Tonic Fairy Birthday Card

I was lucky enough to be given a set of Tonic fairy themed dies for my birthday this year. I hadn't really used Tonic dies before, but I really like the way you can interchange them with each other. The die used here is called 'Moonglade Wish' and comes in 4 parts. This card is an 8x8 card, with the front card piece folded back on itself. The folded section was then cut using the die, but not with its matching edger (meaning that the aperture remains inside the cardstock). The outside edger was then cut out completely on some purple card and laid over the top to create a see-through lacy effect. The same principle was used for the panel on the other side, (rear card piece) although this was not left see-through, as I mounted a large piece of pink card behind it. The sentiment is from Lili of the Valley and has been stamped, cut out and mounted on card stock cut using a Spellbinders Lacey Circle die. Once attached to the front panel, a second lacy circle was applied to the back for neatness.  The fairy's wings were also highlighted by cutting a piece of glitter card and laying it behind the wings. Finally 6 diamantes were used for the corners and the stars on the front. The insert was made using coordinating card stock and placed on the inside of the card, behind the folded front section.

Paper Weaving and Embossed Tiles

Both of these cards were made in another class with Lisa (there is a theme going on here...) The first to my right, was made using some strips of coordinating papers to create a weaved effect (possibly Tim Holtz papers?). We started by attaching each strip of paper to some adhesive sheets. Then we cut the strips in the opposite direction to the way they were laid, and made them all the same width. On the base card some Distress Inks were used to make some patches with a honeycomb style stencil. These patches were entirely random. The strips were then cut to different lengths and arranged in a pattern on the card front. There were some keys on the patterned paper we used, so these elements were cut out and dotted in any gaps. The final sentiment was stamped in brown ink,embossed with clear powder and matted on some distressed co-ordination card stock. The stamp was from a 'Butterfly Kisses Stamp' set with a collection of male stamps.

The card to my left was made using a floral Woodware stamp (I think!). The image was stamped directly onto the right hand side base card with Versafine black ink. The small coloured panel was made using a combination of 3 bright coloured Distress Inks to colour a piece of white card. The floral stamp and message was then stamped on top of this. The whole panel was then inked with Versamark and embossed 3 times with UTEE to create a shiny tile. I was a bit dubious about the bright colours at first, but once the card came together I really liked the effect!

A Pirate Pencil Pot!

Being in the mood for some more altered art, this time my youngest asked for me to make him a pencil pot for his bedroom. Being pirate themed, I had to scrabble about in my stash to find whatever I could with this theme in mind. The actual pencil pot is a basic shaped one bought from the MDF man at Ali Pally. I decided to use pale blue acrylic paint for the base colour in and out. I then found some Papermania paper, 'Ahoy There!' to be my side panels. Each panel I tried to do something different with and therefore used a mixture of stamps from Hobbycraft and Creative Expressions, as well as some nautical themed papers that were free from a magazine some time ago. The stamps were stamped directly on the papers and coloured with Promarkers. The anchor I decided I wanted to be more 3D, so I stamped it on card, cut it out and wound some coloured jewellery wire around it. The bottle was filled with sand and glued on with a hot glue gun, as was the metal key. The chest I cut out and embossed, then made this more 3D by shaping it and using some Pinflair to attach it. The same idea was applied to the skull and crossbones. Finally I used some silver jewellery chain and attached some metal charms from my collection which all fit the theme. At each corner at the top if the pot I used a hot glue gun to attach the chain, and covered this with a flat metal silver brad. I am pleased to say he liked it, especially as there were lots of tactile elements.

                     

Card-io Altered Art CD Crate - More Fairies!!

 

 Following on from the last projects, I decided I wanted to try and use the Card-io stamps to create larger pieces of work. My daughter has just had her room painted and so I thought I would make a piece of useful 'art' for her. This also happened to coincide with a clear-out and an old plain CD rack needing a new home... I painted the CD rack with acrylic paint in a purple colour. Once dry I decided I would use the Cardi-io stamp sets 'Sketchy Spring Floral' and 'Fairies' to build pictures all around the parts of the rack. Again I used Versa Color pads in various shades of purple, and also some white ones for a change. Black was used for the outline sketchy flowers and butterflies to make certain ones 'pop'. The fairies were all stamped in black as well, dotted all over. At the very top of the frame I layered some co-ordinations card as there was an indented emblem which still showed through the paint. The centre wording is from Katy Sue designs. Once all the elements were stamped the last step was some glitter, (of course) which I added using Stickles. She was very pleased with the end result!

 

Card-io Tapestry Style Flower Cards

 Another of Lisa Baker's classes, this time focusing on Card-io stamps. These stamps come in selection packs which can be used alone or interchangeable with others. I haven't really used this style of stamp for some years, and back then they were all called 'Tapestry' stamps. These cards were made using colours from the small square Versa Color pads. The stamp sets used were 'Sketchy Spring Floral' and another with hydrangea style flowers. The bow to the left has been created using the new Sue Wilson Classic 3D Bows die just in white which is really effective. The card below showcases a large Sizzix Bigz die and gives an interesting open front to the card.