Oh Johnny

Made this card for my dil who is crazy about Johnny Depp (well who wouldn't be?).  As you can see I used pre-printed images in a collage for the main part of the card, one of my MS punches for the side decoration and a paper tissue rose.  The rose is like the one I made at the ArtsyCrafty weekend but this one has a shrink plastic clock as the centre but it does have two metal leaves on it.

It is actually on a pale blue shaded card but it does not show up in the photograph.  Couldn't scan it as I would have flattened the rose.

The reason it is a Thank You card is that they are treating us to a roast lamb lunch on Sunday and, although I expect Andy is making it, I thought I would make Sam a card.  Hope she likes it as she is not that into my handmade cards.  Boo Hoo!

I am off to Paddy's now as I have to start my sample for her crafting weekend when I am doing some claywork and as I have to make 40 beads to swap for a Polyclay weekend I am attending in June I doubt I will have much time for cardmaking.  Ah well, out comes the pasta machine.

ps I have a Thank You of my own to make - to Dot.  Thank you for the lovely card you sent to me.  If you want to see it you will have to visit her blog (23 May) - it is the top blue card with the shaving foam technique background and the birds on it.

Japanese Tea House (Origami Tag Book)

As promised here are the instructions for the Japanese Tea House (and especially for Gayle).

This was first taught to me by Lenna Young Andrews she in turn having been taught by Chris Peden.  I have Lenna's original class notes but she asked that I do not repeat them per se so these are my own notes.  I would ask that if you teach this you also make up your own notes and acknowledge the source.  (See other pictures 3rd April blog)

Now to begin:

Cover - 2 pieces mountboard 3 1/4" square and 2 pieces paper to cover (4 1/4" square).
Stick the board pieces in the centre of the paper, cut the corners and fold over sticking well down.  Set to one side.

Tags - make 14 small tags, stamping on both sides - attach approx 18" yarn by doubling thread and looping through to each one.  (You can have more tags but I think this is a nice number to work with.)  Set to one side.

Book - 7 pieces of thin cardstock 5 3/4" square
Stamp an overall design on one side only - this will be the roof.  (You could use fairly substantial scrapbook paper and use the design on it for your roof.)

Do an Origami Flower Fold on each one, open out and stamp on the triangular pieces for the inside.
(Origami Flower Fold:  Fold square in half with roof side to the table, open out and fold again in half, open out and fold corner to corner ONCE  with the roof side inside.  See pictures below)

Fold in half

turn and fold again

 

Flip cardstock over and fold diagonally

Stamp on the two flat sides (inside) and the two triangular pieces which you can see I am holding.

Like this

The photograph below shows the placement of the stamps when opened out.

Poke a hole through the top where all folds meet and put yarn/tags through - two per hole.  Put one tag either side of the triangular piece.

Attach all seven pieces together on the flat side.

Attach covers to the back and front remembering to add ribbon for closure and hanging loop before sticking down.

NB there are different ways you can finish this:

Gently pull each tag out of the pocket page so it hangs just below the pages then make an overhand knot with your yarn right above the top of the pages.
OR
Attach a bead to the top end of each double set of fibres.

I hope you can follow these instructions - not easy to do without physically showing you and I chickened out of doing a video because I don't know how to upload one.

Artsy Crafty Weekend (Part 3)

The final chapter.  This is my Sampler for which I must have requested "lime green" as my colour:

The rose is made from metal, the square next to it with the bird is metal also, as is the dragonfly and the top right and bottom centre squares are also metal.  

The other squares are a mix of stamped canvas and Terra (Viva) paints the latter showing three different techniques with the Terra paint.

Here are some of the examples we saw on display:

This is one done by one of the other participants - I just love this colour combo

Not sure now whether these were samples or whether they were done by participants but just love these colours.

Aren't they beautiful?

As well as a great weekend of lovely projects thought up by Lin and Leandra there were also some new friendships made and I just have to include the girls from Spain on my blog.  Only one could speak English so we had a ball trying to make one another understand what we were saying.  All of this was done with lots of laughter and giggles.

It was good to meet up with one or two people from the last weekend I attended in Warrington and to meet a friend, Gaynor, from way way back in my stamping days.  I also met, for the very first time, Wendy from one of my Yahoo groups and Nathalie from a forum I am on, so that was extra nice.  

but to finish off I have to show you 

Freema chilling out

not exactly behind the bike shed

but in the car park of the hotel

Artsy Crafty Weekend (Part 2)

Well, as I said yesterday, here is the third project we did on the weekend.

This is a little bird house with love birds sitting in the centre.  This was coloured with Kaiser paints and then a piece of metal cut with a big die was embossed and I added some paint to it to vary the colour.  The roof piece was also embossed metal.  The heart and the little birds are carstock.

Again there were samples in different colours - wish I had done that blue - or the lime green as I just loved Carol's finished piece.

Here's a picture of Kay working diligently

Freema on the prowl

and my dear friend Anne sucking her lollipop

Tomorrow I will show you the main project which was a sampler.  That's all for now folks!

Artsy Crafty Weekend (Part 1)

Went on another FAB weekend with Lin and Leandra - this time all the way to Newport Pagnall.

Again three projects which I will unveil over the next three days.  This one was not featuring as much metalwork as the last one and this time we got to play with the fabulous Viva Paints.

When we went in at 8.30 am we had to sit anywhere.  Because we were at the back of the queue (talking Anne, Carol, Freema, Kay and myself - the northeners) most seats had been taken up so I had to sit on the pink table.

We were working on a large tag and this is what I produced:

The tag itself was coloured using Distress Inks and then sprayed with Crafty Notions spray in white (love those sprays) and overstamped with some of Leandra's new stamps.    Then we made the tissue flower for the top.

The tree was then cut from some greyboard and we used Ferro though a stencil, spraying again with Crafty Notions sprays.

Lastly we worked in metal to produce all the little birds, bird houses and leaves.  I added some little bees and a moth.  Love how my owl turned out - I did a 'brush' technique on him.

There were some beautiful examples on display around the room and here are one or two photographs I took showing other colourways.

Think the one above is my fave

but then I do like these two

It is surprising what a difference colour and placement of the various elements makes.

More tomorrow when I will show you the third project - saving the big one until last.

ps just added another blog candy giveaway for Enchanted Revelries - had a great time visiting Tristran's blog via Lenna's - well worth the trip.

Kraft

I have missed entering into Challenges and do enjoy the Gingersnap Creations ones so went on to see what was coming up.  Saw that there was one for a colour and I just happened to have some Alcohol Ink backgrounds that would fit in with this particular colour lying around.  I like how the stamping has missed in parts, - think it adds to the overall design.

Set to and used three of them and then one of my favourite OnyxXpressions stamps as the main image.  This is to be a birthday card for someone - hope they like it.

Now to sign up, last minute, on Gingersnap Creations.  Too warm (hurrah, nice weather at last) to do any more indoors, garden calling for a bit of weeding and sorting, so it is the outdoors for us today.

Hopefully back Blogging

Sorry to my faithful followers for not being around much of late.  As you probably gathered we were going through a "not so nice time" with a much loved auntie who had a brain tumour.  Sadly she died two weeks ago but she is at peace now and we have to take comfort in knowing that.

Today, Friday, I decided I wanted to do something and so created a canvas with a couple of watch faces from old ones that no longer work.  Such a shame that they didn't have "parts" in them as I love cogs and things.  I am delaying this blog because I want to enter it into Sam's challenge over on Lots to Do and it does not start until tomorrow.

I coloured the canvas with Distress Inks - Wild Honey, Rusty Hinge (can't stop using that one), Tea Dye and a touch of Barn Door.  Also used Butterscotch Adirondack for stamping some of the swirls and the clock parts on, and Terracotta for the words.

Now Jennie, the Artistic Stamper, had kindly sent me a piece of "stuff" like the one Suze had used on her piece at CHA, so that I could do some Melt Art in that gorgeous honeycomb effect.  Thanks Jennie - I have at last used it.  You can see the two pieces in the top right hand corner.  Just love the effect.

Then I stamped into some utee with a "Time" wordy stamp and used some of the little drops that you get on your mat when you have finished pouring to embellish the cogs, along with some crystals.

The word "time" down the left hand side is Grungeboard with Terracotta Dabber on it and the flourish underneath the words (Paperartsy) is also a piece of Grungeboard dipped in the melt pot.

Now it is finished, not a clue where I will put it, but I did enjoy making it and hope it helps my mojo return fully.

Watch out:  pictures will be coming up over the weekend from the Artsy Crafty weekend with Leandra and Lin.