Fabulous!

Today I have a card to show you that has been bubbling in my head for a while now, and I have finally managed to get it all out and onto a card.

I wanted the sentiment to be the main focus of my card, which meant that there was quite a lot of empty white space, and what is the best way to fill up empty space? I hear you cry LOL!, well I'll tell you...    with stick on gems, of course. I randomly scattered groups of three little pink gems around the sentiment, this filled up some of the space and added a bit of extra pizazz to the card.

Meiflower stock such a wide range of colours and sizes in their stick on gems, that you will always be able to find just the colour you need, their barbie pink gems were just perfect for my girlie card especially teamed up with the black polka dot satin ribbon.

Hope you've had a fabulous Christmas!

Thanks for dropping by and taking a look

hugs,

Colette xx

Happy Feetzies!

I love penguins! there is something about them that just draws me to them, I also love fun penguin images to use on my cards, and this Sassy Cheryl image is just too cute. Meiflower red gingham ribbon and AB gems in the centres of the snowflakes are just what it needed to finish it off.

Thanks for calling,

hugs,

Colette xx

Pink or blue? it's up to you!

In a post a few weeks ago I mentioned that gingham ribbon always made me think of Christmas and just to prove my point I have two Christmas cards that I made recently to show you and I have used gingham ribbon on both.

I used a couple of ultimate kits from the  Paper Creator kit for both cards, the kits come in a blue and a pink version so I made a card from each.

The brown gingham ribbon was perfect for the blue card as the papers and toppers used brown as a coordinating colour.

For the pink card I used the pink gingham ribbon and Meiflower stocks most of the colours in two widths, which was perfect for my card.

Thanks for dropping in,

take care,

hugs,

Colette xx

Christmas shopping

Here's a card I made for the latest challenge over at the Paper Shelter, I love the satin polka dot ribbon from Meiflower and the silver grey coordinated perfectly with the papers and embellishments from a Nitwits kit. I also added some stick on gems and pearls as I love a bit of bling on my cards.

Thanks for stopping by,

hugs,

Colette xx

Bring on the cake!

The cards below were all made for a Papercraft Essentials magazine commission, the magazine came out last week so I thought I would share my makes with you this week. I was given a couple of collections of images from Kate Hadfield collections, One set of pre-coloured images and also the digital stamp version of the images. I made my own papers to go with the images and if you like the look of the papers you can download them for free from HERE.

All the ribbons, gems and pearls on the cards are from Meiflower

Thanks for popping in,

hugs,

Colette xx

.

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas!

It's that time of year again, and I always think you can't go wrong with a bit of gingham or tartan ribbon, Meiflower sell both kinds and in varying widths as well as some fab metallic gold and silver ribbons and some metallic edged satin ribbons, all perfect for your Christmas cards.

My card for today is quite a simple layout, the main focus being on the image and sentiment and the red gingham ribbon finishes it all off perfectly, Santa also has a few tiny red stick on gems on his hat.

Thanks for stopping by,

hugs,

Colette xx

Glitter, pearls, gems and sticky stuff

Here is a card I made for the new challenge over at The Paper Shelter.

I added a panel down one side of my card which I covered in double sided tape - overlapping the strips a little as I placed them on - I then randomly dotted the panel with Meiflower pearls, gems and dazzlers (they come in crystal, but you can colour them with your Copics or Promarkers to get different colours), sprinkled glitter all over pressing it well in, tipped it off, and then rubbed the glitter into the tape with my finger, very sparkly!

Thanks for stopping by,

hugs,

Colette xx

Sunshine

I will be travelling back from Italy today after a well deserved break for hubby and I, but I wanted to show you a card that I made for the latest Paper Shelter challenge. 

I used a Crafters Companion die for the edges of my double fold back card, painted the flowers with distress ink and then added some gorgeous Meiflower AB and blue gems in mixed sizes to the flower centres, they sparkle beautifully when the light catches them.

Thanks for stopping by,

ciao for now,

hugs,

Colette xx

Christmas countdown Joy!

Haha! I'm not actually joyfully counting down to Christmas, as I am in Italy at the moment enjoying my summer holiday LOL!, but I have two cards to show you today, one is a Christmas countdown stepper and the other is a Christmas Joy card.

Both cards are finished off with Meiflower stick on gems as I always think a little bit of bling is the perfect finishing touch.

Thanks for dropping by,

Ciao for now,

hugs,

Colette xx

Pretty Flowers

Meiflower have a supply of really pretty organza flowers with beaded centres, they would be beautiful on hairbands or as embellishments on clothing and of course cards.

I have a couple of cards and a Christmas wreath to show you, that I made using with them.

For this card I cut a thin strip of green card for a stem and punched out a couple of leaves I added the flower to the top before fixing to a die cut frame. I embossed white card, layered it onto black card and then stuck them onto a white card blank. With another die I cut a fishtail banner from some scrap dotty paper, threaded some organza ribbon through a diamante ribbon buckle and fixed it over the banner, and then used foam pads to fix the flower frame to the card, I finished off with a die cut sentiment and a couple of stick on gems.

I used various dies to make the top of this card, edging the die cut doily with stick on pearls, I then  arranged the flowers and pearl hearts across the bottom.

Finally for the Christmas decoration, I die cut a couple of circles from card, sticking them together for extra strength, I wrapped the circle in organza ribbon then decorated with organza flowers and ribbon roses. I added a large organza hanging loop and bow to the top, threading a diamante buckle onto the centre of the bow as I made it, then used narrow satin ribbon to hang the die cut greeting, before finishing off with a trio of stick on gems at each end of the flowers.

I was thinking that these flowers would also look pretty on hair clips or hairbands, which then reminded me of a photo I have of me as a bridesmaid when I was 8 years old at my cousins wedding on 23rd August 1969, where we had something similar randomly pinned into our beehives.

( I am on the far left, my little sister is next to me)

Thanks for stopping by,

hugs,

Colette xx

Shopping girl

Today's card was part of my DT work for the Paper Shelter, I used an A5 landscape card as I wanted to make a bit of a fancy border down one edge of my card.

I layered up papers with a punched border, used a strip of Meiflower double sided tape, which I sprinkled with glitter, I tipped off the excess and then rubbed it well into the tape with a finger. I also added a row of stick on gems, using blue 4mm and then two 2mm gems in a pattern and some barbie pink gems in the scallops of a punched border.

Thanks for stopping by,

hugs,

Colette xx

Warm Wishes shelf card.

I have a shelf card to show you today, made with a kit from Paper Creator, really easy to put together with step by step photographic instructions included, the card doesn't need a lot of decoration as it already has quite a bit going on with all the layers, but I wanted to show you the little holly and ribbon embellishment I added.

I  punched out a couple of pieces of holly using an X.cut punch and layered them up with a bow made from Meiflower 10mm purple satin ribbon, I added a large purple stick on gem from a mixed size pack to the centre of the bow, before fixing it onto the card, I added another couple of gems from the same pack onto the sentiment panel.

I added a sparkly pom pom to the hat as well, but apart from that I thought the bow embellishment was all it needed.

Thanks for stopping by,

hugs,

Colette xx

Masculine

I have two masculine themed cards to show you today, I have used Meiflower's grosgrain ribbon and buttons on both. The card were made at different times, and I have just realised that I have done exactly the same thing on both cards - ribbon across the front, a knot and 3 buttons  - it's obviously my default decoration for men's cards LOL!

Thanks for popping in,

hugs,

Colette xx

A flower or two

Today I have 2 cards to show you both containing flowers as part of the design, I have used Meiflower pearls on both cards, on the first I have used a large pearl from a mixed size pack as a flower centre, tiny pearls dotted around the centre and also black gems for the butterfly body. For the second card I have added 3 biggish pearls, again from a mixed size pack, as embellishments towards the top right corner.

Thanks for stopping by,

hugs,

Colette xx

Love is in the air!

Well, if you were a pair of Giraffes in love then it definitely would be in the air, cos their heads are so high up LOL!

The image is from a pack of Giraffe images over at the Paper Shelter, I love those looney giraffes and this seemed the perfect image for an engagement card.

I added one of Meiflower's gorgeous diamante ribbon buckle to some pretty organza ribbon, the heart shaped buckle was perfect for this love themed card, dotted stick on gems down the punched border and added a large gem from a mixed size pack to each of the sentiment panels, some tiny gems added to the embossed flowers on the die-cut frame were the final touch.

Thanks for taking a look,

hugs,

Colette xx

Flower book easel

This card was made for the Paper Creator All About Flowers challenge, after making up the kit, making a few changes along the way I used a large pearl from one of the multi sized packs for the centre of the largest flower and stick on gems for the other flower centres, the narrow satin ribbon down the centre of the "book" is also from Meiflower.

Thanks for dropping in,

hugs,

Colette xx

Dragon's Birthday

I always find it difficult to embellish cards for boys/men, I feel that bows and gems are just too girly, so I tend to go down the ribbon, string and buttons route, which is exactly what I've done for today's card.

Normally, I would use grosgrain ribbon for masculine cards as I think it is a bit more macho and Meiflower stocks it in both plain and polka dot, unfortunately I just didn't have the colour I wanted, so ended up using satin polka dot instead.

Thanks for stopping by and taking a look,

hugs,

Colette xx

The Bride

Here's a wedding card I put together for this weeks lace challenge at The Paper Shelter, the gorgeous organza flowers are from Meiflower (you can pick them up at the craft shows and also by telephone ordering) and are perfect for this card, I added Meiflower lilac stick on gems around the frame, in the centres of the flowers on the lace, onto the sentiment and in the corners.

Thanks for stopping by,

hugs,

Colette xx

Shine Bright!

Here's a couple of blingy card samples I made for Meiflower to display at craft shows, showing off some of the products they stock.

I used various fonts to make up the sentiments on both of these cards, printed "Shine" and "Diamonds" in a pale grey before covering with glitter and gems.

I a variety of colours and sizes of stick on gems for this card.

Thanks for stopping by,

hugs,

Colette xx

Coquette

Today's card is my latest DT card for The Paper Shelter, the challenge theme is pearls, so I knew I would be digging my Meiflower stick on pearls out again.

The flatback stringed pearls were from a closing down sale, early last year, but the pearls I used to decorate the oval frame are two sizes of stick on pearls. I used the scallops around the edge as a guide for decorating, adding a larger pearl to every other scallop and then a small pearl in between each one. I was really pleased with the way it turned out. I also added pearls from a mixed size pack to the centres of the die-cut flowers.

Thanks for dropping by,

hugs,

Colette xx

Bling Bling!

Here's a couple of samples I made for Mei using lots of stick on gems, both cards are based around straight lines.

I drew the lines for this desgn in Photoshop, printed it straight onto card and then added randomly placed stick on gems. I used a different colour on each group of lines and a matching coloured die-cut flower. The flower centres are black stick on pearls.

Here's the template I made, if you want to have a go yourself. Just right click to save, re-size if needed, print it out and bling it up.

For this card I measured, marked and lightly drew pencil lines across the card. the letters were printed onto digital polka dot papers and after printing were punched out with a circle punch, I used it upside down so that I could see the placement of the letter before I punched the circle. I fixed them onto the card centrally over the pencilled lines, doing the same with matching coloured gems.

Although I used printed letters, this could easily be replicated with rubber stamps.

Thanks for stopping by,

hugs,

Colette xx

Big Flowers

Here's a trio of cards I made using the same layout but different colours, these big 70mm mulberry paper flowers lend themselves perfectly to Meiflower diamante embellishments, and I also chose papers with a diagonal/lattice type pattern so that I could add lots of stick on pearls or gems to the top. I also managed to find matching coloured ribbon for each flower.

Thanks for looking,

hugs,

Colette xx

Thank you card

I made this card for a friend using the Sue Wilson Caribbean island background die, the die-cut has a little circle on each bar, the perfect place for adding a stick on pearl, and Meiflower had the ideal sized pearls for the job. I also used stick on black gems for the butterfly body.

Thanks for taking a look,

hugs,

Colette xx

A Classy Stroll

Here's a card I made for the latest challenge over at The Paper Shelter, the theme is Flowers Everywhere so obviously we needed to put lots of flowers on our creation.

I made my own flowers using punches, as the flowers are all different sizes I needed different sized pearls for the flower centres, but all in the same colour, and this is one of the reasons that I love to use Meiflower pearls as they have a great range of sizes in every colour, which makes them so versatile. I also used a piece of wide organza ribbon, in the perfect colour to match my papers.

Thanks for stopping by,

hugs,

Colette xx

Blinging fortieth

Mei asked me if I could do her some extra blingy card samples and this is one of them.

Once again apologies for the rubbish photo, taken on the same dull day as the one in the last post.

I used letters from various fonts and put them together to make up the sentiment which I printed straight onto white card in a very pale grey colour, I then painstakingly added each gem, using the outline as a template (very therapeutic - and time consuming LOL!). I matted this onto silver mirri card, added Meiflower ribbon and diamante ribbon slider and then fixed the whole thing onto a cerise 6x6 card.

Thanks for calling,

hugs,

Colette xx

Heart of flowers

Although I made this card as a wedding invitation sample, I think it would also make a gorgeous wedding anniversary card. 

For this card I die-cut a heart shaped aperture in the centre of a 6x6 card. I used X-cut small and medium flower punches to make the flowers and then arranged them around the aperture, placing a Meiflower stick on pearl in the centre of each one. 

If printed the wording onto cream paper and folded it to make the insert for the card, with the names and date centred inside the aperture.

Thanks for taking a look,

hugs,

Colette xx

It's been a while but...

I'm back!

I found it tough after the loss of my youngest daughter last August to make cards and blog, but I have managed to get myself together enough this year to make some wedding invitation samples and blingy cards for Mei, and I am finally getting around to blogging them.

So here is the first

Apologies for the quality of the photo, it was taken quickly on a very dull and miserable day, before I took the samples to Mei for displaying on her store.

I printed the wording onto A4 card, which I then cut down to a 6x6 square, the hearts were die-cut from glitter card using a Sizzix Framelits heart die. I laid metallic ribbon over organza ribbon and threaded it through the diamante ribbon slider before fixing over the hearts, I added a couple of twirls to the ribbon, holding them in place with Meiflower double sided tape and finished off with 3 gems under the date.

Thanks for dropping in,
hugs,
Colette xx