Floral Fun

 Morning all.  We have a lovely new challenge for you this morning over at Make My Monday. Cindy has chosen 'floral birthday' for the theme.  Easy peasy.  Everyone has some floral stamps, papers, embellishments etc etc.  Of course, just because I have loads of possible images doesn't mean I didn't go shopping for a new one.  I've been hanging my nose over some Alex Syberia Digital Stamps on Etsy.  This gave me the perfect excuse.  Thanks Cindy.  I chose a lovely Peony and printed it out several times. I did challenge myself a little bit by choosing to watercolour it.  The first challenge was to find my watercolour paper to print it on!  I'm never very happy with my watercolouring.  It doesn't seen to be a medium I can get the hang of.  I was pretty pleased when these didn't turn out badly.

I stenciled a masked off circle in grey ink and used a die cut sentiment that I had hanging around.  I did use some sparkle pen for the center of the flowers.  I blobbed a bit but it doesn't look bad.  I was so pleased I made another and stuck gems in the flower centers instead.  I like them both, which is a bonus.

Please pop over and join in the fun.  Dig out all those floral bits you've got hanging about.  It's an excuse to use them up, or you could use the excuse to get more.  Blame me.  I've got broad shoulders.

Thanks for reading.

Love Dawn x

Dinosaur Dreams

 Morning all.  We are looking for 'Dragons or Dinosaurs' for the letter D on the Alphabet Challenge.  I wasn't sure what I wanted to do for this one.  I had dragon stamps but nothing for dinosaurs.  I decided to go looking and hit the jackpot on Etsy.  I found a new to me company called RAM Digital Stamps.  RAM stands for Rachelle Ann Miller.  I found her 'Kids Dinosaur' stamp and totally fell in love with it. I still wasn't sure what I was going to do with it but I was definitely using it.  It was such a whimsical and dreamy scene.  I wanted to be a kid again.

The sentiment was from a recent magazine freebie set.  I thought it was perfect for the card.  I wonder what adventures they will have together.  The image is surely only the beginning of this story.  Don't you look at it and think the same.  I will definitely be getting more of Rachelle's magical images.

Please join in the fun and let us see your dragons and dinosaurs.

Thanks for reading.

Love Dawn x

Wingy Things

 Morning all.  I hope you are ready for a new girly challenge over at Cardz4galz.  We want to see 'things with wings' this time around.  I had a fabulous idea for a stenciled butterfly for this challenge.  I have several stencils and I'd dug out my texture paste and some shimmery embossing powders to go on the top.  I carefully spread the paste. I covered it with embossing powder.  I heated it up (it gives the paste a lovely puffy texture - try it).  Then I showed it to my other half.  He confirmed that it wasn't 'up to my usual standard' - bless his diplomatic cotton socks - so it's languishing in the bin.  I was fed up by that time so I just coloured some birds from an old MFT set and stuck them to a card base I had already put together in my 'needs finishing' stash.

Considering I just threw the birds at the card I'm quite pleased with the result.  I've put the butterfly stencils back in the folder.  It will be a while before they see the light of day again.

I obviously need inspiring so I'm hoping you will join the fun.

Thanks for reading.

Love Dawn x

Beautiful Backgrounds

 Morning all.  It's time for a new challenge over at Cardz4guyz this morning. Cindy chose the theme of 'create your own background' for this fortnight. I wasn't entirely sure what to do for this one so I turned to my stamps first.  Once I had an image in mind I was sure the background would pop into my head.  And that's exactly what happened. I chose this cute set from Tracey Hey and the rest was easy peasy.  

Once I had the zebra in my mind I stenciled the background using a cheap stencil from the Range.  I have a set of animal print stencils and this is one of them.  As I intended to make my zebra colourful it made sense to used coloured inks.  I am so pleased with how it turned out.  

Please pop over and join in the fun.  I don't very often create my own backgrounds so I would love to see your ideas.

Thanks for reading.

Love Dawn x

Be a good sport

 Morning all.  It's my turn to pick the subject for this month over at Sparkles Monthly Challenge.  I have chosen 'Something Sporty' as my theme.  Predictably, as it's sport, I have chosen Cricket for my card.  We start the ladies softball cricket matches next week and the juniors are already playing their matches. 

In choosing Cricket I also managed to do a bit of stash busting.  I've had these papers and decoupage sheets for donkey's years.  It's so satisfying to be able to come up with an idea for your old stash.  I really need to try harder and get my craft room in order - like that's ever going to happen!

OK, I really need you to join in the fun as I have to pick the winners for this month.  Besides, we have a lovely new DT member and she's a fabulous talent.  Pop over and check out all of the lovely ladies.  You won't be disappointed.  

Right, I'm off to plan next weeks junior coaching session for the under 11 cricketers.  Hope to see your work soon.

Thanks for reading.

Love Dawn x

Those We Love Don't Go Away

 Good Morning all.  We have a new challenge for you over at Make My Monday today.  We want to see your 'sympathy' projects this time. When dad died earlier this year I felt so grateful to those that sent words of comfort and love.  Especially during the pandemic, it was amazing how many lives he'd touched in a way that they felt the need to share memories with us. My card for this challenge is so very simple but the words - from Baer Design Studio - reflect so much how I feel that I just wanted to let them shine.

Those we love

don't go away.

They walk beside us

every day.

Unseen, unheard

but always near.

Still loved,

still missed

and very dear.

Dad, I know you are constantly with me, mum and my sisters, but Gail said can you stop winding the dog up it's doing her nut!

Thanks for reading.

Love Dawn x

But First, Coffee or Chocolate

 Are you ready to kick start your day with a new challenge.  You have a choice of 'Coffee or Chocolate' over at The Alphabet Challenge. Or both, if you are so inclined. I can't start the day without my Earl Gray but my Other Half needs his 'proper' coffee.  None of that instant rubbish.  He buys his beans by mail order and grinds his own.  I suppose I could have chosen chocolate - which I love more than coffee - but I'm on a diet!

I bought a whole sheet of coffee sentiments from Dr Digi's House of Stamps and just picked one.  After cutting it out and inking it with some distress inks I wasn't sure where to go next. I liked the backing paper I had picked but didn't have a contrasting one. I also felt it needed a little embellishment. In desperation I found a sort of collage

sheet of kraft and black.  It had a little cup on it so I cut it out.  However, the kraft looked daft against my other paper and the inks I'd used. I also felt it was a bit dull and boring.  Out with the alcohol markers.  I coloured my cup red and added it to my sentiment circle.  I was so pleased with how it came out I then cut a square of the kraft paper and coloured the whole piece red.  It turned into one of those cards that I keep looking at and smiling.  It wasn't what I had started out doing but I love how it turned out.

Please pop over and join in the fun.

Thanks for reading.

Love Dawn x

Beginning something new

 Good morning all.  It's my turn to pick the challenge for this fortnight over at Cardz4galz.  I have chosen the theme of 'New Beginnings'.  This could be a new baby, a new job or, as I have chosen for my card, newly married life together.

As some of you will know, I'm on a stash busting mission at the moment.  It's an endless and thankless task.  I have found so many things I'd forgotten about and some stuff I didn't know I had.  When one of my friends moved house she game me boxes of her old craft stuff.  In amongst it was a folder full of decoupage sheets and toppers.  I tend to do more stamping nowadays so they had lain in the box unlooked at.  I'm glad I went through the folder though as it gave me a chance to used some old wedding backing papers that I just couldn't envision using.  It turned out that they went pretty well together.

I was so pleased with how this looked I did two more for my Church and Charity boxes.  So, that's one sheet and three pieces of paper gone from my stash.  Told you - it's an endless task.

I want to say thank you to Pauline Bird from Crafting with Cotnob.  She does such beautiful things with toppers and when I can't see how something will work I often go to her blog for inspiration.  This was one of those cards.  Thanks Pauline.  Keep up the good work.

OK, let's see your New Beginnings please - otherwise I will have nothing to comment on.

Thanks for reading.  

Love Dawn x

Monochrome Magic

 Morning all.  Are you ready for a fun filled week of blog challenges.  We start off this morning with Cardz4guyz and, this time, we have a Monochrome theme for you.  I have to say that I always tend to go for stencils with monochrome.  It's tried and tested so here we go again.  

I made this for my Brother-in-law for his birthday.  I kept it simple with a panel and a couple of frames.  The sentiment is cut with glitter card and I added pearls to finish it off.  

I need inspiration for this type of card guys so it's over to you.

Thanks for reading.

Love Dawn x