Let me start by saying a big thank you to you all for all your birthday and holiday wishes last week I was really touched. We visited the beautiful island of Lesvos in Greece and celebrated my 52nd birthday there, it was fabulous, swimming, walking, eating, drinking, shopping, hot springs to heal are aching bones, and practically no internet which meant I had to take a little break from visiting you all. The last night of our stay there was a severe power cut for several hours and the whole island was in darkness, now this is the third largest island in Greece so it felt quite eerie , it was night-time and we were out for dinner at the harbour when the power failed. It could have been a disaster but it was incredibly romantic , candles everywhere and people talking in hushed tones we could just see the twinkling lights of Turkey off in the distance and it turned out to be one of the highlights of our stay.
This is a photo I took through a whole in a wall and that little balcony that you can see is where we used to have coffee at night to watch the sunset, its tiny and just hangs out over the rocks a perfect end to a perfect day.
Right on to business …. over atAddicted to Stamps its time once again for a new challenge and we are asking you to create a card with the emphasis on using markers to colour your image. Since this will be a regular challenge and due to the fact that I’m rubbish at colouring in, hence my lack of the aforementioned I have had to do some serious shopping and practicing. The shopping part was dead easy , I bought loads of Copics none of which matched each other so I keep returning to the scene of the crime every other day to get me some more. I think the guy who runs the shop thinks I’m either a stalker or a nutter as he has given me three colour charts so I can mark of what I have bought and of course I have lost all three of them ! I’m a bit embarrassed each time I go in and so make up for it by spending a fortune . I have to say I find this colouring in lark quite difficult and have wasted tons of paper on it but I do find it rather therapeutic . Not that my card is anything special by any means, I have so much to learn but am enjoying the process immensely, so come and have a peep at my little cards yes cards , got carried away and made two !
I created the background with my Cameo and then masked it with this great flower image from Hero Arts and used the Copics to colour the blooms, this was about my tenth attempt as either the shading looked wrong to me or I was so far outside the lines it looked like I had drunk about four large Gins ! ( the gin came afterwards )
Heres another one with a different background and I’ve used some stickles on the flower centres a bit of an error I think but it took ages to do so tough !
Please pop over to Addicted to Stamps and see what my fabulous and talented team mates and expert coloureres in have come up with and why not take part , you can’t be any worse than I am !
Right off to bed and lather myself up with the mozzie cream , the little buggers are vicious this year and due to lack of funds here in Greece our local council was unable to do it’s usual spraying ( most probably a good thing ) so all you can hear in my house at night is the constant slapping sound of Teo and I trying to kill the little buggers or our swearing, not very conducive to a good nights sleep !
Hope to catch up with you in the next few days as I am suffering from a little post holiday depression apart from my DT duties I’m avoiding my Mac so please bear with me.
Ta ra
Marie
baileyrosy 
Glad you had a great time Marie, it looks beautiful as do your cards. x
A fabulous bold design Marie, looks wonderful in both colour combos. Your holiday photo looks stunning:)
Val x
My goodness Marie, you’re doing a great job as the Greek tourist board! It looks beautiful and I know what you mean about the power cut – I once spent an eveningin a pub in the west end of London when there’d been a power cut and it was so peaceful and such a lovely atmosphere. Your cards are both completely breathtaking but especially the first with that amazing colour combination. Hope your post holiday blues turn quickly to pinks… those naughty doglets aren’t being cruel to you are they?! Hugs, Vicky x
Hello, my dear! SO GLAD you had a wonderful holiday!!! And your two cards are AMAZING!!! I adore poppies, so these are just some of my favorites! GORGEOUS backgrounds–I think I am partial to the red ones–the background is amazing! 🙂
Two wonderful cards, fabulous coloring.
So pleased you enjoyed your holiday Marie and thank you for a wonderful picture of where you had coffee
Your cards are both amazing I think and the colouring looks terrific.
Love Chrissie xx
It sounds like you had a wonderful time – soooooo jealous! I love both your cards too. I feel responsible for your shopping sprees…. wooo hooooo. Beautiful colouring with your new copics – you look like an expert already xx
Glad you enjoyed your holiday. Lovely flowers, Valerie
Welcome back, looks like you had an amazing adventure! Your cards are also A.MaZinG! You just reminded me that I have this stamp (& it’s one of my faves….. I really must get it out again), Those bg’s are sooooo clever, you’ve totally inspired me, thanks heaps!
Looks a glorious place to spend a holiday. Your cards are beautiful and the colouring is Fab.
Yvonne x
Hello Marie! Once again beautiful cards! I think I can recognise the plase at the photo. I know Lesvos very well and I think it is a amazing island!
Oh to sit on that balcony and watch the sunset, beautiful.
Your blog is my first visit of the day and those cards have brought colour to my morning (a very dull day here). Particularly adore the second card with the addition of th Flapper.
So who won : the little blighters or the two of you?!!!!
Wishes
Lynne
Hi Marie,
Lesvos looks and sounds idyllic. I would love to bathe in the spa. We haven’t visited the Greek islands for a few years, but I feel as though I would love to return.
I’m pleased to hear that you had such a wonderful time, especially when the lights went out 😉
Both your cards are fabulous!! I love the stamps you used and those bright and beautiful colours. Your colouring is terrific…so stop knocking it!!
I don’t envy you having to put up with those mozzies, though. They always seem to make a beeline for me, and the bites swell into big blisters. Someone once told me to take vitamin B and they wouldn’t come near me, as it gives off an odour. I did, but they still ate me! xx
Marie – your holiday sounds fantastic and that photo had me drooling…… oh to sit on the balcony and watch the sunset (perhaps you can fit me in your suitcase next time???? lol). Back to business – your two cards are brilliant and your colouring practice has certainly paid off (unlike the loan you probably had to take out to buy all those Copics!) – you have coloured them beautifully and what amazed me was how you got the cards looking so different whilst using the same stamp. AB FAB!!!!!
Hugs.
Karen x
The cards are lovely Marie such a stylish stamp 🙂
So pleased your break went well with on injuries this time, the view looks so romantic 😉
Von ♥
52 and STILL romantic, – so glad to hear it 🙂 It looks absolutely lovely there, perhaps it has something to do with the sun! I was lucky enough to have picked a summer week, it’s Autumn again now and I know what you mean by post holiday blues.
However if you are feeling depressed after making these fabulous bright and cheery and so well coloured cards, I don’t believe you. Just looking at them would cheer anyone up, love them.
I’m glad you are adding to the Greek economy by losing your Copics LOL.
SO glad you had a happy birthday, I meant to have sent you a little something, but life got in the way big time. Perhaps next year, take care 🙂
happy to hear about your beautiful holidays.
The cards are amazing!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Hi Marie, your holiday island looks idyllic – the perfect place for a bit of R & R. The cards are fab – love the vibrancy of the colours and I’d say you are getting to grips with colouring with copics very well indeed. Your reference to mosquitos reminds me of the period we lived in Germany, nights when they terrorised us, and a certain ex-husband leaping about with a rolled up newspaper, thrashing at the ceiling, leaving horrible red splodges on the white paintwork, and wearing nothing but his birthday suit – me, I couldn’t do anything for laughing 🙂 Nice to see you back. Elizabeth xx
Not anything special???? My friend, your cards are sensational!! I’m glad you had a lovely holiday and hope you feel well rested.
A belated happy birthday Marie! Can’t believe I missed it. How wonderful that you got away for a bit…looks serene and beautiful. You are so lucky to be living in one of the most beautiful spots in the world. Jealous much!
Love both of your cards, but have to say I’m partial to the pinky tones of your second card. Just gorgeous so all that colouring worked out well!
Chin up, there’ll be another holiday soon hopefully. Never nice to ‘come down’ from the high though is it. x
Just popping over to tell you who my light bulbs are by! 😉 Not 100% sure of the set name, but the company is Maya Road!
Hi Marie…. Hope you’re getting over the post holiday blues, coming home is always the worst bit of holidays !!!
Your colouring is just brilliant, you’re obviously a quick learner. The poppies look so vibrant against the sky and I love the collage style bkgd for the red poppies :0)
Jenny x
Both of these are beautiful! Not only the coloring but the backgrounds are amazing and I’m not quite sure how you accomplished it! I’ve just got back from vacation and it’s hard to get back in the groove.
Hello lovey, glad to hear you had a lovely ‘romantic’ holiday, your pic is gorgeous. Now onto your cards – absolutely fab, but tell me, how on earth did you do these. I’ve got this stamp but I’ve never been able to get decent results with it. Gorgeous colours in the first one and did you stamp onto DP on the second? I want to make cards like these!! xx
what a gorgeous place to stay, and your cards are amazing! i esp. love the first: the colors are so vibrant and i love the birds in the background.
Glad you enjoyed your holiday Marie, it sounded fabulous. Your cards are lovely, the colours are fabulous and so is your colouring.
xxx Hazel.