Four Point Blooms

 Hello Crafty Friends,

Today I would like to share a card made with Lisa Horton Crafts Four Point Blooms stamps and dies.

 

 

• I began by stamping several of the blooms in different sizes on a sheet from Lisa's Capri paper pad, using a Versafine Onyx Black stamp pad.  Before the ink had time to dry I quickly added some clear sparkle embossing powder and heated to melt the powder.
  

 

 

• I cut these out and layered to form the flowers.  They all looked  too similar for the card I had in mind, so I decided to stamp a couple of the largest size blooms using a green archival ink pad on a sheet of green spotty paper from the Dots and Spots Pastel Paper pad.

 

 

• I then took a sheet of A4 300gsm white card from my stash and scored in the centre, so that I could create and A5 finished card.

• With the score line in place, I masked off a panel and using a blending brush applied two shades of blue to create an ombre effect.  To make the panel more defined I drew a wiggly line using a 0.8 black pigment liner pen.

• I then folded the card on the score line and arranged the flowers into a pattern across the shaded panel.  The first image of the card doesn't really show up the sparkle very well, so here I have zoomed in and hope you can see the effect of the embossing powder. 

 

• To finish the card I stamped a sentiment from the Bold Words stamp set and added gems to the centre of the flowers.

I enjoyed playing around with the layout of this card as my original plan was to put the blooms in a circle with the sentiment in the centre.  Perhaps that is a card for another day!

Thank you for joining me today.  As always, your company and comments are very much appreciated.

Bye for now

x Anne

Mindful Moments

Hello Crafty Friends,

Many of you will know that my favourite thing about crafting is stamping and colouring.

With this card I spent hours carefully colouring my page using alcohol marker pens.  I think this paper pad is brilliantly named Mindful Moments - because that is exactly what it gave to me.  I plugged in an audiobook and was away with fairies colouring and lost in the fictional world of the story for hours (and hours!)

If you also want to relax and escape in your own little bubble, here is what I did:

• I started with a page from Lisa Horton's Mandala Paper Pad - Volume 1 and cut it down to a 7" square.

• I chose 3 shades of blue alcohol marker pens and began by colouring the background with the lightest shade.  

• Then I moved on to use the darker shades and filled in the mandala swirls.

• Cut this into 4 squares 3.5" x 3.5"
• Adhere on to squares of black card cut to 3.75" x 3.75"
• Arrange these on an 8" x 8" white card base and adhere
• On a scrap of white card stamp a sentiment from Lisa's Bold Words stamp set
• Colour the open area in the word with one of the pens used in the background
• Mat this on a piece of black card slightly larger than your sentiment piece
• Adhere sentiment to the centre of the card and add gems to the centre of some of the swirls

I know this isn't a quick card - but then, it isn't meant to be.  Immerse yourself in the colouring.  Listen to some music, an audiobook or if you are lucky enough to have a quiet zone, simply enjoy the silence - whatever floats your boat.  But most of all, enjoy the moment!

Thank you for joining me today.  As always, your company and comments are very much appreciated.

x Anne

Caught in Amber

Hello Crafty Friends,

I usually try to keep my blog strictly to crafty matters but today I will make an exception and express an opinion that normally I would keep to myself.

Following a recent presentation on macro photography, I was shown some outstanding close-up and very detailed images of butterflies apparently visiting flowers and other plants in the garden.  However, all was not quite as it seemed.  I understand that the method of achieving these photographic gems was to capture the butterflies and keep them in a cool environment.  When they were suitably chilly and dopey and the conditions were right for the photographer, these delicate little creatures were arranged on the plants where they would remain until they were warm enough to fly away. This would give the photographer a contrived photo opportunity.  Some might say that this is fair game.  Personally I think it is cruel and interfering unnecessarily with nature, all in the name of art.  I know there are far more outrageous practices to worry about in the natural world but this is one that happened to cross my radar and made me feel incredibly sad for these short-lived creatures.

So, back to the craft world and my sample today.  Although my subject appears to be 'caught in amber' no butterflies were harmed in making this card.  Much more humane don't you think?

Products Used: 

Leafy Swirl Stamp Set 

• White card base 6” x 6”
• Stencil Card cut to 5.25” x 5.25” & 4” x 4” (ACC-CA-30095-77)
• Taupe colour ink pad
• Black Memento ink pad
• Artistry Ink Blending Set (INK-AT-50367-XX)
• Alcohol Marker pens
• Ultra-thick clear embossing powder and heat gun
• Small foil pie dish and wooden clothes peg or similar 

Method

• Stamp a border around the 5.25” square card with Leafy Swirl stamp and with taupe ink blend lightly 
• Stamp butterfly on 4” square card using Memento, colour with alcohol markers and blend taupe around border.
• Tip a tablespoon of clear ultra thick embossing powder into foil tray, hold with peg and heat from below until molten
• While still molten hot pour over butterfly (on a heat proof surface) to create a ‘caught in amber’ effect.  Leave to cool completely
• Mat and layer on to base card

Thank you for visiting me today, your company and comments are very much appreciated.

x Anne

Words of Wisdom

Hello Crafty Friends

In a reflective mood on this Sunday morning,  I would like to share this simple card made using the Serenity Prayer  stamp set with words that guide me.

Hopefully with a little more bounce, I will be back with more makes soon.

Thank you for your company and comments which are very much appreciated.

x Anne

All At Sea

Hello Crafty Friends,

When it comes to buying more stuff for my stash, I am an absolute pushover for anything nautical or if it features a seascape.  It doesn't matter whether it is a new stamp set, paper pad or stencil, if it has the sea included somewhere in the design, then it is in my shopping basket before you can say "shiver my timbers!"

If I'm working on something purely for my own amusement, it could be a page in my art journal, a card or even an MDF project the marine theme materialises before I know it!

Having said all that, it is by way of an explanation for this sneaky little number.

The image stamp I have used is from Claritystamp Ltd and it is called Sailor Round

To create the card:  

• Watercolour wash a background using blue sparkle pen
• Stamp the image in Versafine Onyx Black and heat emboss with clear powder
• Colour image with mica based watercolour paints
• Stamp words using Claritystamp Letterbox stamps on scrap card
• Fussy cut the words and mount on project with foam pads
• Mat and layer on to dark blue card and then on to white card base

I hope you have enjoyed this little distraction from the worry that surrounds us all at the present time.

Thank you for joining me today.  Your company and comments are very much appreciated.

Stay safe

x Anne

Just For Fun

Hello Crafty Friends,

I have been rummaging through my neglected stash of Woodware stamps and came across these.  I am pretty sure this stamps have now been retired but I do believe they were originally designed by the lovely Françoise Read.

So without further ado, how about these to make you smile!

Flip open and inside:

Flip open once more:

And Finally:

Happy Easter everyone. Stay safe.
x Anne

Black and White

Hello Crafty Friends,

Life is very difficult for all of us at the moment, so I will not dwell on the current situation but simply say that I hope you are safe, well and enjoying your crafting.

Today I would like to share a card sample I made using the Claritystamp Woodland Badgers stencil.  I have only used part of the stencil and I can see now that perhaps it wasn't such a good idea, as it drops off on the left side and has made the border a bit skew-whiff. I do like a bit of symmetry and l am now getting quite twitchy about not noticing it when I made the card.

The process for this one is very simple.  I used a palette knife to spread grunge paste through part of the stencil on a black card base and then added a couple more layers on to a white card blank.  To complete the card I have stamped the words from the Clarity New Design Club back issue 129 on to an odd strip of Clarity Designer paper that I had in my bits box.

Thank you for dropping by.  Your company and comments are very much appreciated.

Bye for now
x Anne

Over The Moon

Hi Crafty Friends,

A completely non-crafty post from me today as I am just scooting by to share this photo with you.  

We live in the Bedfordshire countryside overlooking Dunstable Downs and last night as the moon appeared over the downs, for a very short spell before the clouds rolled in, we had the most spectacular view of the moon.

As a keen photographer, hubby rushed out into the garden and took this picture.  Of course, I am biased but don't you think this is a most fabulous shot?  If you can, zoom in, it is worth it!

To quote Patrick Ness:

"There's always beauty, if you know where to look.”

I'll be back again soon with something crafty but in the meanwhile, thank you for dropping by.

Anne  x

 

 

Celebrating Tina Cox Designs

Hi Crafty Friends,


Today I would like to share a different style of card.

Items used to make this card:

1. Tina's Layering Stamps Circles
2. Tina's Layering Stamps Squares 
3. Shaped easel card die
4. Claritystamp Stencil Card
5. Claritystamp Nested Circles Picot Cut Dies
6. Die cutting machine
7. Memento black ink pad
8. Alcohol marker pens
9. Glossy Accents
10. Foam pads

How to:

1. Use Clarity stencil card to create a shaving foam technique coloured background and cut to fit easel card
2. Stamp a decorative panel using Tina’s Layering stamp collection
3. Die cut a circle approx. 2.25”, stamp one of Tina’s floral circles
4. Stamp butterflies and more flowers from Tina’s collection on scraps of stencil card and fussy cut
5. Colour all the elements with alcohol marker pens and add Glossy Accents to main circle image
6. Adhere butterflies and circle panel to upper part of easel card
7. Add fussy cut flowers to decorative panel and fix with foam pads to lower part of easel card to create ‘step’

If you like Tina's designs, for the rest of today there is a 33% discount on them over on the Claritystamp Website.  

Hope to be back again next week with another of my samples

Bye for now
Anne
x 

Doodleology

Hello Again,

Joy of  joys, after a really long spell of gloomy, wet and windy weather, today there was sunshine in my little corner of the countryside. Overnight there had been a fairly hard frost and the fields were white and sparkled in the winter sun.  Simple things, but they make me very happy.

  
On the crafting side of life, today I would like to share a project using Claritystamp stamp set Doodleology Square Mixed Impressions and the matching stencil.

Once again I have used dye based inks for this project.  I began by brushing a pale colour through the stencil - it is quite an intricate stencil, so I needed to hold each section in place as I worked, in order to retain crisp lines. Then I stamped the image in black archival ink on another piece of card.  There are small infill stamps in this set which I have used to colour the white areas to co-ordinate with the background piece.  Keeping it clean and simple I have mat and layered with white card onto a white base card.

If you have time I would love to hear what you think (please be nice!) by leaving me a comment.

Happy Crafting
Anne x

It's All About Texture

Hi Crafty Friends

A very belated Happy New Year to you all!  

The weather is so grey here today that it is lights on in the house all day to try to dispel some of the winter gloom.  However, the house is cosy and full of the lovely spicy aroma of a good old fashioned bread pudding!  I had an abundance of good quality seeded bread lurking in the bread bin and I didn't want it to go to waste.  Two hours later and using a nice quick recipe, I now have a fragrant home and a very happy hubby - he does love a bit of stodge.

Enough of the domestic waffle, how about a bit of crafting to brighten the day.

Here is a sample I made using the Woven Fabric stamp set from Claritystamp.  These stamps are so versatile that I have only scratched the surface in playing with them.  On this project I have simply brayered dye based ink from a rainbow ink pad on to the stamp and then plonked it onto my card.  The addition of the Fly Away stamp in Archival black ink and a bit of mat and layering.  Job done! 

Hope you like it.

Thank you for visiting me today, especially after such a long time has elapsed since my last post.

I really must try harder!


Bye for now
Anne
x 

Some Clarity

Hello Crafty Friends, 

Where do I begin?  I suppose the first thing is to apologise for my long absence. 
I could take some time to explain but you would probably be thoroughly bored and nod off to sleep, so perhaps it is best to sum up and say the reason was ‘life’ and I am sure you will understand.

One of the positive things that has happened and has kept me exceptionally busy while I've been away from my blog, was that in September last year, I joined the Claritystamp Ltd stamp and stencil design team.  Such an opportunity and very exciting for me!

With that in mind, for my first share, I will show one of the nice and easy samples I made recently.

Ingredients:

1.    Funky Leaves 7 x 7 Stencil (STE-TR-00550-77)

2.    Clarity 7” square card blank (ACC-CA-30619-77)

3.    Stencil card (ACC-CA-30095-77)

4.    Die based ink pads

5.    Archival Ink Pad Jet Black (INK-AR-50030-XX)

6.    Micron Pen Set (ACC- PE-30778-XX)

7.    Leaf Outline stamp set and mask (STA-TR-10507-A5)

8.    Clarity Stencil brushes (ACC-BR-30006-XX)

How To:

1.    Place stencil on stencil card and blend dye-based inks using stencil brushes

2.    Remove stencil and draw a wiggly line to frame using Micron pen

3.    Stamp the hare from the Leaf Outline stamp set

4.    Adhere to base card

Thank you so much for joining me today and if you have time to leave me a comment, I will know that you are there and I will make a real effort to keep my blog active.

I'll be back again soon,

Bye for now

Anne

x

Bits and Pieces

As promised a couple of days ago, I have rescued the bits and pieces that I had left sitting on the Cricut transfer sheet collecting dust and used them to make this card.

Cut the yellow card to 5¾" square and die cut the Birds Roosting die.  This time I was extremely wasteful and discarded the negative bits!

Mat and layer on to white and black card leaving a border size of your own choice. Take the negative bits from the transfer sheet and paper piece into the appropriate gaps in the yellow frame.

To finish, I stamped a sentiment and mat and layered using scraps from the main card and mounted it on to a square card base.

Thanks for stopping by
Anne
x

Birds Roosting

Hello Crafty Friends,

I have recently added some rather lovely 'Fresh Cut Dies' to my stash. These have been designed and produced by Claritystamp

.

 
 
It has been really good fun to play with sticky stuff and gilding flakes once again, as they have been lurking in the back of my crafty cupboard for ages! 


The first card I shared in 2018 gave a pretty detailed step by step of the same process I used here, so I will just share a few pictures and words on how this one has been made.


Step 1:  Cut the Birds Roosting Aperture die in a piece of 5¾" square black card.

Step 2:  Keep all the die cut pieces in place and remove the die. Press the reverse cut side onto a square of Cricut Transfer sheet and lightly burnish with a ball tool to make sure all the die cut elements are in contact with the transfer sheet.

Step 3:  Remove the square die cut frame, leaving all the loose bits (the negative of the die cut) on the transfer paper. These bits will make another card later.

Step 4: Cut a piece of scrap card 4½" square and cover it with double sided adhesive sheet. Remove the protective carrier paper and cover the sticky surface with gilding flakes.  Burnish well so that all the flakes are in contact with the sticky sheet and brush away any remaining dust.  

Step 5:  Affix the black die cut frame over the gilding flakes background. Mat and layer on to an A5 card blank. Add a sentiment and embellishment to complete the card.

 

I will be back in a couple of days to show how I used the negative bits that are still sitting on the transfer sheet!

Thank you for joining me today.

Bye for now
Anne
x

Nordic Christmas

Good Morning, 

It has been a busy time for me and my hubby so crafting has had to take a back seat for a while.  With our house move temporarily on hold, I am taking advantage of some free time to catch up with my blog and I hope to visit my bloggy friends very soon!

With an eye on the number of cards I need to make for Christmas, it is time I made a start.

 

Now, when it comes to shopping for stitched dies and stitching on stamps then I am your woman!   Lisa Horton was certainly on to a good thing when she designed her stitched range of stamps - because I must have them all!  Thanks Lisa!

I created the background piece using the A5 Embroidered Backgrounds stamp set from Inkydoodles.  First stamping in green with one of the larger stamps and then infilling with red using one of the wee ones. 

Maintaining the stitched theme (naturally), I have used Lisa Horton's A5 Festive Friends clear stamps for the main elements.  A bit of masking, a fussy cut tree, some colouring and mat and layer to finish.  Job done!
 
So that  it is for now - thank you for taking the time to visit me today.

A Walk on the Wild Side

Good Evening!

Before I settle down for a bit of telly and my night-time cup of cocoa, I would like to share this card with you. 

The stamp set is by Sheena Douglass and it has been loitering in my stash for quite some time - but it is still one of my favourites!

I have coloured the main image using an assortment of Spectrum Noir markers and pencils.  Both the stamp set called Little Red and the markers are available from Crafter's Companion.

I have teamed up my image with a Sissix Thinlits Die called Moonlit Owl and mat and layered with black card onto a starry die cut background.  

Next time I will try to make a card without using black card - now that really will be a test for me!

Hope this finds you well and enjoying your crafting.

Bye for now
Anne
x

Floral Panel

Hello Crafty Friends,

Today I decided to play with my Spectrum Noir Colourblend pencils from Crafter's Companion but I thought I would try them on black card for a change.

At first I stamped with a Versamark ink pad and embossed in white but I found that the result was too bold against the black card - so I discarded that attempt and tried again.  This time I used a Brilliance pigment ink pad (Moonlight White) without the embossing powder and it gave me a much more muted result.  Good so far!  I then began colouring in my image. To start with I laid down a base of white very lightly, using my Spectrum Noir pencils and then chose a selection of coloured pencils to overlay on top of the white. When I had finished the stamped outline had become too faded. In order to bring back some definition I used a Sakura white gel pen and sketched in some of the lost detail.

It probably took me a lot longer than if I had chosen to colour on white card but isn't it all about the journey and not just the destination? I had a lovely time sitting in my craft room colouring to my hearts content, with the window open listening to the birdsong from the garden - such a lovely day!

To finish the card I mat and layered with black and white card; stamped, coloured and fussy cut an extra butterfly from the floral panel and finished with a black embossed sentiment and a few gems.
 
The stamps I have used are from Stamp Addicts:
Birthday Greetings SA-5033 and
Floral Panel SA-7071

It's good to be crafting after a few months absence and I hope to be back soon with another card.

Thank you for visiting me today, your company and comments are very much appreciated.



Bye for now
Anne
x

Privacy Policy

Hello Crafty Friends,


This post is extremely important, as the new Data Protection Law (GDPR) that came into effect on Friday 25th May 2018,  applies to anyone with an 'audience' in the EU.

The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) is a regulation in EU law on data protection and privacy for all individuals within the European Union.

It would seem that I am required by the new law to add a Privacy Policy page to my blog so you can see how I handle your information.

Please take a few minutes to read this document by clicking on the tab at the top of this page. 

I hope you will continue to follow me and share my makes and ramblings!

I'll be back soon with another project.


Happy Crafting!
Anne
x

Sail Away

Hello Crafty Friends,

I hope this finds you well and enjoying your crafting.

My make for today requires a bit of patience but if you like jigsaw puzzles then you will love this paper piecing technique!

If you fancy having a go at this one, here are the dies that I have used.

Step One:  Cut a piece of white cardstock slightly larger than the scenic die and adhere a piece of double sided adhesive sheet to cover the reverse.  Leave the remaining piece of backing paper on the adhesive and run through your die cutting machine so that the sticky side will be on the reverse of your image.

Step Two: Take great care not to dislodge any of the pieces from the die. I used a piece of Cricut Transfer tape (it comes on a roll so that you can cut it to size) to temporarily hold the die cut pieces in place while I removed the die.

Step Three: Cut a piece of coloured background card to use as a mat on your project.  Peel away the frame/outline from the transfer tape and press firmly on to your coloured mat, having first removed the backing paper from the double sided adhesive.

 Step Four: Using alcohol markers colour one piece of your 'jigsaw puzzle' at a time. You may find it easier to lift the piece out to colour so that you do not contaminate the remaining pieces.

Step Five:  Press each piece into the appropriate space in the frame on the coloured card so that the double sided adhesive holds them securely in place.

Continue until all the pieces are coloured and in place.

To finish the card, die cut the yacht and waves from the Creative Expressions die set and colour in the same way.

Mat and layer your scene and add the final die cuts using foam pads to complete the card as shown in the first picture above.

Definitely not a quick card but I love the different effects you can achieve using these 'stained glass' dies.  I have also tried painting the pieces with metallic paint or using an assortment of Mirri card.  I will share some of these makes with you at a later date.

Thank you for joining me today,

Bye for now
x Anne