Bark! The Herald Angels Sing for JAI #433

Happy November everyone and welcome!! It's hard to believe the year is nearly over - but the warm temperatures are a good sign of what is to come. Yesterday was our first 34 degree day since March and today will be 30 before a late cool change. That is one of the great things about Melbourne - it might be hot for a day or two but it changes quickly and the variation is great. We had a great day meeting Sally's Guide Dogs' puppy raiser today and meeting two dogs she grew up with including her half sister and just generally finding out a bit more about her - a very fun morning tho wish we had taken some photos!!

It's time for a new challenge at Just Add Ink and this week we have a fun and vibrant colour challenge suggested for us all to us by Jo. These colours are ready for anything and the design team had a lot of fun using them and we hope that you do to. Hopefully you can take a moment to pop on over and be inspired to join us - do note that this challenge lasts for two weeks too as many of the design team will be away at On Stage next weekend and we might be able to catch up with you in person so do come say hello! I will be with several JAI team members in Melbourne but there will also be others of the team in Brisbane and we'd love to meet you!

This fun new Christmas set from MFT arrived this week and I just couldn't resist using it though I'd normally colour the dogs a bit differently... The sentiment was just too good 😃
The background is the new Buffalo Check stamp and some ruler drawn lines which is a technique I've seen popular online and did add a more finished touch.

The silver die cuts are a combination of two sets available in the Annual Catty - The detailed Swirly Snowflakes and Starlights...a touch of vellum behind the Lab and this fun card is complete 😊

Card Stock: Blueberry Bushel, Lemon Lime Twist, Berry Burst, Silver Glimmer, Silver Foil, Vellum
Ink: Berry Bushel, Berry Burst, Lemon Lime Twist (Pencil), Versamark, Navy Blends
Stamps: Buffalo Check
Accessories: Big Shot, Swirly Snowflaks Thinlits, Starlight Thinlits, Stiched Shapes Framelits, Circle Framelits (retired), White EP,
Non SU: Deck the Howls stamp set (MFT)

Thanks for stopping by today and I hope you might take a moment to pop over to Just Add Ink and see all the inspiration from the design team and I look forward to seeing your creations with this fun and vibrant colour combo in the gallery over the next two weeks 😊

Happy stamping until next time,

Jan

Merry Christmas to you!!

A very Merry Christmas to you!! I hope you've had a wonderful day of spending time with family and friends and maybe some relaxing along the way too. For us Christmas started with Midnight Mass and then some early morning Skype calls to NZ to chat with family and share in the lovely nephew and nieces opening their presents...such fun!! Then it was lunch with friends and a surprise flying visit from an Aunty from out of State and a long overdue catch up with more family and cousins etc. So a busy day but a lovely one :-)

Today I have two cards and a few other related projects to share with you to finish the Christmas theme for this year. This first one is clean and simple and sparkly. I teamed the Winter Wonder EF with the Swirly Snowflakes Thinlits and a little blue and copper.

The sparkly snowflake is inked with Distress Inks to add some colour and interest.

Card stock: Whisper White (thick and standard), Dazzling Diamonds Glitter Paper, Copper Foil, Vellum

Accessories: Big Shot, Winter Wonder EF, Swirly Snowflake thinlits, Christmas Greetings Thinlits (retired), Metallic Sequin Assortment

Non SU: Distress Inks - Salty Ocean, Blueprint Sketch, Frosted sequins (SSS)

The last card is in honour of this being Sally the Lab's last Christmas as she has cancer and is going out to our vet family in Hallam without whom Sally would not be here several times over. Later versions of this for family and friends are without the gold tree.

Along with the card are a few little gifts with mainly the same photo - my first attempts at using Waterslide Decal Paper.  The process is simple but not always so in practice so I have a couple of hints for you.

I found that one coat of Clear Acrylic spray wasn't quite strong enough to prevent the images from cracking on transfer - especially on the mug. Other sites I found suggested up to 3 sprays and I'd recommend that too if your object isn't flat like the tile coasters. After they are dry, you can coat with more acrylic to make it all shiny and smooth and heat resistant in the case of the coasters. Be aware though in the case of mugs and glasses that it's not dishwasher safe.

And yes, the other side of the mug here features Sally playing with her good mate Monty - a happy snap from years gone by.

Card stock: Real Red, Whisper White, Silver - and gold Glimmer, Garden Green, Whisper White

Accessories: Big Shot, Softly Falling EF, Christmas Greeting Thinlits (retired), Peaceful Pines Thinlits, Metallic Sequins Assortment

Non SU: Square Stitched Framelits (SSS) chocolates!!

Thank you for stopping by today and I hope you can take some time to enjoy the rest of the holidays and I look forward to journeying with you in the New Year!

Happy stamping  until then,

Jan