Oh yeah, I remember now, I have a blog!

Yeah, so, it's been a while since I was here. Sorry about that. It's not that I haven't been busy creating things, just that I tend to use Instagram more nowadays than the blog. However, I think I shall have a shot at getting back into the swing of blogging for a while and see how it goes.
Here is my latest endeavor. I made some cute little labels for a friend's hand knitted garments which she sells through a local craft shop.

I was able to use my Tonic Studios dies for this, it makes for a very cute little tag don't you think?

You can't really tell from the picture, but I have a strange way of doing the printing on my inkjet printer which results in a cool raised printed effect.

Unless you have a top of the range inkjet printer, the inks will run if the label becomes wet. I want to avoid this for labels and make them a bit longer lasting. I do this with embossing powder.

As my printed card is coming out the printer, I sprinkle embossing powder over the inked areas. Because the printer uses pigment ink, the embossing powder sticks to the printing. I then tip off the excess into a big plastic tray I have for the occasion and use my heat gun to heat the embossing powder as you would do normally.

This can be a bit messy and you have to be careful not to trash your printer. But it works for me anyway.

Anyone else do this?

Have a lovely day !

Highland Summer

 May is often a really good month for us in the Highlands. No exception this year. We have had several weeks of beautiful warm dry weather. Hopefully June and July won't be too bad...often the best of summer is right now !

 I was able to make my first ever gate. I am quite pleased with the result. I am working on gate number two just now.

We already have a few strawberries ripening, although this one looks more like a bug or an alien.

I finished painting my Welsh Dresser and I am enjoying using it in the kitchen. I used Everlong Chalk Paint for this.  Now onto the next furniture on my list. Finish upholstering a couple of dining chairs and then paint a bed frame for the spare room. My list is long!

Plus we have been working in the garden slowly developing new flower beds which I am excited about planting up. Too much to do and not enough time!

Plus I entered my first Spoonflower fabric design competition. The remit was Whimsical watercolour insects. I decided on Cobalt blue beetles. I'll be very pleased if I make it into the top 25 fabrics for my first attempt.

Hope you have been having a good May.
Have a lovely day wherever you are.

Watch the Birdy

 We still have much work to do on our new garden, but we have been enjoying the varied bird life we get. This handsome fellow has visited a few times now pecking about at the bottom of the bird feeders.

Isn't he gorgeous!

Goldfinches and greenfinches are a plenty, sometimes the neighbouring tree is all a chirp with birds waiting for a turn on the feeders.

This is a lesser Redpoll. He comes from time to time.

I think the goldfinches are one of my favourites though.
There are signs of spring in the garden too, but being in the Highlands we are a little behind lower regions of the country.

But it is lovely to see things come into bloom.

It makes me feel like painting, but I have so many other things to do ...sigh!

Have a lovely day.

A little plaque

I had fun trying out Tonic Studios lovely letter dies on this plaque. This is the Postal font I have used. It's a really nice set of letters to play with. I have also used the layering hexagon dies to make the background using up some scraps of paper. The buttons are from some past die sets.

Handy hint. Once you have laid out your letters where they are to go, glue them one by one, and do not...I repeat...do not hold up your plaque halfway through to see how it is looking. (Not that I would do that or anything !!! ) Ha ha !

Have a nice day.

'Shell' Paper butterfly earrings

In my last post here, I showed you my "paper" butterfly brooches which were decorated using Nuvo drops butterfly prints my daughter and I made. I mentioned that the waste did not go to waste as I used a paper punch to use up the scraps. The ones done with Nuvo pearl drops look so like mother of pearl or some other shell I decided to make earrings from them. Each earring is made from 7 layers. The middle layer is cut in half and a thin strip taken out the middle to allow an earring wire to be glued inside.

The ones with the frosted glass blue beads are my favourite ones. I've worn them already.

They look so much like shell you could easily be fooled. I don't think anyone would guess what they are made from.

I had such fun making these, and now I am thinking of what other paper accessories I can make.

I hope this inspires you.
Have  a lovely day.

Paper Butterfly Brooches

Glancing at these brooches you wouldn't have guessed they have been  made from paper would you? Well, thin card to be precise. Here's a little view of the backs so you can see that they are indeed brooches. I have die cut some felt to cover over the brooch pins and make them look neat and nicely finished. Not that I am OCD or anything. ;-)

Each brooch has been made from gluing together 8 die cuts. (using Tonic Studios Rococo butterfly die from their die and stamp set). You'd be amazed at how sturdy a brooch this makes.

Do you like the effect on this one. Very pearly isn't it. It's been made using Nuvo pearl drops.
My 10 year old daughter had the absolutely brilliant idea to make "butterfly prints" with a selection of the Nuvo drops. The effect was so lovely that I knew it would be perfect for paper jewellery.

This one was made using the glitter drops and also the black crystal drops. Once this was dried I applied a glaze of jewel drops to the whole area. Having tested this out on larger areas before I knew that as it is  not designed for large areas it tends to crack and so it produces a wonderful interesting patina for jewellery.

I am considering adding another level to these brooches with some polymer clay words, but I have a few things in progress on my desk just now so that will have to wait until I make space for some clay time.

Here are some of our butterfly prints made with the drops. You can see which ones I chose to use for these brooches. And the scrap around the die cut areas did not go to waste either as I made use of a butterfly punch.

Just wait until you see what I made with a few of these. 

Are you going to give this a try?

Have a lovely day!

Mother's Day Frame

Why not use your Tonic Studios dies to make a pretty little Mother's Day frame like I have. The great thing about a box frame is that you can 3D your diecuts as much as you like and know that they will be protected by the glass. It gives you so many options.

BTW, that's one of my favourite butterfly dies. (Rococo butterfly die and stamp sets)

Hope this has inspired you.

Books and Boxes

I have been trying out a few things lately and been creating some boxes and decorated notebooks to stock up in my Folksy shop which hasn't been active for some time. I am still working on a few ideas and haven't uploaded very much as yet, but here are some of the things I have been playing with.

This is a little wooden box I have painted in an Oriental style. I had great fun with gilding flakes and crackle glaze on this one. (Tonic Studios products)

Then I have been making some other little trinket boxes.

 I bought some adorable little wooden bun feet to give the boxes some character. They are really cute!

And I decoupaged a tray for my own personal use...

And a little key cupboard...

And made some little decorated notebooks...

And a few other things I haven't got pictures of yet. Plus I finally got around to finishing painting my Welsh dresser, (apart from stencilling the door ) which may or may not happen. Plus, I am in the middle of varnishing a top for some drawers in my craft room to make a new desk.

But apart from that, not been up to much ;-) You?

Have a lovely day.

Pearly Pink Valentine Heart Box Tutorial

It's time for a little tutorial using some wonderful Tonic Studios products. Create this decorated heart gift box and make someones day with this special little trinket box made with love...

First you will need a little paper mache box to decorate, just like this one, plus a sheet of smooth white card for painting and die cutting. (A little suggestion -  when choosing your papier mache box, always pick one with as loose a lid as you can find to allow for the thickness of your paint and paper.)

Tonic Studios Supplies...

• Nuvo Acrylic Paints in white and metallic pearl white
• Nuvo embellishment mousses in peony pink, lilac lavender, cornflower blue and aquamarine.
• Tonic Funky Glue
• Nuvo Glimmer paste in Moonstone
• Nuvo Crystal Drops in Wisteria purple
• Paper for lining your box. I used some 12x 12 Tonic paper I had (Romantic Cottage paper pack)
• Essentials Die Set - someone special
• Verso - First Crush Die set. 

INSTRUCTIONS

Prime your box with one coat of white acrylic paint .
Once dry, mix metallic white pearl acrylic paint with the embellishment mousses and paint your box and sheet of white card alternating the colours to create a variegated pearly effect. Use mostly pink with splodges of the other colours. Once dry, smooth  some glimmer paste with your finger all over the sheet of card which you will use to die cut your embellishments.

When totally dry, diecut your embellishments and glue to the box.

To line your box draw around the base of the box and then draw a line around 2mm insidewhich will be your cutting line to allow for the thickness of the box sides. Cut two strips to fit neatly in the sides. You can either repeat this for inside the lid, or paint inside the lid as you prefer. 

Decorate the edges of your lid with Nuvo Crystal Drops. 

I also glued some of the little hearts from the die cut onto the lid of the box. 

Now all you need to do is find a suitable little gift to go inside the box. Or better still...make one! 

There are other lovely heart dies from Tonic Studios that would work just as well for this project. Why not check out the full range on their website. 

Hope this gives you some ideas.
Have fun.