Wednesday, 19 November 2025

November DT Project 2 For Country View Crafts and Challenges - Fireworks

Hellooo!!! 

Here I am again with my second November DT project for Country View Crafts and Challenges, with the theme of Fireworks 'use glitter or embossing powder to make your project sparkle' as chosen by our lovely DT member Cassie. 

The challenge is open worldwide and you can join the group here:

https://www.facebook.com/groups/164920247712393


You must use products from brands that Country View Crafts stocks and please list them in your entry. You can enter 5 times each month with different projects. We’ve got a fabulous prize that one randomly selected winner will win this month. 
 
Being that Christmas is now on a lot of our minds, I thought I'd make a Christmas mobile decoration. I recently attended a retreat where Cassie created a hanging mobile with little houses, also used in her first project make for this month. I decided to go with the mobile idea but using snowflakes drenched in Distress Rock Candy Glitter Chunky.

I was going to use the Tim Holtz Sizzix Fanciful Snowflakes 664227 (would have preferred them as they layer up), but discovered I don't have them!!! Can you believe it! So I used the snowflake from Tim Holtz Sizzix Vault Winter Wishes 666717 instead which is a lovely snowflake in its own right.
 

First I die cut 9 of the snowflakes out of thick white card (about 250gsm) running each one twice through my die cutting machine to get a nice crisp cut. Using Distress Collage Medium, I glued three together, so I ended up with three fairly thick snowflakes. I painted these with Distress Collage medium and then sprinkled over Distress Rock Candy Glitter Chunky. It gave a lovely sparkly frosty effect. I tied some fishing line to each one.
 
 

With a twig I'd picked up in the park, I stippled it with some Distress Paint Iced Spruce and then some white gesso.  

I then tied each snowflake to the twig in a graduated line and using some of my stash of bits and bobs, I wrapped around a leafy, berry, wired 'ribbon' around the twig. I sprayed this with Distress Resist Spray and sprinkled over some Distress Rock Candy Glitter. 
 

I tied some twine to the twig to hang it and finally I hot glued a ribbon to the middle and added some rhinestones to both sides of the snowflakes and a larger one to the bow.

And here it is - my sparkly snowflake mobile decoration.
 

I hope you'll be inspired to try something like this for yourself and also to join in our challenge this month.

Many thanks for stopping by my blog.
Hugs
Carol xx

Products Used: (you can always contact Country View Crafts if something is out of stock, to see if they can order it in for you).

Tim Holtz Sizzix Vault Winter Wishes

Tim Holtz Sizzix Fanciful Snowflakes

Tim Holtz Distress Paint

Tim Holtz Ranger Collage Medium

Tim Holtz Distress Rock Candy Glitter Chunky

Tim Holtz Distress Rock Candy Glitter Clear
 
Tim Holtz Distress Resist Spray
 
Rhinestone Bling (Could use ones cut out of this for the rhinestone embellishments)




at No comments:

Monday, 3 November 2025

November DT Project 1 For Country View Crafts and Challenges - Fireworks

Hello November!!! 

Here I am this month with my first November DT project for Country View Crafts and Challenges, with the theme of Fireworks use glitter or embossing powder to make your project sparkle as chosen by our lovely DT member Cassie. 

The challenge is open worldwide and you can join the group here:

https://www.facebook.com/groups/164920247712393


You must use products from brands that Country View Crafts stocks and please list them in your entry. You can enter 5 times each month with different projects. We’ve got a fabulous prize that one randomly selected winner will win this month. 

As the theme is ‘fireworks’ I looked through my stamps and found the Tim Holtz Stampers Anonymous CMS499 set and thought I could use the snowflakes as my fireworks. 

In my journal I created a night sky by blending Distress Inks Chipped Sapphire, Black Soot and a little Villainous Potion to cover over 2/3 of my masked off area. 
I then blended some Mowed Lawn and Rustic Wilderness at the very bottom of the area. 
 
I spritzed some Distress Spritz in Prize Ribbon and Fossilized Amber at the top part of the scene to give it a little more of a glistening look. 


Once fully dry, I stamped the ‘fireworks’ in the upper half of the sky, with Wow embossing ink and sprinkled over some mixed glitter embossing powders by pinching a little from each jar and placing over each ‘firework’. 
I then heat embossed these with my heat gun on the number 2 setting. 
 

I chose my mini paper dolls - Grandma and Little Tommy - from the Idea-ology Paper Dolls Mini set as I wanted them to look tiny and like they were looking up at the fireworks in the night sky. I added a little Rustic Wildnerness Distress watercolour pencil aroudn their feet to make them look more grounded.

From my Tim Holtz Small Talk Sticker Book I chose as appropriate sentiment and added along the bottom of my scene next to my Paper Dolls. 


And then it was done. I’m very happy with the outcome. 

I hope you like my first November make and will be inspired to join in our challenge on Facebook. 
Thanks for checking out my blog
Hugs
Carol x 


Products used:
Tim Holtz Idea-ology Paper Dolls Minis

Tim Holtz Distress Spritz

Tim Holtz Distress Inks
 
Tim Holtz Distress Watercolor Pencils




at No comments:

Thursday, 23 October 2025

October DT Project 2 For Country View Crafts and Challenges - Heavenly Bodies

BOO!!

I hope you’re enjoying the lead up to Halloween - I am, which is why my second DT make for Country View Crafts and Challenges this month has a Halloween flavour. 

The theme for this month is ‘Heavenly Bodies’ as chosen by our lovely team member Rachel.
The challenge is open worldwide and you can join the group here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/164920247712393

You must use products from brands that Country View Crafts stocks and please list them in your entry. You can enter 5 times each month with different projects. We’ve got a fabulous prize that one randomly selected winner will win this month. 

I decided to use the Halloween Stamp set from JOFY Paperartsy (JOFY83). 

In my Dylusions square journal after sealing off the area around it, I created the background using Distress Spray Stains: Black Soot, Villainous Potion, Lost Shadow and Milled Lavender and Hickory Smoke Distress Spritz around Tim Holtz’s Moon Mask, which I bled around the edges using a Distress water spritzer. To finish the inner of the moon mask I blended Distress Oxide Old Paper over it. 

Once dry, I stencilled JOFY's new star circle stencil PS478 around the moon with Distress Black Texture Paste. I only stencilled the outer stars and not the inner part. I then blended some Distress Oxide Hickory Smoke at the bottom right of the page to create a ‘hill’.

On a piece of white card, I stamped the images with Black Archival Ink and coloured with coloured pencils and fussy cut these out. 

I added a piece of text from a Horror book to the upper corner and a piece below the Ghoul and Gravestone and blended these into the page. I also added a strip of Vinyl printed tape to the side of the page.

I glued the gravestones in place on my page and stuck the ghoul down with 3D foam tape to add a bit of depth. Then I stamped Boo to the left of these to finish, made a few white accents on my images and here’s my completed journal page. 

This was a fairly simple page to make and fun to do.

Don’t forget to have a look at our challenge page on Facebook (link is above) and maybe join in the challenge too. 

Thanks for stopping by.
Hugs
Carol x 

Products used: 

Stamp Set Paperartsy JOFY83
https://www.countryviewcrafts.co.uk/paperartsy---jofy83-a5-set-trimmed-on-ez-179981-p.asp 

Stencil Paperartsy JOFY PS478
https://www.countryviewcrafts.co.uk/paperartsy---pa-stencil-478-jofy-179803-p.asp 

Tim Holtz Distress Spray Stains
https://www.countryviewcrafts.co.uk/ranger-tim-holtz-distress-spray-stains-696-c.asp 

Tim Holtz Distress Spritz Hickory Smoke
https://www.countryviewcrafts.co.uk/ranger---tim-holtz-distress-spritz-1oz-bottle---hickory-smoke-176577-p.asp 

Tim Holtz Moon Mask
https://www.countryviewcrafts.co.uk/thmsk01-stampers-anonymous-tim-holtz-layering-stencil---moon-mask-138508-p.asp 

Tim Holtz Distress Oxide
https://www.countryviewcrafts.co.uk/tim-holtz-distress-oxide-ink-pads--reinkers-1049-c.asp 

Tim Holtz Distress Black Texture Paste
https://www.countryviewcrafts.co.uk/ranger---tim-holtz---distress---texture-paste---black-opaque-170467-p.asp 

Ranger Archival Ink
https://www.countryviewcrafts.co.uk/ranger-archival-ink-pad-jet-black---90mm-x-62mm-1609-p.asp

Faber Castelle Polychromos Pencils
https://www.countryviewcrafts.co.uk/faber-castell---polychromos---metal-case-111th-anniversary---12-pieces-121471-p.asp  

Dylusions Square Journal
https://www.countryviewcrafts.co.uk/ranger---dyan-reaveley---dylusions---creative-journal---square-102668-p.asp

at No comments:

Thursday, 9 October 2025

October DT Project 1 For Country View Crafts and Challenges - Heavenly Bodies

Happy October Everybody,

Here I am with my first October DT project for Country View Crafts and Challenges on Facebook with the theme for this month ‘Heavenly Bodies’ as chosen by our lovely team member Rachel. 


The challenge is open worldwide and you can join the group here:

https://www.facebook.com/groups/164920247712393


You must use products from brands that Country View Crafts stocks and please list them in your entry. You can enter 5 times each month with different projects. We’ve got a fabulous prize that one randomly selected winner will win this month. 

For me, October is all about Halloween, so having the moon feature in my make is perfect for this month. 

In my Dylusions journal I created a background scene with Tim Holtz’s moon mask, as a backdrop for my main feature - the ‘Moon People’. 
They absolutely love going trick or treating on Halloween and here they are, in all their finery. 

First I masked off the edges of the pages to leave a white border and prepared my surface to protect it from the sprays. 

Using Distress Spray Stains Black Soot, Milled Lavender and Mica Stains in Empty Tomb and Fortune Teller, following Tim Holtz’s tutorial on YouTube, I created the sky with the moon mask in place. 

You can find Tim’s tutorial here and the moon mask is at the 42.13 time stamp. 


I created 4 backgrounds on Dylusions journal pages that I’d torn out, that were to form the cloaks for my Moon People.




 
 
Then I used stencils THS171, THS062, THS169, THS173 with Distress Oxides Rusty Hinge, Villainous Potion, Faded Jeans and Pumice Stone to decorate these. I started to heat emboss 2 of the stencilled backgrounds but decided the effect wasn’t working out for me, so two are without the heat embossing. 
 


Next I prepared for stamping my moon faces. With a blending tool I created circles with Distress Oxide Old Paper on card to form the background colour and dripped some water on these to create a blotted look.
 
 
Then I stamped my moon faces onto these circles from Dina Wakley Moon Faces stamp set with VersaFine Clair and fussy cut these out.
 

I cut out my cloaks from the background papers and adhered the moon faces to these. I drew outlines, collars and buttons on the cloaks


I used Tim Holtz Sizzix Thinlits 664209 for the pumpkin and witches hat (using the coordinating background and black card) and 662384 for the words Trick or Treat which I cut first in black and then the coordinating orange background, and layered these together, to finish off the page. 

Finally I hand wrote the sentiments from the Moon Faces stamp set around the edge of the moon and glued my Moon People and other elements onto the background. 

This makes me giggle looking at the finished scene - they remind me a bit of Uncle Fester from the Addams Family.  I love it! 
A very quirky page from me and I hope you like it and will be inspired to join in our challenge on Facebook this month. 
 

Thanks for stopping by my blog. 
Hugs
Carol x 


Products used:

Dina Wakley Moon Faces

Tim Holtz Stampers Anonymous Moon Mask

Tim Holtz Distress Oxide

Tim Holtz Spray Stains

Tim Holtz Sizzix Trick or Treat

VersaFine Clair Nocturne
 
Dylusions Large Creative Journal



at No comments:

Thursday, 25 September 2025

September DT Project 2 For Country View Crafts and Challenges - Hello Fall

Hello there,

It’s time for my second DT project for Country View Crafts and Challenges with the theme ‘Hello Fall - Use Rust Colour Tones', hosted by our lovely team member Fiona. 

The challenge is open worldwide and you can join the group here:

https://www.facebook.com/groups/164920247712393


You must use products from brands that Country View Crafts stocks and please list them in your entry. You can enter 5 times each month with different projects. We’ve got a fabulous £25 gift voucher prize that one randomly selected winner will win this month. The challenge runs to the end of this month.

I decided it was time to use my Dina Wakley products and make a double page spread in my journal. I used all Dina Wakley paints for this.
 

In keeping with the colours of Autumn/Fall, using random strokes, I brushed some Dina Wakley Paints; Cocoa, Mustard, Ruby, Buff, Fir, Eggplant and Tangerine onto a piece of A4 white cardstock.
Then with Nocturne VersaFine Clair I stamped on the leaves from Dina Wakley Bold Botanicals, heat embossed these with WOW clear embossing powder and fussy cut these out. 
 

On a separate piece of white cardstock, I lightly stamped, using a stamping platform, my bears and brushed some Buff and Cocoa in the shape of each bear.  I used the big bear twice and the little one once. Once dry, still using the stamping platform, I over stamped first my 2 bears, then the other large one (on a separate piece of card), with Nocturne VersaFine Clair on top of the painted backgrounds and fussy cut out.
 
 
I stamped a moon image from the Dina Wakley Moon Faces Set, painted over with watered down Buff and Night and then stamped again in Nocturne VersaFine Clair and fussy cut out. 

I began to decorate the background of my journal page. First I collaged on some torn pieces from the Dina Wakley Typed Ledgers 1, I also stamped the bear border in black Archival onto some collage tissue paper and added these to the page, and then I brushed on Buff, Mustard, Ruby, Cocoa, Eggplant, Sapphire and then White to blend it a bit more, mostly all watered down as I went.
 

I used my Dina Wakley Triangle Fence MDS83153 stencil with some white paint to add some interest to the background and I stamped in black the leaves from Bold Botanicals randomly to build up depth and then I stamped some words from the Dina Wakley Moon Faces stamp set, using Distress Oxide Lost Shadow to stamp them with.

When I was happy with my background, I auditioned my cut out images where I wanted them to sit. 

I felt it needed some texture, so I added some Tim Holtz Idea-ology Mummy Cloth and some torn pieces of white tissue paper.
When I decided where my bears were to go, I laid up my leaves and tucked them around and in front of the bears andf the Mummy Cloth layer.

I added some cut out hearts (from my leftover painted pieces) to my bears and also gacve them some pink ears and cheeks.

I chose a quote/sentiment from Typed Ledgers 1 and position that on the finished page. I chose this because it looks like Mummy and Daddy Bear are watching as their Baby Bear goes out into the big wide world.

Here’s my finished journal page. I love it! And I hope you do too. Maybe give it a try? (or try some of the techniques in it?)
 

 
And hopefully you’ll join in our challenge this month to win that awesome prize of a £25 gift voucher. 

Thanks for looking
Hugs
Carol x 

Products used:
(If anything is out of stock you can always contact Susan to see if she can order it in for you).

Dina Wakley Scribbly Bears

Dina Wakley Moon Faces

Dina Wakley Bold Botanicals

Dina Wakley Paints

Dina Wakley Typed Ledgers 1
 
Tim Holtz Idea-ology Mummy Cloth

Distress Oxide Lost Shadow

VersaFine Clair Nocturne

WOW Clear Embossing Powder

Ranger Black Archival

Distress Collage Medium


at No comments:

Saturday, 13 September 2025

September DT Project 1 For Country View Crafts and Challenges - Hello Fall

Hello and welcome to my September DT post for Country View Crafts and Challenges with the theme ‘Hello Fall - Use Rust Colour Tones', hosted by our lovely team member Fiona. 

The challenge is open worldwide and you can join the group here:

https://www.facebook.com/groups/164920247712393


You must use products from brands that Country View Crafts stocks and please list them in your entry. You can enter 5 times each month with different projects. 

We’ve got a fabulous prize that one randomly selected winner will win this month. 

Recently Tim Holtz Sizzix re-released some dies and this fabulous leaf set was one of them. I already had this from the first time round so it was lovely to see it back again. It is one of my favourites. 

I thought I'd make a card to have on hand when I need one.

First I added Tim Holtz Alcohol Inks to vellum - using Fall tones - Latte, Terra Cotta, Butterscotch and Mushroom. I spritzed some Isopropyl Alcohol to move these around and then gave one final spritz on top, and it gave this lovely mottled effect.
 
 
Then I ran the vellum and the leaf dies through my die cutting machine. This is such fun! They look gorgeous. 
 
 
 
From there, I brayered some PaperArsty Fresco Chalk Paints onto cartridge paper and left to almost dry. I used Vintage Lace, Rusty, Pumice, Kiln, Pumpkin Soup and French Roast.
 
 
Next, I rubbed some Jet Black Archival ink onto the Tim Holtz 3D Texture Fades Embossing Folder - Cracked A5 Large - and placed my painted paper in this and ran through my Big Shot Switch machine. Oooh, it's come out looking very sumptuous! 
 
 
I stamped the Squirrel from the Visible Image stamp set - 'Nuts About Squirrels',  heat embossed this with black embossing powder, and painted the Squirrel with some Distress Watercolor pencils and fussy cut out.
 

Then it was time to put my card together - I decided on a square shape so cut my black border card to fit the craft card that would form the base, and glued this on. Then I cut the 3D Textures Embossed Cracked background to fit the black layer, leaving a border around it, and glued this down. 
I laid out the leaves and where my Squirrel would sit and glued these down into place. I didn't glue the leaves and the Squirrel fully down to the page as I wanted some 'movement' to them.
I've left a gap top right so that I can add a sentiment to it when I need it.

And here's my 'Hello Fall' card - I hope you like it.
 

If you've enjoyed reading my blog, please do leave a message if you get a moment.
Thank you for stopping by and don't forget to check out the Challenge over Facebook and join in too.

hugs
Carol x


Products used:
(If an item is out of stock you can always ask Susan to see if she can order it in for you).

Tim Holtz 665559 Sizzix Leaf Fragments

Tim Holtz 3D Texture Fades Embossing Folder Cracked A5 Large

Tim Holtz Ranger Alcohol Inks
 
Tim Holtz Ranger Distress Watercolor Pencils

Visible Image Nuts About Squirrels stamp

PaperArtsy Fresco Chalk Paints
https://www.countryviewcrafts.co.uk/fresco-chalk-paints-1734-c.asp
at No comments:
Subscribe to: Comments (Atom)

November DT Project 2 For Country View Crafts and Challenges - Fireworks

Hellooo!!!  Here I am again with my second November DT project for Country View Crafts and Challenges, with the theme of Fireworks 'use ...