Fiskars Craft

Sew-a-long.... Prt1 - supply list

Welcome to the Fiskars Craft Sew-a-long!

So glad you could join me in this sew-a-long where I show you step by step on a weekly basis on how to make something. You are sewing along with me!

This post is the first and lists the supplies you need. You have one week to complete the gathering of supplies. This post however will be up for the duration that this blog exists so you have plenty of time to do this if you don't have time this time around.

If you have ANY questions please ask. I am here to help you.

There is also a prize to be chosen for one participant! So comment in the below thread to say you are participating with me.

 

You will be making this handbag/tote bag with me....

 

Supplies you need will be:

Canvas (or apolstery fabric, or some denium fabric) 38" x 28" (97cm x 72cm) - this is found in fabric stores or artist stores on the roll.

White sewing thread & sewing machine and machine needles 100/6 (Ones that sew denium or thick fabric) and Pins. And an Iron.

Sew in velcro (some places call it hook and loop) - do NOT get stick in stuff it messes up the needle when sewing. Believe me I have tried this.

Clip or hook - these are found on VIP straps or in craft stores:

one "Fat quarter" or more of desired fabric.... or contrasting fabric scraps like me

Fiskars Titanium Rotary cutter and Fiskars quilt cutting mat (found at spotlight stores)

Fiskars microtip scissors (found at spotlight stores) - cuts loose threads nicely and cuts shapes out of fabric well.

 

Optional will be a handy 12 in 1 sewing tool. Has an unpicker, thread cutter, tape measure and more in it. very handy when sewing.

Fabric Adheasive like Helmar All Purpose Glue and Helmar Fray Stoppa
These will help decorate the bag for us.

needle and DMC thread for decorating - Fabric paint (i like using jacquard fabric paints but there are plenty on the market) and paint brush/water container to rince and wash brushes. Pencil or pen for marking fabric.

optional: Various fabric flowers (you can find these in second hand stores or cheepy stores - $1 and 99c or under $10 stores - for next to nothing and pull them apart for alot of crafts)

Well see you next week sometime. I'll try to post on the same day.....
We will start cutting out the pieces we need.

 See you then!

Debbie Buckland
artycrafty.wordpress.com

                                       Part 2 - Cutting out the pieces

                                       Part 3 - Making Bias Binding and sewing

                                       Part 4 - Adding pockets and sewing up bag

                                       Part 4 - Embellishing our Bag

 

Cupcakes......

One thing that is quite common that people like are cupcakes..... I love them!
One type that does not have a lot of calories, fat and sugar is paper cupcakes.

Here is my version of the said paper cupcakes. They make great place tags for parties or decorations for any occasion.....

Good enough to eat right? lol

I used for the "paper cup"

• Fiskars Supersized circle template 6.75" and Ultra shape express
• Heidi Grace little birds tale/flowers cardstock

For the cupcake:

• Fiskars Shape template circle 2.5"
• White foam from foam packaging of a product I bought ages ago
• Fiskars finger tip craft knife
• Only time Heidi Grace Decor stripe
• Gathered blue ribbon from little birds tale Heidi Grace range
• Fiskars squeeze punch
• Fiskars 12"x12" cutting mat

 

I so wish I could claim this idea as my own, but alas I cannot. A very talented Leah Fung thought of this and put it up on you-tube.

Here is her video for you to view.

 

 

Hey and while you decide which papers/embellishments you want to make your cupcake with, how about cooking up some real ones for yourself.....

Pink Marble cupcakes: (adapted from Edmonds cookbook)

3 Eggs
3/4 cup sugar
1 cup plain flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
50g butter, Melted
2 tablespoons boiling water
2-3 drops red food colouring

• Beat eggs until thick.
• Gradually beat in sugar until mixture is very thick and white.
• Sift flour and baking powder together.
• Fold into egg mixture.
• Fold in butter and boiling water.
• Divide mixture in half.
• In one half put 2-3 drops of red food colouring to make it pink.
• Leave the last half plain.
• Spoon the 2 mixtures in diagonal striped into paper cupcake cups.
• Using a skewer twirl together the mix in the cupcake cups twice.
• Bake at 190 degrees Celsius for 15 min for mini cupcakes and 20min for normal cupcake size or till the cake springs back when lightly touched.
• Cool on a wire rack.
• Decorate as desired....I used pink butter icing, toothpicks and Fiskars star squeeze punched stars and circles.

happy eating!

Make n Take Video - Treat boxes

Hi all.

Glad you are all here. This video will really help you with the treat boxes for any occasion.

I used:

Fiskars Ultra shape Express, star and flower templates
Cloud9- Travel spotted cardstock
Heidi Grace - Frost Blvd product pack
Heidi Grace - only time cardstock and flowers

Download the box template by clicking here: Download treatboxtemplate.pdf

video length: 4min 48 sec

Enjoy

Going Gothic - with Ink by Steph papers/embellies

Hi everyone.

Every now and again I receive some supplies that just stumps me. 

This awesome paper/sticker pack I received from Fiskars in my Ambassador Pack and It was nice to look at but I thought... I have no teenagers to use this on. I was used to the bright colours I usually work with. eeek what was I going to do with it? Wait till me kids turn teens? lol that would be about another 10 years!!!!

But it was no problem. I started to think what these papers reminded me of and what they represent to me.......

Pirates
Teen girls/boys
Vampires
Goth

OOOOH Goth! I used to want to be a Goth once......... hmmmmm This got me thinking more. So I ended up researching on the Internet all about the gothic look and style.

I ended up doctoring up a photo of myself in Photoshop (very roughly) and sent some photos off to the printer.

Three days later.....

I ended up with planned sketches and printed out photos of different Goth styles I liked.

 

 

 

 

 

 

A week later when the photos arrived I ended up with this layout......

Journalling:

Once I wanted to be a Goth. It was the fascination and romance of the clothing and the makeup - maybe the whole vampire thing. The only problem was that I couldn't stop smiling for long..... Shame. :)

the Materials and tools used:

• Ink by Steph Papers and La Brea embellishment set.

• Maya printed twill

• Heidi Grace rubons - swirl design on the left and some under the Twill you cannot see well.

• Bank Ink pad & sandpaper - for inking the edge of things and embossed designs

• Black journalling pen.

• Fiskars Mini-shape boss & Victorian template - for the rose.

• Fiskars finger tip craft knife to cut out the chain from the paper.

• Judikins Diamond Glaze - for adding dimension to the heart and flame edges

• Fiskars Texture plate - webbing - used in top right hand corner.

• Fiskars Elegance boarder punch - for a lacy effect with the red paper.

• Xyron 150 to make the chain stick to the layout

• Fiskars 12" orange trimmer to trim papers.

Fonts: Gothic and Forte with MS Publisher printed on the gray card stock  for title. Which was then cut out with Fiskars Ultra shape express.

I guess you could also call this layout computer contaminated.... ahhhh Hybrid. lol Because of the photoshop photo alteration and the printed title.

I had heaps of fun with something I thought I'd never use.

Thanks Fiskars for broadening my outlook on papers I wouldn't have blinked an eye at in the shops.... Now I'm hooked on the look and need to get some more! lol Its great being a Team Designer you get your comfort zones pushed out over the edge and you come up with things that amaze you.

Mothers Day Reading

Fantasy, romance, self help, magazines.....

What ever your mum reads I'm sure she will need a bookmark this year. The day is not over yet and if you have accidentally forgotten then a five minute project of a fancy bookmark may do the trick.

Here are the details of the book marks for your viewing.....

Here I used:

Fiskars elegance boarder punch

cloud9 raindots

cloud9 raindot flowers

cloud9 Chocolate charlet rubons, epoxy sticker and cardstock.

Heidi Grace stamp and ribbon

 

Here I used:

Fiskars sunburst boarder punch

cardstock and stickers from Cloud9 - Be Loved scrapbook page kit available from selected Warehouse stores.

All the very best for Mothers Day. I hope you have a really relaxing time!

 

Debbie

Sewing with Fiskars

Hi all

I've been creating again.... I can't stop myself!

I've dragged out my sewing machine, Fiskars templates and the Ultra shape express.

Some of you may have already seen on my blog but I've been asked to post it here too.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I used my Ultra Shape Express (USE) and the templates with "stiffened" material (this is important when cutting with the USE & a brand new sharp blade)

Then machine sewed the flower and butterfly on the t-shirt.

Then hand stitched the butterfly trail

I also did this one for my daughter (she's almost 4yrs old) I had added the sleeves to the short sleeved t-shirt as well.

Thanks so much for looking and I hope this has inspired you to work with your USE in different ways.

happy scrapping!

Debbie Buckland

Backing up and storing your precious photos

Since Scrapbooking rely's on photos and now that most of the world has gone digital most of our precious photos are on our computers......

As fantastic as computers are, there is the factor of crashes, hard drive failure and file loss. This can be a very scary fact for most of us. And I know I have been a victim of that as well as the human factor of "forgetting" to backup! I once lost a whole years worth of my photos of my daughters second year! Lucky I have some of those photos scrapbooked but I still miss those photos.

 

There are ways of saving and backing up that from happening like:

1. on a secondary hard-drive - most computers have one hard-drive but you can install another one

2. an external hard-drive - a small box that has another hard-drive in it. Good for portability.

3. a pen drive - smaller key ring type drive that is really easy to take places.

4. a CD - compact disk

5. or a DVD disk - yes you can cut a DVD now with a DVD drive

 

Then there is online backup.....
When looking for a reliable host its confusing. I looked for months. Everyone says they are reliable but are they really?
Who is reliable?
How much room will they give you?
What limits are there?
Will they close down in 1 month without notice?
How is their back up system?
How much do they charge? - most charge a fortune only to find out 2 months into using them they close down. No contact. No backup feedback, no help. and No refund.

 

But all has not been lost!
I found one place that is reliable.
How do I know?
They are under the wing of Windows Microsoft people!

 

Its called...........

 

Windows live SkyDrive:

"Password-protected online file storage. Always available where you need it."

You can store files/photos online for nothing!
with Windows SkyDrive they will not close down in 2 months of you using them and its free!!

I have used SkyDrive for:
Holding my PDF files for others to download - a public folder
Holding my sketch layouts and templates - a public folder
Saving and backing up my personal files/photos - personal folder which no-one else can access.
Holding a Mini Mag PDF file called Oh Scrap for subscribers only to download - shared folder with whom I choose to share it with.

I've been using it now for 2 months and have had good results.

When a problem occurs (which is hardly ever) I can contact windows SkyDrive people and they reply within 24 hours with a solution. Very reliable help system.

How much room?
5 GB!!!! - that's huge!

for more information on SkyDrive click here.....

I hope this information helps you out.

Remember:
You have to take the step and backup your files..... its your responsibility.

Happy Scrapping

Debbie

The making of a story teller.....

Hello everyone.....
I've got a little story teller in the making - My Daughter - she's 3 1/2 years old and dishes out stories left, right and center.

So I decided to start making a story book for her.
The idea is to jot down her story - flesh out the story a bit to make sense of it and put it all in a book.

Thus far I have the cover.....

This is my list of tools/paper ranges I used....
Stretched Canvas - front cover
Cloud9 beloved (red) cardstock
Cloud9 Travel cardstock pack
Google eyes (the dragon eyes)
Ultra Shape Express with Butterflies 1 template (wings - I used part of the shape)
and the Oval template (for main body) Other shapes where cut freehand using the Ultra Shape Express.
Black ink pad for inking edges of the dragon
Cloud9 travel cardstock medium alpha and number stickers
Cloud9 travel sprkle mini abc 123 rubons (for the word THE on front cover)
Gold acrylic paint (artilier)
Screws
12" rotary trimmer
PVA glue
Cardboard box for the back of the cover and spine
Computer/lazer printer to print out subtitle and credits

I'll be posting up progress every now and again.
This cover took me about 4-5 hours to construct and make the dragon then put the whole front cover into place. lol - Ok so I was watching TV as well! he he.

Oh something else to note:
I'd love to claim sole ownership of the dragon, but cannot. I copied him from my daughters book "Sparkly wizard's tale by Brian Robertson" the original drawing of the dragon by illustrators Brian Robertson and Chris King.

 

I hope this has encouraged you to do something different with your papers and Ultra shape express. We'd love to see your creations too!

National Youth Week Starts tomorrow

Hi everyone,

Do you know what National Youth Week is all about? YES ?  NO ?

Well come back tomorrow for a little bit more info on what this is all about........starts tomorrow April 5th....

SHOUT         SHARE            LIVE            UNITE

xoxo  Lyn

World Book Day

Today is World Book Day.

World Book Day has entered it's second decade of being celebrated world wide. Traditionally celebrated in April it was changed to March in recent years so that it didn't clash with Easter. Over this short period World Book Day has become firmly established as the biggest annual event promoting the enjoyment of books and reading.

Growing up books were a huge part of my life. My siblings and I were complete bookworms. It was not unusual to find me reading in the bath, in the car or under the doona by torchlight when I just had to finish those last few pages.

When I was five we moved from England to Australia. Most of my books were left behind so my Mum started buying me a Little Golden Book or a Wonder Book each week when she went grocery shopping. I think this began my love affair with books. These books were well read and then reread. Once I had outgrown them my Mum packed them away for when the time came to pass them onto my own children.

Fast forward a good few years and recently I packed these books away after my own kids had both loved them and read them over and over for many years. These books are now packed away for my future grandchildren (gosh that makes me feel old lol).

Here is a layout I did recording the story of these precious books. I am happy to say that my love of reading has been passed onto Kady and Leah.

I think there is something quite magical in getting lost in a story.

My favourite books when I was a kid were pretty much anything written by Enid Blyton.  Some favourites included "The Magic Faraway Tree" and all of "The Famous Five" series.

I would love to hear a few of your favourites.

Aussie, Aussie, Aussie

Happy Australia Day to all of our Aussie readers.  So what's on the agenda for today?  Are you taking it easy and having a nice quiet one at home?  Are you attending any special Australia Day Events?  Maybe a game of back yard cricket and a BBQ is on the books!  However you're spending your day - have a good one :)

What is Australia Day?

On Australia Day we came together as a nation to celebrate what's great about Australia and being Australian.  It's the day to reflect on what we have achieved and what we can be proud of in our great nation.  It's the day for us to re-commit to making Australia an even better place for the future.

On January 26, 1788 Captain Aurthur Phillip took formal possession of the colony of New South Wales and became it's first Governor.  The fledging colony soon began to celebrate the anniversary of this date.  Manning Clarke notes that in 1808 the "anniversary of the foundation of the colony" was observed in the traditional manner with "drinking and merriment".

This is one of my favourite photos - it's of me and my friend Allyson at the 2006 Commonwealth Games in Melbourne with "The G" in the background.  I'm a proud Aussie and not scared to show it, but this would have to be one of my proudest moments!  I felt so privileged to be there cheering on my country - and cheer I certainly did!  My hands were sore from clapping and my throat sore from cheering - the whole MCG was buzzing with excitement and anticipation.

The thing that makes me most proud is how us Aussies really get behind and support the underdogs.  I remember one event in particular that took place right behind us on the hallowed turf of the MCG.  The men's marathon had just begun and all the runners had completed a few laps inside the stadium before heading out on the grueling road leg of the race.  As all the runners left the MCG through the tunnel, one runner was already hopelessly behind the pack - it was Duncan Errol from St. Helena.  As was typical of the Aussie spirit, everyone cheered him on and kept him going - I was filled with emotion watching this unfold before my eyes and it made me so proud.

A few hours later the runners began entering the stadium again for their final sprint to the finish line - it was a proud moment with Aussies coming fourth and fifth in the event.  However, just when we thought it was all over, Duncan Errol entered the stadium - he was over half an hour behind the last runner to enter the stadium and in last position.  Upon seeing him enter the stadium, the crowd went wild and cheered and clapped him all the way to the finish line.  No he didn't win the event, but he gave it his best and didn't give up, but everyone made sure he went home feeling proud of himself and what he'd achieved.

It was such a special moment - one that fills me with emotion whenever I think about it (yes I've got a tear in my eye as I recall it even now!)  I'm proud to call this beautiful country my home.

Do you have a special moment of pride that you want to share about your country?  Tell us all about it by leaving a comment on this post and I'll enter you all into the draw for a special Australia Day RAK.  I'll draw the winner next Wednesday.

So have a good one today - if you want to see what special events are happening in your neck of the woods, check out the official government website here.

Aussie Aussie Aussie, Oi Oi Oi
Cheers Paula