Paper pieced chevrons

Today's challenge over at 365 Cards is to use a stamped image and fussy cut and paper piece it.

I started with my chevron background stamp and stamped it onto black, grey and aqua papers before snipping along all those zig zags and carefully glueing them onto a piece of white card.

The flower is from a Stampin' Up set (Pick a Petal).  I stamped so many of these petals onto all different colours of paper and cut them up in different ways, I just couldn't choose which method worked best, so in the end settled for two different types!

I had intended to cut the flower so it was level with the edge of the card but kind of liked it going off the edge.  It may be a different story when I can't find an envelope that it fits in  :-)

I'm entering this into

Runway Inspired Challenge #45  (I love the black and white stripes and the splash of bright rainbow on one side)

and The Friday Mashup!  #130 Let's Cut It Up

Always Look On the Bright Side of Life

Today's challenge over at 365 Cards is to include an uplifting sentiment... and who can go wrong with a bit of Monty Python?!

The letters were individually die cut, the 'o' s substituted with die cut buttons and a faux stitched border drawn around the edge.

Now all I've got to do is stop whistling this tune  :-)


Some things in life are bad
They can really make you mad
Other things just make you swear and curse
When you're chewing on life's gristle
Don't grumble, give a whistle
And this'll help things turn out for the best
And...

Always look on the bright side of life (whistle)
Always look on the light side of life (whistle)
If life seems jolly rotten
There's something you've forgotten
And that's to laugh and smile and dance and sing

When you're feeling in the dumps
Don't be silly chumps
Just purse your lips and whistle - that's the thing
And...

Always look on the bright side of life... (whistle)
Come on!
Always look on the bright side of life... (whistle)

For life is quite absurd
And death's the final word
You must always face the curtain with a bow
Forget about your sin - give the audience a grin
Enjoy it - it's your last chance anyhow

So always look on the bright side of death (whistle)
Just before you draw your terminal breath (whistle)
Life's a piece of s**t
When you look at it

Life's a laugh and death's a joke, it's true
You'll see it's all a show
Keep 'em laughing as you go
Just remember that the last laugh is on you

And always look on the bright side of life
Always look on the right side of life (whistle)
Always look on the bright side of life (whistle)
Always look on the bright side of life (whistle)

Always Look On the Bright Side of Life by Eric Idle

Am entering this card into

Colour Q #208

Kaboodle Doodles - Use Orange
TotallyPaperCrafts - Stitching
Fussy and Fancy - Punches and Dies

Tin Can Butterfly

Today's challenge over at 365 Cards is to include a small item of altered art.  Come over and join in - we have a new challenge every single day!

My altered art addition is the butterfly - I die cut him out of the lid of a can of condensed milk!  It took a few goes through the die cutter but with a bit of wiggling and jiggling got it out eventually.  I played about with some pink sparkle embossing powders, then coloured in around the edges with a brown sharpie pen before covering it in extra thick embossing powder.

I stamped the sentiment and heat embossed in a light pink sparkly powder then redid in a much darker pinky-red colour to get a bit of a shadow effect on the text.  Then went over the top in water colours.  And then stamped over with a Stampin' Up wheel with teeny tiny flowers whilst it was still a bit damp to get it to all merge a bit.

The top pattern was die cut and the bottom pattern was punched with a hole punch and ribbon threaded through.

I'm entering this into
Papertake Weekly Challenge - Make it sparkle
Moxie Fab World - Metal, Wood and Cork

Cityscape

Today's challenge over at 365 Cards is to incorporate a cityscape into your card.  I had an urge to use strips of newspaper to make the buildings.  After cutting them to size I inked them all over in white craft ink to reduce the definition of the newsprint.  Then, taking inspiration from Trigger Tuesday used my brayer to ink on the colours.  At this point I added another couple of buildings made from tissue paper right at the front to attempt to get the merging/fading colours.  After going off to scrub my very inky fingers clean  I drew on all those black lines, and added the sentiment which is die cut in gold card.

I'm entering this into Tuesday Trigger: In Transition

and also into Moxie Fab World All That Glitters Is Gold Challenge
Addicted To Stamps and More #62 Make Your Mark
Stampotique Designers Challenge #116 Try a New Technique  (first time I've used my brayer to get graduated colours!)

Red Rock

A friend of mine is celebrating the launch of her first novel and we've been invited to the party!  I thought I'd better make a card to take with me!
I've used the cover of her book as inspiration for this card.  I hand drew the rock before masking it off, stamping the grid in clear embossing powder, stamping over with watercolours on my grunge stamp and then colouring in the rock with water colours, before adding the splatters and sentiment.

I'm entering it into
Fashionable Stamping Challenge #56 Can-U-Resist
Less is More - use dark green and rust
Retro Sketches #80  (I turned the sketch on it's side)












Oh, and in case you were wondering, the book is Red Rock by Kate Kelly - order your copy now!

Wow!  This card was reached the top 3 of Fashionable Stamping Challenge #56 Can U Resist!  Thank you - you've made my day  :-)

Autumn Harvest

Todays challenge over at 365 Cards is to incorporate three things associated with the autumn harvest.  I've chosen a harvest moon, a wheat field and a tractor.
I got my watercolours out for this card and painted the moon, night sky and field, then drew on my ears of wheat in the foreground.  The tractor is stamped and coloured with watercolours too, it's been fussy cut out and stuck on to the card.
It would have been a very quick card to make if I hadn't had to have waited for all the paint to dry!

I'm entering this into Addicted to Stamps challenge - Anything Goes
and Papertake's Anything Goes challenge

Dabbling in Watercolours

I keep trying clean and simple cards but there's always too much temptation to keep on adding  :-)
This one is for Less is More who are challenging us to use a rubber stamp and watercolours.  I've been dabbling with my watercolours a bit recently so felt it would be rude not to enter!

I painted the card with a light wash of colour before letting it dry, then stamped and painted the flowers with watercolours and some gold shimmer.