Cardmaking-Companion-Blog

Well Christmas has come and gone and for once we had a white one!

Here's a photo of my 6 year old Dalmatian, Jazz, exploring snow for the first time! After these few tentative steps and sniffs he decided the white stuff was fun and started running around like the dappy dog he is!

I had a really good Christmas - my only complaint was that it went too quickly. If I could I'd make Christmas last for at least a week! Although I couldn't manage being away from cardmaking for a whole week.

In fact on Boxing day night I sat in front of the TV watching my umpteenth soppy Christmas movie and opened up a card making kit which I've had for a while.

 I signed up for an annual subscription to a card making magazine and the kit was the free gift.

I thought you might like to see some of the results. These were really easy to make but I think they look really effective. I like the colour combination of pink and coffee, with just a hint of chocolate for the card making embellishments.

So far I've made about 12 cards and I've still got quite a few elements left. Let's hope the soppy movies continue until New Year!

Technorati Tags: card making embellishments, card making kits, card making magazines, cardmaking

  My good friend Jean's birthday is in December so I thought I'd show you the handmade birthday card which I made for her.

Some card makers wonder  if they are making birthday cards for someone around the Christmas/ winter season whether or not they should keep the card to "appropriate" colours i.e. the winter blues, greys etc of the festive red and greens. My view is that the card must always be suited to the personality of the person you are sending it to, and reflect what you feel for them.

As usual I was on the last minute with this one but was fairly pleased with the result.

The base  card is white onto which I matted a pink pearlised design paper (this photo shows just how pearlised the paper is) - the paper was part of a Craftwork Cards gift set which I received free when signing up for an annual cardmaking magazine subscription.

I used the oval and scalloped edge Nestabilities to create the centrepiece and then rubber stamped a Sugar Nellie image with Versafine ink. Tiny pink gems embellished the scalloped edge.

The image was coloured using Copic markers and I used Candy Pink Stickles over the pinafore.

Finishing touches were a "Happy Birthday" card topper and a pink flower with a gemstone centre. The flower picked up the colour of the flowers on the pot plant which the girl is holding in the stamped image.

I'm pleased to say that Jean appreciated it!

Technorati Tags: homemade birthday card

 Are you an organised sort of person who is always on top of things and has all the handmade Christmas cards finished by the beginning of December?

Or are you like me, with 101 things left to do at the last minute?

Well just in case you still haven't completed your cards and are getting desperate, here is the answer - a 2 minute Christmas Card!

These cards are so simple to make yet still have the individual handmade look and feel to them.

I made these from a pack of holographic tags which have been sitting in my "stash" for so many years that I can't remember where I got them from.

The card toppers were free from a cardmaking magazine and were fixed to the gift tag with 3D foam pads to add some dimension to the card.

I used some glitter to add a bit of sparkle to the card toppers and then finished off with a peel off sentiment and a bit of off-cut ribbon. ( Another reason why not to throw anything away, even small off cuts can come in useful!)

The card blank used was a white 3½"  square.

These may not be the most elegant of homemade christmas cards but they are quick, jolly and full of Christmas cheer!

Technorati Tags: card making, card toppers, handmade christmas cards

 My son David is studying for his Masters Degree at Durham which is a beautiful city.

When I found out that they have an annual Christmas Festival it was a great opportunity to kill 2 birds with one stone - visit David and see the Festival.

The Festival was split into 2 sections - the local food fair was in the cloisters of the Cathedral -as pictured on the left.

It was a wonderful setting, especially noticing the signs which warned you to be careful not to step on any young bats which may have fallen from the cloister roof! ( No, I didn't spot any!)

The rest of the Festival was in a large marquee on Palace Green which is in front of the Cathedral.

It was full of stalls selling lots of beautiful items which you never knew you needed!

There were at least 3 stalls there selling handmade cards and card making supplies - I couldn't resist some more winter Cuttlebug embossing folders.

One of the stalls was run by 2 delightful ladies, Shirley & Margaret.

They told me that they are both retired but love card making and do a number of craft fairs every year.

(I took their e-mail addresses but seem to have misplaced them in the hustle and bustle of the fair - so if they are reading this please get in touch through Cardmaking-Companion.)

 Their cards were selling really well and were well presented. If a customer wanted the card personalised they were happy to oblige curtesy of a peel-off. 

So all in all I had a lovely day out, I saw my son and managed to find some wonderful card making!

Technorati Tags: card making, Cuttlebug embossing folders, hand made cards