Desktop Calendars

As 2012 is slowly coming to an end, I am currently working on some desktop calendars for 2013. Main ingredients are heavyweight A4 card (I am opting for at least 300gsm), calendar tabs, patterned paper, stamped and coloured in images and embellishments.

The cardstock is getting folded in half and scored horizontally half-way down the back of the calendar base. The top halves of the front and the back are then glued together, which gives the finished calendar stability and makes it possible to fold back the bottom section which is the mechanism that makes the calendar stand upright.

The desktop calendar  at the top features a mermaid image by Lili of the Valley and die-cuts created with a die by Joy! Crafts.

A few more examples:

 

These two desktop calendars are created using dog stamps by Art Impressions and Trimcraft papers from a Laura Ashley collection and a First Edition paper pad. The paper flowers are by Wild Orchid Crafts.

All images are coloured in using Spectrum Noir pens.

And One for the Boys ...

Not long ago I was so lucky to win the double CD-ROM 'Vintage Motors' by Kraftyhands in a Making Cards prize draw. And the images are just so useful for male cards.

Here is now a birthday card that I made by using the following elements:

* 15cm square card blank in ivory by Southfield
* Textured cardstock in black, brown and ochre
* White glass-smooth cardstock by Southfield for the printouts from the CD-ROM
* Tim Holtz washer border decorative strip die
* Tim Holtz Texture Fades diamond plate and riveted metal set
* Adhesive including large 3D foam squares by Dovecraft

I hope you like this vintage style card.

Celtic Delight in Mandarin and Peach

No, I am not starting to talk about deserts. But on this freezing cold and grey day I could not resist to use some really yummy colours for a Celtic card.

The card is designed around the Celtic Knot Set (CT190M) by Crafty Stamps.

I stamped the large Celtic Circle in black Memento ink, cut it out and coloured it in using ProMarkers in Soft Peach, Peach and Mandarin. For the stamped border I used the triangular stamp and always turned it by 180 degrees to create the border. This was an experiment, but the stamps are so well cut and so great to work with that the first attempt to create the border was already successful. I then coloured in the border using the same three ProMarker pens.

And here are the other elements, which I used for the card:

* 15cm square white card blank with linen texture from Southfield
* Black textured cardstock
* Core'dinations cardstock
* Glass-smooth white cardstock from Southfield
* Square and round Celtic dies by Tonic Studios
* Round nesting dies
* Adhesive pearls in 'charcoal' by Mark Richards (these are distributed by Woodware)
* Die-cutting machine
* Crop-a-dile corner rounder
* Adhesive
* Toolbox essentials

18th Birthday Celebrations

 Obviously not mine ...

I thought the Toread nymph 'Comge' from a stamp set by Crafter's Companion would be quite nice for a card for a lovely young lady. 'Comge' just has such a cute and slightly cheeky facial impression. I decided on a lilac/purple colour scheme and coloured her in using Spectrum Noir pens. Other 'ingredients' for this card are:

* Shaped card blank by Crafter's Companion
* White glass-smooth cardstock by Southfield
* Coloured textured cardstock
* Round and decorative round cutting dies
* Leaf die by Marianne Designs
* Britannia dies
* Cherry blossoms by Wild Orchid Crafts
* Paper rosebuds
* Adhesive gems

Have a good weekend everybody!

Party Weekend

What a month! It seems to be full of celebrations of one kind or another.

First of all we needed a 40th birthday card. I opted for a white, pink and silver colour scheme and a Strawberry Kisses image. White linen cardstock by Southfield, Hunkydory cardstock, silver mirri card and white glass-smooth cardstock by Southfield are the basics of this project. Sepllbinders dies, Britannia sentiment and number dies and a Marianne leaf die as well as flowers by Wild Orchid Crafts and some tulle are contributing to the design.

I also needed to make a wedding card. I built this up around one of my trusted images by Crafty Stamps - the large wedding cake stamp WD160KI. I combined it with white Centura Pearl cardstock, gold mirri card, paper flowers and rosebuds, organza ribbon and heart pins. The 8" x 8" embossing folder used for this card and the decorative frame are by Die'sire, the sentiment is created using a Britannia die.

Poppy Time

The Poppy Appeal and wearing a poppy at this time of the year is something that is very close to our hearts. But when I picked up my poppy the other day I began to wonder, if it could not look a bit prettier. And yesterday morning I just started to customise it.

I applied Clear Accents to both sides of the poppy and distributed it with a paint brush. I then attached three fabric leaves with silicone glue and brushed on Clear Accents on the front of the leaves. The black centre is covered in Clear Accents (it was my all round helper for this project) and added black adhesive gems. Clear Accents just helps to secure the gems a bit better. Stickles glitter glue in' Frosted Lace' provides a bit of sparkle and a slight wintery touch. The final step was then to attach a brooch bar to the back of the poppy using silicone glue.

The only problem is now that I am hooked and need to organise more brooch bars urgently, so that I can customise some more poppies. But I think I should be able to cope with that ... ;)

Merry Xmas ...

... although it is only relating to the card designs at the moment. But it is scary that we have already nearly reached the end of October and Christmas is not really that far away.

A lovely designed Christmas sentiment of a good size can also be a beautiful focal point of cards. And the large candle and holly merry Christmas image (XM137HF) by Crafty Stamps is just perfect for this. For this card I opted for a mainly monochrome design with splashes of colour introduced by paper roses and the candle and holy image within the stamped image, which I coloured in using Spectrum Noir pens.

For the topper I used a Spellbinders label die. The main feature of the panel underneath is black cardstock with a white core, which I embossed using a Snowflake embossing folder and sanded using a Tim Holtz sanding grip. A quick wipe with a Dust Buddy by Core'dinations then brought out the colours nicely.

For the holly die-cuts I used a Cheery Lynn die. The holly sections underneath the paper roses are created with the same die, but I trimmed off the end sections. A snow writer by DecoArt helped to give the snow on the letters more of a 3D feel. Clear adhesive gems and Stickles glitter glue in 'Frosted Lace' applied to the paper roses provided the finishing touches.

And Crafty Stamps/Stamper's Grove (that is their craft shop in Edinburgh) will also be at the Hobbycraft show at the SECC in Glasgow from 25 to 28 October 2012. If you are going, perhaps pop along to their stand C26 and say hello to Emma. Loads of gorgeous stamps are already packed up and ready for the trip to Glasgow.

A Sleigh with Presents

The first card that I would like to share with you today is again a Christmas card - and this time one that is a bit more colourful. It is built around gorgeous glittered paper from the First Edition paper pad 'Stocking Fillers' (a Trimcraft product) and mainly held in a vibrant red and the light and soft green tone featured in the paper design.

My image of choice is from the new Christmas collection by Crafty Stamps - the large sleigh (XM141F), a quality grey rubber stamp mounted onto kling-on, so it is ready for use with an acrylic block. I coloured in the images using Spectrum Noir pens. To create the topper I opted for Spellbinders octagon dies and arranged the die-cuts in an angle. I added it to the card using the large 3D foam squares by Trimcraft - one of absolute craft essentials.

For the border along the left-hand side I used a die by Die'sire, but pretty much any border die or border punch that can cope with cardstock would do the trick. Paper poinsettias, white paper roses in two sizes (10mm and 15mm) enhanced with a bit of Stickles glitter glue in 'Frosted Lace' as well as clear adhesive gems in two sizes are completing the card.

Large Champagne and Cracker

Large champagne? Oh, that is so me. Alright, alright, it does not need to be champagne. Normal sparkling wine would do.

And you are probably not surprised to hear that I just could not resist the large champagne and cracker image (XM138F) from the new Christmas collection by Crafty Stamps. And as their stamps are quality rubber stamps, which are already cling mounted, we crafters can use the stamps straight out of the package without the need for preparations. And we all know how impatient we crafters can be when it comes to craft goodies ...

And here is a list of the other 'ingredients' that I used for this blue and gold Christmas card:

* Ivory linen card by Southfield (the card is based on a 15cm square card blank)
* Ivory glass-smooth card by Southfield
* Dark blue pearlescent card
* Gold mirri card
* Black Memento ink pad
* Spectrum Noir pens
* Snowflake embossing folder by Darice
* Embossing folder from the Snowman collection by Crafter's Companion
* Rub-on sentiment from the Snowman collection by Crafter's Companion
* Gold metallic card
* Paper roses and rosebuds
* Candi with a gold mirri finish

Cheeky Season's Greetings

Mistletoe Kisses

Today I have got cards with a completely different style of images for you. Not so much elegant, but cheeky and humorous. And after working with these new images by Crafty Stamps for a while I have come to absolutely LOVE them.

For the card above I used the stamp 'Mistletoe Kisses' (XM136F) and coloured it in using ProMarker pens with ultra-fine nibs. My cardstock of choice was ivory glass-smooth cardstock by Southfield, kraft card and Core'dinations cardstock. I used octagon nesting dies by Spellbinders, star nesting dies by QuicKutz and mistletoe dies by Marianne Designs. The embellishments are paper roses and rosebuds, a rub-on sentiment from the Snowman collection by Crafter's Companion and Liquid Pearls in 'Bisque' for the berries on the mistletoe branches.

Happy Festive Couple

The New Year's card features the stamp 'Happy Festive Couple' (XM134F) and the sentiments XM115S (the words come as individual stamps, so a number of options are possible - very clever!) For the colouring I used again ProMarkers with ultra-fine nibs. The card is created with white glass-smooth cardstock from Southfield, white linen card from Southfield, purple mirri card and pink mirri card. The dies are by Spellbinders and the paper flowers by Wild Orchid Crafts. I finished the card off by adding Stickles glitter glue in 'Frosted Lace' to the champagne glasses, the earring and the flowers as well as plenty of adhesive gems.

A pearlescent Christmas greeting

The first card that I would like to share with you this weekend was actually only finished today. After seeing the amazing new production of the 'Phantom of the Opera' on Thursday I just felt like creating a card that showcases a bit of opulence, rich colours and shimmer.

I opted for the Crafty Stamps Celtic candle image (XM102M), which I stamped with black Memento ink and coloured it in using the Spectrum Noir pens IG1, BG1, BG2, BG4, BG5, BG7, CT4, OR1, DR1, DR3, JG5 and JG6. I gave the candle some sparkle by using a Sakura Gelly Roll pen in 'Clear Star'.

For the base of the card I used a 15cm square white card blank with linen effect from Southfield. Further materials are:

* Brown Centura Pearl cardstock
* Pearlescent cardstock in latte
* A small piece of green Core'dinations cardstock
* White glass-smooth cardstock from Southfield
* Die'sire Embossalicious 6" x 6" embossing folder (I know that some crafters doubt that they go through the Cuttlebug, but I use the 6" x 6" folders without problems with a second generation Cuttlebug)
* Dotted embossing folder
* Marianne Designs holly die
* Paper roses and rosebuds
* Special Delivery wooden ornaments by Trimcraft
* Stickles glitter glue in 'Diamond'
* Adhesive (including a good portion of silicone glue)
* Die-cutting machine
* Toolbox essentials

Noir et Chic Christmas Cards

One sentiment stamp, one paper pad, two Christmas cards ... And the First Edition Noir et Chic premium paper pad is not even a Christmas product. But it is such a versatile paper pad that many sheets can be used for various occasions - even for elegant Christmas cards.

The sentiment, which I used for both cards, is created with the 'Wishing you a Merry Christmas' stamp by IndigoBlu. I also used candle, holly and snowflake dies by Marianne Designs and a border die by Spellbinders. The organza ribbons are Woodware products.

Product lists and step-by-step instructions for both products are again in my Trimcraft gallery.

And I hope that you will all have a good start into the new week.

Finally Sunday ...

What a week! It could not have been much worse even if it had tried. Hopefully yesterday's mail with the 'surprise' of HMRC having lost most of my tax return put an end to the chaos. So instead of following the plans I had for Saturday I ended up re-doing my tax return and preparing an official complaint. They said that I did not send it the missing documentation, but bad luck for them that I sent the initial tax return by special delivery and that the post office receipt also shows the weight. And one piece of paper in an envelope just does not weigh 90 grams ...

All that also threw out most of the crafting planned for yesterday, but I had to make a 60th birthday card for somebody close to us. So what can you do when time is running away, your brain has been virtually fried by tax matters and you still want to make a larger card? An 8" x 8" kraft card blank, kraft card and some textured cardstock, a 12" x 12" Garden Party designer paper pack, Garden Party buttons, a Garden Party decoupage pad, some adhesive gems, QuicKutz alphabet dies and a good portion of Pinflair glue gel solved the problem

And today I will hopefully get a chance to have a more relaxing day and to work on some more Christmas cards. Fingers crossed!

And more Merry Magic ...

I am on a 'Merry Magic role' at the moment. Here are two more cards for which I used this new Christmas collection by Dovecraft.

For the first card I added patterned paper from the First Edition paper pad 'Stocking Fillers' and used a sentiment die by Cheery Lynn Designs and a holly die by Marianne Designs.

For the second card I used Cherry Lynn cutting dies for the lattice frame and the sentiment. The snowflake acetate and the snowflake die-cuts are by Crafter's Companion/Hunkydory.

Step-by step instructions and product lists for both cards are again in my Trimcraft gallery.

Merry Magic Collection - Part 2

It is time for some more projects created with the new Dovecraft Merry Magic collection. You can find product lists and step-by-step instructions in my Trimcraft gallery.

And for those of you, who would like to know a bit more about certain products:

For the frame on the reindeer card and also for the inner section of pink cardstock I used a Die'sire die by Crafter's Companion. The label die is from an Xcut set, and the holly die is by Marianne Designs. The sentiment stamp is from the set XM115S by Crafty Stamps. And I got the paper flowers from Wild Orchid Crafts.

For the sentiment on the tree card below I used a die by Cheery Lynn Designs.

A Modern Twist

Sometimes we just need to let our creativity run lose. And why should we always stick with traditions and conventional perceptions? This is how this purple based Christmas card was born. Santa dressed in purple might be unusual, but why not for a change?

The image is the large Santa by Crafty Stamps (XM128M) - stamped onto glass-smooth card by Southfield and coloured in with Spectrum Noir pens. A square card blank cut from white pearlescent cardstock, sheets from the Contemporary Christmas Collection by Core'dinations, tea roses and white adhesive pearls are adding to the look. I also used a Darice snowflake embossing folder, a snowflake doily die by Cottage Cutz, a holly branches die by Marianne Designs as well as hints of Stickles glitter glue in 'Frosted Lace'.

Christmas with Crafty Stamps

Today I would like to share two more cards, which incorporate images from the new Crafty Stamps Christmas collection, with you.

For the first card I opted for a sparkly and yummy cream and brown creation. I used the gingerbread man stamp XM121F and the Christmas sentiment set XM113S. The images are teamed up with an ivory card blank, Centura Pearl cardstock, glittered paper from a First Edition 'Festive Treats' paper pad, Woodware organza ribbon, Stickles glitter glue in 'Diamond' and Liquid Pearls in 'Dark Chocolate'.

My dies for this project are round nesting dies, scalloped circle dies, a label die by Xcut and a die by Marianne Designs for the leaves. For the borders I used a geared punch by Tonic Studios. The paper flowers are by Wild Orchid Crafts.

For a softer look I stamped the gingerbread man and the sentiment in 'Rich Cocoa', a Memento ink pad. Spectrum Noir pens were my medium of choice for the colouring.

The second card is more experimental with white cardstock, silver mirri card (and crafters will know how difficult this is to photograph) and red metallic card. The holly branches are cut from silver mirri card using a die by Marianne Designs. The holly image is 'painted' using red and green embossing powders and then set with the help of a heat gun. The image comes from the holly and snowman set XM2S.

Merry Magic Collection

Trimcraft have brought out a brand-new young and fresh Christmas collection in contemporary colours: Merry Magic.

For this card I used the following products:

* 12.5cm x 12.5cm square card blank
* Merry Magic designer paper pack
* Merry Magic 3D stickers 'Presents'
* Merry Magic individual adhesive gems
* snowflake acetate by Crafter's Companion
* green Core'dinations cardstock
* holly branch die by Marianne Designs
* Cheery Lynn window frame die

Step-by-step instructions for this project can be found in my Trimcraft gallery.

Fizzy Moon Christmas

Am I the only one who is sitting here with a tear in the eye? After the brilliant Olympics and the fabulous Paralympics with heroes like Oscar Pistorius it is just so weird that London 2012 is now history.

But the cute Fizzy Moon always manages to cheer me up, so let's finish the weekend with him. The Christmas For Him Decoupage & Paper Pad plus a white square card blank, some foiled die-cut snowflakes from Crafter's Companion, lace, lilac Woodware organza ribbon, Dovecraft adhesive gemstoness in 'Pastel' and Pinflair glue gel as well as a corner around were all the items I needed for this wintery card.

Step-by-step instructions for this card are in my Trimcraft gallery.

Have a good start into the new week!

A bit more of that Christmas spirit

Here are now two more Christmas projects created with brand-new Christmas stamps by Crafty Stamps. The high quality rubber stamps on kling foam are really great for precise and evenly stamped images.

The first project is something a bit different - a plate-like card with a stand. For this card I used

* Candle and bell set XM3S by Crafty Stamps
* Black Memento inkpad
* Spectrum Noir pens in IG1, BG5, CT3, CT4, GB4, DR 6 and DR7
* Adorable Scorable cardstock by Hunydory/Crafter's Companion
* Core'dinations cardstock
* First Edition paper pad 'Festive Treats' by Trimcraft
* White glass-smooth cardstock by Southfield
* Circle and scalloped circle cutting dies
* Large circle and scalloped circle cutting dies
* Oval cutting dies
* Plate stand die by Joy! Crafts
* Poinsettia and holly dies by Marianne Designs
* Paper roses and rosebuds by Wild Orchid Crafts
* Stickles glitter glue in Frosted Lace
* Dovecraft adhesive gemstones 'Brights'
* Adhesive
* Grand Calibur
* Toolbox essentials

The second projects sports a distressed look in green and black with some hints of colour. The 'ingredients' for this project are

* Holly stamp XM125D by Crafty Stamps
* Black Memento inkpad
* Spectrum Noir pens in IG1, DG2, DG3, DR4 and DR6
* Tim Holtz Distress Marker in 'vintage photo' (for the shading of the reindeer)
* Core-dinations cardstock
* White glass-smooth cardstock by Southfield
* Round cutting dies
* Die'sire die set 'Waltz Frame' by Crafter's Companion
* Reindeer die by Cottage Cutz
* Holly die set by Marianne Designs
* Die-cutting machine
* Corner rounder
* Tim Holtz sanding grip
* Adhesive
* Toolbox esentials

Thanks for visiting my blog. And please look out for more Christmas projects, which will follow very soon.

Winter is on the way

Yes, believe it or not, even I am now on the Christmas card bandwagon. There are already so many gorgeous new products around that I could not resist any longer. And over the next weeks I will share many projects with new goodies with you.

Today I am starting with a lovely new snowman stamp by Crafty Stamps. Inspiration for this project was the nice clean and cold air on a winter's morning. To give it this more 'frosty' feel I opted for white, light blue and silver as the main colours with a lot of mirri card and a bit of glitter.

Here are the 'ingredients' for my 15cm x 15cm square card:

• Large snowman stamp XM129Q by Crafty Stamps
• Spectrum Noir pens
• Black Memento ink pad
• White linen cardstock by Southfield
• White glass-smooth cardstock (200gsm) by Southfield
• Textured light blue cardstock
• Silver mirri card
• Adhesive pearls
• Stickles glitter glue
• Circle and scalloped circle cutting dies
• Cheery Lynn holly corner die
• Snowflake embossing folder
• Die-cutting-machine
• Adhesive
• Toolbox essentials

Smashing Edinburgh International Book Festival

Today I am happy and can look back on round about two fantastic weeks, but also have a tear in my eye. The Edinburgh International Book Festival has yet again been fantastic with such a calm and very enjoyable atmosphere during this busy festival time, but it is coming to an end tomorrow.

After all events there are book signings with the authors. But this year I was also faced with a challenge: How do you get eBooks signed? While I still love the actual books I have the work of some authors solely as eBooks due to running out of storage space.

The solution for me is a smash book. I have been thinking about starting one for all those tickets from sport events, concert, etc. that you want to keep but can then only find by accident for a while. And it also seemed ideal for collating book festival tickets alongside signatures of authors.

I prepared the pages before the event, asked then the authors to sign in the smash book and finish the pages off after the individual events. The pages shown here are just a taster. And my smash book is already turning into a very treasured item.

Wedding Acceptance

Today I undertook my first attempts with gilding flakes and Indigo Blu Flitter Glu - and had a fight at my hands. I applied the Flitter Glu to a stamp, but sometimes the cardstock was tearing when I lifted up the stamp. When I used the stamp in such a way that it hardly touch the cardstock I could lift it up, but the image was not complete. A touch up with a cheap paintbrush worked well.

But removing the stickiness on the rubber of the stamp was a nightmare. I washed it in water right after use, but I also had to use the specific stamp cleaner twice to get the stamp halfway back into working order. I doubt that I will do that again to any of my stamps any time soon. I will rather stick to highlighting areas by applying Flitter Glu with a paintbrush and then using gilding flakes.

I am actually quite pleased with the result - just the cleaning up process was too lengthy. And as I got a bit of glue along the edge of a fingernail, I am sporting a bit of red and gold myself ...

And here is what I used to create the acceptance card:

• Big heart stamp by Crafty Stamps (RM105F)
• Heart cutting die by Joy! Crafts
• Wedding ring die by Marianne Designs
• QuicKutz alphabet dies
• White textured and white smooth cardstock
• Gold metallic cardstock
• Red mirri card
• Adhesive gems
• Indigo Blu Flitter Glu and Lancashire Rose gilding flakes

Make a Wish

On this overcast and windy, but at least dry day with a few rays of sunshine peeking through the clouds every now and again I felt like making a card with a summery feel. My products of choice came once again from the Garden Party collection by Dovecraft. I just love the colours and patterns.

Full instructions including a product list for this card are in my Trimcraft gallery. And here are a few additional details around the non-Trimcraft products, which I used for this project:

• The embossing folder with dots is by Darice.
• The floral embossing folder is by Sheena Douglass.
• For the sentiment I used a Tim Holtz idea-ology adage ticket.

I hope you are enjoying a lovely and relaxing Sunday.

The Scottish Outdoors

You have not seen Scottish themed cards from me for a few weeks, so I thought that I would rectify this immediately.

Deer are so typical for our outdoors. And I just love the beautiful stag rubber stamp by Crafty Stamps. I opted for a combination of kraft cardstock, green Kraft-Core cardstock by Tim Holtz and embellishments in cream and brown tones. Here is what I used:

• Crafty Stamps image SC146HF
• Kraft cardstock
• Tim Holtz Kraft-Core cardstock by Core-dinations
• Ivory glass-smooth cardstock by Southfield
• Black Memento ink pad
• ProMarkers in Warm Grey 3, Warm Grey 4 and Warm Grey 5 for the antlers
• Spectrum Noir pens in BG4, BG5, BG8 as well as a ProMarker in Pastel Beige for head and body
• Spectrum Noir pen in IG1 for the shadow
• Round Spellbinders dies
• Tonic geared border punch
• Cheery Lynn die for the leaves
• Sheena Douglass embossing folder
• Sanding tool
• Brown paper blooms
• Cream ribbon roses
• Rosebuds in 'coffee'

For the second card I used again Crafty Stamps images, but this time heat embossed them in silver. This time I used:

• Crafty Stamps image SC150F
• Crafty Stamps set SC1M
• White DL card blank
• Textured cardstock in two shades of purple
• A small piece of green cardstock
• Versamark ink pad
• Silver detail embossing powder
• Lilac ribbon
• The London Line premium gemstones by Trimcraft
• Thistles
• Cheery Lynn die for the leaves
• Woodware stamp positioner for aligning the images of the border strip

I hope you like these cards.

Butterfly World

Today I wanted to see how the Dovecraft Garden Party products work when they are getting combined with kraft cardstock. And you have so far not seen many butterflies on my cards. But one of the nice things about crafting is that we can play, experiment and discover new things.

And yes, I could not wait to try out my new Cheery Lynn French Lattice Small Frame die (the code is FRM132 in case anybody wonders) and to use the cherry blossom flowers from Wild Orchid Crafts on a card for the first time.

The rosebuds are also from Wild Orchid Crafts while I found the ribbon roses at Hobbycraft. The fabric leaves were still in my stash.The kraft cardstock is from a pack of square kraft card blanks with envelopes by Craft UK Limited. For ensembling the butterflies I used again my trusted Pinflair glue gel.

Those of you, who would like to re-create this project, can find a product list and step-by-step instructions in my Trimcraft gallery.

I hope you like the result and this different look created with products from the Garden Party collection by Trimcraft.

And the Garden Party continues ...

... but only indoors and solely on the crafting front. The month of June was so cold and wet that it ended up being a complete write-off. And July does not seem to be much better - another severe weather warning for rain is already in place. It does not feel like summer at all.

On a more positive note, the bad weather means that I spend more time indoors and crafting. So it is not all bad. And the new Garden Party products by Dovecraft are so nice to work with that they really cheer me up despite the weather being so awful.

And here is an A5 card that I finished last night:

A product list and step-by-step instructions are in my Trimcraft gallery, but here is a bit more information for those who would like to know a bit more about the products I used.

• I found the lace on Joanna Sheen's website.
• The leaves are coloured in using a Tim Holtz distress ink pad in 'frayed burlap'. I applied the ink with Cut-n-Dry foam.
• The swirl die is by Marianne Designs.
• I had the sentiment tag in my stash.
• My chosen adhesive was again Pinflair glue gel.

Garden Party

I promised you some more projects with new Trimcraft products - and here are already the first two.

  Garden Party - Window Card

Garden Party - Floral Rocker

For these two cards I used the brand-new Dovecraft Garden Party collection. Available in this collection are paper pads, a decoupage pad, ribbons, adhesive gems, 3D stickers, paper blossoms, fabric brads and buttons in beautiful pinks, yellows, creams and greens.

Product lists as well as step-by-step instructions are - as usual - in my Trimcraft gallery, but here is a bit more information for those of you who are interested in more details:

• For the window card I used the frame die FRM 142 by Cheery Lynn Designs.
• I created the circles for the floral rocker card using grand nestabilities.
• As glitter glue I used Stickles in 'Crystal'.
• I ensembled all flowers with Pinflair glue gel.

I hope these projects are providing you with abit of inspiration. More will follow soon.

Relax

Today I have treated myself to a bit of work with one of my favourite stamps. The image by the very talented Helz Cuppleditch is just so adorable and versatile. It is great for birthdays, congratulations of all kinds, Valentine's Day, engagement as well as friendship and patriotic cards.

A product list and step-by-step instructions can again be found in my Trimcraft gallery, but here are a few more details around the products:

• The die that I used for the flourish is the 'Valerian Flourish' die by Memory Box.
• The paper roses and rose buds are from Wild Orchid Crafts.
• I coloured in the image using Spectrum Noir pens and used the following colours: IG1 (CG0.5) and IG2 (CG1) for the greys, CR10 (14), CR11 (11) and CR6 (7) for the reds, TB3 (183) and TB4 (76) for the blues, EB2 (169), GB10 (100), EB6 (102) and EB8 (98) for the browns as well as CG2 (48) and CG3 (124) for the greens.

And please look out for projects with another new Trimcraft collection, which will start to follow very soon.

At the Aquatics Centre

... well, in the Trimcraft/Helz Cuppleditch style.

Last night I could not resist to work on another London Line card. But this time I moved away from the more colourful projects and opted for a simple white and silver look with hints of blue and red.

A product list and step-by-step instructions can be found in my Trimcraft gallery, but here are some more details regarding the origins of the dies for those interested in further product details:

• Decorative square dies by Little Claire (discontinued, but similar dies are available from other manufacturers)
• Four petal nesting dies by X-Cut
• Petite scalloped circle Nestabilities
• Swirl dies by Marianne Designs

Have a good and not too wet weekend!

More London Line projects

 
And my 'playtime' with the London Line products by Trimcraft continues. I love especially that the collection not only contains really lovely images, but also so many sports images. And I must admit that I have really become a fan of Helz Cuppleditch's work due to the Trimcraft collections.

This time I used the pyramid decoupage pad and combined the cute images with other products from the London Line collection, die-cuts created with Marianne Designs dies and further embellishments.

Product lists and step-by-step instructions for both cards are again in my Trimcraft gallery.

Further projects with these lovely products will follow very soon.

Playful Cat

This weekend I had another play with the new London Line collection by Trimcraft. And this cat image from the pyramid decoupage pad is just so cute.

I began to wonder, if this cheeky wee cat might have even done anything cheeky beforehand. So I created a 'ball of wool' and special 'knitting needles' with Union Jack hearts as embellishments.

I added a product list and step-by-step instructions for this card to my Trimcraft gallery. And in case anybody is interested in more manufacturer details: the cutting dies are by Marianne Designs, the border punch is a geared punch by Tonic Studios and the 5" x 7" embossing folder is by Darice.