You Make Me Smile

Are you ready for a new Tic Tac Toe challenge? Here are the combinations we have to play with this time around:

I chose the middle horizontal line of pink, square card and CAS (clean and simple).

Isn't that face absolutely adorable? 🐷

Piggy is watercoloured and I added a touch of white gel pen to the eyes and cheeks. I love that the dies used for 'smile' are uneven sizes - for me, it adds to the playfulness of the card. I even used the number one for the 'l' rather than the capital L in the set. These dies have different font styles and sizes for all the letters and remind me of a ransom note with the letters cut from a magazine, lol.  

Materials used:

• stamps - Just Pig-Cause (Unity Stamp Co)
• dies - Word Play (Tim Holtz)
• other - MISTI, water brush, Sidekick, sentiment strip, white gel pen

I hope you'll get the chance to play along. Check out more samples to inspire you over on the TTTC blog.

Thanks for oinking by!

Cheers

Kerry

Simple and Elegant - Just Add Ink Challenge #741

It's Friday, which means it's time for another challenge with Just Add Ink and our brief for you this week is to:

I made a soft-toned sympathy card - something we unfortunately often need to have on hand, especially as we get older. 

For my focal feature I used a stamp/die/stencils set from PinkFresh Studios. A few pearls were all the embellishments needed.

Materials used:

• stamp, die, stencil set - Butterflies in Bloom (PinkFresh Studios)
• sentiment stamp - Country Flowers (Stampin' Up)
• distress inks - antique linen, dried marigold, saltwater taffy, shabby shutters
• Altenew inks - alpine aster, soft lilac, lavender fields, deep iris
• other - blending brushes, pearls, MISTI, grip mat, Big Shot, craft foam, Dimensionals

Do visit the Just Add Ink blog for more samples of simple and elegant to inspire you and if you create, we'd love you to share in our gallery.

Thanks for calling in.

Cheers

Kerry

Winter Wonderland

Experiencing a white Christmas was on my bucket list for quite some time and it almost happened the year my daughter was living in Scotland ... until a little ol' global pandemic came along and then nobody was going anywhere - hardly leaving the house, let alone to the other side of the world. Ah well, such is life. Now I enjoy winter in December through card making instead, lol. 

Today's card is for three challenges which happen to dovetail together very nicely.

 

 

My Tic Tac Toe choice was the top row of ink blending, snow and tree.

I began with masking my paper for the snowy ground and blended the sunset sky (red sky at night, shepherd's delight 😉). Stamping came next, then small touches of puff embossing powder on the tree branches and at the feet of the deer before gesso splatters for falling snow. I die cut some snowflakes to tuck behind, cut my scene into three parts to mount, stamped a sentiment and called it done!

Materials used:

• stamps - Postage Collage Winter View (Waffle Flower), Tiny Text Christmas (Tim Holtz)
• inks - blushing bride, lumberjack plaid, cherry cobbler, Versafine Clair nocturne
• other - snowflake dies, Sidekick, blending brushes, hills and drifts stencil (My Favorite Things), MISTI, craft foam, paint brushes, white puff embossing powder, heat tool, Versamark pen, white gesso

Thanks for calling in.

Cheers

Kerry

Once in a Blue Moon

Once in a blue moon...I make a clean and simple Halloween card. 

The sketch at AAA Cards Challenge caught my eye this week, so I sat at my craft desk and this is what transpired.

I knew I wanted to use this little ghostie, so began with stamping and colouring it and accessories. Then the idea of the blue moon came to mind, so that was blended next, then it was simply a matter of stamping the bats and sentiment. Too easy!

Materials used:

• stamps - Boo Crazy, Mini Bird Crazy & Things (Tim Holtz), Boo Sentiments, Postage Collage Spooktacular (Waffle Flower)
• other - blending brushes, blender pen, moon mask (Tim Holtz), circle punch, MISTI, Dimensionals, craft foam

I've been giving my Halloween cards to my daughter to give away but this one might get saved for my grandson - not that he's old enough to appreciate it, lol, but it's the thought that counts, right? He is definitely too cute to spook!

Thanks for floating on by.

Cheers

Kerry

Optional Autumn

I had some bits and pieces left over from a design team project I was working on yesterday and as they were a perfect fit for the current AAA Cards challenge, I decided to use them for a sweet CAS card.

I had the coloured pieces, so it was simply a matter of some fussy cutting, a little sponging on the background, attaching the strip of paper and stamping the sentiment. Easy peasy!

Materials used:

• stamps - You Autumn Know (Lawn Fawn), Autumn Leaves (Poppystamps)
• other - Copic markers, blending brush, white gel pen, Golden Days patterned paper (Mintay), Dimensionals, cajun craze ink (Stampin' Up)

Hope your day is as happy as that little mouse's, and thanks for dropping by.

Cheers

Kerry

Nobody or No Body?

My attention was caught by the theme for the latest challenge at Addicted to CAS.

You all know I am partial to a pun, but I have to admit to being a bit unsure at first on what I had that would suit a clean and simple design. As luck would have it, I was sorting through some stuff and came across my dancing skeletons dies and the well-known phrase, 'Dance like nobody is watching' came to mind - and I realised I had my pun. Subtle but golden, lol. Here's my card:

I read enough whodunnits to know that skeletons are rarely just all white/cream, so I used a lovely mottled piece I had on hand from some oxide ink smooshing play. The sentiment was done on the computer and that's pretty much all there was to it apart from a little layering.

Thanks for dancing by!

Cheers

Kerry

PS - If you like a pun too, be sure to come back Monday night for a very special punny card...

Promise of Peace

Every now and then I enjoy the challenge of making a clean and simple (CAS) card and the theme at Addicted to CAS caught my eye and sparked an idea. I really hope I'm not the only one whose creative muse won't let me rest until I've sat down to see whether or not my idea will work ... 

And here's my offering:

This was a very quick card to make, probably no more than 10 mins start to finish. I die-cut the splat shape out of a piece of scrap card to use as a mask, blended with distress inks, stamped the sentiment and die-cut the gulls. Card done! 

Materials used:

• stamps - Sunrise, Sunset (Fairy Hugs)
• dies - Nesting Splat (Paper Rose), Guiding Light (Spellbinders)
• distress inks - scattered straw, saltwater taffy, abandoned coral, salvaged patina, mermaid lagoon
• other - blending brushes, MISTI, craft foam, Big Shot, VersaFine Clair Twilight ink

Thanks for stopping by.

Cheers

Kerry

Summer Fun

It seems like almost every challenge blog based in the northern hemisphere has Summer has their theme at the moment. Certainly it's no hardship to be thinking of warmer days and outdoor fun instead of the rain and cold, lol. A couple of clean and simple challenges caught my eye and when an idea popped into mind ... well, you know how that goes ...

And here's my offering:

This was most definitely a challenge for me, I kept wanting to add things, lol. Even now my fingers are itching ...

Materials used:

• stamps - Postage Collage, Postage Collage Beach Days (Waffle Flower)
• stencils - Postage Collage Beach Days (Waffle Flower)
• dies - Postage Collage (Waffle Flower)
• inks - crumb cake (Stampin' Up), salvaged patina, peacock feathers, candied apple, carved pumpkin (distress), hickory smoke (distress archival), black
• other - blending brushes, Big Shot, MISTI, mounting tape

Still a ways to go before we can say goodbye to winter, but thoughts of sunshine and beaches are always welcome!

Thanks for stopping by.

Cheers

Kerry

Just Add Ink #698 - Choose Two

It's a choose two challenge this week at Just Add Ink and the options we're giving you are

I chose flowers and leaves for a clean and simple watercoloured card. 

I embossed my stamped image, which gives a nice border when I'm watercolouring, and used my Zig real brush markers. I absolutely love these markers but you do have to be choosy with paper as they don't blend well on all brands. Here I used Ranger's distress watercolour card, stamping on the smooth side. 

Materials used:

• stamps - Caring Thoughts/Dear Friend (Simon Says Stamp)
• card - distress watercolour (Ranger), gorgeous grape (Stampin' Up)
• other - Dimensionals, MISTI, Wordies Sentiment Sheets - Everyday (Creative Expressions), craft foam, water brush, clear embossing powder, heat tool, Zig Clean Color Real Brush Markers, black ink

We'd love you to get out your own flower, leaf and pot supplies, create and share on the Just Add Ink blog. Head on over to see the lovely samples my team-mates have made to inspire you.

Thanks for stopping by.

Cheers

Kerry

Just Add Ink #694 - Just Add a Colour Combo

Who loves colour? Meeeeeeeeeee!!!! Woo hoo, it's time for a colour combo challenge with Just Add Ink and here's what we have for you this week:

I gotta say, this particular combo was a true challenge for me because in a month of Sundays I would not have thought to put these three colours together. Peacock and Cajun, sure, both bold beautiful autumnal tones from the same colour family - but to add fresh freesia? Nikki sure wanted to test us all when she picked these!

That being said, however, once I (finally!) settled on a design idea and began colouring, I came to like this unusual pairing. For me it was all about balance and how much space I let each colour take - the softer freesia could easily be overpowered by the darker tones. Here's how my card ended up:

I started with cutting my freesia base then used the same card for my back layer but darkened it by inking around the edges with matching ink. I sponged some more freesia on my white foreground and gave that some water splatters, letting them dry naturally so I'd get that lovely dark ring around the edges of the drops. My adorable little chameleon was watercoloured and I have to admit to going through a few trial runs before settling on this one, lol. I stamped my sentiment, added some gems and called it good!

Materials used:

• stamps - Colour My World (Clearly Besotted)
• card - fresh freesia, basic white (Stampin' Up), watercolour
• other - blending brush, aqua painter, MISTI, Dimensionals, craft foam, SU markers, clear gems

Why not try your hand at this fascinating combination too - you may surprise yourself just as I did! And it goes without saying that we'd love to see your creations in our gallery. Now head on over to the Just Add Ink blog to see what my fellow team mates did with them!

Thanks for dropping by.

Cheers

Kerry

Wishing You Luck

Can you believe March is here already? Yikes!

On the plus side, the March challenge over at Simply Clean & Simple to make a CAS card with an optional additional theme of 'Green' did spark an idea ... 

Plenty of ink smooshing to keep me happy here, lol, for both the background and die-cut lettering, which is three layers for depth. 

Materials used:

• stamps - Bitty Buzzwords: Seasons (Honey Bee Stamps)
• card - kraft, watercolour
• dies - Bold Text 2, Tailored (Tim Holtz), Curio: Spring findings (The Greetery), stitched rectangle (Paper Rose)
• distress oxide inks - mowed lawn, rustic wilderness, spiced marmalade, ripe persimmon
• other - Big Shot, MISTI, crackling campfire archival ink, water spritzer, heat tool, blending brushes, Dimensionals, craft foam, clear sequins, mini glue dots

Hope you get some crafting in your day! Thanks for stopping by.

Cheers

Kerry

Hey Boo

When I saw this week's challenge theme at AAA Cards I was immediately keen to play along. 

Halloween is a perfect opportunity for some playfulness and fun and that's what I was after with my card.

The cobweb was embossed in white then I went over it with a glue pen and sprinkled liberally with clear rock candy glitter. Even the anti-static wipe can't keep some of those minuscule specks from sticking where they shouldn't, lol, but them's the breaks. Gotta love the shimmer though!

Materials used:

• stamps - Unravelled, Tiny Frights (both Tim Holtz)
• card - melon mambo, basic black (Stampin' Up), watercolour
• distress inks - dried marigold, carved pumpkin, worn lipstick, picked raspberry, picket fence
• other - white embossing powder, heat tool, MISTI, blending brushes, white gel pen, Edison colorize dies (Tim Holtz), craft foam, Dimensionals, banner punch (retired SU), Quickie glue pen, clear rock candy glitter (Tim Holtz)

When this die set was released, one of Tim Holtz's makers, Debi Adams, used the orange and pink combo and I fell in love with it, wanting to try it out ever since, so I'm happy now! 

Thanks for dropping by.

Cheers

Kerry

JAI #665 - Just Add CAS

This week at Just Add Ink we're challenging you to make a CAS creation - clean and simple. Generally that's defined as minimal layers and embellishments and lots of wide open "white" space.

For my card I've gone for jungle themed cuteness with a sweet-as-can-be zebra.

I sponged a little green ink in my lower corner then stencilled some leaves in a slightly darker shade. The image was coloured with Copics then die cut and attached with Dimensionals.

Materials used:

• stamps - African Animals (C.C. Designs)
• card - basic white, basic black (SU), Monochrome Basics 1.1 (Paper Rose)
• distress oxide inks - bundled sage, mowed lawn
• Copic markers - C0,C2,C4,C5,E51,E40
• other - African Animals die set, leaf stencil, blending brush, MISTI, Dimensionals

Check out more clean and simple inspiration over on the Just Add Ink blog.

Thanks for stopping by.

Cheers

Kerry

Let's Go Fly a Kite

Another clean and simple challenge caught my interest, this time my old friends at CAS on Friday, whose theme this week is Silhouette. Now, you all know how much I love ink blending a sunrise or sunset, which of course are the perfect complement to a silhouette - however, this time around I decided to go with something different. 

Materials used:

• card - basic black, basic white, parrakeet party, polka dot paper (Paper Rose)
• die - The Park (Tim Holtz)
• other - craft foam, Dimensionals, Small Talk stickers (Tim Holtz), Big Shot

Thanks for calling in.

Cheers

Kerry

Ummm....

A clean and simple challenge caught my eye this week and I thought the optional twist sounded fun.

And here's my offering

Materials used:

• stamps - Stamptember 2020 (Tim Holtz)
• card - basic white, granny apple green
• Copic markers - E42,E43,Y21,Y32,G20,G40,G43,R05,R24,R27
• other - craft foam, blending brush, Sahara sand marker, MISTI, white gel pen

Thanks for dropping by.

Cheers

Kerry

Edited to add: I was lucky to have my card picked in the Top 3 for this challenge. Many thanks to the AAA Cards design team. 

Spring Flowers - CAS on Friday Challenge #225

Hi all! It's time for another clean and simple challenge and this time around at CAS on Friday we're celebrating Spring Flowers.

I've yet to experience a spring here in my new home but back in the Blue Mountains it was always wonderful to see those first buds (usually freesias) pop up to tell you the cold days were numbered and the warmth and freshness of Spring would soon be on its way. One of the flowers I loved having in my garden was lavender, not just because it was a low maintenance plant and drought tolerant (very important here in Australia), but because it bloomed in mid Spring and gave us glorious colour and scent all through Spring and Summer. 

I’ve featured lavender on my mini slimline card.

Materials used:

• stamps - Flowers in Bloom (MFT)
• card - very vanilla, watercolour
• dies - Wildflower Stems 2 (Tim Holtz)
• distress oxide inks - villainous potion, milled lavender, dusty concord, bundled sage
• other - mounting tape, white bakers twine, V15 Copic marker, aquapainter, paint brush 

We would love to see your creation in our gallery if you choose to make one, and do pop over to the CASOF blog to see what lovely cards my team mates made to inspire you.

Thanks for visiting.

Cheers

Kerry

Accept Who You Are - CAS on Friday challenge #224

Welcome! It's time for another clean and simple card challenge with CAS on Friday and this time around our theme is MALE cards.

I have kept my card incredibly simple, allowing my die-cut piece to take centre stage - even the few tiny paint splatters are localised to the sentiment.

Materials used:

• stamps - Theories (Tim Holtz)
• card - basic black, watercolour
• distress oxide inks - candied apple, carved pumpkin, mustard seed, mowed lawn, salvaged patina, wilted violet
• dies - Umbrella Man (Tim Holtz), stitched rectangle
• other - white embossing powder, heat tool, Big Shot Switch, Dimensionals, craft foam, black marker, MISTI, water spritzer, blending brushes, white paint

We'd love you to join us in creating a CAS card for a male someone in your life. More inspiration can be found at the CAS on Friday blog where my fellow team mates have plenty to get your creative juices flowing!

Thanks for dropping by.

Cheers

Kerry

Hexagons - CAS on Friday Challenge #223

Welcome to CAS on Friday challenge #223 where our theme is HEXAGONS.

There are so many ways to use this versatile shape! For my card I used them to add colour and texture as a compliment to my die-cut flower. 

The mosaic pieces are ones I made some time ago with a stencil, crackle texture paste and a number of SU embossing powders, so I merely cut them with hexagon dies. I used some of the colours from those patterns for my flower. Some ink speckles for the background, a simple sentiment and touch of sparkle, and my card was good to go!

Materials used:

• stamps - Tiny Words Birthday (SSS), Gorgeous Grunge (SU)
• card - watercolour, soft sea foam
• distress oxide inks - mustard seed, fossilized amber, mowed lawn, rustic wilderness, pumice stone, barn door
• other Tim Holtz products - stacked hexagon dies, wildflower stems 3 die, mosaic stencil, distress crackle texture paste, picket fence distress paint
• other - various embossing powders (SU), heat tool, Dimensionals, blending brushes, stitched rectangle die, Big Shot Switch, paint brush, clear sequins, craft foam, peeled paint archival ink, Memento tuxedo black ink

We'd love you to create your own clean and simple card featuring hexagons and load it in our gallery. If you'd like further inspiration, follow the link to the CAS on Friday blog to see my team mates' cards.

Thanks for calling in.

Cheers

Kerry

Feel Better - CAS on Friday Challenge #222

Hello and welcome to our first CAS on Friday challenge for 2022! 

Our theme for challenge #222 is FEEL BETTER. 

It's always lovely for someone who's feeling low to receive a handmade card you've put thought into, so these are great to have a stash of on hand all year round.

For mine I coloured and fussy cut this beautiful rose, layering it over a partial stencilled background.

Materials used:

• stamps - Merci Beaucoup (Clearly Besotted), Itty Bitty Greetings (SU) 
• card - basic white, crumb cake
• Copic markers - V0000,V000,V01,G40,G43
• other - stitched rectangle die, Big Shot Switch, craft foam, Dimensionals, blending brush, Bubble mini stencil (Tim Holtz), antique linen distress oxide ink, MISTI

We'd love you to join in the fun and share your creation with us. Take a look at what my team mates came up with on the CAS on Friday blog for more inspiration.

Thanks for dropping by.

Cheers

Kerry

The Passage of Time - CAS on Friday Challenge #221

 

Welcome to the last CAS on Friday challenge for 2021! To ring out the old year and welcome in the new, our theme for challenge #221 is HAPPY NEW YEAR.

I've gone with classic colours of black, white and gold for my new year card:

Materials used:

• stamps - Clocks (Paper Rose), Celebration (Darkroom Door)
• card - basic black, basic white
• other - stitched rectangle die, Big Shot, Stamparatus, gold embossing powder, heat tool, sequins in gold, black and clear, Dimensionals, craft foam

If you're looking for some time away from the madness of the holidays over the next week or so, why not head to your craft space and make a card to join us, we'd love you to take part. And you can find more inspiration on the CASOF blog.

Thanks for calling in.

Cheers

Kerry