Challenge up your life: Challenge #80 Trees

Hello Crafters,

can you believe how time flies? Only one month to Christmas eve, I can feel the panic rising... But with today's Challenge for

I did at least make a start on my Christmas cards - finally. To assist you with your Christmas card list, we are challenging you this time, to use trees on your project.
 

Challenge #80 Trees

I watched Lindsay's watercolour tutorial the other day, and decided to try that out myself. So here are my results. 

I actually did 4 panels, but the colours one one didn't turn out right and another panel I ruined the heat embossing, so I cut it down to fix it, but I didn't like how that turned out either. 

At first I was very unhappy with my trees, they just didn't look right, but when I came back the next day with a fresh perspective, they looked okay after all. Sometimes you just need to take a step back. 

So, that's it from me today, I hope to see a lot of tree cards from all of you!
Hugs

Ela

 

Challenge up your life: Challenge #78 Two Die Cuts/Punches

Hello Crafters,

how time flies. It's almost Halloween, which is traditionally the point in time, when I switch from worrying about being late for the Halloween Party preparationsto whirring in Christmas panic mode. 

But there is always time for a Challenge at

This time, we ask you to get out your die cutting machines and use 

Challenge #78 Two Die Cuts/Punches

My card this time is very simple, as I was running late and my schedule was busy. I revisited an idea I had used before, but made it into something new. 

Here is the original idea:

I coloured the die cut with distress inks in fall colours and stamped a simple Birthday greeting in brown ink. I debated long with myself whether to doodle a border or  not - well I shouldn't have, I don't like how it turned out, but since I had already adhered the leaves, I didn't want to start over.

So, now it's your turn, what will you create?

Hugs
Ela



Challenges: 

Simon says stamp: Anything goes
Creative Friday: #191 Autumn
Fusion Card Challenge: Autumn Leaves  

Challenge up your life: Challenge #75 Sketch

Hello Crafters,

it's challenge time again at

This week, we have a beautiful versatile Sketch for you:

Challenge #75 Sketch

I personally struggle quite a bit with sketch challenges, I usually tend to leave them out. But this one I liked so much, I couldn't stop myself and created three cards - with the intent to do a whole series with all my critters and washi tapes. 

I have been playing with my Polaroid frame dies a lot lately and this sketch made me reach for them once again. So I chose a cute doggy and a few accessories and coloured them with alcohol markers. Then I added just a few strips of Washi tape and a slim sentiment strip and that's it. Very clean and simple.

After a day or two with this card still sitting on my craft desk, I decided to go back and create a second card. This time I chose two fish stamps by Dyan Reaveley, because they are just so hilarious. I coloured them in greens and yellows and added yellow and aqua Washi tape. For a pop of colour I chose some Washi with Flamingos and added a sentiment strip in the same Flamingo pink.

For the third card I picked one of the cats in the Tim Holtz set and coloured a bit of a background scene  to ground him.

For all three envelopes I just added strips of the same Washi tape under the address area.

Now it's over to you, what will you make of this sketch?

Hugs
Ela



Challenges: 
Seize the Birthday: Anything goes Birthday
The Daily Marker: 30 days colouring Challenge 
AAA Cards: Creatures Great or Small
Nightshift Stamping: For boys/men (the dog card)
Simon says Stamp: Clean & simple

Challenge up your life: Challenge #74 Moodboard

Hello Crafters,

it's challenge time again, so please check out

This time we have a colour / moodboard challenge for you. Isn't the image adorable? I love the fog between the trees.
 

Challenge #74 Moodboard

 

 

However, this was a real challenge for me. I generally find colour challenges difficult and with these colours, beautiful as they are, even more so. 

In the end, I decided to stick very close to the image and try my masking and ink blending skills. They can do with quite a bit of practise. I used worn lipstick, shaded lilac, dusty concord and black soot to create the circle area and stamped some wildflower silhouettes over the circle.

Originally, my intention was to keep it very simple, with just a sentiment, but when I had the panel finished, I felt it needed a bit more. So I chose a purple card base, which was just a touch to pale for my taste, so I blended a bit of black soot over the whole card front. Not much, just a tiny bit. Then I cut down the panel, rounded the corners and used a border punch to create the top edge. Is there a name to that kind of border?

I did the same with a piece of vellum and adhered both panels on top of each other at an angle. As an embellishment I added a pink paper clip arrow. 
For the sentiment, I punched two small tags from vellum and the same purple card stock (darkened again with black soot) and chose a small German sentiment, which I heat embossed in white onto the vellum. 


Now it's your turn, I'm curious what you will create.
Ela



Challenges:
Simon says Stamp: Anything goes

Challenge up your life: Challenge #73 Summer

Hello Crafters,

two weeks have passed again already, how time flies. Over here were I live, school started again last Monday, so my girls have successfully made it through the first week back at school and work. Good thing it's the week-end now. 


And it is challenge time as well, over at

This time, we are encouraging you to create a summer card!

Challenge #73 Summer

Here's what I made. 
My girls were invited to a pool party during the summer holidays, which is rather unusual, because view people have a pool in their garden here. So I wanted to make a water related card for that occasion, but the only stamp set I could think of, was from lawn fawn and I felt it might not be cool enough for an almost-teenager.

Therefore I wanted to make it special in another way, so he could overlook the cuteness of the critters and I created my first ever pop up box card.

I cut out the box myself, as I don't have a die for it, but that wasn't too hard. I sponged the front and insides with light blues and aquas and a wavy stencil, to create the watery look. I also did that for the inserts, which I cut to a wavy top.

Then I stamped and coloured the critters with alcohol markers, and cut them all out. For some of them I tried mirror stamping, to make them swim in different directions, and one of the fish is hand drawn because that was less effort than mirror stamping, as it was such a simple shape.

I placed them all inside the box, either directly to the inserts or side or with  an acetate strip if they were to go higher up. 

For the sentiment I coloured a piece of paper with my alcohol markers to create the gradient effect and then die cut it with a German sentiment die (means "we congratulate"). I love that die, as it is rather large, very fitting for all kinds of occasions and the dots on the i's are connected to the next letters, so you can't lose them. 

For the personal greeting, I die cut a stitched white panel and glued it to the back. This way we can write something personal, without spoiling the effect on the front. I also embellished that panel with 2 more fish.

So, now it's up to you, have lots of fun creating a summer themed card for us.
Ela




Challenges: 
AAA Cards: Summer fun
Simon says stamp: Add a sentiment
Just add ink: #373 Just add stencils 

Challenge up your life: Challenge #72 Circles

Hello Crafters,

it's time for another challenge at

This week, we are challenging you to use circles on your cards or layouts.

Challenge #72 Circles

I started out, with an entirely different idea. I meant to use an embossing folder with circles, a wide strip of a rainbow gradient I still had lying around and a circle focal point with some kind of image. 
 
I went through my stash and picked a humming bird from WPlus9. I coloured it in blue, green and purple, but then I got stuck... I couldn't make my elements work for me... 

I decided to drop the rainbow and created a whole bunch of circles, I coloured them with alcohol markers in matching colours (blue, lilac, purple, green and grey) and arranged them on a white card base. But it still didn't work, so I dropped the bird as well. 

Now I needed a new focal point. But luckily I  had just received a new sentiment stamp set with the most beautiful scripty sentiments. It's actually an add-on set meant to go inside a circle element, but I didn't get the main set. I just loved the sentiments, and I think they work just as well without a circle.

I stamped the sentiments on a white circle and matted it on a slightly larger grey circle, which was adhered to the card front with foam tape. The sentiments reads "kind regards", but in German that is less formal than in English.

Now, I hope you'll join us in using circles on your projects.

Lots of love
Ela

Challenge up your life: Challenge #37: Bunnies

Hello Crafters,

it's time again for another Challenge at: 

Ready for Easter, we are looking for Bunnies for the next two weeks.

Challenge #37 Bunny

Of course I used my favourite Bunny, from Purple Onions Design, and I wanted to use my brand new set of  Polychromos pencils. Yeah, I know, I said I would make do without. But my sister-in-law gave them to me for my Birthday a while ago. And I love them, THANKS!

I thought a little gift box for Easter would be nice, so I picked a bright orange card stock, die cut the pillow box and stamped and coloured directly on the box, without a belly band this time.

I thought blue would go well with the bright orange, and I think I was right.

So, show us all your bunnies, and don't forget to check out what the other ladies created.

Hugs

Ela  

Challenge up your life: Challenge #36 Die Cutting

Hello Crafters,

welcome to the new Challenge at

This time we are challenging you to use one of my favourite techniques:

Challenge #36 Die Cutting

I love die cutting, you can create all kinds of cool effects with it. For this challenge I wanted to use a die that I actually had for a year and never used. Having disregarded it so long, I now really wanted to put it to work...

So I went for an inlay background grey on white and white on grey. That was one fiddly bit of work, whatever made me go for inlaying with such an intricate die? I must be losing it...

When it was all done I had two panels and no idea of how I wanted to continue. Besides I didn't like the backgrounds as much as I had thought, so I wanted to cover up a bit of them, but not too much.

I found a gorgeous digital stamp of a robot with a balloon - robots being the obvious choice with the clockworks - but unfortunately it was out of sale.
Looking for an alternative, I found myself a great collection of digital stamps at Prettygrafikdesign, with some very cute toy robots and combined them with some balloon stamps I had in my collection.

I coloured all images with water colour pencils, doing only very simple shading. Then I fuzzy cut them out and adhered them with foam tape.

I placed both robots on a strip of coloured card stock to ground them. The red one is water colour paper, coloured with the same pencil I used on the robot and balloon. And the green is a just normal green card stock, but layered with a torn strip of vellum on which I heat embossed the sentiment. 

I picked Birthday sentiments for both cards to go with the cheerful balloons. Besides you can never have enough Birthday cards. As I make my cards for friends and family I gravitate towards German sentiments whenever I can.

To finish them off, I added strings and Glossy Accents to all of the balloons and adhered the front panels to coloured card bases (grey and green). I like the little surprise, when you open the card, and the inside is in an unexpected colour.

Now, go ahead and create a project using your dies. And please also check out what the rest of the design team created. Those ladies are so talented!

Have a nice week-end
Ela


Challenges:
Seize the Birthday: No toppings
Laura's Loft: Watercolour

Challenge up your life: Challenge #35 Buttons

Hi Crafters,

are you as glad as I am, that it's week-end? I seem to be constantly rushing somewhere lately, I'm really looking forward to a break. Though, to be honest, week-ends are not quiet either lately. 

Anyhow, it's Saturday and Challenge time, over at

 

 Our challenge this week: 

Challenge #35 Buttons

 

And what a challenge it was for me. Buttons don't seem to get along with me. Neither do ribbons, flowers and patterned paper, pretty much all the scrapbooky nic nacs that brought me to card making in the first place. I just don't seem to be able to use them very well. 

This time however, I am pretty content with my result. Probably because I combined them with my favourite colouring medium, my inktense pencils.

I really like those origami elefants for baby cards, but no one I know is expecting right now. Therefore I wanted to keep it gender neutral, so I picked rainbow colours, both for the elefants and the buttons. The sentiments is from one of my new efco stamp sets. It's very versatile, with a congrats (Herzlichen Glückwunsch) and then all kinds of occasions to go with it, like the birth of a baby, Birthday, Wedding, Anniversary and so on.

The heart button is actually a clear button, but I wanted it to show, so I coloured a red heart shape behind it.

Now it's your turn, go ahead and create a project with buttons. And don't forget to check out what the other design team members created!

Hugs

Ela



Challenges:
The cat's pajamas: #308 Animals
The daily marker: 30 days coloring challenge

Challenge #34 Without patterned paper

Hello Everyone,
 
guess what, it's Challenge time again. This week's theme is:  

Challenge #34 Without patterned paper 

 

over at

  

That's right up my sleeve, I ain't good with patterned paper anyway, so I did some colouring. And true to my intent not to let the next Christmas get as stressful as the last, this is another Christmas card.

I combined 3 different stamp sets from TAWS, Lawn Fawn and Newton's Nook, to create the frosty little mail-monster. Never hesitate to combine your stamps whichever way you like. So much more possibilities... The sentiment actually says "snail mail for you", but I cut off the "snail". "Mail for you" is so much more versatile, it can be used for almost any occasion, and I can piece it back together any time.

The colouring was done with Inktense Pencils. I really like how the shadow turned out, I think it looks like he's standing on ice.

So, grab your supplies and get started, we want to see all kinds of cards without patterned paper.

Hugs
Ela


The daily marker: 30 days coloring challenge

Challenge #33 Colour combination

Hello Crafters,

I got the lovely purple onion bunny "Birch" for Christmas, I simple LOVE him, he’s so cute. Thanks again Jessa!

I already used the image quite a bit, you may have seen it on my 2016 Christmas cards, I posted a few days ago.

Today, I’d like to show you an Easter card I made with it. As Easter is so early this year, I thought it quite fitting that he’s dressed in mittens and a cap.

And as it's Challenge time again, over at

 

 I used this weeks colour inspiration: 

Challenge #33 Colour combinaton

 

 

I coloured the image with my Inktense pencils and die cut the tag from it, to piece it back in with foam tape. Just for a  bit of extra dimension.

For the envelopes I used thin watercolour paper and the envelope punch board and coloured the image again. I used less water on that, to avoid warping and set the envelopes under a heavy book overnight. As you can see, it's still warped a little, but in real life it's not quite as obvious as in the picture.

Have a nice day

Ela

Challenge up your life: Challenge #27 Shaker Card

Hello Crafters,

isn't it amazing how time flies? It's almost Halloween. I've been crafting a lot lately, only no cards. My girls and I are having a Halloween party this year, so we had a lot of preparation to so. But right now it's Challenge time again, over at

These two weeks it's all about Shaker cards!

Challenge #27 Shaker card

I got those stars at the dollar store, I wanted to use. And as I was still very busy with Halloween decorations, I wanted something quick and - well - messy. So I created a background with some distress inks and the ink smooching technique.

Then I heat embossed the sentiment and die cut the stars. Instead of foam tape I used non-dimensional adhesive this time, so the stars don#t move as much. In hindsight, I think I would have liked it better with foam. I adhered it all to a black card base, because I thought that would bring out the silver stars more.

So, go haunt your craft space and show us some shaker cards!

Wishing you all a creepy Halloween!
Ela

Challenge up your life: Challenge #18 Sequins

Hello Everyone,

how are you? Guess what, it's Challenge time and this time it's all about sequins!

 

Challenge #18 Sequins

I decided to make another shaker card, because they are just so much fun. Besides I had that idea, to use the flowers from Persian Motives (WPlus9) for a shaker.

I stamped the flowers on a piece of watercolour paper. I had marked the area I needed with the help of my stitched rectangle die before I started. Then I coloured the flowers as usual with my Inktense pencils and a lot of water. 

After the colour had dried, I die cut the panel and cut out the middle with a straight edge, an x-acto knife and some small scissors. That was a bit tricky in places. Then I glued my acetate to the back, added the foam tape and filled the inside with matching sequins.  I also glued a few sequins to the card base, so that there would be some sequins visible at all times.

I am pretty happy with the result, even tough too many sequins stick to the glue dots inside now. I meant to scatter just a few, but  obviously the glue dots I used are a bit too large, so other sequins got stuck to them. But I like it anyway.


So, time for you to join in, show us some cards with lots and lots of sequins!
Hugs
Ela

Challenge up your life: Challenge #16 Digi stamps

Hello Crafters, 

Today, we are challenging you again, over at 
 

Lets all use digi stamps these two weeks!

Challenge #16 Digi stamps

 

You can use any digi stamps you like, but we are showcasing Jessa's lovely designs. Please check them out here, they are so much fun and they are free.

I used my alcohol markers to colour the little monster - my favourite of Jessa's designs. Jessa, can I have more monsters, pretty please? 

When I was done with shading, I just added little dots to give him some texture. After that I die cut the sentiment banner from white card stock and coloured it with the same green alcohol markers. No shading this time. The sentiment is from Paper Smooches. 

I adhered one side of the banner around the stick and glued it down with foam tape. For the stick itself I used matte medium. 

Then I just adhered it to a green card base and added a green envelope.

I hope, you'll take the challenge and use your digital stamps!

Looking forward to see all your cards and projects!

Ela

Challenges: 

Seize the Birthday: Anything goes Birthday
Less is more: 2 or 4 legs
Simon says stamp: Anything goes 

Challenge up your life: Challenge #15 Twine, buttons, ribbon

Hello Everyone, 

is it believable, time seems to fly right now. It already Challenge time again, over at

 

This time I personally found our Challenge exceptionally hard, because it's something I hardly ever use:

Challenge #15: Twine, buttons, ribbon

But I am content with what I achieved, so it was absolutely worth while. Here's what I did:

I started out with a selection if buttons, rather randomly chosen, and the feeling of being totally lost with them. Then I opened my box of ribbon and twine and liked nothing much, until this very broad burlap ribbon fell into my hands and I decided to use a piece of it as a panel. 

After that I spent quite  a while colouring a succulent, which didn't make it onto the card, because I just couldn't find a way to arrange it with the buttons. At this point I was pretty frustrated, and decided to go with just a sentiment. I cut out the Happy Birthday in white and black and liked neither of them on my card. But then I remembered a Challenge I had seen lately: Use the negative. 

So I cut the sentiment again, this time making sure that I arranged the words so that I could use the negative. Then I coloured the piece with a dark brown alcohol marker, to make it show up on the background. But the negative was still not very clear to read, so I decided to piece in the positive and just leave out the insides of the letters. 

I rounded the corners of the negative and the card base, arranged it all and glued it down with Matt Medium.

I am pretty happy with my card now, though now I wish I had put the sentiment on foam. But I thought of that way too late.

Hope you'll all take up the Challenge and join in!

Hugs

Ela

Challenge up your life: Challenge #14 Clear element

Hello Crafters,

it's Challenge time again, over at

 

Today we are challenging you to:

Challenge #14 Use a clear element

I received such a sweet comment on my blog the other day, about a card I made with the Ori Kami set. And I felt I totally didn't deserve it, because I hadn't done anything really special with it, so I decided to think of something better.

I cut out a circle card with my circle cutter, only I made sure that the fold was flat, a bit like a fish bowl. Then I hand cut he frame of the shaker element, the sheet of acetate and the back of the shaker. 

To create the water I used a wavy stencil and sponged tones of blue and teal onto the back panel. Then I stamped, sponged and fussy cut the grass from two different Lawn Fawn sets and adhered it to the frame and acetate.

After that, I stamped a lot of fishes and coloured them with my alcohol markers. I picked the ones I liked best, cut them out and put them inside my shaker, along with a lot of sequins in the same colours. Once I had the card assembled, I realised that I had forgotten the sentiment, which I had meant to go on the wavy background. So I had to play around a bit to find an alternative. I ended up with the Cheers die cut from Paper Smooches, which I cut in yellow and white. I shaded the yellow just a time bit, it's hard to see on the photo. Then I stacked yellow on top of white and adhered it to my card.

I do hope you'll play along again this time and get creative with some clear element.

Love

Ela