Stars and Stripes

Good morning crafty friends and hope that this post finds you well.

It's 1st December which means Christmas is this month - yikes !!!!!!!! I'll be putting the decorations up in the office tomorrow as we've only got a couple of weeks left at school now and had also better get a wriggle on with our family preparations, although the majority of the present buying has been done - just need to wrap them now 😂 !

Being the 1st of the month, means it's also new challenge time at Feeling Sketchy and this time, Cathy has gone nice and simple for everyone - it's Keep Calm because Anything Goes! As usual we have a sponsor and prize pack for this challenge, so do come over and play along with us!

Now I had a, OK another "senior moment" when creating this card because I made it when we were still debating what we were doing for this challenge. So I have created using a past sketch for inspiration - I have gone back to Challenge #122 back in June 2015 here at Feeling Sketchy and used the following sketch:

And here is my card for you:

I needed a male birthday card for my B-i-L and this seems to have done the job perfectly 😉

My card recipe is as follows:

• Card base - is Kraft card which I cut, scored and folded to make an A5 card with the fold at the top
• Papers - are part of the great Just For Men Signature Collection by Sara Davies at Crafter's Companion, however you can try out these papers and some of the elements for free by getting the Rock Star - June 2016 Download of the Month. I've used 3 of the 4 papers in the download (wide stripes, ledger paper and stars for one of my stars!)
  
• File Tab - comes from the Die'sire Essentials Just the Ticket die set and I have cut this out of Kraft card and then popped it under the ledger paper. Although it doesn't show very well, I used some foam pads under the tab to lift it off the card.
• Circles - were created using (and please don't spill your tea/coffee etc. here) an upturned glass tealight holder which was just the right size for my ledger paper 😂. I inked the rim with Memento Tuxedo Black Ink and used it to stamp the 4 circles
• Sentiment - comes from a Sheena Douglass Perfect Partners Victorian Floral - Poppy stamp set which came with my Crafter's Inspiration Magazine Issue 7. I again used Memento Tuxedo Black Ink to ink up the sentiment, which fitted inside my circles perfectly!
• Stars - were created from Kraft card and the star paper from the Rock Star Download and my Die'sire Essentials Stars dies in several sizes before being attached to the card, both flat and raised up a bit.

I hope I've inspired you to come along and join in with our Keep Calm because Anything Goes! challenge at Feeling Sketchy, but if you're in need of further inspiration (both seasonal and general) then do head over to the challenge blog and check out the great creations by my wonderful team mates. Then come back and show us your creations. We'll be back with our final challenge of 2016 on 15th December.

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

• Challenge #148 - Something Beginning with T at Cardz4Guyz - My "T" is for tab

Whatever you're up to today, I hope you have fun!

Hugs, Helen x

Kool Kidz

Hi folks! Hope this post finds you well!

We're nearly at the end of half term here at Casa Mia and the whole week has virtually been spent with hot lemon and honey drinks (yuck, I hate honey!) and a box of tissues in tow ... yup, I succumbed to the dreaded "the-holidays-are-here-so-let's-jump-the-school-staff" bug!!!!!!! ;o) At least yesterday evening found me well enough to accompany Mother in Law and PapaMia to an Aled Jones concert (yes he of Walking in the Air fame, and he can still manage the first few lines of the song some 30 years later!) at Portsmouth Guildhall. We were treated to a very entertaining evening of wonderful music (a mix of choral, musicals and pop) and Aled was a very engaging and amusing speaker between the numbers! At least nobody told me to "Shushhhhhhh" so I can't have been coughing too loudly :oD

And now I feel much, much better today, so I'm able to bring you my card for the current challenge at Feeling Sketchy. Our sponsor this time is the lovely Heather Valentin from Lacy Sunshine Stamps who is offering a prize pack to the lucky winner of this challenge.

Here's the sketch we'd like you to use as your inspiration this time:

and here is my take on it using a sponsor image:

Now I have to confess to having had rather a "senior" moment with this project. I chose this image as I thought it would be perfect for our nephew who will be 12 later this summer - a basketball dude with a graffiti wall behind? Perfect! Only when my image arrived did I look more closely at it and see that on his t-shirt is a "No Bullying" slogan. Don't get me wrong ... I most definitely don't have a problem with that (heaven knows I've had to pick up the pieces at the end of a school day for many, many, many years so I know how devastating it can be not only to the victim, but to their families too) but I wasn't sure how right this was going to be for my nephew! Oooooops!

My card recipe is as follows:

• Card base - is a wonky rocker card cut out of black cardstock using my Ultimate Pro together with the largest wonky "circle" from the nest on my Springtime Sweets and Cupcake Treats Embossing Board which I then handcut, carefully! Once cut, I scored and folded the "circle" so that it had 2 scallops on the bottom as "feet" to make my rocker base.
• Image - is the very cool Kyle - Kidz Street as drawn by Heather at Lacy Sunshine Stamps.
  
  Once I'd realised that the whole image on this card base size was going to be far too small for me to colour, I decided to do a close up which I then debossed using the circle which fits inside the wonky "circle" from the nest on my Springtime Sweets and Cupcake Treats Embossing Board and then cut it out by hand. I coloured the image using my Spectrum Noir Pens in the listed colours:
• Skin - FS2, FS4, FS3, FS9, TN4, FS8
• Hair - TN3, EB3, EB8
• Basketball - OR2, TN6, TN4, TN8
• T-Shirt - EB1, EB2, EB6, EB8
• Trousers - BT3, BT4, BT6, BT7, BT0
• Baseball Cap - OR2, TN6, TN4, TN8, True Black
• Sentiment - is one of the Graffiti Words from the image which I imported into my word processing package and then cropped in tightly to the word. I coloured the image using my Spectrum Noir Pens in OR2, TN6, TN4, TN8 (to match the basketball). I love the ombre effect these colours give, don't you?

I hope you'll come over to the Feeling Sketchy blog and check out the other fabulous creations by my talented teamies, and then don't forget to come back and show us your take on our sketch. We'll be back with our next challenge on 15th June 2016.


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

• June Challenge - One for the Guys at Dragon's Lair Designs Challenges
• Aloha Friday Challenge #73 - Masculine Cards/For Dad at Kitty Bee Designs - This card is for my teenage nephew when he celebrates his birthday next month
• Challenge #11 - Shaped Card at Morgan's Artworld
• Week 22 - One for the Boys at Polkadoodles Crafting Challenge

In the meantime, hope you have a great weekend and take care!

Hugs, Helen x

Hey there Cowboy!

Good morning friends!

Hope you're well this morning - gentle hugs winging their way around for anyone who's in need of them.

My car's in the garage for it's annual service today and I've been loaned a 2 seater Smart car - looks like the bambinos will be confined to barracks until I get my car back, as I'm not sure it's legal to put one of them in the boot ;o) ! It's the first time in nearly 30 years of driving that I've found myself behind the wheel of an automatic car, and how many times did I go for the clutch and gearstick .... ? It's quite an experience, especially as I couldn't select reverse gear once home. Unknown to me, the bambinos were in the front window laughing hysterically as I struggled to get onto the drive. I managed to engage reverse properly just once, to turn in the road entrance next to our house, and then resorted to driving around the block to come back at my drive and have just driven onto it. I'm hoping that even if I can't get reverse again, the "fall" of the drive will be enough to let me come off it backwards - if not, I'll be pushing the car off and hoping that the neighbours aren't around :oD !!!!!!!!!!!!!

Anyway, enough waffle. My brothers celebrated their birthdays yesterday and I (like the bad sister I am) totally forgot, so had to quickly whip something up. Luckily, I remembered that I had this cutie from The Paper Shelter (I chose her as part of a blog challenge win earlier in the year), so I quickly printed her up.

My card recipe is as follows:

• Card Base - is a 15cm square card in Kraft Cardstock
• Image and Papers - are from The Adorable Cowgirl set by Veronica at The Paper Shelter. As time was of the essence, I have used the Composition which is everything you see on the card (apart from the sentiment and buttons) is ready laid out for you, which makes it oh-so-easy to whip up a great looking card in no time at all! I've inked the edge of the composition with Walnut Stain Distress Ink, just to highlight the edges.
  
• Sentiment - is from the Happy Birthday Sentiments Set by Debbie at The Crafty Pad Designs. The sentiment comes as a .jpeg file, but by importing it into my word processing package, I've been able to use the "Picture Formatting" options to set the background as a transparent colour which means that I've been able to superimpose it over the tag on the composition.
• Buttons - are from my stash, and I was thrilled to find that one of the buttons (the middle one if you're wondering) is stamped with the name of a certain "jeans" company - unless I'm mistaken they had the advert where the chap took his jeans off in the launderette .... think you will have to be of a "certain age" to remember this, or look on You Tube if you're younger ;o) !!!

So there is my quick and easy Birthday card and, if you read this Fratello Mia "the younger" Happy Birthday to you!

I have been inspired by and would like to enter this card into the following challenge:

• Challenge #242 - Buttons at The Paper Shelter

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

• April Challenge - Cowgirls, Cowboys and Horses at Lunagirl Moonbeams (shop at www.lungirl.com)
• PP289 - Western at The Paper Players
• Masculine Challenge at The Stamping Boutique

I'm off to get ahead on my DT makes for the next couple of weeks, and also try to catch up on some of the projects that I've complete, but not got around to blogging yet!

Hope you have a great day!

Hugs, Helen x

A Chilly Oasis?

Hells bells - I'm running late, yet again! Sorry teamies!

I can't believe it's another week and that this time next week will be half term ... phew! Hope you all had a good weekend - I managed a session on the "trotmill" and notched up 5km, and then had a very successful shopping trip with eldest bambino to get sparkly sandals to go with her Prom dress.

It's new challenge time at Incy Wincy Designs and this week we'd like to see Exotic Animals. We're being sponsored by Stitchy Bear's Digi Outlet who are supplying the prize package this week. They have also very kindly allowed the DT their choice of image to use for this challenge and here is my card featuring a very exotic meerkat:

My card recipe is as follows:

• Card base - pre-made 5" square card from cream cardstock
• Papers - are the brown patterned paper and the yellow ombre paper from the Chilling Meerkat Digital Stamp and Paper Pack by Coosty Creations at Stitchy Bear's Digi Outlet. I've cut the yellow paper into a pennant shape before fixing it to the base paper.
  
• Image - is the Chilling Meerkat Digital Stamp by Coosty Creations. How darn cute is this little guy just chillin' out at a desert oasis? Although, on reflection, when I've been observing the meerkats at our local family theme park I don't recall any of them having a pint of beer in their paws!!!! I've brought this chillaxing furry friend to life using my Spectrum Noir Pencils in the following shades:
• Meerkat - 89, 91, 95, 119, 120
• Beer & Glass - 99, 61
• Plants - 56, 58, 47
• Rocks - 84, 107, 87
• Sky - 65
• Sentiment - is also from the Chilling Meerkat Digital Stamp and Paper Pack by Coosty Creations.

I think I might put this card by for next month, and then I can send it to my Dad for Father's Day ... as long as I remember where that "safe place" is!

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

• Challenge #259 - Funny and/or Cute Sentiments at Sentimental Sundays
• Animals at Top Tip Tuesday
• Challenge #38 Animals at Paper Creator's Crafts

Whatever you're doing for the rest of the day, have a good one. I think I might get stuck into next week's DT card, so there's a fighting chance it might be on my blog at the right time on the right day! ;o)

Catch you soon!

Hugs, Helen x