Forever friends: eyelets/brads

This week at the forever friends challenge, we challenge you to use eyelets or brads on your forever friends piece. I decided to make a faux eyelet mae from a cicle punches piece of text paper, hole punched to look like a paper eyelet.
The other stamps on my Tag are all PaperArtsy

I am also entering this for Mixed Media Monday's stitches theme, as the black zig-zag is real stitching.

sunday postcard art : Fish

I made this quick postcard (6x4) for Sunday Postcard Art, using this little fishing boy mini from PaperArtsy, the other stamps are all from a paperarsty frames plate

Gingersnap DT announcement

I'm proud to announce that I have been selected to be on the Gingersnap Creations Design team for the next six months, Along with this list of very talented artists and crafters.

Jo Capper-Sandon
Debby Boltman
Elina Koutsouradi
Laura Lidell
Hels Sheridan
Erika Taylor
Jean Franks Beck
Paula Whittaker
Lynn Stevens

Check out the gingersnap blog for more information.

Somewhere over the rainbow

The theme at Wednesday stamper is dogs. I decided to use this image of dorothy and toto from The Stampsmith, to decorate a notebook. I hand drew the rainbow again.
(is it just me or does toto remind you of Spit the dog?)

I am also entering this as a second piece or Gingersnap's rainbow colours challange.

Cupcake Teacosy

My sister asked me to knit a cupcake teacosy for her. I couldn't find any patterns that I liked so I made one up. I really hope she likes it (she better had, I'm not making another)
My teapot has a really flat spout, so doesn't really show it off, I'm hoping it will look much better on my sister's teapot.

Forever Friends a sketch challenge

This week on the Forever Friends Challenge we have a sketch challenge for you. I combined mine with a comission I had to make a baby boy card for a baby with an unusual name.

GC20: Color Challenge - The Rainbow

When I saw the new colour challange at Gingersnap Creations was "the rainbow" I decided I wanted to draw a childlike rainbow picture. (I love how children draw rainbows). I then used stamps from the artistic stamper for the butterfly and quote.

What is it with pens?

It seems like everytime I go to the supermarket I buy a packet of ballpoint pens, yet when I need them they've all disappeared!!

So I thought I'd make a pen jar, using one of the new minis from Paperartsy. I also thought this would make a nice "back to school" project so made it in colours that my son, who is just about to start secondary school, might like.

I've stayed with the stationery theme and used ordinary lined paper, a letter stencil (although the smaller letters are a PaperArtsy stamp). I have also embellished with blue staples from a fab little stapler kit that Jo bought me from Tesco.

I love using Jars, as I often think they are too nice to throw out. I recycle my glass, of course, but I prefer to "upcycle"

gingersnap challanges 17 and 19

I made this tiny little chipboard tag for two of the current gingersnap challenges
citrus and chipboard. I used citrussy distress inks and a tiny chipboard tag . The stamps are all Paperartsy and the image is an inchie image from Inka, which shows you just how small this is. I think I might attach a magnet to the back and use it on my notice board, as it is so substantial.

This week's forever friends challenge: not a card

This week at the forever friends challenge we challenge you to make anything other than a card.
I made an easy gift box. I am looking forward to seeing everyone's creations

groovy baby!

I have made this ATC for TMTA's Flower Power theme, Wednesday stamper's Paisley theme and for the stampsmith blog.
The paisley stamps are from a stamps away set, that I have had for ages

make mine a mug of chocolate cake!!

You know how it is when your kids want something cakey, and you don't have anything in? Well we found this fantastic recipe HERE. The best thing about it is all the measurements are tablespoons, so the kids can easily do it themselves. It makes enough for two, but would you share??
I have copied the recipe here

Saw this recipe and have tried it - very quick and pretty good very quick cake! I found 1 cake enough for 2 people when I made it with SR flour.

Just need this recipe and a mug and a microwave!

Ingredients:

4 tablespoons flour

4 tablespoons sugar

2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa

1 egg

3 tablespoons milk

3 tablespoons oil

3 tablespoons chocolate chips

splash vanilla or other flavoring - try peppermint or cinnamon!

Technique

• Add all of the dry ingredients to the mug and mix.
  
• Add the egg and combine well. It gets pretty pasty at the point.
  
• Stir in milk and oil.
  
• Add chocolate chips* and splash of vanilla. Stir well.
  *if you don't have chocolate chips, try a broken up candy bar - I can't stress how much this amps the awesomeness of your cake
• Microwave for 3 minutes in a 1000w oven, or 4 minutes in a 700w oven.
  It will start to crown over the top of the mug. Don't panic! It will collapse once the heat stops
• Enjoy! (OK wait for it to cool down a bit) Yummy hot or cold!

Saturday's workout

The theme at Saturday's workout is textured paint. I made this ATC using some of the new PaperArtsy Ink and the dog minis (49, 56 and 57), combined with some older paperartsy stamps. I textured the paint by stamping into slightly wet paint, which lifted some of the paint away.

Have Book, Will Travel : a crochet project

I designed this bag yesterday, with the sole purpose of carrying a book. I absolutely always have a book on the go, so I wanted a bag to carry it in. This is a really easy design for a beginner and can be adapted easily to any size, using any yarn and hook.
First start with a granny square (there are plenty of instructions on how to make these on the internet) make it the width that you want your bag to be. Along one side of the square, pick up the stitches and make a row of trebles (UK) or doubles (US). Continue rows of trebles until the piece is about 1/2 " shorter than you want the bag to be, then do two rows of double crochet (UK) or single crochet (US).
Make another identical piece. place wrong sides together (although they don't really have a right and wrong side) and join the sides with double crochet (UK) and then go back over in crab stitch this gives a fancy edge for very little effort.

At one of the edges pick up 7 stitches for handle, and double crochet (UK) over these stitches until the handle is long enough. The handle WILL stretch, so make sure you allow for this in the length. I have designed mine as an across the body bag. When long enough, join to the other edge.

You could easily line this bag with a simple bag lining, but I have left mine unlined, in the market bag style. You could also easily add a loop and button fastening.

My project is now featured on the FaveCrafts website, here.

craft stamper

The next issue of Craft Stamper is out on friday and I have made a little box for storing the freebie stamps that come with the mag, which is featured in the readers section.
All the measurements and instructions are in the mag.
I'm really pleased that it's inspired a couple of people as there are all ready a couple of these boxes featured on blogs:
Chicken Licken
Nikki
If any one else makes one, I'd love to see it.

TMTA friendship

I made this for the TMTA theme using an image from the Stampsmith

little cushion

Our theme at forever friends challenge tomorrow is stitching: real, faux, doodled, stamped, whatever....

I chose to actually sew something, and made a lttle cushion. I actually thought this would make a nice lavender sachet, but didn't have any dried laveder, so it's stuffed with toy stuffing instead.
I was also inspired by theme thursday's 4x4 theme, and this is a 4x4 cushion.

PaperArtsy birdhouse

This is made with one of the new PaperArtsy minis. I thought the image called for something bright and funky.
I am entering this for Crazy Amigo's free theme, there's a prize to win!!

winter wonderland

The theme that the winter wonderland challange, is winter wonderland!!
I made this using a stampsmith image, the music image is by river city rubber works and the words are by Paperartsy.
I have coloured the image with coloursoft pencils and blended with sansodor

saturday's workout and secret crafter

The Saturday's Workout challenge is peeled paint backgrounds. Which I have done using two shades of green acrylic paint. I have made this ATC using the sketch from The secret Crafter challenge. The main image is from the stampsmith's "Isn't she Lovely" plate. so I am featuring it on the stampsmith blog.