A Wedding Present and Memory Piece

In the same vein and theme as my previous card, I also wanted to make something for my friend which would last a little longer. I used the same colours and set about making something 'arty'!The base shapes are 2 large MDF hearts from Indigoblu which I have based with Indigoblu white Gesso. I have then mixed by own acrylic paint until I achieved a lemony colour. Still not happy with that, (as it looked a little flat) I took a chance and added a layer Daler-Rowney Interference Shimmering Gold. Instant shine and variable tones! Once dry I have used a script stamp to stamp across both hearts horizontally with Colourbox Ochre ink. The script has then been heat embossed with clear powder. At this point I wanted to add another element to the background, but I admit I was stuck as to what and how. I tried using a range of silver/grey inks, but all appeared to dark or too light! In the end, and quite by accident, I had a go with stamping the Indigoblu Small Flourish stamp in Colourbox Charcoal ink straight onto one of the hearts. Thinking it too dark, I went to wipe it off with a baby wipe, but was then in a panic when a grey echo of the stamp remained! Taking a step back, I realised I liked the effect...

Before adding the top layers of decoration, I wanted to add more texture to the heart and make it more 'vintage'.I decided to add some Inka Gold all around the piece as a whole for a distressed and 'non-perfect' look. Next I wanted to weave together some flowers and gems to create a bouquet along one edge. This took quite some time to get right, but I was happy with the final effect. The lemon flowers were easy enough to find, but I had to create the greyer ones by adding light grey ink to ivory flowers. I also decided to make my own decorative pins using coloured beads and crystals just to add a few interesting touches. Once the flowers were mounted I have used strings of Hobby House pearls across both the hearts. On top of this, I have used Spellbinders Ornate Oval dies to cut and mount a picture of the happy couple (taken from social media) and a sentiment that I love from Lavinia stamps at the top. The date was printed from Serif CraftArtist and cut using a Bigz die (Estate). The final touch was a set of charms (wedding themed) hanging from a bow. The ribbon is yellow seam binding from Creative Expressions along with some organza ribbon from my stash. To present the gift I had to make a box, print a name panel and cut 4 corners from a Tattered Lace die. I was worried that my work was a little old-fashioned, but I'm pleased to advise it was liked!

Hobby House Wedding Couple

This is a card I have made for a friend's wedding. I have used a 7x7 pearl card blank for the base and added a craft card layer. On top of this is have used papers from First Edition pad 'Isabelle'. All the layers on the card have had the edges distressed with Tea Dye Distress Ink. Across the middle of the card I have added 2 layers of Duchess Lace from Creative Expressions. The main topper is from the Hobby House Sylvia Zet collection - 'Love Me Do'. I have cut the image out using Spellbinders dies Labels Two and also created a matt with the same dies. There are 2 panels behind the topper and these have been created using more papers from the First Edition pad and cut with Scalloped Labels One. They have been matted onto Decorative Labels One shapes cut from craft card. At the top and bottom of the card I have edged the paper with a gorgeous cream woven style ribbon. The flowers and pearl pins were from my stash; I have picked colours from the main image and built it all up from there. The little sentiment is from Craftwork Cards and the foliage has been created using Tattered Lace dies. Again, a box is needed for this one!

New Baby Girl Card

This card is based on a 6x6 card blank. I have used Kanban papers for the background along with some coordinating pink pearl and yellow card. The central image is a Hobby House topper from the Wee Stamps by Sylvia Zet collection called 'It's a Girl'. I have distressed the edges with Scattered Straw Distress Ink to bring in more of the yellow colour. The flowers are also from Hobby House, the ribbon and gems from my stash. Behind the main image is a rectangular panel, again backed with coordinating papers, and stitched all around using a sewing machine. The border die cut is from Tattered Lace and the Flourish is a Spellbinders D-Lites die. I had to make a box for this one as it would not fit in an envelope!

A Box of Friendship

This project came about after I was asked to make a box to hold a present for someone. My brief was to make a box with some friendship quotes on it. The cogs starting whirring and I decided I might have a go with my new Cricut Mini Books cartridge on my Expression machine. Whilst looking through I noticed an exploding box and the rest is history!














I chose purple colours and papers from the First Edition pad 'Dreamcatcher'. The Cricut worked out all the layer sizes for each part and all I had to do score and cut the right bits with the right colours! Each inner tab had a flower on it with several layers behind it. Although not obvious here, each layer then had a friendship 'quote' on it. There were different quotes for each layer. The quote theme continued on the outside of the box, with matching flowers on the lid. All the flowers were stamped using Versafine and were from the Heartfelt Creations Sunkissed Fleur plate. The matching die was then used to cut them out and purple Distress Inks were applied for some shading. The green foliage was cut using the Tattered Lace Ornate Leaves die and the pearls were from a Hobby House pinwheel set. Once all finished the gift was added to the centre all ready for the box to explode with quotes! I am glad to say the recipient liked it.