Decorate with Ribbon

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Hi Everybody,

Today the sun is shining and don't you feel much better when it does and this afternoon I am going to visit an old friend.

So a quick post before I go and get ready for the trip.

The  ribbon on this card is from Mei Flower  and is a lovely Satin with a  Silver Edge ...  but instead of adding a large bow I decided to keep this one small and pretty.

The shiny buckles are from  The Hobby House  and there are other styles for you to choose.

I have used this idea on many cards and I had an email a few days ago asking me how I get the buckle onto the ribbon.

So of course the easiest way is always to do a short video and show what I do.

The latest  Video Tutorial  is  Ribbons and Buckles   and it is not long.  Just enough time to have  a cuppa and relax for a little while.

The backing paper is from the CD "The Next Big Thing" from  Just Inklined  and the flowers are as always from Wild Orchid Crafts.  The stamp ... which was free from a Magazine ... has been heat embossed in silver

The Spellbinders used are listed below.

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Spellbinders Flowers ...

Hi Everybody,

Todays card is back to Spellbinders and this one  has a big flowers created with the Daisy Heads and Foliage sets.

The card has been made into the Hinged Style with Decorative Labels 8  and the plain Labels 8 has created the layer.

The Wood Panel paper is from the Floriography CD from My Craft Studio.

I have over layered that with the Grateful Lattice and then added the flower and leaves to the Lattice

The flower has been created from several layers of the Daisy Heads and then shaped and glued together.

The leaves have been cut from Colour Core card and then creased and  sanded back.

Both have been rubbed over with my finger in a  pale gold Gilding Cream for a subtle effect.  You can just see the sheen especially with the side view photograph.

The little tag and the pearl spray is some I have in my "Stash" and I just dug them out to use on the card.

The inside is lined with a matching stripy paper and there is nothing else added to this card .... but never the less I think it is quite pretty.

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Whitby Bargains...

Hi Everybody,

Wandering around the town on our weekend away to Whtiby we popped into the "Pound Shop" as I knew they had some  bargains on double sided foam pads.

I also found some packs of Organza Sheets in many colours. These are the same ones I used in the tutorial for Organza Flowers 

That page was added to the website a few years ago...  but the shop where I used to buy them from stopped selling them ..... Oh No !!!

But now that I have found them again and where to get them from I have amended the web page and added it here for you.  There is no web address for them but many towns have a "Pound Shop"  full of goodies.

And don't do the stupid thing I did and ask the assistant how much they are .... "Let me see... " she said as she stroked her chin .... "Could they be a pound maybe... " and we both bursted out laughing.

I bet she thought I was an idiot ..... no comments please !

Here is a card made all that time ago too with the flowers attached and it looked as pretty then as it would now.

I always like to add flowers to my cards and these are just that little bit different ...  for a change.

The layers to the flower can be joined with a brad, another flower, glue or simply stitched and you can add as many layers as you like.

But please take care with the heat gun as it WILL burn if you
aren't.

The flower on the red card has been added with a large bead cap in the centre that has the brad pushed through it.

And all these are available from Wild Orchid Crafts

More tomorrow ..

Hugs xx

Whitby in Oils...

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Hi Everybody,

Many years ago ... way back in 1994 I used to go to an art class and this is one of the pictures I did of a yacht entering a harbor in stormy seas to get to safety.

It was long before I had ever been to Whitby.

It was done in oils and was one of the first things I ever did. It took hours of layering on the oils in different shades of blue and green and letting each layer dry.

Now it hangs on my wall and is one I am rather proud of.  Griff loves this painting and shows it to all our visitors.

The photo does not do it justice as the sea looks as if it is translucent.

This is a photograph I took over the weekend on a boat trip out into the harbor at Whitby....

Can you see the resemblance?

 I took the photo deliberately from that angle as we entered back between the piers and although the Abbey in the picture is slightly different the similarities are there.

It is poetic license  ... but I like it just the same.

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Whitby Weekend Break...

Hi Everybody,

Here I am home again from my lovely weekend away.

Of course a visit to Whitby would not be complete without the climb up 199 stone steps to the ruined Abbey and St Mary's Church at the top.

It is a long and steep climb and every so often along the route there are benches to rest on.  These where called coffin stops as they where used to rest the coffin on as it was carried to the top for burials.

The weather was so kind to us and the sun shone all the time we where there... you can see the blue sky in the photo.

Now I know to some people it's just a ruin but it is so steeped in History and it is very beautiful even as a ruin.

So for my international visitors here is a little about the Abbey.

This is an artists impression of what it would have been like when built.  It was a place of sanctuary for many.

Henry the 8th reigned at the time and he was a huge influence over his subjects.

But he was also a very selfish and cruel king and life had little value at that time.

He decided that he wanted to get rid of the wife he had because she had only produced a girl ... and he wanted an heir... and the Roman Catholic church wouldn't  grant him a divorce.

So he changed the country from Catholic and made himself the head of the Church of England so that he could make his own rules and then divorce her.

 He also decided that everything to do with Catholicism had to go and so he dissolved the monasteries and claimed all their wealth as his own to refill his dwindling bank balance.

The monks  where executed if they didn't conform and the Abbey became unused. 

The stone work was used to create this house that sits near the ruin.  

I am sure there is a lot more to this story then I relate  but that is just a little overview of the history of Whitby Abbey.

It is well worth a visit and if you can't face the stone steps then you can drive close to the ruin and walk the rest of the way from the car park.

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx