The life and times of Mrs McLafferty

X box inspired....

2011-09-09T01:14:00.001-07:00

A very simple card using basic grey, real red, daffodil delight, night of navy and garden green with a 3/4 circle punch. Letters drawn on with versamark pen and embossed with white powder.
Lines dry embossed and sentiment from level 3 hostess set.
Hope you liked!
(ps been away on holiday and blogger didn't post!)

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James' birthday card

2011-08-26T00:07:00.001-07:00

A bright and fun card for a lovely little boy called James. We're off to his party this afternoon so needed to be something fairly quick.
I used a non Su stamp set I have in my personal collection (which non Su totals about 4!) , I stamped it with staz on onto whisper white and then coloured with markers - garden green, pumpkin pie, daffodil delight, pacific point and real red.
This was then mounted on matching paper layers and the name was stamped using the just perfect alphabet (again coloured with those fantastic versatile markers!) And punched out using the 3/8" punch and layered on 1" circles. Quick and bright!
Hope you like!

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A birthday card for Karen

2011-08-21T14:04:00.001-07:00

Now a card for my sister in law is a big deal! She is an extremely talented card maker who has an innate sense of artistry and style meaning she rarely stamps. She is also known as a perfectionist - something I am most certainly not!
So...
When I saw this card on Monica Gale's blog, I knew I wanted to CASE it. Elegant, stylish and feminine plus the added benefit for me of being a style I had not tried before - the twisted easel card.
I used paper from the now retired sweet pea stack, and the flourish is taken from this years SAB. The butterfly is from my latest new plaything - big shot and dies. I used my nestabilities to cut the two circles. The monogram K is using the broadsheet letters.
If I was doing this again I would play around more with how to make the card stand up and the sentiment to face the correct direction.
Hope you like!

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Butterflies and elegance!

2011-08-20T00:24:00.001-07:00

These were made for my lovely friend Kirsty to celebrate the opening of her beauty salon! So if anyone fancies a pampering west chiltington way.... pop on in!

Anyway... I took my inspiration from ustamp4fun and Amy's beautiful cards and copied idea but changed the color scheme to crumb cake and baha breeze.
I used the beautiful new die with the butterflies and some of our coordinating dsp. The stamped butterfly is from a retired hostess set.
The coordinating gift box is made using the fab pillow box die - i'll show you the contents another day!
Hope you like!

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A rich razzleberry gift for Sally

2011-08-17T13:59:00.001-07:00

An a5 card base made very quickly and simply by the addition of a very vanilla top note and a crystal effects chipboard letter daubed with ink to match the colour scheme. The Leaves are taken from the bird punch.
The 3d flower makes the statement on the card, made from 6 punched scalloped circles, daubed the edges with ink and then misted with water, and screwed up. A brad is used to hold to all together and then it dries to a finished flower.
The accompanying pillow box uses the same elements.

Hope you liked!

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Oh my goodness!

2011-08-11T01:23:00.001-07:00

I wish I was one of those people who was neat, tidy and organised... who had a plan for a card and stuck to it, who didn't need to see all three options of ribbon before making a choice and have the table absolutely covered as she works! I admire people who work on a tray on their laps or on a small corner of a room! Me - my entire dining room gets taken over when project card is underway!

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Hmm...

2011-08-10T00:35:00.001-07:00

For some reason the picture for Tom's card didn't insert...

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A natural birthday card for Tom

2011-08-10T00:32:00.001-07:00

My friend regularly commissions me to make her families birthday cards (she has 5 children!)
Anyway her eldest son, Tom is a fab lad! 17 and has a very mature and wise head on his shoulders. He loves the outdoors and is currently at college learning all about game management and conservation. So, when asked to do a card, I knew it had to be masculine and natural.

I used a retired dsp which has trees on, cut two ovals from whisper white and olive and then was able to use a fantastic technique we covered at our inspirin inkin training recently called thumping! - basically you use a light ink to mark up the tree image and then using a variety of green markers as if they were drumsticks - you thump the stamp with the wide edge randomly. Color in the trunk and press and.you have a very realistic multicoloured tree image.
Tiny tags T and hello provide some personalisation tied on with twine and the happy birthday (retired) added to the ovals adds to the occasion.
Hope you liked!

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Friendship card - inspired by a handbag!

2011-08-09T01:10:00.001-07:00

This card came about because one evening I had lost my mojo! So I did what any sensible girl would do and asked my friend and Su mummy Claire for help. She suggested I used a stamp set I didn't use (ornate flowers) and when I told her this she sent me a picture of her bag which was in this colour way and a v similar pattern (i should get her to resend it so I can add it on here!

So here is my card...

Night of navy and early espresso with not quite navy too. Sentiment (retired) is stamped on vellum and taped into the back of the early espresso panel.

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Birthday card in blues and greens and an oops!

2011-08-07T07:02:00.001-07:00

This birthday card was made in a little bit of a rush.... can you spot the oops?
I knew it was my friends son's birthday... what I had forgotten was that they were going away on holiday suddenly losing me the few days I thought I had! Hence quick card!

Made using old olive dsp and ribbon and pacific point cardstock, star punch and broadsheet letters. The button is available from the mini and actually is pear pizazz but it was a case of that'll do quick!
It wasn't til I had given the card and looking at the picture that I had put the L on the wrong way around!!

The clear mount stamps do make letters easy to line up though! I place them all down on my grid paper straight and then press the block down firmly and hold for 5 seconds.

Hope you liked!

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A card for Anne

2011-08-06T00:42:00.001-07:00

I was given the brief - she likes bright subtles, flowers but not girly and something eye catching! Erm... ok then!
Think this was well received so must have done ok!
Used the totally clever 2 step Stampin set greenhouse garden and stamped the flowers in daffodil delight and then stamped the details in chocolate chip with some of them stamped off to create a softer tone. The little leaves image in old olive is from a retired hostess stamp set.
The letters were stamped using the broadsheet letters, normally as I have mentioned in previous posts, I line the letters up on grid paper then press down my block - I couldn't do this with 2 n's but the grid part helped yet again as I could measure the space I needed to leave for the second n and then add it in after!
Hope you liked!

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Lightening McQueen birthday invites

2011-08-03T01:42:00.001-07:00

My little boy Jonah is rather in love with the film Cars at the moment so what better choice for a birthday party theme when he turns 3 at the end of August and of course the invites have to match :)

Ellen Kemper of Blinkin thinkin inkin is a punch art goddess! This card is adapted from her lightening McQueen and took a little bit of head scratching to work it out (thanks to my Su mummy and friend Claire... took us a while!) Mainly we think because we don't have the extra wide oval the Americans do... but think these are passable... certainly Jonah recognised them so good enough for me! If anyone wants the recipe then leave me a comment.

The background was made using the square punch so quick work! And the initial from broadsheet letters. I printed stickers with all the important info to go on the back and et voila done!

Hope you liked it!

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August promotion!

2011-07-31T23:16:00.001-07:00

Stampin Up have a fabulous new promotion running just for the month of August.... get your hand on this stunning little bag (great for those crafting little goodies), luxury ribbon AND library clips which are essential for a multitude of projects like the milk carton!
Free with order of 75 or more or a hostess gift of workshop over 250.

Contact me today to get yours!

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Graduation congrats.. another hoot!

2011-07-31T23:10:00.001-07:00

Made to celebrate my niece's graduation this year....
Are you guessing I'd just got the owl punch and was enjoying using him given last few posts? Yep you're right!
Rich razzleberry and Early espresso used. The owl tummy and background was pretty in pink dsp, and the mortar board was cut by hand and decorated with a rich razzleberry button from the brights button kit and a piece of (retired) rich razzleberry dotted ribbon. The scroll was made using the word window punch and then turned and rentered to get a shorter version then tied with twine.
Sentiment is from my to to set at the moment - curly cute.

Hope you liked it!

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Hubby's birthday.. and owls galore what a hoot!

2011-07-30T03:43:00.001-07:00

So here is a matching card and dsp gift bag I made for my husband's birthday recently (obviously my toddler must have made them as it says dad!)...
For the card I used a sheet of dsp from the fantastic value neutrals dsp pack - early espresso. (tutorial in available on ilws) and the card is made using the matching paper, pumpkin pie ink and paper, scallop border punch, serif letters, and the totally cute owl punch. (I did use non SU googly eyes for a bit of kiddy fun!)
The 'wooden' posts are made using the solid stripes punch and corner rounder.
The ribbon for the gift bag is the luscious striped grosgrain. (chocolate chip)

Hope you liked it!

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Baroque motifs.... again!

2011-07-29T01:53:00.001-07:00

As my friend and SU upline says... me and my favourite set! (inspired her to buy it so can't be all bad!)

So...
Real red card, baroque motifs embossed in white then using the tree trimmings stickers available from last years Christmas scrapping kit (now retired but stamps still available).

Finished off with a flat fake bow in old olive satin ribbon.

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Christmas in July! and serene snowflakes

2011-07-27T01:47:00.001-07:00

A very quick and simple card using night of navy card.
Serene snowflakes stamped randomly using versamark then embossed with silver powder.

It doesn't show very clearly in the photo, but the three larger snowflakes were hand cut out and raised up on dimensionals to give added interest.

The edges of the card were also embossed.
Hope you liked it!

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Second version of I heart hearts

2011-07-24T14:16:00.001-07:00

Very similar to the previous card - obviously using bashful blue instead of old olive, but blinged up a little with a sentiment from tiny tags, a flower from boho blossoms punch and a brad.

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I heart hearts

2011-07-23T08:42:00.001-07:00

I love this set!
Especially the filigree heart!

Stamped 3 times using old olive and early espresso. Cut out using punch to get most and as this stamp has a slightly thinner bottom - used paper snip too! (Others in the set correspond exactly with the punch).

Mat and layered onto dsp from the paper pack and corresponding card stock and et voila!

Hope you liked it!

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Choo Choo but bigged up!

2011-07-23T01:22:00.001-07:00

Previously I showed a set of cards I made using Choo Choo set, today I used the same set but made a much more special and time consuming card for my god daughters birthday!

I stamped the carriages and then using a craft knife cut them all out so I could layer animals from Animal stories behind the carriages to make it 3d. The cake from the final carriage was made using the cupcake stamp and punch set (usa only - thanks Liz and Claire!) And the right of track wheel used along the bottom.

The sky was daubed using a scallop circle to create the cloud effect and the hills were ripped from mellow moss cardstock (retired).

I confess the inspiration was from a card I saw in splitcoast but I am sorry I can't remember who - please say if yours and I will edit!

Hope you like it!

Choo Choo....

2011-07-20T23:48:00.001-07:00

When I get the chance I like to make batches of children's cards, there always seem to be so many needed!

Here are a few I made with the set Choo Choo and right on track wheel.
Ink - basic gray, real red
Card - very vanilla and real red
Stamps - serif numbers, Choo Choo and stampin around wheel right on track
Corner rounder
Word window punch used for the sentiment and two punched in fed and layered behind create the mat. (sentiment from an SU set but can't find which one!)
Hope you like it!

Peppa pig

2011-07-18T08:17:00.001-07:00

Not my idea! Borrowed from Julie Kettlewell - Julies Japes with a few adaptions eg I used the modern level punch to form her dress and word Windows for the Wellies.
I find punch art really useful on young children's cards as there don't seem to be lots of choices for the younger generation - hopefully some of the amazing stamp sets in America will make our way soon! Love those diggers!
Anyway... I digress!
Patterned paper (retired) was hostess special last year, mounted on pretty in pink.
3 is my go to serif numbers set.
Hope you like it!

Katharine and Ian wedding card

2011-07-18T01:12:00.001-07:00

Here's a card I made for a lovely couple that I used to work with who got married recently.
For special occasion cards I like to up the layers - I think this is one way to make the card look like it has gone the extra mile!
It's an a5 card made using very vanilla and soft suede layers. I daubed the vanilla edges with soft suede ink for extra dimension and depth. One of the soft suede edges was created wither the border punch.
The hearts are made using the large heart punch and the letters are from a cuttlebug alphabet I own (although SU now have the Big Shot and very similar Timeless Type letters). I ran one of these through with an embossing folder to add the dots for texture, the other was stamped with the filigree heart from I heart hearts and then gold embossed.
The sentiment is from the great Tiny tags set and attached with gold elastic cord.
Hope you like it!

A birthday card for Isabella

2011-07-17T01:53:00.001-07:00

Or Bella as my son calls her!
Lots of pink... perfect for a nice girly card!
Pretty in pink and melon mambo team really well with heart to hearts set and the watermarked 3 in the background is created by using versamark and the serif numbers set.

Embellishments come from the heart punches, melon mambo spotted ribbon (retired) and a little bling courtesy of the rhinestones.

Hope you like it!

Test

2011-07-17T01:35:00.001-07:00

Well.... trying out Blogger.on my phone! Hopefully a means of staying more on top of things!

Are you ready for Christmas??

2010-09-04T15:10:00.000-07:00

Have at look at some of the lovely things we’ll be making at our Christmas evening!

Friday 1st October 7.30pm cost for the evening £20 to include all materials and refreshments, you’ll also go home with lots of spare materials to make even more!!

We’ll be making: Technique card, gift box, mini scrapbook album, gift ruler and pen, gift card/voucher container. MASSES of ideas for all your Christmas needs!!

Spaces are strictly limited, although if there if enough interest, then I’ll run a second class. Contact me to book your place and pay a deposit before 12th September so that I can purchase enough materials.

Look forward to seeing you there!

Cupcake calculator!

2010-09-01T14:28:00.000-07:00

I made this calculator cover to give as a gift to my newest Cupcake team member…. I took the sentiment from the all the stars stamp set as I thought it was a perfect phrase to inspire someone on a new business journey.

The calculator cost me 50p! 2 for £1 at Poundland! but a little cover jazzes it up a little :)

Crazy for Cupcakes stampset
All in the stars stampset
Stazon ink
Real red and Cho chip markers
Real Red and Whisper White card
Sticky strip (I stuck the calculator on the side so the back can be reached to replace the battery)

Craft Storage

2010-08-26T14:18:00.000-07:00

Just wanted to show off my new ink pad storage!

It has removable shelves and will hold all 48 ink pads from SU… I have a few more to go!!!

Not bad for £30… it also came fully assembled and when I can get around to it, it can be painted to match our dining room.

Giraffe birthday cards punch art

2010-08-23T14:14:00.000-07:00

The cards below I made for a group of 6 two year olds! Our children are all born within a month of each other as we met at atenatal classes so we recently decided to have a joint birthday bash which was wonderful!

I took inspiration from the fabulous Julie Kettlewell (Julies Japes) to make these giraffe punch art characters… I did two versions for the boys and the girls.

sweet pea DSP
Punches – too many to name!! but if anyone wants to know – email me!
So Saffron, Pretty in Pink, Chocolate Chip and Old Olive
the fab choc chip striped ribbon mmmm love it!
the sentiments in the middle are printed with SU colour values to represent choc chip!

Crazy for Cupcakes gifts…

2010-08-18T13:50:00.000-07:00

As mentioned in previous posts, I am now a sales leader for Mini IQ… my team is called ‘Cupcakes’, so of course I HAD to buy this set!

I made the girls in my team some little gifts, a covered diary… do they can add in their party bookings! and a matching post it note keyring!

Crazy for cupcakes stamp set (I created a mask so that I could stamp the solitary cupcake!)
markers
choc chip ribbon
post it notes an binder rings

Sweet topper thank you’s

2010-08-16T13:41:00.000-07:00

I was asked to make some toppers to go on top of cello bags like my Easter ones!

choc chip paper
very vanilla
2 step bird punch
stamped wing – tiny tags
circle punches
circle of friendship
scallop punch

Decoupage from a printed picture

2010-08-12T13:34:00.000-07:00

Here is a first for me… decoupage from a printed picture!

I made this as a thank you for the teacher of our sing and sign classes as they’ve come to an end after 18months… they’ve been fantastic and to anyone out there considering baby sign… it’s well worth it!!!

So…

I wanted to make something incorporating the logo or the cat – called Jessie! However I kept drawing blanks and wasn’t happy until I tried this!

I printed the logo 3 times on paper and then cut and stuck them to card. I then cut away sections of the design and layered them up using dimensionals!

I should have taken a side view picture to showcase the depth… hey I’m learning :)

sweet pea DSP
black gems paperchase
very vanilla ribbon
Rose red and ??? can’t work it out!!
circle punches
circle of friendship

3-D pram card

2010-08-11T13:24:00.000-07:00

A cute little 3-D card which I made for a friend who recently had a little girl… well of course you knew that! it’s a pink card!! ahem….

Anyway…

I found an excellent tutorial of this online but sadly after searching through my entire list of saved blog items, I can’t find it, so if it was you and you’re reading my little blog… please let me know and I’ll add your name here!

I cut the 2 of the largest nestabilities on my cuttlebug, you could of course use scissors, but I don’t trust my ‘neatness’, created patterned paper using very vintage wheel and melon mambo ink and cut these with the next smallest circle.

I then cut away the 1/4 to form the pram shape, and then turned to SU fab punches to create the wheels.

The pram is then held together with a strip of paper snipped along its entire length at incredibly tight together intervals so that it would bend and stick the sides on. To finish it off, a strip of paper used to make the handle and the trim to the bonnet.

If I was making this again, I’m make the strip wider so that the pram could hold more… as it was I filled it with a little giftcard!

Jungle themed rulers

2010-08-09T13:06:00.000-07:00

On our recent SU training day – run by the lovely Amanda (Inspirin Inkin), we learnt how to make these rulers. (I think they were from Monica Gale’s My many passions blog)

Anyway, when I was asked to make some gifts for my friend to sell at her child’s nursery, these came to mind! 9p from Wilkinson plus 11p for a jumbo eyelet, sell them for 40p and voila… 20p profit! You’re not going to get rich but it all helps :) We’re going to thread ribbon through the ends with the name of the nursery on as a nice memento.

We also stamped jungle animals on oddments of paper and scalloped the edges to wrap around chocolate bars – sadly I forgot to take pictures of these!

In case it wasn’t apparent, their theme was Jungle animals!

Here is the donations pot aka a wishing well decorated with loads of punch art! Can you spot the elephant? monkey? giraffe?

I was quite excited with the elephant as I adapted one that we were shown at our previous training using the butterfly punch to form his ears. I was pleased to discover that I could use the tag punch to cut in half and form the elephant ears! also cut carefully around the edge to form his trunk!

Rich Razzleberry birthday

2010-08-06T12:55:00.000-07:00

An unusual choice for a 2 year old girl’s birthday, but she loves purple!

Rich Razzleberry
Cottage Wall DSP
Rich Razzleberry polka dot ribbon
Large and Small tag punch
Wonderous Words stamp set
Monkey from Fox and Friends stamp set
Scallop punch
Non SU Sakura pen to draw the ‘2’– I’ve since ordered the Numbers stamp set!

Apologies mark 2!

2010-08-04T12:28:00.001-07:00

I’ll say right now that I do not intend to leave my blog alone for quite so long again, the last two months have been quite mad and a little bit stressful for me! I’ve had visitors, my nan had a stroke and sadly passed away, holiday AND working incredibly hard to qualify to be a sales leader with Mini IQ… I’m glad to say that I did it!

But all this has left me with little (but I managed to cram in some!) time to craft…

I did on one deep dark horrible afternoon manage to do some stamping and share it with my son Jonah… a born crafter :)

Book mark card

2010-05-16T07:01:00.000-07:00

Here’s a neat little idea I’ve used a few times for when you want to give a person a little gift and a card… well here it is – all in one! a card with a detachable bookmark!

Mine was shown to me by my upline’s, upline… so thanks Louisa! stamperlousplace.blogspot.com

I just use a normal C6 card blank and cut the front in half and perforate the back half to form the tear off bookmark.

This was then decorated using chocolate chip ink and the stampin’ around wheel ‘Forever flowers’ – very handy for when you want to make a card quickly! The central image is a stamped flower from the Mr and Mrs Stamp set. Scallop oval and normal oval punches form the tag at the top with some ribbon through. If you want to add a little something more, then it is easy enough to slip a pocket on the back to add a gift card for a bookshop!

Have fun making some!

Commissions…

2010-05-16T06:30:00.000-07:00

I’ve recently been asked to make cards for a specific purpose (normally I just have a stash to let people choose from and I make personal cards to give to people from myself), this is whole new ball game….

oh the pressure that comes with it!!! I love the excuse of ‘I MUST craft…’ but being given creative freedom for someone else comes with a little stress! I was asked to make a welcome card and matching gift box with the theme tropical island!!! hmmmm…. I decided to go for Whisper White with my new stamp set ‘bird on a branch’ used in shades of bright pink and aqua blues. (the wing on the bird is also stamped with the bird on a branch stamp set in choc chip)

Card used: Whisper white, Pink Passion and tempting turquoise.

Scallop punch to make roof, 1 3/8’ circle punch, XL 2 step bird punch.

Non SU – clips from Tesco (25 for £1)

Hopefully this will be ok!

My upline Claire, gave me a fab tip which I’ll use on future birdhouses of cutting the flaps at the bottom in a slight V so that they sit neatly on each other. Also take care not to make the hole for the birdhouse too close to the top, else the join will be weak and your gable will refuse to go in the other direction without bending the cardstock.

Am also waiting for the UPS man to visit with my new goodies to come – have ordered the tiny tags and matching punch! Looking forward to having a play with them! Will be back later to show you what I did!

Men’s cards…

2010-05-14T06:49:00.000-07:00

Here is my take on a idea I found on http://ustamp4fun.com/ Amy Celone’s Blog.

I’d been asked to do a 70th Birthday card…. not normally my ‘thang’ but hey… thought I’d give this a go :)

Am quite pleased with the overall look, I need to play about with the colour combos but to be honest I was using up bits that I had left over that might be manly!!

So… a really rust cardstock base, bella bleu paper for shirt, Night of Navy DSP (Hostess level 1 gift set), brass effect brads for the buttons (non SU) and the stamped images are 2 from Circle circus.

I have a tag punch on its way to me courtesy of a swap over at ILWS and I’ll be using this to add a pocket (turn tag upside down), may even add a ribbon hanky!

What do you think? Know any granddad’s who might dress like this?

Apologies…

2010-05-11T06:41:00.000-07:00

I’ve been neglecting my blog… no sensible excuses, just been busy with work, things going really well at the moment with Mini IQ, however this has left me less time to craft!!

Our recent workshop went well, 3 good friends, here til midnight crafting! great fun! We made these adorable birdhouses (see Jo Dumbleton’s blog http://www.stampin-n-stuff.blogspot.com/) which proved a massive hit which I’ll share with you later on tomorrow…

Also we looked at making these lovely vellum cards with pocket silhouettes stamp set.

and also had a go at making some items from acetate… it is really hard to get good pictures of these cards as the light that you need to get a good picture just glares…

For both cards I went for a monochromatic look… I’d just ordered a pack of neutrals :) (loving Kraft!!), the above card uses the flower images from Itty Bitty Buds stamped with white stazon. The insert is matted and layered whisper white and basic grey with a grey stamped flower. Although there is no photo, there is an identical background layer cut in grey and stuck on the back of the card to disguise the adhesive.

The above card is super easy! It is a 3” x3” notecard which is a great size to knock out quickly from a 12” sheet. I used my scallop punch to punch from window sheets and 2 stamped SAB vintage label images stamped in basic grey. I also fed the stamped images back into my 1 1/4’ circle punch to remove the middle – one of which became the insert.

Front of card: scalloped border of vintage label, centre removed

Reverse of front: stick down window sheet, use second scalloped border to cover adhesive

Inside card: apply glue to circle, then line up image with front of card and close card to adhere.

ILWS and swaps

2010-05-10T06:23:00.000-07:00

Recently did a trade with the lovely Deborah I ‘met’ off ILWS (deborahodonohoe.blogspot.com/), am really impressed with this as a method of expanding my stash with little expense!

We ended up having a good ole chat about all things crafty and having listened to a more experienced demo-er I realised that I need to take part or even organise (hmmm) some swaps on ILWS to get myself some new ideas. I’ve just made my very first card fronts for a swap – 15 of the same for a SU training event that I’ll be attending on 15th May. I decided to keep it terribly simple, hopefully people at the swap will still like it! PS the ribbon came unstuck – noticed after I took the pic, they’ve now all been trimmed and tidied up!

I may also look into doing some blog hops… not too sure how this whole blog thing works to increase traffic… I know I seem to read masses of other people’s blogs, but I need to grabble with design so that I can list them all in my sidebar instead of just having a big list in Google Reader! I’d also like to learn how to add things like the mini catalogue to my blog… if anyone wants to contact me to talk me through it, feel free!

Itty Bitty Buds

2010-05-09T06:12:00.001-07:00

I received this set when I held a workshop – it is not available for order and is a hostess freebie… I love it! it is so useful and lends itself well to decorating papers to then be used in projects. Recently I was speaking with a lovely lady through ILWS who was saying she doesn’t know what to do with this stamp set, so here are a few things that I’ve done!

I used it to create a background for my FIL’s 70th birthday card. it’s always difficult to make cards for men I find, so I stuck with quite earthy colours and a natural theme – maybe it was just an excuse to use my SU XL Bird punch!!

Hopefully one day I’ll get the hang on stamping in a straight line – even with the stamp-a-ma-jig I find I’m making mistakes…oh well practise makes perfect…

Colours used:

Choc chip, close to cocoa and creamy caramel for the card layers, green galore, choc chip and mellow moss to stamp.

I also recently held a workshop to create items for Easter… guess that seems ages away now! However, we made these easy peasey boxes… the large one is made using the backing card that comes with DSP and covered in Bella Bleu but the smaller one is made from Mellow Moss card and stamped with choc chip Itty Bitty Buds again. The sentiment is from a SAB set which is no longer available and cut out with scallop circle punch.

Vellum and Acetate Workshop 30th April

2010-04-16T11:00:00.000-07:00

Just a reminder that the next workshop 'Acetate and Vellum' will be held Friday 30th April at my house from 7.30pm

Places filling up fast!

Cost £5 to include refreshments and materials for 2 make and takes.

Come and see the wonderful items from the new Mini Catalogue!

Pocket Silhouettes sunrise…

2010-04-05T14:58:00.001-07:00

Again me trying new techniques!! I used a cut up make up sponge to cover some Whisper White cardstock with a mixture of earth element inks to create a sunset/sunrise effect. I used: Ruby red, pumpkin pie, more mustard and creamy caramel.

After this I then used two of the stamps from Pocket Silhouettes and black stazon to stamp around the edges to form a nature scene.

The sentiment in the centre was from SAB and no longer available and the dragonfly is non SU (sorry can’t remember who did this one!) and it was embossed with black powder for extra effect. I wish I had embossed the sentiment as well to create extra dimension.

The scene was layered on basic black a5 card blank.

Next Workshop... and the Mini Catalogue!

2010-04-01T05:09:00.000-07:00

Dates for diaries!!
Friday 30th April...

Workshop showing some of the wonderful things to be done with Acetate and Vellum!

£5 to cover all materials, redeemable against a purchase of £20 or more.

Email me for further details: mcvictorial@gmail.com

Don't forget also the new Mini Catalogue is out!! Some amazing items here - I've got my eye on the new 2 step Bird punch!

Easter Tree...

2010-04-01T05:07:00.000-07:00

Nothing done by my own fair hand has to be said... well other than the sourcing and picking of the branch which was considerably harder than it may appear :) it had to be the right 'twiggy' look!

Anyway, the decs were from Paperchase for only £4 and I even had a few left over!

Very festive!

Easter Goody Bag

2010-03-25T05:53:00.000-07:00

So as usual I keep adding little things to show at my next workshop – 30th March, We’re making some items for Easter/Spring and I’m demonstrating some of the fantastic things that can be done with punches.

Here is a cute little topper which took about 5 mind to make! Stuck onto some cheap cello bags (99p for 50 from ‘The Works’ – these didn’t fit standard cards as advertised so this is a perfect way to use them up!) and filled with chocolate eggs! Yummy!!

Supplies used:

Circle of friendship stamp set
Scallop punch
1 3/8” punch
Blush blossom and Mellow Moss Ink
Itty Bitty Buds (Hostess level 2 stamp set)
Barely Banana cardstock
Scallop edge punch
Certainly Celery cardstock

Decoupage stamping

2010-03-23T05:41:00.001-07:00

Well this was a new technique for me. I’d attempted it before but you really need a very good pair of scissors to cut cleanly! SU’s paper snips are great! I’ve had a fair few pairs of scissors from many different places and can honestly say these are by far the best!

Basically you stamp your image once as a background and then once again and cut out following the stamped outline. One tip – move the paper not the scissors when cutting. Then using SU dimensionals (I cut these in half to stick to the narrow sections), create a layer to add depth to the card.

Supplies used:

Barely Banana A5 cardstock
Whisper White cardstock
Jumbo Wheel ‘So Swirly’ (I think…need to learn the names!)
Ruby red, Old Olive, Pumpkin Pie and Creamy Caramel inks
Paper Snips
Versamark
SU Dimensionals
Animal Stories Stamp set

Overall I was pleased with the card, but definitely there are things to be learnt from still! I drew a faint line in pencil to line up the text and rubbed it out, yet the card stock is so delicate, there’s a faint line left. Not noticeable to many but it shows up in the pictures and I know it’s there too! So will have to find another way to get straight text!

Technorati Tags: Animal Stories,Birthday,decoupage

Ruby Wedding Anniversary Card

2010-03-19T02:04:00.000-07:00

This A5 card has been made for my Husband's Aunt and Uncle's Ruby Wedding Anniversary.

I broke out some of my new stamps that I got free courtesy of my first workshop!
En Francais and Medallion form the background in Ruby Red (what else??) ink and the Medallion has also been stamped in Versamark on the Ruby Red cardstock.

40 is cut with my cuttlebug and the Hippy chick alphabet set...

A few bling stones and some random ribbon I had, a cream insert and voila!

It's amazing how with as much stuff as I have I still find myself thinking... mmm need a better selection of ribbons as I don't have X.... Must buy some! Lol!!

The ribbon technique is one I saw on Julie Kettlewell's site... Julies Japes (note to self - learn how to add hyperlinks here!). However, I was very chuffed to work it out all on my own before she posted a tutorial!
It is simply a loop of ribbon stuck together with a band of ribbon fastened around its middle, this is then stuck on top of a length of ribbon to make a faux bow! Clever but effective!

All pink....

2010-03-19T02:00:00.000-07:00

Not a normal look for me I have to confess, but what can I say?

Made this tri-fold card at my very talented upline, Claire's. Thanks Claire!

Stupidly I forgot to take the measurements before giving the card away, so I'll try and get those and add later!

The Pink paper is Pink Passion and stamped randomly using Circle Circus stamps.... I love how these go together to create so many different looks as if you've bought expensive designed papers!

The Sentiment is from the SAB set Vintage labels... I just had to get my hands on that set!

Spring/Easter Workshop

2010-03-16T12:03:00.000-07:00

Tuesday 30th March

Come and make some cute and festive Easter/Spring goodies!

A bunny dish and a stylish yet simple basket....

Cost £5 to cover materials redeemable against purchase of £20 or more Stampin' Up Products.

Chocolate to fill the basket provided!

Contact me to book your place today!

My MIL's 70th... and my first workshop!

2010-03-05T10:09:00.000-08:00

A simple, elegant card for my Mother In Law's special birthday recently.

Baroque Motifs large stamp (used the edge of the stamp), stamped in Basic black on Whisper White, Schoolbook alphabet and a few bling adhesive stones to add some sparkle!

I also used the baroque wheel to add a matching decorative insert but didn't manage to take a decent picture of that one, sorry!

This stamp set was one of the ones that I demostrated at my recent worksop - which was a fantastic success! Thanks to the 8 lovely ladies that came along, we had a fabulous time chatting and crafting til gone 11pm!

Date for diaries for our next workshop....

Tuesday 30th March.... Easter! Think Bunnies, Baskets, Chocolate and Spring!

Mmmmm been a while...

2010-03-05T10:03:00.000-08:00

Apologies for that!
I'm quite sad to say that I wrote a veeeerrrry detailed post about the wonders of my seville orange marmalade - pictures and everything, and then hit technical issues! That followed by Jonah being poorly for weeks has meant the blog has taken a back seat.... who knows maybe I'll post it just so it gets air time!

Bella Bleu beeeeautifffful papers!

2010-02-06T09:47:00.001-08:00

Ok, I know… these are quite girly papers, but I just couldn’t resist them! I had an hour today to make a few cards and challenged myself to make as many cards as I could using just 2 pieces of paper! So here they are…

The first is made with an A6 cream blank covered with Bella Bleu DSP with a scalloped edge and a duplicated scalloped edge made from a small strip of Not Quite Navy. The ribbon is non SU (gasp!!), and the sentiment is from Whimsical words (free in Sale-a-bration set with £45 or more order) cut out using 1 3/8” circle punch and the scalloped circle punch stamped in Creamy Caramel.

Not bad for 15 mins!

The second card is made from a square cream card blank (13.5cm) and then matted with 13cm square of Not Quite Navy and a further 12.5cm square of Bella Bleu.

I then used Very Vanilla ribbon with a fake bow and a scalloped oval from the Not Quite Navy and an oval stamped again in Creamy Caramel with Sincere Salutations.

I think if I was doing this next time, I’d use a larger ribbon as I felt it looked a little lost!

And here is the third… my favourite!

Using all the same ingredients as mentioned before on an A6 cream blank used landscape.

And I still have bits leftover!! I just run out of time so that’s all for today!!

Hope you enjoy these…

What sort of card does Jonah 'give' his friends?

2010-02-03T13:19:00.000-08:00

Well...

one with a whale on :)

A really simple card as I was in a hurry!

Whisper white card stock (half A4 folded in half to make an A5 card base)
Brilliant blue cardstock
Brilliant blue ink
Animal stories stamp set from Stampin Up
Star punch
Signo White gel pen
Stamp-a-ma-jig (to help align lettering)

Also as an additional note, I'd been making some cards for my workshop coming up on 26th February (still a few places left - grab yours!), and been stamping on my normal (good quality) non SU white cardstock. The ink was patchy in places and I blamed myself for not inking the stamps correctly! I was loathe to open my precious SU whisper white... anyway I finally gave in and voila! no more inking coverage issues... cliched but true, the paper really does make a difference!

I'm hoping to post later on this week with my seville orange marmalade annual debacle.... so grab some oranges before the season ends!

New Mini IQ catalogue!!!!!!

2010-02-02T14:57:00.000-08:00

HI everyone!

Sunday was the launch of the new Mini IQ catalogue

And WOW there are some amazing new items - over 65 things to ooh and aah at!!!!!

Helen, our in house education expert has really sourced some fantastic things and at amazing recession busting prices for everyone! New books from only £1.99!!!

Here are my top faves, but do be sure to have a look on website at the full catalogue or contact me as I am happy to do a pop in (30 mins max!) and show you my selection from the new catalogue!! Just give me a email/ring and we can arrange a time to suit...

Baby: Incy Wincy Spider rrp £12.99 - Mini IQ price £9.99

Bring the classic rhyme to life by simply pulling the extending

string on this friendly spider’s velvety back. His textured legs crinkle

invitingly and are great for early reaching, grabbing & counting.

Concealed within his tummy is a lovely fabric book. The soft pages

feature a collection of garden creatures with satisfyingly

onomatopoeic descriptions that are just right for reading aloud and

encouraging repetition of sounds.

Toddler: Rosie's Walk with story telling and musical CD £5.99

This classic, simple, near-wordless story is rich in propositions and directional

words,. It’s also a delightful book for emergent readers to enjoy with parents.

Children find it easy to memorise and repeat the text whilst pointing at the

words, so building up confidence.

Pre school: Simple First Phonics rrp £7.99 Mini IQ price £6.99

This gentle introduction uses photographic images to and a wipe clean pen to

develop phonic awareness and knowledge of letters. In simple terms it works on

matching the letter sound with the written letter, at the beginning and the end of

words. It touches briefly on simple vowel blending and double letter sounds

sounds as ‘ee’ and ‘ai’. The activities can be repeated time and time again to instill confidence. And the 26 flash cards are a marvelously effective portable learning tool.

Key stage 1: Ask Dr K Fisher £6.99

Dr K Fisher’s animal counseling service has been dispensing nononsense

advice for many years. Using a hilarious problem page format,

he advises all sorts of creatures on confusing matters.Dr K Fisher’s animal

counseling service has been dispensing nononsense

advice for many years. Using a hilarious problem page format,

he advises all sorts of creatures on confusing matters.

Key stage 1 and 2: Dictionary and Thesaurus £8.99

Has to be seen to be truly appreciated!

The front section of the book provides dictionary definitions,

examples of usage, cartoons and photographs to make the

meaning of each word abundantly clear. Use the rear (thesaurus)

section to expand your vocabulary, and find out about word

partners, idioms, and opposites. A fantastic book that helps with

school requirements to reduce word poverty (lack of vocabulary!!!)

Key Stage 2: Great big book of computing £9.99

Whether you’re starting from scratch or want to learn more, the generic

step-by-step projects and familiar fun activities found in this spiral-bound

workbook will provide young learners with the opportunity to expand their

knowledge of computer technology, progressing at their own speed.

From communication online, to databases, programs and pictures, handy

hints and friendly tips combine with simple explanations and appealing

illustrations to encourage and excite the most reluctant of students. Also

included are notes for parents and teachers, suggesting further activities to

reinforce understanding.

Seriously there are soooo many others to check out!!!!! do have a look at the website!

www.mini-iq.co.uk

If anyone would like to host a party and receive some of these books for FREE, contact me and have a few friends over and I'll do the rest!! As an extra incentive, anyone who books a party in February can have a bottle of wine as a thank you from me!!!

Take care,

Victoria

My First SU workshop...

2010-01-27T10:07:00.001-08:00

Drum roll please.....

I'll be hosting my first Card workshop very soon!

Friday 26th February 7.30pm til late!
Refreshments provided!

We'll be making at least 2 projects, I've not firmed up exactly what yet as I shall tailor this to the 'needs/wants' of the class!

Cost £5 to cover materials which are all provided!

Contact me now if you'd like a space... first come, first served!!!

mcvictorial@gmail.com

Look forward to seeing you all!

Black and White Easel Card

2010-01-24T05:47:00.000-08:00

I can’t in any way claim the credit for the idea of an easel card, there are many different examples out there… basically as long as the top half of the card folds in half and the attachment is no taller than the half of the card on which it is stuck then, an easel card you have!

In order to make it stand up, an embellishment is needed, preferably 3D so that it traps the top half of the card. I used a scallop circle punch layered with a black punched circle mounted on dimensionals.

List of items used:

White cardstock for base card (13.5cm x 13.5cm)
Black cardstock
Silver Mirri card
Fiskars Border punch (can’t remember name!)
Prima flower with crystal brad
Stampin’ UP Baroque Motifs stamp set
Papermania Black and White ribbon
Silver pen for dot detail
Flat backed gem for dotting the word ‘Kind’ on circle
Scallop and circle punches (both Stampin’ UP)
Silver Stickles (detail on flower)

Apologies for the poor quality of the photographs, I need to invest in a flash I think!

Anyway… enjoy! Vx

SALES!!!! and a bit of fiddling and messing about going on...

2010-01-24T05:01:00.001-08:00

Been trying to get to grips with this blogging malarkey! Managed to put pictures and hyperlinks now into the sidebars, so if anyone wishes to view books or crafty stash then feel free to visit the websites and take a nosey... let me know if there is anything you'd like!

Both Mini IQ and Stampin' UP have a sale on at the moment, Mini IQ's only lasts til 31st January so if there is something you like - get in there quick! Also nearly 60 items from the current catalogue will be going, so again if there is something you've seen and like, act now in case it is too late when the new catalogue comes out on 1st February - I can't wait!

As for Stampin' UP's sale, spend £45 and get a free stamp set from their Sal-a-bration leaflet!!! (on website - I'll get a link on here eventually when I can work out what I am doing...), if you join up to become a demonstrator you get nearly £260 of goodies not including a stamp set of your choice from the ENTIRE catalogue!!! for only £139!! And there is absolutely no requirements to you joining... so...

If you'd like to join my team or put in an order - for either (or both!!), then give me a shout/email/call and we can have a chat over coffee!

Take care one and all... Vx

2010-01-22T10:18:00.000-08:00

So... another cute picture of my boy! I'll stop soon, promise. I'm just getting to grips with software! Anyway, this picture was taken by Sally (many thanks!!) on my mad Christmas
open house day - something like 40 people showed up for mulled wine and mince pies... yummy!
So here's Jonah having a break and enjoying some cheese straw!

Jonah at Wagamamas being fed noodles - Look Mummy! I'm a bird!! tweet tweet!!

2010-01-22T10:11:00.000-08:00

So I guess this is a test then???

2010-01-22T08:42:00.000-08:00

Mmm... never was much good at tests!
Thankfully this doesn't required revision, just lots of practise!

Someone suggested I put my manic life down on paper (or rather up on 'tnet) so here we are...

Vx