Tropical Bird

Hello everyone, I have a project to share using the Birds of Paradise Multibuy stamps that are currently on offer this month from Chocolate Baroque. I have chosen to use a colour palette that is outside my usual comfort zone, but I really wanted to create a tropical feel to this card.

To make my background, I spritzed a piece of smooth watercolour paper with some Dylusion sprays, and then used a Crafter's Workshop stencil to add some depth. I used Distress Inks to add the shading; Salty Ocean, Chipped Sapphire, Mowed Lawn and Pine Needles.

I used a little flower spray from the Wisteria Lane stamp set to create some branches to hang the bird cage from. I stamped the image randomly around the top edges of the background, using Library Green Archival Ink. I stamped and embossed the birdcage using gold embossing powder, ensuring that the background was completely dry, so that the embossing powder did not stick to the rest of the background.

I stamped the bird onto the background, and then again onto a spare piece of card. I coloured the second image with Polychromos pencils and cut it out before adhering it to the background. I added a sentiment from the Card Sentiments clear stamp set. I matted the background onto a piece of dark green card to complete my project.

I hope that you will experiment with your colours as I have done when creating your projects, you never know where the journey will take you! Thanks for stopping by, xx

Brusho Bird

Hello everyone, I have a Design Team card for Chocolate Baroque to show you today. It is an Oriental themed card, using my favourite colours and some wisteria stamps taken from the Serenity and Wisteria Lane stamp sets.

I created my card by stamping and embossing the bird and bird cage from the A Little Bird Told Me stamp set onto smooth watercolour paper using white embossing powder. I dropped Brusho crystals over the background, choosing green and turquoise for the bird, and violet and lime green for the background. I spritzed my card with water, and blotted it with kitchen towel, to lighten the colours, and mop up the excess water.

I stamped the wisteria images using Distress markers around the edges of the card, using Peeled Paint, Seedless Preserves and Dusty Concord. I added some detail to the bird and birdcage using Copic markers.  Finally, I matted the background onto a white card base.

Thanks for stopping by, xx

Vintage Poppies

Hello everyone, it's time for another post on the Chocolate Baroque Challenge Blog, and this week, we have a free digital download for you. I have created a card using the download to provide a bit of inspiration, and hope thatyou will pop over to the blog to take a look at some more DT inspiration. We are also looking at some fabulous customer artwork that has been entered into the challenge this month. The blog is fast approaching its one year Anniversary, and we are preparing for the big event, which is not to be missed, as there will be prizes across the month. Do keep visiting the blog if you get a chance, and leave a comment if you have the time.

To create my card, I printed off Lesley's download onto some smooth white card, and trimmed it to 19cms x 19cms, and matted it onto a black card blank. I added some self-adhesive cream lace across the card. I took a piece of Prima Epiphany paper, and die cut a circle, and then stamped the poppy image from the Flora and Fauna stamp set, using Versafine Onyx Black ink. I coloured the image with Polychromos pencils, and then edged the circle with Hickory Smoke Distress Ink, before attaching it to the card. I have not added a sentiment yet, because I will wait until I know what I need to use the card for before I add any wording.

I hope that you will join in the challenge, as there are still a few days left. Here is the link to the post where you can add your entry.

Thanks for stopping by, xx

We've been collaberating again!

Hello everyone, Lesley and I have been crafting together again. We decided to make a couple of tags this time. We each made a background using the same colours, and then swapped them with each other. We made the tags on a recent craft day together, and it was great to be in the same place, as geographically, we live about 230 miles apart.

Here is a picture of our two tags side by side:

Apologies for the poor quality of the photo, but I knew that I wanted a photo of these before they went on their separate journeys, but it was a very speedy photo. The tag on the left is Lesley's tag, she coloured the tag and spritzed it with water before giving it to me. The tag on the right is mine. I sponged acrylic wax across the tag, which I heat set before I added the colour to the tag. We decided to use a colour palette of Squeezed Lemonade, Shabby Shutters and Dried Marigold for our backgrounds.

To complete Lesley's tag, I die cut two honeycomb fragments, and coloured them with the same colours before adhering them to the tag. I stamped a sentiment from the See Beauty clear stamp set onto the tag, and added some raindrops from The Seasonal Fragments stamp set. I stamped the Snake's Head Fritillary and some bees from the Honey Bee stamp set onto a sticky label, and coloured them with Polychromos pencils.

I hope that you will pop over to the Design Team blog to see what Lesley has done to my tag. Thanks for stopping by, xx

Christmas Masterboard

Hello everyone, I have a project to show you today using the current stamps of the month available from Chocolate Baroque. I have used one of the leafy Seasonal Fragment designs to create a masterboard with contemporary colours, and then turned it into a Christmas card by using a seasonal greeting and poinsettia style flowers.

I started my background by colouring a piece of smooth white card with Aqua Adirondack Ink, then stamping the leaves using Red Geranium and Library Green Archival Ink. I completed the background using the same leafy stamp and Aqua Ink for a softer feel.

I die cut a long shape, and sponged the edges with Aqua, leaving the die in place, to create a white border, then stamped a sentiment, using Versafine Crimson Red Ink. I hand cut a matting layer using dark red card. I used the same red card to cut out some Crealie shapes to make some flowers, and cut some Crealie leaves using dark green card. I spritzed the flowers with water and scrunched them up slightly to get a more dimensional feel. I put three layers together and added a brad.

I hope that you will give this technique a try, I had more of this background left over for another project;

which is great when I need to make so many Christmas cards! Thanks for stopping by, xx

Falling Leaves

Hello everyone, it's a new week over on the Chocolate Baroque Challenge Blog, and my turn to make a card for inspiration as part of the Design Team. The colours on the colour swatch seemed very Autumnal to me, and so I decided to create a leafy card for my project.

I started to make my card, by stamping the line of trees using Potting Soil Archival Ink, and embossing it with clear embossing powder. I wanted a crisp clear image that would stand out amongst the multitude of leaves that I was going to add afterwards. Adding the embossing powder just sharpens the image.
I added some Aqua Adirondack Ink above the trees, and some Dried Marigold underneath, and then completed the background with Memento Pear Tart Ink. I stamped the leafy fragment using Olive and Orange Blossom Archival Ink, using first and second generation ink. Any gaps that were left, I filled in with stamping using Pear Tart for a fainter impression. I inked around the edges using Memento Potter's Clay Ink. I then stamped some leaves onto scrap paper from my scrap box, sticking to colours within the challenge colours, and once I had cut them out, arranged them randomly across the page before gluing them down.

I added a bit of shading under the trees using a couple of pencils. Finally, I matted the background onto some terracotta card.

I have purposefully left this card blank as a handy storecupboard card. It will be useful as a masculine card, or even a sympathy card if necessary.

Thanks for stopping by, xx

Making an Impression

Hello everyone, I have a textured card to show you today using the stamps of the month currently on offer at Chocolate Baroque.

I created my background by cutting a piece of smooth watercolour paper slightly smaller than my card blank, and covering it with water. I added some acrylic paint that I had diluted to the paper to give a watery wash over the background. I chose three colours of paint; yellow, saffron and a plum colour. I dried the background with my heat gun, and as is it was quite rippled, gave it a good iron to get it nice and flat again!

I stamped the linen texture stamp using Saffron Archival Ink, and added the flower heads using Seedless Preserves Distress Ink. I stamped a sentiment from the Mackintosh Sentiments stamp set onto some hand dyed ribbon that I had left over from another project, and attached this to the background.

I rolled out three pieces of polymer clay and cut them into circles. I pressed the flower head stamp firmly into the clay, and following the maufacturer's instructions, I baked the clay in the oven. Once the pieces had cooled down, I painted them with the same colours of acrylic paint that I had used for the background of the card. Once they were dry, I added some metallic wax to pick out the details of the flowers.

These stamps are great for adding texture to all sorts of surfaces, and I hope that you will experiment and try something like this out yourself. Thanks for stopping by, xx

Feeling Blue

Hello everyone, it's time for another blog post on the Chocolate Baroque Challenge Blog, and this week, it's digital download week. Lesley has created two free backgrounds for you to download and use in your own projects.Hop over to the blog to collect the downloads and see some inspiration using the downloads.

I decided to create a haberdashery themed card using the download myself, and wanted to keep the colour scheme very simple, just blue and cream. I stamped three mannequins across the background using second generation stamping, so that they would not be too dark. The various gridlines on the background are a great help for lining everything up. I edged the background with Versamark and added vanilla white embossing powder before heat setting it with my heat gun.

I found some scraps of paper in my stash that had been sprayed blue, and used these for the bodices, embossing them with the vanilla white EP. I then embossed the lace strips onto vellum, and the mannequin bases onto acetate, before cutting everything out and assembling the card. The crocheted cream flower is an oldie from my stash that I have had for ages.

 Thanks for stopping by, xx

Dandelion Clocks

Hello everyone, I have a card to share with you today, using some of the new Seasonal Fragments stamps from Chocolate Baroque. I wanted to create a little scene using one of the older dandelion clock images from the Fragrant Honeysuckle stamp set and add the clock seeds as if a fairy was blowing them off the flower head. I used to do this as a child and make a wish, did you?

I stamped the main flower image onto a piece of card, and then added the flower fragment across the bottom of the card. I added some colour to the background using Tumbled Glass and Shabby Shutters Distress Inks. I stamped the seed fragment, and added a fairy from the Spring Fairy stamp set. I coloured the images with Inktense pencils, and added a little bit of Stickles glue on the flowers, seeds and fairy wings as an accent. I stamped a sentiment from the Card Sentiments clear stamp set to finish.

I created a larger mount for my image using Shabby Shutters Distress Ink once again to colour the background card, and stamped the seed stamp around the edges using the same colour for a tone on tone effect. I attached both pieces of card to a large white card blank.

 I'll be back with more cards using these great new stamps in a few days' time. Thanks for stopping by, xx

Batik Florals

Hello everyone, it's my turn to post a tutorial on the Chocolate Baroque Challenge Blog this week. I have made a card with a batik style background, and thought that I would share it here with you as well.

I stamped and embossed my background using a floral fragment stamp and Versamark ink with clear embossing powder. I then coloured the background using Distress Inks: Salty Ocean, Picked Raspberry and Cracked Pistachio, adding a bit of Memento Grape Jelly ink around the edges. Once I had added my colour, I ironed the baclground, covering it with scrap paper first! This left the background lovely and smooth, and showed off the lovely floral pattern.

I stamped the fantasy flower onto a smaller rectangle, and coloured it with watercolour pencils, before shading around the edges with Distress Inks. I added a couple of butterflies and a sentiment. A pretty organza bow was all that was needed to finish the card. These challenge colours are right up my street, so pretty.

I hope that you will pop over to the challenge blog to take a look at the other DT inspiration on offer. Don't forget, there is a monthly prize on offer if you enter the challenge using current CB stamps.

Thanks for stopping by, xx

A supporting role

Hello everyone, I have a couple of cards to show you today using this month's sewing stamps from Chocolate Baroque in a supporting role. This way, you can stretch their usesand you can see how versatile these stamps really are.

My first card uses one of the lacy borders on a wrinkle free distress background. I used a simple colour palette of black and green to keep the card looking quite masculine. I added some background stamping using a stamp from the Harlequin Fragments stamp set. I stamped a heart image from the Punky Hearts stamp set onto a piece of scrapbook paper, colouring in some of the details with Inktense pencils, and then cut it out and used 3D foam pads to attach it to the card. Finally I added a sentiment from the Sweet Nothings stamp set onto a die cut.

My second card uses another one of the borders to create a masculine romantic card using the Key to my Dreams stamp set. This border reminded me of keyholes when I first saw it, so it seemed to match this stamp set very well. I stamped one of the locks onto the background before adding the border on either side. I coloured the background with an acrylic wash, and added some shading with Distress Ink around the edges. I coloured the images with Polychromos pencils and added some background detail with a stamp from the Lace Fragments stamp set.

Thanks for stopping by, xx

A Trio of Tags

Hello everyone, I have created three tags to show you combining the Sewing Stamps multi-buy and the Peacock Parade/Tangled Peacock multi-buy. I wanted to create some designer haute couture style dresses, and decided to use the peacock tails as skirts combined with the bodices of two of the mannequins from the sewing sets. I stuck to a peacock themed colour palette throughout the three tags.

I cut three large tags from watercolour paper using the Crealies extreme labels and tags die. This is a super set of dies, and I used the largest die for my tags. It has embossed stitching running around the edges, so was very appropriate for my project.

I started the three tags by stamping and embossing the lace strip along the bottom of the three tags, using Versafine Onyx Black ink and clear embossing powder. I then stamped the foot of one of the mannequins on each tag. I stamped each peacock tail onto a tag, using Versafine Deep Lagoon ink, and coloured them in using watercolour paints. I used the same paint to colour the bodices, which I stamped and embossed onto a spare piece of card.

I inked each background using Tumbled Glass Distress Ink, and then chose a corresponding ink colour to blend around the edges, (Peacock Feathers, Salty Ocean, Seedless Preserves). I used the same ink colour to stamp an assortment of sewing notions as a border. Finally, I added a sentiment to each tag.

Thanks for stopping by, xx