Orchid Lantern using the Hexagon Classic Lantern by Simply Crafty SVGs

Hiya, I LOVE combining SVG cutting files, and think the orchids from the Orchid Box Card look great on Sandy's lovely Classic Hexagon Lantern.

The vellum panels are decorated with Distress Oxide inks, and detail is added to the orchid petals, leaves and stems with alcohol markers. A double pinstripe line was added to the lantern's panels, initially with foil, and then with sketch pen over the top. The effect is a bit sketchy, but works fine with the vintage style of this lantern. It reminds me of a Victorian hothouse where orchids might have been grown in times past.

Materials Used:
White Heavyweight Smooth Cardstock
Green, Mauve & Purple Medium weight Textured Cardstock
Alcohol Markers
Beacon 3-in-1 Adhesive
Heavyweight Vellum
Distress Oxide Inks
Silhouette Green Metallic Sketch Pen
Silhouette Cameo


Files Used:
Simply Crafty SVGs Orchid Box Card
Simply Crafty SVGs Classic Hexagon Lantern

Other Digital Files: 
Butterfly by Studio Ilustrado (Studio or SVG)

To add a pinstripe to the panels, a double internal offset of each of the panel pieces was made in the Silhouette Studio software.

These are the files I used. Just click on the photo to visit the page in Simply Crafty SVGs online store.




Janet, DT Member Simply Crafty SVGs

Blog: Crafting Quine 
Instagram: @CraftingQuine

Entered in Shopping our Stash #395 - May Flowers

Simply Crafty SVG Files:
Orchid Box Card
Classic Hexagon Lantern

Foil and Vellum Bows and Boxes

Hiya, I've been making gift boxes this week in my favourite colour combination; Mint, Rose Gold and White. Love 'em!

I have a post over on the Silhouette UK Blog with information on cutting the Rose Gold Printable Sticker Sheets. I have two methods, so pop over if you'd like to read about how to use those techniques in your projects.

I used the foil to decorate these pretty Carousel Horse Box gift boxes by Nilmara Quintela from the Silhouette Design Store.

It is a quick and easy file to put together, great if you are making a number for party favours. The base is designed so that it doesn't need adhesive and the box is held closed with a short length of ribbon.  As I don't have bow-tying superpowers, I adapted the box so that it would stay closed without the ribbon. I also made these foil and vellum bows  to add a little more pizazz!

The bows I used are:
3D Bow file by Felicity Jane.
3D Layered Puckered Bow by Jamie Cripps.

I can't decided which one I like best, can you?

Halloween Gruesome Brew Luminary from Simply Crafty SVGs 3D Beer Glass File

Hello, Janet here with a Halloween project using another amazing cutting file from Simply Crafty SVGs. There are many fantastic Halloween designs in the shop, but I decided that I'd transform the 3D Beer Glass into a gruesome brew luminary, complete with eyeballs, green foam, and led lights.  I've included details on how you can make this 'brew' for yourself. I used a Silhouette Cameo® 3, but the SVG files used for the glass can be utilised with other desktop die cutting machines (details here).

MATERIALS:
White Cardstock
Green Paper
Vellum
Glow-in-the-dark Sticker Paper
Scraps of Coloured Paper and Card
Beacon 3-in-1 Glue
Distress Ink in Walnut Stain
Distress Oxide Ink in Distressed Pistachio
Bubbles Embossing Folder
Manual Embossing/Die-cutting Machine
Silhouette Cameo
Multi-coloured LED Light String
Drinking Straw with Firework Frill


The Faux Glass Base

Cut the base pieces from white cardstock and the panels from green paper. Make an offset of the base pieces and cut them from vellum.

Before assembling, darken the bottom edge of the green panels to represent sediment in the glass.

Curl the base pieces before attaching the green panels.  Align the vellum pieces and bend over the right edge and adhere it on the underside of the panel with clear craft glue on the right edge only.

Before securing the vellum on the other edges add eyeballs and vellum circles. For the circles I used vellum left over from another project which had been 'smooshed' with Distress Oxide Inks.

Make eye balls with circles cut from glow-in-the-dark sticker paper, with smaller circles adhered on top (white card could be substituted). Draw on red veins to the eyeballs if desired.

Continue to assemble the base as directed in the designer's instructions.


The Green Foam

Since the completed base is thicker because of the extra vellum layer, enlarge the lid pieces slightly to compensate (base pieces and panels).

To allow light to shine though the top, add a large circular hole to the top of the lid on both lid pieces with sufficient width to cover the tabs. Cut from white cardstock.

Cut the panels from vellum. Duplicate the 10-sided shape adding a smaller hole to allow the straw to pass through. Cut that from vellum.

Emboss all the vellum pieces with a bubble embossing folder.

Tint the pieces with Cracked Pistachio Distress Oxide Ink.  Adhere them to the main lid piece and assemble the lid.


Additional Decorations

Add a dangling spider to the side of the glass.

Attach small black bats and glow-in-the-dark bubbles to the ends of the firework frill on the straw. 



To Finish
Add a battery-operated white or coloured LED light string. (My lights were bundled with blue and green lights at one end and red and orange lights at the other, I left them bundled as they were).

Turn on the lights, put the lid on, and insert the straw.

Display

I displayed the brew with a 'Drink me if you dare' sign in a black bracket-shaped frame, a layered green paper and vellum background, and words in black sign vinyl.

I think this will make a great addition to my Halloween display this year.


Bye for now,
Janet, DT Member Simply Crafty SVGS

Blog: https://CraftingQuine.blogspot.co.uk

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/craftingquine

Simply Crafty SVG Files:
Beer Glass

Files for Accompanying Stand:
3D Bracket Shaped Frame by Lori Whitlock  
Drink Me Phrase by Rhonna Farrer

Orchid Card using Simply Crafty SVGS Orchid Box Card SVG

Hello, Janet here with a new folding box card. It was a treat to make this SVG file for the Orchid Box Card from Simply Crafty SVGS.

This is a quick and easy card to cut and assemble.  Sandy's version is beautiful in purple, but I made just a few little changes to make it more like the lovely white orchids that I have flowing on my window sill today!

Materials I Used:
White Extra Heavyweight Parchment Vellum 220 gsm (about 150 lb.)
Silver Metallic Card
Heavyweight White Glimmer Card
Copic /Alcohol Markers
Geometric Embossing Folder and Embossing Machine
Beacon 3-in-1 Adhesive
Dimensional Adhesive Pads
Tonic Ball Embossing Tools


Print & Cut

I used the Print & Cut facility on my Silhouette Cameo to make green coloured stems, leaves and buds, and cut them from thick parchment vellum (less translucent than regular vellum).  The secret to perfect print and cut is to add a non-cut margin of colour around the printed shapes, printer's call this a bleed. You'll find more Print & Cut projects here.

Adding Dimension to Leaves and Stems

I shaped the buds with a ball embossing tool and layered them onto the stem using a triangular-shaped piece of dimensional foam between.  I blended some green alcohol marker around the edges of the leaves and added some stripes along the length before attaching to the base with more dimensional foam to open the slit in each leaf.

Colouring and Shaping Orchid Flowers

The flower parts were also cut from parchment vellum with no colour added (they fit on the same sheet as the Print & Cut stems and leaves). The orchid flower centres were coloured with the Copic marker colours shown in the photo. A Google image search on orchid flowers will provide a host of colouring guides.

The petals, sepals and centres were shaped with the ball tools on a soft surface (I used an old fabric mouse mat).

The individual flowers were assembled from the back forward using strong liquid adhesive. I used the ball tool to hold the parts together until the adhesive had stuck.

Card Assembly

The card base pieces were cut from white cardstock and the pot and panels from metallic silver card. The pot and panels were embossed using an embossing folder. The card assembly was very straightforward, following the PDF instructions included with the SVG file.

The finished card will fold flat to fit into regular envelope. It makes a lovely card suitable for so many different occasions.


Bye for now,
Janet, DT Member Simply Crafty SVGS

Blog: https://craftingquine.blogspot.co.uk 
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/craftingquine



Simply Crafty SVG Files:
Orchid Box Card

Alcohol Ink and Vellum Butterfly Card - Faux Stained Glass Technique

Hiya,  I'm featuring a card using one of my favourite card-making techniques on the the Silhouette UK Blog today - faux stained glass!  The Silhouette cuts great frames to show off the pattern variations and rich colours of decorated vellum paper.  I've adapted the card design so that  light can pass through and display the inked vellum to best effect. I used self-adhesive cardstock to give a clean, smear-free finish.

To make the card I used the following:


Butterfly Card #124784 file download by StudioIlustrado

Butterfly Mother's Day Card #59805 for the little butterflies

Silhouette® Cameo 3

Pearlescent vellum from Create & Craft

Tim Holtz Alcohol inks & blending solution

Black medium-weight cardstock

Liquid craft glue

Black Silhouette Adhesive Cardstock

On the full post you'll find details on:

• Preparing the vellum,
• Adapting the card base,
• Making an independent frame for the stained-glass,
• Aligning the vellum insert, and
• Finishing touches.

Oh, and don't forget to use the vellum scraps from around the butterfly to make smaller butterflies to use for other projects. Even the bits rescued from the bin!
 

I hope you'll try this out - the stained glass effect is beautiful in real life.

Stained Glass Butterfly Card

Hello, I've been wanting to make one of these stained glass cards for a while. This one is made from black card and pearlescent vellum coloured with alcohol ink.

The card base was cut from heavy-weight cardstock on my Silhouette Cameo, and then 2 further frames cut from adhesive cardstock. Once the vellum (coloured with two colours of alcohol ink) was dry, I stuck one of the frames on to it, and trimmed around it, sandwiched the vellum with the other frame then mounted the whole butterfly onto the card base.

I made a separate body in the Silhouette software, cut two, and adhered them on on top with the top most one decorated with glitter flock.

The sentiment is a stamp from Lawn Fawn and was stamped in blue Distress Oxide ink and heat embossed with clear embossing powder.

Items Used:
Butterfly Card cut file by StudioIlustrado
Silhouette® Cameo 3
Pearlescent Vellum
Adirondack Alcohol Ink in Aqua
Adirondack Alcohol Ink in Sailboat Blue
Black Heavyweight Cardstock
Black Adhesive Cardstock
Glitter Flock Powder
Lawn Fawn Scripty Sayings
Distress Oxide Ink in Broken China  

The colours and butterfly subject inspiration came straight form the images the Daring Cardmakers May Elemental Challenge. The third element was the texture of the fluffy, kitten on the butterfly's body.

Daring Cardmakers have such great challenges!

Welcome Spring Card - April Elemental Challenge at Daring Cardmakers

Hiya, I have something new for you today. I've been loving the challenges over at Daring Cardmakers, but find the weekly deadline a little tight to fit in with my other crafting commitments. However, I was so taken with the April Elemental Challenge that I dropped everything to make this card. It will also double as an Easter card for my Mum, so I didn't feel in the least guilty.

These are the photos from the Elemental Challenge. I love the colour and image selection, just right for Spring and Easter cards.

I firstly selected to make some daisies from Vellum with added pink tips. I used the 'Print & Cut' facility to make these from a digital file on my Silhouette Cameo (Lori Whitlock's 12-Petal Flowers). Daisy was my Gran's first name, so they hold a special place in my heart.

I added some centres cut from yellow felt - they reflect the colour and fluffiness of the duckling.

Then it was out with the distress inks and a bit of smooshing and flicking to make the double watercolour background. I'd forgotten how much I enjoy using wet colour (and also how stained my fingers get too).

I hand cut the stems and then adhered them to the card, and added a tiny bow of twine (another element from the inspiration).

Finally I added a sentiment in teal metallic vinyl (a free file from the Silhouette Design Store from a few week's ago). I just removed some of the bits that I didn't want by ungrouping and releasing its compound path.

I hope you like the card, I certainly enjoyed making it, and enjoyed the Daring Cardmakers challenge too.

Love is in the Air - Valentine Card with the FREE File

Hiya, Today I have made a Valentine's card using this week's FREE file from the Silhouette Design Store - the Love Is In The Air phrase, Design #176413.  I couldn't resist taking it up into the skies!

WHAT YOU'LL NEED:

• Silhouette CAMEO® orPortrait®
• White Printable Cardstock
• Grey Heavyweight Pearl Cardstock
• Vellum
• Card Adhesive
• Adhesive Foam Pads
• Glossy Accents or similar
• Silhouette Adhesive Corrugated Paper
• Love Is In The Air file download by Silhouette #176413
• Amazing Plane by Echo Park file download #125012
• Cloud Borders file downloads #2320 #173527

Here are my construction steps:

1. Make a rectangular card base in grey heavy-weight pearl cardstock in the Silhouette Design software.
2. Adhere a large rectangle of white corrugated paper to the card base.
3. In the software set up a Print and Cut page and arrange the plane elements to fit into a white rectangle. Add coloured frames or strips as required.  Add cut lines to the outside of the rectangle.
4. Ungroup the quote and rearrange it to follow the line of the banner.
5. Copy the plane and banner and add cut lines around the outside.
6. Print and then cut out the elements on your Silhouette.
7. Cut cloud borders from vellum (I used regular and pearlised vellum).
8. Adhere the rectangles to the card with card adhesive.
9. Adhere the smaller elements to the card with adhesive foam pads.
10. Adhere the vellum cloud pieces obscuring the adhesive behind decorative strips of card or tuck the ends under the rectangular pieces.
11. Add some glossy accents to the hearts.
12. Card complete!

This makes for a fun valentine card.  You can change out the colours or materials for a more masculine or feminine look.

The Love Is In The Air design is available free in the Silhouette Design store for one week from 30th January 2017.

Technical Alert !! For these photos I've been experiementing with a light box. I'm finding it difficult to getting a nice sharp focus. Apologies if this spoils your viewing. Do you ever have photo problems?

Challenges Entered:
Crafting By Designs - February Anything Goes
Crafty Creations Challenges - #334 February Anything Goes 
Glitter N' Sparkle - #226 Love is in the Air

Flamingo Card - vellum printed and coloured with alcohol markers

Hello!

Today I have a feel good card made with the latest SVG release from Sanqunetti Design. This single image is available as an SVG (to use with the Designer Edition of the Silhouette Studio software), a DXF (which can be used with the basic version) and a JPG (for printing).  

The colours of Judy's design are some of my favourites, so I wanted to make my version as close to hers as I could and as the sweet flamingo was wearing a tutu, it shouted VELLUM at me! 

Now, I was feeling a little lazy and the coloured vellum I have doesn't come in shades of the same colour - so I cheated! The skirt and bow are printed onto plain frosted vellum in 3 shades with my regular inkjet printer. 

I wanted to use the Print and Cut feature on my Silhouette for my vellum pieces, but the sensors wouldn't pick up the registration marks from the vellum's shiney surface. To combat this I used a paper mask with the registration marks printed on it, with the centre cut away and placed on top of the vellum. It did register successfully, but because I didn't secure it sufficiently, it did skid around on my mat a little and consequently the cuts were a fraction off. 

I used a Copic alcohol marker to disguise the slight flaws and it was so successful that I used only alcohol marker to colour the ellipse and the little circles. Although I used the same colour of marker for both, they happily ended up with two very different shades and patterns. I'm definitely using markers on vellum again!

The sentiment is cut from my new coral vinyl and is just a shade or two darker than the flamingo's body cut from American Crafts card. Just perfect for this job!

I do hope you like my flamingo card. I'm thrilled that my laziness lead to me discovering a new technique to use. Do let me know in the comments if you've used alcohol markers on vellum and what you made. I'd love more ideas on how to use this winning combination.

The Flamingo Ballerina cutting file is available to purchase now from Sanqunetti Design website and at Judy's Etsy store.

Foil and Vellum Lanterns

Translucent vellum paper can create a magical effect, especially when combined with other reflective surfaces and candlelight!

I have a tutorial on how to make these lovely lanterns over on the Silhouette UK Blog today. The tutorial uses the feathers design lantern by Nic Squirrell, but a similar process could be applied to any of her lovely lantern designs. Using the same feathers design I also made a variation using alcohol inks to add a splash of colour to the vellum. Pop on over to the Silhouette UK Blog for a tutorial on how to make both.

Silver Foil and Vellum Lantern with straight top

Shaped Silver Foil & Vellum Lantern with inks

Shaped Mask, inks and ink applicator

The blue ink is more apparent in day light, but then almost becomes invisible when the candle is lit, battery operated of course.

I hope you enjoy making these too. If do you make the feather lantern, or another lantern design from the Silhouette Design Store, you can share it with the UK Silhouette community by posting a picture on the Silhouette UK Community Facebook page. 

Looking forward to seeing your finished projects. 

SILHOUETTE DESIGNS USED: