Monday 29 August 2016

Triple Treat

Hello!!

On Sunday 31st July was the Triple Treat event - for Rose 'Scrap with Friends' - we had a Bus tour adventure the day before - great weekend with crafty ladies!!

As it happened I taught a class...
and had a kit packed full of

Couture Creations

I decided it would be a bit of fun to create a bunch of

Christmas cards

with just White, Mint and Silver



Card one is a little shaker - the 13cm square base is adhered to the the card front - you can distress the edge for a bit of texture - adhere the square of Acetate to the back of the silver scallop square, the mint Trio of Trees die cut will slip in under the scallops - attach two rows high of foam strips - tip the shaker mix into the centre of your card and then the shaker lid (there is a bunch of ways to get the shaker mix into the box so try which one is easy for you?) The Imaginarium Designs chipboard 'triangle trees' are lightly covered with the Liquid Pearls in Platinum (just with your finger to leave a little texture) Finish embellishing with a teal twine bow on the gift charm (from My2Angels)




Card two - the silver spider ribbon is attached around the rectangle of mint cardstock and to the left side of the card front - the 5 stars get folded in half and attached (adhere the right half of one to the left side of the next - they will make a little stack) be sure to leave star 1 and star 5 to adhere to the teal vellum scallop square (adhere behind the star shape to hide the adhesive on vellum) fold the teal twine in half and form a bow with long legs, the legs you will add a twirl and a dot of adhesive to fill out the sides - finish by colouring the chipboard 'Joy' with Liquid Pearls, adhere word to mini tag with the holly charm and teal star pin. 




Card three -  again distress the base card and adhere to the card front - foam mount the silver foil scallop square and the smaller white square is also foam mounted in the centre - now you'll de-construct the circle flower to construct a 'snowman', I added a little foam between the same size circles, adhere the long bugle beads as 'arms' - the 3 snowflakes and tall gift chipboard pieces are all coloured with Liquid Pearls - adhere the cute snowman charm and finish embellishing with a row of
3mm silver pearls at each scallop and snowflake centres too.



Card Four - this is a stick it together, use the photo as a guide for placement - the acetate was placed in an embossing folder to give it soft texture, add a swipe of Liquid Pearls around the edge and let dry before attaching - foam mount the silver foil scallop square to the bottom right hand corner - the 2 gifts are coloured with the Platinum Liquid Pearls - adhere the flowers and pearl trim as per picture.



Card five - either or a bit of both, the choice is yours! They are both Shakers - the card on the right has torn white cardstock attached as mountains, run a little of the two way glue pen for the Embossing Powder to stick to while you heat set it - the red tape included in the kit is also a great way to add strips of embossing powder as it is heat resistant - use the Liquid Drops around the edges and dot it on for some texture too - the piece of loopy lace will fit the two high foam strips (as with the other shaker) finish by embellishing with a snowman, or two?

Bonus Layout

If you are not really a card maker, you can choose to use the same pieces and techniques and create a Christmas themed layout - perfect for adding a special photo and some journalling too!



The frame is using the 'red' tape, embossing powder and heat setting -




I simply snipped the embossed acetate into a couple of mountains, adding some Liquid Drops for colours and texture - the two way glue pen is randomly added to symbolise 'snow'




A new way to use your included 'Trip of Trees' die - make a pile of Embossing Powder and melt from underneath until it is molten, then press your die into the hot (VERY HOT!!) embossing powder, remove the die carefully and you'll be left with the impression (it is difficult to get a perfect impression without burning your fingers, leaving too long and having it cool with powder on... but I like it!) finish embellishing your page with the coloured chipboard pieces and flowers.

A huge THANK YOU to Artdeco Creations for generously sponsoring my kit -
Everyone received a Trio of Trees die, the Embossing tape (red), A tub of Embossing Powder in Platinum, all of the Ultimate Crafts cardstock, Acetate, Liquid Drops, 3mm Pearls, Two way glue pen, 5 cards and envelopes, Scallop Square die cuts, Embossing folder for the acetate, 'snowman flower.

Jane from Imaginarium Designs for the custom cut chipboard of triangle trees, snowflakes, gifts, Joy and Merry Christmas - much love for the professionalism and speed considering the timing!!

Tracy from My2angels for the twine and charms - Thank you!!

Toni from Scrappin with Style for tirelessly helping me precut all the scallop square layers - much appreciated!!

I always enjoy sharing some different ways of using some basic products we all have so I hope you all had a great time too - big Thanks to those who hung around to see how to fold an envelope into a gift bag too xx

Thank you to Rose for contacting me to organise an adventure for her NSW Ladies - what fun we all had!! Laughs, shopping and creating...all of my favourite things!!

Thank you,
Alison xx

The Papercraft Trail - visit me at A Place to Create

Papercraft Trail | September 10th

#couturecreationsaus #ultimatecrafts

SAVE THE DATE 

are hosting their Papercraft Trail 
Saturday 10th September 

Join our fabulous team
for a day of demonstrations, new product release and loads of fun





grab your friends and join the trail for some Creative fun


Come and visit me at 

A PLACE TO CREATE

Alison x

Smile - Couture Creations DT - September

Hello!!
It's Alison back again for a terrific Tuesday...

Have you seen the beautiful
STAINED GLASS 
Collection?
10 decorative dies with lovely names,
I just had to use them all!!

Smile.. 


My lovely friend cut each die out in Ultimate Crafts 'Snow White' cardstock - 
which gave me the option to colour them or
leave them white!


The photo is an outdoors one so I picked out 3 shades
A yellow, green and a light brown - 


By mounting those intricate die cuts on a combination of the cardstock,
they form a lovely background for the layout


The whole layout is created with just 5 & a bit sheets of cardstock - one of each colour, one white as the base and a sheet and a bit for cutting all the dies!


I coloured the white flowers with the same inks and watercolours as the 2 stained glass pieces on either side of the photo - some added with a water brush and then a little dry brushed over too.


I love to remove a base layer of petals and make a new flower - just add another centre!

The finished layout


The frame, leaves and title are all Imaginarium Designs chipboard simply give a quick coat of spray gesso - easy!!

While I had all the offcut pieces of cardstock, I assembled a quick card


Using the 10th die from the Stained Glass collection!!
I adhered the white die cut to a piece of watercolour paper and added the colour then roughly swiped it over with a black ink pad - I don't even mind that there is an 'extra' bit of messy ink, in fact I quite like it!! Very simply added a bit of faux stitching to each layer with a black pen - easy!!

Stained Glass Collection 


Flowers


Cardstock


Thanks for joining me again for a bit of fun,
Alison x










Monday 22 August 2016

Kraft plus challenge - August

Kraft...
Tassells...
oh, what to do?
...thinking, thinking...
and then I remember this cute photo of Natalie May at Champagne Bay on the
 2016 Workshop Wonders on Waters - Scrapbooking cruise
where she taught a day of fabulous classes
and,
I thought,
this might be a bit of fun!!

If you know Natalie, one of her favourite colours is teal - 
the colour of Ovarian cancer
the colour in her tattoo
and a colour she adds to her uniform of black, regularly!!

The MOOD BOARD has some pretty inspiration

 

The photo in the bottom left hand corner is the one I really like and, 
I found a broken necklace which I fashioned into a Tassell
a bit of Imaginarium Designs chipboard, simply inked with Teal
A bit of random stamping with the new background stamp from Couture Creations
and one of Kelly-ann's butterflies to finish the tassell

and this is my entry for August



CREATE YOUR OWN DREAMS
Natalie May!!

Thanks for visiting,
Alison xx

Imaginarium Design - Guest Designer in August 2016

Hello..
Hi..
Me?
Yes you!
WOW!!
Ok then, Thank you
How exciting that I am a Guest Designer for August for

Imaginarium Designs!!

I received a GIANT parcel of the most fabulous chipboard designs, and looked at them all
then looked at them all again

The Great Outdoors

Started by picking a sheet of Ultimate Crafts Snow White cardstock
did a little inking and stamping on the background
added a layer of 'Imaginarium Designs' packaging (I love doing this!!)



I created a wreath shape of Autumn colours with flowers and leaves
Inking the chipboard with a gradient from red through to yellow
The frame and title simply with black ink!
My brother and his family at Fraser Island - the autumnal colours are not a bad match for the sand and the rust from the Maheno wreck site!!



My Favourite Things

Starting with a sheet of Ultimate Crafts cardstock, I added a layer of resist card and then stencilled with 'Whipped Spackle' through the Anna Griffin stencil,
Coloured the long border piece of chipboard with some Liquid Drops for the shimmer,
the leaves all inked with green and a drop of clear crackle at the tips,
the large heart from the centre of a Scallop Heart was simply inked and then swiped around the edges with a bronze ink dauber,



These really are a few of my Favourite things, well people - our children with their Great Grandmother who is now 96 -
The title just inked with a dark brown ink so it can be seen above the cluster of flowers!



You make Me Smile

Starting with another sheet of Snow White, adhered a large book page to the left, inked  through a brick diecut across the edge on the right with a couple of shades of brown and adhered some of the bricks randomly too!
Layered an envelope - I often add an envelope layer to add more photos or hide journalling -
The base layer of chipboard just inked with black and adhered vertically along the edge of the book paper - the title using different fonts from 2 chipboard sets coated with crackle paint and left to dry!
Added a few bits and pieces into the vertical border to fill it out?
Can you see the 'funky flower' inked black below my brother and his son - I snipped that out of the centre of another chipboard so I could use it as a frame (See below layout)



After the crackle was dry I added a bit of an ink daubing over to show the cracks a bit better - it adds a nice aged effect, don't you think?



Gorgeous Smile

Yes, another sheet of Snow White - sprinkled some pigment powders on the top and across the bottom, sprayed and let run through the middle - scrapped a bit of Modelling Paste over an Anna Griffin stencil and let dry -
Layered some torn coloured cardstock with flowers



The chipboard was scribbled on with some Distress Crayons, misted and then mixed with my finger - easy! After adhering all the chipboard pieces I spotted some Glossy Accents here and there and sprinkled some Prills and Mica flakes to fill in the gaps.



Never Grow Up

There was quite a few BUTTERFLIES in different sizes and shapes so I thought I would feature them with different finishes with this beautiful photo of our niece.
A middle section of blue pigment powders, that when misted and tipped made a couple of drippy bits... which I took advantage of to underline the title piece!



Each butterfly type has its own finish -
some inked with dark blue shading
others coated with Glossy Accents and sprinkled with a mix of seed & micro beads,
the large one was coated with a layer of crackle paint and sprinkled with tiny clear micro beads while it was drying - these are my favourite, as they have a real sheen!
There is even one with a little Flower Soft



I love that they all look a bit different!!



Live for Today

Remember that 'funky flower' that I had snipped to make a frame?
Well, here it is in the centre - makes a pretty frame to match the two hearts -
That Heart from the layout above is the centre of the scallop edge heart on the right
I snipped a couple of the shapes in half to make the corners -
every chipboard has been inked with black
and a little journalling around the outside!



My goodness I have had so much FUN!!
Chipboard is so versatile!!

Thank you to
IMAGINARIUM DESIGNS
for inviting me to create some layouts with quality designs
I feel honoured!!
Alison xx




Thursday 18 August 2016

White with 1 - August - Magenta Purple

Hello, hello!!

August, already?

Perfect time to get some layouts completed, and a challenge always makes it a bit more fun!!
So I checked what the colour of the month over at 
WHITE... with 1
is for August,
AND it is...


Magenta what?
...which Purple?
Oh my goodness, what an easy to find colour...
and create a layout with...

This is my entry for the August



Starting with an Ultimate Crafts 'Snow White' cardstock, sprayed a little 'Magenta Purple' -type spray onto a Couture Creations - Anna Griffin stencil 'Rose Trellis', and also swiped a little of the Texture paste over the coloured sections at the top,bottom and side.



A bit of a dribble, splat and speckle with some 'Magenta Purple' - type crackle paint - and put a bit on the Imaginarium Designs chipboard hearts too!!
Layered and adhered the Mystery pack from The Resin Rainbow across the base of the photo and along the right hand side - Janet even included the piece of ribbon!!
The Title and hearts are inked with white - the title then covered with Glossy accents!!

Another beautiful photo of Phoenix, this time with her Mum,
Alison xx



Monday 15 August 2016

"It's a Beautiful Life" Shakers by Alison Bevis

Hello and Welcome back to my next post on the blog!!

I've made a few SHAKER cards recently...I secretly think they are coming back into fashion,
and why wouldn't they... they are so much fun to make!!
They are also SO EASY  to make which means you can keep it simple or add some more advanced techniques - the choice is yours!!

What do you need?
Some Cardstock, Acetate, Foam (strips, dots or whatever you prefer?), a Decorative Die and your favourite Die cutting machine!!
Additional embellishment can be added as you like?


Step ONE is to choose some shapes - for this Newborn layout I have chosen 
Crikey Croc
Gerri Girrafe
Ellie Elephant
from the
It's a Beautiful Life
collection
along with a pastel Pink and Blue cardstock 

Step TWO is to place the dies in an arrangement which is pleasing - remember we are using the negative images - 


continue re-cutting along your 12" strip of cardstock until it is covered.


to add a bit of interest, I made some of the animals into Shaker style elements - 
so easy!!
Just adhere a piece of Acetate behind the shape of your choice - then surround that shape with foam tape, see below


It is very important not to leave any gaps or your Shaker mix will 'leak' out!!
You will then add foam to the entire piece


You will need to add a little pile of your chosen Shaker mix to the area on your base layer and adhere the cardstock on top.
I finished by adding a row of flowers under the chipboard title (Imaginarium Designs)
- and a few old brads and beads to fill in the gaps!


Close up of the Shaker mix - 


Shaker mix can be made up of one 'thing' like glitter or you can make a mix and include sequins, seed beads... the options are almost endless!
The Pink shape has Pink Glitter, silver micro beads, and Irridescent mica flakes.
The Blue shape has Blue 'Flower Soft', silver glitter and White coarse glitter.


Before I added the pink wire heart shape - I added some left over Shaker mix to the edges of the wire.
Not sure if I like the layout with or with out the heart?


I also made a PINK and BLUE card to welcome a newborn into the world - again just using the Negatives from die cutting... yes, so many pink and blue Elephants, Giraffes and Crocodiles left for another project, any ideas?


By simply adding a couple of items from your stash you can easily create a card in just a few minutes


Products - It's a Beautiful Life decorative dies



Have you checked out the Couture Creations U-tube channel - here is the link - 

Be sure to check back tomorrow for some more creativity,
Thank you for making it to the end of my post,
Alison