Holly Wreath Cards...

A while back I saw a fantastic idea that Donna from Butternut Sage Designs Blog had come up with and I loved it so much I had to CASE it for some Christmas cards. She had used the fabulous tree from the SU Pendant Park set to create Holly Wreaths (you can see her fabulous card here).

And here is my take:

To make the holly wreath I used the indispensable stamp-a-majig and masked the card and then stamped the tree upside down.

Supplies (All supplies are SU)

• Paper: DSP; Whisper White, Real Red CS
• Stamps: Pendant Park, Snow Swirled
• Ink: Old Olive, Basic Black
• Accessories: Real Red Grosgrain Ribbon, Red Glitter Glue (non SU)

Thanks for stopping by,

Beautiful Papers

Have you ever thought that patterned paper is just too pretty to be hidden away inside scrapbooks or on cards that will be displayed for a month or so then put away in a draw. I am a paper maniac - I just cannot get enough, I am constantly buying even though I have more than I will most likely ever use. And I cover everything in it! I have previously posted the little coffee table I covered and also some clip boards but I thought even those are things that people see when they come to visit. I wanted to share my love of patterned paper all the time with everyone! When I was in New York I picked up heaps of Japanese Chiyogami papers from an amazing store called Pearl River Market on Broadway near Soho (it sells all things Asian - slippers, papers, home wares, fans, umbrellas - you name it they probably have it!) and I decided that they would be fantastic patterns for earrings. So I set to work to create:

They were fairly easy to make too. The base is just balsa wood so it is really light and thin enough to be cut with my paper cutter (although it may possibly not be the best thing for the blade!), I covered them with the Japanese paper and sealed them with a layer of ranger glassy accents to make them super shiny. Once it was all dry I just punch a hole in one corner with a cropodile and added the hooks. Presto - gorgeous earrings!

PS. How FABULOUS is the little tree! My mum bought it for me as a gift when we are in Melbourne, it is perfect for hanging earrings on but Wicki thinks it is perfect for chewing and pulling the earrings off, naughty kitty!

Where have I been?

Well I have been out and about doing all kinds of things.

Last week I headed down to Melbourne with my mum to visit the Spring Paperiffic Expo - which I was really excited about however I must admit I was a little let down. They had very little new product, well maybe they did have but I am blessed to have access to all these wonderful blogs from around the world so I get to find out about great new things several months before they reach our shores down here. The other thing I noticed many, many people saying was that things were expensive - there were no really fabulous deals. Again I am blessed to be so in touch with the crafting world via the net so I often purchase items from the USA and have them posted over which is actually a lot cheaper than buying from most of the suppliers here believe it or not especially now the dollar is getting stronger :) But at least I went and saw it so I can say I have been there, done that.

The other thing I have been doing is putting together a portfolio together for a design course I wanted to get into. As well as a portfolio of 10 pieces I had to sit an exam of drawing - easy right? Ummmm No! I had to conceive ideas for furniture with a seafood theme for a restaurant chain - I am not making this up, I couldn't if I tried. I swear the girl in front of me burst into tears. After the initial panic I decided I had to pull myself together and give it a go - and I actually came up with three different pieces. I was so very proud of myself because the old me would have given up and fled in a panic attack but I stuck it out and who knows I may even get accepted.

I promise I will be back soon with some more creations and also some exciting news!

Manda x

Taylored Expressions #88

Another Christmas card today. I really need to get my act together and start turning them out for the craft market next month. Now I have my mojo back I decided to have a go at Taylored Expressions #88 Sketch. I had a bit of trouble with this sketch and had a few false starts but with the arrival of my new SU Stamps yesterday I had an idea and put the Snow Swirled set to work. I am pretty happy with the final product.

Supplies:

• Paper: SU CS Handsome Hunter, Purely Pommegranite, Very Vanilla; Kaisercraft DSP Deck The Halls - Ivy.
• Stamps: SU Snow Swirled.
• Ink: Versamark; SU Handsome Hunter.
• Accessories: SU Clear Embossing Powder; Kaisercraft Adhesive Pearls; Cuttlebug Swiss Dots Embossing Folder; Fiskars Corner Rounder.

I hope you are all enjoying your week. Thanks for stopping by!

Color Throwdown #66

Oh yay! I made a card at last. It feels like I have been having a
creative block forever but I think the arrival of some new SU products and Cosmo Cricket papers have inspired me (although the card doesn't use any of my new things other than a word window punch, go figure?!).

Anyway this weeks Color Throwdown was a great way to get back on the horse and at first I thought these colours wouldn't work but

after looking at the fabulous examples by the design team I was convinced otherwise.

Supplies (All SU unless otherwise stated) :

• Paper: Rich Razzleberry, Elegant Eggplant, Bordering Blue, Whisper White
• Stamps: Of The Earth
• Ink: Rich Razzleberry, Craft White
• Accessories: White Gel Pen, Silver Brads, Border Eyelet Punch, Word Window Punch. Cuttlebug Floral Screen Embossing Folder.
  
  

Oh Deer!

Well today is a very wet day here in Sydney. The skies opened up just before lunch time and it rained until the gutters overflowed. This means that I could concentrate on my craft desk, it needed some help. I have been so naughty and just not cleaned up after myself the last couple of times I have done projects resulting in a mess beyond belief. So I have got stuck in and finally cleaned it all up and discover a number of treasures hiding - great scraps of paper, half finished cards and all sorts of bits and pieces.

I also found this Christmas card which I made last week which I forgot about completely. The unusual thing about this card, for me, is that it has absolutley no stamping at all, because usually almost everything I do has stamping on it somewhere even if it is only the sentiment.

Supplies:

• Paper: SU Kraft and Purely Pomegranate CS; Basic Grey Figgy Pudding Stack; My Minds Eye.
• Accessories: SU Purely Pomegranate Stitched Grosgrain; Kaisercraft Christmas Rub-Ons, Adhesive Rhinestones; Cuttlebug Swiss Dots Embossing Folder; Spellbinders Lables 9 Die.

Hope you are all enjoying your weekend and if your here is Sydney, staying dry!

New Lay Out

Sorry I haven't posted for a while, I am still wallowing a bit. Each day gets a bit easier but it doesn't feel like I will ever feel great. Anyways enough about that...

I have made a new layout for 52 Weeks 52 Sketches using some pics I took of Winston playing with some flowers I had in a vase.

I hope his floral antics have bought a smile to your face like it did to mine.

Enjoy your weekend.

TESC#86 Version 2.0

I decided to make another card for the Taylored Expressions Sketch Challenge because A) I really liked the sketch and B) I wanted to put in another entry for a chance to join the DT.

Supplies:

• Paper: SU CS Chocolate Chip, Pretty In Pink. DSP Unknown.
• Stamp: American Crafts Wedding Clear Stamp Set
• Ink: Basic Black, Pretty In Pink
• Accessories: Scallop Hole Punch, Whisper White Grosgain Ribbon, SU Pretty Pink Pink Pastel, Kaisercraft Adhesive Pearls.

Thanks for stopping by!

Taylored Expressions Sketch #86

I haven't made a card in over a week, I think. Well it feels that long. I have had a couple of issues going on in my personal life and it has stopped me feeling creative which is annoying because making cards makes me feel better.

Anyway I really wanted to enter in this weeks Taylored Expressions Sketch Challenge because she is looking for some new members for her DT and to be honest that would be a dream come true because I love her stamps and designs.

When I feel down I may not be creative but I do spend a lot of time online shopping for new craft items so I had to use one of the new stamps from my most recent spree.

Supplies:

• Paper: CS Unknown, DSP Basic Grey Figgy Plum
• Stamp: Crafty Individuals - Let It Snow
• Ink: Versa Mark
• Accessories: SU Silver Embossing Powder, SU Silver Mini Brads, Fiskars Snowflake Punch, Kaisercraft Adhesive Rhinestones.

Thanks you for stopping by and I hope that you are all out there busy creating :-)

Color Throwdown #63.2

So I posted a card yesterday that I made for the Color Throwdown Challenge #63 which was to use Kraft, Olive, Chocolate and Yellow. So I made my card which you can see here and as I mentioned yesterday I am not having the greatest run in the world at the moment so I feel like I am a bit off my game, and when I looked at the card today I kind of cringed. I thought it was fine last night but all of a sudden I am over it. I don't know why, it is a perfectly acceptable card but I just wanted to do the challenge again, I felt like I could do better. Anyway after that long ramble here is my second attempt at Colour Combo #63:


Supplies (All SU Unless otherwise stated):

• Cardstock: Kraft, Chocolate Chip, Old Olive, So Saffron.
• Stamps: Petal Pizzazz
• Ink: So Saffron, Old Olive, Versa Mark
• Accessories: Clear Embossing Powder, Antique Brads; American Crafts Medium Brad, White Foam Thickers; Cuttlebug Floral Fantasy Embossing Folder.

I only had white letters so I used the foam Thickers and inked them up with So Saffron Ink so they worked with the colour scheme. I am much happier with this card yesterday.