Less is More Week #225 - use some metal

Our challenge this week at Less is More is to use some metal.  I used some fine beading wire to make antennae for my SU Swallowtail butterfly.  I cut a square aperture into some paper and then added a cutout for the wing.  Drew round the aperture with a Pigma pen and added a Hobby Art sentiment.  The butterfly is coloured with Inktense pencils.  The body has Glossy Accents added but it doesn't show up too well in my photo.

Less is More - Week 224 - Hello Sunshine

This week at Less is More the theme is 'Hello Sunshine'.  My apologies for the lack of commenting on LIM over the last couple of weeks, appropriately I have been away for a lovely holiday in the sun.  I wish I could say that this gorgeous Day for Daisies digi is me in the sun, but, ahem, sadly not!  She is coloured with Copics and simply layered up a few times, with the layers edged with Copics.

Less is More - Week #223 - One Layer

Its' one layer week at Less is More and this week our theme is Water.  I had loads and loads of idea for this one, but time means I have had to stop at bringing two of them to life!

First card uses a fun Acid Drops and WhatNots stamp that was a magazine freebie.  It is worth noting that the quality is nowhere near as good as the stamps that the company sells, I guess you get what you pay for in life...  She is stamped in grey Memento and lightly coloured with Copics.  The Memory Box wave stencil has Mowed Lawn and Broken China inks brushed through it.


My second card has a panel of Aquatints painted on, with Inkylicious water drops stamped over it.  They have a touch of white gel pen and lots of Glossy Accents added.  The Hobby Art sentiment is gold embossed.

Less is More - Week #222 - Colour Challenge

 This week at Less is More we have a colour challenge - to use opposites on the colour wheel.  My first card uses light blue and orange - aka Distress Ink in Spiced Marmalade and Faded Jeans.  The Dina Wakely bird is stamped onto hammered card and I used a Clarity stencil to ground it on some honeycomb, which I suppose gives it a birds and bees theme!  I inlaid the Mama Elephant diecut, which is the same ink but painted on much much more heavily.  I love this colour combination!

Second card uses the classic Christmas combination of red and green.  I framed the Stampin' Up sentiment with a Poppystamps diecut wreath and added tiny polka dot sequins for berries.  Scored borders onto my panel and popped up for dimension.

Less is More - Week #221 - Sketch or Recipe

Yay it's the weekend!  It's time for a new Less is More Challenge and this week our theme is tags.  My first card is based around something I love - coffee!  I found some very cute free Christmas tags on Pinterest by SimplyKellyDesigns , resized and came up with my takeaway cup from a well known chain :).  The computer generated sentiment uses Stencil font and I overstamped a coffee ring.  No idea who made the tiny heart stamp I added, I found it on the floor (oops!).

 My second offering was added to a housewarming gift for friends who have just bought a house in Spain.  I always get beautifully wrapped present from them, so needed to make a bit of effort with my amateurish wrapping!  Used on of my favourite Memory Box dies, added the very useful Happy stamp and die from Mama Elephant and a punched star.  Cut out with a stitched circle die and added twine and a scattering of stars.  Job done!

Have fun making your clean and simple tags, I can't wait to see them!

Less is More Week #220 - theme

Our theme this week at Less is More is Up, up and away and my first card contains Many Clouds.  In case you didn't know, I live in Lambourn and we are so proud to have the winner of the Grand National trained here, by Oliver Sherwood.  I made this card for Oliver and Tarnya, using a Memory Box stencil and some Distress Inks.  The clouds were cut with my Silhouette and the. gold stars with a punch. In case you think the clouds don't really work for our theme I'd like to point out that Many Clouds has to jump up, up and away to negotiate the course!  Well done to Oliver and all the team at Rhonehurst.
 
 My second card combines a Unity panda stamp with an SU balloon and its sentiment.  The panda is embossed to give him lots of contrast.  I've added some bling with gold embossing, mat and sequins.

Less is More - Week #219 - one layer

 We've a fab one layer challenge at Less is More this week - Splatters.  My first card uses one of the Clarity Stamps Wee Folk. I've drawn in a groundline and my splatters are a Visible Image dotty stamp using Faded Jeans Distress Ink.  I've a great sentiment that says 'Under the weather?' but I am leaving the card without sentiment until I decide who to send it to!

My splatters this time use Aquatints, flicked from a paintbrush.  I've overstamped with a Visible Image sentiment and an IndigoBlu flower stamp, both in black to contrast with the splatters.

Less is More - week #218 - colour

 This week at Less is More our challenge is to make a predominantly black card.  I will admit I found this quite a challenge, my first card uses one of my favourite types of stamp, trees.  This particular bit of forest is a Unity stamp and I've white embossed it onto black.  There's a very thin red mat and I've added a few tiny Memory Box birds to match it, as well as some b&w ribbon.

My second card also uses a Unity stamp, a sentiment this time with a Memory Box butterfly diecut added.  The background butterfly is inked with Distress Inks.  Fab sentiment isn't it?

Less is More - Challenge #217 - recipe

Welcome to the weekend and welcome to a new Less is More Challenge.  This week we are challenging you to combine three of our previous challenges.  The list of the past 216 weeks is on the blog and it is easier than it sounds!  Both my cards combined more than three challenges and both my cards are NBUS :).
First up is a card made with a fab Art Impressions stamp that I bought at the NEC last week.  I've coloured my one layer card with Copics and doodled a border around it.   My three challenges are:  Week 120 Man's best friend, cats or dogs,  Week 121 Humour and Week 111 Frame It.

My second card uses a Memory Box die given to me by Chrissie - thanks Chrissie!  I've diecut the 'happy' and butterflies from grey Bazzill Bling and added glittery bodies and some tiny sequins.  My three challenges are: Week 210 Grey & Pink, Week 212 Wings and Week 173 Add a die cut.

I'm entering my cards for Darnell's 4th NBUS Challenge and for Simon Says Anything Goes.

Style

I love this shape from the Silhouette store and think it's perfect for the Style challenge at CAS-ology.  Both the cut file and the ink (Cracked Pistachio)  are NBUS so I'm entering Darnells fourth NBUS challenge.  I wanted to create a retro-style background and I used Distress Inks in Cracked Pistachio and Squeezed Lemonade, with a Clarity stencil and an Andy Skinner stencil.  My computer generated sentiment is printed onto vellum.
I'm also entering Addicted to CAS's Green Challenge.

Less is More - Week 216 - CASE a DT!

Welcome to the weekend and welcome to this week's Less is More Challenge.  This week we each have just one card to show you, as your challenge is to CASE the DT!
My card for CASEing is a simple one layer effort, using an adorable Stampin' Up image from the Cheerful Critters set.  He's coloured with watercolour pencils and the sign has a layer of Glossy Accents.  A doodled border and some baker's twine completes the card.

Today we three LIM ladies are meeting up at the NEC, which I'm really looking forward to.  Apologies to those of you who didn't get a blog visit from me  last week, I have had a really evil stomach bug and have been ill in bed and off work for several days.  I will get round to it - but not today!

Tropical Storm

I got a fab stencil from Clarity in the post last week, I belong to Barbara's Club.  My panel is masked off and the swirly stencil rotated and inked in different colours of Distress Ink until no white is visible.  I edged the masked section with a black Copic and added a Winnie and Walter sentiment and a Clarity Wee Folk stamp.  The technique was shown in Barbara's leaflet that came with the stencil, Ionly wish I could claim the credit lol!

Challenges entered:
CAS-ology - tropical
Come and Get It - make your own background
Challenge up your Life - masculine
Stamping Sensations - one for the guys

And finally...
Happy Mother's Day to all Mums out there, especially my Mum, has a lovely visit with her today.

Less is More - Week 215 - one layer week

 Welcome to this week's Less is More Challenge; this week is the dreaded one-layer week and our theme is 'Include an animal'.  My first card to show you uses a Unity Stamp image and sentiment.  I've used Distress Ink (Frayed Burlap and Gathered Twigs I think) on hammered card and kept it monochrome.  It reminds me of the illustrations in the pony books I loved to read as a child.

 The second card uses the alternate sentiment that is provided with the horse image.  I've heat embossed it, along with a Card-Io cat silhouette, onto a background created with a Barbara Gray stencil and more Distress Ink, Squeezed Lemonade and Mustard Seed this time.

 I think this Stampin' Up set is really fun!  I have coloured it with Copics to get the shades I wanted, but don't feel they are ideal for a one-layer card because of the show-through to the wrong side.  I've doodled a barbed wire order to keep my stock in and added some googly eyes.

Last Saturday I met the lovely Kathy K at Stamp Attic in Wantage, my local craft shop which is sadly closing down.  I bought a brilliant Andy Skinner stencil and used a portion of it here.  I used Stampin' Up daubers and Distress Inks(Squeezed Lemonade, Salty Ocean and Picked Raspberry) on my stencil and added a computer generated sentiment.  I outlined the evolution figures with a Pigma Micron pen.

One out of three

I do love the images and sentiments that Karen puts together with Acid Drops and What-Nots stamps.  This one makes me smile every time!  I've coloured with Copics and cut it out using a Simon Says stitched frame.  Added a few sequins and job done.

I'm entering my card for:
Simon Says - special lady/ girly
CAS on Sundays - girl power
One Stitch at a Time - anything goes with women
A Gem of a Challenge - CAS
Addicted to Stamps - CAS

Less is More - colour challenge

This week at Less is More we have a lovely spring colour challenge of yellow and green.  I've used Card-Io two-step tiny flowers as well as a Card-Io branch stamp.  Sentiment is by Mama Elephant and the only embellie is green Stickles for the flower centres.

Less is More - week #213 - this makes me happy

 We've a lovely theme this week at Less is More - This makes me happy.  I thought about this and my family and my friends make me happy.  I don't have many family members but I'm lucky to have some wonderful friends.  My card is a tribute to all those happy evenings just chilling,  I hope the words don't offend you, but the more wine I drink the more rubbish I talk :) !  Stamp is heat embossed with Wow Pomegranate and stamps are from Unity.

My second card is all about the four-legged members of the family, I've never had a dachshund, all my dogs tend to be mixtures as they are rescue dogs.   Diecut background is painted with Aquatint inks, dog is Lawn Fawn and sentiment is Mama Elephant.

 
I hope you have a good weekend and I look forward to hearing lots of happy!

Some bunny loves you

Today's card uses Mama Elephant stamps, coloured with Copics.  Aren't they adorable?  I've kept the card monochromatic, using Pink Petticoat DP for the circle behind.  I embossed part of the cardstock with a burlap folder from Crafters Companion, which Chrissie (Lady LIM) pointed out looks like a cellular baby blanket, and added some Fluffy Stuff to their tails to give texture.
I'm playing in some challenges:

CAS-ology - monochrome
Simon Says - add some texture
Susy B's - anything monochrome
Aud Sentiments - Easter / Spring sentiment (Easter bunnies)

Less is More Challenge Week 212 - Theme

 Good morning!  Our theme this week at Less is More is Wings.  I've a trio of cards to show you,  starting with a one layer card using the SU Wetlands set.  The background is made with Pan Pastels, I like the slightly stripy effect I got here with them.

 My flamingo is a Pink Petticoat digi, coloured with Copics and with a googly eye added, as well as a feather and some gems.  Love the sentiment!

Varying my wings here, the Visible Image butterfly is embossed onto a background using Brusho paints, the surface was wetted and the ink blown around it using canned air. This was made at a workshop with the lovely Barbara Daines that I was lucky enough to go to.  Sentiment was die cut on my Portrait and the 'birthday' SU stamp heat embossed.

Hope you all enjoy spreading your wings for some super CAS cards this week!

Poppy

Life has got in the way of my intention to blog daily during February, but I managed to make a couple of cards yesterday and here is one of them.  It is based on this week's CAS(E) this sketch and uses a beautiful poppy stamp from Unity.  I have slightly offset the outline from the background to see some white.  Both the sentiment (Visible Image) and the outline are heat embossed. Poppy is stamped in Ripe Persimmon Distress Ink.  The card was a little too empty, so I doodled a border.
I'm also entering my card for:
AAA - orange you glad you are CAS
Crafts Galore- stamp or digi
Creative Craft Cottage - in the garden
Happy Little Stampers - CAS embossing

Wonderful Day

I had a  fun day at a workshop with Barbara Daines today, near Chippenham.  Everyone was really friendly, vast amounts of sweeties and cakes were consumed and we also played with Brushos.  This card has a SU butterfly overstamped and heat embossed on top of Brushoed paper.  No idea whose sentiment it is, Barbara very generously provides lots of supplies.

I'm entering my card for:
Open Minded - up in the air
Stempelsonne - anything goes
Southern Girls - winged things
Penny's Paper Crafty - embossing
Simon Says - all creatures great and small

Less is More - Week 211 - one layer

Our one layer challenge this week at Less is More has the theme of Love.  I've made quite a few red/pink lurve cards recently and decided it was time for a change!  I brushed broad swathes of Aquatint inks across a linen textured card and then used WOW superfine platinum embossing powder for the brilliant sentiment, from Unity Stamps.  I coloured the key words, 'chocolate bar' with a watercolour pen and added a handful of tiny silver sequins.

Astonishingly, this idea worked first time out and I didn't need to have several loads of attempts at it.  I'm really pleased with it, hope you like it too :)

Dogs leave pawprints on your heart

Today's card is a Valentine for my Mum from Stella the dog.  Stella came from Dogs Trust for my birthday some three years back, when things were bad.  Mum also sponsors two Dogs Trust inmates and was so chuffed to receive Valentines from them last year.  So I thought she had better also have a card from Stella this year!

I've cut a design from Silhouette and gold embossed a Kaisercraft sentiment onto it.  A few tiny sequins, a bit of matting and layering, job done:).

I'm entering some challenges with my card:
Red Rubber Inspirational - so sentimental
Scrap & Craft Inspiration - love/ Valentines/ romance
Scrapbooker PHD - CAS use a stamp

All You Need Is Love

 -

Today I have another card to show you using my yummy new Unity Stamps stash.  Fox images seem to be everywhere at the moment and this pair is particularly appealing, even though I did lose one of my Light Sussex ladies to Mr Fox yesterday :(.

The image is coloured with Chameleon pens and die cut with a Simon Says stitched circle.  The sentiment is Kaisercraft and the two circle stamps, which echo the main image, are also from Unity.  Ink is SU Cherry Cobbler.

I'm entering my card for a few challenges:
Simon Says - All creatures great and small
Crafter's Cafe - hearts
Inky Impressions - Valentines/love
Deep Ocean - love is all around
Just Inspirational - any animal
Lacy Sunshine - have a heart
Sweet Stampin - add a heart

Hello Love

I had a lovely bundle of Unity stamps arrive today and enjoyed myself playing with them!  This card is stamped with the distressed dots in Victorian Velvet Distress Ink.  I inked some card with the same ink to mat my card, embossed the image on top in Wow superfine gold and added a few sequins.  More Unity loveliness tomorrow :)
I am entering my card for some of the many Lurve challenges:
CAS-ology - love
Tuesday Throwdown - love is in the air
2 Cute Ink - love/Valentines
Crafty Cardmakers - love, love, love
House of Cards - love
Make my Monday - Valentine

Trendy Trees

Hello and here I am scraping in with a card for today.   When I visited Chrissie yesterday I found she had the most gorgeous tree stamp that, unbelievably I don't also own.  She kindly let me stamp a few and I've put together a quick card with it.  It is a Memory Box stamp called Trendy Trees, if anyone has one for sale please let me know!

Background embossing is Crafters Companion folder, sentiment die and stamp are Mama Elephant, which were spoils from yesterday's shopping trip.  I'm blaming Sarah Gray here, lol, having seen some fab work on her blog using Chameleon pens I have succumbed and bought some...  used them on my trees.
I'm entering my card for:
Happy Little Stampers - embossing
Paradise of Stampers - monochromatic
Your Scrapbook Place - anything goes masculine twist

Butterfly Kisses

I had a fun morning at the Sincerely Yours craft show today with Chrissie and met up with the lovely Val.  There weren't that many traders there but of course we managed a bit of retail therapy!  Anyhow my apologies for the poor photo of today's card but I didn't get around to it until after dark...

I used a Memory Box die and cut a part of it again from a scrap to add some extra butterflies in.  Sentiment is Winnie and Walter.

I'm entering my card for a few challenges:
JUGS - love
AAA - love, love love
Great Impressions - love, love, love
One Stitch at a Time - anything goes with love
Opus Gluei - Valentines
Allsorts - love is all around
DiesRUs - hearts
Coffee, Chocolate and Cards - love is all around
Crafts 4 Eternity - with love

Happy 4th Birthday Less is More!!!!

 This is a very special week for Less is More - Chrissie and Mandi started it four years ago and it has continued to grow in popularity - now here we are celebrating its fourth birthday!  I am so thrilled to be a part of it and we have some awesome guests this week to help us to party.  Please check out he main blog for details!

Our theme is a colour theme, grey and pink, I can't wait to see your cards.

My first card uses Stampin' Up Holiday Homes stamps, white embossed on pink.  The hills are cut with a Simon Says die and I've added some washi tape and a button from a White Stuff clothing tag, coloured grey with a Copic pen.

My second card uses a Lawn Fawn set that I bought to make a card for a dear friend, whose favourite animals are elephants.  I shan't be giving him this rather girly card though!  Paper pieced from dotty fabric and with a bit of raffia ribbon behind the image.

All Creatures Great and Small

Today I have another card inspired by Simon Says bright and beautiful challenge!  The fun new stamp is from Stampin' Up, it has great sentiments and add ons - I've added party hats and a balloon.  I added googly eyes to the Highland cow and the goat and coloured with my Copics.
I'm also entering my card for:
Papertake Weekly - anything goes
4 Crafty Chicks - hand coloured image
Crafters Cafe - birthday card
Loves Rubber Stamps - anything goes

All things bright and beautiful

Continuing my month of blogging (I hope!) I have made a card for this week's Simon Says challenge, All Things Bright and Beautiful.  I used washi tape to divide up a piece of textured card, then used Pan Pastels sponged across to make a really bright background.  Stamped flowers from my Unity kit of the month across, removed the tape and added a Winnie & Walter sentiment.  I used a white gel pen for the flower centres.
Oh, before I stamped I set the pastels with cheap hair spray.

Heart

Today's card uses a Simon Says stencil, I used sponge daubers and Distress Inks (Pickled Raspberry, Victorian Velvet, Fired Brick) to colour it and outlined it with a fineliner,  Added the Unity sentiment and decided something was missing - so I added a doodled border.

I'm entering my card for some of the many lurve challenges that are running:
Crafty Sentiments - include a heart
2Cute2Ink - Valentines/love
Bunny Zoe - hearts
Crafty Boots - hearts and valentines
AAA Cards - love, love, love
Simon Says Monday - something beginning with H
Simon Says - anything goes
C.R.A.F.T. - Valentines/love
Aud Sentiments - Valentines/love sentiment
Art Impressions - have a heart

A bit of NBUS

Today I bring you some Never Before Used Schtuff.  I made today's card for CAS on Sundays Challenge - flowers.  My partial cut die is from Simon Says Stamp, *had* to have it when I saw some amazing cards that used it - but shamefully this is the first completed card I've made with it -  and I've backed it with some sunny, springlike yellow card.  The flower centres are Dew Drops and that fab sentiment is JOFY.
I'm also entering my card for:
Simon Says - anything goes
Allsorts - flower power
Polkadoodles - flower power
613 Avenue Create - anything goes with doodle option

Card for a Chap

Continuing with my quest to blog each day in February, today's card is inspired by CAS colours and sketches, which this week has a double whammy of colour and sketch.  I used Pear Pizzazz and close substitutes  of Sahara Sand and Versafine Olympia Green.
My stripes are from SU Work of Art and the sentiment is SU Age Concern.

I'm also entering my card for:
Crazy4Challenges - masculine birthday
Addicted to Stamps - clean and simple
Moo-Mania - masculine
Ruby's Rainbow - masculine birthday
Crafts4Eternity- no patterned papers
Simon Says - anything goes

Hippo Bird-Day

Happy February everyone!   There was just too much going on in my life to try to make resolutions in January, but now I am in my new home my aim is to make a card each day and blog each day for the month.  Well here is the start and we'll see how it goes lol!

I've based my card on this week's CAS(E) this sketch and found a bright, fun Cosmo Cricket paper for the background.  The Lawn Fawn stamps are coloured with Copics and there is a teeny gem on the bird's  party hat.

My card is for the following challenges:
CAS(E) this sketch - 108
Creative Knockout - animal antics
Double Click - use a bird
Mod Squad - all about the animals
Simon Says - anything goes
CAS-ology - birthday