spring has sprung at Stampotique

The theme at stampotique is spring has sprung. I made this simple card using stampotique stamps and a little spring flowersoft

ballerina gift bag from an A4 envelope

Continuing with the music theme for the March Happy Daze challenge, I decided to use some Tim Holtz tissue tape and lost Coast's Ballerina 2 to make a simple gift bag from a A4 envelope.

To make the bag cut the envelope to 9 inches long. Use the cut off part to make the tag.

score the sides and base of envelope at 1.5 inches and fold. Score 3 inches from the top and fold this to the inside of the bag. Do not make up the bag until all the inking is done. Attach the tissue tape all the way around the bag leaving a little space.

Fold back the bottom 1.5 inch and ink with vintage photo distress ink below and just above the tape.

Stamp Abstract foliage along the bottom with vintage photo.

Fold into the bag shape, glue the base triangles to the base of the bag.

Punch holes in the top, attach the tag (which was simply stamped, inked and coloured with pencils)

Tie ribbon through holes.

music card for Happy Daze

To fit with the "march to your own tune" theme this month at the Happy Daze challenge, I have made this easy music themed card using Scrolls Work Stamps. Scrolls Work Stamps are not trading anymore, but Happy Daze still have a limited amount in stock.

for this card I used Sheet Music and Knapp music Chart.

To make the card I masked off a strip of the card and inked with various brown distress inks and overstamped with the sheet music stamp. I then stamped the knapp music chart with sepia versafine ink. I embossed two lines down the sides of the strip to make it stand out more,

to make the embellishment, I stamped the sheet music stamp onto white thin card. I ripped it into strips, and inked with distress inks, rolled it up and glued the rolls. I tied a ribbon around them added a charm (these are similar to what I used)and then glued to the card. I have left it sentiment free, but a sentiment could be added for any occasion for a music lover.

I am also entering this for the Less Is More "neutrals" challenge

blue for Happy Daze

Continuing the theme of using techniques that we love this month. I have decided to go with my all time favourite technique of colouring with pencils. Usually I colour onto Kraft card, but I wanted to show how it works just as well on any coloured card.

I also used another technique I love: Making tatty paper flowers which I also inked with stormy sky, and added just a hint of stickles

I stamped Jasmin in a dark blue ink (deep lagoon, versafine) and coloured with pencils, I inked around the edges of the card with stormy sky distress ink, and also stamped with abstract foliage with the same ink.

Hidden message, for Happy Daze

Continuing the "try something new" theme for the Happy Daze challenge, I thought that sometimes the easiest way to give something new a try is to copy something you've seen in a magazine.

I'm cheating a little here as I'm copying my own idea from my article in this month's Craft Stamper Magazine, which used Stampotique Stamps available from Happy Daze.

The card is a tent fold card with a gap at the top to hold a strip of card.
I used the wonderful moon girl, as well as Daisy Daisy, hearts Cubed and Each life, all of which are available from Happy Daze.

The instructions are in this month's craft stamper, which you can also get from Happy Daze

last minute gift for Happy Daze blog

To fit in with this month's challenge of gifts, cards and tags, I decided to share my last minute gift ideas. I often give Amazon vouchers as gifts, but any voucher that prints out onto an A4 sheet of paper will work.

I simply fold the voucher into thirds both ways to create a "z-fold" and then add covers (8cm x11cm) (be aware that the cover is attached to the top left corner of the voucher so make sure that there isn't any important information there.

The covers can then be decorated anyway you like. I have used Stamps from Stampotique.

We Three Kings for the happy daze blog

As Christmas rapidly approaches, I find the need for quick and easy cards gets more urgent.

Here's an easy one made with one simple stamp from stampotique.

I have coloured the card with pencils, highlighted with glossy accents. I have also used some gilding flakes to accent the bands around the crowns. I finally finished with some gold cord.

Happy daze Challenge, an explosion of colour.

For this month's challenge theme I have made this one layer card, using stamps from Jo Capper-Sandon's range at Stampotique. These Splatter stamps are perfect for the theme. I have used distress inks for the colour.

Christmas with non-Christmas stamps

You don't always have to buy special Christmas stamps to make your Christmas cards. Sometimes you just have to look at the stamps you have in a different way. This general tree from Stampotique, can easily be made to look wintry with simple colouring, and the addition of white flower soft or glitter. The tiny bird from Jo Capper-Sandon's range can easily be made to look like a robin redbreast with the appropriate colouring



all stamps are from , I made this for the Happy Daze challenge (where you can purchase your stampotique stamps)

SDC 40: Tag time

At The Stampotique Challenge Nellie has challenged us to make a tag. You can use any stamps for this challenge, but as usual Stampotique stamps are up for grabs as a prize.

I used an old favourite from Stampotique, Smile, but gave him a crown from Jo Capper-Sandon's range, which I stamped using a masking technique. The words are a stamp from Jo's latest collection and work perfectly with the crown.

I highlighted the crown and the edge of the tag, using a quickie glue pen and gilding flakes. I love this simple technique.

mistletoe bird house

The new monthly challenge at Happy Daze is Christmas or Hallowe'en.

The design team were given these tiny little wooden bird houses to play with. Unsurprisingly I kept mine simple. The only stamp I used is Jo's Mistletoe stamp from Stampotique.

Check out the instructions and what the rest of the design team did on the Happy Daze blog.

splashy dragonfly card

This as a really simple card I made with Jo's new Dragonfly stamp (again) and verse from stampotique. I created the simple background by doing a very small spray of adirondack sprays in 3 colours. I then used the same blue spray with a paintbrush to colour the dragonfly.
I have shown this on the happy daze blog.
Stamps are available from stampotique and happy daze in the uk. The sprays are available from Happy Daze.

I am also entering this for one layer wednesday's sentiment-a-mania challenge, where the sentiment must take prominence or at least be equal to the main image.

Stella and the dragonfly

This is my piece for the little black dress challenge at Happy Daze. Anyone who has visited my blog will know that my little black dress technique is pencil colouring on kraft card and using my home made stamp positioner to combine stamps to make one layer cards.

I've used these techniques with some of my new favourite stamps from Jo's new collection from Stampotique available from Happy Daze in the UK
Stella and dragonfly are both fantastic stamps to use individually, but combined I think they create something quite magical.
To achieve this effect, stamp Stella first, then create a stella mask from a post-it note, use a stamp positioner to make sure that the dragonfly is in the correct place and stamp the dragonfly.
colour with pencils, and add the quote also from Jo's collection.

By The Seaside for Happy Daze

I made this piece for this month's challenge theme beside the seaside.
I've made a really simple piece using starfish and words by Jo Capper-Sandon for Stampotique, and mesh from Scrolls Work.

I finished it with a scrap of blue vellum, a scrap of sandpaper and a few dots of liquid pearls

I am also entering this for The St Luke's Charity challenge (Oh I do like to be beside the seaside) and a last minute entry to the Kraft Journal's anything goes challenge.

housework for Happy Daze

I made this card for the Happy Daze design Team blog.

I decided I needed to add some lost coast stamps to my collection and I had a browse of the happy daze shop and came across Housewife, which I knew I had to have.

I decided to make this card in chintzy housewife colours but with a not so housewife quote

SDC35 - red, orange and yellow

It's a sizzling hot challenge at Stampotique this week. It's a stampotique only stamps challenge this week, but as it's a colour theme, I'm sure anyone can make this one work with even the fewest stampotique stamps.
I've just used a single stamp from Jo Capper-Sandon's range, with a masked backgound of distress inks.

This year's batch Christmas Card??

Every year I do a couple of designs for cards that I will be able to batch make (usually in late november). I think this is this year's first design. It's quick, uses minimal materials that are easily replaced, and is perfect for batch making.

The Stamps are all from Jo Capper-Sandon's range at stampotique, (available from Happy Daze in the UK) stamped in brown versafine on kraft card, and coloured with coloursoft pencils. the berries are highlighted with Glossy Accents, and the knotted ribbon is glued on.

This is one of my favourite ways to use ribbon, and so is my second entry for this week's Less is More Challenge. I have also entered this for the Kraft Jounal's Christmas in July theme.

Hanging heart for Happy Daze Challenge

I've made another piece for the current challenge, "Dangly Things". This extremely simple card shows that to be eligible to enter your artwork doesn't necessarily have to include something that actually dangles, just a stamp of a dangly thing will suffice.
In this card I have dangled Jo Capper-Sandons heart from hearts cubed from Tree, also by Stampotique.

I've used a stamp positioner (actually lego corner and clear packaging) to position the heart accurately on the tree, and coloured with pencils on Kraft card.

playing with pointillism again

If you've seen this month's Craft Stamper magazine, you may, like me, have fallen in love with Kim Costello's Pointillism article. I have made this card using Jasmin and Daisy Daisy from Jo Capper-Sandon's range at Stampotique. I don't own Copics so this was made using Whispers markers. I've a long way to go before I master this technique, but I'm enjoying playing!

Dangly Star

This card is made using stamps from Stampotique originals: the ubiquitous Moon Girl and the oh so useful Great Moon. I have made Great Moon's star dangle in an aperture using wire, and so this card is for the "dangly things" challenge, currently running at Happy Daze.