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11 July, 2025

Bestest Wishes Orchid

 


The background has partial embossing which the pot sits on.  The orchid plant diecut and assembled (unknown).  The pot, flowers and centers are cut from pearlescent card. Touches of DI to shade.  The sentiment is old from my Bitz Box, I think I made it on the computer.

Shared on challenges:    

tryitontuesday-summer-blooms

thesisterhoodofcrafters-stripes-andor-dots dots

craftygalscorner-269-fill-in-blank-in-july flowers in July

lovetocraft-87-anything-goes

pammiesinkypinkies-2527-anythinggoes

doubleD-daranddiane-flower-pots
















10 July, 2025

Dog Years Old

 


The background is an experiment with paint, an iceblock stick, spray bottle caps and a wooden skewer.  I really like getting inky, but this is pretty messy.  I used Adirondack Paint dabber paint only.  

After making the background I inked the edges with DI.  Stamped the dog, partially cutting around the sticky-out bits and matted onto blue card that matched the dots.  I left the dog uncoloured (haha, turns out he is a white dog!) to let the colours take centre stage.  The sentiment is stamped and embossed with copper EP to go with the copper paint. Panel is popped up with foam tape.

Shared on challenges:    

simonsaysstamp/monday-funwithpaint

theoutlawz-monday-july-birthday

themaleroom-200-dogs-andor-cats

crafterscafe-320-anything-goes-optionalmasculine

craftyanimals-96-animals

movingalongwiththetimes-180-masculine












08 July, 2025

Eazy zenz

 


A cardswap relating to a youtube tutorial by Natasha Foote.  A kind of variation of zentangle.

To start the black square and lines are made, junctions thickened, rounded, coloured.    I decided to amp it up a bit - masked the shapes, inked with DI's  and stamped over in a similar colour.

Used: Black pen, DI's, random stamps, sentiment die and stamp. Leaves punched (CraftsToo) and gold embellishments are drop-outs from another die.

Shared on challenges:    

07 July, 2025

Seriously Butterflies

 


A little bit of fun for a friend's birthday this week.  Inside it says "Now's the time to start lying about your age".  She is a month older than me and I just have to rub it in.

Image and sentiment stamps are Art Impressions.  Image coloured with Copics, masked for applying stencil.   Stencil is Rosie's Studio coloured with DI's.  Also white pen & WoS on the butterflies, Stickles on her jewellery. Kraft card base.

Shared on challenges:    

colorthrowdown-836-kraft-fuchsia-orange

addictedtostamps-496-makeyourmark

paperfunday-78-anything-goes-funwithstencils

stampingsensations-july--6-summerflowers-or-anythinggoes AG





















06 July, 2025

Botanicals make the Mark

 


More inkiness on watercolour card with Sizzix/TimHoltz diecuts.  Background is smooshed metallic watercolours, Colour Infusion powders & Cosmic Shimmer Pixie Sparkles powders, stamps, ribbon.  Stamps are SimonSaysStamp Beautiful & Curious.  The gold shimmer is amazing.

Shared on challenges:    

addictedtostamps-496-make your mark

simonsaysstamp-wednesday/simon-says-sending-flowers

tag-alongandatc-july-in-garden/ag

letscraft&create-221-ag-use-hand-punch-or die

welove2create-7-mixed media

creativemoments-272-use-die-cut

mixitup-78-anything-goes-opt-mixedmedia


Shapely Gatefold

 


Made for a NZ cardswap with a them of "A" ... arch, autumn, animal

Background is some pretty vintagey patterned paper from stash, various diecuts, silky twine, a wooden rabbit button. I wanted it to be a journey though a garden, enjoying the little things you might discover.  The Autumn stamp is a really old one.

Shared on challenges:    

05 July, 2025

Starry Celebration

 


I just got these 3D stars by Sizzix/Tim Holtz and had to use them!  Red White & Blue... does anyone remember the childrens rhyme "Red white and blue, the queen's got the 'flu, the king's got the whooping cough boo hoo hoo"?

I used the colours of our flag as a starting point (although our flag has 4 stars), used some patterned paper from stash, did a bit of splattering with metallic watercolours, inking with DI's. Navy star dropouts are from another die, a stacked sentiment from Simon Says Stamp popped up with foam tape.  The pearlescent shiny background stars are hand drawn using Sakura pen for a bit of glimmer (on some angles they don't show at all - peekaboo), and some faux stitching as a border - I believe flags were originally handsewn not printed.

Shared on challenges:  

creativeinspirations-july-stars-andor-stripes

simonsaysstamp-monday-red white blue



 



















03 July, 2025

Feather

 


CAS with grey embossed background, black panel (AALL & Create), feather diecut (Sizzix Tim Holtz) from smooshed and splattered card which is made using watercolours in grey and rusty red.   I chose rusty red  for the base card to bring out the colour, the black panel is popped up on thick foam tape.  I deliberately didn't want a sentiment.  The photo at the bottom shows the contrast between white (on the left) and the grey (on the right) as it isn't apparent in the other photos.

Shared on challenges:    

asyoulikeit-favourite-2-colour-combo-and-why Grey and red, great contrast and spicy looking.

alphabetchallenge-f-is-for-feathers

colordare-658-grey+ 2 colours grey + black, red

aaacards-293-anything-cas-goes

justusgirls-782-die-week

















White card on the left, grey card on the right:




02 July, 2025

Songbirds

 

 I am happy to be invited as guest designer this month at pearly Sparkles!  It's a shaped card for July -What a great challenge - LOTS OF FUN!!  Come and join us here:  pearlysparkleschallenge


We hope you'll join us so we can see your creations:  pearlysparkleschallenge-july-shaped cards


I chose a heart-shaped 3D card with songbirds.  The shape is diecut with inset panels of patterned paper from My Minds Eye.  The birds are from various companies like Spellbinders, Couture Creations, etc.  The  cage and blue bird is Memory Box and I have doubled it back-to-back (one side turquoise one side black), the branch is Marianne.  The underneath base has a plain white panel to write a message on.  It folds flat for mailing and that's also why I haven't put embellishments like gems etc on.





























Shared on challenges:    


simonsaysstamp-wednesday/simon-says-anything-goes

girlzcreativefun-11-patt paper

lovetocraft-87-anything-goes












Happy Hedgie

 


Hi crafty friends,

welcome to our next Challenge here at Critter Crazy Challenges
join us here:  crittercrazy

Since we have now reached the 100 challenge, we would like to thank all the participants, the followers and the creative friends from the bottom of our hearts for all the years, the inspirations and the kind comments.  And 100 challenges must also be celebrated... 

For #100 we are making this our BIRTHDAY Bash Milestone and so for this one challenge, the theme is changing to 'animal birthday', and you're invited!! 

There will be special instructions and one of the special commenters will receive an animal theme prize package provided - check it out here:

crittercrazy


This happy hedgie is ready to paaaarty!!
  
Lots of technique here - stencilling, inking, diecutting, stamping, borders, pens.  The stars are made using a background die cut as a stencil.  I inked, moving the card around to cover 2/3 of the cardfront, then used a blending brush to colour the bottom upwards for a ombre effect and laid the border which is diecut from pearly card. Hedgie (HoneyBee die) pieces put together, edges lightly inked, placed Hedgie in front popping the top with foam tape so she stood out a bit from the background, and I pulled up her prickles a little for texture.  I made little gold dots between the stars, and highlights and shine on balloon (edges inked) with white gel pen.   

Shared on challenges:    

asyoulikeit-favourite-2-colour-combo-and-why  I like blue and magenta together, so crisp and complementary























29 June, 2025

Birthday Basic Black

 


I've been trying to find was to use stuff I've had in my stash for ages.  This die is the answer for some very patterned paper that couldn't seem to work with anything.  It's beautiful paper (is bolder colours that shows in photo) with sugary sparkly bits here and there, and they glimmer through the gaps so that's good.  It was simple too, which I like.  The die, ppaper, a stacked sentiment, some tiny gold pearls, all on a black cardbase - bingo!

Shared on challenges:    

addictedtostamps--495-diecuts, stencils

28 June, 2025

Birthday Male

 


A birthday card for a grandson, bold and bright.

The patterned paper from Trimcraft (really really old) was the starting point for this design.  The textured coordinating card is Provocraft (I picked out the red in the pp design) which is used for the panel (embossed & sanded) and the numbers.  Gold versamark ink swiped over black card for the figure, black soot DI distressed the numbers and the little rivets are copper Nuvo Drops.  I put a leftover strip of the pp inside on the paper insert.

Shared on challenges:    

aaabirthday-74-no-stamping

crafterscafe-320-anything-goes-masculine

creativemoments-271-man-or-boy

girlzcreativefun-11-patterned papers

simonsaysstamp-wednesday/simon-says-anything-goes

pearlysparkles-108-masculine

letscraft&create-220-ag-add-buttons

creativeinspirations-june-one-for-boys

paperfunday-77-anything-goes-emboss dryemboss

lovethoseprettypapers-june-challenge























25 June, 2025

Relax & Enjoy

 


Ahhh just what we need right now, to get away from all the awful stuff happening in the world and let nature heal us.  Also it's the middle of winter here in NZ so we're off to Samoa for a week in July with family...woohoo!  (only 3.5 hrs flight away).

Lots of layers to make a scene for the caravan to park in.  The caravan is Sizzix/Tim Holtz die Wacky Transport #1.  Some card smooshed with DI's and misted (sea, sky, sun, caravan which is also stacked), some card splattered with metallic watercolour paints (sand), and some snippets of patterned papers as well to spice it up.  Also black pen and Stickles on the edge of the waves.  The hill with trees is a magazine freebie, other various dies.  I like the simple sentiment - it looks like someone has written in the sand.

Shared on challenges:    

DoubleD-beach

colorthrowdown-835 yellowgreenblue

asyoulikeit-favourite-to-add-sentiment-or-not-and-why I usually add a sentiment this time a fairly simple one

papercraft-challenges-119-summer-vibes

simonsaysstamp-monday-vacation

pammiesinkypinkies-2525-anythinggoes

allsortschallenge-826-seaside

girlzcreativefun-11-patternedpapers

lovethoseprettypapers-june-challenge