Clarity Challenge December 2016 - Carol Singing and Christmas Joy

I used my favourite Carol for this one, just some basic stamping with a little gelly roll glitter pen on elf and Santa's sleigh, although it doesn't show up in photos!

Clarity Challenge

Clarity Stamp Calendar Challenge - December

November Clarity Stamp Challenge - A blast from the past

Clarity Stamp Challenge - A blast from the past


This is one I was going to enter earlier in the year and didn't get it posted in time so I thought I'd use it for this one as it really is a blast from earlier this year !

Clarity Stamp October Calendar Challenge

Clarity Stamp October Calendar Challenge


I'm really pleased with how this has turned out even though I didn't have the right trees, I used the bare trees and the mantles.  First time I've made up my own ink pad too.  When it came to it I decided not to put the sun in as I was worried I'd spoil the effect due to the fact I haven't got a circle punch (would be handy and now on my list) and I hadn't got any decent shade of backing paper to match in.  I was a bit disappointed with the orange edge, it would probably mix in better with a backing paper and I might do that at a later date as I've only stuck down with glue dots.  I love the big tree without the leaves though and, as many of the trees around here are on their way there I thought it still appropriate!   The writing was a bit of a worry and glad I followed Barbara's advice and used a pencil first.  There was still plenty of rubbing out I can tell you.  However, overall I love the colours and some of the perspective in this which was probably more lunch than judgement! 

Recent makes

Recent makes

Paul and Simon's birthdays

Jemma's birthday

 Holly's birthday

Emily's birth card

Clarity Stamp Challenge for October 2016 - circles and squares

Clarity Stamp Challenge entry for October 2016 Circles and Squares

I've gone out of my comfort zone and done something not symmetrical, also tried some more cutting - not there yet but practice should make perfect one day.  I decided to keep the backing simple, i.e. just onto the card as sometimes with the colour parchment it's difficult to find the right backing.  This reminds me of Wedgwood.  

Thanks for any comments ! 

Claritystamp Calendar Challenge - Sept 2016

Just about made it by the skin of my teeth for this month's challenge !   Busy month what with a 2 week holiday as well !

Here's my entry for this month's calendar's challenge.

Don't look too closely, my masking work needs improvement!    

Claritystamp Calendar Challenge - August

My entry for the August Calendar Challenge is 

More recent makes

Clarity Challenge August 2016 - Fussy Cutting

My entry for the August Fussy Cutting Challenge 

Clarity Challenge for July - Days Out

This is my entry for the July Clarity Challenge - Days Out

Not sure where I was going with this once I'd decided to use one of my leftover backgrounds from the Calendar Challenge.   So I used the stencil heart (obvious!) and the abstract stencil to put a few bits of colour around the edge and then the wee folk stamps and the new funky alphabet for the words.   I was tempted to put a squiggle line around the heart but decided against.  I might go back and do that at some stage though!   I felt the heart just needed a bit of a break up around the edge which is where the birds came in !   Put a sharpie edge on and then mounted on green card.  

Claritystamp Calendar Challenge July 2016

This is my entry for the Claritystamp Calendar Challenge for July 2016.  I seemed to get a much smaller spottier effect that Barbara's when doing the acetate squishing! Can anyone tell me why that might be, I just didn't seem to get large patches of colour !   

Some recent makes

All fairly simple cards using the Groovi Plate Mate from Clarity Stamp 

Clarity Stamp Challenge for June - Masculine

Clarity Stamp Challenge for June  -  Masculine

I did this one for Kavisha, across the road, who was 16 earlier this month.   

I just pinned it onto a red background card and was lucky to have a couple of music note brads to do it with !

Clarity Stamp June Calendar Challenge

Clarity Stamp June Calendar Challenge 

I  used a shaving foam background I had in my collection. Struggled a bit with the boxes around the circle but will know better next time !  

Claritystamp Calendar Challenge for May 2016

My Claritystamp Calendar Challenge for April.

I'm a bit scared of birds so this was out of my comfort zone, including stamping them !   I didn't have the same paints as used in the challenge so just made do with acrylic.  Perhaps I will get the other paints at the Open Day in June - I need to keep something back to buy!

Some recent makes

Some recent makes

Clarity Challenge May 2016 - Anything Goes

I made this card for a friend's 70th birthday.  It was one that Barbara Gray from ClarityStamp blogged a while ago and it stuck in my mind as being great for a man's card!   I didn't notice until seeing this photo that 70 is strategically placed between Age Is and Just A, although I did want to show 70 this was a complete accident !

Some recent makes

Thank you cards for the radiotherapy deparment at the Churchill

 One for someone who had just finished their treatment

 Lucan's birthday card

Easter card

Easter card

Easter cards

Easter card 

Easter card

Easter card

Birthday card

Birthday card

Claritystamp Challenge for April - Masking

Here's my entry for the April Challenge, my second batch of sea horses as the first ones just swan away when I turned my back on them, never to be seen again ?   Or will turn up tomorrow !   I quite like this set though.   My first time with coloured parchment as well. 

Claritystamp Calendar Challenge - April 2016

Here's my entry for the Claritystamp Calendar Challenge for April.  My first time using canvas, despite buying it the first time Barbara showed it!   I didn't have all the right materials and had to use acrylic paints on a blank canvas, obviously no used ones!  Really enjoyed seeing it come to life and I like it a bit better each day.  My grunge paste had dried up - is there anyway of bringing it back from a cement like consistency?!  I used some modge podge with sparkle in it so I can see some sparkle top left and top right which is quite pretty.  It doesn't show up on the photo though.  I also painted some pink twinkling H20's over it which was a waste of time I think!  For a first go I'm quite pleased with it.

Clarity Challenge - March - All About the Girls

Only just made it but here's my entry.  I had to do something fairly quick as I'd run out of time but that's the great thing about the Groovi Plate Mate you can be as quick or as long as you like, as Barbara says 'it takes what it takes'.   I was going to just put the parchment on to a pink card but then thought it didn't stand out well, especially for a photo, so went for something completely different, first of all it was going to be a green background with white dots but the blue showed it up better.  It's good that you can do so many different things with just one design too.  

Then it was difficult to get the photo as the card wouldn't lay flat..... talk about less haste more speed.... or whatever it is !

Claritystamp Calendar Challenge - March 2016

It took me a while to get around to doing this as I knew I didn't have the stamps in the original so I had to look for something else.   All I can say is that it's grown on me!

A Groovi birthday card for a man!

A Groovi Birthday Card for a March Birthday

A few recent makes

A few recent makes 

A birthday card for a friend in February and Mum's card for March, realised that Mother's Day comes first though so had better do another!

This was a parchment piece using the original Groovie plates, it was just a practice piece and I had no idea what it was going to turn out like.   I sent it off to Barbara Gray at Clarity Stamp as she set a challenge to see what we could come up with using the original Groovi Plate Mate and plates and it was shown with other contributors on the Clarity Stamp programme on Hochanda  on Sun 6 March which was a sell out show!

A card for my niece's birthday in Feb.

Clarity Challenge February 2016 'Love'

For this month's Clarity Challenge 'Love' I might have overdone the hearts on this one but I like a bit of bling so couldn't resist just off setting so I could use some!  I used the Groovi Mate Plate heart and the new Baby Plate for the boxes and letters and added a Wee Folk stamp.  I happened to have some heart shaped brads which came in handy.

Clarity Calendar Challenge 'Taking Flight' February 2016

I haven't blogged since 2014 and hope I can remember what to do.  Here goes!

Here's my Clarity Calendar Entry for February 'Taking Flight'

Not as easy as I thought it would be.  The picture turned out brighter than it looks too!   I had to use a black pencil to complete the boy and the birds as I thought it looked a bit faded!