Here we are in Week 3 and the odd thing is it's starting to feel normal! Hope you are still bearing up. Without further ado, here's my card....
I've had these stamps for a while and one evening a few weeks ago, along with a whole load of things, I decided to colour them in. I struggled to get the right browns, but I did a lot of blending and came up with something that seemed to work!
I'm enjoying making all things sunshine and rainbows at the moment, so I decided Mr Mole would be popping out of the ground to look at the glorious sunshine. He might have bad eyesight, but he can still make out when it's lovely and sunny.
The sun is keeping me going and it's almost Easter, so the sun is bringing a whole load of hope to the world.
A quick one from me today, but sending you all the requisite virtual hugs and a reminder in these times to keep on crafting :)
Gosh we could do with lots of sunshine at the moment! What a different route life has taken us over the past couple of weeks. I was adjusting to having the girls around and they were adjusting to being around, but not able to go out and see their friends, so I didn't manage to post anything last week.
Week 2 of social isolation is going slightly better. I have closed the Etsy shop for the time being as I'm not comfortable going out to the post office. I may in a few weeks reopen and do weekly post office drops. I'm also more into a routine with the children and negotiating some time for me with my husband. As he's the main bread winner and can work from home, it's best for him to do that for as long as possible.
I'm missing the person to person contact, but ironically I've also decided now is the time to reduce my time on Facebook. There is just too much on it for me at the moment and it's all whirling round my head and I just sit and flick and it gets me nowhere. I still have both my Instagram accounts Crafting While the Baby Naps and Ruth's Reusable Products, and I prefer that for interaction.
So that's my news. How are you all bearing up?
Card! So I've had this set for ages. It's an old MFT set called Sunflower Sweetheart which they re-released in 2019. Someone very kindly sent it to me along with the dies. I didn't use them, as they are the old closed dies and I didn't want to mistakenly chop bits off I'd spent ages colouring, so after colouring her with Copic markers, I fussy cut her. Nearly chopped her head off in the process, but managed not to!
She's just simply adhered to a card base along with some frames I cut out of patterned paper and the sentiment has been stamped along the bottom.
Wishing you all the best of things at the moment. Stay safe. Stay home. Stay sane and Keep On Crafting!
...in one card! Well not quite, but as it's St Patrick's Day and I am half Irish and I have this funky leprechaun in my stash, I decided I had to colour him up in as many of my G and BG Copics as I could. Turns out I don't have as many as I thought I did!
Paddy here is from Paper Smooches and was a gift from an Irish friend who I've known for a ridiculously long time (ever since Uni days!) and who, despite living miles apart, we still manage to meet up and talk like we only saw each other yesterday!
So he's in all the greens and blue-greens I own, stopping short at his face and hands and teeth - if anyone knows any good combos for teeth I'll take it, as he looks like he's smoked one too many. I added some green Spica pen to his shoes and beard because I wanted to. You can't really see it without tilting it, it's so subtle.
I found a green card base in my stash and some glitter paper which I cut out with a Memory Box postage stamp die so he wouldn't get lost on the green background.
However you're getting on amid all this chaos and weirdness with Covid-19, have a great St Patrick's Day and know you can and you will be OK :)
Happy Crafting Everyone!
... is it me you're looking for? Well I hope so! Here's another of these long lost panels that I rediscovered while going through my box of unused coloured stuff, or BUCS (in tribute to Darnell's NBUS!).
This one has only taken a year to get onto a card, so not quite as bad as last week's.... I wanted it to pop against the background, but also be sympathetic to the colours of the greys. They are ALL the Copic grey tones - N, T, W and C - so you can see the difference in them all.
I used some coloured paper I've had stashed away for 5 years and cut the panels to layer it up.
I'm linking this up to my old challenge The Flower Challenge, which Aileen set up and I see going from strength to strength. The theme this month is Anything Goes, which is just perfect for me.
The lovely Viv did a very nice post about some of my wipes, which I custom made in some gorgeous Tilda floral hummingbird fabric. Thank you for your kind words Viv!
Hope you're having a good week so far. The sun has been shining and it's been nice to get out and about without getting damp.
Thanks for popping by and Happy Crafting Everyone!
Ruth xx
I'm fine, how are you? I actually completely forgot I coloured this in. Two years ago. Yes, two years ago! I met up with some lovely crafty friends one weekend in Birmingham and had a lovely time stamping and colouring. We mostly did talking, but I stamped a few images and coloured them in and never made them into cards. Well now is the time!
With my business all about reducing waste, it was high time I went through my scrap box and pulled out this panel which I'd coloured with Copics all that time ago. I wanted to practice highlights and shading. I'm not too sure how successful I've been, but I enjoyed using some of the grey-blues in my collection. The stamp is from Simon Says Stamp.
I'm really enjoying revisiting my card making and getting a bit of a stash going again. Always useful when you're reminded it's someone's birthday or you just need to send a Hello.
Thank you for visiting as always. Keep crafting!
Ruth xx
You may not know it, but I actually have been doing some card making behind the scenes. Just not blogging about it. Well, a chat with my business coach Lynsey from the Handmade Business Hub (best money spent every month I can assure you!) got me thinking about blogs again. Naturally it related to my Etsy business - take a look at my new look and name change! - but I thought to myself, since I already have an established blog, why not spent some time revisiting and blogging on it before I move to business blogging. Besides I realised I missed not doing it even with cards.
I've also started a small craft club in a local supermarket once a month where a few of us get together to eat cake, craft and sit and chat. It's the one place I can get some peace and quiet to craft and this is what I made at our last session.
I've been going through my card making supplies for a bit of a destash and found this Stamping Bella set which was one of the first I ever bought, and it is still a favourite. Obviously I was inspired by the recent weather from Storm Ciara and Storm Dennis here in the UK. If only I'd looked that good when escaping the hail stones at the school gate...
She's simply stamped and coloured with Copics. I haven't done a course for a while, so I'm hoping Faye runs some more. I could do with a refresher on skin and folds - well basically anything at all, because it's been so long!
I then just mounted her onto a nice purple star background onto a C5 card - I've stopped making my own cards as I just don't have the time to cut and fold.
I hope to be back with more cards over the coming weeks, so would love it if you would check in. Hope life is treating you all well.
Happy Crafting Everyone!
I've had these stamps for a while and one evening a few weeks ago, along with a whole load of things, I decided to colour them in. I struggled to get the right browns, but I did a lot of blending and came up with something that seemed to work!
