Good Ol’ Sport Journal (for Jones Crafts)

Posted on 28th March 2014 by perfectly4med

I’ve just received my DT goodies from Jones Crafts, and this time, I have the Graphic 45 Good Ol’ Sport Collection of papers to play with. Just as well it’s vintage and paper, as those that know me well know that I don’t do sport!

In what is fast becoming a trademark makeover, I’ve taken the sheet of 4×6″ prints, cut them up, added some more pages using the other papers and wire bound them using my Zutter Bind-it-All. The front and back covers have faux rusted enamel finish using clear embossing powder and Vintage Photo Distress Ink and Distress Powder. Everything else is aged with Vintage Photo Distress Ink. I created the photo corners by making a cut file and cutting them out on the Silhouette Cameo, before colouring with Tarnished Brass Distress Stain, sticking them together and then inserting the collector’s cards from two other sheets from the collection. Add in some of the chipboard tags and die cuts for tags, and paper ribbons and it’s done. Here’s a clickable gallery for close ups:

Scent-sational Apertures (for Creative Expressions)

Posted on 12th March 2014 by perfectly4med

Also in my DT pack this month are two more Singles stamps featuring cut-glass bottles or perhaps they could be decanters – Crystal Cut and Murano Glass. Both are two stamp sets – the bottle and a ‘scent-iment’. I wanted to highlight the glass element, so created two cards using apertures and acetate. Clean and simple designs, they show off the stamps wonderfully. Oh, and don’t make the same mistake as me: remember that the image on the front of the pack is not actual size… That’s how I ended up with the ‘close up’ in the aperture!

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Two watercolour effect cards (for Creative Expressions)

Posted on 5th March 2014 by perfectly4med

This month’s Creative Expressions Design Team projects include two new Singles stamps: Get Well Soon and Thank you. I’ve embossed the outlines onto watercolour paper, adding to the attractive distressed look and coloured using Distress Markers and a water brush. The clean and simple look is finished off with matting onto card and a few dots of coloured PVA from Cosmic Shimmer.

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Time Flies Encased Quotation

Posted on 28th February 2014 by perfectly4med

Over at The Crafting Cafe, it’s been the theme of embossing all month sponsored by my friends at WOW! Embossing Powders, and my DT project makes great use of embossing powder to encase elements of the beautiful Time Flies papers from Craftwork Cards. Pop over to my post to read more details of how to make the piece… it’s just 5cm in diameter in case you were wondering…

Mother’s Day Garden Card (for Creative Expressions)

Posted on 19th February 2014 by perfectly4med

While I’m working on next week’s 3D piece, I thought I’d just do a quick Mother’s Day card using the Floral Background stamp from Creative Expressions again. I sort of hoped it would remind the viewer of a woodland walk, so used their fabulous Bark embossing folder as well. Bit of grungy rust-effect as well and the look was complete 🙂

You can download a worksheet here, or read on for making instructions…

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Wedding Cards (for Creative Expressions)

Posted on 5th February 2014 by perfectly4med

Clean and simple this week – a couple of quick makes showing off Creative Expressions’ featured background stamps for this month’s design team makes. The A6 size makes them ideal for card making, and I’ve combined them with pearlised embossing powder, spray and ribbon for a classy (and classic) white-on-white finish. Continue reading →

Stencilled – Day One

Posted on 26th January 2014 by perfectly4med

I’m doing another Online Card Class – this time reviewing the different ways of using stencils. None of it is rocket science for me so far, but it’s always good to see what others are doing and to share creative tips, tricks and which mediums work with which. These four cards are my take on Day One tutorials – using a stencil as a patterned background, spritzing though, using for emboss resist techniques and layering with colour. I think all the stencils above are from The Crafters Workshop and are the 6×6″ variety. The cards are 12x12cm. The black text has been cut out as a bespoke design on the Silhouette Cameo.

Bijou Hexagonal Card (for Creative Expressions)

Posted on 22nd January 2014 by perfectly4med

Back to the bags this week – specifically the Creative Expressions Bijou Bag Singles pack, containing the bag and the sentiment stamps. I decided to quilt the bag just to give a bit of a different appearance and texture. The principle is simple enough to make the card, though it’s not a quick make due to all the fussy cutting! This would also work well to frame some home decor pieces too.

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Rose Blossom Purse Card (for Creative Expressions)

Posted on 1st January 2014 by perfectly4med

Welcome to another year on my blog, and we kick off with a card featuring the latest Creative Expressions Singles stamp – Rose Blossom Purse. The Singles range are rubber stamps pre-mounted on cling foam and cut out ready for slapping onto acrylic plates for stamping. I’ve done a simple card, concentrating on using lots of different colouring techniques for my tutorial…

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Indian-style Home Decor (for Creative Expressions)

Posted on 18th December 2013 by perfectly4med

This home decor piece uses the Mosaic and Floral Corner Singles stamps from Creative Expressions ‘Henna’ stamp range. By using watercolour paper I hope to have given the impression of the texture of rich Indian fabric, and using offset printing as well as careful cutting given dimension and interest to the piece. A frame from Ikea sets off the project a treat and allows it to stand freely or be wall mounted.