It’s Digistamps4Joy Challenge time again !

For those of you who don’t know the name, Digistamps 4 Joy is the first South African online digistore – with run by a South African (Mel) with images by South African artists. And for me, being on Mel’s Design Team is such a treat, being able to play with some of the really off-beat, whacky images she has to offer.

Unfortunately, calamity struck the server for Digistamps4Joy, and after being ‘down’ for a couple of days, the digistore came back online – but oh! what gObLleDy-GoOk….. Mel has had to reload most of the newer images, and reshuffle the chaos. She’s nearly done now, after burning the midnight candle (at both ends)! Well done Mel!
If you are one of those who recently registered and now find that your account is not found, please re-register – that’s one of the casualties Mel can’t rectify.

Now to my card as your inspiration for this challenge:
Yippee – I love these challenges, especially sketch challenges – which is what it is this time around! Let’s start from the top layer, and work downwards .
- “Fairy Friends” is the digistamps4joy image I used
- the wings are paper-pieced, coloured and heat embossed
- the die-cut oval behind the fairies is embossed using a Cuttlebug folder
- three shiny heart embellishments from my stash
- shiny organza ribbon from my stash
- the sentiment is computer generated and then embossed using the same Cuttlebug folder
- the white border made using my Fabscraps punch
- the striped, swirly BP is unmarked, but part of the same piece of mini scrapbooking paper
- all matted onto a piece of deep red Nepalse handmade paper.

Phew – a lot going on there – no wonder it took me so long to put the whole thing together!

PS : Just as a bonus – there’s a ds4j freebie for you at part of the CDAC FREEBIE CHALLENGE #8, and I have made a card, which you can see here. Grab the freebie while you can because she’ll be in the store next week and then you’ll have to pay ….
If you'd like to see the card I made with her, click here!
Thanks for looking, thanks for reading this marathon post, leave a comment if you like, and I hope to see your entries for the DS4J challenge where I can comment on your project too!

TODAY - NO ABC - JUST A PROUD MUM!

Our oldest son Nicholas (21) accomanpanied his girlfriend, Storm, to her Matric Ball(that's 12th and final year for my international friends)on Friday Evening. The theme was a Masked Ball, and this is a photograph of them just as they were leaving home to go.
I decorated their masks using glitter, sequins, rhinestones and peacock feathers.

Storm wore a beautiful taffeta ball gown in a midnight blue shade, with velvet stiletto sandals and a pretty little lace wrap. Her naturally thick long hair was curled and half pinned up with the most beautiful adornment. Her make-up was flawless, thanks to a dear friend, Sharon, who made Storm look like a princess.

My precious son, Nicholas, went out and bought himself a black evening suit, crisp white shirt and a black satin bow tie.

When he got dressed at home, and showed me what he looked like, I choked up, tears came to my eyes and I suddenly wondered where those 21 years since his birth had gone! He looked so grown up, so smart, and as his two younger brothers remarked "You look like James Bond, now you need a gun." And they were right - He's never looked like this before, my son, that hyperactive flea that never slept through the night until he was two years old, who was lactose intolerant, tactile defensive, and prone to an asthma attack as soon as he developed a cough! And now here he is, all grown up, a good looking young man, with a head of naturally blond hair that anybody would envy!

Excuse my ramblings, and me going on about Nic, but any mum would understand why ...

ta-raaa .... FIRST CHALLENGE FOR PATTIE'S CREATIONS!!!!!

Pattie Gomez of Pattie's Creations Challenge Blog has just anounced the first Challenge, "Anything Goes". Now, how easy is that, to make ANYTHING with one of the oh-so-cute images featuring Pattieboop and her cat Allie.

Design Team ONE hosts this challenge, and they have made the most gorgeous projects as inspiration. Being the Lead Designer of Design Team TWO, I get to play along in this challenge ... YIPPEE ...!!!

The card I will enter for this challenge features Pattieboop as an Indian Princess, and I have coloured her in the yummy colour combination of brown and turquoise, fit for a princess. A feather, an eagle charm and stick-on butterly as embellishments, and the snakeskin embossed background paper complete my card.

Don't you just love the image??? The birthday card is perfect for a girl (of any age)!!!

Return here next week to see what I have created for the challenge hosted by Design Team TWO.

MIDNIGHT MADNESS SKETCH CHALLENGE #74

My card for this challenge features a digistamp I designed for the Digistamps4Joy online store, and is called "Rain Queen". She is coloured in coloured pencils, and the beads and sequins have been sewn on using invisible thread. The shiny silver background paper is made from the seals of coffee tins, flattened and embossed using a Cuttlebug embossing folder. The other silver BP is purchased, already embossed.
I have used satin ribbon and buckles, and a rhinestones to complete the card according to this week's prescribed sketch.

This card took a little longer to make, but my other passion is beading of belly dance costumes, and the Rain Queen was begging for some jewels. In my opinion, the extra time spent paid off as I just love this card, and hope it inspires you to go and check out the other wonderful digistamps that Digistamps4Joy has to offer, and then to play along in the really exciting Midnight Madness Sketch Challenge.

LET ME SPREAD THE GOOD NEWS ...

I belong to a group on Crafters Digital Art Centre, called Pholkart*Blessings, and the owner and creator of the group Patti Moore, has some folkart-inspired digistamps in her store. The images are just adorable, and have a certain charm that sets them apart. Here is a card made with her mermaid digistamp, and I think that it has turned into a really fun card for a young lady (of any age!) Look for the badge on the right hand side of my blog - it is easy to recognise cos the mermaid is the same as on the card I made. If you click on that badge, it should link you straight though to the shop where you can see all the other great digistamps that Patti has designed.

CLEARLY DELIGHTFUL BLOG CHALLENGE

The new challenge specifies the use of ribbon and what better ribbon to use than an organza bow?

My card for the Clearly Delightful challenge features one of the Doodle Pantry new releases, "agapanthus", another of my favourite flowers. I know I say this every time I show you one of the flower digistamps designed by Laurie, but it's my honest opinion, Laurie's a master of flower digistamps!!! Just look at the detail of this head of flowers!

I coloured my digi using watercolour and regular colour pencils. For the background paper, I used a botanical drawing of an agapanthus flower, and made the digistamp part of the background. The word "Agapnathus" and the explanation of the meaning below it, is also part of the background paper, and and everything was printed as one. The sentiment, "Many Thanks" is also part of the set digistamp set, available from the Doodle Pantry Store. I added the soft lemon organza bow to match the background paper, and a lilac puffy heart and three lilac flat backed pearls to match the soft lilac of the flowers. To make the digistamp "pop" I highlighted the flowers in crystal "Skwiglues". The frame of the card is made up of two shades of lilac, to enhance the colours of the flower.

I can't stress enough how much I enjoy creating with Doodle Pantry flower digistamps, as they are a pleasure to colour, and make up into spectacular cards.

MICHELLE PERKETT STUDIO CHALLENGE : "Girlie with Bling"

I think it's a few months since I took part in one of Michelle's challenges, and with the title "Girlie with Bling" ... now how could I resist that?

For my card I used one of Michelle images called "Olive - Life's a Beach" and coloured her usng my coloured pencils and add a good deal of crystal Skwiglues (similar to Stickles. One of the background papers I used is embossed with velvet flocking. I added a spray of flowers, an organza bow and sewed on some sequins and beads, to give the card the extra bling, and came up with a girlie with bling card.

Who says a girl can't wear blue and still look fabulous!