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Monday, 3 December 2018

Mid challenge inspiration - Holiday Spirit

Hi everyone,
Gosh - heading full pelt towards Christmas now aren't we?
Now, other than the winner's post, this will be our last post before Christmas as we all get to put our pencils away and enjoy the festivities with our families.
(Well, I shall probably still be colouring - that's how I relax Lol)
I am so looking forward to Christmas this year.
Three little grandchildren to watch open their present and listen to shouts of "Mummy look!!".
Honestly they get SOOO excited and it is a joy to behold.
So, to the mid challenge inspiration I have for you this time.
As you know our challenge this time was 
Now obviously this can mean a whole manner of things to different people.
I have chosen to use the gorgeous
WINTER SPRITE
because she is just soooo cute and because I love Sprites and because I made it Myla's Christmas Card this year. 😍
Here are the all important links for purchasing this little beauty if you don't already have her.
At Aurora Wings Store:

At Aurora Wings Etsy Store:

I love blues at Christmas time rather than the traditional red white and green.
So here she is:

Coloured with my FC Polychromo Pencils for the main image and the background is done with my Prismacolours. I'm pretty pleased with those clouds.  Since I started my colouring classes at Kit and Clowder I have started to look at things differently.  Instead of just looking, I now look at where the cast shadows are and the different colours within things.  I mean sky is blue and clouds are white right????  Wrong - there are soooo many colours in both of those things - take a look at a cloud formation next time you are out - you'll see what I mean. 😉

The ribbon is some I have had in my stash for some time now.  Most of my ribbon came from the fabulous Crafty Ribbons - definitely well worth a visit if you are looking for ribbon or lace.

The flowers have again been around in my craft room for quite a while and the majority of my flowers came from Wild Orchid Crafts - the store has recently been sold and the new owners hope to have it up and running again by Mid September.
The backing papers are from Lili of the Valley but sadly they no longer make their paper pads.  Such a shame because the quality was superb. Never mind.

So there you have it - my inspiration for the last challenge of the year.
I know it is a pretty hectic time in most households worldwide but I do hope you can find the time to pop along and join in.

I would like to take this opportunity to wish you all a Very Merry Christmas and a Happy and Healthy New Year.
🎄🎅🎄🎅

Challenges:


Monday, 5 November 2018

Mid challenge inspiration - Once upon a nightmare/dream.

Hello everyone
My word the weeks are certainly flying by now aren't they?
Before you know where we are our American Friends will be celebrating Thanksgiving and then it will be Christmas. It must be an age thing because I certainly don't remember time going this quickly when I was a kid. Mind you the six week summer break certainly seemed to go quite quickly, maybe I just don't remember time the same when I was younger? Hey ho.

So time for team Aurora to pop in and give you a little bit of mid challenge inspiration for our current challenge which is:

Now when I first saw this challenge I thought, well that's easy mine will be once upon a dream because there are dozens of dreamy images in Mitzi's collection.
But then I thought, hang on minute - why don't I step outside of my comfort zone and go with Once upon a nightmare for a change?
Well, that's exactly what I decided to do in the end.
And do you know what? I surprised myself!
I really enjoyed doing something a little darker.
Okay, it is not really really dark but for me it is something way different to what I normally do.
So, I decided to use DARK PRINCESS for this challenge.
You can find here here on Etsy
and here on Aurora Wings.com.
Now as I said this is way out of my comfort zone so please be kind:
I decided to add the image to a canvas which I painted black with acrylic paint and then matted and layered the image onto some gorgeous Designer Paper from Claritystamp.  This is from the pad called Shenandoa which you can find here.
I'm a bit disappointed that the paper buckled when I added it to the canvas  but I can't do anything about it now.  Think I used a bit too much glue! DUH!
Anyway, I can tell you that it took me hours to colour all those little red flowers but I am really happy with them.  I decided to go with monochrome for her skin as I think that makes it look darker.  There are four layers of five colours on the blue flowers.  I had done three layers and every time I looked at it I just wasn't happy so back I went to go over them again.  I am so glad I did as I think they now look how I wanted them too.
In real life the picture is quite a bit darker than it looks on these pics and it is now hanging in pride of place in my craft room.  After spending so much time on it I can't stand the thought of parting with it so on my wall it will stay.


The background is done with Prismacolour pencils and again there are four layers of four blues on here and then I blended them with my blending pencil to soften where the colours merged.
I hope you like her - I have to say I am really chuffed with it.
I also sprayed the entire image with Crafter's Companion Spray and Sparkle in Silver.  In real life it gives the image that extra bit of umph!!

Can't wait to see how many dreams or nightmares we get for this challenge.
Hope you have as much fun as I did.  Remember, part of the challenge is doing something you wouldn't normally do so why not challenge yourself this time.

See you soon
TTFN
XXXX
 Challenges: 


Monday, 1 October 2018

Inspired by Music - Aurora Wings - mid challenge inspiration

Hi everyone
I hope you are all having fun with deciding what music to take your inspiration from for this month's challenge?
Image may contain: sky
Your creation should be inspired by music - doesn't matter what kind of music - but it would be nice to know what that music is in your blog post.

So for my inspiration I chose 
Message in a Bottle by The Police

I loved this song - mind you I liked most of their music back in the day.

So for my project I decided to use Mermaid's Wish which I thought fitted perfectly with the song I chose.

You can find Mermaid's Wish at Aurora Wings.com here and at Etsy here.

So the image has once again been coloured with my Polychromo pencils. I am really enjoying getting back into the groove with these as they were my first "big buy" and I like that they last quite a bit longer than the Prismacolours.  I know that is because of the make up of the pencil but I think they are better value for money as they last longer and I am all for saving a few pennies!! Lol

On the backing paper I used a couple of Clarity stencils and Distress Oxide inks to add to the underwater feel of the project. 
The sea background has been done with my prismacolours because they do seem to cover larger areas better than the Polys.

Once I had finished colouring the main image and background I used some Spray and Sparkle from Crafter's Companion (not sure that they still do this now though),  all over the image but I'm not sure it shows up very well in the photos.

I added a little sea green bow in the top corner and some little flat backed pearls in three of the corners. 
The fourth corner has my sentiment on it and for this I used the fabulous Word Chain stamps from Claritystamp which you can find here and I stamped them in Distress Oxide ink.  
Now I know these have been introduced over the last twelve months and I am a bit slow to jump on the bandwagon but let me tell you they are FANTASTIC!! They stamp beautifully on to darker card which is brilliant.  They have a chalky look and feel to the finish but still give a fabulous crisp outline. The other fabulous thing about them is that you can stamp one colour over another and it still shows up separately - do you know what I mean?
If you look at the background paper you will see that I stamped some bubbles over the seaweed but you can still see the seaweed through the bubbles - that's what I mean.
If you haven't tried them yet, you really should, they are awesome.
Just don't tell your other half it was me that suggested it ok?? Lol

So I hope you can find some time to join in with this fabulous challenge and I can't wait to see which music you chose as your inspiration too.

TTFN
xxxx
Challenges:



Monday, 3 September 2018

Things are a bit sketchy - mid challenge inspiration.

Hello again,
Well, it is time for a little mid challenge inspiration for our current challenge at Aurora Wings which you will all know by now is to use the sketch provided. 

Remember the sketch is just there as a guide.  You can turn it round to any position if it suits your project better and although the sketch shows flowers you don't have to use flowers if you would rather use something else.  So long as we can still see the basic sketch on your project then you should be fine.
So for this challenge I have used the image FLOWER MOON.

You can find her on Etsy here
and on Aurora Wings.com here.
I felt that this image really leant itself to the sketch which I turned upside down. 
I used the layout of the image as my circle as I didn't want to add anything behind the image. 
So where the large flowers are on the sketch is where the face and majority of flowers are on the image and where the smaller flowers are I have used a collection of different sized gems.
Now I have noticed a major flaw in my take on the sketch in that the sentiment is in the wrong place but I am hoping Mitzi won't mind too much. 🙏🙏
So here is my project:

Once again coloured with my Polychromo pencils. This time I have used colours which I don't normally use because I am not really a pink/pastel sort of person, but I am really happy with how this has turned out.

The gems are some that I have had in my stash for ages but I really think they suit this card.

The sentiment is a stamp from Claritystamp which you can find here.
So all in all, I am really happy with how this turned out, please let me know what you think.

I hope you will join in with this month's challenge, and I can't wait to see what you all come up with.

Tata.
xxx
Challenges:

Tuesday, 28 August 2018

Surprise!!

Hello everyone
Just popping in quickly to show you this card I made today.
I am a member of all three Design clubs run by Claritystamp and last week I received my latest envelope.  The stamp, Groovi plate and stencil were all fabulous and I could see many many uses for all of them.
As I was browsing around Blogland today I came across the latest challenge at Craft Stamper Magazine and thought I would give it a go.
It is an "Anything Goes" challenge so this was perfect.
So, here is the card I made for the challenge:
The little cat in the bottom corner was the stencil in this month's club envelope.
Actually the stencil has three cats on it, all on top of one another so I just masked off the top two and used the bottom one.
The birds in a line is also a Claritystamp which you can find here and they come with a row of flowers too.
I used the brick stencil (look here) and brushed through two different shades of Distress Oxide inks, Frayed Burlap and Gathered Twigs.

Then I brushed through the cat stencil at the bottom with Walnut Stain Oxide ink and stamped the "Surprise!" using the Word Chain Alphabet (look here).
I had a mask for the birds and decided to brush through some oxide ink in Gathered Twigs and Barn Door.
The background was a mop up of Distress Oxide inks and water on Clarity Stencil Card.

The ribbon is one I had from Crafty Ribbons quite some time ago but you can still get it here although not in this colour. 
So there you go, a really quick card and I am really happy with it.
Hope you like it, please let me know what you think.

Challenges:

Thursday, 23 August 2018

Aurora Wings New Release Showcase

Hello my lovely bloggy friends.
Gosh, can you believe we are heading towards the end of August?
It really doesn't seem five minutes since my grandchildren were opening their Christmas presents amidst "oohs" and "aahs" and "Mummy look what I've got!!"
Bless them they get so excited - I think they feed of each other lol.
Anyway, I digress, as we are in August and not Christmas - yet!!

So as we head towards the end of the month you know what that means don't you?
Yes, that's right - time for a new release over at Aurora Wings.

There are four new releases this month, two full size colouring pages and two gorgeous new little sprites.
I am showcasing the two sprites here today and I hope you like them because let me tell you, these little darlings are right up my street.
Well, they would be wouldn't they because they are both Sprites - and what cute little beauties they both are.

So firstly, here are the two new images:

So first off we have that gorgeous little Dragon Sprite - now how cute is that?

As luck would have it, because I am a fully signed up member of Kit and Clowder Online Colouring Classes I was lucky enough to receive the latest free colouring class - and would you believe it - this month it is all about colouring dragons!!
Now that has to be a sign to go buy a lottery ticket don't you think?? Well I'm going to anyway - you never know do you?  Hahaha.

Here are all the details you will need to find this little beauty at the Aurora Wings outlets:

Dragon Sprite JPG at AW Etsy - https://www.etsy.com/listing/622270994/dragon-sprite-aurora-wings-digital-stamp

Dragon Sprite PNG at AuroraWings.com - https://www.aurorawings.com/store/p655/Dragon-Sprite-PNG-Digital-Stamp-Aurora-Wings

Dragon Sprite PNG at AW Etsy - https://www.etsy.com/listing/622271526/png-dragon-sprite-aurora-wings-digital
_______


Here is my take on this little dragon sprite:
Now, you know how you "see" something in your mind's eye and think, Yes, that's how I will do it!!
But then it never turns out quite the way you think? Well this is how it was with this little fella.  Now don't get me wrong, I am really pleased with how this has turned out but it wasn't quite what I had in mind.  Having said that, if I hadn't had the free dragon colouring class it wouldn't even have looked this good so - every cloud eh?
(By the way, if you are interested in learning more about how to colour, with either markers or pencils, then why not pop along to the Kit and Clowder website at www.KitandClowder.com and have a look at what is on offer?  They also have a fabulous Facebook page where you can post anything crafty, doesn't even have to be colouring, it can be whatever your craft obsession happens to be.  If you do decide to sign up to any of the colouring classes, just mention that I sent you - there could be a little something in it for you!)
Coloured with my prismacolour pencils and the background is done with Pan Pastels.  I really need to explore more uses for those Pan Pastels, I know they can do so much more than what I use them for. 
Background papers are from Clarity Stamp - there are about six different pads to choose from, all double sided and such absolutely gorgeous quality - have a look here for all the details.

Challenges:
I shall enter my little dragon sprite into the following challenges:

Now onto my second project, this time using that gorgeous little Hummingbird Sprite.
Here are all the purchasing details you will need:

Hummingbird Sprite JPG at AW Etsy - https://www.etsy.com/listing/636103807/hummingbird-sprite-aurora-wings-digital

Hummingbird Sprite PNG at AuroraWings.com - https://www.aurorawings.com/store/p657/Hummingbird-Sprite-PNG-Digital-Stamp-Aurora-Wings

Hummingbird Sprite PNG at AW Etsy - https://www.etsy.com/listing/622273776/png-hummingbird-sprite-aurora-wings
I decided that this little fella needed to be a bit special so I gave him his own little frame and even some pretty little flowers for a plentiful supply of nectar!
I did use good old Google to look at colours and was a bit disappointed to find that a lot of hummingbirds have quite dull wings.  Took me ages to find one that didn't! Lol

I used my Faber Castell Polychromos to colour this image.  I do find they have a more vibrant colour range than the prismas but I am so glad I have both sets as they are equally brilliant for different reasons.

So remember to pop on over to the Showcase Blog and have a look at the other fabulous DT projects featuring these and the other two new release images - trust me, you won't be disappointed.

Now a new release wouldn't be a new release without some super discount offers would it?
So here are some codes for you to use at either the AW Etsy store or the AW store.
Who knows what other fantastic images you will just NEED whilst you are browsing??
Have fun.
xxxx

I shall enter my Hummingbird Sprite into the following challenges:
(always associate hummingbirds with paradise)



Thursday, 26 July 2018

Aurora Wings - New Release Showcase

Hello everyone.
How are you all doing?
It sure is warm here in the UK - not something we are used to really but I'm not going to complain.  I do love the sun but this is a little too warm especially at night!  Hey ho, I'm sure I shall be wishing it back again when the winter hits us! Lol

So, I have just popped in to let you know that today is new release showcase day for Mitzi at Aurora Wings.  
Now when I say you won't be disappointed with the new images, well I think that is an understatement!! 
They are jaw droppingly gorgeous!!
Well now I know you are going to think I am a bit biased and you would be absolutely correct.
Why are they so gorgeous?? 
Well, they are sprites so naturally I am one happy bunny!!
Now as usual with the new release showcase, there is an extra special bonus.
The bonus this time is a Gift With Purchase image - and he is so stinkin' cute!!
Allow me to introduce you to:
PUPPY SPRITE
Didn't I tell you he was cute??? 
So, as I said you will get this image free with a purchase of $8USD (minimum spend).
Now to the other two new images in the showcase are:
Forget-me-not sprite and Succulent Sprite
I have made two cards with the two gorgeous new images and here they are:
First, Forget-me-not Sprite:
She is available from both the Aurora Wings store and the Aurora Wings Etsy store:
PNG - Etsy - here
PNG - AW Store - here
JPG - Etsy - here
JPG -AW Store - here
The image is coloured with my Polychromo pencils and the background is done in Pan Pastels.
The sentiment is done using the gorgeous Word Chain Alphabet from Claritystamp which you can find here.
The flowers are from my age old stash which really could do with a bit of a boost!

Secondly, Succulent Sprite:
Again available in both the Aurora Wings Store and the Aurora Wings Etsy store:
PNG - AW Store - here
PNG - Etsy store - here
JPG - AW Store - here
JPG - Etsy store - here
Again coloured with my Polychromo pencils, The sentiment is from a different Claritystamp wordchain. (It actually says Friendship but I masked off the "hip" to just get Friends)
The flowers are again from my stash.
The background papers are from Lili of the Valley paper pads which are, sadly, no longer available.

The final new release image is the last instalment of the Four Seasons series.
This one is called Icicles and Crystals and is the Winter Image.
I think of the four this has to be my favourite.
Pop on over to the showcase blog where you can see some fabulous inspiration and all the necessary codes to purchase this beauty.
So, if you like the look of these gorgeous new images, and let's face it, why wouldn't you?? then pop on over to the Aurora Wings Showcase blog where you can see what fabulous creations my teamies made.
So here are all the codes you will need for your little shopping spree - go on - you know you want to!! Lol


Thanks for stopping by today.
Please leave me a little message to let me know you called and let me know what you think of my cards too eh?
TTFN
xxxx

Monday, 16 July 2018

Aurora Wings Challenge 69 - Totally your choice!!

Hi everyone.
Thank you for joining in with our Once Upon a Time challenge last month.
Remember to pop along to the challenge blog and see if you were one of the lucky winners.

So, on to the next challenge then.
Now this one has to be everyone's favourite challenge doesn't it?
This month's challenge is:

So, that gives you carte blanche to do exactly as you choose.  You could do what you normally do, be it a card or a framed picture or you could really go out on a limb and do a canvas or a gift bag or do a completely unexpected colour palette - the choice is - as my blog post title suggests - totally up to you!

I was going to make a set of pictures using the sprites because I love them but to be honest we have had quite a few hospital appointments with hubby so I didn't get enough time to get them all done - maybe I will save that project for a future challenge! 😉😉
So, instead I decided to make a door hanger but because they are my first love I just had to use a sprite! 😃😃
I went with the cute little Strawberry Sprite in the end and you can find her on Etsy here and on the Aurora Wings shop here.
So, here you go then:
I just adore these little sprite characters, they are just tooooo cute. I did a pineapple sprite project a while back and I just loved how it turned out so thought I would try again with this one. 
Coloured with my Faber Castell Polychromo pencils this time, a change from my Prismacolours. 

A little digression!
The FB pencils were the first big set I bought and I loved them, but then I tried Prismas and they blend so much easier - because they are wax based rather than oil based. I personally find that the polychromos tend to sharpen to a sharper point because they are a tad harder than the prismas but the prismas do tend to give a better coverage on larger areas that the polys.  At the end of the day they are both beautiful pencils and give amazing results - it will always come down to personal preference I think but I love them both in totally different ways.  If you pop on over to the Kit and Clowder website you will find oodles of information on pencils, markers and papers etc to help you with your colouring choices.  Before I found Kit and Clowder my colouring was "okay" but it lacked any sort of depth and this left the characters with little or no personality - but now - well I will let you be the judge - what do you think?

Anyhooo - let's get back to it shall we?

The gorgeous backing papers (yeah, I know you can't really see much of them can you? lol), I have used on this card are from an 8 x 8 Lili of the Valley paper pad called "Simple Joys".  I don't think they make them any more which is really sad because they were such a fabulous quality.  I am fortunate enough to have quite a few of these pads but now that I am using them more often again I fear that they won't last me very long!! Boo Hoo. 


The ribbon called Strawberry Shortcake is from Crafty Ribbons who again have a vast array of ribbons and threads to choose from as well as ribbon embroidery kits if that is your forté.

I was going to add gems and flowers but do you know what - I think it looks fine just as it is, what do you think?
So there you go folks, my inspiration for the anything goes challenge.
I can't wait to see what fabulous projects you all come up with but whatever you do I hope you have lots of fun doing it. After all, that's what it's all about right?

TTFN
xxx
Challenges:
                                                                                                                                                                                    

Monday, 18 June 2018

Once Upon a Time........

Hello everyone.
Where on earth is this year going to eh?  One minute it is Christmas and the next we are charging full pelt towards Summer - well we are in the UK anyway.  Mind you, when I say Summer I am not sure we will have beautiful Summer weather but we shall see - the forecasters say we are in for a three month heatwave - bring it on I say - I am keeping my fingers crossed but I will believe it when I see it.  Nothing I like more than to be outside in the garden doing a spot of colouring. 😊

So before I go any further just let me tell you about my serious blonde moment!!
I made my project for the last challenge - tick.
Added all the pictures to my post - tick.
Scheduled my post to appear at the right time on the right day - tick.
Added all the challenges with their links - tick
Added my link to all the challenges in my list - DUH!!!! (well I did add to one challenge but there should have been about 10!!)

No wonder I only had one challenge commenting on my work! I am so annoyed with myself right now, especially as I spent ages colouring the beautiful Christmas Lights Sprite. 😭😭😭😭😭😭
Moral of this story - remember to go back and check all your entries - especially if you have had no comments - it is better to check than just sit there thinking nobody likes your work enough to comment on it!!! 
Lesson well and truly learnt!!

ANYWAY......... let's move on shall we?

So our new challenge is:
(Inspired by a Fairytale)
When I was younger, I remember having the most beautiful hard backed books full of fairy tales - wish I had kept a hold of them now because it would have been lovely to be able to read them with my grandkids - mind you, I'm not sure that any of them would sit still that long! 😄😄

Anyway, I digress - I did a bit of googling for this challenge to remind me of the many fairy tales that are out there. It is a long time since I read any fairy tales I can tell you. Lol
Eventually, I settled on Hans Christian Andersen's The Snow Queen.
And do you know, there just happens to be a couple of awesome images called Snow Queen - 😉 -and I have used one of those.  I went with the Snow Queen Full size as I really like the softness of this image.
You can find the Snow Queen on the Aurora Wings Etsy Store HERE
And on the Aurora Wings store HERE

I was going to keep it all blues but decided to do her hair a different colour so that the little headdress stands out a bit better.

Again I have used my Prismacolour pencils.  I would never have added grey into a white item of clothing but my colouring classes over at Kit and Clowder have taught me so much about lightsource and shadows that now I can't imagine colouring white any other way.

Those gorgeous flowers are from Wild Orchid Crafts and I have had them for simply ages - in fact when I was choosing which ones to use I couldn't believe that in my "white" box there could be so many different shades of white.  Might have to have a little spending spree. Lol

There you go then - that is my inspiration for the new challenge.
Which Fairytale are you going to use to inspire your creation?  
I can't wait to see.

Challenges: