Weekly Challenge and Winners {January, wk2}

Hi everyone Darcy here,
Wasn't last week an amazing start to the year. We had a wonderful introduction from Clare Lloyd and the return of some PaperArtsy friends. So much inspiration, from clean and simple to quirky and bright. I know many of you were delighted with the new projects and jumped right in to play along. 

Thanks to everyone who joined in and made projects alongside all of our guests. And thank you also for all the comments left on blog posts. It's really nice to see your response to all our contributors.

1. And the winners are...

Random winner #1 from the First Challenge draw (every single entry linked, including multiple entries) is: Deborah W

 Congratulations, you have won a PaperArtsy A5 stamp of your choice. 

 Random winner #2 the winner from the Second Challenge draw, (only one entry per name)

 is: Glenis F.

 Congratulations, you have won a PaperArtsy A5 stamp of your choice.

*Winners please get in touch with Darcy (darcydotneedles@hotmail.com) with your full  name,  address and choice of stamp plate. 

2. The week ahead...
Coming up later in the week ahead we welcome back ...uh oh!  Well that would be telling wouldn't it! Of course, like last week there will be some more surprise guests towards the end of the week, but first we start with an exciting brand new guest designer. 

Hi Guys, its Leandra here to welcome Julie Ann Lee!

Julie Ann is relatively new to crafting, but she has been bitten by the bug, and in the short time she has been crafting she has thrown herself in boots and all. Last year she was a regular playing along with guest designers, and quick to learn and incorporate new ideas into her own projects.

Despite being so new to this process, Julie Ann has quickly progressed through stages that probably took the great majority of us years, and she certainly manages to put her own twist on something, or try new ideas without fear. She is so bright and cheery in the way she presents blog projects, so if you haven't starting following her on her blog, you really should, she has a way of making you feel happy and certainly engenders motivation. I think Julie Ann is a true inspiration to us all.

We know she was a bit daunted by the task ahead, but nonetheless, she grabbed the bull by the horns and decided to go for it! Good for her, and I know you will love her! 

Even though this blog is already a bit like your second home, we extend a warm welcome to you Julie Ann.

Here's a few words of introduction from Julie Ann herself...

Hi everyone. Well, as Leandra has said, I am not a super-experienced crafter: I am still learning lots, so I hope you’ll feel able to learn along with me! 

It was PaperArtsy's ‘Ink and the Dog’ stamps that really sparked my interest in crafting the way I do. I had always loved making things, painting and drawing. Even though I studied English Literature at University, I spent hours of lecture time doodling faces, flowers, towers and Gothic windows and finding I could only just read my lecture notes through a tangle of squiggles and swirls! 

Then not so many years ago, a friend announced she wanted to make her own greetings cards and that she had heard of a great shop in London where they sold rubber stamps and card-making supplies. I went with her to Blade Rubber Stamps, an Aladdin’s  Cave of stamps, inks and papers not far from London’s British Museum and I saw my first PaperArtsy stamp plate: an ‘Ink and the Dog’  ‘Wings’ one! Those images really chimed with my imagination. Here were super quirky, dreamlike images that I wanted to play with in my own artwork. 

As soon as I discovered there was a Paper Artsy Blog, I was glued to the computer, avidly following Leandra’s tutorials and falling for Lynne Perrella’s incredible images, plus of course Portfolio Pastels, Fresco Finish Paints, Grunge Paste and Crackle Glaze. I love all things vintage and anything eclectic and unexpected. I am most happy when I’m playing with paints and inks and altering almost anything that offers me a friendly surface! 

It was Leandra – so kind and encouraging - who suggested I start blogging when I sent her photos of a little exploding box I had made using my ‘Ink and the Dog’ stamps, and in April 2013 I created http://magpieheaven.blogspot.co.uk/, my very own blog where I could spread my creative wings and - most importantly – share  with other crafty enthusiasts. 

Not long after this, again thanks to Leandra, I was on Twitter as @woletz1 and getting to know the lovely #PATWITS, who share their crafty ideas, advice and experiences so generously. They are a friendly bunch as I discovered when I went to Ally Pally for the very first time and met some of them. There are still some faces that I need to put to names so I am hoping that 2014 will be a year of making even more creative friends thanks to PaperArtsy.

Julie, it's been a delight to watch you this year, and I'm sure that the blog followers will enjoy your contributions this semester. Thank you for being brave and stepping up to the plate, we are thrilled to have you as a GD this semester.  

Thanks again, Leandra x

3. P.A.Weekly Challenge from....{Julie Ann and other guests}

I do hope that you will find time to join in with our new GD this week.Julie Ann will be joined in the latter part of the week with other surprise guests, and of course, if you are inspired by any item you see on the blog this week, then please share what you get up to, and link your creativity here. 

Your challenge entry can link to your own blog, Pinterest or Flickr pages, or any webpage that shows us what you have made in response to the posts on the blog this week. Just make sure you come back to this post, and use the linking tool below to show us your entry. We have extended the challenge entry deadline to 5pm on Sunday evenings.

Make sure on Sunday 19th January  by 17:00 (5pm London time) you need to have your link entered below, and you will go into one of 2 draws to win new stuff.

To help you find the linky tool when you need it, just look at the final green paragraph on each blog post, there you will find a link that brings you back to this post.

Weekly Challenge guidelines
The first draw is for every single entry listed, so if you have multiple entries, you get entered multiple times. 

The second draw is only for one entry per name, and the winner of Draw 1 is not included in this second draw. Having 2 draws makes it fair for everyone, no matter how many times you can join in during the week.

As this challenge is to show how you have been inspired to action by this week's designer, make sure in your blog post you explain what prompted you to create.

Please don't feel you need to copy a designer's work exactly, it may be one small aspect or idea that you want to explore that sends you into the creative zone. You are also welcome to use any stamps/ products / substrates you have to hand, we do not expect you to exclusively use PA products - but of course it is lovely when you do!

The winners are announced Sunday evenings in the 7pm blog post (as above). It is your responsibility to check back and see if you have won. If you are a winner, email Darcy darcydotneedles@hotmail.com with the name of the stamp you would like, and your snail address. We do not chase people for unclaimed prizes.

If we are away at an event, then the winners post would generally be updated by Monday evening with draw details.


Reminder: The PaperArtsy Annual sale is on now, but not for much longer. See details here on the side bar of the shop.