Announcing the brand new Funky Challenge for August 15th

Hi there Funky Friends!

Paula here to tell you that it's my complete pleasure to take up my turn in being your hostess this month and to welcome funky friends old and new to the brand new challenge that will run from today (Funky 15th August) to 14th September.

I joined this fabulous design team in February and absoloutely love being a Funkette - and have the best design 'teamies' in blogland. So, as all is fair in love and war, it has become my turn to choose this month's challenge - so I thought I'd go with a theme that is dear to most of us (young and old):

 AT THE SEASIDE 

sneak peek

I don't know about you, but when I think of the seaside, it conjours up all sorts of smells, sights, sounds - AND colours. So this is what I'm looking to see from you this month: Colours that remind YOU of the seaside...

Those colours, I'm sure, will be different from one person to the next. Some will think of the sand, some of the sky (or both), for some it might be the colours of some of the yummy ice-cream flavours available, fluffy candyfloss, stripy rock, the bright colours of the fair rides, fishing boats, buckets and spades, old fashioned deck chairs, wind-breakers, Punch and Judy show... I could go on as this is not an exhaustive list of ideas. The colours we use can be quite different depending on our experiences, which seaside resort you go to - or went to as a child and whether that was in good ol' blighty or abroad (ooh - the colours of the caribbean just came to me!)  Or what about a Spanish holiday or other holidays in far flung places... (i'm day dreaming now)....

Right, before I show you my card - if it's OK, I just have a little reminder and a small request if I may (please)...

The 'Get Funky' design team, quite naturally of course, want to see loads of stunning entries each month - and believe us - we DO see some incredible entries month in month out (thank you all). However, unfortunately, we still receive entries that haven't taken into account our one teeny weeny request - and that is to include at least ONE Funky Hand product in your project - which is such a shame because we even provide a free download each and every month. This means that we aren't able to take into account those projects that don't comply at the end of the month when we are at the point of considering the winner(s) - and after all that hard work you've done too - how miserable and disappointed would that make you feel? :o(

So if you are reading this and are raring to join in this month and still don't have one of Funky Hand's many CD's - just use this months freebie as your one element for now (then you can go and buy a CD or instant download afterwards), and work round it using other products you already have in your stash - just as long as there is at least this one FH element. Phew. Sorry if I sound like a broken record!!!

Anyway Funky friends, I hope you didn't mind me pointing that out - we're not finger wagging people here at Funky Hand cos crafting is all about fun - It's just that that one ickle point needed to be made for when you make a card or project for the challenge!!!

Right, without further ado, here is what I enjoyed putting together for this months challenge using colours that remind me of the seaside - and that is (a bit obvious mind), the sun, sea and sand. I've also used digi's from the Papercraft Factory CD's Colour Me Happy, Dreams Come True and Craft the Year Away.   All three of these CD's have some quirky, but very useful digi stamps on them - I mean, where else have you seen a bucket and spade or a smiling sunshine as well as an icecream cone (and a football boot - see my last DT challenge card) together... N.B. these are not necessarily off the very same CD - but are from the same Papercraft Factory collection of CD's. Nonetheless, these little digistamps are all available and have some fabby uses - some which you haven't thought about yet!!

ta daaa:

I've used glossy accents on the bucket and spade, although it hasn't showed up in this pic.  The bucket and spade - if you notice, are printed over the DP's - but have you noticed how the spotty one is proportional to the bucket?  Thats because in the workspace area of the CD, I have shrunk down the DP as far as I could behind the bucket - then all I had to do was cut it out.  If i'd have left the DP at the normal size - there would have been about one or two spots behind it!!!  Amazing what you can do with that Papercraft Factory programme!  I did two more buckets and spades like this - one of the other sets can be seen on a further card on my own blog post that co-incides with this post.

All the papers used on this particular card have been made using the same three Papercraft Factory CD's too - but as a massive fan of Funky Hand before I was on the DT - which was a 'dream come true' for a fan to be offered a position on the DT (pardon the pun and reference to one said CD!), I was (and still am) the very proud owner of all the other CD's that Anice had brought out including the very first one she took to C&C 'The Funky One' (the other ones I bought from her website or had them on pre-order chomping at the bit until they were released!!!

Before you miss out on some of her original (and equally fabby) work, you may be pleased to know that a limited amount of the original CD's are still available for sale on the website - so please hurry and grab yourself a bargain, because once they've gone, they've gone. Unfortunately, there will be no more production runs of them once they are sold, making room for new and exciting future CD's. (n.b. as a fan, I always found that they're all a great resource for masculine backing papers too).

I felt the need to add the ice-cream in there and of course the sun in the beautiful blue sky because of course it's ALWAYS like this when one goes away (she says with fingers crossed - tee hee!!!).

bits and juice anyone!!

I've paper pieced the ice-cream balls/lumps/blobs scoops, then used glossy accents all over them (which are available HERE on the website)...

The eagle eye'd amongst you may have noticed this:

well, I just had to start singing while I was making this card - so of course - It would have been rude not to have added those words in for a bit of fun (I defy you not to sing it... go on, you know you're going to... see I said you would! tee hee) lol.   Awwww, now I want to be beside the seaside instead of sat here in my conservatory - {{shouts "get the camping gear ready dear, we're off"!!!}} Sad to say, it doesn't quite work like that - boo!

By the time i'd finished my challenge card, I was on such a roll so I couldn't stop there - oh no, I made a further two cards on the 'seaside' theme - but i'll put them on my own blog rather than take up too much of your time up here (what do you mean I already have????) I reckon by now you're ready for the off, searching for your FH CD's in order to join in ((waving)).

However - if (sadly), you don't own a Funky Hand CD, Anice has kindly designed the freebie below just so that you can download it and join in with the funky fun... or go HERE if you want to become the proud owner of a CD which is like a library of funky, colourful designs at your fingertips.

click to go to download site

Just about every other day from now, one of my fellow Funkettes will post their inspirational take on the challenge - so please remember to come back and see look at what they've done- just to get your creative juices flowing...

Right, that's (almost) enough chat from me - but just to recap.

PLEASE:

a) use at least one FUNKY HAND product (it would help if you would just mention what it is - to help us and other readers of your blog too)

b) link your challenge entry post (not your whole blog) to Mr blue frog (inlinkz) at the foot of EACH post throughout the month

c) make sure that your challenge entry (recognisably) meets with the challenge theme

d) ensure that your entry is posted BEFORE midnight on 14th of the month (in this case 14th September)

e) don't backlink to a card you've posted before and only one entry per person please

and finally

e) have funky fun, fun, fun creating your challenge entry

Please remember to link your funky entry to the blue frog (bottom of post)

Thanks for reading and good luck in the challenge - i'll be round to comment on all entries that meet with the rule of the challenge.

Paula x x x