Autumnal flowers and reminders

Happy Monday everyone, hope you all had a good weekend.

A quick reminder that there are Autumn themes on to go at both Sir Stampalot and Penny Black at Allsorts Challenges and there some great prizes up for grabs so do pop over and take a peek.

Two shares today, the first one an Anniversary card made for an order. I stamped Hero Arts S5316 Silhouette Grass using Tim Holtz frayed burlap in the background, then overstamped with Penny Black 4042K Daisy Fields inked with Tim Holtz wild honey and sage and misted with water before stamping. The DP is My Minds Eye which I also used to make the flower using TH tattered floral die and spritzing liberally with Glimmer Mist pearl before giving a good scrunch. I distressed the edges of the main piece with wild honey and added some lace, punched leaves and butterfly and pearls. This card is for the following challenges:

Our Creative Corner - Sketch

Secret Crafter - Distressing

Paper Playtime - Main Colour Orange

My second card had a background created with masking tape and Brilliance inks, spritzed with Glimmer Mist dazzling diamonds. After removing the masking tape I stamped Penny Black 3932K Japanese Maple with versafine sepia and embossed with detail clear. I stamped Penny Black 3857H Footnote down the spine side of the card and a sentiment Hero Arts C4406 and added some eyelets and cord. This is for the following challenges:

Cards for Men - Happy Birthday
Crazy 4 Challenges - Happy Birthday
Lets Ink it Up - Halloween Colours
Paper Sundaes - Change of Season (Autumn)
Penny Black Saturday - 2 or more PB images
Lots to Do - Oriental (not sure if the Japanese Maple is pushing it too far, count me out if it is girls, I won't have a hissy fit !!)

Beauty of Nature

The beautiful findings of a deranged shopper

Hello Peeps, hope you all had a good weekend. The weather was decidedly iffy here and the central heating swung into action, I just can't abide being cold.

And the trees are feeling the cold as well and the leaves and beginning to fall rapidly, but oh how beautiful the all are. When we were shopping Saturday......I'll share with you shortly what was sourced at John Lewis...........I just couldn't resist picking up these leaves. We had to smile though, as a lady sitting in a coffee shop with her husband watched me intently as I rummaged the leaves for a couple to bring home, touched her husband on the arm with a sad half smile and they both gave my hubby such a caring sympathetic look. Clearly they though I had totally lost it..........but I can't resist revelling in the beauty of Nature.......I thought that was just normal ?

Now on to John Lewis.........my anniversary present from hubby. He made no mention what he was thinking until we hit the shops, said he wanted to go into the computer section of John Lewis, then announced he though a Mac would be just the thing for me with all my art and craft work. So this little package, well not so little, the screen is 27" is being delivered on Thursday.

I confess to lots of reservations, I've used HP's both at home and in the office for years, so me thinks a sharp learning curve is in the offing. But a couple of the children have Mac's so I am hopefully they won't just give me a 'dahhhh' glare when I am at my whits end with all the change. At least I have the luxury of enough space in my craft room to have old and new running until I conquer the Mac......that'll be mid 2011 then !

Enough gabble and a share of a couple of cards. The first one is obviously inspired by the lovely leaves above, very similar to one I made a few weeks ago, but I rather like the design. The leaves are Hero Arts CL457 real leaves, inked with various colours of Brilliance inks, stamped onto linen cardstock and diamond glazed after cutting out. I used the same leaves to stamp a background, but stamped them off first to diffuse the colours a bit. I tied ribbon across the middle panel and added a button to one leaf. This card is for the following challenges:

Mojo Monday - Sketch
Paper Playtime - Ribbons, buttons or rhinestones
Sweet Stamping - Punch it Out

The second card is a clean and simple design using Stamps Happen 80427 which I stamped onto a background created with Tim Holtz frayed burlap, linen and sage and a touch of gold brilliance. I coloured the image with Aquamarkers and added diamond glaze to the glass. The borders are created with Martha Stewart cornice punch. Cord and a button to embellish. This card is for the following challenges:

Cupcake - Happy Hour

Paper Sundaes - Something from Stash (cord and buttons)