Harbour - Monday 11th June

Morning bloggers,


Well it's back to work today after almost two weeks holiday, which have passed so quickly and I've been busy the whole time with commissions, house stuff and of course the Jubilee! I can't say that I have any where near caught up as intended, but it's going to be hard to go back!


Anyway, today's card was one of two cards I made at the weekend from a male cousin and a male friend. I saw these Michael Powell stamps featured in Docrafts magazine and was immediately drawn to them. When I visited Out of the Blue in Chipping Sodbury, they had this one just in, so I had to buy it and try it!

For the card base I used  cream card. I then cut a slightly smaller black piece of card and matted and layered with another cream piece of card. Before adhering to the card blank, I randomly stamped the map from Sam Poole's Nautical Journey stamp set,using Adirondack Latte ink: I also stamped the wheel and ship from the same set. I heavily distressed the entire background using a mix of Vintage Photo and Antique Linen. I then used a measure of vintage bakers twine across the front, stamped a greeting from an LOTV sentiments stamp and die cut it using Spellbinders Labels  Four Small.This was lightly distressed with Antique Linen.

I coloured the picture with Flex-markers. I don't use these that often and if I do, they are usually mixed with Promarkers, the latter being the dominant. I like them a lot, but I only have a few starter sets. My investment over the years has been with Promarkers and it's a bit expensive to collect different types. Having said that, by blending these pens, I managed the entire picture  using just flexes! I wanted to give it more of a watercolour feel than I think I could have achieved with Promarkers, but I do see the future of images with this stamp as...bright...monotone...sepia...who knows!?

I see this as a Cornish harbour scene and have coloured it as such...it could be anywhere in the UK, it's just that being a West Country gal, Cornwall is my idea of seaside and fishing villages! What I wanted to aim for was a fresh image with light, pastel colours and a background reflecting Cornwall's "Pirate" heritage...treasure maps and sailing ships.

All the stamps in this collection are gorgeous and I particularly like the beach huts, which I think are on order!

Because I have to leave my craft room for  my office Monday morning, I am scheduling this post and am now away to tidy my craft desk so that I can at least pick up where I left off...the one good thing about Euro 2012 is that I won't feel guilty disappearing to my craft room on an evening!

Take care and thanks for stopping by,

Carole X

Hello!


I'm sorry I missed posting yesterday...I still don't have many cards I can share at the moment because I've been so busy making them for commissions, some of which I have to wait to share with you. Thank you so much to those of you who commented on my sewn projects postings...glad you liked them..and yes the bunny is my favourite too!


Yesterday, I spent in Bristol with my friend Steph who is an artist, working mostly in sculptures from metal. She and her friend have just held their first exhibition in Bath. It was superb and the first of many I hope. I had made cards for her daughter's birthdays, but I am afraid you are going to have to wait until after the birthdays to see them!

Today's card is a Mothering Sunday card I made as a commission.The person who requested it had suggested a cup cake theme and I found this image on the  Docrafts Digitial Designer Tulip and Friends program. Two ladies sharing tea and cup cakes, that could easily be Mother and daughter!


I covered an 8x8 card with some pretty pink, cream and yellow paper from stash and printed the image and greeting on to cream card. I die cut the image on to the heart circles die and used the Spellbinders Parisian Accents border die for the side and edge. I also used am off-cut from the die-cut down the side. This particular border die leaves the most amazing 'wastage'.


The felt flowers were cut using the spiral blossom one and layered flowers dies and the greeting with labels Four Small. I finished off by lightly shading the greeting die-cut with Worn Lipstick distress ink and with ribbon and diamantes and little cup cakes from the same program.


Hope you have a lovely Saturday, we are off to Bath, where we will meet my husband's parents, have a joint Mothering Sunday and birthday lunch (it's mine on Monday!) and go fabric hunting with them as one of my friends is going to upholster an antique chair of theirs.


Thanks for stopping by,
Carole X

Rule Britannia! 3rd March

Good Morning!


This card was made for a commission, but in this instance, from one of my family to another, so in view of the fact that we have a year ahead where we are all celebrating how fab it is to be British and I'm always stuck with mens' cards, I thought I'd give it a go!

One of my Christmas presents was a Hobbycraft voucher and I used some of it to buy the Portobello Road 12x12 paper pack from Docrafts/Papermania, as well as some of their embossing folders & ribbons -  and this was the basis for this card. The card is 8x8 and is first of all layered with some vintage newspaper print paper from the pack. 


The die-cut Union Jack was also in the pack, so I centred this on the front of the card. I then die-cut three of the images and used Vintage Photo again to distress the die-cuts and the card.


The bunting and cupcakes were printed from Serif Craft Artist "British Street Party'. I downloaded this last year when we war having a Royal Wedding party, so I can see it's going to be useful again!


The Keep Calm and Carry On, I admit I have seen presented in this way on items in shops, the internet - all over the place, but I typed this one out using the Serif Program and added the crown from my clipart. I then die cut it in using Spellbinders Labels Four Small. Finally I added a little Cosmic Sparkle and the ribbon.


Have a super Saturday and thanks for dropping by!
Carole X


For this card I used:


Papermania Portobello Road 12x12 paper pack, embossing folders and ribbon
Serif Craftartist British Street Party
Vintage Photo distress ink
Cosmic Sparkle

Birthday Bubbles - 19th February

Good Morning Bloggers!


It's a gorgeous Sunday morning here...I was up early to let our hens out into the garden and they've been clucking happily (and quietly) to themselves ever since! Normally, I try and schedule a week's worth of posts and just revisit to 'tweak'. It's really the only way when I have to go to work and have time to actually make the cards.


Yesterday we went into Bristol for a meander in the lovely Clifton area (it was wet and dreary yesterday- shame) and one of the shops we went into was a sic-fi comic store. I used to be a bit of a nerd about sci-fi (I know it's hard to believe) and I still like it, but less. But I am envious of all these people who make a living from comic art, because from Manga to Marvel, I think it's amazing. Anyway, I digress! This store actually now has an art and crafts section, I kid you not. It consists of books for knitting and crocheting monsters and robots, but I was taken with a little book called 'Steampunk Softies' with patterns and instructions to created little Steampunk miniatures. I bought it....so watch this space, especially as I have yet to create a proper steampunk card!


Today's card is far from Steampunk...it's fun and cute, I made it for a commission and I was really pleased with it!

I began with an 8x8 card blank which I covered with blue and white dotty paper printed from do crafts digital designer  and slightly distressed the edges with the merest hint of weathered wood distress ink.


I then embossed a smaller square of coredinations card with a floral mat from 'That Special Touch' and lightly sanded it. I printed the images from digital designer Tulip and Friends (Tulip and Hot Diggity Dog) and die cut it with Spellbinders Grand Scalloped Rectangles. Again I shaded the edges with Weathered Wood distress ink. I made the rosette from the same base paper and cut the birds and flower with Spellbinders dies from the Cuckoo Clock set. The greeting was printed and cut with Spellbinders  Lacey Ovals die. The border circles were made using a Martha Stewart punch. I then finished it off with a little touch of Cosmic Twinkles and my favourite  final touch, ribbons and buttons!


Have a great Sunday and see you tomorrow,
Carole X

Mouse Magic! 18th February

Morning!


I like making cards that take a long time to make, where I can really fill the space..but I don't often get the chance because most of the time I am creating a card with a remit from a customer and I am working to against the clock! But first and foremost I love to craft and every now and then have to take time just to put a  card together that is just for the enjoyment of it...and this is exactly how I would describe this card: I hope you like it!

I started with a 6x6 card blank, so it's a smallish card with a lot of dimension. The base blue card with raised polkadots is from my stash box, the paler blue is coredinations, which I embossed by putting a 'That Special Touch...' floral mask through my Grand Calibur. I gently sanded the card to raise the image, but there isn't much of the card showing. I then printed some backing paper (on to card) using docrafts 'Tulip and Friends' cd, cut the card into a square and distressed the edges with worn lipstick distress ink and sewed all around the edge by hand. The little mouse fairy is so sweet! I printed her from the same cd and then cut it out with the Spellbinders heart squares die, The edges were also shaded with  worn lipstick, but very lightly. My first choice would have been spun sugar, but I have used that one right up!


The heart is from Spellbinders classic hearts dies and the deckled circle was cut with my Cricut and tucked behind the heart square, which was added at an angle. The flowers, butterfly and ribbons were all from stash; the cupcake is from the cd and the bird, blue tag and blue flower were cut from the Spellbinders bird sanctuary die.


Finally I finished off with some lace and cosmic shimmer sparkle on the wings and wand.


This card was satisfying to make for several reasons...although I made a sketch of the layout, it came to life as I worked, I used all my favourite craft tools - Spellbinders, Grand Calibur, Cricut, distress inks, ribbons, stamps and cd, so it is a very eclectic finished card, that was a lot of fun to make!


Bye for now,
Carole Z