MHK Designs Christmas In July - Candy Canes and Crackers

       Christmas in July strikes again with Candy Canes & Crackers by MHK Designs. All through July we are showcasing the new Christmas releases with lots of DT inspiration on the MHK Designs blog to help get you started on those cards and decorations.

     For this card I chose to use the candy canes to surround the greeting, substituting the letter 't' with another candy cane. Only the letter 't' is covered with glossy accents, the rest are just coloured in with markers.
     A simple red mat coloured with the same red marker was added to the image panel before being mounted on a layer of red stripe paper from Simply Seasonal paper set.
     With the addition of two larger, coloured and fussy cut candy canes the card is complete. The card is almost flat as the canes are on thin foam pads, this will go as standard post here in the UK.
 

Simply Seasonal

Candy Canes & Crackers

     








   
       There are lots more seasonal sets to choose from over on the MHK Designs Etsy page, so if this has got you thinking about Christmas please take a look at our selection of digi stamps and papers.

I would like to enter this card in the following challenges:

CraftyHazelnut's Patterned Papers - Anything using Patterned Papers
My Time To Craft - Christmas in July
Send A Smile 4 Kids - Christmas in July

MHK Designs Challenge #7

      The MHK Designs challenge this month doesn't have to be Christmas but with this colour palette and our Christmas in July theme what is a girl to do?!

     I have used two of the new release sets to make some mini table crackers. From an A4 sheet of thin card, printed with the red stripe from Simply Seasonal, I have die cut two mini crackers. These are big enough to hold a small trinket or a few sweets, they're just over 6 inches long. They are tied with curling ribbon but could just as easily be done with bakers twine or organza. 

     The tag is printed on pearl card with a sentiment from Candy Canes and Crackers and cut with a tag punch. The edges are coloured with a red Distress ink, then a small silver die cut holly sprig is added under a red gem, the tag is stuck on, not tied. This is also a great way to make place markers, just print the name on the tag.

MHK Designs July challenge

     The challenge runs for a month so you have plenty of time to come and join us at MHK Designs blog, you don't have to use MHK Designs images but we would love it if you did and there is a chance to win two brand new sets including the paper set I have used in this project.

Candy Canes and Crackers

Simply Seasonal

I would like to enter these crackers in the following challenges:

Dream Valley - Christmas In July

CraftyHazelnut's Patterned Papers - Anything using Patterned Paper

Whoopsi Daisy Digi & CD - Christmas In July

CraftyHazelnut's Christmas Challenge - Anything Christmas

Keep On Truckin'

      This time the challenge at The Male Room is to use Red, Blue and One Other Colour. I have chosen to make a quick CAS card using a Woodware stamp set I've had in my stash for a while.

      Using a DL card blank I stamped three lorries in a row and then coloured them with watercolour pencils,  I have used a silver gel pen on the bumper, exhaust stack and tanker but it doesn't show up very well in a photo, sorry.

      It has no real greeting on it yet as I don't know if I shall use it as a celebration card or just a hello, how are you card.

      Come and join us at The Male Room with your creation, we would love to see what you come up with for our colour challenge, just remember anything masculine.

I would like to enter this card in the following challenges:

Crafting When We Can - Based On A Movie  (Convoy)

Dragonfly Dreams - Anything Goes

MHK Designs Christmas In July - Deck The Halls

      MHK Designs Christmas in July is showcasing Deck The Halls today, for this project I've teamed it up with the paper set by the same name.

     I have printed four copies of the tree, two are in reverse so they can be matched up to form a dimensional tree. All four have been coloured the same with a mix of markers and glitter, then scored down the middle and folded. Each folded tree is glued to the next, there were a few tiny white edges so they have been coloured with the same pens to hide them.
     The backing design was printed on thick paper, then stamped with Versamark using a multi-lingual Christmas greeting stamp and finally brushed with gold mica powder. The edges are coloured with a little gold metallic paint.
     Once dry the backing was stuck onto a large white tag coloured green with Distress ink. The tree was stuck down on the right so a mirri card die cut greeting could be added on the left.
      To add a little more interest to the tag there is a die cut bauble carrying a greeting from the stamp set stuck on with foam pads over the bakers twine from the ribbon adornment, this was coloured with Distress ink while the die was still in place to get that even white border.

Deck The Halls

Deck The Halls Paper Set

     There are more Christmas releases to come from MHK Designs so please pop over to the MHK Designs blog for some inspiration. If you can't wait to see what the releases are then head over to the MHK Designs Etsy shop to see the full release.

I would like to enter this tag in the following challenge:

Holly Jolly - Inspired by a Song  (Trim up the tree, How the Grinch stole Christmas)

MHK Designs - Christmas in July

     Christmas in July? well it's not snowing, but it's not exactly summer weather either here in the UK. With five months to go I have finally started making Christmas cards, it'll give me more time for gifts and decorations later.
     MHK Designs are releasing some new seasonal sets this month but for today's card I have used two of last years releases, Holiday Deer and Christmas Past.
     The image of the deer has been altered to remove the overhead foliage, now I can use it on a square card. It's printed in black on to white card suitable for markers.

      I ave used GraphIt alcohol markers to colour the image.
     To add glitter to the mountains I used the new Stix2 glue pen while the glue was blue and wet. For the foil berries I used the same glue pen but let the glue dry to clear, once the glue is clear it is tacky and takes cold foil perfectly
     The image panel is mounted on a red foil layer to match the berries, then on to a paper from the Christmas Past set that has been altered to shades of green.
     There is a die cut pine branch coloured with Distress Ink Pine Needles holding a die cut greeting bauble, also coloured with Distress Ink, mounted on foam pads added to the corner of the card. The foam pads are only one layer thick so this card will fit in standard post in the UK.

Holiday Deer

Christmas Past

      Throughout July MHK Designs are showcasing the new seasonal releases so pop over to MHK Designs blog and have a look at this years great designs. All Christmas sets are available on MHK Design Etsy page.

I would like to enter this card in the following challenges:

Cardz 4 Guyz - Christmas In July

ABC Christmas - N is for No Rules

Christmas Cards All Year 'Round - Anything Christmas Goes

40 Watt Flowers

     We've set you a real challenge this time at The Male Room, we would like to see you make flowers masculine. The DT have come up with some ideas to help get you started.

     Chocolate Baroque have some great steampunk style flowers, this set is called Punky Flowers, it's been out a couple of years but is still available.
     This flower spray has been stamped and embossed in silver on black card. I have used Cosmic Shimmer watercolour paints to colour them in. I have the original single pots, they now come in a pallet but they are the same thing, repackaged and just as gorgeous.
     I wanted to pick out the blue so I used a layer of pearl paper to mat the image panel on before putting it on to an embossed mirri layer. The silver mirri was rather bright so I have used some black acrylic paint dabbed on to age it and dull it down a bit. I had to use redline tape to stick this on as the mirri card is very shiny and I needed a firm fix.
     I have coloured a white card blank with Distress Ink Black Soot around the edges, let it dry and then added my mirri panel on top so it looks like it's on a black card. This makes it easier to stamp inside when I decide what to use it for.
      Please come and join us at The Male Room, we would love to see what you create.

I would like to enter this card in the following challenges:

Crafty Sentiments - Flowers

Great Impressions - Anything Goes
Dragonfly Dreams - Anything Goes

Summer Squeeze at the House Of Cards

     Welcome to the new challenge for the House Of Cards, we have a lovely summer feel to our challenge prompt this month, all we need now is the rain to stop here in the UK!
     I found a rather nice vintage poster for lemonade which I printed out twice, cutting out the lemons and decoupaging them. The green mount matches the base card just to make it pop out a little.
     The yellow background is made using Distress Ink Squeezed Lemonade and a light burst stencil, I thought it looked a little like a slice of lemon. The poster is mounted on the lemon background on thin foam pads.
     The glass of lemonade was hand drawn and coloured with alcohol markers, with a little white gel pen to touch up the slice of lemon on the rim. It's fussy cut and mounted on thick foam pads so it stands a little above the poster.
     We have lots of inspiration for you at the House Of Cards so please pop over and take a look, the challenge runs until the end of the month.

July - Fruit/Drink and/or colours

I would like to enter this card in the following challenges:

Creative Moments - Anything Goes / Summer

The Sisterhood Of Crafters - Create Your Own Background

Deep Ocean - The Colours Of Summer

Papier Mache Heads Up

     Welcome to this months project for Altered Eclectics. This one took a couple of months to make, it's an idea that's been buzzing around in my head ever since I saw a polystyrene head in the charity shop.

      I decided that I might want to make another bust sometime, so I covered the head with cling film before starting to cover with papier mache.
     I used approximately 250ml of an inexpensive children's PVA glue and a complete copy of my local weekly newspaper.
   

     The paper cast is about seven layers thick, nice and firm. I tore my paper into pieces, this seems to make the finished cast a little smoother.
     I had to cut from top to bottom to remove the polystyrene form. While the head was undergoing surgery I glued some stones inside to weight the bottom, this will stop it falling over when the headphones are on it.

     Once 'stoned' it was another operation to heal the cut, a little masking tape to hold it shut followed by two layers of papier mache.
     When completely dry it was painted with white gesso. Then came the fun part, adding all the cut outs.
     The left side is covered with cogs, numbers and letters and the right is covered with flowers, music and patterns.
     After the gesso I painted with a mix of Distress paints in Evergreen Bough, Peeled paint, Salty Ocean and Broken China.

      After all the paint had dried, which seemed likes ages, I could begin to 'grunge' it.
     I have used Cosmic Shimmer gilding wax Autumn Bronze to make the head look like an old bronze bust.

     As the wax doesn't completely cover the paint it looks aged and with a good polish with an old duster it shines beautifully.    
     Some finishing touches were some tiny gems on the flowers and along the paisley shapes. The left eye is a glass dome stuck over a desert island photograph and stuck on with silicone glue.
     It has been given the teenage boy seal of approval so now sits on the window sill sporting a pair of headphones, it was intended to stop them being left on the sofa and sat on, so a creative and useful result.
     Please pop over to Altered Eclectics to see what the DT have come up with, we would love it if you came and joined us with your creations, anything mixed media but no cards or ATC's.

I would like to enter my creation in the following challenges:

SanDee and Amelie's Steampunk  - Anything Steampunk

We Love To Create - Anything Mixed Media

Classic DT Challenge - Anything DT

More Mixed Media - Anything Goes (optional Purple)

That's Crafty - Masculine

Country View - Circles 

Easy Origami Box

        Good morning and welcome to my first project for CraftyHazelnut's Patterned Paper Challenge, I'm thrilled to have been asked to join the creative design team. This challenge is fabulous, you can enter anything you've made as long as you use patterned paper, so dig out those papers and come and join us.

     I like to use my papers for all sorts of projects, not just cards. This box is very easy to make, here's a link to a very good video tutorial.
     The only tip I could add to this great video is rather than fold the square in half, corner to corner to find the centre, mark it lightly with a pencil, then your finished box won't have any creases across the lid or base to spoil the end result.

     I have put a card insert inside both lid and base to make it a little neater. The lid has been stamped with cherry blossom and the base with a greeting, both have been coloured around the edges with Distress ink.
     This would be a nice way of hiding a personal message inside for the recipient. If you have several sheets of the same paper you could make the card, tag and gift box to match.
     The acetate butterfly on top is a digi stamp coloured with alcohol markers. You can find a post about where to get the digi's and how to make them here.
      When you've had time to go through your stash of papers and make your project, come and join us at CraftyHazelnut's Patterned Paper Challenge, we would love to see your creations.

I would like to enter this gift box in the following challenges:

Crafty Girls Creations - Anything Goes

Seize The Birthday - Birds, Bees or Butterflies

Decorate To Celebrate - Anything Goes

Try It On Tuesday - I Believe I Can Fly