Beautiful Card Designs Made Easy

February 07, 2018

Papercraft Essentials 156 - Scenescape

Hi Everybody,

There is a bumper gift on offer with this months Papercraft Essentials 156 that will help you to make some really pretty cards.

There is Pretty Quick Scenescape embossing folder with lovely stamps to enhance the scene.

Or use them to create a background for you instead as I have done with this card.

There is also a beautiful Prima paper pack and the opportunity to get the Little Bird Die & Stamp set just by paying the postage

I did a video a while ago when the Little Bird set was offered as a free gift with Simply Cards & Papercraft and to refresh your memory here is the link to the video for you ....

But this Scenescape set is really versatile and would suit male and female cards ... and all age groups too.
More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

February 06, 2018

Parchment Butterflies

Hi Everybody,

Today's tutorial shows you how I created some lovely Butterflies from parchment and then added them to a card and a box to match. The gold card is from the craft show and I can't remember the supplier/ The parchment is also from the same craft show but I have given you an alternative with Craft Stash ... 
The links are at the bottom of the page for everything else.
This design could be used for any occasion and dressed accordingly to suit. Imagine this as a Golden Wedding Anniversary Card.  A little imagination could make this fit any bill.

Here is the video and I hope you enjoy it with your cuppa.

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

February 05, 2018

Fabulous find ...

Hi Everybody,

I know that many of you are not confident with ink blending and over the years I have tried to show you ways and means to get the look that you like. I have used blending tools ... bought and home made. Sponges and ink blending foam as well as a more expensive range of brushes

But yesterday I went shopping in my local Aldi store and this is what I found in the centre isle.

They are brushes that I thought would be perfect for ink blending and they came in three different sizes.

They were priced at £2.99 per pack


There was one large or two medium or three small ones in each pack and it was the three small ones that I decided to buy.

And because they are so well priced at £2.99 a pack I bought four of them.

The colours on the right of the photo are the inks I blended together with the brushes

You can see the colours that I used on each brush and I was really pleased with the result and they are the best priced item I have ever used for ink blending.

And tomorrow will see me in the store buying some more to use with my Distress Oxide Inks and at that price I can have one for most of the colours that are in my collection.

Always one to share a good find ... if you are UK based then get yourself off to Aldi for your own set of blending brushes.

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

February 03, 2018

Card & Gift Winner ...

Hi Everybody,

Every Saturday I seem to say that it's raining ... and today is no exception.  I have spent the morning in my craft room filming some lovely videos for the coming week and I hope you will enjoy them once they are shown

The draw for the card and gift was late today but has now been done and the inner of the Time For Tea die and stamp set is YOU ....

Kewpi (Sally Morrison)
would you email me your postal address please to
christina@card-making-magic.com
and both will be on their way to you straight away

Please let me know when you have them safely

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

February 02, 2018

Friday Freebie - Time For Tea

Hi Everybody,

A really cute stamp and die set on offer today with lots of inspiration on the back of the pack and in the video

So if you would like to win this combination then all you need to do is leave me a comment at the end of the post.

From those comments a name will be drawn at random and announced in tomorrows blog post so be sure to come back and check if it is you.

Please can you add your full name so that there is no confusion of there are two people with the same first name.

I am happy to send the gift to your wherever you live and it doesn't matter if you have won before

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

February 01, 2018

Another Stamped Background

Hi Everybody,

Using background stamps can be a real time saver especially if you don't have papers or card that matches your design.

For this card I simply stamped the design with Versamark and used white embossing powder on Kraft Card

I coloured portions of the image with pencils.

It was quite relaxing to do it this way and it didn't take me that long.

Once it was done I dotted it with sequins and then add the little sentiment onto a parchment circle

One super easy to make card that can sit in my "To Send" folder until needed 

On another note ... have you noticed the new award in the left hand side bar ?? I have been awarded this because I am at #18 in the Top 100 YouTubers for card making. What an honour and no one was more surprised than me ... but really happy in the process !!

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

January 31, 2018

Creative Stamping 53 - Hello Gorgeous

Hi Everybody,

With Creative Stamping this month there is a fabulous A4 set that will suit all age groups,
occasions and seasons

It will also make cards for men and women and you will have a lot of fun creating scenes with this one too.

The video below shows you how I made a card for the men but there really is a lot that can be covered with this set.

This lovely background was using just the little floral element and colouring it with Copics but it would look equally as good with coloured pencils or water coloured.

It is an excellent way to build up your stash with quality stamps and the magazine gives you many more ideas on how to use it.

So grab your cuppa and relax for a little while as you watch the video making a card for the men in your life

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

January 30, 2018

Shabby Chic with Card Making Magic

Hi Everybody,

As promised here is a little video to show you how I created the Shabby Chic Card that I and so many of you love to do. They are truly cards for the ladies and I don't know anyone that would be disappointed with flowers and Pink has to be one of my favourite colours and so I really enjoyed making this one.

I have used items from "The Christina Collection" and all of it is available at Craft Stash

In the video I have given you a really good tip to save you some money and use something that you would throw away

So you will need to watch and see ....

More tomorrow 

Hugs xx

January 29, 2018

Floral Sketch Stamp

Hi Everybody,

This is another stamp to help create beautiful backgrounds that is available at Craft Stash.

There are ten patterns for you to choose from and this one is the Floral Print Sketch

Yesterday I showed you the Leaf Print and both are really easy to use and can give some lovely results once you start to play.



The video will show you how I created this card and in it I give you the tip about writing down any blended inks that you like and keeping them safe.
 Play with the inks that you have and see what you like  ... keep the list and your inks together and that way you can always refer back to the inks you used to create the blend again.

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

January 28, 2018

Backgrounds - Leaf Print Stamp

Hi Everybody,

Creating backgrounds to suit your designs is always something that I like to do. You can always be sure that it matches

And  getting value for money by using the same stamp in various ways is an added bonus too.

So when I made this card to the right with the new background stamps from Craft Stash my mind was thinking how else I could make use of these lovely stamps.effect

I really liked the Autumn look and the video will show you how I made both of these  with Distress Oxide Inks




I created them with the same technique but cutting the leaves away with scissors in one gave me another look. Both very effective and bright coloured cards that could be ideal for  the men in your family

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

January 27, 2018

Card & Gift Winner

Hi Everybody,

These Saturdays are coming round too fast and it's almost February already. And once again it is raining. I am really looking forward to some nice warm weather and I am hoping we have a good summer this year.

The draw for the Freshwater friends die set and card from yesterday has been done and the name picked at random this week is YOU ...

Diana Lawton
please would you send me your postal address to 
christina@card-making-magic.com
and they will be on their way to you straight away.

I hope you will join me next week for some really pretty cards all created in videos for you to view, and of course another card and gift offered next Friday.

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx 

January 26, 2018

Friday Freebie - Freshwater Friends

Hi Everybody,

Today's Friday Freebie is called Freshwater Friends and the card in the video is not the same one being offered with the gift ... simply because I cannot find it.

But the gift is a useful addition to any collection and you can build your own scenes as you go along.

The video Freshwater Friends is here for you to view and may give you some other ideas on how to use this set

If you would like to win this one then leave me a comment at the end of the blog post and a name will be drawn from them and announced in tomorrows blog post.

Good luck to everybody and don't forget to come back and check if it is your name that is listed

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx


January 25, 2018

Tonic Craft Kit 06

Hi Everybody,

The new Craft Kit from Tonic will be with you in February and here is my take on the beautiful Butterfly die that inside.

The papers and card are gorgeous and the quality is second to none.

And there is so much in the kit that you will be able to make lots of cards using it.

In the pack there are some glass jars of glitter along with glitter pens that will co-ordinate with the papers

The large die makes a beautiful Easel Card and there are smaller butterflies to decorate with and they will work well with the stamps too to create backgrounds to match your designs

The kits are available from Tonic Studios
 UK & Europe  
 US & North America  
More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx


January 24, 2018

Simply Cards & Papercraft 173 - Butterfly Dreams

Hi Everybody,

The gift that is free with SC&P 173 this month is perfect for adding detail to any of your cards and I have had such a lot of fun playing with it.

I am more than happy with all the cards I created and I kept the colours bright and vibrant.

It will make both male and female cards ... depending on the way you dress it, but as usual I enjoy making the girly ones the most.

The embossing folder is just the right size for A2 cards and I have used it to Letterpress several of my designs with really good results

The flowers in the die set are not big but they are really pretty and you can colour them anyway you wish, or simply cut them from Coloured card


The video will show you how to get another 2 fer 1 card by thinking about placement before you die cut

So I hope you have a cuppa and the biscuits ready while you relax and view




More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

January 23, 2018

Aperture Card & Envelope

Hi Everybody,

Today's card is a blue "Thank You" card and because it is relatively flat it doesn't need a box

And so in this video I have used the Happy Mail stamp set to add interest to an envelope

I created a stencil from the Petal Trellis and used Blue Print Sketch to colour the back and front of it

I also used the same ink to add the label on the back of the card from the Happy Mail stamps

Both of these items make the card a little more personal for your recipient

Here is the video ...




More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx