Flashback Friday 24.0

This month's prompt at Flashback Friday is to post your first masculine card.

This was made for Paul's Grandad in August 2003.

He sadly passed away on the 30th May last year and loved my cards so this is quite a fitting tribute to him as we approach the 1st anniversary of this sad event. 

He was renowned for loving a real ale so for the 1st handmade card I gave him I wanted it to be personal for him. I had cut a template out of card to make a 'pint' glass and cut a piece of shiny acetate and placed some textured brown paper behind to emulate a glass of beer. I used some cotton wool for the frothy head at the top of the glass and handwrote cheers in permanent marker on the acetate.

The base of the card was a sheet of bronze pearlescent card and I used some gold paper for the matted layer and trimmed the edges with patterned scissors.

The sentiment was written on the computer and matted and layered on more of the paper.

When I look back at this card it seems so bare... perhaps because there were no patterned papers around at that time in the UK. Cardmaking was just starting to create a buzz and materials were not so readily available. You really had to think outside the box and be creative with other materials. I remember being so proud of this card and waiting frantically for the reaction when Grandad opened it. I have to say that I am still as excited now to see people open their cards and I hope that my joy in this never goes away.

It probably sounds corny but a little bit of me goes into everything I make. I love cardmaking in general but especially love it when I am making something that is quite personal for a particular person. The day I don't enjoy that is the day I should pack up cardmaking for good. I for one hope that never happens J

Flashback Friday 23.0

The prompt for this month at Flashback Friday is to post the first card you made with Butterflies.

This card is the second card I made way back in December 2002. I had been to a knitting and sewing show at the NEC in Birmingham in November and had been inspired by a demo to 'have a go' at cardmaking thinking it would be cheaper to make my own rather than buying shop bought cards......how foolish. We all know it's not cheaper but way more fun J

The aperture card blank was from my Cross Stitch days and I sandwiched the gold crepe paper in between as the background (I still have that roll in my stash somewhere!) I added a scrap of card and a mulberry paper rose with a gold bow.

In those days peel offs were the only way to add a sentiment and I love butterflies so of course had to buy lots of them. 2 are stuck straight down and the other 2 have dimensional wings flapping from sticking 3 identical symetrical butterflies together, the fisrt technique I had picked up from the demo I had watched.

I'm glad to say my photography skills have got better!! I took photos right from the very start of my cardmaking and how glad am I as I can share this little gem with you J

If you are brave enough to re-post your very 1st Butterfly card hop on over to Flashback Friday and link your card up, it can't be worse than mine!

Flashback Friday 15.0

Over at Flashback Friday the challenge this month is to show your 1st Fall or Autumn Card.

This is actually the very 1st card I made that wasn't a cross stitch card way back in October 2002. I had gone to a Needlecraft show at the NEC with my mate Julie and we saw a demonstration on a stand and they were making cards. I was so enthused and thought I could have a go that I bought loads of goodies home with me and so the obsession was born.

This card was made using an aperture card with some angel hair as the background. The leaf is one that was from a floristry spray and has an almost leather like quality to it. The gold trim around the aperture is curling ribbon and I have then put a trim of gold peel offs around that. You may be able to tell, but the sentiment was handwritten.

This card was given to my work colleagues at Allied Carpets to thank them for the gifts they gave me when I left. I had worked there for over 11 years and had handed my notice in as I needed a change of direction and didn't want to work in retail any more.

Looking back I am so glad that I took photographs of all the cards I made. It has become an amazing record of my improvement and achievements over the years but also many cards have specific memories associated with them. I am however extremely grateful that there are a lot more gorgeous 'made for cardmaking' papers and accessories available now than there were nearly 10 years ago.

Thanks for the memory Flashback Friday  :)

Flashback Friday 11.0

Over at Flashback Friday we have been challenged to share our 1st wedding card.

This card was made in September 2003 for one of the ladies who worked at our Bristol Head Office. I hadn't been making cards for all that long and there weren't loads of patterned papers around like there are now. I made my own backing paper by printing onto a pearlescent vellum that I had and also printed out the name of the bride and groom to make it more personal. The silver horseshoe shape was a cake decoration and there is a mixture of confetti shapes and peel offs for the rest of the decorations.

It's really weird how so many years have passed and I remember the look of delight Jane had when she opened it. I am glad to say that the happy couple are still married and that's good going these days :)

It has just struck me as well how some challenge blogs are heading back to a more clean and simple style of cardmaking but really that is all we knew in the old days because we didn't have all the stuff we have available to buy nowadays.

Flashback Friday 8.0

At Flashback Friday we have been asked to show our 1st ever 3d Project.

Once I started making cards and selling them my work colleagues would come to me to ask me to make special items that we could all sign when a colleague left or had a special even like a baby or wedding.

I had made a lovely card when Katie (in photo above) got married so had to make sure it was special again for when she was expecting her 1st baby to be born. I had found out she had decorated the room in yellow not knowing if it was a girl or a boy so using a shop bought frame I cut a mount and painted it with yellow emulsion paint ( I used some leftover from my kitchen, it's a lovely sunshiny yellow)

I carried the 2 pieces of card around with me for weeks getting everyone's signatures. I remember I had marked a border in pencil and told the they must stay within these lines so I could fit it into the frame. You honestly would not believe how many people wanted to write on the outside !!

I made a collage in the centre of various baby bits and pieces trying to keep to the yellow theme as much as possible.

As you can see Katie was delighted with it and she used it again when she had her second baby. She has got 2 beautiful boys now.

I am very proud of it as it was so personal to the recipient. Being able to create something beautiful that brings such happiness to the giver and the receiver is the whole reason I love to make such things.