Tuesday 31 March 2015

A Bit Of A Tonic Triptych :)

Morning peeps and it’s nearly time for a looong weekend, yayyy : )

But before that we have to head on over and catch up with the Papertake Weekly gang and as it’s the last challenge of the month, it’s time to

Take Your Pick

I combined the colour challenge which this month is pastels,  with the technique challenge which is to make a treat holder for Easter and I also snuck in an oval so that’s the product challenge as well.

I used the amazing Tonic  Tent Gift Bag die which you can get from Crafty Devils and they are super easy to put together and also very quick.

You get a shed loads of little extras in this die set as well which you can use for other things.
I enjoyed making them so much that I ended up making three lol.

And here they are -

This first one uses some of the extras from the set, including the gorgeous filigree plate and the oval.
I covered the plate with some
Tonic Nuvo Diamond Glitter – this stuff is great – it doesn't seem to drop like others do and you can burnish it once it’s dry (you've probably seen Jodie doing this on the telly) .

I added a bow made from
38mm white organza and topped it off with an aqua spotty button, both from The Ribbon Girl

The papers are Up Up & Away from my beloved Lili of The Valley

 

The second bag uses the same papers and one of the extras from the die set.
I’ve also added some
Nuvo Crustal Drops in Pearl White.
The bloom is made from
Tonic Plush Peony Entwining Trellis and Delicate Daisy Entwining Trellis.
There’s a close up at the top of the post and if I get a sec I’ll pop a quick tutorial on here to show you how I made it.



And for the last one …

… I used a Tonic Deco Trellis Base Die Set and a layered up Tonic Studios Rococo Petite Die - Butterfly Sprig with some Tonic Studios Neptune Nuvo Crystal Drops, again from Crafty Devils. I added some knotted 15cm white tulle from the Ribbon Girl and finished it off with a rhinestone sparkler.

So that’s my little bags.
I thought I’d do a treat holder for an adult as a change from the ones I do for the kids – hope you like : ))


Right I’m off to get some work done.
Enjoy the rest of your day and if I’m not back in the land of blog before then, have a fabulous Easter.


Huggiest of hugs to all xxx

 

Tuesday 17 March 2015

Happy Happy Happy : )

Good morning and a very Happy St Patrick’s Day to everybody.

We’re heading on over to the Papertake Weekly challenge and this week our theme is

Happy …. Anything

…and all you have to do is to make a card or project for a happy event such as Happy Birthdays, Happy St Patrick’s Day, Happy Easter etc.
Anything you want, as long as it's happy!!

We’re sponsored by our Mary at The Ribbon Girl so our winner is also going to be very happy indeedy.

So ….

… this is what I did.

I used a couple of Tonic dies which I got from Crafty Devils and they are -

Deco Trellis Base Die Set (I made the base in the same way as I did for the owl a few posts back)

Topper And Frames Die Set - Flora

The beautiful card is also from Crafty Devils and it’s Papermania A4 Cardstock Packs - Capsule Collection - Wild Rose.
Such soft and muted colours  – I love it.


The bow is made using 15mm White No. 1 Berisford Satin ribbon and I topped it with a
40m Pale Pink Daisy, both from The Ribbon Girl


The sentiment is from my beloved Lili of The Valley Sentiments to Fit Scroll set – what ever would I do without this set!!!


So that's me done for today.
I’m going to be AWOL for a few days because I’m setting off to jolly old Brum tomorrow for 4 days of crafty fun at the NEC. I’ll be doing my Tonic thing on the
Crafty Devils  stand so if you’re passing, do come and say howdy – it is always fab to see lovely crafty friends.

Take care and if you are going to the NEC, have a great time and I’ll see you soon as soon.

Huggiest of hugs to all xx

Wednesday 11 March 2015

Oliver : )

 

Morning all and hope you are OK today : )
As promised yesterday, I’m back with my boy owl who I’ve called Oliver – very unimaginative I know!!

Anyway before we get to him, I’ve also got a really quick and simple card which lots of people seemed to like so I thought I'd share that as well.
I think this is one of those cards you could make up and keep handy in your stash as it suits most occasions.
You could even get away with ‘sympathy’ for this one - they;re always toughies for me.
I left a space at the top where you could always add your a sentiment if you wanted one, but it looks equally fine without.

And ….

… it’s this one.

You aren't seeing things – it is that rare sight on here which is a rectangular card (generally they are square).

I’ve used the Tonic Frond Finesse die from Crafty Devils and just made some little rolled roses from circle dies and a triple bow (get me!!) using 25mm Black/Cream Rustic Gingham Berisford No 10. ribbon from The Ribbon Girl

Here’s a couple more pics ….

 

 

Look how delicate it is, and yet it comes out of the die so easily (I am seriously loving these dies!!).

Image result for tonic frond finesse die

 

This is the die and I just cut 2 of the large and one of the medium in black.
I stuck one of the large ones down then chopped the bottom off of the other large one and stuck that one on top (I put glue on the bottom part only) but slightly to one side.
Then I chopped a bit off of the medium one and stuck that down as well.
Easy peasy but it looks rather nice I think.

 

OK now for Ollie boy, and ...

… here he is.
He is made in exactly the same way as Olive from yesterday but for his hat I just used a circle and stuck a strip of card across it.

 

So that’s it for today.
I’ll be back soon as soon with some more makes but till then, enjoy your day and huggiest of hugs to all xx

Tuesday 10 March 2015

An Owlie Tutorial

Good morning peeps and I hope that you are all OK and having a great week so far.

It’s that time of the week when we head on over to catch up with the Papertake gang and this week, our theme is

Mum’s The Word.

If you get a sec do nip over and check out the cardage because it is beautimous, I kid you not.

My card today something that I made when I was doing my Tonic thing in Farnborough and I also made some of them when I was in Glasgow. I really am loving these dies – they cut so beautifully and there are endless possibilities. I have to say a huge thank you to all the sweet crafters who came to the shows and stopped by to say hello.
What a lovely bunch of crafty peeps you are xx

Anyway, I’m waffling so back to the card.

I had made a plain white card using the Deco trellis set and I kept looking at it and thinking that I could easily turn it into an owl.
So I had a go and this is it. 
Lots of people loved it so I said that I would put a tutorial on here.
It’s a picture one for now but I’ll try and do a vid as well.

It is ohhh so simple to make and super cute.

What do you think?

I’ve called her Olive Owl : )))

Although I've done a girl owl, you could easily turn this into a boy owl by changing the colours and making a little hat instead of adding  the ribbon.
I’ll pop the boy owl I made on here tomorrow but for now, here’s how I made old Olive.

You will need the following supplies which I got from Crafty Devils 

Tonic Deco Trellis Base Die Set 
Tonic Indulgence Affections Die - 478e On Mothers Day

Tonic Layering Circles Set
 
Tonic Studios
Scalloped Square Layering Dies Set
(Crafty Devils are just updating their website so I'll pop back later and add any missing links).

And from your local craft shop – pink, white, brown and black cardstock plus stuff to decorate.

OK so here’s what you do.

Get your die cuts all done ….

The circles I’ve used are the smallest in the set ( 2 each  in white and brown for the eyes and feet)  and the next size up, 2 each in brown and black for the eyes. And then one more in white  cut from the next size up again for the rolled rose which is optional.

The heart is the smallest from the Mothers Day set, cut in brown, and used for the wings – you will need to cut this in half.

The beak is cut using the smallest scalloped square in brown.

The eyelashes are bits left over from the From Me To You set (thank you Jo Austin for that fabulous idea chick xx) 

The white shape that they are resting on in the photo (which is the owl’s tummy), is the smallest outer edges cut as a solid shape from the Deco Trellis set.

You also need 2 of the largest outer edges cut as solids from the Deco Trellis set, cut in dark pink card and 1 of the largest outer and inner cut together cut in pale pink card.

Now you’ve got the cutting out of the way, here’s how you assemble.

To make your base card …

Make a fold near to the top of one of the pieces, add some glue or tape and then fold down. 
Glue the other shape on top.

This technique will work with other dies as well to make a base card that is a bit different.

Now back to the owl.

Take the outer and inner shape cut from pale pink card as shown in the pic here and …..

.. stick to base card.

Then ….

… glue down the smaller solid shape to the card base using foam pads.

Now for the eyes.

then …

and once that’s done ….

… add the eyelashes if you want them and the black dots or googly eyes.
You can have fun chopping and changing how you put the eyes together and you will get loads of different looks.
My cross eyed owl seemed to be popular with the Glasgow ladies lol.

Now for the wings ….

Chop the heart in half and add some foam pads, then stick down.

And now for the feet -

… fold the brown circles in half and glue one half to the inside front then fold the other out outwards as shown.
Please excuse them scuzzy pic here but I was in  my own light, doh!!!

All that's left to do it to decorate it and generally give it a bit of personality.

You could add letters to the tum to spell put the recipients name, or add lace, ribbons, flowers etc etc. You don't even really need to make a card base if you done want to - you could just make up the owl missing out the first bit  and stick it down onto the front of a card blank if you wanted.

And that, me darlins, is that.

Thanks to anybody who has managed to stick it out until the end – we are very pic heavy today and they are not as good as I would have liked them to be because of the light (grr) but I hope you get the gist of what I’ve done.

If you make any, please send me a link so I can come and be nosey and of course, please feel free to email me if you get stuck or I haven't explained meself very well!!

Enjoy the rest of your day and huggiest of hugs to all xxx