One Stitch at a Time Challenge 218

This week at One Stitch at a Time, it's the easiest of all challenges: anything goes! So, show us what you've been up to!

I got to work with an image and paper pack from Coosty Creations chosen by my team mate Sue. It's called Princess Nataliya.

I used two papers from the pack. They're really gorgeous, and I suspect they'll be used a lot - imagine them on a wedding card, for example ...

The image was coloured with a mix of Promarkers and Spectrum Noir pencils and Pan Pastel (sky only). I'm still getting used to the pencils, but having spent a lot of time practising with the pencils recently, I struggled with my Promarkers, although I think that's because of the card. I've been using Joanna Sheen's card for Promarkers, but find it too smooth for the pencils. So, I got some of the Crafter's Companion Neenah card and, while it's got a bit more tooth for the pencils, I find it causes the Promarkers to 'leak' over the lines more than I'm used to. I'm sure I'll get used to it, but I find these transitions difficult. Still, I think the result's ok.

As well as the papers from the pack, I've used some silver mirror board and a strip of cloth I bought several years ago. There were various gold- and silver-themed patterns and they're lovely, but it's only now I've got my guillotine that I've found a (fairly) reliable way of cutting it straight! My rotary trimmer always just bent it and if you see me trying to cut straight with scissors, you're liable to hear a lot of huffing as things go wrong. And don't start me on craft knives. I do use them, but I'm always convinced I'm going to do some serious damage with them!

Anway, I hope you can join us this week.

I'd like to enter this card into the following challenges:

Digi Chooseday where the theme is 'In the Pink',
Love to Create where anything goes,
Crafty Girls where anything goes,

Papercrafting Journey where anything goes,

Sister Act where anything goes,

A Creative Need where anything goes,

One Stitch at a Time Challenge 210

This week at One Stitch at a Time, we're having another 'anything goes' challenge, so show us what you've been up to!

We're sponsored this week by

See the challenge blog for details.

This week, Hazel chose an image from Cootsy Creations called Squirrel, which consists of a digi stamp and a paper pack.

There are four gorgeous papers in the pack, and because I couldn't decide which to use, I decided to combine two of them in stripes as you see. The image is coloured with Promarkers, and I've embellished with some branches and oak leaves. The branches were cut using a die from the Susan's Garden range, and the leaves were punched. Both were highlighted using Pan Pastel.

I hope you can join us this week.

I'd like to enter this card into the following challenges:

FanTastic Tuesday where anything goes,
Crafty Hazelnut's Patterned Paper Challenge where anything goes (with patterened paper),
Crafty Girls where anything goes,
Brown Sugar where anything goes,

Sister Act where anything goes,
613 Avenue Create where anything goes,
Ditzie Digi Designs where anything goes,
That Craft Place where anything goes.

One Stitch at a Time Challenge 194

This is the last One Stitch at a Time challenge of 2013, so it's an 'anything goes'! And, it's going to last for five weeks, so you've got loads of time to enter.

Our sponsor is Stitchy Bear Digital Outlet

This week, I got to work with an image from Cootsy Creations. I went to the shop, looking for a Christmas image because, well, it's that time of year! But I spotted this image, called Mehendi Peacock, and I couldn't click away. I love peacocks anyway - it's the colours! And the papers included in this image are absolutely gorgeous. Anyway, enough of that. This is what I came up with.

As usual, I coloured the image with Promarkers. I loved the papers so much, all I did after that was use some gold mirror card for matting and left it at that! The image matt uses a Spellbinders Grand die.

I hope you can join us some time over the five weeks of this challenge!

I'd like to enter this card into the following challenges:

Artistic Impressions where the theme is anything goes/favourite colours,
Digistamps 4 Joy where anything goes,
Divas by Design where anything goes,
The Stamping Chef where anything goes,
DRS Designs where anything goes,
Card Crafters' Circle where they want to see 'gold',
Crafty Catz where anything goes,
Polkadoodles where anything goes,
Sister Act where anything goes,

One Stitch at a Time Challenge 189

This week at One Stitch at a Time, our challenge is 'Festivals'. Now, if you look on the challenge blog, then it'll say 'holidays' but I'm trying to avoid that word because it means something very different to me than what the challenge is really about. So, think of a festival ... Christmas, New Year, Guy Fawkes, Easter, even smaller festivals like Valentine's day or Hallowe'en, and make something for it.

The sponsor is

and you can win a range of images from various of the artists who sell through the shop.

I used an image from Cootsy Creations, and I made a Christmas card.

I coloured the image with Promarkers, but did the background using pastel colour applied with cotton buds. I've embossed the background using folders by Papermania and Sizzix, cut the image using a Spellbinder's die, and embellished with a Joanna Sheen Signature die.

I was going to use a Cuttlebug folder, but couldn't because those folders are just too small! They were the first on the market and as a result, I've got quite a few, but I rarely use them these days because they're such an odd size. They're too short for even an A6 card, and I rarely make anything that small. The small Sizzix folder I used is, at least, just big enough for 140mm which is the size I used here. The Papermania folder is 5 by 7 which is better, but these days, I'm only really buying square folders - so much better!

I hope you can join us this week.

I'd like to enter this card into the following challenges:

By Lori Designs where they want ribbons and bows,
Inky Impressions where they want dies and punches,
Whimsy where anything goes,
Papertake Weekly where anything goes,
Bearly Mine where anything goes,
Jo's Scrap Shack where they want things with wings,
Sister Act where anything goes,

One Stitch at a Time Challenge 187

This week at One Stitch at a Time, our challenge is Boo! So, either something with a Hallowe'en theme, or colours associated with Hallowe'en. We're sponsored this time by

 who're going to give three Promarkers to the lucky winner!

Now, if you're like me, you can't imagine sending a Hallowe'en card to anyone. It's just not an occasion for cards, despite the fact that, as a Scot, it's always been a notable date on the calendar. (Although, I must admit since the whole 'Trick or Treat' thing crossed the Atlantic, I now give do my best to ignore it.) So, I went for Hallowe'en colours. They seem to be black and orange (although again, I assume the orange is a US import along with the idea of pumpkins. We used to use turnips (or swedes if you're not a Scot) and dug those out to make lanterns. (Much harder work, I assure you ...)

Anyway, that's a long explanation of why I chose Cootsy Creations' image and papers called Tiger.

I shrank one of the papers as a background to the tiger image before printing, then coloured the image with Promarkers. The background is another paper from the set, and I finished with some black card for matting, some black ribbon and a silver sun which I warmed a bit using a Pumpkin Promarker.

 I hope you can join us this week.

I'd like to enter this card into the following challenges:

Shopping Our Stash where they want orange and black,
Creative Romance where they've got a 'metal mania' theme,
Crafty Hands where anything goes,
Digi Haven where they want 'orange and black',
Kitty Bee where they want black, white plus one,
QKR where they're seeing orange,
Sister Act where anything goes,
Craftin' Boutique where anything goes,
Rhedd and Rosie where anything goes,

One Stitch at a Time Challenge 173

This week at One Stitch at a Time, we want you to share something special with us - your favourite things!

Our sponsor this week is:

(See challenge blog for details.)

So, my favourite things. I've got lots of them, but one of them is definitely Science Fiction. I used to love the original Star Trek, and I've loved each new story as it's appeared. And then there's Stargate. I mean, what's not to love about that - especially a certain Jack O'Neill? And more recently, there's Firefly/Serenity. And all the hundreds of books I've read over the years too. And one thing I've defnitely achieved is that I've passed on my interest to my three children. I was so proud when my youngest chose a Serenity poster for her university room ...

Anyway, my elder son has a birthday this summer, and when I saw this pack from Cootsy Creations, I had to have it.

I've used one of the papers from the pack, and adjusted it for a square format. I added the sentiment before printing. the image I printed twice, and I coloured with Promarkers before layering. 

I hope you can join us this week.

I'd like to enter this card into the following challenges:

Addicted to Stamps and More where they want CAS,
Crafting By Designs where anything goes,
Crafts and Me where anything goes,
I Love Promarkers where anything goes,
Nutcrafter where they want one for the boys,
Anything Goes where anything goes,
LEJ Designs where anything goes,
Tuesday Throwdown where anything goes,
4 Crafty Chicks where they want to 'Hear it for the Boys',
Creative Fingers where anything goes.