NEW 'USING CRAFTY INDIVIDUALS MASKS' VIDEO, AND A HAPPY HALLOWEEN TO ALL...

We have (at long last, I hear you say!) made a new YouTube video, and as suggested some time ago by a reader, this one is all about Crafty Individuals Masks, and simple ways of using them very effectively.

To compliment the video we have acquired the fabulous Sparkle Medium, and Gel, from Imagination Crafts, which we know you will love, and also some Gilding Waxes, from Creative Expressions, both of which you can find HERE on the Crafty Individuals Website - just look at those luscious colours - scrummy, yummy!  I'm just crazy about them!  If you watch the video you will see how you can use both mediums in combination with our lovely masks.

Whilst on the subject of videos, Julie Woodward (you might have watched Julie demoing our stuff before) has a new video out too which is perfect for learning the skills to make Birthday Books (great for Christmas presents), do have a look at it HERE.  I have put links to various YouTube videos down the right hand side of this blog, so you can check back often to see 'whats new'!

Now I thought I would share a 'Trick' (for Halloween maybe?) played on Malcolm and myself this week by little 'Monty Moodle'!?  We were having problems with the materials we use in our stamp making process, so very kindly our friends, Glenda and Adrian (of Chocolate Baroque fame), offered to help us out with some replacement materials which we needed quickly to begin to make up our latest new rubber stamps. 

Glenda and Adrian live over at Barnard Castle, which is around 50 minutes away from our place at Yarm by car, so we (and little Monty Moodle) happily set off to collect the materials from them.  About 40 minutes into the journey our car lost power, a warning light came on, and we had to pull into a lay by.  Whilst we were waiting for roadside assistance to arrive (thank goodness for mobile phones) Glenda and Adrian, again so very kindly, set out to meet us at the lay by and bring us the materials we needed, as we weren't sure how long we would be and whether we would have to be taken straight back home again.

When they arrived we got out of our car to greet them and shut the doors to keep Monty safe and sound inside the car.  To our great surprise and dismay we then heard a click, and found the the dog - bless him - had managed to stand on the central locking system inside the car, and had completely locked us out of the car - with the keys, and the bewildered doggy, unfortunately still inside.

When the roadside assistance eventually arrived the jolly gentleman had to break into our car as well as fix it!!!! Oh dear!

Just look at that sweet, innocent, little face!

Now its about time we wished you all a Happy Halloween - complete with an appropriate image by lovely Lucy - soooo perfectly SPOOKY!

Back soon,

Jean x

TWO FESTIVE WINNERS ....

Thanks all for commenting on my last blog post, and I can now announce the two festive stamp winners chosen at random from the 38 comments.  The numbers picked are 13 and 25, which happen to be 2amScrapper, and Coco!!  Well done ladies, thanks for following, and thanks for your sweet comments, and please do get in touch at info@craftyindividuals.co.uk with your addresses so that we can send off your goodies as soon as possible.

Whilst I am blogging I still have a few more team projects to display relating to our current Challenge (just 4 days to go to link in your image!), and I am hoping to pop most of them on here now, so here we are..

Two projects by Helen Chilton, firstly a spooky little number ..

..Made using our little Shrine Girl, and the second using an image from one of our Glossy Sheets (Time) and the card beautifully coloured for Autumn in Gelatos I believe - very nice indeed!

Followed by another couple of Autumn themed items, the first made beautifully by Brenda Brown..

And featuring CI-287, and the second by lovely Daniele Haddon..

Funnily enough using part of the same stamp in her frame, plus crackle from CI-116, and glittery use of mask 'Floral Border' - cool danglies Daniele!

Brenda has also been in 'Halloween' mode and come up with this fine and creepy delight..

Brenda has featured the three wise Gents CI-077, plus the abbey from CI-286  - looks great doesn't it?!

Before I leave you tonight (Downton Abbey calling) I have 3 creatively cool customer images to share with you.  The first using the Alice bunnies by Rukhshana - who is a little bit obsessed at the moment it seems!!!

The second by the very same lady, this time using the Puffin by Alice..

And lastly a great image from Darlene who was over the moon to see she had made Stampers' Sampler with this creation ..

Well done!

Bye for now - hope you all survive the storm apparently about to lash the UK.......

Back soon,

Jean x

CRACKING ON WITH CHRISTMAS, AND SOMETHING YOU MIGHT LIKE TO WIN....

If your plan is to make a CI Challenge project with a Christmas flavour then the following might be right up your street.  We have nineteen lovely entries to date with 8 days to go - so still time to pop your link in HERE.

The items below all feature our vintage Santa from CI-396:

And this Santa is enclosed in a little shadowbox I made using two swirly frames from our die cut A4 sheet.  With a little simple box inside the frames are great for making little hangings and perfect for Christmas gifts.  I also cut a Starry Christmas Tree from red glitter card to sit at the side and hung a dismantled earring from the base to provide that bit of bling.

At the Port Sunlight Happy Stampers show recently I decorated tags with our masks in my demos.  This is one that I finished off with the vintage Santa stamp when we got home, plus a little ribbon and lace..

Sylvie has also been playing along with Santa, and has made 4 cards in 4 different colourways.  As Santa wasn't always traditionally decked in red robes these are perfect for a vintage Christmas..

Sylvie has also used our Background Paper books, and piccies from our Mini Image Christmas book here, plus the Floral Grid mask to create her lovely cards, and I love how she has kept the colour schemes so beautifully together on each one!

Another project with a Christmas flavour is this pretty decorative word from Lucy - and we all need a bit of 'Joy' in our lives now don't we?!  The pretty little angel here is from CI-211.

*If you would like some delectable Crafty Individuals Christmas stamps (including the two featured above) to start off your festive preparations with a swing, I am delighted to say that we will be putting a little package of 8 assorted images together over the next couple of days which will be posted to two lovely lucky random readers, who follow this blog, and who leave a kind comment on this post below.

*I would also like to mention in this post that if you live overseas in the USA you should now be able to purchase Crafty Individuals rubber stamps in a store near you.  Notions Marketing are currently distributing our stamps over there as well as in other countries too, so do ask your favourite stamping store to get in touch with them to place an order soon!

Back soon - meanwhile thanks for tuning in, and leaving those cool comments!

Jean x

CATCH UP WITH LYNNE .....

Hello everyone

A rather gloomy day here today, so I thought I would brighten things up a bit with a post full of lovely ideas by Lynne!  I have quite a collection and they are truly gorgeous.  A few relate nicely to the current Challenge for October which you will find details about HERE, and there are still 15 days to go to link in Your entry.  I will therefore start off with these cool Santa hangings, perfect to adorn your festive home...

Lynne has stamped the image on gessoed book pages.  The Santa is from CI-396 and I'm loving the corrugated card frill and the pompom!

And then Lynne has also used the other element from the same stamp - the pretty little angel, to make a beautiful soft white Christmas card ..

In the background she has made use of our Elegant Swirl Mask and dimensional paste - very effective!

Next we have a few items using our latest stamps, followed by some detailed shots ....

Stamps used here are CI-387 & CI-389 plus CI-391.

Now I have some images I have had waiting in the wings a little bit longer.  These are all card projects in lovely soft colours....

Great details here, and the stamps used are CI-377 - the dancing silhouette couple, plus the very useful music stamp CI-194.

More fantastic musical notes above, this time from CI-366.  And below we have more gorgeousness - using an image from one of our mini image books, plus elements from CI-341 & CI-342 ...

And finally for tonight another recent project by lovely Lynne - a lovely hanging with seaside stamp CI-397 ...

Hope you have enjoyed the display this evening?!  Please leave a comment if you have.  Keep checking back, and watch out on our website for new stuff arriving in the next couple of weeks.  If you want to be one of the first to know about the new items and the brand new special offers at Crafty Individuals, do sign up for receiving Newsletters which you will find towards the bottom of the Home Page Here.

Good night all,

Jean x

IN AUTUMNAL COLOURS ......

We already have some entries in the October Challenge which you can view HERE, and the weather is turning increasingly Autumnal where we are, with a very cold wind blowing this evening.  After such a lovely Summer it is quite a shock to think that Winter is heading this way.  I thought that with the nip in the air and the trees now changing colour we might focus on team projects supporting the Challenge in Autumnal colours this evening.

With a fun approach towards travelling in style, Gio has had the fabulous idea of 'altering' sleep inducing paraphernalia - and the eyelashes are just fabby!

I think she will cause a bit of a stir on the plane in these, but oh so cool!  Various masks have been used here with sprays I think, and the addition of parts of CI-248, Patchwork Birds and Flowers, stamped over the pattern.  Really nice idea Gio!

Then still by Gio we have a 'gruesome' medicine cupboard for Halloween - but as it is in Autumn colours too I will picture it below -

Poison and Danger CI-360 features chillingly inside here!

Plus a textural card using masks and dimensional paste - a great technique!

Brenda is being very creatively Autumnal with a card full of meadow grasses and flowers -

And a tag too -

'Build a Meadow' used beautifully here!

Sylvie has created an Autumnal angel below using the same stamp, plus our new little angel from CI-396 -

And my final piece of this evening is this fabric delight from Helen -

Gorgeous - bedecked with a tree element from CI-287!!

Thanks all - and please keep those Challenge entries coming in folks ....

Jean x