Hot chocolate

My first instagram photo on a page!  Quite so big the quality of the photo isn't soo good, but I love the grainy effect it gives.  So for this page a complete mix of supplies...mostly Crate Papers Farmhouse (I love it :)) and some Tim Holtz tissue tape and my doily stamp.  I started with the photo, and matted this on brown card stock and then inked and ruffled the edge.  I cut out a few contrasting pieces of paper from the farmhouse range and inked, ruffled and stitched them.  I used my EK success circle book punch down the edge of one.   I also added a glassine pocked for journalling behind the photo (courtesy of another of Hannah's beautiful kits) and a K and Co journal tag (I just found the book in my stack...it had been lost for some time!).  The green lace was from Art from the Heart's beautiful packaging and I added some twine here.  Under the photo I used one of the offcut strips that are on the bottom of the farmhouse papers, and some prima lace too.  

I meant to stamp my doilies before I stuck the paper down....however I didn't remember and couldn't get the papers off easily! So I masked the area and stamped them....but that left a large gap (don't ask) so I used one of the crate paper stamp edge stickers to cover it!  I piled up some chipboard embellishments in the corners, and some of the paper ones....adding some stitched swirls of steam from the cups, I used some mini tags on the other side and decorated them...then a bit of tissue tape in the top corner with some vintage buttons and a few splatters of glimmer mist to each corner.  There you go my 1st instagram page.

The photo is of my kids enjoying a hot chocolate at the end of the pier where my Grandma lives....when we visit they love to walk down the pier and stop for a drink...it's all covered and you can look out to sea - so it was lovely to catch this moment in a photo.

I want to wish you and your families all a fantastic Christmas

Cookies in a Jar

Over at It's a Creative World I have posted a recipe and instructions for making cookies in a jar - they make great gifts and are easy to make (as you can see my layers aren't that great, but the jar was a little wide!).  Anyway here is the link http://itsacreativeworld.typepad.com/its_a_creative_world/2011/12/cookies-in-a-jar.html

Christmas Tags

I keep looking over at Tim Holtz 12 tags....and they are beautiful and I want to have a go, so that is on my list to look out for next year.  However it did inspire me to created some of my own tags, and I have quite a few kraft tags left from my November Handmade Hannah kit...so here are 3 I managed to put together quite quickly.  The papers and embellishments are from Hannahs October kit and are MME, with some Crate Paper Chipboard, and echo park journalling page for the sentiments  - not sure where the snowflakes and snowman are from.  Here are the tags in a little more details.

I choose the gingerbread chipboard piece to be the centre of this tag, and then started on the background.  I used my Martha Stewart doily lace punch (still one of my favourites) and cut out and punched several strips of paper in the candy cane red and white.  I inked the edges, then stuck them down and zig zag stitched along each side.  I cut inked, stitched and ruffled a green mount for my gingerbread man and then stappled the saying underneath.

The snowman tag started with some watered down white acrylic paint, which I flicked over the tag.  I then cut a small hill for the snowman and inked the edges, I added the stickers and stappled the sentiment - didn't even need to put any glitter on as the pieces are all glittered.

I've seen this Christmas tree over on WeScrap so thought I would put it on a tag.  It is great for using up  off cuts of paper, I literally just cut strips of paper and then rolled them around a skewer and stuck them together with double sided tape.  They now resemble straws, so I then cut each straw down to make the  triangular shape just taking a small amount of the end and building it up.  I glued this down with a wet glue, and add a chipboard and stickled star to the top (think this is maya road).  I used a scrap of my doily edge punched paper and put it under the tree and then two strips (again the remnants of the doily edge punching) on the bottom which I added some stickles dots to.  Once the tree was fry I added some red gems and my sentiment.

It was a lovely change to have a go at making these and I was surprised how quickly they came together....and I already have plans for them.

Surf

Another summery page....just as it gets cold!  It is a surf shot of my DS from our holiday - lots of our photos are waterbased from that holiday.  For this I used my spellbinders labels die to make some frames, and I also cut some out  and used them as a mask of blue and orange glimmer mist.  The papers are Crate Paper Farmhouse, I also had a go at using some Teresa Collins white printed acetate.  So I started with the misting, and then layered up my frames for the background.  I made some bunting and swirled my bakers twine using some clear drying glue and then added the little flags. I added a yellow square of Farmhouse paper behind the photo, inked and stitched it, then the acetate on top.  With some of the offcuts of the label dies I layered them behind the photo, and the tiny blue bit is the journalling which pulls out from behind the photo.  I also made a little tag at the bottom out of my off cuts of paper, a crate sticker and bakers twine.  Then added some shells and other elements around the photo, I slid a little pile of punched paper there too (martha stewart doily edge lace), and the title is American crafts thickers - I used quite a bit of twine on this page to tie the elements together (almost literally :D)

Christmas Decorations

Sorry everyone for not posting as often as I would like...I've been working on lots of bits, scrapping and otherwise.  However I sat down last night and did another page which I will be able to share with you soon.  As Christmas is getting very close I thought I would show you a couple of decorations that I have made.  I saw a cotton spool decoration over on twopeas and this is my version using some of the lovely Teresa Collins papers and ribbon and twine.  I also made a little angel - these angel decorations are part of my childhood as I always seemed to make one at some point on the run up to Christmas!  They are really easy to make, you start with a semi circle of paper and then curl it into a cone, cut out a another slightly smaller semi circle for the wings, and you can add a doily semi circle too (stick these onto the cone at the back).  I then wrapped some ribbon and lace around my one, and added a vintage button for the head - if you are doing it with kids then a circle they can draw the face on, some wool for hair and lots of glitter for the body and wings - you can make them any size.  All the papers and bits of twine and ribbon were from Hannahs November grab box and are from Teresa Collins, the spool and button were the only bits out of my stash.

Smiles

I made this page using the Prima Build-a-Page sketch for this month....it had a banner and lots of lovely shapes so I had to have a go.  This is a photo from our half term trip to Dover Castle...which was quite breezy and here I am with my boys at the top of the tower. 

 I used Prima's Pixie Glen papers, and then a few left overs of Flights of Fancy (the butterflies and the text paper).  I started making the background sheet - I made my own templates out of card and then adjusted it to fit the size I wanted (just by cutting it smaller!), then I distressed and inked and stitched it.  I made a smaller thin strip of the same shape from the flights of fancy paper to add another layer.  I mounted the photo on some white card and inked it with tea dye distress ink, and then transformed one of the Pixie Glen journal cards with some dictionary paper and some words that are on the back of the papers, I inked, distressed and stitched them.  I used my spellbinders label die to cut the journal shape, and added some liquid pearls and distress ink to this.  I cut out the banner and did a double layer and then stitched this to the page, curling and distressing it, I then added some liquid pearl scallops and buttons with some string dangling down from it on the top of them. Next for some of the Prima flowers...and since I was on the page I dug out the pink ones and added a few of the smaller paper prima flowers, you can't see that clearly but I added some thread behind the buttons in the centre to give them a messy stitchy look.  I also added in one of the beautiful glittery prima birds.  The final embellishments were some butterflies from the Flights of Fancy paper, and my title stickers....and then a few splatters of paint and mini pearls.  So quite a girly page from me which I loved making!

More Felt Flowers

I've been making some more felt flowers from some super tutorials I have found on my blog browsing.  They would make great Christmas gifts for friends, family, teachers - there are 2 different flowers one easier, one harder so do pop over to the Its a Creative World blog to have a look - there is also loads more inspiration on there too :)