That's Life

Wednesday, 26 November 2025

Rock Candy Glitter Inspiration....

Hello friends...

Hope you're all having a great week!

I'm just popping by today with a little tutorial featuring some quick tips and tricks on how I use Rock Candy Glitter, Rock Candy Chunky Glitter, Snowflakes and Mica Flakes to create some magical sparkle to my Christmas projects.

So, whether it's trees, backgrounds or adding some twinkle to idea-ology products ~ come with me as I start to prepare for my holiday makes...

WOODLAND TREES AND GARLANDS

I chose to use a mixture of the Tim Holtz idea-ology Woodland Garlands, Alpine Trees and Woodland Trees and started by adding some white gesso to the tips of the trees. This is going to add that snowy effect to the tips, by resisting the colour we're going to apply. It will also help your glitter to not pick up the colour of your spray and in turn, go green when you add the sparkle.

To apply the gesso, you can use a paint brush or if you're like me, I use my fingertip. You only need a light coverage and apply to the tips only.

Allow for the gesso to dry throughly before the next step of applying the colour.

For my trees, I used Distress Spray Stain in the following colours:

Iced Spruce, Rustic Wilderness and Speckled Egg and placed my trees and garlands in the Splatter Box before spritzing them to create an even coverage.

In the photo below, I've shared the trees with and without the gesso ~ you can see how the gesso resists the colour, creating snowy tips to the trees.

Dry the trees naturally, or if you're slightly inpatient like me, you can use a heat tool on a gentle setting and heat dry them.

Once the stain is dry, it's time to add the sparkle and after applying Glossy Accents to the tips, I sprinkled the glitters over the trees, tapping away the excess to reveal the magic.

On the individual trees, I used all the glitters to create different effects...

Once dry, the Rock Candy glitter creates a subtle shimmer, the Mica Flakes or Snowflakes will give a vintage sparkle and the Chunky Rock Candy will give a beautiful twinkle.

BACKGROUNDS

For my sparkly backgrounds, I used the fine Rock Candy Glitter and added a spoonful into a mixing cup.

I then added a couple of drops of the following Alcohol Inks to colour the glitter:

Green ~ Sage

Red ~ Cranberry

Dependent on how much glitter you have in your cup, you will need to add more alcohol ink, so just add another drop until you're happy with the colour but remember, you can always add, but never take away...

Mix the ink into the glitter with a spatula and then set aside.

Using a palette knife, apply Translucent Texture Paste through a Layering Stencil ~ I used the Mini Stencil Set 19 and the Christmas Element stencils in my examples.

Remove the stencil and wash immediately in warm soapy water.

Working quickly and whilst the medium is still wet, sprinkle the glitter over the paste and tap away the excess. Any glitter you have left over can be stored in these cute little storage jars.

Once dry, some of the glitter will shed, but don't worry the paste will have captured most of that sparkle and it's not going to go anywhere! The backgrounds are now ready to use for my tags...

You can also add the glitter over the top of Distress Grit Paste. On the tag below, I inked up the background using Distress Spray Stains and once dry, I applied the Grit Paste through the Nordic Stencil in the Mini Layering Stencil Set 2. Once again, working fast before the medium starts to dry out, I sprinkled Rock Candy Crystal Glitter over the top and left this to one side to dry to reveal a beautiful subtle sparkle to your background.

BAUBLES AND ICICLES

By now, if you're like me, you'll be hooked on adding some festive sparkle and I continued to add glitter to some idea-ology Bauble Adornments.

I coloured the baubles with Alcohol Inks and also kept some white, as these can be used for "snowballs". I smeared all my baubles with Glossy Accents, and sprinkling the Rock Candy Glitter over the top.

For my final bit of sparkle for today, I added glitter to some idea-ology Icicles.

To show you the different effects, I used three types of glitter on each individual icicle....

From top to bottom:

Snowflakes

Rock Candy Crystal Clear Glitter

Rock Candy Chunky Glitter

For the icicle in the middle, I painted the back of the plastic with Picket Fence Distress Paint, this colours the icicle and adds more of a frosty finish to the piece.

I hope you've enjoyed some of these ideas and I hope it's going to inspire you with your Christmas makes...I warn you though, once you start, you won't stop!

Thanks for stopping by today and I can't wait to see how you'll be adding some of this magical vintage sparkle to your projects because this is only the tip of the iceberg ~ Rock Candy Glitter and Mica Flakes can be used on so many products, and not just for Christmas!

To all my friends and followers in the USA ~ Happy Thanksgiving and I'll see you soon...Emma xx

SHOP BELOW FOR ALL PRODUCTS

Monday, 24 November 2025

Happy Holidays....

Hello everyone...

Hope you've all had a wonderful weekend and you're now ready for a brand new week and a new Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge. This week, our theme is all about a Matching Set and we can't wait to see how you'll interpret the challenge.

For my make, I created a matching pair of Christmas cards that are also a match made in heaven because these cards celebrate a very cute couple, Mickey and Minnie Mouse who are all dressed up and ready for the holidays. I also made these cards with another special couple in mind, my beloved Mum and Dad ~ they were, and always will be, the perfect match!

So, let's get started and here's how I created this week's magical project...

CARD BLANKS

To begin with I created two card blanks from Kraft card, measuring 19 x 10.5cm.

For each card, I cut a panel of black card, 18.5 x 10cm and then these with a layer of matted a panel of gold metallic Kraft card, followed by a panel of black card, that I splattered with white paint, before adding a machine stitched border and each time, I left a narrow border around the outside. I then mounted these layers onto my card blanks.

Along the bottom of the final card panel, I added a film strip which I cut from black card using the Sizzix Vault Picture Show Die Set by Tim Holtz. Before I attached the strip, I applied an application of Lisa Horton Copper Metallic wax, and then adhered the strip into position.

For the final layer on these cards, I cut a panel of black card and then applied Translucent Grit Paste through the Falling Stars Layering Stencil.

After removing the stencil, I sprinkled gold embossing powder over the top and set this to one side for the paste to dry. Once it is touch dry, I used my heat tool to melt the powder ~ do not overheat the paste as this will cause it to bubble, heat areas slowly and once molten, move on.

I then used Mica Stain Sprays in the following colours to add that touch of sparkle to the background:

Crooked Broomstick, Unravelled, Iron Gate

Leave this to dry and then cut the card into two panels, each measuring 12.5 x 7cm, add machine stitching detail around the outside edge and then matt them onto gold metalllic cardstock before mounting them onto the card blanks using foam pads.

ROSETTES

For each rosette, I used the following dies:

Sizzix Seal Dies and Switchlits Embossing Folder to cut metallic gold Kraft card

Simon Says Stamp Basic Circles Wafer Dies to cut two black circles and one gold circle

Spellbinders Flags and Banners Die to cut the pieces to make the rosette that sits in the centre

With all my shapes cut, I layered them to form two rosettes and attached these to my cards.

In the centres of each rosette, I inked up one of the stamps from the Tim Holtz Holiday Postmarks Stampers Anonymous stamp set and stamped each one onto a piece of black card. I sprinkled them with gold embossing powder and then used the coordinating Simon Says Stamp die sets to die cut them.

I then attached them with foam pads to the rosettes.

To complete the rosettes I added a hint of Snowflake Paste, sprinkled with some Mica Flakes over the top and then painted some Hardware Heads with Lumberjack Plaid Distress Paint and added them around the outside edge of each of the circles.

MICKEY AND MINNIE

We're now ready for the stars of the show, Mickey and Minnie and for these I used the Spellbinders Steamboat Willie Duo Die Set and began by colouring some cardstock. I inked 4 separate pieces of Mixed Media Card using the following Distress Inks; Fossilised Amber, Lumberjack Plaid and Antique Linen and the final piece of card with Black Soot Distress Spray for the black card. Once happy with the colours, I applied double sided adhesive sheets to the back of the card and then cut all my pieces to create Mickey and Minnie before assembling each character.

Mickey and Minnie are now ready for their Christmas embellishments and using the die set that has been released by Spellbinders to accompany the original Classic Mouse Steamboat Willie die set for the holidays, I cut all my pieces to create the Santa hats, the holly leaves, the bauble, scarves and the mistletoe from inked cardstock. I always keep scraps of card that have been inked for previous projects and these dies are perfect to use up all those tiny offcuts.

Once I'd assembled my pieces, I dressed Mickey and Minnie on all their holiday refinery before I attached them into position on my card fronts, using foam pads to add some dimension to the cards.

To ground each of the characters, I applied some Glossy Accents beneath their feet, and then sprinkled some Mica Flakes over the medium before tapping away the excess.

....and applying some Snowfall paste to their little Santa hats.

SENTIMENTS

On each card, I added a sentiment. These are both stamped and then embossed with white embossing powder using stamps from the Cartoons stamp set.

I matted the sentiment to a piece of gold card, then attached it to my card blank using foam pads.

I then added two tiny die cut holly leaf embellishments to either side of the sentiment.

FINISHING DETAILS

I stamped and die cut another of the postmarks using the same Holiday Postmarks stamp and die set as before, and then attached the "Approved" postmark to each card, placing a holly leaf on Minnie's postmark as a finishing touch.

...and to complete the Mickey card, I painted a tiny clip with Lumberjack Plaid Distress Paint, then clipped this to the top of my card, attaching a label with the number 25.

So that's my Matching Pair project complete and I hope you love the cards I've made and you'll be inspired by some of the techniques.

As always, if you make anything, or if you've been inspired by anything that you've seen here on my blog ~ then please, let me know by tagging me on social media or leaving a comment here and I will be right over to take a look!

Don't forget that every week, one lucky random participant has the chance to win a $25 gift voucher from Simon Says Stamp and you can join in up to 5 times, which means you could have 5 chances to win. You have until next Monday at 8am Ohio time. 1pm UK time, 2 pm CET to join in and good luck....

Thank you so much for taking the time to stop by today...

Love Emma xxx

Recipe for project:

Stampers Anonymous: Falling Stars Layering Stencil, Cartoons Stamp set

Sizzix: Big Shot Die Cutting Machine, Vault Picture Show Thinlits Die

SSS Dies: Basic Shapes Circles Dies, Tim Holtz Holiday Postmarks Stamps and Die Bundle

Spellbinders Dies: Steamboat Willie Minnie and Mickey Mouse Duo and Embellishments Bundle, Flags and Banners

Distress Paint: Lumberjack Plaid

Mica Spray Stain: Crooked Broomstick, Unravelled, Iron Gate

Distress Spray Stains: Black Soot, Antique Linen, Lumberjack Plaid, Fossilised Amber, Peeled Paint and Bundled Moss, Tumbled Glass,

Tim Holtz Idea-ology: Hardware Heads, Tiny Clips

Mediums: Matte Collage Medium, Foam Pads, Ultrafine Gold Embossing Powder, Clear Embossing Ink, Mica Flakes, Snowflake Paste, White Embossing Powder, Lisa Horton Metallic Wax

Surfaces: Mixed Media Heavystock Card, Metallic Kraft Stash, Black Card

Glass Media Mat

Splatter Brush

Heat Gun

****These are not affiliate links****

Saturday, 15 November 2025

It's Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas....

Happy Saturday everyone...

Hope you're all having the best weekend and the sun is shining where you are!

Today, I'm really happy to be sharing a make over on the Simon Says Stamp Blog and below is a little sneak peek of what you'll find when you pop on over by clicking HERE!

Hope you love the make and will be inspired by all the tips and techniques!

See you again very soon... Emma xx

Monday, 10 November 2025

Never Forget...

Hello friends....

This week's brand new Simon Says Stamp Challenge is called THINKING OF YOU and we would love for you to join us and play along with this fun theme!

As always, there are so many interpretations for this challenge and we can't wait to see what you create.

For my make, I chose to honour and remember all those who have fought so bravely for our countries and as tomorrow is Armistice Day, I thought there was no better time than to make this tag featuring a poppy wreath, made using Tim Holtz dies from Sizzix.

So, let's get started and here's how I created this tag!

For this project I used a Size 8 Mixed Media Heavystock Tag, and a Size 8 Etcetera Tag as my base.

BACKGROUND

To create the background, I used the Heavystock Tag and began by applying a coat of Black Opaque Paste through the Rosettes Mini Layering Stencil. I wanted quite a dark background for this piece to reflect the occasion, but used Mica Spray Stains to add a slight hint of shimmer and shine.

I allowed for the paste to dry thoroughly and then after misting the tag lightly with water, I applied my background colours:

DISTRESS SPRAY STAIN: Black Soot, Antique Linen

OXIDE SPRAY: Speckled Egg

MICA SPRAY STAIN: Crooked Broomstick, Unravelled, Iron Gate

Once I was happy with the colour, I dried the tag before adding some stamping across the bottom. For this I used the border stamp from The Inspector Stampers Anonymous set and stamped the border using clear embossing ink. I then sprinkled gold embossing powder over the top and heat embossed the powder until molten.

To complete the tag, I added some machine stitching around the edge before adhering the tag onto the Etcetera Tag, using Matte Collage Medium.

Finally, I used gold watercolour paint to add some splatters across the surface...

...and placed a Snippets Ephemera piece in the top right hand corner.

POPPY WREATH

To create the poppies and greenery for this wreath, I used a selection of the smaller floral and foliage dies from the Sizzix Brushstroke 2 Thinlits die set by Tim Holtz.

I began by using Distress Spray Stains to add colour to the Mixed Media Heavystock card...

POPPIES: Lumberjack Plaid, Crackling Campfire

LEAVES: Bundled Sage, Peeled Paint, Holly Branch Mica Spray

I then cut all my pieces ~ each poppy has two die cut layers and I also cut two layers of the stamens, from black card and inked the edges with Walnut Stain Distress Ink.

I layered the die cut pieces over the top of one another, offsetting the second layer and then shaped the petals. I made 8 flowers in total.

Cut the foliage pieces from the inky green card.

I then used circle dies to form my base. You will need approx 8cm and 6.5cm dies to form the frame for your poppy wreath.

I then built up my poppies and greenery around the circular frame, covering the circle so that it doesn't show.

With my wreath complete, I added gold Metallic Droplets into the centres of each poppy.

PLAQUE

To create the plaque that sits across the wreath, I cut a piece of gold metallic Kraft card, 8 x 2.5cm and then applied some Black Soot and Crackling Campfire Distress Paint over the surface. Wipe away any excess paint, as you don't want this to become too dark, you just want it to look weathered.

I then die cut each of my letters to spell the word "REMEMBER". I cut these four times to create and then layered them over the top of one another to create dimensional letters. I attached the letters to my strip and then dry brushed some Antiqued Bronze Distress Paint over the top.