Friday Freebie - Springtime Butterflies

Hi Everybody,

Today we have a beautiful die set called Springtime Butterflies and it is attached to the Die Cutting Essentials magazine.

There is also the opportunity for you to download some papers that will match with the die set.

The pages of the mag are full of information and ideas that you may like to try plus lots of tips on how to get the most from the die set.

So if this is something that you would like to have in your collection ... and who doesn't like butterflies ... than all you need to do is leave me a comment at the end of this post with your FULL NAME to be in with the chance.

Be sure to come back over the weekend to see if it is your name that is shown as the winner.

I am happy to send this to you wherever you are and it doesn't matter if you have won in the past.

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Oldie but goodie ...

Hi Everybody,

This was a technique that I shared way back in 2016  when I was using Spellbinders and it was how to create a stencil from any dies that you have. I will be updating this technique using my own brand of dies coming soon.

 I cannot find the photo of the finished card to show you so instead I am adding the whole video as a refresher or should you be new to this idea. It is a good way to stretch out your dies and get as much from them as you possibly can 

It is an easy to do technique and the hardest part is waiting for the embossing paste to dry.

You can colour your paste to whatever colour of inks that you have and that way it will match the colour scheme of the design you are making. 

I hope you enjoy this old video and will also watch the new one when I have added it to the blog

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Altenew Craft Your Life Kit

Hi Everybody,

This beautiful flower is Elegant Motifs from Altenew and is part of their Craft Your Life Kit for last November.

There are so many lovely arrangements in this stamp set that can be used all together or apart as I have done here. 

The background is an embossing folder from my own Card Making Magic  and I have Letterpressed this using Distress Oxide Inks. 

I also went direct to paper with the ink pad to give me the fuller look and then cut it out with a circle die.

The flowers have been coloured with the stencil in the kit and then added to the card front with foam pads.

Altogether a quick and easy card to make and the sentiment can be added later when I have an occasion to use it.

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Butterfly Trails Collection

Hi Everybody,

Today card is a 5x7 with the fold at the side, which is not my usual style. But there is a reason for this change.

The front of the card has been decorated with the lovely papers from this collection and I specifically positioned the flowers.

The small butterflies have been cut from the pink paper in the pack and double layered onto white card for added strength.

The sentiment has been added to parchment for the same reason and added to the front of the card.

I have dotted it with sequins and added pearls to the body line of the butterflies.

But it is the inside where I have made the most of this card.

I have again used the papers from the pack to line the inside and from some plain white card I have used Picked Raspberry to ink the card.

I have used the large butterfly die to cut out the design and then I have added a little glue to the  centre edge of the wings.

 Positioning it on the middle of the card I have closed it up and pressed it till the glue was set  and then once you open it up the wings spread across the centre as a pop up.

It looks very effective. 

The centre of the butterfly is decorated once again with the flowers and it all folds flat to go into an ordinary envelope.

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Ruby Update

 Hi Everybody,

Thank you so much for all your emails and concern over my beautiful Ruby. 

She is on medication to help her with the diagnosis of Cushing Disease and she seems to be responding to the treatment at the moment. 

The vet tells me it will take a while for her to completely respond but at least we are making progress in the right direction.

Here she is lying on her cool mat with Ella at her side but she is not taking any notice of the kitten and walks away when she has had enough.

She seems to like being left alone when she isn't feeling well and so that is what I do until she comes to me for a cuddle 

I hope she continues to get better as the weeks go by but it is incurable and so she will be on medication for the rest of her life now.

I will of course let you all know how she is progressing

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Winner

 Hi Everybody,

Here I am bright and early this week because later on this morning I am going out with Ruby for the day.

The weather is fine and dry and I hope it stays that way and we wont be back till afternoon.
So I thought it would be better to get this done early so that you are not all waiting for the name to show up as the winner.

The draw has been done at random and this week it is the turn of ...

Marie Quick
so would you please email me your postal address  to

christina@card-making-magic.com

and I will get it in the post to you straight away.

I really hope you will enjoy the gift and please be sure to let me know that you have it safely.

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Friday Freebie - Fabulous Foliage

Hi Everybody,

Here is another chance to win the Fabulous Foliage that comes with Die Cutting Essentials.

The magazine is full of hints and ideas for you to try, along with interesting articles for you to browse at your leisure.

The set consists of eight different dies for you to cut laves and flowers for your projects and it can be used at any time of the year to fill out your displays.

You will find lots of ideas on how to get the most from this die set in the pages of the magazine

So if this is something that you think you would like to have than all you need to do is leave me a comment at the end of this post with your full name. 

It must be your FULL NAME so that I can identify the correct winner and add it to a blog post over the weekend .

So if you do enter then be sure to come back and check to see if your name is listed as the winner.

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Spiral Rose

 Hi Everybody,

It is no secret that I like to add flowers to my cards and this Spiral Rose  is one of the easiest ways to create them. At the moment it is half price on the Craft Stash website. 

You can make them as small or as large as you like by simply adding more spirals to the flower.

This top picture has used the spiral rose with the plain edges and the bottom one has used the scalloped edge die for a fancier look. 

Clicking the affiliate link in this post will take you to the special offer from Craft Stash that is half price at present from the 20 Sept 22

I also have a video on how to make these flowers for your self and they can be made from some of your patterned papers for unusual designs.  Spiral Rose Maker Die set 

These deals with Craft Stash won't be around for long so take a look at what there is and maybe you will see something that you would like.

And by using my affiliate links means I will get a small commission if you buy through them and it is at no extra cost to you. 

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Layered Florals

Hi Everybody,

I am adding these two cards today because these dies and stamps are on special offer with Craft Stash at present.

They are the Layered Florals  Dies and the Layered Florals Stamps and both are currently half price.

I have had so much fun playing with these, with water colours and alcohol markers as well as coloured pencil.

 In fact whichever is your favourite medium to work with you are sure to get a good result.

These two cards have both been water coloured and  cut out using the matching dies.

I added them to the blog a long time ago, but they both remain two of my favourite cards. 

I am not a good artist but I do enjoy playing around with water colours and of course stamping out the images to be coloured makes it so much easier. 

Both of these cards have had the stamped image done in Versamark and then heat embossed in white powder. 

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Bargains to be had ....

Hi Everybody,

There is a special deal going on at Craft Stash and many of my Card Making Magic Collections are going for half price. So now is the time to take a look and there just might be something that catches your eye.

Here are some of my favourite cards from some of these die sets that are going cheap ...

This is an Easel Card created from the slimline set and it has its own matching box with it. 

 This one is the Layered Florals and I have used this die set so much and it has matching stamps.

The sentiment is from an A5 stamp set

This is the Oval box and my video shows you how I made this for any gift you are giving.

Another special box was the Circular one   and this also has a video to go with it. 

 All my videos can be found on my YouTube Channel and all my collections are available at Craft Stash

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Ruby Update ...

Hi Everybody,

This has been a very stressful week for me and Ruby who has been very poorly for most of it. I took her to the vets as I was very worried when she was being sick, and they kept her in to run some tests.

 

Yesterday I got the results back from blood tests and her scan. The blood test shows that her thyroid is working correctly but the scan has shown that she has Cushing Disease

I had never heard of this complaint but I sure have done some research since. It is a condition where her body cannot regulate the amount of Cortisol it produces. 

Some of the symptoms are lethargy, vomiting, excessive panting, muscle weakness, extended belly, eye/ear/skin infections  and skin problems too.

Over the last few months she has had her fair share of them and been treated for them, and I added it to the blog post when she was having problems with her eye just a few months ago.

But it wasn't until this week that we have had a definite diagnosis. She has been really poorly, and sadly the disease is incurable. She is not in danger but she will be on medication for the rest of her life.

 I am hoping that the medication will give her some quality of life back again and give her the strength to run around and bark at everything again with her pal Dougal.  Please keep your fingers crossed for a good recovery for her and I will of course keep you posted as to her progress.

Thank you all so much for the personal messages that have come to me and for your comments on the blog.

Hugs xx

Ruby Update

Hi Everybody,

My poor Ruby has been admitted to doggy hospital this morning and she is having different tests ,
more blood taken and a scan done. 
She is not well and is so lethargic.

 She doesn't want to eat, go for walks, bark at the postman or growl at the cat. She looks really miserable and can't get comfortable at all. 

The scan they are doing is to check her pancreas and  hopefully they will find out what is making her so poorly. 

The blood tests will check her thyroid and liver again. I am not a vet and I don't know what is wrong but I know my dog and I do know that she is not well, and none of the treatment that she has had has made her any better.

Please keep her in your thoughts and hope she gets better soon.

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Circle Frames

Hi Everybody,

This was a card I made from the Nested Fancy Frames Circle dies and I have used it to partially cover the front of my card.

I embossed the largest circles in to another panel of white card for really elegant look  and then used the smaller one to cut the pattern out.

It was then backed with some of the pretty papers that I have been using in the cards that I made last week. Foam pads are used to raise it up from the base card

The Congratulations die is from the Thoughtful Words die set and I have cut it in pink and simply added it to my card.

It is a DL sized card that I have used in Landscape and because the card is flat it will fit into a standard sized envelope.

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx 

Winner

Hi Everybody,

This is a very sad weekend for many people around the world as we have lost our Queen this week at the age of 96. She has ruled over us for 70 years and I for one do not remember any other monarch in my lifetime as I was only four when she ascended to the throne.

 I remember my dad taking me to see her when she visited Bolton, on her tour of the UK, just after she came to the throne. And sadly he died in January the year after when I was five. 

On another sad note it would have been my Griffs 75 birthday today and this evening we are all having a  get together at Griffs youngest daughters house to remember him. I can't believe how quickly those years have gone by since he died and it will be four this coming November.  

Life changes but it does go on, and sometimes it can be very hard, as those of you who have lost someone will surely know.

To cheer things up a little I have done the draw for yesterdays Poinsettia and the name today is ...

Christi Neal

would you email me your postal address please to
christina@card-making-magic.com
and it will be on its way to you.

I hope you enjoy the gift when it arrives with you and please let me know that you have it safely.

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Friday Freebie - Perfect Poinsettia

 Hi Everybody,

Another Christmas themed "Give Away" today and this one is from me Card Making Magic.

It is the large die that will create a beautiful Poinsettia for your designs, whatever they are.

In the magazine I have an article that shows you how I made some tags for your gift parcels and a banner to decorate your home.

All are easy to do and there is a paper pack download that you can get also to enhance your designs. 

If you would like this in your crafting stash then all you need to do is leave me a comment at the end of the post with your FULL NAME and from those comments one will be chosen at random as the winner.

Be sure to come back and check if it is your name that is shown as the winner.

I am happy to send this to you wherever you are and it doesn't matter if you have won before.

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Altenew

Hi Everybody,

For todays card I have used the same stamp, from the Craft Your Life Project Kit for last November, to add the ghost impression for the background panel.

Then I stamped the flowers again onto some more card and coloured them in with the layered stencils and this adds the shading to the flowers very easily.

The matching dies cut them out perfectly and they have been added to my card front with foam tape to raise them up.

The sequins dotted around highlight the green in the leaves and the sentiment is from another Altenew stamp set that I have had for a long time.

I enjoy using these kits as they are such good value. They include the dies, stamps, stencils and a 3-D embossing folder in each kit, and this kit is called Elegant Motifs

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx 

Nested Fancy Circles

Hi Everybody,

Both of todays cards are using the beautiful paper pack from Simply Made Crafts by Helen Griffin. 

The papers in it are gorgeous and make really feminine cards. 

It is the Summer Fun Paper Pack and there are 24, 12x12 sheets each at 250gsm so a good weight to add to your designs.

For this first card I have laid the detailed die from the circles into the 6x6 white card front and run it through the machine. This keeps the pattern in the card. 

From the paper pack I have used the pink stripy one to add the centre to my design and I have fussy cut a lot of the flowers from the large floral paper

The flowers have been added at varying heights using foam pads, and with leaves pushed into the display as they are added. The LOVE YOU sentiment has been cut in gold mirror card and stacked several times onto some more of the word,  cut in white card

This card has used the same paper to cut the large

shaped centre piece, with the smallest detailed die cut in white for the middle.

I used the pink stripy paper as the background and added large pink roses from the Card Making Magic Embellishment collection. 

The base card is cream and so I continued that theme to the front of the design with flourishes that have been added to the flowers.

I think both are very pretty cards and I have lots of the papers left for other projects 

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Altenew Project Life Kit

Hi Everybody,

Todays card is using the new kit from Altenew for August 2022, and this is Magnolia and Blooms 

I have stamped the image with Versamark onto Parchment and then heat embossed it in gold powder.

The image has then been lightly coloured on the wrong side to add shading to the flowers.

The result is very delicate. I have then added it to a panel that has been run through the embossing folder in the kit and ink splattered with black and gold.

I  cut some of the design off the main image and repositioned it on the card, then carefully placed foam tape under the flowers so that it cannot be seen from the front of the card and added it to the embossed panel.

The sentiment is from the same stamp set and the grey pearls are my finishing touch.  

This little A2 card is using the same set but I have added it an embossed panel using a folder from my own collection.

The stamped image is again gold heat embossed and by cutting up the larger portion I ended up with two cards.

Getting a 2fer is always a good deal and uses up all the extra bits that you may have on your desk.

The little butterfly on this card is something that has been in my bit box for a while and I thought that this was a prefect place to add it in.

The sentiment is also from my own collection and I have add all the links at the bottom of the post.

Some of them are affiliate links which means I will get a small commission if you buy through the links.

And this is the other card created from the larger portion of the stamped image.

The image has been coloured using the matching stencil in the kit and this is an easy way to colour them, especially if you don't like colouring.

I am happy with all of these cards made from one kit and I really love the Altenew Craft Your Life kits which come out monthly.

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Ink Smooshed panels

Hi Everybody,

The little panels on this card are the left overs from the one I used on Tuesdays card. 

The only difference is that these have not been edged in the gold embossing powder.

But I have cut them with the Torn Edges die set and used another die cut to enhance them. 

They have then been added to another panel that has been in an embossing folder.

The finished card is an A2 size and has been layered with pink card under the embossed folder layer.

The flowers are some from a previous project and the pearl flourish is from my stash but is part of the embellishments collection from Card making Magic.

I have simply cut it up to fit my card. The sentiment is part of the new Special Words Collection that the Torn Edges are in.

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Winner

 Hi Everybody,

Here we are at the end of another week and it is still hot. I for one will be so glad when it cools down and better still when it rains. What is the weather like in your part of the world ? Ruby is much better agin today and is eating normally. She is a very food orientated dog so when she is off her food I know she is not well.

So for now, the draw for yesterdays offering has been done and the winner this week is 

Ann Topp

please can you email me your postal address to 
christina@card-making-magic.com
and the pack will be in the post to you straight away.

I woild be happy if you could let me know that you have received it ok and I hope you enjoy playing with it once it arrives.

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Friday Freebie - Beautiful Baubles by Chloe

Hi Everybody,

What a difference one week can make ... last week my Ruby was not well and this week after responding well to her treatment she is much better.

We have been for a lovely walk in Witch Wood earlier today and then it was home for lunch and she ate that with relish.

I am so glad that she is OK again, and very relieved too.

So todays offering is from Simply Cards & Papercraft and it has the lovely die and stamp set from Chloe Endean. I will also send the magazine for you to browse at your leisure, and it is full of ideas and inspiration for you to try for yourself.

So if you would like this to join your personal crafting stash then all you need to do is leave me a comment with your FULL NAME.
From those comments one name will be chosen as the winner and announced in a blog post over the weekend.

Be sure to add your full name and come back to see if it is your name that is listed.

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx