Stampin Up Dragonfly Dreams Bokeh Technique

As promised I have just received my tripod so I am able to show you some technique videos. As I have been asked by several of you to show the bokeh technique with the hexagons here it is.

Whisper white cardstock cut at 5.25 x 3.5 ins black mount 5.5 x 3.75
Ink pads used, pool party, marina mist, crushed curry, dapper denim, garden green and whisper white craft ink.

All items used can be purchased through the shop button above.

Check back soon for more technique video tutorials.

Clean and simple with a little bling

My style is a bit of an eclectic mix with lots of colour and background detail and I have always been worried about having white space as I have an uncontrollable desire to fill it.  So today I thought I would challenge myself with a clean and simple card using just a tiny piece of our gorgeous Saleabration glimmer paper, free for £45 purchase while stocks last.

I used the sunshine wishes heart, stitched framelits, butterfly punch and the teeny tiny wishes stampenset for the sentiments. This card shows just how well our products coordinate as the sweetsugarplum glimmer paper is a perfect match.

All products are available through the shop button above and if you live in the Farnham GU9 are and would like to join one of my technique classes then please get in touch 💜

Stampin Up Saleabration Glimmer Paper

Three words love, love, love. This new Saleabration glimmer paper free with a £45 purchase (click on shop button above) is just so gorgeous. A little goes a long way and is probably the most difficult item to photograph as the sparkle is amazing and the colours bermuda bay, mint macaroon and Sweet sugarplum go perfectly together or separately. Here's how to make this beautiful card.

Background

Using the sponge brayer sponge three bands in Bermuda bay, sweet sugarplum and mint macaroon blending the colours. Add a piece of twine in thirds down the card to give definition. Mount on 1/4inch large piece of Sweet sugarplum cardstock.

Focal point

Using the sunshine wishes thinlet dies cut 3 x love in different coloured glimmer paper and the same with the flower image. Adhere to the card.

Tips

Use precision platform for Dies and will cut easily through glimmer paper.
Put some tombow on back of your hand and swipe the die cut image through glue, will cover easily and stick firmly.

This glimmer paper is while stocks last and until end March so only a short window of opportunity to buy. So please don't be disappointed and get yours free today with £45 purchase.

Dragonfly Dreams taken to the next level.

as you know over the last few days I've been focusing on the Dragonfly Dreams stamp set and thinlet dies and I thought I would show you how to take it to the next level.

Background

Using the sponge brayer sponge tones of blues and greens gradually building up the layers to build depth of colour tone blend. The take a short bristle brush and some water and taking excess water off the brush flick the water in a fine spray across the card and blot with kitchen roll. Continue to do this until desired effect achieved. By blotting the ink is removed and white spray is left. Cut card equally in three pieces and mount on night of navy cardstock with small border. Mount this onto whisper white card base.

Dragonfly

Using a piece of cardstock and the ray from the Everyday hero stamp set stamp a circle of rays in various tones of yellow, blue and green, keep stamping till the desired effect achieved. The centre will be darker than the edge. Then die cut the dragonfly and stick to night of navy cardstock and fussy cut out. Now using clear embossing powder emboss three times to build a thick layer. The second time sprinkle some dazzling diamonds while embossing powder hot. Leave to dry completely and press underneath something heavy for a few hours to flatten dragonfly. Add some dimensionals and stick Dragonfly to card at an angle.

All products used are available to buy through the shop button above and if you live in the Farnham GU9 area and wish to join my classes and workshops please drop me an email.
See you tomorrow for some more exciting projects and ideas. Thanks for dropping by.

Glimmer paper assortment pack

Get this gorgeous glimmer paper free product for a £45 spend. Click on the ship button

So gorgeous and only available while stocks last. So get in there quick to avoid disappointment.

Catch you tomorrow for more ideas and techniques

Stampin Up Dragonfly Dreams

Good morning everyone what a lovely surprise the last few days of warmth and sunshine I really think spring is around the corner, so long may it continue.

Today is another Dragonfly Dreams card, did I mention it was my favourite. This is a totally different feel from yesterday's card in Sweet sugarplum and rich razzleberry for a feminine feel. The background was confetti embossing folder which the aperture fits then,arrest ovals thinlet dies perfectly. I sponged using the sponge daubers in Sweet sugarplum all over and then edged with rich razzleberry to bring the eye to the centre of the card. The tiny little stars are cut from the waste of the timeless tags thinlets. The waste from these dies are butterflies, stars and leaves and make just gorgeous embellishments. Some linen twine and a piece of clearance rack ribbon (do check the clearance rack out at my shop as always bargains to be had some up to 70% off)

Thank you for stopping by and see you again tomorrow for more ideas and techniques using Stampin Up products.

Dragonfly Dreams fusions.

I just love the Dragonfly Dreams stamp set and coordinating die as dragonflies are timeless and so on trend. Today I want to show you how to create a fun background using the bokeh effect (bokeh is the circle reflections you get on a camera lens) but with a twist.  I never throw away waste so the hexagonal waste from the Build It framelits was used for a mask. I used all the blues and green inkpads tomsponge using our sponge daubers and build up the background. The last colour to use is white which gives  that translucent look.

The dragonfly was die cut using the solidndie for the background and the detailed in black on top. See yesterdays video for details of these dies. Mounted on black with the sentiment embossed in black it makes a stunning card and if I dare say a good masculine card.

 The products used in this card are
Dragonfly Dreams stamp set 142924 priced £19
Detailed Dragonfly thinlets dies 142749 priced £28
Bundle of both stamp set and die save 10% 144728 priced £42.25
Build It framelits 143230 priced £24
Ink pads £6 each  page 168-171 in the annual catalogue link above

All products are available at my shop just click link above and until the end of March for every £45 spend you can choose a free product from the Saleabration brochure.

Thank you for stopping by and see you tomorrow for more ideas and fun techniques.

Stampin Up Dragonfly Dreams and Saleabration

Well I am so excited today to bring to you my first video. Now as many of you will have seen I posted a 30 second video yesterday more so I could get to grips with how to upload and all the other technicalities as I am not particularly computer savvy and I work on an iPad which has its own little idiosyncrasies. I wanted to start showing you all some tutorials of some of my cards and ideas so videos is a natural progression.  I am waiting for a tripod to arrive so I can mount my iPad but until then here is a video showcasing Dragonfly Dreams and two of the Saleabration stamp sets Avant Garden and Tasty Trucks. I hope you enjoy and continue to share with me my passion for everything Stampin Up.

Products used in the video
Spring/summer catalogue p26 Dragonfly Dreams bundle 144728 £42.25
Dragonfly Dreams stamp set only p26 142924 £19
Detailed Dragonfly thinlets dies 142749 £28

Saleabration - free product with every £45 spend
Avant Garden
Tasty Trucks

Inkpads p 169-171 annual catalogue £6 each with reinker at £3
Marina mist, pool party, so saffron, Sweet sugarplum, peekaboo peach

Watercolour pencils - limited stocks so be quick, p24 Spring/summer catalogue 141709 at £14.50

Amethystarcrafting cards using Stampin Up products

Well having just completed a 3 day tutorial of how to use Stampin Up stitched framelits I thought I would leave you with a short video showing you these cards.

I run monthly card making classes in Farnham Surrey the last Friday of the month from 7pm -9pm so please get in touch if you would like to come along. Spaces are limited and fill up quickly. All products used are from Stampin Up and are available to order on the night. Click the shop button if you can't wait for a class and would like to buy now.

See you all again tomorrow for more ideas & projects using Stampin Up products.

Stampin Up Stitched Framelits tutorial part 3

so today is the third part of making three totally different cards using the the Stampin Up stitched framelits to make three totally different cards. Check back on this blog for part one and two tutorials. So once you have die cut the largest circle from the stitched framelits you are left with the waste which makes a perfect mask.

With so saffron and crushed curry and using the sponge daubers ink Up the sky using light circular motions building the colour slowly. Around the edge sponge some peekaboo peach to give dimension. With th sea area use marina mist and dapper denim in the same way building up the colour adding the darker colour at the edge of the mask to create dimension. Taking the High Tide stamp set and with the mask still in place stamp using dapper denim the sea.

Take the mask away and continue to stamp the, wading birds, sun and seagulls building up the picture as you go.

Add a sentiment of your choice from the set and then mount on smoky slate and put on your card base.

So there you have it 3 totally different cards with the stitched framelits as the centre focal point. All products used are Stampin Up and can be purchased by clicking the shop button above. Come back tomorrow where I will be showing a short video of the finished cards. Thanks for stopping by and have a wonderful day 💜

Stitched framelits part 2 tutorial

So today we are using the largest circle stitched framelit again and this time using it as a centre focal point in the same pattern as the background.

Colours used flirty flamingo, peekaboo peach, crushed curry, dapper denim and smoky slate. Firstly die cut the stitched framelit circle in whisper white and pit in th centre of a piece of whisper white cardstock half an inch smaller than whatever base card you want. Using thrnsponge daubers colour the whole area in different tones using circular motions to blend each colour into the other.

With smoky slate use the timeless texture stamp set to decorate the whole area and then a little black ink with the small dot stamp for different texture. Mount the stitched circle on dimensionals for height and then mount on black and use a die to cut whatever words mounted on a diagonal. Embellish with some rhinestones for a bit of bling and you have a layered pretty card for any occasion.

Come back tomorrow as we use the waste from the circle die cut to make out third card in this series.

Stitched framelits tutorials Part One

Over the next 3 days I am going to show you how to create three totally different cards using the stitched framelits and how versatile these are.  These framelits give a beautiful stitched border in squares, circles and ovals and for these projects I have used the largest of the circles.

The first card is using the stitched circle with the timeless tags. I used the butterflies and the flowers to decorate the outside of the circle and mounted on an island Indigo die cut circle and popped up on dimensionals to give depth. This was mounted on a piece of blooms and bliss dsp mounted on another piece of island Indigo to frame the whole card. The great thing with Stampin Up products is they all coordinate so I was able to colour the flowers with an island Indigo marker to tie everything together.

So a stitched circle framelits, dsp and cardstock, a marker pen and the timeless tags framelits gives a beautiful card.

Come back tomorrow for part 2 where I will be using this same framelit to create a totally different look using sponge daubers and various inkpads.

All products used can be found at the shop button above, so do have a browse.

A splash of vibrancy

Well today is Valentine's Day which is a very special day for me as it is my grandsons 4th birthday so if you remember the froggy superhero card (have a look back on my blog if you missed it) that has been th chosen card with a big fat 4 on it.

So today's project was inspired by Andrea Walford who made an inspirational card using some bright and bold colours. So I thought I would have a go with flirty flamingo, peekaboo peach and crushed curry diagonally sponged and overstamped with the delicate details a free Saleabration set full of lacy borders. I stamped tone on tone to keep the vibrancy.

 I die cut the butterfly in black and also the sentiment which really makes them pop and mounted on black cardstock too. With s few rhinestones for some bling it makes a really modern vibrant card.

This card was a direct case from Andrea walford but using flirty flamingo, peekaboo peach and crushed curry. Makes me think is warmer days to come and hot summer days.

Whatever you are doing for Valentine's have a wonderful day and I'll be back tomorrow for more fun tips and techniques using Stampin Up fabulous range of products 💜

Spring Summer Dress

Today's card is a fun take with the t shirt builder framelits. Now of course they are great for creating t shirts and coordinate with the stamp set to personalise the t shirts in lots of fun ways 144724  £40.50 for the bundle of 10 dies and  35 stamps but I thought I would have a go at making a pretty Spring dress. The weather here is bitterly cold and is trying to snow so anything to help spring along is a good idea.

I used a doilie cut in half to create the dress but some dsp would work equally well with a couplemofmfoldsmin to create the flow of the dress.

I've mixed the colours up a bit using Sweet sugarplum and wisteria wonder and then some blooms and bliss dsp which has island Indigo in. So to tie it all together I stamped the sentiment & teamed the banner in the coordinating colours.

See you tomorrow for. Ore ideas and techniques 💜

Reverse letter one layer stamping.

On the 21st February Stampin Up are launching some new Saleabration products one of which is a reverse stamp set. For every £45 spend you can choose a free Saleabration product and there will be 3 more products added on the 21st.

So reverse stamping got me thinking how I create this one layer card and put negative white lettering. So I die cut some letters in copy paper with the word "wow" & temporarily stuck them down with a little snail. With some sponging and stamping using a free Saleabration set Avant Garden I created this lovely card. The colours used are from the In colours range flirty flamingo, peekaboo peach, sweet sugarplum with a couple of greens for the leaves wildmwasabi and garden green.

Really pleased with the effect and of course you could use any word you like. The letter die cuts I used are retired but we have some lovely new ones to use

Do have a browse through the catalogues we have and the shop button is there when you are ready to buy.
Thanks for dropping by and see you tomorrow for more ideas and techniques 💜

Making Hexagons Tip of the Day

Just discovered a great tip. The Build It framelits have a hexagon die which is fantastic for cutting hexagon shapes for backgrounds

I made this quick card by placing 3 of the hexagons to make backgrounds using dsp. Hexagons make great patchwork shapes so will be using these shapes in other ways during the next few days.

The shop button above will allow you to purchase this product 143230 9 Dies for £24 and for every £45 spend you can choose a free product from the Saleabration brochure. Happy shopping.

Come back tomorrow for more crafty tips and techniques using Stampin Up products.

Scenery and Seascapes

This lovely High Tide stamp set  is 16 photopolymer stamps 143006 £23 and is fantastic for creating all sorts of scenery and seascapes. The lighthouse is a two step stamp which gives perfect realism and three dimension.

All products used are Stampin Up and can be purchased using the shop button above. Do have a browse are there are so many crafty items in all genres and to suit most pockets. Remember that every £45 spent you can chose a free item from the Saleabration catalogue.

I used the following inkpads. Crumb cake for the rocks, cherry cobbler and smokey slate for the lighthouse and Birds and marina mist for the sea with Sahara sand for the lighthouse beam.

Check back tomorrow for more ideas and inspiration. Thanks for supporting my blog and happy crafting 💜

Hey chick your a superhero

Sometimes stamp sets are there to have a giggle with and the Everyday Hero is one of them. First there was super frog, then there was Bella the Superdog and now there is chicken licken the silkie superhero.

I was asked to have a go at this one by a fellow demonstrator and yes it works. The great thing with the Everyday Hero set is that the bodies being separate will go on any facial image which gives endless possibilities.

Have a great day and back tomorrow with my more sensible head on ( ha! ha! excuse the pun)

Masculine Cards hard to find not any more.

Today I thought I would show you two cards using the same stamp set Nailed It. One is a simple one layer card and the second is a step up using the coordinating Build It framelits.

All products used are available through my shop button above and are Stampin Up some of the best quality stamps and dies on the market. If you spend £45 then you can choose a FREE product from the Saleabration brochure so there has never been a better time to shop.

This is a simple one step card. I stamped the images and coloured using the watercolour pencils and aquapainter to blend. Simply mounted on a piece of pacific point cardstock.

This second card is a step up. The background is the wood grain embossing folder sponged with several shades of brown. The images are die cut and popped up with dimensionals. I love how realistic the tools are.

So whether you are a beginner or more advanced this set has something for everyone and is a great addition for those hard to make masculine cards.

Pop back tomorrow for more ideas and techniques using Stampin Up products.

Doggy Superhero

Following on from my froggy superhero meet Bella superhero. I love the Everyday Hero stamp set and because the bodies of the superheroes are separate stamps they can easily be popped onto a variety of faces. Bella and friends makes a cute doggy superhero card and as I have a little spaniel cross myself I just couldn't resist. The shop button will take you to all of these lovely products from Stampin Up so do have a browse.

Bella Superhero

Saleabration is here till the end of March so for every £45 spend you get to choose a free product from the Saleabration brochure. Links above.

Thanks for dropping by and check back tomorrow for more craft technique and projects using Stampin Up's fabulous ranges.

My very own Bella my sweet little spaniel cross 💜

Rainbow Butterflies

The timeless tags thinlets has a gorgeous tiny butterfly array with six gorgeous little butterflies of various sizes. It is designed to cut a negative out of the tags to make a pretty flutter around the Tag.  However I thought that the waste was so gorgeous that I would make a card just from this.

I chose a rainbow using lots of scraps of cardstock and then using a pokey tool carefully positioned and stuck the butterflies so they danced up the card getting wider as they reached the top of the card. 142755 is the product code and they can be found on page 23 of the Spring/Summer occasions catalogue priced £22 for seven dies just click on the shop button above. Remember while Saleabration is on for every £45 spent you can chose a free product from the Saleabration brochure.

Catch me again tomorrow for more crafty ideas and techniques using Stampin Up products.

Thought process of a crafting idea from disaster to yes that works.

So I had an idea using the frog from the hostess set Love you Lots and the superhero from the Everyday  Hero set to make a super hero frog. The idea of the character worked well and I was really pleased with the two frothy figures, one standing and the other flying with his cape, but creating a card with these images proved to be more difficult.

The first card I tried  just did not work. I put it on a red background and teamed it with some other images but quite frankly it was a disaster. This is part of the fun process in coming up with new ideas and working through a thought process until it comes together. So I ended up die cutting the images with the stitched frame thinlets, my absolute favourite die set at the moment and mounted on black and green which popped the image. I fussy cut the flying frog and mounted that over the sentiment. With a bit of ribbon from the clearance rack, domcheck it out lots of fab clearance items at knockdown prices and eureka success.

Both these sets and the stitched dies are available through the shop button above so take a look as we are in Saleabration at the moment somfir every £45 spent you can choose a free product for the Saleabration brochure.

Stamping is full of successes and failures and great cards and not so great cards, the real fun happens when you turn a not so great card into one you can be proud of. So glad I persevered as love this finished card.

Stampin Up Paisley Petals with bubble technique background

i was looking through my box of cards for a card for s friend and came across this one which reminded me of this fantastic technique. If you look back on my blog to September you will find pictures and a step by step tutorial, but for those that just need a quick recap here is how to do the background technique.

Take a small container (a shot glass is ideal) and put 2 tablespoons of washing up liquid and 2 tablespoons of water then add 8/10 drops of reinker of your choice. Mix the mixture together then take a drinking straw and blow to make bubbles. When the bubbles reach above the top of the container tap a piece of cardstock onto the bubbles so they burst and cause a great background, continue to build up until the desired effect is achieved.

I used Sweet sugarplum for this card and then added the lovely Paisley Petals thinlets to embellish.  All products are available through Stampin Up just click on shop button to go to my shop.

Have a great day and catch me tomorrow for more techniques and ideas.

Sponge brayer techniques

A really simple way of creating a tonal background is to do it yourself. Stampin Up sponge brayers are perfect for this as you don't get the streaks that can sometimes happen with rubber brayers. This fab brayer has 4 sponges and 2 handles and is the great price of £7.25 and is in the annual catalogue link above.

Saleabration is upon us until end of March and for every £45 spend you get to choose a free item from the Saleabration brochure again links above. I have used 2 free sets in this example. The flower is from Avant Garden and the lace detail is from delicate details. I used pool party, Sahara sand and crumb cake inkpads to give a delicate soft feel. I masked the centre band so the lace would have more impact.

Have a good day and catch you all again tomorrow for more fun techniques and projects using Stampin Up.

A quiet day of reflection

Yesterday evening I lost my beloved cat to a thankfully short but terminal illness. So today will be a day of reflection.

There is a beautiful big oak tree in the woods where I go and sit and remember. Where I smile and cry and think of the wonderful times I have had with pets I have lost over the years. Today will be a day for remembering my beautiful cat. A timid kind soul who loved to cuddle and had a purr that reverberated through your body every time you cuddled him.

He has joined my other pets at rainbow bridge and I am thankful that I was able to take away the pain and cuddle him till the end.  Run free my friend, my companion and the sweetest of souls.