Summery Birthday

I recently got some new My Minds Eye papers that I've been dying to have a play with so I combined it with a few challenges and this is the result...

(Sorry the photo isn't great, there wasn't any natural light when I took the photo).

Sketch from Spoon Full Of Sugar, I used faux stitching around the image for Creative Inspirations, buttons for the centre of the flowers for Just Magnolia and the Cupcake Craft challenge was to include blossoms and butterflies . The Roses On Paper challenge is 'summer and vacation' and the Simon Says challenge is 'summer fruit colours'. The My Minds Eye papers are so lush and juicy, these areas also covered.

Thought I'd try a new way of showing what materials I've used so here goes -

Image: Magnolia, Kars 'Children' clear stamps for the butterflies (both coloured with Copics)
Papers: My Minds Eye - Bloom and Grow
Tools: Carla Craft flower punch, large Dovecraft flower punch, Woodware grass fronds punch
Embellishments: Anita's gems, buttons from stash, stickles glue

Sarah x

Christmas in June!

Today felt like the right day to start crafting for Christmas so, here's my first Christmas card of the year! I'm sure lots of you have already started  :-)  I'd like to be able to make all of my Christams cards this year. I sort of made them all last year but most of them were from a kit so I felt like I cheated really(!)

I followed a sketch from A Spoon Full of Sugar challenge. I haven't added a Christmas-sy sentiment yet as I didn't have one small enough (i'll add one along the ribbon later).

This is a Magnolia stamp that I got from the NEC earlier this year and it's the first time it's been inked up...ahh, poor stamp(!)

The papers were a free download from the Crafts Beautiful Christmas Party (last year I think), the ribbon is Anitas, I used a Dovecraft snowflake punch, stickles and I used clear embossing powder on the Magnolia stamped image to give it a crisper outline. To colour the image I used a mixture of Cosmic Shimmer watercolours, Marvy Le Plume, Whispers and Dovecraft Double Brush markers with a water brush.

I'd really like to invest in some professional markers but just don't know which ones to choose... I think I might buy a few copics to see how I get on with them but then which ones do I get...? Sketch or Ciao? I'm not really sure what the difference is between them. Advice anyone?  :-)

Sarah x