Tuesday, November 29

Bucket of Flowers

Many months ago, I colored some flower images with Copic markers.  There are still a bunch of them that I haven't used to make cards with.  So I did.  I remember coloring this image soon after I took the Copic Certification Class in July last year, and compared with the same image I colored before I took the class.  And I also remember being proud of myself for the improvement.


I machine stitched the edges of the background, while I faux stitched around the flowers.  Can you tell the difference?


Materials used:
cardstock/dp:  Wassau, ColorBok, leftovers
image:  RAKed/unknown:
ink:  Tsukineko, Copic, Staedler
tools:  Spellbinders, Sizzix embossing folder, piercing tool
embellishments:  micro beads, brads
adhesive:  Scotch, mounting tape

'Til next blog!

Monday, November 28

From All Of Us

Today marks another chapter of my book, as I start a new job.  I am very thankful that it didn't take as long after being laid off a few months ago.

So this will be short and sweet.  Here's another Christmas card set I made, this time using a clean and simple layout.  I love this Penny Black Stamp called Snowy Park and I finally got to use it.  I just stamped the image using black ink. 


Then I stamped and embossed a small sentiment on the lower right area. And to make it pop, I inked red over it with a small stipple brush.


Materials used:
cardstock/dp:  The Paper Company, Wassau
image/sentiment:  Penny Black, Verve
ink:  Tsukineko, Stampin' Up
tools:  Spellbinders, Sizzix embossing folder
misc.:  embossing powder (Tsukineko)
adhesive:  Scotch, mounting tape

'Til next blog!

Saturday, November 26

Amazing Husband

One of the things I am must thankful for is my husband.  If I'm going to make a list of what I love about him, it will definitely be a long one.  Yesterday was his birthday, and I made this 8.5 x 5.5 card for him.  He loves maps, so the dp I used is perfect for his card.  The edge punch also went well with the embossing folder.



It doesn't show so well, but I sprayed Glimmer Mist over a stencil on the card front.  That would be the stars and some swirls coming from the lower left corner.


Materials used:
cardstock/dp:  Georgia Pacific, Gartner Studios, Stampin' Up
image/sentiment:  River City, Verve
ink:  Ranger, Tsukineko, Tattered Angels
tools:  Janome Sew Mini, Martha Stewart edge punch, Cuttlebug embossing folder, Spellbinders, The Crafter's Workshop stencil
adhesive:  Scotch, mounting tape

Enjoy the rest of the weekend.... 'Til next blog!

Friday, November 25

Thankful

I bet everybody's Thanksgiving was celebrated with much love and happiness, surrounded by loved ones and lots of good food.  What made our Thanksgiving extra special in out neck of the woods is that we didn't have any snow.  In fact, it was a lot warmer than the past years.  That's definitely another thing to be thankful for.  Plus it would be so much easier to travel for Black Friday shopping. 

Even though it was so tempting to go to the big city 1.5 hours away, or the outlet mall 2.5 hours away, I am proud to say that I have decided not to go.  I'll still go to town for minor stuff, but I plan on staying home the rest of the day to finish decorating for Christmas.

Anyway, yesterday during my free time, I decided to make a page about the things I'm most thankful for this year.  It was a spur of the moment thing, considering I have not made a scrapbook page in months.  2011 has its ups and downs, but I am thankful for each and every one of them.  And I wanted to make sure that I do not forget. 

The lines for my journaling were machine stitched, as well as around the edges.  The title was adhered with mounting tape for more pop.


I secured the end of my threads with a flower.



Materials used:
cardstock/dp:  The Paper Company, Prima
tools:  Janome Sew Mini
embellishments:  flowers (Prima, Recollections, leftovers), brads, alpha stickers (Basic Grey, Pressed Petals), rhinestones
software:  Photoshop
journaling:  Staedler, Spica
adhesive:  Scotch, Zots, mounting tape

'Til next blog!

Wednesday, November 23

Debut

In the Philippines, the 18th birthday of a girl is often celebrated, as she supposedly enters womanhood.  Yesterday was my niece's 18th birthday, and like most, she had a big party with family, relatives and friends.  I couldn't be there but as my gift to her, I made her party invitations.  I have mentioned this weeks ago that her party theme was the Alice in Wonderland movie with the colors red and black. 

This was the final design.  I made 80 of these:


Materials used:
cardstock/dp:  Recollections, The Paper Company, Wassau
image/sentiment:  Verve
ink:  Ranger, Tsukineko
tools:  Cuttlebug embossing folder, Martha Stewart corner punch, EK Success edge punch, Spellbinders
embellishments:  rhinestone
misc.:  Ranger embossing powder, Shimmer Spritz
adhesive:  Scotch, Glossy Accents, Zots mounting tape

I just concentrated on the card front, and left the inside blank so they can put the details of the party.  I'm sorry I missed the big event, but at least my presence was there even through the invitations.

'Til next blog!

Tuesday, November 22

Product Review: ArtBin Electronic Cartridge & Supply Storage

When I learned that ArtBin was coming up with a storage solution for Cricut cartridges, I was very interested.  Before, my cartridges were in their respective boxes which were in a book shelf in a separate room.  The booklets are in my craft room so I can easily grab them when I need to flip through pages. 

So when I found out that Joann's was going to carry the ArtBin Electronic Cartridge and Supply Storage, I checked it out as soon as I had the chance.  Armed with coupons, I found them on Sunday and decided to get three.

In the ArtBin website, they have the colors GREEN and CLEAR w/ GREEN LOCKS. The one I bought from Joann's is CLEAR w/ PURPLE LOCKS.




One satchel can hold up to 16 cartridges. Then there's a separate compartment with three bins for the keypads and booklets. There's also another thinner compartment where you can put Cricut tools.

My favorite part here is that 16 cartridges, keypads and booklets can be all together in one case.  It saves way lot more space than keeping them in their own boxes.  With the three stachels I bought, I still have 5 vacant slots for future cartridges.  I hope I won't have to fill that up soon.

This is definitely a good buy for me.  I finally found the best storage for my Cricut cartridges.

'Til next blog!

Monday, November 21

Review: ArtBin Electronic Cartridge and Supply Storage

When I learned that ArtBin was coming up with a storage solution for Cricut cartridges, I was very interested.  Before, my cartridges were in their respective boxes which were in a book shelf in a separate room.  The booklets are in my craft room so I can easily grab them when I need to flip through pages.

So when I found out that Joann's was going to carry the ArtBin Electronic Cartridge and Supply Storage, I checked it out as soon as I had the chance.  

In the ArtBin website, they have the colors GREEN and CLEAR w/ GREEN LOCKS. The one I bought from Joann's is CLEAR w/ PURPLE LOCKS.
One satchel can hold up to 16 cartridges. Then there's a separate compartment with three bins for the keypads and booklets. There's also another thinner compartment where you can put Cricut tools.

My favorite part here is that 16 cartridges, keypads and booklets can be all together in one case.  It saves way lot more space than keeping them in their own boxes.  With the three stachels I bought, I still have 5 vacant slots for future cartridges.  I hope I won't have to fill that up soon.

This is definitely a good buy for me.  I finally found the best storage for my Cricut cartridges.


Mother

I have to say that I have toned down on my embossing folder craze.  Before, I had to get every single design that comes out.  But right now, I'm happy with what I have (all ___ of them!). 

One of my favorite embossing folders is the Square Lattice by Stampin' Up.  I like how it makes any paper or cardstock look like fabric.  Here's a card I made using this folder:



Materials used:
cardstock/dp:  ColorBok, leftovers
tools:  Stampin' Up (embossing folder, punch), Martha Stewart edge punch, Fiskars micro hole punch
embellishments:  rhinestone stickers, ColorBok punch outs, brad
adhesive:  Scotch, Zots

'Til next blog!

Saturday, November 19

Saturday

Hello crafty friends!  It sure feels weird not being busy this weekend.  I had a blast with Our Daily Bread Designs last weekend, and a sweet short vacation in LV earlier this week. 

And I can't believe next week is Thanksgiving already!  And of course, after that comes Black Friday.  It's going to be another busy week.  But for now,  I intend to stay in my planet longer and organize my stamps, and hopefully make more cards. Hmmm... maybe I'll do some scrapbooking since I haven't done that in a while.

Anyway, here's a set of Christmas cards I made for a friend from the Philippines.  I mainly used Stampin' Up stamps for this project.



Materials used:
cardstock/dp:  Wassau, Cloud 9 Designs, Recollections, leftovers
image/sentimen:  Stampin' Up
ink:  Tsukineko, Stampin' Up
tools:  Spellbinders, Martha Stewart corner punch, WeRMemoryKeepers corner punch
embellishments:  pearls
misc.:  embossing powder (Ranger, Inkadinkado)
adhesive:  Scotch, mounting tape

'Til next blog!

Friday, November 18

TGIF

Hello crafty friends!  Just came back from a short vacation and I sure missed my planet.  I cleaned my craft room before I left, so it is nice to go home seeing it in a nice and orderly state.  The past couple of weeks were so busy that I was surprised to find out that Thanksgiving is going to be next week.  Time sure flies!  Have you all thought of were to go shopping for Black Friday? 

Speaking of Black Friday, Unity Stamps will be having their Black Friday event a week earlier.  And that will be from 5 pm ET today.  Find out more about it on their Facebook page.  I think I will be present on their BF event, as I heard there will be lots of great deals.

Since this is a late post for today, I want to share with you a quick card that I made.  I just put together pieces from my die cut stash and inked an embossed cardstock.


Materials used:
cardstock/dp:  Wassau, leftovers
image/sentiment:  unknown/RAKed
ink:  Ranger
tools:  Cuttlebug embossing folder, Cricut, Spellbinders
adhesive:  Scotch, mounting tape

You all have a great weekend!  'Til next blog...

Tuesday, November 15

Crafty Weekend (Part 2)

So we were so busy at the Our Daily Bread Designs booth that I wasn't able to visit all other booths in the Deer Widows Weekend Scrapbooking and Stamping Show by Great Scrapbook Events.  However, I signed up for three of seven classes offered by USArt Quest, which has a booth in the show together with Marco's Paper.   



What tops it all is meeting Ms. Susan Pickering Rothamel, the person who gave us USArt Quest and its wonderful products.  I knew Ms. Rothamel through the books she has written, and I have seen her in a number of craft programs on TV.  That's why I was excited to be able to meet and learn from her.

 


 

Ms. Rothamel is one of the sweetest persons I've ever met. She's got charisma and very approachable, and in less than a minute from when I first talked to her, she has already given me a hug. I love the way she speaks and explains things - you just get drawn to her.

The first class I took was called "Dicrofiber Fabulous".  I have had Dicrofibers for a long time, and never really got to play with them.  This class tells me that it's easy to handle Dicrofibers, and that I should take them out of the drawers and use them.  Here's the card I made from this class:


It was also my first time to use detailed stickers like Styl'ine.  I've had a bunch of them as well, but never really used them.  Now that I learned the trick in using them, I'm ready to let them out the drawer.



The second class is called "Cut! Bond! Create!" where we learned how to use Gilding.  It's one of the things that I was leary to try, but now that I have through this class, I can't wait to use it in my cards.  We also learned more techniques in using detailed stickers.



And the last class was called "It's a MICAlicious Collage!" taught by Ms. Rothamel herself.  In this class, we made a collage using art napkins, mica products and USArt Quests latest product called Prills.


In this photo, you can see Ms. Rothamel helping me with my collage:


 And this is how my collage looks:


Aside from making collages and all other things, one thing I'll never forget is learning that a napkin has three layers.  And also how cool it is to use Mica in different forms.  And that you can use Prills in so many ways - even making jewelry!



I can't wait to play with my USArt Quest buys, past and present, now that I know exactly how to use them.

'Til next blog!

Monday, November 14

Crafty Weekend (Part 1)

Hello crafty friends!  I had a super busy weekend filled with lots of crafty deliciousness at the Deer Widows Weekend Scrapbooking & Stamping Show by Great Scrapbook Events in Birch Run, Michigan.  The show ran for the entire weekend, but I was there all day Friday and Saturday.


Even though it was snowing on Friday morning in our neck of the woods, I still went on and started heading south. I just have to mention (and brag) that my DH escorted me and drove his truck ahead of me until the main highway to make sure that I was going to be fine. But there was less and less snow as I got more south, and driving was a lot easier. At that time, the excitement started kicking in - I was going to work for one of my favorite stamping brands: Our Daily Bread Designs.

 

At the Birch Run Expo Center, I was surprised to see many cars already parked outside, with people in line ready to get inside. They were the croppers who have the privilege to shop an hour early for all three days. It sure felt good to walk past them all and tell the organizers that I'll be working for ODBD.


My main task was to demo Flower Soft, but I also assisted in their operations during the show.  I was proud to wear the ODBD apron - it made me feel extra special! 

The ODBD booth was 60 ft. long, perfect to showcase their entire rubber stamp line and all othe crafting products that they carry.  The area you see in the photo below is only about two thirds of their entire space.


It was a feast to see ALL the ODBD stamps.  Who doesn't want to have them all?


It was nice to see new products from Sizzix like their matching rubber stamps/embossing folder combo and matching rubber stamps/die combo.



And it was my first time to see the Cheery Lyn dies.  They are all beautiful!  If I am super rich, I would buy all designs.





All around the booth you will see the beautiful cards made by the ODBD Design Team.  It's such a joy to see each and every one, even though it could take an hour or so.  It sure makes a big difference to see these cards in person and actually feel them with your hands, compared to seeing them online.



And of course, the Flower Soft station where people can learn how the product works, do make-and-takes and try Flower Soft themselves.

 



Did you know that Flower Soft now also has the Ultra-Fine and Diamond Range?  While playing with them during the demo, you can really see the difference from the regular Flower Soft, especially when you all three kinds in one project, giving a more dimensional effect.


In the picture below, you will see the Flower Soft kits by the manufacturer and also by ODBD.


It was a super great experience to work for Our Daily Bread Designs.  Each hour I spent at the booth was so worthwhile and will never be forgotten.   

But you know what the best part is?  I got to meet Kelly Holland, the super person who gave us Our Daily Bread Designs, and her husband Rick.  They are very wonderful, down-to-earth and accomodating people, and I'm so glad to have met them.

I thank them both for a super duper awesome experience, and also Great Scrapbook Events for a great opportunity.

'Til next blog!