THIS COULD BE A LONG POST.....

.... As I have loads of images to share at the moment!  Still focussing on the Challenge of the moment - Nature's Beauty - the team have certainly come up with some very beautiful ideas for us.  You can check out the Challenge itself HERE, and it would be lovely if you could join in by linking an appropriate project (using at least one Crafty Individuals product please) to the Challenge posting during this month.

Lets start with a gorgeous project by lovely Lynne Moncrieff.  Lynne has the very deserved honour of being the Guest Artist in the current issue of Stampers' Sampler.  I am just waiting for my copy to arrive.  What a clever lady she is!!

Lynne has made the background with our manuscript stamp CI-406 stamped onto fabric (loving the colours here), and then incorporated the two thistle images from CI-204...

Next I have a step by step by Gio - this is a gorgeous little hanging featuring the bird panel of CI-357 and here are the instructions followed by the images.

-cut a piece of heavy cardstock to size
-create a frame with paper, fabric, bits of flower using tacky glue
-when dry, cover the flowers with gesso
-spray with several colours of Cosmic Misters
-stamp on white silk card the image from CI-357 in pink and in black Archival ink
-adhere the pink image to the center of the cardstock
-cut some details from the black stamped image, colour them and adhere them to the main image
-attach a chain on the back of the cardstock

Such a cool way to use up any flowers you might have which are maybe in colours you don't use generally - cover them in gesso and change the colours completely with sprays!

Then Sylvie has made this superb hanging for us with CI dies and stamps, and as luck would have it she has linked to all the items she has used here on her Blog HERE.  Pop on over and check it all out soon..

Next I am loving this beautiful Nature's tag by Brenda in glorious leprechaun?! greens, and again would you believe Brenda has kindly given instructions and details of products used on her Blog HERE..

Joanna has done lovely things with our new manuscript stamp again (making it look nice and old, instead of new) - CI-406, plus our butterfly die and floral branch die ...

And to finish off tonight I have some quirky and colourful cards by Effie, using the giraffe and elephants mini plate CI-390 - aw bless - so sweet!

Well I hope you have enjoyed that mountain of images - phew! - and don't forget to link your own in soon!!

Nite, nite,

Jean x

A CHALLENGE FOR APRIL - 'NATURE'S BEAUTY'

Here we are into sunny April already - its been a lovely day here, although it is cold now this evening.  Hope it has been nice where you are!  We had a very sunny day at Port Sunlight and it was lovely to see so many familiar faces and get to chat to so many of you - thanks for all the support.

In celebration of the season perhaps we have a new challenge for you for the month of April.  This title has been chosen by Lucy and is 'Nature's Beauty'.

Here are the usual guidelines:

CHALLENGE GUIDELINES

To enter this month's Crafty Individuals Challenge please put together your chosen project, which must include at least one Crafty Individuals product please, then post your Challenge project on your Blog, before the end of the month, and include a link back to this Blog.  Leave a link in the URL box displayed in this post to take us directly to your Challenge project, which will then appear on this Blog as a thumbnail image - so we can all see your wonderful arty work.

At the end of the month we will set about choosing five lucky participants, each of whom will win a CI rubber stamp of their choice, and don't forget that as per usual, once you have linked in your creation, you can also claim a lovely 25% discount code to use on anything you purchase from the CI Website, which will be valid until the 10th of November.

Go for it, and enjoy the challenge x

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As always we look forward to seeing your entries - you will be in with a chance of winning a free stamp, and you will also be able to obtain a cool 25% web discount.  When you have linked in your entry please email us at info@craftyindividuals.co.uk to obtain your special code, and then go shopping!

To get you in the mood I now have a few team projects to blog, with more to follow during the month to come.  As Lucy is in charge this is Lucy's very pretty piece of craftwork at the top of the display - Lucy has used some packaging from a gift to make this delight:

This is the outer view...

And this is the inner view..

Lucy used our background papers to make the lovely roses and decorate the background, and she made the little bird on the front with clay and a mould.  The stamped images are on Stampbord, and she used the following CI stamps:
CI-194, 209, 161, 185, 347, 309, 193, 385, 176,  and 387. You will find all the stamps on our website at: www.craftyindividuals.co.uk

Now I have some more very pretty things..

By Joanna..

Check out the beach babe from plate CI-278.

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Laury has made this delicate and pretty little thing..

It features our new manuscript stamp CI-406 and a sentiment from CI-407.

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Gio has been playing very nicely with the tulips from CI-388..

And although it wasn't for this challenge as such I thought I would pop this adorable scrapbook page by Coco in here as it seems rather appropriate (featuring a twin!)..

The little birds are from our stamp range.

Back soon,

Jean x

ps  The May issue of Craft Stamper is now available to buy HERE, and it has a project by myself (yipee!!) featuring CI-402 inside.  Hope you like it?!

MAKE A BOOKMARK, AND SEE WHAT HELEN DID NEXT.....

Thanks for your comments on the last post folks - much appreciated - and welcome to Deborah and other new followers - lovely to have you join in!  Hope we can continue to keep you craftily entertained.  We are busy getting ready for Port Sunlight Happy Stampers show which is this coming Saturday.  Lots to pack up, price up and generally prepare for departure.  Malcolm is improving all the time and although we weren't totally sure it looks like he is also ready for the show - please be gentle with him when you see him! Admission to the show is by ticket only, and all tickets have now been sold, so we hope you have yours, and we are certainly looking forward to seeing you there.

I'd like to give a little mention now about a few new products we have in stock on the site.  We have new little gold key charms, also fairies, leaves, flowers, pretty wooden buttons and pearly embellishments.  I will pop a few of the images below as you are certainly loving all the charms and new hardware..

We have also had a delivery of Stix2 white card bookmark packs and cool clear plastic sleeves to put the decorated bookmark in - really nice idea, very reasonable in price and they make a fantastic present, which should last a very long time!

As you can see I decorated this one in an Alice Palace bunny theme, but with the sentiment from the runner ducks stamp.  I used torn strips of handmade papers for the background, plus bits of old lace, and I mounted the bookmark onto another piece of black card before popping into the clear sleeve (plenty of room in this for a few embellies).

Now I have a few more team projects to show you before I finish off with 'what Helen did next.."  Daniele made these two beauties - how gorgeous does that telephone stamp look, and a lovely touch with the pink vellum and flowers?..

And I have projects by Sylvie and Helen below, featuring the same telephone - so clever and colourful and yet so different...

Effie has also been playing with the telephone, but I'll save her creations until next time!

Continuing on from my last post here is the rest of Helen's step by step..

...

..Next choose your colours..

Use cotton wool balls to start adding colour..

You can press colour into the embossed areas if you like..

Next stamp the images onto white card..

Cut them out and arrange onto your background.  I've taken bits and pieces from each collage..

And then watercolour them using the same inks plus one contrasting (I've gone for red, but Seedless Preserves or Rusty Hinge would also work well)..

I've then 'chevronned' another piece of card..

Coloured it with Iced Spruce and torn to fit my collage to make a roadway..

And finally I've embossed two of the arrows..

Cut them out, re-embossed them, coloured and outlined them..

All you have to do then is layer up onto coloured card to finish your project..

Ta da..

Back after the show, and a little rest, with a new Challenge for sunny April!

Jean x