Summer is Here at Di's Digis

Time for a new challenge at Di's Digis Challenge Blog, the theme this time around is "Summer is Here"... even though it's NOT Summer here, lol.  Here's my card

 I've used an image I've used before, mainly because the fortnight just flew by and I didn't remember to grab a new image from Di - she has lots - in time to make my card... but Henry Hazy Days (available here) is soooo cute and PERFECT for the Summer theme, that it's "all good" I reckon :-))
I coloured with Copic markers and Prismacolor pencils, inking the sky with Versamark ink and a homemade stencil.  I'm really happy with my colouring on this one, but still struggle to capture it in photos 

The paper I've used is from Merci - it's from Big W, but the quality of these packs is fabulous; the paper is heavy, really rich/intense colouring and has a texture, really good paper, and not just good-for-the-price either!  I used a punch to cut the edge of the panel at the top, then decided it was too fussy with the print (especially with the mat having a print too) so I just freehand cut along the edge of one set of scallops on the print, it only took about two minutes, ironic really as I faffed about with the punch for AGES!!

The gold metallic trim is from my stash, I've had it for years and am down to my last few centimetres... wonder if you can still get it, mmm.  The wooden butterfly is from my stash; this may be Merci too, but I'm not sure.

I bought a few "generic" dies from ebay recently, the "hello" cut from gold foil card is one of these... I 'll have to track the source down for these too as they have a few more styles that I fancied but I thought I'd wait til I got these to see how they cut; the answer is "brilliantly" so I'm going to get some more.

I finished the inside of my card with elements from the outside, don't I always, lol. That's about it for today's effort, I hope you get a chance to check out the rest of the team's inspiration... so much Summer it makes me long for some... no, not really, winter in Perth is the BEST :-)  I hope you get a chance to enter the challenge too, great prize (as always) this time from Crafty Ribbons, and extra opportunities if you use one of Di's Digis or a Candibean rubber stamp, if rubber is your "thang".

I'd like to enter my card in the following challenges: 

Simon Says Challenge Animal Magic

My Time to Craft Summertime

Creatalicious Challenges  Anything Goes, opt: Animals as Focus
Simply Papercrafts, Craft Your Passion, Through the Craftroom Door, Create and Inspire, Crafting With Friends Challenge 23, Creative Fingers, Art by Miran, Cute As A Button, Little Miss Muffet and Paper Creator Crafts Anything Goes

Thanks for looking at my card, I hope you like it... until next time, Happy Crafting, Donna  

Favourite Colour Combo

The new challenge starting today at Di's Digis Challenge Blog has a really easy theme; we want to see YOUR Favourite Colour Combo... not ours, yours, too easy!  I love autumn colours, not that we get THAT much in the way of autumn here in Western Australia - though I've got three really gorgeous Japanese Maple trees in my garden that are looking glorious right now, they don't realize it's nearly mid Winter, lol.  The combo I've used today focuses on the coral/burgundy end of the spectrum.

The cute image is called "Little Mice Blooms", and you can get it here - I really am hooked on these meeces, who wouldn't be? :-)  I coloured with my usual combination of Copic Markers with Prismacolor pencil providing extra detail. 

I did do something a bit different with the vase though... I added gold leaf (well its that flaky stuff you get that has gold, silver, copper and some coloured foils in.  I rubbed it into the glue I painted the vase with so it wasn't too chunky looking, it actually looks really good in real life - hard to capture the richness in a pic; hopefully you get the idea.
The truly gorgeous chiyogami paper is from my go to speciality paper store, Starfish Lane; this was one of the papers I got for my birthday - my eldest son and his wife (and the twins of course, lol) gave me a huge bag of goodies; usually it's my youngest son that does that for me... but he gave me a lovely photograph of the twins instead this year.  He's a photographer and has just updated his camera - I'm feeling the need to upgrade mine now as I'm having problems with the clarity of my pics... which could just be user error, rofl.   The card for the matting and the embossed cream pearl card at the top are from Starfish Lane too, the embossed one matches the peal card I used as a base and the burgundy has a lovely texture.

I cut the image mat with Lifestyle Crafts Circles and the coral colour and burgundy mats are L'il Inkers Dual Stitched Dies... I cut the burgundy one as a frame and cut the outside of the coral one the same size as the inside of the frame to fit inside the burgundy one... all stuck to a piece of white card at the back to hold it together - maybe this pic explains better!
The metal and rhinestone "ribbon" across the card came from our Malaysian trip a few years ago... or Mum and Dad's this year, they got me some more :-)  The gold flatbacks around the frame are from my stash, the small flowers in the top left corner are from a punch that also came from Malaysia.

I cut the sentiment with a die (from a company called M Crafts) I got on Ebay... it cuts BRILLIANTLY and was as cheap as chips, so I'm going back to see what others they have!  I cut it in burgundy and in gold and stuck them slightly off centre (yes, on purpose, lol) so that it looks like a shadow.

As always (well, most of the time, lol) I finished the inside of the card to coordinate with the front, I didn't have any more of the coral card I used to mat the image so I used another scrap from my "Orange" folder - it's nearly the same colour and has a nice fine glitter through it, adds a little something I feel.  I've followed a sketch this time around, from Stella Says Sketch, I didn't add the gold flatbacks to the frame on the inside, but they're on the one on the outside, so I think I've been more faithful to the sketch than normal.
That's it for today.  I'll be sharing my card over at Crafty Hazelnut's Patterned Paper Challenge, but as I'm on the DT I won't be going into the prize draw... just so you know, lol ... and finally I'd like to enter the following challenges: 

The Crazy Challenge Your Favourite Colour

Bunny Zoes Crafts Lovely Layers

The Paper Shelter Flowers Everywhere

OSAAT Stitching, Real or Faux

Aud Sentiments Anything Goes    + a sentiment

Create and Inspire, Simply Papercrafts, Crafting With Friends Challenge 22, Craft Your Passion, Through the Craftroom Door, Creative Fingers, Art by Miran, Li'l Patch of Crafty Friends, Little Miss Muffet, Creatalicious Challenges, and Paper Creator Crafts Anything Goes

I hope you get a chance to check out the rest of the team's work, and a chance to enter the challenge too; great prize on offer as always, and don't forget there's extra opportunities if you use one of Di's Digi images or a Candibean rubber stamp.
We had the saddest news yesterday, our good friend Roger has passed away - I can't really believe it.  You may remember me talking about him previously, he had a massive stroke at 58 and I used to go up to their home in the hills to help him when he was re-learning to read/write shop etc - he struggled and triumphed in so many ways over the next 7 or 8 years, winning a State award for his efforts from the Speech Therapists Association, only to get Melanoma 3 years ago... which in turn, and against the odds he beat early this year.
He died on Wednesday from a bowel blockage, a ghastly death.  I am so sad that this was his end, he deserved better.  He was more my friend than my husband's as I got close to him during my weekly sessions volunteering with him, he had the best attitude to his adversity... he truly humbled me.  The world is a poorer place without people like him in it.  His funeral is on Wednesday, his wife is just so worn down by it all she is struggling to even grieve, sad in itself.  Tomorrow we are going to scatter my husband's nephew Brad's ashes as it would have been his birthday this weekend - I really could do with something cheerful happening - luckily my nephew and his partner had a baby boy this morning "Lucian" was born at 5.06am weighing in at 3.54 Kg or 7lbs 13oz and measuring 52cm or 20.5" so meeting him will help I'm sure.
Until next time, Happy Crafting

A Pinch and a Punch...

Yup, here we are at the first of the month... AGAIN!  Time for a new challenge to start over at Crafty Hazelnut's Patterned Paper Challenge, where (as always) all you have to do to enter is make a project with some Patterned Paper on it, too easy!
I have a Christmas card to share, it's actually from my draft folder - and no, it's not the last... sigh.

I'm having a bit of a problem with my pictures looking "flat", I can't work out why but we'll just have to live with it for the time being as life is super busy and I don't have time to dedicate to sorting it!  It's lucky I'm here at all really; we were given a new modem by our ISP - nothing wrong with our old one, they're upgrading the network and old faithful wouldn't have been able to keep up, as it's their doing we get a free modem... but anyone who has ever had anything to do with computers KNOWS what I mean when I say that the "simple" and "easy" instructions, while not too bad were NOT simple or easy; or more to the point the "Troubleshooting" page had to come out and the connection's been a bit iffy - something that WASN'T a problem prior to said "upgrade", sigh
Anyway onto my card.  Simple little number (my Christmas cards generally are, lol) using the oh-so-sweet image Wrynn Angel from Tiddly Inks.  I coloured with Copics, with some Prismacolor details, and added Stickles to the halo.

The "joy" is either a Sizzix or Memory Box die, cut in green card then glittered up with Stickles.  The image panel has a gold foil mat cut using a Spellbinders Fleur de Lis Rectangle die.  The papers are from Kaisercraft, I added a smudging of gold ink around the edges of all panels to soften the overall effect.  
As always I finished the inside of the card with elements from the front, the sentiment (stamped in gold, not that it looks gold in the pic!) is one - actually two, the sentiment and the frame are two stamps - of my favourite Christmas sets from the sadly now defunct Tickled Pink Stamps.
That's it for today's card, it was really quite sweet in real life, I'll have to address these photography issues!  I'll be entering my card in the following challenges

Hiding in my Craft Room: Any Holiday

Cute Card Thursday: Holidays/Vacation

A Snowflakes Promise: Anything (Christmas) Goes

Crafty Hazelnut's Christmas Extra Challenge: Anything (Christmas) Goes

Jingle Belles: Banish the Blues… no blue

Holly Jolly Christmas Challenge: Traditional Colours

Bunny Zoes Crafts: Lovely Layers

Craft Your Passion, Through the Craftroom Door, Create and Inspire, Simply Papercrafts, Crafting With Friends Challenge 21, Creative Fingers, Art by Miran, Li'l Patch of Crafty Friends, Cute As A Button, Creatalicious Challenges, and Paper Creator Crafts: Anything Goes

I hope you get a chance to enter the challenge, it's such an easy theme and great prize... why wouldn't you? 

Until next time, Happy Crafting