamp (CI -225 ) was stamped in archival black onto silk art card and coloured with distress markers before cutting out and matting onto an embossed panel rubbed with treasure gold sapphire using 3d glue.This too was from my snippet drawer.

For my second card I stamped the base card with versamark using the border stamp CI - 147 and rubbed over with pan pastels. I then aged it a little by dusting around the edges with Tea Dye distress ink. I added a snippet panel sprayed with irridescent ink and some lace. The main image is CI - 387, stamped in archival black and coloured with distress markers. I mounted it on a couple of snippets and put together with 3d glue.
So, what is the prize this month?

We have a mystery prize so you will just have to keep an eye the challenge blog to find out!
Do pop over there and take a look at the fabulous creations my lovely teamies have created this month, too.

All you need to remember is that we are a stamping challenge and your focal element must be a stamped image, you can enter up to three times and combine your entry with other challenges.

I am off to enjoy my birthday with a walk in the woods looking at Bluebells, happy in the knowledge I don't have work tomorrow! Don't you love Bank Holidays?!
I have just realised that there are several snippets on both of these cards, so I am off to Di's Crafty Snippet playground with them. Will be back soon to share photos from my walk x