Adding some sparkle

Have a great piece of paper but want to add some sparkle?

I loved this Paisley paper but I wanted it to really stand out on my card, so using some glitter glue I traced around some of the lines of the Paisley patterns so that they stood out and using lesser amounts of glitter glue on finer details.

I loved the finish and watch this space for how I will use this in a card design!

Using Embossing Powders

This was one of the first techniques I really got into when starting to make my own cards. It was a bit of trial and error to start with but with a bit of practice it really opens up a lot of opportunity to experiment with powders and finishes. It is also a great way of getting a really professional finish to cards.

The main equipment you will need is a stamp, embossing powder, embossing stamp pad, heat tool and optional equipment include a powder trough. The powder trough can be used to catch excess powder and whilst I did use mine when I first started I have now got used to the amount of powder I can use and pouring any excess back into the pot once finished.


 You do not need any particularly expensive stamps but I would recommend that you invest in embossing powder for intricate/detailed stamps if you are using a very detailed stamp. The regular powders seem to work really well for regular stamps.

The following steps will give you an idea of how to make trying embossing a bit easier for you.


Step one - Select your stamp and using your Clear Embossing Stamp Pad coat the stamp evenly before pressing on your card.
If you tilt the card slightly you will see the impression on the card.

Step two - cover the stamp with your chosen embossing powder. I have used a regular embossing powder for this stamp in baby blue. Gently tap the card to make sure that the powder has covered all the stamp detail and then remove the excess by gently tipping back into your jar. A quick final tap of the card will remove any stubborn bits of powder clinging to the card. I sometimes find that using a clean fine paint brush can help to remove the excess powder.

Step 3 - heat the design with your heat tool. If you find that the paper distorts slightly then alternate heating from behind the paper and in front of the paper and I find that this helps even out the sheet.

The finished embossed design:

The above is a very close up image of the finished design but this will give you an idea of the glossy raised finish you can achieve with embossing.
There are a variety of different embossing powders that provide a variety of finishes including fine powders for intricate work, glitter powders that add a bit of sparkle to finished projects and regular powders. All are available in a wide variety of colours making them very easy to use on all sorts of paper projects.

Abbreviation Buster - GSM

The way that papers are graded are by GSM or Grams per Square Metre. It is a great way of gauging whether certain papers will work well for your projects. For many of my projects I use 250 upwards to 300gsm as I find these work well for some of the designs I use. The exception for this is the Pop Up card which is just made from a basic A4 card of approximately 200 gsm which I then strengthen with the addition of stronger card. 

GSM allows you to gauge what quality of paper you are using for your projects so it is always important to double check (especially if you are buying card stock online) as you can be quite disappointed when you choose great looking paper but find it is either to thick or too fragile to use for your chosen project.The higher the number of GSM the thicker the cardstock.

One handy tip to remember is that if you are choosing a really high GSM cardstock that this will effect the weight of your finished card and therefore will have an effect on the cost of your postage so bear this in mind.

I hope the following guide to card stock size will help when choosing the type of paper for your projects.

10-35 gsm:  Tissue-like paper - really light and handy for packing or using for paper mache projects

35-70 gsm:  Very light paper. Nearer the 70 gsm bracket is just slightly lighter than some printer/copier paper. This will work if you are using this paper for adding details to cards but do double check that the glue will not soften the paper too much otherwise you may end up with a very sticky paper pulp on your card.

70-100 gsm:  This is the average paper weight bracket for the paper you’ll find in a copier/printer. It would be the one you tend to get if you are buying a pack of paper from your supermarket or general stationery store. 

100-120 gsm:  Heavier quality paper or light cardstock. This is lighter than average greeting card weight and heavier than everyday printer paper. Suitable for printing but if you are wanting more performance from your card then it would be worth investing in the next weight bracket.

120-150 gsm:  Average cardstock and comparable to a greeting card in weight. 

150-200 gsm:  Heavier cardstock. This would not be the best choice for printing on unless you have a really good quality printer that can take thicker card/paper. This is the type of paper used for creating greeting cards and as a foundation for invitations etc.


200 gsm +: starts at approximately the same thickness that makes up a cereal box. It is really suitable for other home craft projects. This tends to be the weight I go for and upwards as I can emboss, stamp and decorate this type of card without too much worry regarding warping splitting.

When you are choosing your paper you can opt for a variety of finishes from gloss, silk finishes, decorative finishes and sheens but always remember to try a small section of the paper to see how any glues or inks you are using will take to the card. This is particularly important if you do not have a lot of resting time for the card or creating a card in a hurry!

Simple Butterflies

Simple Butterfly Card using coordinating scraps

With this card I wanted to use some of the coordinating papers that I had left from previous projects.

I cut simple strips of paper and using the butterfly punch I cut out a butterfly from the end of each strip. 

After trimming the ends to tidy up the finish I placed the four coloured strips onto the card. 

For this card I mixed up the butterflies at the end of each strip to add a bit of interest but I think that this would work just as well with using the matching butterfly especially if you are using bright colours for your cards.

The card was finished with a simple sentiment stamp at the bottom and I used a thin strip of dark brown paper which I added pearl and faux stitch detail and glued across the centre of the card.

Simple and quick card

Simple & Quick Card

A bit of a follow up from my previous post with the pop up card made using the DCWV paper that I brought.

This one card is really really simple as this sheet of paper was too good to cover up!

I trimmed the card to 15 x 15cm and then added the With Love panel stamped in rocket red gold Dew Drop ink.

This design goes to show that if you have really decorative paper then sometimes it is great to keep it simple and let it do the speaking for you.

I hope you enjoy the finished result.

Pop Up Card

Pop Up Card using DCWV - Vintage Blend Stack

Its been a bit of a grey rainy day on the South Coast this morning so I used this as an excuse to go and find some new papers from our local TK Max as I noticed last time I went there they had a small amount of patterned papers and I have been promising myself to search out papers next time I had a free Saturday morning.

I was really pleased to find the DCWV (Die Cuts With a View) Vintage Blend Stack of 12 x 12 inch papers. These are a real mixture of colours and finishes but all lend each other to a great mix of co-ordinating looks. I decided to make another Pop Up Card using these papers and the purple scrolls used on some of the flaps were 3D Deco, rub on transfers that have been in my craft drawers for ages!
Quite a few of the sheets of DCWV papers had a glitter finish which doesn't come across so well in the picture but the green flowers around the bottom of the pop up card are a teal glitter finish.

I used a couple of the sheets so I have plenty of paper left to create some new cards which I will put on here later.

For Him

This London and travel inspired card used a real mixture of elements. The tickets and printed paper came from a variety of paper packs and again, were reused to add a mixed background to this card. The London taxi cab and Big Ben stickers came from a pack of stickers that I had brought some time back that I had for adding to letters. This was from Suatelier Stickers no 1017 'days in London'. They added a bit of glossy texture to the front card and seemed to fit in quite nicely with the theme.

Suatelier Stickers no 1017 -days in London

The edges of the card were finished off with some sticky fabric edging that I chose to add the red, white and blue theme to the card.

I am hoping that this card will really suit the 'For Him' type of card and I have left it plain inside so that I can adapt this for any occasion.

I would definitely make this one again but I will go for a cleaner edging finish as the ribbon did fray quite a bit, but this was a first attempt so hopefully this will get better with a bit more practice!

My Essentials

I am still getting together the various tools and gadgets but hopefully the few things I have learnt I need to have as my essential kit will help you when you start getting into the hobby.
One really important thing to add here is that you do not need a lot of kit to get started with this hobby. There are plenty of great products out there to try that it is sometimes really easy to forget about the most basic parts of your kit that will make card making a lot easier.

Scissors - whether you are left handed or right handed get a good pair of larger scissors and if you are planning to cut out a lot of small elements for your cards I certainly would recommend getting a small detail pair of scissors too. When I first started I thought I would be able to get away with just one pair of large scissors but I found it quite hard to cut out smaller elements.

Cutting Board - you have probably seen from my pictures of my cards that my cutting board gets a lot of use! The one I have is a self healing board and I use it for cutting, gluing and stamping - basically it gets a lot of wear and tear. It is quite handy to have one that has the various dimensions and rulers running horizontally and vertically as if you are doing small detail cutting out using a scalpel then these act as a good guide.

Scalpel - at first I was petrified of using a scalpel as it brought back memories of dissecting various objects for science lessons but once I got used to the pressure I needed to use the Scalpel and got my confidence up it seemed a lot easier to use than I remembered.

Glue, Glue strips and tape - I have several tools for gluing including a multipurpose tube of glue, square foam pads/strips and double sided tape rolls. I didn't spend a fortune on the glues but I did buy ones suitable for paper crafting. It is worth buying a glue specific for the job but with a bit of searching around the internet I did find it more cost effective to buy in bulk once I knew which ones I preferred.

Stamp Block - I have two sizes of stamp blocks. One for smaller stamps and a larger one for using with larger rubber stamps. Both are clear and have sizing lines on them to make it easier to be a bit more accurate. These are great for starting out with stamps and help get the confidence that you are stamping straight on your card.

Wet Wipes - these have been a vital part of my kit, from cleaning up ink on my work surface, cleaning off stamps and generally keeping my work surface clean and free from unwanted marks on cards. I will always keep a pack close to hand when I am working on a project.

Card Stock - I started simply with some blank card stock to get going. I did make the mistake of using quite a flimsy stock to start with but now I try and get 300 gsm card stock simply because it is strong enough to take papers and embellishments. I still keep the lighter stock as these can be useful if you are sending cards in the post but want to keep postal costs down. By keeping the card simple and without using too many additional embellishments I found that the lighter stock did its job but out of choice I like the feel and finish of 300 gsm.

As I add to my collection I will let you know what new tools and tricks I have found but I hope the above helps with getting you started with your hobby.

Before I forget it is worth having a look at auction sites as people regularly upgrade their tools etc and there can be some great bundles of craft clear outs that can help you get started too.