You may wonder why I went quiet.........

A few weeks ago I mentioned that I had something exciting happening.  Well I think it is about time I told you what has been going on.

I was recently asked by the very talented Sheena Douglass to join her design team. If you have ever seen any craft shows on the TV you will see them showing examples of the projects you can make using a particular product. Well clearly somebody has to make those, and this is part of what being in a Design Team is all about. So there I was saying 'Yes' to Sheena and wondering what I had let myself in for. Once my feet hit solid ground again (I had never done anything like it before) I waited nervously for the first request for samples to come in. I spent several days clearing the decks in my craft room, finishing off a few projects and generally getting excited about what was to come. 

And then came the call. TV show, in 2 weeks, samples needed. So the last couple of weeks have been spent working on some samples to be featured on the shopping channel, Create and Craft on Tuesday 16th July. HERE is the link to the show details

I was provided with a selection of her lovely stamps and some Luminarte Primary Elements. The brief was 'Anything but a Card'.

Now as you know I love a challenge, I seem to enter some sort of blog challenge at least once a week, but this was altogether different. I could only use the products provided so no dipping into my stash for that special stamp or fancy embellishment. 

So lets begin with the stamps I used. There are a lot of elements on each plate, which are A5 in size, and there are 2 other plates available in the Floral Fantasy range, Lily of the Valley and Wild Rose & Hibiscus. The Ageing Beautifully plate is part of the range 'A Little bit Sketchy' and is a very versatile stamp plate with some classic crackle and distress elements which I love.

Love the Bee

My Favourite

The Daffodils are Lovely

After some initial trials of what the colours of Primary elements could do, what surfaces they would work on, and some pondering about what to make that wasn't a card I came up with the following items.

 Triptych

Box

Banner

Spoons

The Primary Elements set I had to work with is called FAIRYTALES. They shimmer beautifully and the colour is really intense. There are other sets available and I would happily say 'get the whole lot'. They need to be mixed with the binding agent (supplied) for use on card and can be used on metals, wood, polymer clay and fabric when mixed with a clear glaze medium (also supplied). They can be used without any binding/glaze for chalking/dusting techniques. The other sets are:-

•  Dragons Dance- Coral Berry, Sunflower, Hot Cinnamon
•  Costa Rica- Olive Vine, Kiwi, Majestic
•  Fairytales-Wisteria, Dragonfly Wing, Stargazer
• Tahiti Dreams-Teal Zircon, Snapdragon, Pink Azalea

I also used some heat resist acetate for the wings of the bee and on the Triptych.  This is brilliant stuff and as the name suggests can be used with a heat gun without causing problems. It is useful for heat embossing. On the Triptych I used black embossing powder to stamp the images then coloured on the reverse with the Primary Elements to give a stained glass effect and I used black StazOn ink on the acetate for the bee wings.

The stamps are wonderful to work with and used with the Rock a Blocks you get a crisp image every time. I am a convert I must say. I have always used the flat acrylic blocks in the past but the slightly curved Rock a Blocks are so easy and comfortable to use I can see them becoming my 'go to' product for rubber stamping.

So, having seen my projects I hope you are inspired to see more. Sheena will be demonstrating these products and some fabulous paints, which other DT members got to play with, in her own inimitable way on Create and Craft on Tuesday 16th July.

Look out for mine and all the other lovely samples created by the other Design Team members on that show.

As always please leave a comment if you visit me here.

Happy Crafting, hugs from Kim