12/52 #bitesizedbooks

 Hi, how are you??  I hope you're keeping well.

The books made in March (yes, I know its April - I'm playing catch-up because life/work got in the way of creating.. gggrrr how very dare it! lol) are predominately black in colour - which is nice - I like black!  I like how it can make other colours pop and it goes with anything and everything.... This weeks book has a 'theme' of letters (alphabets & the postal kind) and hints of copper and metallics - and of course a touch of kraft.... but I think my favourite piece has to be the gingham trim on the final page which I found when I was destashing and sorting out the boxes of ribbons in my workroom... (I love finding forgotten treasures! -it makes the tidying/destashing worthwhile!)

I doodled circles over a panel of scrapbook paper - love seeing the text through the open spaces... I use an Artline pigment drawing pen to do this - similar to a Micron pen.

I like to use the same image over two pages and treat them differently.. these pages were scraps of book pages stamped with my alphabet (JOFY21)

This is one of the flowers from my recently released set JOFY112, I've altered it by adding extra petals and you can see how I did that in the video at the end of this post (or over on my YOU TUBE channel)

This panel of letters is cut using an Elizabeth Craft Designs die (1610:Planner Patterns) - a really nice set of three dies & I think I've used the numbers die in a previous book. (and there's the super cute trim!!!)

I love using stamps on projects, and in these books their size is perfect - they're perfect mini works of art aren't they?!  I embossed the post mark stamped images using my 'Twiggy' embossing powder from WOW! Embossing, its a lovely brown with a subtle pearl finish. Yum!

Here's the flick through video, featuring a simple 'how to' add extra petals to the flower. 

Enjoy.

Don't forget if you want to join in (please do!) and make a mini book like mine don't forget to add the hashtag #52bitesizedbooks on your social media posts so I can take a look!  I'd love to see what you make!!

Thanks for stopping by, take care.

#365Challenge.... January: Part 2

It feels like I'm still playing catch-up after my computer crash late last year which meant that I wasn't able to blog as often/easily as normal.  Each year I change the header on my blog and I wasn't able to do that but hopefully I'll rectify that soon... and post the 'backlog' of 'things'...  aaaw rats! one of my New Years resolutions is to use the words 'stuff' and 'things' less...  oops..  Did you make any resolutions for 2017?  Any fun ones?  I think a checklist of 'things to do in 2017' would be a fun list to draw up - it'd give the year focus wouldn't it? It wouldn't have to be huge monumental events or goals, maybe just quirky little things - trips, or lessons/courses....  I'll leave that with you to ponder..

In the meantime here are more pages/cards from my #365Challenge.... 

I must admit I'm not making much impact on the stash but I am having fun and its great to use my new JOFY stamps and stencils on journaling cards...

Just to remind you my self imposed 'rules' for the 365Challenge are:

1. Answer the questions

2. Use only supplies I have in my possession... attacking the stash as ever!

3. Make a card each day

4. HAVE FUN!!

x

#365Challenge.... January: Part 1

Since the start of the year I've been creating postcard size (6x4in) mixed media journaling cards. Each one is prompted by the questions asked each day on the Flow Magazine Calendar.

I really like the idea of this - answer a question a day, make a card in the process... how hard could it be?! Well it turns out sometimes the questions are quite tricky to answer and make you think.. and sometimes if the questions are too tricky I just make a pretty card instead! lol

Its my plan and I'll bend the rules if I want to!

My self imposed 'rules' are brief:

1. Answer the questions

2. Use only supplies I have in my possession... attacking the stash as ever!

3. Make a card each day

4. HAVE FUN!!

I post the cards on Instagram (you can follow me on Instagram @jofyjo ) but I plan to upload them on here in batches - probably in groups of 10-15... here's the first group  (if you have any questions about the supplies used (want to know what the question was for a particular day) you can check my Instagram feed or leave me a message in the comments.)

 

There are all sorts of 365 challenges going on via blogs, twitter and Instagram so why not find one that suits you and give it a go...

Thanks for stopping by

x

Bunting!!...

Yes, bunting... I think I may have mentioned on this blog that I like bunting - I do! Its such a happy decoration!

So you can imagine how happy I was when I found the WeRMemoryKeepers Banner Punch Board!!!!
Be still my bunting loving heart!  :o)

I demo'd the board at The Craft Barn's recent Summer Craft Fest (you can find them here on the shop's site). I made bunting in all sorts of shapes, colours and sizes through the day.. and had time to stamp and make a simple bunting for the shop too...

Here's my clean and simple display at the start of the day... showing the basic shapes that the board creates: pennants from 1inch through to 8.5inches...

I think the small sizes would make great flags for cupcakes (or for a coconut macaroon as I used here).
I mounted a strip of bunting onto a bamboo skewer for ease of showing people how to create a phrase/word bunting during the demo day - these are pennants measuring 2.5in top to bottom - great for the top of a bigger birthday cake, or across a 12x12 scrapbook spread.

The Banner Punch Board is so easy to use - 3 simple cuts will create the basic shape and the icing on the cake is that the board also punches the hole need for the hanging thread!  What's not to love about that!

During the day I cut and stamped this bunting for the shop - the flower stamp is from JOFY36, and the 'stitched' scallop border along the top edge is from JOFY31.

     

More bunting! Left to right:
1.  I discovered that I could cut a window out of a flag - would look great with laser cut paper laid across the aperture(attached on the reverse), or vellum so that light could show through... or acetate..;
3.  Stenciled pattern;
2-4. Craft Barn pennants:
5.  another aperture flag:
6.  the final flag on right has a smaller contrasting pennant laid on top - easy to create the mat and layered effect because the board works on the same angle, just different heights/lengths.


While I was experimenting I discovered - a bit by accident - that I could cut chevrons (!!) using the board... and here's a simple step on how to:

Cut a length of scrapbook paper/card -  this one is 1.5 x 12in (you can adapt the sizing to suit your need).

Lay the strip up the centre of the board matching up the 1.5in marks so that it is central and straight- its important that the paper is central or your chevron point will be unbalanced
Cut the first chevron, running the blade across the two top edges.  I discarded this shape as had a straight top - not what I needed.

Now you the strip has pointed/chevron ends - you need a 'measure' point - I used the top 8.5in marked line (shown above) to position my paper for each additional cut. Position. Cut. Remove. Position. Cut. Remove.... this is the result!!:

And this is what I created with the chevrons:

(the card measures 12.5cm/5inches) 'thanks' die cut is Poppy Dies (1118 thanks), flowers are Creative Expressions (Dandelion heads)

I had a lot of fun with this great board - makes bunting soooo simple and people LOVED that fact that it punched the threading holes - a serious selling point! :o)

(nb. I bought this product, all views are my own)

x