Something a bit different

No I haven't come over all funny, but I have moved out of my comfort zone a little this week. Not just because I have blogged, but I have also challenged myself a little crafting wise, to try a very different style for me.

This came about because of the beautiful new masks that we are launching on Friday on Create and Craft. So I have played with White on White (not easy for Mrs Inky fingers), which I will upload later, as blogger keeps rotating it, and you would need to stand on your head to see it!! But really different for me is this pretty girly card. This is a sort of paper piecing (well my version anyway) I embossed the lovely topiary tree mask on a few different small designed patterned papers (they need to be small designs or it doesn't work, and I know as I tried!!) then you give it a little ink, to highlight the embossing, and then cut out the various elements. I then pieced it back together on a nice background, added some paper flowers with gem middles, a doodled line (another first for me!!) matted it on to a nice paper and a pretty doily. Done! Worth the fiddly cutting I think!
So 2 posts in one week can't be bad! I will try and upload more pictures using the new masks and some of the techniques to help you get the most out of them. Happy Crafting and see you Friday

Ali xx

New Start!!

Ok lets start this blog again! And I aim to do an entry every week (let's not make rash promises of more than that, but if I can I will!!) I will try and share on going projects, sneak peaks and explain mad cap crazy techniques!!

Many people have been emailing me about the fabulous Petroleum Jelly technique, so here is a quick outline, but I highly recomend that you grab a pot and have a good old play!.


Place your mask over your paper (I find the Stamps Away stamp and colour card brilliant for this technique)

Then using a piece of cut and dry foam, gently rub a small (you really don't need much) amount of Petroleum Jelly over the mask (just the same as if you were inking through your mask)


Remove the mask, and then apply distress ink or similar over the paper, I find that using a brush gives a better finish as using sponge or cut and dry can smudge the design.

I would love to see your projects using the masks so feel free to post links to your projects so I can go off for a nosey! Until next time keep crafting and keep messy

Ali xx

Well June has been an amazing month!!

Well they say time flies while you are having fun and that is the truth....June has been and gone. In a nut shell - We started our Wednesday night classes, we had 4 Create and Craft shows with some amazing new products, we had another brilliant all day workshop and for my birthday I got 3 adorable chickens!!

I am loving teaching in our purpose built classroom, we even have an over head camera making demonstrating so much easier....I am so excited about what I want to teach I have planned my classes right up to November, and also we will be holding a "Create Away Day" once a month, when you will get to play with all things, inky and mica, embossing and stamping and make 4 projects. Just pop over to CleverCut to book your places.

"That Special Touch" is becoming a more amazing product range all the time, with the amazing sprays and masks already proving popular and we have soo much more up our sleeves!! This beautiful card is made using the sprays to create the background and then using the delicate feather mask as an embossing stencil. Being plastic simply pop them through your Big Shot or Cuttlebug like a brass stencil and admire the effect!! The embossing combined with the shimmer of the mica is stunning and plays with the light in ways photo's really don't do justice!

Another new product I have had a lot of fun with has been the dimensional flower set of templates. This handy set allows you to create truly special 3d flowers for your projects, and with a flower pot, a polystyrene ball, a bit of dowel and some pins, plus an assortment of scraps of paper and you can create this adorable topiary tree, change the colour with the change of season!!

I am looking forward to July with some great things planned. If you are passing by Leicestershire/Northamptonshire why not pop in to our shop and have a nosey you are always welcome. Until then I am off to add numerous new items to the website...

I am still here honestly...

Well despite my best intentions last year I did not keep up with my blog but I have soo much to share now I will try harder!! It has been a very intense time, as we now do a couple of shows a month on Create and Craft so I have been a busy bee with my samples as well as developing new products!!

Our prduct range now not only includes stamps and templates but also the fabulous "That Special Touch" range, which is just fabulous with Mica, Embossing Powder and all other things special!! And I will share some samples from Sunday's show where we launched these amazing and so versatile background masks, use them with Mica Mists, Ink, Paint, Chalk and even for embossing

This card was created using the new masks with the wonderful hydrenga big and juicy pad, so quick but really effective...if I do say so myself!!

But as the maks are plastic you can also whizz them through your embossing machines (or do it old school if you like!!) for another great look, especially when you do a good old bit of sanding

The stamps on these samples are the beautiful butterflies, and I have coloured some with my promarkers, I am a bit late on to the promarkers bandwagon but I am glad I am on board now!!

Well that is enough for tonight but I will try my hardest to share all the latest stuff as we go along. In the meantime why not pop over to the website and check out the up coming classes so you can come and have a play

See you soon

Lots of catching up to do!!

Well I am at the factory trying to catch up on some work, as we are full on again for at least the next month!!! Successful meeting on Friday so we have some amazing products coming out soon, can't wait!! Well back to the grind stone as I have about a years worth of work to do in an afternoon!! I will leave you with a sample I made for the last template show, using the lower case alphabet to make a star book with a difference, as the photo's are on the second layer, the pages spell out Our Wedding. Enjoy the sun shine and try not to burn.

Sorry....

We have been a bit busy at the moment as we launched 4 more templates on Ideal World today. So it was up early to get to Peterborough for the show at 11, and the new templates sold out as did the fab "I can't believe they're not brads!" paper brads. I love these little guys and you will see them feature on a lot of projects!!! I don't have any photos to share of the samples I made yet, but I will try and get some taken over the next few days. So we have a very busy week stuffing envelopes for the TV plus on Friday we are off to take a look at some amazing new products that I am very excited about!! Might not get much blogging done for a few weeks as on 11th June we have not 1 but 2 live shows on Ideal World and Create and Craft and a girl has a lot of samples to make!! But again we are soo excited about the products we are bring on to these shows so I am looking forward to making the samples!! Well bed is calling as it has been a rather long day (although confession for the first time in a long time we stole an afternoon nap!!).

Nearly a Bank Holiday!!

Well it is another long weekend, not that I benefit much as I am working Saturday and Sunday, but Monday I am working from home, and cracking on with new samples ready for the next template show on Create and Craft 25th May (seems miles away but trust me it isn't!!) So Levi and I will go for a lovely walk in the morning on Monday before I get cracking with samples, I hope to have at least one of the new templates to play with!!

I will leave you with one of the samples from last time, I love this template as it makes fun folded cards, this one is the tabbed version (the template also does a flower version). I used papers from Love Elsie Daisy range, and a couple of photo's of Levi. It is a really easy photo card to make, and of course you can go even more to town on the decorating than I do!!!

Whoops almost forgot to share my favourite sample I did last time!! It is just something totally fun and silly but I was so chuffed with how it came out...is this the most unusual use for a cake slice template???