Crafting @ Eighty

Yesterday I thought I would have another try at creating a tangle tile of my own design.   My creative mojo has been hiding from me for a few days & I was getting frustrated.  😖  Here is what I managed to create;- I had a vision in my head & the swirly part is right. The general idea is what I wanted but I think I drew the flowers too small, needed to fill the space more. Never mind I am now once more somewhat relaxed & think my next piece will be much better.  Possibly have to use one of Sandra Rushton's videos for inspiration, or use stamps as the basis.  We will see - I think my brain is ticking over already!  😏 Thank you for stopping by do call again.

The stamps that AALL&Create produce are mostly outside my particular interest, but they are very clever.  I do have a couple & today I decided it was time I started using them. For my first attempt I used the Iris. I started by putting 2 different colours of Distress Inks on my mat & spritzing them with water & finally dipping the card in the resulting ink.  I haven't done this technique for ages & was worried it would just be a mess, but no, it looks quite good.  Next I stamped the image in archival black ink & coloured in with felt pens.  After adding the word "Iris" I used a black fine-liner pen to add some little triple dot groups randomly around the card.  When placing it over the white base card it looked a little strange so I ran a fine pen around the 3 edges to create a faux layer before adhering it to the card. I am rather pleased with the outcome & think I will try it again & be a little more adventurous in what I do wit...

Hello again - another challenge for me today.  This time from Sunday Stamps  the challenge is a sketch titled "Triple the Fun". This is the sketch; and here is my card The background layer has a spray of leaves embossed in clear ink & embossing powder, under a very light layer of pink Distress Ink. The sprays do not show up all that much although one can just be made out in the lower right corner, & another under the greeting. The 3 flowers are from dies by John Next Door. Why not visit the Sunday Stamps Blog & have a look at the other entries & other challenges they have had.   Thank you for stopping by & please leave a comment so that I know you have been here.  Remember to click on the "publish" word in order for your comment to be accepted.

Yes! I have been poking around in the bit box again.   Fairly near the top was some rather pretty Christmas papers, so I thought I would join the "Christmas in July" party.  The idea of the card shape came from another video I had watched by Paul Ford where he used an acetate front. Here is my card;   The papers were from another freebie set off a magazine that I had bits left over from.  There wasn't actually a topper left but one of the design sheets had these larger lovely blue poinsettia style flowers. To create the topper I die cut the paper into an oval shape & layered onto black card similarly die cut. This is the back of the card awaiting a verse or sentiment & a smaller version of the topper in the corner. The design didn't take long to put together & is rather pretty - I think I might make some more like this, especially as there seems to be quite a bit of Christmas papers in that box. 😃

 Hello folks! Well I have had a better day today & feel happier with my work. I decided to try another tangle topper this time with my own ideas. I wondered if things would flow better if it was coming from my head & not copying.  I don't think so. My problem at the moment is a shaky hand so it is difficult to get nice smooth lines.  But perseverance pays off & I enjoyed being in my own little bubble whilst I created it. I started by stamping a flower in black archive ink then adding the tangles around it. So! the trick is to stay calm, don't get frustrated & cross when it doesn't go quite right, & work a little more slowly. Consequently I feel much more relaxed today. I hope your weekend is going well. Thank you for stopping by I hope to "see" you again.

 Hello! My creativity seemed to dessert me some what in the last day or two, plus anything I tried doing seem to fall apart.  I guess we all have days like this from time to time but I get so frustrated & downhearted. I am trying to take part in another card challenge & even though it involves a sketch with some of the thinking done for me, my brain just won't switch on. Also I have just spent some time watching a Sanntangle video for a particular tile in order to draw it - took me 3 goes & I am still not happy with it.  They say that a poor workman blames their tools but my hands are one of my tools & they have been a bit twitchy.  Ah well! Such is life.  I have put everything away & will give it a fresh go again tomorrow. Need my brain to work though as I have the challenge of making a card for our grandsons 4th birthday later in July. The challenge?  He is into helicopters & aeroplanes - so some research to do. I hope you all have...

Hi everyone how are you all doing?  Still staying safe I hope. A long time ago when I had a blog before, I used to join in with the various challenge blogs that were around.  I thought it would be nice to do that again. So today I am going to show you the card I have made for Perfectly CAS blog where the current challenge, which ends on 12 July, is titled "One Corner".   CAS stands for Clean and Simple & for this blog the definition is "rule of thirds" - you will see clearer when you see the card I have made.  Clicking on the blog name will take you to their page where you will be able to see about their challenges & also all the cards that have been entered. Here is my card; In the corner I have inked through a stencil in 2 colours to give the flowers a background. The flowers I stamped with black archival ink & then coloured with felt pens.  The little sentiment was just the right size to fit in the corner. Do pop over to Perfectly CAS & ...