In stitches with stitched dies - and some mirror stamping

Hello crafty fans! Hope everyone is enjoying the transition into autumn, although it's been surprisingly warm and sunny here for a couple of days in my part of the UK. Yes, we do love talking about the weather!

Anyway, on to cards! As I mentioned in a previous post, I was waiting for some stitched dies from Simon Says stamp. They have now arrived and I absolutely *love* them. I have some other stitched dies, but not with double stitching and that is what I really like about them - I've a feeling the others may become redundant.

I had engagement card to make - I've made a few this year! - and I had an idea in my head using the Clearly Besotted hedgehogs and the stitched dies after seeing Michelle's cute panda card - but I needed to do some mirror stamping. I've watched several videos on YouTube and never had much success, but I persevered, and I think the results aren't too bad.

I started by making an A2 size card blank. I'm new to making card blanks and I think I need a new score board, as I'm using a freebie someone got from a magazine, so any suggestions please! I then took a piece of Neenah 110lb card stock and stamped a hedgehog in Memento Tuxedo Black, and after several attempts, managed to get a decent mirror stamp using an acrylic block and the back of a large clear stamp. If you don't have a clue what I'm talking about, this video from Crafty Not Shifty will help! I did need to go over the image with a fine black pen, but I was as happy as I could be with it.

I then coloured them with Copic markers and fussy cut them out. I have the dies, but I didn't want the white border around them. 

I took another piece of card stock and die cut it with the SSS stitched rectangle and circle dies as shown. On the card blank I adhered some patterned paper from the new Lawn Fawn Let's Polka In the Dark - I love the colours in this pack - can't wait to try the purple! I then popped up the front panel on the card blank with some fun foam and adhered the hedgehogs with some glue. Finally I added the sentiment - although it would have been easier to do it before I stuck it to the card blank.....

Supplies: Clearly Besotted Let's Roll; Neenah Classic Crest 110lb card stock; Memento Tuxedo Black; Hobbycraft Premium 300gsm card stock; Simon Says Stamp - Shapes with Stitches; Fun Foam; Super Sticky Red Tape; Double Sided Tape; Lawn Fawn Let's Polka In the Dark; Spellbinders Grand Calibur; Pitt Artists Pen - Fine tip; Copic Markers
 
I'm amazed I didn't do a shaker card with it, but I think it works really well just as is.

Thank you so much for reading, I hope you have a great weekend - it's to be sunny here on Saturday, so a trip to the park will be in order :)

 

 

More Thanks with Mama Elephant

Ha, bet you didn't expect to see me again so soon, but I told you I couldn't put down the Mama Elephant Heartfelt Wishes stamp, didn't I, so I have these to show you too!

This is the stamp set that just keeps on giving! You could do this design in so many different ways and I have plans to make a couple a week until after Christmas so I can use them to say thanks for Christmas gifts :)

The first two were so much fun to make, I made some more the next day!

Really simple with stamping the same sentiment in grey ink - I used Memento London Fog, but I don't think it gives terribly great coverage - across a piece of card cut to fit the card blank. I stamped the 'Thanks' onto the card too in varying Ranger Dye ink colours, but then decided I wanted it to pop out more, so stamped it again onto another piece of card, cut it out and adhered it with foam tape. I attached this to the card front, then added enamel dots and sequins (with glossy accents for a change!). Which do you prefer? I think I might have to get some enamel dots, I really liked them on the blue and red cards. They were part of my giveaway win from Liz over at Buttons For Brains.

Supplies: Neenah Classic Crest 110lb card stock; Paper trimmer; Memento London Fog; Ranger Dye Inks; Foam Tape; Little Things from Lucy's Cards Lemon Sherbet and Lime Cordial; Enamel dots; Ranger Glossy Accents

As always, thank you so much for reading my blog and leaving your lovely comments. Hope the rest of the weekend continues to be great for you.

A whole lot of Thanks with Mama Elephant

Hello again, Crafty Friends. So in my last post I mentioned I had been quite busy, but didn't want to post the cards until they'd got to their intended recipients. I'm fairly confident that Royal Mail will have now delivered them, so I'm free to write them up :)

The stamp set I've used, or over used since I can't seem to put it down, is the new Heartfelt Wishes set from Mama Elephant. I absolutely love it and it seemed appropriate to use it to make some cards to send some of the lovely people I've met over the past few months online - and also in person! 

I've been amazed at how kind and friendly crafty people are. I've received so many positive words, informative emails, and extremely kind gifts. I couldn't let all that kindness go unnoticed, so these cards went off with some little gifts. I enjoyed doing it so much, I plan to send some more over the next few weeks!!

First up were these cards using Spectrum Aquas and heat embossing, with some of those lovely sequins from Lucy's Cards. 

I had a lot of fun deciding on the colours to use and then sploshing them around on the water colour cardstock. I always use dry card stock, scribble the colours on an acrylic block, then pick up the colour with my waterbrush and drop it onto the card. I used Sunflower, Yellow, Gold and Purple, Wildflower and Heather. Once dry, I then splatter the piece with water and dab off with a kitchen towel to add a little bit of interest.

 

I stamped the sentiment in Versamark and heat embossed with some embossing powder and heat set it. I added a second sentiment underneath in archival ink, then attached some coloured card to the front of my card blank finally placing the water colour panel on top with some fun foam.

I then added the sequins with some Multi Medium Matte.

 

I'm really pleased with the results and hope the recipients liked them too. I can tell this is going to be a well used stamp set!

Supplies: Tim Holtz Distress Watercolor Cardstock; WH Smith Watercolour paper; Spectrum Aquas Floral and Primary; Acrylic Blocks; EK Success Powder Tool; Derwent Small tip Waterbrush; Small paint brush; Heat Tool; Versa Mark Ink; WOW! Gold Embossing glitter; Papermania Silver Tinsel embossing powder; Ranger archival Jet Black Ink; Little Things from Lucy's Cards Gilded Rose and French Lavendar; Multi Medium Matte; Fun Foam; Super Sticky Red Tape; Coloured Papers 

Thank you so much for reading, and for all your positive comments on my blog. It really makes me smile - so another Thanks to you all! Have a great weekend.

Mini Christmas Milk Cartons

Hello again, Crafty Friends. You'd be forgiven for thinking that nothing was going on craft wise for me based on this blog, but you'd be wrong! I've actually been doing quite a bit, but can't share the cards I've made until I know they've gone to their intended recipients. I like things to be a surprise!

Instead I've been making the most of some of the freebies I receive as part of my subscription to Simply Cards and Papercraft. This month it was a build-a-flower die, but I've not had any inspiration to use it yet, despite all the cards inside. They highlighted, however, that Papercraft Essentials (it's sister magazine), issue 124 had a great looking Christmas die and stamp set. I swithered about it, but I knew I wanted it, and when I saw that Liz McGuire of Buttons For Brains was doing the inspiration cards, I had to get it. So I did. And it's great.

I felt like pairing it up with my other great favourite, the Mini Milk Cartons from SCP issue 136. I think it works a treat.

I actually made two of them, the second being more successful than the first, so I'll tell you how I did the second! I cut my Bazzill Bling cardstock to size and scored it on the board, as per the instructions in the magazine. 

I then die cut out my Merry Christmas and holly onto green cardstock, putting some Stick It on the back. I decided second time round it was easier to put the die cuts onto the carton before making it up, as I do with the sticky tape. 

I then carefully stuck the cartons together. I say carefully because that tape is lethal if you get it wrong and tears the card badly if you have to remove it - it usually ruins it. But if you get it right, it sticks like super glue!

You can get two cartons out of one 12x12 piece of cardstock, but as you can see, on the second, the bottom piece is shorter. It didn't seem to matter too much, and I think the second actually looks neater.

I then stamped the robin onto some Neenah 110lb cardstock (it arrived this week from Simon Says Stamp!) in Memento Tuxedo Black and coloured him with Copics, and carefully cut a circle out around him - I drew around a circle die cut as a template to make things easier.

I attached him to the top with twine, and added a mini peg for good measure. As I've mentioned before, you can get 4 Lindor in each one - they make a nice little gift.

Here are a few more arty shots - I'm getting used to my new camera. And just in case you are wondering why the holly berries are green, I'd like to say it was artistic licence, but sadly, it's just that I discovered that I don't have any red card stock at the moment - I shall rectify that soon!

[Supplies: Free die and stamp set from Papercraft Essentials issue 124; Scoreboard from SCP 136; Bazzill 12x12 cardstock; Super Sticky Red tape; Scissors; Manual Die Cutting Machine - mine is a Grand Calibur; Papermania Capsule 6x6 Solid Smooth Texture 75 sheets and coloured cardstock; Stick It; Neenah Solar White 110lb cardstock; Memento Tuxedo Black; Red Baker's Twine (free with a magazine!); Copic Markers; Mini pegs - I actually got mine in Sainsburys, but they aren't listed online]


Thank you so much for reading. I really do cherish all your comments. Have a great weekend :)

P.S. Don't forget that there's a new Clearly Besotted release this Saturday (5th September, 10pm GMT). I know what I'm getting ;)

What I've been up to and some flowery notelets

Hello Crafty Friends, here I am back from our short holiday.

It's funny not having blogged for a couple of weeks. I rather missed it, but it has been nice to return from holiday a little bit more refreshed, having made use of grandparents and sister for some baby sitting. It's a win-win situation for all involved! 

I managed a bit of colouring and got into the groove of drawing lines over at Kathy Racoosin's Pop Up Colouring Challenge. Here are my attempts:

Pre-Challenge Day - 13th August- Pitt Artist Pen and Zig Clean Color Brushes

 Day 1 - 14th August - Pitt Artist Pen and Zig Clean Color Brushes

Day 3 - 16th August - Help from Anne with Spectrum Aqua Markers

Day 4 - 17th August - Stabilo Fine Line .88 tip

I rather like the result of the boat on the ocean and the abstract railway lines/ladders, so I may frame them for the craft room.

Keep checking IG and The Daily Marker for more details of the upcoming 30 Day Colouring Challenge in October.

So, what else did I get up to crafty wise on holiday. Not a huge amount other than the challenge, as I tried not to take too many supplies, but when you're on holiday and you don't have children running around you, you tend to buy things....

I bought a new camera. A Nikon P530. It's a refurbished model that I found in a camera shop in Ayr. A friend of mine has since told me it's a good model to start with, and it has taken some nice pictures so far. Now to think about editing software!

I enrolled in an Online Card Class. It's the Copic Markers for Card Makers. It's going to take me some time to get round to doing any of the sessions given small children, but I love that I can dip in and out. I also need to think about which markers to buy, as I finally understand the numbering system!

I also bought a new printer. I decided it was time to get one that would also be good for crafty downloads and pictures - it definitely helps with the card class. It's the Canon PIXMA MG6450 - ours is white. It has WiFi connectivity - I feel dead modern!

The die set I'd been waiting on from Simon Says Stamp came back in stock, so I did a bit of an order to them too..... I'll share with you over on Instagram when they arrive. If you're not on IG, and you are a crafter, think about joining. It's a lovely crafty community.

And I finally got round to finishing off a commission from my mother in law for some more notelets. This time it's a set of 6 3.5x3.5 inch cards, with images from my favourite CB stamp set heat embossed and coloured using pencils. I went the whole hog and made a little box for them using my WRMK Envelope Punch board - it took me several attempts, but I finally did it! 

[Supplies: CB Miniature Florals stamp set; Kraft pre-cut card blanks; Versa Mark Ink Pad; WOW! Bright White Embossing Powder; Derwent Artists Pencils; Bazzill Basics 12x12 card; WRMK Envelope Punch Board; Double-sided tape; Docrafts Papermania Heat Tool; Anti-static Pad]

So there you are, a round up of what's been going on craft wise in the past couple of weeks. 

Thank you as always for reading and any comments you may leave. It really makes my day! Happy Crafting!

Pop Up Colouring Challenge 14th-17th August

Hi Crafty Folks! So we're still on holiday, but I had to pop on and let you know about Kathy's Pop Up Colouring Challenge. It's on from 14th-17th August and is to keep us all going as we prepare for the full colouring challenge in October.

Check out Kathy's blog post all about it:

http://www.thedailymarker.com/2015/08/its-two-challenges-giveaway/

Best place to check it out is on Instagram and you can follow Kathy at @kathyrac. It's a great chance to start colouring if you're new to it, and just spend some time with friends scribbling - you do not have to be an expert! It's all about learning and having fun.

One child is asleep, the other is resisting, so I had better sign off and see what is going on :)

See you all at the weekend, get those coloured pencils dusted off!

Shell-abrate

Happy Friday, Crafty Friends! So we're up in Scotland on holiday and I find it's hard to have a day go by without crafting something now, but it has been nice having a break from the usual routine and seeing family and friends. 

Onto my card! I made this a couple of weeks ago using my current favourite stamp set, Newton's Nook In Slow Motion. When this set was released, I saw a fabulous card by Taheerah Atchia on their blog which had used loads of masking using the little envelope stamps. I thought I'd have a try and make a birthday card for a friend.

Supplies: Newton's Nook In Slow Motion Stamp Set; Ranger Dye Inks; Various Copic Ciaos; Lawn Fawn Let's Polka 6x6 paper pad; Fun Foam; Post It Notes (for masking); Memento Tuxedo Black Ink; Double Sided Super Sticky Red tape

I really like how it turned out, especially the masking of the worm and the envelopes. I started by taking some Copic friendly paper and cut it to size (9x14.75cm) to fit across my card blank. I drew a light pencil line at 2.5cm so I had something solid to stamp on and the critters didn't go all wonky. I stamped the tortoise and then got to masking out my pile of letters. I used both little letters and stamped them 5 times on sticky post it note and cut them out and started stamping and masking, stamping and masking until I got the colourful little pile I wanted. Here's a little picture during the process. The paper at either side of the image is to protect it from smudges - a little late, as it got a couple of thumb prints on it before I put it down :(

I then masked the edge of the pile and also stamped a little party hat next to it and masked it off. I then stamped the worm as if he was peeping out of the pile of letters. Cute!

I then got to colouring with my Copics. I do really like these, and am trying to get in as much practice as possible, but I need to get a few more in green and blue. Once they were coloured in I stamped the sentiment in the corner and also trimmed the panel to get rid of the thumb prints. I then stuck some LF paper on the card base and attached the panel with fun foam and red tape. 

I'm amused by the results and hope you are too! As always, thanks for visiting, I really do appreciate it, and any comments you leave. Have a great weekend, as always!