Welcome to todays post – it’s hard to believe we’ve gone from Winter to Spring and into Summer in just a week! But must admit the green garden and warmer weather is so inspiring. So today I am sharing wonderful Spring inspired card with you using some gorgeous floral stamps and stickers from Chiswick.

In the middle of my card I layered some chipboard elements on top of each other with my top chipboard being a sentiment.


Here’s how i used my washi tape as a masking tool
step 1 – adhere a strip of washi tape across the center of the front of your card.
TIP: Be mindful that your wahsi tape is not too sticky otherwise it will pull of some of your base cardstock – I usually stick it to an old cloth to remove some of the stickiness.

step 3 – Carefully remove the washi tape when you are done stamping.
TIP: The ink on the washi tape may still be wet, so be careful not to get any ink on your fingers and then smudging the front of your card.
Now go ahead and decorate you card using flowers and chipboard.
There you have a quick masking technique using your very versatile washi tapes.
I used the following products from Chiswick for my project:
Die-cut stickers – Funky Fun  st1002
Chipboard adhesives – Ephemera st1007
Clear Stamp Butterflies rs3171
To view all the wonderful products I used head on over to www.chiswick.co.za
or contact Denise  (031) 569 5673 to find your closest craft store.

It's been a while and i am still not feeling myself after a little set back - anyways i guess this is where you realize you are really getting older and things don't mend so quickly anymore!it's also been a while since i have done my Scrapbook Challenges sketches which i love so much - but A into gear and here we go! i loved this week's sketch - although adding my own spin to it it did inspire this layout i made. the photo is of my nephew that i printed a while ago and found on my desk during yet another clean up session - this time for good! no more holding onto things!

here's the original sketch for you to feel inspired by...

and some detailed images to see what i have done.
i used a circle stencil (my favourite) to add some colour to the background - i used a very light ink as i mostly do. the tags and cut outs are from the new Crate paper range that is to be released in South Africa soon and it's one of my favourites ever!

my title was created using a combination of rub-ons from Melissa Frances and lettering stickers from Websters. i normally don't like lettering stickers but just love this type! The green heart stickers are from the same sheet of alphas. can you tell i used the P's as D's?

and one of my favourite washi tapes with some machine sewing! Love!

i also added some red paint splats for as accent colour. i hope you are having a creative week!

in other news.....we are prepping for our Midlands event in May and i am super excited to be traveling there soon with some awesome girls and being creative in such an amazing place! chat again later this week - thanks for stopping by!

There's a new challenge up at Nuts about sketches and this is a great one - i loved everything about this sketch, and i loved how my layout turned out! i did a LOT of Christmas layouts last year for a lot of different reasons, but this was a really special one (even better up close and personal).

this was of my regular friends' Christmas dinner we had together. i used a single sheet of Prima patterned paper for this layout - the piece on the left hand side running down.

the remainder of the paper was cut out and you can see that below - the feather and rose grouping. just love that. i combined it with some Heidi Swapp and Teresa Collins' elements and cut out bits from papers. the red and black striped tape is a Heidi Swapp product from way back when and it just worked beautifully.

i used the die-cut circle i made on my Cuttlebug using washi tapes, with some stamped images inside it. a few diamante were added to finish it off.

i used this beautiful washi tape to add some delicate writing to the top edge and the gold just picks up on the gold in the photos and in the paper. a few gold confetti circles works really nicely scattered amongst some other elements.

and here's how i got to that die cut again as written about it here

hope you feel inspired - i love scrapping themes but not necessarily using themed papers and elements. it can be done to suit your style - and this one is right up my alley! have a wonderful week and thank you for popping by - followers of blogs are special people and you are truly loved and valued! thank you!

Bargello is a technique traditionally used in needlepoint and borrowed by paper crafters to create interesting background effects using paper strips. I borrowed this technique and have done a couple of versions over the years, but today I am incorporating die-cutting and the ever so popular washi tape to create this easy technique. Just another reason to use my products combined together in my Cuttlebug. 

Tip # 7 - Use Bargello and washi tape to create funky die-cuts.

It's time for another sketch share over at Nuts About sketches.i loved using this versatile sketch, and although i am not really into singles apart from making them for the front and back of my albums...i enjoyed this one. to see the original sketch and what the other girls did with their sketches head on over to the blog

i used a beautiful ledger paper in the centre of my layout and it made the photos look even greener but i kind of like it. the flags are all stuff that was on my table like the scrap used to test sewing using gold thread, silver leafed square cut to a flag and then a scrap of white covered in pink floral washi tape.

the brown and white baker's twine was also left over from another kit project. so basically just using what i have on my desk at the time - love that i use everything! hope you have a creative day - until later!

Can you believe here we are in December. it's time for another sketch challenge over at Scrap Africa. Again it's such a versatile sketch and the design team came up with some stunning layouts, and all so very different. below is my version of the sketch...i pulled this photo off of FB of my little nephew and my brother - such a cool pic.

i used a combination of inks and texture paste on the background. I then layered some patterned papers, tags, strips of paper and washi tape before adding my photo. the silver and gold leafed squares was left over from another project (as usual) and i cut them into smaller squares and added them for a fun and metallic twist.

and as usaul i added some sewing and washi tapes but no buttons (oh dear)....

i had loads of fun with this one that came together easily and kept true to my style.

after a rough week of lots of violent electrical and hail storms we finally have power again so i can work on my 25 days of Cuttlebug tips and tricks again. i will be back tomorrow with day 4 of 25. wishing you a peaceful and crafty Sunday afternoon.

it's time for another challenge over at Scrap Africa. This time the challenge is to use 90% white and 10% colour and i love those kinds of layouts - white is just my thing! i wanted to use my cricut machine and create a bigger scale of white on white than what i recently did in my Project Life album class i did for scrapbook studio at pine lodge. i love the effect.

this time around i cut several hearts using my Cricut Expressions 2 machine. some of the hearts were left white and i added some sewing around the edges to make them stand out a bit more. other hearts were filled in with paper to add some colour and some hearts i only used the border with some stamping on them. i added gold dots onto my background to pick up on the gold in the washi tape and embossing i used - i used these earlier in the year after having them for about 10 years in my stash. now that i am in love with them, i am just wondering why i threw out the rest and how i can get more! typical scrapping illness....collect just to purge to look for it later!

i used the lovely Kaisercraft patterned paper as inspiration and the starting point for my colour combination. i also added some washi tape strips and this gold script is a firm favourite. the gold dot heart in the bottom right hand corner was covered completely in washi tape, also a gold dot, and then trimmed around the edges for a nice clean finish.

i love how this turned out! to play along head on over to the scrap Africa blog - you can also see what the other design team members did with their challenge layouts. hope you have a wonderful creative week filled with lots of white and some colour too!

it's time for another sketch challenge over at scrap Africa - we got to work with another great sketch. i stuck to a single page this time around as sometimes you just need those for the front page of an album now don't you. the girls outdid themselves this week and there are some lovely sample pages with loads of creativity. so head on over to the blog and come play along...

i used this gorgeous new stamp from Prima - love the wording and it really is so versatile!

i used my much loved collection of washi tapes and some scraps of paper from my desk - i love my 'messy' desk as that is the place i find most of my treasures. the stencil i used with my texture paste is also from Prima and a beautiful design. i lightly inked some of the paste using my applicator tool with some Walnut ink distress ink on it - i didn't re-ink but just used what was on the sponge.

my usual sprinkle of buttons, pearls and diamante add some colour on the background. so head on over to see the original sketch and what the design team came up with - then play along and you could win some awesome goodies and be a guest designer. 

i have a hectic week and after this one not feeling quite myself - i am once again cleaning and moving stuff around, organizing, purging and getting organized for another hectic week. but really all i want to do is paint the wall in our bedroom that got some fixing done to it with grey plaster - if only i had more time and energy...i think you know you are getting old when getting up on a ladder and painting just isn't fun like it used to be. maybe an incentive is needed....

hope you are having a creative week planned! thanks for stopping by and hanging around so faithfully!

it's time for another super sketch challenge over at Scrap Africa. This time we got to work with a sketch from page maps (www.pagemaps.com) and i simply love their beautiful fresh clean lines. for my layout i used some elements that will be launched in South Africa soon - i promise! but i couldn't resist sneaking them into this layout design - simply because i love it so much!

the sketch can really be anything you want it to be and to prove it you need to check out and see what the rest of the design team did with it - truly amazing!

recently i have started using a lot more of my precious stamps in my layouts. i went through a phase where i didn't simply because people attending my classes just couldn't or wouldn't respect my stamps as i do and they would get messed up. so my 'scrappers' did not have the privilege which in return hindered my creativity to use them. a vicious circle. but reality.

so on this layout i used this beautiful leaf stamp. i stamped the image onto white cardstock and painted them using watercolors. i really love painting and watercolors are my weapon of choice...i first adhere them to my layout and then added a layer of dimensional glaze to make them really stand out. the effect in real life is amazing! i also added in some washi tape strips, because a girl can never have too many rolls of washi tape! the scallop edge is a punch by American Crafts and distributed in South Africa by The Wholesaler - love this design so much!

to add texture to my background i used a 'cupcake' wrapper and inked through the beautiful design using an applicator tool and some Old Paper Distress Ink. the effect is amazing and delicate and soft. Those diamonds....are from a scrap of technique paper i created myself about 2 years ago - yip that's how long things can float around in my work space before it finally finds a home OR i have the heart to thrown it away. a couple of buttons and diamante adds some colour through from the patterned paper and embellishments. 

thank you for stopping by...and a special shout out to Janet - i blogged! 

wishing you an amazing week filled with creativity!

welcome to another challenge at scrap Africa! it was an easy one...but boy did it take me a long time to get it done - it was too funny! i started off with a few layout ideas since i so love washi tape and have a fair share of it in my stash, but just couldn't get it together! so finally i created this card and loved it. it just worked and came together! how big is your washi stash? do i need to know?

love me some twine in pretty colours  -so versatile and functional too!

i used a big variety of washi tapes in blues - love the one with the butterflies on!

the sentiment is from a Teresa Collins sheet of paper from her Memorabilia range. *love

hope you are having a wonderful week. please head on over to scrap Africa and play along to win some awesome prizes!

it's Monday somewhere in the world and time for another sketch over at Scrapbook Challenge. This week is a double page sketch and one that i love...because i could use my scraps and papers i love so much. i used mostly Kaisercraft papers with some Simple Stories thrown into the mix. here is the sketch that the talented Chanell gave us to work with - all created from a print she pulled of Pintrest - she is amazing when it comes to making things digi!

pops of colour, ink, stamping and lots of patterned papers - all the things i love and enjoy so much!

for my title i combined stamping with perfect pearls - love!

some washi tape peeking out from underneath the paper strips and hexagons.

inking and stamping with some of the new kaisercraft stamps - so versatile and fun!

hop on over to Scrapbook Challenges and see what the other design team members came up with - such amazing inspiration - and play along why don't you?

wishing you a creatively wonderful week filled with blessings! 

...as i type i am listening and looking at the 30 odd guinea-fowl roaming around not even 10 meters from my front door - so blessed!