Sharing Sketches

.....it seems I am continually apologising, for not updating this blog on a regular basis. I assure you, I do try, but as we all know, life gets busy and those good intentions don't always happen. I have been continuing my travels around Australia presenting my sketches and papercraft projects and this past weekend helped co-ordinate my second Virtual Crop for Creative Memories Australia/NZ. I designed another 6 Formula Sketches for this event and once again, I was overwhelmed with the response and also amazed with the beautiful layouts and cards created with them. I have decided to share the sketches here for my lovely blog followers and if you want to see more of my work I have also created a page on Facebook for you to "peek" at - you can find it at ChristinesCreativeCapers

You will notice that the Sketches are numbered from 7 - 12 that is because they follow on in sequence, from the 6 sketches used in the last Virtual Crop.

I love converting sketches into cards - it is like getting double value - this card uses the new Nordic Christmas range of products from Creative Memories. The white decorative trims were created using the decorative cartridges of the Creative Memories BorderMaker System - my favourite tool ever!!

My example of this sketch is a digital layout using the Birdy Birthday Digital Kt from Creative Memories - the colours are perfect for photos and yes, I am an instagram addict!!

I chose to do a traditional version as my sample for this sketch - it was created with the new Be Merry range of Christmas Products from Creative Memories and some cute photos of my friends daughters taken a few years back - they look so cute in their angel costumes. Did you notice that lovely zig zag border? It was created with a new cartridge to the BorderMaker system called Diamond Zig Zag - lots of fun things to create with this one....mine has only been in my collection for over a week and it has been getting lots of use.

I chose the Creative Memories digital kit Timeless Holiday to create this layout and more photos of the very cute Amy - her Mum takes the best photos at Christmas to make their family Christmas Cards and I am so lucky to have he share them with me for my design projects - Thanks Tracy :)

I hope you enjoy having a "play" with these sketches and I will try harder to update my blog more often.

Where Are You??

... I have been receiving some lovely messages from my papercraft friends, enquiring about my whereabouts and since it has been a couple of months since I last posted on this blog, I thought it about time I answer that question.

I have still been crafting but busy touring the country sharing my ideas and designs with Creative Memories Consultants and in a 6 week time frame I was in 3 different states visiting Darwin, Adelaide and Perth - WOW!!  what a journey... I got to meet 100's of ladies preserving their special photos in gorgeous memory books....and this past weekend I helped host a Virtual Crop - it was an event planned in less than 2 weeks and we had over 2000 scrapbookers play along with us....it was heaps of fun and the beautiful layouts shared were absolutely amazing. I designed 6 of my formula sketches for some of the online challenges and I was overwhelmed by the response to them - our participants adapted them in more ways than even I, thought possible....simply stunning work. I have had requests to continue to share them so I thought the easiest way to do that was via my blog - so here they are for you to enjoy!



I am returning!

.....my apologies for the long time between posts. I had no intention of neglecting my lovely readers and followers - but I have been awfully busy with design commitments, birthday party planning and I have been touring the country sharing creative ideas with Creative Memories consultants...it has all been a lot of fun, but hasn't left much time for personal playtime. Despite the fact that I have 2 interstate trips planned in the next few weeks ( Adelaide and Brisbane ) and my daughters 21st Birthday party, I am starting to see "light at the end of the tunnel".....if you can stick with me a little longer I promise to be back blogging real soon and I have a lot many wonderful stories, photographs, cards and layouts to share with you - so yes! stay tuned!!

In the meantime here is a little preview of what I am teaching my Mum's Probus Club ladies - in their craft session this week....my version of the lovely flowerpot card idea which were created to promote the new "Enchanted" range of products from Creative Memories....I also had a little fun creating rosettes out of this gorgeous product too....and this is one of the many ideas I have been teaching consultants in my travels.

I also thought I'd share with you, this photo of my beautiful daughter (whose 21st birthday it is coming up)  and myself taken recently...I am so proud of this little lady and all that she has become - I think I will be shedding a tear or two during her birthday celebrations.

Enjoy and I will be back "chatting" with you soon.

Gorgeous Girls in Green!

....Yes! I know this is my first post for April, but please don't think I have been resting LOL!! I have just been a little behind in some design deadlines - (sadly, for confidentiality reasons I cannot share with you here)....but last week this is the list of everything I completed... 12 Scrapbook Layouts, 4 Cards, 2 Tags, 2 Off the Page Projects and 2 Paper Page Embellishments and this week, the count so far.. is 2  Gorgeous Girl in  Green Cards LOL!!

Both cards use one of my favourite colours - Green - but I seldom use it for anything other than, grass and leaves (when colouring my images). However, one of my "Scrappy Friends" suggested I try using it to colour clothing - I was  very inspired by one of her card creations... so I took her up on the challenge and here are the results.

The stamp is called "Waiting" and is from the Simply Gorjuss range - she was stamped ontoX-Press IT Blending Card  (available from Mad for Markers ) and coloured with the following:
Copics Used:
Skin: - E000, E01, E11 - Cheeks: - RV10
Hair: - E21, E25, E27, E49
Clothing: - Dress: BG93, BG96, BG99 - Jacket:YG93, YG95, YG97 - Tie: Y21, Y23,Y26
Boots: - E25, E27, E29

This card was made using a Saturated Canary Digi Image by Krista Smith - called "Blanche". I used the same colour combination to colour the image and create the card as my previous one of the Gorjuss "Waiting" girl - isn't it amazing how the same design sketch, same colours, same paper can look so different?

Copics Used:
Skin: - E000, E01, E11 - Cheeks/Lips: - RV10 - Eyeshadow: - YG93
Hair: - E13, E15, E17
Eyes: E33, E35
Clothing: - Dress:YG93, YG95, YG97 - Tie: Y21, Y23,Y26
Boots: - E25, E27, E29

I also wanted to share with you, a special little gift that arrived in my mail box this week. My BFF Judy and I, had been discussing the best way to remember all the Digital Images we had been purchasing - when she came up with the idea of creating a little book to catalogue them in.... and that could also be used  as a Copic journal.

This is the little book she made just for me! and of course it is Pink! - if you want to have a little peek at her book  and other journals she has created - check out her newly revamped blog - you will find it here....the books were made using a Bind-It-All and if you want to find out more about them, our friend Karen at scrap2relax will be happy to oblige! ;-) - I am now adding one to my collection of toys! Here is little look inside the pages of my journal....I love the black pages.

I hope you have enjoyed the little catch-up... on my "Creative Capers" and I will try not to leave it too long between posts, from now on :-)

Hugs to All


Love me some Canary Art

...I think I have fallen hugely in love with Krista Smith's Saturated Canary Images - I have been colouring up a storm these past few days and I'm still going LOL!

I completed this Easter project using the very cute Murray - love all the detail in her little stocking legs....the basket was fun to make too! I thought bigger was better when it came to filling it with chocolate... and before next weekend I plan to make few more.

Copics Used:

Skin: - E000, E51, E11 Cheeks RV10

Hair: - E21, E25, E29, E17

Shoes: - Y00, Y08, Y15

Clothing: - R81, R83, R85, B91, B93, B95, Y00, Y08, Y15, YG00, YG11, YG17

Chicken: - E50, Y00, Y17

Grass: - YG00, YG11, YG17, YG45

I did a little experimenting with the grass in this image. At my Intermediate Copic Certification, our instructor, Mandi demonstrated a few different ways to do backgrounds and give our images depth. The "dotting" technique really appealed to me, even though I usually like my card creations clean and simple.

I got a little more adventurous when creating the background to accompany this next card... I used a new image called Blanche....she is a sassy little movie star number. I chose 3 colours from my colouring and "dotted" the whole background....I rather like the outcome and thought it would be a great way to make patterned paper to co-ordinate with my creations - so that is next on my agenda....making my own decorative paper with Copics! and X-Press IT Blending Card (available at Mad for Markers).

Copics Used:

Skin: - E000, E01, E11, Cheeks -  RV42, Eyeshadow - B91, Lips - R24
Hair: - E21, E25, E29
Dress: - R22, R24, R27, W1, W3, W5
Eyes: - E31, E35
Background: - R24, B91, W3

...just a teeny tiny bit of "dotting" on this image, back to my clean and simple format for the heavily pregnant Mrs Ice-Cream and Pickles ....she was such a joy to colour and I kept my card very gender neutral in shades of both pink and blue....I have also entered this card in the Thinking of You Challenge #14 at the Saturated Canary Challenge Blog - I thought it fitted the theme beautifully.

Copics Used:

Skin: - E000, E51, E11, Cheeks/Lips- RV10, Eyes - B91, B93

Hair: - E21, E25, E29

Clothing: - R81, R83, R85, B91, B93, B95

Ice-Cream: - E71, E74, E77, Rv00, RV10, RV21, E50, E51, E53

Cone: -  E31, E35 and brown fine tip pen

Pickle: - YG91, YG95, YG97 - and a few little dots were placed on top ;-)

Cherry: - R22, R24, R27

Here is a little close up pic of both my cards - so you can see the colours a little easier... and don't forget, if you want to add any of the Copic colours, I have used in these projects to your collection, be sure to drop by the Mad for Markers online store.

I created all my own sentiments for these three projects and the font I used was called "Whackadoo" - what a cool name - I love it!

I am off to catchup with my "Scrappy Friends" this weekend - we will be trading our Feb & March ATC's, Copic Colouring, Shopping and generally just having a creatively good time!!

Hope your weekend is fun and full of creative adventure too.

The "H' Party

We have had a fun and very enjoyable weekend, celebrating my nephew's 21st Birthday - it was a dress-up themed event. We were all asked to come dressed in something beginning with "H". Wow! - everyone got into the spirit of the night, and there were some amazing costumes we had Hercules, Hannah Montana, Humpty Dumpty, Highland & Hip Hop Dancers, Helicopter Pilots, Housewives and the list goes on. I have a few photos to share with you - wish I could show you them all... but once again I took 100's LOL!... and it really is impossible to post them all!

This is my family and I - the Hawaiian Tourist, Hockey Player, Hostess and Hippy! - long hair and chockers are not the most flattering accessories for me!!

 ....and from left to right:  my nephew the Hotdog with his mate the Hedgehog, My sister the Hairdresser and her Hooker daughter! and family friends Hannibal Lector and Henry the Octopus - cool costumes aren't they??

and here are some more family friends .... dressed as a Hobo couple and with their very cute duaghter the  Hawaiian Princesss. 

The most popular costume of the night appeared to be all the different variations of  Hippies, closely followed with an array of Hawaiian dressed guests - as I mentioned before, it was a lot of fun and we giggled at ourselves and our silly costumes all night.

The dressup theme also inspired my card creation today - I rushed this card a little but I really needed a little R & R in my "happy room" today, after such a hectic weekend. This is Mod Marci from the La La Land Crafts Stamp range - I thought she had a little bit of a "hippy chick" look to her - she is seated on another La La Land image the Garden Bench....both available at Mad for Markers.

Copics Used:

Skin: E000, BV000, E01, E11, Lips: RV42, Cheeks: R20

Hair: E31, E35, E29

Hat/Boots: V12, V15, V17

Vest: R81, R83, R85

Top: YR00, YR12, YR18

Pants: Grey -  W1, W3, W5

Guitar: Y21, Y23, Y26, YR12, YR18

Garden Bench: YG91, YG95, YG97, E51, E53 E55, E57

I have added some white highlights to my colouring using a Size 0 brush and my new pot of Copic Opaque White.... watch out for white highlights all over my upcoming projects LOL! and while on the subject of upcoming projects...stay tuned....while tidying up my "happy room" today I found a few "treasures" -  a big bundle of stamps I have purchased over the past 12 months and forgot about - they have never used - sad but true!!

Hope you have a wondeful day and I will be back soon to show you my new found treasures!

Birthday Blog Hop

Welcome to the Mad for Markers Birthday Blog Hop.....this month the store has been busy celebrating it's 2nd Anniversary with lots of giveaways, the release of exclusive digital images and some wonderful inspiration on the store blogs.... it's been great to have you along for the "party". Today's Blog Hop ends the festivities - the hop is all about sharing birthday celebrations and you will discover some wonderful inspiration for your own Copic Creations...if you arrived here from Kate's Blog , then you are right on track...if not, please go over to the Mad for Markers Challenge Blog and start at the beginning - you won't want to miss a thing!!!

I created two Copic Card Creations for today's Blog Hop - using different images but the same colour palette, both stamps can be found in the Mad for Markers store along with an array of other fantastic stamps featuring birthday themes.

This card was created using a La La Land Crafts Stamp called  Birthday Marci she is super cute with her ribboned pigtails and little panda friend....very appropriate for today's theme.

Copics Used:

Hair - E21, E25, E27

Skin - E00, E51, E11, - Cheeks - RV42

Dress/Shoes - R22, R24, R27

Gift - G00, G03, G07, - Ribbon - B00, B12, B14

Panda - C1, C3, C5, BV000

... this is a "close-up view" of my colouring... you will notice that I have added some thin stripes to Miss Marci's dress - I used a fine-tip felt pen (that I have had in my craft stash for years) and I really like the effect....I think you may see more of this felt pen appearing in my future creations LOL!...I also used my B14 and the very tip of the marker brush to add a dotted pattern to the gift.

my second card was created using a Some Odd Girl image called -  Balloon Kaylee she always colours up a treat - I decided to keep the card design very simple so that Miss Kaylee was the star of the show.

Copics Used:

Skin - E00, E11, E15 - Cheeks - E93
Eyes - B00, B01
Hair - E21, E25, E27
Balloon/Top - G00, G03, G07
Shoes/Skirt - R22, R24, R27
Jacket/Socks - B01, B12, B14

There will be "hidden" prizes for those of you who "hop-along" and visit each of the blogs today - so be sure to leave a comment as you follow each blog for a chance to win a prize or two!!

Now head on over to Alyce's Blog to continue your Blog Hop Journey - enjoy the trip :-)