Latest posts from Merly Impressions

Hi again!! I’m back with my second card for this month, using the fabulous Suga Pop collection from Kaisercraft.

For this card, I decided to make a wardrobe style card and I hope you like it…

To begin with, I created the basic wardrobe style card and then I used papers from the 6.5″ Suga Pop paper pad and matted these onto Ballet Weave Kaisercard, to cover the outside “doors” of the card. I made and added pinwheel rosettes onto the front of the card and I also used the bunting, a message and owl die cuts from the Collectables pack.

To create the inside of the card, I began by using the owl on the tree scene from the Raspberry Drops 12 x 12″ paper and matted this onto a piece of the Soda Paper before sticking the completed matts and layers onto the back of my card. I then added papers on either side from the 6.5″ paper pad.

As finishing touches to the inside of the card, I added the trees and bunting from the Collectables pack and a little birdie from the 12′ Sticker Sheet. Finally, I added Aqua adhesive rhinestones onto the trees and I stamped a message from the YOU clear stamp set.

As always, I really hope you’ve liked what I’ve created and I’ll look forward to reading all your comments.

Thank you so much for stopping by and see you again, next month…

Emma xx

Hi everyone!! Can you believe that we’re already in March, and that it’s already time to share this month’s creations with you all…where does time fly to? This month, I got to work with another must have collection from Kaisercraft ~ Suga Pop and if you like, owls, hearts and gorgeous Spring colours, this collection will not disappoint you!!

Here’s the first of the cards that I made…as always, I hope you like it!

To create this card, I used a piece of the Soda 12″ x 12″ paper and I cut an aperture window into the paper but where I diagonally cut to create the window, I rolled back the paper, to give a paper roll frame. I then added the I<3U message into the aperture and matted it all onto a piece of Pistachio Weave Kaisercard.

Using the Tim Holtz Tattered Florals die, I made and added handmade paper flowers, using paper in the 6.5 x 6.5″ Paper Pad. I also created pinwheel rosettes from a piece of the Rock Candy 12×12″ paper and added these, together with die cuts from the Collectables pack.

To complete the card, I found some bottle caps in my huge stash of “things to use” and I added some of the collectable die cuts from the pack, into the centres of the bottle caps, and then applied Glossy Accents over the top, leaving them to dry and harden before attaching them to the front of my card.

So, I hope this card has inspired you to make cards using this very versatile collection, that is just perfect for this time of year.

See you all soon with another creation…

Emma x

I am playing with the Marigold collection all month. There are gorgeous pretty patterns on one side and the reverse feature more graphic patterns which I totally adore. So for a change, I am mainly using the b-side of the papers to create my layouts.

Colour blocking as I understand it, is where blocks of colour are laid down in layers. It is something I used to do more of and I was kind of missing it. Gorgeous patterns like these really suit this style of scrapping.

Blocks can be an easy way to scrap but it doesn’t have to be boring or too simple either. I  inked the edges for added definition before sewing into position. Try using a mixture of sewing stitches for extra interest.

Layering embellishments really help to break up the blocks. You can see in this picture that the die-cuts have text running through them which I really love. There are loads of frames and gorgeous images to choose from.

I thought I would also dust off some brads to accent one of the blocks. Mixing in old stash with new is a great way to revive them.

I think that this style of block scrapping translates really well into a sketch so I thought it might be fun to share!

I would love for you to try out the sketch too and share it with us. If you have never used one before, you can use the sketch quite literally or adapt it to suit your photos. For example you may have one 6×4 photo or a portrait photo may mean that you need to flip things around.

Materials used:

• Marigold Collection: Lemon, Tawny, 6 1/2″ Paper Pad, Sticker Sheet, Collectables
• Stash Panache – The Great Outdoors

Thanks for popping in!

Morag x

One collection – so many different looks. The Marigold collection is just that. I love the fact that with one collection I can do vintage and modern layouts depending on my subject.

I like to mix up my scrapping style and for this layout I went for a graphic approach. The b-sides of the papers have gorgeous prints that co-ordinate beautifully. Chevrons are definitely the shape of the moment so incorporating those was a must.

You can draw attention to the chevrons by adding your favourite Boutique Button – mine was from The Daily Grind.

Materials used:

• The Marigold Collection – Tawny, Citron, Lemon, Straw, Collectables
• Boutique Buttons - The Daily Grind

I also made a sketch of this layout – I hope that you might try out the layout for yourself!

Thanks for popping in.

Morag x

For my next project using the Tropicana collection, I wanted to show you how these kits are not just for scrapbooking and mini albums and how you can make cards using them. As always, I hope you like the card I’ve made…

…and here’s how I made it:

To begin with I covered an 8″ square card blank with a piece of Licorice Weave Kaisercard. I then took a piece of cream card and using Antique Linen Distress Ink and the Tropicana Stamp Set, I’ve stamped around the edge of the card, to make my very own subtle backing paper design. I hope you can pick this up on the photo below.

I then matted a piece of the paper onto the covered card front, from the 6″ Paper Pad and added die cuts from the Collectables pack, which add dimension to my card.

Finally, I rolled up a piece of the paper into a scroll and tied a piece of twine around this before, attaching a tag from the Collectables pack and sticking it to complete the card.

So, I hope this card inspires you and I can’t wait to read your comments and hear what you think!!

See you all again very soon,

Emma x

As soon as I saw the Tropicana collection from Kaisercraft, I was blown away…it’s just so beautiful and if you’ve got holiday photos and memories that you want to treasure forever, then this is definitely the collection for you!

For my first post of this month, I decided to make a mini album for all those special moments and memories and I really hope you like what I’ve created….

To make my album, I used the Tim Holtz/Sizzix Alterations Vintage Valise die to cut some chipboard panels before covering them with various 12″ x 12″ papers and papers from the 6 x 6 paper pad, all from the Tropicana collection.

I added die cuts to all the pages from the Collectables pack and also added Latte pearls and Honey Paper Blooms onto the cover.

I punched holes into each of the pages using the Crop-A-Dile and added Album rings to hold it together.

I added various colours of seam binding around the album rings and finally, I tied a piece of twine around a small Tim Holtz Corked Vial, filled with Mica flakes and hung it from the handle.

So, that’s it from me and I really hope you like my mini album, all that’s left for me to do it fill it full of memories!!

See you soon with another creation using the Tropicana collection…

Emma x

Welcome to the third and final part of this Product Focus on the New Distress Stains!

Today I am sharing a simple card.

For this card I used the Distress Stains in Peacock Feathers and Squeezed Lemonade. I then stamped a flourish design from the Botanical Odyssey Stamp set and the “Birthday” word from the 365 Collection Stamp Set. The “Happy” label come from the Botanical Odyssey Paper Pad. I finished off the card with a few blooms in Hot Pink and Amethyst as well as a black Resin Flower.

I love the happy colours of this card!

I hope this Product Focus inspired you! I can’t wait to see you all use your Distress Stains!

Emilie xxx

Welcome to the second part of my Product Focus on the new shades of Distress Stains.

In a moment of brightness I thought “Could I write with my stains in order to create my background?” Usually those moments of so called “brightness” turn into disasters but on this occasion I really liked the result so decided to go through with it and use the sheet of 12×12 created for a background.

I first inked the edges with some Spun Sugar Distress Ink and a blending tool. I then wrote my words with the Stains in Picked Raspberry, Peacock Feathers, Squeezed Lemonade and Dusty Concord (Yep, picked-up an older shade by mistake but still, it looks good!) and traced a black line around them with a black pen. I then layered my photo onto squares of papers I did cut-out from the Botanical Odyssey Paper Pad, added a sticker strip from the Sticker Sheet and finished off with blooms in Sea Breeze, Hot Pink and Amethyst as well as a wood Bee. There you go! A different take on the Distress Stains!

I hope this inspired you and that I will see you around of the third and last part of this Product Focus!

Emilie xxx

Well, you know my deep love for the Distress Stains from Ranger and when I received a few new shades in my goodie box I decided to use them for my product focus!

So I hear you say, what is different or new from any other Distress Stains? Well, the colours are A-mazing!!! So bright and cheerful!!! But as you can use them exactly the same way as you use any other shades of stains I decided to show you three different uses for them. I hope you will come along for this three parts Product focus and that you will find some inspiration to use your stains!

Let’s start this part 1. Here I am sharing a very quick and simple yet effective layout. Perfect for a quick scrapping fix!

I used the shades Seedless Preserves, Picked Raspberry and Peacock Feathers. Fabulous colours! I applied them by tapping rapidly the heads of each stains directly onto my background to create big splashes of colours. I decided to marry them with some words vignettes from the collectables from the Botanical Odyssey as the colours worked so well together. You know me, a layout isn’t complete without a few blooms so I added three flowers in Sea Breeze, Amethyst and Hot Pink. I finished the layout off with a few stamped images from the Botanical Odyssey Stamp Set. Gosh I love this little bird!

So there it is for part 1! I hope that this inspired you and that I will see you around for part 2!

Emilie xxx

Hello everybody and welcome to new installment of the Merly Impressions Monthly Challenge! Hope you are all well!

It is February, the month of love, hearts and warm feelings and that’s why I decided to NOT go with a valentine theme! Ha ha ha! I thought that there would be a lot of challenges calling for this so we would do something different here at Merly Impressions. This month, I am calling for you to use this sketch:

And as I am not one to let you play alone, here is my layout:

Gosh I loooove the new 75 cents collection!!! Here I scrapped a photo of my dad taken at Christmas. The colours of this collection were perfect for the colours of my photograph. I used a sheet of “Guinea” for my background and then layered a few journalling blocks from the sheet “Pound“. I distressed all the edges of those with my scissors and then inked them with some Vintage Photograph Distress Ink. I then added a few items from the collectables (love them!) and even got the branch from the Botanical Odyssey collectables! As always I finished it off with some gorgeous blooms in Black and Ruby as well as a rose I cut-out of the Ribbon Roses in Mint.

I hope this inspired you and that you will be many to join in and play along with us!

Please add your creation to the gallery below before the challenge closes at 1:00pm on 12th March 2013. We will then choose our favourite layout based on the sketch to win a fantastic prize – a £25.00 voucher to spend on anything you want from the Merly Impressions online store. Wow!

We do hope that you have fun with our challenge and that we bring some inspiration your way. Every month I love to look through all your gorgeous entries but please make sure you follow the challenge rules as we are sad to have on occasion to remove some entries as they didn’t follow those rules. You can find a full list of the Challenge rules on the Monthly Challenge page but we would like to politely remind readers that:

1. anyone who puts their entry on their own blog must link back to this post (http://www.merlyimpressions.co.uk/blog/scrapbooking/february-2013-layout-challenge/) so that all your visitors can find the gallery below and enjoy all the fabulous layouts being created
2. each creation entered must be “new” (not previously entered into a Merly Impressions or any other challenge)

It can be difficult for us to view any of your entries linked through Facebook therefore we are kindly asking you if you could please post your photos on the Merly Impressions page as this should make it easier for us all to admire your work. You can also email your entries directly to us at info@merlyimpressions.co.uk and we will add them and link them through our Photobucket gallery.

I really can’t wait to see all your entries! Have fun!

Emilie xxx