MDF Wall Hanging for Christmas

Hi again.

For the mid-month post Iv'e been colouring MDF frames again. For this piece I painted front of the MDF frame with white acrylic paint and when dry,  inked the top part in blue to represent the sky  and the bottom part in brown to represent the landscape.

On the back part of the frame I added a piece of white cardstock and coloured this the same as the front frame so that the landscape continued through from front to back.  I then decided to draw some lines and small trees inside the apeture to make it look like a picture. I stamped the swirls stamp around the outside to add depth and added adhesive gems for sparkle.

I used the MDF Christmas Tree and Star and coloured them with Sparkle Medium. The tree was coloured using Black Stars or you could use Golden Pine Medium and the star was coloured using Silver Sparkle Medium. These were then stuck onto  the frame using a hot melt glue gun.

Adhesive gems were added to the tree for decoration.  A ribbon for the top and it was ready to hang on the wall for Christmas.

Products used

Sparkle Medium - Golden Pine 
Sparkle Medium - Silver   
MDF Frame - Dove

An "Extra Special" Christmas Card made with an MDF frame..

Hi folks,

For this month's theme Iv'e made a Christmas card with a difference - Iv'e used an MDF frame from Imagination Crafts for the card itself and MDF shapes for the main feature embellishment.

To make the Card I first painted the back and front of the frame with white acrylic paint then tinted the edges with a blue dye inkpad.  I also tinted a piece of white cardstock with the blue inkpad and stamped the holly stamp taken from the Decoupage stamp set "Flowers" all over the card with second generation stamped images.  I then stamped "Merry Christmas"  in black ink in the centre.  This was then stuck to the back frame.

To add decoration to the edges of the frame card  I stamped the swirls stamp along each edge to create depth.  I die-cut some swirls and coloured them with blue and gold mica powders then stuck them to the front.  The back and front of the frame were stuck together using a piece of cardstock as the spine, which I stamped again with the swirls and coloured with the blue ink to match the w3hole piece.

I then melted some silver embossing powder in a Melt Pot and poured this over the MDF Candle and whilst still hot, stamped into the image with the swirls stamp.  I then added mica powders to the embossed surface to colour the candle and give it a gold/yellow flame. Tinsel Snowflakes were added for decoration and dots around the apeture of the front frame to highlight the message inside.

Products used
MDF Lantern
Mica powders
Decoupage Stamp set "Flowers"

Christmas Card with Imagination Craft Mica Powders

Mid Month imagination Craft Project - "Night Sky at Christmas"

Hi again

For the mid month project for Imagination Crafts I have made a Christmas Card using Imagination Craft Mica Powders and Sparkle Medium.  The Mica  Powders when mixed with water shine and create lovely backgrounds which twinkle and glow.

I painted the sky onto black mount board using Blue and Irridescent Silver powders creating the look of clouds. I added some purple,  gold and yellow mixed with blue for the land. A little white was added to create depth too.

I spread Silver Sparkle Medium over a chipboard Star and "Noel" embellishment.  I Die-cut some swirls and as these were quite delicate I put some Sparkle Medium onto a brayer and used this to colour the swirls laying them flat on a glass mat and brayering the medium over each one.

The chipboard  frame was made by spreading Black Stars Sparkle Medium and Silver onto random areas the frame and left to dry.

The trees were some metallic embellishments I had left over last year. I really enjoyed painting with these mica's and it's given me ideas on how to use them in future for my paintings and cards etc.,

Product used

Silver Sparkle Medium
Black Stars Sparkle Medium
Mica Powders

Cake Decorating Demo - Love this new hobby.

Hi all

Iv'e been busy Demonstrating again - this time it was cakes again.

This cake was made using a very cheap pre-made cake that I bought and then covered with icing. I then decorated the cake with hand-made roses and punched out flowers and leaves.

You can buy all sorts of designs to punch out and emboss your icing from Snowflakes to ivy leaves. I have found a new hobby now - even more crafty stash to find a home for.

My Demo at Otter Nurseries was mega busy and I sold out of lots of the punches and silicone moulds especially the Christmas designs. Empty shelves and happy customers.

Take a look at these little cakes and you can see there are silicone moulds with all sorts of themes, prams, baby feet, holly leaves, flowers and bells etc  You can even multi-colour the images using different colours of icing too.

The silicone moulds are great and can be used with clay and embossing powders as well.

I don't recommend you use the same moulds for baking as you do for the other crafts. Purchase a different set for baking for hygiene purposes.

Every cake, tart or pie I see now I wonder how I can decorate it.....

Imagination Crafts "Glitter and Sparkle" project

Hi all

For the Imagination Crafts Challenge for November 1st Iv'e made a Glitter and Sparkle project using Sparkle Medium.


Firstly I painted this canvas with blue Acrylic paint at the top and white at the bottom. I then mixed some Diamond Sparkle Medium with Iridescent Green Mica Powders and spread this onto the bottom of the canvas to form the grass. I also mixed the Green Mica Powder with Gunmetal Sparkle Medium for a different tone and also added this onto the bottom of the canvas. I scratched some lines into the Medium at the bottom to make it look like grasses.

For the tree, I spread dome Diamond and Silver Sparkle Medium onto white cardstock, let it dry, then used a Star Punch to punch out the shapes. I arranged the stars into a tree shape. I also added small Christmas Trees to the canvas which I punched out as well.

I made small holes in the canvas on each end of the branches of the tree and pushed through some battery operated Christmas Lights through from the back to the front.. I also taped the other lights on the string to the back of the canvas so that they would shine through the canvas like stars in the sky.

You could use this technique with lots of different images to add some bling to your Christmas creations.

Products used:
Sparkle Medium - Diamond
Sparkle Medium - Gunmetal
Irridescent Mica Powders - Green
Detail Sparkle - White Shimmer
Spatula Knife 
Star and Tree punches.

Halloween card for Imagination Crafts

Hi Everyone

I hope you are all ready for Halloween?  Iv'e made a spooky card for the mid month Inspiration Post on the Imagination-craftschallenges blog.

To make this card I cut out a circle to use as a stencil for the moon then I stippled white acrylic paint through the stencil onto a black card which I had coloured with  blue chalk to colour the background sky.  I then added white chalk all around the edge of the moon and faded it with a blender. I added random lines drawn across the moon made with a water pen and brushed Irridescent Mica Powder over the marks to give a cloudy misty moonlight effect. I used blue and white powders. I then put some silver sparkle Medium onto my finger and gently and thinly spread it over the whole sky to create the look of stars.

I added green mica powder to sparkle gel and spread this onto the bottom of the card to create the grass. I then mixed orange mica powder to sparkle gel and stenciled the plain pumpkin from the Pumpkin stencil. I made a few marks to give the pumpkin a round look and when dry added the pumpkin face using Black Stars Sparkle Medium.

The grass was made using a palette knife which I scratched into the wet Sparkle Gel for effect. To finish I added a black cat using Black Stars Sparkle Medium and gave him two blue adhesive gem eyes .

You can mix mica powders with Sparkle Medium to give colour or even change the colour. Experiment and have fun.

Products used -                  (visit the Imagination Crafts shop here to browse for more products )
Black Stars Sparkle Medium
Silver Sparkle Medium
Irridescent Mica Powders
Water brush
Pumpkin Stencil

Here's a little bonus for you .........

- a Tag also made with the same powders, stencil and methods as above.

Happy crafting...

Cake Decorating at Otter Nurseries

      

Hi Everyone,

Thought I would show you this cake that I decorated when I did my Cake Decorating Demo at Otter Nurseries last week.  Lots of interest in the decorating techniques and the cakes which ranged from small cup cakes to a fairly large wedding cake.  Some ladies had a go themselves and went home with their own little piece of heaven. 

I had so much fun decorating cakes that I now have a brand new hobby and something else to add to my Demonstration profile. I'm looking forward to decorating many more cakes in future - and eating them of course. Yummy.

Sparkle Medium with Glass Paints

Hi again,

Being on the Imagination Crafts Design Team means I can play with all different mediums alongside all the lovely products that Imagination Crafts sell on their website. Click here to go to the website.

It's great fun to create ideas for my two monthly posts so for my first October Inspiration Project I created a "Suncatcher" for Halloween made with Glass Paints and Sparkle Medium.  This could be put in your window on October 31st to shine through your window to outside or hung on your door for those Trick or Treaters.

Firstly I found an old piece of Acetate which used to be part of a plastic window. I cut it to size with a fret saw then painted on the back with yellow (for the sky), orange, green and brown glass paints and covered this with white tissue paper whilst still wet. This gives a crumpled look on the correct side of the piece.

I then used Black Stars Sparkle Medium and the Halloween Stencil - Pumpkin for the images on the front and also went around the edge with the Halloween spider's web stencil to give it a frame. I also added another frame with black card to finish.

Products used

Black Sparkle Medium
Halloween Stencil - Pumpkin

Honiton Craft Club - Talk and Demo

Honiton Craft Club - 

Talk and Demo on Gelli Plates, Sparkle Medium, 3D Embossing and more.....

Today I gave a Talk and Demonstration to Honiton Craft Club ladies and gents.  It was a bit of a last minute booking so I had a little time to prep but mainly played it by ear, giving a few hints and tips on a variety of crafty subjects including using the Gelli Plate to create backgrounds for cards etc, Sparkle Medium, 3D Embossing with Silicone Moulds and more....

The ladies asked lots of questions about all sorts of crafts. As well as Demo's on the above I also added in  lots of little hints and tips on how to decorate Polystyrene Balls, how to make jewellery with Fimo Clay and how to create a Christmas Tree using Bunting etc.,  Iv'e given talks to Honiton Club for quite a while now on a variety of different subjects.  

My next Demo is at Otter Nurseries for their "Ladies Indulgence Evening" on October 2nd from 5pm to 8pm where there is a variety of things going on to keep the ladies amused including a Fashion Show, Card Making and something a little different for me to demonstrate this time -  "Decorating Cakes, Biscuits and Pies" using Fondant and Flower Icing. There are some beautiful moulds for sale in store so come along and see for yourself how easy it is to make your Christmas table look stunning this year.  Pictures to follow soon.... All this talk of food is making me feel hungry....

Sparkle Medium is so adaptable - even for Bags and Jewellery

Felt Bag and Earrings using "Imagination Crafts" products.

This useful little bag was made from one piece of A4 White Felt. I used the Butterfly Stencil and Black Sparkle Medium to create the design.

Sparkle Medium works with lots of medium bases even Felt and Funky Foam (which the Earrings are made from).  Click here to see the fabby colours of Sparkle Medium in the Imagination Craft online shop.

Once the Sparkle Medium was dry I then folded the felt into 3 with the top third acting as the fold over section. I then stitched up both sides, added a button and ribbon to fasten and added white pearl adhesive stones to finish.

The Earrings were made using Black Sparkle Medium on Funky Foam this time.  Stencil the Butterflies so that you have 4 the same size, let them dry then cut them out. (You need 4 so that you can stick 2 back to back to create your Butterfliy Earrings)

3 Gold Eye pins were used onto which I added one gold bead. Pull up 2 of the Eye Pins to form antennae then the other middle one acts as the bit to fasten the chain to with a jump ring. I stuck 2 Butterflies back to back over the 3 Eyepins leaving the bead at the top then at the bottom of the Butterfly add another gold bead through all three Eyepins then turn a loop to finish.

An Earring Wire was added to the top of the chain and adhesive stones to embellish the body - hey presto - you have a pair of sparkly earrings (and a bag to keep them in)..... More creations on the Imagination Crafts blog to inspire you - click here to take a look.

Why not enter our Challenge this month too - click here to go to the Imagination Crafts  "Challenge Blog" and if you use Imagination Crafts products you could be in with a chance of a lovely prize. Remember, you can only enter up to 7 Challenges including our Imagination Crafts Challenge to be in with a chance. (Check out the rules just to be safe)....Back soon with more creations.

Imagination Crafts Products used for the Bag and Earrings -
Butterfly Stencil
Black Stars Medium

Sparke Medium on Felt

Hi all

This creation is made with Sparkle Medium on Felt. When the medium was dry, I cut out the feather shape and added it to another piece of felt - bring to mind that you can make any shape and use it for patchwork, quilting, even stump work - more creations to come soon.

Stained Glass Mirror - New from Old.

Hi again,

As promised another home-made, recycled creation - this time an old mirror that Iv'e added a Stained Glass frame to.

The original mirror was cracked so I cut out the good bit into an oval and added a stained glass frame with a flower for decoration.  I love the colours of glass - but it can be expensive to buy. The orange and yellows in particular as they use real gold to colour the glass.

Iv'e made quite a few stained glass items in the past from lampshades to porch windows.

Stained glass can look fabulous but you do need a lot of equipment and room to work. Bits of glass pinging around your workroom isn't a good idea, especially if you use the room for crafting too....

More creations to come in future for you.

Craft and Art - I love it all....

SOME OF MY CREATIONS - 

Over the next few days I thought I would show you some of my home made creations that adorn my house here in the south west. As I love all forms of both Craft and Art I often paint, use my Stained Glass to create something for the house, or just go for a walk on the beach, collect Driftwood and create something new for my home. 

These two creations are a few of the many things that I have created. I love crafting so I'm running out of space to put my home-made things.  I love to recycle too and use up old things as much as possible. This picture was put into an old frame which I had lying about. 

This painting is of my favourite beach down in Cornwall where I got married. Hubby and I spent the afternoon just playing about on this beach, he in his suit and me in my wedding dress. We must have looked a right state but it's one of the best afternoons Iv'e ever spent on the beach. We even sent off a message in a bottle which is floating around the world somewhere... Who knows it may turn up somewhere in time one day.....

The Driftwood Mirror was made using local Driftwood I found on the beach in Charmouth. 

It was made using an old mirror that had a damaged frame. I used the pieces of local Driftwood to create a new frame and added dowls and wood glue to secure it together so that you don't see any unsightly nails.

Iv'e made lots of different things with Driftwood from jewellery to Christmas Trees. 

It's so versatile. Perhaps my next venture will be a massive creation for the garden. Now there's a challenge Iv'e set myself ......  

More creations to come in the next few days..... some stained glass projects and some mixed media too. 

Imagination Crafts September Challenge

Hi again folks,

For this month's Inspiration Post Iv'e made a Felt Needle Case.

Whilst playing with my craft stash I happened to drop some Sparkle Medium onto Felt and it stuck solid. Wow - yet another medium to work alongside the Imagination Craft Sparkle Paste - Whoohoo.

To make this Needle Case I cut a small piece of Felt big enough to take the "Butterfly Flight" Stencil. I then spread Silver Sparkle Medium over the top and waited for it to dry (I left it overnight just to be sure) Once dry I cut a smaller piece for the centre to take the needles.  I then stitched the centre with running stitch and cotton to attach the inside to the decorated outside piece of felt.

I attached an embellished ribbon to the top and added a Sparkle Medium Butterfly to the end of the ribbon. Embellishments were added to give the piece a bit of bling too. Lots of ideas now mulling around in my head for other projects to make with Felt.

Why not get out your craft stash materials and felt pieces and see what you can come up with for the Imagination Crafts Challenge in September. Don't forget to check out the rules - you can enter up to 7 Challenges including the Imagination Crafts Challenge and if you use Imagination Crafts products you could be in with a chance of a lovely prize too. Click here to be taken to the shop where you can find lots of bargains, sale items and much, much more..

Products used for this project were:

Sparkle Medium Diamond
Butterfly Flight Stencil 
Spatula

For more ideas check out the Imagination Crafts Inspiration Blog and follow us on Facebook for all the latest news.

Imagination Crafts - Inspiration for August.

Hi everyone,

Here I am again working with the lovely stamps from Imagination Crafts. Iv'e made a Funky Foam Booklet for you this month. You can add papers inside to create a notelet holder. For this project I used the Decoupage Stamp Daisy on Gold Metal Sheet - I embossed the image with an embossing tool firstly on the front following the lines of the stamp then again from the back, then coloured in the flower with a permanent marker. A small wire swirl was added for decoration.

The booklet itself is made from Funky Foam. I cut out the foam using deckle edge scissors and snipped into the sides to give an old vintage effect.  I heated the foam with a heat gun, stamped the small flower from the set into the foam whilst it was hot,  let it cool,  then coloured the raised bits with gold paint to highlight the  surface.

I then added a side binder made with black cord and beads (your pages fit inside the booklet held in by this cord binder) Also I stamped some Shrink Plastic with the small flower stamp and added these to the side binder for decoration.
I particularly like working with metal sheets. Copper is great too as you can heat it and it changes colour. Perhaps I will use copper for another Challenge coming up soon..... Why not visit the Inspiration Blog to see more ideas from the Design Team. Click here to be taken to the Inspiration blog or visit the Challenge Blog and have a go yourself - you never know you may just win a prize. Click here for the Challenge Blog. .

Product used in making this booklet:
Funky Foam
Stayzon Black
Black Cord
Gold Wire
Gold Metal sheets and the lovely Decoupage Stamp Set - Daisy  from Imagination Crafts.

Next Month's Challenge is all about Butterfllies so watch this space for more creative ideas to come very soon...

Imagination Crafts August Challenge - Flower Power

Hello again,

For this month's Imagination Crafts Design Team theme "Flower Power" Iv'e used an Imagination Crafts Decoupage stamp to create the flowers on this Notelet Hanger.

I used a small piece of mount board for this wall hanging which I painted with black acrylic paints. I then brushed over the background with beige paint roughly to create texture.
I then coloured some Sparkle Gel with yellow mica powders and spread this onto the Honeycomb Stencil to create a textured background.

I stamped the Decoupage Flower stamp onto green vellum, embossed the images from the back to make the petals stand out and added these to the bottom left of the card. I also stamped the image onto some yellow cardstock with green ink and wrapped this round a post -it note to form a cover. Two holes were punched into the top of the mount board and decorated ribbon threaded through to create a hanger.


Why not join in with the Imagination Crafts August Challenge and see what you can create. Take a look at the Imagination Crafts blog too  - click on the Imagination Crafts Challenge badge on the right to be taken to the challenge.


Check out the Inspiration Blog too for ideas throughout the month  from the Design Team.

Imagination Crafts products used:
Honeycomb Stencil.
Decoupage Flower Stamp Set Daisy
Sparkle Medium of your choice

Rings and Things.

Hi all,

Iv'e been busy making some jewellery and thought I would show you a couple of things that Iv'e made.

I love making jewellery as you can make almost anything with just a few bits and pieces and one or two techniques. Here, on the left,  you can see a ring that I made which only took a few minutes. Below you can see a scarf ring that Iv'e made too using seed beads and wire.

Jewellery is so easy and with a little imagination lots can be created.

I am also starting to use beads on material and felt so keep an eye on this blog for more crafty inspiration.

. Back soon with more crafty images for you.

Imagination Crafts Design Team Inspiration Project - Tag Card.

Imagination Crafts - Design Team Inspiration Project - Tag Card.

Hi again,

This inspiration project "Tag Card"  was made using Imagination Crafts Diamond Stencil and Sparkle Gel Medium mixed with mica powders to add colour.

To create this Tag Card - Spread plain Sparkle Gel Medium over the Diamond Stencil onto dark brown cardstock to create the background for the card.  Then, mix Sparkle Gel Medium with coloured mica powders and spread this onto light brown cardstock and white cardstock.  Once dry, cut out tag shapes from both the light brown card and white card and layer up. (Glitter was added to the white stencilled image before it was dry to add sparkle).
Raffia ties and Forever Friends Die cuts were added to the card plus quilled and rolled flowers to decorate the corners and tags themselves. A Thank you sentiment was also added.

These tags can be used for parcels or presents if you carefully attach them to your card with brads or using the raffia.
Go to the Imagination Crafts Challenge Blog and Inspiration Blog for more ideas. There is a new challenge every month so why not join in and have some Imagination Crafting fun and share your ideas with us.

Imagination Crafts Products used for this project were:
Mica Powders
Sparkle Gel/Medium. There  are lots of lovely colours to choose from. 
Diamond Stencil
Spatula

Summer Lantern made with WoW Embossing Powders

Summer Lantern - use indoors or outside to enhance your garden with colour.

Hi again,

Iv'e made this Summer Lantern to hang either indoors or outside with a T-Light inside. These  look fab if you make lots of them using different coloured embossing powders and you can recyle all your old jars too.

They look stunning in the evenings when the sun goes down if you have a T-Light inside and really brighten up your garden with colour.

Iv'e also added flowers to this jar which were made using a silicone mould and melted embossing powders. I also twisted some wire and added that to the top of the jar for the hanger.

Go the the WoW Embossing powder blog to see lots of projects using the lovely range of powders.  You can access the shop from the blog too to see all the lovely colours and varieties of powders that are available.

Happy crafting and more ideas for you tomorrow.  

The Crafting Cafe's new Challenge - "Summers here"

Hi all

This month's Challenge on the Crafting Cafe blog is "Summer's Here" - to give you a few ideas and inspiration the Design Team have posted a few cards for you and will be adding new ideas throughout the month so keep watching for new inspiration and ideas.

Here's my contibution for this month.  Iv'e used one of the Digi-stamps of a Dragonfly to create this canvas. Why not pop over and join in with the challenge - click here to find out more.

The "Imagination Crafts" Challenge goes "LIVE" today

Today, the Imagination Crafts Challenge goes "LIVE"  - Check out the blog to enter the Challenge. Click on the Challenge Blog Badge on the right to be taken to the Imagination Crafts Challenge Blog.

Being on the Design Team gives me an opportunity to use the lovely products from Imagination Crafts to give a little bit of inspiration to everyone (hopefully) - here Iv'e used the Honeycomb Stencil and Antique Bronze Sparkle Medium to create this canvas. Iv'e also used Gilding Flakes to add to the  background to give the canvas more interest.

First paint your canvas light brown . When dry,  stick the stencil to the canvas with masking tape and  and spread Antique Gold Medium through the stencil. Lift off the stencil carefully and whilst the medium is still wet, add Gilding Flakes to the edges - Don't brush the flakes off yet - leave to dry. Once dry brush off the flakes and they be incorporated into the Sparkle Medium.

I then added a pebble for the bee's body, coloured it with permanent markers and added 3D foam circles for the head.

I added some wings I took off a net butterfly and re-shaped, then added antennae made from wire and adhesive gems. The Flowers were made with tissue paper which I added after inking the edges of the canvas to give depth to the picture. The leaves were hand-drawn, cut out and added along with some green die-cut swirls.  To finish I added a butterfly and some embossed flowers to the edges.  Back soon with more creations for you.

For more inspiration on using Imagination's lovely products click here - Imagination Crafts blog and to spoil you even more -  on 15th July there will be even more ideas for you. The Design Team have come up with a variety of projects to inspire and get your creative juices flowing. Happy crafting x

Jewellery Demonstration at Otter Nurseries on Sunday June 30th

Hi all,

I am demonstrating DoCrafts Cousin's Jewellery at Otter Garden Centre, Ottery St Mary near Honiton on Sunday June 30th from 10.00 - 4.00pm. Come along and see what you can make from the Cousins range of jewellery products in store.

This necklace was made using felt as a backgound and beads and metal embellishments were added plus ribbon and felt flowers. You can use up all your odd bits and pieces with this necklace. 

At the demo I'll be showing everyone how to make a simply Dragonfly from just a few beads and beading wire plus lots of other things too.

With Christmas time looming once again, I tend to start my jewellery making now. Now is a good time to buy my jewellery products and start thinking about presents for family and friends. Come along and see what you could make.   Hope to see you there...

Imagination Crafts Blog Candy

Hi all
Imagination Crafts are offering two lots of blog candy for you.  Take a look here Imagination Crafts Inspiration Blog for details on how to win.

Also, over on the Imagination Crafts Challenge blog you can also win more goodies.  Why not enter - you never know, you may just end up winning these lovely products.

"Summer Blooms" with WoW Embossing Powders

Hi folks,


Here's my latest post on the "WoW" Embossing Powder blog - The theme this month is "Nature" so Iv'e created this canvas with embossed flowers and a Butterfly.  Click here to be taken to the WoW blog and see how I made it.

 I love embossing - one of my favourite crafts and very versatile too. I'm able to play with my new Melt Pot now so the world of embossing is my oyster as they say.  More exciting projects coming your way very soon.

Exciting News - I'm on the Imagination Crafts Challenge Blog Design Team

Imagination Crafts Challenge Blog Design Team

At last I can let you know a bit of my good news - I made it onto the Imagination Crafts Challenge Blog Design Team.   Whooppeeee

I can't wait to get crafting with all the lovely Sparkle Mediums, Stencils and more.  Imagination Crafts also have lots of new products coming out very soon so watch this space for details and time of shows on QVC with the lovely Sue Baker in July.

I am really looking forward to working with the other ladies on the team. Why not Follow the Challenge Blog and join in with all the challenges each month. I'm looking forward to see what you all make.  The first challenge is "Anything goes". Just click on the Imagination Craft Challenge Blog Badge on the right to be taken to the Challenge Blog and see what it's all about...

 Happy crafting -  Back soon with more projects, ideas and inspiration.....

My SILK FIBRE CRAFT WORKSHOP a HUGE success

Hi again -

My Silk Fibre Craft Workshop was very well received. The ladies from  Beer W.I. had a lovely time playing with the silks, choosing their colours to decorate their vases and glasses and loved the idea of "make it float on air" before applying to the glassware.

 Lots of ladies wanted to carry on with their crafting at home so purchased some silks from me too. These can be found on my website (currently being updated). Hopefully I'll be back online very soon.

You can see them in the picture here floating silks and having a lovely time. The Workshop was very well recieved and everyone enjoyed themselves.  As well as using Silks to decorate a variety of objects, I also demonstrated how to make Silk Papers too. Lots of ladies have gone away with a totally new and adaptable hobby.

The Silk Fibre Craft is one of my most popular Workshops. Iv'e been offering this particular Workshop for years and am still getting in the requests from all sorts of Community Groups etc., .  Because anyone can achieve a lovely hand-crafted piece - you don't have to be skilled at anything and it's so much fun into the bargain too.
 I have some very exciting things coming up in the near future too . WATCH THIS SPACE FOR EXCITING NEWS COMING VERY SOON......            
                                                                                             

My Stand at the Silk Fibre Craft Workshop.

I was, yet again asked to write a book about this subject and that's something that I already have planned and is in the pipeline already. Lots to do and so little time.....

Beer W.I. ladies  busy crafting at the Workshop.

My stamps on Copper Sheet

Hi all,

I've used my own range of stamps for this card and stamped onto Copper Sheet to give an "alternative" look to a card. The copper can be coloured using heat and then it changes colour to give some lovely effects.

I'm a busy, busy bee at present regarding crafting. I have some VERY exciting things going on at the moment which are a secret for the time being - I'll let you know about them soon.

I am off to the yearly DoCrafts Designer Conference on Monday to meet up with all the other DoCraft Designers and have a good chat about how things are going etc.,

When I get back from that it's straight down to work again on Wednesday 5th June with a talk to the Beer W.I. ladies about my Silk Fibre Craft. They will all be having a go at decorating with silks and I'll have all my Silk creations on display as well as my cards etc.,  Watch this space for some of my Silk and Felt creations in future.....

Check out the Craftingcafe blogspot too - click here to pop along and see what it's all about - why not enter this month's challenge -  The theme is  "Here Come the Boys" - give it a go and see what you can come up with. You may just win a prize....

Decoupatch Demo at Otter Nurseries - Thursday May 23rd

Decoupatch - the easy way to create something new and original....

I'll be Demonstrating Decoupatch at Otter Nurseries on Thursday May 23rd from 10.00 am - 4.00pm

Come along and see how easy it is to decorate almost anything with the lovely Decoupatch papers. I had so much fun decorating these few things, masks, canvasses, shells, boxes and more......

I particularly liked the cow - these easy to decorate articles can all be found at Otter Nurseries or you can find things from around the house that need sprucing up. I even used some shells that I found lurking around the house looking a bit sad and tired so I decorated them to liven them up a bit.

Pop along, have a go and have some fun into the bargain.     Hope to see you there........

Sparkle Medium on inked canvas

Sparkle Medium Canvas

As promised I am starting to make lots of canvasses to go around the house using a variety of mediums and embellishments.

For this canvas Iv'e just used Imagination Craft's  Sparkle Medium for the flowers and inks for the background.

Canvasses are all the rage at the moment and you can make some lovely images with just inks and stencils.

You don't have to be an artist to create something unique and pretty to hang on your wall at home.

Hope you like it.

Imagination Crafts Sparkle Medium on a Vase.

Hi again,

Iv'e had great fun decorating all sorts of household items with the lovely Sparkle Medium from Imagination Crafts. 

Sparkle Medium from Imagination Crafts is a thick glittery medium that you can use with or without stencils. It comes in different colours and you can mix your own too.

To make this vase I coloured the vase using my unique method (the topic of my Workshop in Exeter on 25th May).  Check details on this blog below this post.

I used an Imagination Crafts stencil and Black Stars Sparkle Paste and stencilled onto some tissue paper, waited for it to dry then cut out some of the butterflies and grasses.  I then applied the cut out shapes to the coloured vase with PVA glue which dries clear.   To finish, the vase was then varnished with Acrylic varnish which dries waterproof allowing you to wipe over the vase to keep it clean (do not immerse in water).  

I love the Sparkle Medium as it has so many uses.

 Iv'e also made a Lampshade using the same stencil and same colour of Sparkle paste too.

To  make: 

Stick the stencil to the lampshade using masking tape. Make sure it is stuck down well otherwise the paste will bleed under the stencil.

Spread the Sparkle paste over the top using a spatula or palette knife. Lift the stencil off carefully and wait to dry.  That's all there is to it. Lovely effects when you turn on the light.

This method could be used on T-Light holders, sun-catchers, candle -holders etc.,

Happy crafting everyone....

Crackle Glaze Canvas - with Dipped Flowers and Ribbons

Hi all

Just thought I would show you this Crackle Glazed Canvas I made. I'll be demonstrating how to make this plus other things at my demo's this weekend.

 For this canvas I used the new "Home to Nest" from DoCrafts for the image then Embossing Powder to dip the flowers and ribbons to create a more 3 Dimensional look.

I'm at Buy and Save on Saturday 4th May Demonstrating the new products from DoCrafts and Trago Mills in Newton Abbot on Sunday 5th so if you are in the area then please pop in and say hello.

NEW CRAFT WORKSHOPS IN EXETER.

NEW to EXETER  - "CRAFT WORKSHOPS"

At Last - my new Craft Workshops are coming to Devon.  I'm holding a variety of new CRAFT WORKSHOPS in EXETER -  anyone interested in Card-Making, Jewellery, Silk Fibre Craft, Felting, Beginners Painting and Papercraft in general won't want to miss out on these new Workshops.  

If you like Card-Making, Scrapbooking, Altered Art etc.,  then these are the Workshops for you....

The first Workshop will be "Silk Fibre Craft" - using real silk fibres to decorate a variety of objects - we will also be making our own "Silk Papers" which can be used for all sorts of crafts from card-making and scrapbooking to sewing and covering books. .... 

Also, I'll be covering the techniques using Silk Fibres  that Iv'e had published in " Papercraft"  magazine. 

All materials will be supplied for you and no experience is necessary. Tea and coffee all morning too. Yummy.   

To enquire about the Workshops or to book your place please CLICK HERE  and I'll be happy to help.


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