Friday, June 26

Playing with Impressabilities

Last night after coming home from DSIL's birthday party, I felt the urge to make a card.  My newly acquired Spellbinders Impressabilities were the culprit.  At first I said I was just going to play with them and see how the embossing looked like.  I love the outcome and I'm so glad that I bought these new embossing tools.
 
 Impressabilities Paisley


Impressabilities Butterfly


Impressabilties Snowflake


And even though it was late, I still felt the urge to make a card using the embossed cardstock made with Impressabilities.  I picked an image I received from my past Image Swap and colored it with Copic Markers.  The sentiment is from SU Best Yet set, cut with SU Label Punch.  I also used Nestabilities Curved Rectangles, Dew Drops Mow Grass and leftover bg paper and ribbon.  Then I touched it up with Spica Glitter Pens and Stickles.  For this card, I used Impressabilities Flowers.




See this card in detail here.  I also made a review of the Impressabilities here.


Wednesday, June 24

Something Different

Something Different It's been really hot lately in Northern Michigan.  It reminded me of the sizzling hot summer days back in the Philippines.  And for the first time in my 2 years of being a Michigander, I complained about the weather.
 
I was irritated I got too lazy.  I wanted to create something, but I didn't want to do any scrapbooking or card making, crochet or cross stitch.  I wanted something different to take my mind off the heat.
 
So I decided to make some bead projects.
 
Every now and then, I would buy beading magazines, not just for myself but also for my sister.  She's actually the one who loves to bead.  In Bead and Button magazine, there was a pattern for bead balls called Blooming Beaded Beads.  That's different.  So I decided to give it a shot.  
 
At first, I was just trying to follow the illustration and I was ending up nowhere.  I looked at the clock and almost 2 hours have passed and I still haven't finished a darn ball.  My back was aching and I was getting more irritated.  It made me remember why I wasn't so fond of beading in the first place.



 

After taking a breather, I realized that I really should read the instructions, step by step.  Only then did my bead ball started to look like a ball.  After my first ball, I decided to make more.  When I was almost done, I wanted to put something inside before I closed it up.  I couldn't find one, so I tried putting in the first ball.  It worked perfectly.
 
The next day, I wanted to make more.  So I made another ball.  It was easier the third time, and faster.  And so I decided to make another one, this time experimenting with a different kind of bead.  Halfway through, I thought it could work as a mushroom or something.  And using the Herringbone Tubular stitch, I made the stem.  Now looking at the photos, I'm trying to decide if it's a mushroom or a tree.  Haha!
 
To see my latest bead projects in detail, please click here.
 
That concluded my short beading frenzy.    
 

Tuesday, June 23

Card Making Time!

Card Making Time! Well, not for me.
 
Our niece and nephew from Alaska are here visiting, and it's their Mom's birthday in a few days.  So we thought of surprising their Mom on her special day.  Another niece jumped in the band wagon too and made a couple of cards.  The rule was:  finish the cards, then it's play time!

 
To make it easier, I made them choose images from my Stamped Images Organizer, gathered from the many image swaps I have joined and hosted.  Then I had them color their chosen images with Copic Markers.  After that, I made them choose their cardstock base.  I took out my Nestabilities dies and helped them choose and cut and layer their images.  They also chose the main background paper for their respective cards.  Theresa and Victoria opted to use edge punches, while Dominic decided to make a tri-fold card.  After assembling their cards, they added embellishments of their choice for the final touches.
It's nice to see kids make cards.  It is inspiring and gave me fresh ideas.
 
Want to see their cards?  Click here.

Monday, June 22

Spellbinders Blog Frenzy

Spellbinders Blog Frenzy Hello fellow crafters!  Here are a couple of enablers for you...
 
Spellbinders has some new release dies up for grabs.  Basically all you need to do is visit the blogs showcasing each new die everyday.  Then you will have to send an email to the address stated on that particular blog, then you have your entry.  For more information, check out the Spellbinders Blog.  And guess what?  The Frenzy start today with one of my favorite card makers Becca Feeken, who I'm proud to say, is also a Filipina!  Woot!  The good news about this one is everybody is welcome to join, anywhere in the world :D
 
Nestabilities is one of my favorite tools, especially in card making.  And speaking of which, Ritz Camera is having a really good sale on their scrapbooking supplies, including Wizard products.  Right now, all their Nestabilities, including the new ones, are only $16.65.  BUT it doesn't end there.  If you pay via Paypal, you get $20 off if you spend $100 or more PLUS free shipping.  That is the best deal I've ever encountered with Nestabilities.
Sorry I have nothing new to share.  We've been really busy with relatives visiting.  So let me share with you some of my projects using Spellbinders dies:

Monday, June 15

Monday

My muse paid me a visit yesterday and I was able to make 2 cards.  Two of our nieces from DH's side are celebrating their birthday today. 

The first card is for the one who's celebrating her 14th birthday.  I thought the image is perfect for her age.  My favorite part in this card is the bow.  I followed the video tutorial by one of my favorite card makers, Becca Feeken, which you can view here.

   
 
 I used the following materials:
  • Greeting Farm Miss Anya
  • Sentiment by Heidi Grace
  • Copic Markers
  • Shimmerz
  • Stickles
  • Spica Glitter Pen
  • Baubles
  • Nestabilities
  • Nature Preserve Premium Cardstock
  • Georgia Pacific Cardstock
  • ColorBok Ribbon
  • Ranger Super Fine Embossing Powder
  • Misc: leftover bg paper and cardstock
 
This next card is for an 11-year old girl.  She loves rabbits and that makes me so glad that I have a bunch of House Mouse stamps (thanks Claire!).  


Materials used are the following:

  • Image by House Mouse
  • Sentiment by Studio G Dollar Stamps
  • Copic Markers
  • Shimmerz
  • Spica Glitter Pen
  • Nestabilities
  • Embassy Cardstock
  • Georgia Pacific Cardstock
  • Prima Flowers
  • Cuttlebug Swiss Dots Embossing Folder
  • Stampin' Up Scallop Edge Punch
  • Misc:  leftover bg paper and cardstock, brads
  • Ranger Super Fine Embossing Powder
 
To see the cards in detail, please click here.


Friday, June 12

My Latest Crochet Project

My Latest Crochet Project I finally was able to finish my latest crochet project:  a pair of valances for our master's bathroom.  




One ball of Red Heart Fall is enough for each valance.  The lining you see is leftover yarn I've had for quite some time.  You can see more photos here.
 
Now that these are done, I'm planning on starting a new cross-stitch project.  However, I haven't decided what pattern to use.  I am actually looking for a cardinal bird pattern, but I haven't been lucky.
 
I hope to catch up on more craft work this weekend.  But first I have to recover from a darn bladder infection.  *Sigh!*

Tuesday, June 9

At Last!!!

At Last!!! FREEDOM!!!  Woot!!!
 
Yesterday was my last day from work and today my official summer vacation started.  There are so many things I want to do.  And my goal this summer is to accomplish all of them.
 
First, I'd like to thank all the participants in my International Image Swap.  I enjoyed seeing all your images and swapping them with each other.  We had swappers from Germany, Sweden, Korea, Philippines and USA.  What fun!  I hope you enjoy the images you receive, and please let me know when you get them.
 
Yesterday, I was able to make a belated birthday card for my brother-in-law.  Again, it was a challenge to make a masculine card.  I just wanted a simple one, and I hope he likes it.


The dp is by My Mind's Eye Bohemian Line.  The image is from Cloud Nine Designs.  I also use Nestabilities Labels 4 and Martha Stewart edge punch.
 
Also, I received goodies these past 2 weeks.  Thank you everyone!  I will not specifically mention who you are, but you know who you are ;)  You can see them here.
Let me go do some cleaning in my planet to jump start the summer vacation.  And yeah, I really need to do a lot of cleaning in the entire house!  Hehe...
 

Wednesday, June 3

Happy First Birthday: THE DAILY SCRAPPER

Happy First Birthday: THE DAILY SCRAPPER!!!  
I can't believe a year has passed since the first issue of TDS.  Congratulations Alice Koh, for a sweet success!  I have seen how TDS evolved these past 12 months and each issue keeps getting better.  I can still remember when Alice was just talking about this idea she had in mind.  And again, I salute you, girl, for your courage and making that dream a reality.  Woot!!!
 
The TDS Anniversary Issue has 92 whopping pages packed with articles, ideas, inspiration, projects, online store discounts and freebies - prepared by digital and hybrid artists from across the globe.  Yep.  From Malaysia, Philippines, USA, Sweden to Australia (I hope I didn't miss any).  
 
Check out the TDS Anniversary Issue here.
 
And guess what?  There's one more thing I'm really excited about.  I didn't want to mention anything about this until The Daily Scrapper's Anniversary Issue came out.  Last month, I was invited to be a part of the newly formed Hybrid Team.  And of course, I was so humbled by the invitation and I said my sweetest yes.  For the anniversary issue, I was tasked to write an article on how to organize birthdays and finding time to make birthday gifts/cards (Hi Juli!).  You can ready my article here.
 
Yeah...  I can sleep really good tonight.

Monday, June 1

Wonderful Day

Wonderful Day! My day was topped by a surprise from a co-worker.  Towards the end of the work day, she comes in the office and gives me something really cool!

 
She made a planter out of old kid's denim jumpers.  It's the first time for me to see something like that.  So genuine!  All she did was sew the pant legs close, made holes, filled it up with soil and planted some pansies.  It surely made my day.

 
In return, I made party invitations for her tonight.  The invitations should be handed out tomorrow because the party is on Friday.  It's a short notice, so I decided to just make simple and easy ones.  And the best way to do it is to type the content in Word, and print.  I wanted to use Nestabilities Labels 4, so I made sure I typed the text in a shape that will fit the die when I run it through my Bit Shot.  Then I cut colored cardstock using Nestabilities Petite Ovals Large.  After adhering the invitation part to the cardstock, I swiped the edges with Tim Holtz distress ink pad in Old Paper.



I hope my co-worker likes it.  And I'm sure this Friday's party will be a blast!