Ombre Effect Give-Away...

Hi folks...I'm back to share sneaky peeks of my "Ombre Effects" projects featured in this month's issue of Simply Homemade and if you haven't got your copy yet...it's on sale now in newsagents and supermarkets...

I used Fiskars 1.5" Heart Power Punch to punch through layers of cardstock to create the Ombre 3D hearts in the top photo. The Power Punches will easily punch their way through lots of different thick materials...corrugated card, cork, funky foam, thick plastic packaging, PVC, balsa wood, shrink plastic, magnetic sheet, aluminium cans and milk cartons to name but a few and it just so happens I have a spare one up for grabs....perfect timing for all your Valentine projects. 

So if you would like to put your name in the hat...leave your name with Mr Inlinkz below before 8pm on Monday 1st February and I'll announce the winner on Tuesday morning. In the meantime I'm off to unpack the parcel of new 2016 Fiskars products that arrived in the cubbyhole on Friday...

and woohoo...I'm excited that one of my favourite Fiskars tools...The Stamp Press is back and will be on sale in the UK soon.

See you all tomorrow
Hugs Kath xxx

Happy Birthday Resist...

Hi Everyone...the last week of January would you believe and tonight Scots across the world will be celebrating the birthday of Scotland's Bard...Rabbie Burns with a plate of Haggis Chappit Neeps and Mashed Tatties all washed down with a generous glass of the water of life. Haggis...the "Great Chieftain o' the Puddin Race" is an acquired taste for sure...one of those "you either love it or loathe it" kind of delicacies.
But back to the crafty stuff...today I'm sharing a sneaky look at the "Resist Stamping" cards I made for this month's issue of Simply Homemade...

featuring Hero Arts favourites with lots of Distress Inking...

and how chuffed was I...that this one made the cover...

along with one of my "Ombre Effect" projects but I'll share that one with you tomorrow and I also have a give-away so make sure you pop by.

Hugs Kath xxx

It's Tag Time...

Hi folks...here we go again...setting off on the first of our monthly adventures in the company of Mr Tim Holtz...in other words...it's time for...

"12 Tags of 2016"

I'm over the moon Tim has decided to continue this wonderful tradition despite his hectic schedule and hey what a great idea to revisit some old techniques...

"it's a balance between the excitement of new products and remembering to use what we already have. so i've decided to change things up with the "12 tags of 2016-technique remix"

allowing all us collectors to use up some of our previous purchases and I'm sure I'm not alone when I say...they are many. I loved the Chalkboard and Industrial themed techniques first time round and no surprise that I couldn't resist using my favourite stamp set from 2015...the gorgeous Flower Garden...

Have a great weekend whatever you've got planned...it's teeming down with rain here so I may well spend it snuggled up under the duvet...see you all on Monday

Hugs Kath xxx

InLinkz.com

Thumbs Up...

Hi folks...it's good news...the dodgy digit has been given the thumbs up...passed fit to return to work although it's still a bit swollen but there's no room for lame ducks on this crew so he'll just have to knuckle down...excuse the pun...

I've been feeling a little bit down in the crafty doldrums since Christmas...suffering from that familiar "can't seem to gee my ginger" syndrome but all it needed to get me back in the groove...was a little "12 Tags of 2016" playtime with the January Tag which I should be sharing tomorrow barring any accidents or interruptions.

And on my way home from the hospital...I took a little detour to The Papeterie to pick up some goodies for my projects at The Retreat in April which should keep me out of mischief for a while.

Hugs Kath xxx

Shiver Me Timbers...

Hi folks...greetings from "we don't have snow but it's very chilly" Aberdeenshire...-5 degrees in fact which even for us hardy Scots is "Shiver Me Timbers" weather...

perfect conditions for locking ourselves away in the cubbyhole for a bit of crafting fun...

but right on cue and just in time for elevenses...ding dong...the door bell rang and the cubbyhole was invaded by the Friday Girls armed with cake and a bag of M&S goodies for lunch...needless to say...it turned out to be a "coffee after coffee...stuffing our faces and lots of chit chat" kind of a day....not complaining...just saying. And it's not looking good for today either...my thumb and I are off to the Fracture Clinic...hopefully for the last time...it's almost back to normal but definitely not liking this chilly weather one bit.

Fingers crossed that Thursday will be TAG DAY.

Hugs Kath xxx

Blame The Furry Alarm Clock...

Hi folks...oops...we're clocking in a little bit late today...well who in their right mind wants to tumble out of bed at silly o'clock when it's pitch black and chilly outside...when the Furry Alarm Clock rolls over...sighs contently and snuggles down again...who am I to argue. After all there's no urgency...the workshop kits are done...all packed up and ready to go... way ahead of schedule...

and if I can get myself in the Step by Step Instructions groove after our "wrapped up like Nanook Of The North" morning stroll...

 we'll be ticking another fun Fiskars Workshop Kitting Adventure off the list...

and hopefully putting on my "12 Tags" hat to have fun with the January Tag.

See you later

Hugs Kath xxx

Chop...chop...

Hi folks...I hope you all had a fun weekend...mine didn't quite fall into that category...I was stuck in the cubbyhole on a "chop chop...let's get to it" mission to kit up the Fiskars Workshop Projects for The NEC...starting off with trimming 240 sheets of white cardstock to the required size and thank goodness for my best friend...the Fiskars ProCision Trimmer who makes short work of 3 sheets of 320gsm card in one go and still cuts like a knife through butter. It's one of those "I've started now so I'll finish" kind of jobs because there's no room in the cubbyhole to leave everything lying around...

so we moved on to scoring the card to create a gift bag...one of those "you need all your wits about you" tasks...

and then back to the "mind over matter" chopping...with the help of some boogie woogie music playing in the background...endless cups of coffee and the mindset that...each one on the completed pile is one less on the still to do pile...

and hey presto...the Procision can have a rest and hand everything over to the collating department in the kitchen...

No matter what job you do...there's always a tedious task or two that you have to grit your teeth to get through but let's not forget every job has it's consolations too...

Fingers crossed they'll be all packed up and ready to go today and then I can get back to the crafting just for fun stuff.

Hugs Kath xxx

READY STEADY KIT...

Hi folks...I was having a hard time coming up with a title for this post and don't ask me why but suddenly The Great British Bake Off sprang to mind...yes I suspect the brain wiring may be getting a bit corroded...one thought led to another on a short circuiting word search journey...almost convincing me I'd hit the jackpot with...THE GREAT BRITISH KIT OFF. But hang on a minute..isn't this a risque double entendre...unintentional or otherwise...would my choice of words be misconstrued...would search engines across the globe be lighting up in expectation...would they attract visitors with dubious intentions who are going to be very disappointed and would the furore attract the attention of Mr Blogger and we all know you don't wan't to get on the wrong side of that fickle fella so the next best thing was...READY STEADY KIT...said in my best Sue Perkins voice. A long winded waffling way of letting you all know that yesterday's shopping expedition for unusual thick materials went according to plan...

and the kitting for the Fiskars Workshop Project at The NEC in 9 weeks time (scary thought) can commence...just NOT TODAY...the Friday Girls are overdue for a treat so we're hitting the spa for a relaxing pamper day.

Enjoy your weekend whatever you've got planned

Hugs Kath xxx

A Fun Labour Of Love...

Hi folks...it's been a busy week so far...3 days of mixed media fun and now I can share my take on the fabulous Kate Crane Travel Journal project from Week 2 of my Wanderlust Journey...

This was a bit of a labour of love...lots of prep and painting before the arty fun could begin...some of which was a "way out of my comfort zone" experience for me...the only time I doodle is when I'm listening to Greensleeves waiting for that Call Centre operator to pick up the phone and then it's with a pen and for my eyes only...doodling with a paintbrush was a bit scary but thanks to Kate's wonderful tutorial...I threw caution to the wind...what the heck...what's the worst that can happen...it's only paper...go for it girl and guess what...you never know what you can do until you try.

But it's time to get my work hat on again...the Fiskars NEC Workshop project is good to go so I'm off on a materials shopping expedition...getting ready for another marathon kitting session coming soon to the cubbyhole.

Hugs Kath xxx

I'm having a ball...

Hi folks...I can't tell you how much fun I'm having on my Wanderlust 2016 Adventure...in fact I'm having a rather messy "covered in paint" ball and I quickly realised that with loads of watercolour paper to Gesso for the fabulous Kate Crane Travel Journal Project...my trusty Non Stick Craft Mat was going to need regular hosing down so I had one of those lightbulb moments when I spotted 5M rolls of Christmas paper discounted to 50p per roll in a local supermarket and it works a treat...

and with the covers completed...I was ready to scrunch it up and toss it in the bin but...

I'm a waste not...want not canny kinda Scot...so I turned it over ready for the fun part...creating backgrounds on the pages

If you haven't already signed up for this Wanderlust Adventure...what are you waiting for...this is going to be a whole year of creative fun...you can find all the details HERE.

And instead of watching the proverbial paint dry...I've sneaked to the sofa with a cuppa to catch up with what Mr Tim Holtz's up to CHA 2016.  If like me you are intriqued by the new Distress Crayons...The Professor himself explains all in this video clip...it's a glorious 21 minutes long so perhaps you should get yourselves a cuppa first...enjoy...I did...in fact I've watched it 3 times so far.

My wish list is now so long that I may have to get hubby out of retirement and back to work or if that fails...rob a bank

Catch you all later

Hugs Kath xxx