Thursday 29 December 2011

Still In Christmas Mode..........

.................At the moment so decided to create a Christmas Card as I don't seem to be able to move on to anything else just yet, maybe at the weekend!
A card for 100 Proof Press using the Tall Conifer which I love using for a Winter scene. This card could so easily be adapted for a Winter birthday. I also added Christmas Day to the top of my card, stamped several times onto white card and sponged with Distress Ink broken china.
I created a scene to my large circle again using broken china ink and spritzing with water to give that wintery feel.  The sentiment Let It Snow was the perfect finishing touch.

Hope you all have a fabulous New Year's Eve and Very Best Wishes for The New Year.  Tracy x x

Friday 23 December 2011

Happy Christmas.............

............From Me to You.  Hope you are all now organised for the festive season and enjoying the final preparations.  I have a little wrapping to finish and I am there, I can relax for a few days.  This is therefore my final post before the big day.
I have used Large Tree Skeleton, Tall Conifer, Spry Evergreen Branch, Snowflake, Leafy and Christmas Day all from 100 Proof Press.
I simply punched 9 circles from white card and stamped each image onto the circle with black Archival Ink.  I sponged each with Distress Ink broken china for that icy touch.
I would just like to wish you all a very MERRY CHRISTMAS and BEST WISHES for THE NEW YEAR. See you all in 2012. Tracy x x

Wednesday 21 December 2011

Keep One Secret Place.............

..........Where DREAMS may go.  A great sentiment from the Wendy Vecchi set SENTIMENTAL ART from Creative Expressions.
I have used the Residences ART PARTS to create my card using the fabulous lace background that comes with this set to stamp onto each piece. The background has been stamped onto the Residences with black Archival Ink and the edges highlighted with gold Paint Dabber.
The background stamp has been used once again in the background of my card and spritzed with water before stamping.  I have added the fabulous sentiment to the top of my card which I think works perfectly with the Residences. This would make a perfect NEW HOME card.
A lock and key from Tim's Idea-ology range completes my card.

Hope you are all enjoying your festive preparations.  Thank you for all your support during 2011 and Best Wishes for 2012.  Tracy x x

Tuesday 20 December 2011

Sewing Is NOT My Forte..............

....................Something I decided during a play date with my friend SUE. I suggested some time ago that we should create something a little different and I thought a Tilda Santa was a good idea.......bad idea, I cannot sew, I have no patience oh and I do not follow instructions too well either....a disaster in the making LOL.

So here it is my SANTA, I am describing him as RUSTIC, that's my excuse for the lack of sewing ability.
After purchasing the fabric it was something we needed to try but I have to say I think this will be a ONCE only toe dipping into sewing.
I do however like his rusty stars oh and the fabric............
I also decided to create a trio of snowmen to fit The Play Date Cafe Challenge.
Here is our inspiration photo from The Play Date Cafe, I love love the santa and the splash of colour.
My splash of colour comes from my snowman's scarf.
So there you have it.....my very RUSTIC creations!

Enjoy your week, hope you are all keeping up with the festive to-do lists. Tracy x x

Monday 19 December 2011

Tags..............................

.....................And a little inspiration from Tim are this weeks challenge from Simon Says Stamp and Show.
I've not had chance to join in with the 12 tags of Christmas so this was my ideal opportunity to indulge in a little tag creativity, creating a tag accordion. Each tag has a little inspiration from Tim thrown in for good measure using many of the Alterations dies including Winter Wonder, Reindeer Flight, Carved Ornaments, Tag & Bookplate, along with the Mini Reindeer & 25, and Joy. A little texture has been added using the Snow Flurries Texture Fade and a little Clear Embossing powder. A colour palette of blues/torquoise/green have been used for this seasonal creation with the help of Distress Ink Broken China and Weathered Wood along with paper from the Kraft-Core Nostalgic Collection.

My reindeers have had a good coat of Clear Rock Candy to add texture along with the addition of Baubles to a couple of my reindeers. Christmas Muse Tokens add a little dimension.
I created an accordion from my tags mounted onto Bazzill card stock, making a perfect alternative Christmas Card.  The snowman has one of my favourite backgrounds; I added broken china ink to the flurries texture fade, added my card and then embossed my tag.

On the reverse of the accordion I have used the background stamp from the Seasons Silhouettes and added white highlights with a gel pen. I have used the aperture from cutting the Reindeer Flight as a stencil and added Distress Ink vintage photo. Smaller reindeers have been added to the tags, one having Glossy Accents added to the aperture. Adding wish using Alpha Parts gives further dimension. The Carved Ornament has had the same background stamp added using Archival Ink manganese blue.
Ribbon and a Christmas snowflake from the Christmas Adornments complete my accordion.

Please pop over to the Simon Says Stamp and Show blog and take a look at my fellow team members they have created some inspirational projects and remember there is also the chance to win a $50 prize from Simon Says Stamp.  I always look forward to seeing your creations each week.


I would like to take this opportunity to THANK YOU all for taking the time to participate in the Simon Says Stamp and Show challenge and your continued support. Wishing you all a Merry Christmas and Best Wishes for The New Year.

Thanks so much for stopping by and leaving a comment, much appreciated.  Enjoy your week. Tracy x x 

Saturday 17 December 2011

Its Cold Outside..............

.................Inspiring me to make this card using the Large Tree Skeleton and Snowflake, Leafy for 100 Proof Press.
As soon as I saw the snow outside I thought of this bare tree and decided to add white embossing for that icy feel to my piece. I have added machine stitching around the outside edge for a little depth which lifts this piece a little.
A little corrugated card breaks up the blue, again with a little machine stitchine added to the outside edges. Two snowflake embellishments add dimension.
I have used the snowflake, leafy to create my background, stamping with a VersaMark stamp pad and embossing with white embossing powder to add to the icy feel, again inspired from our weather outside at the moment.

I would also like to enter this into The Artistic Stamper Creative Team's challenge which this month is CHRISTMAS

Thanks so much for stopping by. Enjoy your weekend. Tracy x x

Friday 16 December 2011

Merry Christmas

I am feeling very festive now there is only a matter of days until the big day so I thought I would create a couple more festive cards using the Here Comes Santa set from IndigoBlu from The Stamp Attic.
I created the background using a piece of torn scrap paper and Distress Ink broken china. I created the background first and then stamped the snowflake border at the top of my card.
The trees were then added, with a little shading at the bottom of each tree, Merry Christmas completes my card.
Whilst I was in the festive spirit I decided to create a second card this time using the tree from the set, masked and stamped at the bottom of the card with black Archival Ink. I used the fabulous Zipper once again to create my zipper flower adding a button to the centre along with some black ribbon.
I added a couple of layers of UTEE and placed my card in the fridge and then cracked the enamel to give an aged glass tile look.
I've tried to get a close up shot so that you can see the cracks, must admit they look great in real life.

Thanks for stopping by, Tracy x x

Thursday 15 December 2011

Bonjour

A little creative time using the Bon Voyage set from JustRite for my DT post for Creative Expressions, along with Spellbinders Labels Twenty.
I embossed the white card in the background with a mask to give a little dimension and layered onto black and white card, I love black and white with these images I feel it gives a very classy feel.
I added the Eiffel Tower image to Tim's filmstrip die, sponged the edges with Distress Ink and added behind the Spellbinders shape, giving layers of interest to my card. Buttons and a couple of metal embellishments finish my piece.

Thanks for stopping by, Tracy x

Monday 12 December 2011

Through The Looking Glass - Projects With Depth

Wow the weeks are flying by and here we are again, another Monday and that can only mean one thing, another fabulous challenge from Simon Says Stamp and Show. As soon as I heard that the challenge was projects with depth I really wanted to decorate a configuration box, something I've not had chance to do for a while so this was the ideal opportunity.   I decided on a Christmas configuration coloured with Distress Stain Vintage Photo and decorated with papers from the My Mind's Eye Lost & Found Christmas paper pad. I had great fun decorating each area with Christmas finds along with the use of the Reindeer Flight die, The Tattered Pinecone Die,  and The Pine Tree. JOY was added using Grunge Blocks along with a mini Christmas tree and sleigh. Small frames were decorated with images from the Seasonal Salvage Stickers along with a Christmas Muse Token and several vintage finds.
All my frames were coated with a layer of Glossy Accents to protect and added to a bottle cap with paper added from the Seasonal Salvage Stickers. I have also added a dimensional reindeer using the Reindeer Flight die.  I was inspired by Shelly Hickox post HERE to create this reindeer using layers of  the reindeer stuck together to create dimension and then covered in music paper.  Thanks for the inspiration Shelly.
I have added a Pine Tree to this section coloured with Distress Ink Peeled Paint and Vintage Photo around the edges along with JOY using Grungeblocks, again coloured with the same Distress Inks and adhered with Glossy Accents.
A mini Christmas tree is the focal piece here, however, I only had green so a little bleach came in handy! A Christmas Muse Token has been added to the back along with a couple of my vintage finds.
The images from the Seasonal Salvage Stickers worked so well in my little frames.
25 has been added to the back of this section cut from white card using the Mini Reindeer and 25 die, coloured with Distress Ink Fired Brick.
Pinecones have been added cut from Kraft-Core using the Tattered Pinecone Die.
The top of the box has a vintage find added along with a second of those dimensional reindeers but this time using the head only.

Please pop over to the Simon Says Stamp and Show blog and take a look at my fellow team members they have created some inspirational projects and remember there is also the chance to win a $50 prize from Simon Says Stamp.  I always look forward to seeing your creations each week.


Thanks so much for stopping by and leaving a comment, much appreciated.  Enjoy your week. Tracy x x 

Saturday 10 December 2011

A Winter's Day

A little creative play yesterday using Large Tree Skeleton and Snowflake, Leafy for 100 Proof Press.
My background is created with Distress Ink broken china which I then spritzed with water to give the feeling of snow falling.  I added the snowflakes stamped in manganese blue Archival Ink. Added my Skeleton Tree, adding a little shading to the bottom of the tree again with Distress Ink.
I have added a snowflake from Tim's Idea-ology range to give a little dimension and the sentiment Let it Snow, I did not want to over embellish as I think the tree and scene say it all.

There is also a perpetual contest Press It Out taking place at 100 Proof Press and the grand prize is an amazing $100 with 1st place $75 and 2nd place $50. All the prizes are awarded in rubber, mounted or unmounted. The winners will be chosen twice a year, once on 30th June and again on 31st December.


Entry Rules: All artwork must contain primarily 100 Proof Press stamps. By this, we mean most or all of the main images should be 100 Proof Press images. All styles, techniques and mediums are allowed. No size or dimensional limitations apply. Enter as often as you wish. All entries will be placed into the current contest on the day they arrive.  All entries become the property of 100 Proof Press and will not be returned.  Each entry must have clearly written on it, or submitted with it, the following:
 
1) Press It Out!
2) Your name, Address and Telephone Number(s)
3) I___________ give 100 Proof Press the ownership of this entry to use in any way. Sign and Date.

Send all entries to: 100 Proof Press, P O Box 621, St. Paris, OH 43072. Good Luck.

Time for a little creative time on the house now in the form of cleaning and ironing, mmmmm, may stick to the card making LOL!

Thanks for stopping by, Tracy x x

Thursday 8 December 2011

Bon Voyage

Time for my weekly dose of inspiration for my DT post for Creative Expressions, using the Bon Voyage set from JustRite, this set works perfectly with the Spellbinders dies, in this case with Spellbinders Labels Twenty.
I decided on a different colour palette this week, a change from the black and white of last week.  I used a mask in the background and sanded over the raised areas, giving some dimension to my piece.
I added a blossom using the Spellbinders Spiral Blossom adding co-ordinating ribbon, PARIS and a little brass Eiffel Tower charm.

Postage stamps added to one side stamped on Bazzil card complete my card.

Thanks for stopping by, Tracy x x

Tuesday 6 December 2011

It's Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas!

I am feeling rather festive especially whilst creating my pieces for The Stamp Attic this week using the Here Comes Santa set from Indigo Blu.

I love the snowflake border stamp on this set it's so detailed.  On this occasion I have stamped with Vermillion Archival and StazOn Stone Grey ink, adding a little of each colour to the stamp, masking the tree before stamping the second.
I also added some gorgeous trim to the top of my card and then made a floral to match adding a red button to the centre (the trim is available in the shop but not yet on line).
Whilst I was on a roll I created a second card using those wonderful Authentique papers. I also created a zipper flower, which I coloured with Distress Ink Fired Brick. For a little dimension I added a second layer to two of my trees and added text to jump rings.
I also thought it would be fun to create a place setting for Christmas from the fabulous SPOOLS that Wendy has in stock.  I added decorative paper to the centre of my spool from the Authentique range and stamped the trees onto the Authentique paper and added two layers to each tree and adhered to the spool. I added the same trim to the top of my spool to match my card above. I cut a banner from the same paper using the Tattered Banners die for the finishing touch.

Thanks for stopping by, Tracy x x

Monday 5 December 2011

Elements Of Time.................

..................For Simon Says Stamp and Show. Yes it's Monday and time for another fabulous challenge and this time we would like to see your TIME pieces.

I decorated one of Wendy's Timely Pocket Watches, adorned with Tim's Timepieces and Game Spinners. I have used the gentlemen from Tim's Steampunk set to decorate the inside of the pocket watch, stamped onto paper from BoBunny's Timepiece collection. The pocket watch was coloured with Distress Stain Aged Mahogany and stamped with the background stamp from Tim's Steampunk set. 
I masked the gentlemen to create a crowd and highlighted one gentleman with a coloured hat which I thought worked perfectly with the "The Hat Makes The Man" sentiment from Wendy Vecchi's Steampunk Art.
I have stamped the edge of my pocket watch with the background stamp from Tim's Steampunk set using black Archival Ink. I used the hand from the Art Parts Dress Forms And More set, coloured with Distress Stain Vintage Photo and stamped the background image onto my hand and added a small button. I cut three tickets from beige card using the Mini Tickets Set and stamped the background stamp onto each in Distress Ink Aged Mahogany. I added the three tickets and hand to the bottom of my pocket watch.
To complete, I added Sprockets, Timepieces and Game Spinners.

Please pop over to the Simon Says Stamp and Show blog and take a look at my fellow team members they have created some inspirational projects and remember there is also the chance to win a $50 prize from Simon Says Stamp.  I always look forward to seeing your creations each week.


Thanks so much for stopping by and leaving a comment, much appreciated.  Enjoy your week. Tracy x x