Favourite crafts of 2013

I apologise that my blogging towards the end of 2013 was so sporadic, but I was super busy with work and church, so although I did craft, I just didn't get round to blogging. Infact, some of my favourite cards I haven't even posted yet!
As you will see, if you compare my top picks from this year with last years, paper cutting on my silhouette features hugely this year. I still LOVE stamping, but like to combine it with paper cutting too. I've still been making lots of cakes, but again, haven't had to chance to post them all yet.
I got various craft gifts for Christmas, and can't wait to get some extras I ordered post Christmas with my birthday/Christmas money. Baking featured heavily in my presents, and I'm excited with what I might create this year! I'm not one for New Years resolutions, but I am hoping to make more time to blog and create this year. I need to be super organised with my time, but hopefully will do it!

So here are my top picks from 2013!

My design for a valentines card for my friend Stacey...who you will see later got engaged and then married!

I loved making this card from wallpaper, and that amazing mannequin cut on my silhouette. 

I love this wallpaper card too, and that ruffle ribbon rose!

One of my favourites of the year has to be this. A play on Jurassic park for my Sister in Law.

A lovely Waltzingmouse wedding card, again vintage!

An engagement card for my lovely friend Stacey.

I enjoyed creating this design for some friends who got married in March.

Another favourite, I loved the mini playing cards (salvaged from a cracker!) and the lovely little white rabbit charm.

Elijahs birthday banner, well its rainbow coloured, so of course I love it!

This is my first layered paper cut, I love it, and had to design most of the bits from scratch.

Loved piping this Disney font for EJs birthday cake.

I loved making these mini lego figures for my first ever wedding cake for my lovely friend Stacey!

 And my favourite card of the year??

Ta Da!

I loved making this card so much. It combines almost all of my card crafting techniques (Stamping, embossing, cuttlebug, silhouette, layering, sponging, wire twisting, you name it, its on this card!).

I'm so glad it was a card for Joey, and plan on framing it!

I hope you like my top picks from 2013, just click on a photo to go back to the original post.

Happy New Year!

New York Silhouette Skyscape Wedding gift

Here's a paper cut I designed for a very good friend of my DH.

The New York theme is because he proposed there.

I bought the main background file from Silhouette Store, and then made some alterations to it on the silhouette software to adapt the buildings and the windows. I added in a heart shape to the windows on one building.

The bride has a couple of cats, so I sneaked one under the Brooklyn bridge, which I designed the cut for using a photo from google.

Here are wedding rings and love birds, and this shows the dimension I got between the black and grey.

And finally the good old Statue of Liberty! I bought this from the silhouette store too.

I hope you like this, I was please with how it all worked together.

Pretty Banner Card

Here is the card I made for my beautiful niece who was 1 a few weeks ago. This card is almost entirely made on my silhouette.

First I cut a number 1 from pink card and embossed it with cuttlebug Swiss dots. I also cut a coordinating white number 1 to layer onto. I also cut little banner triangles from white card, and some patterned paper I got in a magazine last year, each one with a letter of her name. 

I placed some pink card behind the letter banners to make them stand out. Each little banner is attached to some twine so it falls like a real banner.

Cas-ual Fridays 103 Congratulations

Here is a card I made for my old uni housemate who took part in this weekends Edinburgh Marathon. Whilst I was trudging out 10km, she was doing more than 4x that distance. Unfortunately her leg gave way and she had to be taken to hospital, but I wanted to send her a card to show what an amazing thing she's been part of.

As I love rainbows I used a variety of different style of wallpaper from some old pattern books in a rainbow colour selection and trimmed them with my wavy blade on my guillotine.

I know I've said this before, but I just love my Silhouette Portrait. I'd ummed and aahhed for ages before deciding to get it, but am so glad I did. I didn't have a stamp sentiment that I thought suited this card, so I just got my silhouette out and made my own custom sentiment! The star is cut from holographic silver card (which I'll admit I normally hate, but here it looked great!).

I hope you like this card which is being entered into this weeked CAS-ual friday challenge, Congratulations.

Exciting Times - Baptism cards

Yesterday was a really important day for our Church. Since it was formed last year this was our first baptism service, and so exciting to see 5 people publicly declare their faith. I made cards for everyone and designed  it to be cut on my Silhouette. I incorporated a cross, dove, Ichthus, waves and our church logo into  the design. 

There were 4 girls and one guy being baptised, so I did a turquoise card for the guy, and mainly pinks for the girls, but there was a mother and daughter being baptised, and I wanted them slightly different, so the purple one was for the mum.

Got to love my Silhouette!

Waltzingmouse Flower show CASE

Today we are CASing cards from the recent Waltzingmouse Flower Show.

 I knew when I was looking through the cards that I wanted to CASE JJ Bolton, and had trouble choosing between the two cards she had made, but eventually I settled on the vellum one.

  here is JJs original here

I started off by stamping the main image from Folk Medallions in a rainbow of colours (I do love rainbows!). I then cut a circle in the centre, using circle nestabilities, which would make the centre of the card visible.

I stamped a red medallion onto a piece of white card which would sit inside the card underneath the main medallion and be seen when the card was closed.

Here's how it is when it's open. You can see some of the glitter in the vellum too.

I used my silhouette to cut the black cardstock to the shape of the medallion.

Here's how it looks when its closed.

I added some Fantastic Ribbon rainbow ribbon and a Paper Smooch sentiment (Simply Said) which was stamped in versamark and used Wow extra fine white embossing powder.

Here you can see the inside of the card with the small medallion.

I hope you like my take on the original :)

Wedding A4 Papercut

Have you ever made something and you just can't seem to get it right (a card, scrapbook page, item of clothing, cake)? Well this project had that kind of feeling. Everytime I thought I was just finishing it...something happened.

It all started when I decided that instead of just making a personalised card for a couple of friends getting married I would go the whole hog and make their present too. About a week before the wedding my plans were hampered by my silhouette portrait conking out (a problem with the power cable, Graphtec did a great job of sorting me out a new one, and some Online Silhouette vouchers for my troubles!) and so I wasn't able to get it done in time for the wedding, but undeterred I continued!
So I created the design and cut it...but I wasn't sure if I wanted it white or kraft...so I cut both. White with a kraft paper behind was my decision, so next I decided to distress it...until my husband came over and said "you've got fingerprints on it" and I said "thats the inking"...."oh". Unsurprisingly I thought I'd better start again...but I'd run out of kraft card, so after cutting it (again) I had to stick my (un-inked!)cut onto some kraft wrapping paper which I'd attached to some plain card to give it a bit of body.
Unfortunately the following day I noticed the whole thing had crinkled because the kraft paper wasn't substantial enough. cry.
So I set about cutting it a 4th time (thank goodness I didn't hand cut it!), and still not having any kraft card I improvised again with a cardboard box. Then I couldn't decided whether to attach it directly to the card, or raise it up on foam pads for dimension.

Top Row:
Left: Design cut from kraft paper. Middle: The remnants on the carrier sheet waiting to be removed. Right: 3rd attempt on kraft paper which crinkled.
Bottom:
Left: The distressed 1st attempt. Right: FINAL 4th attempt!

I actually HATE being a perfectionist sometimes, I really need to be able to accept things that aren't perfect...but this wasn't just a nice card, this was a framed gift, and perfection was what I was aiming for.

FINALLY, I had a cut I was happy with, mounted in a way which showed off the cut.

And I'm sooooo pleased I can just give it to the happy couple and not think about it anymore. Plus I don't have to clear all the waste of my carrier sheet for a 5th time!!
Have you ever had a never ending project?!!

Have a Jurassic Birthday!

You know that feeling when you have an idea, make something and its just "wow!". Yeah, that!
I LOVE this card. I don't care if anyone else likes it (apart from the person its intended for!!) because it is absolutely what its meant to be!

When I was making a card a couple of weeks ago I was flipping through some rub ons and showing my hubby, and as I flicked past some dinosaur ones he said "oh, that would be perfect for my sister!". You see she's a HUGE Jurassic Park fan. I wouldn't even like to hesitate a guess as to how many times she's seen it. But it got me thinking. How could I make her a Jurassic Park card?
I set to googling it, and decided to use my new favourite thing, my Silhouette Portrait!
I decided to make a funny version of the logo and use a cute dino instead of the scary one! I also decided to change the name to the Happy Birthday sentiment.

I tried to find the font, and online it was suggested that African was the closest. I used www.dafont.com to download the font for free.

I also printed a sentiment inside the card using the African font. I never use inserts, but on a black card you don't really have an option!

I hope you like my card, I do, and I'm loving my Silhouette more and more!!

CAS-ual Fridays - No Stamps!

Ok, so normally I would start panicking at the thought of no stamps, but I was so excited when I saw this weeks challenge, because I was already making this card and it wasn't going to have any!!!yippee!

My housemate from Uni was turning 30 and I wanted to make a card using my newly mended (the power cord was broken) silhouette. I used a file I'd designed before Christmas for my brothers birthday card (here) and just changed the number. I was so inspired to get out my promarkers and show them some love that I raided some old B&W 6x6 papers and choose one to colour in rainbow style!

Here you can see the part of the 6x6 I didn't colour!

Go look at all the other great projects without stamps at CASual Fridays!

edit - I just missed the deadline - doh!

Be Less Miserable!

So me and some of my work friends went to see Les Miserables, and I wanted to make some little treat bags for everyone.
I have always thought Les Miserables sounded like less miserable since I was a kid, and thought I would do a play on words. I used some simple kraft luggage tags, cut these amazing mini eiffel towers on my silhoette and used some Fantastic Ribbons washi tape to add to the french theme, and then added some handwritten humour!

I used some envelope sleeves for the sweets, and did a little mix of haribo, malteasers and cadburys buttons!

Everyone thought they were really cute, and very tasty!

Valentines Silhouette

So today is Valentines day. To be honest we don't celebrate it as a couple. Never have. We have our own 'special days' to remember, and I'm such a skin flint the idea of going to a restaurant, eating an over priced meal, and receiving flowers where the price has bee hiked up isn't romantic at all.

But I do think it's a great opportunity for singles to take the plunge and let someone know they may like them, and for new couples to be romantic!

I have been playing around with my new Silhouette Portrait and trying to create some of my own digital files, and decided to make a valentines inspired piece.

I was also asked by one of my closest friends to make her a card to give to her boyfriend for valentines, which is quite strange, as I normally only make cards for myself to give, but its lovely to know that she trusted me to make her a card!

 Designed by moi, cut on my silhouette.

Fantastic Ribbons Design Team Bows

So this month the challenge for the design team was to do something fantastic with bows! Easy, right?!!
Well I think its fair to say everyone can tie a simple bow (although getting it to sit right on a card isn't always easy), but I decided to do something a little different.

This is a tiered bow.

The great thing about this type of bow is that you can use up all your scrap pieces of ribbon.

I used 3 different types of ribbon, varying lengths and widths, and used some white cotton thread to tie them together, as I was putting an embellishment over them. You could just as easily use another piece of ribbon to tie them together to get a nice neat finish. Think I'll try that on another card!

 Here it is on the card, and I put a length of the main ribbon along the card too.

The card is for our next door neighbours who have just had their first little one, and I cut the name on my Silhouette Portrait. The concentric circle stamps are Waltzingmouse Teeny Trees, and the Special delivery date stamps are from Post Marks PTI, and the Welcome little one is from a Hero Arts Baby set. Ribbon is from, of course, Fantastic Ribbons
Blue organza Polka dot
Teal gingham
White satin

Putting the Silhouette to the Test

So I've been trying out a few things on my new Silhouette Portrait. I'm not 100% sure about the size of the cutting area. I'm a bit confused about how wide it can actually cut as the cutting mat can take an A4 sheet, but the rollers go down part of it and so far when I've used an A4 piece of card the rollers have caused it to stick to the mat and rip partially when I've removed it. They also kind of mark the paper as they squash it! Anyway, to overcome the sticking issue I've taped down the sides of the carrier sheet so the rollers aren't pressing down onto an adhesive bit, but if I don't use an A4 sheet then the rollers would be going on the adhesive, and I'm sure thats not meant to happen.

Anyhow!

My friends had a baby before Christmas, and I knew that I wanted to make a personalised gift for them.
I used my DSA software to create a design which I could cut on the Silhouette. Now designing for papercutting is quite simple in principle, if you want it to be a single piece after cutting then everything has to touch. If you were hand paper cutting (which is something I got a book on for my birthday and am keen to have a go at!) the margins for cutting can be quiet small (as small as you're confident to cut), but on a electronic cutter you have to consider what the blade is capable of and what you can peel from the carrier without ripping.

Bearing these things in mind I designed the image around her name, date of birth and weight, incorporated some stereotypical baby items (all of which I had to do by hand on the software) and then imported to the Silhouette software. I'm really pleased with how it turned out, and hope my friend is too.

My next cutting project is going to be valentines related!