So much for good intentions!

What can I say, I just didn't get here did I.  Sorry, but so much going on and I was ill, always a bad combination.  Sometimes I hate having Lupus so much I just want to cry with frustration, but that does no good and leads down the path to depression, and I'm not taking that track for anyone, no way, no how.  Much better to get on as best I can with what I can (if you get my drift).

Anyway lots of belated news for you.

First off, Kuretake now have an online shop so you can buy direct from them, Yippee so much easier than trawling through sites to find something.  One of their new product ranges is the Basically Bare packs.  Packs of wonderful shapes from dress forms to stars and clouds and so much more.  The packs contain a mixture of calico, felt, corrugated cardboard, clear plastic and chipboard/greyboard.  All excellent and just waiting to be coloured, altered and fixed to exciting projects.  Lower down is some projects I've done using them and a tutorial for you.

The next piece of news is that Nikky over at Polka Doodles has crumpled under the pressure by everyone asking her to do some colouring workshops.  So if you want to get tips and help with your colouring in of stamps/images then maybe this workshop is just up your street.  If you live a long way from York, then why not make a weekend of it and do some sightseeing in and around York.  Having been there years ago, I can say it's well worth a visit.

Don't forget to check out the Polka Doodles challenge blog for some fantastic inspirational projects to get your creative juices flowing.  And while your there why not have a go and entre the challenge. 

Basically Bare project tutorial.

Dressmakers Form Card

Kuretake Materials

Art and Graphic Twin Tip Pens, light and dark pink, purple, lilac and mid blue

Basically Bare hearts pack

Basically Bare Dress Form pack

Basically Bare Celestial shapes pack

SBKPC950-5 Gothic corner punch

Light blue scrapbooking paper

Pink satin ribbon pack

Blue round brads

Lilac flower brads

White embossing powder

Embossing pen

Zig Two Way Glue pen

Other Materials

Lilac A4 cardstock

Lightweight white cardstock

Silver thread

How to Make

·         Fold the lilac card in half to make an A5 card blank.

·         Take the large felt heart from the Basically bare heart pack and spritz with water.  Scribble lines of colour next to each other with the Art and Graphic twin pens.  Spritz the ink with water then lay the heart on to colour, move the heart around slightly to ensure good colour coverage.  Allow to dry.

·         Fold over the point of the heart and sew in place with Silver thread.  Sew some stars at the bottom and add a lilac flower brad to the folded piece.

·         Scribble purple, lilac and blue Art and Graphic twin pens on a craft mat, spritz with water and lay the white card over it.  Swoosh it around a bit and put to one side to dry.  Repeat with the same colours but add some pink to it.  Cover the piece with cling film and allow to dry naturally.

·                     Use the corner punch to punch out a border from the blue card.  Fix to the right hand side of the card.  Trim down the coloured/cling filmed card and fix to the card as shown.

·         Use the embossing pen and white embossing powder to cover the top and the bottom areas of the large greyboard dress form from the dress form pack.

·         Cut out a bodice shape from the other piece of coloured card and fix in place on the dress form.  Fix two short pieces of pink ribbon across the bottom of the dress, a piece round the waist and a twisted piece across the top of the bodice.  Fix the coloured heart in place on the skirt area.

·         Cover a star from the celestial shapes pack with the coloured card.  Edge with the blue pen and write your message on it.  Fix some pink ribbon down the right hand side of the card, fix the dress form and the star in place.  Add 3 blue brads in place at the bottom of the ribbon.

Other projects using Basically bare products.

  

Zig Art and Graphic pens used to colour the heart and backing panels. All embellies and ribbon are Kuretake products and can be found in the shop.

  

A lovely happy card this one. Art and Graphic Twin pens again, Kuretake 12x12 coloured paper and the card blank is by Hunkydory.

 

Ooo, he's so scrummy I could just eat him up.  A 8x8 scrapbook layout.  I marbled with the alcohol inks to make the background, and I marbled a few other bits and bobs too.

I used a whole mixture of pens and inks and products on this Basically Bare book.

Well I'm cream crackered, so I'm leaving this post here.  I still have loads of Creative Expressions and Clarity samples to catch up on and post.  They will all be in the next post.

Happy crafting till then.