Stitching Lotus

One Stamp Challenge… With Two Stamps

Posted on April 8, 2022 by Heather

Hello, Crafty Friends! I am a sucker for classes, stitch-alongs, challenges, etc. I love learning new things, and I really like being part of a group (online, please), and seeing how everyone else is interpreting the instructions/pattern. If you are following me on Instagram you’ll probably have noticed that I’ve joined a one stamp challenge hosted by Nicole Watt of Bloom Crafters.

The idea behind the challenge is to explore several different mixed media techniques (my new favourite crafty thing) and apply them to a single stamp. Nicole is using the awesome Converse-inspired stamp set Walk, Crawl, or Run from Picket Fence Studios. (I totally want this set since I live in Converse. I think I have ten different pairs, including ones with skulls and ones with Hello Kitty, of course.) Me being me, and being totally indecisive, I’ve decided to try two different stamp sets.

Inky backgrounds just waiting to be made into something.

First, these are the panels I’m working with. These were made using several different Tim Holtz Distress spray inks and a cool smooshing technique. I then added a bit more colour for some layering, and so the panels looked a little bit different to each other and more suited to the stamp I want to use on each one.

Lotus Bouquet on one of my inky backgrounds. (I love lotus flowers.)

For my first card, I used the Lotus Bouquet stamp from Paper Rose Studio. I also used Nicole’s technique of curving a sentiment to fit “Birthday Wishes” around the flowers. The large leaf and a few other areas of the flowers are also slightly white-washed, which gives them a milky look that sets them off from the rest of the card.

Poor suit! There is something wrong with your collar. Maybe I can fix it?

My second card didn’t work out. I used the Suit Up stamp from Maymay Made It. Like my first card, I embossed it in white using white pigment ink first. But, unlike the first card, I didn’t make sure that all of the embossing powder was melted. So, when I went to add the whitewash, I ended up blurring the lines up near the collar. Oh well. Maybe I can use the panel to do some die-cutting.

Fellow card makers, what is one of your favourite techniques? I’m always looking to add more tools to my toolbox!

Check out Bloom Crafters for more info on the challenge.

Comments Off | Posted in Card Making | Tagged Card Making, Cards, Maymay Made It, Nicole Watts, Paper Rose Studio, Stamp Focus Challenge, Tim Holtz

Good Stuff!

Posted on February 8, 2022 by Heather

Hello, crafty friends! Today I’m sharing a papercraft project. I’ve loved the idea of making little books since grade school. One of my favourite school projects ever involved making two little books with my best friend. We wrote and illustrated cute little stories that starred a unicorn and a princess. Totally out of character, right? 🙂

I discovered junk journals at some point last year when I stumbled across Mad Paper Crush. She makes fabulous junk journals and altered books, and she inspired me to try an envelope journal. (I’ll share that another day.)

My little booklet full of good stuff!

That brings me to last week, when I watched a video from Jana Eubank of Simple Stories. She showed how to make a cute journal using supplies from January’s Scrapbook and Cards Today sampler. I had been wondering what to do with all the bits and pieces from the Simple Stories Good Stuff collection, and the journal just captured my heart.

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I’ll be using this journal to record my favourite things: books, music, scents, memories, dreams, etc. I’ve also included pictures of my family on one of the pages that I didn’t share. All of the papers and stickers I used came in the sampler from Scrapbook and Cards Today, and are from the Simple Stories Good Stuff collection. The Love word and the hearts are die cuts, created using the dies included in the January sampler as well.

The patterns and colours of this paper collect are pretty out of character for me. (They feel very retro late 70s/early 80s to me, sort of). But, sometimes working with things that are out of character helps because you are forced to look at things in new ways, play with new pairings, and really tap into your creativity. I think this journal turned out great, even though I would never have bought this paper for myself.

Needlework is still my greatest crafting love, but working with paper and creating little books has been so satisfying.

If you are interested in the Scrapbook and Cards Today Magazine sampler, you can find information here. Every month has a new surprise. I’ve received lots of wonderful paper, stickers and other embellishments, a stencil, stamps, and dies. It is turning into a wonderful exercise in creativity for me.

You can see the full Simple Stories Good Stuff collection here.

3 Comments | Posted in Papercrafts | Tagged Book Making, Junk Journals, Papercrafts

Hello 2022; and a Little Bit of Christmas Too

Posted on January 16, 2022 by Heather

Hello, my crafty friends! 2022 is well under way, and it sure does feel like 2020 too. I’m confident things will get better, but we have a very long winter ahead of us.

A few years ago I stopped making New Year’s resolutions and started picking a word of the year. The last two years have made it hard to even keep up with my word of the year, so this year I thought really hard about what I wanted my focus to be. I settled on Self-Care. I’ll be totally honest with you, as someone who has dealt with (diagnosed) depression and anxiety for many, many years, the past few years have been hard. I’m thankful that I get up and dressed every day and still take some pleasure in crafting. I intend to look after myself this year. To indulge in that crafting time I don’t think I have earned, or take that bubble bath before bed, or splurge on a new book that looks perfect for me. We will get through the hard times, and a little bit of self-care will make it a bit easier. (Self-care also means being vaccinated and getting the booster, flu shot, etc!)

MemoryDex card featuring washi tape, elements from Simple Stories Vintage Rustic Christmas Collection, and a Tim Holtz Christmas flair.

Today, as we are waiting for a big snowstorm to move in over night (and possibly give us a snow day!, as much as that matters when doing school virtually), I was feeling Christmasy. So, I dug through my stash and pulled out some bits and pieces to put together a couple of MemoryDex cards. The first one (above) has a washi tape background, with a distress tag and ephemera from Simple Stories’ Vintage Rustic Christmas collection. The button is a Tim Holtz Christmas Quote Flair piece from 2021.

Christmas MemoryDex card featuring elements from various Tim Holtz collections, random washi tape, and pearls from PinkFresh Studio.

MemoryDex card number two also has a washi tape background, and features a distressed kraft card and a couple of elements from different Tim Holtz Christmas collections. The pearls are from PinkFresh Studio, in the colourway Sparkling Champagne.

I’m just starting to experiment with MemoryDex cards. They are a really fun way to create a small piece of art, be it mixed media or just a flat stamped and coloured image. There really are no rules, expect maybe that the finished piece should fit on your spinner or in your box, and even that doesn’t really matter.

There’s lots more to come in 2022! I’m experimenting with junk journals, working on several cross stitch pieces, creating with my beloved Cricut Maker 3, and I’ve even expanded my crafting family to include a Glimmer hot foil machine and a Brother ScanNCut. If the outside world is dark and sad, I’m going to work on creating happiness for myself and my friends and family in my cozy little craft room.

2 Comments | Posted in MemoryDex, My Life | Tagged Christmas, MemoryDex, Tim Holtz

Happy Thanksgiving (and a bit of Halloween, too)

Posted on October 11, 2021 by Heather

Happy Thanksgiving, Stitchy Friends!This year I am extra thankful. I’m thankful that I could see my family in person thanks to the vaccine. I’m thankful that nearly everyone I know is alive and well (and vaccinated). I’m thankful that we might finally be turning the corner on this pandemic and that we will all be able to reunite with those we love soon. And I’m thankful for all of you who returned after my log absence. I’m still not totally in the swing of things, but I’m getting there! Thank you.

Now, onto the projects!

Layered Autumn Sign, designed by Craft with Sarah

First up is a layered autumn sign, designed by Sarah Edwards of Craft with Sarah. She created an awesome design that is larger than a standard Cricut mat, and her wonderful instructions make it super easy to put together. I did a little bit of welding of things in Design Space since I had some larger paper, so it was even easier for me to assemble. It is all cut from paper, with glue and foam tape holding it all together. Would you believe, though, that I forgot to put it out for our Thanksgiving dinner!

My second project for today is this super cute and spooky cat and dog skeleton HTV design, also from Craft with Sarah. The bones and hearts are glow-in-the-dark vinyl! How cute is that? I don’t think we will be out trick-or-treating this year (if you can believe it, my little man is just too old now!), but I still wanted to make it because it is super cute and it makes a nice (year-round?) shopping tote.

Both of these projects were part of Craft with Sarah’s Halloween Craft Countdown. If you are interested, you can find them all here (for free!!). Sarah is also hosting a Christmas Craft Countdown, from November 20 – December 9th, and you can find all the details here.

Happy Thanksgiving to all who are celebrating this weekend, and a happy Monday to everyone else!

3 Comments | Posted in Cricut, Papercrafts, Vinyl | Tagged Craft with Sarah, Finishes, Halloween, Thanksgiving

More Halloween Stitching

Posted on October 9, 2021 by Heather

Hello again, Stitchy Friends! I’m sorry I missed a couple of days of posting. There was a minor issue with the backend of my blog and I wasn’t able to post. But, things are working well again, thank goodness! I figured I would share a couple of extra projects today to make up for the days I missed.

Halloween Oujia, Tiny Modernist

First up is Halloween Ouija from Tiny Modernist. This was a SAL in 2020, and I loved working on it. I stitched as charted with DMC thread. I intentionally framed it a little bit crooked (it makes sense with how I display it at Halloween). To decorate the frame, I cut a planchette from basswood on my Cricut, painted it, and than applied vinyl (also cut on my Cricut).

Hazel Fun Witch Mouse, Just Nan

Next up is one of Just Nan’s super cute little mice, Hazel Fun Witch. I love stitching these, and I believe I have collected all of the Halloween and Christmas mice. They are such a quick stitch and they are just adorable on display.

Batty Boris, Just Nan

Batty Boris is also from Just Nan, and he is another old finish. I stitched him way back in 2017, and every year he hangs on my little Halloween tree.

I’d love to hear about some of your favourite Halloween stitching! Please feel free to leave a comment and let me know.

3 Comments | Posted in Cross Stitch | Tagged Finishes, Halloween, Just Nan, Tiny Modernist

Vintage Halloween Cat

Posted on October 6, 2021 by Heather

Hello, Stitchy Friends. I’ve sure I’ve mentioned before how much I love creepy cute and vintage-look Halloween. Well, a couple of years ago I stitched an absolutely fabulous little design from The Witchy Stitcher.

Vintage Happy Halloween, designed by The Witchy Stitcher

This is Vintage Happy Halloween, an adorable Halloween cat design with bright colours and a very 1940s vibe to it. I paired it with the perfect Halloween fabric I picked up at Joann. You can’t really see it in the picture, but one of the card designs on the fabric features a very similar cat.

The design was stitched as charted using DMC threads on some tan evenweave from my stash.

You can find the chart right here at The Witchy Stitcher. If I remember right, she has had a few designs with a similar style published in a couple of magazines, and there are tons of other great patterns in her shop.

2 Comments | Posted in Cross Stitch | Tagged Cross Stitch, Finishes, Halloween, The Witchy Stitcher

Witches Gather

Posted on October 5, 2021 by Heather

Hello, Stitchy Friends! Today I’m sharing a new-to-me papercraft: MemoryDex cards.

Witches Gather Here MemoryDex card

MemoryDex was a big trend several years back, popularized in part by Heidi Swapp. In essence, it is making little mixed media art pieces the size of old Roldex cards. The cards are then stored either on vintage Rolodexes (Rolodexi? Rolodexum?) or on a fancy Heidi Swapp holder or even one you’ve made yourself. My favourite are the little boxes that look like card catalogues. The one I use, however, is a Rolodex shaped one I cut on my Cricut using a file from Nicole’s Paper Crafts on etsy.

Paper Hug MemoryDex card

I discovered MemoryDex just before all of everything happened, and it was so hard to get the dies and punches. Then, back during this past summer I learned that Scrapbook and Cards Today was offering a MemoryDex 101 class and a kit with dies! I signed up right away.

Joy in the Journey MemoryDex card

I’ve only made a couple of cards, but I have so many ideas. I love the very small format and the mixed media aspect. My cards are pretty amateurish, but I’m having fun and creating, and that’s what matters!