Rainbow of Happiness

Hi Everybody,

Today's card is created with one of the new border dies from Card Making Magic and it was shown on the Hochanda show a few weeks ago.

It is really simple card to make and is bright and cheerful on a wt rainy day.

You can use different colours of cards or colour the card with inks or markers to get the colours you need for the rainbow.

I cut each colour with the die once in rainbow colours and then glued them onto my card layer leaving the bottom ends free.

I added a tiny gemstone to each scallop for an added touch and I really liked the result.

So why not give it a try if you like rainbows too and I promise you it is is very easy to create.

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Creative Stamping 67 - Vintage Collage

Hi Everybody,

This months Creative Stamping has a beautiful A4 stamp set that is full of images to help you create beautiful cards and it will be on sale on the 31 st January

There are 36 stamps on the sheet and so you can mix and match for any vintage look you would like to create.

I had a lot of fun playing with this and I stayed with the Vintage theme for most of them.

I did try to show you how you can get a super modern floral look with a water coloured one and it is super bright.

I have no magazine to show how it will look on the shelves but don't let that stop you.

If you would like this set then have a  good look for

 Creative Stamping 67 

on the 31 st January in a supermarket near you

More tomorrow...

Hugs xx

Floral Card from Card making Magic

Hi Everybody,

Today's card is another sample from the ones I made for Hochanda and once again I have used the Spring-Summer Stamp and Die set.

I have stamped all my images onto white card and then coloured them and the die cuts with Copics

This is such a bright and cheerful card and could be for any occasion.

I have used the Sentiments Stamp & Die Set for mine.

The background has been created with  stencil made from the Trellis die in the set and coloured in a very pale pink.

The flowers, bee and butterflies have been added with foam pads to give different heights 

Tiny gemstones have been used to add the sparkle to the flower centres and I would be more than happy to get a card like this for my birthday

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Spring-Summer Stamp & Die Set

Hi Everybody,

This pretty layered card has used lots of dies from different sets and it shows you how well they all work together.

I love adding depth to my cards with layers and of course my trademark is flowers ribbons and pearls.

So for the card shown I have used the Card Making Magic Collection and I am very happy with the result.

Now with the new dies and stamps sets there is a lot of choice on how you put your card together

I stamped and coloured the flowers with Copics and then I did partial die cutting with the Nesting ovals, and layered them with foam tape for height.

Partial die cutting leaves part of the image outside the cut edge and gives a really pretty look to the card

The card layers are wrapped with ribbon and lace before adding them to the base and everything I used is listed below for you to view

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

How To Separate Your New Dies

Hi Everybody,

I have had several emails from people who may be new to card making and using dies, and they don't know how to get the joined dies in the new die and stamp sets apart.

And as it is always better to show you than to tell you and I have made a short video that will do just that.

Many dies these days are "Bridged" to unable the manufacturers to get more from the metal they use.  And so here is the video to show you how I do it

I hope you find it useful and you may have to buy some small snips, but it is better than ruining a good pair of scissors in the process, as the metal is probably too hard for scissors to cut through .

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Card & Gift Winner

Hi Everybody,

Late start for me to today as Ruby and I didn't get up till 10 am and then we had leisurely toast and marmalade for breakfast. Now she has gone back to sleep and I am here typing with her at my feet. 

But later she is going for a walk with Dougal and Vickie ... so she is just gathering her energy for a good run around the park.

The draw has been done for yesterday Make A Splash gift and the name is ....

Elaine Prendergast

would you email me your postal address please to

christina@card-making-magic.com

and they will be on their way to you straight away.

Tomorrow I am adding an information video to show you how to separate your new dies from Card Making Magic so please pop back then if you have had a problem or you don't know how to get them apart.

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Friday Freebie - Make A Splash!

Hi Everybody,

I had a lot of fun with this stamp set when it was offered as a gift with a magazine earlier last year.

It came from Crafti Potential and it has stamps, dies and a stencil in the offer

The video will show some ideas using this set and I am sure that you can come up with many more of your own.

  So if you would like this Make A Splash set then all you need to do is leave me a comment at the end of the post with your FULL NAME

From those comments one name will be chosen as the winner and announced in tomorrows blog post. Be sure to come back and see if it is you as you only have 72 hours in which to claim the gift.

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Blue & White Easel Card

Hi Everybody,

Today I have been busy creating this pretty Easel card and showing you how I did the water colour flowers for the front and inside of the card.

I have used Distress Oxides to do the colouring but you can use any water based inks you may have in your own stash.

I used the Ribbon Threaders as the stop for the easel and raised it up with foam tape underneath.

The shade of blue is really fresh and I have used this a lot in my designs 

The video will take you step by step through the making of this card and if you are new to this hobby then trust me ... it's really easy

I used the left over flower and leaves for the back of the easel to give 

a finished look all round 

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Simply Cards & Papercraft - British Garden Birds

Hi Everybody,

This months magazine Simply Cards & Papercraft will be on sale on the 24th January and it has this beautiful stamp and die set of birds common in British gardens

You can create the most intricate cards building scenes as you stamp or you can keep them quite simple

The one shown here has just used one bird and stamped it several times in different orientations and then coloured them all with Copics in pastel colours.

You need to use a water based ink to stamp your images if you wish to use alcohol inks to colour.

The clouds stencil is from My Favourite Things but you could just as easily make your own from Copy paper ... and save money in the process

I have used the Aldi brushes to add my clouds but many other types will do the same job ... brushes,

blending tools or sponges. Whichever you prefer to work with 

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Adult Colouring Books

Hi Everybody,

Travelling down to Peterborough on Friday to do the "LIVE" shows on Hochanda I decided to pass the time by colouring in some items from and adult colouring book that I have.

I took some Alcohol markers along with me and got busy colouring these two sets. Then once I was home I very quickly made them up into cards

This one clearly shows some Dahlias and I partially die cut them from the book.

The other flowers are added with foam to give more depth to the card and the big yellow ribbon is from Card Making Magic Decorative Collection

This one was some little flowers that I coloured pink and added white spots to the petals with a gel pen

The Happy Birthday sentiment is cut from Glitter card and I have wrapped the card in ribbon and lace

One way to pass a train journey and productive at the same time

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx 

Carter and Bobby

Hi Everybody,

I just had to share this photo with you all as it really made me smile.

These two little cuties are my Great Grandsons watching me on Hochanda on Saturday morning.

Carter is two and a half and Bobby coming up to be one year old... notice Bobby has his hand in Carters pocket.

They apparently where enthralled and every time I was off the screen Carter said to his mum "Gran gone" and when he could see me it was "Grans back" 

So these two are members of my fan club and how good to be able to impress a two year old ... what an achievement

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Card & Gift Winner ...

Hi Everybody,

A really big "Thank you" to all who tuned in yesterday to watch my first
appearance on Hochanda.

It was an amazing two shows and a complete sell out by the end of them both. I was really pleased that everything went so quickly and I hope you will enjoy playing with your new purchases when they arrive with you. 

The new products will be with Craft Stash this week so if you missed out on the super sale on Hochanda then you will still be able to get them here
  Card Making Magic 

I will be adding cards and videos over the next few weeks so please come back to view.

But for now the draw has been done for the Friday Freebie and the winner this week is

Marjorie Bates

please would you send your postal address to 

christina@card-making-magic.com

and they will be on their way to you straight away.

You have 72 hours to claim the gift and please let me know when it arrives with you.

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Friday Freebie - Botanical Border

Hi Everybody,

Just a reminder that I will be on Hochanda Saturday 19th January at 10 am and 2 pm so I hope you will join me then

 And so that I don't miss this give away I am scheduling the post  for this pretty gift to go out while I am away.

This is Botanical Border and I made some really lovely cards with this all in the same colour scheme

The video will give you lots of ideas and so I hope you enjoy it.

  Botanical Borders 

If this is a gift that you would like to win then all you need to do is leave me a comment at the end of the post with your FULL NAME.  

This is to save any confusion if two people with the same first name apply.

 I won't be adding names to the hat if they are not your full one so if you wonder why you're not winning then check your comment and see if you added your name.

If you are new to the give away you can enter each week and it doesn't matter if you have won one before. I am happy to send the gift to you at my expense and it doesn't matter where you live.

You don't need your own blog but you DO need to come back and check for your name tomorrow. I will announce the winner, on my return from Hochanda, in a blog Post and you will have 72 hours to claim it.

If the gift is not claimed it will be re offered at a later date

Good Luck everybody.

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Sneaky Peak !!

Hi Everybody,

So the good news this week is that I will be on your telly this coming Saturday with more of my new collection to share with you.

And this is a sneaky peak of one of the items in the show that will be on HOCHANDA

I am really looking forward to be being back and this is the first show I have done for well over a year. 

I have some lovely samples to show you and these are from my very own collection Card Making Magic ... and I am so excited about it.

Griff would be so proud and he would be taking photos every two minutes to show the world and his wife at every available opportunity .... at least twice !!

So please join me on Saturday the 19th January at 10 am and again at 2 pm when I will be working with Paula Pascual and showing you some of the cards we have made.

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Die Cutting Essentials 47 - Hello Spring

Hi Everybody,

Today I am bringing you a new cover mount video and this is the first one I have covered since last year. If you are a regular reader you will know the reason for the lack of posts with the magazine gifts

But this one is for Die Cutting Essentials and it is a six piece die set called Hello Spring.

Just in time for all your flowery makes but if you leave the flowers off then it is just as suitable for any male cards.

I created this pretty background with the tiny little stamp that is part of the reader offer.

Pay just the postage and packing and the A6 stamp set is yours and it works really well with the dies.

The video will give you lots of ideas and of course you will find many more withing the pages of the magazine too

The background technique in the video is really easy to create with mini ink pads and on one of them I have used the Altenew sets which have three shades of one colour. The pink card is a kind of Ombre effect and I really like the finished card

So I hope you will give this a try and look out for the magazine in the shops tomorrow if you would like this die set.

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Shell Trellis & Nesting Circles

Hi Everybody,

Today's card has used lots of items from the Card Making Magic Collection which is all available from Craft Stash

I love the colour scheme to this card but you can make yours any way you wish and I used Distress Oxides

The flowers I used are the pink edged ones from the Decorative Collection and I have brushed over the edges with the same inks I used on the card

I used the Shell Trellis because it matches the Nesting Circles and that keeps everything tied together. You can stack the dies with the largest one first and make your way out to the smallest centre piece adding foam pads as you go.
That would give you a decoupaged look.

But I decided to add the smallest first and work my way out to the largest  for another way to add the interest.  The finished result is a very colourful card that started life as just plain white

Make your box for this card and ink the two pieces the same as the card. 

Add your Nesting Circle to the box front and add some flowers and you would have a lovely gift to give to some one for any occasion you need it for.

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Pretty Feathers

Hi Everybody,

This card is created with some of the feathers that are from Spellbinders and they are on the front of a 5x7 card so you can see that they are quite large.

I stencilled the background to blend in with them and the die itself is in two parts.

I cut the solid piece from pink and layered the black filigree piece cut three times and stacked together over the top.

This gave me lovely deep feathers to add to my card.

The sentiment is from a stamp that was with a magazine and it just sat very neatly at the bottom of the card.

Backing the panel onto black card gave me a thin borer around the edge that tied everything together and then I added them to a white tent fold base.

Change the colours and this would be ideal for male cards and quite a good look too.

 Not too masculine but more than suitable

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Card & Gift Winner

Hi Everybody,

I am sorry for the delay but yesterday I was so busy I couldn't find the time to sit down and write a post until late in the evening and so I decided to leave it till today ... and here I am. 

The draw for Fridays card and gift has now been done and the winner this week is ...

AnnLouise Harris

would you email me your postal address please to 

christina@card-making-magic.com

and they will be on their way to you.

Please let me know that you have the gift safely and I hope you will enjoy playing with it.

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Friday Freebie - Songbird Blossoms

Hello Everybody,

Today's gift consists of Stamps, Dies and an Embossing Folder and will help you to make some really pretty cards.

I have said quite a lot over the last few weeks, with regards to Christmas stuff, that it can be used all year round, if you use your imagination, and this set is ideal to use all year round too.

Turn the bird into a Robin and alter the flowers to make Christmas Roses and there you will have a card that is perfect to send.

The video to showcase this set was 

 Songbird Blossoms 

and if this is gift that you would like to have then all you need to do is leave me a comment with your FULL NAME

From those comments a name will be chosen and announced in tomorrows blog post so please come back and check if it is you

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Another fancy Border Die .... and some news !

Hi Everybody,

I am loving these new border dies and not just as borders either.

For this card I have cut the border three times from the same colour card and then added it to a white panel

I fussy cut around the panel and then added it to an inked lilac base with foam pads to raise it up.

It really stands out from the card and then I dressed it with a pearl flourish  The flowers have been glittered as I like to do them and they sparkle in the light as the card is turned.

I cut my sentiment from black card four times and stacked them up to give a really deep effect on the parchment base and I do like this card.

Some News ...

It has been quite some time since I was on your TV screens but the news is that I will be back and in the very near future

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

The New 5x7 Card & Box Die Set

Hi Everybody,

Today I am using the new version of the 5x7 card and box die set and with this new set the Trellis die is included in the box.

So now you have everything you need to make a beautiful card with the fancy trellis work and the box to put it in.

This one has used the trellis as a stencil to decorate the front of the card and both panels to the box to tie them together.

The finished card look really pretty and is prefect to give for a birthday or any other occasion you may have coming up

I used the layering dies  from the set to line the inside and the verse is from the Verses set that came out last year.

So I hope you enjoy the video and will give this card a try, and then give it to someone you love for their special day

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Lilac Border

Hi Everybody,

Today I am sharing another border die from the new collection and this pretty one is using the Floral Border die.

This is so pretty and I have added gemstones to each of the drops

I tied a large chocolate box bow for the front of the card and added a tear drop gemstone to the centre 

The large flower is one of the pale pink edged ones from the card Making Magic collection and I have simply edged it with Wilted Violet instead

The lilac colour scheme is so fresh and I am really enjoying using it at present.

 Team it with white, pale pink, pale lemon or pale turquoise and the look can be totally different. In fact it can be teamed with just about anything for a lovely look.

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Just for You

Hi Everybody,

Border dies are always a useful addition to any of your projects.

They can be used to frame the focal point, edge any of the shapes you want to use or as I have done here to add a surround to a separate panel that is raised on your card.

For this one I have used the Lace Edge  and cut my card in lilac.

The flower and leaves are from the Layered Flowers stamps and die set and I used the flower shaper to curl the petals 

The pearl flourish in the background is also from Card Making Magic and adds the finishing touch to the design.

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

More Numbers ...

Hi Everybody,

This little card was created with the new  Numbers dies and would be ideal for a male birthday.

I have used Distress Oxides to ink the background and then spritzed over it with Perfect Pearls to ad some shine.

I chose the numbers and added them randomly over the card, allowing some to hang over the edge,  and cut them out.

Keep any complete numbers for another project, and don't forget to keep any of the centre pieces you may need as in the number six

I cut the age  and the TH several times from black card and stacked them together before adding them to the card front 

Then I stamped Birthday with Versamark and heat embossed the White powder until melted.

I think it looks really cool and you can change out the colours and age to suit your recipient 

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Card and Gift Winner

Hi Everybody,

Cloudy day here this morning but no rain. I have had a busy week making samples with the new dies and I have a  Card Making Magic Box Kit coming out on the 10th January. This is really exciting news and the first of what will be a regular feature.

There is a fabulous paper pack inside the box as well as dies, stamps and stencil.  The stencil will also help you to create the box for your cards if you don't have the new A2  card and box die set

So onto the draw for yesterdays "Good Sport" card and gift, and the name that has been chosen this week is ...

Gill Hubbard

please can you email me 

christina@card-making-magic.com

and the gift will be on it's way to you.

I have started the new year with winners names on the Winners Page and the link is in the NavBar to your left.  You can always check if your name is there and I will list if it is claimed or not as the case maybe 

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Friday Freebie - A Good Sport

Hello Everybody,

This A4 stamp set is perfect for all you sporting enthusiasts and it covers lots of them to help you make the cards

In the video I have shown you some of the ways in which I have used it and I am adding it here so that you can view it again

A Good Sport

You can create different scenes with this to suit your recipient and also some really easy backgrounds.

Would you like to have this set in your collection? 

Then all you need to do is leave me a comment at the end of the post. One name will be chosen as the winner so be sure to leave me your FULL NAME please

I will be back in the morning with the winner so be sure to come back and check if your name is shown.

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Beautiful Bow Card & Box

Hi Everybody,

Here I am again today with another lovely project using the A2 die set and this one features the bows.

I have used coloured pens to add the shading to them and the lazy part to the set is on top.

The addition of the embossing at the bottom of the card just make it a little more interesting

These new dies will be with Craft Stash from today the 3rd January and there are some lovely ones for you to choose from

The video will show you how I made two cards and the boxes to go with them in two different styles

Don't let the colouring put you off just dive in and give it a try .... or use coloured card instead.

But the finished cards can be as simple or as fussy as you like and you know me I like fussy 

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Lots of Hearts

Hi Everybody,

One of the dies that I wanted in my new Border Collection was one with lots of hearts that could be paper pieced or simply added to the card. 

Especially with Valentines Day now on the horizon as the next celebration.
These are available now on the Craft Stash website

This pretty card was so easy and quick to make and I used some bright pink glitter card and paper pieced the hearts with some really shiny silver mirror card

The background is from my Happy Birthday folder  and I just ran a pink ink pad lightly over the top 

There are lots of fun elements in the coming collections and so I hope you will take a look when the next part launches on the 3rd January with Craft Stash

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

A2 Collection ...

Hi Everybody,

I would like to wish you all a really Happy New Year.
 May you find peace and love in all that you do.

The New Year is starting off with a big bang for me as I have a new size of die set added to my range.  This is a size I have been asked for regularly especially by my US friends and readers.

And so here is the A2 Card & Box Die Set

For the cards shown in the video I have only used the dies that are actually in the A2 set.

And new to this is the addition of the Trellis die to give you everything you need to make a beautiful card and matching box.

But there are a whole host of new dies that can be used with EVERY die in the whole collection whatever the size A2 ... 5x7 ... 6x6

Everything has been carefully thought out so that you can use them with whichever set you like 

So I hope you will enjoy the video and any of the dies that you decide to use. 

And don't forget the brand new Letters and Numbers that came out just before Christmas

Then add them with the flowers, ribbons and pearls from the Decorative Collection 

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx