This is a happy day! 09/22/2011

I am picked up as the winner of September Scor-pal Designer Challenge !

Yay! Yay! Yay! I am so happy because I have worked extra hard on this and there are awesome entries by the others! It is extra special to me because my love for folding boxes. I want to thank the design team for choosing me: Big Hugs! You made my day!!

For the past two weeks, I had been crazy cleaning our house and changing the exercise room into a guest room for a friend’s visit this week. And my Mom is coming for a whole month starting next week! I am excited for the visits but preparation is stressful! Yet, I found the time to prepare my entries: whenever I am not moving furniture around, I am at my craft table!

Anyway, here is another box I made following Tami’s example on the challenge page a couple days ago but did not find the time to post. I finally get to use the pretty clay flowers I made:) Had so much fun! I love paper boxes!

Thanks for stopping by! Happy Crafting~

 

Dimensional Flower Punch 09/14/2011

Got this great carnation punch today. Easy and pretty~

Left one is made with two 12” strips in purple/pink, and the right one is made with four 6” pink strips.

 

These are my favorites from this release. I think the examples are made of three or four 12” strips and were rolled very tight.

Here is the official product video Enjoy~

 

Stitched Birthday & Rolled Ribbon Flowers 09/09/2011

My stitched birthday card just won Carolina’s Sew Sentimentally Embossed Challenge @ StampTV Swooned!

 

 

The sentiment stamp is from Gina K. “Nana’s Needlework Sentiments”

Stitch template from Gina K.

Scalloped circle stamp is from PTI  ”Tag-its #1″

2” and 1-1/2” scalloped punches

 

Click here for the Rolled Ribbon Flower Tutorial. So many possibilities with all the pretty ribbons~

Below is another one I made using May Arts 1/4” silk ribbon, dyed with Broken China Distress Stain, Paper is from Basic Gray “Out of Print”.

Clay Adventure Part 2: Molds Comparison + Clay Coating 08/11/2011

Here are four kinds of molds I have:

My favorites are the pink ones from Mold Muse; Yellow ones at top right are not as well done but the results are ok; Blue ones have permanent finger prints on them and the impressions are either too deep or too shallow results will be shown later in this post.

Below are some molds I made, love them~ Molding Tips can be find here in Part 1.

See the round panel with three flowers on at the bottom of this photo? They are Ice Resins. Because they were poured into the molds I did not have much control. However, I found out later that you can use a craft stick to go over the surface after you pour to leave just a thin layer extra which can be pull off easily. I like them together like this myself:)

These yellow molds are not as perfect as the pink ones but the results are ok.

Below are 3 different medium I used. Two on the left are Resins (pink one mixed with Distress Reinker: Fire Brick); Top right is a translucent clay; Bottom right is a regular Craft Smart clay. I think I will stick to clay from now on because the resins I poured in cannot fill into some fine detailed area (for example: the part missing on the plum one’s petal below)

I like the translucent on so much! It is very hard to ned but the results are great: no line and no cracks  at all. I bought some other colors of the same brand but have not use them yet so I do not know whether they are all hard. Sculpey ones are very soft.

See how I did not fill the molds all the way up? The fuller it is the thicker it gets. Something to consider when mixing brands of clays: The baking tempreture and time! The translucent one needs 10min at 300F, pink one I used here needs 30min at 275F… Sign…

And I tried this clay coating, I think it was about $3. There is another one for Matte Finish.

 

Ok, here comes the pink shimmering clay flower with a translucent center:) Before coating

After coating. The instruction says leave 24 hours to dry. So I guess it is ok to look wet at the moment.

Only right side coated on regular clay. (See the cracks in the petals? See why I love the Kato brand?:)

Only the middle ones on both rows are coated.

All done~ See the two flowers under the second blue mold from the right? They are made from the same mold. I like it thin and translucent:)

More coating and coloring~ I used copic markers on the little girrafe

I wish I did not coat my buttons. It makes them look like cheap plastic

OK, my little clay adventure for today:) Hope you enjoy it~ Thanks for stopping by~

Again, Part 1 with molding tips: Click Here~

Christmas in August 08/11/2011

This card was made with a wish to use the pretty label punch. I uploaded this card to my flickr album and was blown away by all the sweet compliments. Now it is Top 3 of cards I made:)

Deer stamp, background stamp & pearls: Hero Arts

EK success label punch

Tattered Flowers Dies

White gel pen

 

Clay Adventure Part 1 + Some Molding Tips 06/28/2011

All of these started with the following videos by three amazing ladies:

• Clay Molds from Mold Muse – Laurel
• Making Resin and Clay Flowers – Lawn Fawn
• Hand Stamped Jewelry – Gina K

 

So I ordered some molds from Moldmuse… Shown above: The pink mold, the big red flower with a yellow center is one cast, and the small yellow roses. I ordered some buttons molds too, but I have not found a way to make them perfect yet, always something missing in a larger smooth area like that.

 

Then I learned about Amazing Mold Putty on Youtube. Shown above: All the yellow molds are made with some fancy buttons and keys I have. Love them all~~~ They are no where close to perfect but they were much worse I stared at my first patch for an entire night and made great improvements. Anyway, some tips I think would be helpful for some beginners like me ;”)

• Work fast, the stuff hardens fast. I found it is easier to tell the mixing is done by putting the white part around the yellow part when you first start. When the even yellow color shown through, you are done.
• Originals with fine, thin lines are much easier to make and cast. They are more forgiving.
• When to stop: When the front of the original is covered, Shape the mold in the palm of your hand to make sure the open area is smaller than the front so no edges will show.
• Do not push the originals too deep into the putty. The deeper it is, the thicker the casts will be.
• Want more professional looking molds like what Moldmuse offers? They use a different type of molding material and process: pouring.

 

Ok, my favorite part:

Followed Gina K’s video, using LawnFawn “blissful botanicals”** set I made above~  How cute! Love them~~ Do remember to put some cornstarch on the stamp and clay before you stamp. Warning: My stamp gets ink stain easier afterwards but they still stamp perfectly.

 

I went back to Etsy and ordered more molds from two other vendors and will write my comparison in Part 2 of my little clay adventure. (Part 2 is done! Click Here!)

 

I do not cook, so this is my first experience with an oven too! Ha~ Happy crafting~~

 

 

** My set of “blissful botanicals” came with a little story: I had a line missing on one of my Lawn Fawn stamp (manufacture error). I wrote them an email hoping to get a replacement for that stamp with my next order. They went ahead and sent me a new set and an extra set of my choice immediately. I truly appreciate what they did. Warm and sweet, just as their stamps are. Thanks, Lawn Fawn, great products and customer services.