Thursday 30 June 2011

And there's still some left!



Laura has created a lovely card again from the same kit and there is still some decoupage and backing papers left. Some of you have obviously seen the cards on display in the shop and been impressed since we only have one pack left!!! It does help to see the kits made up doesn't it? Well done Sofia, Vi and Laura!

Another creation from Vi



Yet another card made using the same Tulip decoupage pack and Vi has also added glitter card and ribbon which really makes an impact. Well done Vi.

Another Tulip



This pretty card has been created by Laura (AKA Flossie) and she also has used decoupage and backling papers from the same pack as Vi and Sofia. There are four sheets of decoupage and 4 sheets of backing papers in this kit which is really good value for only £2.99. Laura has only added some glitter card and ribbon.

Vi's Tulip Creation



Another lovely creation from Vi using one of the decoupage sheets from the same pack that Sofia used last week. These decoupage sheets and backing papers are very pretty indeed.

Thursday 23 June 2011

Sue The Kanban Queen




Another stunning card from Sue using one of the Kanban Elegant Ladies kits. Sue really enjoys decoupage and loves Kanban products - she is our Kanban Queen!!! This beautiful card has been made entirely from one of the kits with nothing added. Well done Sue particularly since you have made this and all the other cards whilst wearing a very fashionable wrist support!!

Sofia's Tulip




Sofia has created this gatefold card from the same decoupage kit and all she has added is the cardstock for the base card. This kit is really good value as even after making two cards there is still enough decoupage for at least another two cards and loads of backing paper left. Well done Sofia but this does not mean that you can 'go on strike' as you said you were going to. There is tons more creativity left in you and we want to see more!!!! I just need to add that Sofia has also made up one of the Christmas kits and these will be shown in a later post.


Sofia took the Challenge!!!



Following the comment that 'Sofia was lagging behind' she decided to show us just what she can do....


The above card has been created using the decoupage kit from the Tulip Range and all Sofia has added is a piece of the polka dot card and some pale green chiffon ribbon and the result is very pretty indeed.


Another creation by Sue



In this card Sue has used one of the Kanban designs aimed at teenagers and she has decoupaged the image and layered it onto polka dot card (you could also put plain card through the cuttlebug with the Swiss Dots folder to create the same effect) and punched the corners with a corner punch. She has made a card base using pearlescent cardstock and decorated the corners with peel offs. The sentiment is also a peel off. A perfect card for a teenager!!!

Sunday 19 June 2011

Popcorn Bear

This card has been made using a decoupage sheet printed from the Floral disc in the Popcorn the Bear Triple CD. The background papers are also from the same CD. The swirl has been cut on the Cricut and the decoupage was layered onto a die cut from one of the Spellbinders Nestabilities range. The large flower was cut using one of the Creatables dies. The card base is from a pack of Craft UK 8 x 8 scalloped cards and envelopes. These are currently a favourite as there is just enough room to add extra elements without overcrowding the card. The ribbon is a white chiffon that has been coloured using ProMarkers.

Tatty Teddy

This card was made by Sue using one of the A4 Card Kits from the Me To You range. The photograph does not really do the card justice as it has an unusual front opening and is very pretty indeed. There are lots of elements included in the pack and it is possible to make at least 5 cards from one pack.

Floral Card

This card is another creation from either Vi or Laura and they have used more of the free papers from the latest Creative Card Making Magazine. The shape of the card is perfect for the floral panels and the sentiment provides a finishing touch.

Craftwork Cards

These cards have been provided by Craftwork Cards as examples of what you can achieve with the latest stock we have received from them. As you can see the papers are very pretty pastels and we have matching Card Candy too.

Cameo card

Another lovely creation from either Vi or Laura (I will have to encourage them to sign the back or something so that I know whose work it is). This card was made again using free papers from one of the Making Cards Magazines, so many different effects can be achieved with these papers and just a little imagination!



This card has been created using the free papers in an earlier edition of Making Cards Magazine - I think it is either the April or May issue. These magazines are certainly an economical way of making cards and the results can be stunning! I'm not sure if it was Laura or Vi who made this but well done anyway!

Butterfly card

Hello again, it's been a while but I haven't really had the opportunity until now to photograph all the delightful cards that Sue, Vi and Laura have been busy creating - shame on you Sofia you are lagging behind!!!


This very pretty card has been created using the free papers in the latest edition of Creative Card Making Magazine. I think the designs are from Hunkydory and they are very pretty indeed.

Monday 13 June 2011




These two cards have been created from the Especially For You A4 Card Kit. The large one was made simply using the decoupage and backing paper included in the kit and the A4 card also included. The greeting was from the kit and a glittered 21 peel off was added to finish it off.


The other card was made using the decoupage elements that were left over and this image was added to one of the 8 x 8 scalloped cards from Craft UK. Oddments of striped paper were used as a background but you could use any that you have available. A white border was cut from a Spellbinders border die to create the illusion of wallpaper. There are four further card toppers included in the kit that could be used to make four more cards.

Forever Friends



Good morning


Hopefully you all managed to have a good weekend, despite the weather!!!


This is the card Sue has done for her husband on their anniversary which is today - Happy Anniversary Sue and Tony. It is just one of the cards that can be made from the Forever Friends A4 Ultimate Decoupage Card - Greetings Male Relations. Sue has only used the items included in the kit to make this lovely decoupaged card and there are lots of extras available to make more cards from the kit.

Friday 10 June 2011

Another of Sue's creations



Another lovely card from Sue. She has used another of the Kanban birds and layered this onto a cream card base. Peel off corners and a sentiment have added the finishing touches. This card is not crooked, I am afraid this is down to my dodgy photography - sorry Sue.

Sue's bird



Sue has made this card using one of the Kanban bird collections and has layered the image onto blue pearlescent card she has then added peel off corners to finish. These images are very pretty and Sue has made a terrific choice of colours - well done Sue.

Thursday 9 June 2011

Sofia's card




This beautiful card has been created by Sofia using the remaining images from the Kanban pack she used in an earlier post. She started with a cream hammered card base and layered onto this a piece of purple and a piece of gold card. Over the top of the layers and continuing down to the base of the card is a piece of cream Asarakusui paper and then the decoupaged image has been added over the top. A piece of cream ribbon with the words "Happy Birthday" completes the card.




The Asarakusui paper has a web like texture and costs £1.07 per sheet but a small piece can make a big difference to a card.

Wedding card





This wedding card has been made from one of the packs in the latest Kanban collection and the only additions are a small bow and a piece of organza ribbon. The photograph does not really do justice to the ribbon which in reality is simple gorgeous.



Wednesday 8 June 2011

Fizzy Moon Stamps





Another Fizzy Moon card today. We have used Kanban Superior Brilliant White Stamping card for the stamped image as this takes alcohol ink pens such as ProMarkers really well. The image was stamped with a Memento Tuxedo Black ink pad and coloured with ProMarkers and the edges were created using a Distress Ink pad and blending in from the sides. The shape was made using one of the Grand Nestabilities dies. The other papers used were from the Designer Pack that is one of the prizes in the competition mentioned earlier and Fizzy Moon Celebrations 6 x 6 designer papers. Glitter was added to the image for a sparkly effect. The two accents were cut using one of the Spellbinders Borderabilities dies and the gems were from the Kanban range of Diamonds and Pearls.


Tip: Create co-ordinating layers for your matting and layering by colouring the edges of white card with the same coloured ProMarkers used on the stamped image.


Hope you like the card.

Laura and Vi have done it again!































Laura and Vi were asked to make up some cards using the free papers in Making Cards Magazine and as you can see they have done a brilliant job again!!!

Sunday 5 June 2011

Competition Time





This card has been made using one of the Fizzy Moon clear stamps that have recently arrived. The image was stamped onto Neenah Cardstock and then coloured with ProMarkers. It was then cut out and layered onto a white square that had been punched with a Martha Stewart Around the Page Punch. This was then layered onto a sheet of the new designer papers (120 double sided sheets for £9.99) which was coloured around the edges with ProMarkers to complement the colours of the stamped image. Gems from the Papermania range, a ribbon bow and a sentiment using Safmat were added to embellish the card further.


News as promised earlier:


Readers of the latest Creative Cardmaking Magazine will be aware of the competition currently being sponsored by Strikes with a prize of over £500 worth of crafting goodies to be won. All you have to do is send your name, address and email on a postcard to:

Creative Cardmaking 29,
The Craft Shop,
Practical Publishing,
Unit 1 Adlington Court,
Adlington Business Park,
Macclesfield,
Cheshire, SK10 4NL

to be in with a chance of winning the following:


60 sheets of 12 x 12 double sided designer paper
5 Letraset ProMarker pens
1 card kit that includes embossed cards, envelopes and embellishments

There are five sets to be won so have a go. Good luck.









Where did the sun go??? They told us we were in for a scorching weekend but it disappeared so quickly!! Still at least it is not raining - at the moment.



Another Kanban card today, just one of two options in this particular pack. There are a couple of additions to the kit though. The image has been layered onto a piece of white card with the edges coloured with a Soft Green ProMarker to match the image. This was then added to a piece of the same white card that had been embossed with a Creative Expressions Embossing Folder through the Cuttlebug as the swirls were almost the same as on the background card provided in the pack.


A small strip of the background card, with a border from a Spellbinder die added on the bottom, was glued to a cream card base and then the completed layered image was placed on top using Pinflair Gel. One of the sentiments included in the pack was added along with a bow created from seam binding that had been coloured with the soft green ProMarker.


Back later today with some exciting news and hopefully another card for you to have a go at.

Saturday 4 June 2011






This card has been created by the lovely Sofia using one of the latest Kanban designs. The only thing that has been added to this card is the ribbon bow since all the elements are included in the pack. Sofia has used Pinflair Gel to put the elements together and then mounted the image onto the decorated background card using Photoglue. Sofia has not been making cards for very long so she has done really well with this one.




Well I think we are having one of our rare sunny summer days today although I believe it will all change again tomorrow - two days in a row is a lot to expect!!!!



Our project card today is from our very talented art student Laura and as you can see she is extremely creative and has oodles and oodles of talent. Laura designed this card from bits she found around the workshop and the 3 Dimestional Die Cuts that Vi also used yesterday. Isn't she brilliant? Well done Laura.

Friday 3 June 2011

Welcome








Hello and welcome to the very first post for Purple Butterfly Crafts. This is a very new venture for us and we are still learning all about how things work in 'blogger land' and since this is a steep learning curve, please bear with us and hopefully we will improve as we go along. I just want to say a very big thank you to Dawn for all her help in setting this up and for her patience during the process, her amazing blog was my inspiration. x


The main purpose of this blog was to give all our customers the benefit of the knowledge we have gained over the past few years in the hope that it will go some way towards making this very addictive hobby more enjoyable, with less pitfalls. Over the years we collectively have made hundreds of mistakes as we strived to achieve the perfect card, scrapbook page or knitted garment and we hope that you will be able to benefit from the tips we have picked up along the way.


If you are a newcomer to the world of crafting then we hope we can help you as it is very daunting when you first enter a craft shop and are surrounded by so many interesting but complicated looking items. From experience, we believe it is best to try and restrain yourself and learn to walk before you run! This is difficult and it is very tempting to purchase everything at once without thinking when, where and how often you would use an item. Most crafters would agree, we all have items in our collection that may not have even been opened. We have all bought something in the past that we thought was wonderful only to get home and not know where to start using it!! We will try and help you.


Here at Purple Butterfly Crafts it is our aim to help everyone make informed decisions about all of our products. We do not know everything there is to know and we continue to learn since new products are emerging daily but we try to keep up and if we don't know then we will try to find someone who does.

We will try and give you a project regularly which will list all the products we have used and hopefully this will give you some inspiration to have a go yourself. These projects will be made by someone within the craft shop and please feel free to replicate any of them. However, please do not use our projects for challenges, competitions or submissions to magazines.



Today's project is a card that has been made by the lovely Vi who has only been crafting for a short time and she was tasked with making her own creation using the 3Dimensional flower die cuts that have recently come into stock. She also used a small piece of card embossed with butterflies and some oddments that she found in amongst our workshop materials. Then she added some gems and a piece of ribbon to finish it off. Didn't she do well!!!

Please leave your comments on our blog as we would love to hear from you.