Watercolour Wednesday-Sneak Peak Week - Winterly Tree Tops

 On this lovely, hopefully very dry and warm day today I have made a card very similar to yesterdays card. This time though I took a white card mat and watercoloured wash in Pool Party across the whole piece and left it to dry. While that was drying, I fussy cut 2 sets of the birds from the Nests of Winter DSP. Unfortunately, with this sheet the dies don't fit! :(( However, as always, I enjoy fussy cutting images anyway so it isn't a problem for me. Once dry, I die-cut the frame for the card using the large die and then using a piece of DSP from the Thoughtful Journey papers for my watercoloured background! A bit of a cheat I know but this is a much better version than I could do! I placed the die-cut frame face down on the desk and added the die cut DSP face down into the frame. By adding tape across the back of it, I was able to trim it down to size easily for the card base which this time is in the lovely shade of blue from Misty Moonlight. I then added the birds onto the picture and completed this one.

Technique Tuesday - Thoughtful Expressions

 Hello and I hope that you are all busy creating in one way or another. It doesn't matter what and how you create but everyone ... and I believe this, everyone creates something every day! Whether it's just putting on coordinated clothing, decorating your home, creating a meal, we all create something every day! Today I am working with the gorgeous Thoughtful Expressions stamp set. I have added some of the beautiful double sided papers called Countryside Inn. I used 2 pieces for this one by trimming it down on the front by a small amount and added paper to the right-hand side of the card where the back of the card is showing. Another bird, once again drinking from the flowers.  

I used a die from the matching set of dies for the 2 white die-cuts and added some Misty Moonlight card behind the DSP and on the inside of the card.

 

Technique Tuesday - Children's Cards - Happy Hedgehogs

 Today's card was made for a little girl called Mia I know who will be turning 5 very soon. She woke at about 10pm one night and looked out of her window to see little creatures outside. She was really excited as she'd never seen them before so her mum told her they were hedgehogs. She has loved them so much since that night and now everything is hedgehogs this and hedgehogs that! So I've used the stamp set called Happy Hedgehogs of course. I  started with a piece of Misty Moonlight card and stamped It's In The Stars stamp all over the card with a white ink pad. On a separate piece of card. I stamped the tree and hedgehogs then coloured them in using my Stampin' Blends pens. I fussy cut them all out and added them to what looks like the night sky on the card background. I used the Alphabest for the number and Charming Sentiments for the rest.

 

Watercolour Wednesday - Translucent Florals

 For my watercolour day, today I went the whole hog so to speak! I had a piece of Fluid 100 watercolour paper and soaked it using a water brush back and forth across the paper. Then using 2 different colours, I chose Berry Burst, Lemon Lolly and Pretty Peacock ink refills. I put a drop onto some acetate and picked a little up with a narrow brush and let it smoosh across the very wet paper. I did the outer 2 colours first and then the Lemon Lolly in the centre last. I loved watching the way the colours all merged together with the softened edges too. You can see the even the Pretty Peacock has different shades too. While that was drying, I took another piece of watercolour paper and washed that too with a large brush. I then used Balmy Blue to cover the whole piece. I love that there are dark parts and lighter parts offsetting the whole page. Once the first sheet was dry, I stamped the leaves and flowers across the colourful mat and squeezed as much in as possible.  It was then just a case of fussy cutting them all out. That was fun! I do love a bit of fussy cutting! I then placed several of the pieces over the blue mat to see how they looked. I am pleased with the end result. 

Fun Fold Friday - Dainty Delight

 Friday is here already and my last card although is a fun fold, it is an easy one. This isn't my design it's one that I saw on Pinterest by Connie Stewart in USA. She called it her Valentine fun fold.  It's brilliant! I made my card base in the lovely Misty Moonlight card that has just been returned to us as a staple colour. It is a mid blue not as dark as Night of Navy but it's going to be used as much as it was too. I am so pleased it's back. I cut 3 white mats. One was 9.5cm by 14.4cm and 2 which are 9cm by 11cm. Using the Dainty Delight stamps, I stamped the largest image onto the largest white mat and each of the 2 other images onto a mat. I have kept the design very simple once again with just a flower and a sentiment on each mat.  

I have made my chart in metric measurements, if you would like them worked out in Imperial (inches) please let me know. I have cut a piece of card portrait style at 29.7cm by 14.8cm, I scored at 4.9c, and 9.9cm from each side landscape. I turned the card portrait again and measured 1.5cm from each side between the 2 score lines and cut them. This was repeated on the other long edge too. I then cut through the score line nearest the centre on each side. I added some DSP on the 2 outer edges and the 4 narrow 1.5cm deep bars at the top and bottom. I cut 2 Balmy Blue mats 9.5cm by 11.5cm and adhered each one to the second of the scored panels on each side so that the edge of the paper goes toward the cut inner part of the card base. I added the 2 white mats onto the Balmy Blue mats and the White mat in the centre I  have since the photos, added a Balmy Blue mat behind that too. 

I knew there was something not quite balanced in my card and only as I was writing about it did I realise what was missing! To err is human I am told and boy ... am I human! 😁😁

 

That's it from me for another week, thank you so much once again for stopping by. I do hope that you have been inspired to make some cards for yourself to give to others too. Today's card will be going to my Daughter in law's mum for her birthday. I do make a lot of birthday cards as I am always sending them out!

Cary will be back to share her creations with you next week so until I return the week after next, please stay safe, keep well and as always, 

KEEP ON CRAFTING.

😍😍 xx Gill xx 😍😍

Below is the link for the Imperial measurements and the video of Connies that I watched. Copy and paste the link below and it will take you straight to it.

https://www.google.com/search?client=firefox-b-d&q=connie+stewart+vaentine+card#fpstate=ive&vld=cid:c151e98a,vid:Ojxn9AXlq2M

Technique Tuesday - Encircled In Beauty

 Hello again. Today I have been stuck indoors as it's really cold and miserable outside so I cheered myself up and made this card. I love embossing folders too but I wanted a circle over two colours and here it is. Using the single flower from the Encircled In Beauty stamp set, I stamped around the edge of the circle I found in my scrap box. I die cut another slightly larger in the gorgeous dusky blue of Misty Moonlight and then again, even larger still in White. The embossing folder is called Thanks and Hello. I added the white panel to the back of the card front. Yes, I cut half of the front off first so the white is all on the inside. 

Once I had embossed the whole front of the card, I added the circle layers using foam pads, Dimensionals to add a little more texture. Inside a simple sentiment and another 2 of the small flowers to finish this one.

It really cheered me up too!

Fun Fold Friday - Whimsical Trees

For my last card this week I have made a very simple gatefold card using the Whimsical Trees stamp set. I took a piece of Misty Moonlight card 14.85cm by 21cm and scored at 5.25cm from each of the short sides of the card. Then I fold both of the outer edges in to meet each other and then using a bone folder or some other such tool, I burnished the scored edges. I added a piece of Balmy Blue card which has been embossed with the Bricks embossing folder and added them to the card front. Then I added the 2 narrow strips of DSP from the Whimsy and Wonder papers (which sadly are not currently available) down the front of the whole card. 

Using the Dies called Christmas Trees, I die cut 2 trees from Misty Moonlight card and 2 trees from the DSP. I removed the centre pieces and replaced them with the opposite pieces from the each set of die cuts. In this one, the trees are in a silver stripe from the Designer Series Paper or DSP and the centres are from the card. I made 2 further cards in the reverse so they will not be wasted at all.

A simple JOY for the centre message which was stamped onto a small die cut rectangle and adhered to one side only. A few trees stamped on the inside and another message completes my last card for this week. 

 

 Below is the 2 cards that I made in the opposite images. This time the trees are die cut in Misty Moonlight card and the inside pieces are from the tree die cuts from the DSP. 

Crafters just don't waste ANYTHING! 😄

That's it from me this week, thank you for stopping by and looking at what I have made. 

Until I return in a week, Cary will entertain you with her creations. 

Take care, Keep well and Stay safe please but most of all...

😄  KEEP ON CRAFTING.  😄

Make It Simple Monday, #simplestamping - Christmas

Hello again and thank you for stopping by.  This week I am using several different stamp sets and they are all about Christmas. This is to show that any stamp can be adapted in the same way that I have done. Today, I am using the Snowbody Better stamp set. By stamping the main snow men image on the front of the card mat, I went to town with my grand-daughter's colouring pencils again. I had a ball. Once that was done, I inked the snowflake stamp up using Memento Tuxedo Black ink and stamped off once then used the 2nd image for the care. This way the snowflakes aren't so dark, more muted. I added some extra snowball gifts and simple sentiments to complete the card. Once I had finished stamping and colouring the mat, I added it to a Misty Moonlight card base. Very simple but a very fun card to make as simple is lots of fun.

For a link to today's stamp set, please click HERE  it will open up a new window for you and take you to our shop where you can browse unintererrupted.

 

 

This is a brilliant stamp set that you can do card on mass and get the family to help colour the cards in too.
 

Tips, Tricks and Techniques Tuesday - Peaceful Deer

 For today's card using the Peaceful Deer stamp set, I have used one of my favourite simple techniques and that is Heat embossing. It is so simple to do as long as you have the heat embossing tool, embossing powder and ink pad such as the amazing Versamark. This is really an upgrade of the card I made for yesterday's Make It Monday or #simplestamping project. I have used another of my favourite techniques called matting and layering. I love the layers on a card as it always adds dimension to any card. 

My first action was to use the embossing buddy (a very fine powder to clean up finger prints from the card) and wiped it across the whole of the card that I was going to ink onto. Instead of using the Memento ink pad as I did yesterday, today I used the Versamark ink pad and stamped the deer first and then the stars repeatedly over the upper half of the card. Versamark is Watermark stamp pad and will stay wet for quite a while, even a day or so! Once stamped all over, I poured white Embossing Powder over the wet ink and then heat set it using the Heat tool. It literally takes less than 30 seconds to heat set all of that powder. Watching it change from very dull greyish-white to the shiny white is AMAZING!!! I love it! I stamped a further deer onto the blue card scrap in the same way and once heat-set I punched it out using the matching punch that goes with the stamp set.

I used the Misty Moonlight card and Basic white once again keeping to my monochrome look again. A strip of the gorgeous cotton ribbon, loads of Rhinestones (a big change for me) and a few messages, completes this card for today.  

For more information on the products that I have used today, please click HERE The link will open up in a new window for you.

Throwback Thursday - Seasons of Fun

 Hello on this lovely sunny Thursday. Today's card was combined by using some dies. I used Give It A Whirl Dies and die cut the white circle in the centre out. Then I stamped the little dog from the Seasons of Fun stamp set, 3 times at regular intervals. The die cut circle has little indents where the frame separates into 3, so it was very easy to see the actual marks. I then coloured them in using Blends to show different characters. Using the framework with the dies, I cut the rest of the shapes from the mats. Once that was all done, I was able to mat everything together and add the die cut circle with the dogs on into it too. I love the little wheel on the edge of the circle that turns it around. I used a piece of the blue Beauty of The Earth designer series papers for the very front panel but had cut out a frame to go under the dusky blue of Misty Moonlight and the rectangle went onto the front with a number of the little stars stamped onto the paper. I completed the card by adding the 2 sentiments. I love the expression.... 'Life Is Full Of Ups and  Downs... Hold On Tight' I think that is so very true.

For more information on the products that I have used here this week, please click HERE. It will open up a new page for you.

As I said earlier in the week, both of these stamp sets can be earned for FREE. By holding a workshop, class or party with your demonstrator and you get order of £15 or more, you get to earn 10% of the total party orders to spend for free on yourself! That really has to be something to think about isn't it? The Seasons of Fun is only £11 and until the end of this September, while Saleabration is still happening, you can get the In Your Words stamp set totally free when the party orders reach £275.