If Friends were flowers

As you all probably by now know I am a little hooked on the Justinklined The Next Big Thing, and this is another image from it, coloured with promarkers.  However, I have also used an image from Joanna Sheen's If Flowers Could Talk, which is features painting by Jane Netley Mayhew and Poetry by Patience Strong.  I didn't use the poem that was with this image, but used the facility to write my own words.

As usual kept the card fairly simple just matting the images on toning card.  I also added a strip from a Memory Box die in the same card as the basic card.

Put you feet up!

A quick card for a male gardener.  Created with docrafts digitil designer.

Clematis

Well that's what I was trying to paint on this tissue box!  Just need to paint the inside now, and another Christmas or Birthday pressie sorted!

Chuffing Good Birthday

It's my son-in-law's Birthday today and this is the card I made for him.  He is a model train enthusiast.  Image is from Justinklined The Next Big Thing, coloured with promarkers.   Computer generated sentiment and one of my new Memory Box dies.

Basket Makeover

You may recall I painted this little basket/planter with fuschias originally and didn't like it - well it got a make over a couple of days ago.  I had to use a darker background to camouflage the red of the fuschias. I like this much more that the original!

Painted Chest

Spent the afternoon in the garden doing a bit of paint fusion yesterday.  This was my first project.  The little box I started to paint the other day,  Gave it another base coat and then painted the clematis flowers on it.

Keepsake Box

Keepsake Box

This is a little peek at a little project that is work in process.  I bought the little wooden box from The Craft Barn a few months ago.  Work on it has been delayed, as I originally wanted it as a little keepsake box for my youngest granddaughter for her Christening!  Now that the sun has at last decided to shine, I have been able to start work on it, so it will be tad late!

I wanted to put her name on it and the inspiration of adding some stick on letters (they came in a Docrafts Goodybag).  Unfortunately the pearlised acrylic paint wouldn't stick to them, so I ended up sanding them a little and getting the top shiny coloured coating off - then the paint stuck.  I thought it would be better to make it look like embossed or "carved" lettering rather than trying to paint each letter and "muck it up"!

I wasn't too sure that the freehand roses were good enough, but the finish is growing on me.  It needs to be varnished yet, and although I have painted the inside, I have decided that I will try and line it with sticky back felt.

Jewellery Box

I am also working on this little box for myself.   This one is cardboard based.  Glad I took a photo as I can see it needs a tad more painting to the base coat before I start adding flowers etc.

Mags

Flat Kumihino Bracelet

Flat Kumihino

Well yesterday I tried the square board.  Following the pattern was easy, but getting the tension right was more difficult.  I also had a little problem with finishing off - realised I should have stopped a couple of rows before as I had a slant on it, but didn't want to risk trying to undo it (mainly because I had already undone a couple of attemps at beginning of the bracelet and had to restart!).  However, I know what to do next time - I must finish when the sequence gets back to the start, rather than carry on until I have run out of cord.

I shall try this flat bracelet again, but think I might try it with thinner material such as embroidery silks or even wool which will have more "give" in it - hopefully I will get a more even finish then.

Must confess that I do prefer the round board bracelets, but hey you don't know until you try do you!

Mags

First Kumihino Bracelet

Round Kumihino Bracelet

I have always wanted to make these bracelets.  My eldest granddaughter makes friendship bracelets with wool and a bit of cardboard, and I thought if I treated myself to the Beader's Companion kits as an early birthday pressie to myself, I might get ahead of her!  :-)

I used the BC kit, and followed the downloadable pattern from their site.  I really had fun, and it was incredibly easy once I got the first round sorted and the sequence in my head.  Looks like a mega order of rat tail cord is on the cards!  Am also going to see what other mediums I have in my stash in  the meantime to see what I can use.

I also bought the flat kit - so watch this space!

Mags

one old ruin to another!

Another simple card made from Justinkline The Next Big Thing, coloured with promarkers.  Matted on to white card and red mirri.  Computer generated sentiment, and a few red flowers added.

The sentiment says it all really!

Mags

Christening Day

Well the sun shone for our family christening today.  Lovely to catch up with family members that we don't get to see that often. 

Here is photo of my son and his family ....

..... and here are some more photos of the cake

Mags

christening card and more cakes!

Christening Card

This is the card I made for my youngest granddaughter's Christening.  Pearlised cardstock with an image coloured with promarkers from Justinklined - The Next Big Thing.    I kept with the colour scheme of the Christening Cake, and used some of the leftover lace and ribbon from the cake.   As you will see I also managed to incorporate the little beaded cross that I created the other day.  I was so pleased to discover the lovely little gold brad in my stash.  (It must have been from a goody bag!)

close up of main image

close up of ribbons and memory box die

showing the beaded cross in situ

I also had to make a sponge cake in a hurry.  My daughter in law was going to buy a ready iced plain one from M&S for me to put some flowers on, but discovered that they don't stock them on the shelves now - you have to order them and they take a week! 

sponge cake

I also made a few cupcakes, which like the sponge cake are dairy free.  You will also see that I used those broken petals from when I made the roses for the Royal-iced Cake!   (Waste not, want not!)

cup cakes with hand made sugar petals

Thanks for popping by.

Mags

For our Sister

Christening Card

Following on from yesterday's wedding card made by my granddaughters, here is the card I helped them put together for their sister's christening tomorrow.

They bought the little christening gown embellishment at a little craft shop, which is part of a local tea rooms, all the way back on Mother's Day, especially to use on their sister's christening card.

I created the sentiment topper and they put the card together.

Mags

Wedding Card

My D-i-l's mother is remarrying tomorrow and this is the card I helped my 5yr old and 3yr old granddaughters create for her.  The sentiments are actually gold on white card, although they look blue in the photo.

The pearlescent cardstock was some I found in my stash - think I bought it Ally Pally a couple of years ago.  All the embellishments and mats were cut from the same cardstock, and the ribbon came from a recent goodbag.  The die cuts are from various Memory Box dies.

I tackled the fiddle bit of sticking on the die cuts, and they did the rest.  (Well obviously I did the computer generated sentiments).

Mags

Proud Nanny!

Watercolured Hydrangea

I visited my three youngest granddaughters today for a bit of crafting.  I supervised the making of a christening card and a wedding card - however, you will have to wait to see those in the next couple of days as what I wanted to share with you was this watercolouring from my 5yr old granddaughter.

I bought her some Lyra Aqua Crayons for her birthday back in May, and she has patiently waited for me to show her how to use them, as her Dad said for the first time using them she had to wait for me to show her.  I also bought her some koi waterbrushes, a neat little palette with a lid for scribbling into to mix her colours and some watercolour paper, as well as printing off a few images that she could use to colour.

Well I talked her through how to get shading and to blend colours.  Her mum was thrilled as hydrangeas are her favourite flowers.

Well what can I say - she is a fast learner - and this is her very first watercoloured image - no practising - just straight in and at it.  I am so proud of her.  Wish I had had somebody to tell me how to watercolour when I was her age or even in my teens, instead of waiting to learn how to do it until my 60s!

Of course the 3 yr old also wanted to paint, and although she wasn't as neat about keeping in the lines as her sister, she learned to use the special crayons, and the great thing was there was no mess to clear up or a paintbox to wash out! LOL!  It won't be long before she catches her sister up; and heaven help me when the baby catches them up!

I can see that I shall have to save up and buy her some promarkers in the very near future, because if this is what she can achieve with water colours on Rey & Graphics paper, what is she going to achieve with promarkers once I have shown her how to use them!  (Mind you might have to hide promarkers from her Dad as he got an "A" in graphic design at school !!!!)

After she had painted this image, I showed her different effects on the water colour paper, and her Dad is going to print of some images onto that for her to try, and then she did a free-hand painting of the vase of flowers on the dining table.  Didn't take a piccie of that as it wasn't finished - but put it like this - wish I could paint like that! 

Mags

Christening embelishment

Beaded Banner

I had the inspiration to create a little banner with a cross on it as an embellishment on my granddaughter's christening card.  The idea came to me as I lay in bed last night.   Well the initial idea didn't work, as banners are created with uneven rows, and the cross wouldn't have worked.

I searched for beading stitches on the net, and found a tutorial that I thought might work.  What the instructions didn't tell you was how to finish off when you had done your desired length!  Hopefully with a bit of fiddling and some craft glue it will hold together.  I then threaded it on an eye pin.

As I had already created an eye pin with beads on it, for my first abandoned attempt, I hst bent this and attached it to the banner to make a beaded hanger.

Not sure whether the idea has worked or not.   You will probably find out when I have finished the card!

Mags

New Baby

Created with Forever Friends cd, mounted on silver mirri and a few diamantes added.

Wedding Day

Created this with the Forever Friends cd.  As it is not for a "First Wedding" I wanted to keep it fairly simple, and decided that the bears were the way to go. 

Pearlised card stock as the base.  The whole topper was created from the cd , printed out and then mounted on gold mirri.  I offset the topper so that I could add some "bling" faux diamonds down the side.

Thanks for popping by.

Mags

"Fusioned" wheelbarrow - Update

It's "Hissing" it down at the mo outside, so to cheer us up thought I would share this photo of my planted wheelbarrow today.

Mags

sneaky peek

I have been working on my youngest granddaughter's christening cake for next week.  The weather has not been good for icing these past few weeks, but tiz finished now.  Just got to do some decoration to a bought plain sponge to go with it.

I shall take a better photo outside if we get some sunshine, or on the day.  This was taken after I had just finished it, thus the "elegant" turntable shot!

My D-i-l chose the design, which was a mix of ideas from a couple of cakes from a couple of my cake decorating magazines.  She also bought the ribbon and lace for it.

Cake is Royal Iced in ivory with white embroidery, and I made the sugar roses to go on it.   The original designs had more roses, but we decided that was slightly OTT, and went with the less is more look.

For those of you wondering why we have a two-tiered Christening Cake - well  I re-iced the top two tiers of my son's wedding cake.

Hope you like it.

Mags

Guardian Angel

Thought I would share with you this little Guardian Angel Phone Charm I made last night to go with the Bon Voyage card for my hairdresser.

Mags



Bon Voyage

Just a very simple one today, but I think it looks a little classy - Less is more as they say.   Pearlised card stock with some paper, ribbon, flower and large pearl from a recent docrafts goodybag.  Sentiment created with card candi stamped using Craftwork Cards mini alphabet stamps made to go with the candi, and a few little pearls from my stash.

Made for my young hairdresser who is having a year out travelling in Asia and Australasia!

Thanks for looking

Mags

Birthday Wishes

Been a while since I posted on the blog, mainly because I have had some health issues lately, so haven't felt up to doing much.  However I am feeling a lot better now, and am currently busy re-icing two tiers of my son's wedding cake for a christening cake for my newest granddaughter later this month.

Anyway I decided to play tonight and get the promarkers out and create this card.  The image is from Just Inklined the next big thing.  As it is for a male - decided to keep it fairly simple.

Thanks for popping by.

Mags