Oriental Ornamental

 

Sparkles Christmas Challenge 188 has just gone live and the theme this month as chosen by Billy is 

✨ Ornament and a Bow ✨

 These days my designs are mostly influenced by my NBUS items - I have so many things in my stash that haven't been tried out yet and this little ornament die is one of them - in fact to was the only ornament die I had that was still NBUS!  Gummiapan dies are wonderfully intricate in detail but they're also tiny and I also felt it resembled something you'd find at a Chinese New Year Celebration rather than a Christmas Ornament!  I was about to abandon the idea altogether but because I had spent such a long time prevaricating about the bush, I had very little time left so pushed aside my doubts and pushed forward with this design!  

I started by cutting a window (Yvonne Christmas Window) from a white panel (Crealies Rectangles 44) that had been sitting in my UFO box,  Then I cut another two windows, adhered a snippet of night sky behind the aperture and then popped the three stacked windows back into the aperture.  I was pleasantly surprised with this window and it's a nice size - can't think why I haven't used it before!

I cut the ornament (Gummiapan Advent Calendar 2023 Day 7) from a snippet of silver and added some holly (Gummiapan Advent Calendar 2024 Day 6) and then this gorgeous bow (which came on Day1 of the 2024 Spellbinders Advent Calendar).  

Originally I thought I'd stamp a sentiment on the window sill but didn't want to risk it on the assembled window so added some foliage (Gummiapan Advent25 Day 02) cut from white and coloured with alcohol markers.  

I was happy with this but I still needed a sentiment - don't know about you but I' always like to have a sentiment!  I didn't want to risk stamping so added the smallest "merry Christmas" die (freebie from a magazine in 2024) I had in my stash underneath the window.  It's still a little too much IMO, and if I make this design again I'll just stamp a sentiment instead.

I am grateful for and would like to enter the following challenges

Snippets Playground Challenge #544 - loads of snippets used;

NBUS Challenge #91 - NBUS Ornament and Window dies;

ABC Christmas Challenge - U is for Unused Stash;

Outlawz Christmas Challenge - Anything Christmas Goes;

Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge - Anything Goes;

Krafty Chicks Challenge #844 - Week 5, Anything Goes;

Thanks for stopping by, I hope you go away a little inspired!  Your visits and comments are always a joy and always appreciated!  And if you leave a comment, I’ll know you were here and hopefully be able to find you!

Kate

Kintsugi and Ikebana

Challenge #325 has just gone live at Time Out Challenges and this fortnight we have a theme challenge and it's 

Friendship/Encouragement/Support

Challenge #325 is generously being sponsored by Birch Press and they are offering our Top Pick as chosen by the design team a $20 credit to their store!  

The Top Pick will also be invited to join Time Out as a guest designer in a future challenge!  Speaking of guest designers, our guest designer this fortnight is the very talented Rita Wright of CardsbyRita, our winner of Challenge #320!   You can check out how Rita and my talented team mates have interpreted this theme over on the Time Out Blog!

I've had this marbled gold card stock in my stash for a while now and I thought it would be perfect for some Ikebana vases (Sizzix Ikebana) since it made me think of Kintsugi - the Japanese art of mending pottery with gold.  

It came together quickly (for a change) though I did cut several vases before I was happy with the arrangement but I'll use them at a later date.  Teamed with a foiled sentiment (Spellbinders GLP-380) it's perfect for any occasion and you can never have too many of these in your stash IMO!

I hope you can find some  Time Out  to come join us this fortnight!

I am grateful for and would like to enter the following challenges

Fab'n'Funky Challenge #320 - Three of Something;

Allsorts Challenge #851 - Feminine;

Ellibelle's Garden Party #20 - Anything in or from a garden;

Triple B October Challenge - Birds, Bees or Blooms;

Love those Pretty Papers October Challenge - I hope the paper used to create these Kintsugi vases qualifies (even though there isn't much used it was integral to the design)!

Thanks for stopping by, I hope you go away a little inspired!  Your visits and comments are always a joy and always appreciated!  And if you leave a comment, I’ll know you were here and hopefully be able to find you!

Kate

Sweet Autumn Blessings

Time Out Challenge #324 has just gone live and this fortnight we have a

Photo Inspiration Challenge

Here's a closer look!

Photo credit: Kateryna Hliznitsova - Ukraine

Table topped with plates of food and a cup of coffee

Challenge 320 is being sponsored by STAMPlorations and they are very kindly offering our top pick as chosen by the design team a $25 store credit!

The Top Pick will also be invited to join Time Out as a guest designer in a future challenge!  Speaking of guest designers, our guest this fortnight is Ashwini Rao of Experiments With Card Making Etc our winner from Challenge #319.  Be sure to check out Ashwini's Blog if you haven't visited her previously.   You can also see how my talented team mates were inspired on the Time Out Blog!

You may be inspired by the colours one or more of the items within the photo, but please explain how you were inspired - especially if it isn't obvious!   You can enter as many times as you like however you must limit your other challenges entered to 4 (5 including ours) or you won't be considered for the prize!

I hope you can take some Time Out and join us this fortnight - you have until the Oct 28th to link up your entries ... we can't wait to see your creations in the gallery!

Shery very kindly sent me a set of her Quickcards #3 - Spring Florals A2 Card Fronts earlier this year and I loved working with them!  I still had this one left over and as it had warm autumnal tones, I thought it would provide the perfect backdrop for a little Fika (the Swedish term for going for coffee and pastry) - since that it what how this photo inspired me!

I didn't want my sentiment and pastry platter (Gummiapan Swedish Fika) to be lost on the card panel so  vellum seemed like the obvious solution ... and the best way that I know of to hide any adhesive when using vellum is to create a frame!  However, I wasn't happy with the proportions of any of the frame dies in my stash so I created a frame using two arches (Spellbinders Essential Arches) and shortened the sides before added it to the snippet of vellum that I had stamped with a sentiment (Verve Autumn Blessings) with Memento Rich Cocoa.

The pastries were all cut from snippets of Kraft card and were shaded with Antique Linen and Gathered Twigs DIs, coloured where necessary, highlighted with a white Posca Pen, winked and "glazed" with Glossy Accents and then arranged on the gilded tray.  The little coffee cups (Gummiapan Coffee Break) were cut from a snippet of white, shaded with Antique Linen and Gathered Twigs DIs and coated with Glossy Accents so they had a ceramic appearance!

Then it was just a matter of adding a stacked "Sweet" to complete the sentiment and mounting the panel on a dark brown card base!

I am grateful for and would like to enter the following challenges

NBUS Challenge #91 - just the little coffee cups are NBUS;

Snippets Playground Challenge #543 - Snippets of vellum, Kraft, brown and white;

Double D Challenge - windows is the theme and my arched frame resembles a window;

Little Red Wagon Challenge #880 - Use a frame;

The Sisterhood of Crafter October Challenge - Fall!

Thanks for stopping by, I hope you go away a little inspired!  Your visits and comments are always a joy and always appreciated!  And if you leave a comment, I’ll know you were here and how to find you!

Kate