An odd sort of day!

Well, it's definitely been a strange sort of day today! I had planned to spend as much time this weekend as is humanly possible working my way through a long list of craft projects. My youngest daughter had other ideas...

Poor little girl really hasn't been feeling well - raging temp, aches all over, irritable etc, so of course she wanted lots of cuddles from her mummy, so - no crafting for me this morning and for the better part of the afternoon!

However, I have managed to complete 6 ATC's for a group swap, I will sort out some photos so you can see what I've done. We had a choice of themes to work on, and me, being me, chose to do all 4!! The cards I completed today were the ones for the 'Devour' and 'Girl' themes. The problem I have is getting the picture in my head onto the card itself. I can usually 'see' in my mind exactly what I want to do, but translating it into reality is a different thing altogether! Added to that, my concentration isn't all it should be at the moment, and I kept finding myself either half way to doing something, and forgetting what it was I was supposed to be doing, or just staring into space. Never mind, despite all that, I have shortened my to-do list slightly. Or I would have done, had I not signed up for a 10 tag swap on yet another group. I guess I just work better when there is some pressure!!

I used acrylics to make an ATC background for the first time today, and have to admit that I'm really quite happy with the effect I achieved. I put a small amount of 4 different colours onto an old cd that I use as a palette, then used baby wipes to apply the paint. Using the wipes gives a lovely finish, and moves the paint around really easily without leaving brushmarks. The effects are slightly different according to whether the wipe is wet or dry, but both are lovely! The best bit about using wipes? No dirty brushes when I'd finished! Just drop the wipes into the bin. Another advantage is that there's no need for a pot of water on my desk - a recipe for disaster if ever there was one! In fact, I had intended to use alcohol inks for my background - I absolutely love using them, but I couldn't find my applicator, so was forced to re-think. Not a bad thing, as I definitely will be using the acrylics again.

I also managed to complete a challenge card for another of the groups I belong to. Each month, one member sends out a small kit of card-making components to all the other participants, the idea being that we all use the same components to make a card. The variety of cards that can be made from the same components is truly staggering. So far, no two have ever been identical. Another advantage to using a limited number of components is that it forces you to think creatively! Perhaps try something new...