Never before used stuff

There is a challenge over at djkardkreations  called NBUS, short for never before used stuff.

Today's card is made with a pattern that I have never used before so I will be entering it into this challenge.

As usual I tried it in a couple of different colours.

Supplies:

Pattern: 101 Embroidery patterns for paper by Erica Fortgens

Baker's twine in navy and silver

Flat backed gems in purple and blue

Thread: 3 shades of blue and 3 shades of mauve (brand and number unknown)

Paper: pale mauve and light blue

Card Stock: 160gsm in white

Milestone Birthdays

We are in the middle of a spate of birthdays and they seem to be mostly male. They are all milestone ones too but not of the 18th, 21st or 30th variety! Guess I just have to face up to reality, I'm definitely what would be called "middle aged".

Today's card was made for one of those birthdays.

The green stripe is shiny and thank goodness in real life doesn't look like it has a finger print right in the middle of it.

The sentiment is computer generated and propped up on foam dots.

I took my inspiration from this card which I found on Pinterest.

Supplies:

Card stock: 160gsm in kraft and white.

                   Scraps of red, black and green for the stripes

Adhesive :Pentel dotliner 8.4mm x 16m

Bostick foam dots

School Outings

Last week we took our Grade 3 boys on an outing to the local aquarium. As though taking 88 nine years olds out for the day wasn't bad enough we were just one of five school who were visiting that day. The one school had 300 pupils with them! To say that it was noisy, stressful and tiring would definitely be an understatement!

Today's card is the ipitomy of being under stated.

It's soft pastel colours and simple repetitive design are very calming to me.

To make the pattern I used a flower design from Erica Fortgens and copied it a number of times before pasting the designs in the corner of the paper. Once I had stitched them I hand drew the frame around the edge of the topper in a very fine felt tipped pen.

I used the same pattern to make some smaller cards too. These are 6cm x 7.5cm

Supplies: 

Pattern:101 Ideas for embroidery on paper by Erica Fortgens

Thread: light green and pink

Felt tipped pen in black.
Small cards: Scrapes of paper and thread

                    Rolfe metallic marker in green

Butterflies and Patterned Paper Part 2

I decided to submit a second entry into the challenge at Butterfly Challenge.
I have so many ideas that fit perfectly into the theme of patterned paper so I just had to add another one.
The first of these three cards is my favourite.

although this one is pretty too......

  

I love this striped paper, I'm just not so sure that I should have stitched over it in yellow, oh well!

Supplies:
Pattern:Stitching Cards Free Butterfly Pattern
Paper: Scrap booking paper make unknown
Thread: Yellow, pink and purple Make and numbers unknown
Beads: Gold and seed pearl
Sizzix 8 square die
Cuttlebug
Scraps of gold and purple paper

A Single Large Flower

Sometimes I am drawn to really simple designs for my cards. That is why I like Ardyth's designs over at Maskarade. Todays card is CASed from one of hers.

I tried it in a variety of different colours and choose to use Rayen thread as I wanted to add a bit of subtle interest with the shine.

Here is one up close

I cut a circle in the topper. Stitched my flower on a smaller piece of card stock and adhered it to the back of the topper. Then I adhere a piece of paper in the same colour as the flower to the body of the card. Lastly I used foam dots to attach the topper to the card. I added some glitter around the edge of the circle and a flat backed gem to complete.

Supplies:

Pattern:  Stitching Cards. Free Flowering Vine
Thread: Rayen in peach, turquoise, lime green and sky blue

Glitzing Glamour in iridescent

Paper: peach, lime green, sky blue and turquoise.

Bostick Foam dots

Flat backed gems in lime green, sky blue, turquoise and champagne.
Cuttlebug
Sizzix 8 circle dies

Kraft and turquoise

I have just finished writing my first term reports for school. I handed them over today to be checked. Hopefully there won't be too many mistakes to correct. This means that there are only three weeks left of this term, can't believe it!

I am enjoying working with kraft paper at the moment. Today's card is made using card stock in the same. 

Usually I like the combination of kraft and turquoise but somehow this one turned out a little too dark for my liking, not sure why. I added the gold Stickles to try and lift it a bit.

The layout comes from this lovely card.

Source: Mamaxsix

 

Supplies:

Pattern: Easy Embroidery on Paper by Joke de Vette

Thread: brown

Ribbon: scraps in gold

Card stock: Kraft, brown and turquoise in 160gsm

Stickles in gold

Butterflies and Patterned paper

The new challenge at Butterfly Challenge is Butterfly and patterned paper. Like all good crafters I have masses of paper so this was an easy one for me.

Here is my entry.

and just for good measure I made a second one.

I cut a circle in the patterned paper, placed it onto the white card stock and marked where my butterfly needed to be. Then I pricked the pattern before stitching it in rayen thread. I wanted it to be shiny.  Seed pearl beads finished the body.

I took my inspiration from Gillian over at Made with Sparkle.

Supplies:

Pattern:Stitching Cards. Free Butterfly reduced to 50 %
Thread: Lemon and pale blue in Rayen

Seed pearl beads

Glue: Pentel Dotliner 8.4mm

Card Stock: white 10gsm

Paper: Free download from Crafty Ferret
Sizzix 8 circle die

Look who's 16 today!

In keeping with my masculine and stars theme for this week here is a card which I was asked to make for a colleague's son who was turning 16. Her instructions where "something with blue and silver"

Here is what I came up with

The sentiment is a pattern from Form-A-Lines . I designed the numerals myself.

Simple but then male cards, in my opinion, need to err of that side of design.

My inspiration

Source: YLM

Supplies:

Pattern:Form-a-lines Free greeting words
Sizzix Stars, primitive 4 die 657910
Baker's twine in navy
Card stock: White and silver 160gsm
 Blue and white scrapbook paper: brand unknown
Thread: Navy and silver

Masculine birthday card

I am a great puruser of fetes and markets. There is lots of rubbish up for sale but every now and again you will stumble onto something worthwhile. The button on this card is such an example.
I found it at a fete for a retirement village close to my home. It was part of a very old sheet of buttons. All different but white. The sheet looked like something a sales rep would take to a prospective customer for them to order from. There are some really lovely buttons on there, a cute little hat with a ribbon and the sweetest little lamb. I snapped the entire thing up for next to nothing. The price was so ridiculous that I made a donation of my change. It was money well spent.

A friend turned 50 this weekend. This is the card I made for him.

I distressed the edges with red ink and the white star is one of the buttons that I bought, I just cut the shank off.

Here was my inspiration

Source: Zoie

Supplies:

Sizzix 4 Dies Stars, primitive 657910

Red and white stripes washi tape

Star button

 Card stock:  160gsm in white and navy

Ink: Colorbox Scarlet

Teaching

Last week I was asked to run a stitched card course for a group of ladies who have never been introduced to the Prick and Stitch method before. This is the card we made.

I prepared all the elements that the ladies would need to make the card. They just needed to complete the stitched section and then assemble it. I have found that this is the best way to run a course as if the stitching is not completed within the time frame then at least the card can be made up later.

Supplies:

Pattern: Stitching Cards. Free flower bookmark pattern
Thread: Pink, green and yellow

Card Stock: 160gsm in white

Paper: Green and shimmery pink

Cuttlebug

Embossing folder: Cuttlebug Organic Flourish

Hexagons and butterflies

There is a new challenge over at Butterfly Challenge and here is my entry.

The requirements are butterflies, of course, and hexagons.

For this card I reduced the stitching pattern to 50% and stitched it in white. I stitched straight onto the cerise paper and then adhered that to the card stock upper. As the holes for the stitching were now very close together I had to reinforce the back with some sticky tape, which I stitched through.

The embossed lines where drawn using my Crafter's Companion. I did the silver outline around each hexagon by hand, they are not prefectly straight but that was the look I was going for. To finish I added three pink flat backed gems.

Edited to say that I am very excited. This card has won me my first ever badge (see left hand margin). Thanks Mrs A

Supplies:

Pattern: Stitching Cards. Free butterfly pattern

Complete Crafter's Companion

Thread: DMC in white

Clear glass beads

Flat backed gems in pink

Silver gel pen

Card Stock: white in 200gsm

Paper: Cerise scraps

Sizzix 8 piece hexagon die

A card for my Hubby

It was my husband's birthday recently and this is the card I made for him

He loves the sea, and to sail (although he suffers terribly from seasickness!!!) and his hobby is sailing model yachts. Hence the nautical theme.

I do not have a tag die so cut this one by hand using an oval shape as a template to make the top. I just trimmed off the points that where left once I had cut the oval.

The striped paper was a download from google images and the sentiment is a peel off. The envelope was made using my Crafter's Companion.

I was inspired by this lovely card by Jean Manis

Supplies:

Pattern: Stitching Cards sunset
Paper: navy. Striped paper Google images

House hold String

Card stock: 200gsm in white

Embossing Folder: Bricks

Cuttlebug

Sentiment: Gold peel off

Compete Crafter's Companion: envelope side.

Glue: Pentel Dotliner 8.4mm x 16m