My first loom knitting project

My son has been telling me he wanted me to knit him something. I don't knit! A lot of my friends do though, and he's seen them knit. I do crochet however I had been wanting to learn to knit anyway. I am kind of put off by how long it takes to knit things though... then I discovered ProvoCraft's Knifty Knitter looms. I read on the Cricut message board that they are easy to learn and fast to do. So I made this poncho for my son as my first project. :)  It's not that great but I'm learning. :)  My son picked the colors!

I used 2 skeins of Red Heart super saver yarn, a strand of blue and orange together on the green round loom. I flat knit on that round loom... I used all the pegs but did not go completely around, just stopped and turned and knit the other way at the end of a row.

It was fun! I'm going to make me a hat next. :) Thanks for stopping by!

Thank you cards #4

Oooh I love love love this new punch around the page punch! My new favorite! Too bad I don't own it! LOL... the punch belongs to the store I work at. But still, it's a lovely punch.
I love the simplicity of this card. I could make a bunch of these, happily, to send out.

Thanks for stopping by!

Thank you cards #3

This one was a little more complicated. I saw an elegant and beautiful card last year and was inspired to do something similar, but was going purely on memory!  The light green is embossed below, then I embossed another piece of the green. I swiped both pieces with versamark ink, then cut out some of the branches to layer over the bottom layer of leaves.  I pushed too hard on my "merci" stamp. Grrr.
This was a cuttlebug embossing folder by the way, and one I wished embossed deeper.

Thank you cards #2

This is a SUPER simple card. Cut the hearts on my cricut though if you have a punch of the right size, that would work too. Some string, pop dots and a stamp. All done! :)

Thank you cards #1

I know most of us are still thinking of the coming holidays, but I'm thinking of the after the holidays! All those thank yous that will need to be said. :)  So here's a first thank you card of the season. Fairly simple... the embossing is a sizzix embossing folder. I love both cuttlebug and sizzix embossing folders, but the sizzix ones emboss really deep! I love that.

Thanks for looking!

Camera strap!

Friday I took a break from scrapbooking to make this present for myself!  I never liked the strap that came with my camera. Wasn't anywhere close to long enough, nor was it comfortable.

Then I happened to see Megan's camera strap, Penny mentioned she'd seen straps for sale on etsy. I went and looked at some of those etsy straps... I just couldn't get past the idea that I could make one for myself, for considerably less!  Don't get me wrong... I'll dish out the money for handmade items, even stuff sewn by someone else in spite of the fact that I can very well sew myself... But seriously, I usually buy sewn things that I'm totally unwilling to make for myself because the item is either way too complicated or too boring for me to make for myself. :)

But a camera strap? Super fast and easy! Well, until I got down to making the part that joins with the narrow strap that I took off the original strap, the part that goes onto the camera. See, my real sewing machine needs to visit a Singer doctor. I can't sew with it. I sewed this strap with a Janome Sew Mini. Except for that leathery part that attaches to the strap that goes on the camera. I had to hand sew that with a glover's needle. I have 3 puncture wounds on my left thumb. But HEY! I have this beautiful camera strap now! It cost me $3.50. I bought the pre-quilted fabric (1/8th of a yard) and the tiny chunk of leathery stuff with coupons from JoAnns so I barely spent anything on it... not counting the blood and cuss words. ;)

Thanks for stopping by!

Parisian Anthology #5

My final project for the Scrappinista Scrapbook Club kit this month is this little tag. I actually cut the tag with my cricut but I happened to size it the same size as the Sizzix Tim Holtz tag die since that's a hot item this season and I wanted non-cricuteers to have another option.

I used scrap printed papers that were left from my other projects with this kit. However, the Flair that I got from this line came in a bubble pack that I realized I could cut up to make treat packs with. I've already eaten up the rest of the M&Ms from the bag I bought for this tag. :(

The big thing I want to say though, is what happened when I made that red poinsettia. That is made from the chip banners that were in the chip embellishment box we got with the kit. I inked them up heavily with Aged Mahogany Distress ink... they were really nice and red. I thought that I'd add some Rock Candy stickles to them for a touch of sparkle. I did that, and went away so it could dry. When I came back, it looked like this... the ink had wicked away into crevices around the rock candy. What a neat effect! I love it!

Thanks for joining me for this exploration of the Parisian Anthology line from Pink Paisley!

Parisian Anthology #4

My second to last project with my Parisian Anthology kit from Scrapaganza's Scrappinista club is a year in review mini book. The box held the chip embellishments for the Parisian Anthology line. When I surfed over to the Pink Paislee blog, I saw that one of the designers had used the box to hold a mini album, and I thought with the year coming to a close, that was a good idea to do an end of the year review in photos and journaling.

I took 6 #10 envelopes, and folded the flaps down narrower than usual, making sure that the sealed envelope would be narrow enough to fit within the box. That ended up being 3 1/2 inches wide. I sealed the envelopes with glue. Then I cut off one end to make them 7 1/4 inches long. I covered the envelopes on both sides with my left over printed papers and some cardstock. Inked them up with Distress inks in Forest Moss, Rusted Hinge and Wild Honey.  To attach the pages together, I did not want to use rings as those would be too bulky to fit in the box. Instead I took 1 1/2 inch strips of scrap cardstock and used border punches on both sides of the strips. Cut them down to 3 inches long approximately and used those as "hinges", glued on the ends of two facing pages. I also covered the outside binding with an outside hinge (cut on my cricut with Storybook) so that it would look more finished.

I printed out 33 photos that summed up our year, at wallet size. With the photos and remaining chip and artisan elements, I filled the mini album and decorated it. I wrapped the outside hinge with a thin ribbon that I could tie in some jeweled charms, and added a few extra ribbons for texture.  The little mini calendar months that mark each page are from the Tim Holtz pad of paper "Lost and Found". They were perfect for this project.

The envelope pockets hold a tag; the tags were cut on my cricut with Plantin, sized on my gypsy to be 3x7. Coordinating ribbon is stapled to the tags as pulls. The tags will have all my journaling about the year, one month per side of tag. I just haven't had time to write it all yet as I had to get this kit stuff done! LOL

This was a fun project! Not only to make it, but also going back through pictures and remembering everything. I've never done a "year in review" type project before and I think I will be adding it every year to give myself a chance to remember everything!  I highly recommend everyone doing a layout or mini book to remember your year too!

Thanks for stopping by!

Parisian Anthology #3

Hello again! Here's my 4th page with the Scrappinista Scrapbook Club kit from the store I work at, Scrapaganza!
For this page, I used a piece of taupe cardstock as a background, then cut down a piece of the printed paper. I misted the paper with Meadow Green and Red Velvet glimmermist and wiped off the excess to reveal the paper's embossing.  Then I adhered the paper to the background cardstock, then sewed it down for that extra touch. By the way, both cardstock and printed paper were edge distressed before getting sewn.
Then I used my Cricut and Gypsy to cut out a tree from Create a Critter cartridge but I used the Gypsy to stretch it taller without making it wider. I cut the tree out of acetate packaging (recycled from a cartridge clamshell, cut at depth 6, pressure 5, multicut 2). I used the negative of the tree as a mask, but what I did to make it work was put my background stamp on the table, stamp side up. Got it inked up. Then I put the mask over the stamp and then the paper on top and pressed the paper down on the stamp. I did this because the acetate is thick enough that pressing the stamp down on the mask and paper did not leave a stamped image so I had to flip them over to get the image.
Now, because I did not practice this in advance, I ended up messing up my paper. However, there are no mistakes, only creative opportunities! So rather than pitch out the whole thing, I tried to think up a way to hide the mess up, which was that some ink had gotten smeared around the tree that I had stamped.  So, I got that acetate tree that I had cut out (remember, I'd used the negative) and I put the actual cut out tree over the stamped background that I like to mask it, then took a silver paint dauber that I'd only squeezed a very little paint into, and painted some silver very lightly around the tree mask, radiating out from the tree. When I took the mask away, it left the tree image looking as if it were glowing in silver radiance... hence how I came up with the title "tree magic"

The little bit of silver paint covered up the ink smudging and I really liked the effect. So, there's a lesson here! Don't give up if you make a mistake. :)
I also used Artisan Element borders on the left, they had been sprayed with Red Velvet, Walnut Gold and Graphite glimmermist and carefully wiped off so that the only glimmermist left had remained in the debossed patterns. I did the same with the parenthesis framing the journaling.
The Flair flower I colored red with red alcohol ink so it would look like a poinsettia. I glued that on top of a pleated "flower" made with Tim Holtz tissue tape, which is layered over a "doily" that I cut from another sheet of the printed paper. Glued to the center of the poinsettia flower are two jingle bells I found in my jewelry making stash. I love raiding that stash for scrapping. lol The title is in American Crafts Thickers.
Shortly after I took this picture, I added tiny Artisan Element stars to the tree. I decided not to take another picture, so you'll just have to imagine them there! :)

Thanks for stopping by and taking a look!

Parisian Anthology #2

Here's the second layout I've done with the Scrappinista Scrapbook Club kit for this month. I am so lovin' this Parisian Anthology line! 
When I saw the dressform chip embellishment, I remembered my getting-dressed wedding pictures and realized they would be perfect together.
This printed paper had embossing on the side, so I only inked the edges of the paper to reveal the embossing. The color I used is Pumice Distress ink. In addition to using the Parisian Anthology embellishments (chips, flair, tickets, Artisan elements) I also added a few of of my own... I took a piece of acrylic packaging and stamped it with a Tim Holtz stamp and stazon ink. I also cut out a doily type shape with my cricut and misted it, and added a few maya road pearl pins.  The title is silver glitter Thickers and MM mini alphas.

I've watched some scrappers sit and pile embellishments on like this, but sometimes when I try it, it doesn't seem to work right. However, this time I feel like my "pile" of embellishments worked well. I am very happy with this layout! I think this line has really sparked my desire to create!

Parisian Anthology #1

This month's Scrappinista Scrapbook Club kit is one of the new lines from Pink Paislee and House of 3: Parisian Anthology.

The printed papers come in neutral colors with printing and an embossed layer. If you ink up the papers, paint, spray with mist or whatever, you can wipe off the color from the embossing, and reveal the pattern that is embossed. This allows you to custom color your projects!

In addition to the papers, the line has corrugated chip pieces that have shapes like birds, tables, branches, banners, flowers, eiffel towers, dressforms and butterflies. The line also has ribbon, flair, bling, fabric flowers, tickets, stamps and artisan elements (rubbery sticky backed embellishments that can be colored or left in their natural off-white color).

On this layout I took a single sheet of the printed paper and cut it into strips so that I could make it look like I had two sheets for this two pager. A taupe colored cardstock sheet takes up the rest of the space with some strips of off-white cardstock that are border punched to fill in the space. I inked up the printed papers with Aged Mahogany and Black Soot Distress inks to reveal the embossing pattern.  On the left is a doily I got at the dollar store. I cut out letters on my cricut and used them as masks with Licorice Maya Mist.  I embellished with the Parisian Anthology chip birds and flowers, the Flair and cut up and inked one of the Artisan Element borders to highlight a few of the pictures. A few spiral 3D roses added as well.

Love this line from Pink Paislee!!! If this kind of stuff might be your style, you definitely need to get your hands on it! And if you are local and not in the Scrappinista Club, you need to join! The kit is awesome and you'll learn great techniques with it!

Thanks for stopping by!

Playing with my Imagine

I've had my Imagine since October. :)  I was one of the lucky ones who attended the launch party at CHA in the summer, and got a voucher for a free Imagine from ProvoCraft. I have to admit, it would have been way out of my price range so it's a good thing I got one free, or I'd never have gotten it!

I had done a couple things on the machine to make sure it worked, when I first got it. But I have to also admit that I haven't done much with it since. I can't afford the extra cartridges for it right now, and there's only a couple I would be willing to buy anyway. I'm also leery of the cost of replacing the printer cartridges. However, I had to come up with some to do with it, because I promised to take it to Scrapaganza where I work to demo it.

I discovered a few things while I was playing with it that I wish were different. You can break images out into layers which is cool, but to combine layers, you can only do that in one way, the predetermined initial image. You can't combine just a couple of those layers, which disappointed me. In the finished project above, I wanted a layer that had the birds and banner combined with the "simple joys" title, but you can't combine just 2 layers. 

The image the banner and birds came from had a different background shape and colors, so I went to another image and used it's background instead. The red shape layer is the same as it's original, but the oval layer shape I changed the pattern to go better with the banner words.

I printed and cut all my different layers, and then pop-dotted them all together to make this embellishment. I will probably slap it on a card when I take it to the store for the demo.

If ProvoCraft could add more manipulation functionality to this machine, so that we could combine some of the layers, and even combine layers from different images, this would be a really powerful tool. I'm hoping that they add a lot more manipulation tools to it or to the gypsy so we can do more with these images.

Thanks for stopping by!

Gift Packaging - Poinsettia "bow"

I found this idea on the Custom Crops website, in their designers' how-to section. The link to the tutorial for the 3D Poinsettias is here. There's also a cut file you can download but it was simple enough that I made this without the cut file. You just need Plantin or a similar leaf on another cricut cartridge.

The original tutorial was for 5 leaves of 3 different sizes, plus 3 green leaves of the largest size. I ended up not using my smaller leaves though, and I had cut extra of the larger size (due to technical difficulties) and when I started putting my poinsettia together, I ended up liking the way I made it with more of the larger leaves and less of the smaller anyway.  So, here's my recipe. You can do yours like Tanya's on the Custom Crops site or like mine or do it your way! :)

10 leaves from Plantin cut at 4 inches in red printed paper
5 leaves cut at 3 inches
3 leaves cut at 4 inches in the green for the non-flower leaves
pearls/beads for the flower center
pop dots and ink to ink edges if you like

The first layer is 5 leaves, pop dot the second layer on top of that. I overlapped the second layer in the center more to make the petals look smaller than the first layer. Pop dot the 3rd layer on top. Glue beads or pearls or use self-adhesive flat-backed pearls in the center. Adhere the green leaves at the bottom. Affix to your gift package. All done!

I remember when I was a kid, my grandma used to dress up her gifts by crafting the packaging. These days, it seems like everyone gives gifts in gift bags and the care and love in the packaging has given way to convenience and speed. I hope to add a little more care to the gift packages that I give this year.

Thanks for visiting!

Gift Packaging - Box Bag

One of the customers at the scrapbook store brought in a project for show and tell, and I loved it. She sent me the link for the tutorial, it's at Split Coast Stampers here.  Totally easy and so cute!  So I made one. Go check out the tutorial, and give it a shot!

True Love

The store I work at, Scrapaganza, just received the next line from We R Memory Keepers! Be My Valentine!  (I know right? valentines stuff ALREADY? I wish they'd slow down over there at WRM).

Anyway, it's a gorgeous line of papers and embellishments!  And yes, there's lots of hearts and valentine theme in it. But I decided to show that it doesn't all have to be Valentines. WRM always has a couple sheets of sewn cardstock, and I LOVE this one, that says True Love if stitching! I had to use that with this photo of my son the day he was born. I also adore the little typewriter stamp!

So check out this line at Scrapaganza if you are in town!  Thanks for stopping by!

Whoo do I Love?

I made this page a month ago! I only just now took a picture of it so I could post it.
I created this page for a Sizzix die cut class at Scrapaganza. The die I used is called "Angel Wings". But the projects I created for the class were to show things other than angels... why buy a die you can use only for one purpose? :)

I also used a scallop circle cut from Graphically Speaking on the Cricut, the beak is a leaf from Plantin cartridge. The fonts are Learning Curve and Cheerful Seasons.  The border punch is one of the punch-around-the-page punches.

I am rather fond of this layout! Thanks for looking!

La Rosa dressform

I've had this metal dressform for some time now. Almost a year maybe? It was originally a sort of off white color with an ugly pink bow in front. I got it cheap at Hobby Lobby though, and never intended to keep it the original color. :)  But, like many plans, the painting of it and then decorating it as home decor never happened... just never enough time you know?

However! I'm in the Cricut Circle, and the Circle Blog's monthly contest (open only to Circle members) this month was to make a home decor item using felt, something green, something cuttlebug and at least one cricut cut. So, I pulled out this forgotten piece and went to work.  It's fairly simple really. I did get my hubby to do the spray painting for me as I had to work long hours on Black Friday. But I cut the roses from felt, the leaves are from A Child's Year cartridge, the flourishes are from Cindy Loo, and the leaves were embossed with my swiss dot cuttlebug folder. This will look very nice next to some keepsakes and photos of our wedding. :)

Thanks for looking!

Happy Thanksgiving!

I thought I would wish all my crafty internet friends a wonderful Thanksgiving! I am thankful to all of you who are my inspiration! May you have wonderful crafty ideas and projects to be thankful for as well!

Be well!

SEW EASY - Product Review

I did this review for the scrapbook store I work at, Scrapaganza. I thought I would share the review here as well, in case anyone is interested! It is the Sew Easy Paper Piercing Tool and it's accessories! The manufacturer is We R Memory Keepers.

I thought I'd take a spin with them to try them out and review them for you!  Many of our customers have expressed how they love the look of sewing on scrapbook pages and cards, but they don't want to use a sewing machine to achieve the look. A paper piercer is fine for straight lines or circles with a template, but it's difficult to achieve a more complicated pattern to mimic the zig zag or other stitches available on machines.  Well, We R Memory Keepers has solved that problem for you!

The paper piercing tool comes with the handle, a straight line piercer and a needle (when you open the package, watch out for that needle making a leap for freedom!).  The piercer head comes off, just give it a little twist and pull, and you can switch it out for one of 6 other piercing heads in different patterns. There is also a mat available so that as you roll the piercer over your paper, the mat protects your work surface as well as providing the give necessary for the piercer to poke the paper. The piercing heads come in 6 patterns as I said, for example: a scallop border, zig zag, a "star" or "snowflake" and others. The back of the piercing head package gives 3 examples of how you can change the sewing pattern to make it look different, so save your package back! You can also come up with different sewing patterns on your own if you like, so  these tools are very versatile! 

Now for my review! I bought everything so I could give it a good try out. However, one of the first questions I got on friday from customers was: Do you really have to buy the mat?  So to answer that question, I got out a self-healing mat, a piece of spongy foam packing, a mouse pad and two widths of corrugated cardboard (very thin and standard width).  Using scrap bazzill cardstock, I tested each one with the straight piercer head. The only one of those items that worked was the corrugated cardboard, and only if you went along the "grain" of the corrugations. HOWEVER: I then tested the "star" or "snowflake" pattern on those items and it did not work at all. So, my conclusion is that if all you ever use is the straight piercing head, you could use corrugated cardboard as your mat. But if you use the other patterned piercing heads, you really NEED a paper piercing mat under your paper.  If you already have the Bazzill In Stitches mat, I'm sure that one will work just fine. 

Here are some cards I made using the Sew Easy tools, and a few tips I learned and will pass along!

 I just love scallops, don't you? I had to use the scallop border. Now, here I used the scallop AND the straight piercers. The first thing I learned is that the piercer probably won't go entirely through cardstock unless you press really hard on it, BUT you do NOT want to press really hard or you risk ripping the cardstock. When I practiced with the piercer, I found that it seemed the intent was to lay down a pattern as a guide for you to stitch through. The very tips of the piercer usually pierced the cardstock but you don't get big holes, so you do have to actually poke your needle through. Also, the piercer cannot poke through two layers of cardstock. You can use it on 2 layers but you will only get a pattern as a guide, which was fine for me doing this project, but you should be aware of it!

Also, the floss that is available from this product line would probably work better if you separate the floss... don't use all 6 strands. Use 3 or 2. The thicker your thread and needle, the greater risk you run of ripping through the paper or cardstock you are sewing through, especially the more intricate patterns (see my comments below). On these cards, I used string, and it was a bit too thick for my tastes. I'd rather have had 2 strands of the floss instead, but I didn't want to break open a package just for 2 cards.  Otherwise, I *loved* this tool. Frankly, piercing one hole at a time with a template takes almost as long as the sewing... I'd rather do the piercing with these piercers any day, and save my time for the sewing! Which did not really take me that long by the way.

On the bottom there is the pattern "star" or "snowflake". It's called "Burst" on the package. I love it! But here's what I learned using it:
Definitely you need thinner floss than the string I used or the full strand of floss. Split the floss, it will definitely look better!
I stitched only through one layer of paper, and it was thick cardstock. It cracked easily. My mistake! Use this pattern on thinner cardstock or paper. And don't press really hard as you roll it over the paper. (practice with scraps) I found with this pattern and the thick cardstock and thick string that it was almost too much for the cardstock and there was some ripping between the pierced holes. I fixed this easily by putting some scotch tape over the bursts after I'd sewn them, as I had two bursts start to come apart. You can't tell though once I put the tape on the back to hold them. I think if I'd used thinner floss that this whole project would have looked better.

If you've been looking for an easier way to pierce patterns quickly, and a more portable, easier to use tool than a sewing machine, the Sew Easy tools are it! I highly recommend them!
   

Scrappinista - Bliss Necklace

Ah, the final entry for this month's Scrappinista Kit club from Scrapaganza.

When I made the layout with the glittered die cut paper, I had cut out a chunk of the glittered paper from behind the photo to save in case I wanted to use it elsewhere. Well I kind of had some sort of jewelry in mind when I did that!

I used a lot of Tim Holtz parts, including one of the new Facets. I backed the facet with the glittered paper and Glossy Accents to adhere it. I also made the earrings the same way, using fragments charms.

I also used one of Tim Holtz' ornate label plates. The oval ones have lots of places to attach danglies and jumprings so it's perfect for this. I backed it with cardstock and this sticker, then filled in the front with Glossy Accents. Baubles from the kit are dangling on either side.

I attached two of the resin flowers from the baubles in the kit to a couple metal pieces I had in my stash so that I could add them in with jump rings.

Guess what! I used my cricut and the Forever Young cartridge to cut the display board for this necklace. LOL!  I used the dress form image, and enlarged it on my Gypsy so that only the top half fit on the 12x12 mat. I cut both thin chipboard and a sheet of black paper and glued them together. A few hat pins to keep the necklace in place and I have the perfect display. :)

Thanks for looking!

Scrappinista - Pooka

Last layout from Scrapaganza's Scrappinista Scrapbook Club kit! lol

Okay, as a designer for this kit club, we're expected to get at least 4 pages out of the kit, preferably 5. This time I was very frugal, and got 6 pages! I did pull an extra piece of cardstock for this page, and I had pulled an extra printed sheet for the Rum Ball page. But that's it really. You will see that this page has a lot of layering, but really, these were all the scraps I had left over from doing the other pages. I just laid them down on the cardstock and started moving them around until I found a pleasing pattern. Easy Peasy! lol

Even the photos had been printed to fill up a sheet of paper so I wouldn't waste my photo paper, and saved for the right scrappy opportunity. When I finished this layout, I had a few scraps of cardstock, a couple stickers and some baubles left from the kit.

Come back tomorrow to see what I did with the leftovers!

Thanks for looking!

Scrappinista - Rum Ball Rumble

More from Scrapaganza's Scrappinista Scrapbook Club kit!

The Making Memories Sienne line has some browns in it too! One of the papers has some lovely butterflies in browner tones, and I pulled an extra paper that wasn't in the kit that also had browns, a handwriting script one. On the brown cardstock, these papers made a perfect background to pop a single layer of the brighter orange/red printed layer. By this time I was also getting a little tired of the monochromatic, so I chose pictures of my friend wearing a lovely blue dress, and did the title word "Rumble" in blue cardstock with my cricut and the Songbird cartridge. This was just enough color to liven up the monochromatic.

I used a Sizzix die for these 3D flowers, the store just started carrying them, though they are sold out already. :)  A great way to add dimension as well as use up scraps.

Thanks for looking!  (oh yeah, those rum balls were GOOD)

Scrappinista - I Feel...

I love love love this glittered die-cut paper from the Making Memories Sienne line, that was in our Scrappinista Kit this month at Scrapaganza.  I always struggle with scrapping photos of me though, so I ended up keeping this page very simple to let the lovely paper show itself off.

However, I did take 12 inches of white double row rosette ribbon, and sprayed it with copper maya mist. That turned it a little too orangey for my taste so I then very lightly sprayed with a little brown glimmermist, which toned the copper down very nicely. I didn't like the way the double row rosette ribbon lay on my page, so I cut the ribbon down the length of it, and it worked for me better that way. I pinched the ribbon tight where I fastened it to the page, and covered that pinch (where I stapled it on!) with more baubles from the kit.

Yeah, that's me in one of my many belly dance costumes. :)
Thanks for looking!

Scrappinista - Davis 1978

One of the challenging things about a monochromatic line of papers is keeping it interesting as well as finding photos that "go" well with the color palette. In searching through my photo stash, I came across this family photo of my mom and I, and my stepfather and his kids. I'd forgotten all about this photo, as we hadn't been with them for over 20 years, but when I found it, I realized that it had discolored with age to exactly the right color scheme to go with these papers! lol

I cut out circles in two different sizes and "dahlia" folded them as flower type embellishments. I used more baubles from the kit to dress up my paper flowers, as well as some of the die-cut butterflies that are packaged and sold in this line. The packages have 60 butterflies in them! lol
I also used my Gypsy to create a scallop circle border by taking a scallop circle from Graphically Speaking and centering a circle within it. I cut the resulting scallop circle border in half and put the halves on either sides of the photo. Cutting this scallop in a natural off-white cardstock also helps break up the monotony of the color scheme I think.
I also used the alpha stickers that coordinate with this line. The line comes with two types of alphas, a more casual, larger font and this smaller glittered font. Since I'm all about the bling, I chose the glittered font. :)

Thanks for looking!

Scrappinista Kit week!

I love working and designing for my local scrapbook store, Scrapaganza!  :)
Our store has a scrapbook kit club (Scrappinista Scrapbook Club) and this month's club kit features Making Memories Sienne line of papers. Scrumptious papers is all I can say!  I was not so thrilled with the stickers. They are very pretty and have wonderful journaling words and such, but they are not sticky once you remove them from the sheet. We have had to tell our customers to use additional adhesive to be sure their stickers stayed put. I had no trouble at all with the coordinating alphabet stickers I used.

So, I'm going to post everyday this week with each project from this kit!  My first layout was made using only supplies in the kit plus the title which was cut using my Cricut, and the Opposites Attract cartridge. That cartridge is really effective if used right. I recommend keeping the second (top) word short unless it's cut from paper that will stand out from the background as well as the bottom word. In this case, the patterned paper below the title would have overpowered the top word if it had extended out too far.

I love working with double-sided papers. Our Scrappinista kits always use double sided paper lines. Anyway, sometimes it's nice to find a way you can show off both sides of a paper. On this page I cut six 2 inch squares, folded the side corners in and snipped them in half. Then I lined them up as a border along the bottom of the layout.

The line and kit also came with a package of baubles, so I wrapped the main photo with ribbon and suspended a couple of the bauble gems from the ribbon.

Thanks for looking!

Batman Party!

My weekend was so BUSY! Not to mention my work schedule at Scrapaganza the two weeks prior! So I had to squeeze in planning my son's birthday party. I only had a few hours while working the crop at the store to whip out the paper decorations. Fortunately my son wanted a batman party and I had the Batman cricut cartridge!  Above is the banner made from the cartridge.

The masks, arm cuffs and a utility belt made from the cartridge.

My son wearing his batman gear and acting goofy! He turned 4 this year. :)

FYI... doing the mask "fit to page" on a 12x12 mat was too big even for an adult. I think I cut Kevin's mask at 7 inches... maybe a tad bigger, and I might have gotten by cutting it a little smaller because the eye holes were just a little wide. I believe I cut the cuffs at 6 inches? His belt is definitely cut at 3inches. He's a skinny boy so we used 6 links only.

I don't have the cricut cake machine and I stink at decorating cakes so I'm pretty proud that I did this. Kevin is allergic to wheat, dairy and eggs (as well as some other things) so I couldn't buy a decorated cake this year. Hence why I had to decorate myself. LOL.... however we did find a boxed cake mix that fit the bill with just a few alterations (Betty Crocker Gluten-free and replace the called for egg and butter). It tasted like a brownie! So, I may need to get me a cricut cake machine since I plan to make cakes and cupcakes now that I have that option! LOL

Thanks for looking!

Fall minibook swap!

I participated in my first mini book swap this fall organized by Stuck On You Sketches blog. The theme was Fall which is what attracted me to the swap, as I adore fall colors!  For this book I used We R Memory Keepers Maple Grove line, just their printed papers and coordinating cardstock.

For embellishments, I used various ribbons, leaves, stamps and buttons. I also sewed on every page! One of the pages is acrylic, so I stamped on the page with Tim Holtz' new leaf stamp set, which I love love love.

But my most favorite embellishments throughout this book are the handmade buttons from Charlene's Button Box. Charlene is local to this area, her buttons are available at the scrapbook store I work at, Scrapaganza or on Charlene's etsy shop. She is a stellar button maker and I was thrilled with her fall buttons, they worked so well with this book! See detail below:

Her buttons really add something special to any project.

Charlene first began selling her buttons last year in the fall, and the "Family" button on the last page here is from one of the first batches of buttons we could buy.

And that's all there is! Thanks for stopping by to look, and thanks to my swap partner for being so patient waiting for this book!

30 Days of Creativity - Day 19 Family art tray

I made this as a gift for grandma for the holidays this year. That's one down, several more to go. I've vowed to make some gifts this year and I am GOING to do it!  Anyway, this is my first such tray. I think I'd rather do one that has bigger spaces. This was the only one available at the time and it's nice, but it was very hard to work in such small spaces.

I used a couple sheets of paper from the Girls Paperie line that is the Scrappinista Scrapbook Club kit this month at Scrapaganza, but nearly all the embellishments are from my stash.