Tonic Craft Kit 15 - Momento Book Maker

Hi Everybody,

This is not a card but a really pretty book that would make a perfect Christmas present, and you can add as many pages as the rings will hold.

There are dies to produce the covers and the pages for the book and corners for you to decorate them.

There is a tiny piece that will enable you to cut photo holders and layers that you may want to add to create extra pockets inside the covers.

Everything you need to decorate the book is in the kit and I have used a really inexpensive Copier paper to get the pages 

You can make this for any member of your family, male of female just use the colours that are more appropriate for your recipient 

I have used die from previous kits ( 5 and 10 ) in the project but you can use any dies that you have.

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Sunny Yellow Colour Scheme

Hi Everybody,

This is a card that I really liked the look of once it was finished. It was a magazine gift that I covered earlier this year and another that I enjoyed playing with

The colour scheme of yellow and blue was fresh and bright and I think they work well together.

If you think of the colours in nature then you can see examples everywhere of those that will work together ... and that is where I take a lot of my inspiration from.

Then go home and try to replicate that scheme on a card. If you like it then you will use it again and if you don't nothing is lost ... just start over. But there are not many colours in nature that will not work together

Use shades from the same family of either cool colours or warm ones on the one design, trying not to mix them together. Cool colours have tones of blue in them and warm colours have tones of red. 

So look carefully at your paints, pens, inks, sprays, pencils or whatever medium you like to use and decide ... is it cool or is it warm ? Is it pastel or bold ? 

Use a colour wheel to help you as that will show you where the colours sit in relation to each other. 

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Brusho Die Cut

Hi Everybody,

This card was made some time ago when I was playing with the Brusho Crystal Colours.

They are such a lovely way to play and can be used in a variety of ways. For this card I have simply spritzed the card with water and then added the crystals.

But you can mix a small amount of the powder with water onto your craft mat and use them as water colours.

But be warned a little goes a long long way so use sparingly and the colours are very vibrant too.

I used a die that I bought many years ago and I can't remember the name of the die or where I got it from,  but I have teamed it with the sentiment from my 6x6 Box and Card die set

Quick and easy card and with maybe a change of colour ideal for a male one

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Card & Gift Winner

Hi Everybody,

Hope you are all going to have a good weekend and lots of relaxation ...  if that is your choice. I know that some of you have crafting weekends and that is what I will be doing today ... filming as I go along.

I am also preparing for the winners of the "Workshop with Christina" which takes place on the 17th October.  If you entered then "Thank You" for taking part and if you are one of the winners then I shall be delighted to meet you all this coming Wednesday in Stockport.

Back to today , the draw for the two Peacock dies that I have has been done and the two names are ...

Linda Batson

and

Denise Bryant

So would you both please email me your postal address to 

christina@card-making-magic.com

and the gifts will be on the way to you straight away

You have 72 hours to claim them and if not claimed they will be offered again at a later date.

Two more gifts on offer next week

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Friday Freebie - Pretty Quick Stained Glass Peacock

Hi Everybody,

These Pretty Quick dies are the gift that was free with Die Cutting Essentials 38 and they are one way of making a card with just the one die.

There are lots of things that can be done with it ... like paper piecing, colouring, acetate etc.

The video that featured this die is here

Pretty Quick Stained Glass Peacock 

I have two of these to Give Away this week  but each card is different and I don't know which one you will get, but if you would like one of them then all you need to do is leave me a comment with your full name to be in with the chance

Don't forget to come back in the morning to see if your name is shown as one of the winners as you have 72 hours in which to claim it.

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Card Making Magic - Christmas Poinsettia

Hi Everybody,

Today's card is on the Christmas theme and it's not that far away now.  The card shown is much better in the hand and would need to go into a box because of the depth to the flowers.

I decided to film it and let you see the process I went through to create it and in particular how to get the thin border around the centre piece.

For this I used the Fancy Nesting Circles  and all my collection is available only at Craft Stash

I am being asked a lot about the tape that I am using at present and it is from Amazon.

It is Scotch 3M Double Coated Urethane and although it is very good and lasts me quite a long time it is not cheap. 

Shop around and if you find it cheaper please let me know too ...

More tomorrow 

Hugs xx

Creative Stamping 63 - 12 Days of Christmas

Hi Everybody,

This months Creative Stamping has a totally awesome gift attached and it is one you can use over and over again and ALL year round.

The images are large and can make a complete focal point for your designs and they are easy to colour in your favourite medium

I used Copics on all of mine and I really enjoyed playing with them.

Here is the video for you to see how I made an Easel card with the set

This card was made into a birthday card using the floral arrangement  and there are many more smaller stamps to make a background to suit your own personal needs.

It is going to be in the shops on the 11th October and I would imagine that it will go quickly as it is an old and traditional song that most people will know and it never goes out of date

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Birthday Diamonds ...

Hi Everybody,

This quick and simple card was created for a magazine some time ago and all I have done is colour the waste diamonds from another card

They have been added to an embossed background with foam tape underneath to raise them up.

The word has been cut from the alphabet that was the gift with the magazine and the other sentiments stamped and cut then added to the card.

Really easy to do and yet so effective for male or female and any age group. 

You could even add the age number if it was for a child as they always like to tell their ages ... and will even add the half or three quarters to it !!

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Time For Tea ...

Hi Everybody,

These pretty cards are created with some of the new Coffee/Tea dies from Spellbinders and they make quick and easy cards.

Perfect if you wanted to invite friends round for a coffee morning or a lovely afternoon tea

The sentiment is from a magazine gift that was out a while ago and it came in to good use on this design

I have used Copics to colour both and for the top one I used a flower stamp to add the pattern to the card

For the one to the left I used a white gel pen to add the pattern.

The pen was  a bit on the dry side though and it wouldn't colour smoothly

It still turned out to be a pretty card but I thought I could try edging the rim and the handle with some gold and see how that looked

Here is the card once I had done that and it does look better with the gold paint.

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Two Winners ...

Hi Everybody,

Another weekend is with us and although I will be busy today,  I have a day off tomorrow to do with as I please. Ruby and I will be going for our long walk with Vickie and Dougal so fingers crossed it doesn't rain.

Every night, anywhere between 7-9pm I get the "Look" off Ruby and if I ignore her she climbs up onto the settee and puts her paws on my shoulders. Then no matter what I am doing she will not leave me alone. She is telling me ..."Get your shoes on mum and take me for a walk ...." and so that is what I have to do, even if it is raining we have to go out for our evening jaunt. 

I swear that dog knows the time better than me 

The draw for yesterdays prize has been done and the two winners today are ...

Heidi Turcios

and

Pippa Price

please can you email me your postal addresses to

christina@card-making-magic.com

and the packs will be on their way to you straight away.

You have 72 hours to claim the gifts.

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Friday Freebie - Coffee Break

Hi Everybody,

Another fabulous twosome to give away this week and this was the gift offered in simply Cards & Papercraft of a stamp and die set 

It was shown in the video from May this year called Coffee Break  and I had a lot of fun playing with this set.

You can win one of these if you leave me a comment with your full name and it is chosen  as the winner.  

You will have 72 hours in which to claim it but I don't know which of the cards will be in your pack and it is not a problem if you have won one before.

But you will need to come back and check if it is you who has won 

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Simply Cards & Papercraft 183 Bauble Opulence

Hi Everybody,

There is a lovely stamp and die set on offer this month with Simply Cards & Papercraft 183 from the Sentimentally Yours range by Phil Martin

Making cards for Christmas seems to be gathering pace now as we get nearer to the day.

And of course if you post many then you will need to consider the last time to post for cards you send abroad

In the video I have done a 2 for 1 because there is no waste at all with this type of card and you can use this idea with any of your dies.

There is also a super offer of a Card Making Magic Bundle that is free if you subscribe to this magazine and I am adding the video to tell you about that offer also

So I hope you enjoy both of the videos and the making of the shaker card and if you are new to card making then give it a go ... it is quite easy to do I promise you

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Die Cutting Essentials 43 - Christmas Treats

Hi Everybody,

Another fabulous die set is the gift with Die Cutting Essentials this month will help you to make some fun cards for ALL year round

For this card I created the Mason Jar as a Snow Globe and there are lots of ways that you can use this for your own designs.

I had a lot of fun playing with this one and creating expressions for the altered gingerbread men

And this would be perfect for a child especially if you added their name or age to it

Don't be afraid to get out the black or white pens to add features to the die cut faces.

Some of mine look as if they are groaning under the weight of all their friends at the top.

Let the video give you some fun ideas for some of your cards this year

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Floral Card

Hi Everybody,

A pretty pink floral card for today created with the Layered Florals Die Set from Card Making Magic

For the background I have used a stencil and some embossing paste to give a raised look to the trellis

It is much better in the hand and has lots of touchy feely parts to it, and the pearls in the centre of the flowers add even more.

I like to work with embossing paste and you can colour this to suit your needs by adding just a little bit colour from your ink pads

I also like the pastel look to this card and it would be suitable for may occasions throughout the year.

More tomorrow ... 

Hugs xx

Bright and Cheerful Year Ahead ...

Hi Everybody,

This card is a million miles away from the traditional colour way for Christmas, but it is one I would be happy to sit on my mantelpiece over the holiday season.

The aperture in the front  is created with the Christmas Tree Die Set from Card Making Magic 

 The background to the tree is the Holly Panel Die and I have coloured it with Copics before adding it into the opening and layering it over white glitter card

The  Card Making Magic Collection is available at Craft Stash and there is a whole lot for you to choose from.

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx