Circular Side Step Easter Penny Black card

Hi blogging friends

Happy Easter!  It is the beginning of school holidays here in Victoria and it will be wonderful to spend time together as a family.   My garden is also desperately needing some work having not had much done other than the basics such as trimming edges, mowing the lawn and the occasional bit of pruning over the past year due to the ongoing care of my loved one.   I love bulbs and being autumn here, it is time to plant them so I had better grab some from my nearest nursery and pop them in the ground before it is too late!  Great rewards for such little effort and I like something that I don't have to worry about watering because I forget to water things all the time......oops.....anyway, I am digressing as usual.......

Each year, I make an Easter card for my daughter and this year, I thought I would try and make a different shaped card.  I have seen a lot of various styles of Stepper Cards around blogland and looked for a tutorial for a Circular Side Step card.  I found a fantastic tutorial from a blog "From my Craft Room" by Norma - and thankfully, Norma had a step-by-step detailed photo tutorial and I was able to make the card after a few false starts trying to get the base right.  No mean feat for someone like me who is pretty useless at understanding how to make anything other than a basic shaped card!  You can check out Norma's tutorial HERE.  Thanks Norma!

I used my Big Shot and largest circle die from my Lifestyle (formerly Quickutz) Nesting Circle Die Set to cut the buttercream circle base.  From there, I followed Norma's tutorial but cut the slit 2.5cm (or 1 inch if you are imperial) from the circle centre and used my Scor Pal for the scoring.  I then used my 2nd largest die and diecut the Doodlebug designer paper (which has been in my stash forever) and then proceeded as per the buttercream circle base and attached it to the circle base. 

I stamped the adorable Penny Black Bunny Kiss image onto watercolour paper with Versafine Vintage Sepia ink and coloured the image with Derwent Watercolour pencils and a small round #2 paintbrush.  I chalked around the sky with blue chalk and the ground with a mix of brown, grey and green chalk.  Here is a close-up of the image:

I added some Kindyglitz Crystalina glitter glue to the orange flowers as well as the bunny's and chick's cheek.  I punched some tiny hearts using my EK Success Arrows border punch (they are the leftover punchies that look like tiny hearts to me) using green, orange and buttercream cardstock and glued them on with Tombow glue.

Probably the hardest thing I found with the card was how to embellish it to make it all look 'balanced' because it was so different to my regular cards and out of my comfort zone.  In the end, I settled for something simple and just added the organza ribbon and the 3 coloured buttons.  The buttons have had matching sewing thread sewn through and then glued them onto the card with Crafter's Pick Incredibly Tacky glue.  The ribbon was attached in 2 separate elements and the bow itself was made with my Bow Easy.  I added some Fray Stop to the cut ribbon edges.

The sentiment is by Lili of the Valley (UK) and was stamped with Versafine Vintage Sepia ink.  The tiny flower on each side of the sentiment panel was coloured with watercolour pencils and then had some Kindyglitz added.  This sentiment panel was diecut using my Spellbinder Circle and Scalloped Circle Nestabilities.  Here is photo at a different angle of my card:

Here is a photo of the inside:

The sentiment on the card inside is by Pink Gem Designs and was stamped with Vintage Sepia Ink.  I used my Martha Stewart Looped Hearts edge punch to punch hearts in the same colour cardstock as the tiny hearts on the card front and then added some Kindyglitz.

The white sentiment panel was diecut and scored as per the card front but using a smaller circle die, but I trimmed off a section on the far right-hand side because when you closed the card front, that part of the white cardstock was visible and it didn't look very nice:  I thought it looked a lot better by just having the buttercream cardstock visible.

Here is a photo of the back of the card:

The 'Handmade by Jocelyn' stamp I had made by Jemac Rubber Stamps who are located in Sydney, Australia.

Challenges:

I am entering my card in the following challenges -

The Squirrel and the Fox Challenge #40 - Easter or Passover

Simon Says Stamp Challenge - Anything Goes

Splitcoaststampers Technique Lovers Challenge TLC418 - Gotta Love Circles

Splitcoaststampers March Fan Club challenge - Central Theme of 'Just Hatched' and 'Word Play' (sorry I can't give you any more details on the Fan Club challenge as you have to be a member of the Fan Club)

Thanks for stopping by!  Wishing you a very Happy Easter!

Jocelyn


Card Recipe:

Stamps:   Penny Black Bunny Kiss! 2563H wood mount, round sentiment by LOTV from their Set 7 - Circular Sentiments (card front), Easter Wishes (card inside) Pink Gem Designs, Custom-made stamp on back of card by Jemac Rubber Stamps Australia

Ink:  Versafine Vintage Sepia

Designer Paper:  Doodlebug Design Inc 1706 citrus squeeze polka dots

Accessories:    Big Shot, Lifestyle Nesting Circles + Nesting Scalloped Circles, Spellbinder Circle + Scalloped Circle Nestabilities, lemon organza ribbon with white dots, Bow Easy, Fray Stop, Scor-Pal, 140lb watercolour paper, #2 round paintbrush, Derwent watercolour pencils, Kaisercolour chalks, Kindyglitz Crystalina glitter glue, 3 x buttons from stash with matching sewing thread, Crafter's Pick Incredibly Tacky glue, Tombow glue, cardstock - buttercream, pale green, pale orange, white

Punches:  EK Success Arrows border, Martha Stewart Looped Hearts edge

A masculine 90th birthday card

Hi blogging friends,

Last January, I needed to make a 100th masculine birthday card but I chickened out and bought one.  Masculine cards are difficult at the best of times, but a 100th masculine fried my brain and I just couldn't think of anything that I could do for the occasion.  And of course I left it to the last minute to buy one that cost over $6.00 but was such a simple card that I wondered why I hadn't thought of it!  D'oh (as Homer Simpson would say)!!  I had to pay more than what I wanted too because most of the 100th birthday sentiments on the card insides that I checked out sounded more like a sympathy card rather than celebrating such a momentous occasion.  Things like:  'As you look back on cherished memories....."   I don't know - it just didn't fit my recipient as he was as sharp as a tack and worked well into his 90's and was still able to memorize and recite a whole page of technical jargon!   Guess card companies have the same problem as me as I am often stumped to know what to say and after 10 minutes of ruminating and asking DH (who usually just shrugs his shoulders and says "dunno"), I usually write something that sounds so dull and unimaginative like "Happy birthday" - not very original!

So, when faced with a 90th masculine birthday card to send to our cousin in Wales, I was determined to make my own.  And after much searching, I remembered a Scalloped Medallion Tutorial that I had seen over at Splitcoaststampers ages ago (but never got around to doing) which I thought would add a little pizazz to a fairly plain and simple card.  I had also seen Nancy Riley from her blog iStamp make a layered one which I really loved - see this card by Nancy which lists the same measurements for the punched squares of cardstock that I used.  And you can find the SCS tutorial at this link here.  Please note, if you are not a member of Splitcoaststampers, you will not be able to bring up the tutorial.

And this is the card that I ended up with:

I will say that you must be very, very accurate at cutting out the squares of the cardstock layers if you are doing a layered medallion like I did on my card as if you don't, they will not match up very well after punching them which can be very frustrating and they don't look right; it's like seeing a picture hanging crooked on a wall (I am one of those people who has to straighten the picture or it makes me crazy!)   Even a little bit out with your measurements DOES make a difference.  I popped my medallion is up on dimensionals.  It is hard to tell from the photo, but the dark teal layer has been punched with the scalloped border punch just like the duck egg blue layer - it just doesn't show up well.

In a perfect world, I would have had a number 90 in some Thickers (self-adhesive numbers/alphabet sets) on the medallion that matched the cardstock perfectly but none of my sets did, so I just used an old Penny Black sentiment stamp instead which luckily, was just the right size.  This sentiment was stamped with Colorbox Peacock pigment ink and heat-embossed with clear embossing powder.  I lightly inked around the sentiment panel with the same ink.

Just to add a little something to the card but was not over-the-top, I added the 3 green buttons underneath which is old shop stock I inherited from my family's haberdashery business and are over 30 years old.  I had to also keep in mind that the card was going overseas and needed to not be too bulky or it would get damaged or cost alot to post if I had to send it as a parcel in a padded box/bag.

I was actually quite happy with how it turned out in the end after a few mis-punched medallions that ended up in the bin because they didn't line up!  Simple and stylish and easy to make - now that I know how.  Our cousin was so pleased that the card was handmade especially for him, that he rang me here in Australia all way from Wales to say how much he appreciated it.   How awesome!! That sure made my day!! and so glad that I didn't buy a card instead!

Challenges:

I am entering my card in the following challenge -

The Sisterhood of Crafters - Stripes - use striped paper on your card/project.

Thanks for stopping by!  Have a fab weekend!

Jocelyn

Card Recipe:

Stamps:  Penny Black - 417E A Birthday Wish - released 1997 (retired)

Ink:  Colorbox Peacock pigment

Designer paper:  Little Yellow Bicycle - Vita Bella Collection - Green and Blue Stripes (2008)

Accessories:  Dimensionals, heat-gun, clear embossing powder, 3 x green buttons, green sewing thread, cardstock - dark teal, white, duck egg blue

Punches:  Fiskars scalloped border

Inkadinkado Standing Seagull - a masculine birthday card

Hi blogging friends

If you read my last blog post about my wrist and having cortisone injected into it and not being able to craft after it for a little while - well, I had to cancel my doctor's appointment as my DD has been sick with a nasty cold which just won't go away - poor little thing.  So I have been housebound and managed to do a bit of cardmaking here and there.  My wrist will have to wait until my DD is all better and back at school.

Anyhow, I finished a birthday card for my DH whose birthday is next month.  I have been having a play with my Derwent Inktense watercolour pencils which is what I coloured my image with and boy - I sure do love them.  The colour is so vibrant and really brings things to life!  They do take a bit of getting used to in comparison to my regular Faber Castell watercolour pencils.  Once I had finished colouring, I added a little bit of clear Sakura glaze onto the seagull's eye, beak and legs - alas, completely oblivious in the photo - but adds a bit of shine in real life.

Because I had chosen a "sea" image, I wanted to make a frame that kind of looked like a porthole so I diecut an oval with 2 oval nesties, added the brads, then popped this frame up on doublesided foam pads.  Here is a wee close-up of the image - you can click on the image for a bigger pic if you wish:

The designer paper is by My Mind's Eye - Stella Rose.  Gorgeous papers - and even though a lot of them have flowers, the non-flowery ones are just so perfect for a masculine birthday card IMHO.  I decided to add some stitching just to add a bit of texture.  I pierced the holes with a paper piercer then hand-sewed all the stitches - yep, all hand-sewn.

The side panel was punched with a Martha Stewart Embossed Diamond edge punch then I added some rope tied in a sailor's knot.  I learnt how to do the sailor's knot from Lynne Phelps blog Savvy Sisters Studio (thanks so much!).  This type of knot is also called The Anchor Bend, Carrick Bend and Full Carrick Bend.  According to the description on this website, it's easy to tie, does not slip easily in the wet, and is among the strongest of knots - it can't jam and is readily untied - and I actually used four pieces of rope instead of two as two just seemed to look "lost" on the panel - the four made for a bolder statement.  Both this side panel and the main image are up on doublesided foam pads.

To finish, I tied the same rope through the button then glued the button on, then glued on the "happy birthday" metal sentiment which I have had forever.  I got it free with an order from some store that I bought something from ages ago.  I "think" they are by Print Blocks; they came in a pack with other sentiments like Happy New Year, and Happy Christmas etc. but I no longer have the packaging so I can't be sure.  If you know, drop me a comment or an email and I'll update this post.  Here is a close-up - pretty cool tag isn't it?  So perfect for a masculine card - and I was so rapt that it matched the brads - a happy coincidence:

I am entering this card into the following challenges -

A Spoon Full of Sugar - Challenge #159 - Sewing (faux or real)

Allsorts Challenge Blog - Week 111 - Free and Easy July - Anything goes

Papertake Weekly Challenge - Anything goes with the optional extra of buttons

Simon Says Stamp Challenge - A stitch in time - real or faux

Thanks for stopping by my little world and thank you so much for any comments you leave  

If you are short of time, scroll right down to the end of this post past the Card Recipe and you will see a heading that says "Reactions" where you can just click on an automatic comment.  This is something I only just recently added and thought it was pretty cool for busy people especially those on DT Challenge blogs that are visiting all the entrant's blogs - what a huge task!  So it's easy to just do one click and your done and you can move onto someone else's blog.

I have been working on a "Welcome to your new home" card for my BIL and SIL who have moved states and built their retirement dream home by the sea so I hope to share this in my next post.

Jocelyn

Card Recipe:

Stamps:  Inkadinkado Standing Seagull INKA-99205-DD wood mounted

Ink:  Versafine Onyx black

Designer paper:  My Mind's Eye Stella Rose 6" x 6" pad

Accessories:  Cuttlebug, Spellbinder Oval Nestabilities, 140lb watercolour paper, Derwent Inktense pencils, small round #2 paintbrush, paper piercer, teal sewing thread + sewing needle, Sakura clear glaze pen, doublesided foam pads (dimensionals), clear blue button - from Basic Grey Granola set, string, Happy Birthday metal tag - Printblocks (?), brads by Printblocks, Cardstock:  teal, mustard

Punches:  Martha Stewart embossed diamond

Kaisercraft English Rose textured lady's card with hand-dyed seam binding

Hi and thanks for stopping by :-)

I have seen a few of this style of card in various places on the web and as the Splitcoaststampers Fan Club April theme is 'Oh so shapely', it give me the perfect excuse to have a go at one myself.  Plus I have been wanting to use some seam binding that I dyed myself to match the gorgeous Kaisercraft English Rose designer papers.  I used JoSonja acrylic goache mixed with JoSonja Textile Medium in the ratio of 1 : 1.  Super-simple and easy.

So, back to my card......it is pretty simple.  I ran the brown-burgundy cardstock through my Cuttlebug using the larger Jamara embossing folder then I lightly sanded the embossing to make it stand out more and sprayed on a little pearl Glimmer Mist.

I used my Martha Stewart Doily Lace punch to punch the borders on the designer paper (note I used the 6" x 6" pad of papers) then ran them through my Cuttlebug using the same Jamara embossing folder which "distressed" them a little.  I then adhered them together with doublesided tape but made sure that I didn't stick down the decorative border.  I bent them up slightly so they would stand out more.

I added 2 different sized Kaiser Blush pearls which have the slightest tinge of pink along the very bottom layer of the dp's.  I punched a butterfly with my Martha Stewart Monarch butterfly punch, ran it through the Cuttlebug too with the same folder, sprayed on some pearl Glimmer Mist and added some Blush pearls to the centre.  Here is a close-up of the butterfly - you can see the sheen from the Glimmer Mist on the cardstock a little better in this photo:-

Did you notice the rose + leaves in the centre of the ribbon bow?  Drum roll.......I made it myself!  Yep, all by myself with a piece of cream ribbon (and olive green for the leaves).  Yay me!!   Here is a wee close-up:-

I have wanted to make these roses forever and found a video on You Tube that I could actually understand.  It did take me an evening to practice/play around with it and eventually was able to get to grips with it (even if it isn't perfect).  I sewed the bottom of the rose as I went so it didn't unravel but I imagine in time, you would probably be able to do it right through and only sew it at the end.  The wider the ribbon, the easier it is and if you use wire-edged ribbon, it is heaps easier (mine is just regular ribbon though).    Here is the You Tube video I used and here is a visual  from the Craft Critique blog of how you actually start to fold the ribbon over - scroll down till you see the pink folded ribbon rose - you just keep folding the ribbon in the same way and keep going round and round till you are happy with the size of the rose.

The rose leaves were made by folding a small piece of olive green ribbon into a figure 8 then sewing it to the bottom of the rose so the ribbon ends are hidden in the centre.  I then glued it to the seam binding bow with Fabric glue.   Pretty cool, huh - even if I do say so myself?!!!

I attached the pink seam binding ribbon in 2 separate elements and the bow itself was made with my Bow Easy.  I kept thinking I should add a flourish somewhere on the card or add a sentiment - and actually spent longer trying to figure out if I should add anything extra than it took to make the rest of the card!!  In the end, I drew a blank and left the card as is.

Challenges:

Apart from the SCS Fan Club Challenge, I am entering my card into the following challenges -

Crop Stop Challenge #15 - Vintage Finish - where they want you to show them how you get inspired by "Vintage".  This is my own interpretation of Vintage - maybe not fitting the style that other people have.  One day I will get to grips with the whole torn and ripped edge and uneven stitching thingy..........hard 'cos I'm a neat-freak......!

Frosted Designs Fabulous Friday Challenge where this week they want you make a card, layout or a project using a homemade/handmade embellishment.  My handmade/homemade embellies are my hand-dyed seam binding ribbon and the folded ribbon rose.

Jocelyn

Card Recipe:

Stamps:  None

Ink:  None

Designer paper:  Kaisercraft English Rose 6" x 6" paper pad

Accessories:  Cuttlebug, Jamara embossing folder, cream seam binding (dyed pink) - 19mm or 9/16" wide, Pearl Glimmer Mist, Kaiser pearls - SB716 Blush, Fabric glue, sandpaper, Cardstock - brown/burgundy, Bow Easy, Folded ribbon rose - cream ribbon 3/8" or 10mm wide + cream sewing thread and sewing needle, olive green ribbon 1/4" or 7mm wide.

Punches:  Martha Stewart Doily Lace edge, Martha Stewart Monarch Butterfly

A Christmas Explosion box !

Hi and thanks for visiting :-)

I did a workshop at a new local store about 10 days ago to make this 'Explosion Box'.  

About 2 years ago, I bought an Explosion Box kit from another place after seeing one made up, and was keen to open up the kit and get cracking - except that once I read the instructions and sat there and frowned alot and thought that my head would probably explode instead of the box, I packed it all up again and put it aside {sigh}.  That's not to say that the instructions were hard to follow - I'm just not very good with instructions - I'm more of a visual person who needs to watch someone do it step-by-step, and then I'll be fine.   Mine is a little rough - some panels aren't quite on straight and I smudged the sentiment, but I'm just keeping it as a sample so that doesn't matter.  Using a Scor-Pal made the whole process very easy!

The designer paper is the new Basic Grey Jovial range and the bow on top was made using Sizzix Bigz Die - Bow, Create-a-Bow #656544.   There are three different sized dies in the pack to make the bow - you diecut several of each size and then you use a brad to hold them in while you are putting it together (quite fiddly!).  The workshop teacher put this die thru her Cuttlebug but I don't know what sandwich she used (I didn't even know you could use the Sizzix Bigz dies in the CB).  

The next pic of the box is after you take the lid off to (partially) reveal the folded layers of cardstock/designer paper:

And the next two pics are the inside once you open it right out.  You will see that there are two layers of cardstock:  the burgundy plus the brown - the brown cardstock is cut slighlty smaller than the burgundy, otherwise the box won't close:

I'm not sure who made the sentiment - it may possibly be Stampin' Up.  If you do know, drop me an email or leave a comment, and I'll update this post.

The tags are supposed to have little photos or a handwritten message on them - or whatever you like - and I have seen one of these boxes with lots of family photos instead of having the tags and the bit they tuck into. The tags were diecut with a Sizzix Bigz Die - Tag, Super Crescent #656341 which was also put through the Cuttlebug.

I did an Internet Search to find some instructions for you - as I don't think I could explain it without a step-by-step tutorial and accompanying photos. 

Here is a tutorial by Marie Aviza (her lid is deeper than mine but the rest of the box is virtually the same), and here is a tutorial on Splitcoaststampers (you have to be a member of Splitcoasters to be able to view this tutorial).  If you Google "Explosion Box tutorial", you will bring more variations on the theme and there seems to be some videos on You Tube (I haven't watched them so I can't vouch for them being easy to follow etc).

Thanks again for stopping by - back in a few days!

Jocelyn

ETA:  Thank you to "Writer's Stamp" who identified that the stamp is from a set by Stampin' Up called "Solemn Stillness" circa 2004.