Back Again!

Two posts in one day  - whatever next?

Just when I'd decided I seriously didn't NEED any more crafty stash someone comes along with more temptation in the shape of some gorgeous 3D embossing folders and yes, you've guessed it I just had to have a couple of them.  They arrived on my doormat this afternoon and naturally I just had to have a very quick play and have produced this very simple, quick and easy card although I'm sure more elaborate cards will be coming along in due course.  Lots of potential here for gilding, sponging, brushing and so on.

I simply embossed some black card and rubbed over with gilding wax before putting the whole piece onto a 5 x 7 kraft card.  More black and kraft card was used to die cut a fancy shape and stamp a sentiment and that's it!

3D embossing folder - Country Garden from Crafter's Companion
Pebeo Empire gold gilding wax
Sue Wilson die - Frames and Tags, Zoe

Batch Making

Batch making isn't a thing I normally do as I'm not a great fan of production line methods, much preferring to make each card as an individual item from start to finish although I realise this isn't necessarily an efficient way of working.  However I came across a box of DL cards which isn't a size I work with much nowadays and decided I really should try to use some of them up.  I decided to set about making some 'notelet' cards which I thought would make a nice gift as a set of six with envelopes in a box.

I started with watercolour paper and Pixie Powders to prepare some background pieces which I then edged with a gold pen and cut to size to fit above the stamped wording which I'd lined up onto the base cards using a stamp positioning gizmo which certainly makes this easier to achieve. The dandelion clock images were then stamped onto the coloured pieces before mounting them onto the front of the note cards.  A box was made to fit the cards with their envelopes and I was actually surprised how quickly and easily I'd managed to make a nice gift item - here is just one of the cards

I still have plenty of the DL cards left so I might well decide to produce some more sets with different colours and images - the box is quite an easy thing to make too once the size has been decided.

Stamps used - Hobby Arts Dandelion set
Words - free stamp which came with a magazine
Pixie Powder - olive green

Wild Flower

I have lots of pieces of watercolour paper around which have been used for various experiments with inks, powders, sprays and so on.  In an effort to use up some of them I've been seeing what I could combine to make some cards.  This card was made using a piece of one such sheet which had been coloured with Pixie Powders.  I found a piece of paper for a general background and then some scraps of toning paper and card to build up a few layers.  The wild flower and butterfly were cut from scraps of black card and the sentiment stamped onto a tiny scrap of the 'Pixie' paper before being cut out with a punch.

Pixie Powders on watercolour paper
Background paper - from my stash of Chocolate Baroque papers
Rectangle dies - Spellbinders
Flower - Wild flower die from Sizzix
Butterfly - die cut which was lying around
Sentiment - stamp and punch from Stampin' Up
Red die cut - Sue Wilson die

Where Did That Week go??

The past week has just flown by with a Bank Holiday, visits to get a computer problem sorted, grass to be cut and so the list goes on.  I do actually have a card to post today which is a result of experimenting with some glitter combined with an embossing folder. The folder is the one which has come to be known as 'that embossing folder' after it became so very popular when it was given away as a magazine freebie.  It appears everyone wanted to own it so it went into production for sale and keeps on selling out even now.  I embossed it on purple card and then used Cosmic Shimmer copper Glitter Kiss.  A frame was added along with a die cut shape with a simple greeting. It is of course difficult to portray and lovely effect of this glitter without seeing the card for real.

Embossing Folder - free with magazine quite a long time ago
Frame - Noble Pierced dies from Sue Wilson
Sentiment Plaque - Zoe Frames and Tags by Sue Wilson
Glitter - Cosmic Shimmer Glitter Kiss, copper

Time to visit the Playground Again

The lovely Di has come up with a great card this week for using up snippets and alongside this she has given us a detailed description of how it was done - including some very useful tips - thanks for those!  You can see her card HERE.

For my card this week I've resorted to paper piecing again which is a good way of using up the scraps of patterned paper which accumulate and which we can't bear to throw away. The background is an odd snippet of patterned paper and there was just enough left to stamp and cut out one of the balloons; the elephant was stamped onto a snippet of white and also some orange spot paper (with another balloon); nesting dies were used to cut the two circles; the sentiment was stamped before being cut with nesting banner dies in matching blue and white; finally I found a snippet of orange card to cut out the 'bubbles' which were popped behind the main image.

Image - Elephant from set of stamps by Stampin' Up, balloons from another set also SU
Scalloped Circles and 'Bubbles'  - dies from Tattered Lace
Banner - dies from Sue Wilson with computer sentiment

A Little Bird Told Me ...

Well there are three birds actually here which were stamped and coloured using Inktense pencils to make this simple card using a piece of patterned paper, a doily and some ribbon.  The weather seems to be staying dry and sunny but still none too warm - there was a really white frost when I got up this morning brr!!!

 
Stamp - Birds on a Wire from Hobby Art
Dies - Spellbinders
Sentiment - free stamp, punches from Stampin' Up.

Butterfly Challenge

The butterfly challenge HERE this time is F for Faux or the colour jasmine.  I have to say upfront that my entry is a bit tongue in cheek and if it doesn't qualify I won't be surprised - or upset.  Daisy Trail were offering a special deal on quilling digi kits so I thought I'd take up the offer for fun just to see what they were like.  So... some faux quilling digital style with a card made entirely in Craft Artist with no coiled paper harmed in the making!!  I imagine my friend Jill of Jill's Quills will be amused if not horrified to see this and I could well be drummed out of the Quilling Guild!!

As I said this was just done for fun - faux quilling, whatever next?? There is still time to have a go at some faux technique incorporating butterflies, just follow the link to see some inspiration from the Design Team