A Starfold Birthday Card For Ngaire

Hello! It's been a little while I know since my last post and I hope you have been keeping well during that time.
I have a card for you today that was commissioned for a New Zealand lady who will be celebrating her 80th Birthday. It is the second time I have attempted this particular style of card and I am glad to say that I think it turned out well. My brief was that Ngaire (the recipient and who lives in New Zealand) loves knitting, enjoys crosswords and is very lucky at winning raffles. So my card tries to reflect these things.

Here it is: I placed the photos I took onto a Blue Background so you can see it a little better.

It is a Starfold card. I was greatly inspired by a Blog I came across by Mio Linden and thought I would have a go at making it. You might need to translate the page as it is originally Swedish I think.
The link to Mio's Blog is: http://bellamios.blogspot.com.au/2011/03/ny-kortvikning.html

My first attempt will be posted in a while as the recipient may well look at this Blog and I don't want to spoil the surprise. The card base was cut to 45cms ( I think in the original Mio cut her example to 30cms). I used a big sheet of card that I purchased at Office works as 12 x 12 papers were not big enough for the additional size. The finished card measures approx: 23cms (9 inches) from point to point of the star.

I have taken a lot of pictures, the quality is not great but it will give you a closer look.
Here they are:

This is the back of her card and I made a Crossword based on the information I was provided. This is a free program I came across on the web - https://crosswordlabs.com/

This little web based program is very simple to use and you enter your own clues and the word you want to appear in the Crossword. It produces a PDF of the final version (also one with all the answers in case you forget them!!!) after you have chosen how you want your Crossword to look or be configured.

As you start to open the card you begin to see the inside.

Here is the card fully opened up. I have taken more close up photos of the flaps so you can see the detail a little better.

The Photo is not Great but it provide the first of the Close up views.

I was really pleased with my little bit of creativity here. I was told that Ngaire loves knitting; so I used two wooden toothpicks and a length of Bakers Twine to do a little knitting and added this to one of the inside "Flaps".
The stamp is from JustRite stampers (Botanical Medallions and Banners), I'll reference it in the ingredients list below.
I made a hole at the top of the card on one of the flaps and threaded through some ribbon from my stash and added a bow of the same ribbon.

On one of the other "Flaps" I added some pictures of Raffle Tickets and a Sterling Silver Lucky Horse shoe charm attached with a length of ribbon.

I was really stoked with the flowers too, I have a close up of these coming up.

I added some Stickers and Embellishments that I had in my stash. I think I bought these at Spotlight (Store here in Australia).

At the centre of the card I added a stamped medallion (Just Rite Stampers again - "Butterfly Garden Set"). I stamped it with a Memento Rich Cocoa ink pad and then fussy cut it out. I coloured the edges with two Ranger /Tim Holtz ink pads: Vintage Photo and Antique Linen.
These were also used on all the edges of the Crafters Block 1 Design Papers adhered to the base card.




The Butterflies are from a Sizzix/Hero Arts set of stamps and Dies, all stamped using Memento Rich Cocoa ink Pads. I added Stickles "Crystal" to some to give a little sparkle!

These lovely paper roses are from Wild Orchid Crafts and a first time attempt at using these types of flowers and I think they look stunning. I cut their wire stems, wrapped them around a pen and added these twirls for dimension to the three flowers. Cute huh?

OK you may be getting Photo Overload now, so this is the last photo of the card. A handy Gold Peel Off (80) and another of those butterflies which once stamped I die cut out using the matching dies in the set.

The sentiment is from a set of stamps from Papercraft called Celebrations J6423-06.









Here are the details of the ingredients I used:

Provo Craft Paper Symphony Crafter's Block 1	Tim Holtz Ranger Distress Ink Pad Vintage Photo	Tim Holtz Ranger Distress Ink Pad Antique Linen	Memento Rich Cocoa Ink Pad	JustRite Wooden Stamper 31/4 inch
JustRite Butterfly Garden Set	JustRite Botanical Medallions and Banners	RRR Bakers Twine - Orange	Hero Arts Stamps & Die Cut ANTIQUE FLOWERS & BUTTERFLIES Sizzix 657773	Stickles - Crystal
Wild Orchid Crafts 15mm Peach Trellis Roses	PaperCraft Celebrations Clear Stamps J6423-06

InLinkz.com

I hope you liked the card. I certainly enjoyed making it.
Until next time take care and be safe.

Three more Christmas Cards

Hi, I hope all is well with you. I have been busy with several card commissions which I am quite delighted about. I have just made three Birthday cards for the SAME person! I was asked to make the first two by friends and because the person is also known to me I needed to make one from Frits and I. I'll show you them after her Birthday as I wouldn't like to let the "Cat out of the bag"!!

I have three more Christmas cards to show you today. I'll post pictures of them with a few "how to's" by each.  Here goes:  This first card is similar to some of the ones I have posted already; I was in bulk creation mode at the time I think.

I used Spellbinders Grand Scalloped Die to create the card base from white card, added a layer of Paper Edition DP. 

On top of that I placed a piece of lace, with a medallion made firstly of Moss coloured Kaisercraft weave card stock and an image from Just Rite Stampers "Old Fashioned Christmas" stamp set; the image was coloured with Copics and both pieces were cut out with Spellbinders standard circles LG.

A little snowflake from my stash finished off the card.

For my second card I made the base Scarlet Kaisercraft weave card stock.

The Design Paper was from Meg's Garden "A Vintage Christmas" paper pack.

The medallion was made using Spellbinders Picot Edge Circle Dies.

The image is from Just Rite Stampers "Bird Houses" (unfortunately no longer available) and the outer ring was cut out using Spellbinders Standard Circles LG and laid on top of a piece of organza ribbon, (after colouring with Copics) with foam pads.

The sentiment for this and the card that follows is from Waltzing Mouse Stamps.

 

This last of my three cards is very similar to my second card just a different type of ribbon and design paper (although from the same paper pad) It does have a similar medallion.

I used Spellbinders Label Fourteen to cut out the sentiment on this card, I used a Memento Rhubarb Stalk ink pad and some Design paper that I had in my stash.

More information about the items I used to make these three cards:

Spellbinders Grand Scalloped Squares	Copic BLENDING CARD X-Press It Paper Pack of 10	Kaiser Craft Scarlet Weave Card Stock	First Edition 12 x 12 Festive Treats Pape	Megs Garden A Vintage Christmas 6 x 6 Paper Pa
JustRite Stamps Old Fashioned Christmas	Memento Tuxedo Black ink pad	COPIC Sketch Markers	Spellbinders Picot Edge Circles S4-345	Spellbinders Standard Circles LG, S4-114
Kaiser Craft Moss Weave Card Stock	Waltzing Mouse Stamps - Compliments of the season	Memento Rhubarb Stalk INk Pad	Spellbinders Labels Fourteen S4 - 290

InLinkz.com

My Crafty Work Space

Hi, how are you?
I promised to let you see some pictures of my recently re-organised crafty space. So I have some images to show you. The place I use is actually a spare bedroom, however it allows me to very quickly turn it into either a bedroom or a crafting space at very short notice.

My first picture is taken from the door looking out the window, it gives you an idea of the general layout of the room. What you don't see is the big mirrored wardrobe to the left and tucked around the corner (where I have other parts of my crafty stash stored like mounted stamps, ribbons, punches, cards & envelopes etc).

This is the new addition and what I have been so excited about. The storage units are 5 single bookcases joined together. My dear husband Frits earned HUGE "Brownie Points" for making these for me. They came flat-packed and he spent a great deal of time on a Saturday putting them together for me. Didn't he do a great job?

We thought we'd get them from IKEA but they are so expensive here in Australia so we went to a local furniture shop and got them there. The beauty is the shelves are adjustable so you can move them where you want them.

The paper storing units at the end were three units I bought from a Scrapbooking shop in Coffs Harbour.

The next images are just close-ups of the shelves. Clare I did these photos for you so you can see what I have put where.

I used my new Spellbinders Dies to make the labels and my Xyron machine to make them stick. The containers are "Decor" plastic food storage boxes. I wanted to get drawers originally so I thought that sealed containers would work just as well.

In my binders I keep all my reference pages and articles that I want to keep taken out of magazines I read or subscribe to.

I keep the remains of 12 x 12 pages that I have used for projects and cards in plastic bags that are stored by colour. This keeps them tidy and I go to the bag first to see if I can use any pieces up before using a new sheet.

I also have all my HOTP paper books stored alongside.

I have another box (creative memories) for loose sheets of patterned paper as well.

When I first started crafting I bought these small boxes with the blue handles from Staples in the UK - they are designed to store CD's. They are perfect for storing like or similar items together and make accessing them very easy.

You can see my Big Shot here - this is a new machine not long in my possession; I am starting to collect a few Sizzix dies that I can use with it.

On the middle right shelf I have a few dedicated Christmas crafty items and papers. This keeps all my Christmas gear together.

Here you have a better view of my card stock - mostly Kaisercraft as I love the colours and it is easier for me to get a hold of.

You can see my Spellbinders storage folders labelled 1 - 5 , this is such a great idea. I saw Beate Johns explain how to do it on YouTube and had a go. I make them from chipboard  cover with pretty paper, then take them to Office Works locally to get them punched and bound.

Underneath you can see my lovely Pink Spellbinders Grand Calibur - what would I do without it - no idea!
I keep the plates for this in an old Laptop bag which is the perfect size to keep them altogether.

I really liked the Storage boxes you get from JustRite Stampers. So I continued to use them for all my cling and clear unmounted stamps.

Underneath and on the left you can see I have stored my ink pads according to type.

On the right you can see a couple of empty boxes. They probably won't stay that way for long, however it does give me some space should I need it for other items.




So there you have it. My newly re-organised crafty space. Thanks for stopping by and having a look.
Until the next time, stay well and be safe.

Santa "In the Round"

Hello again, How are you?
Today I have two Christmas cards to show you. It is one design but each card I am showing you has a subtle difference. I was inspired by an image I saw on Pinterest (via Waltzing Mouse Stamps - I think???) and thought I'd have a go at making it.
Here they are:

I have placed this image onto a Blue Background so you can see the scalloped edge of the card.

I have placed this image onto a Green Background so you can see the scalloped edge of the card.


You'd be right to think "so is that the subtle difference?"...no this isn't the subtle difference - it is the shape of the tags that is different!

The red "Merry Christmas" ribbon I bought at Spotlight.











Here's a more detailed list of the ingredients I used to make this card:

Kaiser Craft Liqorice Weave Card stock	Kaiser Craft Scarlet Weave Card Stock	Copic BLENDING CARD X-Press It Paper Pack of 10	Spellbinders Grand Scalloped Circles LF-124	Spellbinders Grand Circles LF-114
Spellbinders Fleur De Lis Squares S4-318	Metallic Gold Card Stock	Waltzing Mouse Stamps - Santa's Coming to Town	Memento Rhubarb Stalk INk Pad	Spellbinders Scalloped Squares LG S4-127
3/4 inch Pom Pom Fringe	Stickles - Crystal	RRR - Bakers Twine - Red & White	Gold Sleigh Jingle Bells	Epoxy Square Stickers InLinkz.com

Thanks for stopping by to see my cards. Hope you like them.
Until next time stay well and be safe.