Autumn or summer? you choose...

Good evening, everyone!

Well, it is Sunday evening at 9pm and I have had a lovely weekend, just the right mix of relaxing but not too much. I have done some shopping and got a nice bargain or two for my daughter to take on holiday soon.

I managed to get some boots with a huuuuuge discount for me too, so I am a happy bunny. I have caught up with friends and a few chores and then in the middle of all that a little of my favourite thing... a lovely card for you all to see. How about you, did you have a good weekend? Are you still enjoying it or are you relaxing in bed after preparing for the next round of rat racing back to work?
If you crafted what did you make? I'm feeling a little inquisitive I think, haha... Well without further ado... Here is my little bit of the opulent I think:

So pretty and girly too...

My backing card was a blank from Craftwork of course as they are so very sturdy and definitely would never buckle like Bambi legs while standing proudly displaying itself oh nooooooo there surely isn't much worse than trying to stand a card and it just sliding down like a drunken sailor down a wall. hmmm random... 

• I took some milk card and die cut the matching Grand label 1 spellbinder.
• Repeated with my Beautiful Creamy Craftwork paper with swirls foiled in gold... (very strokeable) in the next nesting spellbinder. Matted and layered then down with my Collall multi use glue. Seems to give strength and stability to the card front.
• I then took a co-ordinating paper in a more latte tone and tore around three edges and inked them with Lord Tims (ahhhhhhhhh) Distress. I also took a water brush and made the raw pieces slightly wet so I could roll it easily around the edge of a brush but you could use anything tweezers a ball tool absolutely anything you are familiar with using. I adhered this to the right opening side of the card, which I forgot to say is 8x8.
• I took a thin strip of gold mirri which has a leaf pattern embossed into it and ran it down the middle edge of this paper. Not sure why other than I liked it and it called to me.
• Then die cut a D-lite pattern and added it on the left in latte card, also a circle from the same mirri and a CWC sentiment which was mounted on foam to raise it a little. 
• I took some ribbon form Crafter's companion with a ruffled crinkly edge in a champagne colourway which looks so pretty, I made a bow added stick pins and a decorative clay element to the middle, those of you who know me know I just cannot leave a bow naked, I do like to add something and on top of that I added a Candi. I set that aside to dry out while I made a start on cutting my flowers for the bottom.
• I took the same shades of papers and cut some spirals with my Grand Caliber and then sat making them up and curling them, gluing them and getting them to look how full I wanted them. I also cut some random circles out of my ribbon, some medium some small, and stood them on my craft mat, holding them with a metal pokey tool I added heat until the ribbon buckled and melted  a little making it look sooo pretty and then added a sparkly brad in the centre to hold them together. Now, I must thank the amazingly talented and super nice Sue Wilson for this I saw her demo it on Create and Craft and dived right in to try it, it's fab so Thanks Sue. Lastly, for this section I took my Mirri and cut out the leaf pattern by hand just randomly and cut two leaves for either side and mounted it on foam just in the middle for a little shaping, I also added a Candi on each.

My dressed bow .

My Flower section.

Sentiment on Mirri and D-lite in Latte.

• So, after this I glued my bow in place and my flowers too, I finished off with a few Candi but also some pearl swirls cut from one large group of swirls, which was enough to do three different areas of swirls peeping out from the bow etc.
• My last piece of work was to stamp my beautiful personilised Clarity stamp on the back simply saying Designed by Kim. And to decorate the inside as all cards need that to complete them and make them look finished and professional. Below is the inside finished simply and elegantly with Craftwork card's gorgeous papers.

So lastly, I wanted to share some news with everyone, as you all know I am now designing proudly for Craftwork Cards in the UK and having a great time as the team have to be the nicest people I have ever met in craft so far and yesterday I did my first blog post for there blog which was great and very well recieved, it was the same as I posted yesterday on here but if you fancy a look over on their blog all are welcome.

http://craftworkcards.blogspot.co.uk/

Now, I was lucky enough to be chosen to also design for another company called Memory maze this week and I am so super excited. They are based in Australia, and the co-coordinator is Linda Thompson who is very talented with scrapbooking and they make the chipboard shapes used in scrapping and card making, altered art etc. and I can't wait to get started, we are planning for a March start by the time I get my pack so please watch this space, I am sure the eagle-eyed of you will have seen another badge go up on the blog anyway, haha...

Their blog is definitely worth peeping at too and is http://memorymazedesign.blogspot.co.uk/ and there is a feature on me on the first page at the moment, yay!

I think this must be my longest post haha! Sorries if you got bored or yayyyy if you like long posts. Have a super fab Monday and hopefully I will be back Tuesday for more postiness.

Thanks to everyone who left me comments on my Craftwork blog and my facebook /twitter sites. I appreciate every word and will always answer you. Kind words take a moment but mean so very much.

Crafty hugs

Kim xxxx