Physical, not digital, crafting

So, it's been a while (again!) but I have been pretty busy. I have spent just about every waking moment I've had free for the last six weeks on my first crafty love, cross stitching. More specifically, Jane Greenoff's Diamond Jubilee Souvenir Chart Cross Stitch Kit. A set of four charts designed specifically to commemorate the Diamond Jubilee:

It has been a long time since I have attempted any cross stitch, let alone anything so intricate and complex. The last major project I did would be almost a decade ago, before I developed carpal tunnel syndrome in both hands and subsequently lost a lot of my fine grip. Those chart though, I fell in love! Even better, I knew my grandma would fall in love with them too, so the finished items would make a great gift for her.

Initially, I'd aimed to have two charts - the coach and crown - completed for her birthday in August, but soon realised that was a pipe dream! There was too much detail in the coach to stitch at any speed even if I'd been physically able to do it. Saying that, I was surprised how well I coped with the project; lots of sitting still and intricate work should not be good for me. I did get the coach finished in time (just) and I'm really pleased with the outcome

Anyone else who has the pattern may notice some really huge mistakes, then again, anyone who has never seen the chart before will be none the wiser, so I'm not going to point them out.










 I had adapted my technique considerably from the way I used to stitch, and it seems to have really helped me, so I thought I'd share some tips.

• Do not use an embroidery hoop! This is the worst thing I can use while I'm stitching for two reasons: firstly, they are a pain in the bum to take on and off and tighten by hand, and secondly, they encourage me to hold my work with one hand and my needle with the other so all the fine grip is taken by the same hand. 
• Instead, I use what's best described as a makeshift tapestry frame. Take 2 strips of cardboard (cereal box weight is ideal) and use clothes pegs to attach them to the sides of your work. This works especially well if you have extra fabric at the top of your work - roll it up and attach the top ends of the cardboard to the roll. The whole construction sits nicely on a lap tray Using this, I can have one hand underneath my work and one hand above, sharing the strain evenly
• Use shorter lengths of thread. I don't have to struggle with separating strands, or keep pulling loads of thread through the work, which would strain my wrists and elbows, and I don't end up with tangles and knots that I have to cut out, wasting thread, so that's a fab tip even if you don't have dexterity issues.
• That last tip does mean you end up starting new threads a lot, so instead of knotting my thread when I start or anchoring it behind the next few stitches, I take one strand of thread out of the floss, half it, then thread my needle, so there's a loop at the end of the length of thread. Make the first stitch carefully, making sure the needle goes through the loop at the back of the thread. This uses a lot less thread than anchoring or knotting, and personally I think it looks neater. To finish threads I do still anchor behind my previous stitches, mainly to make sure I don't end up trying to manipulate a short piece of thread.

I think that's pretty much it, all my tips for wrist friendly stitching. Actually no, there's one more. Don't do what I did and start with quite a big project. Start with a small kit, get used to the methods and then progress!

I really hope something here helps someone back into an abandoned craft, or just inspires people to give it a go - Happy Stitching!

'

I'm such a ditz!

OK, so my last fortnight has largely consisted of transferring a MCS CD into a CAP digikit. In between a lot of importing and cutting, I found time to create a new card on CAP. Just as well, really - my brother had to RSVP for a colleague's wedding reception. I would of course post the finished result except I didn't take a photo before it was sent. I do have the CAP export though!

So, first effort

I thought ... very classy, unique, pretty good. Apparently not. Good Lord I hate designing for family!











Amendment 1 ... monochrome and classy font!

It was this point my sensible side kicked in - you don't put RSVP on the response - RSVP is a request for a response! D'oh!











So, different centre decoration

Looks too much like a funeral card *rolleyes*

Perfect! (Finally)

How did I do it?

The final design is a 5x7 tent fold card, with no background picture added. Instead, I added an embellishment from "April Morning" that started life like this:

All I then did was change it in the effects tab. For the effect on the card I used the "Metallic -> Exotic Metal 1" effect. I put the flourish in the top right, copied and pasted, then rotated 180 degrees and put in the bottom left.

The matt for the centre embellishment is just one of the quick shapes built in to the program. 

The centre embellishment itself is slightly more complex. It started as this flourish from the free "Sparkle Sky" Digikit

Apologies to those of a sensitive disposition for the green background, it just shows up the detail of the embellishment really well!

Instead of using this as it is, I used the eraser tool to take out some of the extra sparkle - the yellow sparkles outside of the main flourish. I put on the same effect as the earlier flourish, then copied, pasted and flipped it horizontally - then aligned it where I wanted and grouped the two together. I copy and pasted the group, then flipped vertically 

and grouped again. Always group items you have specially aligned - there is nothing more frustrating than moving one bit at a time and never getting it lined up quite right again!

And there you have it, one finished card!

New Digikits!

I was very restrained, and I didn't go for the Create and Craft Pick of the Day sets. I say restrained, but really, my thought was - why do I need 5 discs of butterfly images?
Anyhoo, I bought the set from Peppermint Creative instead. They landed with a flump on my doorstep today, and I'm so thrilled with my choice. I can see these getting some serious use. To start I played with the kits on the same layout, so I could compare the styles.

Top left: April Morning
Top Right: Kindergarten Crafts
Bottom Left: Tropical Popsicle
Bottom Right: Wild Hearts

There is not one kit I don't like in the set, and I can already seem me using them for different people/events I really do love the kindergarten crafts, although it's geared up to be for school days, it makes a lovely masculine card (an effect the flower embellishments don't really detract from). There are elements in (I think) all the samples that I've recoloured just to tone in with the background and embellishments.

A brilliant set of kits, and a long time to spend crafting for me!

A familiar favourite, remastered

I'm suffering a bit at the moment - a bit of a carpal tunnel issue is making it tough to craft, so Craft Artist is taking a beating instead!
You might remember this card from earlier in the year

I wanted to get some practice and confidence in Craft Artist, so I thought I'd try to recreate it ... and here it is!

OK, so this is just an export from Craft Artist, but you get the idea. I don't think it's too bad a comparison. The carnation topper was still saved on the computer, so I used cutout studio to separate the layers, and reconstructed it. Each layer has the "Bevel and Emboss" filter applied to it to make it appear 3D.
The silver behind the carnation is a metallic effect "Dull Silver", but altered to look flat. In filter effects -> 3D effects, I changed the depth to 0 (All the silver is done this way, except for the frame, where I left the depth set to its standard amount) The filigree background is taken from an embellishment from the "Father's Day 2011" (free from Daisytrail), and the frame is from "Sparkle Sky" (also free from Daisytrail)

Sorry for the MIA!

Yeah, I disappeared for a bit - sorry about that. I had a bit of a computer malfunction (for techie types, my graphics card died, so I had to resurrect my brother's old computer by taking out the additional graphics card to improve airflow and stop it collapsing from heat exhaustion every time I booted up)

After the computer issues, I decided to buy new software ... yeah, I know, potentially mad idea. But you can't blame me - C+C had a £20 software programme available for postage only! I am now a dedicated ( and slightly obsessed) Craft Artist Professional user. Hopefully I will be uploading some of my creations soon, but I'm still gorging on the fantastic-ness that is the programme and marvelling at all the new things I'm finding to do.

If I don't put up projects, hopefully I'll be able to do some tutorials, and upload the digikits I've been making out of my old photos

Experimentation with Mica Powders

I've been spending money again! I have seen mica powders demonstrated a few times on C+C - the lovely Sheena Douglass (http://www.sheena.tv/) and Ali Reeve (http://clevercrafter.blogspot.co.uk/) do some fab demos, and give loads of inspiration. Finally, I decided to take the plunge, and give them a go.

Then, they sat in my crafty stash ... for about a month! Despite all the TV I'd seen, they still made me nervous. Yup, I know, I'm a wimp. I did pluck up the courage to give them a go. On a piece of stamping that hadn't gone quite right. I know that mica can be tricky to work with, so I didn't want to try it on a piece I was planning for a card.

I mixed the micas with a little water, so I could use them as a paint on the embossed image. And you know what? It went really well.

And I couldn't have been more disappointed, lol. It's hard to see in this picture, but the text was ghosted from slipping when I stamped the image. I couldn't use this as a topper on a card.

So it sat on my desk for about 3 days ... mocking me. It narked me more and more every time I saw it - this lovely image that I couldn't use - grr! In the end,  I took some scissors to it, and chopped out the flowers, or at least as much of them as I could salvage. My dexterity isn't great, and I'm left handed, so I usually avoid cutting anything out unless I have to. I did manage to get two nice looking corner images out of it, which I used for these

 The images are a little blurred, I apologise. Think I need the camera cleaning a little. Anyway, both cards are finished with a sentiment heat embossed on white vellum in the aperture. The landscape card is decorated using more mica'd flowers (painted in the same way as the original image) and a couple of the leaves I salvaged from the frenzied scissor attack! The portrait image had a butterfly added. I made this by mixing some mica powder with some PVA, and painting this mixture onto the back of a piece of acetate. I let that dry overnight, then put a black peel off on the front of the acetate sheet, and cut round it (wielding scissors twice in one project? I must be ill!). As I type, the butterfly is desperate to make its escape from the front of the card ... I shall have to investigate better sticky stuff!

It seems I've managed to swipe victory from the jaws of defeat on this one. And I know it won't be the last time the mica powders see the light of day ... I'm even considering getting some in different colours!

Last Christmas card (for now, at least!)

So, this is the last Christmas post for at least a little while. It is my favourite though!

The topper is a few stages. First, I dry embossed some vellum with a stencil I've had for ages (yup, I've been doing more stash diving). Then I used the stencil to cut out some green mirri card to match the tree shapes, and stuck it onto a piece of black card. After that, I lined up the vellum and base card so the trees were in the right place - possibly the hardest part of the whole card. After the vellum was wrapped around, I stuck it onto some green mirri card, and onto a dark green backing card.

The sentiment caused me a nightmare - I wanted it to match the topper, but I don't have anything I can emboss a Christmas message through. I tried everything, from the sublime to the ridiculous of trying to burnish over a stamped image. In the end I settled for stamping in green on vellum, and heat embossing! Sometimes the easiest ideas, huh?

The envelope is another Ultimate Pro creation, this time with a liner to compliment the design.

A trilogy of (un)seasonal delights

Yes, I have started my Christmas Cards! I apologise to readers of a nervous disposition who just spat coffee all over their computers at the mention of the word Christmas in March, but I need to be organised!

These are all made in pretty much the same way - a stamped image, clear embossed. The green and blue cards are chalked over, the orange is left. Matting and layering done in a complementary colour, or backing paper and mirri card (yes, I have gone a little mirri mad at the minute)
I couldn't find a stamp that looked good in orange for the background, so I just stuck some gems on to compliment the ribbon I attached to the topper.

So, Christmas, 3 card down ... I'm not sure how many to go!

Project 1

OK, so in what will likely be a marathon blog writing session, this is finished project 1

You might recognise the topper on this card - it's the decoupage sheet I designed from one of my own photos (more info in this post). I used all the layers to create one huge topper. it's backed onto a hexagonal piece of the background card, and onto a square piece of silver mirri.
The sentiment frame and banner are silver embossed Anna Griffin stamps that have sat in my crafty stash for about 3 years (eep!) chalked in a pink blush colour. It is slightly more purple that I would have liked, but that's my own stupid fault for not trying it on some scrap before I did it for real! Let that be a lesson.

I don't normally post envelopes ,but this was my first envelobox made on the Crafters Companion Ultimate Pro. It made up much easier than I expected it to - I don't normally follow written instructions too well, so I had watched the DVD before I started. The only issue I had was that I had to make it out of card, which gave me a bit of a nightmare when it came to sealing it. Instead of using glue, I've put 2 slits in the flap, and threaded through some ribbon that tones with the topper, and tied it. Once the card has an insert, and is all signed, I'll glue the ribbon back to the main envelobox, so it's opened by untying the bow.

I think this one will be my Grandma's for her birthday - mind you, that's about 5 months away, so that might change!

A long waited return

Ok, maybe not for you, but for me! I hadn't realised it had been so long since my last blog. We've had a bit of a bad time here, family hospitalisation and illness seems to be doing the rounds in me and mine at the minute.
I have been hard at work crafting, and have some entries to put up, and hopefully they'll be posted a bit later today and tomorrow - so look forward to a glut of info coming your way!

And another one!

Oh yes, another make. This time, my Father's day card (18th June in the UK) It isn't nearly as adventurous as the last one, but I still like it, just the same:

The image tag is from a collage book I've had forever, as is the backing paper. The text tag is from a scanned image of the backing paper, which I faded, and added the text to. Fading isn't too hard using standard image manipulation techniques - you can either change the opacity of the scanned image, or as I have done, create a white layer in front of the scan, and reduce the opacity of that. The first method literally makes the image more see through, adding a white layer lightens it.

The text reads:

"For a Dad who's just like an elephant;

Strong, with a long memory ..."

I don't often include info on inserts, but you need to see this to get the joke! 

The insert was made using My Craft Studio's Simply Sentiments CD - for reference, this was Bonus Square number 72. I couldn't believe my luck to find an insert with elephants on! It hasn't photographed well, but the right hand side has a faded mirror image of the left. I digital punched an oval from it to put the text in. 

The text here reads:

"... not to mention grey and wrinkly!

Happy Father's Day!"

I should mention, my dad has a great sense of humour. At least I hope he does - if my blog stops rather abruptly on the 17th June, you know why!

Been a long time coming

Yes, yes, I know, I haven't blogged nearly as much lately. I apologise, but I've been up to my eyes in cards and recovery (still off work with my poorly back). I have 2 offerings for now, but I may have another to add a bit later today.

First up, Mother's Day (18th March here in the UK). As my mum makes cards too, I always like to try something a little bit different for her cards. So, here it is ...

 I know what you're thinking ... no, really I do. That's not so spectacular. And I'd agree, if it wasn't for 2 more photos ...

Oh yes, it's a double slider card! It took me so much time to get this to look just the way I wanted it to. The tutorial came from Card Making Magic but I can't find it there now. As I type, googling " Card Making Magic double slider " brings up the tutorial as the first result, and it can be accessed in a cached form. The only issue I had was that when scoring the card (step 2) the written instructions and the picture give 2 different sets of dimensions - I used the ones in the instructions, but ended up having to trim down the sticking flap of card at the end of it. I think following the picture dimensions might be better.

The designs are edited sections of some free papers from Cardmaking and Papercraft magazine, Issue 85 here (you must be registered with the website to download them, but registration is free).

The only bit you can't see in the photos is the stand at the back - I used the section I trimmed off to create a small stand so it doesn't have to be leaned against anything.

This card was beyond stressful, exasperating, and frustrating - although that was mainly down to my printer refusing to print off high quality images for me! Once I sorted that, I had a ball!

Designing is fun!

So, I said last post I've been playing with digital manipulation with some of my own photographs, and I've come up with my own decoupage sheets. There is only the one sheet at the moment, but I am so pleased with the results that there may be more forthcoming.

Here is the finished product!

This is the whole page, with 5 layers, put together with 2mm tape, but I did discover that from one page, I could make 2 toppers, as long as I print out the top layer twice!









OK, so the layering up isn't great, some of the bits aren't quite where they should be. I'll admit, I haven't decided how I want to make it into a card, so I haven't taken the back off the 3d foam yet, but I think it gives a pretty good idea of what I've achieved.







I must give credit where credit's due - it was watching Create and Craft that I decided to give this a go. Presenter Dean Wilson has been suggesting that we crafters make this the year that we manufacture our ideas, so I did! I must say it's been a fab way to spend some sick time off work.

Watch this space for more designs and ideas - although they might have to wait until the flowers are up in the garden again!

In praise of Super Smooth and digi-crafting

Oh my goodness! I have just gotten my order of super smooth paper through from Create and Craft (UKs dedicated craft channel). I will admit, I was sceptical at first - paper's paper, right?

WRONG! This is amazing stuff, so unbelievably smooth. it makes my standard printer paper feel like fine grade sandpaper. Honestly, it is a glass-like finish, I'm pretty much in shock at the difference.

I only wish I'd ordered more! I only ordered the paper as a trial to see what it was like, and now I need to have the card as well, especially as I'm just getting into CD crafting and digital manipulation.

Speaking of digital manipulation, I have been going through my photograph collection, and noticed I have loads that I could use as card toppers, backgrounds etc. I've started looking through to see what I can do with them, and I've begun making them into some pretty nifty stuff. I already have a decoupage sheet created from a beautiful carnation picture I took in the garden.

I would love to be able to distribute them, but I have no idea where to start. I have heard about www.craftrabbit.com for selling your own designs, and I was wondering if anyone has any experience of using the site and can give me an idea of how it works?

Another one done

I'm seeing the upside to sick leave. I'm further ahead on my cardmaking than I've ever been. I just finished my dad's birthday card, and I've started a Father's day card for him - both for June.
Piccy goodness as ever

This was similar to a card I made last year for my brother's birthday, but I modified it a bit to spice things up ... you know you're bored when adding acetate to a design is exciting!

Anyway, the topper is from a Create and Craft kit, no title as far as I know.
I created a stepped card design, cut out the centre panel and replaced it with acetate - which folds really well on my Crafters Companion Ultimate board! The (slightly wonky) sentiment is stamped by hand - hence the wonky! - on mirror board. The rivets are just spare middles from some corner peel offs.

As I say, it was a twist on a card I'd already done, but I'm pretty pleased with myself over this one. I don't often use acetate so prominently on a card, and I've never used it to create a floating topper effect. All in all, I'm chuffed with myself!

The longest make ever?

So, about a week after I started it, here it is ... *drumroll*

My card of unknown destination! It started life as my Grandma's Birthday card, but now I'm not so sure. Relieved it came together in the end - the topper is PVA'd and obviously the corner leaf spray is on with an eyelet, which meant I had to eyelet another 2 corners for some symmetry! The fourth corner is left blank for a sentiment, once I decide what it's for.

Success!

Finally! After days of exasperated experimentation with about every adhesive I own, PVA and eyelets have come to my card's rescue. I hope anyway - it's all still stuck down at the minute, but time will tell. If it is still in one piece at the end of the morning, I'll post pics.

I'm starting on a new card type for me - a double slider card. So far, it's not going badly, except the written instructions from the tutorial I printed don't match the pictures included with the (same) tutorial, so I'm having to wing it a bit. Hope fully when it's done it will be my Mother's Day card.

So, hopefully pics of the longest make in history will appear shortly, and my Mother's day card will be done in slightly less time than that took!

Nothing More Annoying

So, I've spent all day on a card for my grandma's birthday, and despite some initial worries, it looks really good. I've got a topper backed with vellum leaves that I want to attach to a mesh ribbon. Can I get it to stick? Can I heck!

I've tried sticky dots and DST, but it just keeps falling off. Saying that, attaching the ribbon to the card involved sandwiching it between 2 layers of DST on the backing paper and base card. I love the ribbon, and it ties in beautifully, so I don't want to change it.

I think I might be out to buy some good old fashioned PVA glue tomorrow. Perhaps that will soak through the ribbon into the backing paper and give it some stick. Keep your fingers crossed!

In other news, I finally succumbed to the draw of CD crafting and ordered the Click, Print Go/My Craft Studio Simply Sentiments CD ROM, and some super smooth paper to go with it. I can't wait for it to get here so I can play with it!

Christmas Dove Card

So, this was the card I made my mum for Christmas. It was inspired by a design I saw in Cardmaking and Papercraft magazine a couple of issues ago. The original had a snowflake on purple, which I made and sent to my grandma.

This is the kind of card I really enjoy making - a beautiful impact for a relatively simple design and make (although the way I did it was far more complicated than it needed to be, lol)

I couldn't find the colour card I wanted, so I stamped my dove image with Versamark onto white card, and clear embossed over the top. I inked directly over the image and card in blue ink, then rubbed over the top with some cotton wool so the image came through. The easier way to do this would be to use a coloured card, and emboss in white!

The snowflake background and message are stamped in the same colour as the ink I used behind the dove - so I guess this is a benefit to the long way round! I embossed the message, and mounted it on 3D foam for a bit of depth. All the other layers are stuck flat with sticky dots and double sided tape.

Owwy

This is not good. I have done ... well something at least ... to my back, and it hurts! I am used to back pain, having suffered it almost constantly for the last 5 years, but this has knocked me for six. It's right up there in the worst pain I have experienced.

I am really struggling to sit and do anything productive. I can't stand and chat to people. I discovered earlier today that I can't sneeze either ... that's not a good discovery in cold and flu season. I've spent 2 days maxing out my pain meds and on a TENS machine to no avail. I may have to admit defeat and go to a doctor for something else. I hate having to ask the docs for stronger meds, it makes me feel like I'm being judged. Crazy? Yes, of course it is, I have a chronic pain condition and the meds aren't touching the sides, of course I need something stronger. I doesn't make me think they judge me any less though.

Even more annoying for me is the fact that I've had to take time off work. I work in an environment where you only take time off if you're on your death bed - and even then I think they'd like photographic evidence(!) I have several colleagues with back problems - one of whom is awaiting a surgical procedure - and they go to work every day. Good for them, I say.

When all comes to all, I'm 27. I am not about to aggravate an injury by going into work when I know in my heart I shouldn't. I will not rush my recovery because John manages to come in with a bad back. More fool John I say. And you know why? Spines have memories. Any attempt to rush them back into full service will come back to bite you. Maybe not tomorrow, maybe not this year or this decade. But eventually, some day, you will discover that there is damage to your back that cannot be undone. That cannot be helped. That you do have to live with.

Me? I'd rather lose a few days pay now than have to quit a job I really love later because I can't cope with the pain any more. Next time a colleague takes time off for an injury you would power through, just think about that.

When did we become Web-dependant?

Maybe that's the wrong post title. Maybe it should be "When did I become Web-dependant?". The office has been internet-less all day. An incident late yesterday with a power drill and an Ethernet cable was to blame for that one.

I've spent my day utterly frustrated with the situation. Everything I do seems to require some access to the world wide web. Every question needs to be answered with Google ... from how to create a cross tabbed report in Access right down to ingredients for scones. Mine is a varied job!

And yet, I'm not of the generation that never knew a non-web world. I spent my childhood poring over reference books, trying to find the right person to get the right answer to a question. So what went wrong? When did I become a paper free researcher? My bookshelves at home are groaning with the kind of books I referred to every day when I studied, and I love the experience of using a book.

Maybe its ease of use. Maybe its the wealth of knowledge that is only a few clicks away. More likely its the chance that a typo in a search engine can take you on an unexpected detour into escapism for a little while (especially important during a work day!)

Whatever the reason, I think I need a backup plan in case such a travesty ever happens again. I just can't figure out what it might be. Any suggestions in the blog-o-sphere?

New Years Resolutions

Right now, I'm bracing myself.  I go back to work tomorrow after the Christmas break. Doubtless I will be asked one question at least half a dozen times: "Have you made any New Years Resolutions?" Erm ... no, I haven't. And this is why

As a society, we place far too much value on New Year as the time to make personal change. We can make change whenever we want to, we don't need a specific day to do it. Instead we choose to put ourselves under immense pressure by making a very public effort to change (an effort which, by my experience, fails around 90-95% of the time).
The failure rate is important because many people, having failed once, will not try and implement the same change again for a long time. If the change was something to benefit health (quitting smoking, cutting down junk food etc) where does that leave them? In a pit of misery thinking they can't help themselves.
Why do they fail? Because their awareness of their need to change has not yet moved into intrinsic motivation to change. Without motivation, change will invariably fail to be long term or permanent. But, because they know they should change, and New Year, new start mentality  is looming, they give it a try. In the genuinely unmotivated, the change may not last until Twelfth Night (around 25% of resolutions are broken in the first week), while others may hang grimly onto the wagon for anywhere up to a month. Under half of all resolvers are still keeping up their self promises after 6 months.

And at the end of it all, why is New Year special? It is only a numerically significant day because around 450 years ago a Pope decided 11 minutes was important and so designed his own calendar. Fancying himself as a wallpaper designer, he took a step back, reviewed the dates and decided the repeat would fall between December and January.

If we genuinely want to change, and are motivated to do it, great, a new year's resolution may work for you. For the rest of us, wait, don't give in to social pressure. Your time will come, and waiting to find it may make the rewards that much longer lasting.