Paper smooches Sparks challenge...

Hi everyone,

Just a quick post to show my entry to this week paper smooches sparks challenge.

The challenge this week was 'picture perfect', where by you use a certain picture as your inspiration...and run with it!  So here's the 'inspiration' picture...

I took my inspiration from the neautral colour palette, and here's my creation...

The idea I had in my head was to make it look like little portrait pictures of the paper smooches 'chubby chums' hanging on a wall, I do love these cute little critters and the idea that they're all from one happy family is just too cute!  I stamped the images in distress ink and used a water brush to water colour them and give a kind of 'sepia'effect.  I made the picture frames out of brown card stock and stamped the woodgrain effect on using a hero arts stamp with more distress ink.  The background is patterned paper and the sentiment is from the same, delightful, 'chubby chums' stamp set.

Hope you like it xxx

p.s ...any comments are very much appreciated...I'd love to know what you think :)

...loves of my life

Here's the card I made for my delightful, wonderful, handsome, amazing (...just in case he ever reads this ;) ) boyfriend, for our 8 year anniversary...

 I've gotta say...I love it.  It's one of my favourite ever makes.  I started with a 6" x 6" kraft card blank. matted some patterned paper on to it, and edged with a little distress ink.  The topper is made up of an inked doily, two of the same 'spellbinders' dies - one covered in gilding flakes, the other covered in distress embossing powder - and a wee little envelope that I have a punch for.  The 'loveheart' I created by making a mould out of an actual sweet, and filling it with bronze UTEE, i then used 'gleam' gilding cream to bring out the detail.  I punched hearts along the bottom of the patterned paper and filled them with little heart shaped faux-pearls from my stash.  The 'happy anniversary' sentiment is from the 'paper smooches good gab' set and is printed in sepia archival ink.  I think I was having one of them lucky days when everything just comes together.  Hope you like x

...play date

So one of my best friends brought her beutiful little girl, Poppy, around for a fun day of crafting the other day.  We decided to make a door sign for Poppy's bedroom...and like any little (or big) girl, Poppy likes a lot of sparkly things!  It was great fun, and Poppy loved her sign...

...colour on white shadow stamping

This is a technique I learned from a video made by my IDOL, the amazing, Jennifer Mcguire.  I just love everything she does, the lady has' the midas touch' without a shadow of a doubt in my opinion...and boy does she make it look easy!

So here's the card...

The technique does require a certain type of stamp set that needs to include a solid block background, and a detail/outline toppe.  I used the 'Basic grey lotus' set.  It is then simply a case of stamping your 'block' in a white ink (I like 'colourbox frost white' as it is so, well, white :/ ) on kraft card, and stamping your 'topper' in whatever colour/inks you desire.  I found I got the best results by using 'verscolour' pigment ink, I also got a lovely result from using the 'catseye' chalk inks, but it's probably best to experiment for your-self and see what looks you prefer.  To finish the card I die cut a heart and placed a sentiment from the, 'Tim Holtz nature's elements', stamp set behind it.  I then completed the look with a little faux stitching around the edge and some little pearls in the flower centres.   I am going to try this technique, but in reverse, in all different colours, and on various card stock, so will be sure to post my results.  Hope you like x

...nice day for a white wedding

Just thought I'd do a quick post on a wedding card I was asked to make for a friend.  It's very 'not-me', but I think it turned out o.k...

I made it using various 'spellbinders' dies cut out of white 'centura pearl', which is just perfect for wedding cards.  I added a sentiment I have had hidden away in my stash for a long time, added a small satin bow and some little pearls, and pieced it all together.  Like I say, it's a very different style for me, but I do like trying something new and stepping outside my comfort zone!  Hope you like x

owl wish you a happy birthday...

Here is a card I made for one of my best friends, who lives on the other side of the world from me in Autralia!  She loves owls as much as I do so was a bit of a no brainer on what to put on her card...

I honestly can't remember where the owls stamps were from - I have plenty of little owls in my stash and I just took a fancy to using these.  I stamped them out in various colours using my delicious 'hero arts shadow inks'.  The sentiment is also hero arts from the 'it's your birthday' set and is stamped in versamark, then heat embossed using white embossing powder.  The little red owls (although they don't really show up very well as owls on the piccie :/ ) are a product of my amazing melt pot.  I actually used one of my earrings to make an owl mould, which I then filled with red UTEE, and added a little extra detail on using white & black Sakura pens.  i then used my favourite 6" x 6" kraft card blank as my base, added a little faux stitching around the edges, and matted it all together.  A nice bright & cute card for a very bright and cute girl!  Hope you like it x

Melt pot mayhem...

I had been wanting a 'Ranger melt pot' for soooooo long but wasn't really sure what I would do with it and whether to bite the bullet or not.  Then the good folk at createandcraft did a 4-day-deal with the fabulous Hels Sheridan and my 'want' then became a 'need' haha.  This was obviously all a while ago but I was like a child at christmas when my haul arrived!

Suffice to say, I LOVE MY MELT POT!!!  It now has a constant place on my craft room table and is, rightfully so, very well loved :) 

New release paper smooches dies...

As I said in my last post, I haven't blogged in far too long, but when I made this card, these dies were new releases haha.  I got mine imported form the fabulous simonsaysstamp and as soon as I set eyes on them - i knew I NEEDED them.

So here's my card, which I made for a very good friend, and was being sent all the way to Australia!

I started with a blank 6" x 6" kraft cardblank and used white ink to stamp a mini dotty stripe as the background.  I used all 3 dies from the 'hot spots' set and used various colours of 'American crafts' cardstock to die cut them.  I think the designs of these dies are just so awesome and original, I just can't get enough of them.  I then stamped the 'hero arts notepad' in grey ink - and die cut it out using the 'paper smooches notebook' die.  I think it looks cute as a button if I do say so myself.  I stuck it all down using foam pads and silicone glue for some extra dimension, added a little green dotty bow, some faux stitching around the edges, and there you have it.  Hope you like :)

...you are awesome!

Hi everybody,

So I haven't updated my blog in a looooong time! ...my bad!  But I am back...and I'm back for good!

So to start with, here's a card I made using (suprise suprise) my paper smooches stamps.  I made it at the request of a friend, who was then giving it to his girlfriend...awwwwww.  I am still pretty obsessed with all things paper smooches so you will find a lot of their stamps and dies used in my projects.  ...gotta love a smooch though eh?

So here goes...

I started with a 6" x 6" kraftcard blank (my favourite size, my favourite card stock - i just love the look of Kraftcard!).  I used 'My minds eye' patterned papers, die cut 2 different sized hearts into them, then matted and layered it all together. I then glittered an adhesive sheet and placed it on the back of the die cut hearts.

The stamps (and the 'awesome' sentiment) are from the 'cutesaurus' stamp set (sooooo cute) and are coloured with promarkers.  The 'Love you' sentiment is from the 'Avery Elle, lots of love' set and is stamped in jet black archival ink.

Little bit of distress ink around the edges to soften the look, and voil`a.  Hope you like it.

Clean & simple

Just thought I'd quickly share the card I made for my dad's wife, and my good friend, Nats', birthday.

I wanted to do something clean, simple, and bright ... try and colour these winter winds away ...can't wait for spring!

So...here it is...hope you like x

So I realised, a little too late, I may have been a bit silly popping that big 'ole flower on the front...as this card will be getting sent to Cyprus!!!!  Oh well...a lot of tissue paper I guess hehe.  You live & learn eh!

Paper smooches Sparks challenge...

Hi there everyone.

Surprising for  me I know (hehe) but I thought I'd play along with the paper smooches sparks challenge again this week.

                                       

The challenge was called 'picture perfect' and the idea is that the delightful folk at paper smooches post a picture, and you create something using the picture as inspiration! I love 'picture perfect' challenges as it allows for your own interpretation and gets the creativity really flowing!

So, here's the 'inspiration' piccie...

                                                  


and here's my creation...
                                         

I stamped the little birdie from the paper smooches 'our peeps' set, and the 'smooches' sentiment from the 'chubby chums' set;  die cut some spellbinders (Asian accents), and mounted it all onto orange, grey & dark brown 'Bazzil basics' cardstock.

Hope you like it...wish me luck :) x

                                                 

why emboss once when you can do it twice :) ?

I can't remember where I seen this technique (i think it was a hero arts you tube video) - but I loved it as soon as I saw it so wanted to try it my-self, and as I'm still very new to this paper-crafting malarky - I love trying new techniques and seeing what I end up with.  So these are my efforts at 'double embossing'...

I used hero arts stamps to stamp with, versamark to emboss with, and distress inks to colour with.

Hope you like xxx

who doesn't want to smooch?!

So yes, I am slightly obsessed with paper smooches stamps haha!  I just love their designs and I think they are the perfect stamps to practise my colouring skills...or lack of rather haha!!!

So this is just something I had in my head with the 'my peeps' set that I wanted to do, and here it is...

Hope you like it xxx

always 'make the day special' ...

So as I'm sure all U.K crafters are well aware - it can be blumming hard to get your hands on certain stamps over here - so I couldn't believe it when I found make the day special - they have an amazing range of 2 of my favourite companies - paper smooches & lawn fawn plus much much more, - and a lovely facebook group to match!   So to celebrate my new found love for them - I decided to put in an entry for their January challenge. 

 The challenge was to follow this sketch...

and here's my entry...

Hope you like it - wish me luck :) xxx

all that glitters...

It's my aunty's birthday in a couple of weeks so thought I'd make a card that sparkles like she does.  It's not really my usual style, but I was making it with her tastes in mind...and when the weather is so miserable outside - why not go crazy with a bit of sparkle!  It was my first my first ever play with 'mod podge' so I decided to go to town and use the 'sparkle' version out of my new starter kit which I treat my-self to the other day.  And here it is...

The flowers are from a 'Dawn Bibby' flower set, and the butterfly is 'hero arts'.  I embossed them both with black embossing powder, coloured them with mica powders - then covered them in 'sparkle mod podge'.  Like I say, it's the first time I have ever used mod podge, and I have to say - I love it already!!!  I added a bit of bling to butterfly's for a little extra prettiness - and used 'spellbinders labels four' to stamp my sentiment on to.

Hope you like it xxx

Paper Smooches Sparks challenge

                                        

Hi there.  Just wanted to share my attempt at this month's paper smooches Sparks challenge following this sketch...

                            


It's the first time I have ever followed a sketch, and to be honest, I found it quite hard to come up with an idea, but it was still fun to play along with.  So...here's my effort...

The back panel is created by repeatedly stamping a PS sentiment to create a block effect, the front panel is the same sentiment, stamped in white ink on vellum, attatched to the card using eye-lets;  and the side panel is a dotty stamp, highlighted using a bit of red bling!

Hope you like it xxx

gimme more smooches!

Some of my favourite things in life are the most simple!

With that in mind...

A cute & simple stamp from paper smooches 'vegtastic' set, some nice clean paper piecing, a white embossed sentiment from the same stamp set...and there you have it, a cute, clean and simple card.  Hope you agree :)

A little piece of heaven...

Hi everyone,

I thought Id share my favourite place on earth with you all...my craft room!!!

I spend many a happy hour in here - & I am slightly on the 'tidy/clean freak' spectrum of things and have almost as much fun tidying and sorting in here, as I do crafting haha!

I've had to re-arrange things so many time to make more room for my ever growing stash!  ...I just can't say no to something I want...or should I say 'need'!!!

I love looking at other people's craft rooms, so I hope you have liked looking at mine x