We have been busy ...

We've been busy at the beach...

hard at work in Santa's Workshop...

and making merry - all just for you this Christmas. Check us out on November 1st, to see what the my2angels elves have been busy creating.

Filigree necklace tutorial - beading for beginners

Filigree necklace tutorial - beading for beginners

With Christmas just around the corner, I am always on the lookout for simple (and cheap) but beautiful handmade gift ideas. At my2angels I saw some very pretty filigrees, have a look at them here! I took a few home to make into necklaces. The best thing is, they are so pretty by themselves, all the hard work is done and I just have to put them together.

For a real quick present I could simply attach a jump ring to a filigree flower and string it on a ribbon and it's done, but we can do better than that!

If you have never tried your hand at beading, this is the tutorial for you! It's not hard, seriously. You just need a few basic tools, available at my2angels:

 round nose pliers ($1.50)

wire cutting pliers ($1.99)

Pick a filigree flower, like this one from a set of 6 mixed styles and open up a small jumpring with the pliers:

Slide the open jumpring through the flower and a filigree cross and close it with the pliers:

(Excuse the dirty fingers, I had just finished some gardening)

Repeat that on the other side, so you have 2 crosses attached to the flower:

Now slide another jumpring through the opposite hole of the cross and close it around the first link of a chain. Always bend the jumpring, not the chain links.

Repeat on the other side:

Measure how long you want your chain to be and cut through a chain link with the wire cutting pliers. Attach a small jumpring and a parrot clasp on one side and a larger jumpring on the other side:

Now a tassel! String a brown pearl on  a head pin. They have a little stopper at the end so your bead won't fall off. If the bead's hole is too big and it falls off, add a bead cap. (I didn't have a antique bronze head pin, but the silver will do.) Cut it about 1cm above the bead with the wire cutting pliers (don't use your scissors, they will get wrecked!)

With the nose of the round nose pliers bend the wire till it looks like a hook...

... link it around a chain link...

...and close it with the pliers:

Do that 3 times, add a large jump ring and your tassel is complete! 

Attach it to the flower and your beautiful necklace is done.

For a finishing touch I put a few drops of dark chocolate Liquid Pearls in the middle...

...and glued 2 brown pearls on the crosses:

You can of course go all out with the bling and the colours, but I wanted something soft and tone-in-tone with the bronze.

And here I am with a beautiful new necklace:

Now that you have mastered the basics you can make all kinds of wonderful things. In fact, I rarely buy fashion jewelry, most of my stuff is handmade.

I got a little adventurous and decided to make something fancy. I picked a few different filigrees and arranged them in a triangle. Then I attached them all with small jump rings. I made sure I closed them all real well with a bit of an overlap, so they wouldn't come apart.

Find the ones I used here:

filigree flower mix

filigree crosses

round floral flower filigrees

flower filigrees

flat circle filigrees

I added a chain, just like the first necklace, and a leaf charm:

And here we have it:

It was getting dark, so I stopped here, but if you like you can glue rhinestones, pearls or a resin flower in the centre of each circle. I decided to keep mine plain.

Once you get started the ideas keep flowing. I hope this has give you some inspiration for Christmas gifts.

Cheers

Geli

Lots of New Arrivals in store now

New Arrivals in store now

and restocks of Liquid Pearls, Inkssentials Manilla Tags, Ink Blending Foam, Perfect Pens, White Gel Pens, Tim Holtz Inks, Crafters Workshop Templates and much more ....

Plus finally our back order of Romance Novel has arrived ... I LOVE these papers!

 

Check out your wish list to see if your favourites are back in stock and take advantage of the 10% off all month ... Don't forget you MUST enter "october" at checkout to receive your discount

okay onto some goodies ....

Tim Holtz Distress Inks

Distress is now a 48 color palette!  That means all of those previous limited edition 3-pack colors are now available individually in both pads and reinkers, and will be a permanent part of the distress palette! 

And we have them in store now

Metallic Distress Stains

Quote from Tim Holtz's Blog ... the new distress stains are simply incredible since not only are the metallic finishes so luminous, but the formulation of a semi-translucent metallic is amazing.  these can be used on all of the surfaces you would use distress stains on including paper, fabric, and wood.  they can also be used with the other translucent colors of distress stains for a layered effect.  i think my favorite part of using these new metallic stains is the fact that in true distress style, they react with water so the blends and mottled effects are so cool

Emboss It Dabber

Emboss It™ Dabber is filled with high-quality embossing ink in a convenient dabber top bottle. The Emboss It™ Dabber is great for quickly and easily inking large stamps and surfaces

Inkssentials Wonder Tape

in two sizes

Stampendous Shaved Ice

with an example being used on chipboard

 

Tim Holtz Distress Stickles Glitter in Clear Rock Candy - loose glitter in the same fine quality that has been popular in Distress Stickles Glitter Glue. Clear Rock Candy Glitter has the unique combination of variegated glitter sizes to complement the nostalgic palette of Distress Products

Pop over to the ranger blog here for some tips and techniques of using Rock Candy Glitter

Stampendous Glitter Glass

(with restocks)

Royal Blue

 

Royal Purple

and

Silver Bells for your Christmas Creations

All of these new goodies can be found in the new arrivals section

Wishing you a creative and fun weekend

New in Store ... Kaisercraft Pickled Pear

New in Store

Kaisercraft Pickled Pear

New Kaisercraft Pickled Pear is in store now ... it's a gorgeous collection filled with colours of nature, butterflies and botanical patterns with great wood panels and vintage cameras for the boys
PS check out the die cut papers LOVE these!  You can them in the new arrivals section here

Hello....it's Michele here again, this time with a summery seaside layout using Kaisercraft's soon to be released, Pickled Pear Collection. I just know these papers are going to be a big favourite....they're super versatile!

At first, when I was flipping through the pages, I thought that they would be perfect for vintage photos (and they will!)...there are butterflies, old fashioned cameras, gramaphones, lace, ephemera, a scattering of old advertising, and flowers...all put together on muted blue, green and cream with a scattering of olive green, black and white. The Collectables pack is stacked with over 50 diverse die cut pieces. Very generous!

BUT in the end, October is all about the beach at my2angels so here is what I ended up with:

I started with a piece of 'Willow', a gorgeous white shabby board patterned paper, cut it down to 11''x11'', distressed the edges and inked lightly with Weathered Wood Distress Ink. I used a bubble wrap stamp to randomly add some blue 'bubbles', also using Weathered Wood. Down in the bottom corner I stamped some shells using Antique Linen Distress Ink and clear embossed with Zing! Clear Embossing Powder. I also added a few pieces of white plasterer's mesh - the edges are visible under the embellishments.

To this I added a piece of pale yellow 'Chartreuse' onto which I stamped the same 'bubbles', this time using a Brilliance White ink, and a smaller piece of pretty blue 'Quince'. Both of these papers actually have a light all-over pattern on them already, the yellow has white butterflies and the blue has a paler blue floral, but these are not visible on my layout and the colours are perfect for that washed out beachy look I was looking for. The distressed edges also add to that look so I also sanded the edges of the photo using an emery board and added it to the top.

Because I wanted my layers to have other things tucked into and around them I attached them to each other using a strip of double sided tape in the centre only. The edges are free to curl up a bit and add dimension to the layout.

At the top of the photo on the left I tucked in two Bingo cards. The first, under both layers of patterned paper, is cut from 'Olive', one of those papers that have about a dozen gorgeous cut-able elements on one side, while the second, which is between the two paper layers, is from a set of Mini Beach Bingo cards I had in my stash from Jenni Bowlin. 

The extra embellishments, all from my2angels are a piece of White Fishing Net, a Dried Starfish, a small Blue Crackle Glass Bead, two 10mm Glass Cabochons and a 16mm Glass Cabochon, stuck with Glossy Accents over a number '2' sticker from the Pickled Pear '12x12 Sticker Sheet'.

Also tucked in at the top are two black banners - 'Memories' & 'You And Me' from the 'Pickled Pear Collectables' pack and a fish I cut from 'Olive'. I thought the fish was cute, and it reminds me that even at that age DS was swimming like a little fish.

Right up at the top of the layout there is another small cluster of embellishments over a small piece of frayed muslin. 

A black 'Remember When' and two 'Admit One' tickets are stacked up under a White Cherry Blossom with a 16mm Glass Cabochon over a 'Happy H' circle from the 'Pickled Pear Collectables' pack. Surrounding them are another two Blue Crackle Glass Beads and a Brown Crackle Glass Bead, a smaller 10mm Glass Cabochon and a Seashell Charm, the shine bleached out a bit by painting with white gesso and rubbing some of the paint away again.

The main cluster of embellishments is at the bottom of the page. Two more tickets from the 'Collectables Pack' are tucked under the blue photo mat.

Before doing any further embellishing I ran a piece of double sided tape along the bottom of the yellow paper layer and dropped a piece of muslin onto it. I scrunched it up a little, frayed the edges a lot, and it forms the base for everything else. Over the top of that is a piece of knotted and frayed rafia, and a bit further along the page there is another roughly cut piece of White Fishing Net. I painted a chipboard leaf/branch from my stash with white gesso and then inked with Weathered Wood Distress Stain, covered three more circles from the Collectables Pack - 'Love L', 'Happy H' and 'You & Me' - with 16mm Glass Cabochons and scattered around another 16mm Glass Cabochon, several  10mm Glass Cabochons and some more Blue & Brown Crackle Glass Beads.

Also in there is another bleached Seashell Charm and a Starfish Charm again painted with gesso and rubbed back. The two shells in there are actually real shells. LOL! and there is another Dried Starfish.

Finally, the flowers at the bottom are White and Yellow Gardenias and White Cherry Blossoms.

So maybe a vintage layout or card with Pickled Pear NEXT time.... :)

Michele



Carta Bella All Hallows Eve - Spooky & some New Arrivals

Hi there, Michele here again, this time with a Halloween Layout featuring All Hallows Eve - a deliciously spooky collection from Carta Bella.

I love the thickness and generosity of Carta Bella papers. Being a bit more on the solid side. they are perfect for mixed media and misting, holding their shape pretty well when wet and dried a couple of times. My layout, called Spooky, features both of these techniques and more.

The base paper, Marshmallow/Kraft,  has been given lots of different treatments and it held up really well. I sanded and scraped the edges and inked them with Black Soot Distress Ink, painted the area under my photo with white Gesso and then sprayed with both Starfish and Black Magic Glimmer Mist, letting the mist pool and run down to the bottom of the page. Then I made a few white splatters using Picket Fence Distress Stain, before finally stamping at the bottom and on the right hand side. Using Tim Holtz' Maple Leaf Blueprint Stamp (both the large and the mini versions. PLUS Tracy can order it in for you, she can do anything that girl!) I stamped with Embossing Ink and embossed with Zing Clear Embossing Powder. This adds a subtle pattern to the background, but doesn't crowd it, because there is no colour change, just a little extra texture.

There are several layers of paper under my photo. All of them have had their edges distressed (as has the photo itself. Some I have left white and some I have inked with Black Soot Distress Ink. The first is a square of the reverse of Zig Zag Bats, then there is a smaller piece of the reverse of Poisoned. On top of that I layered a square of muslin and then the photo. When it was all stuck down, I trimmed and teased the edge of the muslin until I got the effect I was looking for.

Tucked in on either side and at the top of the photo are some strips of Scary Stripe and two of the patterned strips from Borders - the Spiders and the Skulls & Skeletons words. Finally, the title is cut from Halloween Words. The letters have been given a bit of extra dimension with Glossy Accents. A Red Copper Skeleton Charm is leaning on the front of the 'S'.

Up in the top corner I have an embellishment cluster which features one of Tracy's new Antique Bronze Filigree Flowers. Inspired by Tracy's use of Liquid Pearls in the centre of her flower, I accented the centre of mine with red rhinestones (the larger one is one of these) and paired it with a small Antique Bronze clock. The chipboard Fish Net underneath is coloured with Black Soot Distress Stain, as is the small bird. The bird has the addition of a thin layer of Black Stickles, which gives it a bit of a sparkle. I added another red rhinestone for the bird's eye. The cluster is finished off using red and white roses and a Red Rose Bud.



 Next to the photo on the left there is a bit more chipboard, another small piece of Fish Net and a larger Scrapware Haunted House. As you can see from the photo, the Haunted House has a thin layer of Black Stickles, giving it a bit of sparkle. I added a die cut branch near the top and have two Red Copper Skeletons sitting on it. Three more roses add a bit of continuity between the embellishment cluster at the top and the one at the bottom of the page.



The main feature of this small cluster is the Antique Bronze Flower Filigree Flourish, with small red rhinestones in its centre. Added to it are a little bit more of that chipboard Fish Net, a tiny piece of muslin, another chipboard bird with a red rhinestone eye and a few roses - and a Red Rose Bud.

As a final touch, I added a larger bird ... this one sitting in a Scrapware nest on a couple more of the die cut branches - which I placed so that the black one is acting as a shadow to the brown. The nest is inked with Black Soot and Vintage Photo Distress Inks, and the bird, like the others, is a combination of Black Soot Distress Stain and Black Stickles.

Better hurry up and get your All Hallows Eve before I go back for a re-stock :)

Michele

New in Store now ...

Restock of mega popular the In Progress Folders
Tim Holtz Kraft No 24 (The blackest cardstock around, I reckon anyhow!)

and new Couture Creations Embossing Folders
available here in the embossing section
(There are 2 different sizes of the Present Folder)

New Arrival and Making Christmas cards with Turtle Dove

New Arrivals


TWIDDLEYBITZ CARDS ARE BACK IN STOCK, except the black ones (sorry) they are still in transit from the manufacturer.  We were able to get them postage free again so the price of $1.40 still stands (yipee)
 
I suggest you get in quick, as these do not stay in stock for long

Perfect timing to starting creating your Christmas cards

They are available in our Cardmaking Section

And speaking of Christmas Cards


Turtle Dove Christmas Cards

You will need 6 Twiddleybitz Kraft C6 cards.  Ink edges with Versamark Pine Cone or VersaMagic Gold Ink

Cut Turtle Dove geese into 6 squares 10cm x 14cm.  Ink edges with VersaMagic Gold Ink and Vintage Photo then adhere these to your cards using the gold/brown flourish side of pp.

Cut out Turtle Dove Lords in the middle giving you 8 of the die cut squares.  This will leave you with the outer border on the reverse side for a layout. (We are only using 6 of them)

 

Stamp the 3 baubles from Turtle Dove Clear Stamps using Timber Brown Stazon directly onto the cut  Turtle Dove Geese and also stamp onto acetate.  Stazon is the only ink I have found that adheres to acetate.  Where you stamp the baubles onto the card depends if you are using a portrait or landscape of the Turtle Dove Lords squares . 

Cut your baubles from acetate and lightly fold lengthways.  Using liquid glue sprinkle on Gilded Mica Fragments.  Put aside to dry.

Using your stamp again, stamp with Emboss it over top of your stamped baubles on the card and heat emboss using Stampendous Aged Gold Embossing Powder.  Allow some length from the top so you can "hang" them with Gold Cup Chain  which we will do in a sec

Cut some scrap coordinating cardstock to frame 6 of the Turtle Dove Lords squares.  Adhere to card on the bottom left or right hand corner.  You might like to raise them using foam tape or scrap pizza box.

Cut lengths of Gold Cup Chain to "hang" the baubles.  Using liquid glue or hot glue gun to secure to card.

Once the acetate baubles are dry adhere onto top of the embossed baubles. 

Cut a strip of brown organza scalloped ribbon to the right or left hand side of your Turtle Dove Lords squares and add a strip to the bottom.  If you have some Merry Christmas stickers or chipboard you might like to add the greeting on top of your ribbon.

IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO MAKE THESE CARDS, place your order and I will put in a piece of acetate for you, if you need it.