Simple Cards with Beautiful Papers

Make some super simple greeting cards using beautiful papers.

I love making handmade greeting cards for family & friends. Sometimes I spend ages thinking about creating layers, textures, finding just the right embellishments from my stash, but sometimes it's nice to keep things really simple. The other day I had a card making session and made some really simple cards which I think show off some beautiful papers to the max. I had a selection of lovely papers that had come in some recent Mollie Makes magazines and wanted to put them to good use. The papers I used were from these designers: The Printed Peanut Mia Dunton Illustration Jess Phoenix Chloe Hall I pulled them all out so I'm not entirely sure who did which design now - they are all lovely though! 
Because the papers are so gorgeous I just added a sentiment (I either print them on the computer or rescue them from old cards) and a button/thread or two. That was all I felt they needed, sometimes simple is better. 

This one has a greeting printed onto velum which just tucks round the paper before being stuck down.

Here I've used a pretty flower button (also a Mollie Makes freebie) and some embroidery thread.

Super easy, this "Thank you" was cut from an old card I'd received.

Not much needed on these beautiful papers, just a message and a button!

Ooo, I went a bit mad here and added a message, button AND thread! 

There's a little but of glitter round this greeting, just to mix things up a bit.

This paper is too cute to need anything else!

Here I used the leftover bits of paper just to make sure I wasted nothing.

This sentiment is another one which came from an old card, with thread and a button it's dangling down. 

Here's another with a dangly sentiment, button and thread. You could use gorgeous scrapbook papers or good quality wrapping papers (cheap thin stuff just doesn't work) I used Pritt Stick glue to stick down the papers and Anita's Tacky Glue to secure the buttons.
Shop this post:(these are affiliate links so if you do click through and make a purchase the cost to you is the same but Sum of their Stories receives a small commission payment) 

Hopefully you've enjoyed looking through these simple card ideas to use any beautiful papers you might have knocking around waiting to fulfil there destiny to be used to make something lovely! 

Handmade Monday #42

Welcome to another Handmade Monday, our weekly craft link up. 

Handmade Monday is a place to share your makes, bakes and other handmade craft ideas and find some new inspiration.
I've been cheating on my CAL with some other crochet this week, I love multi coloured things but I do hate sewing in all those ends.

Now here are the features from last weeks Handmade Monday:
Apparently autumn is here/on it's way really soon, in the northern hemisphere anyway. My Husband has too many Hobbies shared how to make these lovely little felt pumpkins, I think they are really sweet.

Catherine of Hillview Embroidery made the most beautiful baby blanket with a very sweet embroidered duck. What a gorgeous gift.

Congratulations to you both, here is a "Yay! I was featured" button for your blog.

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Handmade Monday is all about building a craft community, please so take a few minutes to visit some of the other links, leave a comment, and maybe share your favourites on the social media of your choice if you can.
We have a facebook group where we share useful or interesting things so send a request if you'd like to join us. 

The rules for Handmade Monday are simple:

• Did you make it? Yes - hooray, we'd love to see it!
• Add the link to a specific blog post, not your main site URL.
• Link up to 3 posts each week.
• Mingle - visit some of the other links - comment - share - let's support one another and grow our craft community.

If you're not sure on anything, more information can be found here.

 

An InLinkz Link-up

Jackson Mouse Craft Kit Review

Today I have a kit review for you, the Jackson Mouse kit from the lovely people at Amazing Craft.

I was lucky enough to be given a toy making kit from Amazing Craft, in exchange for my honest review. My kit was to make a cute little field mouse called Jackson. If you order a kit in the post it comes in recycled packaging and a sweet little poem to explain. I think it's brilliant!

The kit comes in a lovely organza bag and contains pretty much everything needed to make the mouse. The only things I needed of my own were scissors and some pliers.

Jackson mouse is pretty tiny. He measures about 12cm standing up, and 10cm sitting down so the pieces to make him are pretty small.

You receive the paper pattern and fabric, so the first job is cutting it all out. Placement advice is in the instructions, just as well as I almost cut one leg piece with the fur going in the wrong direction! I used a water erasable fabric pen to mark my pieces and things like the dots for the joints. Then it's just a case of handsewing it together. There is no way I could have used the machine to sew him up, I don't have that sort of control! This took me 3 sessions of about an hour at a time. I was catching up on tv programs we had missed whilst on holiday so depending on the excitement of the programs I may have stitched more or less in each hour. The face is just a little stitched nose and glass eyes which are provided.

The kit contains little cotter pins to give the mouse moveable joints so I needed my own pliers to secure them. It was a little bit fiddly but not difficult.

A fairly quick and super cute little make - though I do say so myself. 

Isn't he sweet? He has little metal beads in his body that give him a lovely weight too.

Amazing Craft advises not to use the glass eyes if you want to give this to a small child. I think he is more suitable for an older child or adult really anyway. Someone who will appreciate him and all the hard work that went into making him. These kits retail at £25.00 or you can buy just the pattern and instructions for £6.99. Amazing Craft is a UK based company, they do ship the kits worldwide but it is quite pricey. The pattern is totally reuseable and they sell cotter pins and eyes very inexpensively so you could easily make more Jackson mice if you wanted to. They also have links on the website to video tutorials for the tricky bits which are really helpful. All in all I'd say this is a great little kit. This one is suitable for someone who has some sewing experience but Amazing Craft have loads of other kits to choose from too. 

Handmade Monday #41

Hello everyone and welcome to Handmade Monday, our weekly craft link up. 

Handmade Monday is a place to share your makes, bakes and other handmade craft ideas and find some new inspiration.
I've spent the week with some fiddly handstitching - more on that later in the week - and I've been cracking on with my Tea on the Green CAL.

Details of the CAL are on the Hobbycraft blog and the Tea on the Green facebook group if you fancy joining in.
Now for the features from last weeks Handmade Monday:
Suzer Space shared a lovely fern that you just can't kill - it's made of paper. Perfect if you don't have green fingers!

Our kids would have loved this pokeball cosy for their apples when they were at school. There is a free pattern too, all from Neli Designs.

Chris from Made by Chrisse D has such a great collection of sewing ideas for back to School, I want to make all the things! 

Congratulations to you all, here is a "Yay! I was featured" button for your blog.

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Instructions: Select all code above, copy it and paste it inside your blog post as HTML

Handmade Monday is all about building a craft community, please so take a few minutes to visit some of the other links, leave a comment, and maybe share your favourites on the social media of your choice if you can.
We have a facebook group where we share useful or interesting things so send a request if you'd like to join us. 

The rules for Handmade Monday are simple:

• Did you make it? Yes - hooray, we'd love to see it!
• Add the link to a specific blog post, not your main site URL.
• Link up to 3 posts each week.
• Mingle - visit some of the other links - comment - share - let's support one another and grow our craft community.

If you're not sure on anything, more information can be found here.

 

An InLinkz Link-up

4th year Blogiversary

Oh my word, it's Sum of their Stories' 4 year blogiversary this week. How is that even possible?

It's got me reflecting on the changes that have happended around here in the last 12 months. Sum of their Stories has had a blog makeover from the lovely Linda from My Fairy Blogmother. I was lucky enough to win the makeover in a competition Linda ran back in March this year but she offers a quick and comprehensive service to both Blogger and Wordpress bloggers.

When I had the makeover I did keep my original blog header though, every time I think it needs an update someone leaves a message saying how much they like it and so it stays!
In November last year I took over the hosting of Handmade Monday from Victoria of Lucy Blossom Crafts. I hadn't really planned it but it ended up just happening somehow and after a very steep learning curve on how to host a linky I have to say, it is a lot of fun. 

The downside is I feel very responsible to make sure I write and schedule it in time so it goes up at 5pm Sunday UK time, glitch free. I also find it ridiculously difficult to pick features, most weeks I have at least 6 or 7 things I really, really love to choose from. Kind of 'Sophie's Choice" but not quite so dramatic! The upside is I get to see loads of great an inspiring blogs every week, and have made some great bloggy friends. I've even been lucky enough to meet some in real life. We have a Facebook group and a group Pinterest board and are trying to build a supportive and collaborative network where we share hints and tips, interesting things we've found as well as each others posts. Do join us if you fancy it! Being a blogger now feels like part of who I am, there is still so much to learn, things are always changing (social media algorithms I'm looking at you!) I always feel like I'm playing catch up. 

These last 4 years have flown by, here's to the next 4! Thanks so much for stopping by.