An award

I received this award from Alison, and I'm supposed to share 5 facts about myself, but I feel I've bored everybody enough with facts about me lately, so I just want to say thanks to her and everybody else who has taken the time and trouble to leave comments and send me beautiful cards. XXX

I'm so excited!

I actually managed to finish something at last! This is dedicated to my dear friend Carol, because she is always there for me, and I rely on her more than she'll ever know. She's always making beautiful stuff, and she'll notice lots of her ideas incorporated here, things I've been meaning to do for AGES!
I've also entered it in this weeks Lots To Do challenge, which is Distress.

Update

Just a quickie update on the lovely process that is chemotherapy. Although my cancer doesn't appear to have spread beyond the breast (hurrah!), the doctors recommended that I have a standard course of chemo 'just in case'. So I had my first treatment last Thursday, (after a 4 hour wait, welcome to the joys of NHS Oncology), and by Friday afternoon, I was on another planet. Just beginning to come back to earth this afternoon, I actually managed to eat something today, OMG. The only good thing is thatI have already lost about 6lb, so that's something!.........

I actually looked into my craft room today, so hopefully I may feel like stirring up the dust in the not-too-distant future......

Collaborative Project

Hurrah, I've been given the all clear! - the cancer hasn't spread any further, and the doc thinks it's all out now, thank goodness. I still might have to have chemotherapy, not sure yet. Anyway, at last I have managed to make something.
These are tiles I made for Karin - we've been doing this collaborative thing for a while now, but Karin was the last to get hers. She chose vibrant blues and greens as her colour choice - looking forward to seeing them all put together Karin!

Time out

Some of you may know that I've been in hospital recently, having surgery for breast cancer. I'm at home now, recovering from the op, before I can embark on the next stage of treatment. Don't feel much like crafting at the moment, so I'm willing to bet it'll be a while til something arty appears on these pages.
I would like to say a very very BIG thank you to everybody who has sent cards, good wishes and vibes, it really is apppreciated, and is helping me come to terms with what has happened.
Penny xxx

Card for Cathy

Just made this for my niece's birthday next week, using some of my new Beauty plate of stamps. I clear embossed the image so I could watercolour it, and then did a bit more on the cardstock.
I feel a watercolouring phase coming on!

TGIF

I was just twiddling about with bits and pieces on my desk and came up with this, for no apparent reason. It fits in well with the TGIF challenge this week ' Words'. I just got this Believe stamp so this is it's first outing.

Collaborative Project part 5

Dunno what happened to part 4, I guess I forgot to photograph it! Anyway, these are for Suse, who is poorly at the moment, along with a card I made to match (sort of) - hope you're feeling ok, Suse.

Egyptian images aren't particularly fashionable right now, but I still have lots of bits and pieces lying around, so I thought I'd use them as they fit the colour scheme of brown cream and black beautifully. The pyramid and the plaque shapes are made with Artmoulds, and the spirally pattern is from a mould I made using a stamp and FP.

The card uses a digital collage image mounted on a collaged background., but I'm only allowed to post a sneak peak as it will (hopefully!)be in September's Craft Stamper, along with some more digital stuff.

New stamp plates

At last, the new stamp plates I designed - and re designed over and over - are done and available from The Stamp Bug. There's a Paris plate, an alphabet, and a random image plate called 'Beauty', which I really like. The alphabet plate is part of the new subscription gift for the SSPG.
Hope to have some work done with these up soon....but don't hold your breath, work and children seems to be taking up all my time atm....and here come the summer holidays, oh joy...

Stamp Bug Open Weekend

I spent the weekend demo-ing at The Stamp Bug - good to see some old friends again! We did a little make and take with Canvas Cloth - it's a double sided canvas, which you can ink/paint/stamp on. cut/run through a die cutter - pretty much anything you could do with card basically. It has a white side and a buff side, you can use either depending on the sort of colours you want to end up with.
Here's a couple of bits and pieces I made with it.
















You can run this stuff through your inkjet printer with AMAZING results...This was part of a piece I printed on, then cut out and added shrink plastic, micro beads, shells and wire.
















And this is just layers of card, paper and canvas with lots of paint and ep.

Collaborative Project, Part 3

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These are twinchies I made for Deb - she opted for sea colours, but I added a teeny bit of purple in the background which was a digital composition. The shell images were stamped on to acetate and then cut out and glued on with Glossy Accents, then I added silicone glue and some bits and pieces - micro beads, Rox and Dew Drops. I sprayed it with Patina Glimmer Mist and finished off the edges with silver embossing powder.

Birthday card

Here's another random shaped card made especially for my daughter Amy's 12th birthday - the beach sandals are shrink plastic, made using a stamp from Artifacts with added beads, and the metal frame is coloured with Alcohol inks.

I've also entered it for this weeks Mixed Media Monday - the theme is On The Beach.

Birthday card

This is a card I made for forum friend Jo's birthday - I love making completely random shaped cards.- I just attack them with scissors till I arrive at something I like. The daisy is FP in an Artmould, and I added gold leaf, wire, rub ons, and a couple of charms.

Collaborative Project 2

These were made as part of a collaborative project for a forum challenge - this is the second month the challenge has been running. It's Joanne's turn this time, and she chose a colour scheme of cream and sepia with black. I sort of made these up as I went along, with layers of paint, EP, rub-ons and, to finish, three daisies made from FP in an Artmould. Photos are a bit dark, but you get the idea.

Secret Garden

This is my entry for The Secret Garden, over on TGIF, where forum friend Jo is host for the week - it's mostly digital...well, ok, ALL digital, and I thoroughly enjoyed making it!

ARTspecially

I'm off to ARTspecially in Amsterdam this weekend with Carol - we swapped lots of atc's last year when we went to Mekka, so we've both been beavering away making more for this one. Some of mine are my digital collages which I've shrunk and added bits to.

Created by Hand

I made this for the Created By Hand challenge this week - it's a digital collage, (of course!) - I was going to print it off and add some bits and pieces, but I kinda like it the way it is -hope it still counts!

Collaborative Project

This is part of a collaborative project on our forum - 8 of us each make 3 tiles in a colour scheme picked by one of the participants who then gets to keep them all. Over the coming months , we all get to pick our colours and we each get a set of 24 2"x2" tiles to join together or whatever. These are for Chris, who chose my fave colours, and they are all tiny digital collages, (my new FAVE technique!) which I printed, edged with ink and gold EP, then mounted on Stampbord, which has had the edges inked and scratched. I added some flowers and Dew Drops, and I'm very pleased with them - hope you are too Chris!

Digital Collage

Been playing around with Photoshop Elements and done a couple of courses - I LOVE blending photos! Here's a few I made and then turned into atc's.
The last one is a pic I took in New Zealand of Mt Ngauruhoe, which was used as Mt Doom in the Lord Of the Rings film trilogy -such a beautiful place.

Art Specially

Following on from the last post, I made a few more ATc's to trade at the show. I really enjoyed making these, haven't done any for AGES.

MMM - The Written Word

I have to make lots of atcs, because Carol and I are going to Art Specially at the beginning of April - hoping to do lots of swaps! This one fits the Mixed Media Monday Challenge, The Written Word, as I used one of my favourite images (designed, or should I say scribbled by moi!) and known as Penny's text, from Artifacts. I stamped the writing using a paint dabber, and added some flowers and swirly rub ons.

SSPGuild

Here's a sneak peak of a clock I made for the next SSPG magazine, Guilded. I used some random pieces of chipboard, a lot of paint, some Grungeboard and a clock kit - and it actually works! Next mag goes live Feb 1st.

More Paper Artsy stuff

Some more things I did for the PA DT - The first one is a little chipboard book, done with paint, ink and some copper coloured metal. I've also entered this in the Lots To Do Challenge, which has a theme of Keys.


The others are two tiny little canvases - the first one is about 2" square - again made with paint and ink, shrink plastic and wire.

Design Team work

This is just a couple of the pieces I did for the Paper Artsy Design Team - it was a bit of a slog, but I found the more I did, the more ideas I got, (and the more fun it was!) It's for an A1 board to be used at a Trade Show, and my colour theme was blue and orange. Guess I'll never see the stuff again, but at least I've got pics......

This is a small canvas, about 5 x 7 inches, and I used some of the techniques learned at LB Crafts the other week, plus a few of my own..


















This one is my third attampt at a 12 x 12 scrapbooking layout - the first two ended up in the bin, but I'm quite pleased with this one, even though I had to fiddle about a lot on Photoshop with all my photos...


There's loads of other stuff which I'll post in due course.

New SSPG projects

These have been out for a while now, so I can blog them at last. I made them using
Tims technique of swiping ink on a baking sheet and spraying it with water, and the stamps are Artifacts Alpine Flowers. For detailed instructions, go to the SSPG Website

Dream Canvas

Made this 14 x 10 canvas at a brilliant class yesterday, at Lin B's shop LB Crafts. We got extremely messy with paper, paint, wood filler, more paint, wax, metal, and yet more paint and had a lot of fun!









The 'DREAM' letters were cut from doubled up card stock, gold embossed and waxed.

'BELIEVE' tags were covered in adhesive metal, and then we added paint, alcohol inks and got messier and messier!
When I got it home, I added a 'Craft Room' sign, a tag that was lying around, and a little 'Keep Out' tag - not that anyone will take any notice, I'm sure.
All in all, my idea of heaven, and I can't wait to go to the next one.

SSPG

Here's a coupleof things I've made for the next SSPG online magazine out Dec 1st- you're only allowed a sneak peek til it's published so watch this space for more later.

Tag

This is a tag I found on the last T shirt I bought from Tesco - I altered it using all the bits and pieces lying about on my desk - it wasn't made for any challenges, or magazines or DT projects, or for anybody else, and I'm loving the fact that I don't have to write it up!

I've been tagged

By Carol........and I'm supposed to tell 6 random things about myself.

1.My name was Fiona for about 3 days, and then my mum changed her mind.
2.I'm sure I was a Native American in a past life.
3.When I was at college, I won a nationwide competition for the best Student Window Display.
4. My favourite place in the world is Cotillo Beach in Fuerteventura.
5. I don't like chocolate cake. Really.
6. I always wanted to be a drummer in a rock band....preferably Pink Floyd.

There are lots of other rules which I can't be bothered with, so, everybody in my sidebar, consider yourself tagged. - you are all brilliant.

Mixed Media Monday

Over at MMM, this week's challenge is set by my blog buddy Deb - it's Autumn Colours, which I think is one of my favourite colour schemes. I made this a little while ago but never blogged it and it fits so here it is! The verse is pretty much unreadable (love this font, though) but it's part of The Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam, a poem my Mum loved, and she was always reciting bits to me....

Awake! for Morning in the Bowl of Night
Has flung the Stone that puts the Stars to Flight:
And Lo! the Hunter of the East has caught
The Sultán's Turret in a Noose of Light.
Dreaming when Dawn's Left Hand was in the Sky
I heard a Voice within the Tavern cry,
" Awake, my Little ones, and fill the Cup"
Before Life's Liquor in its Cup be dry."

Craft Stamper

Glad to say that I'm back in the mag from the Jan issue - and I've tackled a bit of scrapbooking. I'm only allowed to blog a sneak peek atm, so here's a couple of shots of the front and back covers..And there's a new Craft Stamper blog - go take a look...

Collage Workshop

I ran a collage workshop at The Stamp Bug today, and we made a hanging thingy. Thanks to Helen and Pippa, who came along and seemed to enjoy themselves. I've done the collage workshop before but I made some new things for this one - it's difficult to get excited about making something you've done 50 times already!


We made a collage sheet by gluing lots of scraps on to a piece of plain paper, and then punched the flowers out of it - you can then use them on card/tags/whatever. These also use paint dabbers, which I can't seem to stop using atm.... The photo was cut from a collage image page, but it would be cool to use a photo of your nearest and dearest. I'm really pleased with the way these turned out.



The tag uses a piece of mica - this stuff has been around for ages, but I love the way you can peel it apart and sandwich stuff inside it. It's easy to emboss on, too.

Dragonfly Tag

Here's something else I found today that I thought deserved some blogtime. This is a tag I made using some of my stamp designs, Dragonfly Dreams from Artifacts - (part of the subscription gift if you join the SSP Guild.)

I used Distress inks, gold EP, and a sizzix die cut swirl. I think the tag was a sizzix die, too

Distress techniques

I made these 2 tags for a workshop I did last year, Distress Techniques, one of my favourites, and they were made using distress inks and water sprays, amongst other things. I spotted them lying about at work, and thought I should blog them. I love these pictures - they are my grandparents (on the left) and my Mum(on the right) Shame I managed to tear a bit of her head off, sorry Mum!
It's 15 years since she died, but I still miss her. I never met her parents but she idolised them and told me lots about them.

I've also entered them in the Saturdays Workshop Challenge - just about made it!

Stempelmekka

Had an absolutely fantastic time at Stempelmekka with my mate Carol in Germany this weekend - lots and lots of artsy stamps and stuff, not a peel off in sight!! And we met up with many online friends, and made some new ones. Overspent wildly but then I have been saving for a couple of years.......
Traded lots of Atc's - here are the ones I came home with....(plus one I made last night, just to fill in the gap!)

This tag was inspired by a background from Hermine
I love this image of Aragorn, - this was an acetate image I printed off ages ago to transfer - I wasn't sure if it would work as it's had lots of time to dry..... but it did! It's so much easier when it's on acetate rather than paper - I just put a lot of goo (matte gel medium in this case) on the tag, slapped on the print, and rubbed the back with a spoon for about 2 minutes.

And it fits the challenge over at Crazy Amigo , which is to make a tag, so I entered it in that too.....

More puzzles

I loved making the puzzle piece so I decided to make a set, using some of my new stamps. As I love my 'Amy ' stamp, I designed a couple more featuring my other two daughters, Ellie and Sarah. Ellie is the yellow one, and Sarah the green.
I use paint dabbers (of course!) and various sundry embellies, of which I seem to have a limitless supply (oh dear, too much retail therapy). The stamps will soon be available from Artifacts, on a couple of plates called Shining Light, and Complex Creation. Watch this space!


On another note entirely, visit the stempelglede blog for a fab blog candy giveaway........

Gothic Arch

Inspired by my good friend Carol, I decided to make a Gothic Arch - the theme this week is Black and White with hints of red. I think this woman looks spooky already so giving her red eyes seemed like a good idea.

The Puzzler

This is for a swap and also for This Thursday challenge. The bottom pic is actually the back - it was meant to be a hanging thingy, and they always end up being the wrong way round. Having said that, I forgot to put the hanger on.....
I used a lot of different stuff on here from the usual - NOT! LOVE my paint dabbers and my Amy stamp.......:)
Btw, these are large puzzle pieces, about 4 x 4".

TMTA

This week's TMTA is watches - I have a thing about collecting watch stamps (amongst other things!) I meant to do only one, but got carried away. These were made with Artifacts stamps and Adirondack inks, and some letter stickers that I've had for absolutely ages, and never got around to using.

Created By Hand

This weeks Created by Hand Challenge is Dream. I made this ATC with a new stamp I've just designed of small daughter Sarah (available soon from Artifacts)- I black embossed it for finer detail. The background is sponged Eggplant ink with Crafty Notions Gold Spray, and a bit of random text, and the dream stamp is from Artifacts Artplate 1, UM003.

TMTA Rendezvous

Over at TMTA this week, the challenge is 'Rendezvous' - who would you like to meet up with?
Double date for me, although if I had to choose one, it'd be the one on the left......

These guys have made an appearance on my blog before. I feel sure they will again...

These are two of the stamp plates I've designed for Artifacts. I'm very excited because I've just got two more new ones today, but as they're not quite in production yet, you'll have to wait and see what they look like!







Meanwhile here's another one I made a while ago, the smiley beautiful girl is Amy, my middle daughter - I've used it on a tag and atc's amongst other things....

More landscapes

Can't stop making these! This time I used Butterscotch ink, Oregano and Denim. I just have to do one more (in Eggplant) then maybe I'll move on!

Distress Ink Tag

The kids and their dad have all gone to the cinema this afternoon- lucky me! - so I have been playing. These are for a challenge on a group I belong to, and both use Distress inks. The main stamps are from Crafty Individuals, and Katy's Corner, the background text is from Artifacts.

TMTA - Turquoise

This weeks challenge over at TMTA is Turquoise. I recently bought these images from Lavinia Stamps at Newbury - not usually into fairy stuff, but they are lovely, and the lady demo-ing - (think her name is Tracy Dutton) was doing amazing landscapes with a brayer. I can't seem to make my brayer work in the same way(!) but I managed to make this with a sponge and Stream Adirondack ink.

In fact, I liked doing it so much I made a couple more in different colours...Wild Plum and Cranberry

ATC's

At last, I managed to get something new done! Not a lot, but these are some ATC's I made to take to the Newbury Artstamp show. I will be demo-ing on Jane Pinders Stamping, Scrapbooking and PaperCrafters Guild, somewhere on the ground floor, if you want to come and say hi and do a swap!

Pendant

This was for a forum swap - I made it with 2 colours of Friendly Plastic melted into an Artmould. When it was cool I flipped it over and reheated it, and then stamped into it. As long as you wait for the plastic to cool before you remove the stamp, it won't affect the rubber.
Then I pierced it with a needle tool, and threaded it with wire and beads, finally adding a shrink plastic heart, and a few other embellishments. The key was also made with an Artmould.

Another Fairy Door...

Or maybe I should say anti-fairy door. I really enjoyed making this - it's so opposite to what first comes to mind when you think 'Fairy'.......Never was that keen on fairies,
anyway....








I tried to take an 'atmospheric' type pic, but it didn't really work - here is the best of the 75 photos I took.
Thanks to Sarah for the loan of Robin Hood's sword, bow and arrow......

Fairy Door

Just finished my first Fairy Door, for a challenge on a forum I belong to. It's a bit more twee than I meant it to be, but I still like it, so here it is. I'm gonna make another one soon....watch this space.