Rubber Stamping - North Wales

Spooky spooky greetings to you all whether you take an interest in this day or not. Before I get to the pictures from Mold II club meeting I think I owe all of you somewhat of an apology. I did rather rant on yesterday about my problems.  I was feeling rather low I admit - but I needn't have used your page to do that.  I guess it was easy to do because it is just like to talking to friends.  So to close that episode - I am still a bit itchy, can still not see completely out of left eye - but feeling brighter.  Have got on top of it. You have to don't you - doesn't do to wallow. Thank you to Joanna for your kind comment on yesterdays post - & thankfully it is not shingles - just (just!) an infection.  hey ho. So, photos.  On Tuesday Mold II was making the pop up Christmas card (there is a picture on their club page) & Rota has sent me 2 photos that show them clustered together in the open position.  I understand Rita has some more sho...

Hi everyone. Sorry I have been missing for a few days - I had one of those funny days on Wednesday - where I really did not feel like doing much.  Also it looked like a recent infection in my ear had returned & that left me feeling a bit low as it is quite uncomfortable, plus I couldn't get warm.  In fact during the evening I was really quite cold. Anyway, I managed to hold the workshop I was doing on Thursday, but when I got home I felt so shaky & cold I went to bed.  I didn't really sleep but dozed a lot, eventually got up again about 5:30, didn't feel like dinner.  My ear was hurting & down the side of my neck on both sides was tender. Friday morning I decided to call the doctor & managed to persuade reception that I couldn't possibly get to the surgery & required a home visit.  Turns out it is an infection but not in the ear - just everywhere else around my head.  In my scalp, across my forehead.  You name it it is there....

Tonight I popped along to the Mold II meeting to see how they had interpreted the sketch I left with them last month.  I didn't stay very long as I had had one of my "not so good days" today.  But it was nice seeing everyone again. Here are the photos from their Show & Tell - I must apologise for a bit of a shine on some of them.  Quite a lot of mirri board had been used & the lights overhead were shining on them.  I had turned the flash off on the camera to avoid that. Once again another lovely set of cards. For their project this evening they were making a lovely pop up Christmas Tree card with Rita - & she will be taking some photos to send to me - so keep an eye they will probably be put up in the next couple of days.  There is a preview of what it looks like on the Mold II club page. That will be it for tonight - sleep well & we will talk again tomorrow.  Perhaps I will have some more interesting things to tell you. Nigh...

Hi everyone - hope you have had a good weekend. All in all I guess I have had a rather lazy weekend, except for that final cutting up of the card for the HSNW workshop I am preparing for. I had meant to make another sample of the project so that they can see two versions, then changed my mind.  But I should at least do a couple of "pages".  Then today whilst talking to Sue something she said triggered off an idea that would link to the project - I can't mention it here in case any HSNW members do read this as I don't want to give anything away.  I don't think they have been told what they are doing. Sue & I were over at Carolines most of today having a good poke around in Carolines stock to find embellishments for our workshop. Talking of workshops I hope all you ladies have been putting some thought to a couple of dates for a workshop for yourselves early in 2011. I will be asking you about that at your next meetings. Then the thought of the next m...

It's me again. Just popping in to let you know that I have added the tutorial for the Spotlight technique onto the tutorial page.  It doesn't have any step-by-step photos at the moment - but I will add those in a couple of days. I must thank Joanna for the wording of the tutorial which she enclosed in her email along with the club photos.  But, I have altered it just a little bit as she had included statements relevant to the actual meeting. Well! I think 3 postings in one day is enough.  I am off back to my card cutting exercise.  You should see the developing muscles on my right arm.  Te, he.

Hello again. Mold ladies were certainly very busy on Thursday - you have already seen their "Spotlight" technique - now take a look at their "Wax Resist" project. I may very well add this technique to the Tutorial page as well - but certainly will be taking out to the other two clubs. Today I am slowly continuing to cut up the card for the workshop that Sue & I are doing for HSNW club members in 2 weeks time.  My shoulder is really suffering - so it is little & often.  We do spoil you when it comes to projects at workshops - where we usually do cut up the card!  I don't mind doing that it gives you more time to have fun - cutting up isn't fun is it? Anyway - here are the "Wax resist" photos; Continue having a good weekend - more tomorrow - or may be later you never know.

  Good morning everyone! I hope you are having an enjoyable weekend.  At least the sun is out this morning. Here, as promised, is the next set of photos from the Mold club meeting last Thursday.  This time they were creating with the "Spotlight" technique. I think nearly everyone has tried this technique but there are new members in each of the clubs now & it is always a good idea to return to some techniques.  Two good reasons for that - always good to keep a nice technique alive & new ideas around it can arise. I am going to put the spotlight technique on the tutorials page, so if you missed Thursday night you will be able to see how it is done, or it may be that you want to revisit the technique.  Either way - have fun - & why not send me pictures of the results to put on the blog.  Talking of which - have you made a card recently & did you take a photo?  Then why not share it with everyone - just email it to me ...

Good evening ladies. Tonight I have the first slide show for this months Mold club meeting as promised yesterday.  It is the pictures of the Show & Tell of the sketch I left with them.  I couldn't find the photo of the sketch to actually include in the slide show, so will probably pop back later & put it in on its own.  Here are the pictures; They are really lovely & some very different ideas.  I think that once I have those that Mold II have done - which will be on Tuesday - I might put them all together in a slide show to run in the side bar. No particular chat from me tonight. More pictures tomorrow - slide shows showing the two projects that Mold ladies made Thursday night. Night night

Good evening, good evening, good evening.  Yep you've guessed it I have just finished watching QI with Stephen Fry.  i also think I used that opening once before too.  Ah well. I haven't done any creating today except maybe for the space that has now appeared in our spare bedroom from the boxes of stuff or stash that I have given to Clare (previously of Crafty Sue's).  I have given it to her to sell to raise money for her charity Multiple Sclerosis  A much better cause than sitting in my craft room not being used. Mind you we did exchange "clearing outs" - as she had a big bag of books in the back of her car to be taken to the charity shop.  So I now have those to see if there are any books Bob & I might fancy reading then we will take the rest, along with some of ours, to the charity shop.  Then later the ones we keep to read will go as well. Earlier this evening I checked my emails & Joanna has sent me the pictures from last nights Mol...

Hi everyone It was very nice seeing everyone at Mold this evening.  I stopped long enough to have a little chat & look at how they had all interpreted the "Show & Tell" sketch. I decided not to stay too long - so Joanna is going to take the photos & forward them to me later, along with those of the 2 - yes two - projects they were doing during the evening.  As I left I heard mention of wax resist technique.  Could be worth pinching that one for the other 2 clubs. I have had a project sent in for the tutorial page - it was from Joanna - she pulled out the instructions for a card we made - would you believe it back in about 2007.  It was a type of tunnel card.  I am not sure if I can just copy & paste from an outside document or whether I will have to retype it.  I will see how I get on tomorrow. One of the new members of the Mold club is a very talented artist & a dog lover & produces the most amazing paintings of dogs.  I...

Good morning ladies! I suppose actually that is good morning again, seeing as I have already written an entry this morning. I have made some little changes to the blog.  First I have added a new page titled Tutorials.  More on that in a minute.  When I added the page it rolled the page tabs at the top of the blog round to a second line.  I didn't like that look, so I popped back & redesigned the other pages headings.  Abbreviated them really.  "Basic Information" now reads "Club Info", & "Basic Craft Kit" has had the word "Craft" removed.  Doing this meant that all page tabs appear in the one line.  Of course it now occurs to me what would I do if I decided to add any more pages.  Cross that bridge when I get to it comes to mind!. The new page is headed - "Tutorials".  On my blog entry for October 12th I described how I had made the Double Easel Card - along with pictures.  Now, at the side of each page there is...

Here is the picture I couldn't upload in yesterdays blog of the stamps I spoke about. They are really nice stamps & recently I played with them at a PBC workshop, using several of them linked together - some great borders & frames were produced.  Of course they can be used in a similar way to those produced by Card-io. The blue ink stain on three of them is not because I haven't cleaned them - it just seems that some colours stain more than others.  This is usually true of darker colours. So! anyone know who makes them? Have a good day & we will talk later.

Hi everyone - well you will be proud of me today - I have been stamping & some!!!!!! It started during the morning when I had a workshop down at PBC for Clarity corner Stamps.  So having to demonstrate the stamps at the start of the workshop, got me going. Then in the afternoon I made a card & a little box, both for some challenges I am entering this week.  I started the card by colouring some white card with the good old DTP technique - using a mixture of ink pads creating a sunset colour.  The images were then stamped with versafine black ink & clear EP.  The frame stamp was part of a set I think I bought in Hobbycraft, the little kitten was a freebie on a magazine & the sentiment was from "My Sentiments Exactly".  I lightened some of the areas such as the flowers in the bouquet by using a damp paintbrush & then dabbing with a paper towel to lift the colour off. Here is the picture of the card; The card ...

Hi - its me again, again. In the last post I mentioned the state of the weather as I was typing up my blog.  Well a little earlier in the morning straight after another bit of a downpour, the sun came out, & there across the next roads gardens was the most beautiful rainbow.  Now you know me & pictures of the weather.  I had to grab the camera & take a picture.  After all we have had sunsets & sunrises so why not rain & rainbows. Here are the better ones;- I was once told (a long time ago), that you can't capture a rainbow with a camera - how wrong that person was. I think it is beautiful - wonder who has the pot of gold? OK that's it from me today.  A little later I am going over to Liverpool to my friend Caroline.  It will be the first long drive & I will be coming back in the dark - not looking forward to it if it is still raining.  We have a HSNW committee meeting tonight to prepare for next years club programme....

Hi - I'm back again as promised. I recently mentioned that I had a wedding card to make, well I finished that on Sunday & will be putting a photo here in a moment.  As you know I like to keep my finger nails nice & it is the young girl who looks after them that is getting married.  She is going on a cruise to somewhere warm & then getting married - in fact, I have a recall of memory that she is actually getting married on board the cruise ship.  i will be off for my latest treatment in a moment - must remember to ask her. Right at this moment it is absolutely pouring with rain so I expect she is really pleased she is not getting married here. Here is the card including a side view - as it is an easel card;-  I just love making those easel cards.  I think I enjoy them more than the stepper cards.  Unfortunately there isn't any stamping - I know, I know - I am supposed to be a stamper.  I have a couple of wedding stamps & didn't ...

Good morning ladies My first post today is a short one to let the members of Mold II know that if they go to their club page there are details of the project that Rita has organised for their meeting on Tuesday 26th October . Also a reminder that I will be popping in to see how you got on with the Show & Tell project I left with you.

Hi everyone I hope you have had a good weekend. Just popping in quickly so that you know I haven't forgotten you all.  I have been reasonably creative today & made a wedding card & one for one of my weekly challenges I enter.  The challenge one was using images etc from a CD - so I spent quite a bit of time just going through CD's to find the right background & papers.  In fact the wedding card was also made from CD images. I shall have you all shouting at me if I don't get back to doing some stamping, won't I?  I ran out of time to photograph them today - will try & do it tomorrow. We do have a full day tomorrow, as we sadly have a funeral to go to, so I know you will forgive me if I don't get around to writing the blog. Take care everyone - talk soon.

Good morning everyone & another nice morning it is too. Well I have solved the problem I was having yesterday with uploading photos.  Just had to approach it from another direction. So they are now all loaded into my blog so that I can link them to the challenges - three all in one day. The first one was for a blog called Theme Thursday & their challenge for this week was - Pink.  Its for Breast Cancer Awareness Month.  So I found some pretty pink papers (they look lilac in the photo - but they are pink) - that had been in an early issue of Making Cards & designed by Nancy Watts, from which I made a tag.  I had bought a little pink button with a heart on it to include - but the pink was so different that I didn't use it.  The sentiment is the word Believe - it doesn't show up too well though.  It is one of those block style peel-offs with the lettering cut out. Here is the tag - The next project was for the challenge over at Tag You're I...

Good evening everyone. Well! I sat down to get blogging & show you everything I have been doing today & there is a problem with the Internet.  I just cannot get into loading pictures.  I started with my blog & 3 times I tried to browse my pictures folder to load my photos for challenges I had entered & it locked.  Then I was going to pop in here & load them here for you to see along with some chat.  But still no luck.  So I am going to bed now & will do it all in the morning. Technology don't you just love it! Have a lovely weekend - talk soon.

Hi - I'm back again.  Hope you have all had a good day. I managed today to sit down & get those fairies onto a card for the challenge.  I started with one idea which I couldn't quite get to work so ended doing it a different way.  I have written up in detail how I made it over on my blog here . Basically I placed the fairies onto black tags, after pre-stamping them with a small fairy using clear embossing ink & EP.   After deciding I couldn't go down the path of my first thought technique, I took a folded A4 card & using sponge applicators, coloured it to reflect the colouring on the images. Here is the photo - Do you like the little message - if you can read it that is. Two things in this card that normally I do not usually do much of - but I seem to be doing more at the moment - & that is glitter & 3-d.  Both fairies have been decoupaged & their wings have glitter on.  Mind you I am not sure either s...

Sorry, that I didn't drop by yesterday.  i had a rather peculiar day.  For a start I didn't feel 100% & that dropsy thing I had the day before seemed to continue. By the late afternoon I was feeling a bit brighter but not ready to go back to the double easel card I had been working on.  So instead I started preparing for another challenge.  Again it was stamping, but this time I didn't drop the stamp on the work neither did I put the work down on any inky patches.  So improvement all round after all. Earlier this morning I scanned the work so far of this newer project & will pop the pictures in here - in the mean time I have to think exactly how I am going to finish the project off.  The colouring in is better in the actual image - although I can see there needs to be a little tidying up, & I used glitter.  Most unusual for me. The theme for the challenge is "Fairy Tales".  Here are the pictures & I will talk again later, hopef...

Do you get those days when things do start out OK, then sort of go wrong.  Well that was me today. Oops nearly forgot - hello everyone. This afternoon I sat at my work desk ready to create a mock up of a card I wanted to show you & also to put in for one of my challenges.  I had seen someone make one on Create & Craft but hadn't been watching with full concentration.  On that basis I needed to make - as I said above - a mock up.  The other idea was to turn it into a tutorial here by taking pictures at different stages of the process. That as it happens was not the difficult part. The problem started when I was doing some of the final stamping.  I was stamping the holly border on one of the toppers when the clear stamp fell off the acrylic block onto the craft mat.  Ink side down of course. But - it didn't just fall on the craft mat did it.  No! it fell on my work. I didn't worry too much (ooh that's a porkie), as it wa...

Hello everyone Well I have been a little quiet over the last 2 days creativity wise.  Although I had not felt overtired on Saturday evening after visiting the Stamp Festival, I was tired on Sunday. So, I spent a fairly quiet day during which we had a visit from Gareth who stayed for Sunday dinner with us, before which he brought his I-pad with him in order to give me an idea of what a "Kindle" works like, as I had voiced the fact that I was considering buying one.  In the evening we watched a Bill Bailey DVD he had brought round with him.  I don't know how many of you know his type of act - he is a comedian & a very clever musician too, which he used quite a bit in the DVD.  He often appears on QI. You may have seen his programme on TV some time back about the Orchestra.  Absolutely brilliant. I did make one card, sadly it was a sympathy card. Today I have had quite a bit of paperwork to do. But I still found time to take...

Good morning Just popping in to let you know that I have just updated your club page with information on the materials you need to take for the 2 projects .......... yes TWO projects, that you will be doing at the October meeting.  Please check back again later - give me at least a day - when I hope to also have posted the images Joanna sent me to go with the project materials.

Well! it was really strange being at the stamp festival without actually working.  Sue & I arrived a short while after noon.  She had decided that she would walk round on her own & meet up with me about an hour later to see how things were going. I was very good & didn't spend a lot of money or in fact buy a lot of things.  I have bought something for a raffle at each of the clubs - I think you will like it - but it will probably not appear until first meeting 2011, but you never know.  One of the things I really wanted to get was the craft mat that Gordon from Once Upon A Stamp had invented.  I first saw it on Create & Craft.  It has been treated on one side so that it clings to your desk, then when your doing all that lovely blending & things with inks it doesn't slide around all over the place.  I must admit I had encountered quite a problem with that.  So I am looking forward to using it. I also bought a stam...

Hi everyone Today I entered another one of those challenges that I seem to have become addicted too.  addicted in a good way of course & it is certainly helping my creativity mojo. Todays entry was for a blog called Stamptacular Sunday where their theme was "layer it on" & they wanted a minimum of 5 layers.  Anyway I found a stamp I hadn't worked with for a while & managed 6 layers in total.  I will put a picture here;- The full instructions are on my blog here . I mentioned a couple of days ago about an idea I had to help with my rubber stamping workshop.  Do you remember the sunset I took the other week - this was one of them - & it gave me an idea.  We had been covering using brayers & inks to colour card & paper & talking about how you could use it afterwards. So, I coloured an A6 piece of smooth card (the type Barbara Gray of Clarity uses) with Kaleidacolor Ink pad called "autumn leaves" using pieces of cut 'n...

Good morning I am still a bit mystified by the process of what has been happening - but here is what you can do. When the slide show finishes you can click on the white arrowhead if you like.  This will then open another window & take you to the actual web album for those pictures. One of those pictures will then be on display  There is an option to "Show All" Clicking on that option will display all the pictures in the album.  There is then an option to "watch a slide show" Clicking on this option will re-run the slide show with larger pictures. To return to the blog click  "close". If you don't want to look at the pictures again, as described above - leave the white arrow head on the picture & just continue reading the blog as normal. Have fun.  More later.

I am experiencing a little difficulty with the slide show.  When it finishes displaying there is a white arrowhead in the centre of the screen.  This would normally indicate replay - but if you press it it will take you out of the blog to where the album is stored.  So when you have seen all the photos just continue reading.  I will put up a notice when that is cured. It comes up also on the first slide show I did but doesn't take you outside the blog. can;t think clear enough now to resolve it - will work on it tomorrow. Night night.

Hello everyone Yesterday evening I popped along to the CSNW meeting for about half-an-hour.  Last month I had left a sketch with them & so I wanted to see what they had made of it.  When I left they were preparing to make a "swing card" - so I look forward to seeing those next month. There were also 2 new members at the club last night - so welcome to them.  I hope they enjoyed the meeting & look forward to seeing them at future meetings. CNW members ............ I have added to your club page the details of your November meeting. I had remembered to take my camera with me - so here are the photos of their Show & Tell cards;...... That's it for today - more tomorrow.  I might have a picture of a card I made yesterday. 

Hi everyone Not long returned from our meal out with Gareth for his birthday. I think he liked his card - although he did point out I had made a mistake.  Here it is............ and a side view  The mistake?  Although I was careful to pick a character with a red shirt because Gareth supports Liverpool FC - this little guys shirt has a black chevron on the front - which is Man U.  Men & their football!!!!!!!!!!! I was really pleased with this little card. I made it using a download from Crafts-U-Print .   The background paper I had left over from making other football cards.  I even did a bit of 3-d work & you know how that is not my favourite thing. Crafts - U - Print is a great site for downloads & has been helpful for me out of a couple of tight spots, when I just don;t have the right thing in stamping. So there we are - mystery over. I have another photo to show you too.  My entry for the CD Sunday challenge, which ...

Hi ladies Just to bring to your attention I have updated your club page with a "Show & Tell" for November. Hope to pop in to the meeting tomorrow evening.  There will be 2 new ladies joining.

Hi everyone here I am again as promised. Today I finished Gareth's birthday card - but you can't see it until tomorrow evening - after I have given it to him.  Bob & I are taking him out for a meal at the local new Gastro Pub near us.  Gosh that's two eating outs in three days - will have to watch my weight!!!!!!  I wonder how long before people stop calling it the new Gastro Pub? Also today I finally decided that I must finish my samples for the HSNW Festival Exhibition board.  Those of you who go to Port Sunlight will know that we always have an exhibition of members work on display. I had come up with the idea a few weeks back, cut out the card then decided to give it a bit more thought, as you do.  They are needed this week by a colleague in order to set up the boards.   So! after a phone call from her to remind me to put them in the post to her I set to & finished them.  A couple of places I got frustrated as thi...