Long time no see - Quirky Picture this challenge.

Quirky Crafts challenges are back, and we need at least one more person on the team so we are having a DT call as well.

The first challenge of 2017 is set by me and is Called Quirky Picture This. I want you to use a photo either the actual photo on your project, or to be inspired by the colours, layout, elements of your favourite photo, and if you don't use the whole photo on your make you need to show us the photo you used.

I didn't know if I was going to be able to make something, it's been a long time and my mojo was gone, but I did it! I printed four photos of my dogs, well mostly of my new rescue dog Luna who has been here two months now since flying from Cyprus with just one of Sooty at the bottom. Life has never been the same, and I have had to buy new footwear and a shoe cupboard with doors to keep her from the shoes and boots! The top photo shows the first shoe of mine she destroyed!

The photo of her sitting is when she first arrived, sitting looking cute in her new crocheted jumper with pretty buttons to put it on - until she chewed them all off making holes in the process! Now it is sewn together and has to go over her head and has a few chunks missing!

Our sponsors for this challenge are Bugaboo and Crafty Ribbons, and all the cute digi dogs I used are part of the same set called Bugvalpup. I had to get some of the Instagram camera ribbon for this too, and more muddy paws ribbons. I also added buttons, twine and an odd sequin. I coloured the pups and hearts with Graph'it markers, and found that the canvas paper I used is very absorbent and it's impossible to blend, the ink just dries instantly.

The canvas is mounted on a frame which was part of a set destined for the charity shop, it seemed like a good idea to try using it. 

I finished the picture with muddy paws ribbon all round the outside.

Hop on over to Quirky and see what the rest of the team have made and maybe join in the fun!

Challenges Entered:

Crafty Gals Corner - add ribbon (Tues)

As you like it - favourite non card make - this because it is my gorgeous doggies! (ends Wed 8th)

Inspiration Destination - anything goes #123 (14th March)

Colour Crazy Challenge - anything goes (17th March)

Love to Create - 5 anything goes (18th March/2nd April)

Catch the Bug - anything but a card (March)

Love to scrap - LTSCB #95 - Anything Goes! (March)

Challenges won:

Crafty Ribbons, entered on Facebook.

Lyn wants us all to have some Quirky Animal Magic

 So animal magic it is, could be magical animals or just animals. My first card features Hedgehog Flower from one of our great sponsors, Bugaboo over at Quirky Crafts for the new challenge this fortnight.

I coloured him with Promarkers and die cut him and a scalloped panel with Spellbinders dies. I used Papermania Tatty Teddy paper (the blue) and DCWV cupcake paper, added some novelty buttons tied through with Tim Holtz paper string, and some polka dot chiffon ribbon which you can buy from Crafty Ribbons (as well as polka dot buttons). Happy Birthday is die cut using an IO die set that I use a lot.

I used the Papermania paper inside too, a slightly different design still pale blue.

I'm entering this card in the following challenges:

Papertake Weekly - things with wings (Tues)

Crafty Ribbons - Happy Birthday (Thurs 24)

Moving along with the times - cute creatures (Thurs)

Left of Centre - die cuts (Fri)

Allsorts - Buttons (Sat)

Pile it on - birthday (Sun/Wed)

Little Miss Muffet - anything goes (24th Sept)

Oh the trouble I had with this card - maybe I will tell you another day - if you want to know! It turned out OK in the end I think.

This image is Charmaine Flannery's We're All Mad Here, from another of our sponsors - Sweet Pea Stamps. She is pretty Quirky I think, do you like her beautiful green hair? She has a crazy cat on her lap (Cheshire cat maybe?), see the playing cards flying round? I coloured her with Promarkers and Graph'it Markers (the turquoise background), and added highlights with paperwhite Sharpie marker. The frame is die cut using two Spellbinders dies, Locking Loops and a rectangle to take out the centre before mounting it on another rectangle. All around the frame I used flat backed pearls in purple, then the first paper pack I picked up was perfect for the colour scheme, it is a Papermania pack of metallic spots and stripes, which dictated to me that I needed silver behind it. The purple brads are silver ones coloured with Promarker, I added lace and ribbon, and the Just for You is one of my brand new never before used dies by Tonic, and it cut very nicely with no problems at all.

I've entered the following challenges:

TTCRD - anything goes Sept 8 - 14

Tuesday Throwdown - anything goes

Crafty Gals - bingo ribbon, hand coloured digi, sentiment (either card fits) (Wed)

Glitter and Sparkle - 154 something beginning with G (green hair) (Sun)

Ribbon Girl - any image (Sun)

Crafting from the heart - #76 anything goes (Mon)

Creative Fingers - #92 anything goes (Fri?)

Coffee, chocolate and cards - fancy and feminine (Sept)

Delicious Doodles - Dark (Sept)

Unicorn Challenges - mythical and magical (30 Sept)

Finally we have one more sponsor, Robyn's Fetish who are giving third prize in the Quirky Crafts Challenge this fortnight. So hop on over to see more Animal Magic and to play along with us.

Quirky embossing reminder.

Once upon a Sunday it was reminder time.....this cute digi is from Sweet Pea Stamps and is Lisa Victoria's Dragon Luck. The image is coloured with turquoise Graph'it Markers and ProMarkers, then die cut with Spellbinders. The Spellbinders label has some embossing round it and I added some pink lace.

The sentiment is die cut with my IO dies and has a gem dot to the "i". 

The background is embossed with a Cuttlebug folder and the flowers are punched and embossed with Nellie Snellen punch and emboss sets and have ProMarker and micro-bead centres.

I found some narrow satin ribbon in the exact colour of the cardstock.

The challenge is also sponsored by Limited Runs and Robyn's Fetish and as usual our top 3 each get a prize.

So hop on over and play embossing with us at Quirky Crafts, or just come and see the great examples the team have made today!

This card has fluttered into the following challenges:

Tuesday Throwdown - texture (Tues)

Fab and Funky - things with wings (Wed)

Inspiration Destination - #47 anything goes (Wed)

Crafty Gals - anything goes (Thurs)

A Gem of a Challenge - for the girls (Sat)

ABC - P is for Pretty in pink (Sat) (10 challenge rule)

Creative Card Crew - lace (Tues 1st Sept)

Coffee Chocolate and cards - use a sentiment (Fri 4th Sept)

Creative Fingers - #90 anything goes (Fri some time in the future lol)

Glitter n Sparkle - Happy Birthday (Sun)

Gone Quirky fishin' instead of just plain wishin'...

 I'm still singing gone fishing, and if you want to hear that song by Louis Armstrong and Bing Crosby and a modern one on the first challenge post by Chris Rea hop over to Quirky now.

The team have been having fun with the great fishing images provided by Crackerbox Palace, and the really good news is that they are all 20% off until August 17th in honour of the challenge.

Alternatively you can enter our challenge and hope to win some of the images.

I used Smiley fish with the funny worm, along with the Drop me a Line sentiment and put them all in the Crackerbox Palace jar. The line the worm is on goes from the "i" in sentiment. I coloured the images with Promarkers and the "water" with Graph'it Markers. I've added real shells and some microbeads to the bottom of the jar and some ribbons that I got a long time ago from Crafty Ribbons. I used my wave blade on the rotary trimmer to cut a wavy edge which reveals the blue card insert when closed.

Don't you think of Finding Nemo when you look at this?

 Crackerbox Palace.

To play along hop on over to Quirky now, and you really should see the fantastic examples by the rest of the team too!

This card has swum into the following challenges:

Tuesday Throwdown - sketch

Simon Says Stamp - tie it up (Wed)

Addicted to stamps - #156 anything goes (Wed)

Simply Papercraft - #10 anything goes (Fri)

Left of Centre - #90 inspired by a film - finding Nemo (Fri)

Allsorts - #232 inspired by Summer (orange) (Sat)

Ribbon Girls - anything goes with an image (Sun)

The Craft Barn - pens (Sun)

Creative Fingers - #89 anything goes (Fri 21st)

Betty Boots - oh whoops I forgot!

I had a few problems photographing this one, this is the third attempt (the sparkles in the cardstock cause problems) and now it has gone from here so I can't try again. I didn't actually forget Vanessa's Birthday last Saturday, I just ran of of time to make a card and I knew I would see her this weekend. Now it might seem a little silly that I didn't just send one of the cards from the two boxes I have of them already made, but I am weird like that, I like to make the card for the individual when I can. This isn't the card I intended to make originally but when sorting through some stamps I found this set that I bought recently and it was crying out to be used. 

Betty Boots is the creation of That Craft Place, the digital images are sold under the name of Ditzie Designs on Etsy and some of them have now been made into stamp sets by Creative Expressions. I really love this character, but she took around four hours to colour mainly due to her hair. I used Graph'it Markers to colour her hair, and ProMarkers for the rest of her. All die cuts are Spellbinders. The sentiment came with the set, and inside the card I used another of the sentiments from the set which says that it is a good job you get more patient the older you get, or something like that.

Daughter in Law is a Papermania stamp from a clear set, and I added some ribbon and buttons from stash.

I have entered the following challenges:

Tuesday Throwdown - no patterned paper

Inspiration Destination - #41 anything goes (Wed)

Addicted to Stamps - #152 Make your Mark 

Cute Card Thursdays - for the ladies

Ribbon Girl - anything goes with an image (Sun)

Crafting from the Heart - #68 anything goes (Mon)

Sugar and Betty's challenge blog - anything goes (Jul)

Quirky reminder - rosettes all the way.

I think this Cartoon illustration of a happy boy in a wheelchair, by Ken Brenner and available from our Quirky sponsor - Stitchy Bear Digital Outlet, is great. You don't often see images for kids in wheelchairs, and I thought I would make it into a well done card. I coloured the image with Promarkers and Graph'it Markers (the hair), die cut it with Spellbinders squares and matted onto a scalloped square. The trophy is a Marianne die. The sentiments are stamped with Hero Arts clear stamps. The rosette is a Sizzix Tim Holtz die. The card blank is shiny red card, I had to dumb down the lighting in the mini studio not to get too much shine.

Hop on over to Quirky Crafts to see some wonderful creations by the team and to play along with your rosette makes.

This card had raced into the following challenges:

Crafty Gal's Corner - anything goes (Wed 1st)

Inspiration Destination - anything goes (Wed)

Creative Fingers - #85 anything goes (Fri)

Glitter and Sparkle - sentimental (Sunday)

One Stitch at a Time - red, white and blue (Sun)

Pile it on - flag colours Red white and blue (Sun)

Chocolate, Coffee and cards - Seeing Red (Fri 10th July)

Chrysanthemum

Chrysanthemum is the name of this Ching Chou Kuik image which I have used as part of another progressive challenge on facebook. 

I coloured her with Promarkers and Graph'it markers (the turquoise), and added gems to her bracelet and hair ornament, and gem stars in the sky. The driftwood she is resting on was stamped, after masking the image, with a Visible Image stamp. I die cut the image with a Spellbinders die then added real shells, hessian, mother of pearl buttons and some blooms, and a little Stickles glitter glue to the centres of the Prima blooms to match the bigger bloom that already had glitter. Finally I added some micro beads to her tail and the driftwood.

This card has drifted into the following challenges:

Graph'it markers - pearls and bling (Fri 5th June)

Pink Gems- flowers (Sat 6th)

Pile it on - focus on your colouring (Sun/Wed)

3-2-1 Blast off

Kenny was 3 at the weekend, where have 3 years gone? I made and posted this large card, is is C4 (A4/letter) size. I used two Kraftin Kimmie stamps, the rocket is by Rachel Anne Miller, and Astro Boy is by Annie Rodrigue and I thought they went together so well especially on the DCWV boy patterned paper. Images are coloured with Promarkers and Graph'it markers. The numbers and letters were die cut with Sizzix dies, and Birthday is die cut with a Marianne die from a stamp and die set, boy is a stamp from the same set. The little rockets are from a cute set I bought at the show by Lin & Lene Designs who are new to me. I added dots of Liquid Pearls and rays round the 1. 

This card is blasting into the following challenges:

TTCRD - anything goes May 18th - 25th

Little Miss Muffet - 112 anything goes (Thurs)

Sentimental Sundays - cute or funny sentiments 

Have you seen a Quirky Angel?

It is Quirky Crafts challenge time again, and Monica set us the theme of Angels  among us because our two sponsors have such a lot of beautiful angel images.

Our sponsors generously provided the team with all the images they can use.

My first card is made with an image from Sweet Pea by Rachel Anderson called Angelic. 

I kept it delicate with pale colours using Promarkers and turquoise Graph'it markers, and used pale pink and blue pearlescent card stock. The pretty panel behind the angel is cut with a Spellbinders die, as are the image, layers and sentiment and layers.

The sentiment was a freebie from Sweet Pea, part of a set of four. I found the perfect pink ribbon in my Crafty Ribbons box, and even found an odd angel charm (thought I had some but could only find this one which is perfect).

I think this card would work as a birthday card and in dark gothy colours - I might have to try that now!

Our second sponsor is Bugaboo, and I chose to use Christmas Words - Angel but to make a girly birthday card for someone's "little angel"! Everyone thinks their little girls are "angels" - right?

Have you ever used a digi or stamp for something other than it's intended purpose?

Again I coloured her with Promarkers and the same colours pink and turquoise, this time adding in purple and some Stickles for some glitter. The papers I used are Tatty Teddy papers by Papermania.

The chiffon polka dot ribbon is from Crafty Ribbons. Words die cut with IO die set and I lost the dots again so used some gold star beads instead which go with the image.

Pssss .... want to see some more angels? Hop over to the Quirky blog now, and I hope you will come and play along with us.

These cuties have flown into the following challenges:

Papertake Weekly - anything goes, no patterned paper (Tues)

Passion for Promarkers - relaxing (Tues)

Simon Says - lets get sentimental (Wed)

TTCRD - anything goes May 5th - 11th

Crafty Ribbons - anything goes with ribbon (Thurs)

Graph'it Markers - something square (Fri)

Inspired by Stamping - IBSIC #93 (Fri 15th May)

Left of Centre - Bling (Fri)

The Stamping Boutique - die cuts (Fri)

Allsorts - more than one die cut (Sat)

My Time to Craft - Sympathy (Sat)

Sentimental Sundays - Really Girly or Mother's day 

The Ribbon Girl - anything goes/shaped cards (Sun)

Little Miss Muffet - lots of layers (Thurs 21st)

Polkadoodles - things with wings (Fri 22nd)

Crafts Galore - anything goes (May)

One Sweet Challenge - things with wings (May)

Are we there yet? Still on the Quirky journey!

This is my card for the Quirky Crafts reminder, you have until Saturday 9th May midday to come on a journey with us. Any sort of transport will do, and a horse is transport too!

This is Buddy Time by Coosty Creations available from our sponsor Stitchy Bear Digital Outlet. I coloured the image with Graph'its (browns and turquoise), and Promarkers then die cut it with Spellbinders label 1 matted onto the scalloped and grand versions. The charms are the only ones I have like this, I took the loop off the bottom of the horseshoe. The sentiment is cut with an IO stamp set, I always loose the tiny "dots" for the i, so added one with red Stickles.

The ribbons are from Crafty Ribbons, the horse silhouette ribbon is exclusive to them.

Inside the card I punched out horses from around the panels, the white panel has a punched out horse in the top corner.

Mum has a birthday soon and she used to go riding until a few years ago, so this will be perfect for her, and she is the "Special Lady" for Pile it on and One Stitch at a Time!

Come on a journey with us at Quirky Crafts.

This card is trotting into the following challenges:

Crafting from the Heart - anything goes 57 (Mon)

TTCRD - anything goes May 4th

Addicted to Stamps - Make your mark (Wed/Fri)

Crafty Ribbons - 118 anything goes with ribbon (Thurs)

Cute card Thursday - use a sentiment (Thurs)

Graph'its Markers - ribbon or lace (Fri 8th May)

Pile ít on - for a lady (Sun/Wed)

One Stitch at a time - anything goes with a special lady (Sun 17th)

Cards Galore - anything goes (May)

Challenges won/top 3:

Sentimental Sunday - work it out 

Playing Quirky Dressing up.

Happy Mother's day to all of you who are celebrating today, and this challenge is perfect for today because it is about children or fur babies!

It's my turn to set the challenge at Quirky Crafts and I chose Let's play Dressing up, with ribbon.

I want to see children or pets dressed in costumes pretending to be something else, either photos or stamped or digi characters, and you must have ribbon on your project because one of our sponsors is Crafty Ribbons and our first place winner could win these gorgeous new animal ribbons!

The other sponsor is Bugaboo and they provided the great images the team have used today, and you could win some images too.

I have here two little boys dressed as rabbits. I started off with the very cute Bugaboo Brat - Boy Easter Bunny, who is fast asleep, then I thought what is he sleeping on - had to be Easter eggs they were perfect, and I added a friend who is carrying a WOE Big Egg, because all the digis come in .png as well as .jpg it was easy to create this scene. The ribbon is a Crafty Ribbons exclusive Animal Silhouette - Rabbits and is perfect to go with my little bunny boys.

I coloured the images with Promarkers and Graph'it markers, then cut them out with Spellbinders dies. The background paper is a freebie with a magazine. The stamp used for the sentiment was also a magazine freebie.

So hop on over and play dressing up with us, and see some wonderful examples by the rest of the team at Quirky Crafts Challenges.

This card has hopped into the following challenges:

TTCRD - Anything goes (March 10-16) 

Cute Card Thursdays - Celebrate

Moving along with the times - bingo (ribbon, die cut, flowers) (Thurs)

Chocolate Coffee and Cards - for a child (Fri)

Creative Fingers - #71 Anything goes (Fri)

Catch the Bug - Spring into Spring (21st March)

ABC - F is for Festive (1st April)

Pile it on - use 3 of something (3 digi images) (Sun/Wed)

Graph'it Markers - Spring Colours (27th March)

Die Cut Diva's - Children/Spring (March)

As pretty (in pink) as a Quirky picture!

This is a very Quirky card, my neice will love these Musical Hamsters, and Musical notes by Sentimental Susan, she has pet hamsters, plays in a band and loves pink (I hope she's not reading this). I coloured the hamsters with Graph'it markers and Pink Promarkers, added lace from my local market, Prima blooms and half pearls, and die cut Happy Birthday with IO dies. The rectangles are cut with Spellbinders dies.

This is the photo inspiration for our challenge set by Monica, and you just need to have pink, green, cream or white with lace or ribbon and flowers on your project.

Come and play with us at Quirky Crafts. You could win these musical hamsters, and more images provided by our sponsor Stitchy Bear, or some images of your choice.

This card has danced it's way into the following challenges:

The Stamping Boutique - layers (Fri)

Ribbon Girl - add flowers (7th Mar)

TTCRD - anything goes 3rd to 9th March

Creative Fingers = #69 Anything goes (Fri)

Die Cut Divas - Spring or children's cards (March)

It's Quirky Lovely

I'm sneaking in so late, missed last week altogether - sorry about that. I have some pretty heavy family stuff going on right now. Anyway I used Love Birds together with Pussy Cat Luv and added a die cut branch and heart shaped leaves and flower petals and I found a heart shaped flat back pearl for the middle. I made the sentiments up and die cut them with an X Cut set, and the ribbon is from Crafty Ribbons, It has nearly run out so I much get more. I coloured the images mostly with Graphit markers and Promarkers and die cut them with Spellbinders card maker dies. The paper is by DCWV. White highlights are Sharpie paint pen.

The images are from Robyn's Fetish who are one of our sponsors at Quirky Crafts this time. You only have until Saturday to come and play!

This card has smooched it's way into the following challenges:

Addicted to Stamps - photo inspiration (Wed)

Cute Card Thursday - crazy in love 

Fussy and Fancy - #132 It's all about love (Fri)

Crafty Gals corner - Pinkylicious (Fri)

Allsorts - #297 love is all around (Sat)

ABC - C is for cupid (Sun) -10

In the Pink - Love is in the air (Thurs 19th)

Pan Pastels - love is in the air (Sun)

Craft Hoarders Anonymous -  How I Love Thee (Feb)

Crafty Cardmakers - Love Love Love (Feb)

Die Cut Diva's - words and sentiments (Feb)

Puffin away and candy redraw for the 3rd time!

I am puffin away! I suddenly got the cleaning bug, fed up with mountains of paperwork and stash I have set to work to clear it!

I have redrawn my blog candy for the 3rd and final time, and the winner is HEIDI! 

Congratulations Heidi!

Heidi contacted me via Facebook, she cannot comment on this blog, but she is over the moon with her goodies.

My card today features a Meljen image called Bundled Little Puffin, and I bought him in the December 50% off sale that Meljen is having, couldn't resist this little cutie!

I coloured him with Promarkers and Graph'it pens, and added some Stickles glitter glue. Cut him out with Spellbinders dies, added some In My Mind's Eye paper, and some ribbon and mounted it all on a gold card blank.

This card is Puffin' into the following challenges:

Meljen Designs - Holiday (Thurs)

Moving along with the times - Christmas climate (Thurs)

Fussy and Fancy - Holiday (Thurs 11th Dec)

Daring Cardmakers - red and blue (Fri)

Allsorts - Animal magic (Sat)

Through the Craft Room Door - anything goes (Dec 15th)

Pile it on - anything goes/Christmas holidays (Wed 17th Dec)

Creative Fingers - #59 anything goes (Fri?)

Crafty Cardmakers - Christmas - (dec 28th Jan 12th)

We are Quirky going round in circles!

 It's another Quirky challenge, and being Quirky we have gone Spring like in Winter. The sponsor is Crackerbox Palace and they provided us with some cute digi bird images to use, and the challenge set by Lyn is Circles, any projects with circles on them somewhere can be entered!
I've got the bird in rubber stamp format too, with some of his chums, I didn't have the branch or bird house before.
All images have been coloured with Promarkers and Graph'its pens, the turquoise is Graph'its.The sentiment (I had been thinking of welcome to your new home, but found this birthday one that was too perfect) is a Little Claire one from a sent of round greetings, and is stamped in teal Stazon.

This is my first ever rocker card, and I only have Grand Nestabilities in scalloped circles, so decided to use those. My first "mistake" was to make the scene so large, only because when I cut it out and added the scalloped layer it covers up my carefully coloured background which I made using the flowers from Crackerbox Palace and coloured with Promarkers, if I had realised I would only have coloured the visible bits! The next "mistake" I discovered was that the card won't stand up, it rocks - oh yes it's a rocker - so is this actually a mistake? Well if you look at the "horizon" crease in the background you can see the first photo has been taken to show the card straight, and there is no way it stands like that! This photo shows it standing, or it can rock the other way. Doesn't naturally rock so maybe scallops are a mistake lol! I creased it across the middle of the scallop, if I had creased in between scallops it might have stood up straight!

I had a strip of my background card left so added it to the back. Should I have decorated the back more I wonder?

If you want to play the circle game hop on over to Quirky Crafts now! 

This card has rocked into the following challenges:

TTCRD - anything goes (Mon 24th Nov)

Allsorts challenge blog - no DP (Sat)

IDIC Robyn's Fetish - use a digi (Sun)

Crafty Little Fairies - not a square (Nov)

Creative Fingers - #57 anything goes (a Fri in the future)

Pretty Woman, walking down the street.....it's Quirky Charades

Here's my second attempt at playing Quirky Charades, this time my card is about a book and a song, Pretty Woman. Once again I was singing this song all the way through making my card!

I used Molly from Limited Runs, isn't she gorgeous!

I decided I wanted the film strip somewhere and it ruined her to have it over her, so I decided to put the street scene, using a Hero Arts stamp, behind her in the film - she is walking the streets after all!

I found the perfect papers in my 8"x8" DCWV Rockstar stack (discontinued), and I had looked at the smaller stack first, but it wasn't big enough. I was amazed to find that the larger stack had more foiled papers and more designs, and I hadn't noticed this beauty before and I am so glad I managed to find someone selling it. The pink seemed perfect for my theme, and I added the strip of stars which I also liked. Molly is coloured with Promarkers and Graph'it markers, I coloured her hair and did the shadow with Graph'its and the rest with Promarkers. The street scene is also coloured with a combination of the two. Molly was die cut with a Spellbinders die, the film strip is a Sizzix originals die. I added some black lace which seemed appropriate too.

I haven't added a sentiment yet.

Hop on over to Quirky crafts to play Charades and see what else the team has done!

My pretty woman is walking into the following challenges:

Die cutting Divas - Think Pink (Tues)

Ike's World - think pink - just for fun (Tues)

TTCRD - anything goes (Tues)

ABC - V for vibrant (Wed)

Chocolate coffee and cards - for the boys (well she was in the film lol) (Fri)

Vintage Stamping - colour challenge - red coat (Oct)

Pile it on - #43 create a scene (Sun)

Crafty Cardmakers - cut it out (Sun)

Crafty Boots - music (Monday 10th Nov)

Creative Fingers - #54 Anything goes (??)

It is getting Quirky colder, and those leaves are still falling.

 To make a change from Ike's Art lovely cats, here is an Ike's Art lovely dog image. He is called Leaf Pooch, and is such a happy Jack Russell that I thought the Hero Arts Sending Smiles stamp was perfect to go with him and it is stamped in brown Versacolor and heat embossed with clear EP. I cut all the panels out with Spellbinders card creator and rectangle dies. I found some Autumn Papermania ribbon with more leaves on it. The paper is HOTP Artsy Collage. I kept this card monotone in shades of brown, apart from the green in the ribbon, and pink tongue, and it is coloured with Graph'Its, and Promarkers which blend together beautifully.

This card is made in the same way, paper from the same pad, and same sentiment (and I used another dog image). I just thought this was such an amusing scene it would make someone smile too. The image is called Standing Guard by Gingerloft from Stitchy Bear Stamps, the ribbon is also from the same pack.

This image is coloured mostly with Promarkers, with a little Graph'Its brown for the soil, they blend together beautifully.

Our sponsor is Stitchy Bear, and the challenge is happening at Quirky Crafts now, you have until Saturday 11th October to join in.

I have entered the following challenges with a woof:

Die cutting Divas - anything goes (Tues)

Addicted to Stamps - photo inspiration (Wed)

Left of Center - 3 or more layers (Fri)

One Stitch at a time - colour orange (Sat)

Open Minded Crafting Fun - Autumn (Sat)

Pile it on - Autumn colours (Sat)

ABC - U for Unique anything goes (Sept 15th)

Graphit Markers - autumn colours (17th Oct)

Pan Pastels - Autumn (18th Oct)

Crafty Little Faries - only one DP (6th November)

Carousel - altered art.

I posted this photo of my partly painted Carousel ages ago, last year anyway. It is a Kaisercraft Carousel that came in white, or off white anyway. I thought it was just crying out for the big white spaces round the edge to be decorated, and I started it - but other stuff got in the way and it stayed on the floor under other stuff until yesterday. I had a kind of life changing moment, which is described in the previous post!

This is the carousel on my desk right now. I can't turn it due to the stashberg next to it, so the next task is to sort that out a little, and I have the pink "Stuff Bucket" which was in that spot before. I went through that and moved a lot of stash over to the carousel, and already I can find it better and organise it better. I found stuff I forgot I had and haven't seen for a long time as well as a couple of mystery objects!

I got my stencils out and "Air Brush" marker spritzer and my Promarkers and Graphit markers and got to work. The stencils are all Creative Expresions ones. I love poppies, and airbrushed them in two colours. I think I need to add a butterfly somewhere, a charm or a stamped one maybe.

This panel has birds on overhead wires and I overstamped with Visible Image feathers, birds and a saying, it is hard to read the saying which didn't work well but it says "free your imagination". You can see the spritzer in the organiser.

This was the first panel I did last year, I didn't have the spritzer then so I used Cut n Dry foam to dab it, then over stamped it with the cogs.

I love this stencilled effect, I used a Graphit turquoise marker to air brush this one. Needs something else.

 Raindrops, I will have to find an umbrella to add!

Finally part of a scene, just the houses.

Then I painted round the rims with some Plaid Folk Art Acrylic paint in burgandy, it doesn't go right the way inside the drawers. The rest of the paint is either by Indigo Blu or Paperartsy. I painted two coats of burgandy then this morning doodled on it with gold Permapaque pen, which was one of two pens I chose with a gorgeous Stampendous stamp as my prize from the Woodware challenge I won.

I think there is more to do to this, more to add to the stencilled panels, more doodling and those drawers look a bit bare now don't they? I am thinking of adding brass charms maybe to the panels.

I have entered the following challenges:

Anything but a card - #38 repeating patterns (Sun)

Allsorts - masking and stencilling #272 (Sat)

Pan Pastels - #20 bold and bright (14th Sept)

Through the Craft Room Door - Anything goes (Aug 25th)

Stamping Sensations - anything goes (Aug)

Visible Image - anything goes with a Visible Image stamp (Aug)