Spring has sprung - well sort of!

Morning all

It's challenge day at 

The Paper Shelter 

and we have the lovely theme of 

Spring

I decided to go a bit arty and chose this lovely image 

called the Huntress available here

I was starting to wish I hadn't bothered by the end of this card - I can''t remember a card causing me quite so much trouble - ever!!  It started off ok and I cut my papers and dies and everything was ready just to mount the image and I decided to colour her with pencils - I think that was my first mistake because it was looking too pale and I didn't like it all that much but I thought I'd carry on and see what happened! After an hour or so I got to a stage that I quite liked and was going to call it a day and finish off the card.  Only thing was I had cut my little finger on the edge of a large die earlier (beware of sharp dies!!) and only had a small plaster in the cupboard to cover the cut.  As I pulled my hand away the plaster came off and splodged streaks of blood right down my colouring - I could have cried! - and there was no way I could rescue it.  I left it for the night and started again (by then I was very late - sorry Shirley!!) and changed to watercolour pencils, sparkle pens with a background of Aquatints.  I think I must be getting hard to please because I didn't really like that either!!  I was going to just change to the precoloured image and give up but when I looked at it it was too pale for my otherwise finished card base - so went back and had another play and it ended up like this - the gold sparkle pen rescued it quite a bit!! - it's ok- ish - just not what I imagined when I started off.  Think I'll go back to print cut and stick cards lol

As always we have a great prize on offer at TPS

Here's what I did...

Image the huntress from TPS

Coloured with Spectrum noir watercolour pencils and Sparkle pens

Background created with Aquatints - (Blue, white and gold) and a touch of green sparkle pen

Papers - gilded Christmas from First edition

Card - Crafters companion Mat black and old gold centura pearl

Dies - Ivy - Sheena's perfect partners festive fancies - Ivy 

           Flowers - from Sara Davies floral delights signature collection 

Gilding wax - pebeo - old gold and copper

Hope we see you at TPS Challenge this week

Challenges I'm entering with this card

Creative card crew - die cuts 17/04
Die cutting divas - sports (hunting/shooting bow and arrow) 11/04
TTCRD - anything goes 13/04
Make my monday challenge - watercolour 11/04

hugs

Judith x

Another gorgeous fairy from Flights of Fantasy - meet Darcy

Good morning all

I'm back with my next fairy from Morgan Fitzsimons Flights of Fantasy collection

Yet another birthday card - this time for a special friend 

(it feels like all my friends and relations were born in March!!)

This lovely fairy is called Darcy

I wanted to create a mono type image with just a burst of colour in the flowers, which I think are morning glory, they are usually blue or shades in that spectrum, I decided to colour her with my Spectrum Noir alcohol pens.  Whenever I see images coloured in this way with a pop of colour it's nearly always with red, so I thought the blue would make a good contrast and that I'd be able to blend it in with the greys that I coloured the image with.  I did this by transferring the blue directly onto the grey pen tip to keep it subtly blended on the image. I then added some sparkle - because a fairy simply has to have some! - with Spectrum Noir Sparkle pens

The background was created by embossing  navy textured cored'nations card then sanding back and embellishing with gilding wax.  The black frames were also embellished with the silver gilding wax

 - I just love this stuff!!

This is what I did....

Image - Darcy from Flights of Fantasy by Morgan Fitzsimons from Crafter's Companion

Coloured with Spectrum Noir alcohol pens -colours IG1, IG2,IG4, TB4, TB9

Sparkle pens - colours silver, starry sky and clear

Flower and leaf die - Sheena Douglass Perfect Partners Country Cottage Plain Honesty

Embossing folder - Embossalicious flutterby butterfly folder

Silver pebeo gilding wax

Sue wilson pierced noble dies and frames

Sentiment - LOTV

Ribbons from my stash

Matt black card - Crafter's Companion

Navy Core'dnations card - Crafters Companion

Silver detail embossing powder(on sentiment) creative expressions

Hope you like her as much as I do - I'm not sure that the full effect comes across in the photograph, but i really loved it when I finished - one of those cards for someone els - that you really want to keep for your self!!

Challenges i am entering with this challenge

Chocolate baroque - colour challenge 20/04

glitter and sparkle challenge - use a die/punch  10/04

Stamping sensations - one for the girls 27/04

the ribbon girl - anything goes - with ribbon

have a great day

hugs 

Judith x