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My Decopatch House

I think this is the start of my new long term project.

I knew that if I didn’t do something almost immediately with this ply board house (£6) I got from the Decopatch Stand at NEC on Saturday, it would eventually get tucked away and erm….  be forgotten for at least a year or so, but that’s not going to be the case …..

I’ve decided to use the papers from the 6in x 6in My Mind’s Eye, Stella and Rose (Gertie and Rosie) paper pads I also got on Saturday.  The patterns are small, in perfect proportion to the “house” and most importantly they already match, which is something I am hopeless at doing!

This will indeed be a labour of love, because although I made templates for one side of the house, they weren’t exactly right for the other side, so each “room” is going to have  be done individually, making templates first. I’m also hoping that several coats of varnish will cover any little mistakes I make along the way.

I think I am going to make each section a room, a little bit higgledy piggledy, like the old overcrowded dolls houses you see in history books, with tables and shelves covered in curios, pictures on the walls and perhaps a few dangling lights ….

 

I am also planning on putting doors on the sides of the rooms, using images I find on Google etc. so that it looks like each room is adjoining.  It’s going to take me ages I know, but just think of all the fun I’m going to have looking for all the tiny things to put in!

Crafty Individuals Stamp Card

This card measures 5ins x 5ins and is made using linen effect card.

Goodness, what has happened to me, I’m turning into a right old stamper!  This is one of three stamps I bought on Saturday, by Crafty Individuals but the stand belonged to http://www.ali-craft.co.uk/catalog/ – oh my life, they had such beautiful stuff, so lovely, I went back twice, and  now have a wish list for their on-line shop!

As you know stamping doesn’t come easily to me, but with so many lovely stamps, I dabble, knowing that it is very  doubtful I will ever be an expert.

But this stamped like a dream. It’s a shame the same can’t be said for my efforts, which are all too visible in this close up shot! It’s woeful I know, but it was my first effort, and I was only playing with my new toy!  I need to trim a little better on the butterfly layers and it’s a little smudged and grimy in places, because I’d wiped off some cerise glitter from the butterflies when I decided I didn’t like it! But what a gorgeous stamp and I’ll do better next time!

Easter Bunny Chocolate Bar

This is a cheaper, simpler version of a wrapped chocolate bar I made last year.

The little chocolates below are made using Cadbury miniatures.

I’ve wrapped them up in scraps of white paper and then added leftover Assessorize stickers.  It was a bit of an experiment, but I think I will make a few more, using the other animal heads I have.

My NEC Impulse Buy? And Going Off On A Tangent ……

 

Funny how some ideas lead to another …. I bought a set of die cut roses from My Craft Studio (one pack should make between 15–30 flowers) at NEC, Hobbycrafts, demonstrated by Stephanie Weightman (from Create and Craft), but now I am really hoping that this isn’t going to be my annual exhibition impulse buy that I regret!

At first, I was a little disappointed with my results, but when I compaared them to the picture of the demo I took (below) they aren’t too bad, though I should have used a finer glitter! But now I am at a bit of a lose as what to do with them, as they are too big for the type of card I make….

I did think they would be ok on a small papier mache box I had, but when I tried the blue looked to “fresh” on the slightly shabby box …. and so then I went off on a tangent.

I added part of a really old tape brown measure round the bottom of the box, which then lead me to colouring the rest of the box (including the inside and bottom) with a brown Promaker

I knew the blue rose was all wrong …. but what if I added a metal flower taken from a Primark necklace and a couple of paper leaves ….?

I am dead chuffed, I’m going to put a new tape measure in the box and give it to my mum for Mother’s Day, I just need to work out what to do with the roses that started this whole thing off …..

PaperArtsy Bird Cage Card - Keeping A Promise To Myself

I was determined not to come back from NEC and squirrel my new bits and pieces away …. I really am going to make a concerted effort this week to try and use most of them, even if some of the results are pants and are in need of  some tweaking ….

 

This is my first effort using a PaperArtsy Mini Stamp, Squiggly Mini (SM27) - £4.80.  I have to admit that it was only after I had bought it that I noticed the quirky bird on the top, I thought it was the hanger …. I’m not really keen, but it’s easy to solve, whenever I use the stamp, the bird's for the chop!

I’ve stamped the cage directly on to a ledger type printed paper from the Stella Rose stacks I bought (though it’s not that clear in the pictures).  Once printed, I’ve cut round the cage, snipping the bird and feet off.

I’ve embellished the cage using a metal bird was also from PaperArtsy (pack of 5 assorted sizes, gold and silver for £1.50) and some dark yellow flat backed gems.  A lot of white space I know, but this is just the sort of card I would love to get.

What I didn’t notice on the stand, but what Lisa bought, and wish I now had …..

 

The triple icon cost £2.64 and the double £1.68 …. when I saw Lisa’s I thought desk calendar …… so I guess I’ll be ordering online in a little while ….

I’ll probably also add the little bird house …. how cute is that?  And at only 77p, I may splash out on two (or three).

I’ve seen PaperArtsy before many times at the NEC but never ventured inside ….. but I am a convert now!

NEC – Hobbycrafts Show – Get Me Out Of Here!!!!!

Oh my life …… my head….. it's BANGING!  Every year I say "NEVER again", but in the six months between the two shows each year I seem to develop Crafters Amnesia!  It was very busy and bustling, but, and perhaps some people may argue, there seemed to be fewer stalls and big name products, that said some of the stalls were so cramped and hard to get to look at that I just didn't try to get near. I didn’t get anything on my list …. and though I told Lisa (CraftFairy)  that she wasn’t to allow me to buy any stamps …. I did!  DOH! (and so did she, and she doesn’t even stamp!).

I was delighted to find some more purple houndstooth paper that I got several years ago, used up and have looked for ever since, it made the most wonderful favour bags for a wedding a while back (see above)

But I didn’t find any random red and white spotty card for this years Monkey Christmas Cards, so that was disappointing,  but was made up by these Stella and Rose pads from My Minds Eye, spotted by Lisa. What I like about them is that the patterns are small (almost tiny), delicate but with a shabby edge and in proportion to the size of the pads, which make them excellent for card making.

These are the stamps I bought from Crafty Individuals, I hope/pray that they are easy to use …. I adore the tree stamp ….. so quirky…. with so many elements that will hopefully appeal and be suitable for so many different people.  As Lisa said, they are a card in themselves, so I am planning on just printing them onto card/paper and perhaps layering the butterflies.

 

Pure indulgence above, just for me to look at …. Tim Holtz vials ….

And some wooden flower embellishments, which I’ll probably use as they are …. with no colouring etc.

And finally this house from Decopatch has to be the bargain of the day …… £6!  I’ll probably sit on it for a while, before finally deciding how to “embellish” it.

I bought a few other bits and pieces, but they can wait until I have done something with them, so I’m in for a busy week then …. I am determined that I will not let this little lot languish in my craft room …. you WILL be seeing what I make with them in the coming week or so …..

HobbyCrafts Birmingham NEC

Guess where I am today?  I didn’t intend to go as I am having a real cull on my crafty spending, but when I was given two free tickets, what could I say?  But, I am going to be very thoughtful about what I buy, as I have stuff I oooohhed and aaaaahhed over on past visits that still remain unused, which is silly!

So I will be looking for E6000 and Crafter’s Pick glues, Kath Kidston type papers, some jump rings for my Creative Expressions memory frames, small flower and leaf punches, finely corrugated card for boxes etc. and then perhaps I will have a look at the knitting stuff, as I have a passion at the moment to knit a bag …. something like this perhaps?

Two Cards Using Tiny Weenie Fimo Gingerbread Men.

Do you remember the tiny gingerbread men moulds I got from Etsy?   Well I have finally used them.  The more expensive mould with several sizes of gingerbread men proved quite hard to use, as it wasn’t flexible when trying to remove the fimo, But the smaller single mould was much easier. But it was a labour of love making all these tiny little men, especially with my pudgy fingers,

Both cards measure 9cms x 9cms and are made using white linen effect card.

I’ve had a go at a bit of drawing on both cards, but the gingerbread house is made using a punch.  I’ve added a bit of clear micro glitter on the clouds for a bit of sparkle.

The tree and balloons on the second card are tiny Accessorize stickers.

Card for A Theatre Lover

I was asked to make a card for a Theatre Lover and this is what I came up with.

The masks are made using a digital design download from Quickutz Silhouette.  I have cut the design out three times, cutting off the ribbon parts and then layering two masks together with sticky pads, the third mask I cut in two, using the comedy side to add more dimension.

I put small gold brads through the mask holes and then trimmed the ribbons I had cut off earlier and added them just behind the masks.

As a special touch I used a sheet of the gold paper for the card inset.

New Arrival Card

I don’t seem to have made a baby card in ages.  I was a bit stuck for ideas at first, as all the baby embellishments I had were pink.  In the end I plumped to use my newspaper template.

 

The baby was a free clipart image, that I have made several simple decoupage layers with, adding a pair of googly eyes and Anita’s 3D clear gloss finish on his vest for extra dimension.

Little Gingham Cat Photo Frame

 I’ve had this blank photo frame for ages, it was part of one of mine and Lisa’s (CraftFairy) swops, I think it originally came from Baker Ross.

 

I’ve covered the shape with a gingham paper, which was a bit fiddly and then painted over it with a couple of coats of Modge Podge.

Positioning the face was a bit of a faff too, but I think it looks OK now. The final touches have been made using wobbly eyes, a ready made bow, a small jingle bell and a few clear flat backed gems. Done!