Midweek Papercraft Party (35)

Welcome to another papercraft challenge!  This week's theme is Happy Days!

Last week's winners are

Donna and Jennyfer

Well done! You both win three digistamps of your choice from the Handmade Harbour shop.  Please email wendy@handmadeharbour.co.uk with your choices and I'll get them to you as soon as possible.  You also get to grab the winner's badge for your blog, which you'll find in the left hand sidebar if you scroll down a little.

Moving on to the design team creations with our Happy Days theme, I love how Teresa cleverly combined two stamps to create this cat with a candy floss (cotton candy) stall.  It conjures up summery, fun days in my head - definitely meets the happy days brief!

The candy floss cart digi is one of my favourites and I love seeing it all beautifully coloured here (I really like how Teresa created the 3D effect on the canopy with colour).  Paired with the cat digital stamp, it creates quite special card.

Oh, now here we have a card after my own heart!  I have quite a thing for seaside beach huts and this card just speaks to me of happy days - summer at the seaside!  The beach hut digital stamp is just a simple, single beach hut with a little note on the door (life's a beach) - but look how a bit of background and some fabulous colour can really bring it to life!

Elina used a homemade embossing paste for the sand - very effective, I think.  I love it.

Emma at the Sparkly Fairy created something quite simple but very special.  I love how just a touch of colour (and maybe glitter, too) on a digital stamp creates a wonderful image - a purrfect card! 

This might be a papercraft challenge, but we can't leave out fabric creations using digital stamps (digis are perfect for applique designs, especially raw-edge techniques with free machine embroidery).  This adorable notebook cover was created by Josie using the elephant and bird digital stamp. What a superb gift this makes!

Josie combined it with a tiny scrap of elephant fabric from her stash - the perfect finishing touch!

I hope you find something from this post to inspire you this week - whether it's one of the design team's designs or the theme, or colours... whatever, it's always good to find inspiration!

If you'd like to join in our challenge this week, it's easy.  Please add your link below so we can visit you.  We're looking forward to seeing your creations!

PS: Handmade Harbour has a brand new Facebook group!  Please follow the link if you'd like to join us on Facebook!

An InLinkz Link-up

Midweek Papercraft Party (16)

Yay! It's time for another papercraft challenge - a little later than usual this week (sorry, there are a million things getting in the way right now).  Anyway, are you up for it?  This week's challenge is...

Fur or Feathers, which you can interpret any way you like - images of birds or animals, animal prints, or real feathers.  I'd love to see what this inspires, and if you'd like to join in, you can link up at the bottom of this post.  We'd love you to join us so don't be shy!

Last week's winners are... (drum roll...)

Amy A and Very Belle

Well done both!  Would you like to email me - wendy@handmadeharbour.co.uk - with your choice of three digistamps from the Handmade Harbour store and I'll get them to you as soon as possible.  Also, please feel free to grab the winner's badge for your own blog.  You'll find it in the left hand sidebar <----

The design team has been working with the fur and feathers theme this week...but mostly feathers, I think!

Lynne made a gorgeous card with the robin family image and stamped on the inside - "Sending You a Christmas Tweet!"

Deanne also used the robin family - this is proving to be a popular image!  The owl made it for Christmas too, with his little hat on!

Rachel used the owl too...

They're all fab, aren't they?  It's always completely amazing to see what people make with my images!

We're waiting to see what you made too... feel free to add your link for your papercraft project.  If you'd like to use a Handmade Harbour image, you will definitely increase your chance of winning - no purchase necessary, there are free digital stamps for you to use!

Midweek Papercraft Party (10)

Welcome to another papercraft party!  This week's theme is Scary or Funny (or maybe both!)

Last week's winners are...

Bettina and Cheremane

Well done you two!!  Please email wendy@handmadeharbour.co.uk with your choice of three stamps from the Handmade Harbour shop and I'll send them to you.  Also, please grab the winners' badge from the left hand sidebar! Yay!!

Back to this week...

Lynne's card is Scary AND Funny! read more about it on her BLOG POST

Zoe's gone with dripping blood and spiders - definitely scary in my book!!  Pop over to her BLOG POST to read more...

Rachel used the witches at the cauldron digital stamp - and this one definitely qualifies for Scary and Funny too!  The wording reads: there are vegetarians coming over so it's eye of newt substitute...

The design team have all used images from the Halloween digital stamps page this week, which are not only seasonal but they all fit our theme this week!

Do you have Halloween on your mind this week, or have you been making something else that fits in with scary or funny?  We'd love to see, so do pop your link below and we'll visit!  Don't forget to check back next week and see if you're a lucky winner!

DT Interview: Rachel

Who are you? Whereabouts in the world are you based?  What's it like in your little corner of the world?

I am Rachel Taylor I am from the UK and live in Plymouth Devon I like living in Plymouth as we are near to the sea side and also we have the lovely country side as well. Unfortunately I am about 7 hours from my family.  I blog at Blossom Cards.

When and why did you start cardmaking?  What (or who) got you started?

I have always liked making things and my mum was very crafty too. I can't remember when I started but I think it was when I was small and by my mum.  I found when my children were young how much fun it was doing crafts with them and then started to want my own business 

What do you enjoy most about designing and making a card?

How creative you can be, the fun in seeing the end result of your planning or even if it's just come together quickly. I like to try and use different techniques and shaped cards.

What do you love about digital stamps?

I love loads of things:

1.  you can store them on a computer or a pen that goes in to your computer
2.  you don’t have to have boxes of stamps or inks to put somewhere
3.  you don’t need stamping blocks
4.  you get a good image every time
5.  you can do things like decoupage with your digi stamps
6. you can make the image large or small and make your own backing papers
7.  you can colour in with lots of different mediums like promarkers water colour pens, etc

How many cards do you make in an average week?

About 10 card a week 

Where do you do your crafting?  Do you have a dedicated craft room or do you take over the kitchen table?

I have taken over the dining room and also teach card making classes there now as well but soon I am having some work done on the house and will have a new craft room 

Do you ever sell the cards you make? If so, where?

I sell my cards at local craft fairs

Do you do other forms of craft too?  If so, what?

I like to make gifts and sell them, like knitted mug hugs, knitted children’s toys. I also like to make some jewellery items: hair clips, brooches, note pads, pictures and lots more  

Who are your favourite craft bloggers?

I don’t have a favourite one - I like to follow lots as you get so many ideas out in computer land

 
Finally, have you got a favourite Handmade Harbour image?

This is hard for me as I love all the images but one makes me laugh the most and it is the image that says Its always wine o' clock somewhere in the world and is in a frame and has a wine glass on it 

it's always wine o' clock digital stamp

Midweek Papercraft Party (9)

Hello!  It's time for another papercraft challenge and a peek at what the design team have been up to!

First though, here are last week's winners:

Pat and Elizabeth (click on their names to be taken to their winning blog post)

Congratulations on your win ladies! - if this is you, please email wendy@handmadeharbour.co.uk with your choice of three digistamps from Handmade Harbour. You can also grab the winner's badge from the left-hand sidebar to proudly display on your blog!

This week's theme is Something Pretty.  I think the vast majority of handmade cards I see on blogs would fit this theme!  The design team came up with a pretty diverse collection of very pretty cards!

I am always reluctant to leave summer behind when it comes to cooler days, dying leaves and darker nights, so this card from Laura just delighted me!  This new beach hut digital stamp was something I drew very recently on a whim, recalling our summer stay in Somerset.  We walked along the beach one day for about eight miles (yup, we were exhausted, sunburnt and really enjoyed our pub lunch at the end with a large jug of water!! We caught a steam train back, but that's inspiration for another day!) and saw a long row of adorable beach hut-style chalets at Dunster Beach.  They inspired this image - and the double easel card Laura made from my image is just awesome - look at that picket fence!  I think I want to live there...

And look - it all folds up for sending to someone special!

By Laura at CraftyLawyerCreates

Valerie used the Tea Shop stamp with a little bit of some quick Zentangling/doodling/free-hand sketching around the border, which I love!  It certainly fits our pretty theme!

Connie made this adorable (and very pretty) scrapbook page using the new girl with bunting digi 

Mary went with the rose digistamp to create this gorgeous card.  I love the mix of plain white rose, red background and music sheet.  Simple but very pretty.

Have you been inspired this week?  Have you made something pretty?  Please do join in with this week's challenge by leaving us a link to your blog - just by joining in you have a chance of winning three digistamps of your choice from the Handmade Harbour store.

Meet the Design Team: Mary

Today I'm interviewing Mary, one of the Handmade Harbour design team members - come on in and join us while we chat and find out more about her papercrafting experiences!

Who are you? Whereabouts in the world are you based and what is it like there? 

Howdy! My name is Mary Driggs and I’m from Austin, Texas. For the most part we get to experience summer weather all year round which can be considered both good and bad - it means we don’t really have a need for winter clothes but the few weeks of the year we do get winter weather none of us (who grew up here) know how to drive. LOL.  Fortunately for me I married someone who grew up in the northern parts of the country so he does the majority of the driving.

Why did you start cardmaking?  What (or who) got you started?

I started making cards by way of doing my wedding invitations. You see my mother-in-law owned the local scrapbook store and so I had card making supplies literally at my fingertips.

What do you enjoy most about designing and making a card?

For me the best part about designing and making cards is the joy that it brings to others. You see right now I teach craft classes and make cards for the Relief Society at Church.

What do you love about digital stamps?

I love digital stamps because they are so flexible, as you are not limited by size, they are beautiful,  and they are easy to store.

How many cards do you make in an average week?

My card making varies but I tend to make anywhere from one card per day to twenty. It depends on when inspiration strikes me.

Where do you do your crafting?  Do you have a dedicated craft room or do you take over the kitchen table?

My crafting is done in my craft room. Although, I have been known to expand into the living room.

Do you ever sell the cards you make? If so, where?
Currently, I am paid to create birthday cards for my Church. Although, I did use to have an Etsy shop.

Do you do other forms of craft too?  If so, what?

Currently I don’t do any other forms of crafts. Although, I will occasionally create a scrapbook or 3D project.

As a teen I used to enjoy needle point and during college I did learn how to knit. Right now I’m incorporating those skills into my paper crafting.

Who are your favourite craft bloggers? 

Some of my favorite craft bloggers are Sandy Allnock, Kristina Werner, and Lydia Fiedler.

Finally, have you got a favourite Handmade Harbour image?

Currently, my favorite image is 034 digital stamp- hedgehogs on armchair. Although I think they’re all super cute.

Find out more about Mary on her blog Cr8ive ME

Midweek Papercraft Party (5)

Hello! Welcome to another papercraft challenge.

Last week's papercraft party was a little bit too quiet for my liking, so in my bid to make it a little bit more lively (that is your invitation to join in!), I'm offering two prizes this week.  One is completely random and another is open to anyone who uses Handmade Harbour digis! (Check out the freebies - there is another new one this week and using a freebie entitles you to an extra chance of winning!)

So, whatever you join in with, you have a chance of winning three digistamps of your own choice from the Handmade Harbour shop.  What would you choose?

There is also a winner's button now!

<div align="center">
<a href="http://www.handmadeharbour.co.uk" title="Handmade Harbour"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEif2cPqQZIyo62zyt4i7VDqKnmg2HXT7do5yDiwcihibt-7vFNlpVrE7Vbt85plRrbjtHKcmJw9u5_wj6V2JpdJUWw8P4-dzHbHnJnQ6AZRnC0I0zVqzMbGv2lfhEGS-ENW57vXLT9cFVE/s200/winner+blog+button+2.jpg" alt="Handmade Harbour" style="border:none;" /></a></div>

And I will hopefully be inviting one of you back very soon to be a guest designer, too.  Yay!

Meanwhile, I want to show you what the design team have been busy with - this week's theme is...

Happy Days!

Mary's mind is obviously on Halloween...I love how this looks, with the witches in front of a full moon!

Laura is a girl after my own heart - this sewing machine digistamp looks fab with the background of pieced stitching (I'm not sure if they are fabric or paper, but they look amazing!)

Look what Lynne has made this week (below) - I must admit I had never thought of being thankful for piles of laundry (ha! and definitely not for ironing!) but maybe this card will make me think about it from another viewpoint!  I must admit this particular washing line looks really pretty with all the gorgeous colours and sparkles!  

It's a gorgeous card, whether you can bring yourself to be thankful for laundry/ironing or not!!

Val also has her mind on Halloween - this card below is just so pretty, don't you think?  I love the detail - and just look at how the witch's gown and hat seem to shine - absolutely beautifully done.

Connie has made a delightful card, combining two digis, which would be a good card for Moms/Mums everywhere!  So sweet!

I also love Connie's witches - don't you?  That wording says: there are vegetarians coming over so it's eye of newt substitute.  The wording is included in the witches and cauldron digistamp.

Another Connie has made a beautiful scrapbook page - I love the pretty girliness of this one!

Last but not least is kel's card - these cats on cushions speak of happy days to me, how about you?  Pop over to kel's blog for more.

It would be lovely to have you join in with your papercraft project this week!  The theme of happy days might be one that would fit quite a range of projects!

You don't need to use a Handmade Harbour digi to join in, but there are a couple of free digital stamps available if you'd like to try them out.  If you're playing this week...

Meet the Design team: Deanne

Today I'm interviewing another of the design team - today it's Deanne.  Come and find out more...

Who are you? Whereabouts in the world are you based? 
My name is Deanne Stewart-Mills. I live in Sydney, Australia. I love where I live in Western Sydney – it is near where I grew up so it is familiar to me. I haven’t always lived here – I moved back and forth between Canberra and Sydney for many years, finally settling here about 12 years ago.

Deanne

When and why did you start cardmaking?  

I started cardmaking when my son, who is nearly 21 now, was only little. I had left work to be with him when he was 4 and started cardmaking as a way to fill in some time. I was really into 3D decoupage at the time, but moved on to rubber stamping from there. I really got into cardmaking when I moved back to Sydney for the last time (that 12 years ago). I joined a cardmaking class, and eventually took over the class. I have been teaching there now for over 8 years.

What do you enjoy most about designing and making a card?

Hmm, that’s a tricky question... I think I enjoy the whole creation process. I sometimes start with a particular colour scheme, but more often than not, I begin with the image and go from there. It all depends what mood I am in or what requirements the card has to fulfil – whether it is for a class, creating for a specific blog or Design team etc.

Deanne's card: cat on the armchair (with patchwork cushions) - find the digi here

What do you love about digital stamps?

Digi stamps are great! I love that there are so many varieties of images available in the digital format. I love that you can print them in any size, you can alter the colour of the outline and, if you have the skills (which I don’t) you can colour them with programs like photoshop and print them in colour. Also, they take up much less storage space in my craft room.

Deanne made this gorgeous card using the cat on cushions digi - 

there's a definite feline theme going on here!

How many cards do you make in an average week?

I used to make 3-4 cards a week. I used to be on a design team for an online scrapbooking shop, so there were lots of things I had to make and lots of deadlines. I was also teaching 3-4 times a week, so I had to have lots of cards ready to go. Since I resigned from the design team nearly 2 years ago, and dropped all but one class, I have been much more relaxed with my cardmaking. At the moment, I am only making 1-2 cards a week. This also has a lot to do with my craft space being totally overwhelmed by ‘stuff’. Which leads me to your next question...

Where do you do your crafting?  Do you have a dedicated craft room or do you take over the kitchen table?

I have a dedicated craft room, but I do tend to take over the dining area too. I have lots of hobbies, but cardmaking/stamping and crocheting are my babies at the moment. I also own 4 sewing machines (1 of which is nearly 50 years old) and more yarn than I have space to keep it. I like to spread out, so my cardmaking supplies tend to cover both desks I have set up in my craft room. I love it, because it is a very creative space.

Birthdays are good for you - statistics prove the people who have the most live the longest

Do you ever sell the cards you make? If so, where?

I used to sell lots of cards, but haven’t really been trying. My parents tend to buy lots of cards. I gave them a decorated tin full of cards for lots of occasions several years ago and they often purchase more (or ask me to make more) to fill in the various occasions that have been used up.

Do you do other forms of craft too?  If so, what?

As I mentioned above, I also do other crafts. I have dabbled in almost anything, including: cross stitch, long stitch, quilting, sewing, folk art painting, silk flower making, knitting, crochet, scrapbooking. My favourites though are cardmaking and crochet (which I teach one day a week at a community group). I also collect tea pots and tea cups. I have several lovely Royal Albert sets from my parents. Although I guess that’s more of a hobby than a craft.

Who are your favourite craft bloggers? 

Handmade Harbour (of course), The Graphics Fairy (lots of beautiful free vintage images), Lucy at Attic24 (fabbo crochet blog) and Sarah London (another great crochet blog). I follow quite a few blogs; too many to name them all here. I tend to follow blogs with inspiring images and crafts. Bloggers who use bright, cheerful colours and images are usually the ones that catch my eye, and is one of the reasons I love Handmade Harbour and Lucy’s blog so much. They are also fun and interesting to read.

Finally, have you got a favourite Handmade Harbour image?
Another tough question. I don’t have one particular favourite, but I do really like bird images, the sewing machines and the humorous images.

the humorous birthday digital stamp Deanne used in her card (above).

Thanks so much Deanne for a great interview!  I always love reading about where people find their inspiration, which blogs they like reading and how they like working creatively - thanks for sharing with us!

Brand New Digital Stamps!

Maybe "hot off the press" is not quite the right terminology, but "freshly scanned" doesn't have quite the same ring to it, does it?

Anyway, here's the very latest digital stamp - a jewellery shop (or perhaps jewelry store for our transatlantic friends) called JEWLZ.

I love the shops category and enjoy thinking up new shops to draw!  If you have an idea for one I've not done yet, do leave me a comment!

I have a whole batch of images ready to be scanned, so that's my next task this afternoon. After that, they'll need cropping, resizing and watermarking for displaying on the website ... speaking of which, watch out for them being posted on the website soon.

You can always check out what's new at the Handmade Harbour new digital stamps page.