Shrink Plastic platform card with Nestabilities

Same idea as yesterday for this card. I stamped the flourish design onto pale blue vellum with white Brilliance ink and left it to dry.

I stamped the same flourish onto a large scalloped edge square of translucent shrink plastic that I cut with a Nestability and shrunk it straightaway, no need to wait for it to dry.

The largest dragonfly on Kay's Funky Frames stamp sheet was stamped with black archival ink onto another piece of shrink plastic that had been cut from a large label Nestability.

I edged the piece with the black ink so that there would be a contrast between the dragonfly piece and the scalloped platform.

I left it to dry for 30 minutes before colouring with Sakura stardust pens as I explained on yesterday's card.

I shrank it down and glued it onto the platform.

Remember not to panic when shrinking!!

Jill Boulton held a workshop with us here today, but I didn't get to play:(   In amongst serving customers, I must have made quite a lot of cups of tea and coffee, dozens I think, plus Ian and I made a start getting product samples decided and together for a new live show we are doing on Create and Craft TV on 28th November (12pm).

We have been asked to go back to film another show with Tracey's stamps that featured at the beginning of last month. We will have different accessories this time so I made up the envelopes today for the new design team members to have a play. Quite a challenge for them as there isn't much time and again, there are restrictions on what we can use.

So no chance to take a breather at the moment, it's straight onto the next show. Somewhere in between I really must start my Christmas cards!  I have ideas in my head that keep changing so by the time I get to actually make them I'm hoping I'll have decided what I'm finally doing!

The ladies at today's workshop used a variety of Ranger products, distress inks, cut 'n dry foam, grunge paper, alcohol inks, acrylic dabbers and this afternoon metal embossing with Walnut Hollow products.

The Cuttlebug came in handy on and off all day and last thing this afternoon I poked my nose in with something to try, embossing the Moonglow filigrees onto metal and then working on them with tools. I'd tried it in the week but hadn't made a note of the order for the sandwich, and it proved illogical to figure out again! But we got there in the end and they looked good. Another thing I will show you once I get a chance to make something with them!

Jill

Brilliance ink card from Monday's show

I thought I'd start with this card from Monday's show first. I made it with the Brilliance ink pads featured in the show, I'll explain how it was made shortly, but first a bit about our day.

We normally only get to show 3 demos but on Monday they wanted extras, it caught me out as the floor manager had moved my demo crate to the other end of the set. I had told the producer I could do some demos on the hop if needed, when I looked down my crate wasn't there!

I always try to keep it near me just in case I've forgotten to get something out and only have to reach down, it was way too far down the counter for me to even grab when Joanne was at the other end, so the floor manager came behind us on his hands and knees to grab it back, better him than me, as you'd have probably seen my head bobbing up and down as I went along!! He couldn't even drag it in case it made a noise so he had to lift and carry it back while still on his knees. That'll teach him to move the guests things too far away from them:)

I hadn't worked with Joanne before but I found her good to work with, she is a lovely lady, I felt she let me talk and get on with it.

We had a meeting at Ideal World before we set off on our journey back home and found that the sign we saw first thing in the day about the A1 north being closed still stood, it was quite foggy in the morning and we thought that it was maybe an accident or fog that would have cleared by the time we headed home, but no, it was completely closed into the afternoon with a huge back log of traffic on the small roads in the diversion (to Newark).

Thank goodness for Sally traffic who said the junction was open so we turned around. The junction wasn't open as stated but we followed the other cars that had listened to Sally and obviously knew an alternative route and hey, we turned up at the next junction to a nice clear road! All was OK until we hit the M62. Sorry, I seem to be getting obsessed with traffic, I'll shut up about it now.... so more about Monday....

I think they were quite taken with this card and Joanne kept going back to it. I wasn't expecting to demo it but it was a nice simple idea and definitely my kind of thing.



In case you missed the show, I applied the Brilliance ink pads direct-to-craft sheet, just randomly using the crimson, ivy, gold and white ink pads (they are all pearlescent inks). I hadn't taken my spray bottle so I had to sacrifice my drinking water by flicking it onto the ink splodges, I did most of that off screen, not a glamorous way to do it, much better to use a spray bottle if you have one!

I then placed my card on top of the inky mess and swished it, lifted it, swished it, lifted it etc, until I was happy with the pattern. You can always add more colour and if you find it is getting a little dark, just apply more of the white. The card I made has more of a pink tone to it than the darker crimson as I had used more white on that piece. I used more gold in the demo, but as I say, it doesn't really matter as you can adjust it.

I stamped over the background with the black archival ink pad when it was dry. I did add some colour to the leaves on the finished card with the Stardust pens and also added the brads to the flower centres so basically a very quick card to make, but it does have a lovely pearlescent finish to it.

I'm not sure if the show will be repeated at the weekend, but if it is I will post the details as soon as I know. I'll show another card from the show tomorrow, it'll be a shrink plastic one, didn't Joanne do well with her first piece of shrink plastic, I think she was really pleased with it. You didn't see us doing it on screen, but we did a high five after it!

Thank you for the comments and messages you have left here or emailed, they are always lovely to receive.

Jill

Two cards from Kay's Funky Frames sheet

Two more cards from last Wednesdays show. Both have been coloured with Sakura Stardust pens and a waterbrush. The background of the first card has been stamped with the Fancy Flourishes stamp sheet and white Brilliance ink. The second card has a black Cuttlebug'd panel mounted on top of pink vellum that also featured in the show.

It's been another busy day, we've been unpacking from the show yesterday and catching up on mail order plus other things that we needed to get done today. There's another week of busy-ness ahead too, but at least the shop is gradually getting back to normal and restocked for customers that are visiting.

I will post about yesterday's show at Doncaster and other chatter tomorrow when I'm not so weary!

Is anyone still visiting?

Sorry I haven't blogged for a while, what with our holiday and one thing and another I've been AWOL. Thank you for the messages you left while I was away, they are much appreciated.

I made this gatefold card on Saturday, using some of the backgrounds I'd made with the French Country Starburst Stains. I ran the piece through my Cuttlebug in the Swizz Dots folder, then sanded it to allow the dots to appear white, a very satisfying technique! I detail painted the flower image with the French Country stains to match. The flower image is of course one from Kay Carley's new stamp sheets. I seem to using them for everything at the moment, I absolutely LOVE using them.

Followers of Kay's blog will know that she now has a winner for the blog candy, congratulations to Cathy, lucky you. I have been using Kay's swirl stamp set and they too are lovely to use. I will show another card that I used with the swirls another day.

My camera is still broken, and Debbie is on holiday, (probably glad for a break from taking my photos for me I'm sure), so I'm using my mobile at the moment so expect some naff photo's for a while. It's my birthday at the weekend so I'm hoping the camera problem may be solved!

Now that Kay's blog candy has finished I will be starting a new blog candy giveaway as soon as I have decided what to offer and have a photo of it, so please call back.

Jill

French Country/Funky Flowers & Frames Book, p4 & 5

Late again! So just a quick post to show pages 4 and 5 of the HSNW book.

Jill

French Country/Funky Flowers & Frames Book, p2 & 3

A look at pages 2 and 3 of the book today, I will post more detailed descriptions during the week.

If any ladies from the HSNW group have photographed their books and would like to share them here, please email them to me, I would love to see them all. It was great seeing people being creative and doing their own thing with the items in the kit.

Thank you for your comments, I will catch up with replies another time.

Jill

Cards with Kay's new stamps

I hope Kay won't shoot me for this but today I'm showing you the 3 cards I made from the artwork last week for the Port Sunlight show. I didn't have the actual stamps but I think they give of an idea of how lovely the stamps are when they are coloured.

I sneaked in the Stampendous Agapanthus Bloom stamp as a background on vellum on the first card (embossed in white detail) and also made use of one of the alcohol ink/shrink plastic flowers Debbie made for me on the butterfly card.

Mr Stamp Man (Ian) has mounted my set of stamps onto EZ Mount and cut them out for me so looking forward to playing with the real thing now. We've been busy so it doesn't look like I'll get much chance to play today.

Debbie has posted a new tag on her blog, apparently I'm telling you how to use the pigment powders tomorrow, lucky I was going to anyway! Debbie, Debbie, Debbie, what are we going to do with you!! It's OK, there's no need to resign!! (We'll put you on tea making or peel off tidying for the next week instead. Tee hee:))

I'm sure we'll have more cards of Kay's new stamps soon. If you have the stamp sheets, we'd love to see what you do with them (umm, dare I say anything naughty Ladylace C!!)

Jill x

Kay's new stamp sheets!

We're back from the Port Sunlight show and still shattered, it was a very busy show. Thanks to everyone who visited our stand, it was lovely chatting to everyone. In amongst the chatting I did actually do some demonstrating and was able to show everyone Kay's new stamp sheets (even though the actual rubber didn't arrive in time).

As you probably know, our stamps are VERY deeply etched and we have special plates made for us. The plates that arrived on Thursday were just normal ones, well that wasn't good enough, and we felt it important to wait to get them how we really like them.

We should have them sometime this week, (I hope to get some news tomorrow), so I've now added them to our website for pre-order if you wish to order them now. Here's the link that will take you straight to the page. As is normal, you will not be charged until we actually despatch your order. If you pre-order them we can send them out as soon as they arrive.

I did make 3 cards from the artwork to take to the show, they look so pretty when coloured in. I finished them late on Thursday night along with others that I made that were relevant to what I was demonstrating, so a VERY late night! I finally managed to get those table cloths ironed on Friday morning before we set off.

In the rush to leave I forgot to pick up the info about the hotel we were staying in and as the normal hotel was fully booked, I'd booked a different one and couldn't remember where it was! After we had set up for the show we went shopping to a local supermarket for water, papers and bananas etc. Watched 2 people losing their marbles ranting at the lottery counter, I couldn't understand why there was such a long queue or why people were getting so het up about getting a ticket, then Ian told me about the Euro lottery, and no we didn't bother getting a ticket so a missed opportunity there (perhaps?) anyhow, the crowd was far too rowdy to bother. Anyway, back to our problem, we stopped off at the place we normal stay to ask for details of others in the area in the same chain and of course, I couldn't get away with our problem not being found out, Janice and Andy, from Sir Stampalot were in the queue to check in, so fessed up about what I had done. We found the right hotel easily so all was well.

Looking forward to catching up with you tomorrow Kay and we can organise the blog candy, just need to sort out the piccies and we're ready to go... I'm sure you'll agree that Kay's new designs are lovely, there was positive feedback from customers at the show, I think they are her best so far!

It's going to be a busy day tomorrow unpacking stock from the show and catching up with everything. It'll be nice to get it all back in its place and back to normal.

Jill x

A peek of Kay Carley's new Funky Frame Stamps

It's nice and sunny in Skipton today, I guess we had better make the most of it as it looks as if it will be the best day this weekend. Skipton is very busy as it is the waterways festival this weekend. OK, today's first bit of news is...

Kay and I promised a peek at her new designs and now they are all finished and in production. Kay is showing you a peek at one of the designs from the Funky Flower sheet and I am showing one from the Funky Frames sheet, so pop over to Kay's to see the other one. I know she is out all day demoing, so won't be able to add any comments until later.

As with all Kay's designs they are very delicate and I'm sure they will prove great designs for summer cards.

Will be back with more news, so do pop back later...