Christmas Joy

'Joy'

Yes, I'm either a little late or way to early to wish you joy and happiness for Christmas, but nevertheless I will and you can take it now or leave it for later in the year!

My little catch cry for 2011 was 'fighting for joy' and so it's quite fitting that my final postcard for 2011 (for my postcard swap group) is called 'Joy'.  Early in January I wrote this.  Meeting Joy... I'm looking forward to getting home and reading what I hid behind her almost a year ago!

But for now, the joy in this day is having crafty time with most of the postcard swap group!  Shelley we wish you were here!

Technology - Holding It Still

'Holding It Still' Postcard

It's postcard swap time again and I'm pretty pleased that mine is completed well in time (for a change).  November's theme is technology. And my, how the technology for photography has developed over the years!  I got my first camera when I was about 11 or 12.  My parents bought it for me so I could take photos whilst on a school camp - I still remember the precious excitement of having my own camera.  I'm pretty sure I still have those first photos tucked away in a safe place and I know when I look at them again many good memories will come flooding back. 

Today, I totally love having a digital camera!  It's so nice to not have to worry about the expense of film and to just keep snapping away until you get a more than decent shot!  The only thing to worry about now is my computer crashing before I've backed up all of my photos, because it's pretty rare for me to print them.  Earlier this year I thought I'd lost all my photos on my computer... yes, I had a very big melt down, but thankfully my techno-wise friend came to my rescue and nothing was lost!  Hopefully I have learned my lesson to back them up!

The camera is a Kaisercraft rub on and pretty much else is from Dark Room Door (the photobooth photos and great range of photography themed stamps).  The film strip is pretty old... I have a LOT of it... one of my friends cleaned out her garage before she left the country and found tins of filmstrips from her earlier teaching days.  I was totally thrilled when Trish handed over two tins of it to me!!!

Published - Little Birds

'Little Birds' as seen in Cardmaking Stamping & Papercraft Vol 17 No 6

I really loved working with this gorgeous plate of stamps by Oxford Impressions...

along with some beautiful Kaisercraft papers.

TPDCC #92 - Sweetheart

'Sweetheart'

This ATC was inspired by The Play Date Cafe Challenge #92 working with the following colours:  coral, petal pink and antique gold.  What a gorgeous colour combination!

My starting point was this romantic collage image by Darkroom Door from their 'Love Letters' Collection.  All stamped images are also Darkroom Door - the 'Correspondence' set.  The heart is by Prima and once again I've used a stunning Kaisercraft 'sparklet'!

Garden Fairy - Grungy Monday 17

'The Garden Fairy'

Hmmm, I could do with a long, extended visit from the 'Garden Fairy' at present!  Gardening is not my passion and it's a little obvious!  I'm so happy be able to participate in Grungy Monday 17, which this time uses Tim Holtz' technique 'Get Ready to Rock!'  I'm especially happy because it caused me to rip the seal off  and open my jar of Distress Rock Candy Crackle Paint, which had yet to see the light of day.  In fact, I was pleasantly surprised to even find it in my stash!  And now I'm wondering how I ever lived without it?!

I used a lovely Kaisercraft paper for the base of the tag, did a bit of layering with TH Papillon stamps, scattered a few sequins into the mix (affixing them with Stickles Rock Candy), stuck on strips of tissue tape and then covered it all with Rock Candy.  I love the vintage looking German scrap fairy and highlighted sections of the image with Distress Stickles Rock Candy.   The final touch was a gorgous Kaisercraft 'Sparklet! 

Create

Check out this creative gal. She's pretty in pink and ready to set to work on some creative project. I love this image from Stampotique, so she had to feature in my next 'Anything Goes' piece for THE STAMPING QUEEN!


I've added some different Kaisercraft rub ons to her skirt and top along with some Kaisercraft rhinestone bling!


Rub ons work really well on buttons too!


Word is by Collections with a spritz of Vintge Pink glimmer mist for good measure!

TSQ Products: Stampotique Creative Girl, Collections word, Kaiser Craft rub ons and rhinestone, Vintage Pink Glimmer Mist

Adventure

Continuing with the theme of journeys and adventures, I've made a luggage tag for my soon to be travelling friend using more of my lovely stash from The Stamping Queen.

I've used a different Alice image (Tuscan Rose) as the focal point. The turquoise frame is a section from 'Trees On Film' (Paperbag Studios). Once again I layered assorted papers for the background and added a layer of Garden Fairy Glimmer Mist. The stamped image, frame and rub-ons (Kaiser) were then added to the tag when the background was dry.


Touches of rhinestone bling!


The word (Collections) was once again sprayed with Garden Fairy Glimmer Mist and edged in turquoise ink. I recommend adding a few layers of Modge Podge to the piece to help strengthen and protect it as it journeys around the world!

'Stella'

Check out 'Stella'! She looks like she's all set to grace the red carpet for a Hollywood awards night. Don't you think she looks great in her hot pink number? I'm really enjoying this months challenge from THE STAMPING QUEEN and having a lot of fun creating pieces using the Robot Montage by Dark Room Door. I put some hot pink metalic paper through the Cuttlebug and lightly sanded some parts of it back to reveal a silvery glimmer. I'm loving the texture of the 'spots & dots' embossing folder! The word 'awesome' has had a coat of vintage pink glimmer mist and the punched stars have added spark with silver rhinestones. The alphabet collage and hole punched stamps were great for stamping some simple backgrounds/borders.


The Stamping Queen products: Robot Montage by Dark Room Door, Alphabet Collage stamp by Crafty Individuals, Hole Punched by Paperbag Studios, Vintage Pink Glimmer Mist and Silver Rhinestones by Kaiser


My Stash: Pink metalic paper, silver shim, cream card, Cuttlebug and 'Spots & Dots' embossing folder, star punch, fabric and sandpaper