Tray by the Sea

When you have beautiful paper, like the By The Sea collection from Graphic 45, creating an elegant piece of home decor is really quite simple.

I started with an old tray I had picked up at Goodwill, painted a bright blue, decided I didn’t like it, and stashed it in a closet for a year. For this project, I pulled it out again and covered that blue with white.

Then, I added a layer of Distress Crackle Paint. Once dry, I used a dauber to add a bit of coffee Archival Ink to help highlight the cracks and crevices.

Then, I covered the tray with paper. (the gold is some Halloween paper from Reminisce).

I sanded a bit of the paper off, which also took off various layers of paint. There are even a few spots where some of that blue came through. It created a beautiful finish!

Once all covered in paper, I added a thin layer of Glastique with a paintbrush to the entire tray to seal it. The Reminisce paper bubbled with the liquid, so I would not recommend using it in this application … but I made it work.

Next, I added some fibers a friend gave me. The burlap ribbon is from Michael’s. The twine is from May Arts. I’m not sure where the other fibers came from.

I tied lots of them to the ends of the tray. they are so soft and match so well!

I love this tray! It matches my living room perfectly and is filled with all of my favorite colors. Thank you, Graphic 45 for the papers and Anna for the fibers!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Time Flies Birthday Card

I was so honored to be asked to join Kimberly Congdon’s challenge design team — Scrap It Girl.

Each month, crafters are invited to create a layout, card, altered art or similar project following a theme. At the end of the month, the entries are all looked at and a winner is chosen. They receive a cool selection of products.

This is the first challenge design team I have been on, so I am excited.

For December, the challenge is clocks. I decided to make a card using products from Globecraft & Piccolo and paper from Reminisce.

I used Vintage Photo Distress Ink to ink the card base and then added the paper (the back side of one of the vintage label prints) at an angle to add interest.

I typed the saying and printed it off, then colored it with Vintage Photo Distress Ink.

For the clock, I coated the back with Burnt Umber 3D Enamel Gel and the clock parts with 24K Gold Enamel Powder.

Then, I coated the wings with Vintage Copper Enamel Powder.

I wanted them to be more than just the outline of wings, so I placed them on my Non-stick Craft Sheet and filled them with Glastique, also from Globecraft & Piccolo.

Then, while I was at it, I put the clock together and coated it with a layer of Glastique as well.

Once the wings are practically dry (dry to the touch, but still white) I carefully lifted them off the Non-stick Craft Sheet. Notice in the photo below how the Glastique stays with the little wing.

Once they are totally dry, the area between the wings is transparent, but still has a bit of sheen — very similar to a dragonfly’s wings.

Now, you can see the paper through them, but it’s obvious that they are not just a frame.

And here is the final card again … Click on the photos for a larger picture.

I hope you head over to Scrap It Girl and try out the December challenge, too.

And, if you can’t find Globecraft & Piccolo products in your local store, click on the link at the side to shop online.

Altering Spoons

I have a new addiction … altering spoons. I cannot seem to stop.

Part of the fun is in finding the spoons. Since I am going to be teaching how to alter them at an upcoming retreat at Sunset Shores, I have been searching for them for the past month or so … antique sales, flea markets, Goodwill stores. I have quite a collection that my husband has lovingly either bent or drilled holes into so they can be hung easily.

Yet, although I have more than enough, I can’t help myself from looking for more!

But the fun of altering spoons is more than just hunting for treasures. They are so small and so easy to work with that decorating them is exciting, too. I have been using up a lot of those spare parts I had laying around from other creations, as well as cutting up some Christmas paper.

The one at the top is wrapped in twine. Then, I added a few cutouts from so old paper, which I had inked with Distress Ink. (I found that Glue Lines, made by Glue Dots, and dimensional foam tape seem to work the best at attaching things.) I coated the paper in Glastique to give it some additional strength and a bit of shine.

Then, I added a Piccolo (laser-cut, compressed chipboard) which I coated with Vintage Black Enamel Powder to the front.

Finally, I added a bit of sparkle with some glitter from Globecraft Memories.

 

I fell in love with this print on a sheet of paper from KaiserCraft. I didn’t want it to be a plain rectangle, nor did I want to cut out the children on the sled, so used a Lifestyle Crafts die to cut out an interesting border and then inked it with Distress Ink.

I added Art Glitter Dazzlers to the bottom of the spoon to replicate the snow and tied a bit of tulle to the top.

I sprayed a Maya Road flower with Perfect Pearls Mists to give it a hint of blue and attached that over the tulle.

Then I coated a Piccolo key in Vintage Gold Enamel Powder and added a little plastic flower from Bazzill. I love how soft it turned out and this is one I can keep up all winter …

This last one was inspired by the Piccolo bird cage and little birds. With the exception of the Piccolo parts, tulle and paper, all of the items on this spoon were sitting on my desk in a little bowl my daughter made when she was little. I toss all unused and leftover embellishments in there for later use — although I rarely use them later! Anyhow, I wrapped the spoon in tulle, coated the cage in Vintage Bronze and the birds in Cool-Set Enamel, also from Globecraft Memories. Then I wrapped around a bit of red tinsel (Tim Holtz). I cut the saying out of  a piece of Reminisce paper and added Distress Ink and Glastique to it. I added a bit of Distress Ink onto the flower and attached it.

The crochet flower is handmade by a customer at Capture A Memory in Flint Township. The center piece was a Maya Road plastic flower I airbrushed with a Copic marker and then never used. I think it works perfect here, don’t you?

I hope you have fun trying your own altered spoons … I know we will this weekend in Clare!

 

New Piccolos from Globecraft Memories

Have you seen the new holiday Piccolo Accents from Globecraft Memories? They are really cute …

Here are a few cards I created with them …

This one is the Night Before Christmas. I coated it with Vintage Gold Enamel Powder and then glued a bit of embroidery floss behind for the string. The stamp is from Stampers Anonymous and the papers are from Reminisce.

This one uses the Lil Christmas Accents (well, a few of them …). I painted them white and black and then covered them with Glastique. The “buttons” were created with a Glaze pen. I used papers by Moxxie and velvet paper for the background. The saying is a sticker.

Finally, this one I have shown before, but I love it so much, I thought it was worth another look! It features the My Own Wreath Design Accents, which are a lot of fun because it comes with several accents and you pick what you want to go on the wreath! The dark green is Mossy Glen Enamel Powder. The red and light green are paints by Claudine Hellmuth Studio. I covered the entire thing with Glastique.

The stamp is the same one used above. Papers are from Authentique and the sentiment is stamped on paper cut out with a Lifestyle Crafts Die.

Are you making Christmas cards this year?

 

Halloween Spoons

I love altered art. It is my favorite type of paper crafting. There is just something super special about turning an unused, unwanted or common item into something beautiful. In my time, I have altered frames, books, boxes, trays, cupcakes and even a window. Naturally, when I saw Vicki Chrisman’s post about altered spoons, I knew I had to try them.

Vicki’s original altered spoons were elegant antique ones topped with birds and nests and such lovely things. I wanted to try it, but never found elegant spoons to work with. This time, Vicki made Halloween spoons, covered in glitter and ribbon and enough stuff that it did not really matter what type of spoons were used.

So, I headed to my favorite store, Goodwill, and picked up several spoons for .25 each. I found some with little teeth at the end, that I thought would be perfect for Halloween, and some that were bent kind of like a ladle. And, I found some plain ones, too.

I asked my husband to bend the handle on each one so I would have a hook to tie a ribbon to so they would hang. During this process, Matt decided the plain ones were unbendable and, since they were far better than anything contained in our silverware drawer, he confiscated them. While I am still waiting for him to reimburse me the .75 cents he owes me, I went ahead and decorated a few of the spoons for a little home-decor resale shop in Argentine. (The owner asked me to make some Halloween items for her to sell.)

I covered the spoons with Art Glitter Designer Dries Clear Adhesive and then glitter in orange. Then I cut out images from Graphic 45 and Reminisce paper and used dimensional foam tape to adhere them to the spoons.

I added twine to this one …

and tied a bow on this one …

 

And a little plastic flower from Maya Road to this one.

I love how they turned out — even if they are Halloween, my least favorite holiday.

One thing I can be sure of … there will be NO more Halloween crafts in my house this year! I am so over Halloween ….

 

 

 

Trick-or-Treat Canvas

My how time flies when you are having fun!

I have so much to do right now, I get overwhelmed, cannot figure out where to start and end up doing nothing. Do you ever have that problem?

Well, one thing I did manage to finish this week is a Trick-or-Treat Canvas. It is my first attempt at making a canvas and I love how it turned out!

This project was inspired by Jen Starr’s canvas, here …

I ran into a few problems … did you know Perfect Pearls Mists and Distress Inks will not work on treated canvas? Glimmer Mists will, so that is what I used on this one.

After spritzing and spraying Glimmer Mists until I liked the result, I added black paint to the edges and a bit of dry brushing to the front side.

The houses are cut from Tim Holtz/Sizzix die cuts in both cardstock and Shimmer Sheetz. The Shimmer Sheetz are then embossed with texture folders and I added a bit of alcohol ink to the silver ones.

The little bits behind the windows are cut from Reminisce paper and covered in Glastique to give them a bit of sheen. I then added some ribbons, buttons, lace, etc.

The witch is cut from Graphic 45 paper. I coated her with a thin layer of Glastique, too. It gives her the look of a canvas painting.

 

The letters are chip board from Maya Road.

I started by adhering them with Removable Glue Dots onto my non-stick craft sheet.

Then, I used Ranger Archival Ink to color the tops. This time, I didn’t want any color on the sides of the letters, so the ink pad worked well. (Don’t use Distress Ink for this — it will react with the Glastique).

Then I added a thick coat of Glastique to the top. It goes on white, but dries crystal clear.

As a final touch, I made a few dots and stripes with Liquid Pearls, added a bit of twine and Dew Drop from Robin’s Nest.

The bats are actually cut from a strip of ribbon.

I think it turned out pretty cool. It is going to be for sale at a resale shop that sells home goods in Argentine — between the Police Station and Seymour Road, on Silver Lake Road.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Happy Halloween

I hate Halloween.

I don’t like spiders or vampires or things that go bump in the night and I find the whole holiday rather creepy. I know, it is supposed to be that way, but frankly there is nothing about being scared that appeals to me. So I avoid all things related to Halloween — normally.

But then new paper started arriving at Capture A Memory and I fell in love. So, when I was asked to make some samples for the store, I agreed and came up with these from the new line Hallowe’en by Reminisce.

 

This piece of Halloween art is made with a picture frame made for a 4×6 photo. The center is a giant sticker from Reminisce — yes, a 4×6 sticker! How perfect is that. I then used a bit of Art Glitter Designer Dries Clear Adhesive to glue a bit of baker’s twine around the edge of the frame.

Then I added some orange buttons I found in my stash. I attached them with Glue Dots Pop Up because the thick adhesive allows them to attach firmly to the uneven levels on the frame.

Finally, I grabbed in old bottle cap from my stash, flattened it with a mallet and used a 1″ punch to cut a picture out of another sheet of Reminisce paper and then glued it to the frame.

Super simple, super easy and super cute!

Next, I turned my attention to a little altered book. I started with a mini composition book … Staples usually has these in stock this time of year for about .50 each. They are 3 1/4″ x 4 1/2″ — the perfect size for a pad to fit in the purse or for a little gift to someone special.

I covered the book cover with paper from the Reminisce line and sanded the edges so they matched the shape of the book. Then I cut out the little girl greeting from another sheet and attached it. I wrapped twine around a few times and added a little charm from My Mind’s Eye.

Another super easy, super cute project!

Finally, I used some of the papers to make a layout for the store. I cut the little pumpkin guys out and used dimensional foam to adhere them.

My dislike of Halloween is so great, I don’t have any photos to use, so it is going to the store without the picture!

Stop by Capture-A-Memory to see all of these projects in person, or click on the photos for a better view.

 

To Gnome You is to Love You

I discovered the cutest set of word stamps from Stampin’ Up in their latest catalog. I absolutely loved them and knew I HAD to have them (I have a thing for gnomes). However, I really didn’t like the set of gnome stamps that coordinated. So, I began a quest to find some gnomes that I liked.

Believe it or not, there are not a lot of gnome stamps on the market (at least not many that I could find).

Lawn Fawn released a really cute set at CHA and I immediately ordered them. But, while I was shopping for them, I stumbled across a company I had not heard of before called Paper Smooches and they had the most adorable gnome stamp. So, I ordered it as well.

I haven’t had a chance to play with my Lawn Fawn stamps yet, but I did make this with the Paper Smooches gnome:

Isn’t he the cutest?!

I colored him with Copic Sketch Markers and used some leftover American Crafts Cardstock, Reminisce paper and some vintage paper by Rusty Pickle to complete the card.

The saying stamp is from Stampin’ Up.

Here are the colors I used:

Senior Photos

When it came time to have my daughter’s senior photos taken, I discovered how expensive they were.

So, my husband and I, both photo hobbyists, decided to take matters into our own hands.

We did several photo shoots, but my favorites were taken at the Detroit Zoo. The landscaping at the zoo provided the perfect backdrop to her photos — and several relatively private settings. And the animals provided plenty of fun. We had a great time together, which makes the photos even more special.

I chose papers and stickers by Reminisce (the Unwritten collection) to showcase a few of my favorite photos from the day. I particularly love the word stickers, which I used to describe her.

I added white Dew Drops by Robin’s Nest to the flower tag to dress it up a bit.

Perfect for Kids

When bad weather causes the cancellation of school, it doesn’t take long for the kids to get bored and once that happens, things quickly deteriorate.

One way to keep things from getting out of control is to have a craft project ready to keep the kids busy.

This one is nice because it makes very little mess and is easy enough for the kids to do all by themselves.

Supplies: Lifestyle Crafts Pizza Box Die; American Crafts Cardstock; Reminisce Paper; Buttons; Craft Glue Dots®; Pop Up Relief Glue Dots®; Mini Glue Dots®

This little box starts with a die from Lifestyle Crafts (formerly QuicKutz). You can run it through the Big Shot, Epic Six or Cuttlebug. If you don’t have a personal cutting system, visit your local scrapbook store and use their Accu-Cut system to make a bunch of boxes to have on hand. Or, search the Internet for a pattern that you can trace and cut out.

Once cut out, fold on the scored lines and use Craft Glue Dots® to secure the box together.

Then, you are ready to decorate — yes, it really is that simple!

I added some paper to the inside just for kicks.

For the top of the box, I cut out a couple of images from the patterned paper and adhered with Glue Dots®. I used Pop Up Relief Glue Dots® for the image in the middle.

Then, I used a couple of different sized Glue Dots® to adhere the buttons on.  With Glue Dots®, there is no drying time or excess glue dumped onto your kitchen table. Depending on the ages of the kids, you could also give them gems, old game pieces, keys, stickers or other leftovers from your craft room to decorate.

Kids love boxes to store things in. But, they could also make these as gift holders — they are big enough to hold a gift card inside!