Dont Let the Attire Fool You....

April 16th 2012

This post is a reminder for our  "From the Past" Challenge at The Cheerful Stamp Pad which still has a week left to run AND is also my entry for the Gingersnap Creations "Last
Century" Challenge and the current Frilly & Funky "I'll Take Your Word For It" Challenge.

The image is from the Altered Pages "Pretty Petticoats" Collage Sheet and the fantastic humourous sentiment - which I thought matched the petticoat lady perfectly - is from CS Designs.

Copper, Ginger & Rust

March 29th 2012
The last Gingersnap Challenge before the "change" and I just couldn't resist making something a bit quirky for this one!! So here's my little button doll "Ginger":

She's a bit of a recycled gal too as the buttons are from an old box of buttons I was given and the "hanger" is actually a beaded bracelet I had bought for Halloween last year to get the "spiders" from it. The "face, hands, feet & guitar" are from a really cool collage cheet by Art Tea Life and I have laid her on a great grafitti background image from June at Dezinaworld - I thought the colours were perfect for this challenge!

May your heart be as light as a song.

May each day bring you bright,

happy hours that stay with you all the year long.

Irish Blessing

Dare to be Different!

February 11th 2012
This is my new card for the Gingersnap Creations Current Colour Challenge: Glorious Greens!!

I've used some great new digis by CS Designs and made the background paper, "Pirouette" Dancer and sentiment - all in green including embellishments!! I wear green everyday but I don't usually create with green so this was a fun challenge for me!

Esmerelda's New Year is not off to a good start!!!

January 1st 2012
Firstly - HAPPY NEW YEAR to all my blogging friends!!!!! I started my blog 1 year ago on January 1st 2011 so this is also my First Blogversary!!! I think I'd better organise some Blog Candy for my followers!!

My first post for the new year is for the new Gingersnap Creations Colour Challenge - Soft Yellows & White. I've made this cute little card with a gorgeous collage image from one of my favourite Etsy Stores - Art Tea Life. I used a Kaszazz Chandelier stamp for the background card and I typed the little "saying" on my computer. I added a star brad to her wand and some little "diamantis" to look like "bits" of the broken chandelier LOL!!!

I called her "Esmerelda" because I thought of the character from the Bewitched TV Show - Esmerelda was the witch who's spells never worked properly!!!! And my little Esmerelda is looking like she might have a lot of explaining to do!!!!

All the best for 2012!!!!

Animal Farm

November 8th 2011
This month's theme at Gingersnap Creations is "On the Farm" - a great theme as I lived on a farm for quite a few years. The new Chestnut Theme Challenge is "Farm Fresh" and I've created this card especially for the challenge - LOL they are drinking "freshly" poured glasses of wine!!!

As soon as I saw the "farm" theme I thought of the George Orwell Novel "Animal Farm" where the pigs take over LOL!!! So my card shows the farm pigs "celebrating" their new found "status"!!!

All animals are equal,

but some are more equal than others.

George Orwell, Animal Farm, Chapter 10

The "pigs" image is from the Phenomenon 1859 Store at Etsy.

We loved with a love that was more than love

November 1st 2011
Gingersnap Creations have had some great challenges for the month of October with Edgar Allan Poe a feature! And for this Colour Challenge of Black & Greys I've made an altered caoster.

I've used images from a collage sheet from The Octopode Factory - the same sheet as my Raven Tag but this time I printed the sheet in grayscale so they suited the colour theme.

I've used a coaster covered with black & white paint dragged together to make black & grey colours and I've made a little torn paper background for the images as well. I've added some black tulle, some skeleton leaves, a flower which I rubbed a grey ink pad over with a little heart brad and I added the quote by Edgar Allan Poe:

We loved with a love that was more than love.

I've made the coaster into a little hanging by adding some fancy ribbon to the top. I love how this turned out - I think the black & grey colours are very effective.

And the Raven, never flitting....

October 28th 2011

This new tag has been made for the Gingersnap Creations Random Redhead Challenge - Ravens! I've used images from a great "Poe" collage sheet from The Octopode Factory.

The background is watercolour paper & pencils - I love the effect! And printed onto the watercolour paper is the last verse of Edgar Allan Poe's "The Raven" Poem. I've mounted that onto black card and stapled some ribbon to the top of the tag. I added a bit of tea stained muslin behind the Raven image.

My "Raven Tag" also suits The Octopode Factory "Halloween" Challenge this week!

A Little Cup of Friendship

September 18th 2011

The new Chestnut Theme Challenge at Gingersnap Creations is "Gal Pals" so I've made some little "tea bag" holders.  I think having a "cuppa" & a "chat" with your "gal pal" is what "friendship" is about! Or if you can't be with your pal then I've made a little holder with the following quote:

A little cup of friendship

With a bag of tea

When you drink this

Think of love from me.



I've used images from Lisa's Altered Art on the fronts of the holders as well as lace, fringe, tulle & flower embellishments. Inside I've added litle "tea" related quotes and wording. I've even "substituted" the little "dangly" bit with my own matching card for each tea bag in the holder!

Primary Colours!

August 24th 2011

The new challenge this week is "Primary Colours" and this is my last project as a Visiting Artist! I want to thank everyone at Gingersnap Creations for allowing me the honour of creating for them this month - I've loved it!!

As you can see this week I've made a door hanger using the colours - RED - BLUE - YELLOW. The images are from Paper Imagery Designs and I thought the little "blue" baby and yellow flowers were a perfect match for the wooden hanger I painted red! Of course I couldn't resist adding my own little sentiment!

Tribute to Teens

August 17th 2011
What a great theme for the new Gingersnap Creations Challenge this week.

This is my third project as a Visiting Artist and I think is my favourite!! Although at first I was at a bit of a loss what to make for "teenagers". But I just love this bottle cap jewelry and as you can see I made a pair of earrings, a nacklace and a key ring all using my favourite Solitaire designs from CS Designs!

Here are some close up pictures of each of the pieces I made:

Mary had a Little Lamb

August 10th 2011

Here's my creation for the new Gingersnap Creations Spicy Supply Challenge - "Baby Wipes". This is my second "project" as one of the Visiting Artists for the "Joys of Childhood"  themed month.

I've never used Baby Wipes on a craft project before but I had a great time inking the wipes and experimenting with this "plaid" design on glossy card. I love the effect and it makes a great background for this wonderful "Mary had a Little Lamb" image from the Octopode Factory.

I printed the nursery rhyme onto the card after I made the baby wipe background and I love the effect. The images have been coloured with Copic Markers. I've attached lace around the background card and I have used foam mounting tape for Mary and her Lamb. I've also coloured cotton balls with ink and glued them to make the lamb's "wool"!!!!

I love this cute card - I think it's the nice bright colours and the quirky Mary and her little Lamb images!!

Gingersnap Creations Visiting Artist for August

August 3rd 2011
I am so thrilled and honoured to have been asked to be a Visiting Artist this month at the Gingersnap Creations Blog!!!!!

The theme for this month is the "Joys of Childhood" and there are some great challenges lined up.

For this new Chestnut Theme Challenge the theme is "Babes & Tots" and I have made a little pram and/or cot toy using some of the cute little Babushka Designs from CS Designs.

These have been made with fabric, cord and wooden beads and hand sewn together - aren't they cute?

For Whom The Sun Shines

June 19th 2011
Welcome to the viewing of my creation for the Gingersnap Creations Spicy Supply Challenge which requires the use of  "packaging materials" - now some of you may already think I am "strange" LOL this may make you think I am even stranger!!! BUT if you read the "reasoning" behind my concept you will understand what I am trying to achieve (even though it's a bit of an essay)!

What I have made is a little "gift box" to give to the person in your life who matches the sentiment above!! A real little "expensive" gold lined Tiffany's box!!!!! LOL!!

Now as this challenge required packaging materials I thought it was a great opportunity to use an iPod case which I have had in a cupboard in my office/craft room for several YEARS!!!! LOL I actually have another one!!! So I decided to use the plastic iPod packaging as a gift box - now as some of you know I have a weird sense of humour so I decided to make the "gift" box into an Egyptian Sarcophagus and as Chris at CS Designs recently released a Nefertari image how could I not use that and make the "mummy" to go in the sarcophagus???????

I have used several "packaging" products to make this creation: The iPod box has been "lined" with bubble wrap which I sponged with Gold Lumiere paint as a Queen needs a very "rich" looking resting place! And I've used string to tie the gift box shut and also to attach some material tags that I made.

As you can see the gift is "For Whom the Sun Shines"!! I found this "quote" through a web search to find something befitting "Nefertari" and I asked Chris if she would design the sentiment especially for me to use - she's done an amazing job as I just love this - it looks Egyptian and fits perfectly with my "theme"!! It is not possible to see in the photo but "behind" the sentiment on the tag is a washed out image of the pyramids. I've printed the sentiment and "Ankh" cross and transferred to fabric and hand sewn around the edges, punched a hole in the tops and added the string!

Now for my "mummy" - she has been made with the Nefertari CS Designs image on fabric and coloured with "Smooch" Ink and then hand sewn around three sides then "slipped" over the top of a large wooden clothespeg which I "wrapped" with tea stained muslin to look like an embalmed mummy!!! I painted her little feet with gold Lumiere paint. I also added some little clip art pictures of a "scarab" for good luck - very small and stuck onto the mummy's leg and also the Egyptian Staff on her chest. Plus she has some "jewels" in her sarcophagus to make sure she is wealthy emough to reach the afterlife!!

Chosen as a Ginger Gem for the GC106 Challenge - Packaging Supplies.

Queen of Retail Therapy!

June 11th 2011

Sadly I am NOT the Queen of Retail Therapy LOL I don't actually like shopping except for craft items!!!
But I couldn't resist turning this "Marie" image from The Ocotopode Factory into the Queen of Shopping "At the Mall" for the Gingersnap Creations Chestnut Theme Challenge GC105. She even has a jewel studded crown fit for a queen! I'm so excited that I was chosen as a Ginger Gem for this entry!

I've made a collage tag with various images from a Dezinaworld Collage sheet! I had a packet of gorgeous silver coathanger charms which I thought matched the theme too so I attached it to the top of the tag with some fluffy fibres!

I've also decided to join in the fun of Pink Saturday - I've seen this wonderful blog lots of times and several people who's blogs I follow are involved with Pink Saturday so LOL as I finally have a very pink item on my blog for Saturday I'm going to add my link!

Can You Do The Bird Dance?

May 21st 2011
Well can you do the Bird Dance??????

I've made this tag for a few challenges (Bella Creations and the Three Muses)!

I've also entered this tag in the Gingersnap Creations GC102: Spicy Supply Challenge - Twine. The "theme" for May was Wild West and I think this dancing girl looks like she could have been on stage in a Wild West Saloon doing her stuff!! (I've incorporated "twine" to make the nest look more twiggy as you will see below).

The tag has been made as well for a challenge at the "Oh La La" Group at Bella Creations. We had to use the 'dancing lady' image from Gecko Galz on a tag or bookmark and as I had just finished cutting out some "bird" images from one of June's Collage sheets at Dezinaworld I came up with the idea of adding feathers to the woman and have her dancing on "eggshells" doing the bird dance!

The wording has been made with my DYMO Label Maker - nice and quick to print out and I like the effect of it. I used some household string and feathered it out to put behind the nest to give it a more 'twiggy' look.

The Three Muses new challenge is "Eggs" which is also why I wanted to incorporate the bird theme and use the nest and eggs from the collage sheet! Overall I'm really happy with this tag - I like the colours and it's a bit of fun!

Wanted Dead or Alive!

May 6th 2011
The new "theme" this month at Gingersnap Creations is "Wild West" and the latest Chestnut Theme Challenge is - "Cowgirls & Cowboys". I was a Ginger Gem for this challenge (GC101)!!

As usual I've decided to add my quirky sense of humour to my new card for this challenge because I couldn't resist using this picture and "hamming" it up! The cowgirl image I found at the Vintage Resources site and I've made it into a collage style card in sepia/brown tonings.

I made the embossed star background by embossing some textured white cardstock and then rubbing it with an Antique Medium I found in my cupboard LOL. I also rubbed some antique gold paint over it in some areas too and then used my Tim Holtz Distress Ink to stamp directly from the pad onto the embossed card - I'm happy with the effect I got.

The wording has all been printed using a "Western" style font to fit the theme and I've added a tag and fringe to finish the card off.

I hope you like it! And my silly sense of humour but when I saw that image and their 'furry' chaps I just couldn't resist!!

Ode to Sushi

April 30th 2011

Here is my "Sushi Shrine" made for the latest Colour Challenge at Gingersnap Creations - RED & GOLD.
I have made a shrine card dedicated to Sushi (which incidentally I love!!).

I made the background myself using gold and red paint and dragging it across the cardboard with a credit card. To add a little bit more gold definition I also 'dropped' blobs of gold paint onto the background. I then printed a "definition" of Sushi on the left hand side and a little saying "that's how I roll" on the right hand side. I then used a Shrine Template from Mirkwood Designs to cut the shape. And after cutting out the shape I sponged the edges with gold paint and stamped all over the shrine card with a little asian text stamp I have - to give it an more 'Asian Flavour"!

This picture shows the little Japanese sticker of a little cooking pot which I thought suited the theme of my shrine as well.



The "sushi" woman is a great little digi stamp from Karber Digital Images which I couldn't resist using on this project as I still wanted the project to be FUN! She has been paper pieced using my wonderful 'stash' of Japanese papers. Her face and hair and the sushi rolls and tray were coloured with Copics. To add more gold to this I also used Kindyglitz for her 'obi' (sash) and the 'sticks' in her hair and she has been attached to the shrine with mounting tape.

Here is the complete card which I am really happy with! I've really enjoyed the "Asian Theme" that Gingersnap Creations have had this month!

I have also entered "Ode to Sushi" at the Allsorts Challenge Blog as they have an Oriental Theme this week! And Wee Memories have a paper piecing challenge!