About Me

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Liverpool, Liverpool, United Kingdom
I have been crafting since May 2008, when in desperation to find an unusual birthday card for my Mum, I gave up looking in the shops and decided to have a go at making my own. I soon realised that crafting is addictive and I haven't brought a card since. In 2011 I completed my certificate in papercrafting as a result of the work I did as part of the course I started entering challenges on line and in magazines. I applied for design teams and also started making samples for Ooh La La Creations for their shows on Create and Craft. I have now completed my Diploma in professional crafting and most recently been runner up in the Papercrafter of the Year 2013 a competition run by Papercraft essentials magazine, I don't have a particular style I like to use elements from lots of styles and techniques, although I do love all things vintage. In 2014 I started to move more towards scrapbooking to take care of the huge family archive of photographs that were stored in my attic. I have continued cardmaking and Scrapbooking through 2015 and 2016 but have also become interested in off the page projects. I hope to be able focus on these in the future.

Monday 23 July 2012

OLL DT Challenge 110 Recipe Card

Good Morning and I hope you have had a wonderful weekend. We had some wonderful entries for the 'Whiskers' challenge last time and you can see the winners over on the Ooh La La Creations Challenge blog. You can also find all the DT inspiration cards for our latest recipe challenge there too.

This time Anne set us the challenge of sticking to a recipe of 1 image, 2 designer papers and 3 embellishments to make our offerings. Sounds quite easy but I found it difficult to come up with a desig, not because I had crafter's block but because there are so many fabulous images on the Ooh La La CD's and I spent a while pondering which one to choose. I finally came up with this .....


The stunning image of the poppies came from the Ladies in Scarlet range on the Carnival of Colour CD. I chose this image because it already had the sentiment printed as part of the frame so meant that I could keep the card simple. I chose the main background paper from the Large Poppies collection on the same CD and then used a wide strip of  green cedar paper from the Creams of Tranquillity CD. I edged the green cedar paper using a Martha Stewart doily lace punch and wrapped it around the main backing paper. I then covered the join with a strip of gingham ribbon and added a bow off to the side. Once the image was in place I punched 4 butterflies out of thin black card and doubled these up to give dimension before sticking them in place.

It was a really quick and easy card to make but I think the image is one of those that is so striking it needed very little in the way of embellishments.

I am entering this card in the following Challenge

http://ppp-makeitmonday.blogspot.co.uk/

Saturday 14 July 2012

It's not every day you open a card to find a Beatle inside.

Bit of a different post from me today, I'm not posting a card I have made but one which has been made for me by a friend who won't mind me saying she is not card maker or paper crafter.

Today I celebrate the big 'five oh' and for a few weeks now all my friend Kirsten has been saying to me at work is 'wait 'til you see the card I've made you'. Well working nights Thursday and having a long weekend has worked out very nicely for once I am not working on my birthday, but the girls weren't about to let it pass without some sort of celebration. So on arriving at work on Thursday night I was greeted with a volley of party poppers and banners and balloons surrounding my desk.

Kirsten told me there were some cards and presents and insisted that I opened a small pink parcel first, explaining that was actually the card she had made for me. Well having carefully peeled the sticky tape off the paper (hey that will make at least 2 card backgrounds) I was confronted with a beautiful velvet covered box, with a row of satin roses along the top.



I was so busy admiring the box that it was a rather excited voice that bade me 'open it then'. I could never have imagined what awaited. All I will say is that Kirsten has managed to pack the things that make me me and have influenced or affected my life for the past 50 years into that box in such a way that I immediately burst into tears I was so overwhelmed by the trouble and care she had gone to. 



Let me explain - I work with Kirsten as a comms officer for the Police hence the crest at the top left, before that I worked in the Control Centre for London Underground - hence the map. I love my garden and when I moved into my current house I designed and with the help of my husband built an entire garden based around   another love of my life, The Beatles, which brings me onto the right hand side of the box.


A patchwork zebra crossing and 4 dolly peg Beatles, recreating the famous Abbey Road cover, which as it happens is one of my favourite Beatles albums. Kirsten has over the years put up with me 'banging' on about the Beatles and I am known as the resident Beatlemaniac in the office. To finish off minature scissors, ruler and glue pot reflect my love of crafting. 

Today I won't be crafting as my craft table is full of cards and flowers.


Tonight I will be off down 'The Cavern' with hubby to see my favourite Beatles tribute band perform, and teh fact that they are also friends makes it even better. 

Once the cards come down I will be adding my beautiful keepsake from Kirsten to my Beatles display cabinet. 

Kirsten has given me permission to photograph and post her work. 

Thanks for reading I'm off to enjoy the rest of my first day as a 50 yr old and normal service will be resumed on my blog tomorrow because I will be posting details of the thank you card that I have made to take to work on Monday. 

Alli xx



Monday 9 July 2012

Ooh La La DT Whiskers

Firstly thank you to everyone who entered our last challenge at Ooh La La creations. There were some gorgeous entries and picking a winner wasn't easy. You can see my top three over on the challenge blog. This week we have gone for 'Whiskers' for the challenge theme which gave me a chance to use the new CD 'Everyday Occasions' it really does what it says on the tin and has every occasion with the beautiful artwork that is synonymous with Ooh La La CD's. Here is what I came up with.




I started by printing the gorgeous mice onto card twice one image I left whole and the second image I fussy cut around the central image panel and then used gel glue to stick this to the base image to give a raised effect. The background was made from three different backing papers. I covered the  card blank with the dark blue paper and then cut strips of the yellow and dark blue papers which I edged using a Martha Stewart doily edge punch before layering alternating strips onto the base. I cut a diagonal trip of the sunflower paper and stuck this to the base panel, before edging with silver peel offs and adding the image panel and a punched butterfly.  To finish I printed a matching insert from the CD and fastened it inside the card.


I am entering this card in the following challenge

http://ppp-makeitmonday.blogspot.co.uk/ - linky party anything goes