"Be My Valentine"

No I am not really asking that, is the theme for our Fussy and Fancy Friday Challenge which has just launched today.

 

I have never been one for enforced romance nor my Hubbie (well he is a Geordie).  Someone telling us that tonight is the night everything is supposed to be perfect and romantic and the night that your other half is supposed to act like he is some Greek families eldest son - Spiros - and the girls get all het up because their 'Spiros" forgot, or only got 7 Roses instead of 12 or he got carnations instead shock horror!!

I got this Manaquin ages ago off  my Sister

Even for kids Valentines day is stressful, will he won't he, will she accept the card will she throw it back at me??  Do you remember the old verses "Roses are Red, Violets are Blue (glad we cleared that one up) Sugar is Sweet and So are you??  You know I got a Valentine card every year when I was at school. I always imagined it was off LOL who I loved for five years all the way through the Senior School!! (Ian Lawrence was his real name) Remember that song "My Boy Lolipop do do do dooo he makes my Heart go Giddy Up do do do dooo" well that was out when we were at school and he hated it because everyone sang it to him.  I remember writing my diaries, do you remember your childhood diaries?  He looked at me today, I think he smiled at me, there was no-one behind me so it must have been me? By the third year I was writing things like, he spoke to me today, he said Can I take that chair??? (no sit on it, it next to me??????)  Well by the time we got to the fifth year I only said I still fancied him because it kept life easy, if I didn't they would want to know why and would make a big fuss.  He never did go out with me but we had a mutual understanding by the fifth year, he would smile and say Hi in the mornings and everyone would nudge me and giggle, so it made me feel in the realm of the "Girls with boyfriends" and I would pretend I was still  In love !! so it made him look good because not matter what he always had at least one follower!!  My Valentines cards, were they off him? NO, they were off my Sister Pamela!!! She knew I would never get a Valentine Card off anyone so she sent them to make me feel better, and it did I used to run home and tell her I got a card again this year and she would be all excited for me.   However, one year I got 2 !!!



I painted her in System 3 Titanium White Acrylic Paint



LOL well apparently he got married by about the age on 17 to a women with three kids who was about twice his age.  What a waste !

 

So you know what the real special moments in life aren't about enforced romance but about the Sisters and friends who are there as back up when you want someone to make you feel a little special even if its for a day, an hour, a minute. 

I Stamped the Clarity Stamp onto the red tissue paper.

However, I do love a nicely decorated ornament, or a really precious looking box of chocolates, or even a beautiful card or a funny card, and it is nice to see people looking forward to their Valentines night.  I think my Hubbie has only ever been home for Valentines night once in the whole time we have been married, Ah Ha you might say she is just bitter and  jealous!!!!!

 

So back to the decorated items, I have taken loads of pictures of this project because I just couldn't get it to look right.  I didn't like her waistline it reminds me too much of mine.  So I thought she needed to go on a diet or wear a wad of black stuff to take the emphasis off it.  She does look nice in real life though, honest!.

Then after stamping and heat embossing,  I de-coupatced it onto her chest for the top of the dress.

 

 I then stamped the same Clarity Stamp Heart onto white tissue paper, this time I didn't heat emboss.

 

 

I made some straps for the dress from one of my favourite Clarity Stamps, feminine you can use that word in so many things,  and now I finally have the lovely Lady that goes with it.

 

and some seems to fit to the front panel using the Clarity Stamp

 

 and of course she needed a waist band

 

 

So I fitted the straps - I think she needs a good  spar day by the look of her skin?

 

 

 Of course we needed a back to the dress - perfect back from Clarity Stamp.

This Plant is from the gorgeous Bunny Set.

That'll do nicely thank you.

 

 

 So now I just needed to stamp more tissue paper and fill in gaps - a patchwork dress!

 

 

 TA DA !

Because the dress cuts in so much at the waist she is starting to look a little top heavy?

 

I started to add ribbons etc as decoration.

Then I remembered about these bows, well I am not a bow person at all but  they definitely have their place in life.

I used a Marianne die here LR0116 - now it looks quite pretty but not right.  There were so many ways I wanted to dress her up you wouldn't believe, I am surprised I didn't get my sewing machine out and make a real dress???

 

Well I just played a bit !

 

I had stamped a full piece of card with the Clarity Stamp Garden Heart Ltd Edition stamp ready for the Die cutting and then I blended with blue Adirondack ink.  I will be honest I do love these Marianne Dies, they are always pretty and they always cut really well too.

 

 

Isn't this Heart Stamp just gorgeous.  

 

 I added some lace and ribbon to the bottom and I have been dying to stick this feather somewhere!!!!

 

So I think we are just about there ? I do like Romance really, but especially so in décor, I think she is bordering slightly towards the Victorian era with this bodice style dress, I think that era is known for its romance so it is quite fitting for the theme of our Challenge I think?

 

Just a little bit of mood lighting

 

A beautiful Garden to walk in, if you can't find a beautiful Garden you would walk in mine instead!!! Its getting there, we just need some plants?

 

 

And finally I have stopped moving the dies around and like where they now sit!

 

So I hope you all have a lovely Romantic Valentine's night, I will be sat watching a movie with the kids and my Hubbie will be trying all night to Skype and will probably give up at about 10pm.

 

Please enter our challenge, it doesn't have to be a project like this, we need Valentine cards too?  The rest of the Design Team have made some gorgeous cards and artefacts so please nip along for a look.

 

 so to enter click here : Fussy & Fancy Friday Challenge

and

Carry on Crafting

I would just like to thank all of my new followers I notice all newbies and I appreciate you all.  I notice I have even started to follow myself??? who knows how these things happen, I am the Chair!!

So thank you to me too.  Byse bye xxx