Holy cow...it's your birthday!

Hi everyone, Happy New Year!

I hope 2020 is a happy, calm and prosperous year for you.

Here's hoping we get lots of rain to end these horrific bushfires we've had for months in Australia.

It's time to kick off 2020 with a new challenge at  Seize the Birthday  and Ashwini has chosen the theme of layers.

(Ashwini has also created our wonderful new blog badges, I love the colourful graphic design.)

I'm more of a CAS card maker but thought building up a little scene would hopefully count as layers.

You can always play along with our anything goes birthday theme if layers aren't your style, and the Design Team have lots of inspiration for you, so I hope you get the chance to play along.

I purchased this digi in 2015 from an online shop that was closing, Squigglefly. 

I printed it onto thin card, fussycut it and then coloured it with Prismacolour pencils, blended  with Zest It.

The background is distress inks lightly blended with a toothbrush shaped brush.

Diecut grass, punched flowers and a sentiment printed on my computer finished the card.

I'm linking up to some challenges:

Watercooler Wednesday,

Double D where the theme is to use a punch, and the team are celebrating their 4th birthday, congratulations!



Allsorts where it's anything goes.

Supplies:

Squigglefly digi; prismacolour pencils; distress inks; Poppystamps grassland border die; Crafts 4 U stitched rectangle die; EK flower punch.

Thanks for visiting,

Cahy x

Christmas window!

Hi everyone, I was sorting through my dies and punches and thought I'd use some that have been neglected for years!
My sister and her partner have moved into their new home, so I thought this would be perfect for them too.

I'm linking up to these challenges:

Simon Says Stamp Wednesday anything goes.

Watercooler Wednesday all about occasions.



Happy Little Stampers Anything goes with dies.

Double D Challenge what is your Christmas style?

On this card I think it's traditional.

At Outside the Box it's patterned paper.
I've used a piece in the window blind with the Memory Box classic scallop die.

Supplies:

     Dies:        Poppystamps grassland border, wildflower patch and small madison window; 

                     Memory Box classic scallop;

    Punches:   Carl lily; Punch Bunch tiny flower; Martha Stewart greenery;

    Other:       Sizzix bricked embossing folder; scraps of green and red card, red glitter paper, polka                           dot  paper and a sentiment sticker.

Thanks for visiting,

Cathy x

Stenciling and a butterfly.

Hi everyone, it's time for a new challenge at Seize the Birthday

and the theme chosen by Glenda is a touch of red.

You can always join in with the anything goes birthday option too! Lots of wonderful ideas to inspire you from our party guest and the DT, so I hope you can play along.

I had a scrap of patterned paper with reds fading out to green on it.

I spread transparent matte texture paste through the scribbles stencil, and added a butterfly diecut from another piece of the patterned paper.

I'm linking up to a few challenges:

Addicted to CAS are celebrating their 7th birthday!

Stamplorations CAS Challenge, without the colour option.

Make My Monday has a colour theme, red, green and white.

Supplies:

Ranger transparent matte texture paste; Tim Holtz scribbles stencil; pp from stash; sentiment sticker.

Thanks for visiting,

Cathy x

Dylusions spray monoprint stencil.

Hi everyone, have you had a chance to play along with monoprint stencilling at

CAS Stencil yet?

There's still plenty of time and there are some amazing cards in the gallery and from the DT to inspire you. It's a fun technique!

I spritzed some dylusions sprays onto the stencil and gave a spritz with water.

Lifted the stencil and flipped int onto some plain cardstock. I laid some paper towel on top of the stencil and pressed down to get good contact between the ink and the card.

I love these vibrant colours! 

I think I need a new anti static pouch though, no matter what I do I seem to get stray embossing on dark bases!

I'm linking up to these challenges:

AAA Cards without the shimmer option.

Addicted to Stamps & More where it's make your mark.



Addicted to CAS where the team are celebrating their 7th birthday, congratulations!

Supplies:

Unknown brand stencil; dylusions sprays polished jade, fresh lime and london blue; Paper Smooches sentiment stamp; white ink and wow white ep; Memory Box stitched circle and Crafts 4 U stitched rectangle dies.

Thanks for visiting,

Cathy x

Black twinkle snowflake.

Hi everyone, I'm taking a break from reality and making some cards.

(There are terrible bushfires in Northern NSW and other areas at the moment.

Fortunately, for now,  we are ok but there are lots who are not, it's a stressful, devastaing time and we just keep praying for rain...snowflakes would be welcome too!!)

I've wet embossed this snowflake die with Wow white twinkle powder before, and recently purchased some black twinkle powder.

Here's a closer look.

The embossed strip is from a retired Stampin Up set.

I'm linking up to some challenges:

It's all about occasions at Watercooler Wednesday

Perfectly CAS has a christmas theme.

AAA Cards I'm hoping my snowflake diecut counts as an image, and I've gone with the shimmer!

Happy Little Stampers CAS has a christmas theme.

Stamplorations CAS without the colour option.

Supplies:

Memory Box Lindemann snowflake die; versamark ink and Wow black twinkle ep; retired SU embossing strip; sentiment sticker.

Thanks for visiting,

Cathy x

Owl Birthday

Hi everyone, it's time for a new challenge at Seize the Birthday and the theme chosen by JoAnn

is off the edge.

You can always play along with the anything goes birthday theme too.

Our party guest and design team have some wonderful cards to inspire you, so I hope you can play along!

This is a new to me stamp set and I thought these guys could sit off the edge of the moon circle.

I stamped them using versafine clair nocturne ink onto a scrap of  watercolour paper that had brown brushos on it. Then I embossed the image with midnight copper powder.

I used a water brush to remove the brown colour from the eyes, feet and beaks so that I could add white and yellow Prismacolour pencil to those areas, before fussy cutting them.

The moon circle was coloured by blending oxide inks in antique linen, scattered straw and fossilized amber.

I'm linking up to some challenges:

Country View Challenges has a hand stamped theme.

Retro Rubber has an anything goes challenge as long as your stamp is at least one year old. These owls are from around early 2017.

Addicted to Stamps & More where it's anything goes.

Watercooler Wednesday where it's a feminine anything goes.

Supplies:

Brutus Monroe owl stamp; brushos; Versafine Clair nocturne ink; Lindys Stamp Gang midnight copper embossing powder; Prismacolour pencils; distress oxide ink; Sizzix woodgrain embossing folder; sentiment sticker.

Thanks for visiting,

Cathy x

Autumn brusho tree

Hi everyone, I've been making some brusho backgrounds using shades of  brown.

I diecut the tree and thought it looked a bit bland so sprinkled on some sandstone brushos and spritzed it with gold shimmer mist.

Here's a closer look.

The thanks diecut is what the tree looked like originally.

I'm playing along with a few challenges:

Simon Says Stamp Monday has a thanks/thanksgiving theme.



At Just Us Girls it's thanks.



At Work it Wednesday it's autumn and gratitude.


Dies r Us has a trees and or leaves theme.
I've used the Memory Box Arboscello Trees die.




Supplies:
Memory Box Arboscello tree die; Thanks die gifted by a friend ; Cuttlebug distressed stripes embossing folder; brushos powder; Tattered Angels gold  glimmer mist.

Thanks for visiting,
Cathy x

Stencilled monoprint & a butterfly.

Hi everyone, it's time for a new challenge at CAS Stencil. 

Linda has chosen stencil monoprinting as our technique this month.

There are some video tutorials on the blog, and some wonderful cards by the design team to inspire you, so I hope you can play along.

I inked up my stencil with a few distress inks, spritzed generously with water, then placed the inky side onto some watercolour paper. I used a paper towel to press over the top to make sure the ink absorbed into the paper. 

I blended some milled lavender distress ink over the monoprint panel as I didn't want a stark white background.

There was some distress ink puddles left on my non stick mat, so I smooshed some watercolour paper into it and diecut the butterfly from that. Love the purples!

I'm linking up to these challenges:

Simon Says Stamp Wednesday where it's anything goes.

Happy Little Stampers Watercolour Challenge

Mix it up challenge blog where it's anything goes with the optional twist of watercolouring.

Stamplorations CAS Challenge without the optional colour twist.

Supplies:

Simon Says Stamp stencil; distress inks in picked raspberry; abandoned coral; mermaid lagoon and salty ocean; Memory Box Whidbey and Theo butterfly dies; vellum; sentiment sticker.

Thanks for visiting,

Cathy x

Moonlit fog!

Hi everyone, I hope you're enjoying your weekend.

I've been lazy and will make up for that tomorrow lol!

I wanted to play along with the fog challenge at CASology and thought a fog covered moon might work. 

This circle is cut from a hammered card base which has a bumpy texture. I blended on some oxide inks in antique linen, scattered straw and fossilized amber, then added some black soot with a finger dauber.

The layout is similar to a card I made a couple of years ago with a couple of changes.

I'm also linking up to the anything goes challenge at Simon Says Stamp Wednesday,

Watercooler Wednesday,

Die Cuttin Divas

and The sisterhood of crafters with a CAS theme.

Supplies:

Memory Box woodland branch, Poppystamps wise owl and Spellbinders circle dies; oxide inks and black soot distress ink; Altenew To the Moon sentiment stamp; Versafine clair nocturne ink and Wow superfine metallic silver powder.

Thanks for visiting,

Cathy x