Hello there, Julie here again with a Christmas wish list for any crafter whether you are a beginner or advanced crafter with a healthy stash of goodies already. Get a pen and paper ready or leave this screen open for your partners to see. Here's my top 10....
A Big Shot...a die cutting machine for every type of crafter. I've used it to cut felt, fabric, foam, chipboard, paper, cardstock and plastic.This wonderful machine comes with all the cutting plates you need to get you started right out of the box. A simple mechanism powered by you turning a handle, no cables or complicated buttons to contend with. It is just a fabulous machine that no craftroom should be without!
Dies... to accompany the big shot. The choice is infinite! Papermaze has dies to suit every taste and every occasion! Nearly all dies are compatible with a Big Shot machine, you may have to use the various plates that come with the machine in different combinations but I've yet to find a die that doesn't work. For someone just starting out I would definitely recommend circles, squares and possibly a flag/penant set. I've found circles can be used for gift tags, shaker cards, backgrounds to scrapbook pages, banners and even used to make circle shaped cards. If you already have a few dies I don't think you can go wrong with a doilly die cut to add to your collection or a beautiful flourish. The possibilities are endless!
Project Life... Where do I begin! Scrapbooking made easy. You can make your Project Life as simple or as complex as it suits you. To start yourself off, all you need is an album, some page protectors, either a core kit or a value kit and your photos. You simply pop your photos in the selected slots of the page protectors, add some cards from your kits and a bit of journalling and an album is complete. Core kits are fabulous to create a whole album with a co-ordinating colour scheme and theme but the kits are wonderful mixed and matched together. The themes are endless, from babies to animals or Christmas to weddings there is a Project life kit out there for you!
We are Memory Keepers Fuse Tool.... This tool is just a must have for anyone who likes to embellish their Project Life albums. One nib can either "fuse" together plastic pockets on the Project Life page protectors so you can seal in embellishments, sequins or special keepsakes. The second nib can cut neat slits in page protectors to add flaps or adjust the size of your page protector to suit your own personal project. I also use my Fuse for fun party invitations, shaker cards and even clear embellishments for projects.
Planners..... This is the current trend, planners! So many to choose from and so many ways to personalise and decorate them. From the gorgeous Carpe Diem planner to the Create 365 planner to the classic Websters Pages Planners and of course the Project Life planners the choice is yours!
Distress Inks..... If you've never used these to stamp before or haven't used these for water colouring, what are you waiting for? These inks come in the most beautiful vintage colours and are just perfect for stamping and painting. They react with water and can be used as water colours which makes them a wonderful dual purpose purchase. You can use them to colour in a stamped image or used with an ink blending tool you can use them to create a colourful background for your scrapbook pages or cards, they can also be used as an ink for your stamps. The colours are designed to blend together beautifully and each colour can also be found in paint, stain and spray stain form.
Stamps.... I'm going to admit that I wasn't really on the stamp bandwagon until this year and then I realised what I've been missing out on. No crafting collection is complete without stamps. You can use them to create backgrounds for cards or scrapbook pages, or as a centrepiece for cards, tags, bags or to make your own ephemera. Papermaze has stamps of all shapes and sizes from tiny for a planner to large for a background. If you've never tried stamping before, now is the time to try!
Stencils and Masks..... Again something I had overlooked for years but now there is no stopping me. Stencils and masks are fantastic to use with lots of mediums such as paint, texture paste and inks. They can be used to create wonderful backgrounds and texture to your projects. My favourite has to be a simple polka dot by Creative Expressions and the Tim Holtz stencils are just fantastic.
Stickles..... These little bottles of glittery goodness get overlooked however they are a wonderful addition to any crafters stash. Coming in a multitude of colours they can add a little or a lot of bling to all your projects.
Finally.....Vouchers!!! Who wouldn't want to receive Papermaze vouchers for Christmas? A perfect present so that you can choose exactly what you want!
I hope you've enjoyed reading my recommendations for a crafters Christmas wish list! Merry Christmas to you all and thank you for reading xxxxx
