Inkyfingeredcat

Nearly finished with all the pages I made back at the beginning of May when I played with the Hey Little Magpie Facebook group and completed a few challenges … this one was to use multiple photos on my layout.

I used four in total and kept the whole page fairly simple with some dies cuts and card Candi as the main embellishments.

It was good too that I was able to get that cute umbrella paper used. I know there won’t be many opportunities to use that sort of paper so was good to get some used and for a relevant reason!

And just like the others I recorded the process and have now uploaded it onto YouTube.

I’ve not made any other pages since the beginning of the month but have a week off work coming up so hope to fit at least one crafting day in to get some more pages done plus it’s 30 days of sketches in June starting soon so maybe I can play along with some of that too!

Happy crafting!

Catherine

Another using up those inky backgrounds Festive Friday project. This time I really wanted to use the Claritystamps word chain stamps as I love the font on these but ended up combining with a few other stamps too to create the embossed stamping over the top of the inky background.

I chose white embossing and love this as it brightens the background. I also added a posca paint doodled border to frame the panel as it almost covered the whole card base.

I did end up trimming a bit and mounting on white but think you can see the little bit of Mossy Meadow poking out the edge.

Once I had finished up the background I went delving through the stash to decide on a focal point. And then remembered the first spellbinders stitched die I got … this fabulous tree.

I die cut it from green, stitched in green and then die cut the sentiment from a different green to finish off!

Well I say finish off except I felt it needed bling so some holographic snowflakes added around the focal image and then inside two strips of the inky paper added with some white to make sure inside was done too!

Probably should have also stamped the word chain sentiment too … maybe I will go back and do that now I have thought about it!

Another background used and another festive Friday card done! Pleased with this green inky card!

Happy crafting!

Catherine

Hello!

Todays challenge at Creative Knockouts is an anything goes but when I was making it I thought it was Fun Folds! So made an easel card!

I got given the image from Beccy’s Place of the gorgeous flowers and I coloured them using a waterbrush and distress oxides.

The left over oxide ink on the desk I smooshed onto the spare cardstock that then became the background panel.

Once the background was dry I embossed it with ink on the embossing folder to create the beautiful wood themed background.

I cut the image out and then stuck it to the background.

I decided to keep the embellishment to a minimum with a bow from pink silk thread.

I created the easel card base and then created the sentiment panel.

I stamped the sentiment and then layered up two pieces of white cardstock and then the green so it gives something for the front panel to stick up on.

Love that flower image and the wooden pastel background!

Happy crafting!

Catherine

Hello – another of the layouts from the weekend of challenges at the Hey Little Magpie Facebook group for (inter)national scrapbooking day – this time the challenge was to use hexagon shapes. Once again video up showing the process over on my YouTube channel.

I teamed this with the #30dscbl14 sketch 25 from Kirsten Hughes too …

I chose some old dsp which has hexagons as I had no other hexagon shaped stash. Just love this paper so although it was a challenge to cut into paper I have been hoarding for years!

I loved putting this together – but it did go through a few different ideas as I put it together – want to see? Check out my YouTube video of the process.

I loved scratching the coordinations background with sandpaper when I remembered that was an option!

I also love all the sewing I did on the layouts to add some additional hexagon shapes and the little cameras I cut from the Lollipop box club kit stash.

So another fab page and pleased I could join in with the challenge with my one piece of hexagon stash!

Happy crafting!

Catherine

Still catching up with the sharing of everything I made during the (inter)national scrapbooking day celebrations at Hey Little Magpie Facebook group.

For challenge number four it was Helen’s challenge to pick 5 from the list she gave …

I went with 3 patterned papers, twine, stamping, stencilling, banner and just for good measure a sixth option of distrssed edge!

I chose to scrap some pics of the day we loved my parents to their new home!

I added stencilling to the base panel of blue, lots of distressed edges, some cute house themed papers and lots of Lollipop Box club bits and pieces for the title and embellishments.

I added the die cut hearts (I used these a lot when doing these challenges) to finish off!

Loved making this – and even though I started worried that because I’d chosen two not three photos I might not do them all – but then managed to do six of them!

Once again I captured the process on video so please do check out my YouTube channel for this and my other makes.

Happy crafting!

Catherine

Some years ago I went to a workshop run by Marlene and had a fab time – of course I also bought some stash. Roll forward many years and art journalling no longer floats my boat and the images and papers aren’t ideal for the usual cardmaking I do… but I’ve held onto them just in case. Well no more! I’ve been in a ruthless get rid mood the past few months but inspired by the little notecards I’ve been making with scraps I decided to do the same with this stash and create little notes for enclosing in with any crafty stash I sell! My thought being that crafty peeps will enjoy the bit of fun!

90 mins later I had made these nine notecards. Lots of glueing and doodling and a few additional sentiments added where I couldn’t find the right sentiment in the Art by Marlene die cuts.

Just love how colourful and fun they are … and of course how simple to make.

Most had around three pieces of the collage paper glued down and then doodled outlines and then went to town with die cuts … most of which I fussy cut after taking them out of the sheet to give them a smaller white frame.

I had a few of those “I see no reason…” sentiments already stamped and embossed so added those and also a few Hello sentiments stamped and die cut … all in all simple!

Happy crafting!

Catherine

Another gloriously sunny day here today and so we are planning bbq burgers this afternoon – until then a few chores and little sits outside the sun!

Third challenge for the Hey Little Magpie celebration of (inter)national scrapbooking day and this time challenged to use my border punches… hmmmm… I only have one border punch – but I made it work!

I was inspired for this page by two layouts that Sarah Davies had shared …

The first one with the rainbow and black and the second one with using scraps … so my page I chose black and white papers with pops of colour … but I think you can see how Sarah’s pages were the jumping off point!

As with the others I did video the process so please check it out on YouTube.

I created strips from the papers and punched them along one edge and then tore the sides. I then grabbed scraps for each colour for the rainbow effect.

I then used a piercing tool to create the three hearts and stitched them with black thread. This was fun and quite relaxing to do on the sofa as a break from sitting at the desk.

I then added lots of die cut hearts across the page which I doodled onto.

I decided not to add journalling as such – I just added the date, venue and the title and then lots of little word stickers from old Lollipop Box Club kits.

Was delighted with the final page and this was the third in the one day … so here is the collection of the three …

Happy crafting!

Catherine

Sun is out for the day and I am off to get my hair done (last weeks appointment got postponed) so updating my blog for the day whilst drinking my coffee! Today I am sharing challenge two for our Hey Little Magpie group over (inter)national scrapbooking day from a couple of weeks ago where the tile was was to use dies to create embellishment clusters.

I chose pictures from my daughter’s 17th birthday in 2023 and used the really bright and bold papers for the background with lots of die cuts adding to the page.

I fussy cut elements of the paper out too and used dies from a variety of sets to create the clusters of embellishments.

I loved gathering lots of different alphas for the title too (necessity because I couldn’t use any set to spell the complete word!) and loved how easily this came together.

Although it is barely visible I also added sewing on the layout – can you spot it?

Fun to put together and also even though that flowery paper is quite ridiculous in its boldness I love it!

Don’t forget to pop to my YouTube if you want to see how this came together!

Happy crafting!

Catherine

Today’s festive Friday project had lots of layers of media and pattern and I love it!

It started as a gelli print background and I wish I had a picture to show you the before and after but I don’t! So first off some painty patches and a bit of stencilling onto the gelli print. Then I ran it through a snowflake embossing folder upside down to create the debossed snowflakes. Then I inked over that with a dark teal ink. This left the snowflakes lighter and still white in the places where there wasn’t any paint.

Next the text embossing folder and once that was the texture I added ink over the top of that in dark grey to enhance the writing. Next splatters of white gesso!

Just love all the texture and pattern this created.

So then to choose a focal point. Well I started with the die cut holly leaves. These have been cut from scraps of paper at some point and I have a little pouch of them so decided it was time to use them! Which made me decide a wreath would be a good idea.

I chose the spellbinders one and stacked it a couple of layers to give it some strength. Then I rummaged in the Christmas stamps box and decided these flower stamps would work which are on an old magazine set.

I stamped them and then decided to choose my Stampin Write markers and a blender pen to colour for a change of medium.

I cut them out and then made up my wreath. I used foam squares to give it some dimension and then added the sentiment from Arrange a Wreath.

I mat the layer onto white before adding to a green card base.

Inside I kept it simple with some more holly leaves and one more flower.

Really pleased with this card – truly love it when mixed media works well and also no idea what prompted me to do the two embossing folder trick but it worked so well!

Happy crafting!

Catherine

A few weeks ago it was (inter) national scrapbooking day and for the weekend Hey Little Magpie ran some challenges … so I joined in and on day one I made three pages … which I videoed for each of them and will spread out over the next few days of blog posts and YouTube uploads!

The first challenge was set by Sheena to use a large photo (larger than 6×4) so I found this 5×7 photo of me from 1996 to scrap.

I shows me having just got off the phone on A Level results day confirming that I had secured my place at Royal Holloway University of London to study Drama and Theatre Studies and the title Phew! Says it all!

I followed a sketch from #30dscbl14 day 17 designed by Lisa Marie.

Papers from the stash (I think Maggie Holmes for some) and lots of Lollipop Box Club kit stickers too.

I had scraped gesso onto the background to give some frame to the orange piece and add texture.

Love the pop of the blue against the oranges and yellows … and it was great to get such an old picture scrapped.

Check out my video on YouTube for how this came together.

Happy crafting!

Catherine