Tip My Hat to You...

With the passing of time comes the natural progression of aging. Some go quietly into it and others go kicking and screaming; I prefer just to go with it in style. ;)  

In our family (past the age of 29) we no longer refer to the familial gatherings as Birthdays. Rather, we have opted for the term 'Appreciation Day.'

So here is me tipping my hat to my most fabulous Mother for her up and coming Appreciation Day!.

The file I have used is an incredible cut file from The Cutting Cafe titled,

Top Hat Set. 

This week the DT at The Cutting Cafe are celebrating hats and the owner Regina has created an abundance of different styles of hats for your enjoyment. 

I really wanted to create a Steampunk top hat.  The hat itself was cut from black cardstock and then painted over with Gesso. When dry, a coating of clear crackle was added. When that dried, several inks of black and brown variations were added to draw out the cracks.  How on earth this hat turned purple is beyond me, but I kinda dug it so I just went with it. I laced up the side of the hat and added extra 'industrial' elements to aid as well.

The exotic feathers are also part of this hat file. 

The back of the hat so that you can see the folded brim.

Well there you have it. 

A special way to wish someone something that must never be spoken of except for to say...

"Happy Appreciation Day!" In a very classy way.

Hope you've enjoyed this visit and I thank you so very much for stopping in.

Hugs and Happy Crafting to you all...

Lisa xx

Go Ahead...Make My Day!

I'm in steampunk heaven with this little lady.  She's sassy, feisty and perfectly coordinated with her weaponry.  Not an easy task, I'm sure.  She even has that dainty little ribbon tied around her hat.  We certainly wouldn't want our skulls and crossbones falling in front of our faces while we're aiming now would we?

This is my DT card for Top Tip Tuesday where our challenge this time around is to focus on the ribbon.  Here I've made 5 ribbon roses that were originally a soft baby blue color. After twisiting the ribbon to form roses, I colored them with coordinating copics to match the hair of the image. A little dab of silver liquid pearls to finish them off.  The grungy cream banners are silver ribbon that have a coating of glossy accents and then folder embossed. A brayering of mod podge and more mustard ink mixture then applied over the top.  This lovely Steampunk Sally also has glossy accents applied to her ribbon to draw out the 'dantier' side of her.

The sentiment was inspired by a Clint Eastwood movie, Sudden Impact.  Two free clock faces from Far Far Hill were resized to 1/4" and glued to little wooden circles and then glossy accented to match the B-13 bingo dot. 

The shimmer of her bling doesn't show up very well on the first picture, but with a little manipulation of light and my disgruntled camera, I was able to get one fairly less blury picture to show.

I actually wrote down my copic combinations for this one...so odd! They are weird one's but I like blending colors together so here's my list.  (In order of application)

Eyes - B37, 45, 34

Skin - E30, E00, E81 and E40

Hair - C9, C2, B18, 45, and 41, W3 and W1

Hat and Shirt - E23, YR14, 24, 23, 21

Lips and Bow - R39, 17, and 20

Okay, that's all for me here, but I hope you'll join us for our focus on the ribbon challenge and show us creative ways that YOU like to use ribbon.

Hugs n' Happy Stamping..

Lisa xx

Top Tip Tuesday Challenge

Focus On The Ribbon

Our Fantastic Sponsors

Sew Sweet

Prize:  £10.00 voucher

Delicious Doodles

Ribbon Carousel

Confusing? Exactly!

Please take a moment to look at the cover of this card and decipher the cryptic message...

(I'll hum the Jeopardy theme song while you look)

 Okay, time's up! Did you figure it out?

For those of you still scratching your heads, let's go on a little trip through my brain.  Some of you have already been introduced to the inner workings of my noggin' and know what to expect.  However, for the newbies, I'd just like to make this announcement:

"Please keep your hands and feet in the ride at all times!"

And we're off...

Soooo, this is the card I've designed for my dad.  He doesn't like to read instructions, nor will he stop to ask for directions; therefore, I had to make a card that incorporated BOTH of those 'endearing' qualities that I find so completely baffling.  The hardware represents the times he decided to assemble a project; directions must have been sold separately, because they are absolutely NOWHERE to be found.  Inevitably there are always extra pieces (even more than the allotted 'extras') when it's finished. 

The twine wrapped around the hardware represents a map.  One must follow the map to deduce the message.  I'm pretty sure he'll just meander aimlessly over the card and notice the pretty pictures!  Which is why I talked myself out of using papers with maps for fear that he wouldn't even pick the thing up!

Okay, now that you've traveled this far,

Take another look and see if you can figure out the message.

Each image, free from the fabulous Pamela at Free Vintage Digital Stamps and Graphics Fairy, was specifically picked to relay,  in a rather complex and confusing manner (resembling the aforementioned "endearing' qualities), a very simple message.

I've included the message on the inside....

Did you get it? 

Okay, that's my card and I thought I should probably explain the inner workings of my thought process just so you're not left going..."what the..huh?"

I hope my dad appreciates the fun jab as much as I appreciate him!

Thanks so much for stopping in and I hope you've enjoyed the visit and my wacky, weird and quirky brain.

Hugs n' Happy Stamping...

Lisa xx

Challenges I would like to enter this card into:
Art Impressions - #67 Husband/Father
Craft Challenge - #159 Father's Day
Charisma Cards - #23 Male Cards
DYSU Challenge Blog - #76 Boys/Men
PaperPlay Challenges - Week 24; For a Man (With Twine)