Watch the birdie

Ruffled ribbon is all the rage at the moment and this new Seam Binding ribbon from the Mini catalogue is perfect for the job. It comes in Baja Breeze (shown here), Crumb Cake, Pear Pizzazz and Rose Red. What you do is fray the end a little and take one of the strands from the centre. Pull and the ribbon will begin to ruffle. The more you pull, the tighter the ruffles will be – just play around... whatever you do with it will look fabulous.

I’ve stamped on the Designer Series Paper here to add a little interest – I used Cherry Cobbler ink and the foliage and eggs from the Nature Walk stamp set. Lots of torn edges as these products just cry out for a “shabby” look, in my opinion!

Stamps: Nature Walk

Cardstock: Cherry Cobber, Early Espresso, Baja Breeze, Very Vanilla, Sahara Sand

Paper: Botanical Gazette

Ink: Early Espresso, Cherry Cobbler

Accessories: Seam Binding Ribbon – Baja Breeze

All products by Stampin’ Up!®

What is it with all these birds?

Brayering is a technique I’ve overlooked for many years. Now I’ve tried it, though, I really love it. You can get some really exciting effects.

To create this effect, I punched a 1” circle from a piece of scrap paper and stuck it to the Whisper White cardstock using temporary adhesive (Two-Way Glue Pen). I brayered the whole piece with Taken With Teal. I tore another scrap of paper to create a mask and brayered the bottom area again to create a darker effect.

We'll be using this stamp set at my brayering class on Saturday, 15th May.

After removing the masks, I stamped the two images in Basic Black. You can’t see on the photo but I’ve made the bird stand out more by applying Crystal Effects® over the top, spreading it out to the edges of the image with a cocktail stick.

To make Taken With Teal ribbon, I pressed some Whisper White ribbon into my ink pad, brayering over the top to get the ink to spread evenly. This did have to dry overnight but it means you can have ribbons in any colour you like!

Stamps: Bird on a Branch
Cardstock: So Saffron, Basic Black, Whisper White
Paper: Sweet Pea Paper Stack
Ink: Basic Black, Taken with Teal
Accessories: Eyelet Border Punch, ¼” Grosgrain Ribbon - Whisper White, Rhinestone brad, 1” circle punch, brayer

All products by Stampin' Up! ®

Striped thanks

Here’s another card inspired by a Stampin’ Up! publication – I love how you can take a design and change it around to suit the stamps, inks and papers you have. That’s what’s so great about the Idea Book & Catalogue – it isn’t just a catalogue, it’s packed with fab ideas to inspire you. Talking of which, have you ordered your new one from me yet? It’s out on 1st October and I’m holding a special launch on 10th October. Drop me an email for details.

Stamps: In The Stars, Basic Phrases
Cardstock: Pumpkin Pie, Chocolate Chip, Regal Rose, Whisper White
Paper: Sweet Always
Ink: Pumpkin Pie, Chocolate Chip
Accessories: Stitched Grosgrain Ribbon – Rose Red, ½” circle punch, Scallop Edge Punch, Pretties Kit

All products by Stampin' Up! Please email me to order a catalogue, or click the link on the right to view it online.

A shabby rose card - with a new ribbon use thrown in!

First an announcement: Alison and I held a prize draw at the papercraft show yesterday and, at the end of the day, drew a winner. The winner is Mrs L. Winfield and I’ll be posting her prize of a fabulous Stampin’ Up!® stamp set today.

Now for details of the card, which is the one I demonstrated yesterday. It was quite a complicated (and messy) card to demonstrate at a tiny table but people seemed to like it. Either that or they were just being polite!

First I wheeled along the bottom of the card with the Watercolour Vine wheel, using the Mellow Moss cartridge. As this is a paler colour than the cardstock (Always Artichoke) it’s left a very subtle image.

Next I used the direct-to-paper technique to ink up the edges of the card, and used scissors to rough up the bottom edge of the card to give it a shabby chic look. To give the card a bit of lift, I attached a narrow strip of Rose Red cardstock behind the distressed edge.

I stamped the main image with Roses in Winter. It’s a two-step stamp set and, to make the first impression paler, I “stamped off” on scrap paper first. Again I inked and distressed the edges of the cardstock. Please click here for more about the techniques used on this card.

Here's the bonus use of ribbon: the ribbon goes all the way round the card and is joined behind the image. I threaded a piece of Hodgepodge Hardware® on to the ribbon before joining it then threaded a short piece of ribbon through the ribbon that goes over the top of the hardware and tied a simple knot.

I added the layered image using Stampin’ Dimensionals® and, finally, as the hardware is loose on the ribbon, I slid it along so that it was exactly where I wanted it.

Stamps: Roses in Winter (p47), Watercolour Vine wheel (p89)
Cardstock: Always Artichoke, Rose Red, Very Vanilla
Ink: Rose Red, Always Artichoke, Mellow Moss (cartridge)
Accessories: Hodgepodge Hardware® - Pewter, ¼” Grosgrain Ribbon – Always Artichoke, Stampin’ Around® Jumbo Handle (p83)

All products by Stampin' Up! Please email me to order a catalogue, or click the picture of the catalogue on the right to view it online.

Using ribbon - part 5: Tying around handles

It sounds really obvious but you can really liven up a basket, box or any container handle with ribbon. This is one of those cases when more is more and it looks really effective with loads and loads of ribbon in co-ordinating shades and patterns. I've just used three pieces around this handle as it's quite a small box. Sorry it isn't a new creation - I haven't had time to make anything new lately.

You do need more than you'd think, so practise with a few before cutting lengths... and make sure you've mastered The Knot first!

This use of ribbon also looks fantastic on books and journals - you can tie ribbon around book rings or spiral binding.

You can see more ribbon around handles here and here (although you can't see the ribbons too well on the second one).

All products by Stampin' Up! Please email me to order a catalogue, or click the picture of the catalogue on the right to view it online.

Using ribbon - part 6

The Loopy Thing: not sure what you really call this but you fold your ribbon in two, then insert the loopy end through a hole, threading it back and poking the cut ends through the loop to secure it. You get two different looks, depending on which way you poke the loop through the hole, so experiment until you're happy with the results.

For this box, I did The Loopy Thing and left the ends quite long so that I could tie a knot in them. It adds interest and make the ribbon just that little bit more secure.

You can see the whole of this project by clicking here.

All products by Stampin' Up! Please email me to order a catalogue, or click the link on the right to view it online.

Using ribbon - Part 4

Another quick and easy way to use short pieces of ribbon is the "charity ribbon". Simply fold your ribbon in a loop and attach with a staple or, in this case, a brad. Trim the ends as desired.

And another ribbon tip which my Mum used to do back in the olden days when little girls wore ribbons in their hair: if your ribbon is creased, hold it over the steam from a boiling kettle. After a few seconds, "iron" your ribbon on the hot, curved side of the kettle. And that's the nearest I'll get to ironing if I can help it!

You can see the whole of this project by clicking here.

All products by Stampin' Up! Please email me to order a catalogue, or click the link on the right to view it online.

Using ribbon - part 3: The Knot

The infamous knot. It's much simpler than a bow (and, in my opinion, cleaner-looking) but the knot causes problems for so many people. It really is as easy as "left over, right under; right over, left under" but there are a couple of things to remember.

For your first "left over, right under" tie the ribbon tightly, without bending your cardstock. It's the second part that's the crucial part.

For the second part ("right over, left under"), work slowly. It's tempting to get that ribbon tied and under control as quickly as you can but hold back! Take it really slowly, and adjust the ribbon as you go, so the top part is nice and flat. If you need an extra finger to hold it still while you practise, rope someone in to help. Soon you'll be an old hand at this and find your own middle finger appearing as if by magic!

You can see the whole of this project by clicking here. There are other examples here and here. 

All products by Stampin' Up! Please email me to order a catalogue, or click the link on the right to view it online.

Using ribbon - part 2

Yes, at long last, a return to my occasional look at ribbon uses. This time, the "flag". This is a really easy and effective way to use up small pieces of ribbon. All you do is fold a ribbon scrap in half and attach it to your card. You can attach the ribbon in loads of different ways. On the card above I attached it behind the layer so it just pokes out. This card uses the wet on wet watercolouring technique - for details, click here. I really thought I'd already posted this card but can't find it so maybe not. If I have, I apologise.

On the pink sample, I've used a household staple - see the whole card here.

Notice how trimming the ribbon can have different effects - the diagonal is cut in the opposite direction on the green sample (click here for full image), where I've used the flag behind a scallop circle to create a rosette effect. You could also trim the ends straight if your ribbon scrap is really short!

One flag is good... but try two, three, four, or have them going all down the side of your card or scrapbook page. Go on - use those scraps!

Recipe for main card
Stamps: Summer by the Sea (p48)
Cardstock: So Saffron, Ruby Red, Chocolate Chip, Whisper White
Ink: Versamark (p82), Ruby Red, Chocolate Chip, Close to Cocoa, So Saffron, Basic Black
Accessories: Brads - Rich Regals (p85), Taffeta Ribbon - Chocolate Chip (p86), Stampin' Emboss Powder - clear (p82)

All products by Stampin' Up! Please email me to order a catalogue, or click the link on the right to view it online.

Using ribbon - part 1

I thought I'd start an occasional look at ribbon. I love ribbon - another U-turn, naturally! I particularly love grosgrain ribbon, which has "ribbed" effect... oh, and gingham ribbon, love that too!

There are countless ways to use ribbon on your projects so I'll feature a few at a time, starting with some really simple ways which are so obvious I'm almost embarrassed to post them. Almost... but not quite!

A simple strip

The first photo features a simple strip of ribbon. To add interest I cut a V from the end of the ribbon. It's 5/8" grosgrain (p86) but if you're using narrower ribbon you could cut the end at an angle instead.

I attached it with SNAIL adhesive (p81) - my new favourite thing! You can see the full card by clicking here.

Get knotted!

In the second photo I wrapped the ribbon around the panel. Obviously not ALL the way - no point in having ribbon you can't see! I do like to make my ribbon go a LONG way so, wherever possible, I'll design the card to make as economical use of the ribbon as possible. I don't like to see cut ends inside my cards so will wrap my ribbon around a layer and attach the ends underneath. I'll even cut lengths as short as an inch from behind layers to use again on future projects! Well, a penny saved... as they say!

I could have left this plain but thought a knot would be interesting. This is just a simple knot - nothing fancy. See the full card here.

Using those leftovers

The third photo shows you what I do with all those tiny scraps of ribbon. I fold them over and attach them behind a layer to create a tab. Click here for the full card.

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