My First Challenge !!!

Hello everyone and a very warm welcome to my blog and a special welcome to my new followers.  So pleased you've decided to join me.  

I have a card to share with you. 

Whilst I was making the box I showed in my last post I was also making a few cards that I need for some upcoming Birthdays.

I've been trying to incorporate lots of layers on my cards lately.   In looking at other peoples blogs, the cards I loved the most all had lots of layering on them.  Even the Scrapbook pages I like best all have lots of layers.  So with this card I went all out.  There's about 6 or 7 layers on this card and that's without counting the flower and leaves.  

 This card is actually a bit of a steal from Heather Jacob.   She made the most gorgeous card (you can find it HERE) and when I saw it with all the layers and all the die cuts I just had to try it for myself.    Thank you so much Heather for the inspiration and the design. 

The papers I've used are from Kaisercraft's Miss Empire and Take Note Collections.    I've also used some brown cardstock in between the different die cuts for contrast.   The Dies used are Couture Creations Scalloped Oval, a Marianne Creatables Frame, Die-namics Decorative Doily Duo and the Honey Blossom Sprig from Memory Box.  I've also used a Wooden Flourish Border from Kaisercraft. 

The wooden heart  is also from Kaisercraft.  I left the wooden flourishes raw with just a little bit of Walnut Stain Distress Ink on the edges.  I also used the Mini Circle Explosion Template from The Crafters Workshop and the Walnut Stain to add a little more interest to the paper.  The flower is from Prima and the leaves were cut with my Silhouette Portrait.

I do usually decorate the inside of my cards but I don't think I've every shown that in my posts because, when I print the sentiment I also print the name of the person I'm giving it to.  In this case though, I haven't yet decided who is getting this card so I can show you the inside.

The paper I've used for the inside came from my stash.  I've had it for quite some time and have no idea of where it's from.  The decorative strip on the side is from the Miss Empire range.

The sentiment was printed through Word Art.

    

 I'm actually going to enter this card into the ABC Challenge.  The criteria for their current challenge is lots of layers so I thought this would be ideal.  A bit nervous here, I've never entered a challenge before so I hope I can get the Linky thing right.    So, please wish me luck.

Thank you so much for visiting today.  I hope you enjoy the rest of the week.

Take care and God Bless.

oxox Marg

Sear's & Son Card #3

Hello and welcome to my blog.

I have another male card I'd like to share with you.  The paper's I've used are, again from Kaisercraft's Sears & Son Collection.   I think I might be stuck in a rut (hehe), but I really do like these papers for male cards.  All the papers were  distressed with my Ingvild Bolme Distresser Tool and then inked with Walnut Stain Distress Ink.  I also stamped them with the same ink and Kaisercraft's Attitude Background Stamp.

 

Used brown cardstock for the base and matted it with kraft cardstock.  This one is an Easel Card, and I've made it so the back drops away to give it a totally different silhouette.

The cogs and the clock shape were cut with my Silhouette Portrait and were coloured with Walnut Stain and then lightly swiped with a Kaisercraft Stamp Pad in Silver.  

 The image was obtained from the net.

Made a tag from Kraft cardstock, stamped it with the same background stamp in Walnut Stain and then with the greeting in Memento Tuxedo Black.  I  also made a small pocket out of some of the dp and placed it behind the image to hold the tag.

 The strips of DP are mounted onto  pieces of paste board to give them some height so as to hold the front in place. 

   

That's all for now.

Thank you so much for stopping by and please take care.

God Bless.

oxox Marg

Just a Card

Hello everyone and a warm welcome to my little blog.

I have a card I'd like to show you.

It's fairly plain and simple with not a huge amount of work done.  I took some plain pale grey cardstock, used a border punch on one edge and then a template and a Versa Color Stamp pad in Cinnamon to add a tiny bit of colour in the middle.  Then did a little doodling around the edge with a felt pen.

 Made a slit close to the top right corner, curled  the edges, added a small piece of dp and curled that as well.  Tucked in some leaves, a couple of Kaisercraft flowers and some tiny pearl beads  and attached a small key underneath.

 Created this flower cluster with Prima and Kaisercraft flowers and then attached a few pearls around it for a bit of bling.  I did a bit of doodling on the leaves and gessoed the edges of the flowers as well.

 I stamped the sentiment on a piece of  cardstock and attached it to the back of a small Imaginarium frame.  The frame was lightly coloured with Versa Color Cinnamon.

 This card is going to a friend of mine who sort of likes girly things but doesn't really like them to be too fussy so I hope she likes this card. 

Thank you so much for stopping by and I hope you enjoy the rest of your day.

Take care and God Bless.

oxox Marg

A Bit of Grunge .... and a Tag Revisited

Hello everyone and welcome to my blog.

First up I've got a card to show you.
The inspiration for this card came from a layout by Heather Jacob.  HERE is the link to her blog.  You'll have to go back as far as March to find the actual layout.   I loved the colors and the arrangement  of the elements on this page and felt it would be very adaptable for a male card.

I'm pretty sure that the papers are all from Kaisercraft but I can't remember which collection.

 I creased the papers up a bit  and lightly painted with gesso for extra interest, then cut a Prima Nature Garden tag in half and placed a piece underneath each side so that just the edges are showing.  The clock below was a print out from my computer.

This clock was cut with my Silhouette Portrait.  I did some doodling and lots of distressing.

The small brad is from Kaisercraft.

 The chipboard penny farthing is from Scrapmatts.  I coloured it with black chalk ink and then brushed over it with silver Versa Color.  The tag underneath the bike was traced from a G45 Curiosity shoppe tag.  Using kraft card, I drew around the edges and then it was simply fussy cut and edged with Walnut Stain Distress Ink and covered with a piece of designer paper.

 Made a little tag for the greeting which is tucked underneath.

Voila!!

I enjoyed making this card, and I really appreciate the inspiration and the ideas that I get from visiting other people's blogs.  Not just from Heather but from everyone out there.  Love it!!!

Now for my second item.
If you've been here before you'll know that I've been making some tags for a journal I'm putting together.  This idea came from AstridMaclean.  HERE is the link to her blog, you'll find lots of wonderful inspiration there as well.
I've made four tags so far but changed my mind size wise after making the first one so decided to re-do that one to match it with the others.
Here is the original tag ...

... and here is the new.

 As you can see, they are basically the same with just a few small changes.  I am supposed to be taking a break from making these tags because I have lots of cards I need to make but, I enjoy it so much that I'm still sneaking in a bit of time on them now and then.  (I have the tag making bug)  LOL

Thank you for visiting and I hope you enjoy the rest of your day.
Take care and God Bless.
oxox Marg

Tag No. 3

Hello everyone and welcome to my blog.  

I didn't think I would be back with another tag so soon but I've got the 'bug' now and I'm actually enjoying the process so I'll  keep going with it.

This is one of the Tags I actually kept when I threw out all the others that I had sprayed and didn't like.  I was quite happy with this background.

 The chippy in the corner is from Make it Crafty.  I coloured it with Versa Color Lapislazuu, edged it with Distress Ink Walnut Stain and then coated it in Crackle Accents.  When it was dry I rubbed over it with Versa Color Royal Blue and wiped off the excess with a paper towel.  The seam binding is from a piece I won in a prize from Sandie Edwards at Delightfully Crazy.  It was already coloured when I received it and was perfect for this tag.  Thank you Sandie.

 The flowers are all from Kaisercraft and I just dry brushed them a little with gesso.  The lace is from my stash.

 As I mentioned in my previous post, the quotes and sayings I'm using are all from different sites on the net.  I really love this one.  I printed it onto cardstock and made it into another little tag and then tucked it under the flower cluster.

In my previous post, I mentioned that when I started this project I really wasn't happy with it because I wanted to create my own backgrounds with paints and sprays, etc. and it just wasn't working out for me, but I'm in more familiar territory now and I'm really enjoying making these tags so, be prepared, there will be more!!  LOL

Thank you so much for stopping by and enjoy the rest of the weekend.

Take care and God Bless.

oxox Marg

Tags

Hello everyone and a very warm welcome to my blog.

I'd like to share a couple of tags I made.  

Those of you who follow Astrid Maclean (you can find her blog HERE ) will know that she has  created quite a few tags lately.  She felt she'd lost her 'mojo' and was making tags using different techniques in the hopes of reviving said mojo.  Now believe me when I say that Astrid's work, even without her 'mojo' ( although I never thought it was missing ), is phenominal and in no way at all do I want to compare anything I've made with her projects.  I would be the loser every time.  She is such a talented lady, I could never aspire to get anywhere close, but she did inspire me to try my hand at making some tags myself.  Astrid is putting hers into a little booklet and I thought I would do the same.  I found some quotes and sayings that I liked and thought I could have these on hand whenever I felt the need.

This first one is very simple.  Just a bit of stamping, a few flowers, a couple of butterflies and the quote " Until you spread your wings you'll never know how far you can fly".

This tag was made with kraft cardstock and I used a couple of kaisercraft stamps for the background.

 I added a small piece of corrugated cardstock, a couple of small kaisercraft roses, printed the quote onto some paper, then cut out the words, inked them with Walnut stain Distress Ink and edged them with gold Versacolor.  The butterflies are stamps from Kaisercraft which I coloured (not good at this ) and then fussy cut and edged with gold.

I liked this quote because I was trying something new ( for me anyway ).  I was going to create some mixed media backgrounds but unfortunately I just don't have the nouse or the talent for that.  I made about seven but only kept three that I actually liked and two of those I had to emboss before I liked them.

So, no shimmery loveliness here I'm afraid.  I just have to be happy with what I can do.

This next tag was also made with kraft cardstock.  I again did some stamping and a little bit of masking, lightly brushed on some gesso and then added some Washi Tape.  

 The mini plaque is from Kaisercraft and the brad which I glued on the top of it is from Graphic 45.  I coloured the plaque with a homemade spray paint and edged it with Walnut Stain Distress Ink.

 The quotes I've used are all from the internet.

 The small roses and the large brad are from Kaisercraft and I believe the larger flowers are from Prima.

I think this tag is more 'me'.  I like it a lot better than the first one and I feel the quote is quite apt too.  I now know I'm not much good at the mixed media thing, but having said that, I am going to keep trying and you never know, one day I might surprise myself.  

Thank you so much for visiting.  

Please take care and God Bless.

oxox Marg

A Quick Male Card

Hello everyone and a very warm welcome to my blog.

Just a quick share with you today of a card I put together for a friend who lives interstate  (Don't tell him but I almost forgot his Birthday).  I needed this in a bit of a hurry but I think it came together fairly well.   

I can't remember which paper I used for the base, ( I should get a little notebook and write these things down as I'm using them)  but the rest of the papers are from Prima's Craftsman Collection ...

 ... distressed all the edges of course and swiped with Walnut Stain Distress Ink.  I also did a little bit of doodling (although I should have done a bit more I think). 

 The wooden globe is from Kaisercraft.  I basically left it bare except for the same Distress Ink around the edges.

 The clock was a print out on my computer which I fussy cut and stuck onto a chipboard button and the cog was cut out of black cardstock with my Silhouette Portrait and then swiped with a little Bronze and Silver Versa Color.

 I used Walnut Stain Distress Ink here with a mini Basketweave Template from

The Crafter's Workshop just to add a little bit of extra interest.

 

Here is just a close-up of the layered strips.    It wasn't until I was ready to post it off that I realised I hadn't placed a greeting on the front but decide that it really wasn't necessary because it's on the inside anyway.

As I said, just a quick, short post but, hopefully you enjoyed it.

Thank you so much for visiting and a Big Thank You to all the lovely people who have left me comments.  I really love to hear from you and I do appreciate you taking the time. 

Take care, enjoy the rest of your day and God Bless.

oxox Marg

Mini Album using Kaisercraft Papers

Hello sweet friends and welcome to my blog.

My oldest grandson celebrated his 18th Birthday not long ago and, instead of a Birthday Card, I decided to make a Mini Album so he would have somewhere to keep the photos taken at his Birthday party.

Here is the front cover.  

Some of you may recognise the centre piece.  I did a post on my first attempt at Mixed Media and this is the actual piece from that project.  

Yes, I chopped it up and re-used the main piece here.  I wanted cogs in the middle of this cover and could not get any in the size I wanted.  Then I realized the centrepiece from my Mixed Media Collage would fit beautifully.  I didn't even cry when I cut it apart.  Hey!! It's for my Grandson, right?  Anyway, I really like it here.  The little hinges are wooden embellishments also from Kaisercraft.

Page 1 &2

The papers I used for this album is a mixture from Kaisercraft.  I used some from their 75 cent Collection and some also from their Timeless Classics paper pad, plus an odd piece or two from other collections as well.

The pocket on the inside front cover holds the tag  I made for his Birthday Greeting.  The embellies on this tag follow the theme from the album cover.  The idea for this tag came from a You Tube Video by Rach0113.  You can find it HERE.  I used a piece of kraft cardstock and cut out the tag shape and then used black cardstock for the corner pieces.  I embossed the black with the Tim Holz Cogs Folder and then lightly rubbed over the raised sections with Versa Color Stamp Pads in Bronze, Silver and Gold.  The cogs were colored the same way.  The little clock  was fussy cut from another set of papers, glued onto one of the cogs and then covered with glossy accents.  His Birthday message is actually on the back of the tag.

 The right hand page opens up to reveal ...

... there are quite a few pockets and tags in this album.  I wanted to give him plenty of spaces for his photos.

Pages 3 & 4

 The right hand page here opens one way to reveal ...

 ... and then opens the other way as well.  ( A sheet of Kaisercraft Sweet Nothings paper found its way in here too. )

Pages 5 & 6

 

 Again, the right hand page opens to reveal ...

... I've only used two styles of pages in this book.  One opens once like this page, and the other style opens twice.

Pages 7 & 8

All of the left hand pages are void of pockets to give him space for large photos if he wants.

 This is the style that opens twice.  One way it opens out from the book ...

 ... and the other way it opens into the book.

Pages 9 & 10

The inside back cover has a single pocket just like the inside front cover.

I love making mini albums.  It's a lot of fun deciding how to construct it and what style pages to use and then to decide which papers are the most suitable.  I don't use a lot of embellishments in my albums, mainly because it does inhibit the placement of photos, etc. but I do love a lot of tags for journalling.

Thank you so much for visiting my blog.  I hope you've enjoyed it and will decide to come again.

Take care and God Bless.

oxox Marg