Faux Tiles and Foam Bows

Faux tile Technique

Dear friends ,Thank you so much for the wonderful congratulations [on Facebook and my blog]!!
For my Guest DT project at Tuesday Throwdown  , I was sent a beautiful colored picture called Spring Blocks from Deedee's Digis featuring lovely crocus flowers and had to use it to make a project in the theme “Bows and Butterflies”.

I wanted to highlight the image and tried out a “Faux Tile” technique [inspired by my most talented blogger friend Valerie Ann aka Mrs A]. Most faux tile techniques involve cutting the image into squares and adding glossy accents for the shine.
In my country [ my Indian crafty friends will agree I am sure], its not easy to get craft supplies and so most of us hoard our supplies like crazy! I have been managing with a small bottle of glossy accents since 2 years and I didn’t have the heart to finish it on one project!

Faux tile Technique

So used a different Faux tile technique!Scored the image every inch , sponged it all over with Versamark watermark ink , poured clear sparkle embossing powder on it and heat embossed to get this beautiful sparkling and textured tiled image!
If you are new to  Heat Embossing  [like me!] , here are a few other ways to have fun with embossing

• Making Pattern Paper with Embossing- In Daffodils tutorial
• Making a simple Border with Embossing-In Boat Pop Up card tutorial
• Highlighting Die-cut edges with Embossing- In Sunflowers Layout
• Embossing Pattern Paper to highlight it –In Handmade Basket tutorial
• Embossing to enhance a background – In Fairyland Diorama 

And my favorite Embossing powder which you may have guessed is the WOW Clear Sparkle!

Foam Bow

Made a background by layering Spellbinders Borders and adding my favorite Cheery Lynn  butterfly and a glittery foam bow.
This was one of the rare times my husband noticed my card and said it looked beautiful ! But my usual supporter in crafting, my 8 year old daughter said " Its Okay" !!
So I dont know...I think I have to leave it to my blogger friends to tell me how it is!

Supplies : Dies : Lifestyle crafts Bow,Spellbinders Borderabilities Curved Borders 2 ,Cheery Lynn  Butterfly,Spellbinders Shapeabilities Lace Hearts.Embossing : Versamark Watermark ,WOW Clear Sparkle Embossing Powders
Linking to : Imaginations Sep[Embossing]Sparkles Monthly Challenge 60oct 15 [ things with wings]

Easy Beaded Flower Spray tutorial

Beaded Flowers Box

       This Baby themed box is my guest DT project for Tuesday Throwdown. I generally shy away from working with digital images as I am not very patient at coloring images but when the super talented Davi invited me to be Guest DT at Tuesday Throwdown and warned me I would have to work with digital images I couldn't turn her down!

Recycling Craft

        Altered this cardboard box by lining it with pattern paper and layering with die cuts.I colored the cute Robyn Fetish image called "Lucy" with Staedtler watercolors [my first attempt at watercoloring with pencils!!] and added a diamond heart pendant in her hand [the diamond heart was salvaged from a broken earring!]

Baby theme Box

        Inked and embossed the edges of the wild rose floral frame die cut with clear sparkle embossing powder to give a subtle sparkle.Added a tiny baby foot and a "baby" atop pink flowers on the corners of my box.My daughter wanted to know why I added a baby's foot on the flower..... I told her its a magical baby and was born from a flower !!

Parchment Bow

       I made a bow from vellum using the lifestyle crafts Bow die and inked it pastel pink. If you love bows be sure to check out my  friend Sindhu's post on some super clever ways to make bows with dies.

Beaded Flowers

The pink daisy is a handmade foam flower [made by Daisy flower tutorial] you saw aplenty in the fairyland diorama too!

The beaded flowers  you see in this altered box were super easy to make and so sharing this super simple tutorial to make a beaded flower spray

Materials Required

Beaded Flowers tutorial 

• Beads - any shape or size you fancy
• Wire - work with whatever gauge you are comfortable with!
• Scissors or wire cutter- I used my favourite Tim Holtz scissors
• Floral tape - in green ,brown or whatever color you fancy [ only recently I came to know that floral tape is available in pink color as well!!]

Beaded Flowers tutorial 

Depending on the size of your beads and the length of the flower branches you want cut a length of wire. I cut 3.5 inches wire to make each beaded flower branch. Its better to cut more wire than you need till you get the hang of it!! Thread 3 beads onto the center of the wire and bend the wire in a gentle U.

Beaded Flowers tutorial 

Hold the 3 beads in one hand and twist the wires to make a beaded flower branch! Super easy isn't it!!

Beaded flower tutorial 

Make more flower beaded flower branches and cut a length of floral tape as long as your beaded flower stem.

Beaded Flowers tutorial 

        Twist one flower branch around another and once its fairly tightly twisted add another one.Dont worry about poking wire ends or bumpy bends..you are going to cover all that in floral tape!

Beaded Flowers tutorial 

      Whoever invented floral tape is a genius!!I just love working with floral tape...it doesn't feel super sticky but sticks to itself so beautifully!...just wrap your floral tape around your beaded flower branches and keep pressing firmly while you roll it around your beaded flower stem.You don't even have to glue the loose ends! And your beaded flower spray is done.

Beaded Flowers tutorial 

This beaded flower tutorial  is a super easy version ! If you have a bit more time you can try the Beaded flower tutorial  or the Beaded tree tutorial .

Beaded Flowers tutorial 

I hope you enjoyed this crazily simple tutorial and do bear with me on my first attempt at watercoloring an image [I was super glad baby was a baldy and I didn't need to color hair ...not yet ready for hair days!! Ha Ha]

Supplies:Dies : Spellbinders Majestic Labels 25, Wild rose studio floral frame, Marianne Anja leaves 3,Lifestyle crafts Bow,Couture creations Oval, Cheery Lynn  Sunflower die.Embellishments: Jesse James buttons , Baby bottle charm

Linking to Kraftzone Sep
Edited: this project was winner at Kraftzone Welcome Baby theme
It was also featured at Totally Tutorials

Swinging Card Tutorial

Swinging Card

      Dear friends this interactive swinging card is my Guest DT post for  Digital Delights  for winning the Petal Power challenge with my Mother’s Day Card.

         Delightful challenges holds a very special place in my heart as I won my first Guest DT post ever [back in 2011] with  this Quilled Sunflower Girl…I was so nervous when I used their digital image [ first time I worked with digis ]  in a Side step pop up card which was my first guest DT post and that card in turn won me a Guest DT at  Crafty JC ! 

        I have done numerous Guest DT posts since then for various websites and craft shops but believe me I still get super nervous as to how a Guest Post will be received!I hope you guys enjoy this Easy to make Swinging card and tutorial

Swinging Card

         I used the super cute digital image "Relax Barnaby" from Digital Delights, 3D decoupaged him and suspended his hammock from palm trees in this tropical paradise themed swinging interactive card.

Swinging Card

       My daughter is forever searching for her eraser and pencil sharpener during homework time and I had been intending to make a  tray to hold her stationary...so I placed my interactive tent card on a cardboard box lid dressed up with glitter foam grass and handmade flowers.

Handmade flowers

What is paradise without some flowers so added some quilled flowers and stamped leaves to my tent card.

Handmade flowers

I always make my own flowers and the large red flower is also handmade and here is the tutorial link : Easy Flower tutorial 

Sharing How to make a Swinging Card

Material required

Cardstock - any size will do but I used an A 4 and a 6 x 8 inch piece of card stock

Glue- I used Fevicol MR 

Scissors

Something to cut an aperture

To punch holes- single hole punch  or crop a dile

Twine, thread or ribbon to suspend your image

Optional - Scoring board, Eyelets and eyelet setter / crop a dile

Swinging Card Tutorial

         On the folded edge of an A 4 card mark a semicircle  using a template [ use anything you have like a plate, lid, circle die,or even a  foam tape like I used here]-- just make sure you leave 1 1/2 - 2 inches on either side so that your card remains sturdy! 

         Cut out a semi circle ,oval, square or rectangle aperture [ the aperture can be any shape you fancy!] on the folded edge cutting through both halves of your A 4 card

Swinging Card Tutorial

            As an interactive card is going to be played with quite a bit  you need a good sturdy base so that it doesn't topple over! I chose a 6 x 8 inch card [ you can play with measurements] and  folded it in half [ center mountain fold] and then folded up [valley fold]1 inch on either side to get an accordion fold in the shape of a  " W ".

If you have a scoring board :score on the 6 inch side at  1 , 3 and  5 inch marks.

Swinging Card Tutorial

        The 1 inch folded parts of your accordion folded " W "are your gluing tabs.Apply glue to one gluing tab of the " w " as shown and stick it inside the tent card you had already made.Apply enough glue and pressure as its important to get a good adhesion here.

Swinging Card Tutorial

          Fold your " W " accordion and apply glue on the other gluing tab and firmly stick the other flap of your tent card onto it. The tent card on which your swinging element is going to be hung is ready!

Swinging Card Tutorial

           On either side of  your aperture ,add decorative elements such as trees, vines ,lattices or whatever element fits in with the theme of your card.You can allow it to jut above the folded edge of your card just dont embellish the top of  your tent card heavily

3 D Decoupaged image

          As a swinging element I 3 D decoupaged the cute honey bee by cutting him and layering using foam dots. Can you see the shiny flower centers and shiny nose and cheeks of the cute bee ? [ courtesy glossy accents] You can choose any swinging style image like a child on a swing  or a  hammock , a bird on a branch etc.Punch holes on either side and attach to the tent card with twine, thread or ribbon. 

Swinging card

       You can actually make the image fit right inside the aperture so that it swings freely to and fro . Since  both my clinic and home printers were acting crazy I had to depend on a printing shop to print  my digital image and I couldn't get my image size a perfect fit but my little bee still swings happily !

Swinging card

Another tip : Do heavily embellish the base of the card like I have done with flowers galore or whatever  you fancy and keep the top relatively simple as otherwise your card will topple over!
You can also decorate both sides of your swinging card like I did in Spinning card tutorial 1 and Spinning card tutorial 2

I hope you like this interactive card which actually doesn't require any fancy tools to make.

Supplies : Spellbinder Classic Leaf ,Spellbinder Rose creations,Cheery Lynn Butterfly,Memory Box fringe, Cheery Lynn Grass,

Linking to  Deep Ocean Challenge Fav 2014 Card
Edited : This card came top 3 in Digi Sketch In the garden theme

Top 3

This swinging card also came Top 3 at BGC Kiddish theme

Punchart Flowers in Fairyland

Punchart Flowers

Punchart Flowers

Some months back I was invited by Heather of Scrapbook Stamp Society to join as DT . I dont join as  DT at any site as I cant commit to making regular projects within time frames[ professional duties often come in the way!] .However Heather was so flexible that I agreed to be DT and here is my first DT post at Addicted to Stamps using Morgan Fitzimons beautiful fairy.

Punchart Flowers

I painted the fairy digital image using a variety of media such as pearl acrylic, water color pencils and sketch pens.Also added glitter glue ,some pearls, and lots of handmade punchart flowers.

Punchart Flowers

The large violet flower was made using the pear punch. Painted and handcut the leaves to match the paper flowers.[Tutorial link to make Easy leaves]

Punchart Flowers

To match the violet flowers on the fairy image I added pointed petal violet punchart flowers.

Punchart Flowers

I learnt to make the yellow- orange daffodil shaped flower from my 5 year old ! [Super easy awesome ideas kiddos have !]   

Punchart Flowers

To accompany the pink acrylic painted flowers added some pink punchcraft flowers made using a balloon punch as in this tutorial link :Balloon Punch Flower Tutorial

Punchart Flowers

The blue flowers were also made the same way but using thinner paper hence not as impressive looking as the pink punchart flowers [Tutorial link :Balloon Punch Flower Tutorial]

Punchart Flowers

The dark green leaves for the rose were hand-cut from a magazine cover. 5 petal flower shapes were used to make the pink punchcraft rose[ tutorial link: Punchcraft Rose Tutorial]

Punchart Flowers

The pink and white daisies are again handmade punchcraft flowers [Tutorial Link: Paper Daisy Tutorial]

Punchart Flowers

I used a variety of punchart flowers in this project and the orange and white roses  were made with a 6 petal flower punch

Punchart Flowers

To match the red flowers in the painting added a 4th variety of  punchart roses [made with a pear shape using this tutorial: Punchcraft Rose Tutorial]

Punchart Flowers

I was not very confident of my coloring skills and had to rely on these punchcraft flowers to create a special fairy land for the beautiful fairy! Do tell me how it has come out. DT projects always make me nervous !

House Pop up card Tutorial and Template

Pop up Card - House

As promised here is the tutorial to the House pop up card.

House pop up card

When I first started making pop up cards I used templates from the net ,now I find  it is so much more fun and rewarding when I design one myself!
For my friends who want to make a quick House Pop up card here is my template.

House Pop up Card Template

Just score on the dotted lines and mountain fold.
For those of you who may be crazy like me and want to "understand the mechanism "and go about it the difficult way, sharing instructions to help you design your own customized House pop up card.
How to design your own House Pop up card

Make the Base of your House

Take a rectangular strip of card.Don't use very thick card stock as your House pop up should be easy to crease and fold.

For people who like measurements- I started off with a card measuring 3.5 x 9.5 inches.

Score your 3.5 x 9.5 inch card lengthwise 0.5 inch.This will help for the tab of your house base.

Pop up card Tutorial

Score at 0.5,2.5,5 and 7 inches. This will give you a 0.5 inch width tab ,  two 2 inch wide sides and two 2.5 inch wide sides for your house. You can play with your measurements however you fancy.

So you have your strip in now divided into tab[ 0.5 inch width], Side A[2 inch wide], Side B[ 2.5 inch wide],Side C[2 inch wide] and Side D[ 2.5 inch wide]

Pop up card Tutorial

Easy way to fold your house pop up card is score sides B and D in the middle as shown

Cut off the lower parts[ below the score line] of parts B and D as shown and slant and cut to form tabs for parts A and C.

Pop up card Tutorial

Draw a triangular shape towards the top of parts B and D as shown and horizontal lines meeting as shown on parts A and C.[My measurement was 0.75 inch from the top]

Pop up card Tutorial

Cut off  the extra parts marked above.Slant and taper cut your tab also and your house pop up base is ready.

Pop up card Tutorial

You can mountain fold all the score lines to start with.Then Valley fold the score line in the middle of part B.[You can also mountain fold this if that is the shape of house you like]

Pop up card Tutorial

Glue your tab to the inside of part D and your house shape has formed.
Make a roof. 

I used rough measuring for this and you can do the same.

If you want a short cut you can follow my measurements which is a 4 x 2 inch card strip scored at 0.5inch,2 inch and 3.5 inch.

Pop up card Tutorial

If you want to go about designing a roof is here is how you do it:

The guide is your roof strip should measure the same height  as the width of Parts A and C[mine is 2 inches in height].To design a roof take a 5-6 inch long strip  score it in the middle and place it over your house shape. Judge the length you will require. You need to cover the house and have some extra to glue on the house.Cut the rest off.

Pop up card Tutorial

Attach your roof tabs to Sides A and C as shown above.

Additional Parts

You can add lots of fun additional pop up parts like an arched door  or a chimney like I did.

House Pop up Card

To make the arched door cut a shape and give it small tabs on the sides as shown.Fold it along the middle and fold the tabs too.

Pop up card Tutorial

Position it over your side B to find a position you like.
Attach one tab on the front of your house making sure the central fold lines of the house and the front of your house[ side B] align.Apply glue on the other tab and  fold over your house on to it.

Pop up card Tutorial

You can decorate your house before sticking it to your base card.

House Pop up Card

Open up your house and position it over  the base card.Roughly mark the position of your tabs in this position.Fold your house , apply glue to the tabs. Stick one tab to the base card. Fold over the base card and let the other tab find its own position. Wait for the glue to dry well.

House Pop up card Tutorial

I added some layers of "snow "cut from photo paper  folded and attached in a V shaped manner.

House Pop up card

The house pop up card is such a versatile pop up - you can use it for a housewarming card, a moving away card, a Christmas card, a birthday card and what not!
Here are links to more Pop up Card Tutorials
Do leave me your comments
Edited this tutorial was featured at
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