Hanging Water Lily

This is another sample I made for the TV shows in Germany. This time I layered up the image twice and then glued the two pieces back-to-back, sandwiching a piece of ribbon in the centre to act as a hanger.

I chose three shades of pink card and alternated the colours.

You can see from the next picture how much dimension you can achieve.

Happy crafting!

Kaleidoscope Gift Box

This is one of the samples I made for Dawn Bibby to take to Germany for a TV shopping channel over there. The shows were featuring some of the Creative Expressions Medallion Stamps and were a huge success with their viewers. If you have been crafting for a while, you may remember the wood mounted Medallion Stamps launching in this country many years ago! However, in Germany this was a new concept and we had lots of sell-outs.

For any newer crafters who haven't come across the Medallion Stamps, the idea is to layer up the image by cutting out different designs you see in the stamp.  

I really "went to town" layering the lid to this little gift box but you decide how many layers you wish to use and how high you build the design.

I made lots more samples for Germany so will show you a few more designs soon.

Happy crafting!

Vintage Boutique

This card was made using blush and black card. The main panel was stamped in black archival, using designs from the Vintage Boutique stamp set from Creative Expressions (the dressform and the chandelier). I coloured the dress in using Distress Markers. This piece was then die cut using the Spellbinders 5 x 7 Elegant Labels Four die set. I then inked through the die using a Spun Sugar Distress Ink Pad and a piece of foam. 

The second panel was put through an embossing folder to add texture and then a Self Adhesive Swirl was added, plus a bow made from Sheer Wrinkled Edge ribbon with a lilac dazzler in the centre.

The last panel was stamped using an assortment of the smaller stamps from the Vintage Boutique set. Double sided adhesive sheet was then added and micro beads added to the top.

Happy crafting!

Not just for Christmas!

This is a card I made using the Spellbinders Poinsettia dies and the matching stamp set by Heartfelt Creations. I thought it would make an elegant sympathy card, showing that these flowers and leaves can be used for any occasion by changing the colour scheme.

The trellis background was made using the Spellbinders Fancy Lattice die. I pierced the edges of the card using the Creative Expressions Piercing Ruler and a needle tool and sponge mat. I then threaded gold thread through all of the stitches. 

The sentiment was cut out using a die from the Spellbinders Fancy Framed Tags One die set.

You could make this card using nice bright colours to make a cheery Birthday card.

Happy crafting!

Cheers! A.T.C.

This is the last project in my ATC designs.

This time I used the ATC Art Part which has the corners cut away. I used Cosmic Shimmer Flake & Glitter Glue and Cosmic Shimmer Gilding Flakes to make the background. 

The little shelf has been made using a scallop trim from the Scallops Art Parts set and the Star comes from the Hearts, Love & Stars Art Parts set (used for the Wings of Love ATC). 

The cute champagne bottle and flutes are from the Embellish Your Art range by Wendy Vecchi.

Hope you have enjoyed seeing something a bit different.

Happy crafting!

Feeling Under The Weather? A.T.C.

Here is the 2nd of my ATC projects to show you, made using some of the fabulous products designed by Wendy Vecchi.

The Art Parts set that I used has six ATC sized pieces in it, three designs, two of each. This design has the rounded corners. 

I coloured the background with a green Distress Ink Pad and then stamped randomly using the main background stamp from the Artfully Said Stamp Set by Studio 490. 

The pocket watch comes in two pieces and is from the Art Parts set called Pocket Watches. You get three backs and three fronts in the pack. I painted the outside edges of the pocket watch using silver paint and the background a pale blue/grey. I stamped the Thinking of You message on the background a few times, as shown, before gluing the two pieces together. 

The umbrella comes from the Art Parts set called Outdoor Art and the hood of the umbrella has been coloured with Distress Ink and then stamped with black Archival ink. The handle has been painted with silver paint. The little crow and the flower embellishments come from the Embellish Your Art range.

I finished the piece by rubbing some Creative Expressions Golden Light Gilding Wax around the edges of the ATC and to highlight the bird's wing.

One more ATC still to come.

Happy crafting!

Wings of Love A.T.C.

A while ago, I did a set of Artist Trading Card projects, so I thought I would show you these.

The base comes from the Studio 490 Art Parts set called ATC Art, which contains six ATC sized Art Parts for you to decorate.

Here is the first project . . .

I inked up the Art Part with a Red Distress Ink Pad and, once this was dry, randomly stamped with Black Archival Ink and a floral stamp. You could also use a flourish or swirl stamp for this. The letters for the word LOVE came from another Art Parts kit, called Hearts, Love & Stars. I painted the letters with black acrylic paint and then added Cosmic Shimmer Dries Clear Glue to the letter O so that I could attach some of the Cosmic Shimmer Luna Silver Vintage Mica Flakes to it.

The wings are also Art Parts, and come from the Simply Wings set. I used acrylic paint for the base coat and then stamped with black Archival ink.

The two flower buttons come from the Wendy Vecchi Embellish Your Art embellishments range. 

More ATCs to follow soon!

Happy crafting!

A quick make

This was made some time ago, to wish a lovely lady good luck in her new career.

The floral images came from the Heartfelt Creations Tattered Blossom Swirl set, which I then coloured in using Cosmic Shimmer Watercolour Paints. I chose colours to match a piece of decorative paper that I had in my stash. 

The white crochet ribbon and the white card base were both inked using Worn Lipstick Distress Ink.

The sentiment was cut out using the Spellbinders Labels Twenty Eight die set.

The card was finished off with a few self-adhesive pearls in two of the corners.

Happy crafting!

Still painting with wax!

I love this stamp set (Tim Holtz Sewing Blueprint from Stampers Anonymous) so I made a second card, this time using the dressform with Amethyst and Pewter Gilding Waxes from Creative Expressions, mixed with their Solvent Blending Solution.

For the button background on the base of the easel card, I inked through the Button mask from That Special Touch with Distress Ink.

Other items used were the Spellbinders Timeless Rectangles die set, Sue Wilson's Heart Lattice Embossing Folder, Lavender Dazzlers, Black Crystal Stick Pins and Sheer Wrinkled Edge Ribbon in Plum.

Happy crafting!

Painting with wax!

Today's blog post is using the Creative Expressions Gilding Waxes and the Creative Expressions Solvent Blending Solution, to make a paint medium.

The parts of the card which I have used the gilding waxes on are the two large cotton reels (using Amethyst and Ultramarine) and the mini half-spools (which used a variety of colours of the Gilding Waxes). I also painted the sewing needles using the Pewter Gilding Wax.

I found it hard to show the metallic sheen in my photos but it really is a pretty effect.

Using the wrong end of a small paintbrush, I scooped around the edge of the pot of Gilding Wax, to scoop out a small amount of wax into a paint pallette. I then added a few drops of the Solvent Blending Solution and, using the brush end of the paint brush, stirred the solution into the wax, adding a few more drops if needed, until the desired consistency was achieved.  You can leave the "paint" to dry on the pallete and then, when required at a later date, you can re-activate it by adding a few drops of the Blending Solution and stirring the wax.

I used Vintage Photo Distress Ink through the Spellbinders Square Swatches die. I also used this ink pad to paint the wooden part of the spool images. The spool image comes from the Tim Holtz Sewing Blueprint stamp set by Stampers Anonymous and was stamped using Clear Perfect Medium and then heat setting with Cosmic Shimmer Black Fine Detail Embossing Powder.

As you can see, I went with the sewing theme by getting my sewing machine out and adding some decorative stitches to one of the card mats.

Today is my first day back at the office since the Christmas break so I wonder what the day will hold? 

Happy crafting!

A review of 2013

When I started my blog at the beginning of this year, I wondered what it would be like. 

I have "met" some wonderful fellow crafters and enjoyed sharing some of what I do, as much as following what others have crafted.

At times I have found little or no time to post on my blog but, having reviewed it today, I realise that I have posted between 60 and 70 projects this year, so more than one a week on average. I have huge respect for those who post more regularly and more often as I now realise how much work this involves.

I thought today I would post a montage of some of my favourite projects this year.

I am teasing you a bit, as a couple of these cards have not yet been blogged. If you want to find out how they were made and the materials I used, you will have to keep checking my blog in the New Year!

For the projects which have already been blogged, there are links below if you missed them.

I wish you all the very best for 2014 and . . .

. . . happy crafting! xx

Sun Kissed Fleur in Blue

A good time was had by all!

Warmest Wishes Stepper Card

Crazy Daisy

Endless possibilities . . .

Today's card features the new Couture Creations embossing folder called Endless. It is a pretty background design featuring lots of different leaves. 

I embossed a piece of white gloss card using the Endless folder. I then blended Alcohol Inks in different colours, trying to use separate colours for each leaf, as much as possible. I die cut this piece using the Spellbinders Grand Large Labels die set and then added a green card mat using the same die set. I then added a mat of ginger card and put a tiny brad in each corner. The final mat was another piece of the green card.

A piece of green seam binding ribbon was added around the middle of the card. This was the point where I had extended the embossing folder pattern, so it disguised the join.

The flowers were die cut using the Heartfelt Creations Sweet Juliet die set. There are two sizes of flower in the set. The largest flower in the centre of the card shows the largest die cut as the base. The second layer is the same die cut, which is folded under and held in place with a tiny brad. The top layer uses the smaller of the two flowers, again with a tiny brad. 

The sprays of leaves were cut using a die from the same set. Before removing the leaves from the die I sponged through the die with Cosmic Shimmer Flake & Glitter Glue, so that I could then add some Cosmic Shimmer Verdigris Gilding Flakes once the die had been removed. 

Happy crafting!

  

Burnished Keys

Today's card uses a stamp and a die from the new Heartfelt Creations Floral Key Collection.

The stamp is a background stamp called Burnished Key and the coordinating die cuts out all of the keys in one go. 

I stamped the background stamp onto a piece of milk card, using the new Wendy Vecchi Archival Ink Pad called Potting Soil. 

I trimmed the card to fit the background and then distressed the edges with a pair of open scissors. I then inked around the distressed edges with the same Potting Soil Ink Pad and curled two of the corners in, as shown.

The top layer was then matted onto a piece of vintage gold card, then a piece of brown card with another mat of milk card and finally a piece of the gold card again.

The messy bow was made using some ivory vintage ribbon and some brown and cream bakers twine, finished off with a metal key from the Creative Expressions Fancy Key Charms pack in the centre of the bow.

To make the little keys hanging from the bunting and to 3D some of the main elements of the background piece, the background stamp was stamped onto a piece of the vintage gold card using the Potting Soil Archival Ink pad. The stamped image was then cut out using the matching die so that all of the keys and locks were cut into separate pieces. The larger ones I placed over the background image using foam pads. The smaller keys were added to the Bakers Twine. 

Happy crafting!

Enchanting Plum Bauble

This card uses one of the prettiest Spellbinders dies, Enchanted Labels Twenty Eight. The Plum card has also been embossed using the Couture Creations Message in a Tree Embossing Folder.

This has been layered onto mats of Vintage Metallic Gold, Coconut White and Plum card.

The bauble is the Creative Expressions Lattice Bauble, stamped onto Coconut White card using a Clear Perfect Medium pad and Cosmic Shimmer Detail Gold Embossing Powder. The co-ordinating Spellbinders 2011 Heirloom Ornaments die set was used to cut out the bauble.

To finish the card, the bauble was coloured using Distress Markers and finished with a few Vintage Plum Pearlescent Plum PVA faux pearls. 

Happy crafting!

Turquoise Baubles with Beads

Another card using the Creative Expressions Stamps to Die for, this time the Ornate Bauble and the matching Mini Ornate Bauble (which comes with the Mini Beaded Bauble).

I stamped the two Ornate Baubles using a Clear Perfect Medium Pad and Cosmic Shimmer Detail White Embossing Powder on Spearmint card. I die cut the baubles using the co-ordinating Spellbinders Heirloom Ornament die set. 

The bow is made from Creative Expressions Teal Silky Crush Ribbon and a square Dazzler.

The apertures were made using the same Spellbinders die set. This piece of Spearmint card was first attached to a piece of double sided adhesive sheet and die cut using the Spellbinders Grand Labels One die set. After cutting the apertures, Micro Beads were attached to give texture to the card.

A piece of Teal card was placed behind the apertures to act as a contrast. 

The sentiment was stamped in the smaller aperture and piece of bakers twine were added to "hang" the baubles. The sentiment comes from the Winter Greetings stamp set from Creative Expressions.

The base of the card is another piece of Teal card and then a piece of Coconut White card on top, which has been embossed using the Creative Expressions Large Embossing Folder Design chosen by Sue Wilson, called Tapestry. I inked over the embossed areas using a Peacock Feathers Distress Ink pad. 

Happy crafting!

Red and Green Christmas

This card was made to feature one of the stamps from the Creative Expressions Stamps to Die For range, called Lattice Bauble, on a Create & Craft show. Julia also had embossing folders and the Spellbinders die featured in the card on her show.

The two embossing folders used were Star Pere Noel (on the green card) and New Year Dove (on the red card), both from Couture Creations.

The embossing was highlighted using the Creative Expressions Vintage Golden Green Gilding Wax.

The faux pearls around the edge of the card were made using Cosmic Shimmer Vintage Golden Green Pearlescent PVA.

To make the bow, I used red Sheer Wrinkled Edge Ribbon and a red Dazzler from Creative Expressions.

I coloured in the stamped bauble using Distress Markers and a Water Brush.

I then die cut the bauble using the co-ordinating Spellbinders 2011 Heirloom Ornaments die set and attached this to the card with foam pads, after shaping it slightly.

The bauble and the sentiment were both stamped using a Clear Perfect Medium pad and Cosmic Shimmer Detail Gold Embossing Powder. The sentiment comes from the Creative Expressions Winter Greetings stamp set.

Happy crafting!

A Wonderful Shoe!

This card uses another of my favourite stamp sets from Creative Expressions, called Sole Creations. It has lots of lovely shoe designs plus a handful of sentiments.

Please ignore the black background (I forget to take a photo before the card was stuck on a black display board!). It is actually a white card base and I have then added some of the Foundations Double Sided A4 papers that Creative Expressions distribute. This one is called Dot & Dash, which has small polka dots on one side and then a colour coordinated striped pattern on the other side. I have also used the Foundations Shades Double Sided A4 papers. These have a lighter shade on one side and a darker shade on the other side but, again, have been designed to coordinate colour-wise with all of the other designs in the range. This removes the difficulty of trying to find papers for a project which "match".

The shoe image I chose was stamped onto Coconut White card and heat embossed using Cosmic Shimmer Detail Black Embossing Powder. The sentiment was stamped in the same way. I then coloured in the image using Cosmic Shimmer Drawing Inks.

The dies I used to cut out the card toppers were from the Spellbinders A2 Fancy Ribbon Threader set.

I used London Tan coloured American Seam Binding to thread through the die cuts and then used this and Chalk White American Seam Binding to tie the bow.

The bow was finished off with a Fancy Pearl Embellishment from Creative Expressions.

Happy crafting!

When is a background not a background?

This card was made using the JustRite Fragrant Garden Background Stamp, but it is so pretty I decided to use it as the focal element of the card.

I stamped the image onto Coconut White card and trimmed the card to the size of the stamped image. I then blended blue and green Distress Inks on each side of the image. I stamped the same image again, this time on Khaki card and cut out the three labels and the flower head. I coloured these four images using Distress Markers or, with the largest label, blending Distress Inks, as shown. The leafy flourish was coloured using a Distress Marker.

This panel was then matted onto a black piece of card, which I had pierced around the edges, using the Creating Expressions Piercing Ruler and a needle tool. 

The final mat was a piece of the Khaki card.

Happy crafting!

Warmest Wishes Stepper Card

A vintage style Christmas card for you today.

The base of the card is a piece of Foundations Milk Card, which has been stamped using the new Heartfelt Creations Delicate Holly Swirls Pre Cut stamp set and a clear Perfect Medium pad. Cosmic Shimmer Detail Gold Embossing Powder was added and heat set. 

The leaves were coloured in using a Forest Moss Distress Ink Pad and a water brush. Cosmic Shimmer Berry Red Pearlescent PVA was then added to the stamped berries. The card base was then left overnight for the "berries" to dry. The next day the card was scored to form the steps and Forest Moss Distress Ink was blended around all of the edges.

The two circular elements were made by stamping some of the stamps in the Heartfelt Creations Christmas Sentiment Circles Pre Cut stamp set (gosh, that was a bit of a mouthful!). The same Milk card was used as before and the Forest Moss Distress Ink was blended through circle dies used to cut out the stamped images. The two circle toppers were then mounted onto the decorative red mats, which were die cut using the Spellbinders Picot Edge die set. 

The die cut tree was made using the Heartfelt Creations Banner & Trees die set.

The bow was tied using a piece of two-tone red ribbon. The holly swirl was cut using the Heartfelt Creations Ornamental Add On die set. The poinsettias were stamped using the Heartfelt Creations Christmas Poinsettia Pre Cut stamp set and die cut using the Heartfelt Creations Sun Kissed Fleur die. 

Happy crafting!

Star Book

This is a Star Book of Inspirations and Techniques. 

It was the sample made for a recent workshop. The idea was to try various techniques and go away with a reference book.

This picture shows the book when closed, together with a few of the pages included.

The front and back covers were made by using a small embossing folder and then extending the design.

The techniques used on these three pages were (i) die cutting and decoupaging the die cuts with different coloured card, (ii) stamping with Cosmic Shimmer Flake & Glitter Glue and adding Cosmic Shimmer Polished Silk Glitter and (iii) rubber stamping and using matching dies plus heat embossing and using Distress Inks.

The techniques used on these pages were (i) using embossing folders and adding Distress Ink as well as inking through a die with Distress Ink and using Polished Silk Glitters with a stamp, (ii) changing the colour of metal embellishments using embossing powder, using Polished Silk Glitters with self adhesive sheets and die cuts, and embossing with a border mask, (iii) using gilding wax with an embossed image and using texture paste through a mask.

I hope this book inspires you to try something different.

Happy crafting!

Blog Candy winner

Hi everyone.

As the blog candy wasn't claimed by Mandy, I have done a re-draw and the lucky winner is . . . . . . . Lesley Thomas!

Please email me Lesley at tenderlovingcrafts@gmail.com with your postal address so I can send out your prize.

Right, I need to blog a new card so off to choose something interesting for you all!

Back soon!

A bouquet of Drawing Inks

Something a bit different today. I recently had to find a way of displaying the different colour choices in the Cosmic Shimmer Drawing Inks range.

There are some really pretty colours available. Some sets contain mica and some are matt colours. 

The "petals" are the Creative Expressions Blossom Heart stamp from the Singles range. The stamp comes pre cut and cushion mounted. This particular design also comes with a sentiment - Warmest Wishes. The heart design was stamped using clear Perfect Medium and then heat embossed using the Cosmic Shimmer Detail Black embossing powder. Each heart uses a different set of Cosmic Shimmer Drawing Inks. The hearts have then been glued to the embossed background to form the two flower shapes. The centres of the flowers are the Creative Expressions Large Circle Dazzlers. 

Happy crafting!

Sun Kissed Fleur in Blue

A blue colour theme, using my favourite range of stamps, the Heartfelt Creations Sun Kissed Fleur stamp sets and matching die.

Coconut white card was used for all layers. The base layer was a plain rectangle mat. The second layer was edged using the Cosmic Shimmer Summer Blue Pearlescent PVA to make the faux pearls. The third layer was stamped around the outside edge using the Heartfelt Creations Sun Kissed Fleur Border & Corner Pre Cut set and an Olive Archival ink pad.

For the top layer, a sentiment from the Creative Expressions Garden Sayings stamp set was stamped in the centre of a rectangle of coconut white card, using an Olive Archival ink pad. This was die cut with a grand rectangle die and Tumbled Glass Distress Ink was sponged around the die. The corner stamp from the Heartfelt Creations Sun Kissed Fleur Border & Corner Pre Cut set was then stamped in the bottom left corner using the Olive Archival ink pad. 

The corner design was then coloured in using Tumbled Glass, Crushed Olive and Mustard Seed Distress Markers.

More flowers and leaves were stamped and then die cut using the matching Sun Kissed Fleur Pre Cut stamp set and Die. These were coloured, as before, and then layered up in opposite corners (as shown).

Happy crafting!