Altenew Project Kit

Hi Everybody,

I have decided to treat myself, on a monthly basis, to the beautiful  Create Your Life Kits from Altenew.

I saw these being shown on YouTube and I thought the kits where absolutely fabulous.

 So I toyed around with the idea and then I took the plunge and went for the monthly subscription.

 That was the best way to save a little cash as they are discounted by $10 if you take out the subscription. The shipping to the UK makes the price go up but I am still happy with the products. 

These featured cards are from the first kit and this is Seasonal Blooms. There is a large stamp set. co-ordinating dies, stencils and a 3-D embossing folder

The shaped card is the first one I made with the set and I used the  stamp as it was and just die cut it out.

I turned the die cut onto its side and made a side opening card. I used the die again to cut out the front of the card to match. This is a 6x6 card

I am very happy with the way it turned out, and it spurred me on to make some more in different colours.

For this card I have cut the stamped design up and added it to an embossed panel with foam tape. 

From that cut up stamping I made three other cards, using the 3-D folder to create the extra background. 

I added some flat backed pearls for extra decoration and the sentiment is from Card Making Magic

This card is an A2 size card which is 41/4 x 51/2 

The main bloom is a Sun Flowers but who says I have to colour it yellow.

Your flowers can be any colour you wish whatever die and stamps you are using. 

But I went with the yellow sunflowers for this card.

Once again I cut the stamped image up and added them with foam pads to different areas of the card front. 

You can get a lot of use from one stamp set by simply cutting it up and using parts of it, or all of it in different areas.

I used a different embossing folder for this one and this is 5x7 card

I will show you some cards when I use the next kit that I already have and the new one that was out on Sunday is on its way to me and I will be sure to sho you some of those too.

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Pentagon Easel for Christmas

Hi Everybody,                           

This card is created from another of the new easel dies and on some of the packages it is called the Hexagon Bauble Easel.

And I know it only has five sides so it's not a hexagon,  and we will have to blame that one on the Gremlins !!

Nevertheless it is a pretty Pentagon Easel Card once made up and just the same as the others in this collection it can be added to a full sized card if you wished.

The deer is part of the set and I have added some shading to mine and then mounted it with foam pads  to the leaves.

Another quick and easy way to create a shaped card without any measuring for you to do. Just run the dies through your machine and away you go.

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Triple Star Easel Card

Hi Everybody,                   

Today's card is created using the new Triple Star Easel Card from Card Making Magic and I am sorry that this is a rubbish picture.

The light was going and my battery was also on it's last legs but you get the idea anyway.

This is a pretty die set and can be used in several ways, and would look particularly good as individual stars on a card.

You could create ornaments to dress your tree, or make a garland by gluing several of them together.

This card has just been made from pink and silver card to give it some sparkle.

It is not a big card and will fit easily into a standard envelope and so save you money on postage, but it is very impressive once opened out for your recipient to add to their mantle shelf.

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Matching Dies & Stamps

Hi Everybody,

In the new collection you will find these  beautiful flowers for you to stamp out and colour with your favourite medium,.

And then use the matching dies to give you the flowers that you need for your project.

These are named Christmas Roses but can be used all year round as you can see from the sentiment on this card.

I have used water colours on water colour paper to make my flowers and then shaped the petals with the shaping tool.

The inside of the card is decorated the same and for that I have used the new Inserts and a Verse from the Birthday Verses  A5 stamp set.

These will give you a complete co-ordinated look for your cards and of course adding them to a matching box will also make them extra special too.

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Extended Oval Box

Hi Everybody,

When the Oval Box Die Set was brought out it was very popular and sold out very quickly when it was on Hochanda.

But the sides to this box, although plenty deep enough to hold small gifts, where shallow.

Well now it's back and with it comes the opportunity for you to make it deeper, up to 5.5",  with the
 Oval Additions set

This new die set will only work for you if you already have the Complete Oval Box Die Set

That original set created the top and base of the box for you as well as the shallower sides.

With the Oval Box there was flowers and leaves and flourishes for you to decorate the outside, and add your sentiment.

But with the additions set there is also a bow and some border dies as well as even more flowers and leaves.

The dies that will make a complete card with lots of layers and of course the Trellis too are also in the Complete Oval Card & Box Die Set

If you don't already have the Original Set then you can purchase both sets together at an amazing price and then you can make your boxes to the depth that you require

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Alphabet & Ultimate Relations

Hi Everybody,

Sorry for my absence but as I explained the noise from having the new roof fitted makes it impossible to think in my craft room and I have no chance of videoing until it is done. Which should be by the end of this week ... fingers crossed.

So in the meantime I will add pictures of cards that I have made using some of the new products that were on Hochanda last week.

For this first card I have coloured in the door mouse in the teapot and created a striped background for him with Blueprint Sketch.

I added the little white dots with  gel pen and the sentiment is from the Ultimate Relations Die Set

It is fun to see what sentiments you can create from the words in the set and there are many in there.

This card has had the Dove on the branch coloured in and then clear glitter pen over the top.

The word JOY  is from the Lower Case Alphabet

and I have cut that from pink card and craft foam and layered them together

Now this card could be used in two ways ... to send a Christmas Greeting OR as someones first name

This card has combined both sets to make the word Sister.

I took sister from the Ultimate Relations Set and trimmed of the first S

Then I cut the Capital "S" and its overlay from the Upper Case set and added in front of the remaining "ister"

This idea would work really well for other words too, such as appy, irthday, erry, hristmas, aster and I am sure that you can fill in the missing letters.

As soon as the noise is ended I will do a video on this idea to show you how I make the cards.

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Perfect panels & Lovely Layers Circles

Hi Everybody,

This was the card that I gave you a sneaky peak at when the new Perfect Panels where ready to be launched onto the world.

But I don't think I ever showed you the full card so here it is in all its glory with yet another way to use hose circle dies.

For this card I have created quarter panels and layered them to the circle card base and I have used Pink, Pale grey and Cream to make the card 

I have added the flowers and highlighted them and the sentiment in shiny gold mirror card.

I will do a video in the next few days to show you how I made this card and it is very effective but easy to make. 

Card Making Magic is going to be on Hochanda tomorrow so I hope you can join me as I will be doing some demos for you via video.

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Squares ?? What squares !!

Hi Everybody,

Today I am using the square dies again from the Perfect Panels ~ Squares set but this time we are making a long slim card commonly called a DL

These are easy enough to make for your self from A4 card stock, and have some left over for layers.

I like the shade of blue that this one is in and it goes really well with the white. It is called Marine Blue and it is from Papermill Direct

The video is not long, so no time to get bored, but I hope you enjoy it anyway.

I have lots more to come in the next few weeks so I hope you will keep visiting me often, and please leave me your comments as it is very encouraging for me when you do.

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Square Card & Matching Box

Hi Everybody,

This pretty card and it's matching box is sure to delight any recipient that receives it ... I know I would if some one made this for me.

The pale turquoise goes so well with the white and I think the pink flower just sets it all off nicely.

I have combined it with the

Square Perfect Panels & Lovely Layers Die Set and the Embossing Folder 

The video will show you how I made both card and box. The flowers are some from another project that where beckoning me to add them to this set and I couldn't resist

I have another video tomorrow with the same sets and then I will move onto one of the others and do a few videos with that.
  I want to show you just how versatile these new Perfect Panels & Lovely Layers are and how they can help you to make some beautiful cards

Please don't forget to scroll back and check for the winner of Fridays Give Away as I was somewhat late posting it. Sorreeeee!!

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Perfect Panels & Lovely Layers - Squares

Hi Everybody,

Today I am using the Squares from the new collection of Perfect Panels & Lovely Layers to create this card .

I love how the layers all fit neatly together without any worrying about them, they all fit really well and you can add as many or as few layers as you would like.

The video will try to explain how the dies work and I will be adding more cards and videos this week using the same set.

These new collections offer you so many ways in which to use them and your choices meant you can come up with a different design each time.

I really love them and I have thoroughly enjoyed playing with them and I hope you do too.

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Lower Alphas ...

Hi Everybody,

This simple and easy card is created with the Lower Case Alphas that were introduced in the Birthday Celebrations last week.

They match perfectly the Upper case ones and are a fabulous addition to your own collection to help you personalise your cards.

Many people have unusual names that you will not find as standard. 

Or even names that they like to spell outside the norm.

For instance how many ways do you know to spell the name Christina ??? 

I have seen it as Krystina, Chrysteena, Kristyna , to mention just a few ... need I say more, none of that is standard spelling.

So this little set will give you endless possibilities when ti comes to adding names to your creations.

Personally I love it and it has opened up new avenues for me in the future, when it comes to different occasions I may be asked to make a card for.

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Beautiful Layered Roses

Hi Everybody,

This is a die set from my collections that has been out for some time now and it will help you to create some lovely Roses that can be used all year round to good effect

 In this video I have created three cards of varying sizes and all different themes 

I have enjoyed playing with this set over the last few days and I hope you will enjoy the video that I have put together for you to view

I have linked to all the products I have used both at the end of the blog post and under the description on YouTube so that they are easy for you to find.

Now,  I have used pens to colour my flowers but you can use whatever you have to hand and still get a beautiful look to the roses. I have used other leaf sets though to give me a variation with them so use any that you have in your own collections.

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Perfect Panels & Lovely Layers - Triangles

Hi Everybody,

Today's video is one that has been requested and it features the Triangles.

In this video I have created two cards from the same set of dies ... one is a 5x7 and the other is a square card.

And both look very different and very pretty. 

You can of course use any of the dies in this new collection to create any style of card and they are a lot of fun to play around with.

So I hope you enjoy  the video and will give these dies a try for your self.

There are a lot of dies in each set so that you can arranges your patterns and layers any way you wish and why not try mixing and matching them with the other sets that you may have too

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Perfect Panels & Lovely Layers - Circles

Hi Everybody

Today's card is created with the Perfect Panels and for this one I have used the Circles to produce this really pretty A2 card

I have used the doily pattern and also cut a layer to sit under it in a contrasting colour and added it partially to the left side of the card front.

For the stripes I have used a stamp that I have had for a long long time from My Favourite Things.

It is one of my favourite stamps for creating a background and it has been well loved over the years. 

Although I have searched I cannot find the link to this particular stamp but there are many alternatives for a striped stamp set

I have also produced a video for you and someone has asked me for one with the Perfect Panels Triangles and so tomorrow that is the video that I will add to the blog.

I hope you are all keeping safe and enjoy the video ... it will give you enough time to chillax for  while

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Filigree Fancy Dies & Beautiful Verses Stamps - Butterflies Card 2

Hi Everybody,

Here is the second of the butterfly videos that I promised yesterday and I have to say that this card is my favourite in this mini -series of butterfly cards

It is soft and delicate and I always think that Mermaid Lagoon, Blueprint Sketch and Wilted Violet are a beautiful combination when blended together.

It is a colour scheme that I like to use often on my creations.

The text stamp that I am using is ancient and has been used so much it is now falling to pieces, but I love the look of the text.

It is such an easy way to create a visual background for any project.

Almost all my supplies are from Craft Stash and the service is second to none.

Although I have shown in the product list Ink Duster Blending Brushes, the ones I use are actually from Aldi quite some time ago and they were three in a pack. But because they are not always available I linked to the others instead as they are and they work in the same way

More tomorrow  ...

Hugs xx

Filigree Fancy Dies & Beautiful Verses Stamps - Butterflies Card 1

Hi Everybody,

Today I have a card and matching envelope to share with you and these are just ordinary shop bought DL supplies

I have used the Butterflies that are part of the Perfect Panels and Lovely Layers Die Sets and I am quite pleased with the result.

The verse and frame are from the
Beautiful Verses Stamp Set

I have also stencilled the background and the envelope for a soft and delicate look

The video will show you how I made this card and if I can add anything else it would be to cut the butterflies from a thinner card stock like 160 -250 gsm card

The rest of the card would be fine with the  300 gsm but the thinner card would reduce the bulk in the butterflies and help it to fold neater.

Tomorrow I have another card for you using the same dies, stamps and colours for a totally different look ... which is my favourite one out of the two.

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Money Pocket

Hi Everybody,

What a lovely way to give some one money or a gift card for any occasion and far better than just handing it over. 

This little envelope was created from just one piece of blue card and the Perfect Panels Rectangle added to the top

I coloured the flower petals and the leaves with alcohol markers and slipped a little white card behind the detail panel.

I went over the flower with a clear glitter pen to add some subtle sparkle and added the words from the Ultimate Word dies

The top flap is held down with some small Velcro dots, that I bought in a pack of many, very cheaply from the Range, ages ago and they will last me a long time. They come in black and white.

And just to let you know that I will on Craft Stash Facebook Live this coming Friday at 1 pm.

I have done a video demo to show you the new collection and I will be chatting to Lou Collins 

via Skype .... hopefully !!

So be sure to join us as there will be some good prizes for you to win

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Perfect Panels & Lovely Layers - Square Card

Hi Everybody,

Today is the turn of the Square card and I have used another of the panels dies from the Rectangle Perfect Panels & Lovely Layers Set

This has been teamed with the 6x6 Complete Card & Box Set and has used one of the dies from the original sets to get the Lacey Border.

With any of the new sets they can be adapted to suit any style card that you want to make and they are all easy to work with

And they all work well with other dies from Card Making Magic, or indeed any other dies that you may have in your collection 

Try out the concept that I explain to you in the video about having a dry run with your dies so that you get some idea of what the card will look like when it is done.

This is something that I have done for a long time ... though don't show on camera, but it really does help me to decide what looks best or even if I should leave it out of the design altogether.

Take a photo of the layout with your phone or camera just in case you have to leave off and return later. It will jog our memory as to what it was you wanted to create.

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Perfect Panels & Lovely Layers A2 Card Size

Hi Everybody,

So once again as promised I am adding another video from the Rectangle Perfect Panels Collection.

This one uses another set of the panels, that I have added to an A2 sized card, and it is a very elegant card that would suit many occasions.

For this I have also used the A2 Complete Card & Box Die Set and in particular the flowers, leaves and Lacey border that is in the set.

Change the colour scheme and leave of the flowers and this would be just as suitable for any male card too

So I hope you enjoy this video for another size to create from the same die set

It's not a long video ... just enough time for a cuppa and relax.  Then make it for your self and send it with love. And look out for the video on Sunday creating a square card with the same die set for yet another look for your cards

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Perfect Panels & water colour

Hi Everybody,

Today I am showing you another card created with the rectangles and this one has used the

5x7 Complete Card & Box Die Set 

to make the base and the Trellis panel on the front

To the top of this I have added to the centre of the card the Rose detailed die from the

  Perfect Panels Rectangle Dies 

 and you can see how well they all play together.

This centre rose panel has been water coloured and then layered with another cut panel and all of it then added with foam tape to give it dimension

The sentiments is from the Box set and fits very well with the card and I have used some parchment behind it just to make it stand out a little more with our disguising the Roses beneath it.

I will be showing how I made this card in a video coming soon as well as featuring the other dies in the collection too.

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx