Mama’s Baby Chicken

I love my chickens. They are so much fun to watch.

When I learned of a twine contest at the online store A Cherry On Top, I knew my new barnyard friends would be a perfect match.

This page features my most unique chicken. She reminds me of an owl. My husband says she looks like a chicken hawk. But we bonded the first evening we brought her home and I immediately began calling her “Mama’s Baby.” The name stuck since chickens seem to be rather difficult to name.

Here’s the page I created showing Mama’s Baby at just a few days old:

Click on the image for a larger view …

The paper is from Creative Imaginations & October Afternoon; cardstock: American Crafts; Twine: May Arts; metal embellishments, charm & black #2: Tim Holtz; cork #2: CTMH; other: Distress Ink, vintage images

In the bottom corner, I created a tag and then wrapped it in twine. Then I used one of the vintage images to make a charm, which I pinned with a key to the tag.

And, along the left side, I used twine as a bit of an accent on both the numbers and the top of the page.

I also inked the area around the  letters after I attached them to the page. I thought it made them stand out and provided a bit more definition.

What do you think?

Happy Father’s Day

For Father’s Day, I wanted to do something a little different. So, like I do with many of my projects, I combined products from several different companies to come up with a unique Father’s Day “Card.”

I started with the Lifestyle Crafts Folder with Insert die. I used Real Wood Paper by Creative Imaginations to keep it masculine. I folded on the scored lines and added a bit of Distress Ink to the edges. Then, I used Memory Book Glue Dots to adhere the pieces together, making a little folder with pockets. Memory Book Glue Dots are perfect for this project because they are so thin, you don’t even notice they are there.

Next, I stamped the image (Crafty Secrets) on Cryogen paper, using Memento Ink and colored it with Copic Markers. I used Memory Book Glue Dots to adhere it to a piece of cardstock and then to adhere that to the cover.

I added Robin’s Nest Dew Drops with Micro Glue Dots. They fit perfectly and hold great.

Inside, I handcut a cardstock liner to serve as the background and added a cardstock label (part of the die set). Then, I tied some May Arts string to the charm (My Mind’s Eye) and adhered it to the label with Craft Glue Dots.

Then, I added a few pages (again, part of the die set) where messages and photos can be added. They can be tucked into the folders.

Finally, I adhered a photo to the folder with Memory Glue Dots.

I love the way it turned out!

Unzip the man

Inspiration is all around us and I take it from a lot of places — scrapbooking magazines, galleries, blogs, idea books, as well as advertising, fashion and home decor. Sometimes, I am inspired by the paper itself.

But this time, it was the new mini gear die from Tim Holtz/Sizzix that provided the inspiration and pulled all of the pieces together.

I am an as-I-go sort of cropper. I rarely have a finished picture in my head when I begin working. Normally, I gather things I think go together and then play around, adhering things as I go and figuring out the rest of it at the end. Somehow, it usually works.

I had this paper by Creative Imaginations (Be A Man) for a while, but hadn’t quite got around to using it — until the new die came into the store.

Suddenly, I saw the entire finished page in my head. I knew exactly how it would look, what tools I would need and how I would put it together. In fact, the hardest part was finding a photo of my husband that would fit the page. Eventually, I gave up that task and used a favorite of the two of us together.

Here’s how I did it …

The ribbon is from Maya Road. It comes with the zipper together. Since there is no zipper pull and I wasn’t sure I could back together if it came apart, I adhered the part I wanted to stay closed to the fence-link paper by Creative Imaginations, first. I used Glue Lines because they are strong and adhere instantly.

Then, I carefully took the zipper apart, adhering the rest onto the paper.

Once that was done, I used scissors to cut off the paper behind the zipper ribbon — so it would look like the paper was unzipping. Then I backed the whole thing with another sheet of Creative Imaginations paper, so everything was strong and secure. I matted the photo and attached it, cut out the title with my Cricut and then got to work embellishing the page.

The back of the gear paper has a lot of words on it and I really liked some of the phrases, so I cut those out (of an additional sheet) and adhered them. Then, I added a couple of stickers off of the coordinating sticker sheet.

Using some circle punches in various sizes, I punched out some of the gears from that extra sheet of paper and placed them around the page — some of them using dimensional foam. Then, using the gear die, I cut out a few gears from cardstock, dipped them onto an embossing pad and then covered them with embossing powder from JudiKins. I heated them to melt the powder and then placed them on the page as well.

Finally, I added some metal gears, brads and coins from Tim Holtz/Ideaology.

Here’s a closer look.

By the way, I used Art Glitter Designer Dries Clear adhesive to attach the metal pieces.

Click on the images for a larger picture or visit Scrap Tales in Brighton for an in-person look.

By the Sea

This is one of the samples I made to hang in the Scrap Tales booth during the Great Lakes Mega Meet.

I made it with Creative Imaginations papers and die cuts, along with a few brads, some dimensional foam and Distress Ink. Although it looks complex, it is really a quick and simple page.

Here’s a closer look at the left side … you can click on the photo for a larger view.

I tore the paper and used Distress Ink along the edges to help separate the patterns from each other. I added dimensional foam (3D Dots or Pop Dots) under the mermaid and one of the flowers to help them stand out.

The title was cut out from one of the papers.

The other side is similar …

I used a couple of brads to attach the die cut. I also left the top of the paper unattached, so I could tuck the photo (and a tag with journaling in the future) in behind it.

Thanks for your Service

Memorial Day has always been a somber sort of day for me.

I know it signifies the beginning of summer and many open their pools and enjoy barbecues and parades on the day off work.

I like all of that, too, but I can’t help but remember what the day means. I was married to the Navy and my son is currently serving in Guam. I understand the sacrifices servicemen and women make for us. So, when Glue Dots® asked me to create a project for Memorial Day, the first thing I thought of was a gift that can be given to a veteran as a small token of appreciation. This is what I came up with …

The box is an Accu-Cut design using paper from Creative Imaginations. I placed a piece of acetate in the window and used Glue Lines® to hold it all together.

Next, I painted Maya Road chipboard letters with a Paint Dabber and, when dry, covered the letters with Diamond Glaze. I love the look it gives the letters. I used Micro Glue Dots® to adhere them to the box.

Then, I cut out stars from QuicKutz, now Lifestyle Crafts, out of white cardstock, painted them gold and then attached them with Mini Glue Dots®.

For the final touch, I took metal adhesive paper from QuicKutz, backed it with cardstock, and then cut out two dog tags using a QuicKutz die. I added a little Alcohol Ink to add some dimension and a bit of chain. I used Glue Lines® to attach it to the top of the box.

Inside, I added a white doily by Little Yellow Bicycle and then some no-bake cookies, my husband’s favorite.

I know it isn’t much compared to the sacrifices made by a vet, but at least they will know we appreciate them!

I wrote this while serving on the Glue Dots® Design Team.

He wants to be a rock star

My son dreams of being a rock star.

I don’t think it is the love of music that attracts him. Rather, I think it is his love of “money for nothin’ and chicks for free.”

So, a few years ago, as part of a high school photography assignment, he put together this lovely outfit. Thank goodness I only saw the photo … I’m not sure any mother wants to see her baby boy in leather pants!

When Scrap Tales gave me this paper by Creative Imaginations to work with for their design team, my husband, remembering Christopher as a rock star, immediately suggested this photo.

I have to admit, it does work perfectly!

I used a craft knife to cut out the middle of the paper and then adhered the photo to the back side.

The tag is cut from a die by Tim Holtz. The title was stamped with a Hero Arts alphabet. The chipboard star was painted with a Paint Dabber. And, the stickers are from EK Success.

Hopefully my son will laugh when he sees this … it is hard to imagine the person in this photo working at a hospital in Guam as part of the U.S. Navy!

Picking the paper

I love being a part of a Design Team. I like seeing things before they are released to the public and helping to promote my favorite brands. But, most of all, I love the challenge.

I love being given products that I wouldn’t normally buy and making them work. Usually when I finish, those papers I would have never purchased become some of my favorite layouts in my albums.

So, when Scrap Tales gave me some Halloween paper by Creative Imaginations, I knew I had my work cut out for me. I don’t like Halloween, so I don’t have anything to do with it and, therefore, have no photos.

But, when I saw this paper, I didn’t really think “Halloween.” I thought “New Orleans Garden.”

Granted, I don’t have any photos of New Orleans, with or without a garden, but I do have some wonderful photos I took last spring of my mom’s garden. Here’s what I came up with:

That gate was begging to be opened, so open it I did:

I cut the title out of extra photos (I also discovered that those with small flowers work better) using the Garden font from QuicKutz (Lifestyle Crafts).

Here’s the facing page on coordinating paper:

For details, visit the Scrap Tales blog, here, or stop in the store.

My Fairy House

When I found this little wooden bird house at Joann’s for only $1, I knew it would make a cute little project. I had planned to decorate it with birds, but somewhere along the way it turned into a house for fairies.

After a light sanding, I sprayed the house with Adirondack Color Wash in Butterscotch. My plan was to fill in the parts of the house that I knew wouldn’t be covered with paper and didn’t feel like trying to get a paintbrush into. But, I loved the effect so much, I ended up leaving the entire front of the house uncovered.

Next, I dry brushed a bit of silver and gold paint (Ranger’s Paint Dabbers) onto the front.

Then, I cut paper to fit (Graphic 45’s Once Upon a Springtime collection) inked the edges with Distress Ink and adhered it with Craft Glue Dots®.

The ribbon was too white for this project, so I inked it with Distress Ink and then used Mini Glue Dots® to attach it to the house.

I used Grungepaper and a QuicKutz tree die to cut the tree, inked it with Distress Ink and then adhered it with Craft Glue Dots® to the back of the house. I added a few Prima flowers with Mini Glue Dots® and then attached Robin’s Nest Dew Drops and some buttons I had in my craft room with Micro Glue Dots® to both the tree and the front of the house.

The butterfly and fairy peeking into the house were both cut from the Graphic 45 paper. I attached the fairy with a Pop Up Glue Dot® to add a little more dimension.

On each side of the house, I made little windows using an idea I got from a friend. I’m not sure how she made hers, but I used a Creative Memories’ square punch to cut first the inner portion and then the outer portion out of real wood paper by Creative Imaginations. I then attached small prints of fairies cut from the same Graphic 45 paper.  I added Prima flowers and some leaves by Jolee’s that I have had forever to create the look of a flower garden on each side.

To give you a better idea of size, the house is only about 4″ tall — perfect for little fairies!

 

I wrote this post while serving on the Glue Dots® Design Team.

Happy Birthday, Korie

My baby will be 18 at the end of February. Although her birthday is still a few months away, I think she is looking forward to it more than Christmas. Well, at least she talks about it more than she does Christmas!

So, when Glue Dots® asked me to create some sort of birthday decoration, this popped into my head. I figure it is never to early to start making the decorations!

Oh, and there is a “gift” for everyone coming soon … Glue Dots® will be releasing a new product at CHA in January — Micro Glue Dots®. They are smaller than Mini Glue Dots® and are perfect for attaching letters and other tiny items. I have been using them for a few weeks and I have been loving them!

Anyhow, back to the sign …

Supplies used: Paper by Bo Bunny (brown) and Creative Imaginations (circle); cardstock by American Crafts; Cricut fonts: Opposites Attract and Doodletype; Sparkly Fluff; Art Glitter; Continuous Glue Lines®; Micro Glue Dots®; Craft Glue Dots®; Pop Up Glue Dots®; gem by Bo Bunny

Here’s how I made it:

1. Cover 12×12 sheet of cardboard with paper using Continuous Glue Lines®

2. Add circle paper with Craft Glue Dots®

3. Cut out letters & numbers from cardstock with Cricut; ink with Distress Ink to provide a bit of dimension and attach with Micro Glue Dots®

4. Print out 8×10 photo and trim; attach with Craft Glue Dots®

5. Cut out birthday hat from cardstock and ink edges to add dimension.

6. “Draw” stripes with Continuous Glue Lines® and add Sparkly Fluff.  (Push the Sparkly Fluff into the lines before shaking off the excess to make it hold)

7. “Make” dots with Craft Glue Dots® and cover with Art Glitter.

8. Attach hat with Pop Up Glue Dots®

9. Add a gem to the top of the hat with Craft Glue Dots®

This post was created while participating on the Glue Dots® design team.