A Little Christmas Recycling!

Morning All!

I thought you might like to see my attempt at being thrifty today by recycling old packaging to make something crafty. First I painted a little wooden box with gold acrylic and then decorated it with Bo Bunny Papers and Stickles. I decided to make a mini album for inside and made little pockets from the cardboard used to back various craft embellishments before covering them in the Bo Bunny Papers to match. I roughly decorated the sides of each pocket with a sweep of the gold paint to tie it all together. I punched a hole in each pocket and added a ring to bind them all together (which I'm going to add ribbon to when I've completed the album).

On the front I made a flower using red metallic petite four cases which had held little chocs at Christmas and popped a big gold button in the centre.

Inside each pocket I made a tag - the back of the tag was made with the designer papers whilst the front used a piece of plastic packaging off my craft embellishment packaging which I quickly whizzed through the Cuttlebug using the Devine Swirls folder then tied them together with a piece of ribbon that had been around a parcel.

Finally, on the top of the box I made the big flower. This was done using the plastic packaging again which I glued some pieces of Chrismas material from an old swatch to the back using Glossy Accents. I then cut out the flower and holly shapes freehand and heated the plastic and material sandwich up with my heat gun to allow me to shape them. When I was happy with the shape - I poked a hole through them all and secured them with a brad and mini silk flower before popping it on the top of my box. (The are some great videos on Youtube on this heating plastic technique.)

I had some lovely crafty embellishments for Christmas off my husband but before I use them I've managed to make use of some the packaging too! Hope I'll be able to be that thrifty in the New Year and try to curb my addiction for new products but somehow...I'm not sure I will! ha! ha!

Hope you like it - I hope to enter my little creation in the Trip Down Memory Lane Challenge to recycle your packaging.

Best wishes and Happy New Year!

Karen x

Memories of Yesteryear

Hi Everyone! This is one of my scrapbook pages with a vintage theme showing images from a sea voyage at the turn of the 19th century. I used Bo Bunny Mama Razzi papers and created the pocket watch from an image cut from Graphic 45 Paper giving it a glassy front with Glossy Accents. The chain was dyed with Alcohol inks and the paper flowers were made by rolling the paper and adding a small pearl in the centre. A real piece of negative film adds dimension and the small 'smile' tag hides a larger tag of hidden journalling.

I hope to enter this in the Simon Says Stamp and Show Challenge which this month has a theme of 'Yesteryear'.

Hope you like it!

Best wishes and bye for now

Karen x

Travel The World

Hi Everyone!

The end of the year draws near and its time for making New Year's resolutions and thinking what we'd like to do in the coming months. Perhaps you're thinking about travelling - off to sunny climes to escape the winter weather? Well as much as I'd like to I don't think I'll be off on my hols just yet so I thought I'd get involved with the Sir Stampalot Challenge which, this month, is to Travel The World. I made a little Paris themed mini book using Distress Inks and the Tim Holtz Artistry stamps. I embossed the details in gold embossing powder, added a little charm and a ribbon tie and made another little mini charm using shrink plastic. The front and back covers were made using UTEE and tiny beads embedded into the hot embossing powder to represent little stars above the Eiffel Tower. I hope you like it!

I'd also like to enter this piece in the Simon Says Stamp - Anything Goes - Challenge.

Best wishes

Karen x

Little Reindeer

Morning All!

While its still the festive season I thought I'd just show you a couple more cards. This one was made using the the papers and stickers from the Honey and Hugs Christmas collection. I love the pastel colours combined with the red dotty ribbon. The pop out section was made using a Spellbinders die to create the apperture in the card and a little bit of silver holographic card helped to make it look frosty!

Bye for now

Karen x

Wow!!

Hi All.
I just wanted to share some fab news with you. Recently I was contacted by the Scrapbook Magazine to say that I was one of nine runners up in their Scrapbooker of the Year competition...I'm chuffed to bits and apparently have £180 of goodies winging their way to me - through the snow and postal hold ups - as we speak.

I don't usually show my scrapbook work on my blog but over the coming days hope to share some with you and would love to know what you think.

Anyway...my winnings this year have made me over the moon and just goes to show that you have to be in it to win it!

Thanks for stopping by.
Best wishes
Karen x

Clarity Christmas

I love the Clarity stamps and all the fabulous effects that designer Barbara Gray can achieve with her brayer and 'Big and Juicy' inkpads but sometimes - when quick and simple are called for, these stamps can be equally effective stamped and embossed in gold and layered onto your card with a mat of gold background paper. i love these little 5x5' cards and their wintry sentiment from the fab poem - 'Twas the Night before Christmas'. Why not have a go yourself - I'm sure you'll be pleased with the results.

Best Boxing Day Wishes

Karen x

Pretty Poinsettia

This card was made using the Poinsettia template from Papermania, scraps of Christmas paper and ribbon layered upon on a background made using the snowflake embossing folder and my cuttlebug - a great way to use up those oddments of Christmas papers from other projects!

Simple but Sparkly

Well, I hope you all had a fabulous Christmas Day and Santa popped you a few crafty things in your stockings! The weather here in Wales is still pretty frosty so what better day than to catch up on showing you a few final pics of the Christmas cards I made this year. The next three posts show my 'simple selection' - ha! ha! I love making fancy cards but sometimes when time is running out - only quick and simple will do! Hope you like them.

Festive wishes

Karen x

The Christmas Story...

I'm not always a lover of Peel Offs but must admit I really like the black silouette type. I created this card with a simple inked background and mat and layered the image on black and silver mirri card - quite effective...what do you think?

Bye for now

Karen x

Dashing through the Snow!

Hi All! Well, I hope you're all safe and sound out there and not too cut off in this snowy weather! Just a quick post to show you some more quick cards created from just some of the gorgous backing papers that have been available to us this year! My Rudolph specials!

Best wishes Karen x

Christmas Quickies

I don't know about you but I always seem to need a lot of quick cards at Christmas for neighbours and people you don't see that often but like to keep in touch with. A friend and I knocked out a pile of 'quickies' using a Martha Stewart punch for a a backround mat and punched snowflakes and gems for embellishments. I hope to enter these cards in the Spoonful of Sugar Challenge which this week is Christmas cards and the ABC Challenge which is for Jewels and Gems.

Crazy for Christmas?

So...are you ready for Christmas yet? Are your prezzies wrapped, cards sent and decs up? Have you found five minutes amongst all the preparations to get a little crafting done? I know the days seem to be whizzing by and I must admit I have done a little crafting - even if the prezzie wrapping has had to take a bit of a back seat - so I thought I'd show you what I've been up to. Another House Mouse decoupage card completed - an image I love - which I hope to enter in the House Mouse and Friends Challenge which this week is Charming Trees and other foliage. You get extra bonus points if you use a charm but I'm a bit low on festive charms at the moment so I'm hoping the fab image will just see me though. Hope you like it!

Best Wishes

Karen x

Christmas Mice 3

As a change from the red and green colour scheme I went all frosty on my next card with a blue and silver theme using plenty of embossed mirri card accented with punched snowflakes and gems. I love these House Mouse christmas cards and its been really hard to part with them ha! ha! - I even made two of this design but there are only so many Christmas cards you can send to yourself! (only kidding.)

I would like to enter this this card in the Papertake Weekly sketch challenge and the ABC Challenge which this week is Ice and Snow and Cute Card Thursday's Blue theme.

More later.

Karen x

Christmas Mice 2

I made this one for a friend who loves cats. The red ribbon really sets the design off - I tried to give the impression of a wrapped Christmas present. I also used plenty of green Stickles in Patina to make the branches of the tree glisten. I would like to enter this card in the ABC Christmas Challenge which this week is Y is for Yuletide with a red and green, holly and berries theme.

Bye for now

Karen x