Stamping Overload!

I am still trying to keep to my challenge of stamping more often.
 
And I can’t believe I have actually used two stamps to mix and match….. with quite pleasing results!

I found the snowman stamp at a car boot sale amongst a box of odds and ends.  It’s by Imaginations (no. 1826)

It took me six attempts to get it printed right, which is why I won’t print directly onto a card. 

All I have done is colour it in with Whispers pens and then gone over the various parts with a water filled brush, a tip picked up from Dawn Biddy! I have embellished with Hero Arts Hologram micro glitter and a few flat  gems and tiny stars, which are actually nail/manicure embellishments from Poundland.

The background is from DoCrafts, stamped six times, very closely together and then trimmed to size and matted on silver card.
This is “well adventurous” for me, right out of my comfort zone!

Simple Snowflakes

This card is still in the experimental stage, it still needs a bit of tweaking, and it will probably be  next Christmas before it gets made properly.  I have all my cards made for this year but it's always nice to have a few ideas spare.

I think the blue printing, is too strong, it needs to be softer and paler. You will probably have noticed already that one of the flat backed gems is well off centre.  That’s what you get for “posing” your card while the glue is still wet!

I like the effect of the pale blue stars against the white background. When I first used the stars, I just sprinkled them willy nilly onto the card, the effect was lovely and natural, so I will probably try it again, leaving the stars where they fall and carefully lifting them one at a time to glue them into position, fiddle fart in other words!

Wish Upon A Star

This an idea I saw a while back and have adapted it for Christmas. It fits into a very small envelope.

I have stuck the star onto the card with a glue dot, so that it can be taken off and put in a purse or handbag pocket as a lucky token.
The idea could also be used for birthdays, good luck, or just as a special wish.

Mini Christmas Chocolate Bars

The mini chocolate bars used for this idea are exclusive to Tesco, four very small bars cost 60p (I think that’s right).  As soon as I saw them, I wondered if I could “recover” them!
I used the original wrapper as a template and chose a light weight paper so that it would wrap round the chocolate easily. I have then embellished the new wrapper with Accessorize stickers.
The snow is my own doodling using a white gel pen, with a tiny sprinkling of micro glitter. Very fiddle farty, but cute!
Oh, just in case you wondered like me ..... I did think perhaps the chocolate may have been made in an animal type mould  .... if they had, I wouldn't have used them, but the chocolate is divided into three plain pieces, perfect and tasted ok too!

Jingle Bells Christmas Card

It’s not often I use gold to mat and layer but I because of the jingle bells I have used it to accentuate the colour.
The background is made using a DoCrafts Christmas text stamp and the embellishments are Dress It Up buttons.

Frogs on a Log

This is probably one of the simplest and quickest cards I have put together, but it is always very popular when I put it in my card box.

The frogs and hearts are from a pack of Accessorize animal stickers, the log is from a pack of twig pencils I got ages ago, because it is uneven I have stuck it with my glue gun.

Very cute, good for anniversaries, Valentines or just telling someone you love them.

Penguin Christmas Card

Craft shop toppers can be expensive. These toppers are actually Christmas 3D gift tags.  They cost £1 for a pack of eighteen from a local market. The designs are really cute and include snowmen, santas, penguins etc. All I have done is take the back off the tag and trimmed it ever so slightly, then mat and layered it on blue, gold and a patterned Let It Snow paper.

I have added a pom pom and a gem holly berry to his hat, a couple of punchie snow flakes and my own doodles on the plain blue paper.

Snowflake Card

This is a rather plain sort of card but not everyone likes pretty, pretty glittery confections. It’s quite masculine.

The star is from a box of assorted Paperchase red felt snowflakes, £3 for 18. I have replaced the original gem with a much larger one.

The background paper is from a Papermania 6” x 6” pack - “Home for Christmas”, mat and layered on red and silver, with a bit of faux stitching with a white gel pen.

Taking A Break

I have made a decision!

I have decided not to take any more orders for cards for a while.  Blogging has made me realise just how much I like making things and playing with papers, stamps embellishments etc., but it seemed that all my time was being  taken up with orders.  For the past few weeks I have looked at my order book and thought “I really don’t want to make you” , and it made me quite grumpy.

Yesterday I apologised for the first time and explained that I was taking a break, I felt awful, but relieved too!

I have a box in the staffroom where I work and I intend to keep it topped up with my latest cards and craft projects (after blogging them first!) and see what goes and what doesn’t .  This week “Snowman Soup and Jingle Beans Sweetie Jars have just flown out  …….

Variations on a Theme

This is a selection of cards I have made using a pack of 3D stickers from Hobbycraft, (there are 2 x 4 designs in a pack costing £1.49), the paper I have used is Daisy and Dandelion Christmas Collection – Winters Tale.

 

At the moment I am making batches of cards for work etc. so it is easier and quicker, to follow the same design, if it suits the embellishments.

 
Aghhhh, you can see how fresh these cards are, the glue is still wet on the penguin one!

Bare Tree with Heart Christmas Card

I am getting into this stamping lark!  Just watch out when I say I am getting a set of ProMarker Pens!

I love bare trees and this beautiful stamp is one  I got at the NEC HobbyCraft Show, it’s  by Art Impressions (G1277).  It’s so plain and simple.

All I’ve added is some very sparkly Preciosa Viva12 flat backed gems from http://www.rhinestonesonline.co.uk/ They really do sparkle like diamonds.  The red heart is from a packet from Artwork  and I have joined it to the tree with a very thin black line. I’ve also added a touch of  Hero Arts hologram micro glitter to the foot of the tree

I have matted the image on black to bring out the starkness.

It’s a stamp I want to play with more when I have the time.  I think it would also look quite good if I used very tiny manicure/nail head stars with it or perhaps stamped it on some text.

Printed Cross Stitch Card

This is a very simple card I have made a couple of times for ladies who like to cross stitch.

I set out the design in Publisher. The font is a free Cross Stitch font I downloaded and all I have had to add is a text box border.  Once printed I have mat and layered on gold mirror card and added a few pearls here and there.

I have also adapted the card to say “Home Sweet Home” for a new house card.

Little Penguins Christmas Card

This is a simple card I’ve made using Accessorize stickers, the penguins are from an animal set I got a while ago and the snowflakes are from one of this years Christmas sets.

The background is made from layers of white glitter card and blue bazzill paper, mat and layered on silver, white and paper blue.  (I have a thing about mat and layering, it’s a terrible habit to get out of, but I am trying).

Gingham & Holly Christmas Card

I found this card from last year in a box of bits,  I think it may have been a one of that I didn’t follow on.

Looking at it now, I don’t really like the clean brightness of the card and gingham against the brown of the Kraft paper background and tag, which is probably the reason I didn’t make any more.

The holly berries are from a pack from Poundland, about two years ago.  At first I wasn’t too sure about them as they were made from plastic (3D on foam pads), but once I got going they were fantastic to use.  There several different design packs with at least 20 big embellishments in each, I just wish I had got more.  The snowman pack was just beautiful! 

Mince Pies and Robins Christmas Card

I’m not 100% about this card.  The robins and mince pies are leftovers from a packet of Forever Friends 3D embellishments, bought in WH Smith Craft sale for £1.49. I would never have paid the full price, astronomical! It would have been cheaper to go out and buy a Forever Friends card ready made, than make one)

I have used a centre square pattern again, mat and layering on scraps of a faded blue gingham paper.

I think perhaps I should have cut a slightly smaller card blank.  Not sure about the corner pieces either, something is missing, but whatever I put there makes it look over embellished. Hmmmmmm

Anyway, it will go into my card box and I will see if it goes.

Christmas Cards Using Brads.

I am still playing with my brads. Because I have already had them for at least one Christmas I feel that they must be used now (so that I can justify buying new stuff!).

These are my last two efforts, the first one is way too fancy, I would say it is fiddle fart over kill!

Yuk! But I quite like the hole effect round the large scalloped square which I did with a very small circle punch.

I prefer the Father Christmas design, not so twee.

A Winter Scene Christmas Card

I only stamp if it is simple, and you can’t get more simple than this!

The stamp is from Art Impressions and as soon as I saw it I just had to have it ….
I have used a taupe coloured  Marvy Le Plume pen to over the stamp.

Then used a Quickie Glue Pen to draw in the snow which is Hero Arts Hologram micro glitter.
You can almost feel the cold!

Christmas Card with Brads

I am struggling for ideas on how to use my Dovecraft brads. I think they are so lovely that the design has got to be very plain in order that it’s the brads that you notice.

I have fiddle farted with scalloped edges and the matching papers that go with the brad set but everything looks pants!

In the end I have used my small scalloped square punch and layers of russet red bazzill paper and silver card in a simple centre square.

To make the brads sit flat on the card, I have cut off the metal prongy things and put a small sticky pad into the hollow back. The snowman’s little face is so cute!

Christmas Robin Card

I knew I would get the scalloped edge bug!

This card took about 15 minutes to put together from start to finish, sometimes it can take me hours before I am happy with a design.

I have uses two sizes of Nestablities scalloped edge dies.  The patterened paper is Hot Off The Press ”Holly Stripe On Red”  and for a change I have used an ivory coloured card blank, because of the brown in the robin.

The robin is gorgeous, from Christmas Crafts (pack of 4 for £1.49).  the only thing I have changed is his eye, originally it was purple, and looked a bit sinister, so I have swopped it for a wibbly wobbly eye. The design is completed with a scattering of  very small gold stars.

Poundland Christmas Stocking

I wanted to make some Christmas stockings, but when I started looking at material etc. it was going to cost me an arm and a leg as well as take me hours to make ………

However, on one of my many sorties to Poundland, what did I spy, but a stocking with Santa’s face on, which is what I had in mind,  though it did have a horrid plastic pocket sewn to the front, edged with a bright green tape (for a letter to Santa I presume), but I could see the possibilities,  if it didn’t turn out right it was only a pound after all.

The success of my idea depended on whether the pocket could be unpicked easily and without leaving marks.  It did. 

All I needed to do now was to “tart” it up.  I wanted to put a name on it and this was easily done by cutting letters out of felt and adding small red buttons for extra colour.  These were glued on with strong PVA.

Santa’s eyes were printed, so I glue gunned  stud type black buttons over them.  His beard was blinged with the addition of clear flat backed gems to the end of the sewn curls of his beard.  Finally his moustache was a bit naff, so I cut two moustache shapes, glued them together for extra thickness and stuck the new moustache under his nose.

Can I stress that this stocking is for my own use, if you were thinking of using the idea to sell, it would be advisable to sew the embellishments on rather than glue them. I have made it as a decorative item rather than something for a child to play with.