The Tamarisk

Scrapbook Supplies Online February Challenges

2012-02-03T12:06:00.000+11:00

Here are my samples for this month's challenges:

This card has papers from a Fancy Pants 6x6 pad, a Prima flower an image from StampIt and various other bits and pieces. The pin heads were originally white, but I coloured them with a Copic marker.

This layout has paper from Pink Paislee, lots of tea-stained calico and twill, letters by Basic Grey and stamps by Darkroom Door (Seashells and Seaside Vol 2) . The photos are of my daughter Rachel at Wilson's Prom beach last Australia Day. Seeing photos and videos of her remind me of my old home movies - I was always running too :)

Hope you can join in the sketchy fun at Scrapbook Supplies Online!

The Craft's Meow Sketch Challenge

2012-02-03T11:34:00.002+11:00

This is how I rounded out my evening:

Another productive procrastination card LOL. This one is for The Craft's Meow sketch challenge, and I've used the gorgeous Butterfly Kisses stamp set, because it's the only Craft's Meow set I own to date. It's a very hard-working set - I used it heaps for birthday cards for just about all the little girl parties my girls attended last year.

The papers are 6x6 Cosmo Cricket, and the two smaller butterflies were punched with a Martha Stewart punch.

Ok, enough fun for now. Time to start ticking things off the MUST DO list!

.....

Artistic Outpost Shades of Red Challenge

2012-02-03T11:22:00.000+11:00

I've got a bunch of work I need to get done, and this, apparently, is how I procrastinate - I join a challenge or two LOL. It doesn't feel like procrastination if I'm actually producing something - that's how I justify this little distraction.

The first challenge I chose is Artistic Outpost's Shades of Red:

I used the set called London Underground - love this set! And I love red, and I love polka dots. All in all, I was very happy with this card, despite the procrastination element.

Thanks for dropping in today.

A new DT position

2012-02-02T00:16:00.000+11:00

I am honoured to announce that I'll be joining the design team at Scrapbook Supplies Online!

The announcement was made here on the blog. I'm really looking forward to 'meeting' everyone on the team.

There's a couple of sketch challenges happening now, and I'll have a couple of samples to show very soon.

Thanks for sharing my happy news!

New Zealand - here I come!

2012-02-01T09:44:00.001+11:00

I'm still pinching myself - I was honoured to be asked to teach at the 2bstamping Stamp Camp at the end of March in New Zealand! The lovely Doreen has asked me over to teach at the camp she runs, and while I'm there I'll also teach a couple of classes for the delightful Liz at Artfull Crafts in Timaru! To say I'm over the moon would be an understatement!!!

I've added some contact details in the sidebar, and I'll be sharing sneak peeks of the projects closer to the dates.

I can't wait!

More Card Maps cards

2012-02-01T09:04:00.002+11:00

Here are some more cards from the Card Maps class I mentioned in the previous post.

The first one here is actually a gift card holder. The front panel is a pocket that can hold a voucher or cash. The papers are by Kaisercraft.

And this one uses papers from the Teresa Collins (no relation) range called Carolina Breeze. I absolutely loved this range - here I've tizzed it up a little with some gold Flowersoft:

And this one uses another range of papers from Kaisercraft called Madame Boutique, as well as the stamps from the range:

A little hard to tell from the photo, but the butterfly has been stamped on patterned paper, cut out and glittered.

Thanks for dropping in today!

Emboss resist with Darkroom Door

2012-01-31T13:39:00.000+11:00

This was a fun card to make!

I started by clear embossing the Bold Blossoms image from Darkroom Door onto white cardstock. I sponged some Frayed Burlap Distress Ink over the top of the embossing. I splashed some water droplets over the sponging, and let the Distress Ink work its magic. Love this technique!

The patterned paper is Echo Park Spots and Stripes, and it matched the colour of ink beautifully! I stamped the sentiment with Frayed Burlap, and made a little tag out of it. A little seam binding and a brown button complete the card.

This card was part of a Card Maps class at Little Bits. I'll edit and show you some other photos from the class soon.

Thanks for visiting!

Spellbinder Thank You Card

2012-01-28T14:54:00.002+11:00

Here's a long tall card I made using some of my favourite Nestabilities:

The gorgeous papers are from an 8x8 pack put out by Bazzill called Divinely Sweet. Lots of gorgeous patterns and colour coordinated too with sheets of Bazzill cardstock. I love it when all the colour matching has been done already!

The pink strip down the middle has been embossed with an Impressabilities die. Must remember to use these more often - I love the effect.

A list of products can be found at the DownUnder Direct Inspiration Blog. Thanks for dropping in on this hot humid day in Melbourne!

Oooh - hang on! More published!

2012-01-25T11:40:00.001+11:00

Serve me right rushing! I really should sit down, relax, enjoy a cup of tea while I flick through magazines, instead of trying to do everything quickly! I totally missed another two cards that are in the current issue of Cardmaking, Stamping and Papercraft.

This one was made for a Cards for All Occasions special feature. I made a New Home card using Purple Onion Designs stamps:

These images are beautiful to paper-piece. I enhanced the patterned papers a little with Copic markers. Here's a close up - see under the fence palings:

This next card was for the new Designing with Sketches feature. I think you all know by know how much I love a good sketch!

Oh look - Purple Onion Designs stamps again! The sentiment, the frame under it, and the damask in the lower right hand corner. This is one of my favourite companies. Here's a close up of the sparkly interesting bit with resin flowers and seam binding:

Thanks for listening to me toot!

Published with Field of Flowers

2012-01-25T11:23:00.001+11:00

I've got some work in the current issue of this:

I was sent the Field Flowers set by Stampin' Up to play with as part of Cardmaking, Stamping and Papercraft's Stampers' Challenge. Here's the card that made it to publication:

And here's the one that didn't:

I had fun playing with this set - I had a chance to get reacquainted with my stamp positioner. After a little moment of frustration, we sorted out our differences and now have a healthy respect for each other. The results were worth it - the detail in these stamps is beautiful.

Thanks for looking!

Miss Independent Layout

2012-01-24T16:19:00.000+11:00

A bright summery layout:

Banners - LOVE EM! I've used heaps in this layout, and I made them with Nestabilities

The photos are of Elouise at a swimming lesson a few days after she cut her own hair. I was worried at the time about our future - I thought she would be one of those kids who gets up to mischief as soon as I took my eyes off her. Turns out I was only half right!

All the materials can be found listed at the DownUnder Direct Inspiration Blog.

Thanks for looking!

Kite flying layout

2012-01-19T22:25:00.001+11:00

This is a layout I did of my little niece Isabel. She's flying a kite at their local park on a bit of a windy day:

The journaling reads: "On this day the kite nearly flew Isabel!" She's my little Thumbelina - she's the tiniest, most delicate thing you'll ever see.

I used some denim fabric from an old pair of jeans as a mat for the photos to bring out the denim skirt Isabel is wearing. It also adds some dimension and texture to the layout.

Because the kite didn't appear in any of these shots, I made one using some of the dies from the Nestabilities pennants sets:

The tail of the kite was made with cotton twine.

This scallop edge is so pretty - it's one of the Edgeabilities dies.

You'll find all of the materials I used listed at the DownUnder Direct Inspiration Blog. Thanks for looking!

The Crafter's Workshop Roadtest

2012-01-18T08:33:00.002+11:00

I had the chance to try out a couple of 6x6 templates from Crafter's Workshop for Cardmaking, Stamping and Papercraft. The cards I made appear in the latest issue (click on the image to be taken to their website):

For the first card, I used the Branches template with some modeling paste. I made a little nest of raffia and put a little purple glittery bird in it:

The second card was printed on its side (hahaha!). I used gel medium through the Brocade template, and sprayed it all with some Chalkboard Glimmermist. I made the flowers with some black zips. This card could probably to with a word or sentiment in the upper left hand corner (that would have prevented it being printed on its side I'm sure!)

Thanks for looking!

Fun felting

2012-01-16T13:25:00.002+11:00

You'd be forgiven for thinking I had taken a little break from crafting over December, but I've actually been indulging another love of mine - felting.

I took another class with the amazing Elizabeth Armstrong together with my friend Greta, and I got hooked on scarves. I made each of the children's teachers a scarf for their end of year thank you gift, plus one for dear Lesley (owner of Little Bits). In the inevitable Christmas panic, I only managed to take a few (bad) photos of a couple of them. Here they are:

And this one didn't felt in parts, so I had to add some machine stitching with lime thread - love this!!

Here's another work in progress - a nuno piece all laid out:

I've got another couple of projects to photograph, so stay tuned for more felting from me :)

Kaiser Sweet Nothings birthday card

2012-01-13T08:48:00.002+11:00

I had wanted to make one of these step cards for ages, and I found some spare time just after Christmas and got stuck into it. What came out was a card for Mum's birthday:

I used papers from the 6 ½” paper pad and some die cut shapes from the ephemera pack. The happy birthday stamp is from Darkroom Door's String Sentiments set. Almost too easy!

Thanks for dropping in today!

Crafty Secrets Car Classics

2012-01-12T08:01:00.000+11:00

These are some cards from a class I taught last year. It was a Stamp of the Month class, and the stamp set we used was Car Classics from Crafty Secrets.

I was a little excited to hold a class with this set because our customers often comment that they are stumped when it comes to making cards for men.

This first card uses paper from October Afternoon, with a little sponged ink and some layering onto black cardstock. We stamped onto cream gloss cardstock with black StazOn ink.

This next card has Graphic 45 papers from a couple of different ranges on it, and some light colouring with Copics to match the King of the Road emblem to the papers:

This next card has paper from Teresa Collins, some sponging with Distress Inks and spritzing with water. Love this technique to really age a piece:

This last card is the more technically difficult card (I like to include one in most classes). The paper is October Afternoon, and the car was coloured with Copics before being fussy cut.

We made the car pop through the paper - love how this turned out:

Thanks for looking!

A family layout

2012-01-11T21:46:00.000+11:00

This is a layout I did using a photo of my three kids after Rachel's First Communion last year:

A bunch of circles and scalloped circles piled up on top of each other make a nice border for the photo. It also helps that the colours match so well, especially with Elouise's striped dress.

The chipboard alpha was coloured with a W-9 copic marker to match the dark grey/almost black of the papers. The banner was made with the little dies from the Nestabilities Pennants sets.

A full materials list can be found on the DownUnder Direct Inspiration Blog.

Thanks for looking!

I'm baaaaaack!

2012-01-11T09:23:00.000+11:00

Three and a half wonderful weeks - Christmas then seeing in the new year, and then just hanging with the family, learning to rest again.
I've got heaps to catch this little blog up on, which is going to be difficult with a shaped internet service. That's what you get when three little children get iPods for Christmas and discover YouTube I suppose!!
I'll start today with this canvas I put together for an ArtyOz 1-4-1 swap. It's a 5x7, and it was for Lucy who likes reds and creams:

I started with some Teresa Collins papers, a dressform by Collections, some red flowers from Prima and some wings and white flowers I had in my stash. A bit of modelling paste, buttons and acrylic paints and the canvas was done.

Lucy tells me I accidentally signed the back "Teresa - 2010" which is just an indicator of where my mind was! Eck! I do hate that stress I put myself under every December. This year will be different - I've promised myself.

Before I go, I'll share some of the insanity that goes on around these parts. This is my mate Max, who thought it was a little unusual for me to be taking pictures of something other than him.

Sniff sniff, what's this?

That would look awesome in my kennel!

How heavy is it?

Quick, before she catches me!

I got it back pretty bloody quickly! He thought it was just hilarious - I'm sure he was laughing at me, the cheeky mutt!

Christmas place card

2011-12-18T07:09:00.001+11:00

I made a simple place card using Nestabilities and an Impressabilities plate:

I'm going to need a heap of these in about a week! All the materials can be found listed on the DownUnder Direct Inspiration Blog.

Thanks for stopping by today.

Quick Christmas tags

2011-12-16T08:21:00.003+11:00

I made a bunch of these tags in a jiffy using Bazzill cardstock, Nestabilities and JustRite stamps:

I've even made a tutorial! You can find it on the DownUnder Direct Inspiration Blog.

Thanks for dropping in!

Taking advantage...

2011-12-16T00:06:00.002+11:00

.....of the problems Blogger was having with backgrounds to change mine altogether. I chose one called Magnolia - beautiful innit?

This background and many others can be found here. Not a site for the indecisive! There's so many beautiful things.

Back soon with some of my latest creations.

Christmas Card for 2011

2011-12-08T01:14:00.001+11:00

I think I've finally settled on this design:

Not sure if it's the colours, the simple design, using some of my favourite produtcs (Nestabilities and Darkroom Door images), or the fact that I get to use up some of my huge roll of gorgeous twine from The Twinery. Hmmm...whatever it is, I think this will be my Christmas card design this year. Here's a close up:

The materials list can be found on the DownUnder Direct Inspiration blog.

Now I just need the time to get these made! Lucky for me I've got two little helpers who are more than willing to roll up their sleeves and get into it LOL.

Another Christmas card

2011-12-04T09:38:00.000+11:00

These reindeer are so cute:

I cannot for the life of me remember who makes the papers - I will update as soon as I find out. I do know the stamp is from StampIt.

Hope you're having a nice weekend!

ETA: I the name of the brand of paper is Hobby Fun. HTH.

More Christmas cards

2011-12-03T07:38:00.000+11:00

Here are some more cards from the Vintage Christmas Cards class I taught a couple of weeks ago.

First up is a Darkroom Door Photochip, cut with a Labels 1 Nestabilities die, and decorated with some gold Flowersoft. The stamp is from StampIt:

The next one has a postage stamp shape cut with a Nestabilities die. The image is from a sheet of Kaiser paper. Very mass-producible!

And lastly, here's a card with a door on it. I embossed the front of the card with a Cuttlebug folder (Madison), and then carefully cut around the panels with a scalpel (no injury to share this time - I must be making friends with my scalpel finally!):

The doors open up to reveal a 25 Dec banner (Darkroom Door Dear Santa Vol 2) and a couple of little baubles hanging from it:

The card also opens as normal for writing a message.

I'm not quite Christmas'd out yet - stay tuned for more :)

Darkroom Door new release

2011-12-02T06:40:00.000+11:00

There's nothing more exciting when you're on a creative team and there's a new release of product. Just to know that you're one of the first to get to play with it is awesome!

Darkroom Door has a few new release stamps, and they're being showcased on the blog this week. This is one card I made using the new Star Flowers Photo Stamp:

Yaaay! I got to use my Copics on a Darkroom Door stamp! Love how the leaves turned out:

It's a pretty easy image to read - a lot of the shading is already there, so you already know where to make it darker. The details of what I used where are listed in this post on the Darkroom Door blog. I love what Godelieve did with the bicycle, and what Michelle did with the English pub.

Look forward to showing you more new stuff soon.

The Publication Collaboration

2011-12-01T20:28:00.001+11:00

I love the episode titles for The Big Bang Theory - hence the title for this post.

It's an apt title, because our little ATC group that meets once a month at Little Bits put together a little collection of ATCs and submitted them to Cardmaking, Stamping and Papercraft magazine. I'm proud to say, they appear in the current issue:

Here they are much less artistically staged (mine's the blue one in the bottom row):

This was so much fun, and I'm so looking forward to our next meeting so I can get all the girls to sign my mag! I can just hear Kerry now: "We're famous!"

Mimi Copic Project Class

2011-11-30T07:07:00.000+11:00

This is the card we made in the Copics project class I taught last week:

We used a Penny Black Mimi stamp that isn't a dedicated Christmas stamp, so I designed a card that could be used for any occasion if alternative sentiments are used. The paper is one from the new Basic Grey Piccadilly range - gorgeous innit? Here's a side view (there's more to see inside!):

And here's the inside:

Let me know if you'd like to see the full list of colours we used. I'm never sure how much detail to go into on these posts!

Thanks for dropping in today.

A couple of birthday cards

2011-11-28T06:09:00.000+11:00

This turned out to be a really really quick card to put together:

It was for Deb, who loves purple. Various papers (contrasting patterns is important for this look), Prima roses and the stamp is from an old Inkadinkado set.

Five minutes later, my daughter came in wanting a card for her friend who was turning 6, so we used the same layout and came up with this:

Too easy! This in fact is the basis of the Card Maps classes we run at Little Bits - we make several cards with the one layout. It's fun to apply lots of different products to the one layout. I treat it like a jigsaw puzzle.

One day soon I'm going to sit and make cards with the one layout ALL DAY. Maybe at camp next year.....

Thanks for stopping by today.

Cream Darkroom Door hello card

2011-11-27T06:50:00.000+11:00

Here's a little break from all the Christmas posts. This is a hello card using some Darkroom Door stamps:

I used the Hello Word Block stamp, with the Mesh Background stamp. I stamped the Word Block again, and cut out the word "hello." Then I popped it up and added some tea stained gauze under it, and finished it off with some cream paper roses.

If you need a LOTE card for someone (LOTE = language other than English), you could just pop up one of the many other greetings on the Word Block. How's that for versatility?!

Thanks for dropping in!

Christmas sparklers

2011-11-26T06:21:00.000+11:00

This layout has photos of what we got up to last Christmas night - experiments with long exposures on the camera and sparklers:

There are bits and bobs from My Mind's Eye, and lots of Spellbinders Nestabilities and Bazzill cardstock. The baubles are JustRite stamps. I've got some close ups to show:

Hidden journaling and one of the baubles:

The banner made with Nestabilities Nested Pennants:

The MME embellishment with a Nestabilities Labels 20 shape underneath:

You can see the complete materials list on the DownUnder Direct Inspiration Blog.

Thanks for dropping in today!

Another Darkroom Door Christmas Card

2011-11-25T07:35:00.001+11:00

I love it when you rediscover an old set of stamps and fall in love again. That's exactly what's happened with Darkroom Door's Christmas Reindeer set. I posted a card yesterday using the same set, and today here's another:

I made the background with one of the stamps in the set - no stamp positioner required yay! It was so easy to line up. Again I used Alison Ellis's Hot Set powder and some black glitter on the reindeer. For this card I finished it off with some black lace, cream satin ribbon and a couple of gorgeous pins.

This was one of the cards I taught in my Vintage Christmas class a couple of weeks ago. I hope the ladies liked it as much as I do! Love that glitter LOL.

Craft Queen November Challenge Entry

2011-11-24T07:51:00.001+11:00

Here's my entry for this month's challenge:

I used the Christmas Reindeer set from Darkroom Door, stamped with Versafine black, embossed with Hot Set powder, and sprinkled with black glitter.

The pink twill tape came wrapped around the Authentique pad I bought from Craft Queen at the Melbourne Craft and Quilt Show a few months back. Craft Queen sell all their 6x6 pads with matching ribbon wrapped around them - gotta love the little extras!

Here's a close up of the rolled ribbon rose I made with the twill tape:

The super shiny silver Sprinkles are from AnnaBelle Stamps.

Thanks for looking, and if you're in the mood, you've still got a few days left to enter the Craft Queen Challenge yourself!

Christmas decorations with Nestabilities

2011-11-23T15:54:00.001+11:00

Here are a couple of decorations I made using Spellbinders Nestabilities, some Bazzill cardstock and JustRite stamps.

This first one can be made from any symmetrical shape:

This second one is a great idea for a baby's first Christmas ornament:

That's baby Rachel - aint she cute?

All details of materials used can be found on the DownUnder Direct Inspiration Blog. Feel free to leave a comment there - we love the attention LOL.

Thanks for stopping in today.

Darkroom Door Christmas Cards

2011-11-14T11:16:00.001+11:00

I've got so much blogging to catch up on, I can't remember whether I've posted these cards or not. I've had a quick look, but can't seem to find them on the blog, so here they are.
These are the cards we made in the Christmas cards class I taught at Picture to Page in October. We used one of the new Darkroom Door sets - Dear Santa Vol 2.

This first one is a variation of the card I posted here. Without the lace and other pieces, it becomes a little more mass-production friendly - great for those of us who still haven't got around to doing anything about Christmas cards *wink*

The papers I've used for this next one are from Alison Ellis design. The basic layout and colours could be used for a wedding card too:

The background on this next one is really quick and easy - a spritz or two of a Glimmermist spray and it's done.

This range of Kaiser papers together with pages from an old book - a perfect vintage combination!

This last card involves some repeat stamping with the pine branch, and then I tizzed it up a bit with some red adhesive diamantes. If you're a botanist, stop analysing why there are berries on a pine branch - I'm allowed some artistic licence, aren't I? ;). Again, very easy to mass-produce:

Thanks for looking!

Christmas layout with Nestabilities

2011-11-10T11:03:00.000+11:00

I don't even want to know how close we are to Christmas! Yikes - where has the year gone? I'm moving forward with my eyes shut I tell you!

This is a layout using Nestabilities and JustRite stamps of my three kids. The photo was taken a couple of years ago, and it's still one of my favourites:

Unusual colour combination for Christmas - juneberry, aqua and cream ;) Nothing traditional about that LOL!

The baubles are JustRite stamps, and they have been cut out with Nestabilities Heirloom Ornatment dies. The die the next size up would have left too much of a border, so I have hand cut the juneberry cardstock very carefully. Here are some close ups:

A bit of stitching and distressing:

I didn't have the right coloured alpha to match the layout, so I took to the Thickers with a Copic marker. I ran my sewing machine over the letters - in my experience, they tend to fall off when you least expect it (like when you're ready to take photos of the layout grrrrr...).

The full materials list for this layout can be found on the DownUnder Direct Inspiration blog.

Thanks for dropping in today!

Darkroom Door Garden Inchies

2011-11-06T09:54:00.003+11:00

This is a class I ran a few weeks ago as a Stamp of the Month class. I chose the new Garden Inchies set from Darkroom Door.

The Darkroom Door Creative Team had a discussion about how to cut this set up - whether to cut the sheet into individual inchies (which would make it really hard to stamp them in a straight row), or whether to cut the sheet into various combinations (eg 3x3, 1x4 etc). I decided to leave my sheet whole, and do the cutting after the image is stamped, that way I can get a background stamped in one go. The whole mounted sheet fits back neatly into its tin, so storage of such a big unmounted stamp isn't a problem.

We made 5 cards in the class. Here's the first:

We first stamped and embossed the Garden Inchies with white embossing powder. We then smooched some Distress Inks onto a Craft Sheet, spritzed with water, and swiped our stamped image and another piece of cardstock to make that awesome background. We stamped the fern leaf from the Leaves set, and stuck the 5 inchies down the right hand side of the card.
Here's a close up of the inchies:

The next card featured just the one inchie:

A high concentration of colour, achieved with Copic markers. The inchie was mounted onto some chipboard for height, and the edges coloured black. The centre window was cut with a Nestabilities die, and the script comes from the Correspondence set. Here's a side shot:

The next card is simply layers of squares - so simple and so effective. The smaller squares were cut with punches, and the larger ones with Nestabilities dies, all in a soothing monochromatic green:

I wanted to do a simple black and white card, again the inchies were embossed with white embossing powder, and mounted onto some slightly larger black squares. The background was embossed with a Cuttlebug embossing folder, and some gingham ribbon was added to the top corner with a white brad:

Here's a close up of the inchies:

We used the entire stamp as a background for this last card. Stamped with Saddle Brown StazOn, and the edges of the piece were sponged with Tea Dye Distress Ink. This card can be customised with a sentiment at a later stage is desired. I'm loving the lavender and rust colour scheme!

Thanks for sitting through this loooong post! Hope you've got some ideas for using the Garden Inchie set - it's really quite versatile.

Spellbinders ornament Christmas card

2011-11-05T15:41:00.001+11:00

Here's a Christmas card I made with non-traditional colours:

I stacked a number of different shaped Nestabilities under the heirloom ornament, which was stamped with a Just Rite bauble. I used foam tape in between to add height:

All the materials I used can be found listed on the DownUnder Direct Inspiration Blog.

Thanks for stopping by on this very sunny day in Melbourne! Off to spend some time outside now and enjoy this weather while we have it.

Treat Bag Tutorial

2011-11-04T12:23:00.001+11:00

Hello there!

I put together a little step by step to make this treat bag:

This treat bag is filled with buttons because it's for a crafty friend, but you could pop some home baked goodies in it, or just about anything else. Your recipient will get a little peak of what they're getting through the little window :) Mmmm my mouth is watering thinking about baked goodies now.

The tutorial and materials list can be found on the DownUnder Direct Inspiration Blog. These are so easy to mass produce! Great idea for Christmas or end of year pressies.

Thanks for dropping in today.

Buttons, bows and bling

2011-11-01T01:50:00.000+11:00

We organised an ATC swap between our group at Little Bits and the girls at Debling in Design.

The theme was buttons, bows and bling, and here's my ATC:

That's a stamp from the London Underground set from Artistic Outpost, some seam binding for the bow, and a blingy button in the centre. The papers are Girl's Paperie.

I love seeing things en masse! Thanks for dropping in today.

Craft's Meow fairy cards

2011-10-31T01:36:00.000+11:00

I guess it must be that time of year - one of my daughters was invited to three (yes three!) parties. All little girls turning 6. Fortunately, I received a cute little stamp set from the Craft's Meow, and thought the fairy would be perfect.

Here's the card design I came up with:

I stamped the image with chalk ink, cut it out carefully, and mounted it onto some Nestabilities ovals. A seam binding bow and an acrylic flower finish it off.

I popped the cards into a vellum envelope, and attached a Thickers letter to the front:

I ended up with some scraps, and squeezed out one more:

Thanks for looking!

Copics fundraiser class

2011-10-29T09:37:00.000+11:00

A few weeks ago, we ran a fundraiser with Copics Australia to raise money for women's cancer research. This was the project we made at our Girls Night In:

We used a La-La Land image called Princess Marci, and coloured her pink of course. I had the colours I used written on a scrap of paper that I kept losing on the night. I've got little hope of remembering the colours now! Here's a close up of the colouring anyway:

We were so proud that our little shop raised over $900!! We really do have the best, most generous customers :) I'm so pleased that even someone like me who plays with paper can do something tangible to help the cause. Boo to cancer!

Sweet ATCs

2011-10-28T22:50:00.000+11:00

These are some ATCs I made for the group of girls that meet at Little Bits. The theme was 'Sweets' so I grabbed some Darkroom Door images from the Sweet Treats Montage sheet and stitched a border around each image:

I coloured some texture paste with pink acrylic paint, and embedded some edible pearls and a word from a Sweet Treats Wordstrip.

Love how they looked all piled up together:

Thanks for dropping in today!

Waves layout

2011-10-27T11:20:00.000+11:00

This is a layout I did for DownUnder Direct using one of my favourite photos of Jake:

I used various shades of blue Bazzill cardstock, and one of my scalloped rectangle dies to cut pieces that look like waves. There's some gauze in there too:

You can find all the details on the DownUnder Direct Inspiration blog. Thanks for dropping in today :)

.....

silhouette and cameo cards

2011-10-26T01:16:00.000+11:00

These are the cards from a class I ran a week or two ago. The theme was sillhouettes (or cameos).

This first one uses a cameo from some Jenni Bowlin paper. Unfortunately, the shape of the oval on the paper didn't fit any of my Nestabilities dies exactly, but leaving a large enough pink border around it, and layering it on a black scalloped oval no one would know. If you look really closely you can see that I've used one of the Spellbinders Fancy Tags dies to emboss under the cameo:

This next one uses a Unity image stamped with StazOn onto some mint green gloss paper. I embossed the background with a Cuttlebug folder. The sentiment is from a Darkroom Door set called Sweet Treats:

I used some Maya Road cameo chipboard pieces for this next one. The oval directly under the cameo has been coloured with Precious Metal Colour available through Darkroom Door:

I used a Hero Arts cameo stamp for this next one. I did a kissing technique using one of the Tim Holtz reverse stamps to print some text onto the head. I cut the image out with one of my new Nestabilities postage stamp dies. With the die still in place, I sponged some ink around the image, and when I removed the die, a white border was left - just like a real stamp.

For this last card, I stamped the cameo in a frame image from the Teresa Collins Posh range, cut it out carefully, and put it in the centre of a big black daisy. Love the black and cream colour scheme - so elegant!

Thanks for dropping in today!

Another Spellbinders birdcage card

2011-10-24T11:01:00.000+11:00

This die set is a little bit lovely! Here's another card I made with it:

It looks involved, but it's really simple. Just a matter of piling up some flowers for the bird to sit in. Here's a close up:

If you look closely, you can see I used an ornate JustRite stamp to fill in a bit of the background. Lots of layers.

As always, a list of everything I used can be found on the DownUnder Direct Inspiration Blog. Thanks for dropping in!

Girl's Paperie Jubilee stamps

2011-10-22T07:51:00.000+11:00

I ran my Stamp of the Month class at Little Bits with this set in September:

I found it to be quite a versatile set of stamps. Here's a few of the cards I came up with:

I used the frame here under an image by Collections, and finished it off with some Green Tara roses and a feather. With this card I wanted to show that an image needn't necessarily fit inside a frame.

I think everyone knows by now how much I love banners! I've also added adhesive pearls to the letters in the word to accentuate it a little more without having to colour it in.

Tickets, popcorn, and some Graphic 45 papers. An easy circus themed card. I embossed the stamped images to make the black pop a little.

Thanks for dropping in today :)

Gumboots layout

2011-10-16T18:20:00.000+11:00

This is a layout I did of my niece Isabel:

The photos were taken when her local park was flooded earlier this year.

I used Bazzill cardstock and a pack of 8x8 patterned paper called Divinely Sweet that's new from Bazzill. The colours in this paper are just delicious - I love how the rosette turned out. Another new product is the pleated Bazzill. Here's a close up:

And here you can see the stitching on my layout and the beautiful Scrapware alpha I inked ever so lightly with pink chalk ink:

All the product details can be found on the DownUnder Direct Inspiration blog.

Thanks for looking!

Monochromatic cards

2011-10-15T19:55:00.000+11:00

Monochromatic cards are those that use any number of different shades of one colour. In my world, white doesn't count as a colour ;)

These are some of the cards I taught at our monthly 5 Quick Cards class a couple of months back

Meet the silver card:

A big silvery wedding type embellishment, and a Purple Onion scroll stamp underneath it. I used Dove Gray StazOn ink, and added some sparkle with different sized adhesive bling. Could do with a word on it I guess - congratulations, or many happy returns if you don't think the couple will stay together very long LOL.

This is the aqua card:

Big mulberry daisies stacked, with a silver centre that has been coloured with Copics. The words come from a Darkroom Door set of stamps called Enjoy Life. The background has been spritzed with some Glimmermist.

Last but not least, the pink card:

The webbing is ribbon from Green Tara, underneath some satin ribbon. The flowers are from Crafty Koala, and stamp is from Stamp It. It has been stamped onto white cardstock and then mounted onto some scrap chipboard for extra dimension.

Quick, easy, monochromatics. Love 'em! Thanks for dropping in today.

Spellbinder Birdcage card

2011-10-13T10:37:00.001+11:00

I had a little play with the new Bird Sanctuary set of dies and came up with this card:

I used a couple of shades of pink Bazzill, and tied some coffee stained seam binding to the top of the cage with a pink button. Here's a side view:

Mmmmm....pink and pearls. They're great for a soft, feminine look.

All the details are on the DownUnder Direct Inspiration Blog. Thanks for dropping in today :)

A vintage chic printer's tray

2011-10-11T22:59:00.000+11:00

Here's a full pic of the sample I made for the class I taught at Paperific this year:

I also taught this class last night at Little Bits. I can't remember the last time I had so much fun teaching a class. There were lots of smiles and people looking pretty chuffed with themselves when they completed their trays. I love seeing that!

I must say a huge thanks to Julie of Collections - she keeps bringing out amazing products that I just grow to love. She's a creative inspiring soul, and so generous with her knowledge.

I'll walk you around the compartments now. Here's the top row up close:

That's tea-stained muslin glued to a chipboard heart in the first compartment. The second has a couple of little weeny glass bottles sitting on top of an antique ruler shelf. The third has a couple of chipboard keys, stained with Brushed Corduroy Distress Ink (they look rusted, don't they?), then there's a pile of little buttons and a Love Letters image from Darkroom Door (about the only thing not Collections in the whole project!).

This is the second row:

Here we have an image of the two little girls (sisters maybe?), fussy cut and sitting on top of another piece of antique ruler. The next compartment has the letters a that come with the tray. These are glued together and inked with Frayed Burlap. The last compartment has another image fussy cut, sitting on some muslin all behind a broken window (it's really some acetate that has been torn with a jagged edge - bit hard to photograph). She's in front of a background that looks like pressed tin - it's really just Cuttlebug embossed chipboard that's got a coat of paint on it.

This is the bottom row:

This is a fussy cut butterfly (I tell you, everyone who did my class said "Please Teresa, can we cut out more things? We love cutting little things out." Not really - just about everyone whinged about that part LOL). The butterfly has one image glued flat, and the other has only its body glued - the wings are bent up. The very last compartment has a couple of Labels Six Nestabilities as a base, and some fun paper rolls holding up some words. I love making paper rolls - I feel that I failed to pass on this love to the majority of the people in my class. ( More whingeing at this point).

Hope you found my little tour at least a little interesting. If it inspires you to make your own printers tray, I'd love to check it out.

Sitting Marci project

2011-10-10T22:51:00.002+11:00

I run the occasional Copic project class at Little Bits, and I mentioned a while ago that one of my samples had spend a chilly night on the lawn when it dropped out of my car in the dark. Here's what's left of it:

It's a little warped, and a possum probably ran off with the missing orange pearl LOL, but you get the picture, right?

We made a cloud shaped mask with a Labels Six Nestabilities die, and airbrushed the sky background. The flowers started life out as white, and were airbrushed too. Marci was coloured and cut out (try not to think of her sitting on the spike of a fence too much -ouch!).

Thanks for dropping in today - hope it's a good one for you :)

DIY Bazzill Swatch Book

2011-10-09T23:06:00.000+11:00

This is how I keep track of my favourite Bazzill colours:

I made it using a Grand Nestabilities die - Labels Eleven. Here's a look at the inside:

I love that I can carry this in my bag when I go shopping. It's handy for matching up papers and cardstock.

You can see the details on the DownUnder Direct Inspiration Blog.

This year's collaborative book

2011-10-08T06:01:00.000+11:00

A whole month or more ago, my friend Greta came over and we bound this year's ArtyOz collaborative book. The theme was the 7 deadly sins, and each sin was assigned a different colour. We decided to make the covers multi coloured, and they turned out beautifully, even if I do say so myself!

Lots and lots of different trims and embellishments - I love running my hand over it and feeling all the different textures.

You can see here, it ended up being quite a chunky book:

Here's my page (Sloth in Sepia):

I used an old book page stained with shellac, a piece of brown satin fabric scrunched up behind the photo, a piece of mica on top of the photo, some Prima flowers and a Green Tara flower. The Green Tara flower started life out as spearmint green would you believe? It's coffee stained. The title was done using the Darkroom Door alphabet. Love this alpha - you don't need to be too accurate with it, it always looks good.

A huge thanks to Greta for getting me motivated to finish these covers - I couldn't have done it without your help and advice, and I loved spending some creative time with you. We should do it more often!!!

Thanks for looking!

A 98th birthday card

2011-10-07T10:05:00.002+11:00

Last month my husband asked me to make a card for a very special lady. For all intents and purposes, she was like his Nonna when he was growing up. She's now an incredible 98! He wrote the sweetest things in the card about remembering her cooking and how she looked after him when he was little.

Here's the card:

I used Authentique papers, Savvy stamps, Nestabilities dies, some Crafty Koala flowers. The numbers come from an American Crafts Thickers pack, and were recoloured to match using a Copic marker (yep - over the glitter!).

Thanks for dropping in today.

Pocket card with a bookmark

2011-10-05T05:45:00.000+11:00

Occasionally I hold a cardmaking session at our primary school for the mums. It's a good chance to get together, do some networking and share some laughs. This is what we made at the last session:

It's a card with a pocket in the front. We popped a bookmark in the pocket, but it could also be used to hold a gift voucher or even cash.

Girl's Paperie patterned papers, Nestabilities and a CC Designs stamp.

Thanks for looking.

MFT boy's birthday card

2011-10-03T21:36:00.000+11:00

This is a card I made a couple of months ago for our great nephew (or is it grand nephew?). Anyway, our niece's son. It was his first birthday:

That's a My Favorite Things stamp (Loveosaurus), Basic Grey paper from a 6x6 pad, and a Prima alpha. The buttons are from my stash. I find that lots of so-called "adhesive" alphas fall off when you're not looking, so to be sure these weren't falling off ever, I stitched them on with my machine. Ha!

The stamped image was coloured with Copics, then the body was paper pieced. I even decorated the inside of the card:

and when it was all done, I didn't have the heart to hide it all by popping it into an envelope, so I found one of these see-thru ones:

Thanks for stopping by today :)

MFT birthday card

2011-10-01T06:00:00.000+10:00

My youngest daughter Elouise celebrated her 6th birthday in July. Here's the card I made for her:

I made the card with time to spare - it has just taken me nearly two months to locate it again and take a photo of it LOL.

I used a My Favorite Things stamp, paper pieced the dress, and Copics for the rest. She had to blonde of course - Elouise is my blonde, blue-eyed baby.

Thanks for stopping in today.

Get well soon card

2011-09-30T06:38:00.000+10:00

Here's a bright get well soon card I made using JustRite stamps, Bazzill cardstock and Spellbinders dies:

The flower was coloured with Copic markers and I added a little Stickles for some sparkle.

All the intricate details can be found on the DownUnder Direct Inspiration blog.

Thanks for dropping in today.

Cousins layout

2011-09-29T05:00:00.000+10:00

I have used one of my favourite photos in this layout. It's of my eldest daughter and my sister's daughter. There's about 4 years difference between them, and I can tell they'll be really close when they're older.

All the details can be found on the DownUnder Direct Inspiration blog.

Oriental wedding card

2011-09-27T05:00:00.000+10:00

I got to play with some of the newest Spellbinders dies - the Bird Flourishes set. Once I cut the birds out in black, they had an oriental look to me, so I went ahead and kept with the theme. Here's the card:

All details can be found on the DownUnder Direct Inspiration blog here.

Thanks for looking!

Darkroom Door new release

2011-09-24T20:41:00.001+10:00

There's nothing like a new release of goodies from my favourite company to get the blood pumping! Darkroom Door's latest includes images of London, some gorgeous vintage Christmas sets called Dear Santa and a fantastic assortment in Essentials 8.

The Darkroom Door blog will be showcasing all of the new releases in the next week or two, but here's a little teaser from me:

London calling:

Blue Santa:

and some Bold Blossoms:

And here's a little pic of the class I'll be teaching at the Picture to Page Show in Burwood next month using Dear Santa Vol 2 stamps:

You can book into my class by calling Little Bits on 03 9798 4122, and you can get more information about the show from their blog. Hope to see you there!

time flies!

2011-09-24T19:48:00.003+10:00

It has been a whopping 19 days since my last post! Where has time gone? I know I've been busy, but this is ridiculous!
Here's a pic of a memo board I made for DownUnder Direct:

There's a tutorial here on the Inspiration Blog.

I had one of these boards up in my studio last year, and I loved how easy it was for me to keep track of assignments. Now that I've almost finished re-organising my space, I will have to find room for it again. I must share photos of my newly refurbished space soon!

Easy gift box

2011-09-05T09:28:00.002+10:00

I got to play with one of the newest Spellbinders dies - it's a one step cut and score Hexagon Petal Enevelope. It's so easy to put together!

I even made a little gift to pop inside with the same die set. You can see what's inside at the Down Under Direct Inspiration Blog.

Thanks for stopping by today :)

Happy Birthday card

2011-09-01T20:51:00.000+10:00

I'm baaaaack. Lots to catch up on, but for now, here's a birthday card:

I used some Bazzill cardstock, Nestabilities dies, JustRite stamps and Prima flowers. All the details can be found at the Down Under Direct Inspiration Blog.

Back soon with more.

Butterfly layout

2011-08-23T10:55:00.000+10:00

This is a layout I did of Rachel:

I love that the butterflies are not glued down flat:

until I eventually put the layout into an album that is!

All the details for this layout can be found on the Down Under Direct Inspiration Blog. Thanks for visiting my blog :)

Nestabilities banner

2011-08-22T22:54:00.001+10:00

Ask anyone who knows me, and they'll tell you I'm a little fond of banners. Here's one I made with my new set of Grand Nestabilities, Bazzill cardstock, some glitter and some Thickers:

I made it to hang across our buffet where we display cards, photos and other little things for birthdays and other special occasions. Here's a close up of one of the pennants:

See? Pennants don't HAVE to be triangular! I'll try to take a photo of this banner in situ tomorrow and add it here.

You can get all the details for this project on the Down Under Direct Inspiration Blog. Thanks for stopping by today.

All occasions cards

2011-08-18T07:51:00.001+10:00

This is another set of cards I put together for the Card Extravaganza class I held last month. Gorgeous gorgeous Cosmo Cricket papers - I was in love!

I used the celebrate stamp from the Sweet Treats Vol 1 set by Darkroom Door, and a Fiskars heart punch.

I wanted a large scalloped edge, but I didn't have that die on me. I improvised with punched circles. The text paper is from Kaiser.

Picking up the blue from the floral paper, this is a Stamp It stamp (from one of their unmounted sheets) with some Versamagic ink.

We had fun making these rosettes! Not really - they're really fiddly and jump up at your face when you least expect it LOL. I think they're worth the trouble though - they look fabulous on a card! The cupcake (Inkadinkado) is coloured with Tombow markers.

This card uses a couple of different Nestabilities dies stacked on top of each other and a couple of Green Tara paper roses.

Thanks for stopping by today.

Orange butterfly card

2011-08-16T09:27:00.000+10:00

Here's a card I've had made for a while. I just never got around to photographing it and writing a post about it:

I think I like it not only because of the colour, but because I've used different textures on it (paper, cardstock, twill trim, calico, button).
The lighter shade of orange on the scroll between the butterflies was achieved by inking the stamp with Rusty Brown StazOn, and then stamping off once onto scrap paper. It's a neat way to get two different shades out of the one ink pad.

I can't for the life of me remember who made the stamp - I will amend and add the name when I find it out.

Thanks for dropping in!

Seeing spots!

2011-08-14T01:57:00.000+10:00

My circle Nestabilities are getting a real work out of late!

Here's another layout using my beloved circles, as well as some black spatter (Twiddleybitz Colour Spray) and some doodling with my Copic multiliner:

This layout was so much fun! You can read all the details at the Down Under Direct Inspiration Blog. Thanks for stopping in today :)

Nestabilities fabric flower tutorial

2011-08-12T07:47:00.000+10:00

Last month I made this flower from fabric and Spellbinders Nestabilities:

There's a tutorial up on the Down Under Direct Inspiration Blog, so you can see how I did it. Enjoy!

Teresa Collins (no relation)

2011-08-11T07:32:00.000+10:00

I put together a set of cards for a class last month using the gorgeous Teresa Collins Posh range of papers and stamps. Loving the black, white, grey and hot pink:

I feel the bling is almost compulsory with this colour scheme! Have a wonderful day :)

If it's good the first time.....

2011-08-08T05:25:00.001+10:00

...why not stick with it? Remember this card? Well, I liked it so much that when my friend Helen asked me to make a card for a 21st, I thought I'd use the idea again.

Here it is in different colours:

I used some of my favourite Melissa Frances papers, one of the Pink Paislee artisan elements, some pearls (colour matched with Copics), ribbon, a chipboard key painted white and the stamp is by Savvy Stamps. Here's a close up of the cluster:

The key is a vital ingredient for any 21st card. This one is made by Collections, and looks fabulous painted white.

Thanks for looking!

Meet Mimi

2011-08-07T04:43:00.001+10:00

I run a class at Little Bits called Stamp of the Month, where I choose a stamp or set of stamps and show everyone 4-5 projects. This was our set for May:

Cuuuute! And now that Penny Black stamps are priced a little more reasonably, there's no excuse not to indulge a little. Here are some of the cards we made:

I love black and white! Here I tizzed it up a little by putting some Polar White Flower Soft on the poodle, and adding some bling to his collar. Here's a close up:

Here's a little cafe scene, with Mimi coloured in monochromatic grey Copics:

Here's a fun take on the classic icon:

and here's a little fairy Mimi, coloured with watercolour pencils and Stickles on her wings:

Thanks for stopping in today :)

Drawers done up

2011-08-06T14:32:00.001+10:00

Absolutely ages ago, I won some Kaiser drawers. I had in mind what I wanted to do with them, and even bought the stuff to decorate them, but there they sat. Until I needed somewhere to store my growing collection of Green Tara paper roses. That's when I pulled them out, dusted them off and got to work. Here's the finished piece:

I used some Art de Fleur photochips from Darkroom Door, some Kaiser 12x12 paper for the sides and some Tim Holtz Curio Knobs. I could only find two of the three packs of knobs I bought, so I used a stack of buttons, a glass bottle with a cork and a Tim Holtz Fractured Doll for the remaining three drawers. The drawers themselves are made from chipboard, so they're light weight. I left the MDF frame raw, I just sponged some Frayed Burlap Distress Ink to help make it look a little more aged. Here's a close up:

Thanks for looking.

La-La Land Ballerina

2011-08-05T14:52:00.002+10:00

This is a card I made for one of the Copic Project classes I ran at Little Bits a while ago:

It's fun matching the colours of the papers to my Copic colour chart. These classes are a great opportunity to refresh some skills that have been learned, or pick up new ones, and the best bit is the participants go home with a finished project, and not just a heap of half finished samples.

We used Marci Ballerina, and the sentiment is from a Stamp It set.

I reckon ballet skirts aren't complete without a little tulle:

and to finish Marci off, we added a little sparkle with Stickles:

I would love to show you what we made in the next Copic project class, but my sample accidentally spent the night out on a frosty lawn :( I will try to salvage what I can and post when it's presentable.

Thinking of you sunflower card

2011-08-04T04:36:00.002+10:00

This card happened a little backwards - I coloured the gorgeous JustRite stamps image in first with Copics, and then had to find papers to match. Lucky for me, there's a huge range of Bazzill available!

Details on what I used for this card can be found on the Down Under Direct Inspiration Blog.

Dandelion Card

2011-08-03T06:00:00.000+10:00

I think I've defined a little fetish that might be developing - dandelion stamps. When I see one, I want it. Just like my friend Kerry who likes anything Paris, and my friend Lynne who likes toy rubber pigs that oink when you squeeze them.

This is a card I made with the dandelion stamp from the Viva la Flora Vol 2 set by Darkroom Door and some paper from Echo Park:

I stamped using Teal Blue StazOn ink, then I added some stickles:

Awwww - look at it sparkle! Hope your day is sparkly.

A masculine ATC

2011-08-02T23:50:00.000+10:00

A group of us meet once a month at Little Bits to exchange ATCs. We set some themes at the start of the year, and this month is masculine. Here's my ATC:

The image is a stamp from the Dashing Gents set from Darkroom Door. Kraft cardstock stamped with Midnight Blue StazOn - my favourite combo at the moment. I threaded some ribbon through a Tim Holtz Philosophy Tag - looks a bit like a war medal (to those of us who've never seen one up close that is).

Time to pull out all of those masculine products with Father's Day on the first Sunday in September. I'll have some more masculine projects to share next week.

Thinking of you...

2011-08-02T00:23:00.000+10:00

Now there's a general, all-purpose sentiment. Here's my card:

I made the card using Bazzill cardstock, Nestabilities dies, Just Rite stamps and some Swarovski bling. The full product list can be found on the Down Under Direct Inpsiration blog.

Thanks for stopping by today.

More baby cards

2011-08-01T23:48:00.001+10:00

I taught a baby cards class last month at Little Bits. Here are some of the cards we made:

Classic black and white, with just a hint of colour. I used an embossing folder to add dots to the stark white card front, attached the pic of the bear from a Darkroom Door Filmstrip embellished with pom-pom trim, and added the puffy feet to define the gender of the card. Too easy!

I wanted to make a gender neutral card, one that could have a little pink or blue bow added later if necessary. I used the pram from the Hello Baby Vol 1 stamp set, over some Kaiser spotty paper, a doily and a touch of pearls.

And this one couldn't possibly be any easier to put together. It would make a great baby shower invitation it's so mass-producible (did I just make that word up?). Again, some spotty paper (love using polka dots for baby cards, don't I?), with a big luscious satin bow up top finished with a button. I stamped some little feet at the bottom in Brillliance ink - very subtle. I also rounded the corners to make the card a little softer.

Thanks for dropping in today - hope your day is wonderful.

August Paperific class

2011-07-22T12:28:00.000+10:00

We've organised a class to teach at Paperific this August 26 through 28. It's one of the beautiful Collections printers trays, done up in shabby pink and cream, with all the little things you'd expect from a Collections type project. Here's a little peek:

All the details can be found on the Paperific website, and bookings can be made through Little Bits on 03 9798 4122.

Hope to see you there!

checking in...

2011-07-21T23:32:00.001+10:00

This is a busy time of year! I thought with all three children at school this year, I'd have so much free time on my hands I'd likely need another job. Ha! I'm busier than ever - if I'm not helping out around the school, I'm taking old people to appointments, or, when things get really desperate, I might be found doing housework. Yeah - that hardly happens LOL.

This is a card I made for one of Jake's friends. He turned 11, and is a mad keen Geelong fan. So the card is navy and white, with a bit of kraft thrown in because I love it and can't help myself:

I used some Darkroom Door stamps - the Checkered Background stamp (which is enormous, but you can see I've just inked up a random area on it for this card), the Mesh Background stamp for the chipboard stars, and the happy birthday comes from the All Occasions set.

Here it is on its side so you can see how the happy birthday banner has been attached:

Thanks for looking in today!

Christmas in July

2011-07-19T11:09:00.000+10:00

Now there's a word that makes me panic - "Christmas." When it's followed by "in July" it's a little more approachable LOL

This is a layout I did for Down Under Direct, and all the details can be found on the Inspiration Blog.

Thanks for looking,

Published!

2011-07-17T11:37:00.000+10:00

I have a card set in the latest Cardmaking, Stamping and Papercraft:

The colours printed a little washed out - they had a little more blue on them:

Thanks for letting me toot :)

Circular card

2011-07-15T11:27:00.000+10:00

This is a card I made with my Lacey (not 'lazy') circles Nestabilities and JustRite stamps:

Everyone in the planet has probably worked this out by now, but I had an epiphany and realised a card can be any shape you can imagine, and to make it stand up, all you need to do is this:

Yeah - just a little score at the back, and glue above the score line to the card front. Too easy!

The full ingredients list can be found on the Down Under Direct Inspiration Blog. Thanks for dropping in today :)

Nestabilities and felt

2011-07-14T21:18:00.000+10:00

Paper and cardstock are not the only things you can cut with Nestabilities. Here's a little project I made for my girls using some felt and my circle dies:

It's simply a matter of cutting out the circles and leaves, stacking them and sticking them together with a little hot glue gun action. The button was stitched on with some floss. Here you can see the backside:

And when your models have abandoned you (gone to school), there's someone you can always rely on to sit still and wear whatever you put on her:

Wish she'd look happier - it's not like I asked her to load the dishwasher or anything!

A full list of products used can be found on the Down Under Direct Inspiration Blog. Thanks for stopping by!

Jake Layout

2011-07-14T21:07:00.000+10:00

I took this photo of Jake on the day of his First Communion. He looked so young and handsome, and so old and wise at the same time:

I made the embellishment (I'm a little loathe to call it a flower because it's a boy layout LOL) using my circle Nestabilities. There will be a tutorial posted about this in the near future on the Down Under Direct Inspiration Blog - I'll let you know when that happens.

Here's a close up of the embellishment - see the JustRite stamp I used underneath to frame it off?

The delicious chipboard scrolls are from Twiddleybitz.

Details about this layout, including a complete lists of ingredients can be found here.

Thanks for dropping in today.

Lunar eclipse

2011-07-14T20:58:00.000+10:00

Wow - I do have a lot to catch up on! This is a pic of the lunar eclipse we had on the 16th June:

Jake woke me up at some ungodly hour to come look at the red moon - the kid must have an internal alarm clock I tell ya! I ran back inside to get my camera, and I don't think my eyes were even open when I took this. I may even have nodded off during the 6 sec exposure LOL.

Back soon with some work to show.

Lynne's birthday card

2011-06-26T06:03:00.000+10:00

This is the card I made for my friend Lynne earlier this month:

I'm loving this colour scheme! The dark brown really sets it off. You might not be able to see very well, but I ran the brown circle through the Cuttlebug with the wood embossing folder by Tim Holtz. Here's a close up:

I used some beautiful MME paper, a Pink Paislee Artisan Element, a Prima hydrangea flower, and some Twinery twine. The rolled roses were made with a My Favorite Things die, and the leaves with an EK success punch. The stamp is Purple Onion.

Thanks for stopping in today.

A baby card....or two

2011-06-25T05:59:00.005+10:00

My friend is about to have a baby. I am convinced it's a boy, so I made this card:

I used the new Baby Word Block stamp and the new Mesh Background stamp. The letters on the banner came from the Word Block itself - I just stamped it in another colour to match the patterned paper). Here's a side view, so you can see that some sections are raised:

On account of the fact that I am conviced it's a boy, coupled with the fact that I have been 100% incorrect in my guesses on sex of babies for the past 20 years, I also made a card to cover the eventuality that it will be a girl:

and a side view:

Thanks for dropping in. I will let you know how I went with my guess ;)

Nature by iPhone

2011-06-24T08:00:00.009+10:00

While I was away at stamp camp last month, I took myself for a little walk around the property. It was a beautiful late autumn day, with lots of sunshine after a morning shower. I had no camera with me, but I did have my iPhone, which is what I used to capture some of the textures of nature for this layout:

Grasses, wood and pebbles. I used different shaped Nestabilities to mat each photo, and a different way to attach each photo - eyelet, string, staples etc. I used a stripped back piece of cardboard box in the centre of the layout - love all the texture!

I used a Thickers alpha for the main title, and a teeny little Labels One nestabilities die cut to record the place and date.

If you'd told me in high school that I would love working in brown and green, I would have laughed!

All of the materials I've used here are listed on the Down Under Direct Inspiration blog.

I'll leave you with another photo I took that day - it's becoming one of my favourites:

A Patchwork Orange

2011-06-23T06:43:00.000+10:00

I made this card for a class a while ago. I just found it in my miscellaneous card bucket - the bucket I send people to rummage through when they ask me to make them a card.

Despite being someone who hates little itty bitty bits of paper, I'm loving patchwork lately. I think I'll be repeating this design again soon.

Thanks for dropping in!

Stamp of the Month cards

2011-06-21T07:31:00.002+10:00

I run a class at Little Bits called Stamp of the Month. We make 4 or 5 cards with the featured stamp or stamp set, and then participants have the option of purchasing it at a discount. For May I chose a beautiful set of Hero Arts stamps called Sew Artsy:

Here are the cards we made:

Lots of variety in styles and colours. Something for everyone!

Thanks for dropping in.

A pink and white card for a friend

2011-06-19T08:00:00.001+10:00

I was chomping at the bit to use the Grand Nestabilities Scalloped Square dies. Here I've used the two largest dies to make the base for this card:

Scalloped all the way around - perfect! I used Labels Six for the centre piece that was stamped with a JustRite stamp from the Vintage Oval Labels set. See in the photo below that I mounted the words onto a scrap of chipboard to lift them off the card:

I used some scrunched seam binding and some hot fix crystals to embellish the card, after sponging the edges lightly with Antique Linen Distress Ink.

Thanks for stopping in for a look.

More than a little excited

2011-06-17T14:22:00.000+10:00

What's got this girl giddy today? Click here to find out.

Yahoo! My arm is getting sore - I keep pinching myself :)

Stay tuned - I'll have a project up here on the blog before you know it!

Copic project class at Little Bits

2011-06-17T09:43:00.000+10:00

Every now and again I run a project class at Little Bits. It's a good opportunity to consolidate the knowledge people have learned in other Copic classes and apply them to a project. Here's what we made in May:

Using Jenny Bowlin papers, we paper-pieced Marci's dress after colouring her hair and skin. The pearl strip and ribbon were recoloured with Copic markers (B95 or B97 from memory), and the window was cut with Nestabilities. There was lots of grumbling about all the careful cutting out (mostly from me LOL), but at the end of the class everyone was pleased with the result I think.

I'll post about the card we made in June very soon - I just need to take a photo of it.

A birthday card for Dad

2011-06-15T06:16:00.001+10:00

This is the card I made for Dad's birthday in May:

I made the card in time - I've just been slack in posting about it here on the blog.

I started with kraft cardstock and Webster's Pages paper. I added Twiddleybitz chipboard (tree and Itty Bitty Alpha) and the hot air balloon is from an ephemera pack from Pink Paislee.

Thanks for looking!

A colour challenge card

2011-06-13T08:00:00.001+10:00

This was a colour combo challenge Tracy sent me. Black, white, red and steel blue - isn't it elegant?

See the white border pieces at the top and bottom? They are what was left over when I cut out a scalloped square with a Grand Nestabilities die for another project.

I used a JustRite set called Signs of Life. I love that the stamps fit a Nestabilities die perfectly:

You can just make out in the photo above that I've embossed a Labels One shape around the blue piece.

I finished the card off with some seam binding coloured with a Copic marker, and that beautiful vintage button is called Sophia and made by Bazzill.

Details about what I've used for this card can be found on the Down Under Direct Inspiration blog.

Thanks for looking!

Australia's Copic Challenge card

2011-06-12T09:53:00.001+10:00

I decided at the very last minute to enter a card into the Copic Card Challenge. We had to use three certain colours and make a card, with an extra incentive prize if we used one of the gorgeous La-La Land stamps. Here's my card:

The winner is being announced at the Brisbane Show this weekend. I'm waiting to hear who that was.....

A box made with Nestabilities

2011-06-11T08:00:00.002+10:00

This is a box I put together using a couple of Nestabilities and JustRite Stamps:

I don't know what was more fun - putting the box together, or embellishing it. The absolute most fun was adding the hot set crystals. You can just make them out in the photo above.

This little box is going to a friend. It will be filled with seam binding, buttons and other supplies.

Details of what I used can be found on the Down Under Direct Inspiration blog.

Thanks for stopping by today :)