Hello Birdie (Silhouette)

Good afternoon!

I hope you are all still keeping well and safe. I've just finished another project for Papercrafter (one for my step by step pages) and before I type everything up and get it ready for posting I thought I would share another make with you.

This is a card I made for all the staff and residents at the care home where my mum lives. It was just to say hello and that I really appreciate what they do and how they look after mum so well. 

Mum and I have been face timing each other at lot lately. She does have a land line in her room but she's never in it! As she takes her lap top up to the communal area it means she can speak to me whenever she wants. The staff have been really good setting her up so she can log on to Facebook and get in touch. She says it is like I am just sitting in front of her!

Anyhoo, onto the card. This is another one created using the Silhouette.

What you need...

Silhouette image file: Bird on Branch #174334 - Miss Kate Cuttables

Font: Script MT Bold

Card stock: brown, pale blue, pale pink, red, yellow white

Self adhesive vinyl: black - Cricut

Gems: clear

Adhesives

What you do...

1 Purchase and download the image. Open the design page and add the image.

2 Re-size the bird image to suit. I sized it to fit a 6" square blank.

3 Send to cut in your chosen colours.

4 Use the text function to create the sentiment in the Script MT Bold font and cut in black vinyl.

5 Assemble the bird, branch and bird box and fix to the blank so the branch comes in from the right hand side edge.

6 Apply the vinyl wording with the help of transfer tape.

7 Add some gems to decorate.

The image used is £0.75 which isn't bad for how detailed it is. The font is free that you can use through Microsoft Word. I think if you have this on your PC then it will automatically shows on the Silhouette. 

Check out my 'Free Fonts' page to link you to a few websites that offer free fonts, there are hundreds to choose from. Please be aware that some fonts are only free for domestic use,  however there are still lots of free fonts available if you are planning to sell your makes. It is always best to check.

If you would like the pear/sentiments digi stamps from my last post, then please email through the 'Contact Me' page and I will send them to you. They are only available for a limited time.

Thank you for popping by and I hope you have a lovely Easter (as best as we can at the moment). At least this virus doesn't affect chocolate!

Pear-fect Couple of Pears! (Own illustration)

Hello blog friends!

For the last few years I really lost my creative mojo. I managed to still create for my magazine projects, but it has been a struggle. This meant creating for myself and my blog suffered a lot. At one point I didn't think I would experience being creative again. Well now I'm back with a vengeance!

This last few days I have been going crazy mad making cards and having so much fun. 

I have some dear friends John & Peter. They are celebrating their wedding anniversary this coming Wednesday. I decided to design and illustrate a special card for them with a cute Kawaii theme.

What you need...

Free pear digi stamp and sentiment - Cosmic Strawberry

Card stock: white

Patterned paper: green spotty

Copic: Yellow Green YG03, Celadon Green YG25, Pea Green YG63, Moss YG67, Light Walnut E57, Walnut E59, Sugared Almond Pink RV02

Glossy Accents - Ranger

Adhesives

What you do...

1 Download the image and sentiment. Open up a suitable program and import. Place the sentiment where desired. Re-size to suit. Print out onto white card stock.

2 Colour in the image.

3 Trim the image to 12cm square.

4 Cover a 15cm square blank with the spotty paper and mat the image centrally onto it. Finish with some glossy accent dots around the image.

If you would like a free copy of the image along with three sentiments, it will be available for a limited time until 23:55 BST,  31st May 2020. Just send me an email (my address is listed in the Contact Me page) and I will email the images back to you. The image and sentiments come both in PNG and JPEG formats.

The sentiments are 'To the most pear-fect couple!', 'We're pear-fect together!' and ' You're pear-fect together!'. Of course if you do get the image you can add your own sentiment if you wish.

I had such fun designing these. You could add little embellishments such as a little bow tie or hair bow cut from a scrap of card.

I'm going to sign off now. Stay safe and well and I'll be back soon with another cute make.

Warp Speed

Good afternoon blog friends!

I hope you are all still keeping well, safe and not going too stir crazy.

Before I show you my card, I just want to say that for some reason Blogger has messed up the reply function to comments, this has been going on for quite a while with no real fixes. Apparently this is a big problem for lots of blogs, especially older ones. A suggestion was made that you could completely change the theme of your blog to overcome the problem. I am sure that I am not the only one who spent a lot of time and energy into creating their blog, so I don't really want to go down that route. 

I have got round it by not embedding the comment box and changing it so that it opens in a different window. As I can't reply I will leave a separate comment myself. Aaargh!

Righto, on to the important stuff. I do have a couple of more cards made using the Silhouette, but I did this one the other day and I am so excited to share it with you.

What you need...

Card stock: white
Stamp: Space Cadet - Paper Smooches
Ink pads: Sapphire - Avery Elle; Extreme Black - My Favorite Things
Copic: Pinkish White R00, Cherry White R000, Vermillion R08, New Leaf YG23, Nile Blue BG45, Cool Grey #1 C-1, Acacia Y04, Apricot YR16
Gel pen: Gelly Roll Stardust Clear #700 - Sakura; Signo Broad White UM-153 - Uni-ball
Masking paper: Stamp Masking Paper - Inkadinkado
Adhesives

What you do...

1 Hand cut a rough edged semi-circle of masking paper and attach to the bottom of white card 10cm x 14cm.

2 Stamp the images onto the card, stamp again onto masking paper, cut out and apply over each image.

3 Use the Sapphire ink and blend over the piece of card, leaving areas a little bit lighter.

4 Remove the masking paper and colour in the images.

5 Use the white gel pen to add stars and planets. 

6 Stamp the sentiment at the base in the semi-circle. Highlight the sentiment with the Stardust gel pen and some of the stars/planets.

7 Mat onto a 10.5cm x 14.5cm white blank.

I haven't made this card for anyone in particular. I am trying to do my makes using old supplies from my stash rather than keep purchasing new ones. This stamp set hasn't been used in a while and I thought the sentiment was perfect.

A thoroughly good time was had making this card and I'm really pleased with the way it turned out. 

The thing I love about Paper Smooches stamp sets is that they always have unusual, quirky and different wording/sentiments.

Thank you for popping by, keep well and I'll be back soon.

Happy Mother's Day - Silhouette Cameo

Good afternoon blog friends!

My it's cold and windy out there today - brrr! Poor chickens are getting blown around the garden.

This post I would like to show you the card I made for my mum for Mother's Day. Sadly I couldn't visit her as she lives in a care home in the North Yorkshire Dales and with the restrictions in place it meant it was a no go. I did send her a little goodie box to enjoy as well.

I am having a run with the Silhouette at the moment, there are just too many cute designs!

It seems that Zuzu the cat keeps getting in on the picture at the moment. She does like to be in all and everything.

What you need...

Silhouette image file: Heart with Flowers #314131 - Little Luxuries Loft

Silhouette font: PN Popsicle Day Bold #305510 - ScrapNfonts

Self adhesive vinyl: black - Cricut

Card stock: pink, pale pink, red, dark green, red, white

Transfer tape: Cricut

Adhesives

What you do...

1 Purchase and download the image. Open the design page and add the image.

2 Re-size the heart image to suit. I sized it to fit a 6" square blank.

3 Send to cut in your chosen colours.

4 Use the text function to create the sentiment in the Popsicle Bold Font and cut in black vinyl.

5 Assemble the heart and flowers and fix to the top of the blank.

6 Apply the vinyl wording with the help of transfer tape.

I chose to keep the colours in the sample by Silhouette as I thought they were adorable, but of course you can use any colours you want.

At the moment the font is reduced to £1.13 instead of the usual £2.25 and the Heart with Flowers is £0.37 instead of £0.75. The sale ends on 31st March, so get in quick! There are hundreds of images with 50% off in their Thank You Event. Even without an event on, I think the prices of images are very reasonable. There are just so many!

Even if you don't have a Silhouette, I think you could easily replicate this make using simple heart and flowers dies in your stash.

My mum loved the card and the goodies even more! Hope you like the card too, I'm really pleased with the way it turned out.

I'm going to go now, but I have some more cards coming up also using the Silhouette Cameo. Thank you for popping by! 

St. Patrick's Day - Lucky Friend - Silhouette Cameo

Hello blog friends!

I hope that you are all keeping well and safe in these difficult times.

I have two dear friends June & Stephen that I truly love and adore. Stephen is Irish (June is Irish by proxy!) and it's tradition that I send a St. Patrick's Day card every year. 

This year I wanted to do something a little different just to let them know how much they mean to me. I had to wait a couple of days to post this up until I knew they received the card as I know they read my blog.

Great fun was had going through the Silhouette Design Store looking for images, there are literally 100's of St. Patrick's Day images and wording. Most of the images are £0.75 but leading up to St. Patrick's Day they had an offer on and images were reduced by 50%. So £0.37 - bargain! 

Then I came across the design which I thought was perfect.

When I photographed the card, Zuzu was in the background and I had to have her in the photo - supervising!

What you need...

Silhouette image file: Good Friend - Four Leaf Clover #315626 - Jamie Lane Designs 

Self adhesive vinyl: black, green - Cricut

Transfer tape: Cricut

Cardstock: white

What you do...

1 Purchase and download the image. Open the design page and add the image.

2 Re-size to suit.

3 Cut the wording in black vinyl and the clover leaves in the green vinyl. Weed away the excess.

4 Use transfer tape to pick up the image from the backing paper.

5 Create a 15cm square blank and carefully line up the image and rub across the transfer tape to distribute the image. Make sure the image is flat with no air bubbles.

I found it easier to do the lettering first and then add the clover leaves after. Transfer is a God send if you are doing lettering on a project.

I love to use vinyl when doing a card with a lot of wording, it cuts very cleanly and you don't have any fiddly gluing to contend with.

Needless to say June & Stephen loved the card :)

Thank you for popping by, please take care, keep safe and look out for those that need a bit of extra help at the moment.

Feel Better Soon

Hello blog friends!

I'm back with another cute little make. A friend of mine isn't too good at the moment and is feeling pretty lousy, so I thought I would make him a little card.

I am a big, big fan of Paper Smooches and have quite a collection of their stamps, so I delved through them all to find the wonderful Healthy Vibes set.

What you need...

Stamps: Healthy Vibes - Paper Smooches

Embossing ink: Clear Ultra Slow Drying Embossing Pad - WOW!

Embossing powder: Detail Clear - Stampendous

Copic markers: E50 Egg Shell, E51 Milky White, RV00 Water Lily, RV02 Sugared Almond Pink

Card stock: aqua

Ink pad: Extreme Black - My Favorite Things

Masking paper: Stamping Mask Paper - Inkadinkado

Adhesives

What you do...

1 Cut a 9.5cm square of aqua card. Mask off an area near the bottom of the card where you want the sentiment to be.

2 Stamp the plaster randomly over the card with the clear embossing ink. Cover with the embossing powder and heat set.

3 Remove the mask and stamp the sentiment with black ink.

4 Stamp the plaster and colour in. Cut out and attach above the sentiment with foam pads.

5 Mat the panel onto a white 10cm square blank.

I find that when heating the embossing powder, it is best to do it from the back of the card. This gives you a bit more control and stops the powder over heating. 

I did use this stamp set years ago for some fun makes in Crafts Beautiful. I managed to find a photo showing one of the cards I made.

Image Copyright Crafts Beautiful

I have just finished making a couple of cards using the Silhouette, so I will be back soon with those. One is a St Patrick's Day card (June if you are reading this you know that is for you and Stephen and will be winging it's way to you soon). The other is a Mother's Day card as here in the UK Mother's Day falls on the 22nd March.

Well, I'm going to sign off for now. Thank you for stopping by. TTFN!

Rainbow Thanks - Silhouette Cameo

Hello blog friends!

I'm back with the rainbow card I promised. I made this for a friend who had bought me cute little Jack Sparrow key ring (she knows I love Pirates of the Caribbean and Johnny Depp). 

It is a simple, yet cute card using Doodlebug Designs available on the Silhouette Cameo.

What you need...

Silhouette image file: Rainbow with Clouds #185512 (Fairy Tales Collection) - Doodlebug Designs

Card stock: pink, dark pink, orange, yellow, lime, blue, white

Stamps: Many Thanks - Paper Smooches

Ink pad: Onyx Black - Versafine

Gems: clear

Adhesives

What you do...

1 Purchase and download the image design. Place on the design screen and re-size to suit.

2 Send the design to cut in the relevant shades of card stock.

3 Assemble the rainbow and clouds and stamp a sentiment on the right hand cloud.

4 Position the design onto an A6 top fold white landscape blank and secure in place. Finish with some gems on the clouds.

This was quite and easy one to assemble, so it didn't take too long to make. After all the lousy weather we've had lately, I thought this was a perfect cheery card.

If you love cute Kawaii designs, then Doodlebug Design is perfect. What is so good about their designs and papercraft items is that they stick to the same colour palette throughout, so it easy to mix and match their products.

I hope you like this cute little make and I'll be back with another cute card, this one being a feel better soon card.

Thanks for stopping by!

Simple Flower - Rare Earth Stamps - Crafts Beautiful March 2020

Hi blog friends!

If you hurry, you can pick up the latest copy of Crafts Beautiful which includes a free bunny/Spring themed stamp set by Rare Earth.

I did a few makes for the issue, including this simple floral card. I kept it in my usual style of clean and simple with a limited colour palette of white and blue.

Image copyright Crafts Beautiful

If you are looking for Easter or Spring inspiration, then look no further than this issue. It is jam packed. I particularly love the crocheted bunny ear egg cosies - so cute. There are lots of interesting features and some fab giveaways plus free backing papers of which you can download and print too.

To download the free papers, templates and see more projects, click here to take you to the Crafts Beautiful website. You will need to register, but it is free and simple to do.

Hope you like my little card and I'll be back soon with a cute rainbow make. Thanks for stopping by!

Elegant Floral

Hello blog friends!

I have decided to use more of my old stash rather than keep buying new stuff (how long that will last I don't know).

Even though I've had the items used for this card for some time, I still have listed what they are and the brand, as some of you may have them or you might be able to track them down through the power of the internet.

I usually do fun and quirky, but this time I felt like doing something more feminine and elegant.

What you need...

Patterned paper: Expressions 12" x 12" Paper Pad - Kaisercraft

Dies: Tim Holtz Plaque & Postage On The Edge Die (656628) - Sizzix; Craft Asylum Thinlits Layering Daisy (660485) - Sizzix

Stamps: Life Sentiments (CS763) - Kaisercraft

Ink pad: Extreme Black - My Favorite Things

Punch: corner rounder

Twine: white

Button: aqua

Adhesives

What you do...

1 Die cut the plaque from bold floral paper and adhere to the top of a 10.5cm x 14.5cm top fold white blank.

2 Cut a rectangle of coordinating paper 5cm x 8cm and fix to the top of the blank on the right hand side.

3 Die cut the layering daisy in another coordinating paper and fix to the bottom of the rectangular panel.

4 Stamp the sentiment under the rectangular panel.

5 Wrap and tie three lengths of twine around the top of the blank.

6 Thread and tie twine through the button and stick to the centre of the flower. Round the corners of the bottom of the blank.

I got the inspiration for the layout of this blank from Retrosketches. Sadly this blog hasn't updated since 2016, but there are over two hundred sketches/layouts for you cards to choose from with some inspirational makes.

I hope you like this little make. Don't forget you can use any stamps, papers and dies from your stash.

Thank you for popping by - TTFN!

Free Animal Pun Digi Stamps

Hello blog friends!

In a recent issue of PaperCrafter I designed some adorable digi stamps themed around cute animals. There is a cat, llama, sheep, toad and a cow. Along with the images there are also some pun sentiments included such as 'You're the cat's pyjamas!', 'No prob-llama!' and 'Love ewe!'.

I also created five cards to highlight the images and some of the puns. 

Image copyright PaperCrafter

You can download the digi stamps for free by clicking here. This will take you to the free animal pun digi stamp page on the PaperCrafter website. You will need to sign up, but it is free, quick and easy.

The website is jam packed with projects and ideas plus there are lots of other free downloads such as templates and patterned papers.

Why not pop on over to PaperCrafter for a look? There are lots more digi stamps available including some more that I have previously designed for past issues such as birdies and houses.

Thank you for popping by and I hope to be back soon!