Blue and Brown Tilda with Sledge

I decided, as I liked the last Tilda with Sledge card so much, that I'd have a go at making the same card (or at least very similar) but in a different colourway.

I love these papers from the HOTP Ultimate Christmas Cardmakers pack. The colours are beautifully matched and the designs are wonderful to work with.

Tilda was stamped and watercoloured with Whispers Brushstroke markers, matted onto chocolate brown card and highlighted with Craft Planet Irridescent Sparkle Glitter Glue and Anita's Metallic White 3D dimensional paint.

Two co-ordinating papers from the HOTP Ultimate Christmas Cardmakers pack were cut to size and the blue piece was stamped using one of the scroll stamps from the HOTP Christmas Scrolls stamp set. This was done using the 3D stamping technique. The inks used for this were Brilliance Moonlight White pigment ink and ColorBox Chestnut Roan Fluid Chalk ink.

The two panels were attached to the card blank. A file tab was cut from matching lilac hammer card to the card blank using a Sizzlet die, and the sentiment stamped using two stamps from the HOTP Christmas Motifs set and ColorBox Chestnut Roan Fluid Chalk. This was attached behind the Tilda image and attached to the card front.

The scroll stamped image was then highlighted with Anita's Metallic White 3D dimensional paint.
I decided to leave off the snowflakes this time, but the rest is more or less the same as the Pink and Turquoise version.

Pink and Turquoise Tilda with Sledge

I'm really pleased with this one, even if I do say so myself!!

Tilda was stamped and watercoloured with Whispers Brushstroke markers, matted onto lilac card and highlighted with Craft Planet Lavender Glitter Glue (more on that later!) and Anita's Metallic White 3D dimensional paint.

Two co-ordinating papers from the HOTP Ultimate Christmas Cardmakers pack were cut to size and the blue piece was stamped using one of the scroll stamps from the HOTP Christmas Scrolls stamp set. This was done using the 3D stamping technique that I only learnt yesterday thanks to the Splitcoaststampers Weekly Newsletter that you can sign up for here. The inks used for this were Brilliance Moonlight White pigment ink and ColorBox Wisteria Fluid Chalk ink. The two panels were attached to the card blank.

A file tab was cut from matching turquoise card to the card blank using a Sizzlet die, and the sentiment stamped using a stamp from the HOTP Christmas Motifs set and ColorBox Wisteria Fluid Chalk. This was attached behind the Tilda image and attached to the card front.

Snowflakes were cut from the Papermania White Snowflake felt ribbon and attached in the corners.

The scroll stamped image and file tab were then highlighted with Anita's Metallic White 3D dimensional paint.

Now, as I mentioned earlier, Tilda's wings were highlighted with Craft Planet Lavender glitter glue. May i make a suggestion - don't try and get the glitter glue down to the nozzle if it's been stood on it's bottom by squeezing it with the lid still on. I ended up with a palm full of glitter glue and a bottle split from top to bottom!!! You've been warned!!!

Pink and Purple Polar Bear

Got a few more Christmas cards made last night and here is the result of my hard work!!!

The Polar Bear image, from the See D's Christmas Fun stamp set, was stamped using Versafine Onyx Black ink and watercoloured using Whispers Brushstroke markers. A wash of pink Sakura Stardust pen was added to the ribbons on the presents and the polar bear's nose was coloured using a black Sakura Glaze pen.

The corners were rounded and the image matted onto a piece of pink card.

The patterned papers are from the DCWV Rose Tinted Christmas stack. The edges were coloured and the strips attached across the square of text paper.

The sentiment was taken from the HOTP Christmas Sentiments stamp set and stamped sing Pearlescent Orchid Brilliance ink. Mini Snowflakes from the HOTP Christmas Motifs stamp set were added around the sentiment using Versafine Purple ink.

Small foam dots were added to the paper strip and bright pink transfer foil was added to the adhesive.

Red and Green Robins

I'm on a roll now - this is design number five, and that's 17 cards made. Only about 67 to go now!!!

This design is obviously loosely based on the last one, as the image is a similar size.


The three mini robin stamps, from the See Ds Christmas Fun stamps set, were stamped and watercoloured using the Whispers Brushstroke markers and the present was coloured using the light green Sakura Stardust pen.


The little hats and the snow were highlighted with the Papermania Glitter Flock.


The sentiment, from the See D's Christmas Messages stamp set, was stamped using Spanish Moss Versafine.


The two panels were matted onto DCWV red textured cardstock.


The patterned papers were taken from the HOTP Ultimate Christmas Cardmakers Creative pack and then matted onto red paper.


I can't decide if it needs a little something extra though - maybe spme faux gems or something. Will have to have another look at it. Let me know what you think.

Kerry Jo Balloon Girl Wallet Card

I just wanted to show you all the wallet card that I made for Annette (Sandra) over on the docrafts cardmaking forum for the die cut swap that was organized on there. I know that she has received it now so it's safe to upload the images to my blog.


The Kerry Jo Balloon Girl (available from the Debbi Moore website) was watercoloured using the Whispers Brushstroke markers, and mounted onto green card.

The patterned papers are from the DCWV Floral Prints paper stack. These were matted onto lilac paper.

The sentiment tag is taken from the Stamps Away Everyday Tag-Its set (available from Clevercut) and was stamped with ColorBox Wisteria Fluid Chalk ink.

Narrow lilac satin ribbon and lime green organza ribbon were threaded through the tag.

Lilac Papermania paper flowers (from an old Goody Bag) were coloured using Whispers Brushstroke markers. This was done by adding different colours of markers to different parts of the flower (pastel blue/green in the centre, with a few dots of purple, and purple on the petal tips) and then flooded with water to make the colours run, making the colouring of the flowers more realistic than the single shade they come in.

Once they were dry, they were shaped using an embossing tool and the mini purple See D's stamping mat.

Clear faux gems were attached to the centres of the flowers.

Craft Planet Iridescent Sparkle glitter glue was added to the flowers in the image.

The pocket section on the inside was created by punching three holes down each side and lacing lilac satin ribbon through the holes and tying in a knot at the back.

The reverse of the card was finished by stamping one of the bookplate stamps from the Stamps Away Bookplates, Anchors and Corners stamp set (available from Clevercut) using ColorBox Wisteria Fluid Chalk ink and my 'Handmade by' stamp from the Aspects of Design Botanical stamp sheet (available from The Stampman).

Using Copics

I don't have any of these pens (yet!?) but I found this really helpful blog by Marianne with loads of tips and techniques on using them to their best.

I thought I'd post it on here for two reasons - one is to keep it for if/when I get them and also so that anyone who does have them can easily find the blog.

The blog is called ilikemarkers and has lots of tutorials on using these great pens. I'll warn you now though - you'll probably spend a couple of days reading through all the posts. It's very comprehensive!

Here is an example if Marianne's work. A true work of art!!!

Red and Green Penguins

Wow - I'm on a roll now!!!

This is my fourth Christmas card design.


I started by stamping the penguin image from the See D's Christmas Fun stamp set and watercoloured using Whispers Brushstroke markers and Sakura Stardust pens. White Sakura Souffle pen was added to the penguins' bellies and Papermania Glitter Flock was added to the penguins' hats.

The penguin image was matted onto DCWV red textured cardstock. Patterned paper from the DCWV Scrapbook in a Stack was matted onto olive green paper and a length of red grosgrain ribbon was attached across this panel.

The greeting is from the Dovecraft Studio G Stylized Christmas Tree mini set, stamped with Brilliance Rocket Red ink and matted onto the red textured cardstock.

So, that's 13 down, still many more to go!

I'm entering this one in the ABC blog challenge - this week's theme is 'R is for Ribbon'.

YIPPEE!!!!!! I've made some Christmas cards!

I have finally made some Christmas cards - nine in total!!!

I have three designs and three of each.

They are all variations on a theme as they were all made using the tag stamp from the Papermania Let It Snow set, but each is completely different.

However, this was definitely a lesson in pick your patterned paper first and then choose which coloured card to work with.

The first card I started with some lovely Aegean blue card, but having made up the tags I discovered I didn't have any blue patterned papers to complement the tag!!!

The tag was stamped onto the blue card using the large tag stamp from the Papermania Let It Snow stamp set and silver embossed.

The centre section was stamped and embossed again onto white hammer card and small snowflakes from the HOTP Christmas Motifs stamp set were stamped on it using Whispers Azure Seas Permanent Dye ink.

The Snowflake/Let It Snow stamp was stamped using Ink It Up! Bright Blue Pigment ink and silver embossed. The words and snowflake were coloured with a blue Sakura Stardust pen and highlighted with white Sakura Souffle pen. The edges of the image panel were pricked with a pricking tool, and silver metallic weave ribbon was threaded through the tag.

Blue card to match the tag was matted on to silver mirror card. A strip of Anita's Classic Christmas Silver vellum was stamped using the Wavy Merry Christmas Border stamp from the See D's Christmas Messages stamp set using Ink It Up! Bright Blue Pigment ink and silver embossed. The vellum was attached to the card pieces using mini silver brads at the ends.

Snowflakes were stamped in the bottom right hand corner using Ink It Up! Bright Blue Pigment ink and silver embossed.

I thought the second design would be easier as I started with a lime green tag and I knew I had lime green patterned papers - but then I discovered that the tag didn't really show up on the green so had to pick complementary colours to show it off.

The tag was made in the same way as the blue one but with lime green card, the snowflakes were stamped using Whispers Savoy Green Permanent Dye ink, and the Christmas Tree image and text, also from the Papermania Let It Snow stamp set, was stamped using ColorBox Apple Green Pigment ink and silver embossed.

A square card was folded to create a fold-back card.

Two pieces of paper from the Papermania Naughty and Nice Christmas paper pack were attached to a piece of silver mirror card and attached to the inside of the card. A line of Glitz It Pear Green Glitter Glue was added along the join line.

A matching piece of paper from the Naughty and Nice paper was matted onto silver mirror card and attached to the fold-back section of the card. The tag was attached over the folded edge of the card.

The third card was just as difficult. The green card was just the wrong shade of green to go with most of the green patterned papers I have and in the end I opted for a black and white card with a hint of green!!!

Again, the tag was made up in the same way using dark green card, but the snowflakes were stamped using Whispers Pine Green Permanent Dye ink and the mistletoe image and text from the Papermania Let It Snow stamp set was stamped using ColorBox Apple Green Pigment ink and silver embossed. The mistletoe berries were coloured using a white Sakura Souffle pen.

The fold-back card this time was made from an A6 card blank and the patterned papers, also matted on silver mirror card, are from the Anita's Classic Christmas Black paper pack.

Brand New Stamp Company Launched

I just wanted to draw your attention to a brand new rubber stamp company that has just launched in the USA.

It is owned and run by Denise of the Stamp Something blog challenges and is called Whimsy Stamps. The website and online shop will be up and running next week and you can keep up to date with all the news over on Denise's blog.

News of the launch can be found here.

To celebrate the launch, Denise is offering the chance to win one of the stamps as blog candy, so pop over and have a peek!!

Amazing Blog Candy from Debbie - CLOSED

Debbie has some amazing blog candy over on her blog to celebrate 12,000 hits.

You can see what's up for grabs here.

Not only does she have a couple of lovely Sugar Nellie stamps, there is also a 12x12 K&Co Swell Noel paper pad and the matching Pleated Grand Adhesions.

BUT the piece de resistance is a selection of 17 Copic Sketch markers.

WoW!!!

This will be drawn on the 26th November.

Flutterby Crafts Design Team Entry - Everything's Coming Up Roses

Here is my entry for this month's blog challenge over at Flutterby Crafts. The theme for this month is 'Everything's Coming Up Roses', and the lucky winner each month will win a £10 voucher to spend in the shop.

The size of this card is 12.5cm square and is made from burgundy card from the Papermill Shop.

The rose was stamped using the large rose stamp from the Non Sequitur Memories Of Italy set, Versafine Crimson Red archival pigment ink and watercoloured using Whispers Cherry Red and Chestnut Brown permanent dye inks from the caddy.

This was matted onto a piece of white card colour tinted with Tim Holtz Shabby Shutters Distress ink and overstamped using one of the flourish stamps from the Autumn Leaves Rhonna Farrer Flourishes v.1 set and Whispers Savoy Green permanent dye ink.

This was matted onto burgundy card to match the card blank.

The corners of the card blank were stamped using the same flourish stamp and Brilliance Moonlight White pigment ink.

The patterned papers are from the Basic Grey Eva paper pad (a purchase from my recent excursion to the Glitter Pot!!).

The decorative corner was created by stamping one of the corner stamps from the Stamps Away Book Plates, Anchors and Corners set on a piece of matching Eva paper and cut out. A paper piercer was used to add holes through the small circles.

The other design team members that have added their cards to this challenge are:

Joanna
Pamela
Stacey
Tenia
Tracy

You can view their cards on the Flutterby Crafts blog or by clicking on the link above and going to their own blogs.

EXCITING NEWS - I'M ON A DESIGN TEAM!!!

I just wanted to let you all know that I have been selected to be on the Design Team of my local craft shop, Flutterby Crafts.

They are starting a new online challenge on their blog later today, and, as far as I know, a prize will be up for grabs. Once it is up and running I will add my card to my blog.

Please head over there and have a look. They are in the midst of developing their online store but the bricks-and-mortar shop in Thatcham Berkshire is a very welcoming place full of goodies (and they are hoping to start stocking Penny Black stamps soon much to Tracy's delight!!).

Some Organizing Tips from Becca

I've been having a trawl through Becca's blog - as you can see from my earlier post and she has some great tips on organizing your stash and also having a record of what you've already got.
So far I've discovered a ribbon swatch book, 2 catalogues of dies and punches here and here and a colour swatch book of colouring media.

I found the latter particularly interesting. It can be used to assess the true colours of your pens, pencils, inkpads etc without having to scribble on a bit of scrap paper every time you use them, and also to stop you duplicating your stash when you see a sale just in case you haven't got that colour!!

It is definitely one of those projects that I will endeavour to tackle in the new year - along with my ribbon holder!! My other task is to add a sticker to the bottom of all my inkpads showing the colour of the ink so I can see immediately what colour they stamp out at.

Becca also has a great ribbon storage idea here that might be of interest to some of you. My only concern would be that the ribbon would crease if wrapped around the board.

Creating A Frame Using Corner Punches

I have come across a great tutorial using corner punches to make a frame over on Becca's blog.

The effects are great and she explains it really well.

Pop over and take a look.

Here is a picture of what she achieved!!

I think you will need a corner punch where you can remove the wings to use it as a normal punch to create this effect.

She has a few other tutorials on her blog as well.

New Debbi Moore Online Video Demonstrations

Debbi Moore has launched a new site that will have videos demonstrating crafting projects.
The first episode to watch is called The Taste of the Orient.

There are projects showing you how to do mini books, template cards and waterfall cards, and the spinning technique.

I'm sure there will be some great shows in the future with some great inspirational projects.

Blog Candy Up For Grabs From Ria - CLOSED

Ria has some funky Fairy blog candy up for grabs here.
You can see what's up for grabs below and there will be some extra surprise bits included too.


This will be drawn on the 22nd November.

Template Website

I have come across a great website with some printable templates and thought I'd flag it up!
It is Paperscrapz, and has templates for shaped cards, baskets and gifts, just to mention a few!!!
There are also links to other template sites on there, so a good go-to site if you ever need templates!

Janet's Great New Venture and Some Blog Candy - CLOSED

Janet, aka Craftycairn, aka Pink Gem, has lauched some new stamps that are available from her new website.
To celebrate this new launch, she is offering a couple of the new stamps as blog candy here.

All you have to do to enter the draw is leave a comment on her BC post and then post on your blog about Pink Gem Designs. The draw will take place on Tuesday 18th November at 7pm.

Autumn Leaves Ticket Stamps Tutorial

I recently purchased this set of stamps and I know they are increasingly popular.

I have discovered a great tutorial over on Aud's blog explaining a great way of making them look more like tickets.

Head over here to see how she achieves it.

A Great Day of Stamping, Crafting and Making Friends

I meant to post this on Sunday but I had great problems with my Internet connection, and then I've just not had a chance to sit down and get on with it since.


Anyway, I'm talking about last Saturday - although the day actually started on the Friday as I didn't sleep at all on Friday night (believe me, this took its toll later on in the day!!)

I was up at 5.45am (I didn't realize there WERE two 5.45's in the day!), showered, dressed and in the car and heading for Newbury train station by 6.45am. I was on my first train at 7.05am and on my way to West Sussex. I only had one problem with the trains -probably due to the wrong sort of rain on the line, so missed my connection at Redhill, but thankfully I eventually arrived at Haywards Heath just 30 minutes later than anticipated.


There I was met by the lovely Alex (I sort of recognized her from her blog picture and was hoping I wasn't smiling like a mad person at a complete stranger!!) and from there we headed to the Glitter Pot where we met up with Julie and Sarah, who had made the trip from London and Surrey respectively. Michelle Saxon was there demonstrating the BIA and the Dreamkuts, and we all took notes as we all wanted to have a play with the BIA later on in the day. Having spent far too much money in The Glitterpot, we then headed off to Alex's house for an afternoon of crafting.


We all decided to get lunch out of the way, but not before some great gifts were exchanged. Alex gave us all some wonderful hand-made goody bags, each containing a lovely calendar, some stamped images from the new Magnolia Christmas collection, and some beautiful papers. Julie had made us all a lovely book of papers, made with her BIA,




here is the book she gave to me:




and Sarah gave us all a box of Belgian Praline chocolates (one of my favourites!)


After lunch, we decided to make the most of Alex's graphic design background and get her to give us all a crash course on using the Copic Markers. When used properly, the effects really are amazing. The colours are so vibrant and they blend beautifully - but, only when done properly!! I think I'd want to practise a bit more before I committed to spending all that money on them.


After our colouring lesson, we all took advantage of Alex's amazing collection of stamps and started stamping some images out. This was accompanied by a delicious Donauwellen cake that Alex had made herself, and reminded me of 'Kaffee and Kuchen' when I lived in Germany. I love all those rich German cakes and this was no exception.


Then, with the exception of Julie who made a start on her calendar, we all started to make mini books following the instructions given by Michelle Saxon earlier in the day (although of course there's always one person who manages to mess their design up completely due to not paying attention - stop pointing fingers at me!! :}).


At about 5pm, my eyes started to get very sore and itchy, no doubt a result of the fact that I hadn't slept the night before!!


Unfortunately, the day had to come to an end. Julie and Sarah bid their farewells at 6pm and headed home. I stayed a bit later as my train wasn't until 7.30pm. Alex dropped me off at the train station and we both expressed our hopes that we'd be able to do this all again!! I have to admit I really enjoyed the day and would love to do it all again, but it was a very long and tiring day!!


Thankfully all my trains were on time on the way home. I almost missed getting off the train at Gatwick but realized just in time where I was and managed to jump off. I didn't fall asleep at all on the journey home amazingly, and was picked up from Newbury station by my lovely hubby at 10.20pm.

If I ever manage to sort out my mini book I'll post a picture of it on here for you.

Blog Candy from Carly - CLOSED

Carly is very generously offering a bumper pack of blog candy over on her blog.



To be in with a chance of winning, all you have to do is add Carly's blog to your list of favourite blogs, leave a comment on her blog candy post, mention her blog candy offer on your blog and follow her blog.


This will close on the 8th December so Carly can get your stash out to you before Christmas! She will also ship worldwide so anyone can join in!!

I've Been Tagged!!!

I've been tagged by the great Tara!

This is how it works. YOu have to link to the person who tagged you and list the rules on the blog.

Then answer the five questions and tag five people. Add links to their blogs, and let them know they've been tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.


Things I Love
1. The feel of the sun on my skin
2. Going on holiday and relaxing
3. A lovely cup of hot tea
4. Spending quality time with my DH
5. Buying new crafty stash


Things I Hate
1. Not having a large dedicated craft room!!
2. The cold!
3. Blackcurrants
4. Migraines (luckily I don't get them very often now)
5. Worms/Snakes


Music on iPod or Playlist
1. The Goo Goo Dolls - Iris
2. Take That - Shine
3. New Kids On The Block - The Right Stuff
4. Girls Aloud - The Show
5. Hallelujah - Rufus Wainwright


Fav Foods/Drinks
1. Thai Food
2. Malibu and Coke
3. Anything with prawns and/or seafood in it
4. Turkish Delight
5. Bacon Rolls


Now to pass this on..... I think I'll tag Alex, Kim, Natalie, Julie and Jo

Blog Candy from Bev and Elaine - CLOSED

Bev, from the Whiff of Joy design team, has some great blog candy up for grabs. She has one of the great WOJ stamps up for grabs over on her blog. This is open until the 12th November.


There is also blog candy over on Elaine's blog. She has some Promarkers up for grabs. I haven't tried this colouring technique yet so this would be a great starter kit!! (HINT HINT!! LOL!!)

You can see what's up for grabs here and here. This is open until 15th November.

Lots and Lots of Blog Candy from Clare - CLOSED

The lovely Clare Curd of docrafts (you might have seen her on QVC recently) is offering LOADS of blog candy over on her blog.
She is offering a different BC every other day for two weeks. It started on Tuesday and you have a week to add you comments to be in with a chance.
Unfortunately there don't appear to be Permalinks on the docrafts blogs so I can't pinpoint the actual posts so you'll just have to scroll through the whole thing to find all the different BC posts. That won't be too great a hardship though as Clare is a great designer and you're sure to get some great inspiration from her cards on there.

DH's Anniversary Card For Our 10th Anniversary

I am taking a huge risk posting this on here. DH (Phil) hasn't had a look on here since I started this blog. He occasionally asks me what it is that I post on here, and stares at me with that look of incredulity (you all know the one) when I get excited that someone has left a comment, or I hit another 100 views on my blog counter.

So, with that in mind, I'm daring to post the anniversary card that I've made for our 10th Wedding Anniversary that we will be celebrating in December. I'm trying to get ahead with my 'normal' cards so that I can make a start on my Christmas cards and not have to worry that I haven't got my cards made for January after the holidays.

Anyway, apart from the imminent 'New Baby' card that is due to be made for the end of November, I am now up to date with my 'normal' cards, with them all made up to the end of January. Tomorrow, the big tidy up can commence in my craft room and I can get my Christmas stash out!!

So, this was the last card to be made, and hopefully it will go down well!

The card blank is deep red hammer card, and was folded to make a zigzag card. The patterned papers are from the Hot Off The Press (HOTP) Classic Creative Cardmakers Pack. The chosen papers were cut to shape and the edges inked with a black inkpad.

For the back page, I took the rectangle of patterned paper, and cut out a frame from the lower half. A piece of white paper was attached behind the frame, giving an area on which to stamp the greeting. The positioning of the frame ensures that it cannot be seen when the card is closed. A photo corner was cut from matching deep red hammer card using the Ellison Photo Corners Thin Cut die.



The other patterned paper panels were attached to the card blank, and punched border strips were then added along the cut edges. These are actually the waste from the lace borders that I added to the pink/black anniversary cards I made the other week using the Fiskars Lace Border punch, and thought these would come in handy for another project - and I was right. These are a lot less fussy and feminine than the lace part, and I think they work with the design.

The tag is artwork included in the HOTP Classic Creative Pack, which was simply cut out, and a black eyelet added (using my now very trusty Big Bite!) and some beige ribbon threaded through. A HOTP Word Fragment was 3D'd to the tag, and this was then adhered to the second panel of the card.

On the front panel, I used my HOTP Labels template to create the name plaque, using matching papers from the HOTP Classic Creative Pack. The letters are from the ColorBok Alphabet set. They are white paper letter die cuts that were coloured using the Brilliance Rocket Red pigment ink and over stamped using the Brilliance Graphite Black pigment ink and the Stone Texture stamp from the Judikins Artifacts cube.

Four lengths of brown ladder ribbon were attached to the front panel and the name plaque, complete with monograms (our initials) was added over the top of the ends of the ribbon.



I am entering this card into the Double Dutch Blog Challenge, the current challenge being to use only three techniques from the list on their blog.

The three techniques I have used are:
STAMPING
PUNCHING
EMBELLISHMENT MAKING

Head over there to see what the design team have come up with, and enter your creation.

Circular Embossing With Dies

Now I don't have a large die-cutting machine (PITY!!!) but I figure that one day I might have (NOTE: DH - please look at Christmas wishlist!!) and I know a lot of you do so might find the tutorial that I discovered very helpful.

Basically, the idea is to get extra usage out of some of those dies (I suppose the same principle could be aplied to some stamps as well).


The tutorial is over on Becca's blog, and the effects are amazing.


Here is the effect she has managed to achieve with one of the smaller corner embossing folders.
I think you'll agree it's beautiful, so pop over and take a look at how it's done, and at all the other lovely cards on her blog.