Santa Steppers

Hi Crafty Friends

I'm still not totally into Christmas makes, but I'm mindful people have a lot of Christmas cards to do and want to get on with them. So this week we made a Christmas stepper card. It's one of my favourite folds and this is a new version with different proportions from my previous ones. I wanted it to fit my stash of envelopes and feature my fancy frames, so this is what I came up with.

 Sorry, I'm a rubbish photographer - you can't see the glitter on the leaves (and the gem on the bow appears to have dropped off). Hey ho.

I was ridiculously pleased with myself for working out an easier way of cutting the matting layers, so I may crack on and make a few more Christmas cards after all 😀

happy crafting
jx

Distress Oxide backgrounds

Hi Crafty Friends

This week we got messy! I've recently bought some Oxides (yup, given in!) and despite knowing nothing about them, I thought we'd give them a go. I made 4 samples and then got carried away and made a lot more backgrounds, or at least started them.
We splodged and splooshed quite happily for a bit, then added more texture and grunginess with stamps. The focal images were stamped on, and the flower heads stamped on old book pages and paper pieced on top. I stamped the sentiment on a blank bit of book page, cut the words apart and outlined them with a fine liner pen.

Here are my sample cards. The flower stems on the first two cards are from one of the first sets I ever bought  (Woodware, I think) but I've put different flowers on them. The fantasy stems? leaves? were very popular, and I must say I love them. I think they are a Dimension Fourth stamp, (now sadly defunct, I believe)

The stamps on this next example are my latest pride and joy: they're Chaos by Visible Image

Here's my fourth sample, not made into a card, and some of the other backgrounds waiting to be stamped.

On Wednesday, I had a lot of fun mopping up people's unwanted ink left on their messy mats. Random colours and random amounts of water, but they still turned out fine, probably better than my more intentional ones. Here's just three of them. I'm looking forward to adding texture and making cards with them. it was good to get some crafting done myself 😊

Thanks to Jackie for making the messy mats.
happy crafting
jx

Vintage Car Card

Hi Crafty Friends

It looks like my secret doing-the-rain-dance worked and we had more bearable temperatures here at Serendipity Towers this week.
It was just as well because there was quite a lot to do on this card, but the only fiddly bit was sticking the metallic highlights back into the die cut car. I haven't used brads on a card in ages, but I love these and may have to drag them out more often.

So, we were kept busy, but there was time for cake, courtesy of Joan who brought a delicious fruit loaf, slurp!
Cake and crafting, what an excellent combination!
Jan x

Starry congratulations card

Hi Crafty Friends

Slightly out of order, but here is the card we made a couple of weeks ago, I've managed to get some pics of it.

As you can see, it's a Z fold, which fits a DL envelope. I love these papers, such a fresh colour combination

After we'd made the basic shape, everyone decorated their cards differently. Here are two of the brilliant makes.

Thanks to those who sent me pictures - I love to see the different ideas.
happy crafting
jx

Party time cascade card

Hi Crafty Friends

We all need a medal for endurance crafting this week! On Tuesday afternoon, with the temperature around 38 in the conservatory, we decamped to craft al fresco, under my new patio brolly, which kept us mostly in the shade. The breeze when there was one, was welcome, but we did have to keep rescuing our papers. Boiling but fun.
On Wednesday there were too many of us for the brolly option, and to begin with the heat didn't seem quite so bad. However, by 12, we were all utterly spifflicated.
This is what we were doing. The one saving grace was that as I had done most of the die cutting in the relative 'cool' of Tuesday evening, no one had to move much.

I love a cascade card, and fancied doing one in cheerful ice cream colours with a party theme. I left a gap at the front of another balloon with the recipient's name (or age) on.
Keep cool and craft on
Jan x

Christmas in July

Hi Crafty Friends
Sorry there was no card posted last week - I accidentally sent it before taking a picture, D'oh!!
If anyone took a pic, I'd be grateful if you could send it to me, so I can do a post.

Anyhoo, here is this week's card - I thought we'd better get on the Christmas in July bandwagon, and I also wanted to try out my latest frugal scheme. I found some cheap (REALLY cheap) wrapping paper. I was attracted by the design (music) but put off by the flimsy quality, till I bethought myself. What's no good for wrapping gifts may be fine for craft, if it's scrunched up and used like tissue paper. Luckily it worked (IMHO).

It was a quick card to make, so I think I'll be making a few more.
happy crafting
Jx

Butterflies (again)

Hi Crafty Friends

This week I have more butterflies for you, but a different look.
This card just required some die cutting, a bit of dry embossing and some colouring. We tried out the new tools for flower shaping which worked well. (Actually a spot removal kit from Amazon) They look quite fearsome and I have no idea how they would be used for their intended purpose (nor any wish to know - please don't enlighten me!). But as a set of craft tools they work very well, and they're certainly considerably cheaper than the very similar ones sold on selly telly (not sure which channel).

These are the first pics I've taken with my new toy ( a photographic light box) It's easier than finding spots about the house with plain backgrounds, no shadows etc, but I must say the pics look a bit dull. Possibly you only get very feeble lights in a cheap as chips box 😀. I might have to re-shoot these.
happy crafting
jx