Colours of Autumn

Hello everyone, I hope that you are all keeping dry and warm in the changeable weather that we are having at the moment. It really feels like Autumn now, doesn't it?

I have some projects using the Autumn Poppy stamp set to show you today. I created a background using my gelli plate, covering the plate with Adirondack Ink using a brayer and then stamping some of the images around the edge to create a frame, before I took a print. I then stamped some of the mushroom images onto adhesive labels, and coloured them with a mixture of Distress markers and pencils. I cut the images out, arranged them onto the background, and then added some grey shading with a pencil.

For my next two cards, I stamped a sentiment taken from the Amazing Birthday stamp set onto a piece of smooth watercolour paper, and then added some images from the same stamp set as before. I coloured the images with Distress markers and a water brush. 

I made the backgrounds using leaves from my garden. This is a technique taught to me by my dear crafty friend Elaine and is a reminder of happy times spent together. In a nutshell, you choose an ink colour which you apply in patches to a pale coloured piece of card, using a brush. You then take your leaf, and using a complimentary colour, and pounce around the edge of the leaf using the ink and a brush. You then move the leaf slightly and apply the ink again. Keep doing this until you have filled the original leaf shape up. Move to another area of the background and start the process again. I have explained the process very quickly and Elaine has a tutorial on her blog which shows the process in much better detail.

These cards will serve as great store cupboard cards for when I need a card in a hurry. They will suit both men and women, so are really versatile. Thanks for stopping by, xx

Mushroom Tag

Hi folks, it's time for a new challenge over on the Chocolate Baroque challenge blog. So hop over to take a look at all of the information and the inspiration provided by the rest of the Design Team.

I have made a tag as my little piece of inspiration. I started with a large white tag, and stamped a mushroom image at the bottom. I covered the image with a mask, and used some Milled Lavender Distress Paint through a stencil over parts of the background. I dried the paint before applying several shades of Adirondack Ink to the background.

I stamped a large leaf using currant Adirondack ink, and pulled some of the colour over the image, using a water brush. I coloured the mushrooms using Distress Inks and a water brush, adding extra shading with some pencils. Finally, I stamped a fairy using black Speedball Block printing Ink.

The colour swatch for the challenge uses an original piece of artwork from Lesley:

You can use any paints, pens, pencils or inks that you like, just as long as you stick to the colours in the swatch with the addition of black, white and neutral including skin tones. So, I hope that you will join in the challenge, there is the chance of winning a £15 prize if you use current Chocolate Baroque stamps.

Thanks for stopping by, xx

Haunted House

Hello everyone, I have a Halloween make for you today, using a combination of old and new stamps from Chocolate Baroque.

I started off by making a crackled background using this technique, with Distress stains and Perfect Pearls. I then stamped and embossed a tree from the Design a Tree multi-buy stamp set and the ruined building from the Things that go Bump stamp set, using archival ink and clear embossing powder. I added a couple of birds and some bats from the Nevermore stamp set and some cobweb edging from the Book of Spells stamp set, all using Speedball black block printing ink. (This ink is great, because it gives great coverage over more difficult surfaces, and is a really deep black. Another bonus, being water soluble, your stamps and brayer clean up really easily!) I painted the windows in the ruin using yellow Speedball ink and a water brush.

I added a little bit of Pumice Stone Distress Ink underneath the tree and the ruin to 'ground' the images. Finally, I matted the background onto a black card blank.

Thanks for stopping by, xx

Autumn Tones

Hello Folks, I have some cards to share today, using some of the lovely new stamps that have been recently launched over at Chocolate Baroque .  This has to be my favourite time of year, as the leaves start to fall, and there is a riot of different colours displayed in the trees and hedgerows.

For my first two cards, I made a wrinkle free Distress background, using Ripe Persimmon and Seedless Preserves Distress Inks. I have used a stamp taken from the Poppy Edges stamp set, and stamped around the corners of a piece of the background, using plum archival ink. I masked the corners, and then stamped an image from the Poppy Meadow stamp set over the background using the same orange ink that I used to make my background. However, I stamped the image onto scrap paper first, before I stamped onto the background, as I did not want the image to be too vibrant. I masked off part of the poppy edge stamp with masking tape, before I inked up one of the flowers, and then peeled off the masking tape. I then stamped the single flower onto a piece of stampbord. I coloured the image with pencils, and then covered the surface with three layers of ultra thick embossing powder, to create a tile effect. I added a sentiment from the Mackintosh Sentiments clear stamp set.

On my second card, I used a strip of the same wrinkle free distress background, matted onto burgundy card, and placed it onto a kraft card base. I stamped the poppy edge four times onto card, and coloured sections of the image with pencils, before cutting them out, and layering them onto the background. I added two of the little bees, which were also coloured with pencil. The sentiment was taken from the Amazing Birthday clear stamp set.

For my final card, I made a gelli plate background, using a selection of green inks, and stamped the single leaf and foliage stamp taken from the Autumn Poppy stamp set randomly over the plate. I took a print from the plate and trimmed it to size, before edging the background with a Tea Dye Distress Ink. I stamped the main image onto a large oval die cut, adding some colour to the background with green and orange Distress Inks. I coloured the image with pencils. The sentiment comes from the Nature's Peace stamp set, and is one of my favourites.

Thanks for stopping by, xx

Angels and Penguins

Hello Folks, I have some more Christmas card ideas to share with you today. I am aware of Christmas creeping up on me now, with the nights starting to pull in and the festive television schedule starting. So, the more cards that I can get made, the better!

Mt first card is using the lovely angel stamp from the A Child is Born stamp sheet. I do love this image. I stamped the angel onto a piece of smooth watercolour paper, but any smooth card will do, and then masked the image, by stamping the image again onto masking paper. I then stamped a window taken from the Gothic Fragments stamp set onto the background, and masked this as well. I coloured the background using a range of Distress Inks; Tattered Rose, Scattered Straw, Weathered Wood, Tea Dye and Pumice Stone. I then added stamps from the Gothic Fragments, and the Harlequin Fragments stamp sets, using the same coloured inks. The last two strips were embossed with platinum Wow embossing powder. I removed the masks, and coloured the window and the angel with Distress markers and a water brush. Finally, I added a sentiment from the Christmas Sentiments Multi buy stamp set.

My second offering uses the Snowy Penguins clear stamp set. I have created a couple of gelli plate backgrounds, using Memento inks in shades of blue and teal, and then stamped the snowflakes directly onto the gelli plate using Versafine Ink, before taking a print. I stamped the images onto a piece of smooth white card, and edged them with blue ink. The images were coloured with pencils.

These images are perfect for children's Christmas cards, or for children to give to their parents or grandparents. Making gelli plate backgrounds ensures that you can run up a batch of these very quickly.

Thanks for stopping by, Judith xx

Christmas Circles

Hello Folks, I have some cards on circular theme for you today, using the stamps of the month from Chocolate Baroque

For my first sample, I created a background using gelatos in shades of green and purple, which I added to a wet background and blended with my fingers. I dried the background then added a circle mask in the centre. I stamped an image from the Harlequin Fragments stamp set around the edge of the mask, using Pear Tart Memento Ink. I sponged a little bit of ink around of the mask to add some shading, before removing the mask. I stamped and embossed the holly and bell images from the Holly Bells stamp plate using gold embossing powder. I also stamped another set of  images onto a spare piece of card. I coloured the spare images with Distress markers and a water brush  and decoupaged them onto the background. I added some hand drawn 'string'. The sentiment is from the Christmas Magic stamp plate.

I have a couple of CAS cards that I would also like to show you. In these days of rising postage costs, flat cards are always useful to make, and these two cards would make good batch cards, that you could make in lots of different colour options as well. The first card was made using blue, lilac and grey Distress Inks, and I simply created a reverse mask, sponging coloured ink through a circle aperture onto my card. I coloured the top and bottom circles first, and overlapped the middle one last. I then selected three baubles, taken from the Santa Baby/Holly Bells Multi-Buy stamp set, and stamped them in the same inks that I used to create the circles, giving a tone on tone effect. The sentiment was taken from the Christmas Sentiments Multibuy

The last card was made in much the same way, except that I created a single circle, blending Dandelion and Pear Tart Memento Inks, and chose Orange Blossom Archival Ink to stamp the bells, giving a stronger contrast. The sentiment comes from the Bold Christmas Words stamp set.

I hope that I have given you a few more ideas with these stamps, and I will be back soon. Thanks for stopping by, xx

Blue Christmas

Hello Folks, I'd like to show you a coupe of cards using the newly released stamp sets fron Chocolate Baroque

My first card uses the Santa Baby stamp set. I wanted to use the sleigh flying through the air pulled by a reindeer, and so I looked through my older christmas stamp sets and found the perfect match on the Damask Reindeer stamp set. I stamped both of the images onto a piece of smooth watercolour paper, and then covered them with a mask. I also added a circle mask at this point. I coloured the background with a variety of blue Distress Inks, graduating to a deep purple at the bottom of the page. Around the circle, I added some yellow, to create a glowing effect. I spritzed the background with water to create a starry feel to the background, and added a little bit of Perfect Pearl spray for some extra shimmer.

I removed the masks, and coloured the images with Distress markers and a water brush. I stamped a tree from the Stained Glass Christmas stamp set along the bottom of the background, using Cottage Ivy Memento Ink and clear embossing powder. I added some grey shading to the moon, and stamped a sentiment taken from the Christmas Magic clear stamp set using black ink.

I have also created a card using the A Child is Born stamp set. I stamped the corner snowflake stamp around the edges of some watercolour paper using white embossing powder, and filled in the gaps with one of the smaller snowflakes to create a frame. I created a watercolour background using lots of blue toned gelatos. I blended them with my fingers and lots of water to get a soft effect. I added a touch of Chipped Sapphire Distress Ink around the edge. Once I was finished, I buffed the snowflakes with a piece of kitchen towel, so that they were nice and bright.

 I stamped the angel onto a separate piece of card, and coloured the image with pencils. Finally, I added the word 'Joy' to the background.

 My Team mates have some beautiful inspiration for you over the coming month on the Design Team Blog so please keep checking back. Thanks for stopping by, xx

Playing with backgrounds

Hi Folks, I have some more projects for you today showcasing the Thistle Butterfly/Honeysuckle Butterfly multi-buy stamp sets from Chocolate Baroque

I have really enjoyed working with these pretty stamps, as flowers and butterflies are among my favourite images to use. I have made some slightly different backgrounds for these projects, and one of them was a first time experiment for me!


My first sample was created by using Pan Pastels for my background over a mask, I wanted to create a tartan background to go with the thistle image, it seemed appropriate. (If you do not have a mask, you could just use thin strips of masking tape, it was what I was going to use until I found a mask). I used a pale yellow over my card first, then applied the mask before using a lilac PP and then a magenta toned PP over the top.

I then stamped the image with Coffee Archival Ink and coloured it with Polychromos pencils. I used the floral spray stamp from the Honeysuckle stamp set to stamp around the edges using Lulu Lavender Memento ink. The sentiment is taken from the Amazing Birthday clear stamp set.

My second project was created using water colour paper, onto which I stamped the large honeysuckle image.  I then brushed water over the paper around the image, and sprinkled Leaf Green Brusho over the water. I wanted a very pale background, so I spritzed the Brusho with water, and dabbed it with kitchen roll, to take the darkest patches away. I then dabbed between the areas of the image that were still white with the coloured kitchen roll to add some colour. This technique worked really well, and as a first time experiment, I was really pleased! I used the tiniest amount of Brusho, so these powders are going to last me a long time.

I stamped the image again onto a scrap piece of card and coloured the images with Distress markers and a water brush. I decoupaged the butterflies from the second image onto the main image. I stamped the small honeysuckle stamp from the Elegant Edges stamp set around the edge of the background.

 Thanks for stopping by, Judith xx

Time for another challenge!

Hello folks, it's time for another challenge on the Chocolate Baroque Challenge Blog so please pop over to take a look at the inspiration from the Design Team, read the information and make something for the challenge. If you use Chocolate Baroque stamps for your entry, you will be entered in the monthly draw for a £15 prize to spend at Chocolate Baroque so it is really worth entering the challenge.

Here is the inspirational picture for this month's challenge using artwork originally created by one of our Design Team members Doreen:

The colours are so different from last month's challenge, and Doreen's original artwork is beautiful. I was inspired to make a card reflecting a recent holiday to Tuscany, so I fished out the Echoes of Italy stamp plate which is an old favourite of mine. I created two panels of colour at the top and bottom of my background using paper masks to cover the central area. I used various shades of Distress Inks: Scattered Straw, Dried Marigold, Wild Honey and Rusty Hinge. I stamped the large crackle stamp over the top using Sepia Archival Ink.

For the central panel, I stamped the image using Bamboo Leaves Memento Ink, and added some clouds from the Magical Landscapes and Fantasy Castles stamp sets. I coloured the images in with Distress Markers and a waterbrush.

Originally that was it as far as the design was concerned, but I felt that the balance of colours was wrong. So, I added some handmade flowers using scrap paper and some die cut Crealie leaves. Italy is bursting with flowers wherever you go, and so the addition of the flowers feels just right.

Thanks for stopping by,

A Pear of Christmas Trees!

Hi Folks, I have some Christmas cards for you today, using the lovely selection of seasonal stamps currently on offer at Chocolate Baroque.

My first card uses stamps from the Snowy Scenes/Turtle Doves multibuy stamped onto green paper using white embossing powder. I added tiny red gems to the tree and snowflakes for a little bit of Christmas bling. To complete the background, I added a stamp from the Nature Fragments stamp set, stamped in Cottage Ivy Memento ink. I also stamped a sentiment from the Christmas Magic clear stamp set in the same colour onto a piece of scrap paper. I edged all of the pieces of paper with green ink and then matted them onto dark green card before assembling my project.

My second card was created by stamping a large ornate pear from the Pears and Baubles stamp set onto my background using Rich Cocoa Memento ink. I coloured the pears using a mixture of green and yellow Distress markers and a waterbrush. I filled in the background between using my Stormy Sky Distress marker pen and a waterbrush, I made the background very watery using a wide waterbrush where possible. The main image was stamped onto a die cut piece of card using gold embossing powder, and coloured in with the marker pens in the same way. I edged the background with Stormy Sky Distress Ink. I added a large flourish from the Butterfly Dreams stamp set, using gold embossing powder.

I matted the layers onto dark brown card and added a piece of dark brown organza ribbon to finish. I hope that these two cards have given you a little bit of inspiration. I always enjoy mixing the new stamps with some of the other stamp sets already available. Thanks for stopping by, Judith xx

Challenge Blog Freebie

Hi Folks, it's time for another post over on the Chocolate Baroque Challenge Blog and this time it's a post with a difference, as we have a free digital download for you! Lesley has created a beautiful download that you can collect, simply by visiting the blog, so please pop over to take a look.

I have created a card using the download for a very special friend, who is celebrating her Birthday today. I printed the download onto canvas, and stamped around the edges, using stamps from the Autumn Fairies stamp set from Chocolate Baroque. I added a chiffon flower that I had lurking in my stash; I have lots of these cut out ready to add to projects whenever I need them. I found a piece of sprayed background paper left over from another project, and stamped a butterfly onto this, using Coffee Archival Ink, and embossed it with clear embossing powder. I added a couple of earring findings for antennae. Finally, I die cut some leaves to place behind the flower.

There is still plenty of time to enter the challenge, so take a look at all of the information while you are there. You can find the link here

Thanks for stopping by, xx

Honeysuckle Canvas

Hi Folks, I have a project to show you today using the Thistle Butterfly/Honeysuckle Butterfly Multibuy stamp sets from Chocolate Baroque. These new sets are a lovely addition to the range of floral butterfly stamps, and great for mixing and matching with older stamps in the range, or using by themselves.

For my project, I covered a canvas with vintage music paper, and then painted it with various shades of Golden acrylic paint in greens and blues. I stamped the flourish from the set around the edges in forget-me-not and orange blossom archival ink to create a border. This is such a lovely stamp, and has become a favourite of mine. I stamped the honeysuckle image onto the background, and again onto some white card. I coloured the image on the card with pencils before cutting it out and adding it to the canvas.

I coloured some scrap card using Distress Inks in shades of blue and orange. I stamped some letters from the Newsprint Alphabet onto the card to spell the word 'Fleur', before cutting them out. I distressed and inked the edges of the little panels, and added these to my canvas.

Keep checking the Design Team Blog for lots of lovely samples from my Team mates over the coming month. xx