Crafty CardMakers 40.5 - Spotlight on Silhouettes

For my demo this week at Crafty CardMakers I chose 'Dance Fever' silhouette from our sponsor.  


As it is a digital image, I thought I'd give it  a digital-hybrid 'treatment' and printed out my digital layers before decoupaging them, finishing with an acetate layer adhered with four real screws!
The background paper and mat are my own Eiglas digi papers.

I've done silhouettes in the past - I rather like them actually - and one of my favourites is one of my own made with an image of my little granddaughter Ada.

I just love that choochie lickle bum...! LOL!


The digi of this image is available on my Eiglassing site.   If you would like any of my digis that don't yet have a 'Buy Now' button, just e-mail me and I'll sort it for you!


Please do pop over to CCM and look at the fab demos my talented teamies have come up with! Some real inspiration over there!  


Hugs
Ei
x

Another three awards...!

There must be something in the water this week...! LOL!
I already was given a lovely award on my other blog, Eiglassing, by JuicyLucy and now I have three more on here from my lovely blog-pals Kim (DitzyCrafts) Gillyflower and Heike!  It's the same award and so I hope they don't mind if I combine the three here.

I now need to give eight interesting facts about myself but I don't think I have eight interesting facts!LOL!

1 I like dogs better than I like most people.

2 I like crafts nearly as much as I do dogs.

3 I dislike 98% of tv programmes.

4 I have four very wonderful and beautiful children.

5 I can't stand meanness.

6 I love music ( and was a rock-singer in another life!).

7 I believe capital punishment should be returned for offences against children and old folk (..controversial, I know...!).

8 I believe that 'Fat Cats' and politicians should not set their own salaries/bonuses.

I apparently now pass this award on to eight other blogs so I have chosen:-

Donna - My Happy Place

Josephine - Josephine's Rainbow

Lisa - Wishcraft

Leanne - Fluttabyz

Anne - Stargroves

Jenni - Jenni's Crafty Journal

Vix - Vixykins

Anesha - Crafting Queen 

These are all lovely, lovely peeps and their blogs lovely places to visit for various reasons. If you like cats, Anesha's is the place to visit, startlingly good colour work - Vix. All of them are very talented crafters with inspirational work on their blogs.

I hope you will enjoy visiting them!

Hugs

Ei

x

For Friends & Family

A few of my friends and family have 'threshold' birthdays this year so I've got started in good time with the cards!


The first (not necessarily chronologically!) is my darling daughter-in-law Dani.
There really should be another title for someone like my Dani - 'daughter-in-law' just does not describe our relationship at all!  


If they made daughter-in-law kits, I couldn't design a better one (...unless I could draft in a mega-rich Daddy for her...! LOL!) because she is more than perfect.

She is kind, caring and simply the most thoughtful person I know and sooo pretty too!  A perfect match for my number three son Rob and they're both 30 this year.


Background paper is K&Co (I think!) and the die-cut leaves are Sizzix.
The handmade flowers are scrap paper distressed with Tim Holtz 'Dusty Concord' and that's the ink used for the distressing too.
The 'Scroll' die-cut in the bottom right corner is Tim Holtz too as is the swirls embossing plate used for the image mount mat. The purple mat is hand cut as I don't have an oval scalloped Nestie.
The image is coloured with my trusty Copics. 


I'd like to enter this one into the challenge at Patti's Creations - 'Your own embellishments'






My friend Wendy is going to b 60 this month so I've made her this.
The papers are Anna Griffin as is the corner punch. The rest is hand cut with scissors and craft-knife. The greeting I made & printed myself.
The extra vellum layer on the box is hiding a bubble I missed when I covered it with the paper during the make! LOL!

Well that's all for now - off to play with Charlie & Lola!
Hugs
Ei
x

Coffee & Cream

Simon Says Stamp! have a theme of  'Coffee and Cream' this week and as that's one of my favourite combos I thought I'd have a go!


The DT have used WOJ stamps this week but, rebel that I am, I've gone for a Tim Holtz theme.

Everything used is from the Tim Holtz or Ranger range except for the brown filigree paper ribbon and the fibres. 
Hope you like it!
Hugs
Ei
x

Flashback Friday 8.00

Flashback Friday is a relatively new blog with unusual challenges and this week, they're asking for our first 3D project.  I don't think the first one I made is still in existence as it was probably in reception class at infants school.....! LOL


However, my first in blogworld was this one!

It's a birdhouse!

It was very easy to make - the 'body' of the box is just an A4 card scored and folded into four equal parts (after leaving a 1.5cm 'lip' for sticking), which is easier to decorate, cut holes in etc. before you stick it together.

The roof, is just another pice of card I fudged around with until it fitted.
The two birds are Inkadinkadoo stamps which I cut out, coloured and mounted, one on the roof and one on the perch.
I roughly sketched and coloured some flowers and used an Adirondack Lettuce inkpad to make some rudimentary grass and colour the roof.
Hope you like it!
Hugs,
Ei
x

I hope I've done it correctly this time...! LOL!

Jude's Half-Term Candy !

My Trimmie-Pal Jude at Crafts International has some fab Half Term candy on her blog at the minute - well worth popping over for a shufti!

It's a significantly stash Jude's generously offering - I wouldn't mind winning it!
Here are the items I've cut & pasted from Jude's blog:-


Items you will receive
1.Tim Holtz........Journalling Tickets
2.Tim Holtz.....Grundgeboard Swatch Book
3.Brand New Release Designer Paper Pad6x6 Prima......... "Moulin Rouge"(Lush)
4.A2Z Scraplets Chipboard ..........Butterfly and flower large Die Cut
5.Tim Holtz .......Tags
6.Ranger ....Perfect Pearls Forever Red
7.Prima....Glass Decorated Pebbles
8.Prima Clear Stamps....Set 3 Frame Stamps and Gems.
9.Artist Trading Pack.......Assorted Pack Includes 2 of Each Vellum Bristol,Smooth Bristal,Canvas,Textured ,Watercolour ATC's& 1 Each Of Illustration Board and Acrylic
10.Clip Board ..To Alter
11. 1 Absolutely Gorgeous Large Chipboard Key to Alter
12. 1 Organza Bag......With white Prima FlowersColour/Alter Yourself Assorted sizes Largest3"
13. 1 Back To Basics...... Note Book to Alter
14.Assorted Chipboard Items to Alter ....Including Frames.Coasters square Round,& Bare MatchBoxes.
15. 1 Blue Moon....Metal Vintage Pendant "Angel"
16.Anna Griffin Flora Collection ....Pack 8 Brads
17.Kanban ....Sentiment Stickers Black n Silver
18.Reminisce Phraseology Rub ons
19.Item Still in Hands Royal Mail...coming Soon
20....I will buy something whilst away as hate odd numbers.....lol


...so you see, definitely desirable candy! LOL!
Pop over there before 31st March for a chance to win!
Hugs
Ei
x

WOYW...?

I've not done 'What's On Your Worktop' for a while but was just prompted when I went over to visit one of my followers, Linda W.
I looked at her lovely tidy, ordered room (...well, compared to mine..!), looked over at mine and just fell about laughing!
This is just ONE worktop and not even the worst.....! LOL!

I should hang my head in shame, especially as I've just had a clearout and a tidy!
Ah well, at least it's interesting!


Over to Julia's Stamping Ground for a tootle...!
Hugs
Ei
x

Eiglas Super Challenge #1 - Baby Birth

***This post will remain at the top until 23rd February - please scroll down for more recent posts.***




To celebrate the birth of my gorgeous little grandson Tobias yesterday morning, I would like to run a very special challenge!


The Eiglas Challenge is not quite like most of the challenges out there - I am a stern taskmistress!LOL!


To be in with a chance of winning my prize this week I'd like to see the following:-


1)  a card or other project which must be specifically for the birth of a baby. No children, toddlers, puppies or doe-eyed girls etc, just newborn babies.


2) the colour pallette can be for either a girl or a boy but please, no gaudy or very dark treatments (I'm very old-fashioned! LOL!)


3) I'd love to see at least one hand-made flower.  I don't mean a bought one, I mean one you have made with your own fair hands. You can have as many Wild-Orchid Crafts type flowers as you like too!


4) I'd like to see, (but it's not mandatory) my Eiglas digistamp, 'Baby Toby' on the project . Please help yourselves to it and enjoy it! The only thing I ask is that you send me the link to any projects you make with him as I'd love to see them - preferably on this challenge! LOL! Also, if you'd please give a small credit to Eiglas if you publish him online or in a publication. Thank you so much!

 All of my digistamps can be seen on my showroom blog www.eiglassing.blogspot.com although I only have a few Pay Now' buttons up yet - there'll be more soon! 


In the meantime, if you want to buy a digi just e-mail me at www.eiglas@eiglas.co.uk and tell me which ones you want.

See...! Not so bad, is it...?
Oh! What's that you say? What do you get out of this.....?
How about no less than seven Copic Ciao markers including the blender pen 0, Black 100, Barley Beige E11, Barium Yellow Y00, Mimosa Yellow YG00, Yellowish Green YG06 and Ultramarine B29


Is that all...? Well, no actually! I'm also offering my very special winner a selection of my own Eiglas digis and I'll try to include genres to suit the winner too!


Anything else? Surely not....?


But YES! There is!  I'm also going to choose two more entries to be in the top three and they will also receive an Eiglas digistamp. 
All three winners will have my exclusive banner to display on their blogs to declare they were in Eiglas' top three!

This won't be a weekly or very regular challenge but it will always be a special one with the winner chosen on merit by me!


Please link only to your project, not just your blog and link back to this blog.
Please enter up to, but no more than, three projects.
Please leave a nice comment! LOL!


This challenge will remain open for two weeks and will close at midnight 23rd February 2011


I look forward to seeing your wonderful projects!
Hugs
Ei
x

Eiglas Super Challenge #1 - Baby Birth - Winners!

I can't tell you how hard this was to decide! 

I'm clearly more scary than I thought I was as there were fewer entries than I expected and that's what's made it so hard as they were all of an excellent standard and presented my 'Baby Toby' beautifully albeit in totally different ways. 

Sadly two of my entrants omitted the handmade flower and so, regretfully, cannot be considered for the Copics but I'm just SO impressed with the standard of entries, I've decided to send everyone at least one of my Eiglas digistamp files.

I really could not choose a clear winner between two of my entrants because they are sooo lovely but, in the end, got my Hubby Nic to break the deadlock!

Top entry and winner of the Copic Markers and a selection of my digital images is.....

                                           VEE!!

The other two 'Top Three's who will receive three of my images each plus a 'Top Three banner are jointly

                Ceej & Rozzy

but like I say, because the entries were so lovely, I think every entrant deserves a prize and so will each receive an Eiglas digi of their choice!

So if Vee would please e-mail me with your 'real' address I'll get your Copics off to you quicksticks. Also, if you pop over to my Eiglassing site and choose the three digis you would like and let me know which they are, I'll get them to you too!

Christa and Rozzy please select three images each and if Cheryl, Joan, Elaine, Jo and Terri could look there and let me know which one they would like too that would be great! I've really enjoyed seeing what you have done with baby Toby and the lovely comments each of you have had on your blogs for the lovely projects you've created so I may well repeat this mad exercise again! Thank you all for liking my Baby Toby and for popping in - do come back! Hugs Ei x

An award from Donna

My second award of the week!
The lovely Donna Mosely has very kindly given me this lovely little award and I do accept and appreciate it!

Now I have to pass it along to some of my favourite small blogs.

HopeJaCaRe Claire has been an inspiration and practical guide to me since I met her

( and her drawings are just fab!).

Lisa's Craft Garden - is so gentle and comfortable with so many pretty things to look at!

Twisted Witch - because Lin is a madwoman but very talented (I should hate her really! LOL!)

Lovely Linda's Craft Central - because she makes the most amazing things and has a way with vintage/distress to which I would like to aspire!!

Pattie's Art - Pattie never ceases to inspire and amaze me with her work.


I hope you'll go visit these five fab ladies! Thank you all for looking!
Hugs
Ei
x

Top Tip Tuesday 23 - Bling it on!

This week at Top Tip Tuesday, we want you to pile on the bling! Don't hold back, go for it! LOL!




We also have a fab tut by our own Maggie. She's going to give the lowdown on the, often neglected, 'inners', so get over to TTT and have a go!




There are three sponsors this week:-

So do yourself a favour and pop over to Top Tip Tuesday - there's loads going on!
Hugs
Ei
x

Crafty CardMakers 40- Fairies and at least two punches.

Everyone loves fairies and I was spoiled for choice what to do for this demo but eventually decided on this one ....for the moment! I may well do others too, time allowing!


I love working with the team at CCM - they're a great bunch of madwomen who also happen to be very talented! You do need to pop over to our challenge blog to check out their demos - they're quite stunning!

For my card this week, I've used a digikit to make another hybrid page for this challenge. It's called 'Fairy Story' by  Linda Rechtin ©2007 from DSP.

I printed out the bp's and the elements plus a photo of my Ada when she was younger and decoupaged the project, adding bits of bling and using Martha Stewart punches for around the page, the corners and for the handmade flowers. I also added some glitz with my Copic Spicas.

So easy!


Our fab sponsor this week is JOANNA SHEEN  who are offering a £10 voucher to the lucky winner! 

How good is that?

Hope to see your wonderful entries this week!

I'm entering this project for the following challenges:-

Corrosive Challenge - Magical Creatures

Sparkles - Fairies 

Resq Challenge - What makes you happy!

Hugs

Ei

x

Top Tip Tuesday 22 - 'All Stitched up' challenge!

Wow! Another week has flown by! I can't believe it's Tuesday again and my beautiful lickle grandson Toby is a week old!


It's Top Tip Tuesday again too and we have yet another fab sponsor giving away lovely prizes to some lucky winner of our challenge.


If you'd like to win this .....

...from Stashbooks then pop over to TTT because this is one of the prizes offered this week!


If you'd like to learn how to use it on cards, there's also an excellent tutorial on our TTT blog by the amazing Stargroves aka Anne. I wasn't originally going to take part this week as I am an indifferent sewer of cards - they end up looking like Frankenstein's greetings cards...! but Anne's tutorial gave me the tips I needed to make it all so much tidier. 


Limited Run Stamps have a selection of stamps to please most people and the lickle mouse on my card is one of them.

I used scraps form stash including a bit of Laura Ashley drawer-liner, so the project also smells heavenly!
I edged the scraps with scissors & punches, distressed them lightly with Tim Holtz inkpads (Stormy Skies, Tumbled Glass and Dusty Concord) then adhered them with re-positionable glue runner then stitched them to the base card.


The lickle mousey was then coloured with me trusty Copics and mounted upon his own coaster-doily.  I manipulated him a little with the handle of my scissors to make his belly & eyes more convex, then stuck him with silicone glue, padding out the belly & eyes.


Hope you like him!  He's one for Post-Pals I think!
Hugs
Ei
x

Crafty CardMakers 39.5 - Spot on Plastic

For this week's super challenge at Crafty CardMakers, I've used shrink plastic...for the very first time! And despite having visions of ending up with a small globule of melted plastic on the end of my tweezers, it was actually quite easy and great fun!

I stamped Tilda onto the plastic, but coloured her on the 'wrong' side in quite strong colours. 
This proved to be the hardest part as the plastic didn't seem to like any of my mediums - including my lovely Copics! -  very much and the Lyra pencils ended up the best. 


I then cut her out and heated her with the heat gun. Using my Tim Holtz Baroque Bigz die, I cut out the medallion behind Tilda and heated that. 


Tilda was adhered to this with jewellery cement and a jump ring attached. I then inked the edge of the medallion with a Krylon 18ct Gold pen. 


This whole was then attached by a piece of gold thread to the card and the little sequins added. Lastly an acetate dragonfly was adhered. The gold spots are just peel-off waste.

Once again, the dark got here before my project did! I'll try to replace it in the morning.


Hope you like this and I do urge you to pop over to CCM - my teamies are much cleverer with plastic than I!


Hugs
Ei
x

Welcome, Baby Tobias!

I try not to go on about the family too much on this blog - I have my other blog, Eidle Tales for that  but I just have to say hello and welcome to my new grandson Tobias Nicholson-Pike!
He popped into the world at 4:20 this am and is, as all babies are - scrumptious!
I don't have a good piccy of him at the minute but I have this one nabbed of his Daddy's Facebook page!

We all see someone different in babies, don't we, but to me, this little chap, apart from his brow-bones which are definitely his Daddy's, is the spit of my brother Alan and therefore also my number three son Rob(...God help the poor wee mite...! LOL!)!
Let's hope the camera DOES lie occasionally......! (no offence Al - only bekiddin'! LOL!)


Whatever his features, whatever his woes,
we'll love little Toby, from head down to toes!

New piccie

Hugs
Ei
x

Crafty CardMakers 39.0 - Hearts

As we're fast approaching Valentine's day, the theme at Crafty Cardmakers this week is totally appropriate - it's Hearts!
Our team have come up with some excellent work this week (...as they always do..!) so you really do need to pop over there for a shufti and maybe a little inspiration for your own Valentines card, which, of course, you can then enter into our challenge!

We're sponsored by The Stampman for this challenge who are offering a £10 voucher to use in their online store, shop or show!  They have a huge variety of products to suit all tastes including Hero Arts, Aspects of Design, Tim Holtz and Ranger and have also recently added some scrummy Prima papers to their range! 


So what have you got to lose? Make your Valentine happy with a card and spend a free £10.00 at The Stampman!  
Sounds good to me!


I wasn't going to join in this week as I don't really care for hearts as a motif but something made me change my mind (...who knows - I don't go there if I can help it...!) and I had the idea to make this card for my long-suffering Hubby who only ever gets jokey, sarky cards from me!

Now this is a very dangerous ploy on several levels because either:-
a) he'll think he has a terminal illness and no-one's telling him
b) he'll think I've run up a big craft bill somewhere
c) he'll think I want to run up a big craft bill somewhere
or
d) he'll get the wrong idea and get inappropriately amorous.......eeek!
Perhaps I won't give it to him after all....... LOL!




I'm also adding this to the following challenges:-
Fussy & Fancy - Valentine - no red or pink
Polka Doodles - with hearts
Raise the Bar -  hearts#
Tellen's Place - hearts
Secret Crafter - Valentine's
The Stamp Fairy - Lace and hearts but no pink or red!
Bunny Zoe's -  Love is in the air!


Hugs
Ei
x