Pixel Adventures

Craft-A-Lot’s first Unity Stamp challenge…

Published May 4, 2012 | By Rhonda

You may or may not be aware, but I am a member of the Craft-A-Lot design team and to start off the month of May (after a few hiccups), we’re having our very first Unity Stamp challenge.

Like to know more? Then visit the blog today where you will find all about the challenge, what you need to do and the most exciting part, the prize up for grabs for the winner :) So join Colleen, Danielle, Alyce, Amanda and myself on the blog and goodluck if you enter!!

Before I go, I thought I’d leave you with a sneak peak of what I created. Enjoy!!

One Day at a Time…

Published April 14, 2012 | By Rhonda

I received the February Unity Company KOTM stamp set the other day and looking through the stamp sheet, decided on choosing the sweet little umbrella stamp. It very much suited the day because it was pouring with rain outside. I’m not sure if it was raining because of the weather or if it was because I was using my Cricut Expression for a card finally. If you are interested in joining the Kit of the Month stamp club, talk to Colleen at Craft-A-Lot and she’ll be happy to help with any enquiries you might have. If you don’t want to join the monthly club, you can take a look here and browse all the Unity Company stamps Craft-A-Lot has in stock.

The base of the card and my version of clouds were both cut from American Crafts cardstock using Accent Essentials Cricut cartridge. I used Accent 48 and cut it at 5 inches from yellow cardstock. It was then scored down the middle, folded and creased. Using the same base shape, I cut it at 4 3/4 inches in blue cardstock and 4 1/2 inches in the flower patterned paper by October Afternoon. They were cut down the middle and layered ontop of each other. For the cloud (things lol), I chose Accent 46 and cut one at 3 inches in AC yellow cardstock and one at 2 3/4 inches in white.

I diecut a 2 inch circle from another October Afternoon paper and stamped the umbrella in Whisper dye ink. I then stamped it on the same flower paper and paper pieced it using 3D foam. I decorated the umbrella and the cloud with a couple of buttons. With a leftover piece of the white cardstock, I stamped the sentiment in the same black ink and attached it to the card using 3D foam. The buttons were adhered to the card using Helmar’s 450 Quick Dry glue.

Using the left over pieces of the blue cardstock and flower patterned paper, I lined the inside of the card.

ALWAYS & FOREVER:

For the next card, I used the same Cricut cartridge, Accent Essentials and this time used Accent 47 at a size of 5 1/4 inches and cut it from white American Crafts cardstock. It was scored down the middle, folded and creased.

I then cut the same shape in blue cardstock at 5 inches. I cut it in half then dry embossed it with the Budding Vine embossing folder by Craft Concepts. I accented the raised embossed parts using Memento Dew Drop dye ink in Summer Sky.

You will find this stamp also in the Feb KOTM kit and I coloured in the decorative A using a Sakura Stardust Pen. I love the subtle glitter effect. The flowers used on the card are both from Kaisercraft, white and buttercream and I covered them all in Kindy Glitz glitter glue.

The lace used was snagged from Lincraft and the other ribbon is by Stampin’ Up. Rhinestones are from Kaiser.

Thats it for now… I’m off to work on my next facebook giveaway which is happening once I hit 100 fans. Thanks for visiting and I’ll see you soon xx

Posted in Cards | Tagged cards, Craft-A-Lot, general cards, KOTM Stamp Set | Leave a comment

Mother’s Day Tags…

Published April 9, 2012 | By Rhonda

Just a quick post today showing you a set of mother’s day tags I was asked to make for one of my regular Madeit Store customers, Kasey. She freely lets me create and usually loves what I make!!

I decided I wanted to use some of the pretty lace edging I picked up at Lincraft. I had bought 4 different types and this particular lace was around $1.30 a metre and I really love it. I will be going back soon to buy much more of it because I didn’t realise how pretty it would look on cards and tags.

I used some MFT ‘Sew Nifty’ dies for the dress stand and cotton reel and had a tough choice as to what papers I was going to use to go with them. Browsing my drawers, I came across some of my all time favourite papers by October Afternoon. They came from the 8×8 paper pad Fly a Kite and that will be another paper pad I will miss when I’ve finally used up what I have left. I remember when it first came out, I ended up buying 4 each of Fly a Kite and Thrift Shop and sadly, I don’t have much of each left. Oh well, some papers I will just have to reminisce about :)

Although you can’t see it, I hand sewed the crepe paper ribbon onto the dress form since that was the theme I was going for. In the My Mind’s Eye ribbon packs, there was also the thinest of twines, so instead of wrapping plain cotton around the diecut reels, I used that instead. I stamped a Stampin’ Up sentiment onto the tag and added a few Kaisercraft Rhinestones to the dress form. I finished off the swing tags with a threaded bead.

Thanks for visiting and I hope everyone had a wonderful Easter!!!

Posted in Tags | Tagged Mother's Day, tags | Leave a comment

Altered Coffee Tin…

Published March 20, 2012 | By Rhonda

As I emptied the last few remaining coffee grounds from our coffee tin this morning, I decided that instead of throwing it in the recycle bin, I would recycle it a different way and have a go at altering it.

AFTER:

BEFORE:

Just thought I’d include a couple of before photos – (I know, who doesn’t know what a coffee tin looks like) :)

After cleaning the inside with a few baby wipes, I was ready to go. I couldn’t clean it the conventional way as the sides of the tin weren’t really metal… I think they are cardboard or something that looks like tin but I know if definately wasn’t metal but anyway, on to the altering….

First off, I had to work out exactly what I was going to do with it apart from cover it with patterned paper. I wanted it to be based on 2 stamps from the Unity December 2011 Kit of the Month stamp set bought from Craft-A-Lot and since I knew I was altering it for my beautiful 16yr old daughter, I knew the main colours would be purple and yellow/lemon, 2 colours she loves. Next came the tough part (some would say not after rummaging through my craft drawers) – finding supplies in those colours which was easier than I thought as most of them I already had on my craft table – lazy me didn’t clean up after my last couple of crafting sessions.

The 2 stamps used from the December 2011 Unity KOTM stamp set are the sentiment and the heart which isn’t shown properly here, both were stamped using Whispers Archival Black ink. The first thing I did to the tin, was use 2 patterned papers from Kaisercraft and they were Buttercream from the Sugar Sugar collection and Lattice from the Garden Arabesque, both of which are old paper ranges but loved both the purples and the yellows/creams. I adhered the Buttercream to the base of the tin using Modge Podge and then I used a Cheery Lynn Die called Border Carnivale to diecut 6 x 8″ border pieces from the Lattice paper and adhered 2 of them around the top.

Next, which was quite daunting to me, was to stamp a border around the bottom of the tin. Not something I thought was going to be easy because of the shape but turned out ok. I used 1 of the stamps in the the Butterfly Garden – Impressions No.14 stamp set by Pink Paislee. I had to use a rolling technique because of the shape of the tin and there are a few parts that weren’t stamped perfectly but as they say ‘there is no wrong in art’. Again I used Whispers Archival Black ink because it gave parts of the stamped images a faded look but that could have been me not inking the stamp fully :) – either way, I love the end result. The purple ink sponged on the centre diecut is Dusty Concord distress ink.

Using the birdcage from the same Pink Paislee stamp set, I stamped a cage where the top border diecuts didn’t quite meet. I then punched some leaf stems using a Martha Stewart punch out of some Echo Park paper from the Victoria’s Garden 6×6 paper pad, adhered them to the join and then covered them with a few paper blooms from Kaisercraft. I then added a pretty purple Kaisercraft rhinestone to the cage to finish it off.

On some parts of the tin, I stamped a butterflies, again from the same Pink Paislee stamp set and then layered a Martha Stewart punched butterfly on top…

… then finished it with a little Kindyglitz Crystalina glitter glue. I did that to all the butterflies on the tin, including…

… all the Kaisercraft paper blooms.

I’ll finish with a few photos from different angles.

…and another view…

If you have any questions, don’t be shy, ask me :)

Thanks for visiting xx

Posted in Altered Art | Tagged Altered Art, Craft-A-Lot, KOTM Stamp Set

Craft-A-Lot Blog

Published March 15, 2012 | By Rhonda

Here’s a lovely message from Colleen at Craft-A-Lot.

Finally!! We have a blog!

And you know what that means???

CHALLENGE’S ARE COMING !!

Seriously! That’s cause for a butt shaking dance….. oh yeah… Crump It baby!!

Craft-A-Lot Blog

http://blog.craftalot.com.au

To Celebrate this uber cool event – the first 20 PEOPLE to follow our BLOG will get sent a FREE little Grab Bag filled with various UNITY STAMPS….

Goodluck everyone!!

Posted in Updates | Tagged Craft-A-Lot

Thanks…

Published March 9, 2012 | By Rhonda

Being in a reflective mood this last week or so, I’ve been thinking about all the times I should have said thank you (and there have been ALOT) but didn’t. Such a simple word but it can have the biggest meaning, alot like the word ‘sorry’ (both of which are either said too much or not said enough), so having that in mind, I was looking through January’s 2012 Unity Company KOTM stamp set and found the perfect stamp for my reflective thoughts, so here’s my card based on the word ‘thanks’. This goes out to everyone I should have said thanks to but didn’t because of my stubborn pride or just plain stupidity (or both)!!

I used Echo Park’s Victoria’s Garden 6×6 paper pad again for all of the patterned paper. I just love all the pretty papers in this pad and I know it will be one that is missed when I’ve used it all.

I have all these doilies sitting in one of my drawers and thought it was about time I started using them in my craft projects (because that is the reason I originally bought them for over a year ago lol). I thought about glimmer misting them but by the time that thought registered, I had already stuck them to the card and I thought if I tried to mist them, I would have one huge mess, so I didn’t bother – maybe next time!! The seam binding ribbon is by Stampin’ Up.

These Kaisercraft mini paper blooms are about $3.00 for a pack of 10 and I bought 6 packs of various colours a few weeks ago. Very economical and I did notice that when I added a little Kindyglitz glitter glue to the petals, it made them a little translucent and gave them a soft, delicate kind of look and I love it!! (you can’t really see it in the photo though). I puched some leaf branches from a Martha Stewart punch and layered them under the flowers. The butterfly punch is also by Martha Stewart.

The bird sentiment was stamped with Versafine Onyx Black ink onto a diecut shape I cut from some lemon/yellow Victoria’s Garden patterned paper. I layered that onto the doily using 3d foam and then added a few yellow Kaisercraft pearls to accent parts of the stamped image. The butterflies were also edged with Kindyglitz glitter glue.

I used a Signo uniball white pen to draw a couple of lines around the outside of the card as I thought it was missing a little something when I had finished.

I’ll finish it there for tonight… thanks for visiting!!

Posted in Cards | Tagged cards, Craft-A-Lot, feminine cards, Unity KOTM stamp set

Heart and Soul…

Published March 6, 2012 | By Rhonda

Another card using Unity’s Jan 2012 KOTM stamp set purchased from Craft-A-Lot. If you are interested in joining the monthly stamp club, contact Colleen at Craft-A-Lot for more information.

HEART and SOUL:

Using the chipboard hearts as a focal point, I decided to create the card around that. I used a patterned paper from Kaisercraft’s 6 1/2″ paper pad called Sweet Nothings on the Kraft card base.

I coloured the scalloped heart in Barn Door Distress Stain and the plain heart in Picket Fence Distress crackle paint. After the crackle paint had done it’s job and dried, I covered the heart in a light coating of Kindyglitz Crystalina glitter glue.

Using a scalloped diecut from the Sweet Nothing’s paper pad, I adhered a beautiful fabric flower by Bella! onto it and adhered them to the heart using 3d foam. I picked a few matching buttons from my button jar and adhered them using small Zots Dots.

For the flourish pieces, I cut them from a yellow patterned paper in Echo Park’s Victoria Garden 6×6 paper pad using a My Favourite Thing’s die called Vintage Flourish. I chose another diecut piece from Kaisercraft’s Sweet Nothings paper pad and stamped the sentiment using Onyx Black Versafine Ink then layered the diecut onto the card base using 3d foam.

Finishing off the card, I chose a couple of mini paper blooms by Kaisercraft and again, used a little Kindyglitz to give them a bit of sparkle.

OTHER:

A couple of other crafty things I’ve made lately…

Thanks for the memories card using a sentiment from Unity Company’s Jan 2012 KOTM stamp set.

That’s it for today so I’ll see you next time!!

Posted in Cards | Tagged cards, Craft-A-Lot, feminine cards, general cards, KOTM Stamp Set, tags

Sweet Kind Nice Wonderful…

Published March 3, 2012 | By Rhonda

I wanted to show you a couple of cards I’ve made using the Jan 2012 Unity Company KOTM (Kit of the Month) stamp set which is called Heart and Soul.

CARD 1:

The sentiment stamp is from the kit and I love how it’s so versatile because you can more or less put anything on the end of it depending on what or who you’re making the card for. It’s stamped using Onyx Black Versafine ink.

I’ve used papers from the Times & Seasons Collection Pack by Echo Park. I’ve also used the alphabet stickers and the border sticker from the same pack.

The pretty fabric flower is from Bella! and it’s sitting on a couple of basic circles which I’ve cut using my Martha Stewart Circle Cutter (yes I still have all my fingers). I’ve distressed them using a Heidi Swapp edge distresser and adhered them to the card using 3d foam.

CARD 2:

All the patterned paper used is from the Be Loved Paper Kit by My Mind’s Eye. I’ve also used the squigly border diecut from the same kit. Of all the KOTM kits I’ve bought so far, this butterfly is one of my faves. I got a nice surprise when I stamped it onto the patterned paper because it has a beautiful watercolour effect. I’m sure it will become a stamp you see me use often.

The ribbon is from My Mind’s Eye, the button is from American Crafts and the pearls are Kaisercraft.

I’ve outlined the butterfly with a little Kindyglitz glitter glue and layered it using 3d foam. The ‘thank you’ stamp is from Stampin’ Up… both the butterfly and the other sentiment stamp are from the Jan 2012 KOTM stamp set. If you would like to learn a little more information about how to join the Kit of the Month club, visit Colleen at Craft-A-Lot and she will be happy to help you.

To finish off today, I just thought I’d show you a Card Sketch notebook I made using Kristina Werner’s video tutorial. It’s a nice way to keep all of your card sketches together and if you are a card maker, it will become your best friend especially when you need a little inspiration to kickstart a card or perhaps a scrapbook layout.

Here’s mine:

Thanks for visiting xx.

Posted in Cards, Updates | Tagged cards, Craft-A-Lot, feminine cards, KOTM Stamp Set

What I’ve been doing lately…

Published February 19, 2012 | By Rhonda

Just wanted to show everyone what I’ve been up to lately. Sorry I haven’t posted this week. I have been busy playing with my new toy – a Cricut Expression and doing a couple of card orders. Also, finishing off the box for my Notecards for the giveaway and I’m happy to say, it was won by a lovely lady called Carolynne… she also has a little online jewellery & gift store, so if you are looking to buy beautiful things to wear and gifts to give, visit her store here.

And here’s the Notecard Box:

All paper used is from Stampin’ Up. I cut out the sentiment using George Font and Basic Shapes cricut cartridge and the flowers and the leaves using Plantin Schoolbook Font cricut cartridge.

I covered the sentiment in Glossy Accents. I also inked all the flower petals and the 2 leaves in Brushed Corduroy distress ink. The pompom trim was from my stash and the box I bought from Spotlight for $6.00. Love these boxes because they are reasonably priced and are a quality product.

Cards I’ve made lately:

Thanks for visiting…

Posted in Cards | Tagged baby girl cards, boy birthday card, decorated box, feminine cards, handmade cards, wedding

Notecard Giveaway – Day 4 & 5

Published February 11, 2012 | By Rhonda

I won’t ramble on today about supplies and how I made these notecards as I am about to go rest my twisted ankle but I will say that my Giveaway is being drawn tomorrow so there’s still time to enter by liking my Facebook page.