A card for Dennis

 Good Morning to you! I hope you are well and happy! If not sending you hugs! Thankyou for your comments yesterday - I really do appreciate each and every one - Jam update for you - it seems to be a good set - not too hard - and the jam itself is very tart - perfect for blackcurrant jam for me!

Today I have a card I made for another neighbour who will be 80 in July - I don't think he'll have any other cards like this one - lol! Hope he likes it!

To make the background I used distress inks - peacock feathers, mermaid lagoon and shabby shutters. I also used layering stencils from TH.

The main stamp is one from the Alice Palace collection at Crafty Individuals. I used the same distress inks to to water colour this image stamped onto water colour card. I then fussy cut it.

The background to the turtle is another brusho background done using the clingfilm technique.

I adore this stamp - it reminds me of a holiday I had with Shaun early in our relationship in Australia - we were very lucky and went for a three day boat trip on the Barrier Reef - and we snorkled with turtles - it was just perfect - a wonderful memory of my beautiful husband whom I miss so much. 

I'm Looking forward to getting a new garden bench today - its a memorial bench for Shaun - if it comes I'll take some pictures and let you see it - probably on Sunday - tomorrows post is already scheduled!

I'd like to enter this into fashionablestampingchallenge101-all-about-the-men

Hope you have a great Friday!

Big Hugs

Rachel xx

Colour challenge at Chocolate Baroque

Good Morning all! How are you? I hope you had a better day weatherwise yesterday - we did - so much better to be able to get on with the garden chores - I managed to trim two hedges - I could have done more but my friend Heidi is coming tomorrow and she'll be needing a green bin - so I could only fill one!!! Thats my excuse and I'm sticking to it!!!! I also managed to get 18 jars of blackcurrant jam made - I really hope it sets!!! Will let you know tomorrow!!!

Today I have a card to share with you that I made with the current chocolate baroque colour challenge in mind.



These colours are lovely - I used mostly distress inks/pens but also some aquatints to to make my card. I started by stamping the main image onto water colour card using black archival  then painted with vintage photo, dusty concorde, twisted citron and peeled paint. I then used the distress pens to add the shading.

After fussy cutting the image I created the background - I painted with aquatint then stamped in archival fern green - the quotes were two from a recent quote set from Chocolate Baroque, I also stamped the border floral image in sepia archival and then coloured in much the same way.

I then put all the pieces together.

Love this image - she's so cool!!!

I'd like to enter this into the chocolatebaroquechallenge thirteen-our-first-anniversary.

Now - last piccies from our holibobs!!!

This is at the top of one of the mountains - we took a cable car up there - its supposed to be the 2nd longest cable car in the world - but only took 10 mins so I'm not so sure!

The two faces of Penny - funny and cute!!!

My beautiful Lucy!

I do hope you have enjoyed seeing my holiday pictures - it was such a tonic for all of us - I think we needed it!

Enjoy your Thursday!

Big Hugs

Rachel xx

Cheryls card

Hello Lovelies - I hope you are well - I am hoping that the forecast for an improvement in the weather is going to be right too - its so cold and wet!! Sounds pretty much like its countrywide too! Thanks for your comments on yesterdays post - today I have another card to share with you! This is one I made for my friend Cheryl - she was leaving the school we both used to teach at. She loves Audrey Hepburn so I used a stamp my lovely mum bought for me a while ago at Bolton.

Its a red rubber stamp. I used black archival ink to stamp with. Its a very simple card but Cheryl was thrilled with it.

I've got a few more pictures to share with you now fro our holiday - todays pictures focus around food.

Most lunch times we were in the hotel complex we had pizza around the pool ...

followed by icecream!!!

In the evening meal at the main hotel restaurant I always partook of three puddings - they were really yummy and so very pretty too - it would have been rude not to. You gotta love all inclusive!!! It might explain why the run I did yesterday was so very difficult! Lol!!!!

Enjoy your wednesday - I'm hoping to get the hedges cut today - but if not I'm sure we'll think of something!

Big hugs

Rachel xx

Face Value at Crafty Individuals and Diving time!!!

Hello there! I hope you're having a good week.... its so wet isn't it? And cold! A bit of a shell shock after my last week in the sun!!!! Hoping it gets a lot better soon!!! Don't want to put the heating on!!!

Thanks for your kind comments on my canvas yesterday - I hope you like todays card as much! Its one I've made for a neighbour who will be 80 in August - her and her husbands birthdays are 1 either side of Lucy's so I have a few cards to make!!! I used a stamp from the last release by Crafty Individuals - its a stamp designed by Gio and is called elegance-is-timeless. I think its a real beauty of an image.

The card background is made using distress inks (fossilised amber, frayed burlap, mustard seed) and stamps from the set.

The background behind the face image is one made using brushos and the clingfilm technique that I did at coffeepot  a few weeks ago - it was from the craft stamper masterclass on brusho techniques!

I stamped the image onto water colour card using archival ink and coloured the skin using distress markers and water with a brush. The hair was done using frayed burlap. And the dress was painted in Indigo Blu metallic-paints gold finger. I watered it down very much to allow the details to be seen.

I would like to enter this into the craftyindividualsblog face-value challenge. 

Now for some pictures from when the girls did their bubblemaster diving course in the hotel pool:

This is Penny being helped into her diving equipment ..

and lucy ready to go....

It took quite a bit of encouragement to get Penny down under the water but this was taken some 20 minutes after submersing. Lucy did it first time and just stayed under - Penny needed more time to trust the equipment! They both did really well!

And this is after a blue slush that they had following their final dive! Funny stuff!!!!

Hope you have a great Tuesday! I'm still not going to be doing the hedge I don't think - hopefully wednesday!!!

Big Hugs

Rachel xx

Anything goes at Clarity and more holiday snaps!

Good morning all! Thanks for your kind words yesterday - and also your comments on our piccies - there's more coming! But first here's my make for the Clarity challenge this month - I've been working on this one for a while and only just finished it off - lucky I had it almost ready really!

I used two of the clarity canvas boards to make this - the central one is 6x6 inches and I used a clarity stencil on it and grungepaste. Once dry I painted the whole thing black. When dry I added pebeo gilding wax onto the raised surface then coloured using alcohol inks. Thanks to Jo Rice for showing me this technique at a clarity cumbria day a wee while ago.

The background was painted using dyna paints and then I stippled through a TH stencil with black gesso. Putting the pieces together had been the sticking point but I decided to use some orange card - I think it worked well.

I would like to enter this into the following challenges:

claritystampchallenge-29 anything goes

I would also like to enter the mixed-media-monthly-challenge-14-summer - I was inspired by summery colours (oranges) in the making of this piece!

welove2create-craft-challenge-15 - AG mixed media

Now for some piccies! I want to share some today from our trip rafting:

This is where we had just got our jelly shoes and life jackets on - I also got some things to help keep my glasses on!!!

Here we are rafting - it was pretty tame - but we did all swim in the river too - it was surprisingly cold! 

This is the end of our trip.

and closer up!

And here's my beautiful Penny - just before she went on the zip wire above the river! No fear!!!

I hope you have enjoyed looking at our pictures - and I think there will be more! Lol!!!

Have a great Monday - enjoy whatever you do. I'm hoping its going to be dry so I can cut the hedges!

Big Hugs

Rachel x

Christmas card club - let it snow

Hello Lovelies! Well we're safely back from Turkey - it has been a real step into another world. Absolute luxury and decadence! We had a wonderful time!!!Some pictures later!

Its Christmas card club today and the theme is 'Let it snow'.. when I got home last night the last thing I felt like doing was making a card - so my attempt is a little low on inspiration - but it is done!!!

Very CAS - I used a stamp from Crafty individuals and having masked off an area I stamped in versa mark then used wow powders and heatset. I then used salty ocean distress ink to colour the kraft card.

I made two to add to my growing collection of christmas cards!

Now here's a few holiday pictures:

Lucy and Penny loved to go on the funfair after dinner each evening - the big wheel was the highlight - it was in the hotel complex and was part of the all inclusive package!

They really enjoyed the pool too - splashing around on their lilos - it was the best pool I've ever seen - amazing - loved it myself!

This is inside the hotel on the 10th floor - it was called the Royal wings and this is looking down on one of the wing sections!

This was the view from our balcony down to the sea - the hotel had its own section of beach.

And here' my munchkins enjoying the sea at the hotel beach. Penny said the water was too salty so we didn't spend too long there! Funny!!!

I have lots more pictures to bore you with over the next few posts! I hope you can bear with!!! I also hope to be back to normal ASAP - that means visiting! LOL!!! Looking forward to seeing what you've been up to!

Big hugs 

Rachel x

Precious metals at Indigo blu

Hello there! How are you this morning - this is a scheduled post so I am hoping that it all goes okay! A new challenge starts today over at indigoblublogchallenge. The theme this month is Precious Metals. I have altered a frame using cottage paints and mega flake and stamps from Indigo blu.

I used banana-custard paint to give the frame a general overcoat then added burning-bonfire paint on the front of the frame. I also painted some torn card with the burning bonfire paint  in strips.

I used the script-background stamp in black archival and stamped all over the back of the frame. I also used the same stamp in parts of the front of the frame. 

Then I got the flitterglu out and stamped the poppy-heart stamp and added lancashire-rose mega flake. I also used parts of these on the frame front and used the flitterglu and flake with rugged-edge stamp on the frame and strips. I stuck the strips on to the rear of the frame then added the heart which had been mounted onto mirri board,

This is sitting in my hall - I love it - the metal catches the light and really does look fabulous! 

I hope you have a wonderful day! 

Big Hugs rachel xx

Tims tag July

Hello Lovelies - how are you on this fine day? I hope you are well and happy? We are all good and very excited as we go off on our hollibobs later today - well we don't fly out to Turkey until early sat morning but we're off to the airport later. So I will be quiet for a week! Please forgive me!

Today I wanted to show my Tims tag make for July - tim did a very patriotic one:



that you can find here - I used Tims techniques and did a tag based on being an office worker with a 9 to 5 job using some different TH Blueprint stamps.

The colours are fossilised amber, cracked pistachio and ripe persimmon. They were chosen to reflect the different times during the day.

So this colour goes with the alarm clock and for me signifies morning and the start of a bright day.

The green is the middle of the day - the telephone all about working.

The red is the end of the day and the typewriter the vintage equivalent of the PC I use most evenings!

I would like to enter this into the timholtz12-tags-of-2015-july.

I have scheduled a post for one day of the hollibobs but may not get around to you blogs until I get back!

Take care and be good!

Rachel x

A 10K race and a journal page

Morning all! How are you today? I hope you have a great day and thanks for your comments on yesterdays post. You're all very kind!

Last night I went in for a 10K race at my local athletics club - well when I got there I wondered what on earth I was doing there! It was full of very young (mostly) very fit looking club runners - oh well I thought to myself - somebody has to come last! Anyway - after 62 minutes I didn't quite come last - about 215/222 I think - lol! Still I managed it! Here's a picture of me and my friend Julia once we had finished!



Compare this to the last 10K we did in April at the same club - where the conditions weren't quite so good:

This one took 63 minutes! This was the before picture!  Lol - the finish picture is even worse! The camera got all steamed up in the damp conditions!

Anyway! Onto today's make - its for the Journalling facebook group that I'm part of  - the brief was a different view....

To be honest I had no idea what to do - so I just played and this is what happened! I used Paperbabe stamps and stencils to do the lady, paperartsy paints throughout although I think I used some older pebeo paints to do the hair. 

I used a number of TH stencils and distress inks in the background.

And the fluorish stencil was from Indigo blu.

I would like to enter this into the challenge at paperbabestamps-challenge-16-hair. 

Hope you have a great Thursday - we are having the last day at school today - what fun!!!! Then its going to be the big summer break!

Big hugs

Rachel xx