Blog candy shout out.

Hi everyone. :)

.

Been a bit busy lately, hence the lack of makes here, however i just wanted to give a heads up for a great blog candy that Karen is doing over at Crafty Goings On.

.

As usual Karen has put together a lovely bundle of goodies for you, including the new Tim Holtz book which i can thoroughly recommend for beginners and experienced crafters alike.

.

So pop on over to Karen's and try your luck! Thanks Karen. :)

.

Hopefully i'll be back soon with something nice to share with you, the weathers just too nice to miss out on with the kids at the moment though. Need to get my night time crafty head on maybe? :)

.

Take care all.

A fantasy 12 x 12.

Hi all,

Recently i have been working on something for Jennie at The Artistic Stamper. She will be at the Make-It craft show at Farnborough, Hants from 20th - 22nd Feb, and i was asked to make something for the stand.

I was asked to do something with one of my fairy doors i make. I haven't made any for a while so this was a great opportunity to dust off the chisel and set about something special for the show. After sitting in my craft room for days on end wondering what to make, i came up with this 12 x 12 layout.

I am quite chuffed with the end result, at first i was doubtful whether something so "blocky" as a wooden door would suit a paper craft layout, but this actually fits quite well with the fantasy theme.

At first i went with a very plain background 12 x 12 paper, but then i came across this one from the DCWV "Once Upon A Time collection". All I've ever done with that collection was stroked it lol, so it was a pleasure to use it on this LO.

.

The door itself was kind of a new experiment for me, in that i usually spend a long process getting the finish right with paints and varnish. However here i used a thin coat of Picket White Tim Holtz Distress Crackle Paint for the finish, and what a result! I am so pleased with how this turned out, just as you'd imagine an old weathered painted door to look.

Another first for me was the fact that this door can open! :)

A single brass hinge covered with ultra fine glitter, allows the door to swing open, revealing a hidden world behind it....

.

The view behind the door was made by covering a backing paper from the Crafty Individual "Trees" range, with ultra thick embossing enamel (UTEE), then i sealed some pine branch punch leaves under another layer of UTEE. The effect looks real magical in real life, you could almost get away with thinking it was underwater.

.

Now until this project, i have to confess to having been an absolute oaf at embossing! However i recently purchased an anti-static pad which appears to have made a major difference. On this layout, i really wanted to use one of the any of Jennie's Calligraphic background mats, and as you can see, it worked beautifully with embossed gold against the background layer of greeny-blue distress ink. I also edged the whole 12 x 12 with embossed gold. The embossing isn't perfect, but i'm still a learner so go easy. :)

Another product that totally sold itself to me whilst using it, was the Tim Holtz masks. I used a couple of pieces from the "Time works" sheet. I blended distress ink over the masks so that it was similar to the 12 x 12 paper, i think it turned out pretty well and i really enjoyed using these.

I thought the Once Upon A "Time" wording fitted nicely with the clock piece....

What else is there....ah yes.....a little tag made from black stamp board and embossed with one of Jennie's stamps, backed with a crackle glazed stamped paper.

Finaly, i have to mention the door plaque. The name of Jennie's challenge blog and another one of her stamps. Anyone who has seen my doors before, knows they are hand carved, and this plaque was no exception. I think it goes with the door nicely.

So i just wanted to say a big thank you to Jennie and Hel's for asking me to do this, it opened my eyes to a few techniques that i have been wanting to try for a while now, as well as trying out new products.

Talking of which, here are the products i used from Jennie's shop, all which can be found here...

Various rubber stamps, including background mats, flourishes and word stamps....

Calligraphic mat 3 for the gold embossed background.

"Object d' Art" stamp for door plaque.

"ART" stamp for the embossed tag.

Flourish swirl stamp (part of) for around the door.

Flourish swirl stamp for embossing on page.

"Diamonds" texture mat for "ART" tag backing.

Chipboard tag for embossed "ART" tag.

Tim Holtz Distress Crackle Paint (Picket Fence - white).

Various colours of Distress Ink applied with the blending tool and foam pads.

Ultra Thick Embossing Enamel (UTEE).

Gold Embossing Powder

Tim Holtz Ideaology "Timeworks" masks.

Crackle Accents. for back of "ART" tag.

Crafty Individual backing paper "Trees".

Thank you for taking a look.....hope you like it. :)

Altered chipboard box.

Hi everyone :)

I haven't made Maddy anything for a little while, and one of my more secret resolutions was to do more of this, so here's a little altered chipboard box i made for her to put odds and ends in.

Very simply done, but the best bit about this was that i got to try out my new Tim Holtz Distress Crackle Paints that i bought today. They are amazing! It's the uneven crackle effect i really like, and when you brush over it with colour, the crackles stand out even more.

.

.

Here i just coated the box in Tattered Rose Distress Crackle Paint, and when dry i lightly brushed over it with Tea Dye distress ink. A few embellishments and of course some lace to dainty it up a bit, and there you have a nice looking little box for a lovely gift.



Aren't these crackles just great?.........Cheers for that Mr Holtz! :) You can buy the paints here at Jennie's shop.

It's the first box I've altered apart from a tea caddy i did a while back, so i was pretty chuffed with the result. Hopefully Maddy will be too....fingers crossed! :)

.

Lastly, i have to give a shout out to a new craft shop i discovered in a nearby town today. Close to Southampton, theres a place called Swaythling, and there you can find a craft shop that's only been open a few months called "Craftin Delights".

.

Run by a lovely and helpful lady called Jeanette (hope i spelt that right), who makes a gorgeous cuppa btw, her shop is full of crafty goodies. I was made very welcome by Jeanette and her friend and fellow crafter Nicky, i had a lovely time there. Jeanette also runs workshops there too, so next time you are down this neck of the woods, it's well worth popping in.

.

Always nice to find a new place to get stash, and only right to pass it on to. :)

.

Bye for now.....

A nice suprise...Tim Holtz said hi!!!

Just before 3am this morning, i was pottering around my blog when i saw i had a comment on my "star themed pocket challenge" post. So i clicked on it to see who it was, and it was none other than Tim Holtz!!!

What a star for doing that! Since getting into crafting, i have become increasingly drawn to his work. Not just the work he produces, but the way he delivers it too. He is easy to follow, enjoyable to watch, and you can tell he's just a nice guy. Can't ask for much more than that in a role model can you?

I've followed his blog for a while now, and what made it all the more nice that he posted here, was that you can see by his blog what a workload this guy has! I'm surprised he has time to even get on the computer!

So yeah, a lovely surprise on this rainy typical Monday morning in England. I know many of you will have already met him, and hopefully i will too one day if he's over the UK again.

Thanks Tim! :)

Handy mobile paper storage idea.

At present i do not have anything to carry 12 x 12 papers in. If i go to a shop it was always a bit of a pain putting the papers into a plastic bag, especially if they were bought singularly. They could end up bent or damaged by rain due to our lovely weather here in England.

For a temporary measure though, my girlfriend Maddy gave me a spare laptop carry case that she had lying around. She suggested sticking a couple of bit's of mount board in it, and sandwiching the 12 x 12's between them. It works perfectly! Cheers Maddy x.



I use a backpack a lot, and i would dearly love to see a craft tote bag designed in backpack form. Something big enough to carry 12 x 12, but have all the storage compartments to house your crafty stash. This would also allow you to carry it hands free so you can carry the rest of the mountain of goodies.

I know there are tote bags already on the market, but to be honest none of them appeal to me. I would like something a little more manly than pink or lilac please, and if brown has to be the only colour tote bag designers can come up with, could they please make it just a tiny bit funky?

Before anyone mentions the camofladge options, i spent enough years wearing the stuff to stop my backside getting shot off in the forces, so i'd rather not go down that avenue of fashion thanks. :) (Yes i know, i'm too fussy). Don't get me wrong, i can be the biggest girl at times when it comes to colours and crafty items, but just once i'd love to see something that a guy would'nt be embarrassed going to a craft workshop with!

Something like this.....


...but with crafty storage and wide enough for 12 x 12's.

Another handy storage container i use a lot, is the plastic cases from the Ferrero Rocher chocolates. It's the box with 16 chocolates inside, unfortunately though.....and i know this will really put a dampener on the idea....you have to eat the choccies first!!! :))))))



Being perfectly clear, they are great for storing bits in. I use them for tools, embellishments, i love the fact you can see everything inside them. Last night i discovered that they are a great fit for the Tim Holtz Distress Ink pads. Arrange them how you want, they can fit eight pads into each box.






I'm hopefully going to build some custom fit wooden storage for these this week, so I'll post some pics when it is done.

Is a male crafter really an oddity?

"Men" and "Crafts". Who would have thought that two simple words such as these, could be viewed in so many "strange" ways when used together?

I guess for many people, more so those not involved in crafts of any kind, the thought of men crafting conjures up images of woodworkers and the likes, the more "masculine" crafts as some would like to think.

So today i was in town paying off an overdue library book fine, large enough that i could have bought the book brand new!.......anyway......i stopped into a new fabric shop to get some material for a paper craft project i had in mind. I wanted something to cover a "Journey" themed album with and found this lovely cotton with a map of the world on it. Not cheap but will be worth it on a project.......i got this one in a lovely blue and brown.....

..and one in a Sepia colour too....

Whilst i was in the shop, another guy came in looking for material. By the sounds of it, he obviously knew his stuff and we both went about our business looking through the fabrics. The shop owner, a very nice lady, said that she'd never had two men being the only customers in her shop at one time. It was as though it was unheard of.

Then shortly afterwards, i met an old friend. He has an office job and has in the past, like myself, served in the armed forces. So we go through the usual banter of what are you up to now, and then i mention that I'm into crafting. I may have well said that i was wearing women's underwear and was off to get my hair and nails done!!!

There was the stifled laugh and raised eyebrows, nothing that i have not experienced before but nevertheless. We chatted for a bit before parting company. I guess it bugged me a little, but then i quickly thought about some of the other things he said. He wasn't all that happy in his job, but was too stuck in the system to get out and do anything else. That was enough for me to smile and think about how glad i do what i do.

Whether it be as a hobby or as a career, crafting as we know it, is what i love and enjoy. Someone once said, "You gotta do what you love!". There are many reasons why i do what i do, but best of all, I'm happy, it benefits me, my partner and my kids! End of!

There is a noticeable lack of role models in the world of the male crafter, maybe thats a factor that prevents so many younger lads starting out in crafting? I am a big fan of Tim Holtz and his work, but how many other well established male crafters do i know of? Not many at all. Thats something i would like to do something about and i will.

Throughout history men have been skilled in what is classed as the more feminine of crafts. Big rough hardy fishermen used to knit thier own jumpers, and some of the best tapestry makers I've known learnt thier skill in the armed forces. Not that you need a macho background or other side to your life to balance the crafting out, personally i couldn't care less what you've done in the past or what you do now ( I mean that in a nice way of course)......if you craft and enjoy it.......then thats good enough for me!!!

Maybe you just have to be secure in yourself, or not give a hoot what people think to be a male in this area of crafts. Maybe a recruiting campaign is needed for male crafters, or to encourage them to come out of the woodwork!

Anyway, I've rambled enough, just wanted to get that off my chest....although i have a feeling it won't be the last time!

Take care all......I'm off to do my nails! :)