Tag - you're it!

I was delighted to have a couple of projects accepted for the PaperCrafts Holiday Cards and More special issue and even more delighted to discover today that Cath (PaperCrafts Trends Editor) has picked one of them to show on the Moxie Fab blog to highlight the gift tag challenge!

Here it is! I haven't seen the issue yet but apparently it's on p.98. The lovely sentiment (it's from the Waltzingmouse Stamps Compliments of the Season set) makes a perfect centrepiece for a chalkboard style and this is a really quick and easy tag to make since it's a single stamp and no complicated colouring or cutting out!

If you're trying to get ahead with Christmas crafting, do check out the Moxie Fab blog this week for challenges and some inspiration from the publication. All the posts based on this Holiday Cards and More special issue are here. There are copies of the special issue to be won if you fancy playing along with the challenges.

Thanks for stopping by!

Take flight!

I'm hosting the challenge this week in the Crafty Secrets member forum over at Splitcoast Stampers. I've asked people to Take Flight and use anything on their projects that can fly!

I went a little bit quirky today – the lady is cut out from one of the vintage advertising images in the Earthy Paper Pad and I stamped the butterfly wings from the Altered Art set for her to try for size. I stamped Dream/Imagine/Beautiful randomly over the background and sponged over a clock mask as well. After stamping I decided I wanted to accentuate the word Believe so I went over it carefully with a Zig fine point drawing pen.

When I make a shaped card like this I like to get the full shape on the front so I make a card base by putting the fold of the blank just inside the top cutting edge of the die and then cut a separate piece and stick it over the top so it covers the fold.

Stamps (all Crafty Secrets):
Altered Art
Believe
Mini Memories

Paper:
Earthy Paper Pad (Heartwarming Vintage)
Cryogen White

Ink:
Brilliance by Tsukineko (Graphite Black)
Adirondack by Ranger (Espresso and Latte)

Other:
Copic markers
Timeworks mask by Tim Holtz
Nestabilities by Spellbinder (Labels 1)
Rub n buff by Amaco (Gold Leaf)
Zig drawing pen
Foam pads

Thanks for stopping by!

Dear Santa

I'm sure this little girl has been nice this year, even if she does look just a little nervous of sending her letter to Santa! She's just too sweet-looking to have been naughty, don't you think?

I have to say that the "Dear Santa" is the teeniest, weeniest stamp I have ever seen! It stamps beautifully though and fits the space on the envelope perfectly. You could personalise your card to the recipient though by handwriting their initials (or name if you have tiny writing and a fine nib pen!) on the envelope instead.

I happened to have both "Artsy Banners" and this Christmas Mail set out on my desk at the same time and noticed that the snowflake would be a great fit in the scallop border (this is the small version of each, the large snowflake fits equally well in the larger scallop). You could stamp the flake in a punched border, too.

I used a Copic in one of the reds used to colour the little girl's coat to colour the matting strip so that I got a perfect match.

Stamps:
Christmas Mail and Artsy Banners (both Clear Art Stamps by Crafty Secrets)

Paper:
Smooth white
Kraft

Ink:
Adirondack dye ink by Ranger (Espresso)
Tim Holtz Distress ink by Ranger (Antique Linen)
Colorbox pigment ink by Clearsnap (Frost White)

Other:
Copic markers
Flowersoft (Polar white)
Cuttlebug embossing folder (Ice Crystals)
Nestabilities by Spellbinder (Classic Ovals, large)
Tracing wheel
Corner Chomper by We R Memory Keepers

Thanks for stopping by!

Make a Wish

Over on the Bubbly Funk forum, Karen has decided we need to be challenged out of our pure papercraft zone! The first challenge is to alter a tin. I scratched my head for a while as I didn't fancy tackling the great big tin that had amaretti biscuits in it last Christmas and then remembered I'd bought a little candle in a tin in Poundstretcher a while ago, intending to turn it into a little Christmas gift but didn't get round to it.

I'm going to start here with "things I have learned about tomato paste". I made a card last week using a tomato paste tube and uploaded it to Splitcoaststampers. I was feeling quite pleased with myself as I remembered to call in "tomato paste" rather than the more typically British term "tomato puree". Little did I realise that its name was the least of the differences!

Tomato paste in the US typically comes in cans so most people had no clue what I'd used. I did a little research and apparently some Italian grocery stores stock it in tubes and I even tracked it down on Amazon.com in the "gourmet foods" section - so, if you're reading this in North America and want to get your hands on this stuff, you now know where to try! It's much less wasteful than a can if you're cooking for small numbers, BTW - just pop the top back on and put it in the fridge for next time.

So, all that was by way of telling you that I used a tomato paste tube here! Just snip the top and bottom off your empty tube with kitchen scissors then slit up one side. Flatten it out and wash it and you're ready to go. I have yet to meet a tube that was not a rich gold colour inside - the acid from the tomatoes apparently oxidises the metal and turns it that colour. The circle for the lid here is cut with a Nestie and the whole lot is embossed and then sponged with Stazon which is then polished off the high spots. It's all glued down with Bostick.

I stamped a plain Prima hydrangea with a script stamp and sponged the edges with Vintage Photo ink.

Stamps (Cornish Heritage Farms):
Spanish Script backgrounder
Birthday Centers

Ink:
Stazon by Tsukineko (Timber Brown)
Tim Holtz Distress by Ranger (Vintage Photo)

Other:
Candle tin
Tomato paste tube
Cuttlebug Embossing folder (Textile Texture)
Hydrangea by Prima Marketing
Vintage button
Classic Circle Nestabilities by Spellbinder
Linen thread

If you're blowing out a candle today, don't forget to make a wish! Thanks for stopping by!

A cute cottage and some very exciting news!

Thank you all so much for your lovely comments about my Thomas Kinkade fisherman. I have another Kinkade to share with you today and some exciting news alongside it.

I think this image, Foxglove Cottage, has a lovely warm feeling to it and it would make a great card for someone special returning home from a trip or someone moving into a new place of their own. I blended the first layer of colour on this one with Sansodor to provide a soft base layer and then added shading and texture over the top with the same pencils. A little bit of Glossy Accents gives the windows and lamp a glassy sheen and a white pen adds highlights. I used a fine paint brush to transfer the white ink in places where I wanted very fine detail.

I made the sentiment panel by cutting a frame with two Nestability dies and colouring it with a Krylon pen. Once the Krylon had dried, I sponged black pigment ink over the top to 'antique' it a bit and I filled the centre of the plaque with Glossy Accents so that it looks a bit like a ceramic name plate.

So... the exciting news is that I submitted this card to the recent Design Team call at Cornish Heritage Farms and I heard earlier this week that I was one of three people picked to join the team *big grin*. I am absolutely thrilled to be joining a really talented bunch of stampers and I'm sure I'll be learning loads!

Stamps:
- Foxglove Cottage (Thomas Kinkade series at Cornish Heritage Farms)
- sentiment stamp (my own design)

Ink:
- Adirondack by Ranger (Espresso)
- Versafine by Tsukineko (Vintage Sepia and Onyx Black)
- Tim Holtz Distress ink by Ranger (Antique Linen)

Cardstock:
- Birchtone light and Birchtone medium by Prism Papers
- smooth white

Tools:
- Prismacolor and Lyra pencils (plus OMS and blending stumps)
- sewing machine & thread
- Classic oval Nestabilities
- fine paint brush

Accessories:
- brads
- Glossy Accents by Ranger
- Inkssentials white pen by Ranger
- Krylon leafing pen (copper)

Thanks for stopping by, hope you enjoyed the card!

Explore your birthday!

I made this card for my Dad's birthday. I always find it a bit difficult as he doesn't have any of the hobbies that many 'guy' cards tend to get themed around. I thought this vintage feel made a good all-rounder! The old map pages from the Crafty Secrets Earthy Paper Pad combine perfectly with the Journey set to make a more masculine-looking card.

I cut a hole with a Nestability Classic oval die and put the stamped and coloured image behind it once I'd given it the faux burnt edges treatment. I also stamped the globe from the set in Antique Linen on the card base to give it a slightly more finished feel but I don't think that really shows well on the photo. Lisa Zappa's idea of stamping words onto the little ticket image works well even to express sentiments like Happy Birthday!

Supplies: Journey stamp set, Earthy paper pad, sentiment words from a HOTP set, Tim Holtz Distress inks (Antique Linen, Tea Dye, Vintage Photo, Walnut Stain), Versafine Vintage Sepia, Prismacolor pencils/OMS/stump, Nestability classic oval die, sponge.

Thanks for stopping by!

Ten Years Ago

This is a project that Sandy has featured on the Heartwarming Vintage blog but I thought I'd tell you a little bit more about it here since I have less to fit in to a post than she does!

We recently celebrated our tenth wedding anniversary and although we don't usually make a big thing of anniversaries, we thought we'd push the boat out a bit since it was a round number. We had a couple of days away in a nice hotel and I thought I'd make something a bit more 'special' than a regular card (as ever, you can click through for a closer view).



When Sandy sent me my lovely Guest Designer package, I looked at the Rosy Wishes set and thought "Eek, what am I going to do with that?" Guess which set I reached for when I sat down to make my first project? Yup, Rosy Wishes! I wanted to use a photograph of me on my wedding day (I joke that it's to remind DH how little I've changed in a decade - lol!) and the spray of roses stamp seemed like a perfect tie-in with my bouquet. I stamped it once and then inked up only the top part of it and stamped again to extend a little further up the side of the chipboard heart. As my bouquet was cream roses and ivy, I coloured the flowers with a cream Prismacolour pencil and just shaded a little with a light beige. I painted the ribbons with a gold pearlescent watercolour.

I sponged a couple of shades of green ink over the heart and then added marble 'veining' with a couple of gel pens. The photo was cut with a Nestability die and I made the mat for it by using the outer edge of the same die as a guide for a scalpel. Ivory silk ribbon provided a touch of luxury for the hanging loop and one of the small shapes from the Frame It set provided a delicate edging pattern.

I've never used cardstock stickers before and I have to say I was impressed. I wanted the holes where the ribbon is threaded through to look a bit more 'finished' so I chose a couple of eyelet stickers - so easy to handle and get properly placed and they're die-cut on the sheet so they're ready to just peel and go, there's no fiddling about trying to punch out holes in appropriate places or anything.

Supplies: Sweet Chips heart album and small die cut frame; Rosy Wishes, Sexy Little Numbers and Frame It Clear Art Stamps; Brass and Cream Hardware Stickers (Heartwarming Vintage); Tim Holtz Distress ink - Shabby Shutters and Peeled Paint; Versafine Vintage Sepia; copper, gold and white gel pens; Nestability Classic Oval dies; 1" silk ribbon; Versamark and gold lustre powder; pearlescent watercolour; Prismacolor pencils/OMS/stump

Thanks for your visit today, do let me know what you think if you have a moment to leave me a comment, I do love to hear from my visitors!

It's a wrap

Rhi is the darer for the Daring Cardmakers this week and she's sending us all on a recycling mission. It's our plastic packaging she's after and after a couple of disasters fit only for the bin, I managed to use two sorts of plastic in producing this...



The little swing tag is acetate cut from our Christmas cracker packaging. I stamped with Stazon and coloured with Sakura Glaze and Souffle pens. I ended up backing it with a matching white card circle to make the colours look more vivid. It has a more stained glass effect in real life but it's a bit dull up here this morning so it doesn't really show on the pic!

Did you spot the second use of plastic? The bottom polka dots are not designer paper or a rubber stamped background - they're done with bubble wrap *smile*

Supplies: Scribble flowers stamps (unknown maker), Stazon Jet Black, Ranger Archival Jet Black, Prismacolor Pencils/OMS/stump, Sakura Glaze and Souffle pens, grosgrain from stash, bubble wrap, acetate, split rings, Nestabilities Classic Circle

If you haven't checked out the Bubbly Funk auction for Ellie, new things have been added including a "LO promise" from Kirsty Wiseman herself. So if you've ever fancied owning a Kirsty Wiseman original, this could be your chance. Click below to find out more about the auction and how you can bid. Pictures and short descriptions are available on a Fotopic site if you are not a member of the Bubbly Funk forum.

Click here for the auction details

Love and Friendship

This week's DCM dare has been set by Rachel and Keryn who are both building up their Stampin Up! businesses. Their theme for the dare is love and friendship. Here's my card (you can click through for a more detailed view if you want it):



The sentiment is computer generated and I positioned it inside a Nestability circle die and then stamped the design on the cut and embossed circle.

I used the leafy tree from the Lovely as a Tree set by SU!, stamped in Chestnut Roan and coloured by dusting with various shades of green chalk. I used a bit of blue chalk for the sky area and darker green and brown for the ground. The circle is popped up on foam tape so the jute string (which I unravelled for a softer effect) goes underneath it and is threaded through a couple of holes which are then 'plugged' with brads.

The wood grain background panel is stamped onto some paper that already has a fine wood grain effect (it came from The Papermill). It has torn edges that are further distressed with a bit of inking.

Supplies: Lovely as a Tree (Stampin Up!), Wood Grain backgrounder (Cornish Heritage Farms), various brown-toned Tim Holtz Distress inks, Clearsnap Fluid Chalk ink Chestnut Roan, blending chalks, jute garden twine, mini brads (Dovecraft Earth Tones), Nestabilities classic circle, foam tape

Thanks for looking, do let me know what you thought if you have a moment to leave a comment!

Sympathy Silhouettes

People often say that sympathy cards are hard and when someone said it again on Carolyn's, I decided to have a go. Let's face it, they're the ones you least feel like making when you find out you need one so having one or two put by is probably not a bad thing.



Supplies: Silhouette Blooms I and Cheesecloth Backgrounder (CHF), Barbedor Script (Ma Vinci's Reliquary), Clearsnap chalk ink in creamy brown, chestnut roan, dark brown, Nestabilities classic oval dies, copper brads.

I made the frame for the sentiment just by putting two Nestability dies into my die cutter at the same time, one inside the other. I hit the two copper brads with a ball-end embossing tool and hammer to make them look more like rivets for the frame. I wanted to use antique copper really but I can't find them at the moment! I think these look OK, though.

Thanks for looking, I hope you liked the card.

New Nest!

I haven't done a DCM dare in ages so I thought a New Year was a good time to get back into the swing of it. Lynne's set the dare this time and she wants us to celebrate something new with our cards. I'm doubling up my challenges here as Carolyn has just set a 'birds and bees' challenge on CBC so I thought a new home card should do the trick.



I masked off the area for the nest before stamping the bird so that he looks like he's sitting rather than standing. I also tried to make him look a bit more settled by not inking his back wing before stamping! I used the 'negative' of the mask to ink in the nest area and then added a bit of detail with a Prismacolor pencil. I thought gingham would provide a nice homey sort of background and I used pinking shears on the edges and did faux stitching to complete the fabric effect.

Supplies: Singing Swirly Bird and Gingham backgrounder (both CHF) and New Home (Tanda Stamps), Ranger Distress ink Broken China, Clearsnap Chalk ink Dark Brown and Creamy Brown, Whispers ink Azure Seas, Prismacolor pencils/OMS/stump, blue Quicklet, grosgrain from stash, Nestabilities Classic Circle

Thanks for dropping by!