Sunday, November 30, 2008

Some good news and some bad news

The bad news is that I am no longer on the Design Team for Scrapbook Queens.  The owner decided that she wants a change for the new year, so she asked us to step down from the DT.  She gave us the option of whether or not to finish out the year, and I chose not to.  It was a lot of fun, and I am thankful for the opportunity to have shared my ideas and (hopefully) to have inspired others.

Now for the good news!  I will now have more time to devote to My Crafty Life and the Design Team for Repeat Impressions .  If you haven't had a chance to visit RI yet, you really should.  Wendy is a wonderful person and a very gifted artist. 

I have lots of holiday ideas for scrapbooking, card making, and crafting coming up soon, so check back often.  Right now, you can look at the Design Team creations for RI.  Just click on the link above and go to Design Team Gallery.

Have a fabulous holiday season, and keep on crafting!



Saturday, November 22, 2008

Paper Crafting Tip #43: Ten crafting tips that will save you money

During the holiday season, we're all looking for ways to save some money.  Here are 10 crafting tips for using things you already have around the house.

1.  Instead of buying those waxy sticks to pick up and place rhinestones and other small objects, look around the house for stray crayons.  They work like a charm!

2.  Don't buy one of those small irons to iron your ribbon.  Just rub it over a warm lightbulb.  Remember to make sure the bulb isn't dusty, and BE CAREFUL - IT'S HOT! This works well with satin and grosgrain ribbon.  I wouldn't try organdy or gauzy ribbon; it might melt.

3.  Save the backings from your stickers and Xyron to use as waxed paper when you're using glue, paint, embossing powder, or glitter.

4.  If you have a Cricut, don't throw away your worn-out mats.  Spray them with repositionable spray adhesive to freshen them up.  Just remember to use masking tape around the edges so that the part that goes through the rollers doesn't get sticky.

5.  Another use for the worn-out Cricut mats:  Once they get to the point where they can't be refreshed anymore, use them to hold small objects while you're painting them.  I've used them to hold buttons while I painted them.  They have just enough tack to hold the objects in place temporarily.

6.  If you don't want to spend money on Christmas/Holiday stamp sets, try using stamps that you already have.  For example, cirlces make great ornaments, squares make wonderful packages, and a bit of holiday ribbon can spruce up an otherwise tired flower stamp.

7.  Along the same lines as Tip # 6:  Use simple shapes cut with your die cut machine to make holiday cards.  Circles, squares, ovals, and other shapes can easily be transformed into ornaments, boxes, flowers, etc.  Use your imagination!

8.  Make your own tags.  If you don't have a die cut machine, you can use punches or your paper trimmer to cut squares and rectangles.  Punch a hole, tie some string or ribbon, and you're good to go.

9.  Instead of buying new stamp sets with phrases and greetings that you will use only once or twice, use your computer to print them out.  This is also a great way to get a lot of card greetings done in only a few minutes.  Yeah, I think it's "cheating" too, but no one else has to know, right?  (I won't tell.)

10.  Get together with your friends and swap crafting stuff.  That leftover Halloween orange ribbon might be just the thing she needs to finish a layout or card, and those Valentine's Day buttons might add the perfect touch to your project.


I hope you find these useful.  They work for me, and I hope they work for you too.  Happy Crafting!



Friday, November 14, 2008

Paper Crafting Tip #42: Scrapbook a favorite childhood toy.

Beanie Boy & Me (2)
This is another layout in my book about me.  I love
how it turned out, and my children are enjoying reading about my
childhood and seeing me as a very little girl.

Is there a particular toy from your childhood that holds special memories for you?  Do you have a picture of yourself with that toy?  This layout was a lot of fun for me.  Give it a try.  I think it will be a lot of fun for you, too.

Paper:  Pop Star by Rusty Pickle
Title:  Vixen by QuicKutz
Bottom Border:  Martha Stewart punch, Ranger Adirondack spray dyes
Markers:  Bic Mark-It
Journaling Card:  Printed from Simple Scrapbooks website
Other:  Glitter, 3-D flower stickers



Monday, November 10, 2008

Some Holiday Cards to Get You Started

Now, don't tell me it's too early to start thinking about the holidays.  You know they're right around the corner.  Every year, I say that I'm going to get started on my Christmas cards early, and every year I'm stamping away right up until a few days before Christmas.  At the same time, I'm trying to do my Christmas shopping, decorate the house and the tree, bake, make chocolate, and make some hand-made jewelry.  Plus all the day-to-day "stuff" that doesn't go away simply because it's the holiday season.  Oh, yeah, I almost forgot about the yearly trip to the Galleria to wait 90 minutes on line to take a 30-second photo with Santa (that usually drains our bank account of about $50).

Does all of this sound familiar?  I thought so.  Well, because I'm on the Design Team for Repeat Impressions, I was sent some wonderful holiday stamps to work with.  I was able to get a jump-start on my Thanksgiving and Christmas cards.  So I thought I'd share some of my designs with you to get those creative juices flowing.  I hope that these will inspire you to create your own wonderful and unique cards, tags, decorations, and gifts.  This is just the beginning.  I plan to have lots more to share.

Just to make things a little more fun, anyone who posts a comment here will be entered into a random drawing for a fabulous Mini Holiday Surprise Package to get you started on your holiday crafts.  Enjoy!  And remember to be yourself and let your unique creative talents shine through. (Deadline to post comments for entry in drawing is November 30th.)


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Sunday, November 2, 2008

Paper Crafting Tip #41: Use your diecut machine to make an Autumn Leaves Wreath

My daughter and I made this lovely wreath with leaves that I cut with my Cricut and Big Kick machines.  After I cut and embossed the leaves, we chalked them and glued them onto a cardboard wreath I had made from a cereal box.  Just trace a large bowl and a smaller bowl onto the cardboard and cut out.  I used tacky glue, and it worked great.

Fall Wreath