A Little Catch Up!

Hey all!

I've been a little quiet on it lately but that's because I've been busying away on various orders and makes etc.
This post isn't going to be as detailed as my usual ones... I just thought that seeing as I haven't been on, I'd give you all a sneak peek of SOME of the projects I've been working on at home. Unlike previous posts, this one will just be pictures with no instructions as to how I've made them, however if there's a card you're interested in wanting to know how I ,ade it or any info about it, leave me a comment and I'll get back to you :).
So here we go lol.
A couple of button card makes :).

 A little distress ink card with stamped image and sentiment which has been heat embossed in black.

 A bookatrix style card with stand and matching handmade box.

 Customer order for an army themed card. Dog tag has glossy accents on it to make it stand out and shine :).

 Customer order for mum birthday card,

 Customer order for a wedding card... theme was purple.

 Some little personalised wooden coasters. I'll be keeping and using these ones as they are personalised for us and have the year of our marriage (which also happens to be the same year as this Christmas) lol.

Hope you like, and as I said, any questions, feel free to ask :).

Drinks Up!

I had a last minute card to make for my sister to give to her of her friends. (I was given a couple of days notice but left it last minute cos men are SOO hard to make for lol).
She had initially wanted a card with the local football team he plays for on it but as I wasnt sure what copyright etc would be, I decided to steer away from that. She was getting another of my sisters to make him a glitter guinness glass so I figured I'd make him a matching guiness style birthday card. After all... what 18 year old bloke isn't going to go out and have hus first legal pint as soon as he could lol.
I had a vague idea of what I wanted to do for the card... guiness glass with his name put on it using Craft Artist 2 software and colour scheme black, silver (possibly silver glitter card) and white and maybe a few stars threw in the mix :).
Knowing what I wanted to do made for a lot quicker work.
To make life handy for myself, I made a 6x6 card blank out of black card. I layered silver mirror card onto this and cut a piece of white supersmooth card a quarter of an inch smaller. I bought a digikit from daisytrail with a guiness style glass and used the 'add text' feature to put a message on the glass. I copy and pasted this with the plan to decoupage when printed.
Using a star die set I got free in a mag, I cut a star out on the top left of my white card layer (making sure there was room for my pint glass on the bottom right).
I layered my two pint glasses on top of each other with 3d foam tape and stuck where I wanted. I then cut various sized stars and stuck them in random paces over the card. Using my tattered lace numbers, i cut out a 1 and 8 and added faux stitching and then stuck this over the aperture I made earlier with the star. To finish the front off, I added 3 gems on the top right and put glossy accents ovee the glass. I really loved the effect the glossy accents gave as it looked like an actual glass. My glossy accents had went on slightly bubbled which I though would wreck the card but when it dried, it looked like the bubbles in the guinness going up the glass.
My sister was over the moon with the card and everyone was in awe of the glass and how I'd done it so needless to say I was happy lol.
Heres the final card (and matching insert). Hope you like :) x

Peace On Earth in Pastels

I've been lacking on my Christmas card makes recently so when I came across a sketch challenge on a Facebook Group I belong to, I figured what better excuse to make a Christmas card... the winners gift was pretty awesome and it means a card will be made.

I had the background for this little card stamped up for a while. I had planned on using it for a different project however when I laid my things out before sticking down, I no longer liked it and so this went spare, To create the layer, I stamped a few different sizes of snowflake stamps in my pearlescent memento dew drop ink pads... in the blue, the pink and the silver. I then layered this onto a pale pink cardstock from Papermill Direct. Using their pale blue, I cut quite a thick strip and cut a triangle out at the bottom to make it a banner style strip. I cut a thinner strip of pink polka dot paper from Lili of The Valley and did the same, I layered both layers onto the pink card and cut in the same way before sticking the smaller strip on top and off centre. I wrapped baby blue ribbon from my stash around these layers and stuck them to the left of my stamped card. Using my Spellbinder Scalloped Circles, I cut a circle out of the pale blue card I used earlier and placed my image (also from LOTV) on top. Using the smallest die in the set, I cut another blue circle and cut in half to place behind my stamped sentiment (also done in the blue pearlescent memento ink pad). using a blue promarker, I coloured three white pearls and attached them at the top right of my card and hey presto!

This was an easy card to make, and pretty quick (even though my description makes it seem otherwise :p). Hope you like my little pastel coloured Christmas card! :) x (the sketch I followed is below).

My newest makes!

In the run up to craft fair season, I've been experimenting with a few little ideas of things to make and hopefully sell as handmade cards aren't always that popular.
I have always wanted to try my hand at candle making or making handmade wax melts I should say. I ordered a few bits and pieces at the weekend for them and they came yesterday and this morning. Me having that patience, or lack thereof, that I have, i had to get making straight away. I made a few batches up yesterday amd can safely say I'm hooked lol.
As much as I love card making,and I always will, candle making is so much quicker and a lot tidier lol. Maybe just cos I'm an increadibly messy crafter tho :p.
After thinking on how to package the melts to make them more attractive, i thought I'd try out a card technique I'd been eyeing up for ages but never actually tried yet either... an easel card with a pull out drawer underneath. Using Papermill Direct teal card (I absolutely love this) and gold mirror card from my stash (courtesy of Home Bargains) I  made up the easel card and drawer and a little matching box to hold it. I stamped an image from a stamp set I got free in a magazine onto the teal card with versamark ink and heat embossed it with gold glitter embossing powder. This gave a real sparkle and looked amazing against the teal. Using a different stamp from the set, I made a stopper (which I stuck on strips of layered gold mirror card and teal card and hot glued a few buttons together for the drawer handle and topped with a gem.
I'm really in love with this little design and it has proved popular with others I have showed it too aswell.
Hope you like :).

New Blog Challenge

Today (5th October) marks the beginning of our second blog challenge over at Where The HeART Is challenge blog.
The theme for this challenge was 'use stencils' and we were given two sponsors to choose digis from. The digi I chose for this challenge was a Bugaboo one.
The layout I chose was a pretty basic one. I matt and layered some shabby looking fairy paper I had in my stash onto light green card from Papermill Direct. Using my harlequin stencil, I inked through some parts of it with my white pearlescent Memento Dewdrop Ink pad. This let me be quite acurate in my stenciling. I repeated this at a few random areas of my backing paper. I coloured my image using Spectrum Noir markers and again layered this on to the same green card. To add a bit of dimension to the card, I distressed the edges of both layers. I added pink satin ribbon along the base layer half way up the card and added a piece of pale coloured burlap to add an extra bit of texture. I then stuck my image on top of this and added a double bow on the top left corner using the same satin ribbon.
I inked an wooden fairy embellishment I had in my stash with the while memento ink pad and coloured her wings with a Spectrum Noir. I glossy accented bits off her wings to add yet another layer of dimension. I had no green ink pads to match my card so I coloured a stamp with one of my green Spectrum Noirs and stamped onto white card. I layered this onto the green card and again distressed this before adding it to the card too.
Hope you like my end product.
Theres some awesome projects over on the challenge blog... both cards and mixed media projects so feel free to pop over and take a look and of course join in the challenge aswell. I look forward to seeing you over at Where The HeART Is. :)

New Order Book!

Can you tell I'm in love with both mixed media and these little OddBall Art stamps? Lol.
I thought it about time I made myself a new order book. My old one was rather plain looking (just a plain shop bought one) and has gone walkies so I've been writing my orders on another notebook I've had lying around.
Using acrylic paints ( in cerulean, rose and lemon yellow) I created a background onto white hammered linen card. I placed the paints rather randomly but wasnt fussed in how it turned out... possibly cos I put the yellow on last n it didnt look right with the others underneath. To try n blend them together, I used a thin layer of white paint and although it did help mute and blend the colours, i still wasnt fussed on it. I've heard someone say before that mixed media projects tend to have an 'ugly stage'... this was definitely it lol.
I mixed some texture paste with light green acrylic paint and using my harlequin mask, dis a bit of stenciling. This helped a good bit I think but when it has dried, I went over my rose and cerulean painted areas again brightening them up.
I then sprayed all over my project with some ink sprays (cosmic shimmer chic grey blue and decadent grape and a bronze shimmer spray I made using a bronze shimmer acrylic paint and water). I then stuck an image I bought a few days ago from Oddball Art and coloured in with Promarkers on 3d foam pads and stuck it to the bottom right of my page. Using a tattered lace alphabet die set, I cut out individual letters and stuck them onto black cardstock. I distressed the edges of my page, layered onto teal carfstock and then adhered it to my notebook.
I had a spare image left so coloured it using my promarkers. I took another piece of hammered cardstock and using the same 3 colours of paints coloured the background in block colours. I sprayed over the papers with the same ink mista and again die cut letters in white supersmooth card and stuck onto black cardstock. I then adhered this to the back of my notebook so it would have a double function and all my projects would be kept together.
Hope you like my little notebook :).

Christmas clock.

After watching a craft programme on one of the craft channels where a clock face had been designed to look like scrapbook layout, i decided I really wanted to give this a go as not only qould it be something really different and unusual, but it woukd be something ypu could display in the house that would have a practical use as well as just looking pretty.
I ordered an mdf clock a day or two later and waited patiently for it to arrive. Iin the mean time, I looked online for pictures of other scrapbook style clocks (silly me forgot to record the programme I watched) and couldnt come across any which meant by the time my clock came, I hadnt a notion how to decorate it anymore. Typical me lol.
Instead, I figured I'd try a mixed media Christmas style clock that would look pretty at Christmas time.
First, I primed my clock with homemade Gesso as I planned on painting it. Once dry, I used acrylic paint to paint the base a bright blue. Using an old credit card, I scraped texture paste onto the bottom of the clock to look like snow. The card left a lovely tough texture when I patted all over the texture paste with it (it needed to be put on thick to get the effect). I tried stamping the images from a Stampin Up stamp set (possibly called Snow Much Fun?) onto newpaper to get anprinted effect but I didnt like how it looked so I stamped onto cream linen card instead and using ine of the sentiment stamps in the set, I did some second generation stamping all over the images. I then coloured them using my Spectrum Noir markers and glued them onto the clock base. I went over the texture paste again to thicken it and to 'ground' the images and using the sponge brush I used for that, I dabbed all over the blue sky with the texture paste to create a snow falling effect. Lastly, I die cut some numbers (12, 3, 6 and 9) from some holographic silver card and stuck those on too. 
The clock face did come with hands however I didnt really like them so I plan on using ink or heat embossing them to change colour so they match better or maybe just buy a new set. I also need to buy the mechanism for the clock and once assembled, the clock will be finished. I really like how the clock came out tho and plan on making a few more for upcoming craft fairs.
Pictures below!

My first mixed media piece :)

So I went shopping yesterday for things to make a mixed media piece. Of course I had NO idea what I needed or even what I wanted to make... I just knew I wanted to attempt a mixed media something or other. I ended up buying a couple of canvases, paint brushes and a few colours of acrylic paints (some of which were metallic and look pretty cool). My sister had some texture paste she wasnt using too so gave it to me. Sorted! Lol. 
To do the background of the canvas, I painted some pink acrylic on 2 corners taking it quite far intonthe middle if the cancas and put the metallic green on the rest that was still white. I got a small spray bottle and mixed some bronze metallic acrylic paint with water and sprayed all over the cancas with it. I has also bought aome cosmic shimmer ink mists in a blue and pink (will get actual colour names in morning) and sprayed thise on too. Using a circle stencil I had, I used texture paste to add some dimension and when dry put some more of the paint on it. 
Looking through a challenge blog, I came across Oddball stamps. I had never seen these digis before but loved how quirky they were and thought they'd look perfect in a mixed media piece. 
I had no idea where to find the digis so to google I went and found them. I'm going to be really nice to you all and link the digi I used :p. Its found here on Oddball Art Co etsy page. I used my Craft Artist 2 software to flip the image (forgetting that there was wording on the hoodie which also flipped... whoops lol but seeing as its for me it'll do fine lol) as I needed it to fit on the right hand side of my canvas and wouldnt have fitted if I kept it as it was. I coloured the image using my Spectrum Noirs and cut around it placing it where I wanted on the canvas. I had come across the saying 'Be yourself... an original is worth more than a copy' earlier so wanted to incorporate that in too. I wrote part in the thought bubble in the image and the rest I wrote in individual blocks to cut out and then distressed them with shaded lilac distress inks. To stick them to my canvas, I used glue which ended up taking some of the colour from my cosmic shimmee sprays and discoloured my wording. I initially thought I had destryoed my piece then but found the more I looked at it the more I started to like it lol.
To finish off, i drew some flowea, birds and faux stitching with a black permanent marker (my fine liner decoded to stop working :( ) and added liquid pearls to the middle of the flowers and glossy accents to the skull on the girls hoodie and the coloured parts of her eyes. I still found it plain or lacking somethin so when i came across a die cut with a bit of lattice I thought I would try using that as a mask and stamp through it with my pearlescent white memento ink pad. This definitely helped tie it together more and brighten the canvas as it was a tad dark looking.
Not sure if ive completely finished it but I definitely am done for the night lol. Ill look over it again tomorrow with fresh eyes and see what I think but for now here it is...
Hope you like :)