Falling for Spellbinders Halloween.

Hello and thanks for joining me again Dear Friends!!

NB: This post was originally for Halloween sales at the store, however, I thought a few of you might still like to see the info about the products.

Happy Fall to you all!!  Here in Australia, Fall (or Autumn as we call it) really isn't that much of an event.  Our leaves don't turn golden and burnt umber in color, we don't really have a 'turning of the leaves'  as such.  Our school year starts in January so we don't celebrate that either. In fact, September is a bit of a quiet month for us--even though it's the beginning of Spring here, it creeps in quietly rather than launches with vibrant colours and birds a-tweetin'. 

HOWEVER!! I've discovered the remedy to this sad state of affairs--it's the new gorgeous line of Spellbinders dies.  In order to really make my September fantastically Fall-like, some of the following are definitely going to have to come home with me :)

I'm so excited by these: 

Spellbinders Assorted Leaves Cut and Emboss Dies

I mean--hello?! GORGEOUS!!! Can you get more Fall than these?? Maybe you can. How about...

Spellbinders Shapeabilities Nested Dies Maple Leaves

*sigh* Maple leaves. I love Maple leaves. So many options with this set of leafy loveliness.  I want to cut hundreds of these out, make a pile of them on the ground and jump on top *giggle*.

Now, I'll share a secret with you all--when I first saw these next two dies, I fell totally in love.

Spellbinders Shapeabilities Assorted Fresh Fruit

Spellbinders Shapeabilities Apples

They are so cute and fresh and pretty...BUT...I said to myself..."What does it have to do with Fall?!"  Linda from a2z quickly explained to me the tradition of Cornicopia at Thanksgiving.  Sounds wonderful--I might have to introduce it into my home!  You know what else I love about them?! They're so versatile! Those apples would be super-cute on a card or note to a teacher, or even on a set of ABC cards for your kids! A is for apple...B is for...you get my drift. *wink!*

I have a question for you all--WHOO loves Halloween?! We do!!! (Sorry, I couldn't resist!)

Spellbinders Shapeabilities Owls

My goodness if these owls got any cuter, it would just about be criminal.  I love that they look like a little family.  It took me many viewings of these owls to be able to think of singular uses for them. I just kept imagining them lined up on a tree branch all sleeping together in a little row, looking wise and all-knowing-even with their eyes shut *smile*.  Now that I can tear myself away from the image of a little paper-owl family and consider them individually, the options are almost endless!  They could be spooky and haunting in a dark twisty tree (think Tim Holtz) or cute and kid-friendly with googly eyes.

I think I'll be putting them in a scary old gnarly-looking tree with these guys flying overhead:

Spellbinders Nested Bats

and perhaps some of these sitting around the base of the tree for added effect and spook:

Spellbinders Jack-o-lanterns

*shudders* ...Spine-tingling scary.  You know what would really make these great?! Some bright bright yellow or even gold cardstock or foil behind them to recreat the effect of the glowing candles inside.  These goulish faces would really bring some fright then!

Halloween too, isn't much of anything here in Australia either, but this year--with these products, I'm doing to do my best to bring it back into the spotlight.

Spellbinders Pumpkins Nestabilities Dies

Need I say more? I didn't think so.

For something a bit more gothic, there's always these;

Spellbinders Graveyard Scene and Shapes

or even;

Spellbinders Halloween Fence Scenes

I love love LOVE how much you can mix and match with these sets.  Don't forget you could even team the above images with the Vampire punch from Martha Stewart that we showed you last time.

Now who doesn't love a a nice old lady with a cute cat, a sweeping device, some great boots and a hat??  Don't forget that she brought her crock pot with her!!! She's going to make us stew!!

Spellbinders Witches Brew

What's that you say?! She's going to make us INTO stew?! Oh dear. I might have to give her some of this to see if I can sweeten her up a bit:

Spellbinders Candy Corn Nested Dies

What do you think? Will that make her nicer??  She'd better watch out, with all the SPELLbinders I'll have in my stash, I might have to teach her some manners! *waves wand menacingly*  If she's not careful she'll end up looking like this guy:

Sizzix Movable Skeleton Bigz BIGkick/Big Shot Die

Of course, if you're after something to make your Halloween gifts more personal, hand-made tags are perfect--here's just the thing for you to use!

Sizzix Halloween #2 Embossing Folders

Well my lovelies, I think that's just about all for today.  I hope I've managed to inspire you with some ideas and of course, all of these gorgeous products!

Take care now and see you next time!

Linda x

Girl with bird and some news!!

Hello dear friends!

Another shortish post today I'm afraid. BUT this time I can explain my absence from the bloggy world!

So, in my previous post I mentioned an opportunity offered to me by the fabulous girls at www.a2zScrapbookingSupplies.com--today I get to tell you all about it!

About 2 weeks ago, I was chatting online with Linda from a2z and mentioned my marketing background and she then asked if I would be interested in doing their newsletters for them. I of course said yes that sounded great! BUT then the role developed from there. So long story (and many conversations) short, they offered me the position of Blog and Creative Team Coordinator!! *squeaks with excitement*

This role will mean that I not only create and run their brand-spankin' new blog, but I'll also be their permanent Creative Team member. I will be organising and implementing contests, offering tips and hints for creative success as well as seeking out other wonderful creative bloggers to spend a day on the blog as special guest host! These people will be invited to share a couple of their latest and greatest creations and give any helpful hints or even tutorials they might have to offer inspiration to other craft-minded people!! So exciting!!

So here is the link to the newly created blog that has been keeping me busy this past week: www.a2zScrapbookingSupplies.blogspot.com

Of course, I'll still be running this blog and updating as I go along. Hopefully now that the a2z blog is up and running, I will have a bit more time to actually spend at my craft desk making things!!

ANyhoo, to keep your craft-o-meter up high, here is a card I made AGES ago and completely forgot about!!



The stamp is from funky kits. It was coloured with copics and the background is made using a patented Isabella-inking-technique (yes, Isabella my 2 year old...*laughs proudly*). The ribbon and string was from my stash, the tag was hand-made (I haven't got my tag punch from A2z just yet--hurry up mailman!!)The sentiment is from Hero Arts Friends Clear set
and the Hero Arts Lace Circle stamp is in the background behind the circle, which was cut with a nestabilities circle die.

Sorry this is a shorter post but I have a baby who's calling me!!!

Linda xx

a quick one...

Hello friends!!

Just a real quickie today to let you know I'm still here and haven't forgotten you!! I've been super busy this week caring for Charlotte who is recovering from her operation BEAUTIFULLY!!! Kids are so much stronger than us adults aren't they?! Her scar is almost fully healed--amazing! She doesn't even seem to think anything's happened. Which is awesome. Mummy however still has a few grey hairs! lol

Anyhoo, I'm in the middle of a riDICulously exciting project that stems from a huge opportunity extended to me by the gorgeous Linda & Tina at a2zscrapbooking.com. I'm so so excited about it, I'll tell you all about it when it's ready. I really wanna share my news now...but I'll wait...or at least, try to!!
It's taken me away from my crafting desk for a few days but I will be heading back in there tomorrow night so, stay tuned!

Ok, so that's me for this time, sorry for such a short and card-less post! But never fear, crafting will resume its normal schedule soon!


Take care! Thanks for stopping by :)

Permanent Masking with Glossy Accents

Wow!! Jennifer McGuire has done it again! Watch this fantastic tutorial to see how beautifully this new masking technique turns out! Glossy Accents is a staple for cardmakers and scrapbookers alike, so try this technique the next time you get crafty!!

find all the products you need to recreate this project below;
Tim Holtz Distress Ink
Tim Holtz Mini Ornamental die
Ranger Ink Glossy Accents
Ranger Inkssentials Ink Blending Tool
Hero Arts Friends definition stamp
Hero Arts Real leaves cling stamp set

You are special

>
Hello to you all on this lovely rainy day :)

Yes, I'm one of those people who cheers when I hear it rain. Here in Perth we have sun for so much of the year, rain is a real treat. It also rains for such short periods of time that when--like today--we have a good hour or two of solid rain, well I'm in heaven :)

Here's a new card for you:


I've had the backing piece for several months now, maybe even 2 or 3 and I just never got the right inspiration to finish it off. Nothing felt quite right (are you noticing a trend in my cardmaking lately?!)
I'm not going to go into detail on the "how to's" as I think most of it is pretty self explanatory--as always, feel free to email me/leave a comment if you have any questions.

Here are the products I used;
THe backing card:
Hero Arts fern silhouette woodblock stamp, friends definition
Distress ink in Walnut Stain, Forest Moss, Peeled Pain (just a little)
White embossing powder
Versamark ink

The central label;
I hand-cut the label after tracing around one from a tag on something I got in the mail the other day but it's a spellbinders Labels #9. (must buy...drags mouse over to a2zscrapbookingsupplies.com link...CLICK)
Distress ink in Antique Linen, Wild Honey, Black soot
Hero Arts Flourish Grid woodblock stamp (it's very pale but shows up more in real life)
Hero Arts Great Flourishes messages (sentiment)
Memento tuxedo black ink
Perfect pearls in Kiwi

extra items--gold ribbon, glossy accents (around edge of label), 4" paper doily, black bazzill cardstock, Prima say it with pearls flourish (discontinued).

Here's a close up look so you can see the shimmer of the perfect pearls--gorgeous right?!

Hope you like it!!

thanks so much for looking

Hello again & "Splish Splash" card

Hi again!!

Sorry it's been so long! As you know, Charlotte had her surgery on Thursday and it all went PERFECTLY!!! *sigh of relief*. I was so stressed in the lead-up to the surgery I nearly blacked out a few times and the morning of?! Well I was shaking.

Anyhoo, it's all over now and we're back home. She has a tiny 2 inch scar on her right side and it's healing nicely. She may need another surgery when she's about a year old, but we'll come to that when we get there!! Thank you for all of your support, I received quite a few messages of 'good luck' from you lovely ladies and I appreciated them so much.

I was so excited in hospital to receive an email from the lovely Virginia, who congratulated me on being the random winner--and I am pretty random--of the Hero Arts prize for having their blinkie on my blog!! I can't wait to get my package of Christmas goodies in the mail!! *claps hands* Thanks again Virginia for letting me know, I REALLY needed that good news to calm my nerves and give me a dose of good luck at such a stressful time.

I'd also like to take this opportunity to thank my ASTOUNDINGLY wonderful friend Linda (from a2zscrapbookingsupplies.com). She stayed up till nearly midnight (her time) chatting with me on email and keeping me sane, just to make sure Charlotte got through the surgery ok and that I didn't break down completely. Linda--we've only been friends a short while really but I love you SO much and I value your friendship more than I can say.
Ok mushy moment over--I'm gettin' a bit teary!

OK ON TO THE CARD!!!

The pics aren't the best, as usual SORRY.




I really fought with this card, it took me ages to get all the elements just right.

How I did it:
*I used the Hero arts cloud stamp for the sky with Weathered Wood Distress Ink. I also used the cloud stamp for the ground, but this time with Versamark ink (on blue cardstock) and Tim Holtz Distress Powder in Weathered wood. I then used Glossy Accents for the puddles. In real life, they look fantastic. Just like water.
*Hero arts Mi Casa clear stamp set for the house and I used the brickwork on the roof and a masking technique to make the rest of the house brickwork too. (That took some work!!). Then I coloured it with copics. I used a white gel pen to make little 'reflection' marks on the windows.
*The little girl image is from The Greeting Farm, she's coloured with copics.
*The fence is a Martha Stewart edge punch
*The tiny strip of grass you can see behind the fence is using my pinking shears on green cardstock. (terrible to use fabric scissors on paper, i know, but just this once ok?!)

The rest is pretty self explanatory, buttons for flowers, layered the card onto yellow and grey cardstock to give it a frame and then onto a black card, setniment 'splish splash' is using black rub-ons.

The inside of the card is here:


I just repeated the image and coloured the boots and raincoat for some added interest.

The sentiment says "I know you've been through a rough time lately, but remember-without storms, we wouldn't have PUDDLES!". I was searching all day for a puddle-quote, but NOTHING! I liked the idea of Friends being like puddles, they're what will make you smile after a storm, but I just couldn't get the wording to be quite right. Hopefully this makes sense. I'm one of the few people who love rain storms, so I wasn't sure if it would!

Anyway, I have a baby waking up so I have to run! Hopefully I haven't missed anything!

Talk to you all soon, thanks for looking!!




PS Do you all prefer this style of 'how to'?? I usually write up the instructions in a paragraph style but it seems so wordy! Would you like more or less detail on how I make my cards? I'd do videos but youtube seems to hate me at the moment. Please comment and let me know if you have a preferred 'way'!!
thanks :)

Striped background Hydrangea card

Hi again,

a quickie tonight...this is a card using a hydrangea image that I've had waiting for several weeks to be used. I had it with a different background completely but it just didn't work for me.

SO! Here's the totally reworked card, with the original centre piece.



The backing piece of kraft cardstock is stamped with the Hero Arts stripes background cling stamp in Snow White Papertrey Ink ink.
I stamped the La Lettre stamp (using Pumice Stone D.I) onto ivory cardstock, distress inked the edges.
I coloured the hydrangea image with copics. I used the EK Success Moroccan edger punch on some brown & green bazzil cardstock and touched the edges of the green with the copic marker I used on the flower. I then added some dark satin brown ribbon & Papertrey Ink string and finished it off with a silver ornament from my stash.
I finished the card off with some silver eyelets and PTI string & a hand punched tag using a fiskars handpunch.
The two sentiments are from Hero Arts All occasion messages and are both stamped wiht Versacolour Pinecone ink. The larger sentiment is being held by a Tim Holtz memo pin.

I hope you like it :)

I've mentioned this before, but just a reminder that my 6 month old daughter, Charlotte is having surgery on Thursday so I'm not sure when I'll get to post again, but I will be back, God willing that everything go well with the surgery. Please keep her in your prayers that everything goes well and she's returned to us safely.

My Little Family Layout

Hello!!!

Sorry it's been so long, I've been working on a few projects at once this week and they all took FOREVER!!! One of them is finally finished and I'll show you in a moment.

Firstly a quick apology for not posting more often. I was happily posting every day or two there for a while but this last week or two has just been a nightmare for many different reasons--none of which I'll bore with you but lets just suffice it to say that by the time 9:30pm rolls around and both my beautiful girls are asleep, my "creat-ometer" is hitting below the red line!!
I sit at my craft table and think...'inspiration?! where are you now?!?!' and I usually end up watching some tv or a movie on my lap top AT my craft desk (is that blasphemous??) and I colour in some images with copics...and then the images never go further than that! Otherwise I'm chatting with the beautiful Linda from a2zscrapbookingsupplies.com--->>> see the link over there in pink?? CLICK!!! GO ON!! CLICK CLICK!! She's the best and it's shopping that helps a fantastic cause. So it's like you're not really spending at all, cause you're giving back too!! (That's what I'm telling myself...*wink*)
But don't you get too friendly with her now cause I might get jealous :) I'm not ready to share my new friend *hearts to Linda*

ANYHOO. Here is what took me about THREE days to get done. I kept walking by it during the day to see if inspiration hit and then finally after watching HEAPS of the genius-that-is-Nichol-Magouirk on youtube, I felt the tingling in my spine that sent me rushing to my desk to finish.

Sorry for the terrible photos yet again! I can't wait to get a light box for my photos!!

I've added a few pics of this so you can see the details.

This first pic is what the layout looked like when my inspiration waned... I liked it but didn't REALLY like it. It just felt kinda naked


The next one is the finished product:



Here are a few extras so you can see the details:





And here's my furbaby Toby sniffing my layout, no doubt wondering why the heck it's in the pot plant!! lol (outside light Toby, it's all about natural light :))




The products I used are WIDE & VARIED!! The ones I can name are:
green rosette: Bazzil cardstock & Kaisercraft brad
Blue Rosette & background paper: DCWV Garden Party Stack 12x12
Stamps ('Admit one' ticket, 'order' ticket & 'Original' and 'There is Noone like you'): PTI "It's official" and "Larkspurs" sets (both July release)
Green thickers: American Crafts "Rockabye"
Teal chipboard letters:chipz by Bella
Inks: Walnut Stain, Antique linen, Black Soot & Pumice stone Distress Inks Tim Holtz.
EK Success Scalloped Scallop edge punch (behind main photo).
String (or Jute Twine I think it's called): PTI
Spiral notebook page die (from Order ticket at top with handwritten journalling) PTI.

Besides these listed, the rest are from my stash. The journalling was printed onto standard printer paper, then inked & mounted on some pretty paper from the above paper pack.
One of the little details that I'm especially proud of is on the Admit One tickets (which I stamped on cream cardstock and distressed). I've used a perforator tool from Tonic to seperate the tickets so they look like the real tickets you find at a fair. (Well I assume so, we don't have fairs here in Australia!!) I crumpled them up and even wet them a little with my water spritzer to make them look as though they'd been crumpled up in someone's pocket all day while mad rollercoaster rides were taken & too much sugar was eaten. Actually, I don't have a ticket die yet, so these were just cut out with scissors and I used the edge of my corner chomper 'stub' side, to cut those little nibs out of the corners.

I started this layout planning a pretty & simple style but as usual, my shabby-chic/distressed tendencies took over, so I just went with it. I'm pretty happy & I plan on doing many more layouts in the future. I can't wait to get my flags stamp from Hero Arts--that little baby is going to be used till it falls apart I think!!!

Ok, I'm done!! Hope you like it, please leave me some feedback--if you have any ideas of how I could have improved this that's great too!!

Thanks so much for looking. I'll try to be back soon.

sorry its been so long

Hello again my lovelies

this is just a quick note to say I'm still here!! I haven't forgotten you, I've just had a week where getting to my craft desk has been difficult.

As I've mentioned before, my 6 month old daughter Charlotte, needs surgery in a few weeks and I've just had a few days this week where the thought was making me internally shut down a bit. I'm feeling better now as I'm doing my best to stay positive.

My gorgeous hubby just helped me set up a new swish (impressive) printer and tidy my craft area, so I'm looking forward to finishing the few projects I have on the go at the moment. One is a suprise for someone extra special, so I can't say too much, but I'll try to finish the others so you'll have something to look at when you stop by!

I've also been fighting with youtube to get a video uploaded. Current score as follows: Linda 0, Youtube 2. hmmm

anyway, it's late and I'm going to try to get a bit of time in with my beloved papers :)

talk to you all soon--thanks for your patience :)

Back to School

Hi!!

THis will have to be a super quick post.

This is my entry for the Hero Arts back to school challenge for August.

I started thinking back to school and the idea of having a little girl in front of the school came to mind. Then, when playing with my new PTI School Time stamps, the writing lines with the dashed line in the center looked exactly like a road to me, so I used that too.
I thought the house from the Mi casa stamp set looked like a little town's "school house" (think Anne of Green Gables!!) but with the chimeny and roof, it looked too much like a house...so CHOP CHOP!!

I purposely used a darker colour for the girl's skin as I wanted her to look kind of flushed and extra pink. I tried to make it look like she's wearing a uniform, thus the several shades of blue (memories from my school uniform!!)

I've used felt for the grass, cut with pinking shears and attached with Glossy Accents. The rest of the card is pretty self explanatory.

Super cute if I say so!!







Here are the stats;
Stamps: Hero Arts 'Mi casa es su casa' & 'Sweet, wonderful you' clear stamp sets
PTI School TIme stamp set, Stampin Up! Rough edges alpha.
Inks: Tim holtz distress ink in Walnut stain, Pumice Stone, Frayed Burlap, Black Soot, Hero Arts Soft Pool shadow ink, Versa Mark (inside card)
Copic markers: B99, BG10, E37, E15, YR14, R02, B95, B34 & E57


Hope you like it!! THanks so much for looking.

I like Beeeing with you--etsy inspired challenge #99

Hi Everyone!

Its late so I have to make this as quick as I can.

After reading Virginia's blog the other day I thought I'd take part int the etsy-inspired challenge #99. I've not done this before but my eye was taken by this gorgeous head-piece by Becky Kazana:


and I immediately started thinking of blue skies behind bright yellow flowers... so THIS is what came to be:



Sorry for the terrible photo--I REALLY need to get a photo light box...gah. The light in my parents house is *horrifyingly dim* for photography....

This card WOULD have been finished last night but my 2 year old Isabella liked it so much when she saw it sitting on my work desk this momrnign that she decided to pull it apart so she could have the bees...she's never done this before and I nearly collapsed when I came in and everything was torn to pieces. Poor little love, I really snapped at her too! I don't think she thought she was doing anything wrong. However, the fact that I'd stayed up till midnight last night to make it may have lead me to want to blow up a little more than it usually might have.

I really struggle with simple cards, they never look finished to me, despite loving them when other's create them.

I think this is about as simple as I can get :)

It's also the first time I've really done a 'paper-piecing' type card, with more than one element added.

I added an extra 'e' to the sentiment coz I felt like the pun was a bit lost...I wish it was in all the sentiments in this set.

Here are the stats:

card: American crafts "ocean" cardstock. The green I used for the leaves had no name, but it's also AC.
DCWV Citrus 8x8 paper stack (for the bees, they're actually polka dot)
Hero Arts Be Happy clear stamp set.
Hero Arts gemstones (bees eye).
Simonsaysstamp freebie pearls in centre of flowers.
Prima e-line flowers.
Tim Holtz Distress Inks in: Spiced Marmalade (flowers & background piece), Black soot& Broken China
Papertrey Ink Background Basics retro stamp set (on orange paper in background)
Buttons--my stash
Corner chomper-rounder
Hero ARrts clouds woodblock stamp.
Hero Arts Soft Pool shadow ink.

anyhoo, it's super late==I'm off to try to figure out how to link this back to the etsyinspired challenge blog....

hope you liked it!! THanks so much for popping in!! (PS sorry for the typos! It's late!! *yawn*)

Butterfly & roses thankyou card.

Hi again friends!!

Here's a card that honestly--I nearly gave up on about 3 times...thank goodness I didn't though! I'm in love with the bright yellow and the über pretty American Crafts roses ribbon that I spotted on several of Sarah's cards. (I'm in love!)

I didn't have a plan in mind at the beginning of making this card but it turned out COMPLETELY differently to how in envisioned it after I first started. It was going to be paler, more neutral with a 'biology report'-type feel.
The Hero Arts ledger stamp in the background just makes me want to measure things and write them down along with scientific apparatus and such!! (Paper and stamps do strange things to my brain!!)



and a side shot so you can see the dimension:


HOW I DID IT:
I inked a piece of white cardstock with Antique Linen distress ink and using the same colour, stamped the Ledger cling stamp. Next I stamped the butterfly image all over the "ledger paper" also using Antique Linen and clear heat-embossed it, then distressed the page edge.
Next, I stamped the larger butterfly onto plain white cardstock using black stayzon ink and coloured it with PTI Pure Poppy & Plum Pudding inks (using daubers). It was lovely but a bit pale in the centre (the Plum Pudding) so I went in with copics and added some colours.
Next I used a tiny bit of Glossy accents on the butterfly's wings (to make the 'veins' stand out more, which in turn makes the colour more vibrant).

{Hint: the glossiness of the Glossy Accents is repeated again in the use of the acetate--this made the card really 'come to life'...little 'matching elements' like this can really up the WOW factor, its also more pleasing to the eye.}

Using the dauber from the butterfly (without reinking them as I wanted just a hint of colour), I brushed the Pure Poppy over the wings of the background butterflies to tie in the pink from the front area of the card. It looks very pretty in real life.

I knew I wanted the butterfly to sit on the rose ribbon, as if it were in a garden, so it was all just a matter of placement. I 'accidently' (read: on purpose but then hated it) coloured the body of the butterfly in black but it looked horrible so I added the rhinestones and I love the effect. I just laid 2 strips of thin double sided tape directly below the rose ribbon, adhered the cardstock that I'd edge punched & inked with Pure Poppy PTI ink and repeated the same (double-sided tape on top of this cardstock) to adhere down the yellow ribbon, with a ripple effect on one side.

I cut the 'sentiment frame' from a tiny piece of yellow bazzil cardstock using Nestabilities Labels 4 and set it on dimensional tape.
I decided to use acetate for the sentiment, so after stamping it with white versamagic ink, I adhered little buttons strategically around the sentiment so I'd be able to adhere the acetate to the yellow bazzil cardstock (the nestabilities die cut shape), which I did using glue dots directly behind the buttons.

Lastly I added some bling and attached the whole thing to a piece of dark brown bazzil cardstock to make the card body.

The stats--there are a LOT of components:

Ribbons~ American Crafts rose; small yellow ribbon (pleated)- from my stash (un-labeled)
Copics(on butterfly): V04, V12, V06,RV1,RV11.
Stamps~ (all Hero Arts) Essential messages, Butterfly cling, Ledger cling
Clear embossing powder (butterflies on ledger paper)
Inks~Papertrey Ink Plum Pudding & Pure Poppy (main butterfly & light colouring on background butterflies); Tim Holtz Antique Linen & Walnut stain distress inks; Cloud White Versa Magic (sentiment), Black stayz on (butterfly)
Ranger Glossy Accents (main butterfly)
Buttons--my stash (read:un-labelled :)) tied with pink embroidery thread.
Zots, Terrifically tacky red tape.
Martha Stewart Moroccan edger punch.
Rhinestones: Kaisercraft
Overhead Projector acetate.
Spellbinders Nestabilities Labels 4

PHEW!!

anyhoo--hope you like it as much as I do!! I've got a screaming baby I have to get back to.

Take care and thanks so much for looking! Please feel free to leave a comment--I'd love to hear from you!

Masculine sympathy card

Hi again!

A quickie today.

Here is a sympathy card I made for my best friend's husband, who recently lost his dear grandmother. I wasn't sure where to go for a masculine sympathy card but decided that just because it's for a man, doesn't mean it can't be beautiful.

I decided to stick with muted colours and an unusual design. I put the note from us inside the envelope and kept the card single layer (like a postcard).

The stats:
Flower: Prima "Raspberry"
Ribbon: Martha Stewart
Lace: $1 shop!! yay!!
Envelope: Maya Road (LOVE LOVE LOVE)
Stamps: Flourish & La letter woodblock, Sentiment "Thinking of You" Cling (Hero Arts)
Button & Twine: my stash
Ivory cardstock
Inks: Black Soot (Sentiment), Frayed Burlap, Walnnut Stain & Peeled Paint(envelope & backing card)
Backing to photo: Matt's jeans :) I had to take the photo in the car on the way to deliver it!!

anyhoo, thanks for stopping by and looking! I hope you like--please feel free to leave a comment!! I'd love to hear your thoughts...

till next time~~

*tries to look guilty for not blogging but instead yawns*

Hi again!

Sorry it's been so long--this will only be a quickie. The days have been flying by and I've made a few things but mostly just been playing and tidying my scrappy corner. I did a huge overhaul of the space which was exhausting and back-breaking but it's better now!

I've also changed the layout to the blog--I hope you like it! It's much simpler but prettier I think...however I've got this annoying little "undefined undefined" icon thingo showing up in the top left corner...anyone know how to fix that?! maybe it's from when I was fiddling with the html....I was going to change to typepad as I'd heard it had better layouts and better features...as always in life, this apparently is only true when you're paying for it! SO i'm sticking with this one... I'm not 100% happy with the blog name (the url I mean) but it's working so far, so ...again, I'll stick with it (unless any of you has a suggestion?!)

Please tell me what you think of the new style.

I've got several new pics but I'll have to upload them tomorrow-I'm pooped today!

Thanks to all of you who come by and read my little bloggy ramblings...there's now an 'RSS' feed button (it's kinda see through but it's there just at the top of this post) that you can click if you'd like updates to when I post (which hopefully will be more often!)

I'm going to attempt to participate in more challenges--I think I need the inspiration. I see it everywhere (note: my blog title) but I'm having a hard time translating it onto paper this last few days. Never the right ribbon colour, or the right embellishment. Never the right hole-punch. You know what I mean. I just have to get my brain sorted and GET TO PLAY!! (not work :))

anyhoo, I'm off to bed early tonight (10:30pm..woohoo!!) so I'll say Oyasuminasai (Japanese for goodnight) and hope to 'see' you all again soon.

PLEASE feel free to comment, even if it's only a few words, I think it would be wonderful to feel like I'm writing TO someone rather than myself or the big ol' void that is cyberspace.

take care

You make me smile...

Hello hello!!

WOWWWWOOOWOWOWOWOW!!! What a huge response to my last card!!! How exciting!!! I'm so proud to have had Hero Arts tweet about it!!! What a huge honour!! I had a quiet internal challenge to myself since I started making cards and following tweets, blogs and Hero Arts etc that I'd keep trying to improve until H.A noticed one of my cards on the flickr group and tweeted about it...WHO WOULD'VE THOUGHT IT WOULD BE SO SOON!!! *blushes*

THEN!!!! Sarah Martina (the very genius this card was inspired by) tweeted about it too!! *double blushes*

Thank you all so much for the WONDERFUL comments!!! It's such an honour to be noticed by such talented, gorgeous people!! I'm so humbled.

It's been a really rotten few weeks for me, my 5 month old daughter is going to need surgery for a kidney problem and I'm trying not to have a complete heart-attack, but its very stressful. It will all be happening next month so I'm doing my best to hold it together until she goes into surgery (then I'll have a total meltdown I'm sure) and I'll be aiming to be back to functioning when she comes back out...*positive thinking positive thinking positive thinking*

ok. back to happier thoughts and pretty cards :)



I kept going with the 'pretty, girly and glittery' kind of mentality for this one and I'm really pleased with it.

Here are the stats:
Bazzil textured cardstock in fushia/dark pink
Beige/tan cardstock (untextured)
Hero Arts Friends definition cling stamp-- inked with Martha Stewart queue chalk inks-hibiscus; colorbox cats eye queue-olive, Tim Holtz antique linen & Vintage photo D.I (just tiny dabs of each).
Whole section edged with Tim Holtz walnut stain Distress ink.
Swirl stamp: Heidi Swapp
Bling: "Basics" Rhinestone strips by Kaisercraft in pink.
Martha Stewart etiquettes tag
Stamped wtih Hibiscus chalk ink (M.S queue) & Hero Arts La Letter stamp.
Pink patterned strip: Marcella range by K cardstock. "Lucy's Linen Mat Deck" (K & Co)
punched with MS edger punch.
Sentiment: "you" Thickers: "Glass Slipper" by American Crafts (GORGEOOOOOOOUS!!!)
"make me smile" Hero Arts "All occasions messages" clear stamp set.
Feathers, pearls & chocolate ribbon: local craft shop.
Terrible handstitching: by me :) using embroidery thread.



Hope you enjoyed!! Thanks for looking & comments make my sun shine brighter!!







PS I always title these posts based on the sentiment of the card I'm showing you. I also usually title each post at the end, just before posting so that I can be sure to include any ramblings/changes that I might include that I hadn't planned--how fitting that I'd make a card with the sentiment "You make me smile" the night before such a hugely overwhelming and humbling response to my card. Again, thank you all so much for the wonderful comments..."I'd like to thank the academy..." lol. YOU all make me smile so much. Thank you thank you thank you...

Sarah Martina inspires me endlessly

Hello!

I'm such a huge fan of Sarah Martina Parker and I'm constantly left breathless by her ridiculously beautiful cards.

Her recent post on the colour throwdown (http://sarahmartina.com/blog/2010/07/08/color-throwdown-100-clear-and-simple-stamps/)
inspired me to make this card.

I'm really happy with it, more so than I've been with anything else I've made recently...or ever, so thank you Sarah!!!
I'm so glad to feel happy with something I've made, my mojo has REEEEALLY been waning lately. I might maker her blog my homepage :) Beautiful things every time I open my laptop--yes please!!!


Here are the specs...
*Hero Arts Friends definition stamp, inked with Chalk inks from Colour queue in ocean & olive, with a little Walnut Stain Distress Ink on the edges.
*Olive green lace from local $1 store!!
*Brown Ribbon, chinese coin & Household String from stash.
*Tim Holtz Movers & Shapers Alterations die, run through the bigkick with Swiss Dots embossing folder.
*White alphabet stickers (name lost!!), inked with same colourbox queue chalk inks.
*Prima flower
*Bling from Simonsaysstamp.com
*Espresso Bazzil Cardstock



Hope you like!! Thanks for looking :)

many creations and apologies ...

Hello again!!

I promised I'd be back didn't I?!

Ok, so today, a few cards that I made a while back but forgot to post and a few newies...

first the older ones...














The first was made using Broken China DI on scalloped circles I punched out and stamped with the Hero Arts Dots & Flowers woodblock stamp, Claudine Helmuth Sticky-back Canvas with Faded Jeans DI and the Hero Arts Japanese writing stamp. The canvas is mounted on white cardstock inked with Faded Moss & Peeled Paint DI, which is mounted on a piece of white cardstock that has the Hero arts Friends Definition stamped in Walnut Ink with Tea Dye & Antique Linen ink over the page...FINALLY I topped alll those layers on brown Bazzil cardstock and rounded the corners...

The second card is made using some cardstock I picked up at the Perth Craft Fair, it's a wedding paper pad set...name of which completely evades me!! (I'll come back and add the name later) I used the tutorial Dawn on youtube did for the 'waterfall card'--you can find plenty of them.













This card is using another set of papers I got at the Perth Craft Fair, Mariposa is the name and it's just a teeny pad of paper, maybe 5"x3.5". GORGEOUS papers!! I diecut the butterfly on my Bigkick and then heat embossed with Bronze embossing powder and the Hero Arts Swirl Stamp.
The sentiment is from Hero ARts and says "thinking of you". The little black butterfly you see on the Sentiment piece (the central piece of card) is from Martha Stewart Punch. I thought this would be a great sympathy card but it could also be nice just for a birthday/everyday card for someone a little older.

I just want to wrap myself up in the gorgeous bird cage paper in this set. Card tutorial is on Splitcoast Stampers (Tri-fold card).

I might just give you a list of details for this one:
Hero Arts Wildflower Stamp--inked with Walnut stain DI, I heat embossed it half in clear embossing powder and the other parts I used white to make an unusual effect-it looks great in person. (I'd like to try this as snow actually!)
Hero Arts French letter stamp-antique Linen Distress Ink
Antique Linen & a touch of Walnut Stain on the page behind & on sentiment (which is handwritten).
The flower & 'ripple' is handmade from lace, using hotglue. (Technique shown on Marion Smith's ustream channel)



Hero Arts stamps: Hydrangea, French Script, Grid Pattern
Inks: Broken China & Peeled Paint & Forest Moss (for flower)
Broken China, Weathered Wood (Grid background)
Antique Linen (white page in background).
Stayz on in Black on Transparency paper for the sentiment.
Mushroom coloured embroidery thread for bow.







The deets:
Walnut Stain & Frayed Burlap (for background cardstock)
Peeled Paint & Frayed Burlap for tag wtih French Script Hero Arts stamp in Walnut stain on tag.
Peeled Paint & Swiss Dots embossing folder on backing piece of paper.
White embossing powder for leaf stamp on tag.
Peeled Paint ink on white prima e-line flowers.
White Martha Stewart ribbon.

mini tag with handwritten sentiment--from a packet of ribbon I bought from a craft shop-if only I could find some of these to buy!


ok!! that's it!! sorry it's taken sooooooooooo long. We've all been sick one after another in my house this last week and my mojo was a bit AWOL before that...I keep starting projects, loving them then I get to the end and think..."hmmm what's the finishing touch that it needs?" and then I get frustrated and huff as I leave my craft desk because I can't find just the right thing...I need MUCH more ribbon :)
I have a mini album to put a video up for but I have to send it to my friend first!


thanks for looking!!

I am still alive!!!

Hi there,

I know, I know, it's been 2 weeks PLUS since I posted anything, we've been dealing with some health issues for our youngest daughter, she's going to need surgery soon, so it's been doctors, specialists, more doctors, tests, blah blah blah and then on top of it all, my husband and elder daughter have been sick this week so it's just been a BUST. I've done a few cards and finished off a mini album that I made a quick video of and I'll be uploading all those tomorrow...I tried to today only to be greeted with a sad little bleep from the camera who's battery had died...again, it's been one of those weeks.

anyhoo!

thanks so much for checking in, I PROMISE I'll upload some stuff soon...as long as my best friend doesn't want to see Twilight Eclipse tomorrow instead of the planned Sunday...Twilight may have to take precendence!! I haven't had a couple of hours to myself in several months so I'm sure you'll understand!!

thanks again for stopping by and talk to you soon!