Opus Gluei Challenge #138. The Rock Diet.

Ever found yourself caught between a rock and a hard place?
When was the last time you tried the latest crazy diet that didn't work?
Well Two Barrettes definitely wishes she read the small print because she really wasn't expecting this on day 4 of her new diet.

Click on her rocks to make them bigger (snigger).

The Opus Gluei Challenge this fortnight is called "Me and my camera" and you are to use a photo in your project.
The challenge was set by the lovely Electra who makes absolutely gorgeous digital and hand papercrafted Scrap Book Pages and mixed media art.

Well I can tell you that this challenge nearly made me give up the glue. Boo Hoo.
I never use photo's or do scrap booking, it does not appeal to me at all to make it myself, and I tried all week to come up with something scrapbooky with a photo I took of a pebble sculpture years ago in Ilfracoombe harbour.
But I could not manage anything AT ALL.

In the end I gave up and cut out the pebble sculpture and made a person out of it, so I have used part of a photo I took after all - hooray!
The arms didn't look very arm like, so a made a handbag to try and give you a clue that hey, these really are arms, honest.
Hmm.

Happy Creating with Bournville Old Jamaica Rum and Raisin dark chocolate, my favourite yum! So much nicer than rocks...
Gini
xx

In the Pink Challenge #1. Anything Goes

A new fortnightly challenge blog has started called In The Pink that is co hosted by a dear friend Sylvia .
The themes of the challenges will change fortnightly but the projects are always to be predominantly pink in colour.
I'm sure the blog will be a big success for Christine whose idea it is and she is the creator of the blog and Sylvia.

I recently bought myself some Octopode rubber stamps and this card uses one of the chicks. Isn't she adorable???
I love circles so came up with this layout that I'm really pleased with.
The papers are Bo Bunny double dot and the Spellbinders Edgebilities die is the Classic Bracket one.
Click on it to make it bigger.

Happy creating!
Gini
xx

Little knitted Dresses

Opus Gluei Challenge #137. Red Hot. 

Oh My Goodness haven't the Olympic Games in London been spectacular and completely RED HOT with absolutely amazing daily athletic feats.
I'm so proud to be British right now because the British crowds in London and at every other Olympic venue around England supported every single athlete competing through all their triumphs and tears, I'm still totally fizzing with it all!

I loved it all but I adore adore ADORE the team synchronized swimming event the best, Britain swam a wonderful Peter Pan but the Spanish team totally blew me away with their fabulous Ocean routine, their dazzling mirrored silver costumes were spectacular in the water and made their performance truly breath taking.

Oh my, the shiny shiny costumes of the swimmers are incredible in their own right and are only beaten by the rhythmic gymnastic costumes which are even more sumptuous!
Here is a link to some fab photos of the swimming costumes
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2186619/London-2012-Synchronised-swimmers-bring-beauty-pool-compete-Olympic-title.html?ito=feeds-newsxml

So as I sat and watched the athletics I knitted little dresses suitable for cards and mixed media which I admit are woefully poor as a tribute to the amazing and marvellous costumes of those two Olympic Events but anyway here is my red hot shiny dress in celebration.
It's 3 1/4 inches tall and I've plans for a canvas celebrating the games but can't decide yet how big to do it and how many dresses to use.

The knitting pattern I created can be knitted easily in any needle sizes ranging from
UK 3 3/4mm to UK 5mm using double knitting weight yarn.
Fancy yarns work just as well in this needle size range.
If you are using fancy yarn remember to keep your tension loose.
Dress lengths vary from 2 inches to 3+ inches depending on needle size.
They take about 10 minutes to knit.

Here are a couple of examples of sizes using double knitting yarn, click on the photo to enlarge it.

The Knitting Pattern is for personal use only and commercial use is not allowed.

Little Knitted Dress Pattern using garter stitch.

Cast on 12 sts.
Knit 5 rows in garter stitch.
K2tog at each end of next row (leaves 10 sts)
Knit 1 row
K2tog at each end of next row (leaves 8 sts)
Knit 1 row
K2tog at each end of next row (leaves 6 sts)
Knit 4 rows
Cast on 5 sts and knit to end
Cast on 5 sts and knit to end
Knit 1 row
K5, K2tog, K2tog, K2tog, K5
Knit 1 row
Cast off.



Happy creating!
Gini
xx

Opus Gluei Challenge #136. Seasons

This fortnight the lovely Rosemary has set the challenge at Opus Gluei which is to make a seasonal project. 
 I love Rosemary's challenges and this one is particularly flexible as it doesn't matter what season or what art form. 
 So it could be the Christmas cards you've been making throughout the year , Halloween pumpkins, the quilted Thanksgiving table runner, springtime flower displays, summer wreaths, scrapbook layouts, presents for the holidays - whatever you've been busy making.  

I chose to make an Autumn Card that doesn't look traditionally like an Autumn card (which to my mind would be with leaves or trees as the main focus and using reds, browns, yellows and green) but something that still was recognizably Autumy.
I think I managed to do it.
Click on it to make it bigger. 
Sorry it's a bit of a dodgy photo.

The birds are a Crafty Individual stamp set on ivory pearl card layered onto paneled kraft card that was embossed with a Tim Holtz embossing folder and then I rubbed bronze acrylic paint over the sun's rays with my trusty finger.
The leaves are a Hampton Art stamp set. The die cuts are Spellbinders.


Happy creating!
Gini
xx

Opus Gluei Challenge #135. Where'd you get your suntan?

This fortnight's challenge is mine and it's to make a project based on anywhere you could get a suntan.
I thought we could think about traditional sun holiday destinations or your back garden/yard, on top of the Eiffel Tower, sitting in a canoe, anything really that you can make a story up to explain how you are getting a suntan so it fits the challenge, you know how I love a tall story.
For example, the mermaid whose dream was to get a suntan and how she managed to fulfill that dream. How did she do that? Was Sponge Bob Square Pants or the police involved? Maybe her fairy Grandmother came to her aid? How did she stop her scales from drying out?

I am over here in very soggy England, we have had rain, rain and more rain for what feels like a very long time but if it would just stop raining for a few days I might be able to get a suntan in my back garden.
If I was to lie on tinfoil out in my garden right now you would here the rain drumming on the tinfoil fortissimo style (the music term for very loud which I looked up on Wikipedia, gotta love that website and all the wonderful people who have contributed to it).

I need a raincoat and some fake tan...

So here is our house in the middle of our street.
 I loved that Madness song from 1982, yes, it really was that long ago!
You can see them in action over here on youtube if you fancy a bit of nostalgia
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KwIe_sjKeAY
Pssst turn it up very loud ;-)

Click on it to make it bigger.
I used a 5x7" canvas that I painted with acrylics to make the background in nice bright colours. I put a coat of Decoart Ice Crystal glamour dust paint over the top. This gives a wonderful subtle sparkly sheen to it.
I die cut some white clouds on textured white card using Memory Box dies.
I used book pages from the wonderful Author Louise Rennison book "It's OK I'm wearing really big knickers!"
 If you love colloquial English then you will love Louise's writing style plus she is very funny.
I used a retired set of Chocolate Baroque stamps called Retro Florals and the brights range of Ranger Adirondack Dye inks to stamp with.
The birds are Inkylicious.
I used scraps of designer papers for the windows and doors and the die cut fence panels are by Go Create.


Happy creating!
Gini
xx

There She Goes Stamps TSG161 challenge. Winged Things

I have one set of There She Goes stamps and it's called Aim for the clouds, it's the same stamp set as I used in my last post but this card looks quite different.
I made that beginners mistake (WTF?) of die cutting, stamping and colouring without having a plan for the finished card. I was just too excited maybe?
So I ended up wasting a lot of card before I came up with this layout.
But I like this card and the wings are on the little silhouette birds that came with the set making it qualify for the TSG161 Challenge.
There She Goes has some wonderful stamp sets, and they are on my shopping list.

I used my Whispers Brush pens to add the rainbow colours to the balloons which I stamped and masked to create the overlaping balloons.
I used Spellbinders Label's 10 and one of the Spellbinders edgeability dies, I think it's called upper crest or perhaps bracket?
The lovely coloured card is Bo Bunny's Double Dot basics range that comes in some fabulously bright colours.
Happy Creating!
Gini
xx

Sketch Challenge 133. Skipping Stones Design.

I followed the sketch quite literally to make this Hot Air Balloon card.
Unfortunately I don't yet have any Skipping Stone Design stamps but have my eye on a couple of gorgeous designs.
Click on it to make it bigger.

This is the sketch:

These are some of the wonderful stamps sets available.
The first two with just the cutest robin:-


                                                             Heartsong 2

 Heartsong. 

 Beautiful Botanicals.

 

 Dandelion Dreams

Healing Wings.

The sentiments are really good for the ever hard card to make; Sympathy for bereavement cards. The poem "Do not stand at my grave and weep" is wonderful and uplifting and I like to include it in Bereavement cards so I'm pleased to see it as a clear stamp.

My card is made using the set "Aim for the clouds" by There She Goes Stamps, another American stamp company that has loads of great stamp sets. The font used on the sentiments is really nice too.
I've paper pieced the stamps with Bo Bunny Double dot papers and the Hot Air Ballon is an Echo Park paper.

Happy Creating!
Gini
xx