Stretching your craft stash – using embossing folders as a stamp

Hi crafty people! I hope you are doing well. I’ve been thinking about ways to get the most out of my crafty stash without always having to buy new things.  I thought a series on ways of stretching our stash to use items in different ways would challenge me to think outside the box and I’d love to hear what other people do too!  For this first post I decided to try using my embossing folders as stamps.

I chose this feather embossing folder which was a magazine gift in the past.  I used some distress oxides to ink the folder in a sort of ombre effect.  I tried just pressing the folder onto the card by hand and also running it through my bigshot machine to emboss as well as stamp the colours.

This first card is the version that was run through the bigshot.  I cut a square panel and added some salty ocean distress oxide ink around the edges.  I added a navy layer behind and a strip of vellum.  I added the die cut dream catcher and feathers and drew in the lines for the strings.  To make the dream catcher fit in I coloured it with the blue print sketch oxide ink.

Here is a closer look at the finished card….

The second version I used the panel which was stamped without being embossed.  For this version I added some nuvo crystal drops to look like little beads on the dream catcher.

Here’s a closer look…..

I hope you liked my cards and that you will share your stash stretching top tips!  I can’t promise it will curb my shopping but it might!

Crafty hugs

Jenny (AKA the Ginger Ninja!) x

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Bingo and a sentiment – Aud Sentiment Challenge #231

Hi crafty people!

There is a brand new challenge today on the Aud Sentiments Blog and it’s a fun bingo challenge, where you must use three elements from any row to create your project.

The challenge is sponsored by the lovely Bugaboo stamps and the design team were lucky to be gifted a digi stamp to make our projects for the blog.

I chose the beautiful Ava the Mermaid and I opted to use the following three elements for my card:

Embossing  –  Digi stamp  –  Faux stitching

I used a Creative Expressions die to cut the frame from navy card stock.  I then cut a rectangle from white card and inked it up using distress oxides in Cracked pistachio, blueprint sketch and broken china plus distress ink in peacock feathers.  I then embossed the bottom of the inked card with a wave design and spritzed the card lightly with some water.

I then added Ava the Mermaid with her fishy friend and some of the bubbles, all coloured with alcohol inks.  I added some faux stitching around the panel and then the sentiment “Make a splash” which was heat embossed in white.

I can’t wait to see what you all come up with for this bingo challenge, there are lots of inspiring ideas from the design team so why not pop over to check them out now at Aud Sentiments Blog.

Thanks again for visiting the Ginger Ninja Crafts blog, I hope to see you again soon!

Crafty hugs

Jenny (AKA the Ginger Ninja!) x

Hi crafty people!  I’m still all about the fairies for today’s project, this time using a die from Joanna Sheen.

This card is my entry for the Freshly Made Sketched 395  and I loved the simple sketch for this challenge.

I also used some stars in the design so I am using it for the Simon Says Stars and/or stripes. 

I paper pieced the fairy to give her silver glitter wings, a star patterned dress and some brown hair.  Then I inked up a circle and did a bocca technique with a difference as I used a star stencil instead of circles.  The sentiment stamp was in a joanna sheen set and I thought it went really well as it even has a little star dotting the i!

I hope you like today’s fairy and that she grants you a fairy wish or three!

Crafty hugs

Jenny (AKA the Ginger Ninja!) x

Nail polish marbling

I thought I would share a couple of other cards I made with my nail polish marbled papers for the Back to basics and beyond challenge

Check out my post from last week to see how I made these papers.  Thanks so much for visiting my blog and I hope to see you again soon!

Crafty hugs

Jenny (AKA the Ginger Ninja!) x

Back to Basics and Beyond – Triple Stamping

Hi there crafty people!  Today there is a new challenge on the Back to Basics and Beyond Challenge and this time we are focusing on triple stamping.  I really like this technique.  It’s a great way to make a smaller stamp into the focal point of a card.

I started with a square of white card and two sunflower stamps.  I randomly stamped these using archival ink in sepia.

Once the ink was dry I cut squares into the panel using some tonic nesting square dies.  I then did the same with some dark green card stock, making the squares one size up from the white panels.

I coloured the flowers using a water brush and some inks (a mix of distress inks and izink).  I stamped the quote from the same stamp set using black ink so it would stand out.  Then I just layered the card up, making sure to match the patterned squares.

Here’s the final card…..

I hope that you get a chance to check out the other design team members projects over at the Back to Basics and Beyond blog and why not join in with your own project?  I’m looking forward to seeing what everyone comes up with.  Thanks so much for visiting the Ginger Ninja Crafts blog.

Crafty hugs

Jenny (AKA the Ginger Ninja!)  x

Feeling springy!

Happy Monday crafty people!  I hope you all had a fab weekend.  We had such unseasonably warm weather that it felt like spring had sprung.  We got quite a bit of clearing done in the garden and bought supplies to get the base made for our new greenhouse so hopefully we will get that up soon!  I also had a very fun shopping trip spending a book token I got for Christmas and I have a lovely stack of new books to work my way through, such a treat!  What were the highlights of your weekend?

Anyway I’m here to share a card which was definitely inspired byt the spring weather.  The card is for the Freshly Made Sketches Challenge which has the following sketch.

I’ve been trying to buy less craft magazines but I couldn’t resist the latest Simply Cards and Papercraft issue as it had a beautiful Altenew daffodil layering die.  Last year in another magazine I got the rose version and I’ve used it lots so that was my justification to buy it!  The magazine also has some beautiful coordinating papers that you can download so I used them too.

I thought it would perfect to send to a friend of my Mum’s who shares the same birthday as me next week so it killed two birds with the one stone!

I hope that you like this little touch of spring and that you are off to a great start with this new week.  Thanks so much for stopping by.

Crafty hugs

Jenny (AKA the Ginger Ninja!) x

Add a button!

Happy Friday crafty people!  How’s your week been?  Have you got fun weekend plans?

We are hoping to start on some of our garden plans tomorrow.  We bought some paving slabs for a patio and a flat pack greenhouse and we need to clear the areas for these.  We also want to get a third veg box and widen our flower beds to have some more planting space and a bit more of a shape to the garden.  We moved into our house nearly 3 years ago and we have a good sized garden but as a new build it was just a blank canvas and we’ve gradually been adding some shape but we now have a grand plan!  It’s going to be quite a bit of work but we are up for a challenge!  On Sunday we are going for lunch at the golf club with my Mum and I’m very excited to be going to the bookshop to spend my Christmas book voucher!

However I’m really here to share a crafty make!  Today I’ve got a card that I made for the Cupcake Inspiration Challenge which is to add a button (how cute are these cupcakes!).

I used to love rummaging through my mum’s button box as a kid.  I seem to remember it was an old sellotape tin which was round and blue.  My button stash is a drawer in some ikea wooden drawers and I still enjoy a rummage!  I picked out three yellow buttons that I thought could be the centre of some pretty flowers.  The flowers are die cut from the Hunkydory Moonstone Fabulous Flowers set and the green flourishes are from a spellbinders die.  I added a little touch of gingham and a sentiment (clearly besotted stamp) and it’s done.

Thanks for stopping by the blog today, I hope whatever your weekend plans are that they get off to a good start.

Crafty hugs

Jenny (AKA the Ginger Ninja!) x

Owl I want for Christmas is you!

Happy Monday crafty people!  How was your weekend?  We had a really nice weekend although I didn’t really get much on the to do list done!

Today I’m sharing my entry for Freshly Made Sketches Challenge (367) and the sketch for this challenge is …

I opted to use the Lawn Fawn Winter Owl stamp set and some papers from my pile I’m trying to use up.  I used a snowy paper for the background and then this textured white cardstock for the front panel.  I can’t remember where I got it but I thought it could almost pass for swirls of snow!

I coloured the owl with alcohol pens and added glossy accents to the eyes.

I hope you like my wee festive owl.  Thanks so much for stopping by and I hope to see you again soon.

Crafty hugs

Jenny (AKA the Ginger Ninja!) x

Freshly Made Sketches 355

Happy Friday!  How’s your week been?  I hope you have a fun weekend planned.  Today I am sharing a card I made for the Freshly Made Sketches challenge, with this sketch….

I’m still loving the Halloween build up so I’ve gone for another spooky theme!  The stamps are from the Whoo to You set from Clearly Besotted Stamps.

I hope that you like my card today and thanks so much for stopping by,

Crafty hugs

Jenny (AKA the Ginger Ninja!) x