Hope your birthday is Rawrsome Video

Just a quick update on my previous post, I'm hoping that this video will work so you can get a better idea of how it works.

Thanks for watching!  xx

Hope your birthday is Rawrsome

Hello everyone. 

My great nephew will be 4 this year and loves animals, in particular dinosaurs. I know he also loves getting interactive cards that he can play with, so I knew as soon as Lawn Fawn bought out their Slide on Over maze, that I had to do something that had a dinosaur moving along the maze.

Then, those clever and inventive people at Lawn Fawn, bought out the Swish and Pop pull tab, so I thought it would be great to also have a Pterodactyl flying over the maze. 

The trouble is, I wanted to take it one step further and make the volcano from their Rawrsome set, erupt and glow using the brilliantly versatile Chibi Lights. So I had the ideas, but had to put them altogether and workable! I was really pleased with the result, what do you think?

I hope you can get the general idea from the pictures, unfortunately I haven't mastered the art of posting videos yet! 😂

Up, Up and Away

Just recently Tattered Lace have bought out some clever new dies, which make 3D designs, like the cocktail shaker and martini glass in my last blog.

One of the designs I really enjoyed making samples for was the hot air balloon. I love it if you happen to see one floating around, and it took me back to when we were lucky enough to go in one in Egypt a few years ago. It was so smooth and quiet, apart from the occasional blast of heat, even animals are not spooked by them as they don't know they are there. Luckily for us, even the landing went smoothly!

Once again, you can have these mounted onto a card front, or made up into complete models, which is what I did here

I wanted it to look as if the balloon was literally floating above the ground, so I made a set of two of the cut dies and joined them altogether to make a complete 3D model. I then made a small hole in the bottom of the basket to secure and thread through some invisible thread and also attached some to the inside of the top of the balloon, one strand on each half, so that it would hang evenly. I love the invisible thread for these sort of projects but, boy, is it difficult to work with at times as it is, literally, invisible!

I then made up three identical card bases, each with an oval cut into the centre and scored and folded in the middle. The trickiest part is to make sure your ovals are cut in exactly the same place so when the card bases are joined together, they all fit together perfectly. Then it's just a case of joining the bases, with the strands of the invisible thread securely sandwiched between them and pulled quite tight so the balloon doesn't sag and hangs nicely in the air.

Shaken not Stirred!

It's the summer, although I think it may have gone on a break this weekend, but we have been having glorious weather and, now we can meet up with a few family or friends in the garden, what's better than a couple of cocktails or six whilst chating in the sun. 

The Ready to Party collection of dies, which were recently launched by Tattered Lace are perfect for makes with cocktails and parties in mind.

Two of the dies I was asked to make samples with were the cocktail shaker and martini glass dies.

These are so versatile, great to use as they are on a card front or, as I did in this sample, as a stand alone gift.

These are so easy to make and look so effective. You just need to cut two of each die and join them together, back to back.

I made a box out of acetate and silver card and glued them into position on the base of the box, standing on a small doily I had in my stash. The little extras like the lemon peel, spoon, mint leaves, lemon segment and ice cubes are all included with the dies.

The lid of the cocktail shaker can be left so it can be removed, but I attached mine to the shaker so it wouldn't keep falling off, especially in transit.

The most fiddly bit was the 'drink' in the martini glass. For that I cut a piece of acetate to fit inside the top of the glass and cut a triangle shaped hole it in where I wanted the ice cube and mint leaves to pop out of, as if they were floating in the drink, and a place at the side where the lemon would go. I stuck the ice cube in place and the whole acetate piece using dries clear glue.  I then stuck the lemon in place and left it all to dry. Although it dries clear, the glue will still show but this was covered up by covering the top of the acetate with a coloured liquid glue. You do not have to be very precise with this at all, in fact it look much more realistic if it is done quite roughly and forms air bubbles. Finally, I put the mint leaves in place, which were held by the coloured glue.

Cheers! 

Frozen!

It seemed a bit strange making a card which is all about snow and ice, when it's so hot and sunny outside, but my little granddaughter, who was 3 yesterday, loves the characters from the film, so that had to be the theme for her birthday card.

I wanted something she could interact with, so the front had one of the Tonic number 3 shakers and I made a pull tab which moved some of the characters (Anna, Kristoff and Sven - see, I do know their names! 😂) towards where she is standing with Olaf. 

The inside was probably the most challenging and a real labour of love. I searched the internet for templates of Elsa's castle, but with little luck as none were really meant, or sized for cards. So I found one picture, printed it several times, using each one to cut out different sections to make templates, then I cut each one from either white or blue glitter card or acetate which I had coloured blue. I then layered them up using various sizes of pop up tabs so the castle would pop out when the card was opened in different depth and layers.

All the backing paper's were from the internet (what would we do without it!) which I sprayed with the Crafters Companion Spray and Sparkle iridescent glitter spray. The character's are the Disney dies from Crafting.co.uk.

I was really pleased with the final effect and, although I couldn't be there due to the lockdown to see her reaction, I am told by her mummy and daddy that she was delighted with it. 

Sweet Birthday

If you're like me, this lockdown is not doing you any favours when it comes to snacking! So when I was asked to make a few samples for the Duo Dies new set of dies this month I was really taken by the ring doughnuts that were included. 

I thought it would make an ideal card at this time, even if it was just to show someone that you are missing them and thinking of them, and is a calorie free option to sending a real box of doughnuts!

It was so easy to make. The 'lid', with the shaker element, is made seperate and added on top, so the sugar strands shake freely without getting caught up on the doughnuts.

What I really like about the dies is that they come with an additional die so you can layer them or use to cut apertures, but I used mine to give them additional depth to look like the icing is really standing out on the doughnut. You just have to remember to cut a centre hole in that layer. You can, of course, also colour them to make them any flavour or colour, so you can match them to the recipient's favourite doughnut choice, and they are so easy to colour.

Let's hope it won't be too long until we can meet up with friends and family again for a real coffee and doughnut, until then, stay safe x

Lockdown Lodge

I hope you are all keeping safe and well in these crazy times.
One of the benefits for us crafters is the enforced lockdown is giving us plenty of time to be creative. I am very lucky to be on the design team for Tattered Lace, and that keeps me fairly busy but, having a quiet interval from that, and having caught up on some of the cards I needed for friends and family, I suddenly found myself in the rare position of just being able to play.
I have recently found the Lawn Fawn stamps and dies (I know, where have I been!) and am now completely hooked and my collection is growing well.
Looking at the Lawn Fawn blog this week, I saw their new challenge was to make anything but a card and, as I have just received their scalloped treat box die, with some of the add-ons, I knew this would give me a great opportunity to try them out!

I came up with a fun way of having a little gift box to brighten somebodies day during the lockdown and to show them you are thinking of them. I called it 'Lockdown Lodge' and the little door is nailed shut to show that we cannot go out as we used to. The little girl at the window is wearing a face mask, but everything outside the house is normal, with flowers blooming and birds singing.

The back of the house has a (very large!) ginger cat, again perfectly able to wander around outside as normal, while the shutters are shut on the window, symbolizing us not being able to join him.

This side of the house shows a little boy looking out of the window, again wearing a face mask with flowers blooming below his window. 

The other side is similar, but having a little dog looking out the window, probably looking forward to the one walk a day he is allowed!













You could fill the box with sweets, tea bags, anything you think the recipient would enjoy, but I have put two reusable face masks in mine, to be used when we can venture outside.

Swimming Mermaids

I recently had a chance to play with the new Under the Sea dies from Joanna Sheen, which included the lovely mermaid dies, one which is swimming and one sitting.  I really enjoyed playing with these dies as they could be bright and colourful and were also calling out to be used with movement.
The first card I made with them was using the swimming mermaid with a pull bar which, when pulled, made her 'swim' across the sea.

I used a couple of backgrounds from the One Summers Day CD which, although are meant to be of flowers, easily passed as coral and seaweed on the sea bed.
I started by sticking two seaweed die cuts from the Signature Die range to the front of an oval plastic dome and stuck this into an aperture I had cut to fit it in a piece of card with one of the backing papers stuck to it. I found it best to spray glue the papers to the card so it was securely stuck in place when you cut out the oval aperture.
The card base was covered with the same backing paper.
I cut a piece of the remaining backing paper, which again was stuck onto card, big enough to fit behind the oval and in position so the 'seaweed' and 'coral' were showing at the bottom. In this I cut a small slit, about 5mm wide, to go across the oval, making sure that it left enough room for the mermaid to still fit within the oval at the start and the end.
I then cut a piece of thick card about 1cm wide and long enough to reach slightly beyond the beginning point of the slit to the edge of the card, allowing for a 1cm overhang for the pull tab.
Wrap a very narrow piece of card around this strip of card, big enough to go around the strip and fold back on itself to give a butterfly fold. You will need one for the Mermaids head and tail. When happy with the position, attach in place to the pull bar, feed the 'butterfly wings' through the slit on the card and attach them to the mermaid.  She should now pull backwards and forwards on the card as you pull on the strip of card.
Put some glitter or sand in the oval and attach the card with the mermaid on firmly in place over the top, making sure it is completely sealed so the contents do not spill out.
Put foam tape on the back, making sure it does not interfere with the mechanism, as shown, and attach this to the main card front.

Finally, decorate the front of the card with the coral corner and fish, which are all part of the 'Under the Sea' die sets, having fun colouring them in bright colours.

Baby Shower Exploding Box

It was my sons girlfriends baby shower recently and I wanted to make something special that they could keep and would also double up as the 'wrapping' for her gift.
As we didn't know whether it was going to be a little girl or boy, I opted for a yellow colour scheme and also wanted to incorporate the theme they were having for the nursery which was going to be elephants.
Having looked at Pinterest for my inspiration, I decided to make an exploding box and used a couple of boxes on there as my main source of inspiration, combining the two for the look that was perfect for me.

Two of the sides we're joined together so they could be decorated as the nursery walls. I handcut the cot, making a small blanket to cover the base with a teddy bear at the bottom of the cot.  The cot was to also hold the charm I had bought as a present. 

The remaining two sides held messages and sentiments.

For the lid I used a bootie die from Joy Crafts and decorated around them with flowers and a plaque with the message 'Bundle of Love'

I was really pleased with the way it turned out and Mum to Be loved it too. Many thanks to the boxes that inspired me on Pinterest. 

Gnome Sweet Gnome

I was recently sent two dies from Tattered Lace for their new Paisley Parade collection which came out on Create and Craft last week.
The first die was the text 'Home Sweet Home', which, for some reason, immediately changed to 'Gnome Sweet Gnome' in my head!
This gave me a brilliant idea for my first sample, which was a toadstool shaped card with a sign hanging above the door.

I was really pleased with the way it came together and it also meant I was able to incorporate the other die I had been sent which was the Common Foliage.  Because of the size of the wording, it meant the card had to be rather large to be in proportion, so I started by folding a cream pearlescent A3 card in half and, keeping the fold at the top, shaped it to become the stalk. I then used a dinner plate to partially draw around on a sheet of A4 red card and cut around this, rounding off the two corners to become the toadstool roof. I used the Tattered Lace mini round dies to cut several white circles in varying sizes to stick randomly on the red card.

I hand drew the door and frame and cut out from white card, which I coloured with a Firewood Promarker and run through a wood grain embossing folder, before sticking it on the front of the house, using foam pads to slightly raise the frame. I then stuck a small gold pearl on the door to make a handle.

The sign was made by cutting a piece a cream card, big enough for the wording and running this through the woodgrain embossing folder and inking the edges using Frayed Burlap Distress Ink. I cut a slightly larger piece of card to layer this on, again colouring it using the Firewood Promarker around the edges that would show, and embossing in the woodgrain folder.  I layered the two pieces together and cut the wording out of white card, trimming down the 'h's' to become a 'n' and die cutting a 'g' from another alphabet die set I had. I coloured all the wording using the same Promarker and stuck it in place on the sign, adding small yellow gems to each corner.

I stuck a piece of twine to the back of the sign and, using foam tape, stuck it in position above the door at a slight angle.  I stuck a large gold pearl on the roof, where the twine would hang and glued the twine in place so it looked like it was hanging from the pearl. 

To finish it off, I cut two of the Common Foliage, and fixed them either side of the door.  Using the Tattered Lace mini blooms dies, I cut a few in white card and coloured them in different contrasting colours and stuck them to the foliage. 

I hope you enjoy having a go at making this card, although it may be a bit big to post!

Send more Chocolate!

Being a self confessed chocoholic,  it was quite apt that one of the dies I received from Tattered Lace a couple of weeks ago was the saying 'Things are getting worse, send more Chocolate'.

To begin with, I made a stand up plaque for the kitchen.

I used one of the House Mouse Gruffies stamp sets from Joanna Sheen called 'Bearytastic Day', which I thought went with it really well.

I cut the sentiment in half and added it top and bottom of the picture. 

I then decided to make a hanging wall plaque, using the sentiment as a whole and just using Tattered Lace products. 

  

The Easter Egg dies came from their advent calendar,  which I thought was good value, and great fun too - why should it be just the kids that can enjoy the countdown to Christmas! 

I was really pleased with the way both plaques came out.  They would both be fun additions to have in the kitchen. I hope you like them too.

NEC Update

Well, we're on our way home, all a little tired, spent out but very happy.  There were a few bargains to be had, I got quite a few of the Tattered Lace dies I had wanted, including the recent Art Deco one's they had bought out, and at three dies for the price of two, they were a very good buy.
Create and Craft were also offering a goody bag for £20 with the contents worth £150. I didn't get one but a couple of ladies on the coach did, but haven't opened them yet. So I was wondering, if you got one, what was in the bag, and do you think it was a bargain I should have gone for?
The number of exhibitors have definitely diminished over the years and, speaking to one of them today, I can understand why.  With the cost of having a stand, travel for your stock and staff, and overnight accommodation for four nights for yourself and your staff, you have to sell quite a lot to make it worth your while.  Some were of the opinion that they will just break even and may not do it again next year.
Sadly, that's bad news for us shoppers, but you can understand where they are coming from. Everybody is feeling a little less well off and probably being more careful with how they spend their money - although when you saw the activity on some of the stalls, this didn't always seem to be the case!
There were a few things I had on my wish list I didn't get, and lots of things that made it into my bag which weren't on my list! The good news is I still have some money left, so I can order the stuff I didn't get online and eagerly await the postman to bring them to me!

NEC Birmingham - Christmas Crafts Show

So we are on our way to the Hobbycraft's Christmas Crafts Show at the NEC in Birmingham, and I cannot wait to get there!

Like many people, I save the money I have made from cards I have sold to spend on replenishing stocks, but for this show I am also lucky enough for my Mum and my husband to give me my Christmas and birthday money early (that's when having a birthday two days after Christmas comes in handy!) to have a really good, guilt free spending spree on whatever I need, or just plain want!

I am travelling up in a coach from the Island with other, like minded crafters, and we will no doubt be comparing things bought on the trip back later this evening.  The nice thing is to see the diversity of goodies people buy as we are not all into the same crafts, and it can be interesting to talk to people about other crafts and perhaps vow 'to give that a go one day'.

I tend to do this trip alone as I find the show is so large, I selfishly just want to wander around and look at things I want to without worrying about boring, or holding up, somebody else. I would never ask my husband to come with me, and he wouldn't want to go! If he came, I would be whisked around the entire venue in about an hour and, if I stopped to look at anything, would be asked if I really needed that? To which, like many of you I know, is usually 'no, but I want it!'

I will update you later as to what I bought and the new and interesting goodies that were on offer, and for those that have already been, or are still to go, please tell me what you bought and what you thought of the show.

Cats Dies

Wow, It's Sunday evening already, where did that weekend go?

Last weekend I was busy playing with some of the new dies that are coming out tomorrow on Create and Craft from Tattered Lace.

I particularly had fun with the cat. I love making cards that move, so when I first saw the cat, I instantly thought I had to make his head move. So I made a mechanism made up of three parts, held together by brads so they all moved when you pulled the tab on the side of the card, making the cats head move side to side.

 I also thought it would be fun to make a 'treat box' for a cat, and made a small box using the Tattered Lace hexagon box die. This time I made a ginger cat and put it on the lid of the box, which I filled with catnip treats and a ball.

Another idea that sprung to mind when I saw this die was that it would be great fun to make some cat earrings using shrink plastic.  I was really pleased with how the colouring came out on the earrings, as you can never be sure how much darker the colours are going to go once it has been shrunk.  I had used a very old black Stazon ink pad that was almost dry, so very little colour came out, and very light colours in alcohol inks for the eyes and nose.  I made a small box with the Tattered Lace A5 box die and cut a piece of funky foam to fit inside to hold the earrings in place.

I really had fun playing with these ideas and I'm quite pleased with the way they turned out.  Oh well, back to work again tomorrow morning, but I'll be playing again soon!

Sneaky Peak

Mark and I came home last week from a lovely cruise, which took us into Gibraltar where we met up with my sister and her partner (and delivered some Christmas presents!). We were extremely lucky with the weather all the way from Southampton to Genoa, even the Bay of Biscay stayed calm for us!

But it is always nice to get home, especially when a package arrived the next day from Tattered Lace with a couple of new dies to play with.

I'm not able to give too much away at the moment (watch this space!) but I can show you a couple of photos of part of the samples I have made so far.

The lovely lady die used on this sample was from the latest magazine and I have found it really useful. 

I will show more pictures of the samples before the show which is due on Create and Craft next Tuesday, 25th October. 

Until then, happy crafting! 

One Die - Six Cards

I was really excited to receive my first die from Tattered Lace to make samples with for their show which is on Create and Craft this week.

I was given the 'Peace' die to play with and was amazed at how versatile it was.  I cut it out several times and then just started cutting into it to see what I could make, starting from the obvious - removing the central plaque with the 'Peace' wording - to making frames from the outside edges.  I actually came up with at least eight different ideas, but had to stop somewhere!

Here are the cards I made:

The first two cards I made used the die as a whole. I chose to infill the cut out with contrasting colours to make them stand out more and affixed the lilac one to the card base and hung the red and gold one from an aperture cut in the card.

With this card I just removed the central plaque and replaced it with the date.  You could easily use a photo of the recipient to make a lovely personalised card.

I then started to really dissect the die cuts and made this card using the Melded Church Die from Tattered Lace.  I made a shaker card using vellum instead of acetate to give a more wintery feel and added just the cut out 'Peace' words to the shaker.

I then made a Nativity Scene using one of last years Christmas dies from Tattered Lace and the Doves which came with one of their magazines, originally holding a bow but attached the 'Peace' plaque to them instead,

and finally ...

I cut into the bauble to make a frame.  This one was made using the bottom half on the die, but I also made one using the top half too, which created a very interesting shape.  I'll try and get that finished to put on here later. Again, I used elements of the Nativity die and just the 'Peace' plaque at the top.

I hope these have given you some ideas.  There is so much you can do with just one die, I sometimes forget to just play with them, so I'm off to have a go at some of my other dies and see what I can come up with - have fun with yours!

A Magnolia Church Wedding

With my Nephew getting married last year, it inspired me to make a wedding table centre piece which I subsequently entered into a competition.
Sadly, I didn't win anything, but I enjoyed making it and thought I would show you.

It took a bit of planning and creating templates, but I was really pleased with the way it turned out.
I put a battery operated tea light in the centre to light the 'church' up, which looked lovely with through the stained glass windows.

The 'stars of the show' were the beautiful Magnolia stamps - Tilda and Bridesmaid and Edwin standing groom.  I seem to have neglected my stamps recently and have been spending a lot of time with my dies, but this shows that the two combine beautifully and is something I really want to spend more time with in the future.

In the Days Before Bright Heart Craft Lights

It has been an age since I last updated my blog, which was really down to work commitments and having two years of looking after both sets of parents.
In the first year my Father in Law had a small stroke while we were on holiday and was still recovering from that when my Mother in Law had to go into hospital for open heart surgery.
As they were both too poorly to look after themselves, they moved in with us for a while and all card making was put on hold.  Luckily they have both made good recoveries but then last year, my Dad, who had been suffering from dementia for a couple of years, had a fall which was enough to trigger something in him and suddenly, overnight, became completely helpless and lost.
Mum couldn't manage and we had to arrange for a care home for him which he was only in for a couple of weeks before being taken to hospital and being there for a month before he sadly passed away.
Hopefully, all that is behind us now and I was so pleased to be asked recently to join the design team for Tattered Lace.
I have yet to receive my first commission but watched with interest their Christmas show on Create and Craft this week and, in particular the new Bright Heart craft lights they have bought out.
It reminded me of when I used to decorate cakes and for two years I made Christmas cakes using the small strings of battery operated lights you can buy for home decorations.  Oh what a difference these new lights would have made!  Although I was pleased with the results, the battery pack was so bulky, I can't wait to get hold of some of the new ones and make special cards with them.
Here are a couple of pictures of the cakes I made

This is the first one I did and this is what it looked like normally, and once the lights were turned on this is what it was like:

The next one I made the following year, was of Rudolph and his sleigh on a rooftop - even his red nose lit up!

I hope you like these ideas and I will be blogging a lot more in future, especially if I can give you any sneaky peaks of anything coming your way!

Gothic Wedding

It's been ages since I've had the chance to add to my blog, but I wanted to take the time to show you an unusual request I had for a Gothic wedding card. The instructions were that it had to be in dark purple and black, with skulls and butterflies. 

This was the end result.   Not something I can say really appeals to me, I'm more a cutie sort of person, but each to their own.  I just hope that the bride and groom for who it is intended think it is great!

On Route to South Africa

Well it's 5.15 in the morning to us but we are sitting in a bar in Dubai airport waiting for our connecting flight to South Africa!  We have been looking forward to this trip for so long and are meeting my sister and brother in law there tomorrow as they are making their way from Spain.
We have so much planned for while we are there, I am sure I will come home brimming with ideas to turn into cards!
Just wish I was able to sleep on the flight here. Mark slept all the way, but I didn't sleep a wink! Hopefully adrenaline will keep me going until we get to our hotel later today!