A different new baby card ....

Sometimes a traditional card just wont do ...

So today I made a more unusual new baby card.  It uses really lovely Autumnal colours, and features Be our guest paper from the Home sweet home range.

It is very simple in design, taking most of the detail from the paper itself ... and I really like it.  Definitely a card that the recipient wont get from someone else!

Hand crafted

Sometimes, as I make cards to sell, I try to make them as efficiently as possible, trying to keep the costs down for the customer.  However, sometimes, it just takes time to make something.  

This week I have been making hand stamped, painted and decorated cards, and they take more time than some other designs because they are so time consuming.  The nice thing though is I really do enjoy making them.  Again, Christmas in October for you readers may not be ideal, but when you sell seasonally, I cannot make Christmas cards in December, people have already bought them!  And believe me, I have tried.  One year I was making cards up until  Christmas eve, and it wasn't' so much fun.

So if you will humour me, I will share my hand crafted little cards :)

I'm not sure which my favourite it!

[The stamps are all Dovecraft, and the inks are Versa Colour]

Recycled Christmas ....

Like most card makers, I began with a heavy amount of recycled materials in my design.  I still do when I can, but now I need designs that I can replicate, and that means buying in papers that can be re-purchased.

This week though, I went back to my re-using roots, and make a set of five cards from one old Christmas card that I had cut up from a few years ago ... this is how it started....

And here is what I came I did with it...

I really like them :)  And if no-one buys them I might just give them away myself!!

Merry Christmas in October everyone!!

Shelly X

Media outlets?

Twitter, facebook, google +, websites, my space, blogs, folksy, etsy .....

Its a long old list.

But how much social media is it beneficial to use?

Questions to think about ....

crochet ....

For all you crochet fans out there .....  I happened upon this on the fantastic Colossal blog.  If you only do one thing today, check out Colossal ...

It is a music video for Wax Tailor featuring Aloe Blacc, which was shot by a crew at the Australian firm Oh Yeah Wow. It is Directed by Darcy Prendergast and Seamus Spilsbury.  

Picmonkey away ...

This last month I have really been playing around with Pic Monkey ... It has been an invaluable tool for me to play around with images.  I have been adjusting the colour and shades within windows, but creating collages and adding text in Picmonkey.  I have found that it is a great way to show close up detail on cards, but in one overall image.  It has also been great at watermarking, and also in terms of 'branding' my images when I want to direct traffic to the website.  

So today I wanted to show you a few of my recent pictures that I have been using on facebook and in promotional e-mails.

Thanks for stopping by.

Shelly X

Unknown artist

I went for a walk in Ramsgate yesterday.... My Nan was up visiting and we had a lovely time catching up.

While we were out, we happened upon a wall of murals, one of which struck a chord with me. I love the colour, the lines, its just great. I don't know who the artist is, but I love it!!

power of android ...

i am writing my first blog post on my phone.... i have not decided yet as to whether this will be useful .. so we'll see.

for my first phone experiment i'll share this with you ...

a lovely little tea cup from the cupcake cafe, where i met for a business meeting this week.

Magnolia Christmas ...

Last year I made a few cards with the Magnolia range of stamps.  I found these cards very time consuming, and very unlike the style I normally make.  There is general style that goes along with these stamps, and I suppose you could say these are the hard cards for me... they are busy and have a lot on them... like this card at Magnolia's card studio ..... and they take some time. 

 This is the first attempt that I had at this style last year .... not bad for a a first go, but a lot of room for improvement compared to what you can do with these lovely stamps!

Anyhow, I found some lovely hand painted ones on the interweb this year, so decided to have another bash at them for Christmas ...

This time I stuck to more of my own style ... and I think I like them!  They are less busy, and take less time so they can be sold at a reasonable price for the hours I put into making them,

 I would love your opinions on them ....  Do you like them? What can I do better next time?  ANy help welcome!!

Bright Birthdays ....

This week we have two birthdays ... my Auntie Liz, and also my little nephew is 4!!! I cannot quite believe that he is turning into his own little person!  Anyhow, today I decided that both cards had to have glitter on, and they had to be bright!  So here are today's makes!..

Thanks for stopping by :)

Shelly

Blue Christmas

This week I have been working on some great little custom cards. ... but I can't share them until November!! But I can show you the stash of Christmas cards I made for a customer yesterday ...

They are really pretty, and so simple, the detail comes from the papers themselves.  They use recycled blue card, and recycled scraps of card for the sentiment.  

I have been playing around with a free online programme called PicMonkey .... you can find it here.  Its a nice way of making photograph collages, and also, watermarks.  It is only recently after hearing more stories on Facebook about unscrupulous business owners stealing peoples photos, that I thought I should start to introduce them.  Its straight forward to do, and I don't think you can notice it too much. 

 I will be back in the week with a little good news, but for now, have a good week X