One for the men

The Head to Head Challenge on the Dragons Lair Designs Facebook page uses a definitions set of papers and embellishments. Dragons Lair Designs produce some wonderful kits for scrapbooking but don't feel they are not for you if you are a cardmaker, they work just as well for cards as they do for scrapbook pages.

Materials used: 
Dragons Lair Designs - Definitions: Happy Themed 
Dapper Gentleman, Ticket Stub and Greating stamps from a set free with Creative Stamping Magazine
Black paper
White 15cm square card blank
Printer card
Polychromo pencils
Archival Sepia ink pad
Distress ink pads - Old Paper, Vintage Photo, Tea Dye
Blending Tool

Having printed out the background paper  and the Fun tag from the Definitions Kit I cut it to size and then stamped the man on using Sepia ink. I coloured him with Polychromo pencils.

I made up the ticket pocket and ticket stubs from snippets of white card and used the distress inks to age them. I made up the pocket, folding it in halves and sticking the sides together before adding the tab and attaching to the front of the card.

The main panel is matted on black card and the edges of the card blank have been distressed to  match the tickets and pockets.

A growing number of people have started sending cinema vouchers as presents so I designed this card with that in mind. I did not have a voucher so I wrote a 'pledge of a film of your choice' on the back of one of the tickets.

There is still time to enter the current Head to Head Challenge at Dragons Lair so why not hop over and have a look. There are a lot of other fun challenges going on, both on the Facebook page and on the website. I have put all the links in below.

• Dragons Lair Designs Online Shop (http://dragonslairdesigns.com/shop/)


• Dragons Lair Designs Fan Group (https://www.facebook.com/groups/636646656454888/)


• Dragons Lair Designs Facebook Page (https://www.facebook.com/Dragons-Lair-Designs-443643142441261/)


• Dragons Lair Designs Inspiration Blog (http://stampingdragondesigns.blogspot.co.uk/)


• Dragons Lair Designs Challenge Blog (http://stampingwithdragon.blogspot.ie/)


• Janette Padley - Designer on craftsUprint (http://www.craftsuprint.com/janette-padley/)


• Dragons Lair Designs Etsy Shop (https://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/dragonslairdesignz)


• Dragons Lair Designs Crafts Group - selling buttons and bits and bobs (https://www.facebook.com/groups/dragonslaircrafts/)

 

Thanks for dropping in. Take care.

Pippa

I would like to enter my card into the following challenges:
Dragons Lair Designs Head to Head (on Facebook)
Glitter and Sparkle #180 - Anything Goes
613 Avenue Create #167 - Anything Goes
Lil Patch of Crafty Friends #30 - Anything Goes
Robyns Fetish #308 - Square or Rectangle Cards 
Addicted to Stamps #122 - Any Shape
That Craft Place #6 - Anything Goes
Crafting From The Heart #104 - Anything Goes
Craft Your Passion #304 - Anything Goes
Not Just Cards #30 - March
Where The HeART Is #7 - Easter/Anything Goes
Our Crafty Corner #7 - Anything Goes
Creative Card Crew #9 - CAS
Lemon Shortbread #11 - Anything Goes
Through The Craft Room Door - Anything Goes

Bowing out.

This is my last post as a Guest Designer for Imagine That digis by Kris. I have loved being a small part of her team and, no doubt, her designs will continue to pop up on my blog now and then. For my final sample I have gone for a very simple card.

Materials used: 
Imagine That digis by Kris - Psalm 91
Imagine That digis by Kris - Thoughts and Prayers
X-Press It blending card
Copics
Copic multiliner black pen
A5 white card blank
printer paper

The image and the sentiment are printed on the X-Press It card and coloured with Copics. I drew in the frame freehand with the black pen then used a grey Copic to put in a shadow to make it look raised.

Before sticking my topper to the front of the card I ran a black Copic around the edges. The topper had been trimmed slightly smaller than the base card so that the black inking made a frame for it.


I used the pre coloured image and a sentiment from the Thoughts and Prayers set to make an insert.

Now the eagle-eyed among you may have noticed the slight error! I got so carried away colouring that I forgot to look at the precoloured image for reference which means the image on the insert is different from that on the front!

Thanks for dropping in. Take care.

Pippa

I would like to enter my card into the following challenges:
2 Creative Chicks #8 - Anything Goes
A Bit More Time To Craft #16 - Anything Goes
Crafts Galore Encore March - Make a Card
Just Keep On Creating March - Anything Goes
Sisters of Craft March - Anything Goes
Your Scrapbook Place March - Anything Goes
Crafting With An Attitude #13 - Anything Goes
Crafting From The Heart #104 - Anything Goes 

 

Beauty Part 2

We are now at the midway point of the current Path of Positivity challenge #36 - Beauty. It was not until my second choice of image to work with came that I realised that I had chosen a floral theme for both cards. I think living in a rural area might have something to do with it, but I always think of God's wonderful creation in nature when I think of beauty. Of course people are beautiful, they are, I believe, created in the image and likeness of God. At this point I can hear the sceptics say, 'Then how come the world is in such a mess?' While I agree that the world is a mess and that we have the too often used ability to mar the beauty in it and in each other, but that has more to say about us than it does about God. We are created in God's image but it is up to us as to whether we develop the same mind set of God, whether we align our thoughts and actions as much as we are able to God's will or whether we go our own way and do whatever we like. God gave us free will as people, he did not create us robots.

So back to nature and my card. Our hedgerows are filling with primroses and daffodils and the fruit trees are starting to blossom, Spring is slowly pushing back Winter. The verse from Ecclesiastes sums it up, no more words needed!

Materials used: 
Sammi Stamps - Spring Branch
X-Press It card
Copics
8 inch square card blank
black card
Memento ink pads: Rose Bud, Cottage Ivy
blending tool
corner rounder punch

I arranged the Spring Branch stamp on my paper to make a wreath and put the Bible verse in the middle. Having got the image to the size I needed I then copied, pasted and cropped it to just the flower head and printed out 4 copies.

I coloured all the flowers with Copics then cut the base image to size and rounded the corners. I inked opposite corners with the Rose Bud and Cottage Ivy inks.

 I covered the front of the card blank with black card and then mounted my image ontop.

 I fussy cut the extra flower heads and stuck them ontop of the base image to add depth.

There is still time for you to enter at the Path of Positivity, we would love to see you there and there are some great prizes on offer:

SPONSOR & PRIZE INFORMATION:

• A $12 gift certificate from Sami Stamps, one of our guest sponsors this month, for the post or project that the DT deems most inspiring of the bunch.


• A $15 gift certificate from Lunagirl, one of our guest sponsors this month, for a person chosen in a random draw based on all entrants.


• One digital image from Creative Bug Digital SnapShots for each person chosen as a DT Delight.

There will also be:

• A small selection of digital designer papers from Décosse's Dynamite Doodles for one lucky person who leaves a comment on posts published during the challenge timeframe.

• One digital sentiment for every single person who enters the challenge.

So come on, what are you waiting for, this is your personal invitation to take a walk along the Path of Positivity!

Thanks for calling in. Take care.

Pippa

I would like to enter my card into the following challenges:
Penny's Paper-Crafty Challenge #269 -Anything Goes
Crafty Creations Challenges #311 - Spring Fever
Creative Inspiratios #247 - Nature
Creative Moments #89 - Anything Goes/Spring Has Sprung
Ruby's Rainbow Challenges #125 - The Earth Laughs in Flowers
Word Art Wednesday #222-223 - Anything Goes



 

 

I've never done this before!

Ok, so what have I never done before, you  may well ask. Nothing as remarkable as ski down the Mattehorn but still a significant happening in my life! (I really do need to get out more!) I have made a'card' for a specific challenge that is not a progressive freebie one!

Materials used: 
Sarn's Sarntangle Rubber Stamp Set (these were a limited edition that have now sold out but you can get some digi ones from her blog: Stamping For Pleasure.)
X-Press It card cut to ATC size
Copic pens
Copic multiliner
Memento Tuxedo Black ink pad

The stamp starts (or ends if you turn it around the other way) with the swirl which I have used as the 'p' in Spring. I added the other letters with the multiliner pen trying to make it look like the swirls in the original stamp.

The leaves and swirls are coloured with the Copics in spring colours (although when I Googled Spring colours it came up with just about every colour in the rainbow and more!)

The black border is added freehand using the multiliner pen.

Now if I am being honest, the reason I have never made anything for a specific challenge, other than progressive freebies, is that I am never organised enough but I was determined to do this one maily so I can plug Sarn's stamps and her fantastic blog, which is well worth a visit, but also so I can feel the ink and rubber again after all the digi stamping I have been doing.

Thanks for stopping by. Take care.

 

Pippa

I would like to enter my ATC into the following challenges:
CASology #189 - Doodle
Lemon Shortbread #11 - Anything Goes
Inspiration Destination #77 - Anything Goes
A Bit More Time To Craft #16 - Anything Goes
2 Creative Chicks #8 - Anything Goes
Crafty Gals Corner #63 - Show Me Some Green
Sweet Stamps March - Anything But A Card

 

'Ere be dragons!

The freebie image for Dragons Lair Designs Facebook  Group challenge is a broken egg! Now I know it could be a broken Easter egg but we are talking Dragons Lair so I thought -hatched dragon! It just so happens that there is a lovely digi stamp of Jiggy hatching and the top of his egg is missing so I added that image to my broken bits of egg.

Materials used: 
Dragons Lair Designs - Broken Egg (request image on Facebook Page)
Dragon's Lair Designs - Jiggy's Hatchday
X-Press it card
A5 white card blank
Mein Lila Park - Brown Polka Dot Paper (free)
Copic pens

It took a while to work out the positioning of the two images so that one did not run into the other. A black fineliner pen filled in any gaps quite successfully.

The brown paper comes as brown and while so I coloured in the dots with the brightest green from the combination I used on the dragon.

The sentiment comes with the Jiggy's Hatchday digi stamp.

I have entered this card into some challenges with Spring as the theme because spring heralds a flurry of new birth in nature; flowers, trees, animals, and birds are all busy producing the next generation.

Dragons are not the only ones concentrating on family, our garden birds are busy refreshing or rebuilding their nests and there is a growing sense that Spring has arrived to stay this time. I popped out into the garden this afternoon and there was a lot of bird song going on. The frogspawn is developing and not far off hatching and the water Iris is just poking out above  the water. The trees are growing ever greener as leaf buds and young shoots develop and there are more trees in blossom on my route to work. With all that and glorious sunshine and blue sky it certainly feels more like spring, could do with being a tad warmer though!

Thanks for popping by. Take care.

Pippa

I would like to enter my card into the following challenges:
Dragons Lair Designs Group Challenge - March
Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps #322 - Spring  (new birth!)
Allsorts Challenge Blog #354 - Spring Is In The Air
Susie Bee's Bloomin' Challenge - Anything Goes With A Touch Of Spring
Sweet Stampin' - Boys To Men
A Gem Of A Challenge - Spring
Crafty Friends #27 - Anything Goes
613 Avenue Create #167 - Anything Goes
Dragonfly Journeys #48 - Go Green
The Craft Barn - Circles In The Background
Lil Patch of Crafty Friends #29 - Anything Goes
Pile It On #103 - Green and 2 Other Colours (I have used brown and blue)
That Craft Place #6 - Anything Goes
Glitter and Sparkle #179 - Use Some Green
Lacy Sunshine Colour and Craft Anything Goes
A Bit More Time To Craft #16 - Anything Goes
Lemon Shortbread #11 - Anything Goes
City Crafter Challenge #303 - Make It Green



 

 

Helping in the garden!

This month's Stamp of the Month for the From the Heart Stamps challenge features a not so helpful helper in the garden!

Materials used: 
From  The Heart Stamp of the Month - Digging Dog
X-Press It stamping card
square card blank folded to make an easel card
Adorable Scoreable card left over from a kit
gold mirri card
bone charm
hexagan cutting dies
Copic pens

I used two copies of the main image, cutting the dog out of the second copy and attaching it ontop of the base image with gel glue.

The Adorable Scoreable card has been lanquishing in a draw for month and months so it was great to be able to put it to use at last!

I made this card for my husband whose birthday is at the end of the month. We do not have a dog, just a cat that on occasions thinks he's a dog! But Tim is in charge of the garden and I thought he would enjoy the funny side of the card.

The challenge at From the Heart goes on all month so there is still plenty of time for you to join in. If you do you will get the image for April free of charge, so you could say everyone's a winner!

Thanks for popping in. Take care.

Pippa

I would like to enter my card into the following challenges:
From The Heart Stamps Stamp of the Month - March
Lemon Shortbread #9 - Anything Goes
Little Red Wagon #332 - Mainly Manly (I always associate dogs with men, cats with women, not sure why really! But this is for my husband so I hope it counts as manly enough!)
Inspiration Destination #76 - Anything Goes
The Crafty Addicts #10 - Anything Goes/Card For a Man
Whimsy Stamps #91 - Anything Goes
Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps  Wonderful Wednesday - March Anything Goes




 

Challenging myself!

For my entry in the Art By Mi Ran progressive challenge on the Facebook page I challenged myself to use colours that I would normally avoid because I cannot get them to blend as well as others. So it's away with the reds and out with the oranges, purples and greens!

Materials used:
Art By Mi Ran image - it was the image for the challenge and will be available in the store soon.
Color Your Way- Valentine Digital Paper Feather
X-Press It card
Copic pens
white feathers
green and orange card
A5 white card blank

The image is printed out on X-Press it card and the feathers on ordinary printer card.

The sentiment is computer generated.

The white feathers have been coloured using the same Copics as I used to colour the bird and image feathers. Colouring the feathers was an experiment that actually worked!

Even though I was working out of my comfort zone with the colour combination I am quite pleased with the final result. The problem now is that I cannot stop stroking the feathers, they are so soft!

Thank for dropping in. Take care.

Pippa

I would like to enter my card into the following challenges:
Open-minded Crafting #3 March - Luck/St Patrick's Day (I think my sentiment fits the Luck theme and the bird is a good Irish green!)
Penny's Paper-Crafty Challenge #268 - Anything Goes
Inspiration Destination #76 - Anything Goes
Ikesworld Challenge #58 - Lucky Me (I think my card fits the theme for the same reasons as above)
Crafting With Dragonflies#52 - Girly Cards
Ellibelle's Creative Moments Let's Color Linky Party #4 - Anything Goes With Something Colored
Scrapper's Delights #53 - Anything Goes
Lacy Sunshine's Colour Your World - Anything Goes
613 Avenue Create #166 - Anything Goes
Lil Patch of Crafty Friends #29 - Anything Goes
That Craft Place #5 - Anything Goes
Sweet Stamps March - Anything Goes

 

 

Making the most of what you have

My penultimate card for Imagine That! Digis by Kris is the one I made for Mothering Sunday. This time I have only used papers, no image.

Materials used: 
Imagine That! Digis by Kris - Bella's Beauties: Romance Set 1 Digi Papers
Imagine That! Digis by Kris - Bella's Beauties: Satin Fabrics
acrylic greeting stamp
black archival ink pad
white square card blank made into a twisted easel
Copic pens
Copic re-inkers in the same colours as the pen
white glossy card
X-Press It card

The inside of the card is lined with pink paper printed from the Satin Fabrics set.

The mat for the main image is made using the re-inkers from the pens and blending solution on a felt pad on a blending tool.

The coloured flower is made from two layers. Having sized the main image to the correct size for the card blank I copied it then croped it so that I was left with just the flower I wanted to focus on. I managed to arrange the printing on one sheet of A5 X-Press It card so that I had the main image and two copies of the single flower.

It just goes to show you that even if all you have is some designer papers you can still make a good card from them, especially floral ones like the Romance Set.

This month Imagine That! Digis by Kris is celebrating it's third birthday. There are lots of events taking place and freebies to be grabbed so why not head on over and take a look. Don't forget there is also the monthly Payground Challenge and the theme this time is Birthdays.

Thank you for dropping by. Take care.

Pippa

I would like to enter my card into the following challenges:
Crafting With An Attitude #13
Crafty Girls Creations #15
In The Pink #89 - For A Special Lady
Little Miss Muffet #132
Creative Knockouts #131 - Flower Power
Cute Card Thursday #415 - Mother's Day
Glitter 'N' Sparkle #178 - Mother's Day

 

 

 

 

Beauty Everywhere

It's time for a new challenge at the Path of Positivity and this month the theme is Beauty. I am fortunate to live in one of the most beautiful areas of the country. From my house you do not need to go too far to get to woods, hills, seashore, river bank, canal tow path, disused railway lines turned into cycle tracks, open land, the choice is almost endless! I love being out with nature and watching the seasons unfold different beauty as the year progresses. At the moment we have the last of the early spring flowers still showing here and there, the crocus, snowdrop and daffodil. Meanwhile the blossom is coming on some of the trees and new leaf buds are starting to show. My pond has frogspawn in it and the fields are filling with ewes and lambs. Even though we had a really mild winter it is still refreshing to watch spring coming in.

For my sample card this time I have, quite predicably, gone with a floral theme.

Materials used: 
Luna Girl - Flowers Line Art Digital Collage Sheet
Die'sire Create-a-card die set - Oval Accordian
yellow card
X-Press It card
Copic pens
stick on gems
silver peel-off greeting

I chose two of the flowers from the sheet to work with, the daffodil and the snowdrop, to match the season.


 

I die cut the card parts in yellow card to make it cheerful. I decided that it did not need any more embelishment other than the little gems in the corner. I wanted the focus to be on the flowers.

 


There are some super prizes on offer from our sponsors for this challenge:

• A $12 gift certificate from Sami Stamps, one of our guest sponsors this month, for the post or project that the DT deems most inspiring of the bunch.


• A $15 gift certificate from Lunagirl, one of our guest sponsors this month, for a person chosen in a random draw based on all entrants.


• One digital image from Creative Bug Digital SnapShots for each person chosen as a DT Delight.

There will also be:

• A small selection of digital designer papers from Décosse's Dynamite Doodles for one lucky person who leaves a comment on posts published during the challenge timeframe.

• One digital sentiment for every single person who enters the challenge.

With all that and don't forget the fun of joining in! I hope you will come and add your creation to the challenge. We look forward to seeing all the wonderful makes you come up with. Don't forget you can enter with anything, it does not have to be a card, as long as somewhere on your post you explain how it links to the theme. This month is a reallye easy one so come on, give it a go.

Thanks for dropping in. Take care.

Pippa

I would like to enter my card into the following challenges:
Just Keep On Creating - March
Crafting By Designs - March Anything Goes
Creative Moments #88 - Anything Goes/Optional Twist: Place a sentiment on the front of your project
Freshly Brewed Challenge 201609 - Spring
Inspiration Destination #75
Little Red Wagon #331 - Layer of One
Create and Inspire #40
Stamping Sensations March - Flower Power
2 Creative Chicks #8
Luna Girl Moonbeams March - Spring Flowers and Birds
Our Crafty Corner #7
Lemon Shortbread #9