A mini hibernation!

I've been noticeable by my absence this week, as I needed to recharge my batteries after my very busy weekend in the North East. It was a really good few days and I must say big "hello's" to all the ladies that I met in Darlington and Chester-Le-Street. Thank you for the very kind emails and comments which have been much appreciated.

I didn't take any photos as I had so much gear to carry that my camera was just one extra weight and I decided to leave it at home this time. I must admit that my bags were the heaviest ever and, going up the metal stairs of the railway bridge at Chester-Le-Street, in the rain and the dark, I almost fell backwards down them. (Get the violins out please!) Anyway, I survived all the travelling and the friendly enthusiasm from everyone made it worthwhile. Special thanks to the owner and staff at the Art Shop for the huuuuge box of chocolates that they gave me.....I do meet some lovely people!

I've had some time off and have also been progressing with some designs that I'm working on for next year and, this afternoon, David announced that we were going out in the car. Unbeknownst (?! that looks wrong!) to me he had bought some bags of birdseed and we ended up at Redesmere reservoir where we haven't been for, shockingly, almost two years. We were greeted by looooaaads of geese, ducks,coots, swans and moorhens, all charging up to us, making the most hilarious racket of quacks and honks! I had ducks standing on my feet, pulling at my tights and skirt to get my attention...it was absolutely, to quote Wallace "A grand day out!".

Anyway, just to let you know that I have squeezed another couple of demonstrations into my calendar before Christmas. Check out my diary dates on the left. The first is this Saturday when I'll be at the opening of the relocation of The Craft Shop in Congleton. The second is another opening event, this time at Hobbycraft in their latest store in Norwich. More details will follow about this one nearer the time.

So, apologies to anyone awaiting an email from me, I shall rectify that very soon! Lindsay

Travelling North.....East

It's Thursday again...I can't really believe it...which means that I am off on my travels again tomorrow, this time to Darlington and Chester-Le-Street up in the North East. Bet it'll be a bit nippy up there! My bags are really heavy because I'm packed for two demonstrations and have punches as well as paper stacks and card....surprising just how heavy card is! Anyway, I'm pretty tough, so it will just give my muscles a good work out!

Last weekend I was in Bury St Edmunds which is one of my favourite large towns to visit as it has interesting little shops as well as a lovely area of parkland and gardens behind the Cathedral. I had a less than relaxing jorney down there as my train was running late and I knew I would miss my connection with a looong wait for the next one. I was willing the train to speed up but we seemed to be going very slowly all the way. After being given wrong information by everyone that I asked, it then transpired out that I could pick up my connection from a later station. So...it turned out okay but meant that I had been "on pins" for no reason. Oh well! There's not much wildlife watching to report from my journeys at the moment, but I saw quite a few dead animals and birds on Friday's trip. I think they must have succulmbed to the storm the night before, poor things. Hopefully I'll see some more uplifting sights tomorrow.

I had a very busy day at The Stamp Hut where I was using the Melt Pot - great fun! I hope the ladies who were making Christmas wishes will be receiving Melt Pot shaped packages from their husbands....I did drop plenty of hints to them on your behalfs! Thanks to Paula and Dot for looking after me and keeping me hydrated with fruit tea as always!

I have a few new pieces to share with you tonight. Well, the first two are actually only partly new! I have been trolling a Grungepaper flower tag around with me as well as one that was unmounted. So, I decided to give them a new lease of life and made two new tags. They are both covered with TH paper (Retro and Vintage Shabby) and both feature alcohol inked velevet flowers and ribbon. I've used a Timepiece and Game Spinner on one and some pleated Symphony Tissue Tape and a new (for me) MS punch called "Modern Garland".The next photo really doesn't show this tag very well, so I will take a better one if I get a chance. Here it looks quite flat but it's actually very dimensional. I used the Vintage Shabby paper again and a mix of Bundled Sage and Victorian Velvet Distress ink to smudge around the edges. to make my rosette I cut a full strip from the VS paper stash and then scored lines along the length using a ruler and ball ended tool. A bit laborious, but not too bad! I then concertina folded the strip, stuck the ends together and flattened it into a rosette. I stuck this onto a punched circle as a base to keep it in place, added it to the tag (after sticking some Tissue tape across the bottom) and then glued one of Tim's buttons into the centre. I carefully piped Diamond Stickles around the edge of the rosette....I chose Diamond for the golden glint it has which tied in nicely with the button. I dyed the ribbon and Jewelled Florette flowers (Petaloo) in my usual way! (ie alcohol inks) and added these. The butterfly is a Grungeboard element of two seperate wings which I lightly inked and curled before glueing the into place. I cut a simple body from a scrap of Grungepaper and wrapped it in Tissue Tape before glueing it over thewings. I cut the antennae from more Grungepaper and slidd them under the head before adding more Stickles. A few MS Opal gems filled in some blank areas to complete. My final photo tonight is of a card featuring my Fairy Silhouette stamped onto an alcohol ink monoprint on gloss white card. I then stroked Paint Dabbers over a page from my charity shop bought copy of Grimm's fairy tales (no wonder they were the Grimm brothers - some of the stories are positively horrific!) and cut out three rectangles and three triangles which I glued down to create towers. I added details with my fine black pen. I dyed and added some flowers at the base and then popped blue gems to their centres. I drew two of my "grown up stars" with an Inkssentials white pen and then covered the fairy image with Stardust Stickles to give her a softer look. I have done a similar thing with the "Paint Dabbers on book page" towers on a recent Journal page which gave me the idea for this card.I'll have all these, plus lots more of course, with me over the weekend, so do come along if you are in the area. On Staurday I'll be at The Art Shop on Bondgate, in Darlington. I'll be using lots of Ranger products including TH stamps and papers, Idealogy and inks etc. Then, on Sunday, I'll be at Lambton Garden Centre in Chester-Le-Street with similar products as well as my stamps and cardstock. I'll have MS punches with me at both as well. I'm looking forward to this trip, as it's a while since I was in the North East and I always enjoy my time there.

Okay, better sign off now as I have some emails to send and train times to copy out before we have dinner. So, have a great weekend everyone. Lindsay

Candy Winner....

Knowing that I had this rare Sunday at home, I chose today to draw the Blog Candy Winner. I thought it would be fun to try a different way to pick the winning name and, seeing the plastic pull ring from this morning's orange juice carton gave me the idea. So, I wrote out all the entrant's names on sqaures of paper and screwed them all up. I put the plastic ring onto the floor (it isn't a black carpet...thats my jacket - velvet makes a good background for photos!) and then David dropped all the paper balls. The winner would be the one that landed in the circle. Simple! (?) Here they are, cascading down...

.....and I have to confess that we had to repeat this process twice more before any of them actually landed in the circle! However, third time lucky and here I am plucking the paper ball from the plastic ring. And, the winner is..............dddddddrrrrrrr...... Clare H . Congratulations Clare H! Please email me with your details by this Tuesday and I will post the Candy out to you. Sorry to those who didn't win this time, but I will gather some more things together for another giveaway before too long. Lindsay

Melt Pot creations

Hello everyone on yet another wet and windy evening. Well, I haven't felt too chilly the last two days as I've been working with my Melt Pot creating some samples for my demonstration at The Stamp Hut. I've made a range of things so here's a sneaky peek at some of what I'll have with me on Saturday.

I did take some closer pictures of these two necklaces but they looked awful, very blurred, so hope you can see some of the detail in them here. They both feature images which I got from Suze Weinberg when I was at Ranger U a couple of years ago. I eke them out as you can tell! The left one has a tiny key embedded under clear UTEE poured into a Memory Frame with the image adhered to glass inside the frame. I've used a Swivel Fastener attached to the hanging loop (at the bottom) and I Glossy Accent-ed (!) the other end to the corner of the frame. Once set I added a couple of alcohol inked Foliage flowers with inked gems in their centres - the alcohol ink just knocks back some of the bling. I then attached various charms to the chain using Mini Paper Clips, added a Hinge Clip at the top and threaded the whole piece onto a length of Lace Chain.

The right hand piece is made in the same way but with a teensy dragonfly as oppoed to a key. I added the clip at the bottom and strung a key and a letter charm from it. More Foliage and gems and some Glossy Accents drizzled around the piece to which I added some Beadazzles (that was fun!). I srung this piece onto large ball chain. These were fun to make! Next is a card that I made using the technique which Dawn Bibby amazed Suze herself with! If you haven't tried this, or if you don't like cleaning out you Melt Pot, then do give this a try. Simply cut a piece of non stick craft sheet to fit inside the Melt Pot. You can then add various UTEE and powders without them gooking up the Pot. So, here I added a scoop of Black UTEE, a sprinkle of gold and copper Perfect Pearls and a little Bronze UTEE. It only takes a few seconds to melt and then I whipped out the craft sheet piece and place it onto another craft sheet before pressing my stamp firmly into the surface. After a few more seconds just peel away the stamp and craft sheet piece to reveal a thin, lacy edged piece that can be stuck to the front of a card or used however you wish. This card is very simple and I just used an EK Success punch (Scroll & Hearts) to add some extra interest. Simple card for a man I think...as opposed to a card for a simple man! Oh dear! The next card features the same technique to make the focal image using different colours. This is an example of my "looking at clouds" way of working....that is I sometimes look at an abstract thing and either something will jump out at me, or I'll try to see something in the design. This one was the former! The piece of stamped UTEE just looked like a Christmas tree to me, so I decided to add it to a Best Creations paper background and then added a border of snowflakes across the top - MS Snowflake Trim M42-70016. A bit quirky but I like itThe penultimate picture is a mixed technique piece which started out as a boring coaster. These are great - cheap to buy, a nice size to work on and you can easily pierce them to make holes for a wire or ribbon hanger. I covered the coaster with a page from an unwanted (charity shop buy) book of Fairy tales, using Multi Matte Medium to glue it in place before trimming. I then brayered the page using a Soothing Sunset Big n Juicy ink pad. To this I added another of my precious Suze W. images and the word Heart from Tim's Seasonal stickers pad. I melted natural Beeswax in the Pot and brushed it over the whole piece, thicker in some places than others. The thicker areas obscure the images underneath, but you can scrape away thin layers of the wax to re-reveal them. I then dropped a paper flower into the melted wax and then secured that to the corner using more wax. The heart was a piece that I had already made by placing a greased cookie cutter on top of a colour copied image and then pouring melted UTEE into the cutter, allowing to cool and then removing the excess paper with a finger dipped into water. I also inked and partly embossed a Grungeboard flourish before sticking these to the piece with melted wax. I added more wax over the top, scraped areas away and then added the wire hanger. The final piece is my favourite! Those who came on my Matchbox Shrines workshop may possiby recognise the crown which was one of the car boot treasures which were on the table to dip into. Nobody had chosen it, so I decided to use it myself! I began with a teeny canvas that I had already begun and then given up on...all I had done was used Paint Dabbers to colour it and then stamped the TH sentiment over that. I used white Beeswax to texturise the whole canvas and added another Suze image in one corner. I stamped Marion Emberson's lovely dandelion from her "Make a Wish" set. The image didn't completely take on top of the wax, but that's okay. I added the extra word and a teeny dragonfly before adding more wax layers. I cut some Maya Road chipboard wings in half and embossed them with silver and verdigris powders...just enough to leave them looking a little textured. I adhered the wings to the back of the canvas with Glossy Accents and, once they were set, I adhered the crown between them. It was an old brooch that I was able to easily snip the pin off..think it may be made from lead! I finished the piece by adding more Beadazzles held in place with Glossy Accents...not just decorative, they also help to keep the wings and crown in place. Hope you like this piece. So, tomorrow morning I am setting of down to Bury St Edmunds which is a lovely town. I'm especially looking forward to this visit as last time I was there I discovered, too late, a whole area which I had somehow missed on my previous visits! It takes a good few hours (four and a half to be precise!) to get there, so I'll be doing some of my exploration in the dark and, probably, the wind and rain if the last few days are anything to go by! If you are in the area please do come along and say hello. Meanwhile, remember that my blog candy ends on Sunday and the winner needs to email their details to me by Tuesday, so leave a comment, if you haven't already, and pay another visit on Sunday evening to see if you've won! (I've confused myself now! Lol!)

Have a great weekend whatever you are getting up to, and see you back here on Sunday. Lindsay

Blog Candy artwork

Hello folks, and welcome to the new followers who have recently joined. I had a terrific time in Thame and at A Maze of Memories in Long Crendon on Saturday. It was a very busy day with lots of ladies joining in a make n take using alcohol inks and my fairy stamps. Here's a picture of some of them hard at work...concentration on every face! Everyone was so friendly that it was a pleasure and I was kept topped up with fresh cups of fruit tea all day...thanks ladies! It's a beautiful part of the country and I had a few hours looking round Thame itself on Friday. Even though it was pouring with rain I really enjoyed having a good long walk and it blew the cobwebs away that's for sure! So, hello to all the ladies that I met on Saturday and just to let you know that the ink came off my hands by about Monday!Anyway, I'm posting a couple of photos of the picture that I've created for the Blog Candy. Hope you like it. I decided on a Fairy as I think these appeal to most of us. She's quite a "modern" fairy I suppose, with her stripey tights and all! Her wings are slightly glittered and she's attired in some of my favourite colours of lilac and teal. I've put her into a plain black frame and the mat around the picture is from the Tom Holtz Vintage Shabby paper stash. Ha ha, sorry, I meant Tim not Tom!!! Here's a closer look...and this is the finished piece. So, if you haven't already left a comment, remember to do so by the 14th when David will pick a random winner.

I'm off down to Bury St Edmunds on Friday for my demonstration at The Stamp Hut on Saturday. I'll be using the Melt Pot with UTEE and Beeswax as well as EK Success punches, stamps etc. I'll be making cards, Christmas decorations and jewellery, so hope you can call in if you're in the vicinity. Lindsay

My next little trip

I'm off on another train journey tomorrow down to Thame in Oxfordshire where I'll be demonstrating and hosting make n takes at "A Maze of Memories" on Saturday. So if you're in the area, do pop along as it will be a fun and interesting day. I've been busy making samples so thought I'd share some with you. This first one features the Celtic Owl from my Swirly Birds set...this isn't a new design, but it's one that I use all the time as I do love owls and he suits lots of occasions and styles. I've stamped him onto the new PI 300gsm white card using Walnut Stain Distress ink and then waterbrushed the ink to colour him. The PI card is great for this as the ink stays wet for longer than on standard card. I added a touch of white to his eyes and beak. I then created the background using Distress inks in Worn Lipstick, Old Paper, Spiced Marmalade and Brushed Corduroy then spritzed with water and painted the moon with water before dabbing with tissue to remove the colour. I then added a large drop of Walnut Stain ReInker to the base of the card and blew it through a straw to create the tree....haven't done this technique for a while and I'd forgotten how woozy it makes you! I used a mix of ink colours to paint on some tatty leaves - just for the effect of those lingering, crumpled ones that hang on as long as possible. I covered a large card with paper from Tim's Retro paper stash and used another piece as a mat around the main image. I placed the owl onto a branch and cut the word from Tim's Seasonal stack. Three leaves from the Idealogy Foliage pack were enhanced with some alcohol inks and stuck down with silicone glue around the word. To complete the card I added a strip of Hobgoblin Tissue Tape once I had inked it lightly. Good to be able to use Halloween themed products after the event!

A fairy and toadstools from my Fairy Silhouettes stamp set are the focal points of this card. I made a monoprint of alcohol inks before stamping the images over it...I curved the toadstools slightly before stamping some of them to give more variety. This was matted onto silver and then a paper from Tim's Vintage Shabby stack which I smudged with a mucky foam pad to get a mix of colours! I punched the corners using the MS String Lace which I also used on the large card blank before smooching some more colour around it all. To finish I used some peel offs...I know...peel offs! These are glittered stars and I alcohol inked them first which I think raises them up a level (for you peel off snobs out there....I know who you are!). Oh, I did add some of my "grown up stars" to the main panel using an Inkssentials pen. This next piece was fun and simple to make. I squidged Glossy Accents over the back of a Tim Holtz Facet and stuck this to a piece from the Seasonal stash....I placed it with the drilled hole at the bottom. Once dry, I cut around the piece and pierced the hole from the back, threaded a jump ring through and hung an Idealogy Bauble from this. I dyed some ribbon with alcohol ink and made a loop with a double knot which I stuck to the back of a metal Corner before sticking the Corner to the top of the Facet using good old Glossy Accents. I tied a bow around the hanging loop with a second piece of ribbon and added a little Gesso and glitter to complete. Next is Mr Twit Too Whoo again! Told you I use this stamp a lot! This time I stamped him with Archival ink and coloured him with Memento pens. He's on a Distress ink background with a tree stump drawn on with a brown Memento pen that I later added Gesso to. The backing papers are from the Vintage Shabby stash and I added a calendar tag that I cut from "Traveller" Tissue Tape. I also made a ruffle of the tape to go below the main image....this is one of Tim's ideas that I really like as it adds dimension. I've found that if you double the tape back on itself first (ie make a double sided strip) then it doesn't crush. Lastly, here's a full on grunged card! The backing paper is from the Seasonal stash, the music score from the matching salvage stickers. The numbers are Grungeboard that I've inked and added Gesso to....love Gesso, despite the dangers of mess! I also inked and Gessoed an Adage ticket and added a dyed ribbon, a strip of Tidings Tissue Tape and some Foliage accents. Hope you like them! I certainly had fun making them. Oh yes...check out Tim's blog as there is great news about Colourwash which I really love using. New colours (including some of my all time favourites) a new, handier size and improved spray nozzle. I am keeping my fingers crossed that these will be coming soon!

Remember to leave your comment to have a chance for the blog candy....you don't need to have a blog of your own to do this - just follow the directions after pressing "comment". I'm hoping to start the artwork side of the candy on the train tomorrow! I do a lot of doodling when I'm travelling, so I should, at least, get something sketchy done.

Finally, we're holding Dawn, Rena, Amy and the rest of the family in our thoughts and hearts as they go through this difficult time. It's at these moments that their strong family bond comes into its own. Lindsay

Blog Candy

There are full details of my Blog Candy in my sidebar at the left, but here's a bigger picture of the contents. I'll also be including an original piece of artwork...picture will follow once I've finished it!So just leave a comment by the deadline and remember to call back to see if you've won! Lindsay

Photos at last!

Here are the photos which I promised to post. I had to take the chance when the sun came out for a quick blink! First of all though, hello to everyone who came to the demonstrations this weekend, it made for a busy and jolly two days. Hope everyone is enjoying their new stamps, punches and inks! I met some new ladies, and some old friends....I know....less of the old! Chris brought the journals she has been working on to show me. They were great Chris, I specially liked the mushrooms and the borders that you had created...keep up the good work! Sheila and her mum also came along for the afternoon and I met some people that I hadn't seen for years, so Sunday was a very interesting day.

Here, as promised, are some photos of the very special gift which I received from Kath and Elaine last Saturday. Isn't it fantastic? There are three delicate fairies around the egg, so I've taken the pictures from two different angles to show them off. As you can see, the wings are very ethereal, even having the teensiest crystal gems imaginable on them. The egg is topped with a glimmering diamante roundel.And, in this picture you can see the other fairy and that the whole egg lights up from within. I assure you that the pictures don't really do justice to this work of art and the words don't fully express how surprised and grateful I was to be given such a generous gift.Next are the Paris Tag which Sheila made for me, with rich, sumptuous colours that are "just me"! Clockwise from this are ATC's from Chris, Joanne, Karen and Gez. Thank you all, ladies, and I promise to have some decent ATC's for you all next time we meet!Finally, this is the piece which David created in my Journalling class when we were working with magazine images, Gesso and paints. He even drew the picture that the lady is working on at her easel. Everyone said he had been hiding his light under a bushel! Well, that's all for now as I have to write some instructions for a magazine project....the worst bit! However, I'm just going to post details of my latest Blog Candy giveaway, so do check that out and remember the old cliché.....you have to be in it to win it!

Oh, and I have, at last, posted a new rant on my other blog, so do have a read of that...it's part rant, part being very upset. Well, you'll see. Lindsay