We’re Back! Challenge #53 Anything Goes and A New Team

Hi folks, well we are finally back.
We have a nice easy challenge for you this week as it’s an ‘Anything Goes’ theme, so please have fun with it and we look forward to seeing what you can come up with.
But before we get going on this week’s challenge I should like to introduce to you some new team members and I hope you will find time to pop round their blogs and leave them a message.

Our first new member is Beth

I'm 52 years old and I married my wonderful hubby on my 50th birthday. We live in a lovely village with my Mum (who is 91 years old), two beautiful retired greyhounds and several fish, both coldwater and tropical. I have two fabulous grown up stepsons, one of whom, together with his beautiful new wife, have given us two gorgeous grandkids with another wee one due in January 2012. I've been crafting and cardmaking for a number of years.  I enjoy rubber stamping and colouring in with Promarkers and watercolours.  I've been taking drawing classes as that's something I've wanted to do for a long time and also recently tried sugarcraft for the first time. Life is good.

Carole 

I'm a part-time primary school teacher, who started papercrafting nearly 4 years ago, when I had a fancy to make my own Christmas cards. Since then, I have tried all sorts of techniques and styles - and I kind of like them all. So my work is very varied, which keeps me interested - and my crafty stash growing!! As well as cards, I love working with boxes, gift bags and bookmarks - and I'm always seeking inspiration for new projects.

Carole’s ‘Anything Goes’ card

Doreen

I'm 35 years old and mother of two wonderful kids (3 1/2 years and 7 months) and married to my best friend.
We live in the beautiful mountains of Austria.
I have been crafting / scrapbooking for 5 years. I love to create photo albums for my kids and for me.
The last one year spend mainly on stamping and card making.

Doreen’s ‘Anything Goes’ card

Feebs

My name is Fiona.  I live in Sheffield with my very supportive husband Andy and our four cats. I've always been creative and began card making when I left school, initially as a cross stitcher. About 11 years ago I discovered stamping; one demonstration featuring embossing powder and a heat gun and I was hooked! I still dabble in various crafts but my real passion is card making. I think my style has CAS leanings, but I just enjoy creating and like trying out lots of techniques.

Feebs’ ‘Anything Goes’ card

Jackie

I am at that interesting age. I regularly feel hot even though everyone else is putting on their woolly vests. I also have the energy levels of a particularly tired sloth when it comes to housework or the "day job". However, the very mention of "distress inks", "clear stamps", "embossing powder" or "background papers" will liven me up amazingly. I also bestir myself on a regular basis to spend inordinate amounts of money on craft supplies... I've crafted one way or another all my life - I must have been the only child ever to be fascinated by, and collect, fountain pens! There aren't many crafts I haven't tried out, but papercrafting is my favourite by far. I also enjoy reading, cooking and gardening.

Jennifer

Jennifer Bliss lives in the snow belt near the east coast. I am married with 3 dogs and 2 cats. I have been memory keeping since I was 3 years old, started officially scrapbooking in 1999 and start making cards and altered projects shortly after that.  I’ve been addicted to digi stamps for the last few years and am getting more involved with rubber stamps, acrylic stamps, chalks, and more!  I loves to network with other crafters and cross promote within the craft world whenever possible!  I’m very excited to be a part of this team!

Kim

I am a self confessed stampaholic with a passion for all things card related.
I started Rubber Stamping after meeting the wonderful Maggie Wright at a show at Olympia in 1995.
I have written 2 books and numerous magazine articles.
I have demoed at shows all around the country and currently teach in Purley at Stampcraft  and occasionally at Sir Stampalot in Peterboro (http://www.sirstampalot.co.uk/rubber-stamps.php.)
I am a DT member of the Clarity. Hobby Art and Imagination stamp companies and make samples for their TV shows as well as being on the Sir Stampalot DT.
Believe it or not crafting is my hobby since I work full time in a BP Simply Foods petrol station as well as doing some of the paperwork for my old firm on a 'when I can fit it in' basis lol.
I live in Surrey with my family, 2 daughters, 4 Grandchildren and my eldest daughters partner.
I am looking forward to being part of the CCM DT, although am currently wondering what I have let myself in for!!

Kim’s ‘Anything Goes’ card

Sally

My name is Sally, I live in Bristol with my husband Glenn & our feline fluffball called Poppy. I’m lucky enough to have 2 great kids & 3 special grandchildren. I’ve always been creative & have tried my hand at lots of different crafts including crochet, making soft toys & cross stitch. I started scrapbooking about 8 years ago & moved on to designing cards which I really enjoy. I don’t have any particular style but I love using digi images, pastel colours & pretty ribbons.

Sally’s ‘Anything Goes’ card

Susan

I've been doing some type of crafting since I was very small and Mum taught me to knit and sew, however a couple of years ago I discovered rubber stamps and distress ink and the knitting needles are gathering dust. I used to have another life which I think involved things like cleaning, ironing and cooking, but I can't find it - it's vanished under a pile of paper scissors and glue!
Generally I'm best at making an inky mess, usually on my hands and clothes and occasionally, if I'm lucky, a card will appear!

and finally

Susie

Initially I started out crafting as a Watercolour Painter a friend suggested that I painted miniatures and mount them onto greetings cards, this took off quite well and on hearing this my Sister bought me a card making kit for my birthday 5 years ago. Within weeks I'd become hooked and within 6 months I'd spent a fortune and I haven't looked back!!
I have one very patient and encouraging husband and 3 children between 9 & 16 years old who love to craft with me.
In the last year I have started to learn to Crochet and to knit and I have all the gear to try dressmaking too ( but I'm too afraid to cut the fabric).
I started to blog around 4 years ago and try to post at least 3 times a week. I'm obsessed with challenges so the more the merrier!!.

Susie’s ‘Anything Goes’ card

Right so that’s the introductions over with, lol.
 
This is what the rest of our lovely team came up with starting with our host for this challenge:

Me

I was very lucky and won three gorgeous Digis from Crafts and Me a couple of weeks back and this is the first outing for one them, she is called Felicia. I coloured her with a combination of Flexmarkers and Promarkers and her tail is glittered with glamour dust. Her beads are also glittered with MS Glitters. The BP is from my stash, a lovely paisley pattern, and the blue embossed background I made with a paisley pattern embossing folder. Some flowers from my stash, a doily and some bling finish it off.

Tracy

This card is made using digital images from Dustin Pike, I merged them together and added some shadows in my Scrapbook Software. I coloured it all in with Promarkers.

Fiona

For my pirate card I used 3 Magnolia stamps for the scene,not sure of their correct names.... the pirate Edwin,the barrel and anchor and then a small shell stamp.I coloured everything with PMs, used my distress ink for the blue background and added some gold stickles to the sand. I have used papers from the DCWV rockstar stack. My sentiment is a stamp from the Kraftin Kimmie pirate sentiments set. I used an Xcut punch for the border and the cord and charm are from my stash.

Josephine

I've been playing with a brayer and some new stamps from Clarity and Lavinia Stamps. And since I created and then went looking for some paper, I couldn't find anything in the right colours, so I resorted to Coredinations card from the Chocolate Box collection.

Jack

Anything goes, whooo hoooo!!!  This gave me a great opportunity to play with my parchment stuff.  I chose a pattern by my favourite Judith Maslen which was printed in the Sept 2009 edition of Parchment Craft Magazine.  It's called Autumn Fairy.  She is coloured with Derwent Studio Pencils.

Melly

Just like Jack, a wee Anything Goes mean I can go with my favourite kind of paper craft!!
For me that meant a my lil boxes! I made this Wedding one using purple 12x12 card, tartan papers, lots of nesties shapes, lots of flowers and sparkle and I used my Woodware Scottish Wedding couple. To finish the box I added lots of card candy and some sentiments.

Jenni

I decided to go with an autumnal colour combo for my Anything Goes card, the image is by Pollycraft and was coloured (as always) with my Promarkers, I added some faux stitching with a fineliner and distressed the edges of the patterned papers with my fab new distressing tool - a heavy duty emery board designed for acrylic nails!

Vix

For this I used an image by Lost Coast Designs which was stamped twice, once on iridescent pink cosmic shimmer and once on distress inks (spiced marmalade, mustard seed & vintage photo) cut and mounted.  The base is made with wild honey and forest moss distress stains with some iridescent pink sprayed on and overstamped with a hero arts harlequin and embossed with moonglow fiddlehead fern blue green embossing powder (all inks & powders from our sponsor The Stampman
 Sarah

I've used a scary Tilda again!  Anyone who knows me will know that Tilda scares me!  But, in the spirit of 'Anything Goes' I have faced my demons once more and used this stamp for my card.  All the backgrounds are handmade using stamps and inks and the very back of the card is dry-embossed core'dinations card attacked with some sandpaper.

We have a prize on offer of two gorgeous Pink Paislee stamp sheets. Wouldn’t mind winning them myself!

We will hopefully announce the winner and our Top 5 when we come back for our next challenge on 17th October.

Please add your link to your creation for our Anything Goes challenge below

We have had a slight change to our rules and will not accept entries that have been entered into more than 14 other challenges, (15 including our own) please check out the rest of our rules here

That’s about it, time to have some fun and we look forward to paying you a visit!