Wedding: Pen Jar

My sister had a theme wedding. As a world traveler (she’s been to all but one continent and all of the states), she wanted to bring her passion to travel to her wedding.

We made place cards using map paper to help people find where in the world they will be sitting. Each table was a different place she has visited … (more on the centerpieces to come).

In leu of a guest book, she bought a map and pens for guests to sign. Naturally I couldn’t let the pens just “hang out” on the table, so I made her a coordinating little jar to hold them in.

The label was a little large for the jar, so it had a few wrinkles, but it turned out really cute, don’t you think? Here’s how I did it:

My secret weapon is Elizabeth Craft Designs Clear Double Sided Adhesive. If you’ve followed me before, you know how much I love this stuff. It sticks to anything, is crystal clear and comes in all sorts of sizes. I applied it to the back of the map paper (Authentique) and then ran it through my Big Shot with a Tim Holtz label die. This way, adhesive wouldn’t show from one side of the jar to the other.

I then added a black stamp die cut, also from Tim Holtz/Sizzix, to each label. I topped it off with a sticker from Little B.

And, on the other side …

I finished it off with a bit of ribbon from American Crafts and some travel charms from Art C.

I sure hope she enjoys this journey!

Potter Street Station

I think this is my favorite layout ever … It has all of the elements of a great Mosaic Moments photo — close up photos, distance photos, photos of details and perfect color choices. It features Potter Street Station in Saginaw, Mich. This glorious old train station has endured abandonment and a fire, but there are still real efforts to preserve and restore the beautiful building.

I took these photos several years ago … we were on our way somewhere and drove by and I made Matt stop, turn around and go back so I could take photos of one of the most incredible abandoned buildings I had ever seen. Fortunately, he loves me and he endures my whims.

So, for years, I have been carrying around these photos, never finding the right time or place to turn them into a layout.

When I ordered the new Square Diamond Frame Set from Mosaic Moments, I knew it would make a nice page, but even I was surprised at just how magnificent it turned out!

Naturally, I made a video to show you how I created the page … click here to watch.

Note: I did receive compensation for making this video.

This die is currently sold out at MosaicMoments.com, but I have a few in stock, if you would like one.

Where are the animals?

When I planned my trip to the Upper Peninsula, I went to see the animals. I had visions of hiking a trail for a mile or so, finding a big rock or log to sit on, sitting still for a few minutes, and then watching the birds and squirrels play. I thought, perhaps, I might even see an eagle, moose, elk, wolf or bear. (Well, I really didn’t expect to find one in the woods, but maybe along the side of the road or something …)

I spent a week and was along the shore and in and out of the woods. And I saw less than what I see in my own backyard. No songbirds. No deer. No rabbits. No squirrels. No raccoons. No foxes. No skunks. No coyotes. Not even any roadkill!

Honestly, I’m starting to think that whole bear and moose thing are myths! Probably something they tell us trolls (those who live below the bridge) to get us to travel up there and spend money.

I was extremely disappointed. And, since that was such a big part of our trip, I had to document it … so I scrapbooked the few animals I did see using the Mosaic Moments system.

Want to see how I did it? Click here to watch the video …

Mosaic Monday

This was our second time staying in the Big Bay Point Lighthouse. My daughter, knowing I love lighthouses, did a little research online and found this place. She bought us a gift certificate for a stay there for Christmas. What she didn’t remember was that we stayed there on our honeymoon, when she was just 11!

I cried when I opened our gift and realized all of the time she took to look for something really special. I mean, who would even think to Google “Lighthouse Bed & Breakfasts”! And, the fact that it was a return to one of the wonderful places we spent on our honeymoon made it even better.
I created quite a few layouts of the lighthouse for our scrapbook. This one shows the interior of the building and some of the grounds around the lighthouse. I love using the Mosaic Moments system for pages like this. The grid paper makes it easy to showcase just the details — like the nameplate on our bedroom door, the Victorian doorknobs, the view from our window and the brick that used to divide the house into two houses. These types of photos are hard to scrapbook without the page looking cluttered or unorganized. Mosaic Moments Grid Paper allows you to add in all sizes of photos while maintaining a sense of organization. And the mixture of detail-oriented photos and those taken at a distance keeps it interesting.

Perfecting Pocket Pages

Pocket pages have been on trend for a few years now. They may be called Project Life, Simple Stories, Journal Cards or something similar. Basically, you buy a page protector that has different sized pockets in it to hold elements. You can fill the pockets with photos, journal cards, cardstock, patterned paper or whatever else you like.

I have played around with the pages for a while, but this is the first time I tried them in place of a traditional scrapbook page.

The page above is (the photos aren’t the best because they are taken through the page protector and I needed to prevent a glare …) the first time I tried geocaching. I cropped the photos to fit in the pockets and added cards from a couple different companies to complete the page. It took about 10 minutes … most of that time spent deciding which cards to use — there are so many cute ones!

Here’s another I did of our trip to Gaylord. I love the ability to quickly combine random photos and elements and complete pages without thinking about design. On this one, I even added a sticker to the front of the page protector.

And another … this was my favorite meal during our trip. It deserved it’s own page, but I’m not sure I could have done a traditional page with the few photos I had. And I LOVE that card that says eat well!

So, in review, I love the journal cards and the quick and easy approach with pocket pages.

However, it is sometimes difficult to get the pockets to match the photos. And, the back side of the page needs to be filled in, as well, which is much more difficult — at least for me.

Yes, I will continue to do pocket pages and mix them in with my regular pages. On a limited basis, they are great fun!

Exploring Alcohol and Acrylic

I recently learned a technique using acrylic paint and rubbing alcohol and I have been having so much fun with it, I thought I would share it here …

I found these little wooden panels on sale at Michael’s and thought they would be good to try this technique on.

1. Paint randomly with multiple colors. I used Distress Paint in blue and green. When they start to blend, stop and clean the brush and then go again. If they mix too much, dry and then add a bit of color back in.
2. When dry, cover with white paint. I used Dylusions paint. This is a very fluid paint that dries quickly and it worked a bit too well … It didn’t cover as completely as I had hoped and the alcohol obliterated it in places. Next time, I will use a standard acrylic paint. While still wet, spray with rubbing alcohol. Let sit for 5 minutes and then use a baby wipe to remove portions of the white paint, allowing the other colors to show through.
3. 
   Because of the properties of the Dylusions paint, I had little to take off … it almost fell off. In some places, I used a dry paper towel to blot the alcohol off and then heat dried it.
4. Use a glazing medium to adhere Finnabair Mica Flakes.
5. Mix glazing medium with Perfect Pearls (I used green) and cover each piece.
6. Use Tiny Attacher to staple rope to the blocks to make a banner or hanger.
7. I added a photo and hung this one on my tree.
8. Cover chipboard letters with two coats of enamel powder and one coat of UTEE.
9. Decorate with photos, twine and rocks taken from the beach!

Window of Travel

Welcome to day 2 of the 4th Annual Handmade Holidays Blog Hop!

A few years ago we were looking online for handmade gift ideas and thought it would be great if there was a resource dedicated JUST to handmade gift ideas. Enter the Handmade Holidays hop!

We’ve gathered over 100 of our creative blogger friends in the craft industry as well as some of our fellow product manufacturers to bring you a plethora of inspiring gift ideas you can make now to give to your friends, family, and colleagues.

Pin and bookmark these ideas for this holiday season and to use throughout the year! Each day of the hop features approximately 30 gift projects and you can “hop” from one blog to another to check them all out.

 

For my project, I decided to alter a window with travel photos as a gift to my parents. This is a long post and there are a lot of steps, but do not let that frighten you. It is deceptively easy to create a photo window.

This is what the window looked like when I started … it came out of a barn that was being demolished. After a good hose down with a little bleach, my husband added a piece of wood and hardware cloth to fill in the two missing panes and it was ready to transform.

I applied layers of acrylic paint, some watered down a bit, until I liked the patina. I used white, deep brown and a bright blue. I also left a bit of the red paint that was on the window and some of the chipped paint and wood visible in my layers.

My dad is not into rustic and I was worried he would think the window was dirty, so I painted the sides and back with white gesso to keep it nice and clean. (My cat likes to help with all of my projects — mostly as a supervisor.)

I covered the wood with paper from Graphic 45’s Come Away With Me collection. I also added a bit of embossing paste through a stencil in the corners. At first, the paste was too white, so I took a bit of permanent ink (by dabbing a dauber into the ink pad) and went over it lightly to deepen the color.

I cut out elements from other papers in the collection, inked the edges and adhered them to the frame. I also added a tiny nail at each side and in the top left corner of the frame to hang things on.

For the next pane, I adhered a couple of photos to a piece of paper, cut slightly larger than the glass. I used packing tape to attach it to the back of the window.

Here it is from the front side …

I used clips to attach photos to the hardware cloth. This way, they can easily be changed out as often as desired.

The banner was cut out of Graphic 45 papers with Elizabeth Craft Designs Tags & More 2 — Deco.

I decided to put the tags upside down to create a banner. I added cork squares (with rounded corners) and circles cut out of the maps on the paper. Then, I cut out letters with Sizzix/Tim Holtz die Wordplay. I punched holes in each tag and ran fibers through to connect them. I tied them to little nails I put in the edges of the frame.

To add a bit of dimension to the top frame, I used the Sizzix/Tim Holtz Ticket die to cut out tickets out of Graphic 45 paper and then stamped them with a coordinating Tim Holtz stamp.

I used Scrapbook Adhesives 3D Foam Squares to adhere some of the tickets so they stand out better.

I also cut out arrows and cars out of these Sizzix/Tim Holtz dies. This type of die allows the images to be cut out of paper and chipboard. I adhered the papers to the chipboard for a little more dimension.

In this pane, I adhered photos and elements directly to the glass. I used Scrapbook Adhesives 3D Foam Squares to add a bit of dimension to some of the elements.

I used the Mini Filmstrip/Ticket die from Sizzix/Tim Holtz to create a filmstrip border. Then I cut out small images from the Graphic 45 paper and used the Sakura Quickie Glue to adhere them. (DISCLOSURE: I did receive products from Sakura to use and promote on this project).

I added the filmstrip border, car, compass stamp and buttons to the front of the glass, so photos can still be changed on the backside without bothering these elements.

I added additional elements cut from paper and chipboard, along with more vintage buttons to this frame.

I wanted to make items to dangle on the frame’s left side. I used Sakura’s Glaze Pens to color an acrylic tag.

I coated another tag with clear, liquid adhesive and adhered it to paper. I added rub ons to the blue tag. Then, I used the black Glaze pen to create dimensional dots on the acrylic. Once the glue dried, I trimmed the tag with the paper on it.

Then I added some jump rings, fibers and pearls to create a little tag for the side of the frame.

For a final touch, I used Sakura Gellyroll Moonlight 06 pens to make a little tag to hang on the frame. These pens show up brilliantly on black cardstock.

And, one last look at the completed frame … I already presented it to my parents and they loved it!

 

Are you ready for lots more creative handmade gift ideas and projects??

Follow along on our blog hop! Simply click on each of the links below to be taken to that post with additional information and photos on how to create a handmade gift project. Have fun and pin away!

 Clearsnap

 Ellison Educational Equipment

Walnut Hollow

 Graphic 45

 Hydrangea Hippo

 Westcott 

 Scrapbook Adhesives by 3L 

Rowland Technologies

 Neat and Tangled

 ICE Resin

 Therm O Web

 Elizabeth Craft Designs

 Pink and Main

The Buckle Boutique

Clearsnap – Vivian Keh

Ashley Rader – Giddy Upcycled

 ICE Resin – Jen Cushman  ‎

 Candy Spiegel- Candy Scraps  YOU ARE HERE

 Graphic 45 – Andrew Roberts

 Rina Gonzales – Mothership Scrapbook Gal

 Therm O Web – Amanda Niederhauser

 Cori Warner – The Flying C

 Yana Smakula – My Cardmaking & Scrapbooking

 The Buckle Boutique – Shawn Mosch

 Eileen Hull Designs – Eileen Hull

 Angela Muir – Handmade in the Heartland

 Krista Winters – eat, knit & d.i.y.

 Scrapbook Adhesives by 3L – Erica Houghton

Katie Smith – Punk Projects

 Elizabeth Craft Designs – Karen Aicken

 Jeanie Hevener – Create & Babble

 Ellison Educational Equipment – Hilary Kanwischer

 Fancy Shanty – Stacy Molter

Liz Hicks – Blogerisms

a Rafflecopter giveaway

 

Follow our Handmade Holidays Gift Ideas Pinterest board for even more inspiration!

Follow Jennifer Priest of RainMaker Media Works + Hydrangea Hippo’s board Handmade Holidays on Pinterest.

A huge thank you to our sponsors for this hop – please visit their blogs below and follow them. And be sure to come back tomorrow for another 30+ amazing Handmade Gift Ideas!

Clearsnap|| Ellison Educational Equipment || Walnut Hollow || Graphic45 || Westcott || ICE Resin || Therm O Web || Rowland Industries || Scrapbook Adhesives by 3L || Pink and Main || Elizabeth Craft Designs || The Buckle Boutique || Neat and Tangled

Additional Sponsorship provided to bloggers by:

Sakura|| Fairfield Processing

Tour the National Parks

Wow! Time sure does fly!

Between deadlines, not feeling well, starting up a business, teaching and working on projects I cannot share right now, I have not only neglected my blog, but I forgot to share the mini book I made for my mother in law on Mother’s Day!

My mother in law loves to travel and she enjoys visiting National Parks all over the country. So, I thought it would be fun for her to have a book that listed all of them so she could record when she visited.

The process took a little longer than I anticipated, since I couldn’t find a list of all of the parks online. So, I went through the National Park Service’s website and copied each state’s parks into a Word document. That ended up being 500+ pages long!

So, I deleted photos and descriptions and formatted all of the text, which took me down to around 200+ pages.

Obviously, I was not creating a book that long, so I deleted all of the National Monuments, Historic Trails, National Lakeshores and other things included and focused only on National Parks. Then my book was a manageable 13 pages long and I could cope with that!

Then, I went through and grouped each of the parks by the area they were located in. So, all of the parks in the Pacific Northwest were together and those in New England were together, etc.

My final lists looked like this …

I then went through and created an index page with a tab on it for each section. I used a variety of stamps and quotes with a travel theme to decorate each one. Here are a few examples:

 

Most of the stamps I used were from Studio 490 (Wendy Vecchi) or Tim Holtz. They both have great sayings and the images were perfect.

On this one, I also included a die cut tag from Tim Holtz.

Each index page lists the states that are included in that section.

I covered the insides of the cover with map paper from My Little Yellow Bicycle. the index pages, cover and accents were all made with a very old line of paper that I love from Cloud 9.

I used the Cinch to bind the book and then added ribbon to the bindings.

Here is the cover again.

It turned out great and she loved it.

Should you decide to make a similar book, I am more than happy to send you the Word document I created. Just drop me a line with your e-mail address.

 

 

 

Bo Bunny’s Timepiece Collection

I absolutely fell in love with this new collection by Bo Bunny while making these pages for Scrap Tales.

In fact, making these pages actually inspired me to create this …

Click here to visit Scrap Tales blog where I tell the story of how this paper inspired me to create this layout.

What can you do with Glue Dots®?

Mini Glue Dots® were used on this to fix edges that didn't get adhered properly and to hold tags in place.

When I was asked this question, my first response was, “what can’t you do with Glue Dots®!”

I have been a huge fan of Mini Glue Dots® since the day I discovered them some 10 or 12 years ago. I first used them to attach decorative buttons. Then, when metal charms and accents were all the rage, I used them for that.

Eventually, I developed my own techniques.

For instance, I never learned to sew. I understand the concept, but the whole knotting thing is just too much for me. So, when I want to “sew” a button onto a scrapbook page, I run embroidery floss through one of the button holes. Then, at the back, I attach Mini Glue Dots® so it holds the floss in place. Next, I run the floss through the rest of the button holes and then add another Mini Glue Dots® to hold it all in place. I trim the edges and adhere it to my page.

The Mini Glue Dots® on the perforated sheets are my favorites — so much so that I special order them from my favorite scrapbook store (they carry both the value pack rolls and the Dot N’ Go Glue Dots®. But, I love using the perforated sheets when I teach classes.

They also come in handy when working on altered art. It never fails that no matter how much adhesive I apply, I always seem to miss a corner of the paper here and there. With the perforated sheets, you can slip the Mini Glue Dots® under the paper, press down and yank the sheet back out, leaving behind a perfectly adhered corner.

I also like the Removable Glue Dots®. I use them to adhere small pieces of chipboard to my Non-Stick Craft Sheet when painting or inking. They are also helpful in keeping ribbon wrapped up on its spool.

The only adhesive used on this frame were Glue Dots®.

But, in response to the question I was asked, I decided to experiment and see what you really could do with Glue Dots®.

As it turns out, you can use them to hold embossing powder in place while you heat it (see the blue lines in the frame above). You can also use them as an adhesive for glitter, flock or Sparkly Fluff. And, they can hold just about anything, as shown in the travel frame I made to celebrate a train ride my husband and I took.

Incidentally, my husband took one of my Mini Glue Dots® and used it to fix his camera the other day. While I wouldn’t recommend that, he’s happy and in the end, that’s all that really matters!

Here are step-by-step directions for making the Travel Frame:

1. Sand frame by KaiserCraft.

2. Paint with Ranger Paint Dabbers — I used Black and Silver. Since the tape is transparent, the different colors underneath create a bit of depth and interest.

3. Once dry, place a photo in place and assemble the frame using Glue Dots®.

4. Cover the front of the frame with Tissue Tape by Tim Holtz.

5. Apply two strips of Continuous Glue Lines® and sprinkle with JudiKins Embossing Powder in Lapis Lazul. Heat to melt.

6. Using Sizzix Dies by Tim Holtz, cut out Tickets on plain white cardstock and flowers using paper by Tim Holtz.

7. Stamp desired tickets with Ranger Archival Ink using Tim Holtz stamps by Stampers Anonymous. Color with Tim Holtz Distress Ink. Journal. Crinkle and bend as desired and staple on each side using the Tiny Attacher. Add mini paper clips by Tim Holtz.

8. Bend flower dies as desired. Pierce hole in each and connect with Hitch by Tim Holtz.

9. Attach lace, buttons (My Mind’s Eye), and pin (Tim Holtz) with Mini Glue Dots®.

10. Thread chain (Tim Holtz) through key (Tim Holtz). Place Mini Glue Dots® on the bottom of the key and Pop Up Glue Dots® on the top of the key and attach to the frame. Drape the chain over the frame corner and attach in the back with Mini Glue Dots®.

11. Attach flower with Mini Glue Dots®.

12. Attach a Game Spinner to a Clock Face using a brad (all by Tim Holtz) and use Glue Dots® to adhere.

13. Place a Mini Glue Dots® on top of Gear (Tim Holtz) and attach a Dew Drop (Robin’s Nest).

14. Using jump rings (Tim Holtz), attach charm (Maya Road) to gear. Then place another Glue Dots® on the back of the gear and adhere it to the frame. Push it into the Continuous Glue Lines® for extra security. Be sure your charm hangs freely in front of the photo. Enjoy!

“I wrote this blog post while participating on the Glue Dots design team.”