Competitions, Shows and Make and Takes

Well, as I was sick, when I was talking about the Oscars the other I forgot to mention the competition that Craftwork Cards is running a comeptition to win an Card Oscar. For more info click here.

By the way, the weekend of the 20th and 21st of March is Great Northen Papercrafts Extravaganza, which will be my first time there and I will be doing some inspiring Make and Takes, so if you are a Northerner reader, please come along to say Hello.

And because I haven't posted any card in the last couple of days, here is one using a combination of products: Prima papers and Glitz and Glamour collection, all products available from Craftwork Cards.

Digital Paper

I have been in love with the Copics or Promarkers for quite a while, and although I had some card and paper that work well with it, it was not perfect. Then, on Monday I saw Julie who gave some sheets of the new digital paper/card from Craftwork Cards.

I expected to like it, but not be wowed by it as it is plain thick white paper. Wrong. It is just so smooth, it's ultra smooth so the stamp detail shows so beautifully, and not too thick, perfect to make stamped and colored panels to add to cards.

To be honest, when I got home I quickly stamped this image (Magenta stamps) and colored in. Cutting took a while and as soon as I started I wished I hadn't as I am not the most patient of crafters.

Chipboard Hearts

Quick and easy, that is my motto. And then some Basic Grey papers. And I am happy.

For someone really special

I made this card, which is a Christmas version of this one. It takes me about an hour an half to make just the one card, so you will understand that I didn't do this one for everyone on my list.

Simple Jack Frost

Finally I got my email and blog account sorted, so I can resume regular postings.
So, I thought I would share a quick and easy card I did for a workshop at The Glitter Pot a few weeks back.

Square Patchwork

Today I went to the post office and the lady before me was sending off some Christmas Cards to Canada. She had chosen a medium sized card but it was over the 20 grams for just a letter post, so she had to pay an extra 30p. Ok, not much, but if you have to send more than the odd one abroad it adds up. And I rather spend that in lovely card, that this make mean?

The actual size of the card is 4 x 5 inches counting the excess over top edge, you know I like small cards. I just use the Woodware -Marvy Uchida for those in America- 2" Scallop Square punch. If you are into punches you will know that this particular one, *5

Recycling ideas

I believe strongly that one should repeat card designs that we like, specially if we scraplift our own work. I do that constantly because when I like a design, I really really like it, I can't stop reproducing.
So I took a card I did this summer using a floral range and converted into a little Christmas Card. If you ever been to one of my workshops, specially a Christmas one, you will know how much I suggest to make smaller cards. Yes, large cards have got more of a Wow factor, but small things can be delicate and cute and they are much easily fit in living rooms full of Christmas cards.
The pink scallops are from Craftwork Cards and the patterned paper is from the Eskimo Kisses collection (Basic Grey). All the materials are available from Dawn Bibby's shop.

Craftwork Cards 10th Birthday

To celebrate their 10th Birthday, Craftwork Cards asked their design team to make a Birthday card for them. So this is what I did.
In their brand new website, there is a page of Inspiration where you can see the rest of the entries, as well as a better picture of my own card. Since it only captures the front I thought it would be nice to share some pictures of the inside, which I did decorate quite profusely.


As a base for the card I chose a basic color scheme, black, white and lime green. As pattern goes I chose to use the single flowers from the Floral Christmas stamp set.


As you open the card this is what you see on the left side of the card.


I made the main card from bits of card, using a shaped card - from a 8 x 8 album - trimmed top, bottom and left and then I made a M spine with black card, so the heart is actually attached to the V inside of the spine.


I inked the 1 which was chipboard to begin with. Use card candy for each of the big flower centers and on three of them I then put crystals.


For the flower I use Pinflair glue gel to add dimension.


To add even more pizazz I made a card bow with some left over card that I cut off.
I used two edge border punches, both of them from Eksucess.

Christmas acetate

Will I make my Christmas cards out of acetate this year? Well, not a hundred percent sure, probably I will do some like this one which I love using Craftwork Cards stuff/ I used so many different items that I wont list them, too tired for that.


If I mentioned that I am tired is not for sympathy. It is that tomorrow I have a workshop at the Glitter pot. Last week I was sent by post a parcel containing the items for me to design and make the cards. As the postal strike was in full swing, the parcel has not arrived yet. Thank goodness for plan B. But plan B has been a bit challenging, maybe a bit of a stress made me uncreative.

Also yesterday I had my hair cut and... it didn't go that well.
Haircuts. I have had a few, most of them pretty standard ones. It is not that I have been over the moon with many of them, more like I have been satisfied with the results. To be honest, I can only recall two haircust made me feel really good. The first time, eight years ago when I went back to professional hairdressers after a few years of home hair cutting, and the second time was last year in LA, in a proper Hollywood saloon.

Why hair makes us so miserable? I mean when its good its great, we feel on top of the world, but when it's bad it's really bad.

Yesterday I had my hair cut short, I just wanted a jaw sort of length. The problem this time is that I had it cut so short that there is nothing I can do, the back is super short -she actually shaved the neck- and the very front and some top layers are very short too.
I liked the salon -a lot actually- and it is a good hair cut but it is so short!

Well, you live and learn. One haircut at the time.

Some times the simplest cards have got the most wow factor. I like to think that this is one of those cards. If you are thinking how that card is going to fit an envelope, well let me tell you, you use one of 8 x 8" -from Craftwork Cards.
I know this card is not for everyone, this one is over three edges not just the one!

More Gap parts

A quick post just to share yet another gap card. This is a very small one as I used the smaller mats from the Scallop squares from Craftwork Cards. I would like to point out I used two In Circles as I was demonstrating when I made this card and I did not have the right one. What I did was to use a purple one that said Happy Birthday and then I punches out the Best wishes white and silver one and punched it out using a 1" circle punch.
Also, the spots on the left bottom part of the photo show that I can not be bothered to actually clean up photos. Well, I do a bit of white balance on iPhoto and resizing but not much else. I do admire those who spent time and effort making sure that the photos they post in their blogs are picture perfect. Me? I can't.

Diorama card

I love any papercraft or card that pops out or that you can interact with it. A diorama card fits the bill very well. I did this card for a friend of mine (Happy Belated birthday Sarah!).


For the apertures I used Petite Ovals Nestabilities dies, although I am not sure which wether the large or the small set. The double sided patterned paper is from Pebbles Inc.

I used for the cage and the bird images the clear stamp set called Gilded Cages from Craftwork Cards. I stamp the largest bird cage on acetate, on plain white card and on the blue side of the patterned paper and then I assembled it all together.



On the back of the guilded cage I added one of my messages in circles as the cage is suspended it rotate a bit so you can actually see the message.


The flowers are from the clear stamp set called Build a bloom.
Again, apologies for the bad quality of the photos. Apart from the lack of natural light mentioned in the previous post, I also have a problem with my lens.

Floral Tree

These November days are not good. By the time that I get round to take photos of last night card it is too dark to take daylight photos, so I end up with bad photos like the one above. Granted the card is not my best one -nor my worst one either- but still the photo does not justice to the card.
I use Dawn Petler's idea of decoupaging with circles some of the flowers of the tree but then I decoupage properly the larger ones.

I may follow my friend Fabrizio's advice and get myself a light tent, but I kind of know that I will buy it and then not use it enough. What I need to try is to experiments with the daylight bulbs that I have.

Birthday Wishes

Because I was born on Christmas day, birthday cards that have a winter feel appeal to me. It may sound a weird combination, but that is what I like.
For this card I used Enchanting Trees stamp set from Craftwork Cards, click here to see the rest of the images for the set. Copics for the colouring in, and Rock Candy Distress Glitter Glue. About that glitter glue, let me show you a close up.


The Rock Candy glitter glue is very, very subtle, nothing like Stardust Stickles. BUT, it is gorgeous specially for someone that is not very glittery like myself.
The message is from the first Simply Sayings that craftwork Cards manufactured which were blck printed on white card, which is ideal to color in. Alternatively you could use the ones foiled in silver or gold.

Blue Jack Frost

The super talented and amazing Julie Hickey design this lovely snowflake papers that come in a pack of 12 papers -6 designs, 3 snowflakes, 3 of my floral Christmas patterns-.


And I decided to decorate the inside as well.

Scrapbook page

Last week this layout was posted over at the Craftwork Cards blog. I just thought I shared as well in this blog, so I can also show the little details.

I used a wrap under the photo to create an oversized card hinge, so under the photo I have journaling space.

This is the detail of the back of the photo.

And here you can see how all the snowflakes are linked together and the crystals underneath the dots.

Introducing Floral Damasks

Craftwork Cards has now produced this foiled sheets that contain 9 rectangles -8 the same size, plus the long one. It is very versatile as you can color in the flowers using any method including Copics or Promarkers.

You can cut the rectangles in to different sizes, some of which will fit nicely into rectangle punches or die cuts.

In each pack, you get two sheets of the Black & White and two of the Purple and Black.

Check Lousette's new blog, is worth it!

More Frost

The outside:


The inside:


Not the best photos i know, but nontheless good enough to make yourself an idea of what they look like in cards those Jack Frost papers!

One of my favourites

Well, since I just made it yesterday it is bound to be today's favorite card.


I just wanted to play with what I had on the table, mostly Craftwork Cards stuff plus some little extras like the ubiquitous self adhesive pearls.


Since I love the acetate cards I decide to use the sheer delights scallop circles and pink wraps which are exactly the same shape, festive/spring flowers.


Usually I don't post photos of the back of the card, but I wanted to show how I covered the scoring line that comes on older Wraps. I just used a ribbon and card candy to cover the eyelets that maintained attached the acetate to the card, because attaching thick acetate to card is difficult other than with brads, eyelets or something similar.

All products by Craftwork Cards.

Monochromatic

Those who know me are use to monochrome from me. I usually dress in black with a touch of white and, sometimes, red. So I decided to make a couple of cards in that fashion which is a quite in a the minute.

Promarkers on Acetate

For this poinsettia I used acetate die cut flowers -from Craftwork Cards- and run it through the herringbone Cuttlebug embossing folder. Then, I used a Promarker marker to colour in the acetate by using the medium broad end of the marker. I am no coloring expert, but I love my Promarkers, love the colors, the easiness of how they work and how great they are to do shading. I do like the Copics too, but I do prefer the Promarkers as the colors are more intense, fresher colors. Just the other day, it was announced that they have launched 56 new colors. which means that you can get 148 colours. I am saving to get the whole lot!!!!

More Acetate

Yesterday I took the day off and what did I do? I went to the Craft show at Sandown, pretty much a busman's holiday! I knew that Richard and Julie would welcome an extra hand for coffee rounds and things like that.

As my Sat Nav wasn't working properly so I got lost, well not quite lost, but missed several times the right turn so I ended up doing almost twice as many miles as I should have. By the time I got home it was past six o clock, just in time for Dawn's QVC hour which again feature one kit containing some of my die cut messages I did for Craftwork Cards. Dawn is so sweet she always mentions me when she gets to them, I don't think most people could remember mentions like that on camera. That is one extra reason why she is so great doing this job. You may disagree with me on that, but trust me, I know many many people in this industry and not one could do the job Dawn does. HONESTLY.

Jack Frost

If you know Craftwork Cards stuff you will know that one of their specialties is gold and silver foiling into beautiful card or paper and as you may know I have been designing some stuff for them, but it's the first time I designed papers. First I designed the Floral tree image and flowers which developed into the Floral Christmas patterned paper pack, and then now you can get the foiled Floral Trees in 8 x 8" packs as well called Jack Frost that also feature Julie's beautiful Snowflake papers (the three patterns on the right of the photo).
Although I designed the floral tree papers -meaning I was well acquainted with the motifs- when I saw them in real life with the silver foil and all, I was surprised on how beautiful they came out.
You have got two options the silver foiling into white pearl card or the silver foiling into dark/light blue pearl card.
I know I am a bit over the top with my recent products, but the truth of the matter is that I absolutely love how all of them have come out. I guess I surprised myself!
I can't wait to play with those papers!!!

If you can't wait either, then you can go to Sandown Racecourse -Esher, Surrey- this weekend as there is craft show going on and Craftwork Cards is there exhibiting.

Alcohol Inks and White stazOn

Only a card to share today, as I am busy working in some new designs. I am not sure if they are going to come to anything but so far I love them.

Materials
Card: Elegant Square Scallop Wrap
Paper: Love the Look - Low Lights - printed paper in lovely colours that coordinate perfectlly with other ranges from Craftwork Cards, so you can emboss and sand it if you would like the white showing through or just leave it plain for stamping.
Die Cuts: Sheer Delight's Poinsettias -Acetate flowers in the bottom one I used acohol inks and on the top one I stamped with white StazOn.
Stamp: Christmas Bubbles from Artemio.
Message: In Circle Message Christmas, Black.
Card Candy: Truffles pack -it contains this very gold green color- and Winter Wishes -for the red one, but there are other packs that contain it-.

- all available from The Craft Barn or Craftwork Cards (not the stamps, alcohol inks nor the White StazOn).

Floating Frames

As you can see Christmas cards are going be regular in this blog from now on, but of course they can easily be adapted to everyday occasions such as birthdays or anything else.


This card I did for last weekend demo at The Craft Barn. Basically I made a blank card out of thick acetate to measure 6 x 6. then I used ready cut and emboss frames - click here for more info on them - and attached one to each side of the acetate.


The patterned papers are from the Floral Collection.

All materials can be found at The Craft Barn, also most of them can be found at Craftwork Cards.