Card It Monday - Fiskars 3 in 1 Tag Maker

Recently I got my hands on one of the new tools from Fiskars, have you seen it yet? It is a tag punch that also punches the holes and sets the eyelets - the Fiskars 3 in 1 Tag maker. Of course I have been having a fun crafty time giving it a work out.

Ok so here is how it works:

You punch the tag shape, I have the one called Label and the size of the punch out is approx 7.5 cm by 5 cm at the widest points for this tag.

Then you place the punch-out tag into the hole punching slot, and this is my favourite thing about this tool, it seems to perfectly centre the hole. Super quick and super easy and if you have ever had one of those moments when you are doing it by eye and the hole is slightly off, then you will know how cool it is that it centres the hole with minimal fuss!

Finally you can use the eyelet setting bit to...yep you guessed it...set the eyelet!

So after punching lots of different tags I made this card using papers from the Heidi Swapp September Skies paper pad

and with a handwritten sentiment using watercolour and a brush.

Pretty cool huh? I don't think it is quite in the UK or EU shops yet as I could not find it so keep your eyes out as I'm sure it will be there soon, but my US readers might be able to find it in some of their stores. You can find out more about them and decide which is your favourite shape on the Fiskars website.

Have a fun Card It Monday.

Catch you later Card-inators!

Kim

Art Journal Sharing - Wednesday?

I knew that as soon as I started calling my weekly art journaling post 'Art Journal Sharing Thursday' that I would live to regret the name! I'm so not good at this blog titling thang. *SIGH* But now that I've finished my DT work with Creative Expressions I thought I would spread my blog posts out more regularly and move my weekly Journaling post from Thursday to Wednesday.

I had my last Fiskars demo for a while at the weekend and once again, in between making tags and cards, I did a bit of journaling too.

I started on a gesso-ed page in my A5 repurposed flier, there aren't many pages left, soon I will have to think about what to put on the cover! The gesso is textured and I used masking techniques and watercolour to make the page.

This week I packed the Winsor and Newton Cotman Watercolour Sketchers Pocket Box Set which I got because of its tiny size and weight. It fits into my bag so easily, even when I am travelling light. The best thing about it is that you can replace student quality pans with artist quality ones if you want. But waste not want not, I'm going to finish off the pans that are in there first, before I replace them.

Obviously I had some Fiskars dies, for the Fuse that I was demoing, with me and my pencil case staples a marker pen, in this case a Staedtler Pigment Liner Pens, and the Kuretake ZIG BrusH2O Waterbrush.

I masked off the tag shape with the negative piece left over when die-cutting a tag and arranged a die-cut butterfly over the top then added the watercolour wash, holding them in place with my hands. I then used the tag and the butterfly negative cut outs to help guide where to place the pen border and added the lettering to finish.

So now that my demos are over when will I fit in my art journaling? When do you tend to do your art journaling? Have you a set time, or do you manage to do something everyday? 

I would love to know, please do leave me a comment below telling me how you manage to fit your journaling into your week.

Thanks for popping by.

Kim

[The product links are affiliated, by the way, so if you click through and decide to buy them I get a percentage of the sale for referring you to my favourite products.]

Art Journal Sharing Thursday - Letterpress with Fiskars Fuse

As some of you might already know I have been doing some demos this month at Hobbycraft for Fiskars showing the Fiskars Fuse. Last Saturday I was in Crawley and I decided I would do something a little different, so as well as making the usual cards and tags to show how the Fiskars Fuse works I thought I would have a bit of art journal fun too.

It is kind of like a challenge, making an art journal page with the limited supplies you have to hand, I mean there is only so much you can carry to a demo isn't there? 

Of course I had a couple to the Fiskars dies and some patterned paper, scissors, glue and my pencil case. Now in my pencil case I usually carry some watercolour pencils, such as the Derwent Inktense pencils, my Kuretake ZIG BrusH2O waterbrushes, I never leave home without them, and my favouritest pencil ever - the Stabilo All Aquarellable pencil. Sorted!

I started by glueing torn patterned paper pieces to a page in my A5 Repurposed Flier Journal, then I gave each panel an extra colour boost with a wash of the Derwent Inktense using the waterbrush and let the page dry before going over the torn edges with the Stabilo All pencil and a touch of the waterbrush again.

To make the focal point image I used the Fiskars Thick Material Scalloped circle die, that comes in the Fuse starter kit, loaded with the Thank You bird letterpress plate, inked up with Ranger Archival Jet black and run through the Fuse with a piece of canvas paper.

I then trimmed off the scalloped edge with scissors and stuck the letterpressed canvas disk to the page.

You can see that I ran the letterpress through the Fuse again with patterned paper and cut out the bird. The sentiment is also cut form the patterned paper. The final touch was a Stabilo All pencil border and there you have it - a Fiskars Fuse Art Journal Page Demo.

Mmm...I wonder what I can do next week at my demo in Maidstone? 

Thanks for popping in today and please do share any of your art journal pages you might be working on this week. Have you done any out and about journaling recently? 

Kim

Bits And Bobs Friday - Demos, Magazines And A Question

I've been in an all-absorbed frenzy of making this week to meet some deadlines, so much so that I am starting to question my sanity a bit. I've been so work-focussed that on Wednesday I mistook my door bell for the telephone ringing. Erm? Eeek! Yeah, ok so might not be that big a deal, they both ring and everything so I could be excused, except I did it twice! So yesterday I was extra vigilant as I was expecting a delivery but then it never turned up - D'oh!

Please tell me that when you have your creative hat on that you do mad things too? I mean is it just me? Oh boy! I think there is no hope for me.

I might try and take some time off this bank holiday weekend - got a feeling that I might need it! 

Except I can't take Saturday off because I will be in Hobbycraft Woking demoing for Fiskars with the Fuse and I'm excited because I have a new die to try out (it doesn't take much to make me happy!).

I'll be there from 10am to 6pm so do come on by and say 'Hi' if you are in the area. Also there will be a 25% off ALL the Fuse products running whilst I'm in the store - Oooo! So might be worth checking it out and stocking up?

I've got some more demos coming up this month:

Hobbycraft Crawley - 10th May 2014

Hobbycraft Maidstone - 17th May 2014

Hobbycraft Croydon - 31st May 2014

Another thing causing a bit of a stir this week, this time in facebook, is the latest issue of Simply Cards and Papercraft (issue 123). Have you seen it yet?

Oh boy are you in for a treat, there is an Indigoblu stamp set as the cover gift this month which has made a lot of Indigoblu fans very happy!

My offering this month are some silhouette style cards using some of the Cottage Cutz dies available over at CraftsULove.

Thanks for all the wonderful tips and ideas in the comments for yesterday's Journaling post, it is great hearing about where everyone does their art journaling.

Ok, I have another question for you - do any of you use affiliation programs on your blog? I would love to hear your views on them, anything you have to share would be great whether it is positive or negative.

Thanks

Have a fun Friday.

Kim

Oooooo Spoooooky Pumpkin!

I am the worse person when it comes to spooky horror movies, just can not watch them at all. Not a fan in the slightest, but when it comes to Halloween I do like joining in the witchy-fun! So I've got some posts coming up this week which might have a little Halloween-influences!

So get your spook-on for this spooky pumpkin tag I made at my Fiskars Demo on Saturday with the Fiskars Fuse Creativity System.

(I do use affiliate links on my blog and there are some in this blog post)

I've letterpressed the corrugated card using the Tag Thick Material Design Set then swiped it with a black ink pad and doodled the pumpkin and sentiment.

Hope to see you tomorrow for some more Halloween makes.

Spook-ya later!

Kim

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Happy 100th Issue Papercraft Essentials!

Papercraft Essentials has reached its 100th issue!

Well done Papercraft Essentials! They are celebrating with some very useful tag dies with the magazine and free downloadable papers too. So don't forget to check it out this month.

Anyone going to be at the Croydon Hobbycraft this weekend? Come and say hello if you are, I'll be demoing the Fiskars Fuse on the Saturday.

Have a fun weekend.

Kim

A Little Bit Of News...

It's Friday, almost the weekend, which also means a heads-up for a little bit of weekend reading...

How about the latest issue of Papercraft Essentials? Issue 99 is out in the shops...

I've got a step by step guide showing how to make a Christmas wreath using the lovely XCut A5 die set available from docrafts. But you will also spot some gorgoeus makes from Elaine Hughes with her phenomenal colouring in this issue, so well worth checking out!

In other news I'm going to be in Reading tomorrow (Saturday) demoing the Fiskars Fuse.

I'll be in Hobbycraft from 10am to 6pm so come say hello and if you can't make Reading then checkout the other Fuse Demos going on around the UK.

Finally, I just wanted to remind you about my Silhouette Cameo Tutorial Series I've been running this month.

It is my last instalment on Sunday so don't forget to pop on by.

Catch you later.

Kim

Demo Time!

I've got a demo this Saturday with the new Fiskars Fuse Creativity System in the Crawley Hobbycraft.

See you there 10am - 6pm!

If you are in Sheffield checkout the Hobbycraft, Kath Stewart has a Fuse demo there this Saturday too. There is also a demo going on in Milton Keynes and Bournemouth, not sure which girls are doing which of these two but check them out if you are in the area.

Also have you voted for your favourite craft punches yet?

Kim

Craft Awards 2013 Heads-Up

Hey guys have you spotted this year's craft awards nominations?

 Fiskars has been nominated for Best Craft Punch Range. Way to go Fiskars!

You can find the awards via this link if you are interested and fancy a bit of voting.

Have a fun Wednesday.

Kim

Today I am...

Catching up!

Watcha Gorgeous Fluffs Of Bundle, how are you all doing? It has been a busy old week for me so far, hence the lack of posting. It is not from want of projects to show, but more a lack of time to get them posted here on the blog.

I've been working more with the Fiskars Fuse, it was my first demo last weekend and so I've been learning all I can about the machine.

I had fun making samples but I've got to say the demo was a little quiet, then I was competing with one of the hottest days of the year so far! Mid demo I suddenly had a yearning to make a mini-book so I kept myself busy cutting pages ready to work on at some point. My next demo is the 27th July in Reading if you happen to be about do come and say hello!

I think I'm a little bit behind with my magazine updates, Get Stamping 3 was out last week:

You have SO got to check out the stamps that come with the mag this month - LOVE the camera and the scooter is really cute too! Perfect set for a spot of holiday modular/project life scrapbooking I reckon! I have some cards in this month, I've used ICE Resin and Glossy Accents to make some fun embellishments with the stamps. I haven't seen the magazine yet so can't tell you what else is in it, looking forward to seeing it though!

By the way what do you think of the Fiskars demo photos above? I have three cameras at the moment, my beloved dSLR (LOVE LOVE LOVE), a handy little digital camera (also quite fond of!) and of course my mobile phone.

I'm not a great fan of taking photos with my mobile phone as they never seem to come out particularly well, but then I didn't get my mobile phone for the camera as I already have the dSLR and digital camera which are perfect for what I use them for. But it does mean that I sometimes go out and about with three cameras in tow which is a little mad! Anyway I was actually pleased to have the camera on my mobile on Saturday as the battery ran out on my digital - D'oh! So the photo collage above is all taken with the mobile phone camera.

I thought I would have a look at other photos I've taken with my mobile phone recently...

I've only slightly lightened and put frames on them in Photoshop Elements, but otherwise not processed them too much. Except the photo in the centre of the top row which was played with in the Pixlr-o-matic App. The phone is a Samsung ACE2 in case you are interested. Still don't think it will replace my other two cameras, which will need surgically removing from my body.

I would love to know what camera or, if you are like me, cameras you use when you are out and about taking photos? Do Tell!

Catch you later PhotoFluffs

Kim

EDIT: The Fiskars demos have been delayed 'til later in the year so I won't be in Reading on the 27th July. Watch this space for the new dates.