I'm sorry about this...

I apologise to all about this, but since I had a very bad cold/flu/whatever over a month ago, I've been behind in everything in my life. It's only now, as I sit in a nice hotel room in Sydney, that I can post things that I should have over a fortnight ago.

One of these things is a card for Get Creative Challenges Challenge #62, that has a theme of Autumn/Fall.

I hope you can see the background design I tried to achieve with a stencil, double-sided tape and various containers of gilding flakes. The stencil is a gorgeous one by (forget the name but I'll fix up when I get home) with a leaf pattern over it. I lay some wide double-sided  tape over some white cardstock, positioned the stencil over top and then tried filling in the leaf patterns with a bronzy mixture of gilding flakes. There are some areas that represent the sky/void space, which I covered with silver; and then after removing the stencil, I filled in the leaf outlines with a greeny mixture. One thing with gilding flakes is that when you drop a piece on double-sided tape, there is NO chance of picking it up to try again. Anyway, that's it for the background. The image is AliciaBel's Felicity that was coloured using my Copic markers to tie in with the autumnal theme. You should be able to see the other accoutrements I used to finish the card.

This challenge is sponsored by Angie's Digital Stamps, AliciaBel and Fred, She Said Designs. Winners of this challenge can win 2 digistamps from Angie's Digital Stamps or a $10 voucher to spend at AliciaBel or Fred, She Said Designs.

Join us at Get Creative and see what Autumn goodness has been created. Make a card and join in the fun.

Bye for now.

Love,

Using a Digital Stamp to Make a Background

Hi to all.

I'm back again with the third challenge from Angie's Digital Stamps. This month's challenge is "Anything Goes". I used one of Angie's digistamps of a cute little cupcake and thought it would be fun to create a background paper with it instead of making it the focus of the card (like I usually do).

I don't know about you, but whenever I'm manipulating images like this, I always go to a Windows Word page and find that I can manoeuver the images however I like. Probably it's because I started doing this back in 1980 something when we first got computers in the staffrooms in QLD schools. I used to make up my own class handouts and was forever trying to make them look interesting and professional-looking. 

This technique is for those of you who do not own/have access to editing programs such as Photo Shop.

HOW TO CREATE A BACKGROUND WITH A DIGISTAMP AND WINDOWS WORD PROGRAM.

1. Start by opening your image in a photo editing program like Photo Manager; and crop it to remove any excess white space. Make sure it's saved as a jpeg file.



2. Open the Word program, create a new page document and insert a rectangle the size of your intended background panel. You can position the images where you want them to be. Insert the cropped image. Reduce the size of the image to suit the size of the intended panel. It's important to now edit the image by changing the "Wrap Text" to "Tight". Also edit the order by bringing this image forward.

3.  The image is now ready to copy and paste. 

4.  Move the images and rotate to suit your design. The little green-ended handle is used to achieved this manipulation. Make sure some of the images fade off the edge of the panel to make it more natural looking.

5. Once you've placed all of the images where you want them, save the page and then print. Leave the rectangle in place as this will show you where to cut out.

I hope you can easily understand these instructions. If there's anything you need help with, please leave a comment and I'll get back to you.

To finish my card I painted around the edges of the card blank with some gold Wink of Stella ink, coloured the image using Copic Markers and secured a foiled and printed vellum panel; before completing by adding some pink enamel dots.

Anyway, head on over to Angie's Digital Stamps; see the amzing designs on display and enter your own design for a chance to win.

Bye for now.

Love,
Janelle

I'm now on two more Design Teams!

I hope I don't get into trouble for telling you this yet, but, I've been asked to be on the design team for two internet card challenges. I'm so excited!!!

They are both the brainchildren of Angie Addison. from Florida, USA. The first one is Get Creative Challenges and the other is Simply Create Too Challenges.  I'll be submitting cards for them real soon - can hardly wait!!!

I have also started a Facebook page. I'm a bit of a techno-dino, when it comes to things like that, but I need it for my crafting, so needs must....... (I think that's how it goes.) I will be using it mostly for cards etc. I hope those who have asked to be my friend don't get too disappointed with what I post on it. :)

Speaking of dinosaurs, I've ordered a ring with a Dinogem in it. In case you don't know, Dinogems are agatized dinosaur bones and sometimes called "gembone". The stone for my ring is said to be from a T Rex. How cool is that???! I'll post a photo when it comes.

Lastly I'm posting some cards I made for Practical Publishing a while back and hope you like them. They used foiling techniques from heat foiling, using glues, stamping, double-sided tape, gilding flakes and gold leaf.

The "Hello" card uses what I've called a faux velvet technique. IRL the texture on the card looks like jacquard velvet (the red/brown bits). This is because I applied gilding flakes through a stencil (onto a panel of double-sided adhesive sheet, then rubbed in some Distress Glitter once the stencil was removed. Because the glitter flakes are rather large, they don't lie flat and you see a nap, like in real velvet. 

I'd seen it with microbeads added but not the Distress Glitter, and I really love the effect that produced. Another good thing also, the glitter doesn't continue to brush off with this type. No more fairyland funhouse here.  :)

Anyway, bye for now.

Love,

Janelle