missing in action without a cable

I'm heading 'down south' and teaching at Wendy's for the weekend.  I was going to leave you with some pics from my zendoodling class, a new little friend, and my guinea pigs (they're for Lavender in Amsterdam - I do love how you meet people blog hopping!).  But the cable has disappeared that connects my phone to the computer so I'm afraid I can't share pics :(  I can share the link to the USArtQuest post though, leave a comment and your in with a chance of winning the Draw and Gild kit!

http://sarahanderson1.blogspot.com/2010/06/usartquest-design-team-launch-and-blog.html

But me quick, it ends Sunday!

play date cafe challenge 7

I love working on envelopes, my version of tags I guess!  They're small, contained, and they can be added to cards of journal pages and have things put in them.  I think this one is waiting for a tag!

In between checking the colours, and getting out my supplies, my idea of the correct green for the week seems to have gone awry!  Sorry Sandi! 

 

I love black and white with a splash of colour and so decided to do a bit of a play on that and do brown and white.  I love the white embossed leaves under the coloured ones.  This was my first play with any Wendy Vecchi stamps - love that script, and the leaves!!  Pity my brain forgot I was going to stamp the words in brown, took me a few hours to spot that mistake, by which time it was too late!  Never mind!!

ps just found a card of stamped green leaves - I cut the wrong ones out late the other night when I was working on it; but the great thing about this challenge is there is leeway re the shades of the colours in the challenge so you may see different greens around from the other designers too!

EDIT:  Ok, have no idea why my blog didn't post as scheduled, or why I have coffee with my cake ;)   I've left the challenge colours up there that I worked from but here are the proper ones!  Hmmm, and my background has disappeared!  I suspect the snow, will investigate later!

Have fun playing along in the play date cafe :)

the stamp does it all!

Sometimes the stamp image is just so lovely that it doesn't need much else.  That's how I felt with this tree which I think is Inkadinkado [EDIT: no it's not, it's Autumn Leaves Stampology: Wild Trees, sorry!].  The colours from the play date cafe colour challenge have been going through my head all day, to the extent I've been spotting autumn leaves in these colours LOL.  Anyway, I decided to do some quick ATCs (hope you like it Karen).  I used Adirondack colourwash spray in butterscotch, spraying the card with water after to create the 'blobs'; a Colorbox reddish brown and Nick Bantock charcoal grey to stamp the paperbag studios hole punched; and finally stamped the tree in black.  My colorbox tuscany set has the yellow ochre, reddish brown and grey next to it in the palette!  I couldn't believe it when I saw it!!

STOP PRESS...stop press...STOP PRESS...stop press...STOP PRESS

:) :) :) I made it onto another design team.  The lovely Wendy Gale from the Stamp Attic asked me and I said

YES!!

the play date cafe is officially

OPEN!!!
I'm feeling a mixture of excitement and nervousness.  I can't wait to see what you all do with this colour challenge, especially our brand new design team whose blogs I'm heading straight over too!!!  And my fingers are crossed that you like my contribution!

Soooooo, here were the colours Julie challenged us with

And here's what I did

I used my new, slightly mad, character constructions stamps from Wendy's Stamp Attic to make this little book.  Then added washers, press studs and Tim Holtz gears, and hinges from B&Q! 

To get the colours needed I used card stock in a burgundy and a yellow ochre, raisin adirondack spray (over Tim Holtz alphabet masks on the background piece), grey Nick Bantock ink and regular black ink. 

I made the book by folding 5 pieces of card and using sticky tape to attach them together.  The hinges were attached with eyelets because I couldn't find my brads!!  I attached the hinges to the front cover, then the back cover, then inserted the inner pages.

Can't wait to see what you create!  Go to Julie's Open Window and add your blog post via Mr Linky.  Have fun!

un-be-lievable

What is it about best laid plans?  Yesterday the plan was to visit Wendy at the Stamp Attic, a nice jolly day out with the girls.  I woke up to the news that a lorry had hit the central reservation of the M6 motorway in the night and that the motorway was closed for 2 junctions.  We didn't need to go on the motorway to pick Sue up but the impact on surrounding roads was horrendous!  It took us over two hours to do a 40 minute journey, nearly as long as it then took to get to Wendy's!  But all that driving was definitely worth while!  Look, here's a sneaky peek into Sue's 'studio'.

I'm standing half way into the room and on each side of me are drawers and drawers of stash :)  It was great to see some of Sue's creations in the flesh (not the best pics, sorry!)

Again, I was so excited to get to Wendy's shop that I completely forgot to take a picture!!  But I did persuade Wendy to let me show you the 'original' stamp attic, at the top of her house.  Sue had tidied her room but Wendy got completely caught out by me producing my phone and saying "can I take a piccie for my blog?"  I don't know, how sad am I!  But I really want to get my blog candy together for 'Where women really create' and this is as much a reminder for me.

Talking of blog candy, don't forget that if you grab the 'play date' button, put it on your sidebar and leave Julie a comment before next Thursday you'll be in with a chance of winning some yummy stash!  And whilst you're over there, read up on my talented fellow designers [and check out my bio tomorrow :)]

just like Christmas!

Look at all these parcels that were waiting for me when I got home!  The big ones are bits of exhaust, I think, for our new campervan and there's a little packet of hemp for my eldest son Tom.  He's making a neck protector and shoulder pads that soldiers would have worn.  He's always loved weaponry and can make amazingly lifelike guns from A4 paper (he rolls it into cylinders) and sellotape.  If they weren't guns I'm sure he could take them on Blue Peter!!!  A couple of years ago he made a gauntlet all by himself and he's decided to go back to his 'leatherworking'.  Bless him!

But the rest of the packets were all for me :)

There are some advantages to living in Manchester, England....the weather's too naff to be outside so I can curl up with my yummy magazines and cuddle my guinea pigs.  I knew Sue Roddis had a piece in this month's Somerset Studio, but Sue, you didn't tell me they were owls!  What a wonderful surprise!  I love them :)  I've decided to put ten second studio metal tools etc on my Christmas list.  I've wanted them for a few years now :)  Julie, you may notice your owl ef is tucked in there so I'll get your parcel off to you asap.