Traditional Christmas Colours

Hi Crafty Friends

I just thought I'd stop by and share a few of the cards I made for some of the club members. I love trying out new colour schemes for Christmas cards, but I always end up coming back to traditional reds, greens and gold. They just seem to say Christmas to me.

Sorry the pics are so dull. I took them quickly in poor light, just before I had to give them out.
This is a great die set which with a bit of tartan matting makes a quick and easy card.

This uses a 6" paper pad (The Gift of Christmas, I think). And it's another outing for my old Magenta rubber stamp. I just select different bits of the image.

This uses the same paper pad and a host of spellbinder dies.

Happy Christmas
Jx

Rein-ing it in

Hi Crafty Friends
And welcome from the bad blogger! As you may know, I've been very busy helping out a poorly friend so not much time for blogging. The craft club has continued as ever so here's a bit of a catch up. Reindeer have been a bit of a theme this year: I've already posted two cards in which they feature, and here are three more.

This one also features my fave Santa stamp by Inkadinkadoo (now retired, I believe). I enjoyed using the die to make the flip part of this card - so much easier than partial die cutting which we used to have to do.

I was inspired by a small pic in an advert to make this one. The proportions are different though. This fits a DL envelope. The tag is removable so the message can be written on the back.

I love stepper cards and made this one to fit the fab new Christmas frame. I used the same deer as the card above. it's such a versatile die. Loving craft card at the moment

Happy crafting everyone
Jx

Round the Bend (2)

Hi Crafty Friends

Here's the card we made at the club last week, so it's almost on time!

I really like bendi-fold cards but they are time consuming so we don't do them too often, but I have to indulge myself every now and again. As before, this is a triple bendi.

The basic shape is a Go Kreate die I've had ages, and I just made up the shapes for the flaps, which the club used as templates.
The other dies are mostly cha cha cha. The flourish is Spellbinders from the holly border set.

The papers are quite heavy so didn't need matting onto card, which speeded things up no end.
Sorry the background is so distracting - I'll try to re-do these pics.

Happy crafting
Jx

Grand Crafting Jamboree

Hi Crafty Friends

Well how about this! An up to date post from me 😀

I just had to blog our grand all day crafting event which I was somehow talked into about 2 months ago. Since then I have been beavering away making cards and plans, and finally, after a week of carpentry (making the tables and fixing the chairs) heavy lifting, advanced logistics and generally running around like a mad thing, the great day dawned.

This is what we made in the morning
This one used a lot of die cuts: Marianne poinsettias and the rest unbranded. (cha cha cha)

This one involved a lot of stamping and heat embossing, but no die cuts. The poinsettias had to be cut out by hand but they are an easy shape (Four Petal Flower by Chloe). I think they're lovely on vellum. In fact I generally love white on kraft card.

And here's everyone hard at work. As you can see, quite a lot of furniture shifting has gone on. But we all fitted in fine

The pom poms you can see were a late addition from my pal who had them left over from her daughter's birthday party.

The new, makeshift, die cutting station worked well (Thanks Wendy, for the wood)

And with a quick change, it worked equally well for the real reason for the day - the buffet!!
 Everyone brought something and it was all delicious

A moment of quiet reflection (or major stuffing ourselves with deliciousness) I think the red place mats were the success story of the day!

And then it was back to the table of craftiness. This is what we made in the afternoon. I do love white on white cards, but I tried to get some variation by using a mix of plain and pearlescent card, and LOTS of glitter. None of which is very apparent in this pic.

And then there was the Christmas dec. Many thanks to my good pal, Debbie, for the idea and the prototype. I'm pleased to say my cunning scheme for scoring and cutting made quick work of making all the basic shapes. Then it was just a matter of sticking on coloured paper, in the right places and joining them up. (I'm saying nothing 😉, but some might remember the Christmas snowflakes at Tracey's 😀😀) 

Many thanks to everyone who came for making it such a fun event, and for the lovely lunch. Especial thanks for all the help with clearing up, and to Ann for the help with moving the furniture.

Happy crafting, everyone

Jxx

Diamonds are for ever

Hi Crafty Friends

Diamonds may well be for ever, but here at Serendipity Towers, it just means it takes forever to blog them!
We made these cards last May and I totally forgot I hadn't done a post on them. Oops. It was our first club foray into Colour Cloud inks, and it was a lot of fun. I also loved getting to christen so many new dies all at once too.
I made three samples, mainly because I couldn't decide which colour to choose, and everyone chose their own colours.
It it a really easy card, but gave us a chance to experiment with the inks and with making various rolled roses, which I recall I was fairly obsessed with at the time. We coloured the ribbons on the purple and turquoise cards with Colour Cloud too. Easy peasy matching!

I still can't decide which is my favourite
happy crafting
jx

In a Bit of a Flap

Hi Crafty Friends
Out of order as per ..., but I thought I'd share a card we did at the club a couple of weeks ago. I had great fun designing it. It's very loosely based on a trifold card the lovely Tracey sent for my birthday, and on a Christmas card of June's). I didn't have either of the cards to hand so I just made it up.

It's a DL trifold card with lots of pockets and possible places for gift cards etc.
here's the front

This is with the front panel open

And here it is with the second panel open

We definitely got in a bit of a flap with flaps and it took longer than I thought -  a marathon crafting session on Tues. and slightly less on Weds. Still everyone enjoyed it - even if not everyone finished the card.
Hard at work  - as you can see!

I really like the opportunity to play around with all the die cut embellishments and have made two more. I'll post pics later.
Happy crafting
jx

A bit of a stretch

Hi Crafty Friends

One day I might get my blogging up to date, but sadly that day is not today!
Here is another random pick from the club card archive - it must be several months old by now.

Any hoo, we had a fun time making it, and the green and white scheme was very popular. It's another take on one of my favourite layouts, but I tweaked it a bit. I was so delighted when people brought in their makes inspired by this one.

My favourite bit is the embossed panel with the hand embossed ridges and narrow border which I think finish it off nicely. I also like the sentiment. It's unusual for me to stray from basic sentiments like happy birthday, but I think both the sentiment and the font are lovely.

It should be a really straightforward card but it was complicated by the fact that the green backing paper was v narrow and the embossing folder was too small. So it was an exercise in 'stretching your stash' - literally in this case.
Still, it was fun to do (imho) hope you like it.
happy crafting
jx

Peaceful Christmas

Hi Crafty Friends

I can't believe it's September already, and soon Christmas will be upon us. A couple of weeks ago I gave in to the plaintive appeals from the club, to do Christmas cards. This is the first.

I love the tiny hills and trees dies. We layered them up in the aperture for lots of dimension, which was a bit fiddly on account of their smallness and then there was a tricky bit of masking and stamping for the sentiment. In real life, it's very sparkly with glitter, but I haven't managed to capture that at all well. The stamp set was very popular, but sadly I couldn't send any one the link as it was free with a mag, but I can't remember which. I think magazine freebies are heaps better these days.

Happy crafting

Jx

Putting on the Ritz

Hi Crafty Friends

Just thought I'd stop by with a couple of cards we made a while ago in the club. They were both quick to make, hence two in one week.
They are a bit of a departure for  me, but I love the glitz and glamour of black and gold. I couldn't wait to get cracking with the starburst die. As soon as I saw it, I imagined it as a fancy top for a card, and I was pleased with how it worked out. I think it looks a bit like a present.

The stripy paper was a freebie in a magazine. I found the mags in a sale and snagged a couple, so there was just enough to go round the group. Wish I could get it again.
We just cut the star die out of the top of the card base, and cut the same shape again in gold to cover it - easy peasy.

The next one was even easier

We just die cut the flourish and the sentiment from black cardstock and layered it over gold mirri card. But we did use my (sadly, not) patented technique for taking the blinding out of the bling. I think it's a great improvement on ultra shiny metallic paper (even if I do say it myself 😊) Unfortunately you can hardly see it in the pic. Ah well.
happy crafting
Jx

A Blast From the Past

Hi Crafty Friends

Here's a fun children's card we made in the club a few weeks ago. I certainly had fun designing it. I saw a card on Pinterest with this fold, but without all the 3D layers. It occurred to me that I could fill it with dinosaurs (as y' do!)

We inked a cloudy background and inked and stamped a sandy foreground. I love these rather friendly looking dinosaurs (Marianne, I think). The foliage is coral and some Memory box poppies which I thought looked a bit Triffid like scaled up to dinosaur size.
I love the dimension you get with this fold, and the fact that it goes flat for posting. I'm already thinking 'Christmas scene'
happy crafting
Jx

Sailing By

Hi Crafty Friends

We made this card in the club last May, and I've only just round to blogging it. At the time the weather was summery so a seaside scheme seemed in order. I'm much indebted to my good pal Debbie for the layout - it was great fun sharing designing this. I tweaked it a bit for the club.

I loved having another opportunity to use my starfish and shells. I also enjoyed making the driftwood sentiment (a Kaisercraft wood stamp and a lot of distressing). The background is just a bit of inking and masking to line up with the die cut image.

happy crafting
jx

Animal Crackers

Hi Crafty Friends

You know how it is, every now and then you just get a yen to craft out of your comfort zone (or out of your mind!) I saw a card which really made me laugh on Lost in Paper (a great You Tube channel by the way) and decided I'd have to have a go at doing something similar.

So here is my take on LiP's card

I just love the decidedly uncheerful elephant with his party balloon. The animal stamps are by Katzelkraft (Les Jongles) and the happy die is by Sue Wilson. It was a really quick card to make: just a matter of putting patterned paper behind the word aperture and  colouring & cutting out the elephant.

So I gave in to my whim to use the flying hippo in the stamp set, and we made this. We die cut the letters, coloured them and then covered them in Glossy Accents. We inked the sky and mounted the hippo on pads. Easy peasy. But I do think the club are living in dread of my doing a card with the giraffe with a knot in his neck (which I love by the way, so be warned!)

I'm not terrific at colouring as you can see, but I really enjoyed these cards, and I sent one to my brother and one to my nephew, so got two men's cards done and dusted too.
Hippo crafting!
Jx

Everything in the garden is rosy

Hi Crafty Friends

Long time, no see (well, no blog at any rate). As most of you know, I work pretty full on in the summer, but I'm now done and ready to catch up on my blogging.
Actually everything in the garden isn't entirely rosy as my favourite (but v elderly rose bush) was blown down in strong winds and pronounced beyond redemption. But I still have my dog roses and they inspired me to make this card for the club.

The leaves and the small flower are Susan's Garden; I don't know what the larger two are, but I had to cut them down as they were huge. The stamens were fiddly to cut into lots of thin strands, but I like the effect. The trellis is Spellbinders and the frame Crealies.

One of our club members has now left to live nearer her family. It was sad to see you go, Pat, but hope you're settling in to your new home and enjoying life down South. This is the card I made. I didn't have a suitable sentiment so I had to do this one on the computer.

Hope you're all having a fabulous crafty time
Be back soon
Jxx

Sea View

Hi Crafty Friends

It's been boiling hot here recently (especially in the conservatory) and its put me in a summery sea side mood, so this is this week's card. I had the Wetlands stamp out from my stash busting efforts so decided to go with it again, as it is one of my fave stamps anyway. Teamed with the SU Work of Art paint swash, it was a quick and simple scene to create.
We made the 'wood' pieces with the help of a Kaisercraft background stamp and a bit of old fashioned embossing with a ball tool before swiping more ink straight from the pad.
The waves are a Stampin Up Swirly Scribble die, and the shells are Marianne.
The chains are actually sections from a circular frame ( from Craft Stash, but I can't remember the make)

I was pleased with how it turned out - hope you like it.
happy crafting
Jx

Stash Buster continued

Hi Crafty Friends

Recently I needed an anniversary card and a birthday card for crafty friends, so it was a good opportunity to launch another assault on the stash mountain challenge.

Here's what I made
This was for Tracey and Neil, a lovely couple, and my lovely friends. After I photographed this, I decided to add a small '25th' on the horizontal band.  Congratulations to you both.
The flowers are wild roses by Sheena Douglas (matching stamps and dies). I love the heart die (Cha cha cha)

I love the dog roses on this card ( a mixture of Susan's Garden and cha cha cha) But sadly the subtle differences in the 2 papers I used proved too subtle for the camera and they look the same. I'm really pleased with the lacy squares dies, though - I think I'll get a lot of use out of them.

There's still a lot of the paper pad left, but luckily I've found another pad which goes with it, so I can shift the colour scheme a bit. I think Kirstie Marcotte is cleverer in her choice of pad for her challenges, as she seems to have more variety. Despite being a fan of soft muted shades, I'm beginning to feel I have looked at these papers for long enough. Not ready for giving up yet, though 😀
happy crafting
jx

My Stash Busting Challenge

Hi Crafty Friends

6x6 paper pads!! Can’t resist them, never use them J

Well, I’ve been watching   Kristie Marcotte (You can see her here https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCcj-jYI7SFdJ477sTGlSu3w)

She proves it’s humanly possible to use up a whole pad in a marathon crafting stint. She uses just the paper pad and coordinating cardstock and makes 30+ small cards. I don’t need so many and I like bigger cards, but I thought I’d challenge myself to USE UP A WHOLE PAD!

I’m not doing it all at once, and I am allowing myself to mix in random scraps and papers from other 6x6 pads (getting a sneaky head start on future challenges?). I picked my latest 6x6 purchase, a £1 pad from The Range. As usual, I fell for the soft colours but when I got it home, I thought the paper’s thin, I won’t really use it much. Still, there are 10 designs (3 of each) so it’s theoretically do-able. I’m also hoping to learn how to make the best out of this thin paper. (A handy skill, given the amount I have of it!)

This is the pad I’m using, and the others waiting to be challenged.

Here’s the first card I made – I’ve posted it before, but I’ve included so the challenge will be complete (if I ever finish it!)

I made the flower 6x6 paper; it’s a good weight for shaping the petals.

(I have no idea why the computer has decided to put this pic to one side - nor why it randomly deleted a whole load of wittering, I'd just typed, but hey ho)

And here are three more using the same layout as a recent class card. There is a fourth, but I won't blog it till its reached its recipient.

I've found really distressing the edges gives it more dimension and makes up for not being able to layer it up on pads.

I thought I'd keep this last one for a thinking of you card, so I've just popped an oval text mat roughly where the sentiment will go, so I can finish it later. Another good thing about this light weight paper is I've use 6 layers + a band, a sentiment and gems, and it will still only need a standard stamp.

 At this rate I'll only have to live to be about 3000 to use up my 6" papers - and then I'll have to start on the 8", the 12" .....

wish me luck

happy crafting

Beating the Blues

Hi Crafty Friends

This is the card we made a fortnight ago. I fancied lots of texture and dimension, so we've got lace, raffia, dried seed heads and a lot of distressing. I just hand cut the banners, which makes a change for a dyed-in-the-wool die crafter like me. I don't know why I don't split up the sentiment more often; it's a lot easier to fit into the design that way.

 It was quite an easy card to do, especially as no one had to make any flowers. I've done a similar layout before, just rotated (oops maybe I shouldn't have admitted that!) but no matter everyone liked it, and it was so lovely and heart-warming to see the cards people brought in last week, based on this one - I do love our 'show and tell'. I've made a few more myself which will be appearing in an up-coming blog, but in the mean time

happy crafting
Jx

A Rose by the name of Poppy

Hi Crafty Friends

Here is a card I made ages ago, but decided not to use for the club because the lining up the stamping took too long. But that was before we had the MISTI.
Layered stamps were just coming in, and I was please to get some bargain poppies at a show. They were a bargain because they were proto-types and when I got them home I found the layer that made the lines was rather thick, and hard to align, so I drew my own lines in. I liked the look, so I stamped the poppy shapes twice in different colours to get a blend, then drew in the lines. Then I stamped the poppies again with Versamark and embossed them in clear ink.
Then I brushed on the background colour and stamped on random patterns.

And here's another version, not made into a card yet

Hurray for the MISTI. It made accurate repeated stamping a doddle. The only thing was, I only had two poppies and I needed three. Luckily I had an Altenew layering stamp set, free with a magazine. It was a rose, but as I was drawing on my own petals, it was pretty easy to turn it into a poppy. So you might have spotted the big poppy in the foreground of the club version, is the Altenew rose in disguise.

For my original card, I was lucky to find a scrap of paper which matched my colour scheme. The only paper I had for the club was a bit plainer, so folks stamped over it to add more interest to the background (unlike the one you can see here).

It was fun and good to see all the variations. The only thing was towards the end we ran out of embossing powder so I started a new pot - which didn't work properly at all!! Does anyone know if embossing powder goes off? Does it have shelf life, or should it be stored in a particular way?
I need to know - I have a lot of embossing powder which may be rotting away as I type.

Happy Crafting
Jan x

Inks and Dies

Hi Crafty Friends

We had a two-fer day at the club recently. We did a couple of cards which were quick to make. Thanks to Debbie for the sassy woman design and to Shaz in Oz for the Brushos and Dragonfly combo.

Both the dies are cheapies, and the woman and dogs one fell apart, so we had to stick the bits together with low tack tape, but hey ho, it was cheap. It didn't put people off, and several have ordered the die.

I didn't have a stencil for the skyline so we made our own with a die (Oyster stamps?) and then brushed in the background. I've had the sentiment ages - I'm so pleased it finally made it to a card.

This next one involved Brushos (sprinkled and splodged onto wet watercolour paper). This was a new technique for most of the club members, but was great fun and everyone got great results.

I got carried away and made loads of Brusho pieces, so I hope I get some time to turn them into cards.
Happy crafting

on a Roll

Hi Crafty Friends

One of our craft clubbers hasn't been able to make it to the club for ages, and it was her birthday recently, so I popped round with a card. I really wanted to try out my new Spellbinders border die (had to buy it after we'd used it in the class Margaret did for us), and I'm still on a roll with the rolled roses. My latest rolled rose die (a nameless cha cha cha die) is, I think the best yet - even if I did buy it, thinking it would make fir cones!
I used a mix of Spellbinders and Tattered Lace dies for the sentiment panel, and another cha cha die for the leaves, I love the way they emboss.

here's to hoping our pal can get things sorted so she can return, in the meantime
happy crafting everyone.
jx