It's a Creative World

Tag Cards

If you're anything like me, you've probably got loads of die cut sheets of tags and elements lying around that you got with various scrapbooking kits.  The majority of mine are Basic Grey. I challenged myself to try and use some of them up, so here are three really simple cards I've made using tags from Basic Grey Lily Kate collection.

 

The first one here is very straight forward.  Some plain pink cardstock has been embossed using the Cuttlebug Swiss Dots embossing folder to add interest to the card.  The tag has been added with ribbon and stickers for the sentiment. 

 

On this card I have used the tag as the centrepiece.  Rub ons were used to make the sentiment, with a couple of large silk flowers forming texture on the background.  The scallop edging was done using the Stampin' Up! Scallop Edge Punch, and the whole thing decorated with Paper Frills and a couple of Prima flowers.

 

I love the combination of the lime, pink and green on this card.  Again, the left hand edge was scalloped using the Scallop Edge Punch and buttons used to cover the join of the two patterned papers used.  The tag was tied with matching ribbons and a large co-ordinating hat pin also added.  I tucked the sharp end of the pin behind the buttons to protect the recipient from being injured!  If you haven't got anywhere to tuck the sharp end, I always add a blob of glue to the end to act as a "stopper" and to blunt the end a little.

I hope these ideas give you a little inspiration about what you can do with any tags you have lying around.  Have a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year and I'll be back again soon!

Lots of love, Joanne xx

The last page of our A to Z Journal....

Can you believe we have actually finished this project? It just seems like yesterday that we launched the A to Z Art Journal project and a whole year has passed. We hope you have enjoyed it as much as we have.

And what have we learnt from this year long adventure?

Caz says - "I will NEVER do double pages again"

Lemon says - " I have learnt a lot about my daughter, she contributed a lot to the journal and changed quite a few things."

Di says - "I will not bind the journal up front - it is so much easier to work with a single page rather than a book! And its easier to photograph or scan"

Here are our pages:

Lemon book of growing up

After browsing all two pages of the dictionary this seemed the most appropiate for my daughter....I hope she never looses her ZING

Di Book of my life

The dictionary tells me that zany means - "Comical because of incongruity or strangeness; biZarre." Well I guess that's me! biZarre so my life must be Zany... And my DD caZ is Zany too!

A message from Di:

As we arrive at the end of the alphabet, I must confess that I have enjoyed the journey so much that I commit to making an Art Journal for my dear sister Linda. Maybe I can share bits and pieces of this new journey next year. X

Caz

For some reason or another I can't seem to upload my page. I will try again tomorrow (saturday). This is what happens when you leave everything till the last minute!!

And finally Karen Leahy (AKA Scrapdolly) has sent her Z page already!

Finally, Z is NOT an easy letter so here are just a few suggestions:

• Zealous
• Zeal
• Zoo
• Zip
• Zany
• ZZZ's
• Zesty
• Zippy
• Zutter

And if you want to see loads of strange words starting with the letter Z - try here

http://www.crosswordsolver.org/definition/Z

Thank you for joining us on this wonderful journey.  To mark the end of this project the fabulous Kate Hadfield has created some rather festive digi goodies for you to download absolutely FREE.

     

Simply click on this linkie dink and help yourself.  Not only can you snaffle the doodles but there is a discount voucher for you to use in her shoppie shop . 

The cReative giRls XXX

Our Jakey had some problems with the link on Mozilla.  If you can't get it to download drop us a line at acreativeworld@hotmail.co.uk and I'll whizz it over to you this evening - Maria x
 

Just a simple hanging thing....

Hello from Di 

Just look what my sister found for me for my crafty studio!

 

 

 

 

It is a long tube thing and attaches to the wall with sticky stuff and or nails, and you just push your page in at it hangs. The tube is filled with ordinary marbles and thats what holds the bits and pieces. Great inspiration while you are working.

 

It is just so neat and will hold 3 12X12  layouts or just loads of bits and pieces. Fab for any craft room!

 

 

 

 

So where can you find it? Problem is I only know how to buy it in South Africa!!!! But any large store that sells office supplies should have something like this.

 

Thanks for visiting IACW and love from Di XXX

 

PS from Caz. I have searched the internet and can't find anywhere selling these from a UK site. But did find them in the US. If anyone finds them in the UK, please let us know!

 

ETA:  HUGE THANKS TO BREN FOR SENDING US SOME LINKS TO THESE IN THE UK, YOU'RE A LEGEND! ORDER RACKS....AND ORDER GRABBERS (ooh I love the stainless steel spinny one!)

It's Theme day and the theme is INVITATIONS!

Hi from the cReative giRls who today have been challenged with the word INVITATIONS!

We all are invited to special occasions - baby shower, kitchen tea, birthday, wedding, anniversary, house warming - whatever! Do you ever have to make INVITATIONS???

So Just a reminder: We choose a word and several members of the team will INTERPRET that word, create, and share their creations!

Lets see how the creative girls got on with this challenge!

Hi from MadDi, - the Queen of Easy Peasy, who at the last moment realised I had to make some invitations for my niece's farewell party. I started with Microsoft Powerpoint!

 

Using Word art you can do marvellous things but I kept mine real simple.

I printed the invitations as 'handouts' 6 to the page (very economical), on card board coloured cardstock.

Then I cut out the invitations, inked the edges then attached them to fluted red cardstock (corrugated paper) punched a hole and attached some twine. Finally I attached the Welsh flag. SIMPLE!!!

I was amazed that this was about a 2 hour project to make 30 invitations!

Hi from Caz
When I got married last year, I wanted to make my own invitations. And luckily, when I was still in the planning stages, I had a Scrapping Weekend away with some awesome, talented ladies who lent me their mojo and helped with the design.

I found the most gorgeous vellum in a bargain bucket, and snapped up as many sheets as I could. I cut a template out of some stiff card and set about cutting all the pockets. Each sheet made 2 pockets.

The invitations were created in WORD, using a table and it took a little while to get the spacing right so I went through a few sheets of paper. But I did use both sides and even occasionally more than twice!

Each invite was printed on a sheet of A4 and had to be cut out, scored and folded. The edges were then inked, and finally they were popped into the pockets.

I also made a little info sheet, with hotel and train details on, and the order of service sheets for the day.

It was great fun but also hard work!

Thanks for visiting us and love from the cReative giRls X

Customised bags

Hi from Jo!

I saw some gorgeous decorated cotton shopping bags on a friend's blog and decided to have a go myself using items I had left over from my cross-stitching and sewing days (before papercrafting took over my life!)

I started with some cheap cotton bags like this:

 

For my first bag I used some stamps and Stazon ink to stamp flower designs on the bag then attached buttons as the flower heads. I then sewed a length of ribbon along three-quarters of the bottom of the bag. Here's a photo of the detail:

 

For the next bag I used a piece of digital scrapbooking art as inspiration and drew the design on the bag with pencil before using stranded cotton to backstitch the design. I then used sequins and beads to highlight bits of the design:

 

And here's a photo of the finished item:

 

I've already given one of these as a gift and the one above is earmarked for another with another 3 in the pipeline! I'll be using more of my stranded cotton, buttons, ribbons, beads and sequins and, if I can dig my sewing machine out, some of the fabric scraps I've been hoarding.

Maybe it's something you may like to do yourself?

 

Making a Citronella oil lamp....

And its Di again from Johannesburg South Africa. At this time of year its pretty hot down here, so most of our time is spent relaxing in the garden or on the covered verandah LOL.

However as evening approaches the mosquitoes sometimes come out so we use citronella oil to keep them away from us. 

Citronella oil is one of the essential oils obtained from the leaves and stems of different species of Cymbopogon. which is a genus of about 55 species of grasses.It is a tall perennial grass. Common names include lemon grass, lemongrass, barbed wire grass, silky heads, citronella grass, fever grass or Hierba Luisa. This is what it looks like:

Citronella oil is a renowned plant-based insect repellant,

We have a few of these little oil lamps containing citronella oil and they certainly keep the mosquitoes and midges away.

   

I wanted to see if I could make one!

I started with a scribbled sketch but soon realised that I did not really want to hang it :.

::

 

You wil need a jar, wick or a strip of cotton and some citronella oil.

I made a hole in the lid (using a nail and a hammer), cut a piece of wick and pushed it through the hole.

Finally I poured some citronella into the jar, screwed on the lid and Voila Viola we are done with the prototype! Before lighting the lamp you have to wait a while until the wick soaks up the oil all the way to the top.

Now its time to have some fun!

The design and decoration possibilities are endless!

LOL after I made my little lamp I searched the WWW and here are some fun sites with instructions on making oil lamps!

http://www.wikihow.com/Make-an-Oil-Lamp

http://www.instructables.com/id/Glass-Bottle-Oil-Lamp/

http://www.neworleansmistic.com/spells/primer/magicoillampbasics.htm

http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/548915/how_to_make_an_oil_lamp.html?cat=24

http://www.ehow.com/how_2077601_make-oil-lamp.html

Many of you are in the middle of winter so I guess you have no need of my little ol lamps, but just perhaps you could use them as an alternative to candles?

Thanks for visiting IACW and love from MadDi

Maria....be our guest

We are delighted to bring you another awesome guest today. Maria is another of my favoutrite scrappers, and when I saw this layout, it took my breath away! Over to you Maria,

Ok so a little bit about me! I’m 41 and live in Northumberland. I’ve always crafted in some shape or form since I was a child! I have a passion for art and design and scrapbooking fulfils my need to create stuff! I began cardmaking about 6 years ago and have been a regular contributor to Quick & Crafty! magazine for a couple of years. I discovered scrapbooking when teaching at a local craft shop almost 3 years ago and was instantly hooked!  I regularly teach at crops and retreats which I love, and am very fortunate to make show samples for Stampbox, who are a UK distributor of some very yummy products!

I’m honoured to guest design on this brilliant blog and I hope you like the sketch class that I have designed for you.

 

When my mojo disappears (which is often at the moment!) I always find that this simple sketch kick starts it back in action!

 

There is a HUGE selection of patterned papers out there at the moment that are just perfect for cutting out and layering onto layouts. I've used Sassafras Happy Place and are a current favourite of myself! Have a dig through your stash and find some papers that you can carve up and a contrasting sheet of plainer paper to pop your photo onto. You will also need some plain cardstock, letters for your title, ribbon and any other embellies that will co-ordinate!

 

 

 

1.      Adhere a 7 inch square of the plainer paper towards the bottom left hand corner of your cardstock as shown in the sketch. Now attach your photo (mine is 6x4inches) at an angle.

2.      I have added a 10inch strip of ribbon along the bottom of the paper and stapled it at each end.

3.      Add you title so that it overlaps your photograph.

4.      Now for the fun bit! Cut out a pile of shapes from your patterned paper and start arranging them on your layout. I never stick anything down until I’m happy with the placement! Use 3D foam pads or silicone glue to create layers on your layout.

5.      Finish the layout by adding some extra embellishments, doodling and your journalling. I’ve stamped out some little swirls with a Brilliance white ink pad and added some Prima crystal swirls. My large cloud at the top of the layout was made with some Riff Raff chipboard which was painted white and inked with light blue chalk ink.

 

I can’t wait to see your interpretations of the sketch!

Wow, isn't that an awesome layout, thanks Maria. We'd love to see what you do with the sketch, so be sure to leave a link to your work in our comments.

Thanks for visiting!
Caz
xx

Masculine card

Hi from Caz!!

As I decided to start making all my cards, I had to face one of my biggest card making hurdles yet. A card for a man! *YIKES*

I use flowers on just about every card I make. So having to sit and make a card without a flower was going to be a HUGE challenge.

Thankfully I received the 'Static Collection' by Crate Paper in a ScrapRoom kit. It's boyish and has a great die cut of a bike, perfect for my DH!

 

A little layering, inking and some foam pads, to add dimension, and I had a fab card to give to my DH on his birthday.
The key to 'man cards' is to find embellishments that match the guy's hobby or interest, and use it on the card. Now i'm not sure how many years of motor bike cards i'm going to get away with, but at least I faced the challenge and made the card.

Thanks for visiting and if you have any man card ideas please share!
Caz
xx

Christmas Card Fun!

I always quake at the thought of making Christmas cards. Time is short and I'm a great one for faffing with things! Then I remembered my Tilda stamps and dug out my coloured pencils. I found a really fast way to produce a whole series of images that could be popped onto a very simple embossed 'snowy' background. Colouring in the images was very relaxing and my daughter was soon joining me in a colouring fiesta!

So you need:-

You Fave Stamps.

Colouring pencils. 

Versafine or other permanent black ink pad.

Paintbrush and water or a water brush.

Cardstock.

Blue Patterned paper for the background.

Cuttlebug embossing folder.

Take your favourite stamp and stamp onto white cardstock (mine was a bulk pack from Hobbycraft) and use a permanent inkpad such as Versafine.

Using water colour pencils draw a line of colour close to the stamped line, you don't have to colour in the whole image. 

Take a moist paint brush or a water brush and draw it along your coloured pencil lines.

 

and 'pull' the colour into the centre of the stamped image. 

This will produce a lovely graduated effect giving your image depth AND it's REALLY quick and easy to do!

Once dry cut the stamped images out and leave to one side.

Measure a piece of blue patterned paper ( you want paper that has a white core) cut the paper so it is 1/4" smaller all round than your card blank.

Place this paper into your Cuttlebug embossing folder and emboss.

Take a sanding block and sand over the paper in small circular motions so that the white core of the paper is exposed through the blue. Stick onto the front of your card.

Tear some white cardstock to make a snowy ground and stick to the bottom of the card.

Now stick your coloured, stamped images onto the card. Add some embellishments of glitter (of course!!) and you're done!

Have a Happy Christmas- Katie!

Scrapping old photos

There loads of different opinions when it comes to scrapping old photo. Do you scrap the original or a copy and keep the original in a box. Do you scan and touch up a photo before printing it to scrap. Do you avoid the old photos like the plague.

For me it's simple. I love to scrap old photos! I love to scrap originals but sometimes mum gets the original and I get a copy, hell i'm happy with a copy too! DO NOT touch up, unless there is a huge mark or it needs a little sharpening, but even then, these things add to the charm of the photograph.

I love these photos taken in a park, playing cricket. In the photos are my Gram and Grumps, and my uncle. I have no idea what park or what year these photos were taken, but I think they are fab. And there are 5!

 

I've only stuck them down in the middle of each photo so I can take them off if I need to. But for me they are safe. Much safer than in a big box getting crumpled under the strain of a hundred more photos!

This next layout hasn't scanned well, because of the lumpy embellishments. But it's another photo I love. Check out the gingham bikini my mum is wearing! It's really a rubbish photo as far as all the laws of photography go, but to me it means SO much. It's also very orange but again it's safe in an album!

 

Following are three more examples of original photos scrapped because they mean something to me and i'd rather have them in an album, safe, than in a box never looked at. Yes, I do look at my albums, often!

 

 

 

It really doesn't matter if you don't know all the details about the photo, the date or the occasion. Often photos just bring back a random memory, as the above layout does for me.

Don't leave all those lovely old pics in a box, dig them out and scrap them.

Thanks for visiting!!
Caz
xx