26 December 2015

Merry Christmas to you all

Well, this was Rudolph out for a training run before Christmas Eve's epic trip around the world pulling Santa's sleigh with his reindeer friends!

He and the other reindeer are now taking a well earned holiday!

Reindeer Flying by Tiddly Inks
(free with either Reindeer Games or Reindeer Kisses)
Stitched Frame die
White gel pen
Sticky foam pads

Copics:
Body - RV32, RV34, W1, E40, E41, E42, E43, E44, YR30, R20, W8
Antlers - E70, E71, E74
Nose - R21, R22, R27, R39
Background - BG0000, BG000, BG01, YR30, BG10, C00, C0, C1, C2, B0000, B000, B00
Scarf - G40, G12, G21, G46, G28, R20, R21, R22, W2, W4

It is not overly clear in the photograph but I actually printed the reindeer twice so that I could fussy cut one and place it on top of the other with foam pads to give the image a little more depth, oh and I  mounted the frame with them too!


I hope you are all having a wonderful Christmas
and I wish you the best for 2016!

22 December 2015

Anyone would think it's nearly Christmas!

Wryn and Rudolph have been having fun taking selfies and here is one of their favourites


Tiddly Inks - Reindeer Games
Stitched Polaroid Die - L'il Inker
Misc snowflake dies
DP from stash
Copics:
Background - BG70, BG10
Reindeer - YR30, E40, E41, E42, E43, R20, W8, R35, R37, R39, RV32, RV34, E70, E71, E74
Skin - B12, B14, W8, E0000, E000, E00, E40, R20, V20, RV32
Outfit - R21, R22, R24, R27, B0000, B000, C00, C1, C2, C3, E11, YR20, YR21, YR24, YR27, G43, G46, W2
Hair - E11, E13, E15, E17, E18, R56
Enhanced with colour pencil

I hope you all have a wonderful Christmas
and I wish you the best for 2016!


7 December 2015

Without Words Festive Feeling Challenge

Ho, Ho, Ho, it's time for another challenge over at Without Words
........in fact I am sad to say this will be our last ever challenge, so lets make it a hum dinger with oodles of entries!!!

and here is mine


This has been a real labour of love, taking several weeks to complete!
(and as you will see I have used a lot of Copics!!)

Image - Roberto's Rascals Merry Christmas by CC Designs
Memento Angel Pink ink

Copic Markers......
Background: BG10, BG11, BG13, BG23, T1, T3, T5, BG0000, BG000, BG53
Pot: YG06, YG09, W1, W5, G28, R43, R85, R46, R59, RV99
Tree: G28, G46, YG45, G12, YG41, G20, E29, E27, T5, W10, T3
Ornaments: R21, R22, R24, R27, R46, R59, E000, YG01, YG13, YG25, YR20, YR21, YR23, E31, E34, E35, Y32, Y35, Y38, E35, E30, E33, V20, E0000, E000, E00, B0000, B000, C00, C0, C1, C2, W0, W1, W2, W3, W4
Slippers: N0, N1, N2, B0000, RV32
Nightdress: R000, R00, R01, R02, W0, W1, W2, W3, BG53, BG57
Christmas Hats: B0000, B000, C0, C1, C2, R21, R22, R24, R27, R39
Dog: W00, W0, W1, W2, W3, W7, W9
Cat: E11, E13, E17, E27, RV32, RV34, W1, W3, N1, E21, B0000
Baskets: E21, E11, E13, E15, W4
PJs: N0, N1, BG70, BG72
Hair: E30, E31, E34, E43, E44, BG11, BG13, W3

Enhanced with Caran D'Ache coloured pencils

Our sponsor this month is
Bunny Zoe's Crafts


For more information and to see all the wonderful creations my fellow team mates have made to inspire you please click HERE


I would like to take the opportunity to thank Squirrel for all her hard work in creating and running Without Words, I have had a wonderful time and will miss her and the rest of the team - love you girls!!



Wishing you all a very Merry Christmas

26 November 2015

Time to get those decorations out!

It's that time of year again - Christmas.....well, almost!

Anyway here are some adorable penguins helping out with the decorations......

For such a simple image there were quite a few challenges......

Primarily colouring black and white!
In order to obtain the depth and dimension on the penguins I opted for shades of grey rather than black on their bodies whilst their tummies are a combination of pale blue and very pale grey.

As always I chose to stamp out my image using Memento Angel Pink to give my finished piece a softer no-lines look.

The upper background was created using my trusty YR30, a small natural sponge and some Isopropyl.
I coloured the chosen area with the copic marker, then sprayed the sponge with Isopropyl, dabbing it on some waste card to remove the excess before dabbing it onto the marker. As you can see it gives a lovely mottled texture to the background.  Once dry I then coloured the ground before moving on to the penguins themselves, enhancing some of the finer details with coloured pencils.

Image: Stamping Bella - Christmas Penguins
Sentiment: Happy Christmas set by CC Designs
Memento - Angel Pink and London Fog
Copic colours:
Ground - W00, W0, W1, W2, W3, YR30
Penguins - YR20, YR21, E31, C00, C0, C1, C2, C3, C4, C6, C8, YR31, E33, E34, R32, R56, R59
Bells - YR21, YR24, YR27
Coloured pencil
DP & Mulberry paper from stash

Happy Crafting

2 November 2015

Do you have a winter birthday like me????

Hello everyone, our challenge at Without Words this month is.......
Winter Birthday

and here is my card

now I have to confess, I have had this image coloured for yonks, in fact it featured on this blog back in January 2014 but as I've finally got around to mounting it I thought it was perfect for our latest challenge!

Bronte wants it now - Mo Manning
(this was on Mo's old site and appears to no longer be available - sorry)
Sentiment - Hero Arts
Copic - sorry no list
DP - Colorblock - CB Red Stars

our sponsor this month is


For more inspiration from my fellow team members and details of where to post your entries
click HERE

Happy Colouring

31 October 2015

Delicate shades of green in Copics

Copic colours can be vibrant but they can also be used to create soft, delicate shades
and here is an example of this using the no-lines technique.....


As you can see I have also added patterns to the clothing and parcels - those little extra details can really make your colouring stand out.

Tiddly Inks - Wryn Birthday Girl
Various dies

Copic colours:
Dress/Bow - G40, YG11, G12, G21, G46, T1, T2, T3, T4, G20
Ground - W0, W1
Hair - E51, E11, E13, E21, W2, W3
Skin/Eyes - E0000, E000, E00, V20, R20, G43, G46
Gifts - Y0000, Y00, YG0000, YG00, G0000, G00, YG11, G12, R000, R00, R01, RV32, W0, YR30, E50, YR20, W0, W1, G12, YR02, YR0000, YR000, YR00
Shoes - BG10, BG11, BG90, T1, T2

I hope this has inspired you to use some of the softer shades within the Copic colour range and to have a go at adding patterns to your images.

Happy Colouring

27 October 2015

Ghosts, ghouls and lots of chocolate!

Mwah ha ha it's that time of year when I pick up my purple Copics......so it must be nearly Halloween!!

Over at Tiddly Inks we have a new challenge for you:

#169 Spooky Dooky

and here is my creation, I hope you like it

I thought I would give Wryn some zingy green hair.....in fact it ny on glows!!


Background sketching by yours truly
DP and mulberry paper from stash

Copic colours:
Background - W00, W0, W1, W2, BG90, BG93, C00, C0, C1, C2, C3, C5, BV000, BG10, BG11
Hair - B00, BG11, BG13, BG23, BG49, BG53, BG57
Skin - E0000, E000, E00, E41, R20, V20
Eyes - W10, YG41, YG45
Hat - N0, N1, N2, N3, N4, N5, N7, N9
Robe - BG13, BV00, BV01, BV02, BV04, BV17, BV29
Broom - E43, E44, E47, E31, E34, E37
Cat - RV95, W1, W2, W3, W4, W5
Shoes - W2, W4, W5, E42
Frog - G14, G16, RV34

Additional detail using Caran D'Ache pencils

Please hop on over to our challenge blog HERE for more inspiration from my team mates.  
You will also find information on where to post your entries.............
good luck

Thanks for dropping by

13 October 2015

An autumnal challenge at Tiddly Inks

My personal challenge has been to grow a pumpkin for the first time!
Lets just it's a bit of a "Tiddler", so much so I've named it Peewee!
Oh and he's camera shy (or am I just a tad embarrassed) so there are not pictures (yet)

Anyway, on to the reason you guys are here
Challenge #168 Fall Colours


I love this time of year as the green leaves are magically changing into reds, oranges and browns!
...and it would appear that Wryn loves it too!!!!

Wryn's Leaves - Tiddly Inks
Frame is a cannibalised polaroid frame die cut coloured with Copics
DP - Lili of the Valley Country Gent Pad

Copic Colours
Background - W0, W1, W3, W4, YR30, E30, E31, E34, E35, E50, E40, YG41, YG45, YG61, YG67, G40
Leaves - YR12, YR21, YR31, YR82, Y21, Y23, Y26, YG41, R05, E02, E04, E11, E13, E15, E41, 
E42, E43, E47, W1, W2, W3, W4, W5
Clothes - BG90, BG93, YG61, YG63, YG67
Skin - E0000, E000, E00, E41, V20, R20
Frame - E44, E57
Dog - C00, C1, C2, C3, C4

For more inspiration from my fellow team mates and details of where to post your entries
please visit the Tiddly Inks Challenge Blog HERE

Thanks for dropping by and happy colouring

4 October 2015

Golden Anniversary

Wow, my in-laws have clocked up 50 years together!!

and here is the card I made for them to celebrate the milestone.......and I took a couple of photos during the process



and here is the finished card:

Stamp: Valentine by CC Designs
Cardstock and Designer Paper from stash
Pencils - Caran D'Ache Luminance and Pablos
Memento Angel Pink ink pad

Thanks for visiting - please feel free to leave a comment, I'd love to hear what you think and whether you like the .... work in progress pictures.


29 September 2015

I'm being just a wee bit krafty!

Well hello there, how are you this fine September morning?

Ready for another Tiddly Inks Challenge I hope!!

This time we have a theme that I loved working on - Kraft (card)
and of course I used my coloured pencils......woo hoo!!

#167 Lets get krafty!
Wryn - Howdy Cowgirl by Tiddly Inks

Card and Designer paper from stash
Pencils - Caran D'Ache Luminance and Pablos
Winsor and Newton Professional Fixative


As a Brit I am not too familiar with Cowboy hats - yes I've seen them in the movies and on TV but hey I'm an English farmers wife, I'm more used to beanies and baseball caps!!

So I googled for images to ensure I got the shadows right.
 It was that brim that caused me issues and seeing real hats and how the light hits the bend of the brim really helped when colouring Cowgirl Wryn.

Well, this is where I pass the challenge on to you......yes you....the person reading this blog - come on have a go - you can either do as I have and colour your Tiddly Ink image directly on to kraft or ...........click on this link HERE to see some amazing creations from my teamies and how they interpreted the challenge!

Thanks for dropping by

26 September 2015

A good excuse for cake!

Celebrating a birthday anyone?


          Cupcake Henry - CC Designs

          Hat - B000, B00, B02, YR20, YR21, Y28, N0, N1, N2, N3
          Skin - W6, W8, B12, B14, V20, E0000, E000, E00, E41, V20, 
          RV32, B0000
          Cake - E50, E51, E21, E23, E27, E34, C00, C0, C2, YR20, YR23, 
          YR82, W5, B00, B02, N1, YR30, E40, E41, E42, E81, W3
          Shirt - YR30, YR20, YR21, E55
          Jeans - B41, B91, B93, B95, B97, C2, C4
          Hair - E40, E41, E42, E43, E44
          Shoes - W0, W1, W2, N1, BG0000, BG000, B00, BG01
          Background - YR30, B0000, B00, C0, C1, C2, C4

I have enhanced my Copic work with Caran D'Ache pencils and sealed it with
Winsor and Newton Professional Fixative to prevent smudging.


Thanks for dropping by today,
 I hope my work has inspired you to get creative with your Copic markers!

Happy Colouring

15 September 2015

Don't be square

Todays challenge over at Tiddly Inks is to create a card that's not square!

Pretty easy eh!

Here is my sample:
Yet another no lines creation!
(for those new to this, it simply means the image has been printed in pale grey (no black lines) so when colour is added the lines ny on disappear, enabling you to achieve a much softer looking image)


Skater Wryn - Tiddly Inks

Background - N0, N1, BG0000, BG000, B0000, R0000, R000
Hair - E11, E13, E17, E18
Skin - YG41, YG45, E0000, E000, E00, E41, V20, R20, W8
Boots - W00, W0, W1, W2, W4, C1, C2, B0000
Coat/Hat - R20, R21, R22, R24, R27, R39, W00, W0, W1, W2, W3, W5, B0000, B000, E11
Gloves - N0, N1, B0000

Enhanced with coloured pencils




So come on crafty peeps, embrace those curves, put away your square cards and play along with us!!

Thanks for dropping by

7 September 2015

Growing old doesn't mean you have to grow up!!

This is a special post for me as it is the card I made for my son Ben who turned 20 at the end of August!!!

and I thought it was perfect for our new challenge over at
Without Words

"For the Boys"


I had rather a lot of fun colouring this one, especially with the transparent water tanks!

Blast by Mo Manning
DP - My Girl by American Crafts
Stitched die - Lil Inker
Inside sentiment - "You're never too old to do goofy things."


Copics:
Ground: YR30, E50, E81, W0, W2
Kid: E0000, E000, E00, BG70, R20, V20, B12, B14, W8
Shorts: YR20, YR21, YR15, YG23, BG01, N0, N1, N2, B41
Orange Pistol: YR20, YR21, YR23, YR27, E23, Y13, BG0000, YR30, BG01, B12, B14, B45, W5
Hair: E43, E42, E41, E51, E44
Shoes: YG21, YG23, YG25, W2, W4
Blue Pistol: B01, B12, B14, B52, BG000, BG01, W0, W2, YG21, YG23, YG25, YR20

enhanced with coloured pencils

As usual we have a wonderful sponsor offering a prize for the winning entry
and this month it is......

So for your chance to win please enter your
clean and simple creations
(it is also where you will find more inspiration from my teamies)

Crafty hugs

24 August 2015

Let's hear it for the girls!

Wow, it seems like ages since I last sat here in my studio to blog......
.......not surprising really as it's harvest time here in the UK, I'm married to a farmer and normal life gets put on hold at this time of year!

So it feels quite an achievement to be able to say here is my latest post for Copic Europe - 
I hope you like it!


As is my preference of late I have opted for the no lines technique i.e. printing the image at reduced opacity if using digital images or pale ink when using a stamp.

Super Day by Mo Manning
Papers - June Bug Pad by Basic Grey, Blast Off pad by Bo Bunny
Star and large flag dies


Skin: E0000, E000, E00, V20
Hair: E40, E41, E42, E43, E44
Cape: R20, R21, R22, R24, R29
Sweater: B32, B34, B41
Tights: YR30, E81, B0000, B000, N1, N2
Shirt: B0000, B000, N0, N1, N2
Shoes: R21, R22, R24, R29, B0000, B000,
 B21, B23, N0, N1, N3, N5, W1, W2
Ground: N0, N1

Please note - image has been enhanced with coloured pencils

Thanks for dropping by and I hope this has inspired you to get crafty

18 August 2015

Tiddly Inks Challenge

#164 Have Heart


Wryn's Heartfelt Love - Tiddly Inks

Copics
Hearts - R32, R14, R35, R37, W3, W4, W2, W0, R20, R21, R22, R24, BG70, T1, T2, C00, C0, C1, C2, C3, C4, BG0000, B0000
Skin - E0000, E000, E00, V20, BG70
Floor - R0000, R000, C00, C0, C1
Hair - E40, E41, E42, E43, E44
Dress - YR30, R0000, R000, R01, R02, B00, W0, W1
Shoes - B0000, B000, N0, N1, N2

enhanced with coloured pencils

With digital images it is still quite easy to do "no lines colouring" - you just have to adjust the opacity of your image prior to printing it!

Good luck with this challenge

Hugs

4 August 2015

Tips on how to add a little interest to your colouring

This is my first tutorial for Copic Europe and I wanted to share some of the ways I
"play" with Copics.......

So I have a little montage of ways you can add a bit of fun to your colouring!

Lets start with a simple stamp
I have used
Say it Loud! by Art Impressions



It's OK like this, but a bit boring don't you think!!

So to jazz things up a bit I started by stamping it out on Copic suitable card stock using 
Memento Angel Pink, so that I could use the no lines technique
and cut it out using a stitched circle die by Lil'inker Designs


Now I started by creating a background using my "Squiggly Wiggly" method!
Basically you start with your base colour, in this instance B0000 and cover the whole area using the standard Copic circular motion.

You then add squiggles of a darker shade, in this case B000, going over it with the lightest colour to soften the squiggles if necessary. 

Don't get heavy handed with this, light, delicate squiggles work best.


 I finished with a layer of B00 squiggles, softened by B0000 applied in a circular motion as before.


A - B0000 applied in a circular motion
B - B000 squiggles applied to three quarters of box, softened with B0000 
C - B00 squiggles to top left of box
D - Squiggles softened with B0000 applied in circular motion

This technique works best with the palest shades in any of the colour families.

It gives a soft textured almost fluffy appearance to a background and I use this method regularly when I am colouring skies!!!

Now the real fun begins.......
time to play around with your image!


I started by giving each word a 3D appearance, achieved by simple shading, but hey, it's still a bit boring and I like to have fun when colouring.....


I'll show you a close up in a minute, but here is a list of the colours I used for each word

SING: B21, B23, B24, B26
DANCE: B01, B02, B04
LAUGH: B91, B93, B95, B97, 0
LOVE!: B12, B14, B16
shadows applied using N1, N2, N3


DANCE: random dots applied using darkest colour B04
LAUGH: spots created using 0 to remove colour 
LOVE!: Stripes drawn using B16 and B14 mindful of the 3D colouring

I hope you have found this tutorial interesting and whether you try colouring a Squiggly Wiggly background or add a pattern to your images, above all have fun when using your markers!!

Happy Colouring