Fancy a Cuppa?

These new papers are just that bit different, lovely soft muted colours.This is perfect for making the cup and this one has lots of borders to cut out which was just what was needed for around the top of the cup and the saucer

flat back pearls finish of the points....

while a cut out butterfly sits on the handle in the middle of some paper blossoms....

All the goodies for making this are available in the shop...except the cup template, sorry... but it is available here.

Effie

XXX

Jan:Mens cards....easy peesey

 Yes you read it right that most difficult of topics.... cards for the men. Easy, easy easy, when you get your hands on these gorgeous Pion For Father papers. They are double sided, checked, plain, embellishments, borders what more could you want. With a couple of sheets you too could be rustling up a bevy of cards for the men in your life. 

 

 Here I've used the smokey blue option which has a corner already decorated with swirls and a postage stamp. I've just added a strip of hats from the border sheet, a clock and butterfly from the embellishments sheet, a Crafty Individuals image and finished off with a bit of embossed card I found on my desk.

This next one is the checked paper in a lovely shade of brown.

I've used the car advertisement from the reverse of the sheet as the main image. See I told you everything is there for you to put together.

I've even stamped the domino border stamp onto the fab seam binding that Jean is now stocking in the shop.I've used the cream but there's lots of colours to choose from.

Finally I've combined both colour ways to make the last card. The blue and brown compliment each other so well. The strips are from the border sheet and I have darkened the hat strip with a bit of Distress ink.

So what do you think easy or what?
 Men's cards ..pah easy peesey with Pion

Julie: Custom colour your seam binding

Hello again.

Did you know that Jean now stocks seam-binding in the shop? Well ... she does, and while it comes in lots of colours already, I like to experiment with dyeing my own to suit the projects I'm working on at the time. And it couldn't be easier!  

Here's how my latest experiment turned out:

Here's a closer look:

And here's how I achieved the look:

• I cut a length of Eggshell coloured seam-binding and laid it on a waterproof craft mat;
• I then spritzed two shades of Shimmerz spray inks[a yellow and pale pink] directly on to the mat so if formed two inky puddles!
• Next I dipped the seam-binding into the inks and kept moving them around and alternating between colours;
• I spritzed any areas which didn't quite get a full covering directly from the bottle using the lighter shade - so as not to completely cover over the nice mottled effect;
• I then crumpled the ink-soaked binding into a tight ball and left it to dry [or you could gently blast it with a heat gun];
• Once it was dry I ran several strips of strong double-sided tape over my card base and, starting in the centre, wound the binding around in a circle, twisting it and turning it over to create folds, pressing it down into the adhesive as I went along;
• Finally I covered the centre with a decorative button and added pins, pearls and flowers for finishing touches:

Supplies used - available at 3DJean:

• Shimmerz Colouringz spray inks
• Eggshell seam binding
• Pion 12x12 Cut out sheet - Fairytale of Spring [currently reduced in price]
• Hobby House paper flowers, pearl flourish and self-adhesive pearls
• Decorative button
• ATG gun + tape

So, why not have a go at custom-colouring your own seam-binding - all you need is a pale shade of binding plus ... any colouring medium and this doesn't need to be spray ink, you could also try out:

• ProMarkers / Copics / Distress Markers etc;
• Watercolours or any paint medium watered down;
• Ink pads ... and anything else colourful you can think of [I'm considering trying natural dyes - like onion skins etc ... if I give ot a go ... I'll let you know!]

Happy crafting.

Julie :-)

Tweet!

How cute are these little bird houses!....just the thing for this little chap, he's made from paper clay, (you can find it here I had to trawl the tinterweb before Jean got some in the shop...Iv'e stocked up now) I just love that stuff, it's so versatile....his hat is just a cone of paper.

His house sits on a half polystyrene ball covered with map paper (I'm sticking everything on these at the moment...it makes a change from wheels!)

A bit of German scrap and a stamped tape measure finishes the base... which is an empty ribbon reel.

Hope you like it.

Effie

Couple of hours knitting

New wool has arrived lovely pink , a light pink and a dark pink and more are on the site now. All you need is 1 ball of the wool to make these scarves and a couple of spare hours , yes 2 or 3 hours and you will have a lovely scarf knit. Great for those cold summer days , sorry I meant cold winter days. Or why not start knitting for christmas presents. Balls are only £6 , so get knitting.   

Jan:Hanging around

Today I'd like to share a door hanging I've made using those fabulous Pion papers. Now don't tell me you haven't drooled over them in the shop.  They're a must have at the moment so many to choose from but this time I used the For Father papers. There are patterns, plains, embellishments and border sheets all perfectly coordinated.

Absolutely ideal for those difficult man cards or projects.

Julie: Altered 'shrine' project

Hello again.

Today I've got a 3D project to share using the tall Tando Creative 'Mini Theatre Stage':

The structure itself is made from layers of board which you glue together to form a stand-alone structure:

And ... if I'd thought about it before hand, it would have been an ideal way to build up several layers of scenery behind my focal point:

• by adding in a layer of decoration ...
• followed by a layer of frame ...
• follwed by another layer of decoration ... and so on, trapping the scene and incorporating fully into the structure.

Maybe the next one I make I'll remember to try it out!

Before glueing the top frame down, I covered it in 'Horizon' a patterned paper from the Lecon De Choses range and trimmed around the edge with my craft knife:

And, alongside some bits + bobs form my own ephemera collections, I added bottle caps, lots of cabochon and German Scrap foil trimmings:

The various Tando 'shrines' make lovely gifts which you can personalise and tailor to your recipient and fill with items that will mean something to them.  I gave this little scene as a gift on Mother's Day this year and she still has it out on display in the living room ... so I must have done something right!

Thanks for dropping in today. I'll be back here in a few weeks ... see you then.

Julie