Scrapbooking: Books that make me happy

Hi!
Finnish crafting challenge site 'Jehkotar Craft Challenge' revealed a few weeks back a great moodboard really I loved playing with. According the the challenge rules the participants can choose one, two, or three elements from the board, and use it/them in any kind or project (layout, card, art journal page, canvas, ...)
I decided to make a scrapbooking page, and was inspired by the book pictures and the sketch:


This is my finished 12"x12"layout:


For this layout I took a picture of my favourite book shelf part in which I keep my scrapbooking, art journal and mixed media books. Whenever I feel like I have lost my crafting mojo I love to browse my inspiration books. Yes, for sure there's a lot of stuff online, but somehow paging through an inspirational book is for me the best solution for recovering my crafting mojo.


For the background of layout I used a simple white cardstock, and decorated it with letter stamps and dots of Distress inks.


Title is die-cut using Sizzix dies. Book shelf stamp is from Cocoa Daisy. Foil and cardstock embellishments are from Heidi Swapp collection.

Do you have crafting books you come back to every now and then? Any recommendations for 'must have' books?

Hugs,
post signature

Sizzix Inspiration: Vanilla cupcakes with beautiful toppings!


Hi!
Hope your week has started well.
Just stopping by to share you some tasty Sizzix inspiration: Follow *this link* to download free project sheets for making beautiful flamingo and freebird toppers. They can be used for various occasions (perfect for Mother's day!), and will make your sweet moment even more special.
This free download also includes a yummy recipe to make vanilla cupcakes with a vanilla buttercream swirl.
Enjoy!

Wishing you a sweet day,

post signature

Stamped pendant for Visible Image DT

Hi!
Did you watch the great Visible Image show at Create And Craft TV last Saturday? In case you missed it the recording is still available for some days, just follow this link to watch Mark and Pauline do their magic!

Our design team made beautiful samples for this show, showcasing the inspiring new stamp collections 'Music Speaks', 'Dare To Be Different' and 'Teenage Kicks'.
I wanted to try something new with my 'Music Speaks' stamp set, so instead of making a card or a mixed media project I made a pendant with shrink plastic:


When stamping on shrink plastic it's important to note that the plastic sheet has two sides: a very smooth one and one that's more rough. Stamping (and colouring if you wish) is done on the rough side, on which the stamping ink will not dissolve that easily which is important for getting a crispy result. If both sides are very smooth you can use very fine sanding paper to gently prepare the surface for stamping.

If the finished piece is used for a pendant, key ring or such it's important to punch a hole in the plastic before shrinking. Remember that the hole will shring, too, so do not make it too tiny!


On the above picture you can see how much the image will shring during the heating. I like to use my heat gun for the shrinking, but the instructions on the shrink plastic package will guide you how to use the oven for this step, too. The image will crinkle during the heating, but don't worry, it will flatten out when the shrinking is finished.

For more information on the stamp set I used please click on the picture below:


  

Wishing you a creative day!
Hugs,
post signature

Easy watercolouring!


Hi!
Craft Stamper Magazine Take It Make It April challenge is still open for 8 days, so if you have not yet linked your 'Spring Flowers' themed project please hurry up- the prize to be won is amazing:

ALL SIX Kate Crane Art Journalling DVDs will be sent to one lucky winner! All challenge details can be read here, and our talented design team has put up more Spring Flower inspiration for you here!

My second April project is a simple card in CAS style:



When crafting I like to mix supplies from several manufacturers, but for this card I used stamps from one Stampin'Up set only ('Painted Petals').  


The background paper is heavy mixed media paper that suits well for using wet media, but it is smoother than normal watercolour paper. For the flowers I used a fun 'Faux Watercolour' technique in which the watercolour effect is created with gently misting the inked stamp with water before pressing it on the paper. Distress inks work well for this technique, but you could use any water-soluable ink or even water-soluable markers. So easy and fun!


Faux Watercolour technique can be used for backgrounds, too. There are many great videos out there, and here's the link to one video by Jennifer McGuire I wanted to share with you.

Happy crafting!
Hugs,
post signature

Sizzix April Make Off with Emeline and Deepti!

Hi!
Each month Sizzix is challenging two of our UK bloggers to create projects using the very same die set. It's wonderful to see how the designers show their own personal style in their projects and using the very same dies they are creating something very unique!





In April Make Off Emeline and my dear blog friend Deepti used Sizzix Thinlits Die Set 'Scribbles and Splat' and created four beautiful and inspirational card projects. Follow *this link* to view the projects and to download the free (!!) project sheets.
Remember to vote for your favourite either on Sizzix Facebook or Twitter. Voting links are here, too. 







In case you missed the March Make Off with Annika and Quim follow *this link* to see their projects with Framelits Scalloped Circles (downloadable project sheets included aswell!)


Wishing you a wonderful day! Remember to vote! :)
Hugs,
post signature

Cards for Visible Image: Music Speaks

Hi,
Have you read the news in Visible Image Facebook that VI will be on Create and Craft TV on April 16? Save the date- I'm sure Pauline and Mark are again going to create something amazing!

Today I will show you two projects I made for the TV show, using the inspiring 'Music Speaks' stamp set. For both of these cards I used the same colour palette with black, white, and pink:








The background of the left card is a patterned paper with note lines on it. I stamped the image on the paper and inked the background around the guitar with pink Distress ink. After inking I splashed some water on the card front creating light splash mark textures on it. I dried the water with a heat gun and splashed thin white gesso on the card.

 


I did not have any white nor black tags in my stash so I die-cut them using the Sizzix tag die. From the white tag I removed a few millimeters on each side, and attached it on the black tag with two-sided tape.


The background grid is inked with the same Distress ink and cut into smaller pieces before gluing on the tag front.


The guitar is heat embossed with black embossing powder, inked with pink Distress ink, cut around the edges, glued on a piece of white cardstock, and cut around the edges again. I lifed it from the background with foam tape.

I love this guitar image- it can be used in so many different projects!

For more information on this stamp set please click on the picture below:


  

Wishing you a wonderful day!
Hugs, 

post signature

Take It Make It April: Flower card for a good friend


Hi!
It's time to kick off a new Craft Stamper Take It Make It challenge!
Our 'Take A Technique' theme for April is 'Spring Flowers'. Those flowers can be of any kind: stamped, die-cut, punched, ready-made, hand-drawn... When playing along our challenge please remember that in addition to the flowers you need to use stamping somewhere on your project. Easy, isn't it!

Our generous sponsor this month is Traplet, the publisher behind the best stamping and mixed media magazine Craft Stamper (. One lucky winner will get an amazing prize: ALL SIX Kate Crane Art Journalling DVDs! Amazing!


Here's my spring flower themed card:


This card was made for a dear colleague of mine who is now heading towards new challenges. However, even if we will no longer be working together the friendship stays; we both share the same passion for crafts and follow up on each other in social media. So thank you and all the best for your future!


For this project I used a chipboard branch, punched flowers (using the versatile Tim Holtz/Sizzix punch), stamps from several manufacturers, and seed beads.


I hope these flowers inspire you to create your own 'Spring Flowers' project and link it to our website. I will be keeping my fingers crossed that you will be the lucky winner for the prize!

Craft Stamper is an amazing source for stamping fun and inspiration. Each magazine shows lots of creative projects, and many of them come with step by step tutorials. If you are not a subscriber and would like to buy copies of the magazine please follow this link!

I wish you a lovely day!
Hugs,
post signature


Mixed Media Card Challenge April: Wish, Love, Dream



Hi!
April has just started and so has a new Mixed Media Card Challenge:


After seeing the challenge picture it did not take too long until the plan for my card project was already cooking. I knew that I would use the Tim Holtz/Stampers Anonymous 'Rays' stencil for it. So this is what I came up with:


The rays are stencilled using Prima/Finnabair golden cracle paste. I was not patient enough to let the paint air dry, so the cracles are only partially visible. However, the golden shimmer of the paint looks still very nice, and I was very pleased how well the paste worked with the stencil.

I inked the white background with light yellow inks, and added darker yellow splashes with yellow Prima mist. Once the mist was dry I stamped text patterns with black Archival ink.



The two hearts are die-cut using Tim Holtz / Sizzix Movers&Shapers heart dies, and decorated with stencilled dots I made using white texture paste. I misted the hearts with two shades of red mists, and decorated them with sewing around the edges with a straight stitch. For lifting the hearts from the background I used little pieces of foam tape.


Words Wish-Love-Dream are cut from a washi tape roll I bought recently. Love it! I'm pretty sure those washi tape words will appear on many of my projects in the future. :)


With this card I wish you a day filled with sunshine. Maybe the rays will inspire you to play along our April challenge!

Hugs,
post signature