I Am What I Am - a Metal Doll .....

Ever since I saw Linda Brown from LB Crafts demonstrating Ten Seconds Studio stuff at Worthing, I was hooked. I have been messing around with the tools that I have for ages and then I got the Ten Seconds Studio CD/DVD, which is great. If you're not into metal you will be after seeing this...
I was originally messing around with Paper Dolls after seeing them in a recent edition of Somerset Studio, and then I found a template (somewhere - can't remember where) of a jointed doll. I thought that this would look good in metal - so I had a go. This is my first attempt at a big metal project.
Terrible photo - again - but I hope you like her .....

In My Pocket ...There Are Some Buttons ....

Here is my answer to Hels new challenge - In My Pocket ....
I have called my pocket One Two Button My Shoe. All the stamps are from Paperbag Studios.

And this is inside the pocket .....

The usual bad photography - lol - but too late to get the scanner out - again! Hope you like it ......

Time has Marched On ....

After the marathon scanning session and putting all my Sisters on my Blog, I was left with just one Sister - Diana.
I am sorry Diana - I did try to leave a comment - even after reading your English instructions. So hello Diana ....

For My Sisters in SBS 19 ....

Well hello everyone .....
It's great to be a part of the Sisterhood and I'm looking forward to visiting everyone.
In the meantime, here's a little something from me to my Sisters ......

From My Box ....

I have been making cards for ages - mainly for me to send to family and friends (and we musn't forget my mother, who because I am her daughter, simply loves my stuff (bless) and who says "Ooohh Susan (the only person alive who calls me that) they are so lovely - can I have that one - and that one - and that one" - you get the picture!!!

I have taken the day off today - mainly to do something with the roses in the garden which have been absolutely trashed by the recent bad weather but, guess what, it keeps raining!!!!! So instead, I have scanned some piccies of some of my cards, rather than taking appalling photos, which I thought I would share with everyone before they get taken down to my mother's in Somerset next Sunday for her to rifle through - again!
So before they disappear I thought I would share them. I hope you like them .......

Don't you just love Penny Black ......

These two are Jayne Nesterenko's new Cute Companions, which are so cute .......

And these are some of my Rubber Stamp Tapestry cards - just love them ....

Just love this OneFourZero stamp ....

This is the same Penny Black stamp my crafting friend used for my Birthday Card, which I just had to rush out and get. I coloured mine ....


Finally - The Girls. Princess Drama reminds me of me! .......

A Crafting Friend of Mine .....

I have a crafting friend who lives in the Midlands and we meet up twice a year at the NEC (next one is 20 weeks away yesterday!). She tells me that she is computer illiterate ('cos she can't even open a Google account to post a comment on the blog!) and that because of her non-existent IT skills she couldn't possibly entertain the idea of a Blog - her being shy and bashful is more the case!

She has been a good friend to me, especially over the past few months, so as a small thank you, I would like to introduce her stuff to the world ......

All of her cards are totally different and are brilliant. The lamp post was last year's Christmas card which I am looking at as I type and the black and white Penny Black image was just sooooo good I had to buy the stamp myself!
Hope you like them as much as I do ....

Stamp Addicts - Purple Challenge

For the Challenge I have made a Birthday Card. The base card was covered with Papermania Creative Tones papers - Amethyst Infusion. The panel was first stamped with the Stampington Marble Texture Cube in gold and then overstamped with the Judikins Bead Curtain stamp in Royal Purple Staz On. The 'beads' were coloured with purple glitter and clear gel pens. The flowers were stamped from Carol's Cube onto scraps off purple card (various shades) from my Purple Envelope. The petals were defined with the purple gel pen and the centres of the flowers coated with Star Dust Stickles. Not being a fan of huge greetings a discreet Happy Birthday was stamped bottom right, again in Royal Purple Staz On.
Sorry about the photo - think I need some lessons!!
Hope you like it though .....

Sunday Stampers - Week 22 - Friends

Well, well, well - I've had my Blog for a week and here I am entering a Challenge! I have spent the day - off and on - looking at all those Challenge Blogs out there. I can see this as becoming quite a serious addiction! So this is my first ever Challenge entry .....

I chose to do a large Tag - which was coloured with Shabby Shutters distress ink and then stamped all over with the Stampendous Marble Texture Cube in gold ink. The check pattern is B-Lines Checker Board stamped in Olive Green Staz-On. The main image is Classmates by B-Lines, stamped on glossy card and then dabbed with Lettuce and Butterscotch Alcohol Inks, with just a touch of Stream; and mounted on black glossy card. A 7-Gypsies Friends tab is at the top of the image and a pink flower and black ric-rac was added to finish it off.
Hope you like it .......

Paris .... on a clipboard

This is a 'work in progress' that has been in progress for quite some while! I went to Paris once, ages ago, for the day - and loved it. Maybe I will go again, when I retire! Paris themes seem to come and go and this is one of my pieces .....

The masonite clipboard was bought from an office stationers and, despite being thick, can be punched with a Crop-a-Dile. The surface was painted with a very light brown acrylic paint and then with Paper Glaze Sheer Gold Glaze. The clip was dabbed with Wild Plum and Lettuce Alcohol inks.
The Paris word idea is from a back issue of Somerset Studio Gallery. It is cut from foamboard and covered with pages from a French book out of the libary, which were inked with Old Paper and Vintage Photo Distress Inks. The stamps used are from Tim Holtz - I See Paris; and the Oxford Impressions plates - Paris Poste and Travel Journal; and are all stamped with a Ranger sepia Archival ink pad.
Other images - the Parish metro map, Moulin Rouge, Mona and the French flag were all from the net.
Even though I say the piece is finished - everytime I look I think - does it need something else, that 'je ne sait quoi'. Post a comment and let me know what you think.......

Singing with the Birds

This is a project I did some time ago and want to share. The idea was from a Sue Roddis article in a past issue of Craft Stamper.
The Bird House is a bought one which was sanded, covered in gesso and then acyrlic paint was swiped on using an old credit card. Bits of corrugated card were swiped with gesso for more texture. The tree trunks were burnt on using the Hot Marks tool (something I bought ages ago, thinking I have got to have one of those!).
The stamps are from Invoke Arts plates and the roof 'tiles' are a Stampington stamp - Ledger (or something like that!) - I use it quite a lot. Other embellishments were the letter beads, cut out letters and die cut folk hearts.Sticking everything to the Bird House was interesting - Copydex (not too bad), Superglue (try doing that in surgical gloves!) and Hipstick (a disgusting pumbling adhesive) for the glass tiles around the edge of the roof.
I see these ideas and make them (generally buying even more stuff!) and then think - what am I going to do with it (having bought two bird boxes because I am incapable of buying anything singly!). This one, however, is going to be a gift. An older friend of mine soon has a birthday and she has loads of houseplants. I think this will look great nestled in amongst them.
Sorry about the photos and the layout of them - have yet to get to grips with that.
Hope you like it .....

A Special Card

A crafting friend of mine, another Sue, asked me to make a card for her grand-daughter's 2nd birthday. I couldn't believe it - this was a request to make a card for an expert card maker herself. No-one would believe how nervous I was !!!!

The card was custom cut and covered again with Papermania paper from the Vibrant Colossal paper pack. The train was cut from a WS Designs template out of Bazzill card. The stamps used were from Jayne Nesterenko's new Cute Companions stamps and the flowers on the wheels from an Elusive Images plate. All the images were water coloured and there was liberal use of the Sakura Clear Sparkle Gelly Roll pen.

As it turned out, I understand, Sue didn't get to give her grand-daughter the card, it was commandered by her children to give to their cousin!!!! So she had to make one herself!!!!
Hope you like it.

The first REAL entry

As a new grandmother (but do call me Nanny) of four weeks, one of my most recent projects was to make THE BABY CARD.
I found a great template called More Than Words (and I am ashamed to say I bought five other words as well!).
I cut the words from box board and covered each letter with papers from the PaperMania Vibrant Colossal paper pack. I used mainly Woodware Clear Magic baby stamps and a couple of tiny sets of Dovecraft Designer clear stamps (what a bargain at 99p). A computer generated "Announcing Me" card and a photograph of the happy family completed the card; together with tiny buttons, flowers and loads of lace, ribbons and ric-rac. The card was bound together using book rings but for the next ones, I will use my Bind-It-All machine.
I had to make two - a pink one and a blue one - just in case - and I have since made another blue one - again, just in case !!!!

My first ever blog entry

This is my first ever blog entry. Quite by accident I found a great craft blog and thought - "I can do that". That was two weeks ago and it has taken me all this time to get up the nerve to do it. I know what will happen now - I shall be spending the next few days working out how to add all those lists and other exciting things - but it will be great fun.