Ye Olde Style Congratulations - New Baby

A work colleague has just sent a colleage/customer of his, a gift for his new baby..... there were some lovely muted colours in the outfits they chose for the new baby's gift... it made me think of the gorgeous Mabel Lucie Atwell stamps from The Artistic Stamper - and while the 'title' of this stamp is 'A Jolly Day Out'...... somehow, I thought it might make a splendid New Baby Card...... I've used Ranger Distress inks on the background of the card - sponged and 'crackled' with a bit of screwed up cellophane.  Torn and distressed the edges of the papers.... added some gorgeous ribbon from Craft Fairy and coloured the image with Sakura Gelly Roll pens for a lovely glossy finish - and despite my general 'dislike' of peel-offs...... I thought these finished it all off rather beautifully!  Oh yes..... the little button, is wooden....... came from the wooden button stand at Ally Pally [actually it might have been Farnborough... but it's the same guy!]  Hope you like.

giving Harvest Thanks.......

I think  people know that during the daytime I work for an English Vineyard - yes we do make wine - good wine - and red too,  in England!  We win lots of awards... International - we've even beaten the French!  That being said, we've just finished [well, almost] the most amazing harvest we've ever had - bringing in and processing over 100 tonnes of grapes - that folks, is a heck of a lot of wine!  Anyways, I had this hankering to make something using a rather lovely church window stamp from The Artistic Stamper together with one of their fabby texture mat stamps - and just for good measure, being Harvest 'Time'.... one of the clocks and foliage stamps too...... feathers from birds on the estate... crown cap [bottle top] from the bottling line for the sparkling wine... All inked up with Brilliance Tiramisu ink and Archival Coffee ink - thus my tribute to Harvest time!  The picture doesn't do the article any justice, but maybe I am a little biased!  Think maybe i'll have another go with different inks........ any suggestions??  Cannot hope to replicate the fantastic colours that the vines are turning into..... I'll post some pictures later!  Enjoy your Harvest time. xx

Love, Love, Love.....

All you need is love.... right?            It's been one of those weeks, when folks could've done with a little more love! I fell over a discarded Teddy Bear... [like you do!]... and thought ... apart from Ouch!... I have this lovely stamp [well what else do you think about when you've just falled a** over t**?]  [apart from an open log fire, oodles of hot chocolate and a big box of Maltesers?!] one of Mabel Lucie Atwell's drawings of course!.......  from The Artistic Stamper - so a little 'me' time for playing, nursing a sore toe and knee...... and tra-la........ adding colour with Sakura pens, some embossing and some rather lovely fun flock for teddy from Stamposaurus - I managed to 'flock' the brads too! [peeps, this you gotta try!] dip the brad head into pva.... then into fun flock..... [use tweezers!] then put the brad 'stems' into a piece of foam [Oasis or polystyrene work great] leave to dry overnight!  I mounted the little girl onto brown card, decorated with Calligraphy blending pens from Kuretake and the metallic pens - blend the two pens together.... [I used brown and silver] and decorate away! great effects! Have fun.:-)

Origami Picture Frame - Instructions

Okay dear friends......... you asked for it......... don'chya just love this little piccy frame.....and it really is so simple! 
Step 1. take a square of paper.... I used 12" x 12", but you can make it smaller.... you need to find the centre of the paper, so bend the paper [dont fold the whole thing please!!!] diagonally and crease just a fingers width in the centre, repeat on the other diagonal........ if you're like me, and can't see so well.... I used a pokey tool to make a hole on the centre mark.... just to make sure! 

Step 2. with the patterned side of the paper face down, bring each of the diagonal corners to the centre, folding each edge with a bone folder to make a good crisp fold. 

Step 3. turn the paper over, and once again bring each of the diagonal corners to the centre, folding each edge with a bone folder [or if you are like me, and have a workbench that frankly is a disgrace, and you cannot find a thing - use anything you can to make that fold crisp and sharp!]

Step 4. now fold the diagonal points back, so that they are level with the outer edge, again creasing with the bone folder [or the base of a paper punch..... or whatever!]
Step 5. pokey tool to the fore once again..... and holding what is now the frame in one hand - poke a hole [this to make brad insertion easy] approx. 1cm from the edge - go thro' all the layers of the frame - but take care a. not to push the pokey tool through your finger! or b. dont go through the back of the paper]

Step 6. you need ribbon... or fibre... and 4 brads of your choice.  Lay the ribbon between the flaps on the first side of the frame, insert and fix the brad into place - carry the ribbon around under the next flap and fix as before..... repeat, until you get back to the beginning.

Step 7. Attach your chosen picture to the inside 'back' of the 'frame'..... and gently pull the ribbons tight..... tie in a decorative bow.

Step 8. with the bow at the bottom, turn your 'frame' over, and fold back the bottom diagonal flaps to form the stand

Hey Presto.......one Photo Frame!  See, I told you it was simple!

Origami Picture Frame

Origami fascinates me... I confess it here! so when I saw somebody make a picture frame from a single sheet of paper, they got blown over in my haste to 'have a go'! Welllllllll some things you just gotta do, right?!  Anyways, I had in mind a wedding piccy to do for a neighbour as a little gift on their gazzillionth wedding anniversary, bless! Hope you like...... I used Kuretake paper - plain in ivory/cream.... I just adore the texture of this paper, and it stamps so well! used Stazon in Dove Gray, and Swirly stamps from The Artistic Stamper to decorate the paper, a few flower brads and some divine mole coloured chiffon complete the look....... it's a real simple design.... and you can make it smaller out of 6" square paper too! [smaller than this works too if you can cope with the folding!!] and folding the bottom bits, creates a stand for it to 'free-stand' which is real dandy!

'Potential'..... just means - 'you 'ain't done it yet'!

I have a little bank of sayings...... things i've found, sentiments i've been given, and I thought this one really fitted MLA's lovely stamp... the little girl was concentrating so hard on the balloon..... I thought she was lovely... her 'Potential' is enormous!  Another one of the new set from The Artistic Stamper these really are so cute, and great for decoupage!

This was really a great challenge for me, not being a dedicated 'decoupager' - lots of tiddly cutting out! - but as I have had to spend the day with my foot elevated [far too much shopping at the BSSBS yesterday!] it was a great bit of relaxation, however, I did colour her face with colour pencils and sansodor... 'potential' was a challenge, but great fun to do!

Lovely papers - unashamedly from a pack I bought in the USA; the balloon was coloured with Sakura pens, and glossed with glossy accents.  Edge punch is one of the new Martha Stewart punches.... can't wait to get my hands on the corner punch for this one!

'Under the Weather' with Mable Lucie Attwell

Brand new stamps - oh so cute! The Artistic Stamper has excelled again!! Mabel Lucie Attwell was a picture on my bedroom wall - oh so many years ago, as a child.... I adored her....... I've created a couple of the images....... Ok so the colours may not be 'traditional', but heck a little poetic license is good for the soul! Really hope you like them!

I've embossed her raincoat and the unbrella... and given a coat of gloss, to replicate the rain.... she is just so adorable....... I think this one is my fave so far!