Challenge one at Keep it Simple!

So you can get up off the floor now and stop laughing that "chuck it all at a card ClarkyJ" is on the design team at Keep it Simple!
Me and simple have found it hard to get along but try we must as I have accepted the challenge of being on the team :0)
Our first challenge was to make a Christmas card with the traditional colours of red and green. I found these fabulous corrugated cards at Kanban at my last visit and loved the texture so much it begs not to be covered up. I have added touches of gold to the ridges so it has a sparkly feel to it. The ribbon has the Merry Christmas sentiment running through it so that took care of that and I have just added some white and gold vellum, the fabulous paperartsy background stamp then an image which I have punched out to finish it off. Took less than the required 30 minutes and it is indeed very simple what do you think?
The Keep it simple team have produced some gorgeous projects so do stop by to check it out - we would love to see you join in too !

Hello Taggers

This week at Tag You're it we want to see you make your own backgrounds. I learned this edging technique many moons ago from Dyan Reavely and use it often (nearly every project of late lol) I also got these fab woodware stamps last year and only recently inked them up but I am loving the detail on them. I thought this tag would be perfect to accompany a bottle of Whisky which I plan to give our good friend Bill for his birthday - being a Scotsman I'm sure he will appreciate the text as well as the whisky!
Supplies are:-
Woodware stamps - Scottish wishes available at The Stamp Man
Promarkers
Library green and black archival ink from ranger also available at The Stamp man

Do stop by the Tag You're it blog where my team mates have done some stunning backgrounds :0)
More posting to come after lunch xx

Look out Tomorrow there is a new challenge blog about!

For all those busy crafters on the go - simple cards every week! Just click the banner to find us x

The Stampman Challenge goes musical

Made this card a while ago to congratulate my son James on his first year results at Uni. He plays guitar so the music sheet from the stampman was the perfect choice. I just stamped the guitar and coloured it with distress inks. The background is made using the music cuttlebug folder which I have scrunched up then swiped the black soot distress ink over it. Simple matting and layering with brown and black card then some black stick on stones to finish and its done. The sentiment - Just a note - is also from the musical instruments sheet designed by Tracey Coates for The Stampman. Some amazing projects from the rest of the team so do stop by for a look :0)

psssssstttttttt

Have you heard the news? A brand new challenge blog has arrived for all those crafters who like to Keep it simple!
Hop on over and check it out as launch day is on Sunday and we are looking for DT members too - do you fancy keeping it simple. If you do go and look :0)

Imagine

Had a fun day yesterday on the last of our journalling sessions with Mums and daughters. It has been lovely to see how they have embraced the whole thing and enjoyed learning the skills which can transfer to other crafting areas. They were presented with their own soft back moleskin to go home and play in as they had been working in an exercise book to learn the different techniques. Its been a lovely session - Thanks Freya, Lisa, Jo and Liz for being so open to the ideas and playing along with us.

I also watched a film last night borrowed from fellow blogger Susie - Thanks so much :0) It was the film "Remember Me" with Robert Pattinson - the ending was so unexpected - I wont spoil it but both Meg and I were shouting at the TV we were so shocked!
I went upstairs to the craft room to play after that - yes it was late but I had bought a black versafine at The Stampman so needed to play :0)

I bought this stampsmith stamp at Elusive images in July and have stamped quite a bit but not been happy with what I have done with it. I also bought the sepia versafine with the stamp but I just have not been inspired at all so I thought I would give the black a go.
Ive used promarkers and distress inks to colour her and am much happier with this result. The metal corners are from The Stampman and Ive just stamped the word Imagine over the top. Some dusting of the edges with distress ink - frayed burlap and simple matting and layering and its now an atc. Looking forward to much more playing with the stamps now - as yes I have more but they are not the right size for atcs.
Have a great Thursday Blogging buddies x Janet

Tuesday Taggers - Inspired by a poem

Now as always when Michelle chooses our challenges there is a bit of thought that has to go into it and this week is no exception. I have racked my brains on this one and finally settled on a poem told to my Mum , then me and my brother and I have passed it on to my own kids - In fact my eldest at 3 used to tell this poem brilliantly full of the expression my Grandad introduced all those years ago. I think we even have embarrassing video footage of it LOL.

My Mum had to go live with an Aunt when she was small for a short time whilst her Mum was having her sister and Grandad read this poem or a version of it from a Nursery book on the train journey from Yorkshire to Essex in the 50's. When I was little this is what he could remember so it may have changed a little from the original.


" Three little pigs went out one day,
they said "we are too old to play
with faces washed and tails all curled
we'll seek our fortunes in the world"
The first little pig chose a cosy spot,
the wicked wolf he quite forgot
"I'll build a house of straw" he said,
he finished it and went to bed
The wolf came around in the dead of night,
and blew away that house so bright
and with his teeth so strong and big,
he gobbled up that little pig!
The second little pig built his house of gorse
so the wolf ate him up too of course
But the third little pig built his house of bricks,
and so the wolf was in a fix
He blew until he was cross and hot,
"I'll climb right down your chimney pot
and gobble you all up" he cried,
I do not like to be defied!
But the third little pig in his house of bricks
was up to all the old wolfs tricks
He took the lid off his stewing pot,
The wolf fell in it was boiling hot!
So the pig ate up the wolf instead
a very tasty dish he said!


The poem itself is not that exciting written down but if you say it with lots of expression making the sentances longer by speaking slowly its a fab poem and story for youngsters - well we loved it anyway!

So here is my project - digi image is from Mo Manning and I think it looks perfect for the Pig relaxing after the wolf has been taken care of!

I think this will be a birthday card for my Niece who is 5 in November. I have written the poem out on the back of the card (so my brother will be able to read it to her - he remembers the poem but has not memorised the whole thing as I did but there again he was only 5 when our Grandad died) * I am correcting this as my brother does remember the whole poem and has recitied it to them many times! Sorry Bro!*

Hope you have fun with this weeks theme - as you can see the poetry can be anything at all - just have fun. I really enjoyed revisiting some of my favourite poems especially those from AA Milne in Now we are six and When we were very young. My team mates have come up with some brilliant samples and poems do head on over and check them out!