Design team make....One thought...5 projects

Hello everyone...Genny here. I have called todays design team makes..one thought..5 projects because I began with the thought of doing a large mixed media canvas but ended up making 4 other projects and the original piece is only half way finished..lol. My first idea was to use lots of die cut and stamped flowers, painted with my H2Os..which gives them a lovely mica shimmer. I began by getting together lots of die cut flowers which I had cut using plain white paper. I then painted then all with different shades. As I was waiting for the flowers to dry I found two small canvasses and deiced to paint them using my acrylics. So for the first two projects, I added three flowers..using a black peeloff as the stem, and finally stamped a different sentiment on both.

The following two projects were a happy accident. When I'm painting with H2Os, I always work on a piece of paper. When I had finished painting the flowers, I looked at the way all the colours had mixed on the paper and loved the look of it. So I took a flower stamp and stamped the outline in black..and then cut them out. I mounted them onto a piece of white which had been mounted onto a piece of black card.

And finally I actually began on my first idea..lol. I have painted a board with black acrylic and placed lots of flowers in opposite corners.I have added metal hearts, some jewels and some pearl dots. It isn't finished yet but I thought that I would share the work in progress. Hopefully next week I will be doing a piece on mixed media..so I will be able to share the finished piece then.

The one thing that I would recommend is that wherever you decide to work that the cats are banned from the area. I'm sure that my cats know as soon as the acrylics come out and cannot wait to dip their paws in it..hence I have now multi coloured paw prints over one of my armchairs..perhaps they fancied doing some mixed media of their own..lol. So untilnext week...take care and happy crafting.

Design team make..a card for a special friend

 
Hello everyone...Genny here. For today's design team make I thought I would share this card with you. I have made it over the weekend for a friend and really enjoyed making it. To begin I made an 8x8 gatefold card. I created 2 panels for the front and two for the inside of the panels.I cut the panels with a deckle edge and then inked them in a mixture of pinks and lilacs. I found the two flower sets in my stash, which had a matching mandela stamp. I stamped an absolute load of them, then coloured them with my promarkers and finally cut them all out. I have to say that it was all very calm whilst cutting..NCIS was on the television and all the cats were out in the evening sun. Normally they do love to help..lol

For the middle back panel, I found this silhouette image in my stash and thought it would make a great focal point as my friend is into dancing.I mounted that onto some rainbow card to match in with all the other colours.

The side panels are decorated with yet more of the flowers. And finally the back panel.I coloured that again with my inks and created an oval..so that I had some where to write. Stupid as I am, I had written it before I photographed..hence the blue piece of card. I left the inside of the oval clear but edged it with a small leaf tapestry stamp. I finally added 3 more flowers to the side.

I really enjoyed making this card. All over the place you can read about mindful crafting. A quiet space where you just concentrate on what you are creating. I think that this card must fit the bill. Even with all the cutting out..it was all very calm. So why not look at what flower stamps you have and create something similar. I would love to see what you can create. For any of your crafting needs or wants..just pop over to Julie here at JB-Crafting Supplies and she will help.

Well I'm off to do some more crafting..I think some more colouring is called for. Next week I will be sharing some stencilling and using some texture paste. So until then...take care and happy crafting.

Design team makes......Just a piece of paper.

 Hello everyone...Genny here. For today's design team makes, I have been playing. I began by getting my inks out and like I said had a play. I messed about mixing different colours on a piece of paper and blending them. On some, I worked on glossy card and some on ordinary paper. My thought process was what could I make just using inks and paper and a few stamps.

For the card above, I used different shades of green...actually doing a whole piece of A4..then added a little brown. I didn't concentrate on what was happening on the paper as a whole, just on getting a nice mix of colours. Then I cut out a panel and mounted it onto some black card. This I matted onto some brown card onto which I had layered some cream card. I then stamped some butterflies and coloured them with my promarkers. I finally added some jewels at the top and bottom corners.

For the card below..I really did have a play. I used my distress ink in a pink shade and inked onto some bubble wrap. I then used this as a stamp onto some cream card. I then used my blending brush to add some more pink on the edges. This I mounted onto some cream card, which itself had been layered onto some pink. I then stamped a butterfly again but this time coloured it with pastel colours, again using my promarkers. I then added a shower of tiny flowers. In my mind the butterfly is leaving a trail of flowers..lol

For my next card, I began by screwing up a piece of paper and then again coloured it using my distress inks in shades of green. I then added some gold mica powder whilst it was still damp. It doesn't show that well in the photo but there is a gold shimmer in real life. I then cut a square out and stamped the silhouette onto it. I then mounted it onto some black card.

For my final card..I began with a piece of glossy card to which I added my inks to. I also sprayed some silver ink over the top. I then cut out the inch squares using a punch..which I admit to having for about 10 years but had never used..lol. I stamped over the square using a corner stamp which I kept moving round, so it covered the square. I mounted these squares onto black again, as it does seem to make it all stand out. These squares I added to the card and added a greeting.

I hope that you like all my playing. That is what it is all about. I would encourage you to take an afternoon and have a play of your own. Take some paper and your inks and just play. Don't think about the end result..just get mixing your colours. Screwing up your paper and then flattening it  before inking gives a lovely effect. Add some metallic sprays or some mica powders. The fun is extended when you sit back and look at what you've created and pick out what areas you want to use for your card. As it stands now, I still have the rest of 4 A4 papers to use in the future.

Anything that you need or want for your crafting is available from Julie here at JB-Crafting Supplies. As I always say, she does have an Aladdin's cave of crafting goodies. I must also apologise for not posting yesterday but thanks to BT I couldn't even get online..lol. Today everything is fine..thank goodness. So until next week..take care and happy crafting.

Design team make...Pinflair Kit

Hello everyone..Genny here. I must apologise..this weeks make should have been last weeks but BT decided that the village could do without internet for the most of 3 days and have given us an intermittent service since. It drives us all crazy..they know our service is going off but never think to let anyone know. Anyway here I am, catching up. For my design team make I have been lucky enough to work with this fabulous kit from Pinflair. All instructions are included. You will need to add your own choice of material, book binding glue. I also used some sellotape to hold things in place when I had run out of the paper. I have to say that was my own fault for not paying attention to what I was doing..as a cat fight set off. So I took everything apart and did it properly using my sellotape. I should have taken my own previous advice and shut the cats out of the room..lol.

 When you come to hold the drawer together...I added some sellotape to the outside..just to hold it together while it dried.

I didn't have a suitable handle for the box and due to the way I'm having trouble with my hands..I really needed something I could get hold of...so I fiddled about and made one. I had a lonely large button in my stash which I have always loved the look of. I took some of my jewellery wire and threaded it through the button and then added some beads..so it went button, bead, box drawer and then I secured the wire on the inside of the drawer. It has worked very well and has given me something substantial to hold on to.

And here it is finished..I have been looking for something to hold all my pearls from my stash and this is perfect. Everything that you need is available from Julie here at JB-Crafting Supplies. The range of fabric that she stocks is delicious..there is no other word to describe the patterns and colours that she has in stock. Well worth a look. So until next week..take care and happy crafting.

Design team make...A Fairy Pocket.

 Hello everyone...Genny here.I am so excited as this is my first design team make featuring sewing.Over the years, I have done a lot of sewing, but hadn't done any for a while.And then over the last year, the more I saw of Julies sewing projects, the more I was twitching to get my machine out.

So here I am with my first project.I thought it would be nice to go through it , step by step. Of course, the sheet itself has instructions printed onto it. But as usual I tend to do things a little differently..lol

I first cut the pieces out. The whole project is in one piece and is available from Julie. To go with the material piece, all you need is a piece of backing material to match the project (I have used some pink spotty fabric), some wadding to go between the pieces (the front and the back) and some interfacing to use on the back of the pockets.

I  ironed the fabric and ironed what would be the hem. To my mind just ironing what is going to be a hem makes things so much easier.

 I then ironed the interfacing onto the pocket strips and then pressed the top edge of the pockets.

 Then stitched to pocket top (above) and then pressed the pocket lengths to give the definition to the box pleats.

 Matched up the dotted lines to their corresponding lines on the full picture.And then stitched them. This is the major area where I did it differently to the instructions, mainly because it made it easier for me.

 Whilst I was stitching the dotted lines, I also stitched into place the ends of each pocket row,

Finally I stitched the bottoms of the pockets strip, catching the            at the same time

 Whilst I was stitching, I also cut two lengths of the backing fabric into 30cm by 8cm.,folded in half and stitched the length. I then cut both strips into half again,which made 4 strips. These will become the hanging strips

Once all the pockets have been stitched into place, I then tidied up all my threads in preparation for sewing the front,back and wadding all together. I layered the pocket topped piece, the wadding and the backing fabric together. I then pinned them together. I then went round all the edges, turning the raw edges in, making sure that the wadding was captured securely. I then sewed the two sides and the bottom edges. On the top edge I pinned in the straps, securing then inside the edges. I then finally sewed the top. I then sewed again around the inside on the small pink line   to make sure that the wadding was captured even more.

I have so enjoyed making this fairy pocket. I made it over two afternoons, taking my time and doing a lot of shouting at my cats, who thought the whole thing was just done for their entertainment. I would recommend making this pocket without cat help..lol. This would be the perfect gift for a young girl..but I have to say that this girl is going to use this to hold my collection of scarves on the back of my bedroom door. At the moment they are all hanging on coathangers..but as expected the kittens think that they are only there to hang on to..so this will be perfect to keep them away from kitty claws.

Everything that I have used is available from Julie here at JB-Crafting Supplies. Julie has a wonderful selection of materials available. On a personal note, I have also started a quilt and will share some blocks with you in the next couple of weeks. So until next time...take care and happy crafting.

Design team makes....Using up your Peeloffs

Hello everyone...Genny here. For the past couple of weeks I have been looking at using your stash in lots of different ways. Whilst I was looking through all mine..I came to look through my peeloff boxes. I have always used peeloffs for border edging, as I think sometimes it can just give that finished look to many cards. But during various buying sprees, I have picked up and have been given a number of peeloffs that I have never used. I thought to myself the time is right to get some cards made with these wonderful peeloffs. 

As most of you know I just adore my cats and have a number of friends who do to. The cat peeloff was the black outline and so needed a backing. I found some rainbow card and used the peeloffs on two different ends of the paper..so they have different colourways. I decided to keep it plain and simple as I thought that would be the nicest way and just added two of my favourite cat sayings. I thought that these would make lovely note cards to send to my friends. I have also used a smaller size card than I normally do to ensure that they can go by the cheaper rate of postage. That's another reason why peeloffs are so handy..they are flat and can give great detail without any height..another thing to bear in mind when posting. I once made a small card but added a jewel which made it require a large stamp.I wouldn't have minded but if I'm going to buy a large stamp then I will make an elaborate card..not having to worry about size.

My second two cards have used this lovely Chinese image of a lady...which were inspired by the fact that Chinese new year has just taken place. The peeloff outline of the ladies, I placed onto some white card and then coloured with my promarkers. Both background papers came from a Chinese themed pad which I have had for a while.

On the card above, I first layed the background paper and then added an extra peeloff of some cherry blossom, which I then also coloured with my promarkers. The vase was a peeloff that I layed on some black card and then cut out. I chose the red and gold colouring due to them being the colours of prosperity in the Chinese culture.

For the card below, I did much the same..colouring with my promarkers. I also added the peeloff symbols for Good Luck. Again I think that both cards would make great note cards..or even as a thank you card.I really enjoyed making all these cards and I hope that you like them and consider looking at your own stash..if you are short of anything..Julie is the place to get it. I have always considered the shop as an Aladdin's Cave of crafting goodies, and it's the first place I go when increasing my stash.

As seems usual lately..the wind is raging round the mountains and I'm staying in and crafting..with much help from my cats..lol. Next week I will be sharing some sewing..I'm really looking forward to it. So until then...take care and happy crafting.

JB Crafting- Supplies....Home makes

Hello everyone...Genny here. After last weeks makes, I decided that I wanted to make a hanging flower to fit alongside my dream plaque and door hanger. I made this flower, managing to use lots of the little bits that I had hanging around my craft studio. I have always had a collection of beads..for the use in a bright idea that I never got round to..lol so I was determined to use them. I am hoping to get a better picture of the flower but it was a hard thing to photograph with no help. I will take a picture of it when it's in it's place in my bedroom.

The flower has beads above it and a string of beads at the bottom, which give it a little weight to hang straight. The flower itself started with an idea which I had when I was just about to throw a kitchen roll middle away. I cut it into six strips and then painted them with my acrylic paint which I had bought from Julies shop. I then attached some backing paper..again from the shop to the back of the roll strips. I then cut the petals out and glued them together. I created the strips of beads and attached them to the top and the bottom of the flower. I cut a circle of the backing paper twice and attached it to the flower centre. Onto that I added a smaller circle of glitter paper and finally added a large jewel to the very centre. I hope to make 5 strips of flowers and hang them along the wall in my bedroom. For all the paints, jewels and beads just take a look at Julies stock...it really is an Aladdin's cave of crafting goodies.

When I was about to write this blog, I looked through my photographs and realised that I had made quite a number of pieces to decorate my home. I have loaded them below,,in the hope that they will give you a few ideas. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me.

I hope that the weather is being kind to you wherever you are. Here in the mountains it can't make it's mind up whether to rain or not. I'm having quite a time to keep some wet cats off my crafting..lol. So until next time..take care and happy crafting.

My craft room

We have been busy working on my craft room for yet another weekend and it is finally ready to use. This has been an-on-going-project for my husband and myself for the last two and half years and I can't beleive it is actually ready to use. We still have some more work to do but the main thing is that I can use it and get back in to my crafting.