Just One Word

Good morning,

It's time for our next letter over at the Alphabet Challenge blog and this week we have the letter 'O' with the theme chosen by Tammy. We would love to see your cards and projects using just a

'ONE WORD SENTIMENT'.  

So, here's what I made for my DT inspiration ...

It's a fairly simple design today on a DL card - I don't make these very often and fancied a change. I used a piece of ivory cardstock, printed the sentiment on the pc before running the card through an embossing folder. The little puppy is stamped and coloured with Promarkers and added to a scalloped circle mat. Simples!

I shall look forward to seeing your creations this week and please pop over to the blog for more inspiration from my teamies.

Hugz, Jan xx

Midweek Motivation at MMM

Hello again,

Wow! We have had some stunning entries to the challenge over at Make My Monday this week, with not a single card in sight - but there's still plenty of time if you haven't joined in yet.

As it was my challenge on Monday, I thought I would pop back with some midweek motivation for you. Here's another little project ...

This one was much quicker than the original - I found these little sets of drawers in a local discount shop - what a bargain. They came in the kraft colour that you can see underneath and I covered it with some pretty papers from LOTV. A few extra decorations and voila! A perfect little place to hide some trinkets.

Here's a view from the top, showing the handmade flower ...

You have until Sunday to enter this challenge - so come and join in the fun.

Hugz, Jan xx

What if the Trees weren't Green!

Happy Tuesday,

I hope everyone enjoyed the Bank Holiday weekend - I can't believe the next bank holiday will be Christmas!!

It's my turn to post over at Studio 12 for Polkadoodles today and I have a page from my art journal to show you. I have used some of the gorgeous new Studio 12 acrylic stamps which are now back in stock in the PD store. Here's what I made ...

Stamps used include:

Dreamy Trees (I adore these!)

Distressed Zig Zags (around the edges)

Shabby Owl Blossom (for the leaves)

The background was coloured using three distress stains (mustard seed, dried marigold and fired brick), then I added a little interest to the background using a stencil, a bottle lid and a little white acrylic paint. I stamped the border and the leaves using black archival ink and stamped the trees onto book pages before colouring with my Promarkers. The wording was printed on my pc.

Why not pop over to the Polkadoodles store now and order your stamps - I would love to see your creations.

Hugz, Jan xx

Photo Inspiration

I'm back again!

Well what can I say! Three in a row today - never been done before, but as they say - 'there's a first time for everything'. You can tell that I'm not back at work yet! Lol.

I have spent the morning playing in my craft room and made the following card with three different challenges in mind.  The first one is over at 'Creative Moments' whose theme is a photo inspiration - these are one of my favourite challenges. Here's the photo, and boy is it a pretty one ...

Here's my card ...

I would also like to play along with Magnolia Down Under who have a 'Tic Tac Toe' theme - another favourite and Stampin' for the Weekend with the theme of 'Butterflies' - yep! you guessed, another favourite!

I took the colour scheme from the photo inspiration, added 'Tilda and her Bunny', together with pearls, frantage powder and flowers for Magnolia Down Under and added pink butterflies made using my Tim Holtz die for Stampin' for the Weekend.

Right, off to enter it into the challenges - enjoy the rest of the day.

Hugz, Jan xx

Buttons, Birdies and Bows

Good morning again,

Now this doesn't happen very often! I'm back with my second post today.

I have my very first DT project to show you today for the 'My Besties UK Challenge blog'. I was recently invited to join their design team and as you all know I absolutely adore these images, so the decision wasn't a very hard one!  The challenge runs bi-weekly and this week the theme is 'THREE THINGS THAT BEGIN WITH 'B'. Here's what I made - can you spot the things beginning with 'B'?

Buttons, Birdies and Bows

This one is a 6x6" kraft card base which is topped with papers from my stash. I used image 841 which can be bought from Sherri's on-line store HERE and coloured it with my Promarkers.  My starting point for this one was the buttons - once I had chosen them I then matched the backing papers and then my choice of Promarker colours. The lettering was printed on my pc and the little piece of fence is made using a Doohickey die.

I shall look forward to visiting your blogs to see what you made using items beginning with 'B',

Hugz, Jan xx

Anything but a Card

Good Morning to you all,

I hope everyone is enjoying the extra long weekend - I only have one more week left of my summer break. This time next week I will be back at school, trying to fit all my crafting in when I can.

It's time for a new challenge over at Make My Monday and this week it is my turn to choose the theme. As you can see from my post title I chose 'ANYTHING BUT A CARD'.

This is a favourite theme of mine as I love making home decor projects and I have been wanting to show you this one for a while. So, here's what I made for my DT inspiration ...

After much research on the subject - here's my version of a decorated shadow box. I chose the cream and pink theme to give a 'shabby' look to the project. The whole thing is made from scraps of paper from my stash, together with lots of little items from my craft box, including a baby domino, a little penny farthing charm, a miniature clothes peg, a dice, a mini wooden cotton bobbin, a mini clock charm and loads of tiny little punched butterflies. The letter 'B' in the largest section is to represent my surname (Brown) and I also added the date in one of the sections too. 

Here's a closer look at some of my favourite sections ...

The top section

I love the little bottle of beads

I covered the little cotton bobbin with some lace

I must admit this took a while to finish - but I am thrilled with the outcome and it now sits proudly on my display cabinet.  I am hoping to make these to order in the future, so watch this space.

I hope this has inspired you to have a go at something other than a card - I will be back on Wednesday with a little midweek motivation. 

Happy crafting,

Hugz, Jan xx

In the Pink!

Happy Sunday to you all,

I'm back again with my Sunday post for Sherri Baldy Art and this week I thought I would try something a little different.  I have made a tag using a close up of  image 692 - 'Lil Muffy Mopsy' as the focal point,

which you can buy from Sherri's on-line store HERE.

I simply made the image the right size to cut out with my nestie, then coloured her with my Promarkers - don't you just love her pink hair! All papers and embellishments are from my stash and the wording made on my pc.

Have you ever thought about just using part of an image??  I would love to see your creations using part of a Bestie image - just leave me a comment/link to your art so I can visit.

Hugz, Jan xx

Bright and Beautiful

Hello crafty friends,

It's time for another challenge over at Polkdoodles and this week the theme is 'ALL THINGS BRIGHT AND BEAUTIFUL'. Now this one is open to interpretation - what do you see as 'bright' and 'beautiful'? It can be anything that you think fits the theme and the design team have had a few ideas of their own. Here's what I made for my DT inspiration ...

Now, I'm not used to working with such bright colours - I'm more of a pastel girl myself, but this is what I love about being on a design team - it pushes you out of your comfort zone once in a while. I thought of lovely bright colours and reached straight for my 'Bonbon Belles' CD which I know has the most amazing sections of colour. My card was made using papers and embellishments from the 'Tropical Sorbet' section - hope you like it.

Also, if you haven't ordered your snazzy watermark for your projects yet - pop over and have a look in the Polkadoodles store. Just click HERE for more details.

I shall look forward to seeing your interpretation of our theme this week.

Hugz, Jan xx

Child's Play

Happy Monday,

Are you ready for another challenge? We have a new theme this morning over at Make My Monday. This one has been chosen by Laura and the theme is 'CHILD'S PLAY'. You can choose to make a child's birthday card, or a new baby card. I chose the second option and made two cards - one for a girl and one for a boy ...

These are both 6"x6" cards and are made using a Saturated Canary image called 'Butterfly Baby', coloured with my Promarkers. I couldn't resist making them in both traditional baby colours and am planning to offer them to order when I get my self organized. Everything has been made from scratch - the larger letters are stamped and embossed using the 'Clarity Letterbox' stamp set and the smaller letters are printed on my pc before being mounted on little die-cut tags. All other papers and embellishments are from my stash.

Hope these give you some inspiration to come and join in the challenge with us.

I am entering these cards into the challenge over at Saturated Canary which is 'Winged Things'.

Hugz, Jan xx

Lil' Ladybug

Good morning My Bestie friends,

As it's Sunday, it's time for my post over at Sherry Baldy Art and this week I have a card using Besties image 788 who has yet to be named. I called her 'Lil' Ladybug' and you can buy her from Sherri's on-line store HERE.

Here's what I made ...

This one was made with the 'My Besties UK Challenge Blog' in mind - the theme this time is 'CIRCLES'. How many can you spot?

I used my Promarkers to colour the image and the backing papers are from Raspberry Road. Using my dies I cut lots of circles from scraps of purple papers to match the background, then arranged them around the edge of the design. Some little punched flowers and butterflies finish off the design.

Enjoy the rest of your weekend,

Hugz, Jan xx

A little Gift Bag

Hello there,

Monday morning means it's time for our next challenge over at the 'Make My Monday' challenge blog and this week Rosie has chosen the theme, which is '3D ELEMENTS'. Now how much scope is there for this one - I didn't know where to start! It can be interpreted any way you like as long as you use something 3D, so it could be a 3D embellishment, decoupage, altered elements or even a 3D project itself. Here's what I decided on for my DT inspiration ...

I decided on the 3D project and made a little gift bag from just one piece of cardstock which I then embellished.  The image is LOTV and is called 'Big Hug' - isn't it adorable. I have coloured it with my Promarkers, added some frantage powder and a little glitter and then mounted it on a blue die-cut 'Fleur de Lys' square frame. Added embellishments include a Doohickey die-cut flower and heart swirl, together with some little punched butterflies and a few pearls.  

The reverse of the bag has a 'To/From' label (printed on my pc) mounted on a smaller die-cut frame, together with matching flower and little punched butterfly.

I can't wait to see your interpretations of our theme this week and shall look forward to visiting your blogs throughout the week. 

I would like to enter this into the following challenges:

Artistic Inspirations - Die Cuts/Punches

Cute Card Thursday - Dies and Punches

Fussy & Fancy - Bingo (blue, flowers and pearls)

Happy crafting,

Hugz, Jan xx

Name Plaque

Good morning crafty friends and followers,

I hope you all had a great week with much crafting. I have been working on a little home decor project but can't show you just yet - it's taken me ages to complete, but I am so happy with the result, so watch this space.

It's my turn to post over at Sherri Baldy Art today and I have another little make using one of Sherri's gorgeous 'Bestie' images. Here's what I made ...

This week I made a name plaque which I intended to sell at our school summer fayre - but I didn't get enough made, too busy with DT projects! Lol.

I used the image 'Tiny and Supersaurus' which I coloured with my Promarkers. You can buy this image and many more from Sherri's on-line store HERE.  The letters are stamped and coloured by hand and all other embellishments are hand made. 

Enjoy the rest of the weekend,

Hugz, Jan xx

In the Garden

Good morning,

Well, that's another week gone and I spent most of crafting - what better way than to spend my holidays. As it's Friday it must be time for another challenge over at the Polkadoodles challenge blog. This week the theme is 'IN THE GARDEN' and we would love to see your interpretation of the theme. As a design team we were challenged to use some of the gorgeous download bundles available in Nikky's on-line store. I chose to use the 'Shake a Tailfeather kit' which has some fabulous papers and images to play with - just click on the link below for more details.

Shake a Tailfeather

Here's what I made for my DT project ...

I made a garden journal which I can add pages to as I go along, recording what I planted and when, etc. The background paper and all the embellishments are from the download kit - the wording was printed on my pc.

Please pop over and check out what my teamies made for further inspiration.

Hugz, Jan xx

Jeans and Denim

Hi there crafty friends,

I am loving my time off school - it gives me loads of time to craft without feeling guilty! I have been playing this morning making a card for the 'Graph'It Markers challenge', although I have to say I used my Promarkers as I don't own any Graph Its. The challenge this week is to colour 'Jeans and Denim' - so here's what I made ...

I automatically thought of a boys card when I thought of denim (I know - a bit stereotypical!) so reached straight for my Polkadoodles CDs which I know have a great selection of boy images to colour. I used pale blue, denim blue, cornflower blue and cool grey 4 to colour both the jeans and shirt (I wanted to keep the monochrome effect to enter another challenge). All other items are from my stash.

I would also like to enter the challenge at 

'That Craft Place' 

which is Monochrome.

Have a great day,

Jan xx

Pink Love

Good Morning,

First of all I would like to say 'welcome' to my new followers - thank you so much for your kind comments, I really appreciate you taking the time and I love to read what you have to say about my work.

As I'm on school holidays at the moment, I have plenty of time to craft without feeling guilty and have my DT projects up to date - so yesterday I sat down to play.  Here's what I made for the 'Artistic Inspirations' challenge ...

They are currently running a 'Bingo' challenge, which I love playing along with - so I chose a diagonal line including a digi image, buttons and layers. The image is by Sherri Baldy (no. 741) and is coloured with my Promarkers, with a little added frantage powder around the edges for a bit of sparkle.  I have layered up three different backing papers from Raspberry Road, together with lots of embellishments from my stash (including a die-cut doily, die-cut border, ribbon, 'Love' ticket and a little hidden tag behind the main image).  I used three pink buttons to finish off with lots of added pearls for that extra little touch.

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

Crafty Cardmakers - 1,2,3 

(one image, two papers and three embellishments)

Totally Gorjuss - Anything goes with Pearls

Thanx for stopping by,

Hugz, Jan xx

Silhouette Stamping

Good Morning,

Hope you all had a great weekend - it's time for a new challenge over at 'Make My Monday' and this week Jacqueline has chosen the theme - SILHOUETTES. I must admit this is one of my favourites themes and my only problem was choosing which stamp set to use. Here's what I made for my DT inspiration ...

I decided on a brand new set called 'Serene Sihouettes', which I bought recently from a 'Stampin Up' friend. The background was made using my ink dusters and four different distress inks - from the top Worn Lipstick, Dried Marigold, Mustard Seed and Crushed Olive. I then used archival black ink to over stamp, adding the little birds and a tiny sentiment. Once finished, I cut the picture into three equal pieces and mounted them on black cardstock. The gold mirri board corners were made from a 'Lacey Square' spellbinders die which I cut into four pieces.

If you would like to see some more inspiration for the challenge, then why not pop over to the blog and check out the work of my teamies.

Hugz, Jan xx

Hello Besties ...

Happy Sunday everyone,

I hope you all had a great week - I think we have finally regained some order after moving my daughter back home. I only have to climb over the odd box now to get into bed!

As it's Sunday it's my turn to post over at 'Sherri Baldy Art' 

and this week I have made a card using the gorgeous 

'Belinda Beehive' 

which you can find in Sherri's on-line store HERE.

I adore these little girls and each week seem to have a different favourite! I coloured her with my Promarkers, adding a little sparkle on her wings and some frantage embossing powder around the image 

which I though looked a little like fairy dust.  Papers and embellishments are all from my stash.

Have a great day,

Hugz, Jan xx

M for Micro or Mini

Happy Friday to you all,

Well, I'm not sure where that week went! As it's Friday again it's time for our next letter at the Alphabet Challenge and this week our Roxx has chosen all thing 'MICRO or MINI' for the letter 'M'. So we would love to see your projects featuring something small - it could be a tiny little embellishment, a small stamp or even just a small project! Here's what I made for my DT inspiration ...

I decided to make a small card and gift tag - the card measures 10.5cm square. I used a mini heart stamp, which is decoupaged and coloured with my Promarkers and also used little mini button brads. 

The challenge is open until the 15th August, so why not have a go. If you have a minute - please pop over to the challenge blog and check out some more inspiration from my teamies.

Hugz, Jan xx