Sunday, July 17, 2011

Hometown Summer Album - so far

This album is for my husband's birthday.  I don't think that it will be complete by his birthday, but I wanted to show off how it's coming along.  I've LOVED every minute of the work that I've done on this project ..






Tea Swap card & Good Luck on New Job card

Today was a productive day.  I made this card for the August Tea Swap.  The theme is "Pink" & I really enjoyed working on it.  The flower on this card was made by my dear friend, Zeffy.  It matched perfectly.  For the inside pockets I used a doily cut in half. 







This card is for a colleague that's leaving our Dept.  The chicken connection is one that she'll instantly understand & we, as a Dept., want her to think fondly of us after she's left.  We hope that this card brings a smile to her face.  I loved the colors & think that they reflect our personalities within the office.

Saturday, July 2, 2011

3 Cards on a Saturday

Here are some cards that I made today ... I'm pleased with how they came out ... Let me know what you think ~

 This is the engagement card that I made for our nephew.  He recently proposed (& she said "yes").  I wanted to make them a card to celebrate this very special day.
 This card I'm calling Bride to Be ... but I'm not sure who I'm going to give it to.  I wanted to play with a doily, an image that I received in a RAK & some lovely papers that I had around the house.  The lace matched perfectly & I think that the bling in the hair adds so much.
I love Webster's Pages & look for any opportunity to use them.  This card was made using a 6 x 6 page & I intentionally left the sentiment off so I can add it whenever I want to use it.  This card would be a lovely birthday card or a fun "new home" card or an elegant thank you card.  I'm keeping my options open.

Monday, June 27, 2011

Cards

 Father's Day card for David ... We have a yearly tradition of going fishing on Father's Day weekend as both of our Dads are deceased & we miss them so much.  This was a good year of fishing .... Note that the silver fish is from a necklace that my friend, Zeffy, sent me from Greece.  Isn't it perfect?
 This little card was submitted as a challenge entry to Crafting Ireland.  We had a layout to follow & this was my take on it.  I love the image of the children marching across the sand ... The punch is from EK Success for teh sand castles ...
This is the card that was chosen for publication in Crafting Ireland.  I loved making this card as it incorporated layers of Webster's Pages goodness.  It's unfortunate that you can't see that the Happy Times image is on a transparency.  It really lends depth to the card.

Published in Crafting Ireland today

Website: craftingireland.wordpress.com
I'm so excited that a card that I created has been selected for Crafting Ireland's 2nd issue.  The theme was Beach & living in New England - our water is often very cold.  My fondest childhood memories don't involve being in the water.  They involve the beach foods that we always enjoyed & the card that I submitted reflects those sweet times.
Check out this online magazine & consider submitting an entry.  There are lots of great designs & techniques to learn from ....

Tuesday, June 7, 2011

June Tea Swap Card

This is the card that I made for my swap partner for the June Tea Swap.  We had the option of using "masculine" in our card.  I used the Gabrielle Paper Line from Bo Bunny & went with the browns/teals [not quite masculine ...].  This card came out exactly the way I envisioned it & I think that fussy cutting the floral area on the left & inserting the center image was a good way to add dimension.  The butterflies were cut with a Martha Stewart punch & I added some trim on the far left that matched perfectly.  I hope that Colleen enjoys it ~


Beyond this card I've been very busy -- I've been hosting swaps on the Life on the {Scrap} Beach & that's been a lot of fun.  I made 2 different designs for the Retro Sewing Room swap & 3 different for the BoBunny Gabrielle 4 x 4 page swap & 2 different layouts for the Tradewinds Postcard swap ... I'd love to get all of the photos posted, but need to make the time.

Friday, April 8, 2011

Tags on their way

 This tag is being mailed out tomorrow.  The theme is Victorian Picnic.  The inspiration for this tag was some toile tissue paper that lined a gift bag along with a toile ribbon that matched.  I began by adhering a fleur de lis patterned paper onto the tag & then adding the tissue paper.  Mod Podge over all & then I began building.  My element for the swap was to incorporate a transparency or acetate so I added a cut transparency with a frame over my digital image.  I layered some papers & thought that I'd add the bit of doily for some visual interest.  I loved the laces I chose - not only for their color, but for their textures, too.  Finish off with a bit of flower & some cut leaves & it's ready to go.
 This tag was for a swap with the only requirement being Vintage=inspired.  I had saved this little girl on my desktop for months with the note, "girl with checked hat" .. Finally I was able to use her.  My tag is a recycled file folder that had a grid pattern on the inside.  When I covered with a soft vellum, layered with distressed paper & 1/2 of a piece of ribbon & the image was coming together.  Her hat was colored using Broken China Distress ink that I applied by hand.  The flower combined the papers & a matching brad ... A stamp on the top with Archival ink & a TH corner & some blue bling pull it together.

Both of these tags are for Life on the {Scrap} Beach swaps.  I'm hosting a Paper Napkin swap & also a 4 x 4 Gabrielle Paper swap.  I'm having so much fun .. Come join me!



Saturday, March 5, 2011

Japanese Bookmarks & a Mini Composition book

I'm adding these in the order that I completed them ... Here's the photo of the bookmarks that I made using items that I had on hand ... So much fun (took hours & hours), but I'm very pleased with how they came out.
I have to say that it really was a lot of fun figuring out their hair.  I tried bangs & even long hair down the back ... thought about a bun on top & decided that I'd give my little girls a simple hair style that I could add just a touch of bling to. 





The next project that I worked on was a mini composition book for a swap with Brenda.  This was a different project for me as I was working with a small existing element & trying to figure out how to keep the scale right & still provide visual interest.  The focal point was a paper raffia flower that I made & spritzed with Smooch Spritz.  I played around with the idea of making a bumblebee cover with blacks & yellows, but I remembered that Brenda likes vintage so I dove into my stash of papers & found a sweet floral with purple & yellow in it.  Once I found the green trim with a tiny edge I knew that it would come together fine.  Like any project you make to swap -- my real concern is whether my partner will like it as much as I liked making it.... I love the fabric I placed this book on, but you might have to really hunt to find the actual book.  Hint - look for the black binding on the left hand side.

I'm having a great time on the Beach creating & swapping & seeing everyone's ideas.  If you check it out (go over to the right side of this blog & click on the link) I know that you'll soon be joining in the fun, too.

Tuesday, February 22, 2011

4 x 4 Pages - Cottage Garden - Flora & Fauna


 

These are the four pages that I made using the Cottage Garden & Flora & Fauna papers by K & Company.  This Life's a {Scrap} Beach swap was a lot of fun as I was working in a 4" x 4" format.  I really enjoy the challenges of small scale.  These pages are much more vibrant, but I was taking photos using very bright natural winter light & there was some reflection from the windows as well as any shiny baubles on the pages.  I really hope that my partners enjoy these pages.  The pictures are of the 4 pages that I'm keeping.  I included a tag with the first initial for each of my swap partners on the pages that are getting mailed to Oregon.

Mardi Gras Charm

This is the charm & tag that I just sent out for the Scrap Beach March charm/dangle swap.  We had a choice between Mardi Gras or St. Patrick's Day & I chose Mardi Gras in order to play with green, gold & purple.  This charm was made with both vintage (deconstructed) items & new.  I'm pleased with how it came out & also with the way the tag coordinated (used my Cuttlebug Fleur de Lis folder) ... Colors could be crisper, but the blog wouldn't let me upload the adjusted colors.

Monday, February 14, 2011

Blue Fairy with instructions

This is the captured fairy jar that I created for Mary.  Our friend Mary is from Scotland & longs for the sea.  No matter what time of year (including November in New England) if she's anywhere near the water her shoes come off & she's in up to her ankles.  When I saw a Captured Fairy on Cynthialoowho's youtube channel I knew that I had to make one for Mary.  This is actually a water sprite that was captured, but the process is the same. 
I took an old mason jar that I had & began by sprinkling fairy dust over the inside bottom (aka blue glitter over Mod Podge).   I took some papers that I had that looked oceanic & layered on two of them (fussy cutting some waves) & attached to the back of the jar with ModPodge (over & under the papers to seal them).  [I found that tissue paper works much better for this when I made my pink fairy later in the day.]  While everything was drying I spritzed some cotton batting with Riptide Glimmer Mist & let it dry.  My thought was that this could be the sea foam over the glitter.  I took the butterfly that I had (a small fabric one from a previous project where I gently removed the body) & used Riptide & Lemon Meringue Glimmer Mist & heat set it.  I edged the wings with Crystal Stickles & let it dry for several hours.  I added bling on the circles for some added sparkle.  For the fairy herself I printed her on our printer & colored gently with Q-Tips & Broken China Distress Inks.  I was trying to figure out how she'd stand in the jar & bent the base she was standing on in the picture & attached to a large antique button.  I glued the wings onto the center of her back & bent them by hand.  I attached the button to the glitter-covered base & then added the batting over the button.  I put in flowers, a pearl button [thinking that pearls come from oysters &oysters come from the sea) along with some small, white pearl trim that I had.  I added small seashells that we had gathered to cover up the outside edge of the back paper using my hot glue gun.  I used lace for the base & also around the rim of the jar lid.  I left the jar lid able to be opened so thart Mary can add other treasures to keep her sprite happy.  I made a paper flower for the lid using the Sizzix #3 layered flower die cut & Glimmer Misting with Riptide & spritzing with green Smooch Spritz for some depth.  The final element that I put on was a pearl swirl to the outside of the jar & then a sprinkle of Dazzling Diamonds with a wish.  I attached a tag with the sprite's name, capture date & location with a message for Mary.  This was a labor of love & I am already looking forward to making my next one.  I will be teaching this class on March 26, 2011 at Life's Memories & More in Palmer, MA.  It should be loads of fun ...

Saturday, February 12, 2011

Captured Pink Fairy

I saw a Captured Fairy on the internet & had just received my Goodie Swap from Sandi... I took several of the elements that she sent me & put this Captured Fairy together.  I'm going to watch an instructional video tonight (Artedar on UStream).  I'll get a chance to see what else I can learn.  I also made a 2nd jar, but it's a gift & I'm not posting a picture until the recipient has it in her hands ... I loved every minute that I spent creating this mini world for my little fairy.  I wish that there was a better way to show the contents ... It's a mini world inside the jar ...

Sunday, February 6, 2011

Easter Tag Inspiration

We're off to a SuperBowl party this afternoon & I'd told our sweet hostess that I'd bring along my new tags to show off.  Half of the partygoers will be sequestered in the downstairs scraproom happily creating & I was excited about sharing the results from my recent class.  When I said that I'd be bringing Christmas tags she challenged me to come up with an Easter Tag using the same techniques.  The picture attached is the result.  I included the original Christmas tag on the left, and I'm very pleased with the Easter tag on the right. I started with a standard manila tag that I stamped with Archival ink using a stamp with cursive writing on it & then distressed when dry by dragging the ink onto the tag with my Stampin UP sponge in circular motions.  The bird is the recognizable bird from the Tim Holtz birdcage die & I used Antique Linen Distress crackle paint & then added some of the purple ink to soften when completely dry.  The banner was made using plain white paper stamped with the Easter Greetings from the Stampin Up Easter Blossoms set.  To get the ripple I simple ran the rounded edge of a pen along the back & then flipped up at the end.  To keep the height I used pop dots underneath at the notched side.  The flower was the very simple scalloped punch flower made with a dry purple gingham paper I had that I distressed with the same purple ink that I used for distressing the tag & the bird (Marvy Heritage Lavender Fields).  I had the coordinating paper, rickrack & ribbon in my stash.  When complete I used the Marshmallow Glimmer Mist to add some shimmer over the entire thing.  I finished off with a green organza ribbon at the top.  I can just see this tag hanging from an Easter basket with chocolate bunnies behing it ....

Friday, February 4, 2011

Lace Around The World Swap with Tag & Charm

This is a tag with matching charm that I made for the Lace Around the World Swap.  The directions were to send 3 laces or trims (1 yard each) & put them on a tag with a matching charm.  This tag was created by embossing a 3 1/4 x 6 1/8 piece of glossy cardstock with the Sizzix folder from the Summer Fun set.  I then inked the entire card using Adirondack Alcohol Ink colors Sail Boat Blue & Pool.  After dry I used Glimmer Mist (color Sweet Pea) randomly & heat set.  I added a piece of black card stock, an image from an ATC set & then stamped with Archival Ink using a flourish (now hidden under the lace.  For the charm I made it using Tim Holtz chain, a Tim Holtz Philosophy tag, a clip that I soaked in the alcohol inks used for the background, & beads from Anita's bead shop in New Hampshire.  The teal lace inspired the tag & the other colors are fuschia & white.  I ordered the teal lace online from elfcrafters on Ebay.  The lace arrived beautifully packaged & quick, quick, quick.  I would recommend them without hesitation.  For fibers I used some yarn that I had in my stash.  I do hope that my swap partners enjoy this tag ... I am looking forward to seeing what they make, too.

Tim's Tags 1
















What an amazing Christmas gift! My BFF, Mary, gave me this class (+ dinner at Panera's before) as a Christmas gift ... The class was delayed due to snow - we had a 2nd storm which left the City with one lane streets & the store was 45 minutes away, BUT - we were intrepid souls & went off to take the class last night. The photos aren't fabulous, but I was taking the pictures in -1o degree weather out on my sunporch [I prefer natural light] & I was having trouble with glare [3 feet of snow!] ... Here are the results & I've learned TONS of new techniques ... The class was held at Inspiration Station in Stafford Springs, CT.
Update re: the Valentine Tea - it's been postponed (of course - we're expecting MORE SNOW) until the 12th of February -- How many people will remember that it's Abraham Lincoln's birthday????





Sunday, January 30, 2011

Spring Fling Tag Challenge


This is the tag that I'm submitting for the Spring Fling Challenge for the Scrap Beach swap. The photo doesn't do it justice in either the color contrast or the details, but I wanted to get it online before sending tomorrow. I'll go over the process here in case anyone has questions about how it came together. This was (believe it or not) a 6 hour tag as I spent a lot of time trying different techniques & making adjustments. The tag is a standard 3 1/8" x 6 1/4" tag as the base. I cut a matching piece of glossy stock to build upon & sprayed with Glimmer Mist (Lime Twist) & heat set. I then used Versamark to stamp the blossom background (Stampin Up Easter Blossoms set) & then sprinkled with clear embossing powder before heating. Over this I sprayed Glimmer Mist (Cherry Blossom) & wiped excess off with a baby wipe. I added a couple of light spritzes over the top with more Lime Twist. I adhered the dry emboss resisted sheet onto the original tag & cut the corners. For the medallion I stamped the image of the little girl (also from the SU Easter Blossoms set) onto a piece of green vellum that I'd cut with my Spellbinders Nestabilities dies using Archival ink. I cut a larger piece from some pieces of pink scrap paper (no name - sorry) & chalked the edges with ColorBox (Pink) chalk. The small dots in the pail are made using Stickles (Cotton Candy). I printed out the verse that was assigned to me ("Spring unlocks the flowers to paint the laughing soil") & spritzed with Glimmer Mist (Cherry Blossom) before cutting & adhering. I made the small flower on the lower right by cutting 5 scalloped circles with the 1 1/2" Stampin Up scalloped punch. I wet the pieces with my mini mister & stacked & fluffed each layer to let dry. I used a piece of polka dot paper that I had on hand (no name on it). It is a pale cream with yellow dots. I assembled with a green brad & let dry. When dry it was the wrong color so I then used Glimmer Mist (Cherry Blossom) to get it to coordinate with the design. The piece of lace is actually a cream lace from Graphic 45. The color was too dingy for the tag so I ended up changing the color by using the Shell Pink alcohol ink by Adirondack letting air dry. I attached the lace edge using scrapbook tape (a first for me). The tiny keys are from Graphic 45 & I'm not sure about the paper clips. I had them on hand in a small container. I finished the tag off with a piece of ribbon from my own stash. I think the colors work well together.
I hope that my partners for this swap enjoy it.... I like to think of the little girl representing "Spring" ... I think that I get to make this connection as my birthday is the first day of Spring ;-)

Altered Journal for Timi in Ireland


This is the cover for the altered journal that I made for Timi as my half of the swap through Life on the {Scrap} Beach. Check out the website (http:/thescrapbeach.ning.com/) & you'll find all sorts of fun options (swaps, RAKs, wish lists, etc). I'm participating in a Spring Tag Swap, Lace Swap & this Altered Journal Swap. It was so much fun to create --- I hope that she enjoys it ... The edge was covered with the Tim Holtz Paper Tape ... It does look like newsprint, but is actually distressed tape. I also used a technique that I'd seen online & wanted to try using pieces of tape, covered with Mod Podge & then added the mesh ribbon & a white prima flower that I had & inked with alcohol inks in colors I thought she'd like. There are more surprises inside, but I want her to have some surprises so I'm not showing them here.

Wednesday, January 12, 2011

February Kit of the Month - File Folder Mini Album


This is the sample for the February Kit of the Month on Sale at Life's Memories & More in Palmer, MA beginning Sunday, January 16th. I know that people may be looking for additional information (including dimensions of cardstock, papers & tags) so here's some more info for this very fun project ~
I began by spraying the folder inside & out with Riptide Glimmer Mist Spray & setting it with my heat gun. After it dried I did put it under some weight to flatten out the pages.
The next thing I did was to open the folder & notice on the insde (by flipping down the folded pocket) that I needed to cut 2 slots for the ribbon. I took care of this detail right at the beginning so I wouldn't forget about it.
Moving on to the cover - I added the date on the upper right hand tab using stickers. For the dashes between the numbers I cut down exclamation points. I cut the brown matt 3 3/4 x 7 1/4 & rounded the corners. I cut the patterned paper 3 1/2 x 7 & rounded the corners, too. I then chalked the patterned paper for a finished edge. I adhered the patterned paper to the matt & the matt to the cover of the album. For the letter I attached the chipboard "L" using a pop dot for some added height & then completed the name (Logan) using the alpha stickers. In order to help the letters stand out I simply added white dots freehand. I used 3 orange graduated orange "blings" that I had in my personal stash. Remember that you will be having a 1" inch ribbon cut across your cover - be careful with layout so that you don't cover anything up at the end.
The inside page on the left -- I added a journaling card to the front of the pocket & attached using photo corners. For the tag I cut the teal cardstock 3 1/2 x 6 & then snipped off the corners at a 45 degree angle. I punched a hole in the center, added fibers & a couple of stickers (included in the kit).
The next pocket I cut a 3 x 3 green square & corner rounded only the right side. I found some words that I liked from the celebration paper & cut a 2 1/2 & 2 1/2 square & rounded all corners before chalking. For the tag I cut 3 3/4 x 7 1/2 from the 8 x 8 square. I took the piece of newsprint collage paper & ripped at an angle before chalking. I added one of the file tag words to the top & finished by adding a flourish from the sticker sheet. The tag has fibers from the set threaded through the hole punched in the center.
The 3rd pocket used a leftover piece from the patterned paper used on the cover. I cut it to 3 1/2 x 3 1/2, rounded the corners & added stickers from the sheet. For the tag I cut the lined paper to measure 4 x 7. I added BABY down the left side using alpha stickers. The 2 pieces of vellum at the top came from my personal stash (not included in the kit). I adhered them with vellum adhesive.
The last pocket was covered by cutting a 3 3/4 x 3 1/2 inch piece of the cardstock leftover from pocket 1's tag. I rounded the bottom corners & border punched the top with a Martha Stewart punch. I chalked. I then used the same punch to punch along the edge of a 3 3/4 x 2 inch piece of grey cardstock & chalked the top for contrast. I used my white marker to outline the edges of the punched edge & finished with a sticker from the sheet.
I lined the 4th pocket with a piece of the Celebration word paper cut to 3 3/4 x 7. I rounded the top corners & chalked the edges before adhering. The final tag was cut from the leftover piece of the 8 x 8 paper to measure 4 x 7 & then had the top cut to replicate a tag. Fibers were threaded through the hole punched in the center.
The next step was to thread the ribbon through the 2 slots. Flipping the entire book over I threaded between the 2 [ ] making sure that the ribbon came around the front of the cover & also went behind the back of the whole book. I did adhere the ribbon (when final placement was determined) to the front of the book. Do NOT adhere to the back or you won't be able to open your book ;-)
My final step was to add Terrifically Tacky Tape to the inside of the left side of the 1st pocket & the right side of the last packet & adhered. This keeps all of the pockets from flopping around, but can't be done before the ribbon is all set.
Add photos and journaling of your special day & enjoy this Kit.

Tuesday, January 4, 2011

What have I been doing since Thanksgiving?

Miss Mary reminded me today that I was remiss in not entering info onto this blog ... I've been so busy that I guess I'll have to prove it by showing what I've been creating ...










These are 3 calendar covers that I made for my co-workers. I purchased the 2 year calendars at AC Moore, took off the plastic cover & started creating. Jan was kind enough to use her Cricut for the rooster & car. She then reduced a template for the hiking boots & look how amazing they came out. I made a total of 11 different calendar covers & I think the girls at the office liked them.
After the calendar covers I worked on cards for the January kit of the Month at Life's Memories & More. Here are 3 of the 6 birthday cards that are in the kit.








So what's on my mind right now -- well ---> beyond waiting for our grandson's arrival (any day now) I've been working on cards for a fun event at Life's Memories & More. On February 5th from 2 - 4 we're having afternoon tea (with tea, cucumber sandwiches, fresh berries, scones & a surprise dessert). I thought that we needed to have cards to go with our goodies so everyone leaves with 3 cards (either Valentine or Tea-themed). I think it's going to be so much fun & for $10 I think it's an affordable event. Seating is limited so don't wait til the last minute.