A Starry Birthday Card for Benjamin

Ever been in the situation where your child is due at another child's birthday party in an hour (or less)? You'd think I'd have a stash of kids' cards on hand but no, no such luck. Here's a card I made quickly using a stamp wheel called Classic Stars. In fact, I made it while teaching at a stamp-and-crop-day so it wasn't in anyway difficult. I used Ballet Blue which is one of my favourite blue colours in the Stampin' Up! range. It looks good teamed with Real Red. A customer kindly gave me a chipboard number "8" and I inked it with Ballet Blue but of course, I didn't paint it white first so Ballet Blue became almost Not Quite Navy with the grey of the chip coming through.

I was lucky to remember to take a photo before I hastily stuffed it into an envelope and attached it to the gift. The resulting photo isn't well lit but there is a row of piercing underneath the stars (in the red cardstock). And the stamped red stars (which were punched out using the large and small Stampin' Up'! stars punches) are popped up with Stampin' Dimensionals. Not sure I needed that Real Red grosgrain ribbon in hindsight.

In the end, Benjamin had a fun birthday party in the company of his friends, including my son so I was happy.

Love from Crafty Kim

Belated Happy Birthday to Leanne

I made this card for my good friend and Africa travel partner, Leanne, who celebrated her birthday last month. It's taken me this long to catch up and present her with a card and gift. It's a little sad when our lives get busy and take us in different directions but she's often on my mind.

I borrowed Fifth Avenue Floral from to make the card. I set myself a challenge of using colours I wouldn't normally reach for. It also helped that the card stock was sitting on my desk, remaining from earlier card-making. It was only afterwards that I questioned whether there is such a thing as a blue rose. I'm sure it's possible with all the genetic engineering in horticulture but personally, I haven't spied one.

To get the textured background, I stamped the flowers in Versamark on Brilliant Blue card stock and then clear heat embossed them. For the main image, I wanted an embossed (raised) image to help me stay within the lines when water-colouring. But I also wanted the flower to be Brilliant Blue in colour. Nearly all of the Stampin' Up! inks available in Australia are dye inks and they dry very quickly which is not helpful when you want the ink to dry slowly enough to coat it with an embossing power. Fortunately there is a workaround by inking the stamp in Versamark first, then Brilliant Blue dye ink followed quickly with clear embossing powder and heating. You can see this technique demonstrated via an online video here.

I created two embossed Brilliant Blue roses on watercolour paper so that I could colour and cut them out for a layered effect:


The top layer is smaller than the bottom layer, paper-tole style I guess, but only two layers and much quicker than multiple layers. The pretty lace border punch has been applied to Gable Green cardstock, and a greeting stamped in Brilliant Blue. A bit of sponging and it was done after decorating an envelope to match.

I'm really keen on this set, it first caught my eye when the queen of watercolouring, Alisa Tilsner, made the following card (click on the preview to go to Alisa's website and view the full card):

(With thanks to Alisa for her inspiring work)

Bye for now,

Love from Crafty Kim

Sneaky Peeky from New Spring Mini Catalogue

Here's the first card I've made using the following sketch as inspiration:

It's also made from a stamp set featured in the upcoming new Spring Mini Catalogue called Great Friend. It's my favourite out of the new batch of stamps. I love the butterfly. And the sentiment, "You're a friend who makes the good times great" really touches me because without my friends, my life wouldn't be a patch on what it is today.

There are three new papers in the new Mini but I've used Raspberry Tart from the main catalogue to make this card. The colours are not those I would normally team together (Reds, Cameo Coral and Kiwi Kiss) but it works. Albeit brightly. Of course, you could use any paper and colour combination if you're inspired to try the sketch.

If you want to have a play with the new Great Friend set, you'll get a chance at the Spring Mini Launch that I'm hosting on Saturday 8 August. Please try to make it along, I promise it will be fun.

Two posts in as many days, I'm happy. Stay tuned, I had a birthday recently so I've got some cards to share with you.

Love Crafty Kim

Cute Punch Animal Cards

Woo hoo, I made it here to post some of my creations. I've been snapping away today so lots to show you over the next few days.

I love Punch Art but don't often take the time to do it. But I recently set myself a challenge to make some Cute Critter cards for a paper-craft class group. Here are the results:


Now this pup is a bit tricky because I had the hand-cut his body. Not rocket science I hasten to add, just not as easy as punching out the shape. Now I've also been having a Cuttlebug and Nestabilities session in preparation for another upcoming class so I used the Swiss Dots embossing folder to give this doggy a nice background to sit on. The greeting was printed out on my 'puter using Comic Sans font and then punched with the Stampin' Up! Word Window Punch.

This next card is the easiest one, a quick starting point if you're inspired to make some of these cards:


Again, I've used a Cuttlebug embossing folder to make the grass. And if you're wondering how the background is done, I hand-drew some clouds on a piece of scrap paper, cut two out, and then used them to mask the white card while I sponged around the mask with blue.

Now for my favourite card (although the dog was a close second):


This time I used a Nestabilities Label as a mat for my frog on its lily pad. And I've used a CuttleBug folder on the card base. I'm really loving the variety of card image mats I can make with the Nesties, sure beats a rectangle or square.

And last, but not least, was an adaption of a card featured on my blog earlier this year:


Most of the details are on the original post but I added the embossed heart background and greeting.

In the interest of speedy posting, I'm not publishing the ingredients or how-to for these cards. But if you have any questions, please let me know. And I confess, I didn't invent these creatures. I collected the ideas from a late night trawl of the internet and CASE'd away to make them my own. I'd love to acknowledge the inspiring artists but I've lost track. But THANKS to those other paper-crafters who so willingly and generously share their tips and tricks. May Kraft Karma reward you.

Love from Crafty Kim

Dates for your diary

Just popping in quickly to ask you local crafters to save the following dates:


Saturday 8 August, from 2pm - 8pm, at Cherrybrook. I am holding a launch party for the new Stampin' Up! Mini Catalogue which runs from August through to November 2009. More details will follow in an invitation to my newsletter subscribers (if you're not on my database, please email me.). Come when you can, go when you must!



Saturday 10 October, from 9:30am - 5pm, at Epping. It's time for the Getting Ready for Christmas Craft Day. Remember last year's event? Invitations will be issued shortly but places are limited so feel free to register your interest now by emailing me.

I hope you can join in the fun.

Love from Crafty Kim

Some places to visit between my posts

Hello,

I'm sorry for the infrequent postings to my website. I'm REALLY missing my paper-craft. And hanging out in the crafty cyber-world. But for now, it has to be.

Thanks to those crafty friends who supported my Tupperware party. We had a good night and our plasticware needs are all sorted. But I promised my next post would be a crafty one.

I've made a few cards as June is the busy month of the year for family and friends' birthdays. But I haven't taken photos of many. Let alone uploaded them.

Soooo, before you log off in boredom, I wanted to let you know where you can go for interesting crafty stuff while I'm off at work. My top picks are:

1. **NEW ** Stampin Up! Video Channel. Do yourself a favour and subscribe. Whole days could be spent here.

2. Ryn Scraps. The website of one of my SU! downline, Carolyn Gibbs aka Ryn. Ryn's creations are truly unique and original and I always admire her creativity. She is a multi-talented person, and highly capable girl who I wish well in her current job hunt. If anyone is looking for a new employee, she is well worth an interview.

I've got more suggestions but hubby Bryan awaits a trip to the movies. My little boy is at Nanna's tonight and it is my birthday tomorrow so we're off the flicks.

Love you all later,

Crafty Kim