Monday 31 December 2012

Last Post of 2012 & A Little Note of Thanks

What'cha Peeps!
Well, this is the last post of 2012 for me. It's been quite a year. I thought I would show you one of the thank you cards (for my Christmas pressies) I'll be sending out soon. It is from a past project I had in the January 2011 issue of Crafts Beautiful.

 

What I used...

Papers: Penny Lane 12x12 Glitter Stack - My Mind's Eye
Stamps: Petal Pushers - Bo Bunny; Green at Heart Tree Hugger - Basic Grey
Punch: Upper Crest Border - Fiskars
Card Stock: white, turquoise
Promarkers
Ribbon: pink
Ink: Rich Cocoa - Memento
Adhesives

How to do it...

Trim a white DL blank to make the top and right side angular. Stamp, cut out and colour two birds, the sentiment and three flowers. Punch the border along a piece of  turquoise card and patterned paper.

Layer the punched borders to the bottom of the card, arrange and attach the flowers, birds and sentiment. Finish with a knotted piece of ribbon applied to the patterned border.

I know that the stamps and papers are probably not available now, but you can use any you have in your stash!

I'm off now, we are going out to a fancy dress tonight (not telling you what I'm going as, just yet), so I have to get ready.

I would like to take this opportunity to wish you all a very happy, healthy and prosperous New Year. Until 2013, toodle-pip! xxx

Sunday 23 December 2012

January Blog Candy!

Heevnin Christmas Chums!
Ooooh! I'm getting all excited. I love Christmas, the getting up early, new jim jams, open fire, chestnuts, sprouts, turkey, mug of Irish coffee, carols, candles....I could go on.
Well done to Katelyn who won the K & Company blog candy. For those who weren't lucky this time and as a big thank you to all my lovely followers plus the wonderful comments you leave, I have a new giveaway:)


It's a fantastic mixed pack of papers which include 25 sheets 12" x 12" papers, 30 sheets 8" x 8" papers and 45 sheets 6" x 6" papers. There is an assortment of spots, stripes, florals, glittered, Christmas and more. Quite a lot of them are DCWV.

To have a chance of winning this fab candy:-

1. Be a follower either through Blogger, Google or email (see sidebar to follow by email)
2. Post a piccy of the candy with a link to this post in your sidebar (if you have a blog)
3. Leave me a comment (with your blog address if you have one) ta da! You are entered!
If you do have a blog, it will be great to have a look and see what you are up to :)

This candy will close on 31st January 2013, I will then use RANDOM.ORG to choose a winner!
Go on! Why not enter? What have you got to lose?
Before I go, I just want to wish you all a very Merry Christmas and I would also like to thank everyone who has supported my blog and my work in Crafts Beautiful magazine this last year. Here's to a happy and prosperous 2013!
Toodle pip! xxx Colette xxx

K & Company Blog Candy Winner!

Mornin' Peeps!

OK, here it is the K & Company blog candy winner! I've allocated a number to each person who entered and left a comment in that order. The list is:-

1. Dawn
2. Lucretia
3. Paperkate
4. Katelyn
5. Nikki
6. Asia
7. Nelli
8. Rebecca
 
Here is a snapshot of the winner picker, and the winner is #4 - Katelyn! Congrats!  If you email me your address (my email is in my profile), I will post this fab pack of papers out to you.
 
For those of you who didn't win it this time, I will be posting another fab giveaway later today. So watch this space!
 
Until then, enjoy your Sunday and thanks to all who entered the giveaway! xxxx


Thursday 20 December 2012

Let's Be Merry

Aft'noon Christmas Chums!
Here, as promised is the Christmas card I made for my Husband, Simon.
I saw Jenny's fab card over at the Make the Day Special blog using stamps from Paper Smooches. On one of the snowmen she used the bug stamp from the Healthy Vibes set as a 'splat'. I've used the splat idea, but with my own twist on things.
Snowball fight!!!
 
Gotcha!!

Oh Ohhh...Incoming!

We're winning!!

What you need...

Stamps: Warm Hearts, Swanky Snowdudes, All Yule Need, Freezy Fellas, Christmas Sampler, Healthy Vibes - Paper Smooches; Flora & Fauna 5 - PaperArtsy
Ink: Onyx Black - Versafine
Embossing powder: Detail Clear - Stampendous
Promarkers: Red, Lime Green, Lime Zest, Lime Twist, Bright Green, Pear Green, Cocoa, Ice Grey 1, Ice Grey 4, Mandarin, Black - Letraset
Card stock: white, turquoise
Glitter card: iridescent
Peel-offs: snowflakes, white
Glitter dots
Adhesives: double sided tape, foam tape

How you do it...

Cut large, uneven scallops in a piece of turquoise card and attach to the top of a landscape A5 blank. Create the snowy hills by cutting white card in a wavy pattern, repeat with a piece of glitter card and adhere to the blank. Make another piece from white card and attach to the bottom of the card with foam tape.

Stamp, heat emboss and colour the trees, snowmen, snowballs, star and splat. Cut out, arrange and adhere to the blank, as shown, tucking two snowmen and the trees just behind the hills.

Stamp and emboss the sentiment in black, trim into a banner and attach at the top left with a few snowflake peel-offs. Finish with a glitter dot on the star and the heart.

I used the flower centre circle from the Flora & Fauna 5 set for the snowballs. If you don't have a circle stamp, you could punch out circles from white card and draw a black sqiggly line around the edge for detail.

The snowman behind his mate getting the snowball in the kisser, didn't have a mouth, so I used one of the tiny circle stamps and coloured it black to give him that element of surprise, knowing he was going to get a snowball in the mush just like his mate.

It's great when you can mix and match stamps, you can create amazing things that you would not necessarily think of just using the one set.

Sadly, this is my last Christmas card to show you. Back to normal every occasion cards now, though I might do the odd Christmas card when I get a bit of spare 'twiddling my thumbs' time.

Right, I'm off for the nonce. Thanks for popping in and will speak soon. xxx



K & Company Blog Candy (ends soon)

Hello Peeps and happy Thursday!
It's very wet and windy here in Norfolk - boo! Anyway, I noticed my last post went live successfully whilst we were away (now have a smug look on me ol' mush).
We had a lovely, if very tiring weekend. It's a long tedious journey, but it's worth it to see everyone. I made some of my famous mulled wine round at my Sister's on Saturday night. It is very potent and not for lightweights. Yvonne & I were soon a bit squiffy!
This post is just a reminder that the K & Company blog candy giveaway ends tomorrow. I'll probably pick the winner sometime over the weekend. Good luck and a big hug and thank you to all you lovely peeps who have entered. It really is a fab set of papers, definitely classic K & Company. As I mentioned in the original post, some of these are now discontinued or have been part of an exclusive collection, not readily available in the shops.
I have several sheets of each design and I know I will never get the chance to use them all, so I thought it would be nice to share them and let someone else create something wonderful with the papers.
That's it for now. I'll be back later today with the Christmas card I made for Simon. Until then, take care. xxx

Saturday 15 December 2012

Crafts Beautiful January 2013 - Pt 3

Well hello there!
 
If you are reading this then my schedule post has worked. Yippee! We're at my mum and dad's in Yorkshire delivering pressies, but we will be back soon.
 
Simon's dad is feeding Bazoo for us. She will not be happy. There is nothing worse than a sulky cat. Bazoo is the only cat I have ever known that can ignore you from another room. You can feel the vibes! They come through the wall at you. You just know you are being ignored. Don't know how she does it, but she does.
 
Anyway, onto the final part of my projects in the January issue of Crafts Beautiful.


 
I had to use pages from a book and being ex-library, I didn't know whether I could bring myself to tear pages from a new book. It was bad enough in the library tearing up and throwing away old, tatty books!
 
One of my favourite books is Far from the Madding Crowd by Thomas Hardy, so I purchased a copy, steeled myself and tore the first page out (after about half an hour of hesitation, weeping, wailing and huge waves of guilt). The thing is I knew it was going to go on a lovely card, not in the bin, so it wasn't that bad. I'm really pleased with the way these turned out and will definitely be doing some more.
 
As it's nearly Christmas, why not treat yourself to a subscription of Crafts Beautiful? Or better still, drop a few very loud and not so subtle hints to your nearest and dearest. It makes a great present. The free gift for subscribing at the moment is a set of beautiful Tilda storage tins, and as an extra gift you get a free binder for your magazines. Can't be bad! It's great having each issue drop onto your door mat. No more missed copies (and you usually get it before it hits the shops - bwah ha ha har).
 
That's me for now. Hopefully I'll be back soon with some more cards to show you. Ta ta! xx

Thursday 13 December 2012

Crafts Beautiful Jan 2013 - Pt2

Evenin'!
Here is the next sneaky peep at my projects in the current issue of Crafts Beautiful, January 2013.




These seven cards were to feature gilding flakes. I had never actually tried them before this project, they are fantastic. The effects you get with them are amazing. Rather than go for the normal gold, silver and bronze, I went for mixed flakes.

The flakes are called Mega Flakes by IndigoBlu and some of the mixed ones are simply stunning. The three I used were Winter Dawn, Morris Dance and Royal Peacock. I think the Royal Peacock is my fave. It has flecks of blues and greens, in with the silver and gold. The Morris Dance has a more red tone to it with a hint of blue and green. The Winter Dawn, is mostly silver but has touches of blue, gold and green. IndigoBlu also do a starter kit, which has everything you need to get going right away. You can buy the starter kit with a pot of Winter Dawn included, or without. Go on, give it a try. I promise you'll be hooked.

The January issue is available now from good newsagents and retailers and comes with an exclusive vibrant paper pack especially designed for Crafts Beautiful. It also has a few ideas on how to use your free gift.

Don't forget, you can download the templates for all projects, free from the website www.crafts-beautiful.com. Pop over for inspiration, top tips, projects and loads of other stuff!

Until next time, take care and thanks for calling by. xx

Wednesday 12 December 2012

Crafts Beautiful January 2013 - Pt 1

Aft'noon peepsicles!

Are you nearly ready for Christmas yet? I lurrve Christmas, the open fire, mulled wine, hot chestnuts, carols... and you can't beat a bit of Perry Como, Andy Williams and Bing Crosby!

I'm not into a really modern Christmas, I like the old traditions. Weird really when you think the cards I design are quite modern, but I think they definitely have the retro 50's - 60's feel about them - the era I love.

Today I would like to show you the first of my Crafts Beautiful projects. I have three projects in this issue. I tell you, they'll be getting sick of the sight of me! No seriously, I'm honoured that they like my work enough to ask me to contribute so much, plus it keeps me busy!




This is another Card School project, this month focusing on card inserts. I admit I'm not of fan of inserts (or verses) to be honest, but I really enjoyed creating these. I'm pleased with the way they turned out, once again putting a modern twist onto something that can be 'twee' or old fashioned.

That's a little sneaky peek. The issue is jam packed with ideas, projects and features, and for more crafting ideas visit Crafts Beautiful. There are loads more hints, tips and projects on the website, plus you can join the forum, where you will find lots of lovely, friendly people.

Okay, that's enough from me for now. I'll post the second part soon. Until then, toodle pip! xx

Monday 10 December 2012

True Spirit of Christmas

Well hello there chums!
Hope you all had a lovely weekend. I really don't know where it went to and at what speed. Back to Monday already.
The showcasing of my Christmas cards is winding down now. I just have one more to make, the most special one of all...Simon's (mushy stuff...bleugh). So this one I want to show you today is the last one of the cards I'm sending out.
I'm a bit disappointed that I didn't get more made, I still have loads of new stamps, papers and ideas to play with. I've been so busy and basically ran out of time. Maybe I will make the odd one or two throughout the coming year and at least build a stock up.



What you need...

Stamps: Happy Holidays Star - Fancy Pants Designs
Dies: Framelits Circles - Sizzix
Embossing folder: Seeing Spots - Cuttlebug
Ink: Onyx Black - Versafine
Promarkers: Lime Zest, Cardinal Red - Letraset
Embossing powder: Detail Clear - Stampendous
Card stock: white, lime green, red
Ribbon: red
Glitter Dots

How you do it...

Onto a top fold white square blank, mat a smaller piece of lime green card, making sure you line up one edge with the fold of the blank. Emboss spots onto white card, trim so that it is slightly smaller than the lime green panel and mat on top.

Stamp and heat emboss the image onto white card and colour in. Cut out using a circle die. Mat onto a larger circle in red card. Attach to the blank so the circle overlaps the fold and trim off any excess.

Finish with red ribbon tied around the bottom and a few random glitter dots.

I'm not sure if you can this stamp now. I have had it a few years, but you could use any stamp and sentiment you have in your stash, just follow the layout of the card. Try using a different colour theme too.

Okay, that was the last one, except for Simon's card. I will post that one up when I've made it and given it to him (he reads the blog).

I'll be back soon with some sneaky peeks at my projects in the new issue of Crafts Beautiful, until then, take care and thanks for stopping by. xx

Sunday 9 December 2012

Santa Claws!

What'cha peeps?
It's a bright and breezy Sunday here in Norfolk. Cold though. Bazoo wanted to go out, so as cats do she sat by the door for 5 minutes waiting for us to open it. Open it we did, Bazoo stands on doorstep, sniffs air, Bazoo turns round and legs it back into the house. Brave cat...not.
You may remember me telling you about the gift wrap cutting thingy in a previous post; missing, presumed dead. Well the latest news it that we still haven't found it. I am fearing the worst. One of my socks was the latest victim of Bazoo, though thankfully it has pulled through. I will keep you updated of any news.
On a lighter note, here is a Christmas card I made for two lovely people, John and Joyce, of whom are fast becoming great friends. I did do another version of this card last year, I think I did showcase it in a previous post. The eyes on the cat makes me laugh.



What you need...

Paper: 12 Days of Christmas 6x6 Designer Paper Pad - My Mind's Eye
Card stock: white, pink, grey
Punches: teardrop, circles 2", 1", 1/4"
Ink: Black Soot Distress Ink - Tim Holtz
Pens: black, white
Button; red, large
Baker's twine; black
Rub-on letters: black, white
Pom-pom: white sparkly
Adhesives

How you do it...

Cover an A6 blank with aqua star paper, doodle lines around the edges in black and highlight the corners in white.

Cut a piece of white card with and uneven scalloped top edge, ink the edges in black. Cut a piece of red stripe paper, ink the edges and mount onto the scalloped piece, attach to the blank approximately 1cm from the bottom. Thread baker's twine through the red button and tie in a bow, attach to the left of the scalloped piece.

To make the cat, punch a 2" circle in grey card, two 1" circles in white, two teardrops in grey and three in pink and two 1/4" circles in black. Ink the edges on all pieces, trim one of the pink pieces for the nose and assemble as shown in the picture. Cut a hat shape from red chevron paper and white card, ink the edges and attach to the cat.

Hand cut a large wonky circle, draw another wonky circle within in it (slightly large than the cat) and divide this outer circle into stripes, colour alternate ones in black and ink the edges. Mount the cat onto the circle, slightly off centre. Add details and highlights in black and white pen. Attach the circle to the top left of the blank. Apply rub-ons to make the sentiment, finish with a pom-pom on the hat.

It's amazing what you can create from a few punched shapes and a little imagination. This card is easier to make than you think, it is a bit more time consuming than most, but it's one of those cards you send to someone special.

Righto, I'm now off for the nonce. The washing machine just finished it's cycle so I suppose I'll have to get another load in and put his lot in the tumble dryer - boring!!!! Then I'm going to wrap Simon's pressies whilst he is out in the garage. I don't want any peeping.

Thanks for calling, ta ta. xxxx




Friday 7 December 2012

Dude, ...chill

Good afternoon!

Now here's something you don't get very often, two posts in one day. It is another Christmas card (I'm trying to get as many made as I can, but still not sure if I will have enough - oops).

This one again is very simple and very cute.




What you need...

Stamps: Freezy Fellas - Paper Smooches
Ink: Onyx Black - Versafine
Embossing powder: Detail Clear - Stampendous
Card stock: white, Kraft
Promarkers: Bright Green, Lipstick Red, Pumpkin - Letraset
Button: red, small
Crochet Cotton: white
Felt holly leaves
Adhesives

How you do it...

Create a top fold blank 8cm x 11cm. Stamp and heat emboss the snowman, two arms and the mistletoe. Cut out and colour in with Promarkers. Assemble the snowman and attach him to the front of the card.

Stamp the sentiment in the bottom right hand corner. Stick the holly leaves above the sentiment, thread cotton through the button and tie in a small bow, attach to the holly.

There you go, one very cute card indeed! Everyone go awwww.

That's me for the moment, until next time, toodle-pip. xx





Merry Christmas

Mornin' chums!
It's a wet, windy, dark and nasty day here in Norfolk. Not good. Then again it's the type of weather you want to cosy up on the sofa with a hot cocoa and an old Christmas movie, such as Holiday Inn or White Christmas. 
On the other hand National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation and Blackadder's Christmas Carol are good for a giggle. I watched Blackadder's Christmas Carol last night on the laptop whilst I was making a couple of cards. I say watched, I know it off by heart so I'm really listening rather than watching.
Talking of cards, here's another Christmas one for you.



What you need...
Stamps: Christmas Tree Stamp Set - Yellow Owl Workshop; Christmas Sampler - Paper Smooches
Inks: Sea Breeze, Turquoise Gem, Aquatic Splash, Purple Hydrangea, Spring Pansy, Pretty Petunia - VersaMagic
Card stock: white
Gems: clear, assorted sizes
Adhesives
How you do it...
Stamp the tree with Sea Breeze ink onto the left side of a top fold square blank. Stamp five presents under the tree using the remaining five colours. On a scrap of white card, stamp the sentiment with Purple Hydrangea ink, trim and adhere to the top right corner of the blank. To finish, embellish the tree with a few gems.
Another quick and simple card, perfect for last minute makes. I think it would also look good in shades of pink... maybe I'll try that colour later.
Right, must get on, lots to do. Thanks for popping in and see you soon. xxx

Thursday 6 December 2012

Advent Calendar

Aft'noon peepsicles!
I thought I would post a few piccies of an Advent calendar I made a couple of years ago. It always stands on the dresser in the kitchen and is very much part of the Christmas decorations. I bought the calendar from Craft Mill, it's still available and costs £31.99. It comes all assembled in bare pine, ready for you decorate. It's really sturdy and the doors open and close really easy and it will last for years.

Here's a few close ups of some of the doors.


I used a selection of retro themed papers from K & Company, My Mind's Eye, Basic Grey, Cosmo Cricket and American Crafts. Some of the embellishment are die-cuts that co-ordinate with the paper collections. Others are ribbons, gems, shaped buttons, brads, snowflakes and rub-on words/phrases. The numbers are a mix of black and white glittered and plain white (some I coloured in).

I waxed the whole calendar, except the door fronts. Then I sanded it back, more in some places than others, to give it a distressed look. I made a basic template in card and then used it to cut out the papers. The papers were then carefully glued onto the door fronts. When dry I again sanded the edges, to give the distressed look. 

To finish, I embellished each of the doors and added the numbers randomly. Ta da!

The most important job is to fill it with loads of choccies. I usually buy the chocolate coins, mini bars and little chocolate puddings, except for 24th December, when we have Lindt miniatures! Oooh yummy!

The good thing is, if it starts to look tatty in a few years time, I can remove the existing decor and do something different. Apart from the fact it's going to last years, and you get the pleasure of decorating it (and filling it - eating any left over choccies - rule #1) £31.99 doesn't seem that bad, especially when you think of how much the throw away calendars cost.

This could be your New Year's resolution, to buy and decorate one of these calendars ready for next year, or you could get one now, decorate and fill it, then have a catch up choccy fest. I think the second suggestion is the best:)

Right, that's me for the nonce. Off to make a coffee and get the fire going. Until next time....xx












Wednesday 5 December 2012

Let's Make Cards Magazine!

Good Mornin'!
 
Exciting news! A few weeks ago I was approached by Let's Make Cards (a sister title to Crafts Beautiful) to become one of their designers - yippee! Of course I jumped at the chance. It's a fab magazine. I know it's a bit more expensive to buy, but what you get with it is amazing.
 
For those crafty peeps who maybe haven't got a lot of storage space or don't really buy many supplies, LMC is perfect because you get everything you need to make the projects with the mag. You can add your own little extras if you wish, but all the papers, embellishments and die cuts etc. that you get are so lovely, you probably wouldn't want to add anymore...just glue or tape. Plus of course, everything co-ordinates perfectly.
 
My first set of projects will be in Issue 59, due out in February. Can't say anymore at the mo, but hope they will like what I come up with.
 
On that high note, I will sign off for now,  see you soon :) xx

Tuesday 4 December 2012

Making Spirits Bright

Aft'noon chums!
Sorry I haven't been around for a few days, I've been busy working on a commission for Crafts Beautiful, which is now all finished and posted off.
Last night I spent hours wrapping Christmas presents 'helped' by Bazoo. I have one of those gift wrap cutting thingies, which is now missing, presumed dead. Last sighting of it was under the Christmas tree, in a state of shock, disbelief and finally acceptance that it was no longer for this world.
I have to say, Simon and I were in great danger and it was only through Bazoo's instinct and bravery that we have come through what could have been a truly grisly ordeal. No doubt I will find the gift wrap cutter's body somewhere under an armchair. I will let you know when and where the service will be held. No flowers and no black please.
Back to the moderately sane world. I did manage to make a couple of cards before I started work on the CB stuff. This is a very simple Christmas card, I used solid circle stamps and created a background of different sized dots in greens and red, finishing with a sentiment, ribbon tied in a simple knot and a few gems.
Here it is.



What I used...

Stamps: Round Designer's Block - Judikins; Joyful Greetings - Paper Smooches
Ink: Tea Leaves, Key Lime, Red Magic - VersaMagic; Onyx Black - Versafine
Ribbon: red
Gems: clear, red

How I did it...

Stamp the sentiment with black ink in the bottom right corner of an A6 blank. Stamp dots randomly over the rest of the card with the red and green inks, starting with small dots around the sentiment, then getting larger as you move up the card.

Embellish the 'i' in 'bright' with a small red gem. Apply a few clear gems on a few of the dots and finish with red ribbon wrapped around the card and tied in a knot at the top.

Ta da! There you have it. I think it would also work really well with snowflakes stamped in lovely shades of blue. Hmmm...might have a go at that.

Again, this is a quick simple card, which can be whipped up in no time.

Well then, that's me for the mo, but I'll be back later. Thanks for dropping by. xxx

Wednesday 28 November 2012

Happy Christmas - dangly bauble!

Whatcha peeps!

It's manic at the moment. I'm in the middle of another Crafts Beautiful commission, so I've not been around much this week.

Well, this Christmas card I want to show you, I made a couple of weeks ago. So glad I did now. This is another very quick simple card, again perfect for those last minuters (is that a word? minuters? - will have to check the 'ol Oxford later).

Righto, on to the card...



What I used...

Stamps: Joyful Greetings - Paper Smooches
Paper: Soda Fountain Dots & Stripes - Echo Park
Card stock: white
Die cut: 12 Days of Christmas Accessory Sheet - My Mind's Eye
Ink: Onyx Black - Versafine
Gems: black, red
Ribbon: red
Punch: corner rounder
Adhesives

What I did...

Create an A6 top fold blank and round the bottom corners. Cut a slightly smaller piece of turquoise stripe paper, round off the bottom corners and attach centrally to the blank. Repeat with white card.

Stamp the sentiment about 1" from the top of the white card. Add a row of black gems leading down from between the 'a' and 's' on the Christmas.

Attach the red bauble from the accessory sheet to the end of the black gems with foam tape, embellish with red gems. Wrap ribbon around the top of the card and tie in a knot on the right. Add a red gem over the dot on the 'i' to finish.

Having a large size sentiment means you don't have to go too mad on filling the rest of the card. These sentiments from Paper Smooches lend themselves very well to having things 'dangling' from them.

Well, that's me for the nonce.

Don't forget you can enter my blog candy giveaway, with a chance to get hold of some fab K & Company papers (rules of entry are in the post dated 21st November 2012). Just a little thank you to those of you who follow, read my waffle and leave fab comments; or to my new followers a thank you for joining :)

Take care, until next time. xx