Down Sunflower Lane: April 2016

Wednesday, 27 April 2016

World's Best Mother - Couture Creations

And hello to you today!

Tracey R here to get you ready for Mother's Day. Say what? Can you believe we are staring down the barrel of May very soon? I don't know where the year is going. But with May comes that all important day to show Mums (and other special women in our lives) just how much we love them & how thankful we are to have them in our lives. Let me show you how to create a beautiful card for a special lady.

Let's get crafting!

I've used a 5x7 white card, with a piece of Ultimate Crafts pink cardstock (Pandora) just smaller as the base for my card. I've distressed around the edges of the cardstock with my non-stick scissors. Best distressing tool out!

I've gathered up my offcuts from the Magnolia Lane 6x6 pad and arranged them in horizontal strips across the cardstock, to decide on placement. I chose the top piece as a focal strip with the pattern in the left corner, so I can put my greeting on the right hand side.

I've trimmed each piece to 4.5 inches wide. Seeing as strips will overlap, the height of each strip isn't that important. I've then distressed and inked each edge.

I've layered each strip on top of the previous one using double sided tape, and curled up the distressed edges to add some dimension.

I've embellished and stamped my greeting on the top piece before attaching to the layers to ensure a flat working surface. I've placed a small piece of gauze behind the butterfly metal trinket and mounted on foam tape. I've stamped the Mother's Day sentiment in black ink and placed 3mm pearls (Chiffon Cream) on either side, and one on the top of the bird cage.

This sentiment layer has been attached to the top of the pink cardstock with double sided tape.

To finish the card off I've attached the pink cardstock to my white 5x7 card with wide double sided tape. Change the sentiment (it's YOUR card!) to make a lovely birthday or thinking of you card.

So today I salute the amazing strong women in our lives.

May we know them.

May we be them.

May we raise them.

Because we'd be lost without them.

To the wonderful women in my life who keep me sane,
make me laugh & get me through the day -

Mum, TBB, Corbs, Bead Girl, Scrap Girl, Ribbon Storm, Super Chef & Megzi

You are the bestest & I love you to the moon and back!

xxxxx

Be sure to check the Couture Creations Blog to be inspired

by the amazing ladies on the Design Team.

You can also follow Couture Creations on

Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram and Twitter.

Couture Creations/Ultimate Crafts Products Used

ULT200082 Ultimate Crafts 12X12 Cardstock, Pandora

ULT157488 6x6 Paper Pad Magnolia Lane
ULT157500 Magnolia Lane Embellishments, Metal Trinkets
CO724634 3mm Pearls, Chiffon Cream
CO721955, Pointed Non-stick Scissors 14cm
CO721964 12mm Foam Mounting Tape,
CO72196518mm Double sided Tape

CO721957 15"x15" Self Healing Mat

Have a crafty day!

Tracey R

Tuesday, 5 April 2016

My Boy - Couture Creations

Welcome welcome fellow crafters!

Tracey R here today with more of the gorgeous Magnolia Lane range. I am so enjoying creating with this collection. The colours & embellishments are truly gorgeous. are truly gorgeous. If you haven't grabbed any from your LSS be quick, because it's been very popular. Today I'm sharing a 12x12 layout of me and "My Boy".

So let's get crafting!

These photos are around 5 years old, but they make smile and I've been wanting to scrap them for sometime. I really like these little passport size photos, but rather than use then as one photo (how they were printed out, I've cut them up individually. To start I chose my background page (ULT157488 Rosehip Memories). I love any script paper (I'm in heaven with all script papers in the Magnolia Lane range!!), and this green paper is no different. It has a script & postmark pattern making it perfect as background.

Using a light coat of modelling paste and a stencil I've added some circles over the page either side of where my photo will go. Initially I like the circles just plain white, but when I added my matted photo (as below) the white stood out a little more than I was looking
for, so I added distress ink (light pink, rose grey) to plastic packaging from my
embellishments and dabbed it over the circles.
Just make sure your modelling paste is dry before you ink!!!!

To matt my photos, I'm mounted each photo on foam tape and attaching in a grid pattern. Making photo mats is a fantastic way to use up your paper scraps - which is exactly what I've done here. I've used offcuts from both my 6x6 & 12x12 Magnolia Lane paper pads. I've used green & pinks tones of paper in a range of pattens for interest. I've distressed each piece of paper with my non-stick scissors and then inked each edge with a pink ink. I adhered each layer of paper together with double sided tape except for the last 2 layers (one closest the background page) where I've used foam tape to give some dimension to the mat. And if you're using papers from the same collection it doesn't really matter which ones you use because they are all coordinating! Making your job much easier & quicker.

I've added a piece of white gauze to the back of my photo mat and added to the page with some more foam tape. I've placed the photos towards the top slightly off centre. You can also see the inks I've added over the white circles. It tones down the starkness of the white and adds more detail & colour to the page.

I've changed the look of my rosettes by adding other embellishments to the centre. I removed the pearl (keep that for something else!), added some white gauze, and placed a metal trinket on one and a oval cabochon to the other. Just a small change, but creates something totally new.

I've placed the 2 rosettes and paper magnolia along the bottom left hand side of my photo mat with foam tape, and once in place added a part of the bling flourish under the flower.