Smashing a page idea

I'm really getting into my scrap booking, or the alternative which is my Smash book (see what it's all about here) and love to use Stampin' Up! products for this.  

When I quit my job I wanted to create a page as a keepsake and had a pile of business and ID cards which I thought would be ideal for this.  I wasn't too keen on the original papers in my smash book so instead covered it with some of the papers from the Patio Party DSP pack and then created a sort of pin board style card holder by wrapping a length of Bakers Twine around the page to tuck the cards behind.

I still need to find a few bits and bobs to embellish the page fully but it's a great way to use Designer Series Paper (DSP) and leftover twine or ribbon.

Of course I've been busy creating numerous pages during my current trip to Arizona in the US... so am getting my crafting fix whilst I am away :).

See you next year x

Happy anniversary M&D

Well I trust everyone has had a good Christmas.  I'm currently in Arizona,enjoying the warmer climate after a trip to the Grand Canyon at below zero temperatures.  Do check out my travel site for more on this if you are interested.

Despite being away I do have a few crafty posts lined up to share with you so keep checking back.  Today it's my parents wedding anniversary, so here is the card that I made them.

It uses one of the images from the For the Birds stamp set which has a lot of choices for many occasions...

The base is Bashful Blue and I have teamed this with Pink Pirouette and Whisper White using a strip run through the Argyle embossing folder and layered onto a Scallop Trim Border punched from Whisper White.

I've added a couple of butterflies from the Beautiful Butterflies embosslits die, cut from Shimmery White card scraps and a button tied with Linen Thread to finish.

Happy Christmas 2012

Well, Happy Christmas to you all!

Here is my last Christmas card for 2012, which I made for my parents.  You will see the card includes a little box for those christmass tealights that I showed you recently.

It was a bit fiddly to get the right dimensions for the box, and which I had forgotten to note down before sending the card, but if you are interested, just email me and I will get these for you :).

The card base is Basic Grey and I've used Cherry Cobbler run through the Argyle embossing folder for the background.  The sentiment is from the Wacky Wishes (hostess set) inked in Marina Mist and of course those little 'gingerbreads' are from the Scentsational stamp set.

Happy Christmas Sis

This is the second year in a row that my sister will be celebrating Christmas with my parents and the second year that I will not be there... in fact I can't remember the last time I did celebrate Christmas with her - when we were kids I think?!  

So, I'm missing out on her Christmas roast, but also the cold weather as I am off on my travels until January. In the meantime, here is the card I made for her.  Happy Christmas Lee x

This is another twist on one of the cards I made last Christmas, but with a variation or two.  The Scallop Circle die works so well as an easle style card base, I must remember to use this idea more often, especially as the bird punch can be used to create other birds for year round cards :).

Something for the table

Well, despite not planning on celebrating Christmas this year I have prepared just in case and have made these little wine glass charms for the table on Christmas day.  They were created with the Scentsational Season stamp set from the Autumn/Winter catalogue and some skrink paper (non Stampin' Up!).

I'm really pleased with these, here's a close up :).

I've just used the stamps as they are and inked in each of Real Red, Marina Mist, Old Olive and Chocolate Chip directly onto the skrink plastic and then shrunk them with a heat gun.  I've then threaded a selection of beads onto a 'earring hoop' and ta dah!

This is a great stamp set for doing this sort of thing as the size shrinks down just right... need to identify some other sets that I can use for the same idea for another time?

One of my favourites

I created one of these cards for my Christmas card classes last year (yes, 2011!), but it was so popular that I had customers this year requesting commissions of the exact same card.  So I had to share it with you again :).

You can see the original post here, but I have changed the sentiment.  The owl punch is still my favourite punch, there are so many things you can do with it... and they don't have to involve owls lol.  Check out the owl punch tab to the right of my site for more ideas.

Happy birthday Mum

As usual I'm out of the country for my Mum's birthday, but of course I didn't forget the card...  Happy birthday Mum, hope you have a great day x

Mum doesn't drink but I thought she would approve of a non alcoholic cocktail card for this year?  I've used the Happy Hour stamp set which has so many little stamps it's hard to choose which glass to ink up :).

The base is Whisper White and I have created an easle style card so that it stands upright and then added the Real Red panels with some of the Pumpkin Pie DSP from the 'Brights' collection paper pack.  The image is inked with Stampin' Write markers as you can use more than one colour at a time and then I've added the umbrella and fruit using my Stamp-a-ma-jig.

I've punched out the image with the Curly Label punch and then created a border with 2 Real Red punch shapes.  Finally you can just make out the 'Mum' wording in the photo from the For My Family stamp set.  Again the Stamp-a-ma-jig came in handy here as it's always nerve wracking to stamp directly onto a card!

Take note

I'm off on holiday today... to America and flying into Vegas.  There will be some travel blog posts to follow so do keep an eye on my other site.

In the meantime here is a little post it note holder decorated with one of the stamps from the For the Birds stamp set in the main catalogue.

The holder is made from Bashful Blue card stock and I've added a square of Pretty in Pink and Whisper White and then inked and stamped the image in Early Espresso.  I've coloured parts of the image with Stampin' Write markers to co-ordinate.

If you would like to make some of these for yourself you can find the dimensions here.  They make great gifts and you can also add a calendar on the front or inside (with a small note pad) instead given the time of year?

Handmade leaving card

When I quit my job last month I didn't expect to leave with so many cards and presents!  The finance team in Cambridge even went to the trouble of making me a special card, which I just have to share with you.

To top it off, stamped on the back was a blog address with a story to tell - financecrafter.blogspot.co.uk, so thoughtful, and of course will be treasured :) x

Christmas wrapping

I still have quite a bit of non Stampin' Up! crafting stash that I am selling off for charity - see here for more.  If you would like to stop by at my home (GU16) and take a look either today or tomorrow then please contact me.

Yesterday, I had a crafting session with a few friends.  Amy arrived with a little gift for me, which she had wrapped in some of the Be Good of Cheep DSP with a cute card/tag on the front...

This is such a cute card, created using the Scentsational stamp set 'gingerbread man', inked in Chocolate Chip onto Whisper White card and then cut out with the co-ordinating Holiday Collection Framelits dies.  Amy has teamed Real Red and Old Olive (Christmas favourites!) and some more of the Be Good of Cheer DSP for the base and added a Teeny Tiny Wishes sentiment and some cleverly placed 'hearts' from the Owl Punch (cut from Old Olive) to create a 'bow tie' and 'bow' on the gingerbread people :).

What a great idea!

Craft sale reminder - Sunday 2-4pm

This post will remain at the top until Sunday therefore please scroll down for daily posts.

Don't forget I'm selling off my non Stampin' Up! craft stash for charity at my home (GU16) on Sunday - see full details here.

Christmassy tealights

The crafting is taking a bit of a back seat currently, mainly because I have to keep the house tidy for viewings and can't have the craft room looking like it's usual bomb site and the dining room too!

That said I still have a few projects lined up to share with you. 

Today I thought I'd show you these tealights that I have decorated with lettering from the Occasions Alphabet stamp set and the snowflake from the Every Little Bit stamp set (sorry the photo doesn't show the latter too well as I've used Bashful Blue ink).

Box them up as gifts or use them as decorations around the hous or at dinner :).  I'm going to create a card with box attached to put mine in... so watch this space for more with these soon.

Belated new home card

Wow, what a day... I've been busy catching up with people, getting my car ready for the winter and at the same time also had the first viewing of my house.  Tomorrow is much the same and then I must start packing some boxes.

Here is a quick card made using the Little Additions stamp set (it's a baby themed set) but I've used it for a new home card...

I had to come up with something very quickly this morning before dashing out to deliver it, so I've opted for a Marina Mist base and a background of Pool Party which has been run through the Perfect Polka Dots embossing folder.

The arm chairs and coffee table have been inked and stamped onto Whisper White and then carefully cut out (ok, so this wasn't a quick task after all!), and I've mounted the chairs using dimensionals to add some depth.  The sentiment is handwritten and punched out with the Word Window punch, and then I've sneaked in a non Stampin' Up! peel off which I stumbled across whilst clearing out my stash as the card just needed something else to liven it up a bit!

Don't forget I'm selling off some of my non Stampin' Up! craft stash for charity (see details here) this Sunday between 2 and 4pm at my home (GU16) so let me know if you fancy stopping by to pick up a few bargains.

 

Craft stash sale for charity - this Sunday 2-4pm

For those of you that know me or have been following here or on my travel site, you will probably by now, be aware that I quit my job last month and am planning to take a bit of time out and go travelling as soon as I can.

Stage one of the plan is clearing my house and putting everything into storage - so of course that means a clear out of my crafting stash :(.

Books, magazines, paper packs

Ribbons, embossing powders, punches

There is all sorts of bits and pieces from magazines and books to embossing powders and stamps, so I thought I would sell it off for a few pennies to raise some money for charity :).

It's all non Stampin' Up! stuff as I will look to doing something else to raise money with some of my Stampin' Up bits in the new year too.  

Prices start from just a few pence, so if you fancy coming and having a rummage through a couple of boxes of various crafty bits, I will be having an open house at my home (GU16) this Sunday (16th) from 2pm until 4pm, where you can stop by and take a look and purchase anything you fancy.  

The money will be collected and put towards items for a school or orphanage somewhere overseas.  When I travel on longer trips I like to try and take items with me and donate these to a local school/orphanage or charity at one of my destinations, so of course that is what I will be doing in the coming months.  See details of past volunteer/charity visits here.

As I haven't yet planned the trip, I can't tell you where the money/items will be donated to just yet, but I promise to keep you updated as soon as I have organised things.

Do let me know via email if you are planning to stop by on Sunday so that I can let you have my address and make sure the kettle is boiling ;).  Alternatively if you cannot make it along I will still be around Monday and Tuesday next week and willing to accept any stray visitors who may be interested in anything that is left, so if you do let other crafters know.

Anyone who would like to place a Stampin' Up order in the meantime can of course contact me to do so as products can be shipped directly to you for the normal UPS flat rate of £4.95.

Last minute Christmas card

Despite having quit my job last month, keeping up with daily posts isn't too easy... not being in Cambridge every week and not having evenings stuck in a hotel have meant no time set aside to blog :).  Although to be honest I haven't had any time to craft I've been trying to take it easy and catch up on a few things first.

Here's a quick card made with the Star Tree stamp that you can buy individually from the main catalogue.

I've used those lovely Festival of Prints DSP papers again and teamed Old Olive and Real Red card stock and Stampin' Write markers to co-ordinate.

The sentiment is not Stampin' Up!... sorry, just needed something else for the occasion.

Birthday bike

There are some lovely hostess stamp sets in the main catalogue, and I just love the Summer Afternoon set:

I've used the lovely bicycle image for a male birthday card, by teaming it up with some of the papers from the   Festival of Prints DSP pack in the Autumn/Winter catalogue...

The base is Basic Grey and I've used Island Indigo to matt the image to.  A few brads and it's good to go.

It's the weekend

But for me this week has been like the weekend.  I've been busy collecting content for my travel site, so will be updating that and my craft site with more ideas next week.

Hope you have a good weekend, whatever you are doing x

Christmas wine bottle tag

I love to create tags to attach to wine bottles when giving these as gifts.  I think it just makes it more personal when you go to a dinner party, and they are also great as just gift tags too.

Here is a wine bottle tag that I made to co-ordinate with this card...

Why not knock up a few of these as you are bound to need them over the Christmas season :).

Favours at Christmas

I really miss the retired Pillow Box die.   Even though I am not supposed to share projects with you using retired items, I know that many people have this die and it's ideal at this time of year for creating little favours for the dinner table, so I couldn't resist sharing this with you...

The tag is from the Beautiful Season stamp set, which I have inked with Early Espresso and coloured with Stampin' Write markers.  You can make these boxes so quickly so they are great for favours and for gifts such as jewellery too :).

Scallop window at Christmas

Here is another card which uses the Joyous Celebrations stamp set that I shared with you yesterday...

I have punched out the image after stamping it onto Whisper White card, using the Scallop Circle punch and then punched the front of the Real Red card base and then stuck the image inside the card so that is peeks through the window.

A simple strip of DSP (from the Festival of Prints paper pack) punched with the Scallop Trim Border punch to finish.  This would be a good card to personalise with the name of the recipient.

Christmas wishes

Another quick Christmas card today, which uses the Joyous Celebrations stamp set in the Autumn/Winter catalogue.

I've stamped the 'mistletoe' and the sentiment onto Whisper White card and then punched this out with the 1 3/8 inch Circle punch before mounting onto a Real Red Scallop Circle punched shape.

The card base is Old Olive and I have stamped the 'tree' image from the stamp set with Old Olive to create the background and then adhered a strip of DSP from the Brights paper pack and finished with a strip of Real Red card.

The image/sentiment has then been mounted with dimensionals to raise it up.

Star tree card

Do you still need to make some Christmas cards?  Well don't worry, I still have a few ideas for you over the next few days which are designed to be quick and easy :).

I CASE'd this card from Amy:

The stamp is the lovely Star Tree which has been inked with Old Olive and Real Red Stampin' write markers in order to get two colours on the same stamp.  The DSP is from the Festival of Prints DSP pack.

Christmas stocking

With Christmas fast approaching, and hopefully most of your cards now made, it's time to think about other bits and pieces.  Therefore today I have Christmas stocking to share with you made with the Candlelight Christmas fabric in the Autumn/Winter catalogue...

If you are a regular reader of my blog you will know that I wouldn't have made this myself as my mum is the sewing expert... here's a close up of the Christmas tree that features a variety of buttons and sequins...

Normally tomorrow would be a day back at work, but I've quit my job, so will be making the most of putting my feet up for a bit.  I'm actually in London for a few days so you should be able to catch up on what I get up to on my travel site when I get around to updating it.

Christmas bag

Finally I have managed to sort out issues with blogger and can now add photos via another route, so scheduled posts are back... that is of course subject to actually creating something to post :).

Today I have a quick Christmas bag that co-ordinates with this card.

I have adhered a strip of Cherry Cobbler card stock, embossed with the Perfect Polka Dots embossing  folder, to strips of Old Olive before attaching it to the sides of a pre cut gift bag.

The little tag was created with one of the Labels Collection Framelits dies cut from Old Olive card stock and then a selection of punches were used to create the Santa from scraps of Pink Pirouette, Whisper White and Cherry Cobbler card stock.

Finally I have used some of the Real Red taffeta ribbon to attach the gift tag to the bag.