Dimensional Floral Birthday Card

I created this card for my Mum for her birthday using an assortment of docrafts products, focusing especially on the Xcut dies 'Flowers' (XCU 503195) and the 'Rectangular Parenthesis 2' (XCU 503045) designs. The papers used for the design are a  mix of two of the April Creativity Club printables 'Daisies' which I designed for docrafts.
 

 

You could create this card for any occasion, simply change the sentiment and lettering.

 

 

I love making dimensional, layered projects so the Xcut flower and leaf dies were perfect. I only had a Little Venice Cake Company modelling mat and ball tool to hand so I used these to curl the petals and create vein effects on the leaves.

 

 

I also adore making quilled paper roses - you can find a great tutorial for these here on

Nikki Smith's blog 'What Nikki Did Next'.

 

 

Thank you for looking!

 

Jill x

 

 

 

 

 

 

#docraftsmonday - Thank you to two special Dads

It's been a long couple of stressful weeks. My Dad has been in hospital twice, the most recent time was very serious; luckily, he is now through the worst. It puts everything in life into perspective and had made me re-focus on what is important; we should cherish every moment of every day.

 

I didn't have much time to pull together cards for Father's Day but I found a window yesterday and cobbled these together - it doesn't feel right buying cards for those special to me anymore!

 

My husband and I are each lucky enough to have great Dad's, so here are the designs I came up with using some docrafts Club printables from my stash...

The stamps were one of the free gifts from May's docrafts Creativity magazine. I used chocolate brown and dark blue ink to stamp and add a vintage effect around the edges of the Xcut die-cut shapes.

 

 I then added some buttons and string to finish off the designs.

 

Thank you for looking!

 

Jill x

 

The first docrafts Design Team Blog Hop!

Hi, the DT and I are so excited to welcome to the first ever docrafts Creativity Design Team blog hop! I have made a card to say thank you to the very talented Paula Whittaker who has left us to move onto pastures new (check out her docrafts gallery here plus her fabulous blog) So, why not pull up a chair, grab a cuppa (or a glass of the red stuff!) and join in our hop – we would love for you to leave a little love and we will pop back to visit you and check out your creations!

 Here’s what I have made using the docrafts Creativity Club Spring Green printables….(please excuse the photography, I thought I had taken the shots but realised at the last minute I hadn't and it was dark outside!).

 

Here is the list of designers who are taking part in the hop – it would be great if you could take the time to check out their blogs as there are some really fabulous ideas and inspiration on there!

Nikki Smith 

Michelle Gower 

Keren Baker 

Heather Mitchell

Denise Fletcher

Sarah Douglas 

Katie Lamb

 

Thank you for looking!

 

Jill x

#docraftsmonday Dimensional Butterfly Birthday Card

It's time for #docraftsmonday once again! My lovely Grandma is an amazing 94 this coming Thursday and over the weekend, we held a kind a crazy Easter/Birthday family party to celebrate. I have been so manic recently, I haven't had time to craft but this occasion definitely needed a handmade offering...

 



 I wasn't too sure where I wanted to go with the layout for this card, so I got all the elements

out I wanted to use and went from there.

 

This week's docrafts Creativity Club printables is a fab collection of brick and decking textures (photographed by Carly Barrett) in a monochrome colourway, so I started with that. The theory is a garden wall which has rambling flowers and butterflies climbing up it!



 

As usual, I went slightly mad on the dimensional side of things - my cards are not suitable for

posting unless you want to box them up! I used a mix of Xcut dies and punches as follows;

 

 Xcut Butterflies A5 Die Set - XCU 503196

Xcut Large Dies Leafy Flourishes - XCU 503189

Xcut Dimension Butterfly Punch Stamp - XCU 2701000

Xcut Daisy Palm Punch

Xcut Tags and Bookplate Dies - XCU 503066

Xcut Petal Posy Dies - XCU 503065

 

I have to say, the Leafy Flourishes look so much nicer once they have been die-cut. This is the first time I have used them and will definitely do so again!

 

 

Add in a touch of antiquing with dye ink and a few Papermania adhesive gems and there you have it!

 

Thank you for looking. If you would like to take part in #docraftsmonday, visit the docrafts facebook page and join in the fun every week!

 

Thank you for looking!

 

Jill x

Male themed Birthday card using docrafts Creativity Club printables

Well, it's #docraftsmonday (thank you Emma!) and I thought it was about time I got my craft stash out - you forget how good it can make you feel, simply being focused on one thing instead of ten for a change. Here's the result - a birthday card for my Father-in-Law (don't show him this yet Barb!), using the printables I designed for this week's Creativity Club download. There are flowers included in the collection, but I missed those out and converted the patterns into a more masculine card...

 

 

I love layers and dimension so I used lots of 3D foam squares and layers of paper

mounted onto card to created a sense of depth...

 

 

...I wrapped craft string around the card base randomly...

 

 

...and used lots of dark brown dye ink to get a vintage effect.

 

 

The inside of the card echoed the same design as the front...

...and I used red buttons to add that finishing touch!

 

Thank you for looking and don't forget to join in #docraftsmonday!

 

Jill x

 

#docraftsmonday is like a weekly crafty 'show and tell'.

To get involved on Facebook:

On Monday, post a photo on https://www.facebook.com/docrafts of your recent craft project

and add the hashtag #docraftsmonday.

You can see all #docraftsmonday projects by visiting the page and viewing the 'Posts by Others' section, clicking on the #docraftsmonday hashtag, or searching '#docraftsmonday'

in the Facebook search box. When you see a #docraftsmonday project you like,

make sure you comment or give it a Like!

 

Father's Day Bottle 'All Tooled Up' Card

Hi! With Father's Day imminent on Sunday, here is a card I have designed to wrap around a bottle of wine - specifically designed for my hubby using the docrafts Creativity Club 'All Tooled Up' printables which I designed last month.

 

The concept is simple - create a wrap, then decorate it! For this card, I have made an opening card, secured with a large washer and craft string, which hides the sentiment...

 

I am going to get Beth and Evie to write their messages on the inside of the 'doors' (I thought it best to photograph the card first in case it gets covered in felt pen drawings!).

I made a simple ring of paper (mounted onto card), to sit around the bottle neck and 

added a Father's Day sentiment to finish.

I hope this has given you some ideas! 

Thank you for looking

Jill x

Happy Father's Day Booklet Card

I have had this idea in my head for a while and finally got a chance to have a play 

(just in time for father's Day!).

Photograph by Louise Jolley

 The card has been created using the collection of papers I designed for the docrafts Creativity Club called 'All Tooled Up Father's Day Printables', which can be downloaded by Club members for free!

Photograph by Louise Jolley

The card is created using three different length pages and bound together using Papermania Brown String. I mounted all the cut out elements onto card first to give the booklet strength and stuck them on using Stick it! 3D Adhesive Foam Pads for dimension. 

The following shots show each page from front to back (excuse the quality of the photography, I was taking these late last night on my ipad and my lighting is shocking at home!)

 

 

I have uploaded this project into my docrafts gallery with more detailed step by steps so 

pop on over if you fancy reading more.

I want to try and make a card for my hubby by the weekend using my bottle holder 

card idea so watch this space!

Thank you for looking

Jill x

Best Dad in the World Card & Papers

This week, the docrafts Creativity Club have part 2 of my ‘All Tooled Up Father’s Day' printables collection available to members to download. My Dad is due to go in for a back operation today, so I used a selection of them to create this card to wish him luck…

 

I used a Papermania recycled A6 Kraft card blank as a base them added a series of layered die-cut shapes (mounted onto card for strength). The top rectangle was created by running the distressed cream paper through my die-cutting machine with a lovely little dotted embossing folder I found in my craft bag!

  

I created a distressed effect by dragging a Papermania brown die ink across all the edges, then assembled the pieces onto the card using Stick it 3D foam pads for dimension. To finish, I wound some Papermania string around the card, then used a blob of silicone glue to attach the 

sentiment on the top.

I loved creating this collection of papers – it was a refreshing change to design something out if my comfort zone. The initial sketch were done when my kids were zooming around at a soft play – all the other Mums were gossiping or reading their kindles, I was sketching from a box of mixed nuts and bolts! I had a few funny looks! Here are the initial sketches…

I scanned them into my pc and worked them up before converting some of them into 

paper designs in illustrator using this colour palette...

I used last week’s blue collection to make this digital card layout...

  

I would love to hear your comments - it is such a help when designing papers to hear 

other people's opinions. Thank you for looking! 

                     Jill x

Love, laugh, Live - using docrafts Creativity Club Chevron printables for scrapbooking

I haven't had much time for crafting this week (I have been absorbed every spare second making a 3D sugar paste tractor for my hubby's birthday cake!), but I couldn't resist making a quick digital scrapbook layout (8 x 8") using a combination of last week's and this week's Creativity Club Chevron and background downloads.

I designed these papers as a multi-use collection which could be utilized for masculine cards (Father's Day is coming soon!), as well as feminine designs. Although the colour palette includes pinks, the overall feel of strong linear design is perfect for all whole host of cards and scrapbook layouts.

Chevron & Backgrounds Colour Palette

 

I created the large chevron design with the thought that you could chop sections out to create bold design statements. Here is the digital layout I came up with...it features my two little honeys having a ball jumping off walls at a glorious country park we have nearby!



Photo of my girls was taken by the lovely Louise Jolley
http://www.louisejolleyphotography.com/

 

The layout is pretty simple, just layering up of the elements, and could easily be

adapted to make a birthday or greetings card.



Thank you for looking. Any comments would be much appreciated!

 

Jill x

 

Visit www.docrafts.co.uk to find out
more about the Creativity Club

 

If you love sweets, you may like this...!

Phew, it's been a while since I had a chance to blog - we have just been on a fabulous family holiday to the gorgeous Center Parcs, and now we are back, have just had the chance to take a few piccies of the card I made in a few hours I snatched just before we went away! It's made using last week's docrafts Creativity Club printables 'Candy Love' which I designed after an inspiring trip to the sweet shop (what an excuse to sample the goods before sketching!).

 

 

To create the depth, I used silicone glue and slighty twisted the top layer of the decoupage bag to create a more 3D impression...

 

 

I added somePapermania ribbon and Vintage Notes Lace Borders to the mix for effect...

 

 

 

...and to finish, some craft twine to tie the bag.

Thanks for looking!

 

Jill x

 

 

Spring Blossom Birthday Card

Here's a layered card I designed for my lovely Grandma' s birthday using the docrafts Creativity Club 'Spring Blossom' printables. I stuck the decoupage flowers and vase onto some card, cut them out, then assembled them to create this card - it was really easy and fun to make!