St Paul's || Scrapbook Layout

Hi all,

My last blog post of 2016! This year has gone by so quickly.... The tree is down - it's been a crappy December for us as a family with one thing and another so we wanted a clean slate for the new year. I'm crafting today and then going to welcome in the New Year with my boyfriend and his family.

Here's a scrapbook layout I made using the Like Forever kit from November which is called Stargazer and has lots of bits from the Pink Paislee 'Moonstruck' collection which I absolutely adore. 

We took the picture in the square near St Paul's on a recent trip to London. Nathan's camera has a flip-out screen so it's perfect for selfies....! 

There are also some bits from the Simple Stories 'The Reset Girl' collection here.

Now, for 2017... there are a lot of unknowns but my resolution is to take better care of myself and relax more...!

Thanks for stopping by and have a fantastic 2017!

Emily xx

More Couture du Jour cards!

Hi all,

It's been a very busy Christmas and I haven't had much time to craft. We spent Christmas in Liverpool and it was fabulous. A busy week, then it's New Year,  but hopefully next week things will calm down a bit and I can get back into crafting properly!

I have some more cards to share using the Couture du Jour collection from Trimcraft.

For step by step instructions, head over to my Trimcraft gallery! (link) 

Thanks for stopping by!

Emily xx

Merry Christmas

Hi everyone,

A final Christmas card to share and this one is for all my lovely followers...! 

As you read this I'll probably be on the way to Liverpool. Nathan walked in one day and told me that his parents are going to Liverpool for Christmas and that we are welcome to tag along. I had a think, and then I asked his mum about it one morning and she made it sound really exciting, so it was very hard to say no to. I know Nathan would prefer that too, and we did spend Christmas with my family last year. Very excited! 

I've planned this as my last post before Christmas, so wherever you are and however you are spending Christmas, have a fabulous time!

Emily xx

Introducing Simply Creative Around The World! || A London Scrapbook Layout

Hello!

This week I received my Trimcraft DT Kit, featuring all the new paper releases. There are six new Simply Creative paper pad designs and two from First Edition. I will be very busy over Christmas! 

I have a new layout to share today using one of the new Simply Creative paper pads. This one is called Around The World and as you can tell it's all very travel-themed so perfect for documenting your trips at home and abroad. 

This layout uses a picture I took in London earlier this month. Nathan and I always have a walk by the Thames whenever we are in London; we love to explore all the little shops and galleries and of course call into one of the FOUR Wagamama restaurants along the route. (I have since noted their locations all down on the map we use...!) 

To find out how I made this, head over to my Trimcraft gallery (LINK)

I apologise for not posting much of late - I have been busy with my December Daily album and I'm loving putting it together. I will do a video walkthrough once it is complete!

Now, I have some more projects to make and then I should probably think about packing as we are going to be spending Christmas in Liverpool... exciting stuff!

Thanks for stopping by!

Emily xx

See Amid The Winter's Snow

Hi all,

A layout to share today using kraft card and an old picture...
I've a new obsession with scrapping old pictures from when my parents were young. I love hearing the stories behind the pictures.
I was looking for a wintery picture with a cold feel to it and I found this one, taken when my dad was young, on a 110 format camera, Vivitar Tele 835AW, he tells me. (I need one!) It was taken on Christmas Day and then snow was so bad the road to New Holland for Christmas dinner was impassable.

Here's the original picture, I love it. The photocopy never did it justice but you can see how wonderful the colours are in the original. 

Anywho, if you want to find out more about how I made this layout then it's up on my Trimcraft gallery. (LINK) 

Thanks for stopping by!

Emily xx

Life In A Snapshot - December Challenge - Snowy Sunrise Layout

Hi all,

December really is flying by.... Here is my project for the Life In A Snapshot challenge. You can find out more here (LINK)

This month we decided that we would do a moodboard instead of a sketch and the theme is winter. 

I decided to use a picture of a sunrise in the snow that I took a few years ago (from a moving car, clever me...!) 

The background paper is by BasicGrey I think, it was difficult to find a paper that matched my photo but this was perfect. I used a little gesso on the background with some spray ink on top. 

Thanks for stopping by!

Emily xx

'Oh Deer!' Christmas Scrapbook Layout

Hello, lovely followers!

As it's the last week before the Christmas break I thought I'd share a festive layout with you. This one uses the Simply Creative 'Jingle Bells' paper pad by Trimcraft.

I made this in November, and I was struggling to find pictures I hadn't used before and then I found these pictures Nathan had taken for me a few years ago when there were some reindeer at the market in town. Perfect for this festive layout.

Step by step instructions are up on my Trimcraft gallery (link)

Thanks for stopping by!
(When this post goes live I'll be in Sheffield presenting a thing to some very unhelpful uni tutors... fingers crossed we'll do ok!)
Emily xx

Autumn Leaves Mixed Media Layout

Hi all,

A new layout to share today using some pictures I took a few weeks ago of the trees in our local park as the leaves were just beginning to turn. It was at this point that after having my camera for four years, I worked out how manual focus works. Ha ha ha...

This layout started when I was trying out some Nuvo metallic 'embellishment mousse' through a Prima stencil and it looked fantastic. The challenge then was, how to make a layout without covering too much of the beautiful pattern I had created. I also added light green and gold ink splatters.
I stuck my photos in a strip on patterned paper and then stuck onto vellum and ripped the edges. The large skeleton leaves are from Paperchase (note to self: buy more in London!). Finally I added ribbon, rub ons and thickers, as well as some cardstock stickers from the 'Market Street' collection by My Mind's Eye.

Thanks for stopping by!
Emily xx

Couture du Jour cards!

Hi all,

I have some cards to share today using the Couture du Jour collection from Trimcraft.

For step by step instructions, head over to my Trimcraft gallery! (Link)

Thanks for stopping by!
Emily xx

Spreading Some Christmas Cheer!

Hi all,

Some final Christmas card inspiration to share just in case you've that last few cards left to make.
These cards use the Simply Creative 'Christmas Cheer' paper pad by Trimcraft.

This one used layered papers. I fussy cut along the patterned paper with bells on it and stuck behind tartan print paper. I made a shaker element using vellum and sequins, held together with machine stitching.

This one used inlaid die cutting. Sound complicated? It really isn't. There's a handy tutorial over on my Trimcraft Gallery which should explain it all for you.

Thanks for stopping by!
Emily xx

Golden Days Scrapbook Layout

Hi all,

A new layout to share today and it's one of my favourites ever.

The picture was taken a couple weeks ago at our local park. Nathan and I went for a walk as it was a sunny Sunday and it was an excuse for a cheeky Maccies and an opportunity to have a play around with Nathan's new camera which is like mine but with a lot more bells and whistles. It's a lot of fun to use and I got some great shots but this one is my favourite. Nathan had gone for a sit down (he had been at work the night before) and I took this. I love how the trees were reflected in the still water and how the shadows in the leaves on the floor have been captured.

Sometimes, you have to suck it up, put your big girl pants on and USE YOUR SPECIALITY PAPERS. Like seriously if it cost you two quid you need to use it and not sit there stroking it. So I did. The background is some speciality papers I had been hoarding. I'm going to say the one with the trees on is by Carta Bella and it's textured and lovely and I got it in one of those surprise sale boxes last year. The round one with the lovely rings (there is a word for it and I can't remember!) is from one of this year's collections, it's... Warm and Cosy by Pebbles/Jen Hadfield. It cost me £2 but I didn't care.
The embellishments are a mish-mash of collections. Basically I got a 12x12" plastic zip bag and filled it with all of my autumn stash. Like a personalised scrapbook kit. Most are bits from the September/October Quirky Kit, but there's also some Shimelle 'Go Now Go' love hearts which brought a little more gold to the layout. The blue domes are from The Works, they have a crackle effect and they are wonderful.

They don't show up on the picture but I also used some gold rub on leaves. I forget what brand they are but they are from this year. I took a picture from the side so you can see them. It's all in the little details.

Thanks for stopping by!
Emily xx

Ombre Inlay (It's Simpler Than It Looks!)

Hello again! 

I have something of an experiment to share with you today. Yesterday I was at a bit of a loose end so I figured I would have a go at an idea I've had for a while... an ombre inlay in a pattern die.

Maybe that sounds over complicated? It's super easy (if a little fiddly), and in the end I came up with this.... 

For this card I used a First Edition repeat pattern die by Trimcraft. I cut it from kraft card. I also cut it from four coloured papers from my scraps box, and (IMPORTANT!!) saved all the little 'bits' from inside the die. I backed the kraft die cut with sticky tape, and then used the little bits to fill in the gaps. I arranged them into an ombre pattern (dark red>red>gold>yellow), with a little of each colour in the next colour (I'm bad at explaining things...) so the transition to one colour to the next was smoother. 

The dragonfly is from a mini die by Dovecraft. I did the same technique as with the pattern - die cut from kraft card and then from coloured scraps, saving the 'bits'. 

The background is some watercolour paper with a DecoArt mister sprayed over it. This was just to test the mister out (Katie kindly sent me a parcel of mixed media goodies last week <3) but it went well with the inlayed die cuts that I used it as a background. I used yellow washi tape around the edge and backed onto orange paper. 

Finally (I'm obsessed with this lately), I cut a length of gold thread and stuck it around the dragonfly, using little gems to cover up the areas where the double sided tape was visible.

Right, off to watch some December Daily videos as I'm thinking about doing it this year. I have a little 6x6" album coming, it was like £1 in the docrafts sale so I thought... why not?!

Thanks for stopping by! 

Emily xx

More Penguins & Presents Christmas Cards!

Hi all,

As promised last week, here's more of the Christmas cards I made using the 'Penguins & Presents' papers from StickerKitten.

I actually can't stop making with these papers... they've really helped get my crafty mojo back.

For this first card I used the pale bokeh effect paper (my favourite) as a background and layered up more paper and a tag.
I coloured some plain wooden pegs with my trusty silver Sharpie and added some silver thread around the sentiment (from a chipboard sticker sheet by Trimcraft). I also coloured some wood veneer (also from StickerKitten) and stuck them onto the card.

This one is a bit bigger, with more layered paper. I made a shaker frame for this, covered a plain Trimcraft frame and then making an acetate pocket filled with sequins. I then stuck bokeh effect paper behind this and stuck the whole thing to the card front. To finish I added some silver stars and a wooden penguin (also from StickerKitten). 

Thanks for stopping by!
Emily xx

Steampunk Mixed Media Piece

Hello, crafty friends!

I have a mixed media piece to share with you today and it's something I wasn't sure of at first but I persevered and once I finished it I was quite pleased with what I achieved!

I've been wanting to make a piece like this for a while - I had a bag of MDF gears from Things To Alter just begging to be used!
Then I saw this video on the Finnabair Art Files channel on Youtube...  (link) and decided to loosely follow along with it. I'm not great at mixed media and I don't have many supplies but it seemed simple enough so I had a go.

You can find out how to make this following the video, but I'll explain the colours I used, etc.

 Once I had applied the (many layers of cheap) gesso (seriously, The Works gesso isn't great..), I used modelling paste to stencil gears. The stencil is by Scrapberry's. I added dylusions spray inks in Fresh Lime and Chopped Pesto, adding water and letting the inks run, until I was happy with the effect. Basically, just play around!

Once this was dry I used a brown watercolour pencil to outline the edges of the gears and then added some water. The darker edges brought more dimension to the gears.

Thanks for stopping by!

Emily xx

Introducing Dovecraft 'Couture du Jour'!

Hi all,

I was very excited last week to receive my box full of new products from Trimcraft. I spent some time over the weekend coming up with a list of ideas for projects to make, and this one was the first and one of my favourites - a scrapbook layout, of course!

The picture was taken at a wedding a couple years ago and it is of the lovely ladies in my family. I am the short one. A side effect of being 4'11" is that I have tiny feet and it's impossible to find heels in size 2...!
I chose to use the picture as it went perfectly with the Couture du Jour collection.

You can find step by step instructions over on my Trimcraft Gallery (link)



And if you fancy a nosey what I got in my Design Team kit.... here's an unboxing video I made.

Thanks for stopping by!

Emily xx

Penguins & Presents Christmas Cards!

Hi all,

Some Christmas cards to share today using the 'Penguins And Presents' papers from StickerKitten, which Sarah kindly sent me.

I absolutely love working with Sarah's papers, they're so bright and fun and the quality is so good. I'm sharing a couple today and then there's a couple more up next week. 

This first card uses layered paper with some festive buttons. I used some silver thread in the buttons and stuck some behind the sentiment too. I'm not sure where the thread is from (my parents bought me it and a gold one too when they were out somewhere) but it's one of my favourite things in my stash!

This one used more layered papers, but this time I fussy cut some little penguins from one of the paper sheets, and coloured in some of the wood veneer (also from StickerKitten) with Sharpies. Again I used silver thread behind my sentiment. 

Thanks for stopping by and stay tuned for more from this collection next week!

Emily xx

Advent Calendar Clock!

Hi all,

With December just around the corner, it's the right time to be thinking about Advent calendars.... but why not make your own?....


It all started when I received a pack of advent number stickers in my Trimcraft DT kit.
"What can I do with these?", I thought...
And I had been saving a 14" pizza base (Sainsburys started selling fresh pizza and the bases are great for crafts!)

So I made this.

The rings are die cut from cardboard and the patterned papers are from the Simply Creative 'Christmas Cheer' paper pad by Trimcraft.

There's a step by step guide on how to make it here.

Thanks for stopping by!
Emily xx

Sunny Selfie Layout

Hi all,

A new layout to share today using a selfie we took in Whitby outside St Mary's Church in early September when it was 30 degrees! Hard to imagine now isn't it.

Here's my layout. It's dull and cold outside so I really wanted to make a nice bright layout to cheer myself up.

I used a double sided sheet of Crate Paper 'Poolside' paper, cut diagonally down the middle, one side flipped over and attached back to the other side with washi tape (and sticky tape on the back for extra support). The washi tapes I chose from my stash to complement the colours of the ice creams (?) on the patterned paper.

I mounted the photo onto white cardstock and then onto this awesome metallic polka dot print vellum from My Mind's Eye. I used more on the bottom right corner.

The embellishments are all from the Pink Paislee 'Fancy Free' collection designed by Paige Evans.

I really enjoyed making this layout, I think I got too caught up in Christmassy things and autumn layouts I don't know how to finish and then forgot how to scrapbook! All better now. I love bright layouts! 

Thanks for stopping by!

Emily xx

Deck The Halls!

Hello to my lovely followers....!

A few Christmas cards to share today. These all use the Simply Creative 'Deck The Halls' 6x6" paper pad by Trimcraft.

This one is a circular aperture surrounded by die cut and glittery stars. Simple but effective!

This one really encompasses the Nordic designs of the paper pad with a cosy, warm feel.

And finally something with a bit more sparkle.

For step by step instructions, head over to my Trimcraft gallery!

Thanks for stopping by!
Emily xx

Crafty Girl Scrapbook Layout

Hi all,

A new layout to share today.....
I really wanted to use the Simple Stories 'Reset Girl' chipboard stickers on a layout...
And I did like(ish) this picture of me in the outfit Nathan bought me for my birthday....
So I made this with a little mixed media.

I started off with 2 papers from the Heidi Swapp September Skies paper pad, layered them and painted an area with gesso, then copper acrylic paint and finally stamped some stars once the paint was dry. The stamp in the top left is an old one by Kaisercraft and I love it...! Would like to do more stamping now I have bought myself a decent ink pad.

I used Reset Girl washi tape on the background and also along the bottom. Then I layered up some envelopes and doilies before adding my photo, stickers and some Cocoa Vanilla Studio sequins. 

Thanks for stopping by!

Emily xx

Twist & Pop Christmas Card

Hi all,

I tried something new this week, using the Christmas paper download from Trimcraft which you can get for free HERE

Looks like a normal card right?

Wrong.

Some of my fellow teamies at Trimcraft spoke of a 'twist and pop' card.
I was intrigued, so I enquired how to make it....
I was directed to this video, which I followed to make the card.

Here's a picture of the inside of the card.

Thanks for stopping by!

Emily xx

More Christmas Cards!

Hi all,

Hope the xmas cards aren't getting too much... limiting mine to one blog post a week.

The ones I'm sharing today are made with leftover stash from last year. Mostly docrafts collections and I made a couple cards to try out different techniques - (relatively) CAS and a mixed media one.

Thanks for stopping by!
Emily xx

More Than Words Challenge November 2016

Hi all

Here's my entry for the November More Than Words challenge and you can find out more and enter HERE

I used the November Like For Ever kit for this layout. I'm not currently a subscriber but I saw the kit on instagram and it looked awesome so I ordered it and I love it!

I also used watercolour on this layout and I love the effect it created.

I also made a lil' process video for it. I've had scrapper's block for a while and it's only today that my mojo has really come back so I was excited to make this.

Here is the challenge the folks at More Than Words set:

I chose the photo because it's SPECIAL. We hardly see Sam any more so when we do get to see them it has become tradition to take lots of selfies. I love our friendship because even though we cannot be together often, when we see them it's like we have never been apart.

I also chose the picture because of Sam's BLUE hair. (It's also incredibly soft...). I'm not sure about 'old', but the camera was BORROWED from Nathan, it's his new one and he let me take it around the convention all day to try it out. The screen folds out and flips over so it's perfect for selfies! Something NEW is the supplies I used, from the Pink Paislee Moonstruck collection which is my favourite ever scrapbook collection to date. 

Thanks for stopping by!

Emily xx

PS excuse my terrible handwriting...

Life In A Snapshot Sketch Challenge - November

Hi all,

A new layout to share today for the Life In A Snapshot sketch challenge. You can find out more and enter here 

The backing paper is Mr Smith's Workshop by docrafts (Probably should have chosen something less busy!) covered with various washi tapes and the other papers and embellishments are from the BoBunny Enchanted Harvest 6x6" paper pad that I got last year and never used as much as I'd've liked.

Here's the sketch for this month.

You could use four embellishments if you're making a card or ATC, or if it's a layout you could use four individual pictures or do what I did and cut up one picture into four bits.

Thanks for stopping by and I hope you'll join in with us!

Emily xx

The Christmas Trapeze!

Hi all,

Some Christmas cards to share today.
These two are made using a trapeze fold and you can find out how to do it HERE.

Both also use the Simply Creative 'Deck The Halls' 6x6" paper pad by Trimcraft.

If you want to find out more about how I made these then head over to my Trimcraft gallery.

Thanks for stopping by!

Emily xx

More Than Words October Challenge

Hi all

Here's my entry for the October More Than Words Challenge. You can find out more and join in here.

Here is the October mood board.

I wanted to do an autumn layout as I've not had much chance to make one so far this year. 

I decided to do an ombre of orange-yellow-green like the colours in my photo and I did this by covering a sheet of 12x12" cardstock with gesso and then used watercolours once the gesso was dry.

I tried to keep the ombre going through my embellishments - these wooden stickers by BasicGrey were perfect and I'm so happy I could finally use them - they've been in my stash for a while now. I painted them in the same colours as my background so they blended in. 

Thanks for stopping by!

Emily xx

Gorjuss or Goth-juss?

TRICK OR TREAT?!

(Treat please!)

With Halloween on Monday I decided to make something spooooooooky!

I don't have much spooky stash.

But I did win a Gorjuss stamp set from docrafts a few weeks ago...

It's common knowledge that gorjuss is waaaaay overdone...can we have something new please, docrafts?! .. so I figured I'd do something different with her. Cue printing a sheet of tiny 'day of the dead' skulls and turning 'Gorjuss' into 'Gothjuss'.
I doodled a little pattern onto her face and stuck her onto a mannequin with wings from Things To Alter.

If you want to know how to make the card shape then you can find how to do it here.

Thanks for creepin' by! (Y'know, 'cause it's Halloween...)

Emily xx

Whitby Layout Using Cocoa Vanilla 'Hello Sunshine'

Hi all,

A new layout to share today using a picture I took in Whitby a few weeks ago. Hard to imagine now as the weather's so cold and gloomy.
On the radio on the way there it said that it was the hottest September day in over 100 years. It was really busy there, we nearly turned back after a 2 hour drive as there was a huge queue to the full car park, but we saw a Park and Ride on the outskirts of the town and it cost the same as a car park ticket, plus we could spend all day there without worrying about the time. It was a beautiful day and I got some great pictures. Nathan had never been to Whitby before and was unimpressed by the amount of steps to everything... but we had a lovely day. We had fish n chips from The Fish Box opposite the co-op. Lovely and definitely beats the queue to Trenchers!  Anyway, on to my layout...

The background paper is from an old Elle's Studio collection, I think it's called 'Shine'. I stitched lines of blue, aqua and yellow up some of the.... radiants? I scribbled a blue gelato around where my picture would go, went over with water and then outlined where my picture would go with blue Distress Paint. I used the cut apart sheet from the Hello Sunshine collection by Cocoa Vanilla Studio - I bought it to use with my holiday pictures and never did, but it went really well with this picture. I also used the wood veneers from the same collection. Finally I used my absolute favourite ever Amy Tangerine thickers for the title.

Thanks for stopping by!

Emily xx

Jingle Bell, Jingle Bell, Jingle Bell CRAFT!

Hellooooo!

Christmas card making is in full swing and I have some cards to share using the Simply Creative Jingle Bells 12x12" paper pad by Trimcraft. The colours in this pad are really vibrant and there's some traditional designs in there too. It reminds me of the really old Christmas decorations I used to put up at my grandma's when I was little.

This one is a simple grid design with stitching and cute character stickers.

This one makes a bauble out of an aperture, surrounded by die cut buttons. 

And something a little more CAS - three snowflakes each topper with a sticker.

If you want to find out more about how I made these projects then head over to my Trimcraft gallery.

Thanks for stopping by!

Emily xx