My first Christmas cards!

Bird in Winter Hat (by Stampendous).  Isn't he lovely!  I have paper pieced his spotty hat, funflocked his woolly hat and gittered his snowy hat!  All in stock at JAPONICA - Exmouth.

"What a Wonderful World!" Tra la...

Shopping List

Art-Quest Pearl Ex Pallette- Stargazer

1" Monstera Leaf punch

Safari Silhouette Peel Off -Black (Giraffe)

Stampendous CRY 025 "Life is Art..."  cling rubber stamp

Versafine - Onyx Black

Brilliance - Rocket Red Gold

All available from:-

www.woodware.co.uk

Your local stockist is:-

Japonica

22 The Parade

Exmouth

EX8 1RW

01395 271739

www.japonicadevon.blogspot.com

"What a Wonderful World.."  is my title this week as I love all things Flora and Fauna...and I love singing with my "La La Choir!"

First of all, I had fun painting an A4 of white card using the Pearl Ex pallette - a rainbow of bright colours. Set aside to dry.
Attach Peel-Off images as you wish.
Print message using black Versafine inkpad and layer onto black card.  (I have split it into 2 parts as I wanted it in 2 different places on card front and on inside flap).

Attach your Monstera leaves to create interest.


Detail inside cream card insert paper.



Close-up of Rainbow effect painting.



Punch Monstera leaves in black paper, attach
 a stem, and arrange in 3's to add interest to card.



MAGIC STAMP?

MAGIC STAMP FOAM has many uses - when heated it can be imprinted with anything with a texture -ie, leaves, string, buttons, twigs, chain, lace, Hessian etc...

Hydrangea leaves have good vein
detail for impressing onto Magic stamp foam.

1. IMPRESS IT!  Heat with a Heat -tool for a few seconds and press onto your texture - 2 arranged Hydrangea leaves, for a few seconds.  With this imprint, just ink up (I have use Kaleidacolour Carribean Sea) and print.   I have added Crystal glitter with a glue pen to detail veins in leaf.  
IF YOU ARE NOT PLEASED with the impression - clean, heat up again and impress again - MAGIC!



 

The Rectangle of Magic foam as a shadow stamp!

2.  SHADOW SHAPE! Make a rectangle shape the same size as your favourite greeting stamp and use with a pastel inkpad to create a "shadow" for the greeting.  I have printed the HAPPY BIRTHDAY greeting into the shape using a bold colour ink on top of the pale green "shadow".  ( I used Brilliance -Thyme).


Twigs made this "Savannah" style background using Brilliance Beige, Rust &
Coffee Bean inkpads to print before adding the black Peel-Off.

Buttons make a good background for many designs!  I used
Kaleidacolour Berry Blaze - a lovely bright range of colours.

3. CUT A SHAPE!   Cut out a Heart shape - or a "brick", oval,

I cut out a Heart shape in Magic foam and impressed with Rosemary
from the garden!  Friendship hearts!

Cute Summer concertina cards!

 "Well - I made 2 cards this morning in my FREE demo - thats 1 more than last week -but there was alot of work invoved and I had so many people asking me questions!  I loved making these summery cards using the NEW "Wild Rose Studio" stamps showing Emily and Elsie her cat - I printed he images onto linen embossed card and coloured-in using coloured pencis - it gives a really nice finish and its easy to acheive too!"

Front of concertina card - tied with organza ribbon.

  Shopping list -all in stock at Japonica

Emily and Elsie cat -£6.49

Blackberry Lane papers £4.99

Dies for circles, scallop circle and flourishes in pink card.

"Grass" punch - pale green card.

Coloured pencils for colouring-in ( I use Sakura -Bruynzeel -they blend well and are really good shades)

Blossom embossing folder (for top corner of card front.

Awesome greeting - £2.20

White flowers -tinted with a little colour from an inkpad to match. 

 Liquid pearl-Hydrangea to centres





Inside box card



Concertina box card standing

And heres the other one...I made a plaque for the greeting inside and covered it with "Glossy Accents" so it looks like enamel.

Front of card

Inside of card

Standing card

AND NEXT week - what can you do with Magic Foam??

My FREE Punch craft Demo - SUMMER Gerberas

Gerberas are such a favourite flower - so many exravagant colours make them such a Happy flower in my opinion!

My card consists of a layer of paper in pastel colours and I have made  my 3 Gerberas to match!  I have printed "With Love" onto shrink plastic to make a neat tag too.  Stems are cut from a soft green thin card and anchored after placing flowers - they are then cut to size and glued in 1 more place only so they are not glued flat.

Close up of Gerbera showing centre and shading.

Shopping list :-

PUNCHES -Lg Lilium Feathers (Leone Em punch), 1" Daisy, 3/4" sunflower. 

( Or for small lilium punch -scale down all other punches to the 1 size smaller)

and other products...
BREMEN 12 x 12" paper

1 DL white folded card 

Liquid Pearls - Majestic purple & Hydrangea

Coloured papers to punch.

Co-ordinating inkpads for shading papers.

(Versamagic chalk inkpads are lovely shades for flowers-I usually choose a darker shade than the paper)

DIRECT-TO-PAPER Technique-a la Jan

 

Daffodil Girl - a beautiful stamp (Stampendous) - coloured pencil added over Versamagic fluid chalk inkpads (d-t-p)



I like to  use Versamagic chalk inkpads onto white linen card for this technique. 

Simply dab, swipe, swirl and sudge an inkpad over the card - Direct-to-paper!  It will look a bit messy - just look at my sample piece! 

Then print your image ontop ( I used Versafine Onyx black for this) and allow to dry.

Now add coloured pencils ( I use Sakura Bruynzeel pencils -they are very soft and blendable)over the inks to give detail to the image.  

 

Magnolia stamp (Stampendous) -using Versamagic chalk inks and
then coloured pencil for the detail (same method as above)




Bouquet stamp set (Stampendous) with BRILLIANCE inks direct-to-paper, Onyx black
printed image, with coloured pencils to pick out detail.

*All stamps/products shown are in stock at Japonica.



PRINTING on FABRIC for card-making

Grasses stamp, printed onto Calico fabric with Brilliance inkpads - Thyme green & Coffee Bean.

 I have frayed the edge of the Calico and just attached with double-sided tape to a folded craft card.  Natural hemp has been tied to the card spine and 3 buttons have been made from Cream shrink plastic and edged with Brilliance inks to match the colour scheme.  NEW liquid pearl colours of Copper and Avocado add a little embellishment too.  
And on Silk.....


On Silk, wrapped around a square of board for a neat finish.

The same grasses, same ink -but different colourway! Thyme & Sky blue Brilliance inkpads.



Embossing on Silk!

The window in this 6 x 6" ivory card (cut to size by me!) allows you to see throught the silk-and apreciate how delicate it is.   The inside has been tidied by adding another window card (same size) over the raw edges of the silk piece.
I have printed with Versafine (Onyx Black) & then poured Crystal embossing powder over it.  Tap away excess powder & HEAT GENTLY & quickly!   Silk will burn if you are not careful -so keep an eye on it & move heat away as quickly as you can.  I have used Brilliance inkpads(Lavender & Thyme) to colour, by dabbing the inkpad onto an acryic block and picking up colour with a paintbrush and water.  The embossed outline acts as a gutter to contain the ink on the silk fabric.  I used the same stamp -Phlox (£6 with a birthday greeting at Japonica) to create a background pattern on the ivory card.

 I have used the same method of embossing on the muslin fabric - (Top tip - Muslin is not so delicate as silk). I have echoed the stitching around the purple layer card edge and added Hydrangea Liquid pearls to dots and corners.

On naural muslin fabric

Close up on the Muslin embossed image (Pram stamp -£4.05 at Japonica)