Prepare for the 30 Day Coloring Challenge - July 5th 2016 - VIDEO

Hi Everyone, How are you all doing? I have been struggling to make cards lately thanks to some bed time and late night sleeping antics of my children, but I have made some time to get ready for Kathy Racoosin's next 30 Day Coloring Challenge.

If you've been reading my blog for a while, you'll know I've been involved in the last few and I'm a big fan, as I find colouring hugely relaxing and stress relieving. There's no pressure with this challenge at all - 10 minutes a day is all that you need do, and you don't need to take part every day.

I have some pictures of how I'm preparing this time, along with a video on my You Tube channel. Are any of you getting ready?

I have an Ikea Variara box filled with various things, with Sven the Viking leading the charge.

I've filled some cellophane pockets with pre stamped card panels of water colour and Neenah card stock, so that I can just grab and colour as I go.

I've separated out my other blank card panels and card bases with marked up spare bits of white card, so that I know what is what. Some washi tape is a visual reminder too.

I am hoping that this time I'll manage some colouring every day. I mostly post on Instagram as it's a quick and easy way to keep up with what's happening in the challenge and to meet others taking part. 

Here's the video, which you can also watch on my YouTube channel

Below is a list of what I used in this video. Please note I DO NOT USE affiliate links: 

My Sweet Petunia - MISTI Mini	Hobbycraft Clear Acrylic Stamping Block 10.1 x 7 cm	Hobbycraft Clear Acrylic Stamping Block 13.4 x10.1 cm	Hobbycraft Clear Acrylic Stamping Blocks 2 pack	Memento Tuxedo Black	Ranger Archival Ink Jet Black	Versamark Watermark Ink	Lawn Fawn Stamp Shammy
Clear Design Ultra Clean Stamp Cleaner	Hero Arts Stamp Scrubber Pad	WOW! Clear Gloss Embossing Powder	WOW! Bright White Embossing Powder	*Neenah Classic Crest **110 LB** SMOOTH SOLAR WHITE Paper Pack 25 Sheets	WHSmith Watercolour Paper 12 Sheets - Art, Craft and Hobbies	Martha Stewart Mini Scoreboard	Tonic Studios Maxi Guillotine
Viking	Sugar Pea Designs Quackers	Lawn Fawn Mermaid for You	Some Birdie Loves You	Simon Says Clear Stamps ONE WITH NATURE	Pirate Party	Mini Distress Ink Pad - All Colours	Clearly Besotted Woodland Kisses

InLinkz.com

You can find more information on Kathy's Blog, The Daily Marker, where there will be daily inspiration throughout - she deserves a medal!

I hope you'll be taking part, for some of it at least. 

Keep crafting!

You Quack Me Up! - Sugar Pea Mix It Up Challenge #3

Hi Everyone! Thank you so much for all your lovely comments on my blog hop post. If you didn't manage to hop, you still can. And if you downloaded Jeanin's Forest Friends, there's now a link on her blog to upload your creations.

There's a new kind of challenge over at the Sugar Pea Designs Blog, and to keep myself amused while I'm waiting for the latest release, I've been playing with the last one and the cute little ducks. The weather outside has helped - it's been wet enough for them!

 
The Mix It Up Challenge gives you the option to use the sketch, or the inspiration on the other side, or mix and match, which I decided to do.

I started out by taking a 4.25 x 5.5 piece of water colour card and stamping the ducks where the circles were on the sketch in Archival ink. I then went with some wet on wet watercolouring with my Winsor and Newton Cotman watercolours. You wet the paper, and let the colours flow freely, so it gives it a sort of messy look which I quite like.

I dried them off with my heat gun and then did some partial die cutting with my stitched circles and cut the rest of the panel down with my craft knife.

I took a piece of Lawn Fawn paper and made an A2 card base (I use American sizes in case anyone is wondering! UK A2 is huge!) and on the front stamped the bullrushes and lilypads in a random pattern using Hero Arts Soft Pool. 

I then took some fun foam and cut it out to fit my watercolour panel and attached it with double sided tape. The ATG doesn't work well on the foam. 

I then stamped the sentiment on a scrap piece of watercolour card with my new Altenew Crimson ink (am loving these!) - it matches the inspiration perfectly - and attached it with the ATG.

Below is a list of what I used to make this card. Please note I DO NOT USE affiliate links. 

Sugar Pea Designs Quackers	Hobbycraft Clear Acrylic Stamping Blocks 2 pack	Ranger Archival Ink Jet Black	Clear Design Ultra Clean Stamp Cleaner	Hero Arts Stamp Scrubber Pad	WHSmith Watercolour Paper 12 Sheets - Art, Craft and Hobbies	Winsor & Newton Cotman Watercolour Sketcher's Pocket Box Paint	Simon Says Stamp SHAPES WITH STITCHES SetSS160 In Stitches
Sizzix Big Shot Die Cutting Machine	XCut No 1 Craft Knife	Lawn Fawndamentals Rainbow Cardstock	Tonic Studios Maxi Guillotine	Martha Stewart Mini Scoreboard	Hero Arts Soft Pool Shadow Ink	Lawn Fawn Stamp Shammy	Assorted Fab Foam Sheets
*3M Scotch PINK ATG ADVANCED TAPE GLIDER 1/4"" Adhesive Glue Gun	Sellotape Double Sided Tape 12x33

InLinkz.com

Thank you so much for taking the time to visit me today. Have a good week!

Forest Animals Digi Stamps Blog Hop

Hello! I'm so excited to be part of this blog hop for Jeanin's (Some Bits and Pieces) new and FREE digital stamps, Forest Friends. 

If you're on the hop, you should have arrived here from Nina, and if you would like to join the hop from the beginning, head back to Jeanin at the beginning so she can show you her fab and funky new stamps. The list of everyone on the hop is at the bottom of this post, along with a pointer to who to hop to next after me :)

I've only just started to understand fully what you can do with digital stamps. If you're looking for really helpful videos, have a look at Vera Lane Studio on YouTube as these were massively helpful to me!

I took the PNG file of the bunny and separated him out into his own file, along with the carrot and the sentiment. I resized him and the carrot so they would fit on an A2 card base. I took the carrot and shrank it down and copied and pasted it 22 times, repositioning them around the bunny like a heart. I then grouped them together and changed the colour to orange.

I printed the image out onto some Neenah and die cut it with a SSS stitched rectangle die before doing some Copic colouring - 22 tiny carrots is good going!

I then took an A2 card base and adhered some Lawn Fawn Let's Polka in the Dark paper to the front before adding the card panel popped up on fun foam for dimension.

Below is a list of what I used to make this card and where I purchased them. Please note I DO NOT USE affiliate links :)

*Neenah Classic Crest **110 LB** SMOOTH SOLAR WHITE Paper Pack 25 Sheets	Copic Markers	Lawn Fawn Let's Polka in the Dark 6x6 Paper Pad	Simon Says Stamp SHAPES WITH STITCHES SetSS160 In Stitches	Tonic Studios Maxi Guillotine	Martha Stewart Mini Scoreboard	A4 Super Smooth White Card - 250gsm - 100 Sheets	Sellotape Double Sided Tape 25x33
Assorted Fab Foam Sheets

InLinkz.com

I hope you like my card and it inspires you to download Jeanin's stamps and try something different!

Here's everyone on the hop:

Jeanin

Birka

Nina

Ruth - You Are Here!

Vanessa - Hop Here Next!

Wiebke
   
Happy hopping!