Tutorial – Butterfly/heart card

Hello!
Valentines is coming up fast so here is a tutorial…
Using a technique I just discovered…. masking with a rubon!

You will need:

• Some rub-ons (butterflies 2 sizes and a swirly background type one)
• Pen
• two coloured ink pads (I used red and green)
• Heart punch
• white card-stock
• red card-stock
• swirly stamp
• dimensionals
• glue
• scissors
• trimmer

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1. Take your swirly background type rub-on and punch out a shape of a heart.
Mine didn’t quite go all the way through but it worked anyway.

2. Then take a 2 3/4″ square piece of white cardstock and Rubon your heartshaped rubon. DO NOT remove the backing at this stage.

3. Now take your makeup sponge and sponge around the heart and the edge of your paper.

4. Now take the green and sponge on the green in between the red heart and edge

5. Now remove the rubon backing. Rubbing where necessary if needed.

6. Now get your two butterflies and rubon them with spare pieces of white cardstock taking off their backing.

7. Now cut around the outside of your butterfly. Leaving a small white frame around them.

8. Now put the adheasive down the middle only of the butterflies and stick them around the heart.

9. Now write the words “My heart… takes flight” on the card where pictured.

10. Now take your red cardstock and trim it to 8″ x 5″ and fold in half for the base of your card.
Next stamp red on your red cardstock the swirl stamp along the top and bottom letting it overhang the edges just a tad.

11. Now stick your embellished square in the middle on an angle.
With dimensionals and pinch the butterfly wings together a little.

12. You have finished your awesome card!!!

Thanks for visiting my blog. Hope you have learned something new.

Whats frustrating to a crafter?…

So whats frustrating to a crafter?
Running out of adhesive, thats what. I have only a bit of liquid Helmar Acid Free Glue left and about 6 squares/dots of foam adhesive left.

Totally run out of xyron 150 refills, tape adhesive, and tape.

Whats even worse is that I have also run out of cotton! so I cannot even start sewing up my 3 quilt tops I have planned…..

above shows one full quilt planned on top and under that 2 quilt tops planned.

OK ok I’m over reacting again. I should really relax and read a book or two while waiting for the next payday to turn up……
come on Thursday! lol

Hmmm I wonder if I could make a card or two with the left over Helmar Acid free glue?

Ohhh I’m doing well – next quilt done!

I’ve done it!
Finished my second baby quilt!

My quilting this time was zig zags and diagonals. Kept it a little more simple.

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And if you want to catch up with a few videos all in one place from CHA then go off to:
http://craftblogassco.wordpress.com/

its awesome what is going on over there!

Cardmaking, business and the quilt

Cardmaking

Lately I have discovered a great cardmaking artist by the name of Michelle Zindorf. Her blog is very inspiring. She does amaizing tutorials with her stamps and ink pads.

Here are a few greeting cards I’ve made using her techniques:

Main tools I used are:
My and carved woodmounted owl lino stamp
Fiskars boarder punch – leave it to weaver
Craft Stuff cartridge punch set – house

The techniques used: layering ink colours, clear embossing resist, coloring stamped image

main tools used here:
marker pens (instead of stamps)
white crayon and colour pencil
Post-it notes and ink pads

Techniques:
Post-it note masking
Direct to paper ink pad “painting”

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Right down to Business:

You’ve heard it right here……..
I’m going to start making my own handbags, wallets, purses, iPod pouches, sunglasses cases out of my paintings.

remember this?

I’m doing these!
The thing that has sparked me to do this is a course I have just finished called “seed money”
was all about how to generate money for or with your craft/art endevours.

I don’t want to make millions – but that would be nice. Just want to make enough to cover my craftiness and my kiddos extra curricular activities such as sport/dance etc (what ever they decide to do). I’d be happy with that.

How? do I hear you say…
well first of all I need materials to make these things, paint the paintings etc so will be doing a few things locally to raise funds for that and then I’ll be arranging my time so I can start making them.

After that I’ll be approaching local shops here in Chch to sell on my behalf or buy them directly off me to sell in the shops.

Oh NUTS!!! You want one? but not here in Christchurch NZ?
Just email me…. My email addy is on my About me page.

I also want to do custom ones…. you got photos of your fave trip ever?
Well I can paint paintings from your photos you email me of your trip and then make them into your handbag…. I could maybe do a handbag, purse combo….

Payments are easy via Paypal. No online shop at this time. But you can easily enquire via email if you are seriously thinking of getting my wares.

Thank you so much for your support and I’ll keep you posted on progress on this new venture of mine.

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Quilting:

My next quilt is happening… I have 2 more rows to “quilt” in a zig-zag design then bind it, take out hand tacking and wash it all up then its done…. Hoping to do it this coming Monday afternoon while the kiddos are out at school – preschool. Such is the life of a mum…. I have to wait THAT long!!!!

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Thanks so much for reading and I hope to see you soon with another exciting installment of my crafty adventures.
Till then have a groovy day filled with happiness!

Just finished

A few days ago the family visited the NZ air force Museum here in Christchurch. I was very interested in the world war 2 clothing rationing that happened. Many handy women must have altered a lot of clothing back then too. I’m inspired by that fact and I’m altering a dress that no longer fits me to a top and some shorts that no longer fit me to a skirt.

I put the detailing on the flower button (ruffle) and the skirt pocket..

A wee while ago you remember me altering my jeans into a skirt?
Well I stamped the heamline…

I did it with White VersaCraft ink and fiskars clear stamp then heat set it like I was told but…
I washed it just recently and the stamping faded heaps…. hmmm must have been something I did wrong… Not sure what though.

I also made these cards. Using my hand made masks from pictures of ladies from mags and sprayed with my new Memories Mist that I won from Terri Sproul. I also won from her some matching stamp pads with the 3 bottles of Memories Mist, 2 packs of paper-clay and 2 bottles of Silk ink.
Awesome products and heaps of fun to use.

sewing the next quilt

Well after almost giving up on my sewing machine. I decided to have one last ditch effort on trying to sew with it…..
But before I did that I found a series of very useful videos on how to do some maintenance by yourself.

here’s a link to the series of 5 videos
http://www.youtube.com/view_play_list?p=8C1DCB55EAB20C4A

well after doing that I decided to have another go at sewing a quilt top together and this was my set up last night…

Yes I’m watching TV – Dr who is showing and then after wards was Robin Hood. I wanted to do some sewing too hence my set up.

Having heaps of fun with my machine now…. only needs a new shuttle hook and a needle plate and it will be perfect. Just waiting on the shop to get back to me on prices of those parts etc….. might take a while – its been a week already and I rang up yesterday – I got back the answer “the rep hasn’t got back to me yet” – Oh how many times have I got that answer for any of my crafting endeavors…. I’d be rich if I got a $1 every time I heard that one! lol

I’ll be back when I’ve finished the quilt.

Tutorial – Stamping up a notepad cover

I did a video tutorial for you….
I’m using my Tim Holtz mini masks for the first time…. love them!

Heres the video:
7min 39 sec long

Thanks for watching!

Tutorial: altering a t-shirt

I have the habit of having fave t-shirts but I also have the problem of under arm staining.

Believe me I get the sunlight soap out and scrub those under arms, then wash them in the washing machine but alas it keeps happening…. But finally I have a solution……

put in new sleeves!
Heres the tutorial on how…

1. Turn top inside out. Then cut close to the seam as possible.
Leaving the finished edge on the sleeve as shown.

2. Cut the bottom of the sleeve along the seam again. This will be your pattern.

3. Place your “pattern” onto the chosen contrasting or matching material.

4. Cut at least an inch or inch and 1/2 away from the “pattern” edge.
PLEASE NOTE: cut longer than the shown… as in short edges should be longer than pictured or the top will be tight under arms.

5. Turn up 1/4 inch to the wrong side along the straight edge, and sew. This is the opening of the sleeve.

6. Place right sides together. This will find the middle of the sleeve on the curved edge (your shoulder seam)

7. Place at the shoulder seam the middle of the sleeve and then pin around the opening of the top.

8. Sew around the sleeve 1/4 inch seam. And down the small straight seam (your under arm)

9. repeat for the other sleeve all above steps.

10. Turn your top in the right way and put it on.

thanks for looking. I hope this is useful to you.

New Craft Blog Association show

I’ve started up a Craft Blog Association.

Its a show to help promote awesome crafty blogs done by bloggers out there that are not manufacturers in the craft industry.

Hoping to do a Craft Blog Association show every 6 months to promote peoples crafty blogs…. applications taken now for May show.

craftblogassco.wordpress.com

next quilt in the planning stages

Next quilt/blanket is in the planning stages!
It took me ages just sorting through the fabric squares I’ve been cutting up to find “matching” or fabric that goes together well for a quilt.
I think I have 3 other quilt “tops” that I can make out of the rest of the cotton fabric. Maybe 4. We will see…. but for now I’m concentrating on this one………….

Here it is all layed out on my bedroom floor and ready to start sewing all the bits together.

This time its hugely bright. Just the way I like life…. full of colour and happy!
The squares and cream fabrics are all given to me from that huge 8 bags of fabric I was given 2 weeks ago. The spotty fabric I bought ages ago from a remnants bin at spotlight for no more than $2.

The batting will be bright yellow polar fleece fabric I bought year ago for another project for megga cheap but never ended up using it.

The back of the quilt will be from a secondhand duvet cover – the set of 2 pillow cases and a double cover bought for $5 at a garage sale.

All fun and games!
Now pray that my sewing machine will sew for me will you?
Thanks!