Design Team Call Out for Crimson Cloud - One week to go!

Hi Everyone,
Just a reminder that there is one week to go on the Crimson Cloud DT Callout - all entries must be in by Friday 17th May - good luck!
Mel xxx


Crimson Cloud are creating design team and are looking for enthusiastic and inspiring papercrafters to help promote their exclusive range of clear stamps.

You will need to have -

- an active blog

- a Facebook account

- a Pinterest board showing your designs

You would need to be able to commit to

- the design team for a minimum of 6 months

- making one or two projects per month

- promoting Crimson Cloud projects on your blog/facebook and pinterest and other social media

The benefits are -

- Free stamps supplied to make projects (two projects required per stamp set)

- Your name and link to your blog displayed on the Crimson Cloud blog

- Your Crimson Cloud projects promoted on our Facebook page, Pinterest board and Blog

- 10% Discount off Crimson Cloud products for the duration of your term.

To enter -

- become a follower of the Crimson Cloud blog and leave a comment on this post

- "like" us on our Facebook page

and....

Please submit one of your recent papercraft projects by email (sales@crimsoncloud.co.uk) - under the subject heading "Design Team Call - April 2013"

- Tell us if you are on any other design teams (you don't need to be!)

- Give us your blog and facebook links and links to any online galleries you may have

- include a short paragraph on your style and the type of projects you like to make and why you would like to join the Design team.

Entries must be submitted by Friday 17th May 2013.

We look forward to seeing your entries!

Mel and Linda xxx

New Spellbinders Die D-Lites now in stock!

Please note that due to a manufacturer quality issue with some of the D-Lites lines, the full range is not yet in stock. We expect to have the rest of the dies in stock from late May.


Best wishes
Mel and Linda
xxx

Land of Make Believe......

This card was made for the CRAFT challenge blog which we are sponsoring this week.

One of the themes is Fantasy/Land of Make Believe.

The stamp and sentiment come from the Sitting Fairy stamp set from the new Crimson Cloud Fairies range.

The stamp has cleverly designed so that the fairy is sitting on a base which could be a mushroom, the ground or even a grassy knoll and comes with a lovely range of sentiments.

I stamped my Sitting Fairy in Stazon onto some white cardstock. I stamped her again onto some Eclipse masking tape which I cut out and covered her with to create a mask.

I took some Tumbled Glass Distress Ink and using some blending foam, I blended a background around the fairy.

I removed the mask and painted her with some more distress inks - Victorian Velvet for the skin, Pumice Stone for the wings, Brushed Corduroy for the mushroom and Worn Lipstick for the flower in her hand.

I then took some Brushed Corduroy ink and rubbed it onto my craft mat and spritzed it with water. I dipped a paintbrush into the ink and flicked it across a Kraft card base to create a splatter background.

I trimmed the fairy panel slightly smaller than the card base, tore the edge and blended some Brushed Corduroy Distress Ink onto the torn edge to age it. I stamped my sentiment with the same Brushed Corduroy ink pad.

I finished the panel with a button and some twine and mounted onto the card base.

I love the way that the fairy is looking longingly off into the distance - as if she is day dreaming or waiting for her fairy prince!

Mel

Refer a Friend and earn a £5 voucher off your next order with Crimson Cloud*

It's quick and it's easy.

Just follow these simple steps -

-  Go to www.crimsoncloud.co.uk
- Log into your account
- Click onto the "Refer A Friend"tab at the top of the page
- Fill in your details and your friend's details

And that's it!
When your friend places their first order (minimum spend £10), they will receive a £5.00 voucher and you will receive your own voucher worth £5.00.

Happy shopping!! xx

*Terms and Conditions apply

What a day this has been! - Crafty Tales from the Wilderness

A friend came to visit and to say goodbye to Melanie at the end of her recent trip here.

After the usual hello’s we commented on how well she looked and she said “Oh it’s my new eyelashes!”

 Neither Melanie or I are very girlie so this was quite amusing, but when she mentioned that she no longer has to wear makeup our ears pricked up. This was a time-saver so therefore justified girly-ness. Off we went, tongue-in-cheek, to get our new eyelashes and were very pleased with the outcome. We were instructed that if we didn't use eye makeup remover or excessive amounts of water that they would last three weeks - great!

The following Friday (one week later) a removal company were coming to collect and return to the UK the last remaining possessions of my darling sister which were boxed and in my store room. She lived in South Africa with me for 7 years but died last May leaving me devastated. 

Everyone asked me if I was going to be OK with the task in hand and my reply was “of course I am!”

Being a control freak I had to make sure they got it right and took the right boxes, opening each box to check and then repackage. All is going well until I open a box of her beautiful bed linen, of which she was so proud, and had a complete emotional melt down, leaving the poor guy who was packing totally confused as to what he had done so terribly wrong! 

Having had a good cry and regained my composure (but losing several eye lashes in the process) I went back and declared war on the store room. Then I invaded my office which I blitzed. This is how I deal with any emotions which tend to get out of control.

As my reward, and given that I am now filthy dirty and exhausted, I decided to indulge myself with a long soak in the bath. To help make sense of the next part of this saga I must explain that my bathroom has a sunken bath in the corner and the windows run from floor to ceiling giving me a clear view of the lakes. I don’t have any privacy problems as I have no neighbours other than the Fish Eagles and if anyone from the other side of the lake goes to the trouble of using binoculars to peak at a sixty-something’s body, well then good luck to them!

The phone rings 5 times and each time I lose the call as the signal in my little corner is not so good. Having given up on my relaxation it is time to get out of the bath when I notice a troop of little men in green suits carrying tools over their shoulders, looking rather like the seven dwarfs, come marching past my bathroom! I sink under the water and wait a while. 

They are gone so I try again, when another little troop comes by and I sink back in the bath again. 

This little dance continues four times more. Eventually I storm out of the bathroom (wrapped in bath robe) and I holler at them “who the hell are you and what are you doing here?”

 “We are from the Parks Board Ma'am and are spraying aliens” (alien plants that is - not little blue men). 

"Yes well you are supposed to give notice and maintain the Fire Break but you haven’t been here for 10 years! Why did you have to choose today?"

Back to the bathroom and I attempt to continue my body maintenance day and start to clean off my nail polish and makeup. This went well until I pick up the cotton pad soaked in nail polish remover to remove my very smudgy mascara (bottom lashes). After running around screaming with the pain I now have to wash out my eye with copious amounts of water. What about my lovely new eyelashes? They must be sacrificed to save my eyesight!

I book an appointment with the beautician as I now only have one eyelash on my right eye and the three on the left. "What have you been doing?" she asks.  I tell her it is a long story but I do tell her about my crying. "Oh no!" she says, very seriously “eyelashes don’t like crying”.

Thank goodness I didn't tell her about the nail varnish remover!

Linda xxx

Rainbow Fairy with Alcohol Inks

This little fairy is from our new Fairy range - isn’t she pretty?

To make this card you will need:

Crimson Cloud Fairy Picking Flowers Stamp Set

Spellbinders Grand Nestabilities Large Labels.

Adirondack Alcohol Inks - Purple Twilight, Pool, Stonewashed, Lettuce

Alcohol Blending Solution

Stazon Black

Memento Tuxedo Black

White Card Stock 10” x 6” x two pieces

Clear Acetate Sheet

Button and Twine

Pearls.

Create your card base from white card stock and die cut an aperture in the front and back panels using the Large Labels die. Repeat with the second sheet of cardstock.

Cut out 2 pieces of acetate and stamp the fairy on one of them using Stazon Black. Make sure it is dry and turn over to paint your fairy using the alcohol inks. 

Put to one side and use the remaining inks on your palette mixed with some blending solution to paint diagonal stripes across the front of one of your card bases.

Attach your painted fairy acetate sheet behind the front aperture, and your other clear acetate sheet in front of the back aperture.

Glue the second die cut card base to the inside of the card - lining the apertures up. This will cover up where you have glued your acetate in place.

Stamp your sentiment using the Memento ink on the spare piece of painted white card stock and cut to shape.

Fix with a pretty button and some twine.

Now simply colour some pearls with the alcohol inks and stick them randomly.

When the card is closed you can see straight through it - my Granddaughter will love hanging this  up to her window.

Enjoy!

Linda xxx

The new Hero Arts range....

....has just arrived at Crimson Cloud.

Including the latest wood, cling and clear stamp sets.

Here are just a few to whet your appetite!

Looking forward to making some demos with this little lot!
Hope you like them too.
Mel xxx

I believe.....

...do you?

This card was made using the new Fairy Picking Flowers stamp set from Crimson Cloud

and the Spellbinders Arched Window die set

To start, I stamped the fairy in Stazon onto watercolour paper.

Then , I positioned the Arched Window die over her and and ran through the die cutting machine. Leaving the card in the die, I blended Tumbled Glass and Broken China Distress Inks to create the sky.

I took the card out of the die and blended Peeled Paint Distress Ink to create the grass.

To paint my fairy, I dabbed distress inks onto a white tile and spritzed with water. I used Tattered Rose for her skin, and Pumice Stone for her dress and wings. I used a touch of Shaded Lilac to colour in the flowers. I put her aside to dry.

I took the sentiment from the Sitting Fairy stamp set

stamped the words onto a strip of card, then cut them all out.

I spent some time moving the words around the fairy scene to work out the best position for them and then adhered with some Cosmic Shimmer Glue.

To create my card base, I drew around the outside of the largest Arched Window on to pieces of dark green card and cut out. I scored along the top of one piece of card to create the back, and attached to the front piece.

To finish, I decorated with some twine, some randomly place Pearls, and some glitter for her wings.

Mel xxx

2nd Anniversary Blog Candy Winners Announced

We have pulled two names out of the hat and are very happy to announce two winners of our 2nd Anniversary blog candy.

The Winners are

Redland 81 

and 

 Karen.

Please email me on mel@crimsoncloud.co.uk with your addresses and I will send out your goodies!

Thanks to everyone for taking part and leaving such lovely comments.

Best wishes
Mel and Linda xxxx