Winnie the Pooh Card

Did you know that January 18th is National Winnie the Pooh Day?  Well, it is, and being a lover of that "willy nilly silly old bear," I just had to make a card with his adorable face on it. I decided to give him a chef's hat, because my niece, who is a pastry chef, has a birthday coming up soon. Because I love my Cricut machines so much, I wanted to use my Pooh and Friends cartridge. (If you don't have a Cricut or this cartridge, you can find some wonderful free coloring pages on the Internet.) 

Here are the materials and supplies that you will need for this project:

• Cricut machine
• Cricut Pooh and Friends cartridge (or coloring page)
• cardstock:  goldenrod, red, black, white
• adhesive or glue (I used a Zig 2-Way glue pen.)
• Distress Inks:  Black Soot, Vintage Photo, Fired Brick
• "Happy Birthday" greeting die-cut or sticker
• white gel pen
• twine
• Washi tape
• scalloped-edge scissors or border punch

Directions:

1.  Using the photo for color reference, cut the following images with the Cricket for Winnie the Pooh (button 2 on page 17 in the manual) at 3":

• Icon
• Layers 1 and 2
• Blackout
• (I cut some extra images and a greeting, using Cricut Craft Room.)

2.  Layer and adhere pieces together. Ink edges with Vintage Photo Distress Ink.

3.  Cut a chef's hat from page 65 of the manual (Icon in white and Shadow in black) at 3". Ink edges with Black Soot Distress Ink.

4.  Cut a piece of goldenrod cardstock to 4 ¼" x 11".

5.  Score at 5 ½" to create a top-folding A2-size card, and fold in half on the score.

6.  Trim ¼" off the bottom of the card front with either scalloped-edge scissors or a punch.  Ink edge with Fired Brick Distress Ink.

7.  Cut a piece of red cardstock to 4" x 4 ¾", and adhere it to the front of the card.

8.  Cut a piece of white cardstock to 3 ¾" x 4 ½", and adhere it on top of the red cardstock.

9.  Adhere the assembled Pooh image onto white cardstock.

10. Tie a piece of baker's twine around the bottom of the card front.

11. Add your sentiment to the inside of the card, and add a strip of Washi tape to the bottom edge.

 

The last step, of course, is to give your card to someone you love.  Don't forget to share your cards on the Scrapbook.com website.  Happy Winnie the Pooh Day!

Neil Gaiman's New Year's Wish

I had to share this with you all, because they are, indeed, words for me to live by this year:

“I hope that in this year to come, you make mistakes.

Because if you are making mistakes, then you are making new things, trying new things, learning, living, pushing yourself, changing yourself, changing your world. You're doing things you've never done before, and more importantly, you're Doing Something.

So that's my wish for you, and all of us, and my wish for myself. Make New Mistakes. Make glorious, amazing mistakes. Make mistakes nobody's ever made before. Don't freeze, don't stop, don't worry that it isn't good enough, or it isn't perfect, whatever it is: art, or love, or work or family or life.

Whatever it is you're scared of doing, Do it.

Make your mistakes, next year and forever.”

― Neil Gaiman

Have a wonderfully imperfect 2013!

Scrapbook Calendars

Scrapbook Calendars

by Jeanette Giancaspro

The first scrapbook project that I made was a calendar.  It was a Christmas gift for my mother back in 2001, and I really didn’t know much about scrapbooking at the time.  I had a blank calendar, a paper trimmer, some lettering stencils (Yes, I cut out ALL of the letters by hand!), an acid-free adhesive runner, and a few patterned papers.  The calendar was a big hit, and my mother still proudly displays it at Christmas time.

 Times have changed since then, and scrapbooking is much more sophisticated - and often more complicated - than it was back in 2001.  There are ways to simplify things, though.   Many companies offer coordinating lines of papers and embellishments.  Everything matches, and the hard part of finding products that work together has been done for you.  You can even buy a blank calendar and add your own papers, photos, and embellishments to create a one-of-a-kind keepsake.  Here are a few photos of my most recent scrapbook calendars.  The kit is by Basic Grey.  Everything is included, and there are step-by-step directions for each page.

Place in Time is a calendar collection by Graphic 45 that makes it easy to build your own calendar.  You can purchase individual double-sided calendar foundation sheets, as well as two individual double-sided sheets for each month.  There are also add-ons such as sticker sheets,   a cut-apart word sheet, and alphabet stickers.  You can also purchase the sheets all together in pad form.  This collection is available in both 12 x 12 and 8 x 8 formats.  These papers and embellishments have a lovely vintage theme.

Another company that has put out a wonderful scrapbook calendar line is Memory Works.  Their Simple Stories Year-o-graphy Collection has a fresh, fun feel to it.  Included in this collection are double-sided papers, cut-apart journaling cards, a border and title strip sheet, quote and photo mat elements, and cardstock sticker sheets.   You can also purchase this line as a collection kit.

If you want a blank spiral calendar that will provide plenty of room to display your photos every month, this 13 x 13 wall calendar by Karen Foster is just what you’re looking for.  Each month has a full page on top and a customizable calendar grid on the bottom.

And if a smaller size calendar is more your style, try the 14-month 8 x 8 calendar by Paper Accents, or their 5 ½ x 8 ½ calendar. 

For those who prefer to have everything all together in one kit, several companies have done this as well.  In the Scrapbook.com store, you will find kits by Die Cuts With a View, K and Company,  and Karen Foster Design.  All you will need to add are your photos and journaling.

Whether you like to mix and match, or you like having everything coordinated and packaged for you - or a combination of the two - there is a calendar collection for you.  Creating your own scrapbook calendar is not only a practical project, but it is also a keepsake that will be treasured by your family for generations to come.