Magical Moonlight

Morning Everyone. Today I am sharing a card I made for the launch of Joanna Sheen's wonderful Fairy Door Dies on Create and Craft on Thursday. The detail in these dies is superb, from the wooden grain detail to the little extras, such as the door furniture, foliage and flowers.

For the base of this card I have used one of the papers from the Josephine Wall project book from Joanna Sheen. Before printing the sheet I added a large moon mask to the sky, so it would remain white.

Next, I added the skyline to the background using a mask from Clarity and Black Soot Distress Ink. I also used one of the Clarity Alphabets to stamp the words across the moon and sky.

I cut the fairy door and small fairies from Matt black cardstock, then added silver gilding wax to add a little moonlight and enhance the details.

I cut down the background in line with the skyline mounted onto some purple mirror card before layering onto my card base made with white pearl card.

Here is the finished card. I do hope you like the card and the step by step I have shared today.

There is plenty more to come, so do visit again. Take care and Happy Crafting.xx

Joanna Sheen, Launch Sneek Peeks

Morning, In addition to my normal post, I am also treating you to a couple of Sneek Peeks of the samples I made for a New Launch from Joanna Sheen. Joanna is launching her fabulous Fairy Door Dies today on Create and Craft at 12 Noon with another show today at 6 pm. Tomorrow there are  two more shows at 11 am and 3 pm, I really do hope that you will tune in as Joanna is celebrating 15 Years with Create and Craft.

I will be sharing my samples from Saturday onward with full step by steps including photos. Also on the show will be Joanna Sheen's Cardmaking Boxed Set, containing an embossing folder, a lovely stencil, a beautiful daffodil die and a sheet of super flower stamps, not to mention all of the inspirational step by steps. Please do check it out.

The doors really are wonderful, the detail in them is amazing along with all of the extras that accompany them. For now Take care and Happy Crafting.xx

Coffee Break.....

Morning. It's all very exciting, Leonie is Launching her new stamps tomorrow night at 8pm on Hochanda. It's a one day Special, get in quick as her last stamps sold out so quickly. In my blog post for tomorrow, I will share some of the samples I have made and it will go live at 8 to coincide with the first show. 

For today I am sharing another House Mouse card, this time it's a decoupage project. It's a large card (A4) great for a special card.

To start I made an A4 card using an A3 piece of Centura Pearl, it's a quality card, gives an expensive feel and has the strength you need for a base, you could use a pre made A4 card blank.

Once I had assembled the lovely House Mouse decoupage image, I added a mat in cream approximately 3 mm, Just to make the image stand out a little more. I then matted an layered it onto some Co ordinations Chocolate Box card which I had embossed (Couture Creations Intrinsic swirls) and sanded back. This matt was about 1 cm at the top and sides but 4 cm at the bottom. Then I used the same cream cardstock as a mat for this. I actually gutted the larger cream matt, which gave the right size for the topper.

I took a piece of cream card 3 mm smaller than my base card and added my background paper to to this, also 3 mm smaller than the cream card. I added my background paper. I wrapped some raffia around the bottom right hand corner and secured at the back and added a raffia bow. Then stuck this to my base card using tape and glue gel.

I decided to carry on the theme of the topper, therefore I brought the hessian through onto the card as well. I secured it to my card about 1'' from the top and covered about 2 thirds of the card and rolled it back on itself on a slant and secured with PVA. Then I added my topper as shown in my photo. I also made two mini hessian sacks, filled them polystyrene and topped off with coffee beans, this gives a nice scent and matches the topper. 

To finish off the card I made some paper roses from the Chocolate box Co ordinations card, which I embossed and sanded back as before. One large and two smaller.

I hope you like this special card. Thank you so much for your continued support. I love reading your comments, they do mean a lot to me. I love sharing what I d and I am so glad you are enjoying it.

Hope you stop by tomorrow evening at 8pm to see the previews of Leonie Pujols Launch samples. I will be sharing lots of step by steps from Thursday. Take care xxx

Faux Enamelled Embossed Card

Morning, Thank you for dropping by to see today's card. I think it's a simple but very effective card and looks lovely against the black. The card is made using just one embossing folder. The one I used was from Joanna Sheen, but you could use any one of your favourite folders.

The design was embossed onto 300gsm Suer Smooth white card and I used the de-bossed side for this. The design was all coloured in using Alcohol markers in bright colours, not too loght though or the effect doesn't look enamelled. The debossed areas were then filled with glossy accents. When dry I changed the remaining white card to black using Black Distress Ink.

My base is double sided black pearl card-stock, before scoring I used Spellbinders Deckled Edge rectangle dies to cut windows and edged them with a gold Krylon pen. Finally I added the embossed card to fill the windows and finished off with a simple sentiment and glossy black peel offs.

Thank you so much for visiting again today and I really hope that you will pop back soon. Take care. xx

Three House Mouse Card

Morning,Thank you for popping by to see my blog and welcome back. I thought it would be nice to a share a few simple cards over the next few days. I love the House Mouse stamps drawn by Ellen Jareckie. The stamps I have used are  from the set 'Sing Your Heart Out' from Joanna Sheen. I know that she now stocks all of the House Mouse Stamp by Stampendous.

This is an 8''x 8'' card, 300gsm Super Smooth. I cut the front of my card down to 4'' to allow an overhang for the topper. I added Dusty Concord Distress Ink all around the edge of the base card. To make the background paper, I used the flower stamp from the collection to match the topper and coloured with my Alcohol Markers on Super Smooth card and distressed around the edges with Dusty Concord.

The main image was also stamped on the same card and coloured using a selection of Alcohol Markers. I then used Grand Labels one to cut out the image and a matt from purple card. I inked around the edges with Dusty Concord. The sentiment from the collection was also done in the same way with Labels 1 (Small). All edges were gilded with a krylon gold pen. Finally I took a matching ribbon and secured it around the backing paper before securing it to my base card and added a bow. The topper was then added to overhang and the sentiment added.

I hope you have enjoyed your visit to my blog and hope that you will be back again. Take care Nick xx

House Mouse Project Book Designs.

Morning.Well I am not doing bad. I have updated my blog for the third day in a row. I have plenty to share with you and I hope you will enjoy it. Today I thought I would share some of my House Mouse cards. When I was in Joanna Sheen's design team I was fortunate enough to be given the chance to have some designs published in one of her wonderful Project Books.

Some of my designs were also used in the beautiful Thomas Kinkade Christmas Project book and I will share those in a later post. The project books really are brilliant and comes along with a CD Rom that contains everything you need to put the cards together and then use to design your own cards too. 

The House Mouse Project Book Volume One has been beautifully illustrated in photographs taken by Debbie Patterson. The 48 page book contains full instructions to make all of the 23 House Mouse designs. I thoroughly enjoyed making the cards that are in the book, there is something for everyone, easier designs for new crafters and some more elaborate ones too. The CD Rom has some beautiful backing papers, toppers and decoupage to use again and again so it's a great resource to have in your stash.

I have checked and the House Mouse project book is still available at the Joanna Sheen online shop. Here are a few more of the cards I made for the book. I really hope you like them.

National Cardmaker of the Year 2011 ~ Craft it your way!

Once again my life has taken a new direction and has been the main reason for the gap. Since my last post I found out that I won prizes in 2 categories of the National Card Maker of the Year 2011.

I can’t quite describe just how amazing it felt to find out that I had come first in Joanna Sheens Category. But then to discover I had also won a second prize for my entry into the My Craft Studio was amazing. To say I was over the moon was a massive understatement. It was like winning the lottery, not that I have ever won, but I imagine I would feel the same. For me though winning anything in this competition meant so much to me as this was for something I had created from scratch, rather than simply a stroke of luck or being the winner of a prize draw. Even as I’m writing this, I still can’t quite believe that two of my cards had been chosen to win.

There’s nothing like crafting to take your mind off of everything else that’s going on. How wonderful to be rewarded for something that’s so enjoyable. It’s been a huge boost to my confidence, I’m incredibly proud of this achievement. I’ve not been put out to pasture just yet after all.

Along with my monthly magazines, I get so much inspiration from Create & Craft and all of the talented guests. In particular Melanie, Leonie, Stephanie and all at My Craft Studio, Debbie Shore for her reintroduction to sewing. And of course the one and only Joanna Sheen for everything she brings to us crafters, I’m always eagerly waiting for her next release. It’s impossible to put into words just how much of a difference these people have made to my crafting without sounding patronising or cheesy, but I’m sure they will know what I mean.

I’m always learning new techniques, that’s what makes crafting such fun and crafters are always willing to share and help. If I had to choose my favourites, which is really difficult I would have to say Decoupage closely followed by stamping and distressing. I do love my Cricut though as I’ve mentioned before and I’ve just started scrapbooking thanks to Melanie Heaton, she has such a passion and shares such inspiration.

I hope this doesn’t sound too much like the proverbial acceptance speech, as it’s meant most sincerely. When I first decided to enter this competition in July, it was for a bit of fun as well as another way to donate my cards to charity. It was my original intention to enter a card for each category, I thought it would be easily achievable. Health certainly wasn’t on my side and in the end I was able to enter ten of the categories.  I honestly didn’t expect to hear anything at all, I’ve never entered such a big competition before. I suppose deep down I didn’t feel that my cards were good enough to win such a contest. I know it sounds like every other person that wins, but it really is true.

We’re so lucky to have such a large and varied selection of crafting supplies and tools to choose from. Like everyone, I have my favourites and believe it or not, top of my list is My Craft Studio and Joanna Sheen. My very first Purchase was a My Craft Studio Double CD Rom and shortly afterwards, I came across Joanna Sheens ‘Enchanted Christmas’. My first ever cards were from these and since then I have every release. For me being a winner in both of these categories is a dream come true.

I just know I’m going to be walking round with a constant grin on my face, I’m over the moon with excitement. I’ve not even had chance to think about the prizes, but it’s brilliant to have so much more to look forward to and thinking about all the crafting I will get from them. I have a passion for crafting, I love making cards for Friends and Family, that’s when you can really personalise them and know that they are going to be special.