Wednesday, 17 June 2009

Making do...

You know when youre looking for an embellishment/focal point/something and you just dont have anything thats suitable...do you make your own? I made this simple inking template to create both a flower and sunburst, depending on what you need it for....

First punch out an 8 petal flower...
..cut around the edge leaving enough room at one side so that you have something to hold...
......line up the punch with the petals of the shape you already cut out....
.....the petals will pop out and you will be left with a 16 petal flower/sunburst...
Lay this on the paper and gentle rub ink/chalk from the edge INTO the shape....this will stop the ink from bleeding outside of the template.
Voila, a perfect little design you can use again and again without costing a penny! :)
I used mine as little journalling spots on a layout created for my class this week.

Remember to check in tomorrow for a fab new template and box tutorial! :D

Monday, 15 June 2009

What im enjoying right now....

**The purple flower is a Tradescantia - thank you Annette**

A few random pics while walking round the garden...Does anyone know what plant this is?? Its grown like wildfire and looks so pretty.....Foxgloves and roses growing up the side of the shed....
....yummmm fresh strawberries....
...(ive never grown tomato plants before!) these are the ones next door gave us and look at that beauty already!
The minature roses are in full bloom this year - last year i think there were 2 flowers on there!
Our new (first of three) veggie patch built by ds2 and dh :) Its going to take some filling - its 4ft x 4ft and 1 1/2 ft deep!!
Im absolutely loving the fact Tesco had these Green Family reward charts on offer! The kids are excited and making more of an effort with the recycling - what is it about moving stickers around that keeps them working at it! lol
Love Love Loving the fact we are getting either 3 or 4 fresh eggs a day! I really dont think i could ever tire of that feeling you get when you open the coop door and see a little pressie in the nesting box *awww*

Im also enjoying the creative mojo i have right now - i just cant seem to get enough paper and glue!! Here is another card i made for the Gallery Idol (thanks to all for the good luck vibes too!)

Sunday, 14 June 2009

Creative Sunday! :)

Afternoon - isnt it lovely out there today!!

My cousin is coming this afternoon as i have been asked to make all of her wedding stationary for next year. Today we are going to work on the Save the Date cards that are being sent out soon - i think shes going for a peacock blue colour which will look stunning against cream card! Cant wait to start!

Here are a couple of snippits of a layout i have been designing as guest for July at A Trip Down Memory Lane. The projects go live in a few weeks time so until then i cant really share anymore than these little bits ;)

Also here is the card i have made for Gallery Idol 2009 - please keep your fingers crossed for the first round which closes next monday (yep i know i said today but im a ditzy mare!) :)

Catch you later xxx

Saturday, 13 June 2009

Very exciting!!

Yesterday morning we got our very first egg!! By lunch time we had 2 more!! :D
The girls have settled in really well and today gave us 4 eggs!!
They deserved a little free time so we let them out of their pen to roam around the garden and they were as good as gold. Theyre still a little flighty when you go to close but theyre coming round :)After a trip to B&Q to get the supplies for the veggie garden and working on that this afternoon im shattered!

I do however have some FAB news - so exciting!! I have been selected to join the Scrapbookmate International Design team! How cool is that - i re-read the email a few times just incase it had come to the wrong person!! LOL ;)

Friday, 12 June 2009

Welcome home girls!!

Guess who arrived yesterday afternoon?? YAYYY our chickens, Milly, Tilly, Cupcake, Cocoa, Lottie and Ginger! They are really shy and still quite scared so are keeping indoors but Ginger ventured out and i managed to snap a pic of her :DMilly and Tilly poked their heads out to see what was going on but they stayed indoors.They are settling in fine though and by the time it came to close them up last night they were all wandering around the pen in the fresh air - i felt guilty locking them up after having their first taste of freedom! This morning though Ben got up at 6 to open up their gates and they all came out into the fresh air :) Will take some pics when im not in my jammies!! lol

Here are a couple more layouts i have made for the Scrapbook shop
I love Lime Rickey - the colours just pop against the white cardstock and they are so bright it makes the layout look really funky!
A little close up of the dimension...
This is the fab Lil Man range of papers and how adorable are those little clouds and star shaped chipboard buttons! I know ive scrapped these pictures before but these layouts are going to be displayed in the store so i quite enjoyed doing something different this time :)Hope you all have a lovely start to the weekend.....im off to get ready and go see our new girls :D

Thursday, 11 June 2009

Tutorial Thursday :)

Yayy 2 weeks in a row so im on target so far LOL ;)

Here goes on a little present for fathers day. Little ones get so much pleasure from making something of their own to give as a present. This present will be even cooler if daddy is into camping, sailing or gardening!
This gift box can be themed for any of these with a simple flag or some little sticks tied together. How about instead of the sweet, pop in a little teeny plantpot with his favourite seeds. With the addition of a pirate flag it could become a raft - how cool would that be for individual cupcakes at a boys birthday party!! :)

Here goes...

Cut a piece of card 7x9 inches.Mark and score at 1 inch, 1/2 in, 1/2in, 1in, 3in, 1in, 1/2in, 1/2in, 1in = 9 inches total
Turn and score down both of the longer sides at the 1inch and 2 inch marks.
Back to working on the shorter sides. Along the middle 3 inch section, at each end, you need to mark a 1 inch square and score ready to fold.
You need to create a little slot where the handle will slip through. Leave the 2 1/2in sections and move down to the last 1 inch section, mark a little letterbox type split in line with your handle you scored earlier.
The following 2 pictures show how the template should look once the sections are cut away.
Place DST on the inside of the scored section you cut earlier.
Fold and again pop on some DST, fold the other side over.
Place your template flat on a surface and stick DST to the inside of the 2 side panels, the inside of each end (where my finger is in the pic). Fold over the side reinforcements and pop the DST on the OTHER side - these are to be pushed against the side panels so need the tape on the opposite side to the rest.
Fold the panels you just taped in to the middle of the side section and bring the actual side of the box up and over.
The end panels can be folded down the half inch score line and the end sections will stick together.
Fold these in on themselves at the same time passing the handle through the slot you cut earlier.
This is how the finished bottom section should look.
Now for the decoration :) Cut a 3x3inch square of cardstock or decorative THICK paper. Remember it has to hold whatever you are placing in the middle! Either use a die cut machine or hand punch to create a 'holder' space in the middle of this section. Use DST to secure this to the top of your box.
I wrapped DST (yes i should have shares! lol) around the whole box....
....and added jute string by wrapping it round and round, leaving a little at the beginning and end to fasten into a double knot.
I rounded the corners of the handles and inked all of the edges. Decorated it with buttons and a Its Fathers Day sentiment. A little flag is the finishing touch and doesnt it look like a little raft.......or campfire base.......or, well im sure with a little imagination, it could look like anything! :)
Couldnt resist this picture but while i had my back turned Jacob took a bite out of the desert! LOL How cute is that little nibble from the back! Dont you love it when kids hold out their arms at full length when theyre presenting you with something - thats the good thing about the little handles on this project! Good job it needed to be eaten straight away (fresh cream) and we will fill it again in time for fathers day...
...we have plenty to fill it with so im sure we can make a couple more just to try! ;)

Thanks for checking and remember to link back if you make anything as i love seeing what you do with the templates :)