Who's that girl?

Good morning blog friends!

Firstly, I need to make an apology as last week I forgot to welcome Lynsey who is my newest follower and a fellow "Clowdie" - thank you for joining me on my crafty ramblings!

Secondly, hope everyone is in fine fettle. For most households in the UK it's back to school/college this week, although the Bambinos get a few more days respite due to Inset Days. I'm back to the madhouse, ooooops school today getting the office ready for the new academic year.

It's new challenge day at Incy Wincy Designs and this time we're bringing you a Colour Challenge. We've got two lovely sponsors lined up which means 2 lucky winners will get picked by Mr. Random.org from our challenge entries and they will each win one sponsor's prize.

Our first sponsor is new to us here at Incy Wincy Towers, and it's Waltraud from Miezo Stamps. They have some funky and quite quirky images, both line art and pre-coloured in the store.

Our second sponsor is Chrishanthi from Ppinky Dolls who is probably best known for creating the Lolita style images of girls!

So, here's your Colour Inspiration and we would like you to use at least THREE of these colours on your project, and our swatch has six colours that shouldn't be too difficult :oD !!! Of course you can also use neutrals and skin tones too!

And here's my card for you, using pale blue, pale pink and yellow from the colour palette above and featuring one of Chrishanthi's images:

My card recipe is as follows:

• Card Base - is a 12cm x 29.6cm piece of Snow White Silver Centura Pearl which I then scored and folded to give a 12cm x 12cm stepper card. Into the front step I used a Die'sire "Mini Victoriana" Edge'ables die to cut the standing piece of latticework - the bit it's cut out from is the back part of the front step. This technique, which I've not used before, was demonstrated in Crafter's Inspiration Magazine Issue 11 and I also saw Sara Davies demo'ing it on TV a few weeks ago, plus I think it looks pretty cool! I think that this die might also have been a past freebie from the same publication, but I can't find which issue it was in at the moment!
  
• Frame - is Die'sire Nouveau Stamping Frame which I have die cut from Centura Pearl in a pale baby blue. My cardstock came from a bulk pack called "Pastels" from Crafter's Companion. The closest I can now find in their store is this Fresh Blue which looks quite a bit darker on screen!
• Image - is the slightly wistful Lonely Sisi by Chrishanthi at Ppinky Dolls. I have brought Sisi to life using my Spectrum Noir Pens in the listed colours and Chrisanthi makes it easy to see where the shadows and highlights should be as she shades the images for you! I then die cut Sisi using the inner rectangle from my Die'sire Nouveau Stamping Frame. 
• Skin - FS2, FS3, FS4, FS9, TN4, FS8
• Hair - CT1, CT4, GB3, GB7
• Dress - PP1, PP2, PP5 

I have deliberately left this card sentiment free as I think it could be used for several occasions, so it'll go into my box ready to be used.

I hope I have inspired you to come on over to Incy Wincy Designs and join in our Colour Challenge. If you need any more inspiration though, please go over to the blog and check out the fantastic showcase of cards from my teamies - there are a variety of cards to suit all tastes! Then don't forget to come back and show us your creations using our colour swatch as your inspiration.

I would like to enter this card into the following challenges:

• Challenge #212 - Girlie at Ooh-La-La Creations
• O is for Open at ABC Challenge
• Challenge #128 - Anything Goes with the Twist of Colour Challenge at DigiStamps4Joy - I've used Baby Blue for the frame, Yellow in her hair, and Fuschia Pink on her dress
• Game #72 - New to You Technique at AAA Cards - using an Edge'able die to cut across a fold and leave a portion standing up is my "new to me technique"

I hope you have a great day!

Hugs, Helen x

"Curiouser, and curiouser" said Alice

Good morning crafty friends!

Last week of term for us with it being Good Friday at the end of the week. Although it's been a rather short term, as usual it's been rather action packed!

It's new challenge time at Incy Wincy Designs and our challenge for you this time is 3, 2, 1, GO FOR IT! OK, it's not a running race, it's a recipe challenge! We'd like you to use 3 papers, 2 buttons and 1 ribbon.

As ever, we've got 2 great sponsors lined up for this challenge.

Our first sponsor is the lovely Chrishanthi at PPinky Dolls and our second lovely sponsor are the team at Dr Digi, both of whom are offering our 2 randomly picked, lucky winners a prize package.









Before I show you my project, here are some ramblings from Casa Mia:

A brass on the wall in our parish Church
commemoratingAlice's brother Edward

Many of you will familiar with the stories of Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll and some of you will also know that the original story was invented by Lewis Carroll to entertain a young Alice Liddell and her siblings whilst they were on a boat trip in Oxford. Later, Lewis' story was committed to paper. Fast forward to 1888 and Alice's father (who was still the Dean of Christchurch, Oxford), together with the then Lord Bishop of Winchester, consecrated the church where we now worship - one of Alice's 9 siblings, Edward, was Churchwarden at the church at that time. The font in which both Bambinos were baptised was also donated by Edward! Alice spent the rest of her life in the New Forest, Hampshire and her remains are buried in the Churchyard in Lyndhurst where, coincidentally, the Bambinos and I have spent many happy weekends because there is a Girlguiding UK Activity Centre in the same village! Small world eh or, as Alice would say "Curiouser and curiouser"!

So I'm delighted to be featuring one of Chrishanthi's quirky images with which I have a rather tenuous connection!

My card recipe is as follows:

• Card base - black card which I've cut, scored and folded to make a 14 x 11 cm card
• Design Papers - are by Summer at the now very sadly closed Summertime Designs and they come from a set called All is Calm. I have used the Dots Paper as my base layer and Red Damask Paper as the top layer. My third paper has been used to make the rosette - the paper is Branches and Berries Paper and the die is used is Medallions Strip Die by Sizzix.
  
• Image - is of course Alice who has been drawn by Chrishanthi at PPinky Dolls. I have brought Alice and the rabbit to life using my Spectrum Noir Pencils in the listed colours before die cutting it out using one of the ovals in my Die'sire Essentials Ovals Die. I should say that Chrishanthi has already added some shading to the image which has made it oh-so-easy to know where the light source is and where to use dark and light colours!
• Skin - 005, 004, 009, 047
• Hair - 084, 107, 087
• Dress - 065, 066, 068
• Rabbit - 024, 027
• Grass - 056, 058, 047
• Sentiment - is from the set that came with the Spring 2015 Crafter's Inspiration Magazine ... just perfect for this image I feel! The tag is from a Die'sire set called Tags One which I can't find for sale any longer. I have threaded some organdie ribbon from my stash through the holes in the side of the tag.
• 2 Buttons - from my stash finish off my design

I hope I've inspired you to play along with our 3, 2, 1, Go For It challenge however, if you need any further inspiration, please head over to Incy Wincy Designs where my fellow teamies have a variety of projects to inspire you! Then come back and show us your creations. We'll be back with our next challenge on Monday 4th April 2016.

I would like to enter this card into the following challenges:

• Challenge #304 - Always Anything Goes at Craft Your Passion
• Critters and Creatures Linky Party 2 at Ellibelles Creative Moments
• Something Fluffy at Make My Monday
• Layer It Up Challenge at Melonheadz Friends
• Challenge 49 - Hippity Hoppity at Dragonfly Journeys
• March Use Any Image With a Ribbon Challenge at The Ribbon Girl

If you're going away for the Easter holidays, I hope you have a great time. Take care!

Hugs, Helen x