Sparkle and Flourish

what I've been up to.....

2011-12-02T16:27:00.001Z

Hiya folks...just so you don't think I have dropped off the face of the earth I thought I would share a couple of pictures of what I have been up to recently.

Frankly it has been crazy busy with customer orders, which I am extremely grateful for. Thank you to everyone who has ordered from me this Christmas. If you haven't received your order this week then be assured it will be finished this week coming. My intention is to clear the books of any orders by the end of next week. I am also very thankful to have some more Craft Stamper magazine articles to work on. Will let you know as and when they appear !

This card below is for a lovely repeat customer to my Etsy shop.

What else.....mmmm some autumn pics from a few weeks ago. looking forward to gettting some nice frosty ones now!

Thanks for popping by :)

Back soon with some more news.

Judy

Quinn In Her Boots

2011-11-11T12:39:00.001Z

Hi Folks!!

Good to be back with you. How are you this Friday?? It is a bit dreich here and rather yuk but hey ho !

So as it is Friday I have some rather gorgeous goodies from Quixotic Paperie to share with you. I have finally manged to get a Christmas card done :) YEAH!!!

So the image is from Stamping Bella and is called 'Quinn in Her Boots' and what lovely boots they are too :) They look fine and cosy ! She is coloured with copics and then some stickles for all the sparkly bits.

The papers are a new set from Echo Park called 'Season's Greetings'. They have some lovely colours and vintage papers in this collection.

Today is a sad day for me and this is going to be my last Quixotic Paperie blog post. I have been a DT member for Elaine since the very start so it is hard for me to say Goodbye. Over the next few months I am going to take a break from blogging. At least till Jan / Feb time. There is a lot of other things I would like to do but due to blogging and DT commitments it is hard to find the time to do them.

So to begin with I have several crochet projects I would like to do, I have begun running and am loving how good I feel after it, I would love to decorate my boys bedrooms and several other things I have in the pipeline.

So I hope this isn't goodbye forever but just a break and a chance to refresh myself, assess what commitments I would like to have and come back with some more mojo in the New Year!

I will still be keeping my Etsy shop ticking over so do feel free to pop back and visit me over there!

take care,

Judy

Happy 30th Birthday Elaine!

2011-11-04T08:30:00.000Z

Morning folks!

Now today is a very special day for a certain young lady......today it is the lovely, generous and super talented Elaine's 30th Birthday! Whoop whoop! We all want to wish you a very special and happy day! Welcome to your thirties you young thing!!

This week on the blog...unbeknown to her the Quixotic DT are having a week long celebration for her!

So I am delighted to kick the week of with a special card just for Elaine!

For this card I have used the super sophisticated 'Posh has a Present' from Stamping Bella available from Quixotic Paperie. She is coloured with copics which I have listed below.

Skin : E000, E00, E11, E13
Dress: b91, B93, B95, B97
Bags and Presents: E41, E43, E44, E47
Hair: Y21, Y14, Y99

The papers are My Mind's Eye 'Paris & Co 6 x 6 pad' which is so gorgeous and sophisticated. I can't wait to use it again :)

I know Elaine has some very special offers going on at Quixotic Paperie until Tuesday 8th November with 15% off most items and a very special 30 % off many others. Hop on over and grab yourself a bargain!

Happy Birthday Elaine! Spoil yourself!

Judy

Sugar Stick - I'm One!

2011-11-01T09:00:00.000Z

Morning folks!

How is your week going so far?

Today I am back to show a real cutie! This is 'Sugar Stick - 'I'm One' from By LORi Designs. I love how quick and easy these images are to colour. There are also some lovely new Winter-themed images, which I hope to be making cards with over the next few weeks. They are available here.

The papers are 'A Walk in the Park' by Echo Park, available from Quixotic Paperie.

The stripey ribbon, American Crafts button, twine and brads are all from Sew Sweet.

This card will be for sale in my Etsy shop.

Have a great day folks!

Judy x

Geeky Love

2011-10-28T09:42:00.004+01:00

Morning folks!

Sorry to be absent for so long :)

The last couple of weeks were the kids mid term holidays and it has taken me till Friday i.e. today, to get back into the swing of things again :))

As it is Friday I have some lovely goodies to share with you from Quixotic Paperie.

Firstly I have used 'Geeky Love' from Make it Crafty and coloured the image with copics. What a cute couple ! I have also added a few pearls to the centre of the flowers for a little dimension. The papers are MME 'Lost and Found', which have a really lovely vintagey feel to them.

The brown velvet and cotton lace ribbon is from Sew Sweet. and the flower and metal tag are from my stash drawers.

Thanks for popping by today. I would love to hear from you to know that you have popped by today !

Have a great weekend!
Judy

Mommy In Waiting - By LORi Designs

2011-10-18T09:00:00.000+01:00

Good day folks!

This is a scheduled post, so while you read this I will be away on my holidays :) The boys are off to Granny's for a few days and Norman and I are enjoying a couple of nights away from our darlings :)) Then we are off to stay with my sister and her family for the rest of the time.

Today I want to share with you a lovely new digi from the wonderfully talented By LORi Designs. This adorable image is called 'Mommy in Waiting'. How cute is it??? She is coloured with copics.

The papers, ribbon, and buttons are all a lovely gift from my friend Aileen, who is an SU demonstrator and lives in Kingswells with me too! How handy!!! I just adore that ribbon and will certainly have to get some more!! And just look at those cute little buttons...mmmmm just a few more for my wish list ;)

Well this card will be for sale in my Etsy shop when I get home next week.

Don't forget you check out loads of wonderful inspiration over at the BLD blog right here!

Thanks for your visit!!
Judy

Praying For Katie

2011-10-14T18:15:00.002+01:00

I am writing this on behalf and in supprot of LORi. What a great thing she is doing to help and support this family in their time of greatest need. So I have copied this post from Lori's blog and would love you all to support this wonderful cause.

Many thanks Judy x

I am writing this evening about and for Katie Renz you can meet her HERE on her Card blog and HERE on her Family Blog.

Some of you may know that she has a wonderful husband, 3 beautiful little boys, that she is a super Mum
and way talented crafter...she also has Stage 4 Gastic Cancer.

Today, her husband wrote an update on her blog. This is so sad, my heart is broken and my thoughts have been consumed with her and her family. I am continuing to pray for Katie's Miracle!!!!!

I hope will join me!

Lori Boyd was asked at the start of the year to design a stamp for Katie, She ended up getting an email from her telling me how much she loved it. She said it really was her boys. She was so very very sweet and very
appreciative! Sooooo, I wanted to do a HUGE push of this image for her babies!! I told her we were going to do this and that forever this stamp would be theirs!! It just so happens that her 2 little guys have a
birthday on the 19th of this month and her big boy has one on the 1st of December. I would LOVE to bless them with a wonderful birthday and Christmas, so that Kevin and Katie do not have to think of worry about that!!

_________All donations will receive a random image__________

THANK YOU!

If ANY of you would like to help spread the word on EVERY forum,

blog, etc etc you can think of then the proceeds will go to The Renz

Family...I and I know they would be so appreciate that we are helping to wrap her

boys with our love and care.

Katie Renz said...Hi Lori,

I absolutely adore this image! It is one of my
absolute favorites of all the donated images :) Thank you again from
the bottom of my heart. I also wanted to let you know that I've
received numerous cards with this image and they have all been so cute!

so I know she would love it!!

P.O. Box 5913

Bellingham, Washington

98227-5913

THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH for supporting and loving Katie and her Family!

PLEASE keep Praying for Katie's Miracle!!

Tons of Love and Many Blessings-

LORi BOYD

Time for Tea!

2011-10-14T10:00:00.001+01:00

Morning all !

Hope you are all fine this lovely day :)

Just flying by to share with you today a fabby stamp set you can find at Quixotic Paperie. This one is from the Octopode Factory which has some pretty quirky and fantastical designs. This one is from the Alice in Wonderland set and is called 'Time for Tea'.

I just love the bold design of it.

Now I fell in love with THIS card I saw earlier this week on THE extremely talented Lori Boyd's blog. I loved the graphic design of it. So I have used the same sketch for my card too :)) The sketch is from Sweet Sunday Sketch Challenge, ( SSSC138).

The papers are just scraps I have had in my drawer.. The button and chocolate brown twine are from Sew Sweet.

Thanks bunches for your time today!

Judy

By LORi Designs - Puddlejumper Ben

2011-10-11T09:38:00.000+01:00

Morning Folks!

Here we are up in Scotland at the start of our two week 'tattie' holidays, so it's busy days all round entertaining the little ones. Weather is lovely ...so, so far so good :)

I am back today with a card for BLD (By LORi Designs) . I have used the cutest little guy. He is one of the new images available NOW at BLD. He is called 'Puddlejumper Ben'.

He is all coloured up with copics with a little prisma pencil for the grass.

The papers are Fancy Pants 'Beach Bum' from Quixotic Paperie.

I have also used some little goodies from Sew Sweet:

Thanks for popping by today!

Judy

It's all about crochet.....

2011-10-05T12:18:00.002+01:00

Good afternoon :)

I have no card to share today only a little crochet love :)

I am finding crochet so relaxing...and this is what I have been making.

A chunky off white scarf with a funky flower.

The button is from Sew Sweet and I have used a clasp from Sew Sweet to attatch to the scarf. So I can take it on and off and attach it to anything I wish......

Thanks for your visit!

Back to a normal card very soon!

Judy x

Pretty in Patches - Elisabeth Bell

2011-09-30T09:08:00.002+01:00

Good morning and what a glorious morning it is too...the sun is beating down once again on Bonnie Scotland. You see we shout about it and get excited because it happens so rarely!

Today I would like to share with you some lovely goodies available from Quixotic Paperie. Today I have coloured 'Pretty in Patches' from Belles and Whistles. I missed this image first time around when it was sold by Sugar Nellie and am delighted now to own it!

I decided to put my copics aside and this image is done completely in Prsimacolor pencils. I have kept the layout of this card pretty clean and simple. The papers I have used are MME 'All Spice' 6 x 6 paper pad. Added a little stitching, a sparkly flourish and a cute little flower :)

Thanks for popping by today. I have kept this short and sweet as I know we all want to be outside on this lovely Autumn day.......I just can't believe it is 1st October!!

Anyway this will be popping into my Etsy shop later, as hubby and I have a date...we are walking to Dobbies for a 2 for 1 cooked breakfast! Yum yum!

Have a wonderful weekend,

Judy x

By LORI Designs - We 3 Friends

2011-09-29T10:41:00.003+01:00

Morning folks. back as promised with my first ever card for 'By LORi Designs' :)

This cute digi image is called 'We 3 Friends' and is just perfect for so many occasions :)

The image is coloured with copics and I have used some scrummy Echo Park 'A Walk in the Park' paper available from Quixotic Paperie.

The button and natural button twine are both available from Sew Sweet. I've followed the sketch from this weeks Papertake Weekly Sketch.

Thanks for your visit today.

I'll be popping this card into my Etsy shop later today.

Enjoy the sunshine !

Judy x

Coffee, crochet and some fabby news!

2011-09-28T13:55:00.002+01:00

Good afternoon folks and I just have to say what fabulous weather here in the UK!!! Whoop whoop...heatwave all round. Up here in the far far north (!!) we normally would have our snowboots out at this time of year...instead we are topping up the tans!! Long may this wonderful sunshine continue.

So today I want to share a little bit of chit chat and some exciting news.

I have been pretty busy backstage with Etsy orders and magazine work so I things have been quite slack with posting on the blog. I am hoping to get the big bulk of that done by the weekend !

So in between orders and commission work I have been learning how to crochet. I am in LOVE!! What a wonderful new thing to learn! The pictures were taken this morning . I am so proud of my first Granny Square :). I'' show you the scarf I am working on really soon.

I am also so very excited to tell you that I have been kindly invited to join the 'By LORi Designs Team!!
It has been a true pleasure to get to know LORi through Facebook and see her fantastic art and I was thrilled when she asked me join her lovely group of designers! So keep your eyes peeled for a card real soon. I can't wait to share her art with you!

Thanks for visting my little corner :)

Judy x

Home Sweet Home

2011-09-23T09:42:00.000+01:00

Morning my crafty friends.Today I want to share with you something that I was completely inspired by yesterday. And I can happily share it with you for my Quixotic Paperie DT day!

I have had this house stamp from Christy Croll for ages and have just been waiting to be inspired to use it! I was browsing through the mega talented Linda Heaven's blog and she had created a fantastic card with it for a class she was doing. I was so totally in love with it! I was going to link you to it, but her post has disappeared :(( So thank you Linda for the wonderful inspiration. If I ever get the chance to link to her card I will because the credit for this idea goes to her.

I used a canvas board that I got from Simply Create. I then painted the sky with blue acrylic paints and the ground with green. Whilst that was drying I stamped the Christy Croll house several times and inked with Distress Inks: Fired Brick, Frayed Burlap and Wild honey. i cut out the pieces I needed and stuck onto the canvas board. The clouds are die cuts and the sentiment is computer generated..To create the mottled grass effect I used tissue paper scrunched up and inked it up and then dabbed it randomly to create some texture. Then there is some random stamping around the edges with different background stamps.

Thank for your visit today!

Please let me know if you have this stamp and I would love to come see what you have created with it!

have a great weekend !

Judy x

Wee Suzi is a cutie!

2011-09-21T11:11:00.000+01:00

Morning folks. Hope you are well today. Today I wish to share a card that I made with a gorgeous digital image from the very talented Sylvia Zet. If you prefer her art in rubber, it is now available from SCACD stamps at the Quixotic Paperie.

I have coloured 'Wee Suzi' with copics. A combo I rarely use is from the BV family, so it was nice to dust these pens off ! The papers are MME 'A Beautiful Life' from Quixotic Paperie.

The flowers are from my stash and the funky mini yellow ric rac is from Sew Sweet. Have you popped by recently?? Emma has increased the amount of ribbon and buttons and other lovely stuff she stocks considerably! It is a fabulous treasure trove of wonderful goodies :)

I have stamped a little sentiment on the inside (from Hero Arts).

Thanks for your visit today! Enjoy the rest of your Wednesday.

Card will be available on Etsy later today!

Judy

Fox Gloves from Gorjuss

2011-09-16T07:47:00.000+01:00

Morning my crafty readers!

How things??? Thanks for popping by. Today I have to share with you some gorgeous goodies from Quixotic Paperie.

I have stamped on kraft and coloured with pencils this beautiful wintry image from the Gorjuss range. It is called Fox Gloves. I really wanted to stamp onto kraft as you can really show the brilliance of the snow by colouring it with prisma pencils. Once the image was coloured and I was happy with it, I then added tiny dabs of PVA glue wher I wanted some sparkle and covered it with some Glamour Dust.

The papers I have used are from a range from Bo Bunny that I purchased last year. I am commiting myself to not buying any more Christmas papers till I use up the mounds I have from last year and the year before that and maybe even the year before that!

I have also added a couple of Make It Crafty Chipboard Snowflakes which have been covered with Picket Fence Crackle Paint. Also, something I am delighted to have found, which is new to me...but may not be to all of you is Picket Fence Distress Stain!! Wow...I edged all of my papers with this! So quick and dries in an instant! Elaine if you are reading this....you REALLY need to stock this. It is perfect for the winter season

Thanks guys for stopping by today . I really appreciate your visit.

I will be popping this card in my Etsy shop over the weekend. Today I am at a friend's wedding with hubbie all day...kiddie free..woooooo hoooo!

Have a wonderful day,

Judy

Why I have black fingers!

2011-09-15T10:43:00.002+01:00

Morning folks! Just a quick visit to share with you what has been keeping me busy the last few days.

I had a lovely custom order from a bride who had a classy colour scheme for her wedding of black, silver and grey. She asked me to make some little jewellery boxes for her bridesmaids and an altered frame for her Matron of Honour.

All the items are first painted with white acrylic paint, then once dry I applied a couple of layers of silver metallic paint and again once dry I applied a crackle glaze. Quite time consuming but a really pretty result.

I then proceeded to make 5 black grunge flowers, which resulted in very black fingers !!! Once dry they have been spritzed very generously with Glimmer mist! And finally a lovely acrylic bead for the centre.

To finish I have, as requested, made a little scroll tied with ribbon, containing a message to the recipient.
Thanks for bearing with me and all the photos!

Have a great day!

I am just running out the door for a lovely crochet lesson with a couple of friends!

Catch ya later,

Judy x

My weekend!

2011-09-12T15:53:00.002+01:00

This was me at the weekend selling my wares! Thank you to Catriona from Blue Door Photography for the piccie above !

I had a great day in Alford Village Hall for the Craft Day in Aid of Cancer charities. It was lovely to meet so many new people and catch up with some old friends! This is Kirsti from Storminavintageteacup. Lovely to catch up again!

Thank you to Jacqui for organising such a great day!

Judy x

Sylvia Zet for SCACD - Christmas Planner

2011-09-09T09:00:00.002+01:00

Today is the day we've been waiting for - the gorgeous new Sylvia Zet images are being released by SCACD Stamps!  There are EIGHT fantastic and utterly adorable images, all exclusive to SCACD Stamps in yummy red rubber, and they are all available now.

The stamps are all now available, and if you just have to have them all, you can grab them in discounted sets! 


US/Canada: You will find the stamps in the Sylvia Zet section at Susana's Custom Art & Card Design HERE.




UK/Europe: You will find the stamps in the Sylvia Zet section at Quixotic Paperie HERE.

To celebrate, we've got a hop for you today, filled with inspiration from the SCACD and Quixotic Paperie design teams PLUS some special guests!  We hope you will hop along with us as we introduce you to Loli & Shellie, Poppy and the rest of their friends!

You should have hopped here from Melanie's Blog.  If you're just joining us and would like to start the hop at the beginning,  then pop back to the start over at ELAINE HUGHES' BLOG.

A complete hop list can be found over on the SCACD Store Blog.

I have chosen to make a little Christmas Planner notebook.I had this notebook sitting in my stock cupboard (!)and knew I wanted to use it to make a little altered notebook.

So I used this gorgeous Sylvia Zet image called 'Winter Wonder'. I have coloured her entirely with prismacolor pencils and lots of stickles!! I have also used some Make It Crafty Snowflakes Stars (Laser Cut Chipboard)and covered them with a generous amount of Picket Fence Crackle Paint!

Also used on this notebook are odds and ends of ribbon, chipboard alphas and some Fancy Pants 'Christmas Magic' papers.

Your next stop on the hop is the gorgeous Marti's Blog!

This notebook will be for sale over in my Etsy shop.

Thanks so much for your visit. Enjoy the hippity hop hop!!

Judy x

Handsome Little Man

2011-09-06T08:00:00.003+01:00

Good morning everyone! I hope you are all having a super duper week so far.

My life is changing this week and it is taking me a little while to get used to it. All 3 of my babies are now at school and I have a whole 6 hours every day...ALONE! Quite weird I tell ya! The last few weeks have been nice as Peter started P.1 and was just in for the morning...so we were both in a transition phase. This week and forever forward it is for real..... I am enjoying getting used to a new season of my life but I do miss them.

After 10 1/2 years of having 3 children at home, then 2, then 1 ...now none! So I am taking my time to decide which direction to go in. But as a believer in God and His purpose and plan I am sure things will become clear as I want it use my time wisely and effectively.

Anyway I have rambled on much more than I intended. Today I popped in to show you another of my little boxes I did for my commissioned work at The Wooden Box Mill. This is fairly self explanatory. I painted it with brown acrylic paint and the top is decorated with a cute little Hanglar boy, coloured with copics and is decorated with some start shaped buttons.

I will be popping this box for sale in my Etsy shop.

Hhave a great day!

Judy

A Hanglar.....at last!

2011-09-05T08:00:00.003+01:00

Morning folks!

I am so happy to show you a card that I made just for the sheer pleasure of it. It has been a long long time since I just made a card....well, for no reason at all. I feel I have lost a bit of the joy of just creating. So I am determined to make time to do more of it...definetely gets the creative juices flowing better !

So I have coloured the Hnaglar image with copics and the paper used is from Simply Create and is the gorgeous Tilda pack. I ahve added a gorgeous piece of jumbo ric-rac from Sew Sweet and a gorgeous button from the Baby Pink Mixed Button bag for the centre of my scrunched flower. The metal butterfly has been lying about on my desk for soooo long and it has finally found its way onto a card...I can't remember where it originally came from.

Thanks for all my loyal visitors and commentators. It really is appreciated.

This card will be available here for purchase.

Thank you!

Have a great Monday!

Judy x

Copic classes @ Simply Create

2011-08-30T14:58:00.000+01:00

Afternoon folks!

I am just popping by today to let you know that I will be beginning a series of 3 copic colouring classes starting on the 24th September at Simply Create, Alford, Aberdeenshire.

These will be perfect for you if you are a beginner and wanting to start out with copics and give them a try. No previous experience needed! You will book into all 3 classes ...so you will start a beginner and soon be a pro! The price for the classes will include all the copics you will need for the class. You will make the two cards shown here in your first class.

The first class will be an introduction to copics and learning to blend with them. We will begin first of all with learning how to colour skin. The next couple of classes we will progress onto hair, clothes, grass and backgrounds. So if you have always wanted to try copics but too afraid or not sure where to start then this is the class for you!

If this sounds like something that you would be interested in then please give Jacqui a call on 01975 564010 to book your place.

Spaces will be limited!

Hope to see you there!

Judy

Foto Friday on Monday !

2011-08-29T11:51:00.001+01:00

Morning folks!

I just wanted to stop by quickly and have a little break in my Monday morning housework routine to share with you my Foto Friday on Monday!

I seem to have missed it or forgotten it last week.

This is my beautiful friend Blair (inside and out!). We had a wonderful visit this summer with her family. I miss you guys! This was on a visit to Duthie Park in Aberdeen.

Hop over to Lori's'blog if you want to join in the fun!

Judy x

Queen's Cutie for Quixotic Paperie

2011-08-27T10:26:00.000+01:00

Good morning!

My week has just flown by without a minute to post this. So without further ado...I'd like to present 'Queen's Cutie'. Isn't she adorable! She is available in rubber at Quixotic Paperie. The image is coloured with a mixture of copics and prismas. I used some [prismas to deepen the shading in her hair . A touch of deep borwn at the roots. I also used prismas to create the blended sky background, which always looks very faint after being photographed!

I have used the most gorgeous papers from MME called Paris and Co. Gorgeous shades of brown and muted turquoise!!

This is a quick picture of the inside. A rare occasion...I don't always have time to finish these before I post on the blog. The sentiment is from Paper Makeup Stamps.

I'm not going to chitter chatter today as I am feeling rough and have been suffering with sinusitis.

I also want to remind you that Quixotic Paperie will be on holiday for a well earned break from 27th August to 8th of September.

This card will be popping into my Etsy shop later today!

Caht to you all soon!
Judy.

Foto Friday!

2011-08-19T16:39:00.000+01:00

Hi I'm back again with my 2nd post of today. Scroll down to see my card for this weeks Quixotic Paperie DT make!

I am joining in today with Lori's Foto Friday. I saw this bike whilst we were on holiday. It was such a cute bike that i just had to take it's picture!!

now I would love to be able to use Photoshop better and know how to edit it properly to make it look more vintage and get rid of the untidy pieces in the background. So I have decided now that Peter (my baby!) starts school on Monday I am going to enrol in some Photography courses. I am VERY excited!!

Anyway, thanks Lori for this great idea!

Judy

Quixotic Paperie - Oliver

2011-08-19T11:22:00.001+01:00

Morning folks!

It is such a glorious day today that I am going to keep this brief as I want to make the most of the last days of summer and get out to the garden.

Today I am following a trend :)) Now all over blogland and Facebook groups there has been a new trend starting!! And I just had to give it a try . Talented crafters on the Make It Crafty Facebook Group have been colouring their stamped images with no black lines....and instead using evry faint grey ones.

So I had to see if it was as hard as it looked ...I do like a challenge!!

So for my Quixotic Paperie DT card this week I stamped an image from The Greeting Farm which I have had for ages but it has not seen any love as yet! This one is Oliver from the 'Journey Set'. He is coloured with copics and a little amount of pencil for the sky background. I used (as recommended by Elaine) an Adrionack Ink Pad 'Lake Mist' to get the light grey lines on the image. Once coloured it creates a really nice soft, pastel effect on the image. This is a technique I would love to try again and perfect a little more .

The papers I used are Fancy Pants 'Beach Bum' 6 x6 pad. I have given them all the distressed treatment. I have also used a Tim Holtz journalling ticket and a Tim Holtz Metal Hinge Clip.

Thanks for popping by today.

Back soon!

Judy

Button Box and some news :)

2011-08-18T11:34:00.000+01:00

Morning folks! I hope you are all well.

I wanted to share with you today a piece of work that I was asked to do for a lovely lady called Cathy. Cathy works for the Wooden Box Mill and approached me and asked me if I would be interested in doing some work for them. Next to making cards, I also am loving altered wooden boxes. Cathy sent me 8 different boxes to alter. I am happy to now say that they feature on the homepage of the website!!

This is a fab online shop that I would highly recommend for GREAT customer service and superb quality of wooden boxes. They have so many different styles to choose from! You can buy batches for wholesale or you can bu them in individual sets.

Today I just have this mini round cube box to show you. This box comes as part of a set of 3 and this is the smallest of the boxes. I will share with you some more of the boxes in the coming days.

I decorated this box really simply. I painted it with light blue acrylic paint inside and out . I then used some Bo Bunny spotty paper and covered the top and the sides of the box with it. I distressed the edges of the paper with white crackle paint. I finally added a little heart shape of buttons with Papermania Mini Polka Dot buttons which are from Sew Sweet.

This box will be for sale in my Etsy shop.

Thanks for popping by today!

Judy x

Foto Friday!

2011-08-12T16:48:00.000+01:00

Hee hee ...can't get rid of me today!!

Now I LOVE taking photos almost as much as I love creating!! I think taking pictures is very creative too and I love composing photos but I have a LONG way to go and MUCH to learn!

So I saw over on Lori Boyd's blog that she has started a new feature called Foto Friday. All you have to do is go hop on over to her blog and link a photo...simple as that!

I choose this photo because I love little children's toes...so sweet and unblemished...a bit like them really! I also love Jude's little ankle bracelets. He got them last year when we were in the Phillipines visiting my sister and they have not come off since :) Reminds me of that fabulous experience we all had.

Chat to you soon!
Judy

Victoria Case - Retro Crew - 'Rosie'

2011-08-12T14:38:00.000+01:00

Where does the week go???

How can it be Friday AGAIN?? Normal services will be resuming soon when my lovely boys go back to school and my youngest starts school on the 22nd August. Life will be a changin!!
I have so enjoyed this summer with them...it has been so busy with friends and family that they have not had a chance to squabble with each other! It will be fab to regain the routine and the resemblance of a tidy house but I will miss the relaxed days we have all had together....despite all the rain and cold weather.

On the plus I hope to blog a bitty more regularly :) I hope to have some fab news to share about some classes I will be doing at Simply Create...but I will leave that till next week.

I am also going to be starting some classes in my home from September onwards. Depending on the demand for them I will probably start them on a monthly or fortnightly basis. I will be guided by those interested in what cards and projects we undertake. So don't be shy leaving a comment below if you are local and fancy a couple of hours relaxed crafting with a cuppa and a few other friendly ladies:) We will probably start with some simple stamping and colouring projects and move onto whatever interests those who come along. I hope to run them in the weekday mornings and will charge £10 for the class, which includes materials.

OK ...time to share with you some of the info of the card. The image is one of the newly released Victoria Case images from SCACD , which are available for the UK @ Quixotic Paperie. This lovely sophisticated lady is called 'Rosie'. I have coloured her with copics. The paper is a MME 6 x6 Pad called Lost and Found 'Blush'. Totally gorgeous ! Make sure you ahve a chance to check out all the other fab new MME 6 x 6 pads that have been released.

The sentiment is from Waltzingmouse Stamps and the frame is SU!

Thanks so much for your visit. This card will be available for sale in my Etsy shop.

Judy x

Long time no speak!

2011-08-05T10:00:00.001+01:00

Morning folks!

How are you all? It is good to be back. I have had a lovely looooooong break away from the computer and crafting. It was really great not to have any deadlines to meet.

We have been away for a small break in Aviemore, then an extended family reunion in a beautiful seaside resort in Fife and then we had some good friends staying with us for a few days. Now it is only just over a week till the kids return to school . How it flies!

So I am back today with my usual Friday posting for Quixotic Paperie. When I came back from hols I was delighted to see so many wonderful new items in stock! I will leave some links at the bottom of the post!

The card I have to share today is featuring the gorgeous Some Odd Girl Stamps and this image sis called 'Tobie and His Puppy'. The sentiment I have used also come with the image. The image is coloured with copics . The papers I have used are Echo Park 'Little Boy' Collection Kit. I ahve then stamped and cut out a couple of little stars from an SU! set and wrapped a small piece of hemp chord around the image. A nice simple little boy's card!

I also have some great news to share. Elaine is having a DT call!! So does anyone fancy joining our friendly little group? You can check out all the info and details here.

Lastly , as promised, here are is a link to all the newest items in Quixotic Paperie. As for me I couldn't resist the MME Paper Pads and the New Gorjuss Girls!

I will be listing this card in my new Etsy shop for anyone who may wish to purchase it.

Great to be back!

Judy x

Dance Like No-one is watching!

2011-07-08T11:41:00.000+01:00

Hey good morning folks!

Great to have you visit!

I have a super quick and sweet card to share with you today!

This is a Image from Some Odd Girl in rubber! You can find these over at Quixotic Paperie. This one is called 'Dancing Mae'! The fun sentiment also comes with the image. I love that...as you don't have to scrabble around looking for a matching sentiment! I also know that Elaine is waiting for some new rubber to arrive in her shop very soon from Some Odd Girl!!

I have coloured this image *mostly* in pencils. It is a real hybrid! The skin is coloured with copics as is her pink top. The rest is all done with prisma pencils. I love using pencils for her hair. If anyone is interested the prisma pencils combination I use for her brown hair is Beige, Light Umber, dark Umber and a very small touch of Black for the deepest shadows.

The papers are super scrummy and are Echo Park 'Springtime' Collection Kit.

I have also used from Sew Sweet:

Thanks y'all for your visit today! This card will be hopping over to my *new* Etsy shop today, if anyone is interested in purchasing it.

Have a super duper Friday and weekend!

Judy x

Rosie's Bike Ride

2011-07-04T22:32:00.048+01:00

Morning folks!

Well hasn't the weather been just fine? I for one have not felt like spending very long indoors at all.....as we all know especially up in Scotland that it just won't last!

We have spent a long time in the garden, tidying up and then enjoying the fruits of our labour with manicured lawns and tidy flower beds, eating strawberries and meringues in the sunshine! Ahhhh that is what the summer holidays are all about!

So today I am sooooooo excited! My sister, her husband and her 2 kids are coming to stay with us for a few days ...why am I so excited.??? Well they have been in the Phillipines for the last 4 years! Whoop whoop....it is going to be so exciting to have them around for a few days :)

Anyway enough blethers, time to show you what I have been making!

This is a card using a gorgeous image I have seen around some other folk's blogs and really thought it was so gorgeous. It is from Wee Stamps and this one is called Rosie's Bike Ride. The image is coloured with copics and I have added a little sparkle to her flowers.

The papers are old ones I am using up from Three Bugs in A Rug. I was doing atidy up for my sister coming and I REALLY need to use up old papers before I buy ANY more new ones!

Here is a little close up of the ribbon detail. The seam binding ribbon, button and twine are all from Sew Sweet. (P.s....make sure you check out her new fabulous ready made felt flowers!)

And finally the sentiment is from Paper Makeup Stamps which can be found at Quixotic Paperie.

Thanks for stopping by and all the lovely comments you leave. You make my day!

This card will be available to buy in my *NEW* Etsy shop later today!

Hugs , Judy x

Stop and Smell the Flowers

2011-07-01T10:01:00.001+01:00

Well helloo everyone!
I wondered if I would get the chance to post again this week. It has been a busy one. This is our last week of term and last day of school for us in Scotland.....holidays officially start for us at 3:15pm! Whoop whoop!

There have been so many events to attend at school and so much to get organised. I saw my eldest be the Wizard in 'Wizard of Oz', and went to a Garden Party for my youngest's last day of Nursery, so it has all been good.

I have no idea how much I will get to post over the next 6 weeks...I will just have take it as it comes!

Today I have made a frame with one of the fabby Some Odd Girl stamps from Quixotic Paperie. This one is called 'Smell the Flowers Tia'. She is coloured with copics and instead of making her into a card I stamped the sentiment (which comes with the image!) below and placed her into a photo frame. ( I removed the glass so you could see the 3D elements!)

I then took some yummy felt from Sew Sweet and used my Sizzix Die for 3D flowers cut to make the felt flowers. These are made in exactly the same in which you would make a paper flower. For these flowers I used 3 shades of pink felt to make my flowers. I used Baby Pink, Vintage Rose and Rose Pink.

I then added a fabby acrylic bead to the centre.

Thanks for your visit today!

This will be popping into my *NEW* Etsy shop later today!

Judy x

Whimsy Stamps Spotlight - 'Download Diva'

2011-06-28T07:00:00.003+01:00


The Quixotic Paperie design team and friends hope you have been enjoying the Quixotic Paperie 2nd Anniversary celebrations. We have been throwing the spotlight onto some of the fantastic stamp companies available from Quixotic Paperie and our last celebratory spotlight for you is:
Whimsy Stamps 
Whimsy Stamps is owned by Denise and Kevin Lynn, with Denise as the papercrafter and Kevin illustrating their Kids Collection based on their two children. As the company has developed they have built up their collection of contributing artists, stamp collections, dies and papers.

The ranges include the Crissy Armstrong Collection; Melissa Jenkins Meljen's Design Collection; KennyK Collection; Whimsy Sentiment and dies by Raindrop Echo Designs; Whimsy Animals Collection and Whimsy Kids Collection. 
Whimsy Stamps are available in the UK/Europe at Quixotic Paperie. 
If you're in the US then you can find the stamps at Whimsy Stamps direct!


As part of the celebrations and the spotlight today, we have a PRIZE GIVEAWAY!  
Pop on over to the Quixotic Inspirations blog to get all the details and enter the draw to win some fantastic Whimsy Stamps and more!
[UPLOAD IMAGE HERE]
So now for the inspiration! Hop on over to each of the blogs below to see some fantastic Whimsy Stamps makes!
- Elaine - Judy - Kim Dellow - Mary  -
- Ann - Iris - Minna - Patricia - Vicki - 
Thanks for joining us and we hope you are enjoying all the Whimsy Stamps fun.

To my shame I am admitting that this is the first time I have ever used a Kenny K image. And I can tell you that I loved it. This image was fabulous to colour and is called 'Download Diva'. I coloured the hair with prismas and the rest with copics.(List at the bottom of the post)

The papers I have used are 'Fancy Pants 6 x 6 Beach Bum'. Great bright summery colours in this pack!

For the sentiment I used a Hero Arts stamp and heat embossed it with 'Broken China' Distress Powder. This has a great sand-papery distressed look and feel.

Thanks for popping by today to enjoy some Whimsy fun!

Judy

Colouring:

Hair: Beige, Light Umber, Dark Umber, Black

Skin: E000, E00, E11, Henna

Tops: Y13, 17, Y19, YR00, YR12, YR14, YR18, YR24

Trousers: B93, B95, B97, B000

Socks: R21, R22, R27, R29, R89

Quixotic Joins Make it Crafty!

2011-06-25T12:00:00.000+01:00

Today is a joint celebration! As you may be aware, this is the month that Quixotic Paperie turned TWO! What you may not know is that it is also the month in which Australian company Make it Crafty is turning ONE!

Quixotic Paperie have been stocking the fantastic Make it Crafty range of products (Rubber Stamps - Lasercut Chipboard - Make it Colour Blending Card) since April 2011, and are one of the first places you can find them outside of Australia! We are thrilled to be celebrating with Make it Crafty today.
To celebrate we thought that rather than a blog hop we would set a CHALLENGE using Make it Crafty products!!
To get inspired, hop on over to the Make it Colourful challenge blog where you will see the amazing creations our fabulous DT’s have created for this event! PLUS find out all the details on how you can play along!
OF COURSE THERE ARE PRIZES!!
There are FIVE challenge categories and there will be FIVE GRAND WINNERS!
PLUS, PLUS, PLUS
There will be random winners throughout the whole month. The numbers have been pre-selected and as soon as an entry is added that matches that number they WIN! Winners will be announced soon after entry on the sidebar of Make it Colourful.
PLUS there’s MORE!!

Quixotic Paperie have a little something for you too!! Make sure you pop on over to HERE to enter your name for a chance at MORE Make it Crafty Goodies!!
PLUS THERE’S MORE!!!

Zoe, the owner of Make it Crafty has a super duper HUGE Candy give away – choc-a-block FULL of Make it Crafty goodies!! AND I have heard a whisper that she is planning on having random giveaways on her blog throughout the month of
July! All you need to do is leave her some love as she’ll randomly be choosing people who have commented on her posts throughout the last year!!
PLUS THERE’S EVEN MORE!!!
You’ll also receive a set of steak knives when you... hahaa ONLY Joking BUT... for THREE DAYS ONLY you’ll be able to get 40% off Make it Crafty Digi Stamps when you enter the coupon code: CELEBRATE (Ends June 28^th)

So I do hope you will celebrate with us this month and get into the Make it Crafty spirit of FUN!!

One of the challenges is to make a card/project using the colours from the
logo of 'Make It Crafty'.
So this is what I choose to do.
I have used 'Summer Dreams' and coloured her with copics. (List will
be at the end of the post).I used my prisma pencils to add a touch
of grass to 'ground' her.

The papers are MME 'Stella and Rose' Hazel 6 x 6 pad.
I have also used some of the ever so versatile Make It Crafty Chipboard.

The sentiment is stamped from the Brand new Whimsy 'Summer Letter Seals Sentiments'.

Thanks for your visit today. Hope you have time to join in all these fun celebrations!

Judy

Copics:
Skin: E000, E00, E11, E13, R20
Dress: BG000, BG11, BG13, BG13, BG15, BG18
Hat: Y21, Y23, Y26, Y28
Hair: C1, C7, C9, 100

A New Logo and a New Name

2011-06-24T15:19:00.001+01:00

Hi folks!

Yes you are at the right blog......this is me, Judy!

This is www.judyscraftymoments.blogspot.com :)

But I am in the middle of a rebrand :) I hope you like my new logo! I couldn't wait to show you it!

When I first started selling my cards I very quickly picked the name 'Fresh 'n' Funky Cards'.....and once you have it it is kind of hard to change. I never really like it. I didn't want my cards to be funky...I wanted something more elegant and sophisticated.

Anyway I decided that now was a good time to rebrand and pick a new name...so here is my big reveal to you.....

This is going to be the name of my new business. Over the summer months I will be building a brand new website for selling and my Etsy shop will be slowly moving over to my new shop 'Sparkle and Flourish'. I have not provided you with a link yet as there is nothing in it!! I will let you know more as and when I am able to do it.

So you can all still find me here at www.judyscraftymoments.blogspot.com, as blogger will redirect you, or you can now use this new address:

www.sparkleandflourish.com

I would love to hear if you like my new logo and new name.

Back soon!

Judy x

Sew Sweet - Baby Boy

2011-06-21T08:19:00.001+01:00

Morning everyone!

I am happy to share with a card today that I have made using some of my lovely goodies from Sew Sweet.

I made this Baby Boy card to go in my Etsy shop. I have used an all time favourite digi from Mo Manning for Baby Cards. I just love the way the baby is sleeping. My boys used to lie like this... so cute and adorable.

On this card I have also used some beautiful embellishments form Sew Sweet.

I have used on this card:

Have you seen the utterly gorgeous new seam binding Emma now has in stock?? So many colours...so many choices!!!

Don't forget her DT call and Friday Freebie over on her blog!

Copic colours used are:

Skin: E000, E00, E11, R20, R21

Nappy: B21, B24, B26

Ground: C00, C1, C3

Thanks for your visit today!

Judy x

You Mean the World to Me - Paper Makeup Stamps

2011-06-20T07:00:00.005+01:00

As part of Quixotic Paperie's 2nd Anniversary celebrations we are throwing the spotlight onto some of the fantastic stamp companies available from Quixotic Paperie and we have another gorgeous stamp company for you this week: Paper Makeup Stamps - 'Where Beauty and Paper Meet'

Paper Makeup is owned by Katie Cotton and to give you a clue as to where the name of her company came from - Katie is a professional makeup artist.

Katie has some fabulous artists contributing to her company including Steve Hammond with the Monsters range, Diem Pascarella's Beautiful Day Fairies, Moody Girls by Cynthia Liu and the Retro Cutie Critters by Diem Pascarella. But that isn't all, there are also some background and accessory stamps as well as some beautiful word art and sentiments and some fabulous sets all from various artists.

The Paper Makeup Stamps range is available in the UK/Europe at Quixotic Paperie. 
If you're in the US then you can find the stamps at Paper Makeup Stamps direct!
As part of the celebrations and the spotlight today, we have a PRIZE GIVEAWAY!  
Pop on over to the Quixotic Inspirations blog to get all the details and enter the draw to win some fantastic Paper Makeup Stamps and more!

For today I have chosen to use one of the sentiment stamps.  I love that these sentiment stamps can make a focal point for a quick and easy make. it is amazing how quickly a card can come together when no colouring is involved. It is also a nice chance to go a bit crazy with the embellishments!!

The sentiment stamp I have chosen to use can be purchased here. But beware there are over 70 different sentiments to choose from! You might be gone a while!

Other scrummy Quixotic Paperie products I have used on this card are:

Prima 6 x 6 Pad 'Madeline'

Make It Crafty - Laser Chipboard Swirls

So now for the inspiration! Hop on over to each of the blogs below to see some fantastic Paper Makeup Stamps fun!

- Elaine - Judy - Kim Dellow - Mary -
- Andrea - Tangii - Stephanie - Tina - Katie - Dawn -
- Randee - Lisa K - Jami - Anita - Michelle - Shaela -
Thanks for joining us and we hope you are enjoying all the Paper Makeup Stamps loveliness.

This card is now listed on Etsy for anyone interested in purchasing it!

Judy

Quixotic Paperie - Kraftin Kimmie Spotlight Day

2011-06-15T07:00:00.017+01:00

As part of Quixotic Paperie's 2nd Anniversary celebrations we are throwing the spotlight onto some of the fantastic stamp companies available from Quixotic Paperie.

This week it is the wonderful Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps in the spotlight.

We have some lovely samples to show you and would love for you to hop through the list below to see all the fabulous makes.

Kimmie started her stamp company in October 2009 and since then has bought us some wonderful images from some amazing artists: Annie Rodrigue with Moonlight Whispers, Cheryl Alger Designs, Steven Leary Designs, Crissy Armstrong with Crissy's Cuties and Jean Grant with Cindy and Mindy and now the latest addition Emilie's Etchings by Emilie Goulet.

The Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps range is available in the UK/Europe at Quixotic Paperie. If you're in Canada/US then you can find the stamps at Kraftin Kimmie Stamps direct!

Which is your favourite? Too hard to choose!

As part of the celebrations and the spotlight today, we have a PRIZE GIVEAWAY!

Pop on over to the Quixotic Inspirations blog to get all the details and enter the draw to win some fantastic Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps and more!

I have created for you a card using my all time favourite Cindy and Mindy image called 'Bench Friends'. The image is coloured with copics. the papers are Echo Park 'For the Record' Collection Kit.

So now for the some more inspiration! Hop on over to each of the blogs below to see some yummy Kraftin' Kimmie Stamp goodness!

- Elaine - Judy - Kim Costello - Kim Dellow - Mary -

- Kimmie - Angie - Tara - Tracy -

Thanks for joining us and we hope you enjoyed looking at all the lovely Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps.

Judy x

Simply Create

2011-06-14T10:50:00.000+01:00

Good morning guys!

Hope you are well today! I am sharing you with you today the cards I made for my class on Saturday at Simply Create.

I had a lovely class and it was so relaxed and enjoyable to do. I had such a wonderful bunch of ladies to work with.

We focused on colouring with prisma pencils and coloured in 2 Simply Sassy girls available from Funky Kits. We looked at colouring brown hair and black hair and touched a little bit on how to create contrast in your images.

The papers are all My Minds Eye and are in stock at Simply Create.

Here are the ladies hard at work. Cough cough....please excuse the coffee cups and cake remnants! Us ladies do like to relax whilst we are colouring!

It is even more wonderful to find a fellow crafter and find they live just a couple of streets along from you! I'm sure we will be seeing more of each other!

Thanks for popping by to say hello today!

have a great day!
Judy x

Sew Sweet Friday Freebie!

2011-06-10T18:00:00.002+01:00

Hi guys I just wanted to give you all a very quick reminder that Emma has a little Friday Freebie over on her Blog here. This one you really will want to enter...buttons, felt, brads, seam binding....WOW!!

She also is having a DT call which you really don't want to miss out on!

So hop on over and show her some love!

Judy x

A little Altering and a Grungepaper Rose Tutorial

2011-06-10T11:08:00.001+01:00

Hiya guys and gals!

You will know that this month is a special month for Quixotic Paperie as they are celebrating their second birthday.

In honour of this I am going to bring you a special post highlighting lots of products that are perfect for altering, available at Quixotic . Now I love to alter things, but I don't use anything special or fancy and I promise any of you who might think that it is too tricky...that if I can do it then anyone can!

Firts up I am going to show you a little box I have altered and I will highlight the Quixotic Paperie products I have used.

Products used:

Secondly I am going to show you how to alter a wooden frame and make a grungepaper rose to go on it! I will take you through this with step by step photos, again highlighting products you can purchase from QP.

The wooden photo frame is one you can buy from any craft store. These are the additional materials you will need.

Grungepaper
Distress Stain Ink ( I have used 'Fired Brick')
Staz On Ink pad
Distress Crackle Paint
Glimmer Mist 'Pearl'
Script back ground Stamp ( I have used one from Hero Arts)
Flower Stamp ( I have used one from Studio 490)

Step 1:

Paint your photo frame with 'Picket Fence' Distress Crackle Paint. leave to dry. Spritz with 'Pearl' Glimmer Mist for fabulous shine and enhancehment of the crackles! Hard to see in photo...but gorgeous in real life!

Step 2:

Stamp 4 flowers with Black Staz-On ink onto your Grungepaper.

Step 3:

Step 4:

Stain the flowers with the Distress Ink Stain. Do this a 2nd time for more vibrant colour!

With your Script background , stamp so the flowers are covered.

Step 5:

Cut out the flowers as shown in the picture. Thrown the left over pieces away.

Step 6:

Assemble the flower pieces together using Glossy accents and a clip to hold them in place whilst they dry. I like to use Tim Holtz Hinge Clips.

Step 7:

Once the separate flower pieces are dry, assemble the flower together using Glossy Accents. Add a finishing touch to the centre of the flower with an acrylic bead.

Step 8:

Attatch flower to your photo frame. Die cut a couple of leaves from Grungepaper and stain with 'Forest Moss' Distress Ink. Add a pearl spray and finish with an adhesive flourish on the opposite corner!

Phew! Is anyone still with me ??? If so, thank you. I did not invent the wheel here with my little tutorial as I am sure you can find many out there on how to make grungepaper roses. I just wanted to share with you the way i do it and also how you can put it once you have made it to good use!

Now if anyone does not want to make this altered photo frame for themselves, then yes you have guessed it, I will have this one up for sale in my Etsy shop :))

Thank you for your visit! I would love to hear if this has been a helpful tutorial for anyone, and if so , what kind of other tutorials would you like!

Judy x

Sew Sweet

2011-06-09T09:00:00.008+01:00

I said on Tuesday I had some exciting news....well I have been asked to be a Designer for Sew Sweet!
I am so chuffed to be asked to design for Emma! We have worked together in the past and it is fab to be in touch with her again and working together.

Not heard of Sew Sweet?? Well her online store is a delictable treasure trove of buttons, ribbon, felt, brads and fabulous findings.

The image is a digi from Mo Manning and the papers are Bo Bunny. The digi is from a set called the Diaper Crew. Love them and are perfect for baby cards. The image is coloured with copics ( I will leave a list at the bottom of this post).

So on this card I have used lots of lovely products you can buy over at Sew Sweet.

The card is finished with machine stitching and a little bit of distressing. The sentiment is computer generated. Please forgive me for the little blob on her arm. I was crafting late at night and I was kindly brought a glass of wine and a drop spilt on my image. Now normally I would scrap it and start again...but time was against me! Doh....!!

Now I hope you will all hop on over and have a browse through Emma's shop 'Sew Sweet' and also go have a look at her blog and become a follower. I know she has a little 'Friday Freebie' planned for tomorrow!

I look forward over the next few weeks to share with lots of the lovely things Emma has to offer!

This card will be appearing in my Etsy shop very soon.....with a brand new image, minus the wine blob!

I have also listed a bunch of stamps over on E-bay if anyone is interested in a bargain!

Back soon,

Judy

Copics used:

Skin: E000, E00, E11, E13 R20, R21

Nappy and Bow: R81, R83, R85, R89

Ground: C00, C1, C3, C5

Some Odd Girl

2011-06-07T12:07:00.001+01:00

Hiya Folks!

Just popping by with a brand new favourite stamp company of mine!! Quixotic Paperie has started stocking some new stamps from 'Some Odd Girl'...so I just had to grab a few! A new discovery for me. I love her style so much....Kristy (the illustrator) made my chibi and I bought a gorgeous print from her Etsy shop to go in my craft room!

Talking of Etsy...this little card will be for sale over there very shortly!

This is the first one I have had a chance to colour and is called 'Balloon Kaylee' and you have the chance to get her with 10% off until tomorrow!

She is coloured with copics and I have added a couple of touches with a white opaque pen. The papers are Echo Park 'Little Boy' Collection Kit. Which is gorgeous for funky girl's cards too!

The sentiment comes with the stamp and I have added a little seam binding and a button and twine to finsh. And of course the usual machine stitching....would be bare without it!

Don't forget the 2nd Birthday Celebrations at Quixotic Paperie!

SPECIAL ANNIVERSARY OFFER!

1st June 2011 to midnight on 8th June 2011

10% Off Throughout the Store!

(Offer does not stack with existing offers or discount coupons and does not apply to Gift Certificates)

Back on Thursday with some exciting news!!!

Judy x

A Quixotic CASE study!

2011-06-03T11:16:00.000+01:00

Hiya folks,

Today is going to be a busy day. It is Sports Day for my kiddos and for the first time in many years....it is going to be warm AND sunny! Woo hoo...suncream here we come!

In the morning I watch my youngest two and then in the afternoon I watch my eldest. Will I wear my trainers and give it a go in the Mother's race...I do have a title to defend.???

So a real quickie here from me. Today;'s card is a CASE ( Copy and Share Everything!) study of the most exquisetely talented Chris dark from Sketching Stamper. When I saw here post this card a few weeks ago I mentally stored if for one day to ahve a try at this!

So I first of all stamped 'Giddy Up Horsey' from Belles and Whistles onto kraft cardstock. I then coloured the image rely with prisma pencils. I added a couple of eyelets and some doodles with a white ink pen.I used Go Kreate dies to create the wavy card shapes. The flowers are from a Sizzix die with a gorgeous acrylic bead in the centre.

Thank you Chris for allowing me to CASE your card!

Judy x

Chibi'd and Classes!

2011-06-02T10:04:00.000+01:00

A little bit newsy today !

Firstly I was very excited to get my Chibi! Now if any of you don't know what I am talking about yet....then
have a look here.

The very talented Kristy from ''Some Odd Girl' Stamps drew this from a photo of me. I love how I look about 22......no grey hair, wrinkles anymore. I am going to stay youthful for a loooooooooong time to come!

Secondly I just want give a wee shout out for the class I will be taking next Saturday 11th June @ Simply Create, Alford.

The class is ALMOST full ...but I think there are a couple of wee places left.

The class starts at 1:30 and for a couple of hours we will be having relaxed fun with prisma pencils and some gorgeous My Minds Eye papers. At the end you will come away with a couple of beautiful handmade cards.

Sound like fun? The give Jacqui a call on.......01975564010

Thanks guys,

Back soon,
Judy x

Happy Birthday to you!

2011-06-01T09:00:00.107+01:00

Today is an exciting day! Why? It marks the 2nd Anniversary for Quixotic Paperie!

2 years ago on 1st June 2009, Elaine (Quixotic Cards) took the leap and opened an online craft store selling a small selection of crafty stash. Now, the store features stamps from favourite companies around the world, lots of pretty papers and embellishments and other papercrafting favourites.

To celebrate this year, we have a month filled with fun! Stick with us as we show off projects featuring products from around the store, bring you tutorials and tips, and throw the spotlight on some of the awesome stamp companies in stock at Quixotic Paperie! There will be prizes along the way (and a big one at the end of the month), so you won't want to miss a thing!

To get the ball rolling, this week there is a birthday special offer at Quixotic Paperie:

1st June to 8th June 2011

10% Off Throughout The Store!

(This does not stack with existing sale offers or discount coupons, and does not include Gift Certificates.)

Plus, the Design Team are all showing off their favourite creations from their time so far with Quixotic Paperie!

Pay a visit to the rest of the team to see a round up of their favourite makes.

* ANNIKA * ELAINE * JUDY *

* KIM C * KIM D * MARY * ROWENA *

I have several of my favourite Quixotic Paperie Makes to share! I had a lot of fun browsing through the past couple of years....how tough it was to pick just the 5 :)

Products used:

Belles and Whistles - Tubewear

Products used:

Thanks for your visit! I hope you have the time to visit the other DT members favourites!

Judy x

Memories Box

2011-05-31T09:32:00.000+01:00

Here is a wee something I made earlier. Not a card! But I do LOVE making altered boxes and other bits and pieces!

Before I tell you a little more about it I want to thank you ALL who left a comment on my last post. You girls are so encouraging. It was great to hear some tips about how some of you do make Craft Fairs work. And I know a lot of you have had much the same experiences as me. I think it is fair to say that handmade items are generally not valued outside our own little craft world.

For now I am going to be sticking with Etsy!

To make this box I first painted it with blue acrylic paint. Then once it is dry I added a layer of PVA glue. Whilst this is still wet I then add a layer of white acrylic paint. this then dries to give the fabulous crackle effect. I then added the Tim Holtz photo corners and the flowers arrangement..

Thank you all again for you support! You know how to cheer a girl up :)

Judy x

What was the point?

2011-05-29T15:39:00.000+01:00

Well I have a little bit of musing for you today and I would love to hear what you all think!

You might have noticed ...or maybe not...that I have been missing a bit around blogland. I have dedicated a lot of time getting ready for a Ladies Pamper Evening that took place on Friday night. I was very kindly asked if I would like a table.

So I have been busy beavering away behind the scenes ALL last week. I did not meet up with anyone for coffee, my kids lived on stuff out of the freezer and I did not do any housework...just so that I could have a table full of stock.

Bet you can guess where I am going there with this one! Well the hall was FULL of glamorous women with lots of cash to spend. I had lots of oohhs and ahhs and this is lovely from many admirers ...but on the night I only sold a handful of tags and a couple of altered pegs. It was most certainly NOT worth all the sweat and hard work that I had put into it..

So I have a couple of questions for you my lovely readers.....,

Do you do Craft Fairs?

And if so, is it worth the effort that goes into getting a table full of stuff ready?

What do you find sells... lost cost items only?

What type of events work best for you...ladies only evenings or family friendly school type affairs?

I would love to hear your thoughts. I feel a bit rubbish about it now. Anyway I will stop the pity party and get over it and move on :)

I am glad I did it...if only to learn about what people don't want!

Back soon with cheerier posts!! LOL!

Judy x

Little Foxes!

2011-05-27T12:07:00.001+01:00

Gorjuss - Little Foxes!

Firstly my apologies for not having anything new to share with you today. It has been a crazy busy week behind the scenes chez moi. I will ahve some photos to share with what I ahve been up to tomorrow :)

So I thought I would go through some of my back catologues and find you a card I made a while back!

This stamp continues to be one of my favourite stamps! It is so versatile. You can colour it to make a winter card or a spring/summer card. This is a newly re-released Gorjuss stamp and is called 'Little Foxes'. It now comes with a few additional extra stamps so you can make a wee scene with it! Bargain!

This card is coloured entirely with prisma pencisl and I have embellished it with some Tim Holtz goodies and some of my favourite Kraft cardstock which is available right here at Quixotic Paperie

Thanks for popping by!

Have a great weekend one and all!

Judy x

Carmen Medlin - Natural Beauty Release adn Blog Hop!

2011-05-20T09:31:00.000+01:00

Heloo everyone!

The stunning new collection by Carmen Medlin for SCACD Stamps is now IN STOCK at Quixotic Paperie!

There are SEVEN beautifully illustrated new stamps, which are available individually or as a discounted full sheet!

PLUS you can enjoy a blog hop packed with inspiration! Get started by visiting ELAINE'S BLOG.

Judy

Ruby, Ruby , Ruby....

2011-05-19T09:35:00.001+01:00

Morning all!

Hope you are all well this fine morning! I have a 'Gorjuss' new image 'Ruby' to share with you that you can get right here at Quixotic Paperie. Isn't she lovely?

She is coloured with copics and I have used prisma pencils to create the background around her. The camera seems to have washed that out quite a lot. It is a little less subtle in real life!

The papers I have used are Echo Park 'For The Record'. I have punched out a few flowers above her swing and then added an big adhesive flourish to bling it up!

The black flowers are a first for me and are made out of metal.
I bought a black metal sheet as I was hoping to make some grungy stuff but instead I used it to make some pretty flowers! They are punched out and then run thorough a spotty embossing floder. I then sanded them down so you would see the silver coming though. Then the metal is such a doddle to shape and bend! A new thing to my reptoire that I love :)

Watch this space for more metal flowers ....

Now I love this girl so much that I decided to frame her! I made her into a piece of art that will match the card and hopefully make someone a lovely gift !

So here they are both together :) Sorry the frame is so blurry...makes it look arty though eh???

OK I will have this pair up for sale in my Etsy shop later today.

A wee heads up for tomorrow that you don't want to miss...there is going to be a fab blog hop and stamp release from Carmen Medillin. I will have a wee post for you tomorrow with all the details and info.

Have a great day!

Judy x

I Love You Dad!

2011-05-17T10:54:00.000+01:00

Morning Folks!

Just a flying visit...I am on a cleaning day :) Bathrooms, washing, floors..blah blah...the list goes on.

I wanted to share with you a grungy, manly kind of card that I made for Father's Day. It was very much inspired by one Tami Hartley made for the Hero Arts blog a few weeks ago. Her one was a Birthday card but with a few tweaks I have made it into a Father's Day card. This is not my usual style of card, with the stamped and coloured image missing, so I have followed very closely to her design. As I get more confidence in this kind of style I will hopefully have more of my own design ideas!

First up, to make this card I stamped a background definition stamp in black ink from Verve onto grey card stock. I then gave the card a good scrunch and crumple for the distressed look. I added a couple of eyelets to the right hand side and then embossed in silver using a Hero Arts background stamp the circles.

I then painted a wash of white acrylic paint across the centre and once it was dry I added the sentiment. Again this was from Hero Arts. Finally I die cut the star and wrapped some twine around it . Ta da...my Hero Arts inspired Father's Day card.

It is great as I can make a few of these fairly quickly for all the Dad's that need a card and I even have some spare to pop in my Etsy shop :)

If you have any questions , please ask or you can go check out the link I gave you for fuller instructions on how to make this.
Thank you for stopping by.
Right back to work for me!

See you soon!
Judy

Big Hugs!

2011-05-13T18:33:00.001+01:00

Well hello guys! I wondered when I was going to get this posted...Hooray for blogger fixing itself :)

So today I have stamped and coloured the wonderful image from Elisabeth Bell called 'A Pen Friend' now available from Belles and Whistles and can be bought at Quixotic Paperie. She is coloured entirely with pencils....back to my roots! ooops I lied slightly. Just her skin is done with copics and a little touch of Henna pencil for the shadows on her face. You know sometimes I forget just how MUCH I *heart* my prismas!

OK some of the other yummy gorgeous products I used on this card that can be found in Quxiotic are:

Prima 6 x 6 'Madeline'

Stempelglede 'Just a Note'

All the papers are stitched and then I added some gorgeous seam binding ribbon and a wooden button to finish.

Here is a wee peek of the inside.

This card can be bought from my Etsy shop here.

I have started adding some large watermarks over my images now, as many of you will be aware that there are some very unscrupulous sellers over on e-bay who are pinching our card images and selling them off as their own on CD's. I have found that many of my card images have been stolen. So ladies do what you can to protect your own work. If you have not done so sign up for your work to be protected by Copyright ( click on the link at the top right of my sidebar if you need to know how to do this) and also add watermarks over your images so that it makes it harder for these thieves to steal and make a profit from our work.

Thanks for visiting and I hope you all have a wonderful weekend!

Judy x

Craft Stamper - June 2011 Issue

2011-05-11T09:30:00.001+01:00

Girlies I am so excited to tell ya that I have another wee article in this months Craft Stamper! Yeah Baby!

This month is a follow on from last months skin tutorials and I have created some hair - colouring tutorials. I have used the amazing Simply Sassy's stamps from Sugar Nellie , as the hair on these girls is A-MA-ZING!

These photos I have shown you today are just a little sneek peek of what you can find inside the mag!

I have shown you how to colour brown, black and blonde hair and it is complete with step-by step photos.

This is a fabby issue this month with some great Father's Day ideas. I am certainly going to be trying out the Faux Leather Wallet idea.

If you would like to order a copy of this month's issue and are not a subscriber, you can get one here at Quixotic Paperie.

Thanks so much for your visit today!

Judy

NEW Stash for Sale!

2011-05-06T16:35:00.000+01:00

Hello everyone!

I have been busy today updating my 'Stash for sale' page!

I am having a stamp clear out ...so go check out the tab at the top of my page or click here.

All prices include postage and packing within UK. If you are International please feel free to purchase the stamps but I mayy have to charge a little bit extra on top for postage. I can give you a quote once I know which stamps you are purchasing.

I have uploaded only a SMALL amount of stamps today.....so in the next few days feel free to keep checking back as whenever I get a spare minute I will be adding more :)

Thanks guys!

Any questions...feel free to ask!

Judy x

You're tea-rific! - Quixotic Paperie

2011-05-06T08:23:00.001+01:00

I have had this sentiment for sooooo long and have been dying to use it!

I am so happy now that I have an image to match my 'tea-rrific sentiment!'

I am happy to be back sharing with you some lovely goodies you can find in Quixotic Paperie.

So toady I used one of the new range of Stamping Bella stamps that Elaine now stocks at Quixotic Paperie. The new range is by artist Christy Croll. She is called Alice. I just LOVE her style. I can see a few more of these finding a home with me :)

The image is coloured with copics and prisma pencils for shading. The papers are my current favourite pad...which is running a bit low now! the pad is MME 'Stella and Rose' Hattie collection. I also used some adorable laser cut chipboard shapes from Make It Crafty that Elaine is now stocking.

So that is it from me today! Thanks for your visit!

This cards is for sale in my Etsy shop right now!

Have a fabulous weekend!

Judy x

A New Gorjuss girl - Little Heart

2011-04-29T08:00:00.001+01:00

Wooo hoooo...is anyone excited??? I am....once this is all posted I will be sitting down watching The Big Day! I can still remember watching Charles and Di getting married on an old colour telly that we hired for the day!

Even my kids are excited about today....maybe that is because they are getting the day off school!

OK down to business. Today I have to share with you some gorgeous goodies from Quixotic Paperie. Can I just say that Elaine's shop goes from strength to strength. I have to resist temptation to buy all the lovely goodies she has in stock. I feel incredibly lucky to be designing for her. Here is the link to all the 'New Arrivals' . See if you can resist!

This Gorjuss Girl is called 'Little Heart' and she comes with some lovely little additional images. The papers I used today are from Prima 'Moulin Rouge'.

Don't forget that this weekend there is special offer of free postage on any orders over £25.

Have a wonderful weekend!

Judy

Dear blog...

2011-04-27T15:53:00.001+01:00

Dear blog,

I do love you very much and I am truly sorry for neglecting you off late. We have been together, well now it is 2 1/2 years and you have been a part of my daily life (almost!).

Somehow, now I find it so hard to find spending time with you...maybe it is the gorgeous sunshine we are having. I find myself wanting to be outdoors instead of sitting looking at you (please don't take it personally!). Or maybe it is the fact that during April the kids are only in school for 8 days...whatever the reason....I have not managed to spend as much time with you as I would like.

Also, some wonderful opportunities have popped up in the outside world. I am currently designing altered wooden boxes for an online company (will let you know when I can reveal some more!) and running some children's parties, doing some craft fairs, prismacolour classes, magazine work and running my Etsy shop.......which are all so much fun.

So I have just popped by today to say sorry and that I will be back with you soon !

I will now hereby pledge to come by and visit you at least twice a week during the summer but any more than that might be difficult. I will be here every Friday with some 'Quixotic Inspiration' and at least once more per week:)

So my dear blog, I hope you understand this season of my life and that I still do love you. Things will change in the Autumn...I know they will! Please do not forget me and I hope you can forgive me....

with affection,

Judy

P.S. Hope you like the spring piccies of my garden !

Little Friend - Quixotic Paperie

2011-04-22T08:00:00.012+01:00

Hiya folks,

Happy Easter you you all! I hope you all have a wonderful weekend.

Today is Friday and that means it is is my turn to share with you some lovelies from Quixotic Paperie.

First up we have this gorgeous stamp 'Little Friends' released by Belles and Whistles, available to but here in the Uk from Quixotic Paperie. many of you will recognise this gorgeous image from its first time around where it was available from Sugar Nellie.

I think it goes without saying that Karen from Sugar Nellie has an incredible knack of spotting wonderful artists. Karen was the very first to bring us the amazingly talented Elisabeth bell, whose stamp illustrations are now known worldwide! I am proud to have designed for this small Scottish stamp company for 2 years!

So now a whole bunch of Elisabeths' Sweet Art' (originally from Sugar Nellie) have now been released again. Click here to check out the whole collection.

I have coloured the image with prisma pencils and have used chalk for the sky background. I alos used some Go Kreate dies to cut the wavy shapes....I quite like it!

Thanks so much for your visit today :)

All your comments are very much appreciated!

This card will be for sale in Etsy shop later on today :)

Judy xx

Mr and Mrs!

2011-04-18T08:32:00.000+01:00

I was asked recently if I could make a wedding card for a friend (hello Michael!). I was delighted to do so and rumaged around in my box (es!) of stamps to find a suitable one. As this card was from a bloke to his brother ..man to man....I din't want the image to be too girly or cute...but then again the card was for a wedding so had to be pretty but not too masculine.

So out came a very old ...but eminently suitable wood mounted 'Stampendous' stamp. This must have been one of the very first stamps I bought. Now I have a cupboard full :)

Having never attempted yet a WOW (white on white card) I knew that this was the perfect time! The image is coloured with prisma pencils and some stickles for her veil. The edging of the image is also done in stickles. I stamped the sentiment and the image in Memento Brown ink to give it a softer look. I have used a gorgeous doily and some embossed cardstock to make the base of the card. I have made some more of the rolled flowers.....coz I just love them! I then tied a bow with some organza ribbon, added a little ribbon slider and some lovely paper rose buds.

This card will be popping into my Etsy shop today!

Thanks for your visit....as always it is greatly appreciated!

Judy x

Mum-to-be!

2011-04-16T18:44:00.000+01:00

Hiya folks!

It is fab to be back sharing with you.

I was going to have some posts scheduled while I was away on holiday this past week. However our hard drive died. Boooo!

It was amazing really as we have kept talking about backing up our photos and documents etc and Norm was given a freebie at work of an external hard drive and so we backed up everything purely because it was handed to us on a plate. If it had just been left to us it would have been another of those things we 'should get around to doing'. Then not 2 days later the whole computer went dead and we lost everything..... but having left it in the hands of an 'expert' while we were away on holiday we have arrived home to a working PC again! Phew....not one photo or document lost! Praise the Lord!

So this is a card I made just before we went away to Edinburgh for a few days.

The image is from Mo Manning and is coloured with copics. The papers are Bo Bunny onto which i ahve added a little machine stitching. It would look bare without it wouldn't it???

I have used an MFT die to create the spiral flowers with a gorgeous acrylic bead from Quixotic Paperie for the centre. A little seam binding bow and a button to finish! Oh and the sentiment is from Hero Arts and I have just curled it to give it a little bit of dimension.

This card will be winging its way to my Etsy shop this evening :)

Hope you all have a wonderful rest of your weekend!

Thanks for popping by!

Judy x

A Friend Loves at all Times

2011-04-09T08:59:00.000+01:00

Hi Guys,

I fancied sharing with you a little something I made for my Etsy shop.

I really wanted to make some pieces that folk could buy and maybe keep for themselves. I know how hard it can be sometimes to part with a card. So I bought some pictures frames and then distressed some old book paper for the background.. The Bible verse I printed out from the computer, cut out and distressed the edges.

The Gorjuss girl is coloured with prismas cut out and mounted onto the picture. I then coated the whole picture in Mod Podge to seal it all and protect it.

I am certainly going to be making some more of these ...with different verses and quotes. I am already in the process of making another for my sister to give to a friend as a gift.

Thanks for popping by today.

I really appreciate all your lovely comments.

Judy

The Peekers Blog Hop

2011-04-08T08:00:00.001+01:00

Introducing...The Peekers by Elisabeth Bell for SCACD Stamps!

The Quixotic Paperie design team have once again joined forces with the SCACD design team for this blog hop to celebrate the release of THE PEEKERS by Elisabeth Bell. We think you'll agree, these are some of the most adorable images by Elisabeth Bell, truly capturing the mischief and innocence of childhood.

There are FIVE adorable Peekers in this release, and they are available either individually or as a full set at a special discounted price!

If you're in the UK/Europe you can buy the stamps NOW at Quixotic Paperie.

If you're in the US you can buy the stamps NOW at Susana's Custom Art & Card Design

On to the hop!

If you have hopped on over here from Marti then you are on the right track, if not then the first blog on the hop you need to go to is Kim G's Blog - Crafts By Kim.

For my make I have used 'New Beginnings Peeker'. Isn't she a proud big sister??

She is coloured with copics and I have used to chalk for the background...so quick and easy!

The papers are Marianne Design 'In the Meadow'.

The next stop on your journey is Danni!

Enjoy the hop!

Judy xx

Simply Create and Craft Stamper E-Zine

2011-04-02T10:49:00.001+01:00

Morning folks!

Just a couple of things to share with you today. The first being a card I made for the Simply Create DT. Jacqui sent us some Hero Arts stamps to play with. I received the 'Leaf Clusters' set. I admit to being a little bit stumped as to what to do. However I am always inspired by the beautiful work on the Hero Arts blog and often wish I could create cards like that.

Sometimes I feel that I get stuck in a style rut...that I HAVE to stamp and colour an image. So I found that recently on the Hero Arts blog that Shari Carroll had created a video on how to do multi layered backgrounds. So I followed her video tutorial using the materials and stamps that I had to hand and came up with this.

I will tell you briefly how the card was made but if you want full info and details you can watch her video here!

I firstly stamped and heat embossed in white the Friendship definition background stamp from SU!. I then inked and misted my acrylic block with Frayed Burlap to created the background. I then stamped, and misted the Leaf Clusters in various Distress Ink colours and stamped on top of the background stamp.

I then made the rest of the card up with bits and pieces I had from Simply Create!

Secondly I want to point you in the direction of very inspiring freebie! Craft Stamper have put together a FREE downloadable e-zine of the best projects from 2010 as voted for by readers. It contains 12 complete step by step projects. Feel free to take the button on my sidebar and if you post it on your own blog and then leave a comment on the Craft Stamper blog, there is some blog candy up for grabs.

Thats all from me folks!

Have a great weekend!
Judy x

Hugs and Fishes

2011-04-01T09:08:00.000+01:00

Morning!

Wow thank you all so much for your comments yesterday. They are truly appreciated. You are a lovely bunch!

Today is Fri which means only one thing...yup it is time to show some yummies available from Quixotic Paperie!

My card today features a Greeting Farm chap called Oliver from the set called 'My Favourite Things'. He is coloured with copics and I have blended some prisma pencil for the background. I also used some Glossy Accents for his fishbowl to give it some dimension. Now I am almost at the end of the bottle, so I was giving it a good shake and a squeeze and what happened but a HUGE blob just dripped onto my page. Luckily it was mostly in the right place, on the fishbowl. So I kind of pushed this massive blob onto the Fishbowl and I was amazed at how good this stuff is as not of it leaked over the edges. It just stays where it is put! So now I have a VERY dimensional fishbowl :)

The papers are again my very favourite MME Stella and Rose 'Hattie' collection and I have used some delicious Bakers Twine to wrap around with my button.

A quick view of the inside of the card.

And finally a wee shot of the copics used.

Thanks for your visit today. I hope you all have a good weekend. Our Easter Break starts today at 3:15pm! Yippee!! And we have the in-laws arriving a couple of hours later so I going to get off here now and get those bathrooms etc gleaming!

Chat soon,
Judy

Cover of a magazine !!

2011-03-31T09:32:00.001+01:00

Hey crafty ladies!

I just wanted to share with you my excitement of being on the front cover of this month's Craft Stamper!!

I have created some copic tutorials on colouring different skin tones. Itwas really fun to do. Here are a couple of sneek peeks. If you would like a copy you can purchase one from Quixotic Paperie or from your local WHSmith (should be out in stores tomorrow 1st April) . The lovely Kim Costello also has some beautiful cards using the Stempelglede stamps, also available from Quixotic Paperie.

Now onto some other exciting news from SCACD!

Elaine is showing a preview of the upcoming and totally adorable new release by Elisabeth Bell for SCACD Stamps, over on her blog - Quixotic Cards - today!

The Elisabeth Bell for SCACD "Peeker" release will be available on Friday 8th April 2011 from Susana’s Custom Art & Card Design in the US and from Quixotic Paperie for UK/European customers!

More previews will be posted by the SCACD Design Team over the next few days, so keep your eyes on the SCACD Store Blog!

Back soon,

Judy x

Gorjuss on Kraft - Simply Create

2011-03-26T10:07:00.000Z

Hi Guys!

While you read this I will be over at Simply Create with a lovely group of ladies making these cards with them!

In my class we mainly focus on prisma pencil coloring techniques. So today we are going to be colouring on kraft cardstock....a real favourite of mine ! I love the vibrancy you can create with this effect. Today we will be working on colouring black hair and blending techniques without the use of Sansador.

We will be colouring some Gorjuss stamps. And look no designer paper!! I created the background by stamping a Hero Arts Design Block onto the kraft cardstock with Walnut Stain Ink. The sentiment is from a Wendy Vecchi Studio 490 set.

The second card again is fairly simple and requires little explanation! Again the image is coloured with prismas onto kraft. And again the background is stamped with a design block, except this time it is from Stampin Up.

I have pre-ordered some of the new Gorjuss stamps and I can't wait to get playing with them! They said they would be here by the end of March so that is only a few days away :))

Thanks for your visit today. I hope you all have a lovely weekend.
If you have any questions please ask !

Judy x

It's all about the shoes!

2011-03-25T10:00:00.001Z

Good morning! It is Friday and that means it is time for me to share with you some lovely Quixotic Paperie products.

Today I have coloured a lovely Kaftin Kimmie stamp. This one is called 'Cinderella'. When I saw this stamp I knew I wanted to have a go colouring all the delicious folds of her dress. What a lovely challenge to bring her dress to life. The sentiment on the card comes with the image when you purchase it!

I have also used some lovely papers from Prima called 'Moulin Rouge'. I love the deep rich colours on this 6 x 6 pad. The flowers are made from a MFT (My Favourite Things) die, which are now available at Stampeezee. For the centre of the flowers I used one of the gorgeous beads from Quixotic Paperie.

A little close up of the flowers.

Thanks for your visit today! I am off now to sharpen all my pencils and get ready for my next class over at Simply Create. We are going to be doing colouring on Kraft with some Gorjuss images...2 of my favourite things!

I will show you the cards that we are making tomorrow!

Have a fabulous Friday!

Judy

Copics used:

Skin: E000, E00, E11, E13, R20

Dress: R81, R83, R85, R89, R000

Hair: E41, E43, E44, E47

Background: C00, C1, C3

Celebrate!

2011-03-23T09:43:00.000Z

Morning everyone! What a beautiful spring day here! I am going to be brief here so I can go and have my morning coffee outside in the garden :)

Again today I have a card to share with you that I made for another customer. I coloured Popcorn the Bear with prismacolor pencils and blended with mineral spirits. I have kept the card simple because the card is for a little boy and the image is quite large so the card doesn't need a lot else to it! The sentiment comes with the image...so makes a perfect little set!

The papers are MME 'Stella and Rose' Hattie collection, available from Quixotic Paperie.
I just added a few brads and a punched out photo corner. The inside is also decorated but I won't show a photo as it is personal to my customer:)

Thanks for your visit today :) Great to have you here!!

Back soon!

Judy x

Tilda and Edwin Mother's Day Card

2011-03-22T08:21:00.000Z

Way hay! It is so nice to be back with you sharing a card! Life has been very full of things other than crafting.

So today I have to share with you a card that I have made on request for a customer. I was delighted to get a chance to colour some of the new Tilda and Edwin's!

I made an easel card and used the reverse side of some very old papers I had in my vast collection :) I am on a mission to use up lots of stash instead of being enticed by all that is new and shiny. I had a great clear out when I moved upstairs to my craft room and found some very worthy recipents of my unwanted items.

So I used some flowers from Wild Orchid Crafts to create my little arrangement and the butterfly is a Martha Stewart punch. The sentiment is created from the computer.

I have had a few questions about the sewing machine I use. I use a Janome Mini which I bought from John Lewis a couple of years ago for £50. It is just perfect for my needs and can stitch through a maximum of 3 sheets of paper or card. i wouldn't try any more than that! I don't use it for stitching fabric. I would suggest if you want to do that then you should invest in a sturdier model. For my needs in papercrafting...I LOVE it and would thoroughly recommend this model.

Thanks for your visit today and all your lovely comments.

Have a wonderful day!

Judy x

Flora Bonita - Quixotic Paperie

2011-03-11T10:42:00.000Z

Morning folks!

I am back this lovely cold and sunny morning with a card to share with you from the new release from Victoria Case available from Quixotic Paperie.

This lovely lady is called 'Flora Bonita'. I especially enjoyed colouring her lovely locks of hair! List of copics used will be at the bottom of the post.

I chose to make a circular easel card. These are made with exactly the same way as a normal square easel card...just use your circle nesties instead!

The sentiment is from the Stempelglede set called 'Just A Note'. I used a little Tim Holtz handle thingy...not sure what they are called to make a little secret panel underneath where you can write your message.

Thanks for visiting today! It might be a few days before I am back as I have my Mum coming to stay next week and we will be spending time chatting and having lots of coffee I hope :))

Please excuse my photos today..they are slightly out of focus and easel cards are notoriously hard to capture!

Have a great weekend everyone!

Judy x

Simply Create Challenge - Mood Board #2

2011-03-10T12:00:00.001Z

Jacqui, over on the Simply Create blog has posted up another challenge with another wonderful prize! The prize is £100 worth of crafting goodies! Plus a few more surprises thrown in. Even better the DT are allowed to enter :)

So the challenge is to create something using the mood board above and also to inlcude a flower and a button in your project.

So this is what I came up with. I chose one of my favourite Hanglars that was uninked. She is coloured with copics with some stickles for her wings. Copic list will be at the bottom of the post.

I picked out out the colours dark pink, light pink and the muted turquoise. The papers I used were spotty bazzil card stock which mirrored the spotty cushions and the pretty floral paper (Marianne Design ' In the Meadow') which complimented the flowers in the mood board.

I used 2 of my favourite Dies from MFT ...the rolled circle flowers and the scalloped border. The scalloped border is taken from the scallops of the turquoise paper ornament on the Mood Board. I wanted to create a pretty floral display with the colours from the mood board. I then machine stitched all the layers in this card and finally the sentiment is from Stampin Up!

I will be popping this card into my Etsy shop later this afternoon for anyone who is interested :)

Thanks for your visit today and all your lovely compliments on my craft room yesterday! I am now off to give it a wee tidy as already there is stuff everywhere after creating last night!

So don't forget if you want to join in the challenge you have until 30th March to do so. Read all about it here.

Judy x

Copics used:

Skin: E000, E00, E11, E13, R20,

Pinks: R81, R83, R85, R89, R0000

Turquoises: BG0000, BG02, BG72,

Greys: T1, T2, T3, T4, T5

My Little Craft Space - WOYWW - Lots of Piccies!!

2011-03-09T10:01:00.001Z

Ok as promised!

A few piccies of my new space.

My apologies that I can't get a full view of my room. As I have mentioned before it is quite little :) So wherever I stand in the room I can only get like a little corner of the room in shot. You will have to use your imagination to piece it all together!

So this was where I worked beforehand...on the dining room table. And it pretty much always looked like this. Or worse!

And now my dining table looks like this! That makes me happy!

So now let me take you upstairs to my little room!

Behind the door is a small but fantastic cupboard. So the next couple of photos are the shelves inside that.
The boxes have my stamps sorted by company.

This shelf holds buttons, paints, sizzix dies, paper,crop-o-dile blah blah blah

Across the length of the room my wonderful husband built a worktop. I can't fit it all into shot ! So onto the far left corner are all my colouring materials.

On the far right is my tool bag and mini-sewing machine.

And this is the middle of the worktop where all my work will get done! I have a few coloured images...just getting ready for my next class at Simply Create and some that will be appearing on cards soon!

I also have a chest of drawers and this is the top of them:) The little Ikea drawers I altered are looking a bit tired now. I need to tidy them out and re-label them I think.

I recently purchased one of these paper storage racks and I can now see what cardstock I have. I am going to save up and get another one for my patterned paper.

So thank you for bearing with me on all the photos! This is now a wonderful little haven for creating. I now feel when I come up here my work is more focused. I have everything at hand. I know and appreciate how fortunate I am to have this wonderful little space.

I am going to be entering in to WOYWW (What's on Your Workdesk Wednesday!)

Thanks so much for your visit!

Judy xx

Hey Dude!

2011-03-08T10:12:00.000Z

Morning folks!

It is great to be back sharing with you. I have been busy this weekend painting and hammering and organising my new craft room. YEAH!! It has been so much fun creating this little space that will be all my own!It is like a little haven :) I will try and take photos, but it is so very small that I can only capture tiny little corners of the room and not get a feel of it. I will be back tomorrow with one or two anyway!

So here is my first creation made in my very own craft room! This card uses Simon from one of the new Mo Manning Stamp releases from Stampavie available from Quixotic Paperie. He is coloured with copics. I will put a list at the bottom of the post.

Other products I used are :

MME Stella and Rose 6 x6 pad 'Hattie'
Hero Arts Sentiment
Stampin Up Silver Brads
Sewing machine
button from stash

I always love Mo's images and they will always remain high on my favourites list !

This card will be available in my Etsy shop later today!

Have a great day!

Judy x

Copics used:

Skin: E000, E00, E11, E13, R20

Trousers: E41, E43, E44, E47

Top: YR000, YR23, YR24,

Skateboard: BG000, BG00, BG02, C1, C3, C5

Blog Hop - Quixotic And SCACD

2011-03-04T09:00:00.002Z

Welcome to the March stamp release from Susana's Custom Art And Card Design.

The Quixotic Paperie design team and special guest Jane Johnson have the honour to join up with the SCACD design team for this blog hop to celebrate the release of some fantastic new stamps from artist Victoria Case. This time Victoria has illustrated some stunning ladies - The Bonitas and some super fun Retro Girls!

If you have just arrived here then you might want to go back one step and start at the beginning. The first blog on the hop you need to go to is Crafts By Kim.

For my make I have used 'Call Me'. Isn't she very chic?? My card today is inspired by Inge. She makes THE most wonderful layered and scrappy cards and I really fancied having a go at her style. I am happy with the way my card turned out :)

I have also used:

Prima 6 x6 Pad 'Sweet Fairy'

Prima E-Line Flowers - Fuschia

For those of you in the UK and EU you can get this and the other lovely Victoria Case stamps from Quixotic Paperie. For those of you in Canada and USA check out Susana's Custom Art And Card Design!

The next stop on your journey is the mega talented Elaine of Quixotic Paperie.

Enjoy the rest of the hop!

Thank you guys for bearing with me with my irregular posting! I hope to fill you in with lots of chat and cards next week :))

Judy x

Quixotic Paperie - Cameo Rose

2011-02-25T11:09:00.000Z

Morning folks!

Is is too much to think that spring might have arrived?? It is truly gorgeous here today. I might even cast my jacket aside to stroll in the morning sunshine without it!

I am sorry to be so quiet this week. I have had lots of other things going on on the 'must do' list!

So anyway here I am with a gorgeous new stamp from SCACD illustrated by Elisabeth Bell. This beauty is called'Cameo Rose' and is available, as always at Quixotic Paperie.

I have coloured this image with prisma pencils. The papers are also lovely scrummy new ones available at Quixotic Paperie by Prima called 'Moulin Rouge'. I hunted around my stash as I knew I had mini cameo lying somewhere. I was happy to find it and stamped the sentiment to go inside the centre of it.

Thanks for your visit today. I hope to be back soon!

Judy x

Quixotic Paperie - Kim's in Awe!

2011-02-18T11:03:00.000Z

Good morning! I have a card to share with you today showing you one of the new Elisabeth Bell releases for SCACD, availabe at Quixotic Paperie.

This lovely spring-time image is called 'Kim's in Awe'. She is coloured entirely with copics with a little bit of prisma pencil for the grass.

The gorgeous papers I have used are the new MME 'Stella and Rose' Mabel 6 x 6 pad. These colours are so fresh and happy unlike the grey dreich weather we are having here. The flowers are prima e-line and the sentiment is from Waltzing Mouse.

If you are looking for some new crafting goodies this weekend, don't forget to check out the New Products section at Quixotic Paperie. Some of my favourites are the Echo Park papers and the brand new Mo Manning stamp release!

Have a great weekend everyone! Don't forget I have a little giveaway over here! I will be picking a winner later today :)

Facebook Giveaway!

2011-02-17T21:47:00.001Z

Evening all...just a very quick post to let you guys all know about my little giveaway on my Facebook page!

I fancied giving away an altered moleskine notebook and I am inviting you, my loyal blog readers to come and join in. If you win you can pick the design...whatever one you prefer. I am also happy to post internationally.

I will get one of my boys to pick a random winner tomorrow night.

All you need to do is come on over and 'like' Fresh 'n' Funky Cards!

Back tomorrow with a card for Quixotic Paperie

Judy xx.

Look what I made!

2011-02-15T10:20:00.000Z

On Friday night I bravely took the plunge to go to a sewing class at Simply Create. Now I know that I sew on my cards pretty much daily, but for me it was quite a plunge to start sewing with fabric!

Well, the class was lead by the lovely Anne, who is a whizz at all things stitchy! We set to work right away making a Shabby Chic Cushion. I was so proud at the end of the night to come away with a fabulous stylish cushion! And I can't believe I made it all by myself :) Thank you Anne for being so patient!

This shows you the chenilling (??) effect we created on the centre panel of the cushion.

And this is the raggy effect you created by lots of cutting into the fabric and then washing it. I am delighted with my make :)

Now I just need to invest in a decent sewing machine !!!

Hope you all have a terrific Tuesday!

Judy x

Baby Love - Sugar Nellie

2011-02-14T11:32:00.000Z

Morning folks and a very Happy Valentine's Day to you all! I hope you all get a lovely surprise today from your loved one:) I have some beautiful red roses to display from my wonderful husband!

I have a card to share with you today using a wonderful new digi image that will be released very shortly by Sugar Nellie. This is another of the series of the 'Simply Adorables' and isn't this one just simply adorable???? The drawing is just exquisite and looks almost like a photograph it is so detailed. I am not sure what it will be called but for today I have called it ' Baby Love'.

The colouring again is very simple and easy on this one as the artist has done a lot of the shading for you. I have used some Bazzill basics dotty paper and some blue gingham ribbon. The ticket sentiment is from Tim Holtz.

The copic colours I have used are:

Skin : E000, E00, E11, E13 and Henna prismacolor pencil
Hat and Blanket: B00, B32, B34 and some Warm Grey prismacolor pencil

Thank you for your visit today! I have been such a rubbish blogger and have not found much time recently to comment on your lovely cards. I aim to try and put that right...so please accept my apologies!

This card will be in my Etsy shop later today!

Have a wonderfully romantic day :)

Judy x

Fresh Picked - Quixotic Paperie

2011-02-11T09:37:00.000Z

Morning folks...and it is Friday again. We are just enjoying our first of a few days off for mid-term break. So I am giddy with a lie-in until 8am. Wow! It was great! Then the builders rang the doorbell at about 8:01... NOT so great! I think scared them a little with my bed hair :)

Anyway, So this is the card I should have shown you last week for the release of the new images from SCACD and Quixotic Paperie. The image I used is called 'Fresh Picked' and is drawn by Carmen Medelin. Isn't she beautiful and makes for a lovely spring time card?

The flower is made from Tim Holtz Tattered Florals die and I then stamped a text background stamp, inked the edges with Distress Ink and layered them together with a vintage style brad from my stash. I added a couple of Jenni Bowlin pins to the back of the flower. The sentiment is from a Stdio 490 set I have.

Before I head off I just wanted to let you know about some of the lovely goodies that have just arrived in Quixotic Paperie over the last few days.

My Mind's Eye Stella & Rose collection - FOUR designs in 6x6 pads
Whimsy Stamps - Feb release and also the
SCACD Stamps

I will be popping this card onto my Etsy shop later today!

Thanks for your visit!

Judy x

Little Dreamer !

2011-02-09T08:00:00.004Z

Remember the prismacolor tutorial I did a couple of weeks ago onto kraft paper??

Well finally I got around to using the image to make it into a card.

I have had some fabric quarters sitting on my window shelf looking pretty for many months now...but the red gingham one really caught my eye and was begging to be used up :))

So I made a black card blank and then cut my gingham square just a little smaller than my card base. I stitched it to the card and then frayed the edges a little, so that it actually looked like fabric. I have to say that stitching fabric was way harder than paper! Sounds silly ...but it moves about a whole lot more and is stretchier...so I found it much harder to keep a straight line....so therefore the card has a VERY homemade feel about it now!

Anyway, I used the image that I had coloured from my tutorial: here, and mounted it onto black cardstock and machine stitched the layers together. (much easier this time just stitching the card!).

The flowers are from my stash and the sparkly brads I have had for years! The sentiment is included with the 'Little Dreamer' set from The Greeting Farm, available from Quixotic Paperie. You canfind the heart pins here.

This card will be available in my Etsy shop later today!

Thank you all for your kind comments. they are very much appreciated :)

Judy xx

Number One Star!

2011-02-07T09:29:00.001Z

Morning folks!

Thank you so much for all your kind wishes last week. I am now on the mend thankfully. It was a long week!

So I am delighted to have a card to share with you! This cute fella is called 'Number One Fan'. He is a Simply Sassy from Sugar Nellie and can be bought as a pair with 'Fit and Flirty.'He is coloured with prisma pencils and copics.....a little bit of a mixture! I used textured cardstock and I kind of like the effect of it when using pencils...see the ground he is standing on?

The papers are from Stampin Up! and I've distressed the edges with white crackle paint. The sentiment is done with a Dymo writer and the star is cut from corrugated card with a Sizzix die.

Thanks for your visit today. It is snowing very heavily here! I had hoped we had seen the last of the snow...but it still is only February. That was too much like wishful thinking huh?

This card will be available for sale in my Etsy shop later today!

Back soon,

Judy x

Quixotic Paperie Blog Hop

2011-02-04T09:00:00.001Z

Happy Friday!!!

Am I glad to see the back of this week...no that is not true really! I have a lot to be thankful for ....my sweet boys giving me cuddle when I have been feeling rubbish and my hubby willing to take a day off work to care for me :)

Anyway I just wanted to point you in the right direction of a fabby Quixotic Paperie blog hop! I haven't been able to join in this time...but all being well, I will be able to show you what I was supposed to make for this blog hop very soon!

So, Today sees the release of some fabulous new stamps from SCACD Stamps and their three artists - Elisabeth Bell, Victoria Case and Carmen Medlin.

The Quixotic Paperie and SCACD Design Teams have joined forces to bring you a blog hop filled with inspiration using the new designs.

For more info and to start hopping, pop over to the Quixotic Inspirations Blog!

Judy x