This is a really late post as I just realised that I forgot to blog about the cards I made in February for valentines day (or any other reason as they are always blank inside so can be multi use).  I die cut some painted card and used my craft sewing machine (a small mini cheap one I bought a few years ago for paper crafting only rather than using my decent sewing machine as paper and card created a lot of fluff and blunts the needles SO quickly if you want to use them on fabric after-so I keep the 2 separate) to add a zig zag stitch all around the edge and left the threads dangling.

Then I added a strip of patterned card down the edge to bring it all together.  

Quite plain and simple but I quite like the added dimension of the thread.

Kyla

Scraps and sewing

Just a quick update as not sure I posted this card yet.  AGES ago I stitched some die cut hearts and I came across one I had left over in the bottom of my scrap box.

So I decided to mat it on some precut die cuts (that I bought AGES ago from the local scrap store which were probably left over from the card or packaging industry, it tends to cost about a fiver for a carrier bag full of scraps) and I edged the blue card with some gold embossing powder and then added some flocked paper to a card blank.

A few more items from the scrap box used up-go me!!

Kyla

Wedding Card

Just a quick update for a new card I have.

This is die I borrowed from a friend and I cut lots of black and cream pieces in one sitting to use when inspiration strikes.

The paper is actually a staple of mine, wallpaper.  I find it robust and cuts nicely and of course it is free when you ask for a sample!

I added some ribbon, a resin heart at the top and a glass heart below.

Clean and simple (unusually for me).

Happy crafting

Kyla

Wedding Card

I waited to post this photo.  As well as the Royal Wedding last weekend, it was the wedding of a good school friend of mine, Kev to Clare (sadly I couldn't make the wedding).

I wanted to make a personalised card and since they are into comic-con and music I thought the backing paper was quite arty and reminded me of vinyl records.

I die cut the birds from cardboard and hand coloured them with promarkers.

The letters are also die cut and have a thick gold enamel covering and I added a heart brad as a finishing touch.

Hopefully the happy couple have opened all their cards by now, if not-SURPRISE!!

Kyla

Anniversary Card

Hello peeps, just a quick update for a card I made recently for a 25th Anniversary.

I used some silver skeleton leaves, die cut 25 from some holographic card and added some ink over the top of an embossed piece of card.

I then used a silver pain pen to add some detailing around the edges of the card.

Nice and simple but something you know you could not just pop to the shops and buy so hopefully the recipient loved it.

Happy crafting

kyla

New Job card

Hello, just a quick update I made a card and it wasn't a Christmas card!

Using a topper sheet I bought a LONG time ago I added a little bit of glitter and gloss and a sentiment on an embossed scrap of pink card I die cut.

Now, back to making Christmas cards!

Happy crafting

Kyla

Speedy Recovery card

I needed to make a special card for some recently who had a nasty fall and broke her leg.

 

These embossed cards are quite large and I bought them from the charity table a couple of crops ago at the WOYWW meet up.  I have been mainly using them for weddings etc but I thought they would make a good base for this card.

 

I die cut some TH butterflies from board and coated them in some indigo blu flitter glue (love this tacky glue) and covered them with gilding flakes.

I stamped a sentiment and matted and layered it on silver card.

 

A feminine get well soon card and one perfect for the recipient.

 

Happy crafting

Kyla

Silver cards

 So at the WOYWW crop the lovely ShazSilverwolf brought her dies with her and I cut a TON of these (I tried purchasing the die at the NEC show but none of the stalls had one for sale-good job as now I have lots in different colours!!).

I thought that these would be suitable for both male and female cards (and both silver since they were inspired by Shaz!).

The top one is in silver and on a plain white card.  I am not great at doing plain cards but I think this one works ok.

This one is on holographic card and backed with a slightly metallic grey card with some bradless brads just to add some dimension.

That's it for now,

Happy crafting

Kyla

Purple scrap box make

Just a quick update on a recent card I made.

Whilst sorting through my scraps box I came across some scraps of fabric card I made and die cut AGES ago (music papers and scraps that I inked and free machine embroidered over) and some small pieces of gloss card with alcohol inks.

Sorting through my scrap box I came across some purple off cuts and using my TH tiny attacher I added some mini staples and a mounted sentiment.

Odd how scraps can sit there for ages then suddenly your mojo sits up and shakes you until you realise you have all the components for a card!!

After all, it's not like my scrap box is running short-but every card is a little more used!

Kyla

Warm fuzzies

 Hello peeps, just a quick update for a couple of cards I made recently.

The top one is using pre-die cut red felt and I thought it went really well with the "warm fuzzies" sentiment (since the felt is fuzzy).  I thought this would be ideal for anything from Valentines, anniversaries, birthdays or even just sending a 'hug in the post' to a friend.

The next card uses patterned paper, a die cut satin ribbon along the edge and a couple of glass hearts.

Nice and simple cards this week, though for a change these didn't use anything from my scrap box (I need to remedy that with my next makes!).

Happy crafting

Kyla

 

365 Challenge Year 4

I often beat myself up for not sticking to things but one thing I have stuck to is Kate Crane's 365 Journal Challenge.  Every day you jot something down about the day, or even a small drawing to represent the day.  It only takes one minute which I think is why it works.

I have been doing this for four years now!  I know!!! Get me, actually sticking to something.

January's page is coloured with Dylusion sprays (I still love these products, such bright colours and water reactive) and the fir trees are made from a stencil I made by punching trees from some waste card and inking through.

I added some snowflakes, stickles glitter and flicked some white watered down acrylic paint across the pages.  The 'January' is die cut from an old cereal box, coloured and stickled so it screams bling and sparkle! 

The pages are filled in up to date, but I tend to take a photo before I start filling them in...lets be honest the daily humdrum life is of little interest to me let alone you!

If you have made any new years resolutions (mine are the usual, work less, create more, be kind to myself etc) then I hope you have made a good start to 2016.

Happy crafting,

Kyla

A card for a gardener

Just a quick update on a card I made the other day for a friends birthday.

I used a die cut I made from one of Hettiecrafts dies she brought to the WOYWW crop (thanks Sam) and the background was a thick serviette that I used to clean up during my fabric dying session a few weeks ago, it had a lovely colour and reminded me of a heather hillside.

I stamped my new boots stamp on gold card, distressing the torn edges and added some butchers twine.

A perfect card for my friend Ju who is a gardener.

Happy crafting

Kyla

 

Multi layered scraps

Thought I would post one of my latest cards I made.

The background is an old 12x12 patterned scrapbook sheet I no longer like that I gesso'd, painted, wiped back, stencilled, stamped and collaged!

I then added an off-cut from an Angelina fibre die cut butterfly that I made for a previous card and attached it with coloured mini staples.

I added a butterfly with some foil adhered for a little bling and stamped a sentiment on the bottom left.

I got suitably inky and covered in paint so I was a happy bunny!

Happy crafting

Kyla

 

Scrap butterfly

Not got much to show at the moment as I have been too busy with the pay the bills job.....BUT my weekly meet up with the crafting coven does mean I get a couple of hours to craft (and eat cake and drink tea!!).

Its a little like a really short crop because you take the stash you want to use with you.  

To make life easier I keep a craft organiser grab bag which has mini distress pads, some glitter glue, a few stamps, some washi tape and a couple of small boxes with brads etc in (you get the idea) and a clear pouch full of papers, off cuts, scraps and bits of ribbon, odd die cuts etc and a few blank cards.  

This means that I can usually knock out a card or maybe two and get to use up some of my scraps.

This is the card I made at last weeks session. Luckily I was about to add some stickles to add a little bling...then remembered I would have to somehow drive home with it still wet so decided against it!

The butterflies remind me that spring has just sprung and very soon the sun will start having some warmth in it and the days will be getting longer.

Happy crafting

Kyla

 

For the love of cards

 Hello peeps, I am finally getting back into the groove with some card making and using up some scraps.

This card used up some left over toppers I've had hanging around for AGES and some off-cuts of ribbon.

The next card has 3 different coloured leather flowers that I die cut from leather leftovers (I love Sizzix Bigz dies as they cope so well with leather).  

The pink flower in the centre is such a small off-cut I wasn't sure what I could do with it, but bright pink leather no matter how small it just too good to throw away!

Both of the cards are bright and cheerful but I think they would be ok for Valentines day or even for a birthday. 

Happy crafting

Kyla

 

Raindrops keep falling on my head

"Raindrops keep falling on my head" so the song goes-I don't know about that, but it has gotten mighty chilly recently (but then it is January in the UK so I am not sure why I should be surprised!)

 I thought I would take a break from posting Christmas present makes (I think there is only one more to go) and post the finished cards from the colouring in I was doing on a previous WOYWW.

To the stamped and coloured image I also added some glossy accents and a strip of scrap paper with some scrap lace over the top (I am trying to make cards from mainly my scrap box in January and so far I have made about 15 - its a big scrap box!!)

 The leaf is made from a tomato puree tube cut open, cleaned, flattened, dyed with alcohol inks then die cut.

 This one is using my new rain drop stamp as a background (at the last WOYWW crop I saw Shaz Silverwolf's stamps and fell in love with ALL OF THEM!!). I thought it would add some interest to the background without having to cut up any more precious card!

I thought these cards would be good for a variety of occasions from Valentines right through to "I'm Sorry".  Cards without words is sometimes all you need to let someone know you are thinking of them.

Happy crafting

Kyla

 

Frugal Christmas cards

 Hello peeps, I hope you are well and not freaking out too much over Christmas!

I decided to make a few clean and simple cards (not really my style)

 I drew a box around the card in a light blue pen and embossed some scraps of blue metallic card and die cut them with a die borrowed from a fellow coven member.  

These are frugal cards, not only is there no mat and layering, the blue card is from the scrap box and the ribbon is actually off a present I received and saved!

This bauble was too long for the card so I decided to snip the bottom off and add a point to make it shorter (and fit on the card!).

A couple of cards, didn't take too long to make and cost pennies.  What a shame I didn't think of this before I made my others!!!

Off to shake my sloe gin (bit late making it this year, but it should be ready new year celebrations).

Happy Crafting

Kyla

 

Left over metal, ribbon and paper and viola!

Hello everyone I hope you are all well.  

Its getting really chilly here in the UK, proper scraping of the car windscreen time!!

When its chilly outside I don't feel as guilty about squirrelling myself away in my craft room (the smallest room in the house and therefore the warmest!!).

A friend is 50 in a couple of weeks so I thought I would make her a special card. 

The card is stamped in versamark to create the watermark effect and I used similar pieces from my scraps box (seriously...HOW does that box hold this much?!) to stamp the saying and mount it.  I used fabric dyes to dye a tag and then using my tiny attacher to staple some leftover ribbon (it was really thick ribbon, but only a couple of inches long, so I cut in half along the length so it fitted through the hole in the tag easier).  

Ferreting around in my box I also found a third of a metal tube (I know, I literally chuck everything in this box, leftover fabric scraps, off cuts of paper...basically anything too small to put away...but as we know a lot of us crafters are hoarders, so I CANNOT chuck out something that can be used again....those of you who know me from WOYWW crops will know I am the one who actually went through the bins on everyones desk...well, other peoples rubbish is SO much more interesting!!).

With this tube I flattened it out and dyed it with alcohol inks before die cutting leaves out of it.

There you have it, a card for next to nothing (shh...don't tell the recipient it was so cheap!!).

I am entering this in the playground at the snippets challenge here

Why don't you pop over and see some of the fabulous creations, all made using up some snippets-genius.

Happy crafting

Kyla

Keys, keys and more keys

 Hello, are you keeping warm? It's really chilly here, who'd have thought it was Easter at the end of the week?!! (2 pairs of socks, electric blanket and hot toddy..and I am STILL cold!!...come on...its nearly April...this time last year it was 23 degrees and we were basking in the sun!!...what a difference a year makes!).

Anyway, back to craft....Tracey, one of the lovely Coven, passed me a bag of keys her partner collected for me...aren't they lovely...ooh, so many ideas. 

With such a haul I decided my box could be made into key storage, I added some letters and a die cut key, I painted them all with acrylic, stippled some crackle paint on top and added some green and gold wax to hi-light the texture.

Right, I am off to put ANOTHER layer on and turn the heating up!!

Happy crafting

Kyla

Rusting, Resin and friendly plastic...how much CAN I fit on a card!

Hello peeps, how are you keeping?  After over 4 weeks I am finally starting to feel better!  This winters bugs are nasty and so many people have or are suffering.  If you are, I hope you are on the mend.

Have you been watching all the fun of the CHA unfold on the blogs?  I must admit, I have loved every sneak peak and behind the scenes that are being posted (especially Dyan's, Hels and of course the Duke of Distress') and more than once I have almost pressed the "buy now" button on the 24/7 craft shop that is the internet!!  But I am so proud as I didn't (though, not sure how long my restraint will last!).

So, back to crafts....this is the card I made for my Mum's birthday (which was last week so its safe to post it on here now!).

The tag is cut out of patterened paper and put through a script embossing folder and the edges touched with some DI.  I added the picture of the sailboat (its actually a price tag off clothes that my dad saves me 'cos he knows "I like bits and bobs that can be reused!!!")  and added the word "Journey" (as its very pertinent for my mum).  I die cut a bird (also from an upcycled clothes tag) and stamped it with the script outline (from paperartsy).....ooh, it almost looks like I have a plan using 2 lots of script to bring it all together (must admit, more of a happy accident at this stage!).  I added some flower ribbon, a flower and some beads on a wire.

At the top of the card I added a buddha that I made from a mould and some friendly plastic, as my mum is interested in buddhism, some TH film strip (as she is always taking photos) and attached it with my tiny attacher (I am still loving this tool).

In the middle of the flower I added a pink heart that I made from resin and some bells that I rusted.

I stamped a card base with my TH script (ooh..this is really looking like a plan!) to bring it all together and added some buttons and a bit of fern to balance the card.

Right, I am off to scan the virtual world for more CHA fun!!

Happy crafting
Kyla