I pad cover

When I got my ipad I bought a magnetic cover for it.  I didn't like any of the colours available so I chose grey but I've hated how boring it looks.  I kept wondering whether it was possible to decorate it in some way but was concerned I would damage it however last weekend I finally decided to have a go.  I tried spraying glimmer mists but they wouldn't dry, just pooled on the surface so I mopped those off and instead used wooden stamps and Stewart Gill fabric paint to stamp a leaf and flower in their gorgeous Byzantia range.  But then they wouldn't dry....... Being fabric paints they are usually ironed to set them but I didn't dare try that or use a heat tool.  Gradually as the week went on they got drier but still felt tacky to the touch.  Then today I had a touch of inspiration and I brushed mica powders over the top and then polished the surface with a tissue.  It worked - it has taken away the tackiness and the powder has been polished in.  That looks so much better than the boring grey!

I had some of the paint left on my craft sheet and hate wasting any so I stamped a scrap piece of fabric and a piece of paper to use it up.  I liked the look of them so much that I then painted in all the flowers using Twinkling H2Os - love the finished pieces and will have to think of something to do with them.

The top picture is the fabric and the bottom one the paper.

Printer's tray

Recently I attended a workshop at the Stamp Attic with Hels Sheridan and we altered a Tando printer's tray. It was good fun and I especially liked Hels's technique of using lots of masks on the same piece of card, using them over the top of each other with different colours of ink. I meant to make a blue and green tray but it has come out very green but I like it anyway.
I went with my sister in law and you can click here to see her lovely version in very different colours.
Thanks to Hels and Wendy at the Stamp Attic for a good day.

Chevrons & Cathedral Windows

I've noticed that chevrons are a big trend at the moment and I'd seen Jennifer McGuire using Hero Arts chevron stripe stamp to make really attractive cards.  So I bought the stamp and played about with it to make a Thank you card.  I stamped it on different coloured card and thought I'd make a set of cards but once I started cutting apart the chevrons and rematching them to get different colour combinations I ended up with 20 Thank You cards - enough to last me quite a while I think!  Here are the photos en masse but it doesn't actually show all the colours as there are green combos in the mix as well.

Recently I saw Rosemary Merry on Create & Craft demonstrate how to make a Cathedral window patchwork card so as I love the patchwork look I had to have a go before I forgot how she did it.

I am rubbish at folding and origami techniques but, as Rosemary promised, this one is very forgiving and if the circles don't line up perfectly it doesn't matter and I was very pleased with the result.  If only I had the patience to do it in real patchwork......

Distress markers and inks

I've been overindulging in new purchases lately but in an attempt to justify them I have been having a play.  Above is a card made using distress markers.  The peach stamp is a Joanna Sheen set and I stamped it on to Silk Art card and then coloured in with the markers.  Because the card has a sheen I was able to use a watercolour brush and get a really blended look with the colouring which I loved.  I had cards to make for two upcoming birthdays and I was so pleased with the results that I made them both the same.  The label and border are cut with Spellbinder dies.

When the Fall and Winter Distress Inks were released they looked very similar colours to ones already available so I didn't buy them.  But the Spring and Summer colours are very different from existing ones and they are really bright and right up my alley!  I received the summer ones this week and the 3 ATCs shown here are made mixing the two sets and using PaperArtsy stamps.  Great fun and much more summery than the weather!

Jesters Galore

Well, I don't know quite what this is but I had fun making it.  I had the idea to mount one of these jester faces on a stick but I found I couldn't stop at one so ended up making seven and then I needed somewhere to display them.  The masks are an Elusive Images stamp and a Judikins cube stamp.  The base is 3 empty ribbon reels painted and stencilled and an empty cotton reel. Fun, but I don't know what I'll do with it now!

Apple Quilt

I've made my first quilt! Or rather mini quilt as it's approx 24 inches square.  I say approx as I have real problems getting things straight, measuring, finishing neatly etc. but despite the wonkiness it has actually come out better than I ever thought it would.  I used a Moda Chocolat fabric charm pack, and a Spellbinders die to cut the apples in my Cuttlebug - I got a very clean cut. I used bondaweb to stick the apples on and then handstitched round them, alternating stab stitch and cross stitch.  I just tied the front to the backing fabric at the intersections.  I'm pleased to have done it (especially as it's taken me months on and off) but I don't think I'll ever become a quilter!

Cockerel fabric piece

I like reading Sew Somerset magazine and admire the fabric pieces in there and the way people seem to be able to build up a pleasing design from scraps.  I've tried it a few times but have not been pleased with the results but finally this is more the look I've been going for.
I bought some DeColourant cream which removes colour from paper and fabric and last weekend I played around with it trying it on all sorts of different materials and using stamps and stencils.  The cockerel (a wooden stamp from the Indian Block Company) was stamped with DeColourant on a piece of kitchen paper that had been used to mop up left over dyes from a tie-dye session. Quite colourful!