Poinsettia Star

Hi all.  I bought this Sue Wilson star die before Christmas which is getting its first outing here, after having been looking for the Aurora Star which was not available anywhere.  The lovely Di Wray enabled me to get this one instead, which is really pretty too and has a couple of edges to cut out the star as well as the pretty central area which will cut into the card, so lots of ways of using it, so that you Di.  I also used a Tim Holtz 3D Texture Fades Quilted Embossing Folder which makes a pretty background.  I very rarely complain about something but this no way gives a 3D effect with deep embossing and the plumped up look of a quilt.  Luckily I got it very reasonably as a Black Friday deal, but had I paid the full price I would not be impressed.  It is a very thick folder which does not work with the Big Shot plates they recommend and I did eventually find a sandwich which worked but the thickness of the actual folder does not translate into deep embossing....right, moaning over...lol.

I cut the star out using the largest stitched die and used the cut into the card die for the pretty central area.  I decided to add a piece of silver behind and decided to use my Versamark and heat embossed with WOW Silver Glitter Embossing Powder and cut it with the slightly smaller die to add behind the ornate white front die cut.  I stuck this together and added a piece of foam to the back to give it a bit more dimension, and also added some Wink of Stella around the outside edge.  I then embossed the Quilt EF and tried highlighting the stitched lines on it with some Pebeo Silver Gilding Wax using a piece of tissue over my finger and rubbing it gently, but as the stitches aren't very raised it did go on the background a bit, but decided it still looked pretty.  I then remembered I have a Sakura Starlight Pen which gives a sparkly finish, and so I when over all the stitches with this and was happier with the look.  I finished this by cutting into a square and added a silver mirri layer behind it.  I placed the quilted layer onto the 6" square card and heat embossed the sentiment below using WOW Silver Metallic EP, and finally added the star to the centre.  

If anyone has the TH Quilted EF and has achieved better results, perhaps you could let me know what you did.  It is still pretty but isn't quite what I had imagined it would look like.  

Thank you for visiting me here today and I'll see you again soon.

I am entering the following challenges:

Rudolph Days Challenge - January 2024 - Anything Christmas Goes.  This is the last challenge post as Maureen has sadly decided it is time for her to give it up.  I know we all appreciate all the hard work you have put into running the challenge and I hope that you and Al will have many happy years in your new home.

ABC Christmas Challenge - 'A' is for Anything Christmas/"B" is for Berries.
The Holly and Ivy Christmas Challenge - No. 155 Anything Christmas Goes.
Merry Little Christmas Challenge - No. 54 Anything Christmas Goes.
Simon Says Wednesday Challenge - Add Some Texture.
NBUS Challenge - No. 58 Where we use our Never Before Used Schtuff.

Little Wren on a Branch

Hi everyone.  I have another cloudy sky background using the same colours as on my last card here.  I used an offcut of white card just to test out the three colours of ink before I used it on my card, and as it was a success I thought I would use it with this pretty little bird, branch and leaves which was also part of the Country Diary of an Edwardian Lady Magazine and kit which I got recently and being used for the first time here.  I also used a new set of Deco Time Twinmarkers which have a brush nib and a felt tip.  I found them at a great price at The Range, and there are 99 colours and a colourless blender, so lots of colours to get good blends.  I am not sure how long they will last as they worked out at approximately 30p per pen but I did not want to spend a lot of money as this is something for me to practice on as alcohol pens are something that I have never used to any great extent, but having seen a couple of people I follow on YouTube using them very successfully I was tempted to give them a try.  

I decided to tear the edges of the piece and ink them before adhering onto a DL card.  I then die cut two of the birds, and four of the branches so I could double them up, and then a few of the leaves to add.  I thought the little bird looked like a wren so did the colours in shades of brown, and brown and three or four greens and a yellow on the branches and leaves.  I was pleased with the results, and added the bird and leafy branches to the cloudy sky background and finished with a sentiment from the same set using Versamark and heat embossed with WOW Metallic Gold Rich Embossing Powder.

Thank you for visiting my blog today and I'll see you again soon.

The Group of Seven Cardmakers put a post up once a month using a different technique and this month it is 'Torn Edge' and I am adding this card into their gallery.

I am also entering the following challenges

Allsorts Challenge - Week 765 Anything but Square/Anything Goes.

Triple B Challenge - January 2024 Birds, Blossoms and Butterflies (using any one or all).

Beautiful Blossoms Challenge - Birthday/Anniversary - Happy 1st Birthday to them.
Simply Clean and Simple Challenge - January 2024 Anything Goes/Winter.
Addicted to CAS Challenge - No. 250 Sky.
NBUS Challenge - No. 58 Where we use our Never Before Used Schtuff.

Wild Flowers in Copper and Green

Hi everybody.  I have another experimental card today using an embossing folder and a little bee stamp (both being used for the first time) which came as part of the kit with a magazine called A Country Diary of an Edwardian Lady which also has quite a few more stamps and a few dies together with some pretty papers and toppers.

I found a piece of white card and spritzed it with some water before I put it in the embossing folder and ran it through my machine.  I then used an anti static pad over it before adding the Versamark on the embossed flowers and added WOW Metallic Copper Embossing Powder.  It wasn't perfect and I had to get rid of quite a lot of stray powder which I admit did take time to do, and I then heat embossed it.  There were areas where the powder had not stuck sufficiently so I used the Versamark Pen to fill in the gaps, and added more powder and heated these areas, and did this several times until I was happy with it.  There were some stray bits but I thought that when I had added some colour it would be OK.  I then added a bit of background colour using three green Distress Inks - Lucky Clover, Twisted Citron and Cracked Pistachio.  I decided to use the starch again as it works equally as well as water, and I think that the card doesn't warp as much and the starch makes it more viscous so it stays put better.  I tore my own cloud mask by just pencilling a rough shape and tearing it with my fingers which gives it a more random look than using scissors, and started adding clouds moving top to bottom with just Lucky Clover for the clouds and I then added some Twisted Citron over the top in places, and finished with Cracked Pistachio at the bottom, and the Lucky Clover round the edges.  I then added the little bee, again heat embossed with the Copper EP, and added a little colour to it using a pencil with a similar coppery colour.  I decided to mount it onto a piece of white card  a little longer than the embossed piece and placed the sentiment at the bottom of this with the Copper EP.  Finally I put it together on a  5" x 7" card, and added some foam tape to the back of this layer for dimension.

Thank you for  dropping by today and I'll see you again soon.

I am entering the following challenges:

Color Hues Challenge - No. 79 Copper and Green. 

We Love Stamping Challenge - January - Something New/Anything Goes.
Stamping Sensations Challenge - January - Anything Goes/Mood Board.

Allsorts Challenge - Anything Goes/January Blues.
Beautiful Blossoms Challenge - Happy 1st Birthday to them - Birthday/Anniversary.
NBUS Challenge - No. 58 Where we use our Never Before Used Schtuff.

I am also adding my card to the Group of Seven Cardmakers latest post where they have a monthly technique and if you wish you can add your card using the technique, and this month it is 'Torn Edge'.  I tore my own cloud mask.   

Clockwork Daisies

Hi everybody.  Having seen techniques using embossing folders and heat embossing on YouTube, I decided to give it a go.  I used this Sheena Douglass 3D embossing folder called Clockwork Daisies.  I also used the frame from a Cardmaking Magic set called Fancy Rectangles which is being used for the first time here.  I also used a die cut sentiment by Sue Wilson.  As I haven't mentioned it for a long time, the card I use is Craft UK Premier White 300gsm.

I found a snippet of white card and using starch I sprayed it onto my glass mat and added orange and brown Brusho Powders, and swept the card through it doing it several times to build up the colour.  I think the starch helps to make the paint less runny and it tends to help stop the card warping and also adds a bit of a shine to the finished piece.  I then used the Clockwork Daises EF and decided to deboss it and then I very carefully rubbed the Versamark pad across it just to catch the surface with it and then added WOW Metallic Gold Embossing Powder.  It did leave some powder where I didn't want it and I used a pokey tool to remove some of the stray bits, as it has a nice point you can be more controlled, and then I heat embossed it.  It didn't catch all of the areas, and so  I used the Versamark pen to fill in a few places where it didn't stick enough and heated those areas again.  I used the Fancy Rectangles frame around the piece using a snippet of orange card and added the die cut gold 'Congratulations' along the edge of the frame also cut from a snippet of gold mirri card.  I double layered it to make it stand out more using another snippet of white card.  I mounted it on a 5" x 7" card.

I have added this as I don't think I explained properly that the usual technique with spray starch using Brushos then includes cling film laid over and left until dry and you can get a lovely textural look, but I didn't use the film as I knew I wanted to do the dry and heat embossing so thought any added texture would not really be seen. The dry embossing and then using a sticky ink and embossing powder is really a separate technique.  There are lots of videos online showing both these techniques if you are interested.   

Thank you for coming to visit today and I'll see you again soon.

I am entering the following challenges:

Snippets Playground Challenge - No. 471 Celebration Theme.
NBUS Challenge - No. 58 Where we use our Never Before Used Schtuff.

Beautifiul Blossoms Challenge - No. 13 Anything Goes/Mood Board.
Triple B Challenge - January 2024 Birds, Butterflies and Blooms (using any one or all).

Lighthouse Bookmark

Hi all.  I have something different to show today.  I used to do a lot of cross stitch, including some quite big projects, and then I made some cross stitched cards which led me into cardmaking in the first place, but over the last few years I haven't done much of it.  Whilst I was in the supermarket one day in June I saw this bookmark which was the gift with a World of Cross Stitching Magazine, Issue 334 so I bought it to make the bookmark for hubby.  I made him one with a blackwork heart design on, probably about 25 years ago, and I noticed it was beginning to fall apart..I'm surprised it has lasted so long.

I took the kit on holiday in July hoping I might get a lot of it done whilst away, but that didn't quite work out..lol.  I started it but have been just doing a bit occasionally during the evenings.  I do find these days stitching makes my thumb joints ache so consequently have to be more measured with the amount I do at a time, and I did finish the stitching in November but wasn't quite sure how I was going to finish it off, and with lots of other things to get on with before Christmas it was left for a while, but I have finally finished it.  It came with a printed aperture card to put it into, but I wanted it to be more robust, so  I did buy a piece of blue felt to use on the back and eventually decided to do some blanket stitch around the edges in a coordinating blue (luckily I still have quite a few different colours of thread in a box).  Anyway, I have enjoyed doing it and intend to carry on doing some as and when I have the time.

Hubby was very pleased with it and I notice that it is now installed in his latest read.  Thank you for coming to visit me here today and I'll see you again soon.

I am entering the following challenges:

Ally's Angels Challenge - No. 78 Anything Goes.

Love to Craft Challenge - No. 78 Anything Goes.

My Favourite Cards of 2023

Hi everybody.  I do this every year on New Year's Day and have a round up of my favourite cards, and yours too, choosing one from each month of last year, so here they are.

This last one is an extra from May as there were several which went down really well with everyone that month, and this had the second highest amount of comments, and I love the contrast of the bright orange with the dark grey ink of the chess pieces, and the background was a bit of an experiment too using the gelli plate.

Thank you for for taking a look at my blog today, and I would like to thank you all for your visits which do mean a lot, and I wish all of you a very happy, healthy and creative 2024!