Just a quick post...

...before bedtime. I have had a very productive day today, playing with image transfers and alcohol inks. I have started to decorate some dominoes, found a cool site with free collage images, and made an ATC background. All of this will be on here tomorrow, but tonight I am so tired! Nighty night!

New header.

As you can see, I have finally got around to making a few little changes on here, just little tweaks to make it a bit nicer. This is partly thanks to Godelieve, as she has a blog devoted to helping us novices with improving on the original template.
I've been planning this header for ages, I have just been so busy with other projects that I kept putting off making it. I wanted to use all of my favourite stamps and techniques, to reflect the general content here. So, stamp-wise, you will see my Cherry Pie and Aud Design swirls, Hero Arts script, PSX alphabet, Cherry Pie face and a butterfly stamp (Rubbadubadoo). The background was made using the craft mat/water technique and Distress Ink in Dusty Concord plus Nick Bantock Dye Ink in Damson Plum. All of the black stamping was done using Versafine, and the golds were either Perfect Pearls on Versamark or Gold heat embossing on acetate. The chipboard letters are from Making Memories and were coloured with Brilliance Inks, the gold swirl is 7Gypsies, and the flower is Prima.
Oh, and if anyone is interested, the name of this blog is from an ATC I did for one of Isa's challenges, which said "I like it...but is it Art?" It refers to the interesting question for stampers, that since we are using someone else's images, is it art? Or maybe it should be "Whose art is it anyway?"

Think Monday, Think ATC- Holiday

I finally managed to finish my ATC for this week's Think Monday, Think ATC challenge. Boy, did I struggle with this one! I hope it's just because of this cold I have, but I really wasn't inspired, and this isn't my best work. However, I have decided to use it, even though I don't like it, as I am not ashamed to show I have off days! The important thing is to recognise when something isn't quite right. It would be far worse if I thought this was amazing!
Anyway, the faux postcard in the background was made with my Hero Arts script stamp, a Rubbadubadoo butterfly stamp, and Distress Ink in Vintage photo. Then there is a layer of torn Mulberry paper, then a photo of a French beach printed onto a transparency. Finally, a swirl stamp from Aud Design was stamped in black Stazon and highlighted with white pen, and I wrote "Wish you were here" to finish. Hmmm, not sure where I was going with this!

Rocking Girl Blogger!

I've seen these doing the rounds, and I'm really pleased today to be nominated for mine by Cora! She always has such great work on her blog, especially her winged dolls she creates for her daughter. I haven't really tried collage yet, and I have the greatest respect for those who do it so well.
The next step with this is to nominate 5 other people who you think deserve the Rockin' Girl Blogger badge. This is pretty hard as so many people have been nominated already, and so many deserve to be nominated. Well, here goes, apologies to anyone who has been nominated already!
Kym- Stamp Galaxy
Julie- The Land of Lost Luggage
Sandy- It's a Colourful World
Isa- Scrap and Stamp
Jacqueline- Jacqueline's Craft Nest
These are some of the blogs I visit regularly for inspiration, and I think their artwork rocks! See for yourself, go on, just click!

Slow down of crafting, just for a little while.

I haven't done a lot in the way of creating for the last couple of days. The baby and I are both streaming with a cold (luckily I don't make a huge fuss when a tissue approaches my nose!), and we have had a bit of a sleep revelation: Dan sleeps so much better when he goes to bed after 9pm! When he is put down at 7pm, he goes to sleep immediately, but then wakes between every three quarters of an hour to two hours. Not fun! When he goes to bed at 9pm, he makes a fuss, sleeps until 11pm, then until 2.30pm, then until 7am. Since I usually go to bed around midnight, that means I only get woken once. Wow!
The relevance to the crafting side of things is that Paul and I are going through a huge re-think of how we structure our evening. We always eat late, so that isn't a problem, but when do I craft? If Dan is around I am usually in the room with him. Do I let Paul look after him for an hour while I have 'me' time, or do I bring some things into the living room to do? Now it's the weekend we will have some time to plan, and I can do some daytime craft while Paul plays with Dan. So by Monday, it will be sorted!
I have made a decision about my 'holiday' ATC, it partly involves the computer so I can start this morning. I hope to have it finished by this evening. Isn't it amazing how much fuss I can make over one 2 1/2" x 3 1/2" card!

Box for the Jacob's ladder.

This isn't a new project, I'm afraid, just the finishing touch to the last project. I thought it would be nice to make a matching box to store the Jacob's ladder in. This is simply made from two pieces of A4 card, scored, stamped and folded, using my box-making scoring board. I doubled over the side pieces for neatness for the first time, and I wish I had done this before as the fit and finish of the box is greatly improved.
On Sunday I am going to make a children's version of this as a toy for Dan. My Dad said he would cut some wood pieces, and I just have to find the instructions for the ribbon layout. I still need to do my TMTA ATC for this week, the theme is 'holiday' and I'm wracking my brains for an idea!

UK Stamper's Jacob's Ladder swap.

Good old blogger! I knew it would put these photos on one above the other so I didn't need to mess around in Paint Shop Pro, stitching them together! This is my finished Jacob's Ladder for the UK Stampers swap. For those of you who don't know what a Jacobs Ladder is, it is a child's toy made of squares held together with ribbon. When you turn over the top square, all the other squares flop downwards in turn. And, thanks to Craft TV Weekly, this one does work! I will make a little matching box to store it in, but I wanted to show the photos now, as this is also going to be my entry for Wednesday Stamper, for this weeks open theme.
The stamping on the front is all done in various colours of Brilliance Ink, using stamps from Paperartsy, Crafty Individuals, Rubadubadoo, Anita's, Limited Edition, and PSX. The back is heat embossed in white and the stamps are Judikins (flower) and Rubadubadoo (butterfly). And just in case you can't read the phrase, it says "Live life free like a butterfly".
PS. The patterned paper for the base is from Fancy Pants, but the bit with the name is stuck down!

I will show some photos later, promise!

I have taken some lovely photos this morning of the Jacob's Ladder project I have now finished, but I don't know where the morning has gone! I need to go out now to do baby things, but on my return I will blog, promise!
Bye for Now!

My Picture!

It's not because I'm shy that I have not previously added a photo of myself to the sidebar, it's just because I am always behind the camera rather than in front of it. Well, today I had scrubbed up OK, and the light was good, so I thought I would ask Paul to take a couple of pictures of Dan and I. They turned out OK, as we were in fits of laughter throughout, and there was even one which I thought was OK for this blog. Notice the background co-ordinates with the colour scheme?

UK Stamper's 'Artistic License' ATC swap part two

Here are the other two ATCs for the Uk Stampers swap. Instructions for them are on a post from a couple of days ago. The only difference with these is that the top one has gold Krylon pen on the reverse of the acetate.
I had thought I was so up to date this month, then looked at the date! These are due for the 26th, and the Jacob's Ladder swap is for the end of this month! I had better get stamping!

Normal service will be resumed in the morning...

I received my copy of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows at 9am this morning, and I have just now finished it! (I did manage not to neglect the baby, but I was grateful for his unusual 3 hour nap this afternoon!) I am grateful to my Dear Husband for his patience, as he has had no real adult conversation at all today, and he let me read this evening from when Dan went to sleep until the book was finished.
I won't spoil it for those who had more to do today than read the book, but I will say that it is worth waiting for, and yes, everything does get explained at the end...
I have photos of the other two 'Art' ATCs to show in the morning, and I'm working on a Jacob's Ladder for a swap. Back to reality, in other words!

Think Monday, Think ATC- Asia

I've been pondering this theme since Monday, trying to decide how to use my oriental stamps, as I don't have a lot to choose from. It's strange, as I love Japanese culture and I have some nice items around the house. Maybe that's why I don't have many stamps of that theme, I would want them to be beautiful and not at all cartoonish. I have my eye on some from Stonehouse Stamps, but have yet to take the plunge and order them.
The penny finally dropped that Asia also incorporates India, and suddenly I was inspired! The peacock is India's national bird, and I have used some text from a Hindu folk tale. And I love pink!
I stamped the main images (both from Tanda Stamps) in Versamark on cream card, and used matt clear embossing powder before creating my background with H2os and other metallic watercolors. Then I masked off the image and stamped the background with the feathers image (Rubbadubadoo) using Cats Eye Fluid Chalk in Dark Peony. The text was tinted with Distress Inks in Tattered Rose and Antique Linen, then the Paisley (Tanda Stamps) stamped and embossed in gold.
I feel the need to find some detail embossing powder in various colours, as the paisleys look a bit 'rough', but good old Google will surely help me!

UK Stamper's 'Artistic License' ATC swap

I'm late posting today, as Wednesday is busy day! I've been out and about, doing baby things, since 10am, and only now, at 9pm, am sitting down with time to myself. It's still better than work, though, and at least it motivates me to make better use of my free time. So it's stamping time in a minute, while my Husband cooks dinner, yum yum!
This is the first of three ATCs for the UK Stampers July swap. It has been jinxed at every stage, but here it is, finished! I'm going to carefully put it away in a minute, just in case something else happens! I wrote about the Sakura pens problem, next I couldn't get the word 'Art' to stamp (on the rough side of the acetate), so had to cut out the original image and glue it onto a second piece of acetate, then the Perfect Pearls I used in the background decided to stick to the rough side of the acetate too! At least the photo isn't too bad, although the background stamping is more vivid in real life.
All of the stamps are by Cherry Pie, I stamped in Black Stazon then coloured with Sakura Souffle and Stardust pens, and the background was stamped in Versamark then dusted with Perfect Pearls. The acetate was adhered with glue dots hidden under the gems and the figure.
I have two more still to finish, then I need to think about some other projects. I wonder what the new theme is for Wednesday Stamper?
PS Thanks to Penny for the idea of using the Souffle pen behind acetate for the face. I have used the Stardust and Glaze on acetate before, but hadn't thought of trying the Souffle as it is Opaque.

Harry Potter Rocks!

I'm sorry, but there are no photos today, as I went to see the latest Harry Potter film. It was a 'Newbies' showing, so I could take Dan along, and luckily Paul came too and helped look after Dan. What a great movie! This was the book I liked the least, but I still wanted to see the movie for the sake of continuance, and I'm so glad I did! It has put me in the right mood for the book, which I have on pre-order from Amazon. The plan is to have a mad stamping rush for the next few days so that I can post some pictures even when I've spent my precious evening time reading!
I started my 'Artistic License' ATCs last night, but ran into technical difficulties. I stamped onto acetate, the printable kind I usually use, then tried to colour in the reverse of the image with Sakura gel pens. I did one the wrong way round, stamping on the rough side and colouring in the smooth, and that one was fine. Unfortunately, the other two are not fine, as the coloured areas cracked as they dried, a bit like the effect I had using Perfect Pearls and Glossy Accents on a piece of jewelry I made a while ago. I think the gum they use to make the surface of the acetate suitable to take the printer ink caused the reaction, so I have to start over tonight. I should be able to finish them, I hope, and I will show the photos tomorrow.

Isa's weekly challenge- 'I'

Isa's challenge this week, as well as the usual alphabet theme, is to use something transparent and to use stitching. This is my entry, which I am quite pleased with, although I don't usually do sparkly. Maybe I should also enter this for UK Stampers' 'Cute v. arty' challenge, as this is a bit outside my usual style. Maybe I'm not quite comfortable with it because I only used three stamps!
The inside of the card is a wash of watercolour paints, some sparkly, over stamped and embossed in white with my well-used Stampendous stamp. The outside of the card was stamped at the top using A Stamp in the Hand's 'Field of Sky', one of those useful stamps, then embossed with holographic sparkle powder and over washed with sparkly watercolours.
It all happens on the acetate wrap on the outside. I stamped and embossed the Anita's dragonfly in white, then cut the same shape out of Art Institute's Fantasy Film in Aurora and glued it behind with Glossy accents. Then I did a separate dragonfly, this time embossing in holographic sparkle then cutting out the glued layers and mounting it over the first dragonfly, again with glossy accents. I pricked then stitched the word 'Iridescent' with sparkly floss and glued on the flower sequins with Sakura quickie glue. To attach the wrap to the card I ran a line of the quickie glue down the spine of the card, then weighted the edge to make sure it dried in position.
I think I need to start using more sketches for my cards, as this one uses the same basic layout as two others I have done this year! Funny how you are always drawn to a layout you are comfortable with! Oh well, off to 2Peas to look at sketches!

A little taster...

...of my card for Isa's weekly challenge. I got a little stamping done last night, but more importantly, whilst I was getting the baby to sleep, I figured out what I wanted to do for Isa's 'I' challenge this week, and for the 'Artistic license' ATCs. Both ideas involve acetate, which I love working with, and this photo shows the start of the 'I' card, looking through the acetate at the background. But that's all I'm going to say for now about the stamping, as I will post all of the details when I finish the card!
What I will say is that I actually bothered to make use of the super-macro setting on my camera, and I am really pleased with the resulting photo. For once, the shimmer and shine show as well as they do in real life. Julie recently showed some photos of fireworks on her blog, and used the manual settings on her camera. The photos were amazing, and inspired me to get out the handbook for my camera. It's 144 pages long, all in English! I will start to wade through it, as the photos I take don't always do justice to the subjects, and I can already see the difference in this morning's photos. (I didn't want to bore by putting on the one I took on auto, trust me, this one is tons better!) So hopefully there will be some photos to look at in the coming weeks!
PS I needed a dragonfly for this card, and this is the stamp I have, but in my mind, I did it with the gorgeous Technique Tuesday stamp I didn't buy at Newbury, mmm, lovely!

Think Monday, Think ATC- Faces.

I decided last night that, despite the presence downstairs of the wakeful baby, I would leave him under the supervision of his Daddy, and go into the dining room to stamp. I was getting withdrawal symptoms! I wanted to make something small, and so decided to go for it, and make something for the new challenge site, Think Monday, Think ATC. This week's challenge is faces, and so I have used my gorgeous new Limited Edition stamps, plus some old favourites.
I stamped the frame first, in Versafine, and masked it off before stamping the Hero Arts script. Then I did a reverse mask and stamped the Cherry Pie face. I watercoloured everything using Distress Inks in Shabby Shutters, Scattered Straw, Tattered Rose, and Weathered wood. I stamped on the Prima flowers (with the new stamps), and attached them with brads from my stash.
For me, that's pretty simple, and I got it finished just as Dan started to be ready for sleep!

Ssh, don't wake the baby!

Still no stamping, I'm afraid, but since Dan has remembered how to sleep again, I don't mind! I caught up on my housework yesterday evening, and had an early night, and as I type he is having his morning nap (on my lap, so I'm typing one-handed), the first for two weeks.
I thought I would just take the opportunity to list the things I have planned for this month, and the swaps I am involved in, so I can prioritise!
UK Stampers 3x3 ATC swap- 'Artistic license'. Due 26th July.
UK Stampers 'Jacob's Ladder' swap- Due end of July.
UK Stampers 'cute v. arty' challenge- ongoing.
I have also set myself a challenge of altering a Christmas candle which was given to me as a leaving gift from work last year, and I hate, plus Carrie very kindly sent me some Dominoes to play with.
It's actually a small list, not intimidating at all! This means I can think about joining in with the new "Think Monday, Think ATC" challenges that have started. (I had better catch up with Isa's challenges first!)
And now Dan is awake, and it's time to go out and do baby activities, but I can start thinking about stamping again!

No sleep, no stamping!

I thought I would just write a quick note to explain my lack of entry for Isa's challenge this morning: Dear Miss, I'm sorry that Hazel did not do her challenge card last night, but her little baby did not want to go to sleep until midnight, thus taking up all of Hazel's evening. He then slept through the night, but has yet to have a morning nap. When he sleeps, Hazel will have to catch up with her housework, but then she may have time to do her card this evening.
Sorry, Isa!

Wednesday Stamper- Buttons

As seems to be the case recently, it's Tuesday, and I'm only just posting the pictures of my entry for last week's Wednesday Stamper challenge. I actually decided what I wanted to do fairly quickly, but then I had to go into town to buy the buttons, then sew them on, and I had to make the pressie for my Husband, so I have a good excuse for my lateness this time!
The idea behind this is that it would be interesting to stamp onto a surface which has texture. The odd thing is that the mind fills in the gaps between the buttons, so it looks like a sharp image. If you click on this to make it bigger, you will see that there is no paint on the fabric. I ended up sewing on about 70 buttons here, and the overall size of the piece is 12cm square. It will eventually have a wire and bead hanger, but I have lost my heavy gauge wire!
The heart stamp is a free foam stamp I have had for years, stamped with pink acrylic paint (I thought it would look more splodgy than this), the rose border is from Tanda Stamps and is stamped in Versafine. The fabric was dyed using Distress Ink in Weathered Wood. The little heart was coloured using the pink paint.
Thanks for the challenge, Wednesday Stamper, but I hope that the next one is not haberdashery related!

Going to Newbury Stamp show with limited funds.

I didn't do badly at Newbury yesterday, with my savings from my penny jar! It was the Art Stamps show at Newbury Racecourse, and my friend and I go every year. We both have limited funds, and an addiction to patterned paper, so it's a challenge to shop sensibly as this is usually a great show!
We were not disappointed this time, as you can see from the photo. I got some essentials that I needed, like envelopes for A5 cards and a Herma adhesive refill, then everything else was something I had wanted for a while, or know I use a lot. You can see a Nick Bantock ink and another Distress Ink, plus the Versamagic chalk ink in White, on the left of the photo; finally my work will use some different colours! Brads, charms and ribbon I use a lot, and the colours co-ordinate with the inks. And plain chipboard sheets I had to have for the Bind-it-all!
The range of stamps available at the show was excellent. I was looking for unmounted or clear only, and had the money been available I could have spent and spent! A lot of my online favourites were there, like Paperartsy and Crafty Individuals, but I hadn't seen the set I bought by Art Warehouse before. Of course, seeing a true bargain throws the rules out of the window, so I had to have the half price Anna Griffin Stamp, even though it is on wood. I had spent all of my cash by the time I saw the Technique Tuesday stamps on the ground floor, and Vicky made me put away my credit card. Thanks, Vicky! My bank balance appreciates it!
The next big show that we go to is Alexandra Palace, at the end of September, so I am going to have to raise some more funds so that I can get some of the stamps I didn't buy at Newbury. And I can really think about how I would use them; I don't want to have a stamp collection like my paper collection, that I just look at and never use! (Please note, I bought no pp at all!)
I am still sewing buttons on today, but am nearly done. Photos tomorrow!

My first project with the Bind-it-all.

Here is some artwork, at last! This project took three evenings, but there was a lot of work in it! I was inspired to make this for my Husband by the Making Memories 'Poolside' chipboard alphabet which forms the 4 solid pages of this book. There are also 4 clear plastic pages, thanks to two old Sizzix embossing folders which I didn't need for their original purpose. These have the popped-out letters attached to them. It has made a really chunky book; I had to use the 1" binding wires.
First I made two co-ordinating papers to cover the chipboard with. I used the Nick Bantock dye inks as my starting point, and used the usual craft-mat/water spritzer technique I have used on previous backgrounds. One used the Prussian Blue and Cerulean Azure, the other also used the Chartreuse Green. I stamped over these with various oriental stamps from Blade Rubber and Paperartsy, plus my favourite Cherry Pie swirls. I added accents with Versamark and Perfect Pearls.
The front of the chipboard pages were inked with the Prussian blue ink and covered with the green paper, then the letters cut out with a craft knife. I sanded the edges then used gold Krylon pen to finish them off. I did the same in reverse with the popped out letters, using the turquoise paper. The reverse of these was inked with the two blue inks, stamped with Versamark and the swirls stamp, then Perfect Pearls added.
Then I punched the pages! This was easy, although I had to line the pages up carefully because I only wanted to use five holes instead of six. The machine had no problems going through the chipboard or plastic. I laid the plastic pages over the chipboard pages and glued on the letters with glossy accents, with the right side to the plastic.
The covers were easy, just two pieces of mountboard cut to size, then covered with the turquoise paper. On the front cover I also attached the cut out green paper letters from the inside pages, then added ribbon and a shrink plastic dragon embellishment and a Chinese jade charm. I used navy cardstock on the reverse after adding the ribbon, to cover the raw edges. I then punched the covers, finding it a little difficult to get through the extra two layers of ribbon, but achievable with a bit of extra pressure.
The binding was the easies part, just set the machine and pull the handle. I only have white wires at the moment, but I will be adding to my collection. Oh and one last thing before I assembled the book: I sprayed everything with Matt artists varnish, as my fingers were covered in blue ink from handling the pages. Not good for a present!
I'm very lucky that my Husband appreciates these creations, this book has no purpose other than to look pretty- oh, and keep me occupied for three evenings!

Happy Weekend, everyone!

I didn't post yesterday, as my Husband had the day off and we had a family day. As the weather was not brilliant, we just 'mooched' around the shops, had a nice lunch, then 'mooched' some more. The baby had two good naps, we had a chance to chat, it was a great day! Today is going to be similar, except 'sea-front' instead of shops, lovely.
I am in the middle of two long-winded projects at the moment. One involves my lovely Bind-it-all, and is a present for my Husband. The other involves sewing one hundred shirt buttons onto some cloth! I do have these mad ideas sometimes! Neither project is ready for photos yet, but they're coming!

Finally I can show the photos!

Kym has now received this so I can stop teasing and show the finished book! This is my contribution to UK Stampers Velvet-ize swap. It's a bit hard to work out how this book works, until you follow the instructions and make it. It is a 6" square book when closed, but it has two front covers which sit one on top of the other, so that when they are open the book is 18" wide. The inside pages also fold on top of each other, and have fold out flaps, whew, it does sound complicated! Luckily the instructions from Craft TV Weekly are excellent, so it was pretty easy to put together.
The details of how I made the background paper are on a previous post here, and the instructions for the book are here at Craft TV Weekly (you will need to join to download the PDF, but it's free). To embellish, I firstly used a sponge and Distress Ink in Dusty Concord to add colour around the edges of the covers, inside and outside. I made tags and a pocket for them inside the covers, and printed off the quotation on vellum, which is inside the chipboard frame. The flowers are also sponged with Dusty Concord Distress Ink. The paper on the back of the inside pages is from K and Co, sponged again. There are several slide mounts, coloured and stamped to match, then the rest of the embellishments are from Dovecraft (chipboard), Prima (flowers) and Making memories (all of the metal items). All of the ribbon is from my stash.The spaces are for Kym to add photos or vintage images, whatever she likes really!
I loved making this book, although it was a little nerve-wracking to make for someone else, especially someone whose work I really like! I am now planning to make one for my Husband as a delayed birthday present, and fill it with photos of him with the baby. I will show it when it's done!

My new toy!

At last it's here! I ordered this about 3 weeks ago, but the place I ordered it from had to wait for the manufacturer to get more stock, so I've been watching every delivery van that drives into my road for the last week, as I knew it was due. For those who don't know, this is Zutter's Bind-it-all, a home binding machine which can punch holes in all sorts of materials, then will bind with metal o-wires. All of those people who know me well know I love mini-books and notebooks, so now I can make my own!
Godelieve put a great photo of her Bind-it-all, plus beautiful finished project, on her blog, so I have not bothered to put a proper photo of the machine on. Instead you can see some of the exciting things I have punched holes in. From the front, chipboard, paper, old credit-type card, and a CD! If you click on the image it will enlarge, and then you can see the quality of the holes is excellent, even on the CD! Sadly, I didn't finish, or even start properly, any projects as for the last three days it has taken two hours plus to persuade the baby to go to sleep (he has a cold), which is basically my stamping time. Hopefully things will go back to normal soon, as I'm getting withdrawal symptoms!
PS For anyone reading this who has a Bind-it-all already, a little question. Mine came with a little clip and a label which has written on it 'Do not remove'. It wasn't attached to anything! It's driving me a bit nuts, trying to work out where it should be attached!

Wednesday Stamper- Hats

I could have managed to be a little later for this weeks Wednesday Stamper, but not much! I seem to be pretty much caught up now, so hopefully will be more on time for everything. Of course, give me enough nights without sleep and that'll change again!
I'm into making ATCs at the moment. I usually have someone in mind for a card, and arty ones don't go down well with my family! But ATCs are just a little artistic indulgence, as they aren't 'for' anything. Hence this one, which I have called 'Hats off to the Music Man'. I am still inspired by these Paperartsy stamps; this is my third ATC using them. When I'm done I will label them as a series, my first!
Stamps by Paperartsy, Tanda Stamps and PSX, inks used are Distress Inks in Scattered Straw and Vintage Photo, plus Versacolour pigment inks in a mix of blues. The 'the' is Sakura Stardust pen. Thanks for looking!

Another teaser.

I finally completed this mini-book last night, to my great satisfaction. The weather was so awful yesterday, I knew I wouldn't get to the Post Office to post this to Kym, so rather than rush the finishing off in the morning, I waited until the baby was asleep and did it then. But I still don't want to put the photos on until Kym has received it! I really enjoyed the project, though, and I have promised my Husband that I will make a Danny themed book for him for his birthday. It's great that I have a man who encourages me in my artwork, and would rather have a handmade book than a computer game!
I will post all of the details about the completed project with the photos. Now for Wednesday Stamper (Better late than never!).

Isa's weekly challenge- 'G'

Hurray! The first of my weekly challenge entries is done. This ATC is for Isa's weekly challenge. I was puzzling over interesting words beginning with the letter 'G', and I got hit by inspiration! This doesn't happen all of the time to me, so I did rush into my craft area and get going as soon as I could. Then I had to rush back to my computer to create the background text, which is from the various spam emails I get trying to sell me pills I definitely don't need! I am fascinated with the computer generated text that these emails contain, they make no real sense but have a gothic, whimsical feel. (If you haven't received this kind of email, lucky you.) I also have this great Cherry Pie face image, which also has a gothic feel, so there we are!
All of the images are stamped in black Stazon onto white card. Stamps are by Cherry Pie, Tanda Stamps and PSX, and I coloured the eyes with blue felt pen, washed over with a metallic watercolour paint. The black line at the right hand edge is narrow black velvet ribbon. Isa's extra options this week were to follow a sketch for the layout and use alphabet stamps, both of which I have done!
I ended up with four ATC sized backgrounds, so may do another three ATCs in this vein. I think 'Vampire's kiss' may have to be one of them, very traditional!