I believe

I believe

If you follow my blog you will know I’m having a storecupboard January- using up stash and trying out moneysaving ideas as I go. I’m also playing with my new Cougar!

My money saving tip of the day is using cheap baby wipes to clean your craft mat if you’ve been using glimmer sprays/ distress inks etc. When they dry out you can use them as a textured background. I sprayed this baby wipe with home-made glimmer sprays (I made these with a few drops of pearlescent ink in water in a mini mister) to give an impression of  sky and grass.

The beautiful cutting file was one that had been made by Linda using a pattern found at this web site.  Linda has a great web site with free stuff as well as some great files to buy. Her site is here. I used my Cougar to cut a copy in black card and one on lilac pearlescent paper (both scraps!) I then layered them as if there was a shadow.

My stamp was fairy on tiptoes from Lili of the valley. I coloured with Promarkers, mounted on a scray of lilac pearlescent card and lightly embossed the edge by hand. I also added 3 pearl gems.

My sentiment is also LOTV mounted on a circle punched from scrap card and decorated with pearls.

 I also used pearls on a couple of the swirls.

I would like to enter the following challenges
2 sisters challenge- things with wings
Crafting for all seasons- fairies
Flutter by wednesdays- open
Card Caravan challenge- sparkle
I brake for challenges- simple
Crafty sentiments- love and romance (plan to do this for hubby as he starts a new project)
Truly scrumptious challenge- shabby pastels and paint
Aud sentiments challenge- any sentiment but must use scraps
Just inspirational challenges- Inspiration picture

A special sparkly birthday box!

A special sparkly birthday box!

I’ve finally done the box for the card I posted! Just to remind you I’ve taken a photo of the card in the box base!

This is the card folded down in the box base I made.

A side view of the box- I used a circle punch at each end to make it look a little more professional!

I used a single digi of a lily and then coloured it and made it into the heart frame digitally.  I added sticker corners and added pearls to them.

TIP: I added flowers from WOC and painted the edges of the petals with pearlescent ink to give them glimmer rather than glitter!

I added embossing ink to the raised surface of the purple resin embellishment and then added pink Perfect pearls. I painted the outside with perlescent purple ink.

I would like to enter the following challenges
Top tip Tuesday- silver, white and a hint of (purple)
4 Crafty Chicks Birthday
Wacky Wednesday- birthday
Whimsy- anything but a card
Challenge up your life- packaging/box
Paperplay challenge- tags and wrapping
Anything challenge- cutting corners
Crafty purple frog challenge- for someone special

A special sparkly birthday

A special sparkly birthday

I was asked to make this based on another card that I did but I’ve tried a couple of new ideas and techniques to make it even more special! I’m adding lots of pictures as it won’t be staying with me for long! Despite all the photos and most of the card being covered with perfect pearls I don’t seem to have caught the shimmer and sparkle with my camera.

 As you can see this is an easel card for a very special birthday.

I used distress inks and pink perfect pearls around the scalloped edges of my card blank. I then used the same effect on the lilac card. I used my MS butterfly border punch at the top of the card. I then took some small butterflies that I’d punched out and coloured them by dipping them onto pink and purple alcohol inks placed on my craft mat. I tilted the edges up and glued them to the top.

On the base of the card I coloured the edges of the lilac card and papers with distress inks and pink perfect pearls. I tried a new technique to colour my lace with purple and pink pearlescent ink. I then added pearls into a swirl pattern. I added flowers from WOC.

TIP: you can colour embellishments and ribbons using the following technique- put small pools of glimmer mist, pearlescent ink or alcohol ink onto a silicone or glass mat. Using tweezers dip the embellishment or ribbon into the ink. If there are any gaps when you are finished then used the inks as a pallete and brush them onto any areas that have been missed. This can help you to match up colours on your card and also adds some shimmer!

 I punched the butterflies with a MS punch. I coloured them by dipping them in pink and purple peralescent ink. I also added some texture to them by adding some perfect pearls in embossing powder in places. I coloured small pearls with Promarkers and placed then in the centre of the butterflies.
I also made my first decorative pin. I took a flower pin left over from my wedding (Miachel Dark) and threaded pearl and snowball beads along it. I then bent is to become more of a swirl.

I’ve added paper to the back of the card and I have another piece of card ready for a personalised message to be stuck here.

I used a single lily digi to make the frame and add my Wee Stamps digi on Craft Artist. The image was coloured with Promarkers. I added some WOC flowers to the frame and sentiment. I used corners from WOC and stickled the edges.  I dabbed clear ink over this and added shimmer with pink Perfect pearls.

This is the base with card when open. I hope the recipient feels it is special! I need to make a box for it too.

I would like to enter the following challenges
Charisma cardz- lace and pearls
2 sisters challenge- let it sparkle
Digital Tuesday challenge- sparkle and shine
Patties Creations challenge- burthday or thanksgiving
Crafting when we can- female birthday
Top Tip Tuesday- More than 1 fold (OMG- check out the amazing DT cards here!!)
More than favors- birthday
Southern girls challenge embellishment bingo- lace, 3 patterned papers and glitter
Just some lines tic tac toe. Two lines!! Punch, digi, glitter. Punch, lace flower.

Fairytale Christmas

Fairytale Christmas

I made some papers using the inspiration photo from Fairy tale challenge 

and used the sketch from Stampin from the weekend even though I’ve missed the deadline!

So here is the card

I inked the edges with distress ink and added Perfect pearls. I made the mushroom paper and mushroom pattern paper on computer and the frame with the digi perched on the mushrooms from the photo. I also made the sentiment on the computer. I added the pearls and ribbons from stash.

I coloured the digi using Promarkers. I tried a new technique with distress inks to do the grass and sky background and then put on blue and white Perfect Pearls for some shine.

I would like to enter the following challenges
Fairy tale challenge- inspiration photo
Flutterby Wednesday- open challenge
Digital Tuesday Challenge- Christmas time
Bunny Zoe Crafts- anything Christmas with pearls
Daisy doodles creative challenges- anything goes with a digi

It’s a bit like Narnia

It’s a bit like Narnia

This LOTV die cut makes me think of Narnia becuase there is a postbox in the middle of the woods! I thought of using it when I saw some lovely tree inspiration photos for challenges. I used a great sketch but had to flip the embellishments so I didn’t cover the best bits of my background layer! I used distress ink around the edges of the card.

The tree paper was from stash and the snowflake paper was from the Snowman selection. I also used black card from stash.

I used my LOTV let it snow sentiment stamped in blue with added stickles and pearls. I punched two black snowflakes, added silver ink over the top, cut them up and stuck them to the back of the sentiment.
My snowflake embellishments were punches from blue glitter paper and black paper with added silver ink effect. I stuck them together and on two of them added a blue snowflake gem and to the third I added a bead that looks like a snowball with glossy accents and added some pearls.

I would like to enter this card for the following challenges
Paperplay challenges- use black
Top Tip Tuesday- layer it up
A gem of a challenge sketch

Do You Stack Up- inspiration photo

 

For your inspiration

Girly winter in pastels!

Girly winter in pastels!

I needed to make a girly Winter card ready for a birthday in December. When I saw the beautiful inspiration card photo for the Ribbon Reel Challenge (see end of post) I knew the pastel flower theme together with my Winter angel digi would be perfect.

 I made the flower paper with the roses wreath on the computer using Craft artist. I blended Distress ink on the paper and I used Promarkers to colour the flowers on the paper. The Winter Fairy digi was coloured with pastel Promarkers and then I used somepink, light green and white stickles on some parts of the image.

I made the background paper by stamping repeated flower patterns using purple and blue ink.

The LOTV sentiment was stamped in purple onto card which had been distressed. The frame was stamped as well and decorated with 4 pearl embellishments. I punched the corners of the frame and threaded ribbon through. I coloured the flowers on the ribbon using the dusky pink Promarker and stickles.

I made the flower embellishment. The two layers of flowers from stash were distressed and decorated with pink stickles on the bottom layer and white on the top layer. I then removed the flower head off a flower pin using cutters and added it with glossy accents.

I would like to enter this for the following challenges.
CRAFT challenge- recipe of 1 ribbon, 2 shapes and some glitter
The Squirrel and the Fox- for the girls
Corrosive challenge- flying things
Top Tip Tuesday- layer it up
The Ribbon Reel challenge- pretty pastel florals inspiration photo

It’s distressing!

It’s distressing!

First time using distressing today.

I used lavender and brick red distress inks on the edge of the LOTV die cut. I used textured paper and used the two distress inks on them. I ripped the edges of the smaller paper.

I couldn’t get a very good photo of the flowers I put together. They are made of two layers of petals which I highlighted with the distress inks and then pink glitter glue. I put them together with glossy accents and added a pearl embellishment to the middle.

I’d like to enter this for the following challenges
Truly Scrumptious #67 distressing
Glitter Geeks- flower power
Crafty Cardmakers- anything goes

Let it snow!

Let it snow!

Another Christmas card using a beautiful LOTV die cut with cute penguins holding their Let It Snow banner (can’t afford to get many stamps so these die cuts are great!) and LOTV Let It Snow sentiment stamped in red distress ink. I used sticky pearls for snowflakes and highlighted the snow and snowflakes on the sentiment with white stickles.

I’ve made my first snowflake embellishments using a snowflake punch on some shiny and frosted cards together. I took some left over flower pins from my wedding (from Michael Dark) and cut off the heads to fix to the middle of the snowflakes using glossy accents.
I also used left overorganza ribbon from the wedding.
I would like to enter these challenges
LOTV Let It Snow challenge
Fab ‘n’ Funky challenge #93 diecuts/punches
Anything Goes Challenge diecuts/ punches or both
My Mum’s Craft Shop Challenge- all creatures great and small
Simon Says Stamp Challenge- sparkle and bling