Handmade in Windsor Lab

Hi, I have been challenging myself to use all the stamps I have never inked before, so I have been stamping on all my scraps ready to use up with different techniques. For anyone who has been crafting for a while, we often get so caught up in all our lovely stash that we don't get on and make things. For anyone new to crafting, you. might not have all the amazing stash that you see long time crafters using. Today I thought it would be good to use minimal supplies, and see what I could come up with. The kraft flowers look brighter in day light than on my desk, scroll to the end if you would like to see them in natural light (I have no natural light in my craft room so rely on a daylight lamp.) Today I used the Altenew Amazing You stamps set and matching dies - I bought this set from another crafter when they were de-stashing, because I loved the sentiment that I used on the cards today. I started with my stamped scraps, using every stamp in the set, except the sentiments, on white s...

Hi, Today I am going to do a review of the new Altenew Modern Blooms magazine box set Volume 1, along with making three cards and using the stamps, dies and stencil that come in the box set. I do a full start to finish demo of all three cards in my Youtube video that you can find linked here . If you don't like chatting on videos, feel free to mute me (I won't be offended) and listen to your own music, I have added captions for most of the information.   I tried to use minimal supplies, except for what came in the box set, so if you are new to Altenew, or layering stamps, you could see what you would need to get the most out of your magazine kit. This is everything I used, except for basic tools and card stock/ card blanks, and the dies that came with the magazine, which I missed out of the photo!  If you are new to layering stamps, you will need inks in three or four different shades of the same colour to use these stamps in the classic layering way that they are originally m...

Hi, So I was inspired, once again, by Jennifer McGuire to try out a fast watercolour technique using Ranger Distress and Distress Oxide Inks on watercolour card. The Altenew Beautiful Heart stamp set (July 2018 release) had the perfect flower outline and leaves to try it on, but the technique will work with any outline stamp. One of my completed cards. The technique gives a really fast watercolour look to your images, and I did a quick video showing how to do it. You have to use a watercolour card for this technique, as you will soak the paper with water. Other cards will tend to end up all buckled if you try it with them. Distress Oxide and Distress Ink comparison You could do any colour of heat embossed outline to act as the resist, but I used Heat It Up! Silver Pearl embossing powder that I have had for years. The Distress Oxide inks give a more matt, chalk look than the Distress Inks, but I like both! It does look like a mess when you are waiting for them...

Hi! I decided to make a second card with the Altenew Needlework Motif stamp, keeping it in the same place on the card, just using a different colouring technique. This time I went for water colours and used my Gansai Tambi water colours. These are really thick creamy water colours so you can get really strong colours with them as well as the more traditional wash type looks you get with many watercolours. Lovely splatters to hide where I got a finger print! Here's a video quick video of how this one was done. You might want to speed it up to double speed which you can find under the cog on a computer, or under the 3 dots in the top right corner on a mobile device, unless you like to relax and watch people colouring in! The embossing acts as a resist for the paint, so it doesn't go outside of the lines, so it's a fun thing to paint without having to concentrate too hard! Don't forget to use an anti-static bag before stamping with embossing ink. Lesle...

Hi! I mentioned in my last blog that if I was going to recreate the card Tasnim did at the Altenew Workshop using the Needlework Motif stamp, I would heat emboss it rather than hand outline it, so I did! Ignore the excess powder, I forgot my anti-static powder! Here's a video of exactly what I did, I used the other stamp from the set just to change it up a bit. The technique is the same as the one we used at the workshop, up to the embossing part, at the workshop we hand traced around the card with a Sakura Metallic Jelly Roll pen, which I found pretty time consuming. Even double embossing the stamp and heat embossing the sentiment, I think this was faster and gave a similar effect, it its still a single layer card without any real dimension so would post nicely. You don't need to be too careful with your colouring as you cover up the edges with the embossing at the end, the same applies if you are going over the stamp with a pen. Don't forget to use an...

Hi! Yesterday I was lucky enough to go to the Altenew day long workshop in Daventry that was held ahead of the One Big Show event they were attending. If anyone knows the company, they are famous for their floral layering stamps that I have demonstrated at a couple of craft fairs while out and about with Handmade In Windsor stalls. We got to make 6 cards and a scrap book layout, with Lydia, Lillith and Tasnim (who owns Altenew and was over from America.) I thought I'd share the things I made today and give a sneak peak of the stamp sets we got as part of the workshop that aren't out until next month (July 2018). First up was Lydia's 3 cards... This is the photo I took during the workshop....  And here's some better shots of the cards I took when I got home... First up was a single layer card using the Life is Awesome stamp set We only had blue and pink inks from the Floral Ink Set and the Sweet Dreams set, so the purple flower was created by simply ov...

Hi! Today I am sharing a video I made of how to use dies to make a partial die cut edge on a card. This is a lovely technique for keeping your card to a single layer, or to add dimension while keeping the base layer more interesting with images popping off the edge of your card. This is the first card I made with the technique using Altenew's Lotus Flower stamps and matching dies. This card had some extra dimension, but could have been made as a single layer card. You do need dies to do this technique, unless you wish to hand cut stamped images with a craft knife! Here's the video which best shows how to do this: I showed the finished single layer card I created at the end of the video, here's a few photos of it in progress. I did a quick follow-up video of how I applied the blue wash in distress ink on this card, and finished it off with a die-cut greeting that I stuck flat to the card on vellum that I fussy cut as a layer. Here's the...