Thursday 28 May 2015

Fun with friends (and birds)

Hi everyone and thanks so much for dropping in here today!
A few days ago I was lucky enough to have a crafty day with friends, and apart from great company, lovely food and some good old crafty chats we also started to make a little altered file folder booklet.
Our lovely friend Anne had brought along her Crazy Bird Tim Holtz stamp set, so I decided to have a play with that.....

Now to be honest, when I first saw this stamp set I thought "whaaaaat"? That is one of Tim's new sets??? Not me at all, no way will I ever get/use that one. But then of course everybody and their cousin is using it right now, (and in my book that is often a reason not to use something), but then hey, there they were, and why not just have some fun with them. And you know what, the more I used them, the more I fell in love.....

Anyway, here are some pics of what I made:
Here's a close up of the little guy on the front. I stamped all of my birds on a piece of specialty stamping card, (thanks Anne for letting me use that). The background was created with distress inks and stencils on each of the pages. I only managed to finish part of the front during the crafty session, all the rest I then finished at home, adding more stamps etc.

Here is the next double page. I fussy cut the birds, coloured them with Distress Markers and Inks and then because of course I could not fussycut the feet etc etc I just drew them with a black pen once the main parts of the bird had been adhered to the background.
Here are some more close ups, as you can see, each of the pages has a pocket that can be used to fit in journaling notes, tags or whatever.

I used Tim Holtz, Design by Ryn and Carabelle Studio stamps through out and added loads of rub ons too. Anne has given me Tim's new rub-on tool as a present. Again when I first saw that, I never thought it was worth while to purchase it, but now that I have one, all I can say is WOW, it works like a dream and it has actually become easy to add rub-ons even over an inked surface. So once again THANK YOU ANNE!!!
Here is the final page, all done in a similar way, just playing with stamps and stencils, my all time favourite way of creating.

Ok, so I have now well and truly fallen in love with the Crazy Birds and have a funny feeling they may well drop into my basket one day soon after all.....

I want to thank Annie for being our wonderful host and Rita  and Anne for being such great company!! I'll leave you with a picture of us all:
    Annie        Anne          Rita           me

Thanks for your visit like always and stay inky!!


43 comments:

Ann Chuang Crafts said...

So cute birds!! I love the background you made! Just beautiful!!

Valerie-Jael said...

Beautiful work! Glad you had a fun day together, Valerie

Nikki Acton said...

Yes they are everywhere and not necessarily classic Tim, but so glad you are converted as you have made them look amazing Astrid! Wonderful you had a great day together too. Nikki xx

Annie said...

Love your journal Astrid....a great one for the kids to keep stuff in when you are on holiday xx

Your colouring of the birds is amazing and I hope I can do my journal justice....afraid it is still sitting as I left it. Love all those stamped details, especially the water droplets x

Sending you huge hugs and we certainly had a fabulous day xxxx

Annie xx

chrissie said...

So pleased that you had a great time Astrid and the book is fantastic. I feel as though I shared in the fun with you when I Iook at the great way you used the little birds.

Love Chrissie xx

froebelsternchen said...

You made this funny birds yours and all together as beautiful as always.. unique booklet Astrid!
Great to meet artfriends and have a good time together!
xxx
Susi

Margaret Mifsud said...

I was like you when I first saw those bird stamps but, again like you, the more I see them the more I love them. They are so cute and you coloured them so beautifully!! Love this little file folder .. a real treasure and it is always such a treat to catch up with crafty friends isn't it?? Fabulous post Astrid!! hugs xx

Sophie said...

Herrlich, deine Vogel-Szenen. Großartig und witzig gemacht.
Hat dich die "Vogel-Krankheit" auch erwischt?! :-)
Ich kann im Moment fast nichts anderes mehr machen, außer Vogel-Szenen :-)

Herzlichst Sophie

Jenny Marples said...

What a joy to have the loveliest group of ladies together for a play date. I can just imagine how much fun you'll have had together. And once again I'm loving this altered file folder full of those crazy birds. Like you I resisted for much the same reasons but like you it's creations like this that make me think again!!! And it sounds like that ball tool is great too - always good to get an expert opinion. Jenny xxx

Redanne said...

Oh Astrid I just LOVE how you finished yours (and folded it correctly - still don't know how I went wrong!) - I just love the colours, your wonderful stamping - and of course the crazy birds! It was such a great day and one I will remember for a very long time, there is nothing nicer than spending time with crafty friends! Hugs, Anne xx

Redanne said...

PS - you are so kind to give me a shout out - thank you! xx

Ros Crawford said...

Oh you did great with those stamps ... There have been many things I thought "no way" and then suddenly found myself using over and over again! That's the creative world I guess ... we are always pushing our boundaries!

Inky and Quirky Designs said...

Ah the birds get everyone in the end Astrid! They are so fun to work with.
Everyone looking very glam in the lovely group pic too :)
Big hugs
Donna xxx

Jennie Atkinson said...

I am with you on the birds Astrid so perhaps I might have to try them too! I love what you have done with them in the file folder - so wonderfully colourful!

Lovely to see you all in the fabulous photograph - the "A" team!!! Jennie xxxx

Pamellia said...

Wow such a gorgeous project! I felt the same way about those bird stamps, not my style and overused...but sure are making me rethink that one! This is incredible! Love that water droplet stamp and the white highlights are just brilliant! Such a lovely photograph, I can't believe you get to craft with such a talented bunch of ladies!! I seriously need to move to where you are!! You look amazing by the way, you all do! hugs :)

Patty O'Malley said...

This folder is fantastic! I love those birds because they are so different. It's also wonderful to have friends to share some crafty time with.

Terry said...

I am a bird lover and like you had decided to hold off due to them flying all over blogland. Astrid, I think these crazy birds will make it into your basket! Love your crazy birds and they look so happy on the gorgeous altered folder! So nice to see a group photo of so many lovely ladies! Hugs!

Marisa Job said...

Such a beautiful project!! Love the background and colors!! Hugs!

Dorthe said...

The birds are great fun,-even they will not be mine, I love seing when others are using them. Your colours are wonderful, and love the falling drops, and you created a gorgeous booklet Astrid.
Hugs,Dorthe

Vintagehandmade said...

Woow, Astrid, what can I say that everyone else hasn't already said! Your birds are just fantastic, you coloured them perfectly! I LOVE your rich textured backgrounds with amazing vibrant colours! Oh, and those water drops and white higlights, wonderfully wonderful! Such a beautiful booklet!
Hugs :)
Branka xxx

S@ndy Diller said...

Totally love those birds, you did such a great job with them. So nice of you to post the photo.
Nice seeing all you lovely ladies.

Alie Hoogenboezem-de Vries said...

You must have hadso much fun with the crazy birds, Designs by Ryn stamps, Carabella and the stencils...What a great make you share with us, Astrid...I really, really enjoyed every page!!!
Lovely and sooooooo creative!
Greetings, Alie :-)

Anita Houston The Artful Maven said...

LOVE this!!! Crafting with friends is the best, and what an awesome crew of ladies! LOVE your crazy birds!!!

Rita said...

Your folder looks so grand Astrid. I have managed a good bit of mine too, but had to stop and make some birthday cards. It was indeed a great day and we crammed so much into it as well. Here's to the next one. Hugs Rita xxxx

Unknown said...

Really love your birds,the colour combo is great.My favourite part has to be the droplets, they are stunning. So pleased you enjoyed your get together with your crafty friends. Sue Balawajder

pearshapedcrafting said...

Hmm! I had the same thoughts about the birds but a friend was kind enough to let me stamp some so who knows I may change my mind too! I love your file folder! (crumbs!! just realised I should have e-mailed you by now!!) Chrisx

Corrie Herriman said...

What can I say, like everything you make these are fabulous too !!!
Corrie x

Unknown said...

Heheheheh - I would love to be an ugly bird and be crafted by one (or all) of you.... WHY?... because you would make me totally beautiful AND... I would get to see all of your other creations while you were working on me!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! This is wonderful...you did FANTASTIC with your little friends.... and yes - they ARE your friends now - heheheh - can't help but laugh!!! Now that you have endorsed Tim's birds Astrid...there will be a run on the stamps!!! LOVE LOVE LOVE the picture of the four of you FABULOUS crafty ladies together. Thanks BUNCHES for sharing. j.

Unknown said...

Astrid, the backgrounds are absolutely gorgeous! I think the birds are so fun, there's something quite endearing about them. I'm glad you had fun and why a sweet photo of you all! :) x

Kathy Bradley said...

Astrid - what a pretty project! It sounds as if you had a wonderful time with your friends! I too ended up loving the crazy little bird set by Tim - they always make me smile.

Jac said...

another fab piece with that lushy stamp x

Deb said...

Sounds like you had a wonderful crafty day with friends Astrid, how wonderful to be able to get together! I thought the same as you when I first saw the 'Crazy Birds' stamp set but have now fallen in love with them, they make me smile each and every time I see them :O) What a wonderful file folder book, fabulous colours and love all the sentiments and embellishments you've added. Thanks so much for sharing this great little album.

rachel said...

Hiya Astrid - well I love what you have done with the crazy birds and so glad to hear you're falling in love with them - I think they are awesome little chaps - I love them to bits. The file folders look great and I look forward to using some when I go to visit Anne and Mo in the near future! Big hugs to you and don't forget to let me know how to get payment to you! Big hugs Rachel x

Juliz Design Post said...

Hi Astrid, yes these birds are rather infectious lol. Great little folder, love the bright rich colours. Lovely photograph.
Julie x

Nicole Wright Designs said...

Firstly, you all look STUNNING! I love your folder. It's so vibrant with colour and so much going on! I felt the same way about these birds at first. Now, I adore them! They are so fun to work with and each one telss a story. Making creating with them more fun! I love how you've used them. It's hard to tell you weren't Bird Crazy! Way to go Anne for bringing them over.

Craft Addicts - Tracy Evans said...

Firstly what a lovely picture of you all. Love your file folder , the intensity and depth of colour is fabulous. Love how you used the birds. Tracy x

Meggymay said...

Love what you made with the Crazy birds, all fabulous projects. This set should have come with an addiction warning.
Yvonne xx

Marjie Kemper said...

Oh, I love working in file folders and you've done a knock-out job here. What a delightful group you were crafting with, too!

Silvia(Barnie) said...

Was für ein tolles Projekt. Die schrägen Vögel sind zur Zeit meine Lieblingsmotive.

Carol said...

Gorgeous xxxx Love your folders xxx Looks like you all had a fab fun filled dayx Have a lovely weekend x

pchickki said...

Love all your pretty little birdies :)

Words and Pictures said...

Tee hee - lovely to see you let rip with the birds. Gorgeous vivid colours against the vintage pages. Like you, I've been resisting, and then I found them at a great price, ordered them, and they failed to arrive - I guess it's just not meant to be.
Alison xx

Paper Profusion said...

Stunning make Astrid, those birds keep growing on me and really make me smile. So lovely to see you ladies together, you all look terrific. Nicola x

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