Amy Designs - Ocean Wonders

A selection of makes using the Amy Designs Ocean Wonders collection.

This porthole card uses the Underwater View die set. Love the dies that cot the random shapes.

This one uses the Sea Animals die, with Crafter's Companion Stitched Edge Squares.

And I immediately thought of a Pearl Wedding card when I saw this Shell die set.

Finally, I used the Underwater Edge to create this ombre card, with Julie Hickey Designs Sweet Pea Alphabet.

Click on the image to see the video demo, and please feel free to follow me here on my blog, or on FaceBook, Twitter, Instagram or Pinterest.

And I now have a YouTube channel where I hope to add my video content to in the future. Would love it if you could subscribe. 

Thank you for popping by and happy crafting, 

Cxxxx

Amy Design - Classic Men's Collection

I have three cards to share today, all using Amy Design Classic Men's Collection. I have already shared a couple of cards one using the Motorcyle die, and another using one of the 3D Push Outs and the Gentlemen's Accessories die.

The first uses the die set called "Gentleman" and is a very simple card.

The second used a 3D Push Out and the Motorcycling Frame die.

The last also uses a 3D Push Out, along with the Travel Frame die.

Click on the image to see the video demo, and please feel free to follow me here on my blog, or on FaceBook, Twitter, Instagram or Pinterest.

And I now have a YouTube channel where I hope to add my video content to in the future. Would love it if you could subscribe. 

Thank you for popping by and happy crafting, 

Cxxxx

Amy Design - Sympathy Flower

I have three projects in today's post. Two use the gorgeous Amy Design Sympathy Flower. I have included the third as I used the Creative Expressions Paper Panda Petite Fleur Frame on one of the cards, and I had another card to share that used the same frame.

The first card is a small 4x4card, using the Sympathy Flower to create a simple sympathy style card. The sentiment is Julie Hickey Designs Everyday Sentiments. 

The second show that it doesn't just have to be for a sympathy card. This anniversary card uses Card Deco Frame Card Lacy Dots 4K for the base, and Creative Expressions Paper Panda Petite Fleur Frame (cut in half), along with a Julie Hickey Designs Everyday Sentiments stamp.

The final card today shows the Petite Fleur Frame in its entirety, teamed up with Elizabeth Craft Designs 1592 Garden Notes Nasturtium dies.  The colouring is Saltwater Taffy Distress Oxide.

Click on the photos to see the video demonstrations. Thank you for popping by. 

Please feel free to follow me here on my blog, on Twitter, FaceBook,  Instagram or Pinterest.

Happy crafting, 

Cxxxx

Barber Shop!

Here's another card using the Amy Design - Classic Men's Collection. This one uses one of the 3D Push Outs (SB10634 - Barber), along with the Gentlemen's Accessories die.  It's another card that could easily be made into a Father's Day card by changing the sentiment. 

Click on the picture to see the video demonstration.

Thanks for popping by, and I hope I have given you a little inspiration. Feel free to follow me here on my blog, or on FaceBook, Twitter, Instagram or Pinterest. For lots more video demonstrations, pop over to the Hixxy Studio YouTube channel to subscribe. The main items I use can be found on the Hixxy Crafts website - have a look under the Hixxy Studio tab.

Happy crafting,

Cxx

Motorbiking!!

Hello!! Well, its nearly June, and that means (here in the UK) that Father's Day is on the horizon. I have recently been playing with  Amy Design Classic Men's Collection, and am also recording a few videos with another Yvonne Creations collection which would be perfect!

This card - although here I have used it for a birthday card - would be a perfect example . It uses the Motorcycle die from the collection. I really love this die - and it's worth taking the time to cut into it to create a fab image.

Have a look at the video demo (click on the photo) to see exactly how I did this. 

Thanks for popping by, and I hope I have given you a little inspiration. Feel free to follow me here on my blog, or on FaceBook, Twitter, Instagram or Pinterest. For lots more video demonstrations, pop over to the Hixxy Studio YouTube channel to subscribe. The main items I use can be found on the Hixxy Crafts website - have a look under the Hixxy Studio tab.

Happy crafting,

Cxx

Colourful Parrot

 Along with the Peacocks, the Amy Design: Colourful Feathers range also features Parrots. Here is a card I have made with one of the 3D Push Outs, and I have used the tail feather die from the Peacock set to create a stencil for inking through.

In this sample, I have worked with ovals as that is the shape of the decoupage. The Distress Oxides I used were Picked Raspberry, Kitsch Flamingo, Twisted Citron, Cracked Pistachio and Peacock Feathers.

For the video, I demoed using a circular decoupage, with different colours. I cut a piece of stamping card, just marginally smaller than the piece I wanted to ink onto, and cut a circular aperture (oval for the sample) roughly in the middle. I then placed this onto my piece for inking, and sealed around the edge with low tack tape. 

 

I then used my brushes to ink through the circle, and briefly heat set it. Having previously cut the feathers die in stamping card, I laid this over the circular opening, and inked through it to create the pattern. The colours of ink I used in the demo are Candied Apple, Squeezed Lemonade, Mowed Lawn, Tumbled Glass and Mermaid Lagoon.

I cut a frame from the same card as the base to go round the inked area, and I cut a mat to go under the decoupage.

If you would like to watch the video demo, then please click on the main photo above.

Thanks for popping by, and I hope I have given you a little inspiration. Feel free to follow me here on my blog, or on FaceBook, Twitter, Instagram or Pinterest. For all the videos, pop over to the Hixxy Studio YouTube channel to subscribe. And FB lives are streamed on both the YouTube channel and the Hixxy Crafts FB page. The main items I use can be found on the Hixxy Crafts website - have a look under the Hixxy Studio tab.

Happy crafting,

Cxxx

Peacock Easel Card

Another peacock card today, using the Amy Design: Colourful Feathers - Peacock die set. This time, I used the complete die set along with Cosmic Shimmer Watercolour Inks. The angle of the photo makes it look oval, but it is definitely circular! 

To start with , I cut the pieces of the peacock in white stamping card. For the feathers, I used Golden Sunrise, Turqoise Cascade, Ray of Sunshine and Holly Green - which are all pearlescent - and Peacock Teal - which isn't.

I mixed the yellow and green for the central part (and also the separate small part that sits behind the body of the peacock), and mixed the turqoise and teal for other parts of the feathers. The orange I kept the same. The body of the peacock is painted turquoise.

To create the easel, I score a piece of A4 card in half and used a large circle die placed just off the edge of the fold. It opens out like this. Score one of the circles in half to create part of the easel, and stick another circle onto this.

I used several mats and layers - and used an embossing folder for a little texture. The it's all assembled with a blingy stopper! If you want to see the video demonstration, then click on the main photo for the start (last 12 minutes of the clip) - then click here for the finish (first 18 minutes of the clip). Apologies for this - we had a little glitch during the FB live, so, unfortunately, the video is in two parts. 

Thanks for popping by, and I hope I have given you a little inspiration. Feel free to follow me here on my blog, or on FaceBook, Twitter, Instagram or Pinterest. For all the videos, pop over to the Hixxy Studio YouTube channel to subscribe. And FB lives are streamed on both the YouTube channel and the Hixxy Crafts FB page. The main items I use can be found on the Hixxy Crafts website - have a look under the Hixxy Studio tab.

Happy crafting,

Cxxx

Peacock Doily Card

Peacocks seem to be very "on-trend" again, at the moment. And today, I have a peacock themed card to share!! This ones uses the Amy Design:Colourful Feathers 3D Push Out, and also the Peacock die from the same collection. 

For the background, I inked a piece of stamping card with a combination of Wild Honey, Peacock Feathers, Lucky Clover and Blueprint Sketch Distress Oxides. 

The doily on which the decoupage image sits, is made up of two of the tail feather pieces from the die set.

They line up really well to make the complete circle doily! Matting and layering it all onto some co-ordinating card makes the colours pop! It's as easy as that!  If you want to watch the video of the demo, then click on the main picture.

Thanks for popping by, and I hope I have given you a little inspiration. Feel free to follow me here on my blog, or on FaceBook, Twitter, Instagram or Pinterest. For all the videos, pop over to the Hixxy Studio YouTube channel to subscribe. And FB lives are streamed on both the YouTube channel and the Hixxy Crafts FB page. The main items I use can be found on the Hixxy Crafts website - have a look under the Hixxy Studio tab.

Happy crafting,

Cxxx

Underwater Scene

This is the third of the three watery themed cards I did on a FB live a while back. The videos are available on the Hixxy Studio You Tube Channel. They are cut from the whole live show, so the beginnings and endings are not seamless - but you should get the idea.

For this one, I used white stamping card and inked lightly with Tumbled Glass Distress Oxide. I wanted a pale and patchy effect, as I then sprayed Mermaid Lagoon Distress Oxide Spray over the top and blotted it with rice paper. The whole things was edged with Mermaid Lagoon Distress Ink - or Oxide.

I used Distress Inks to "paint" the little pieces with: Scattered Straw for the sandy background; Wilted Violet for the fish; Abandoned Coral, Mowed Lawn, Twisted Citron and Lucky Clover the the corals and seaweeds; Hickory Smoke for the sharks; Mermaid Lagoon for the bubbles Worn Lipstick, Antique Linen and Ripe Persimmon for the shells and starfish. 

It is then just a case of assembling the scene as you wish. It's a gorgeous little set to play with - and you could cut multiples of all of the dies if you wish.

Thanks for popping by, and I hope I have given you a little inspiration. Feel free to follow me here on my blog, or on FaceBook, Twitter, Instagram or Pinterest. For all the videos, pop over to the Hixxy Studio YouTube channel to subscribe. And FB lives are streamed on both the YouTube channel and the Hixxy Crafts FB page. The main items I use can be found on the Hixxy Crafts website - have a look under the Hixxy Studio tab.

Happy crafting,

Cxxx

Porthole Card

This is the second of the three watery themed cards I did on a FB live a while back. The videos are available on the Hixxy Studio You Tube Channel. They are cut from the whole live show, so the beginnings and endings are not seamless - but you should get the idea.

This card combines two fabulous Amy Design dies. One is the Fishing Net from the Maritime collection. The other is Sea Life from the Underwater World collection. I used brown for the base card, with gold mirror card and a wood effect paper from Crafter's Companion. The idea was to be looking out from the inside of a boat into the water outside.

The fishing net is cut in Kraft card to give it a natural feel, and I made the porthole from gold mirror card, using nesting circle dies. I cut a larger circle to put the underwater scene on, and a smaller frame to go over it. 

The underwater scene is created on a circle of stamping card. I started with Salty Ocean to cover the whole of the circle - not worrying about any patches. I then sprayed it with water and blotted it. I used the dies from the Sea Life set to cut the coloured fish, sharks and shells to arrange. There is a larger die that cuts out a large piece like the sea floor. I did this in green and just cut off the seaweed and algae pieces. I arranged them onto the inked piece, stuck this onto the solid mirror circle, and then placed the frame over the top. The little flat backed pearls create the effect of the porthole. I finished it off with some twine to blend in with the netting.

Thanks for popping by, and I hope I have given you a little inspiration. Feel free to follow me here on my blog, or on FaceBook, Twitter, Instagram or Pinterest. For all the videos, pop over to the Hixxy Studio YouTube channel to subscribe. And FB lives are streamed on both the YouTube channel and the Hixxy Crafts FB page. The main items I use can be found on the Hixxy Crafts website - have a look under the Hixxy Studio tab.

Happy crafting,

Cxxx

Beneath the Ocean

On a live a few weeks ago, we had an underwater theme. I made the canvas that is on an earlier blog, and three cards. This is the first of the cards. The videos are available on the Hixxy Studio You Tube Channel. They are cut from the whole live show, so the beginnings and endings are not seamless - but you should get the idea.

I have used a 3D Push Out from Amy Design: Underwater World collection, along with the Fishing Net die from the Maritime collection. If you have not seen the Push Outs before, they are decoupage sheets and each one has 3 different designs on it. Have a look at the video to see how they work - click on the photo for the link.  

The background is created on white stamping card with Iced Spruce, Faded Jeans and Wilted Violet Distress Oxide Sprays. Once dry - you can blot it with rice paper if you want - edge it with Faded Jeans Distress Oxide.

The net was cut in Creative Expressions Steel Pearl Card, and the letters with Trimcraft's Banner Alphabet dies. The added embellishments are little seed beads from my stash, stuck on with 3D glue gel.

Thanks for popping by, and I hope I have given you a little inspiration. Feel free to follow me here on my blog, or on FaceBook, Twitter, Instagram or Pinterest. For all the videos, pop over to the Hixxy Studio YouTube channel to subscribe. And FB lives are streamed on both the YouTube channel and the Hixxy Crafts FB page. The main items I use can be found on the Hixxy Crafts website - have a look under the Hixxy Studio tab.

Happy crafting,

Cxxx

Flower Box Card

After the dome card, I had another idea for the Amy Design: Enjoy Spring - Flower Border die. A box card. Click on the picture below for the link to the video demo.

You need an A4 sheet of card for box - and the offcuts will be the perfect size for the struts inside.

I laid it landscape onto my Big Score, and scored at 7cm, 14cm, 21cm, 28cm. I then turned it portrait so the small flap/tab is at the top. I then scored at 10cm and 17cm BUT only through the flap/tab and 3 of the side pieces. The bottom one will form the back of the box so you don't want to score into that.

 

Cut out the pieces that are not needed.

 

Cut down the score lines to separate the flaps. Fold and burnish all the score lines.

 

Use the waste to create the two struts by marking 1" from the score lines and cutting. Then then cutting this piece in half. You know that they will fit perfectly.

For decoration, cut the die out three times. Cut each one in half. For the three on the flaps, you can just mount onto the decorative paper that you are using there.

For the struts and the back, draw around the actual die on patterned paper to create a mat for the flowers. Have a look at the video if you are unsure (17:00 onwards). 

I decorate the box - including the back (but not the bow), before sticking together. I add the struts once the box is stuck. The first one I put in, is the back one, and I push it to the back. Because I cut the flaps at 1", I know that the strut will sit 1" from the back. I add the second one, which sits 1" in front of that.

Thanks for popping by, and I hope I have given you a little inspiration. Feel free to follow me here on my blog, or on FaceBook, Twitter, Instagram or Pinterest. For all the videos, pop over to the Hixxy Studio YouTube channel to subscribe. And FB lives are streamed on both the YouTube channel and the Hixxy Crafts FB page. The main items I use can be found on the Hixxy Crafts website - have a look under the Hixxy Studio tab.

Happy crafting,

Cxxx

Dome Window Card

As soon as I saw this die - Amy Design: Enjoy Spring Flower Border - I thought of a window box! And, of course, you need a window to put your window box on. 

I don't have any step-by-step photos of this one, but click on the picture for the video, and I will talk about the measurements and describe the steps here.

The base card is 5"x7". For the dome front, you need a piece that is 5" x 7 1/2", which you need to score 1" from each end.

Cut an aperture in this piece between the two scored lines, and slightly towards the top (I used a 4" x 5" rectangle die). You need a piece of paper for the window frame that is the slightly larger than the aperture - I drew around the outside of the die I used. 

Using a ruler, I marked 1/4" in from each side, then I marked the middle of each side and drew lines to create a cross. I then drew more lines 1/8" each side of this cross (it creates a 1/4" wide piece down the middle and across). Cut out the "windows" with a craft knife.

Attach a piece of acetate behind this, and glue around the aperture of the card.

To create the flowers for the box, cut the die out leaving a longer piece at the bottom. On a piece of patterned paper draw around the edge of the die and cut it out. This will give you a piece to fit behind (and frame) the flowers.

Once these are glued together, stick it to the front of the card, and add another piece of paper to create the window box.

You can decorate the flat parts to the side of the window, before gluing them to the base card to create the dome shape. It's best to wait until everything on the front of the card is dry before you do this.

Thanks for popping by, and I hope I have given you a little inspiration. Feel free to follow me here on my blog, or on FaceBook, Twitter, Instagram or Pinterest. For all the videos, pop over to the Hixxy Studio YouTube channel to subscribe. And FB lives are streamed on both the YouTube channel and the Hixxy Crafts FB page. The main items I use can be found on the Hixxy Crafts website - have a look under the Hixxy Studio tab.

Happy crafting,

Cxxx

Seaside Canvas

Last week, I demonstrated this canvas on the FB live for Hixxy Studio. The full video is on the YouTube channel (click on the final picture for the link), but I have a few pictures of the stages to share here. I have recycled an old box canvas for this project - you can just make out the stripes underneath the layer of white gesso.

For the sea, I used white tissue paper and decoupage glue to create some texture like the waves.

For the sand, I used Imagination Crafts Icy White Paste because it has a grainy texture.

I used acrylic paints mixed with Gesso to paint both parts of the canvas.

 

I used Amy Design Maritime Fishing Net die to cut out the mesh from funky foam. I used white as it is easier to add colour to - with acrylic paint. I tore this up to add to the top of the canvas. To adhere it, I used transparent texture paste.

More paste was used to add the twine. You will see in the finished picture that I tweaked it and pulled it around once the picture was on. 

The photo was mounted onto a piece of card torn from a box. I ripped the edges of the card to expose the corrugated parts. And finally, I added shells.

Feel free to follow me here on my blog, or on FaceBook, Twitter, Instagram or Pinterest. For all the videos, pop over to the Hixxy Studio YouTube channel to subscribe. And FB lives are streamed on both the YouTube channel and the Hixxy Crafts FB page. The main items I use can be found on the Hixxy Crafts website - have a look under the Hixxy Studio tab.

Happy crafting,

Cxxxx

Pastel Safari!

Hello!! The weekend is almost over - but not quite!! I have a safari themed card - without the safari sunset colours! The colours for this one were suggested by my lovely crafting friend, Karen, when all I could see were sunsets!!

There are two versions of this card - the one with the giraffes was my sample, and the one with elephants is the one I made on the video (click on either photo for the link). For the shiny, sparkly background, I have used Creative Expressions 7x7 Safari Landscape with Cosmic Shimmer Lunar Paste in Moonlight Ocean and Stellar Lemon. The green was created by mixing the two. The elephant and giraffe came from cutting into Amy Designs Wild Animals - Wild Frame. I cut the frame 3 times, and then layered the colours to match the stencil. The sentiment is from Trimcraft First Edition Sentiment dies. 

Thanks for popping over to have a look. Feel free to follow me here on my blog, or on FaceBook, Twitter, Instagram or Pinterest. For the videos, pop over to the Hixxy Studio YouTube channel to subscribe. And FB lives are streamed on both the YouTube channel and the Hixxy Crafts FB page. The main items I use can be found on the Hixxy Crafts website - have a look under the Hixxy Studio tab.

Happy Crafting,

Cxxxx

Safari Time!!

Today's project is a combination of inking, stencilling and die cutting, all contributing to produce this bright, safari-themed party card.

The background was created using Distress Oxides - Mustard Seed, Rusty Hinge and Festive Berries - onto white stamping card. I then stencilled over it with Black Soot, and the Safari Landscape 7x7 stencil from Creative Expressions. 

The frame at the front is Amy Design Wild Frame from the Wild Animals collection. I have put a piece of vellum behind this to diffuse the background, and added sentiments from Trimcrafts First Editions Sentiment die collection. 

Click on the picture to take you to the video.

Take care - and happy crafting!!
Cxxx