The Journey so Far ...

Hi Everybody,

I have managed to find another of those WiFi hotspots and so I am letting you know where we are in the world today.

I have so many lovely photos to show you once I get home again.  Early yesterday morning we sailed into Warnemunde in Germany and the view from our balcony was beautiful. I am not able to add the photos to a blog post from my iPad but they are collecting so that I can show you later.

This has been a lovely holiday and we have seen some wonderful scenery. We chose to dine on a table for six and so we have also met some very pleasant people.

If you have been a reader for sometime you may remember that we cruised a couple of years ago on a really enormous ship. This one is about half the size of that one .... but still quite big at about 87,000 tons.

I will give you all the details once I can add the photos so until then I hope you will stay with me and enjoy the Tuesday Tutorial I have scheduled for you for tomorrow.

Hugs xx

We Are Special ...

Hi Everybody,

This is another scheduled post for you to see and it is one I colored with Spectrum Noir pens

The image is one I have had for sometime and it is off the CD "The Next Big Thing"  ... which sadly is no longer available

For this I have the simply folded A4 card in half with the card fold at the top

I have matted and layered it with a pale blue stripe card from AnnaMarie Designs  This card comes in lots of other lovely colors and there is a Spotty variety too  

The satin ribbon is from Mei Flower  and it ties into a beautiful bow.  The sentiment is from Lili of the Valley and is one of several on the sheet. The flowers are sparkled with glitter from Glitter Magic

If you visit regularly you will know that my flowers and the bow centre are always from Wild Orchid Crafts and I know that many of you have become WOC converts. I choose these because I love the variety and quality of the blooms.

These are quality UK companies that I use on a regular basis.  I like their goods and I like to tell you about their services. Click their links to view the products for yourself.

Hugs xx

Tuesday Tutorial - Victorian Fan

Hi Everybody,

Todays Tutorial uses the Victorian Fan from Spellbinders and is part of their Victorian 2.0 Collection.

It is a free cutting die that removes the shape from your card and of course there is nothing to stop you cutting it to add more to the fan size.

I have used lots of foam tape to add dimension and that allows you to see through the fan and gives shadows to the card itself


Spellbinders Supplies:

• S3-218 Victorian Fan
• S6-001 5x7 Matting Basics A
• S6-002 5x7 Matting Basics B
• S2-139 Sentiments Three
• GC-200 Grand Calibur

Other Supplies:

• Organza Ribbon from Mei Flower
• Lace from Wild Orchid Crafts
• Self adhesive Pearls from Want2Scrap

Instructions:

Please remember that die #1 (Number One) is always the smallest

With die #7 from 5x7 Matting Basics A cut two in white and hinge together to create your base card
With die #7 from 5x7 Matting Basics B cut one in blue
With die #6 from 5x7 Matting Basics A cut another panel in white and this is the layer we are going to emboss

Using the embossing sandwich for the Grand Calibur carefully emboss the card twice with the Victorian Fan die.  This will leave a matching pattern in your card and add interest to the background

Cut the fan shape out twice in blue and ink the card through the die to accentuate the pattern.
Add foam pads to the back of the solid areas so that they cannot be seen from the front

 Add both shapes to the embossed panel so that they just touch in the centre. Then add this to the blue layer we cut earlier.

Wrap ribbon and lace around these layers to hide the join and then add this to the base card

 Cut your sentiment in blue and add it to the card.  Adhere the bow onto the lace and ribbon and add in a lovely sparkly centre to hide the knot.

Designers Tip:

Vary the color for a lighter look and add pearls to the fan for extra effect.

Use some flowers to dress it up more or leave off the ribbon and lace for a more masculine fell to the card.

The choices are all yours to create this really pretty card

 More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Stockholm ...

Hi Everybody,

A little note to let you all know where I am.   We have found a little spot in Stockholm with FREE WiFi and so this is the ideal opportunity to write a quick blog post.

The cruise is going really well and so far we have visited Norway, Denmark and today we are in Sweden.  All the cities we have visited so far have been really beautiful and I have taken photos of many things.  

We sail again at 4.30 pm heading for Estonia. But the highlight for me is Russia when we have two days in St Petersburg.  I will be sure to take many more photos to show you.

But I cannot add them to the blog yet .... that will happen when I get home.  Thanks for all you messages. I am adding them when I can but as you can imagine WiFi  on the ship is expensive. So until we find another free spot that's it for now.

                Hugs xx

Water colored Card ...

Hi Everybody,

So this little card is for all of  YOU to say many many Thanks for all your support.

From the cards that I make and the tutorials that I do you all seem to enjoy them and write to tell me often that you do

And also when ever I am on Create and Craft I know that many of you are there for me too.

I have really enjoyed setting up Tuesday Tutorials  and this is something else that you seem to enjoy. I have lots more to show you over the coming months

Many people are asking me for specific tutorials and I am happy to oblige.

But they may take me a little time to complete so I ask for your patience as I work my way through the list.

So please keep visiting and thanks again for all your good wishes.

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx