Tonic Studios | Snowman card

Tonic Studios | Snowflake Acetate Card with Nuvo Glitter Dros

Today its an exciting day! I shall be in Create And Craft UK for the first time introducing the new Nuvo Glitter Drops from Tonic Studios at 8am, 1pm and 6pm.

If you have been following me on social Media or in the blog, you will know that I have been guest presenting (or demonstrating) Tonic products on Create and Craft USA since March. I am loving it! But I am very nervous about demonstrating for the UK!

So I thought I would share one of the projects I am hopefully demonstrate on air. I thought I would share a simple card made with circles and a large Snowflake embellished with the fabulous Nuvo Glitter Drops!

This is an acetate card, finished card 5" x 5". I used extra thick or construction acetate that you can get here from Stix2 or from Hunkydory.

The Tonic dies I used are:

ROCOCO DIE – WINTER SNOWFLAKE – 1016E

THREADED SCALLOP CIRCLE LAYERING DIE SET – 487E

CIRCLE LAYERING DIE SET – 481E

The Nuvo Glitter Drops is a medium that allows you to create perfect gems with encapsulated glitter. You can make them tiny or really large, and they are self levelling so they crete the perfect 3D domes every time.

I used two new colours here, the Sunlit Meadow - a lovely apple green - and Aquatic Mist - a gorgeous mid aqua blue.

I hope you like the card and will tune in to see the demos!
(You can also catch up on the Create and Craft website here.)

New blog post for Craft Asylum | Christmas Card

Click here or on the photo to read more about it.

Sizzix | Quick and easy Christmas cards using die cutting

Quick and easy cards are always essential when making last minute Christmas cards.

Here you have an idea!

Click here or on the photo to see how.

New blog post for Craft Asylum | Christmas Cards

Click here or on the photo to read more about it.

Christmas cards using Craft Asylum

Today's blog post features two cards for Christmas made with non Christmas Craft Asylum collections. Click here for the post!

Today on the Sizzix blog I participate on the first Christmas Challenge 2014: Week 1 Cardmaking!

Adhesives ...

Just a quick post today. As some of the dies are very detailed I loved when Stix2 started doing the foam strips. On the same sheet they come as 5mm and 3mm wide which is ideal for different projects.

I just trim the length I need with a non stick scissors. I prefer to cut them rather than using the ready cut 3 x 3mm as this are a pain to place and remove backings. With the strip its so much easier!

Ps: the peace die cut is from the Christmas Phrase Card and the butterflies bellow are from the Butterflies cards.

They would also make the best shaker card adhesives!

A Christmas ornament tree card

I love Christmas trees, I love flowers and I love triangles. Combining all three things I designed a die that is intricate and creates a beautiful detailed apertures in the shape of a Christmas triangular tree - 659976 Sizzix - Ornament Tree by Paula Pascual.

It will fit on a 5 x 7" card, but worry not, I made a template to create the triangular card that you can download here. It has three pages, with four different ways, a double fold triangular card, a trifold card, a topper with edges, and a single triangle that can be used for bunting. remember that use is strictly personal and for charitable causes.

The die cuts all the little holes and bigger flowers. It is so simple and quick and easy to make, that I think this will probably end up as my Christmas card!

I printed and cut the folded template to create the brown card base. 

I followed the template marks to cut and score down the middle.

Then I used the single triangle template to cut and score the patterned paper.

I then die cut it. 

I just attached it to the brown card by folding the flaps to create a bubble effect. You may need to trim the flaps a bit more as I designed them big enough to create a box like the one on the left photo.

I used a strong glue to attach the flaps, but remember if you are not too bothered about the bubbled effect, then use the single triangle template and glue directly.

This was done out of copier paper just to test the template. And I loved the effect of the white on white so I thought I would share it!

New blog post at Sizzix Eu blog!

A step by step tutorial on how I make acetate cards!

Receiving Christmas Cards

I love receiving Christmas. Yesterday I got one from one of my favourite people, Lindsay Mason, that just left me in awe of her talent. Such a beautiful artwork. Of course, another of my favorite, Julie Hickey, was the first card that I got, as Julie is probably the most organized person I know. She may disagree with me, but in truth she is!


This little lot of Christmas cards can be done fairly fast and without too much expense, a perfect combination for me when it comes to Christmas cards. The beauty of the embossing folders captivates me. A simple card just looks so much better with some embossed plain card.

Bits and pieces

I think you can see a common thread through most of my years Christmas cards, that thread is actually double thread. The obvious one being using the same message as a focal point, the large circle from Large Christmas and the flowers and leaves from Filled with flowers (Versafine ink pads: Crimson Red, Spanish Moss, Vintage Sepia).
The second common thread, less obvious, it is the fact that I am using left over pieces of patterned paper, cards and using any of my large cardstock stash, meaning that I haven't bought any card specifically to make the cards. The patterned papers are this years, so strictly speaking they are not left overs, but I bought them and used them for some projects -articles mainly- so what I am using now are left overs.


By the way, if you are looking for Christmas crafty presents or for craft bargains, check out the offers from Dawn Bibby's shop here.

Making my Christmas cards

Making the cards for my Christmas list is one of the highlights of my paper crafting year. That is what I first started doing so many years ago in Spain, that is what is a non negational thing: I don't send any Christmas card that I haven't done myself. However I tend to wait for the last minute before I make them because I always wait to see all the new products out there.


On Saturday I started to make the bulk of them. I apply to myself few rules, the most important one use whatever cardstock I already have. I allow myself to buy stamps and dies, but I safe the money on the cardstock department.


This is one of the cards I did. Using leftovers in papers (Jovial, from Basic Grey) and card, doing some patchwork and then the message from Large Christmas and Filled with Flowers.

Crescent Tag Card

The snow keeps falling outside so it is the perfect time to crack on my Christmas cards, but truth be told, I really just want to play in the snow. There is about 13" last time I measure it. Not bad!


Anyway, this card I made a couple of months ago for Crafts Beautiful magazine, I think it was the November issue that went on sale in October. Anyway, features my following stamps sets: Joyful Bubbles, Christmas Messages, Filled With flowers (the little dots). The die I used is the Super crescent Sizzix Tag.

More stamping Christmas cards

This one was also part of the article I did recently (las month's issue I believe) for Crafts Beautiful. I used just the Large Christmas set and two ink pads, for the light blue i used memento Summer Sky and for the darker one Versafine Deep Lagoon. 
The circle in the middle was punched out using a 2" circle punch. 
I finished it off with 3mm self adhesive pearls.

Modern Christmas

This card was on the cover of crafts Beautiful last month. Is one of my favorites. I love the colours which was an inspiration from my admired Jennifer Mcguire. The background was stamped repeatedly with one of the border from Dotty Borders, the message is from Essential Christmas and the flowers from Filled with flowers.


All materials available from Sir Stampalot.


I am not doing much creative these days, but I am hoping that inspiration will struck soon as I need to do all my Christmas cards yet.
Have you done yours?

Back home

Last week I went for a few days in Mallorca -Majorca, I just prefer the Spanish/Catalan spelling!- which was a lovely break. I enjoyed the warmer temperatures -not by much, mind you!-, the lovely food and, of course, the company, my family and friends. Although I do have quite a lot of good friends here in England, I do miss terribly my friends in Spain. They are mostly University friends so we talk endlessly about, well just about everything.


The downside is that I haven't been making cards for over a week so I don't have much to share in terms of papercraft.

But I don't think I have shared the inside of a card that I posted  days ago (bellow). The inside is one of those easy pop up mechanisms that I like so much, this time I used as a pop up element a die cut new Nestability shape, the Beaded circles. I believe I used the second largest die to cut plain white smooth card and I stamped one of the circle sentiments from my Large Christmas set. then I stamped one of the two steps flowers from the Filled with flowers set to create an image that resembles a poinsettia. Finally I stamped the dots onto the beaded edges of the circle using the single dot that is on the Filled with Flowers set.

Joy

This week has been a weird one. I didn't feel very good on Monday, Tuesday was even worst. (Nothing serious, food related.) Wednesday I still felt a bit sick but it allowed me to follow the rescue of the miners. Now, that it is a joyous story. 

I am feeling still a bit funny, so I don't really have anything really to say. Just share the photos of this very simple card, outside and inside.


Clear Stamps sets: Joyful Bubbles and Christmas Messages.

Non Christmassy Christmas card

This is another Christmas Card that I did teach last week at The Glitter Pot. Well, actually this was one early version of it, the one that did for the class was slightly different as I used another Tim Holtz on the edge die.

The colors are not very Christmassy, but I love those My Minds Eye papers so I worked with them. And not everyone loooooves Christmas colors. Hey, some people don't even like Christmas. Not me, I really LOVE Christmas, or rather the preparation towards it, cause some years the day itself turns out to be more bitter than sweet.

 

A quick break

The last couple of days have a quick blog break for me. I have had a lot do recently, and I just needed a break. There are still many things on my To Do list, but hopefully will find the time to blog!
This card combines two things I love Cuttlebug embossing folders and stamping. I used one of the larger 7 x 5" folders and then for the message the Large Christmas sentiment in a circle as well as the two step flower from Filled with Flowers.

Simple!