A week of Cards: Heat Embossing

Heres a Free standing pop-up card I tried. The cage was first stamped & then heat embossed using a silver powder, then masked & the swirls stamped on, this time heat embossed with white powder.

The tutorial I used for the card is HERE. It folds up totally flat so can be posted, when you pull the ribbon up on the tag it pulls it all into shape.

A week of Cards: Embossing & Mica Powders

This is one of my favourite cards that I made. I started off by embossing a birdcage onto a white piece of card and then embossing it with copper coloured embossing powders. I then stamped it again onto paper & cut it out to create a mask. I applied the mask over the embossed image, holding it with my fingers wile I stamped around and over it. I used versaink to stamp and then used a range of copper colours to dust over before removing the mask.

With a verse added, "The future comes one day at a time", I mounted onto a coordinating piece of car & then onto white card.

I love the way this card has turned out & want to get myself some steampunk stamps now :)

A week of Cards: Mica Powders

Though I've tried working with versaink & mica powders before I hadnt tried it on black card before. The results are stunning.

A verse stamped with versaink & covered with turquoise & bronze mica powders. I backed it with a pale turquoise paper that had a bronze sheen. Behind this I put a sheet I'd embossed & sprayed with mica mist. finally everything was put on a turquoise card.

I used bronze & turquoise colour scheme on this card as well, but this time I stamped butterflies onto a separate sheet of card, cut them out and stuck just the bodies down so that the wings fold up. I also added glossy accents to make the body & antennae 3d.

I embossed the card, just over half way & then mounted the image on a few layers before sticking onto the card.

A week of Cards: More Mica Misting

I tried embossing the black card before adding the mica mist spray, & then rubbing over it gently when dry to remove a small amount of it on the raised areas. I loved the effect & it made a simple, quick card.

A week of Cards: Mica Mist Backgrounds

Over the summer hols I have done 2x5hour card making "taster sessions". Lynne organises these tasters to give us the chance to play with new techniques/mediums. We get have a few enjoyable hours being creative and to meet other crafters.

The first technique we tried was using mica mists, spraying them onto white paper & black card, using masks, printing & generally experimenting.

I used a button mask for the background & then used it to stamp the pattern.

I used the mists on black shiney card here & also on the decoupage rose before I put it together.

Scrapbooking: Cookery Classes.

 I largely based this page around the colours of the embellishments, I wanted the page to have an immediate cooking feel to it. With the layout I was thinking along the lines of a recipe card, so it has a top & bottom border with rounded edges, & then mounted onto a simple background sheet.

Scrapbooking: Karate

I made this page for Julies Alphabet Challenge, letter K.

The background paper is by K and Co, I knew I wanted red on the layout, its just soooooo stereotypically oriental in colour. I then raided my collection of scrapbooking papers for dragons, finding a nice large off cut with them printed on with a bit of shiny blue & green glitter. I also found a couple of sheets in light brown I’d been given with more dragons on so added them to my pile of goodies.  A few coordinated off cuts & I was ready to make a page. The title is simply printed onto white cardstock with glossy accents over it, then, once dry, cut around leaving a white border.

When I asked Zack to help out with the journaling, as he was the one to attend the lessons, I got the usual teenage shrug & “I dunno, cant remember”, so I wrote down what I could and hope in later years it prompts a few memories for him at least … that is my main reason for scrapbooking, to help my lads remember the good times & answer questions they might not have thought of at the time.

Scrapbooking: Kitchen Ninja

You know how kids like to copy their favourite characters on cartoons? Well this scrapbook page is Kai being a Teenie Mutant Kitchen Ninja (in relation to a teenage mutant ninja turtle). As Nun-chucks & pole-arms are banned from the house he made do with rolling pins, a pastry brush & a whisk. He also didnt have the leather straps or shell to tie them to himself so the waist band of his trousers had to do.

I used checked and dotty patterns to give a kitchen feel, as well as a few kitchen embellishments.

 I also had a couple of cardboard turtles from an old game of Zacks that was missing half its pieces, these made for great embellishments.

The journalling was simply written on a sticker & stuck to some more check patterned paper and the title added.

Scrapbooking: All work & no play

I love the teen angst papers by We R Memory Keepers. They're so full of movement and colours that are perfect for teenage boy layouts such as the one I've done above.

I inked the edges in black once trimmed to make them resemble the original edging of the sheets.
To make the white letters of the title stand out more I drew round them in blue.
I added stickers from the same set & a white piece of card I'd also inked around the edge, for the journalling.

I've only got a small amount of teen angst left & I'm really not looking forward to it running out, its so versatile. Having been released in 2009 its getting harder & harder to get hold of :(

Scrapbooking: A Not So Windy Day

UKS Team mate Niki from Being Scrappy is setting this weeks challenge over at UKScrappers, so of course I was happy to support her by making my page early.

The challenge ....
To include ribbon on your layout but to use it in a different way i.e. not just flat so rouched, ruffled, looped, sewn, made into an embellishment etc 10 points

To use stitching on your layout whether real stitching or faux. 5 points

To scrap something that's happened within the last month 10 points

To use ripping or tearing on your layout 5 points 

As you can see, ribbon is used on my kite tail, stitching for the breeze, the photo's were taken at the start of the month & nearly every piece of paper has been torn.

I loved the sound of this challenge & it tied in nicely with my other team mates free course: Stitching on paper (by Clair from Obstinate Pursuit) (get it, tied in, stitching, tied in, ahhhhhh forget it ;)

Scrapbooking: Toy story

A very simple layout to show the reason behind the photo which, without it, probably looks like Kai is sitting looking rather moody.

I went all in for the toy story theme, using the colours from the title & then adding some wall stickers. I finished it off with the tag to put the title & journalling on.

Scrapbooking: Cool

UKS July week 5 challenge

Pick something from Scrapdolly's album & scraplift it.

This is the page I came up with after lifting Scrapdollys Lacock Abbey page which you can find HERE

Scrapbooking: Artist at Work

UKS July week 4 challenge.

Your favourite colours = 10pts
A technique you love (to do OR to look at) = 10pts
Something you couldn't live without OR your favourite thing to do when you have 'you' time = 10pts

I used a sketch by Shimelle for this page, a great way of using acetate/vellum sheets.
I used my favourite colour combination - primary colours (plus brown)
My favourite technique - cutting shapes out of paper by hand & layering them up.
& to get the final 10 points, the page is about something I couldnt live without .... apart from the obviousness of my kiddies, I couldnt live without the little distractions I have for them so we can all play.

I used the brush end of my pen to do the writing this time, to match the theme of painting.

On the other side of the acetate is a photo of what Zack was doing while Kai was painting, I'll show you that one tomorrow.

Scrapbooking: Bloggers Craft Weekend

UKS July week 3 challenge
use sketch see below = 10pts

use photos that are far from perfect but tell a story = 10pts
use black somewhere on your layout = 10pts

I'm sure a few of you will recognise the photos I've used, some of you are even in it, & for those that don't can read more about it HERE, HERE & HERE.
I swapped the pretty papers (pp) in the sketch for tags & reduced the number of photos down a little. I also swapped the flowers for buttons as they seemed more appropriate for a page about a  crafty bunch.

The photos aren't perfect, well the top & bottom one arent with letters missing off words & barely being able to see Jo & Jem on the bottom one.

Finally, the black that was called for I used in the way of buttons.

Scrapbooking: Merry and Bright

UKS July week 2 Challenge.
A non summer theme - 10 points
Use paint on your LO - 10 points
An odd number of photos -5 points
Use white space - 5 points

Obviously this page is a Christmassy one so definitely not summery.

The tag had peel offs put on for the words & pictures, I then sponged first green, & then red paint onto it before allowing to dry & removing the peel offs, leaving the original colour of the tag, a lovely cardboard box brown, showing through.

5 photos used i.e an odd number

& finally, for the white space I actually looked up the definition of it, its basically to leave a space clear, As the bo bunny sheet I was using was so pretty I didnt want to cover most of it anyway, even to the point that I carefully cut around parts of the title that was printed on the sheet so that I could put it in-front of the photos & tag.

Scrapbooking: Robin.

July's week 1 challenge at UKS was to...
Put your photos in the middle of your layout.
Use a shade or tone of blue.
Use a link to Shakespeare.

I decided to do a layout for Kai's school play. As he played a robin I, of course, used a few robin images & and kept mainly to the red & brown colouring, along with the contrasting pale blue/turquoise.

The quote "For bonny sweet Robin is all my joy" is from Hamlet, a song Ophelia sings about Robin Hood during some of her mad ramblings, but it seemed perfect for this layout.

Scrapbooking: Family & Fireworks

July House Challenge at UKS was a sketch which I translated to.....

The letters in the title are slightly mirrored & go well with the rest of the firework imagery. The photos of the fireworks were taken on the night.
I have removed a small amount of the journalling, it basically described where we went and who came with us.

Scrapbooking: Back Garden Bowling

Another one of our summer holiday pastimes from last year. I used Week 4 of 52 layouts step by step to make this page.

Scrapbooking: 1st day at school.

 Another challenge taken up, this time from Creative Craft World, I rotated the sketch to show Kai's first day at school. It worked perfectly in showing the multiple photos I took of Kai that day that amuse me.

Scrapbooking: Latest Fashion Designer.

 I have to admit, when I saw this page over at being scrappy for week 8 of 52 layouts step by step I really didn't think it would work for me. It isn't my usual style & I just couldn't visualise it, however, once everything was laid out it all fitted together, everything fell into place & I love how it turned out, especially the layering of the photo with the title, it looks almost like a polaroid photo.

Scrapbooking: Cat Love

 The challenge over at The Studio was a sketch & here's my interpretation...

Rather using a circle behind I replaced it by two } & replaced the reverse arrows (do these things have a name?) with die cut leaves.
The background sheet has gorgeous flocking on it, as does the title. Esme, the cat, is rather pink due to her lack of fur (due to her breed type) so a pink page seemed to suit.