Catching the last train to Craftstamper's Take it, Make it challenge

I think I just made it as the deadline is tomorrow besides I'll be off hunting painted dog sculptures.
Craftstamper's challenge was to create something using layer embossing as shown in July's edition.
Problem was I thought it was plain heat set embossing but reading the entry again and looking at the entry confirmed my suspicions. The card below was created last night using free clear stamp which came with June's issue, Wings is from Rockstar set Inkadinkadoo and some freebies from card making in simple steps.
I actually went out and brought some a set of coloured embossing powder they were cheap and discounted further. A craft store is relocating so everything is 50% off such a shame as I love the store's own brand glue as it doesn't warp the card or paper that much.
There's some elements I'm not happy with in fact I wasn't satisfied with other card my made it's just my inner critic and needs to get things spot on. Well there's so much I can do as all the monthly challenge have closed.

For Craftstamper's Take it, Make it Challenge 3: Layered Embossing.

I have been trying to find some time to do some more Smash book journals. I do have Red Folio by K and Company plus a few smash items. I'm trying to keep all my scraps and mementoes in one place but ends up as large heavy bag not that much portable than the bag I carry with me.
Still can't craft in the daytime and my chance will run out next week as I'll be on work placement. I hate working late at night because of lack of time maybe I feel so stressed out plus my day is not complete without spending some playtime with my hamster.
I'll see how it goes

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My entry for July Challenges

This month is almost over and deadline for Challenges are around corner. I'll keep this short as I have a bit of headache and didn't get much sleep last night because an annoying person kept me up. I caught some sleep in the morning which didn't really help.
This card I kept things simple and used only 4 Distress Inks colours: Faded Jeans, Tumbled Glass, Dried Marigold and Tattered Rose. With a few dabs of Adirondack Color Spray: Terracotta and Cosmic Shimmer Vintage Mist Patina.
Stamps I chose are Stampers' anonymous Mini Ornates and Fairytale Frenzy, Hampton Art Stamps Splatter, Stampingbella mesh and PaperArtsy Hot picks.
Other tools are Martha Steward Vintage Doily Edge punch and Distress Stickles Pumice stones
Embellishments: faux flat back pearls and Idea-ology Paper string stripes.
The paper flowers are all hand cut and stamped with floral from PaperArtsy Hot picks.

For Stamping Sensations July challenge Sketch and Summers colours and
Country View Crafts July Challenge Summer Sizzler
The choice was to use sketch or colours and I did both. Minimalism is not really my thing as I come from a Eclectic, sometimes Chaotic background and like it this way. Sketches are helpful in the layout but rarely do I follow them. I can't find any use for Paper strings other than tying up stuff, you can sew with them, pierce the hole and add a touch of glue to one of the end and use as needle. Metal needles will tear the card. The orange gives a zing to cool blues it feels intensive heatwave meets heavy rain which is what I'm experiencing right now. More to come that is if I can complete another project for another challenge.

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July tag of 2013 and some good news

I found out at the beginning of the month I'm the winner and runner up of Visible Images June Challenge: Character. Hence the new blinkie badge my prize was the choose of any clear stamps for £10 which is basically 2 stamps. Due to the random selection of winner and runner up anyone can win except for Craftstamper magazine the standards are so high. In all it is important to do your best in everything you do. Tim Holtz is launching a new load if idea-ology plus stencils I'm having trouble trying to keep up. Only joking I only choose the stuff I actually want so for July's Tag of 2003 this is my creation:

The technique was using a brayer and distress ink I barely glanced at the post so the result was make it up as I go along. Grunge board with Rock Candy crackle paint, I was little impatient with drying and rushed the process with the heat gun. Ideally it should be left for day or more but I don't get free 'quiet' slot at the kitchen table till 7pm sometimes later. A half a day is wasted through waiting and with this heatwave, crafting is difficult. My intention was make something which celebrated Handover day in Hong Kong but ended up different and random. Mistakes can be turned into something wonderful. Distress Stains were dabbed in the cracks, I made my own tissue tape as ideo-ology range is so expensive, you can use washi tape instead.
Didn't have simple saying in my collection a stamped text on vial labels works as fine, most of stamps are PaperArtsy except for the Aztec Sun which is GCS(Great Canadian Stamp). For embellishments I used Muse token attached to crinkle ribbon with mini safety pin and metal charm (not idea-ology). Grunge board is strange as it smells like new shoes, very rubber and meant to be  altered as it doesn't lie flat. Element range is hard to find I end up buying and Mini safety pin might be discontinued. Some places still sell them if you know where to look.

These are the stamps I've chosen and don't know if I have time to make something for Visible Image's July challenge.

I've discovered something new this month it's called Smash book, all it's really is sticking stuff on pages. K & Company sell these Smash book which is spiral bound and has lots of coloured pages plus there are numerous accessories. It's like what I have to spend money on a new idea when I have been doing this kind thing for years since about 2000 when I was studying Foundation Art and Design it was called Visual Diary and brought on by Dan Eldon. I did buy a doodles smash book and few stuff from Amazon, at the moment I'm using Walls Journal Notebook due the fact it becoming annoying trying to align the writing. More details on 'smashing' will later I have stuff to right now.

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My submission for Take it, Make it challenge two

This is for Craft Stamper Take it, Make it challenge two and involved tearing and ripping.I decided not to make a card although I can still can because there's still plenty of time and have 2 important things to be completed before this months ends. I feel so energetic right now like a Roborovski hamster. I didn't know Craft Stamper had a challenge going until I went on their site, brought a copy of June issue of their magazine. Used to buy a lot of magazines in the past and was nervous of submitted a card when I did it was gone and none of my ATCs submitted were publish the ATCs swap is gone as well blame this on high cost of postage.
I had some ideas in my head and sketched out a few drawings in my sketchbook mainly to put them to rest so I won't have to keep thinking about them.

I used Paper Artsy, Ink and Dog Mystery Plate as it came with house like stamp and perfect for making small matchbox shrines. The matchbox template is from Mirkwood designs and decades old, the box itself is made out of Idea-ology Paper Stash of Lost and Found. With all of my designs I don't know how it will turn out like until the object is finished because make it up as I go along.
Paper scraps coloured in Distress Inks/Stains or mixture of both were used for triangles and other pieces. House, labels and other parts were stamped in TLC Violet ink and Staz-on Jet Black. Other stamps used are Stamping bella, Crafty Individuals. I found the if edges look better if they were embossed or outline using a sharpie. Stampendeous Frantage Aged gold embossing powder gives a dynamic texture when used as gilding as the powder has mixture of coarse and fine grains. I wasn't sure to add to central area whether to use stamped image stuck with foams pads, charms or 3D embellishment. 

As you can see here I used charmed made from stamping bird cage from Paper Artsy Hot pick range HP1004EZ on to clear shrink plastic. Archival ink work best but stamping takes some skill.
I added from cross screw heads from Prima marketing- Junkyard finding these are yard I think are suited for scrapbooking or altered arts assemblage. This when jewellery making wire works comes in very useful for attaching metal embellishments which are Route 52, 7 Gypsies and others. As final touch I added a chitchat the whole thing is intended to be hung. This is the third matchbox shrine I've created and managed to acquire 2 of the configuration shadow boxes. Something to try out in the future.

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My entry for the another monthly challenge: How does your garden grow?

This card I decided to enter for May's Country View Craft's challenges because completed and submitted a tag for Tim Holtz's May tag of 2013. I still have my version of February to make give the fact I was forced to endure excessive noise and almost no sleep it has been a struggle. Why and also if I don't craft like every day I get very restlessness and irritable. My household is not the ideal place for crafting it was always my attentions when there's a sunny day with not so much wind to work outside. I rather listen to the songs of nature than the harsh tunes of music player. It's not music it's noise pollution.
Been a while since I made a card the last one was on Mother's day. The challenge for May is entitled "How does your Garden grow"

I have lots sheet of pre-distressed papers in various colours some using Distress Ink, Stains or a mixture of both. The floral stamps set I wanted it's by Paper Artsy, their Hot Picks range HP1004EZ I wanted this for a long time as it contains patterned flower.
I stamped flowers, petals on various paper scraps. The main stem is in Memories: Art Print Brown it didn't show up as much when the moths were added (Stazon- Jet Black). I outline the stem using fineliner. Further moths were stamped using Archival Ink on modeling film, the same kind used in April tag of 2013. A voice in my head kept saying emboss the edges of the petals so I did using Stampedeous Frantage Aged Gold embossing powder and it worked well.
More Distress ink was added onto the backing sheet to tone down the colours Faded Jeans, Walnut Stain and Moss Green. I ran a paper distressing tool on the edges before sticking the background to the add. Used idea-ology custom fastener to fix the flowers together before finally gluing the leaves and stapling the moths using tiny attacher. I added some words from Chitchat stickers the edges were coloured with Walnut Stain. There is an trend of adding large flowers on to card, seen as Create and Craft. This proof you don't need a CD-ROMs, craft sheets or even die cutting maching to make a card. All you ready need is your head but I do recommend buying Compendium of Curiosities vol 1 and 2 as they have tonnes of wonderful idea or go on youtube and watch his videos.
The next step for me is submit something to Craftstamper, I did send some ATCs but sadly they were never published. We'll see. Loads of people of submit of work so you have to create something exceptional to get noticed. I hope one day my work will get this attention. Why can't it be now?
It's the taking part which matters it's just I always improving my skills and there's other techniques I haven't discovered or tried out. 

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May tag of 2013

I haven't had much energy last week and even this week is a struggle. I'm forced to wake up early before 8am and endure hours of noise as work is done on the bathroom. I find my falling asleep in front of tv and there is no where quiet for me to go. Some how found some energy to make this month's Tim Holtz's tag of 2013 challenge. I know he would use remnant rubs in one of the monthly tags so I already brought 2 already Numbers and Element but wasn't able to get Words. Don't really need it. As I used Stampers' anonymous CMS110 Stuff to say and mix and matched a few items I have in stash. Other stamps I used are Paperartsy and Lost Coast Designs.

The tricky part is trying to get all part of 4 Distress stains colours on one tag as on my trial I couldn't get all the colours to balance on one sheet. You can dab a little and spritz to blend. The texture hammer is difficult to buy and maybe discontinued luckily there is a site which still sells the tool. Country View Crafts and they sell other Tim Holtz's products much cheaper.
There's still February tag yet to complete and would like to give their monthly challenge a try. The title is called 'How does your Garden grow' and any style and medium. There's a set of Paperartsy stamps I would like to try out maybe make another card again. We'll see I have lots of mailart to sort out and trying to survive this week. I just hope work on bathroom will be completed soon.

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April tag of 2013

Here is my interpretation of Tim Holtz tag for April. Yes I know it's almost a blatant copy but I used different elements and managed to nab some material before they were out of stock.
Luckily that's crafty  sells majority of items for anyone wanting to attempt Tim's challenge.
Local hobbycraft store stock some not much.

 I used metal charms- Philosophy tags, foliage, game spinner and word tags and did some improvisation with tissue tape and cut out my own 4. I wondered why the number than thought April is the fourth month in the year. Art Parts modelling film is thicker than shrink plastic and tricky to use since not used to this new media but I have future uses for this material.
At the beginning of the month metallic Distress paint weren't available I shop on artist trading post as well as they have more extensive range or products. They don't sell idea-ology 8 I have Tim Holtz's app and added the stuff I want to the wishlist. Still think washi tape is stronger and cheaper than tissue tape. I'm spending a fortune on one project and never wanted to get Distress Paints if you have Paint dabbler than don't need these. Almost finished with the palettes actually in the future I'm going to use whatever in stash unless really have to buy these items. Idea-ology and Distress is really expensive there's other I could of brought like Paperartsy, 7 Gypsies and other antiqued metal embellishments.
It's just I notice the ones which were selected resembled what Tim created. Would be nice if my tag was selected I'm not bothered anymore. Art can be made with few simple items but I'm an eclectic artist crafter. On 2012 monthly tags I thought he would do something special like in his Compendium of Curiosities. Besides I have to play catch up with February I will make 2 as one of them is going to have to be celebration of Chinese Lunar New Year. Snakes are cool.

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TAG- now you're it

I have been busy not with cross stitch but organizing all my stuff together but sadly I'm still stuck in same situation I was last year without a permanent workspace. The ideal place for stamping is on the kitchen table lit under daylight I have LEDs daylight simulation lamp pity the batteries last long.
After reading Tim Holtz blog, watching his youtube videos and reading his Compendium of Curiosities I felt inspired to make tags for this month. I made two because wasn't happy with the first attempt never thought of making tags don't see their purpose.
For March: tag of 2013 I will submit them both they are part of set. 

First one I call Dark (because I used earthtones) and the other is Light. They both talk to each and have similar styles. My tags bare no resemble to Tim's because don't have sizzix or use the idea-ology materials I find it's best to make something more of your style like own personal interpretation of the project. 

Picture quality is not good as I've take this on my smart phone ideally I would take a picture using my digital camera in good daylight one thing in the UK it always rains and rains some more.
Much of what I used is explain in my flickr photostream I find it's good to have a source of vintage royality free images the rabbit is from Dover books.

See the colours are more subtle or could be because of poor light conditions. I'm not going to wait till tomorrow to do this why not now. Actually, last week I wanted to make stuff but couldn't because unsuitable condition it's too noisy and the table wasn't free. So I said to myself stop waiting and start doing. This was finished when first half ended of England vs San Marino match.

Here's another tag I made this is for second monthly swap of new yahoo group I've joined. Actually take on ATC I once made for Blue theme swap.

I was giving crushed jewels techniques to try and didn't realise you can add glitter, embossing powder, shaved ice at the same time. Oh well it pays to follow the instructions very carefully.
Okay I admit I went on a spending spree on buying Distress Inks, Stains and idea-ology finding will was for ATC swap now I have more variety for other things. I'm interested in making shadow boxes or personal shrines been a while since last made one. Well I have to find a way to use Paper stash pad I should really stop there's still more Stains and idea-ology, Stamper anonymous stamps to get but they are so expensive. Mini ornates cost £24.99 and you can't just have one.
No seriously I have to stop buying craft materials plus there's unfinished projects to do. There's further news from this post.

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