Wednesday, November 26, 2014

Winter Scene Art Journal Tutorial

Hi everyone! We are having a challenge break week at Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge this week, but three team members will be posting tutorials, and today it is my turn.

As you know, I love to build scenes and in this tutorial I am building a scene using mainly stencils by Simon Says Stamp. I turned this into a peaceful art journal page, but you could just as well make a card or a tag.
 
To see the full tutorial, you'll have to hop over to the Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge Blog.
 
Happy crafting and thank you for stopping by!
 
Anna-Karin

Tuesday, November 25, 2014

Kids & Sled Wallhanging Tutorial

Hi everyone! I am sharing a tutorial on the Sizzix blog today, for a wintery wall-hanging.
 
I was aiming for a cosy and textured feeling on this project, using different techniques. As usually, the techniques can be applied to any type of project. You can easily turn this into a card, tag or make embellishments for a scrapbooking page.
 
To see the full tutorial, head over to the Sizzix blog.
 
Thank you for visiting!
 
Happy crafting!
 
Anna-Karin


Monday, November 24, 2014

Winter Shadow Box Tutorial

Hello friends! Today I am happy to share a tutorial on Tim Holtz blog, made for the Tim Holtz Media Team.
 
I turned a burlap panel around and made it into a shadow box instead. You probably already know that I love shadow boxes and it is particularly fun to build little scenes inside them. I used one of my favourite ways to create snow here; texture paste and a lot of Distress Glitter. You can also use the techniques for other projects.

To see the full tutorial, head over to Tim Holtz blog.

Thank you so much for stopping by today!

Anna-Karin

Tuesday, November 18, 2014

Vintage Canister Tutorial

Hello everyone! During November, the challenge at Eileen Hull's Art With Heart challenge is Favorite Recipes. Eileen's new Vintage Kitchen collection is going to be available for purchase any day now and the team has shared creations using this wonderful and versatile collection.

In August, I shared some of the samples I made with the Vintage Kitchen collection and promised to give the details later one. In this post, I will share three samples, one of them a stepped out tutorial. I have a fourth one too, but I will save that for later this week.

Let's start with the Canister die, which is such a great die. Love this tall shape. I wanted to create a vintage canister, looking like something my grandmother might have had in her kitchen, with texture and a simple design.
 
Die cut the canister from mat board. This is an XL die, so you need the Extended Cutting pads. As you can see, the Scoreboards dies both cut and score the material, making assembly easy. Paint with Antique Linen and Pumice Stone Distress paint. When dry, stamp here and there with a crackle stamp and Watering Can ink. I painted and stamped the inside too.

I painted the lid with Broken China paint. All the edges were sanded to reveal the white mat board.

Cover the edges of the lid with masking tape. Mix a little Pumice Stone paint into Wendy Vecchi's Embossing Paste and apply through a stencil. Remove the tape and leave to dry.

Mix a little Antique Linen and Pumice Stone paint into Embossing Paste and apply through a flower stencil with a palette knife. Leave to dry.

When the flower panels are dry, you can add more stencilling on the remaining two sides. I used a word stencil and some birds. Leave to dry.

When the paste is dry, you can assemble the canister. I used Ranger's Wonder Tape. Die cut a label from white paper and paint with Broken China.

Dry brush Gathered Twigs paint here and there on the canister to give it an aged look.

I stitched a vintage button to the lid, which also makes it easy to open the canister.

It can be displayed with any of the sides facing forwards, to vary the look. Use patterns that fit with the recipient of the canister. 
 
This sugar bowl is another sweet die and it comes together with a creamer. It remained me of a very cute china set I had as a child and I tried to recreate it from memory. Again, I used a stencil by Wendy Vecchi and sponged Distress Inks through it, aiming for a soft look. Mat board takes inks really well.  
 
Stamp with a sentiment using Watering Can ink and add some pearls.

On the other side, I used another favourite sentiment stamp. Assemble the sugar bowl with strong tape.

I also used the Loaf Pan die, to make a little gift box for something sweet, in this case jelly beans. The pan was die cut from mat board and embossed in the pretty Sunburst folder. I coloured it with Eileen's Bay Blends ink. The Loaf Pan can be assembled in two ways, the second one being a little broader than my version, with the sides leaning outwards.

The flower was die cut from patterned paper with the Sweet Treats For You die, inked and layered together. I glued some trim around the edge.

The Loaf Pan was sprayed with Biscotti Perfect Pearls mist, for some sparkle.
 
Thank you so much for looking! I'll be back with another Vintage Kitchen project later this week.
 
Happy crafting!!
 
Anna-Karin
 
Supplies:
Embossing folder: Sizzix: Sunburst & Waffle
Surfaces: Sizzix Little Sizzles White Mat Board; Neenah Smooth Solar White; Prima Vintage Vanity A4
Stamps: Stamper's Anonymous Wendy Vecchi: The Purpose of Art, Art Comforts, Forever Art; Stamper's Anonymous Tim Holtz: Cracks & Specks
Ink: Ranger Archival Ink: Watering Can, Saffron; Distress Ink: Spun Sugar, Shabby Shutters, Gathered Twigs; Colorbox Eileen Hull Blends: Bay
Paint: Distress Paint: Antique Linen, Gathered Twigs, Pumice Stone, Broken China
Mist: Ranger Perfect Pearls: Biscotti
Stencils: Stamper's Anonymous: Wendy Vecchi: Vintage Floral, Sunburst, Classic Words, Fancy Flowers
Medium: Stamper's Anonymous Wendy Vecchi: White Embossing Paste

Monday, November 17, 2014

Winter Forest Scene

Hi and welcome! Sorry about the quiet week on the blog last week, things were busy here with my parents visiting. We have a new Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge, to the moon. Lots of options for this challenge, be inspired by space, stars, something celestial and so on. I am looking forward to seeing what you will all come up with.

I love using stars, and there are some on this project too, but the focus is on the moon. It is a quick Christmas card made with glossy cardstock, dye ink and the new Winter Deer die from Sizzix. I love working with dye inks on glossy cardstock, which you probably know if you have seen my scenic stamping. This card is an example of creating a quick scene using some of the same techniques.
 
I started by die cutting a mask for the moon with the smallest Sized Circles die and a masking sheet. Place it on glossy cardstock and start applying inks on top with a Colorbox Stylus Tool and Oval Tips. Start at the edge and pull the ink into the card. It is easier to begin with the lightest shade of ink and gradually build up darker colours. I like to start with the Ranger Adirondack Lights, in this case Aqua. When you remove the mask, add some ink over the moon to blend it into the background.

The stars were made with a white gel pen and I sponged a tiny bit of white pigment ink on top, using a Q-tip, to make them shine. The sentiment is from a Simon Says Stamp exclusive set.

Die cut the Winter Deer from another piece of glossy cardstock and colour in the same way as the background. Stamp with a script stamp and Faded Jeans ink.

To increase the snowy feeling I stamped the ground with a Tim Holtz Specks stamp and embossing ink, and embossed with white powder. This also gives a great texture. Glue the deer scene on top of the background.

I hope you will take part in our challenge this week, as every week, one participant wins a $50 gift voucher from Simon Says Stamp.


http://www.simonsaysstamp.com/
 
Thank you so much for stopping by today!

Happy crafting!

Anna-Karin

Supplies:
Surfaces: Ranger: Glossy Cardstock; Tim Holtz idea-ology Mask Sheets
Dies: Sizzix: Winter Deer, Sized Circles
Stamps: Simon Says Stamp: Inside Holiday Greetings; Stamper's Anonymous Tim Holtz: Classics #9, Cracks and Specks
Ink: Distress Ink: Faded Jeans, Stormy Sky, Chipped Sapphire; Ranger Adirondack: Aqua, Stonewashed; Archival Ink: Cobalt; Colorbox Frost White; Versamark
Embossing powder: Ranger: White
Pen: Uni-Ball: Signo White

Monday, November 10, 2014

Frosty Snowflake Ornaments

Hello everyone! I hope you had a good weekend. We were away on a little holiday last week in a national park and saw lots of wildlife. It is Monday and a new Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge is up, focusing on ornaments. You can, for example, make an actual ornament, stamp something ornamental or be inspired by an ornament.
 
I like to make my own Christmas ornaments and snowflakes are one of my favourite shapes, so I combined the two here. The big snowflakes were die cut from grungeboard with Tim Holtz new Layered Snowflake die. The smaller ones were die cut with the Stacked Snowflake die.

I made three snowflake ornaments and they can hang in a tree, or maybe in a window. They were painted with different shades of blue and teal Distress Paint.

The Layered Snowflakes were embossed in the coordinating folder, that comes with the die. I painted them in shades of blue. When the blue was dry, they were dry brushed with white paint, most of the paint gets stuck to the embossed parts. I sanded them slightly and inked with Gathered Twigs.

To add a lot of twinkle, I coated the snowflakes with a thin layer of Glossy Accents and covered them with Rock Candy Distress Glitter. They were painted and glittered on both the front and the back.

They were finished with some Chit Chat stickers.

Here you can maybe see the embossed pattern a little better. You can hang as many or as few snowflakes you want together - or perhaps make a banner with them instead.
 
Join us this week and it might be you who wins a $50 gift voucher from Simon Says Stamp, drawn randomly.  

http://www.simonsaysstamp.com

Thank you for stopping by today!!
 
Happy crafting!
 
Anna-Karin
 
Supplies:
Surfaces: Tim Holtz idea-ology: Grungeboard
Ink: Distress Ink: Gathered Twigs
Glitter: Ranger Distress Glitter: Rock Candy
Embellishments: Tim Holtz idea-ology: Seasonal Chit Chat Stickers, Snowflake Adornments

Friday, November 7, 2014

Handmade Holidays Blog Hop

Hello and very welcome to my post for the 4th annual Handmade Holidays Blog Hop! During this three day blog hop, we will share handmade holiday gifts with you, and there will be so much inspiration. We've gathered over 100 of our creative blogger friends in the craft industry as well as some of our fellow product manufacturers to bring you a plethora of inspiring gift ideas you can make now to give to your friends, family, and colleagues.

Pin and bookmark these ideas for this holiday season and to use throughout the year! Each day of the hop features approximately 30 gift projects and you can "hop" from one blog to another to check them all out.

Handmade Holidays 2014 Hop Logo

Creating your own gifts, makes those gifts so special, especially because of all the heart put into the process of creating. And it is fun too!

I used new Sizzix dies by Tim Holtz for my project. I have had these plain fabric serviettes for probably ten years, and planned to use them for something but just never got to them. For this project, I thought it was time to alter them into something a little prettier. You can use the same techniques for a table cloth, fabric bag, apron or whatever you can think of, and it makes a great and quick gift.
 
These were the original serviettes.
 
Start by die cutting shapes from transparencies. It will work even better if you use Tim Holtz Masking Sheets, but I had ran out of them. I used ink jet transparencies, which means they are rougher on the one side, and that side sticks to the fabric a little bit, making it easier to apply the ink. I love using my dies to make stencils and masks and it is a great way to get even more out of your dies.
 
For this project, I used Ranger's Clear Fabric Medium to turn Archival Ink reinkers into fabric paint. Squeeze some medium into a disposable cup and add a few drops of ink. I used three blue/teal inks, but you can of course use any colour. Mix.

Place your homemade stencil on the fabric, with your craft sheet underneath, in case some ink leaks through. Use a mini round ink blending tool to apply the ink, holding the stencil in place. It might be easier if you dab some of the ink off on a piece of scrap paper first.

Continue until you have a shape in each corner of the serviettes. Vary the three colours so that the images are not uniformly coloured.

Use the Stacked Snowflakes die to die cut snowflake stencils.

Move the snowflake stencils around and add snowflakes here and there on the serviettes.

I like to add words to my projects and used a Tim Holtz Christmas stencil for that. Mix a little Sepia ink into the Fabric Medium. Use masking tape to mask out the words that you don't want to use. Continue until you have completed all four serviettes. 
 
Make a simple tag for the serviettes and tie them together with twine. To make the tag, I first smeared some Tumbled Glass and Picket Fence Distress Stain on my craft sheet, misted with water and pressed manila cardstock into the ink. The tag was die cut with the Tag & Tie die.

When dry, stamp with a deer stamp and Potting Soil ink. Stamp a snowflake background with Evergreen Bough. The three Mirrored Stars were coloured with alcohol ink.

Just to show you the finished serviettes. It might look nicer to let the angel face the other way, into the serviette, but I had run out of transparencies and wanted the rough side to face downwards when applying the ink.

I love this Prancing Deer die and also used it on my December Daily tutorial earlier this week.

You can add as many or as few images as you want.

These techniques will also look great on a linen shopping bag, or maybe an apron.
 
Fold the serviettes and tie them with a piece of twine and you have a one-of-a-kind Christmas gift to someone special. I hope this inspired you to use your dies to create your own stencils, which is great for papercrafting projects too.

Are you ready for lots more creative handmade gift ideas and projects?? Your next stop is Amy Latta from One Artsy Mama.

Follow along on our blog hop! Simply click on each of the links below to be taken to that post with additional information and photos on how to create a handmade gift project. Have fun and pin away!


There are also great prizes to be won!

a
Rafflecopter giveaway


Follow our Handmade Holidays Gift Ideas
Pinterest board for even more inspiration!

Follow Jennifer
Priest of RainMaker Media Works + Hydrangea Hippo's board Handmade Holidays on Pinterest.

 

A huge thank you to our sponsors for this hop - please visit
their blogs below and follow them. And be sure to come back tomorrow for another 30+ amazing Handmade Gift
Ideas!
 

 
 
 

Additional Sponsorship provided to bloggers by:

 

Thank you so much for stopping by today!
 
Happy holiday crafting!
 
Anna-Karin

Supplies:
Dies: Sizzix: Layered Snowflake, Angelic, Prancing Deer, Sleigh Ride, Stacked Snowflakes, Tag & Tie
Surfaces: Ranger: Manila cardstock; plain linen serviettes
Stamps: Stamper's Anonymous Tim Holtz: Styled Woodlands, Simple Sayings, Christmas Nostalgia
Ink: Ranger Archival Ink reinkers: Sepia, Ultramarine, Aquamarine, Manganese Blue; Archival Ink: Potting Soil; Distress Ink: Evergreen Bough, Gathered Twigs
Stain: Distress Stain: Tumbled Glass, Picket Fence
Alcohol ink: Ranger Adirondack: Sail Boat Blue
Medium: Ranger: Clear Fabric Medium
Stencil: Stamper's Anonymous Tim Holtz: Christmas
Embellishments: Tim Holtz idea-ology: Mirrored Stars, Linen Ribbon, Merriment Tissue Tape
Tools: Sizzix Big Shot; Ranger Mini Round Ink Blending Tool