Scrappy Shiek

My First Jewelry Class

2010-09-05T19:53:00.000-07:00

Necklace & earrings from beading class

Bracelet from wire-wrapping class

Every year I have a goal to learn a new talent or take a class of some kind. This year I was leaning toward photography or jewelry-making. I couldn't find a photography class that seemed to be what I wanted, but I finally found a couple of jewelry-making classes that worked for me and I even managed to get a friend to go with me. The teacher who provided the materials had very different taste from me so I can't say that I'll ever wear either of these, but I learned some good skills and had some fun. I can't wait to order some supplies and make something that's more my style. It was a fun last little hoorah for me before the baby comes along in a few more weeks.

First Date

2010-08-02T14:22:00.000-07:00

This is a layout I made this weekend. When Ryan and I went on our first date over seven years ago I don't think either of us had any idea that anything would come of it. Consequently, neither of us took any photos. Fortunately for us our friends did, however we didn't know this until a few weeks ago. They were kind enough to give me a copy of the photo and now it is preserved in my scrapbooks for my posterity.
I almost never do one-page layouts, but since I only had the one photo and it's now going to be the first page of my album it was perfect for a one-page layout. I've had most of these supplies on hand for years and haven't used them for anything so it was nice to be able to put them to use finally. It was also fun to use lots of flowers since I haven't had much opportunity to do that on my son's pages, however I hope to get to do more of that in the near future. It's kind of hard to see, but the inspiration for the color scheme and embellishments came from the shirt and necklace that I'm wearing in the photo.

Tutorial: HiRes vs LoRes Blog Header

2010-05-04T15:21:00.001-07:00

I frequently make blog headers. I get bored easily. The other day I was making a new one for Birth Blessings and didn’t notice until a few days later (eek!) that the font looked odd. LOW Resolution, to be exact. Oh no, what happened? So I checked the settings and repeated what I did. Same outcome. I opened a new document in PSE 7 for the size of the header – 980 by 400 pixels. That’s it! That’s what makes it LoRes. It’s all in the pixels.
Try #2. Open a new document and in the “preset” dropdown menu pick “Scrapbook”. It’s 3600 x 3600 pixels. Now that is HiRes! And of course you always choose 300 for your resolution. I cropped a rectangular piece and made my header again. Look at the difference in the font!

Yes, this is what I do when I should be sleeping. Someone has to.

Blog Button with Scroll Box

2010-04-30T08:57:00.000-07:00

This is the best and easiest tutorial I've found to make a scroll box under your blog button. Check it out at A Heart For Home.

Here is my finished product:

Are you wondering how I made the button? Mmmmm K. My husband said, "it took you THAT LONG just to make THAT?!" He he he he he. He has no clue. I say, "ok, you do it!" He shrugs and says, "tomorrow." We both laugh.

1. Circle Text Path has to be made in Photoshop CS (not Elements) - follow this tutorial
2. In Elements 7

create a circle, put my photo on it, Ctrl G (group to previous layer), saved as png file
open a new file with transparent background
make a circle frame with shape tool, black
make a regular circle with shape tool, white and place on top of black frame
add circle photo
add text path

Sit back and LOVE LAYERS. Seriously. How did anyone Photoshop w/out layers?!

PS Tutorial: Text in a Circle

2010-04-29T21:42:00.000-07:00

First Professional Order

2010-04-29T20:26:00.001-07:00

Tomorrow I will place my first order with WHCC – another custom birth announcement I made. I’m so excited!

Images taken in RAW with Katie’s Cannon Rebel and 50mm 1.8. Processed with ACR and PS CS4 and announcement designed in PS Elements 7.

Win a Tamron Lens!

2010-04-13T06:48:00.000-07:00

MCP is having a lens giveaway! Tamron 17-50mm f2.8. Hello! Go check it out.

Baby Girl Announcement

2010-04-09T12:38:00.001-07:00

I finished my second announcement this week. Color AND a girl! So fun!

Twin birth announcement

2010-03-27T21:43:00.001-07:00

I finished my first newborn birth announcement today. She couldn’t decide if she wanted pictures from the 2 week session or the 9 week session, so I made both! Never got a perfect one of the two of them together – twins are a handful!

Photos processed with Adobe Raw and PS CS4 and the 5x7 announcement created in Elements 7.

I’m looking forward to making many many more custom announcements – bring on the babies! =)

Don’t drink and scrap

2010-02-16T15:02:00.001-08:00

Found this card from my husband while organizing my desk today. Hilarious!

XoXo

2010-02-07T18:22:00.000-08:00

Savvy Photographer Giveaway: Kelly Moore Camera bag!

2010-02-03T13:48:00.001-08:00

Wouldn't I be the happiest girl on the block if I had this gorgeous camera bag to put my baby in?! I never win anything - I hope this time I do!!!!

check out the giveaway at The Savvy Photographer

Maternal Lens Giveaway: Sassy Designs

2010-02-02T21:56:00.000-08:00

Check out the giveaway on The Maternal Lens! It is the most gorgeous digital paper (by Sassy Designs) I've seen yet! Wow! Pick me pick me pick me =)

I used my Cricut!

2010-01-29T20:58:00.000-08:00

It’s been sssooooo long since I used my Cricut. I have no idea why. Could be the crazy, hectic, child filled life I live. Nah! When you find out a birthday party has a color theme, and you’re a scrapbooker, it’s on! I had so much fun shopping today for my twin nephew’s 3rd birthday party tomorrow.

I can’t wait to show you the “during” pictures. See, I got them a canvas picture frame to paint…in their blue and green shirts. And I’m hoping a picture of them painting (or just one from the party) will go in the frame. So cute!

Fabric Bookmarks

2010-01-20T07:56:00.001-08:00

I received a fabric bookmark from Shealynn from The Benner Daily (LOVE her camera straps!!!) last year for joining her book club and decided to make a few more for myself. I love to read and would way rather use a cute bookmark than some little scrap of paper that I scrounged up…

Aren’t they cute? I used a fusible web between the layers to stiffen it up, pinking shears for the edges, and my crop-o-dile for the eyelet up top (first time I ever used it…and I’ve had it for about 3 years!). Fun stuff!

We've been featured on Tip Junkie!

2009-12-12T14:32:00.000-08:00

We've had some recent recognition from TIP JUNKIE

Katie's post about How to Change your Blog Background was featured HERE.

Robin's post about Mod Podge Christmas Boxes was featured HERE.

CoffeeShop Giveaway

2009-12-11T14:42:00.001-08:00

Remeber Rita? I told you about her just a few days ago. Today she is giving away this wonderful Watermark Action Kit. $25 value....for free! Go check it out.

P Dub Free Actions

2009-12-10T22:26:00.000-08:00

Pioneer Woman must be the most famous blogger in the world, right? And she gives us free actions for PhotoShop. Love her.

Check out her photography blog.

CoffeeShop Photography

2009-12-09T22:49:00.001-08:00

Meet Rita. SAHM who loves photography and Photoshop. She gives us actions for free. Love her. Read her story here and get some free stuff here. Want to learn something? Try one of her tutorials here. She’s been in my Google Reader for over a year but I’ve been admiring from a far due to my loss of Photoshop… soon, I’ll be back in action. Literally! Woot woot.

What do you use to edit your photos? If you digi-scrap, is it the same program?

Dashing through the Snow

2009-12-09T21:51:00.001-08:00

Photoshop is in the mail (on a one horse open sleigh...) and on the way to my house! YIPEEEE. Santa does love me =) Hopefully MY CAMERA will soon follow, but I might not have enough for another 6 months. Luckily I have time to practice with the new camera and macro lens my employers bought! fun fun fun! Wait, they will let me, right? Right?! They must...or I might combust.

Hopefully this will motivate me to get my scrap on. Especially since it's been ONE YEAR since I finished a page. WOW, that's bad. I have done other crafty things this year...but I failed at my New Year's resolution to scrap weekly. One page would've been nice, LOL.

On a crafty roll!

2009-11-13T13:11:00.001-08:00

A while back I saw a tutorial for an easy, small chalkboard using spray chalkboard paint and a melamine plate from Target. This has been a long project in the making. It’s totally easy, but I took forever to complete each step. I finally finished it today and love it!

I taped off a square using blue painters masking tape (that was the hardest part!), sprayed a few coats of chalkboard paint—letting it dry between each coat (duh), peeled off the tape, added “Welcome” and the flower at the bottom (rub-ons), and lastly glued the ribbon on the back for it to hang from! CUTE!!

Loving this wreath!

2009-11-13T11:34:00.001-08:00

I saw a tutorial yesterday on the Moda Bake Shop for a fabric wreath that I knew I wanted to make!

How cute, right?! I love the colors, it definitely has a fall vibe to it. Good thing we still have a few weeks until Christmas completely takes over, right?!

I already had the fabric, just needed the wire part (which I purchased at Michael’s). If you want to know how I made it, check out the tutorial. Super easy and fun!

Magnets

2009-11-07T15:40:00.000-08:00

I posted this on my other blog too. I whipped up these six sets of magnets the other day. I'm thinking I would like a set for each month or at least for each season. These would be perfect as a gift. (These were extremely difficult to photograph so I'm sorry the pictures aren't better. They look much better in person.)

I made these for a magnet board with assignments on it that stays up year-round. Each magnet has a family member's name on it and they match my decor.

These would be great for winter or January.

These would be great for spring, April or Easter.
These would be great for fall, October or Halloween.
These would be great for winter, December or Christmas.
These would also be great for winter, December or Christmas.

More Picture Frames

2009-11-06T16:03:00.000-08:00

I already posted these on my other blog, but I thought I'd post them here too. The first two I made as samples for a class I taught at a church activity recently. The third one I made just because I wanted to. I love the bling! If I ever have a little girl I want to decorate her room in black, white and pink. None of these are really the style or color scheme of my place right now so I'm thinking I'll either hold a give-away, give them as gifts or sell them or some combination of that. (The pictures aren't that great. Maybe I need to take a photography class from Katie.)

Another Frame

2009-11-03T15:25:00.000-08:00

I recently taught about 15 12-18-year old girls at church how to make these Mod Podge picture frames. This is the sample frame I made to show them what they would look like. I tried to keep it simple so it wouldn't be too overwhelming. It was a little chaotic, but most of the frames turned out pretty well.

Assignment: Family Picture

2009-10-20T09:10:00.000-07:00

Jackson's preschool assignment - bring in a family picture. Well, mom has been lagging! I don't have one you see. We haven't taken a picture with all five of us yet. Wow, there are five of us. Finally, this morning I decided to just whip something up. Improvise, as it were. My husband is out of town and I don't want another week to go by letting Jackson be "family picture-less" at school. So this is my quick little creation via Picasa collages. Thank you Katie for the beautiful photography and Picture People for the cheap stuff =). I'm picking up an 8x10 of this today from Costco and dropping it off at school. Total cost: $1.49 and about 15 minutes of time.

BAM! A onesie…

2009-09-27T14:53:00.001-07:00

A friend of mine just had a baby boy and his initials just happen to be BAM! So I made him this super cute onesie with fabric paint and freezer paper. Have you tried this stuff out yet? I LOVE it! I bought the paper at Walmart (150 yards thank you very much!) and the paint at Michael’s. Then, I followed this fabulous tutorial from MADE. And here’s what I came up with:

Autograph Books

2009-09-20T15:39:00.000-07:00

It may have been 2 years since I set an eyelet or used a rub on. When I ventured out of my digital world to make my kids autograph books to take to Disneyland, I had forgotten about being sore from sitting on the floor with my supplies sprawled out everywhere and having to get up every few minutes to retrieve a ribbon or button from the closet. But despite all this, it still felt good to have it in my hands when I finished and to use all those brads, buttons, and paper that have been taking up space in my closet. It was the perfect size for their little hands and the acryllic front and back made it a little more sturdy. My neighbor helped me bind it. Forgive the pictures, they are pretty terrible.

Photoshop Announcement

2009-09-16T13:00:00.000-07:00

Katie and I designed this baby announcement on Photoshop...and we are very proud of it =) The greatest part is that it's nothing but photos and text. Very simple, yet elegant design.
Meet Robin's newest baby boy, Gavin.

Pictures courtesy of Katie Sabin Photography.

My Last Two Towels

2009-09-15T14:44:00.000-07:00

I finally finished my last two towels-February & July. (See my previous post to see more towels.) I can't take credit for the stitching around the edges. My mom did that on her fancy-schmancy sewing machine.

I had to finish the faces and hair without any pattern, but I think it turned out okay.

Crafty sites I love

2009-08-26T08:35:00.001-07:00

I subscribe to far too many blogs in my Google reader—I currently have 117 unread posts and it is growing by the minute! I rationalize the large number of subscriptions because of the great inspiration I get from some seriously crafty people out there! Here are just a few of my current favorite crafty sites...

V and Co.
This girl is seriously talented! I recently bought a fabric bracelet tutorial from her that I love. I've made just one so far but have plans for many, many more...

She has a ton of great {FREE} tutorials on the left side of her blog…go ahead, check it out. I'll be using her Binding Your Quilt tutorial so I can hopefully finish my nearly complete, first ever quilt this week!

I love, LOVE her quilt in the picture below…

( Photo from V and Co.)

Just a few of her tutorials I plan on trying out:

Nanny Goat
Awesome inspiration for re-crafting used/old/thrift store items. Totally loving this chalkboard frame!

(picture from Nanny Goat)

It's red, scrolly, and funky! I bought a frame at a garage sale on Saturday for just $1.50 that I plan to do something fun with. The frame itself is totally boring compared to hers and the print is not quite my style, but I have big plans!

Maybe I’ll make a dry erase calendar frame…the idea originated from Make it and Love it, another super awesome and crafty site!

(picture from Nanny Goat)

Great tutorials…

Today’s Creative Blog

How can you not love Today’s Creative Blog? A different fun and crafty blog nearly every single day?! This site may very well be the reason I have a ridiculous amount of blog subscriptions in my reader. Check it out, you’ll love it and become addicted just like me:D

The Purple Pea

A great find from Today’s Creative Blog a few days ago…She has a Project Gallery where you can find ideas galore…A Re-Do Gallery with before and after pictures…and I’m loving her new craft room!

(picture from The Purple Pea)

So, so many awesome blogs out there! I’ll share some more another day…it’s time now to focus on my children! Have a great day!

My First Picture Frames

2009-08-15T08:00:00.000-07:00

I've been making Mod Podge projects for a few months now, but I hadn't tried picture frames yet. I made these as a wedding gift for my little sister. She told me the colors in her master bedroom are chocolate, cream and mulberry so hopefully these will match. When I was making them my husband kept saying, "Target sells picture frames, you know." To which I replied, "Not like these" and "You're missing the point. I want to make her something." When I got done he said, "Oh, I didn't know you were going to put stuff (husband speak for embellishments) on them. You were right. It was worth it." I smiled and said, "Thank You!"

Hoping I finish this today!

2009-08-04T07:13:00.001-07:00

Yay! Check out what I did yesterday! This is my first quilt to make it this far in the sewing process. I’ve sewn together other squares for a small quilt as well as strips of fabric for another small quilt, but this is the first one to actually get borders around it! I’m so excited! I’ll be heading to the fabric store today to get my backing and possibly a bigger self healing mat…mine is just a bit too small to be cutting long lengths of fabric. This is definitely a good beginning quilt, I’m not following a pattern and I bought the squares already cut—making it so much easier on me! I’ll try cutting out my own squares another time:D I still have 3 more borders to add and then I have to figure out how to do the binding on the outside…not sure how that’s gonna go for such a newbie!! Wish me luck!

Frames using fabric

2009-07-31T08:02:00.001-07:00

A girlfriend of mine had fabric bibs that matched her new baby’s bedding that she wanted to use for frames. I volunteered doing it for her since I have lots more experience with it than her… This was my first attempt using fabric and although they turned out pretty good, they could have been better. She was happy about it though and that’s all that matters!

Appliqué is NOT for sissies!

2009-07-31T06:15:00.001-07:00

Oh wow, I never knew appliqué could be so hard! I made Robin these little onsies for baby Gavin and I will state that trying it for your first time on a letter with numerous curves is DIFFICULT! It was hard going around the letter on the sewing machine! Especially because the onsies are so little, it was hard to maneuver on the arm of the sewing machine, plus stretchy material is hard to negotiate! In any case, here is my first attempt...I kind of cringe when I see them because the stitching is so horrendous!

If you're interested in learning how to appliqué, here are two great links with tutorials..

Sew Mama Sew
My Happy Crazy Life

My Scrap Space

2009-06-20T17:47:00.000-07:00

I've been wanting to do a post like this for awhile and I'm finally getting around to it. My scrap space happened to be clean for a brief and rare moment so I hurriedly took some photos so I could share it. It consists of a corner in my master bedroom (what else can you do in a two-bedroom condo with a toddler on the loose?).
I think storage/organization is one of the biggest problems many of us crafty people face. I'm always looking out for good storage/organization ideas. I hope that maybe something I have posted here will inspire someone else. Here is my scrap space in all its glory.

This is my scrap space, or my happy place.

This is my work surface. (It almost never looks this clean.) I love my self-healing mat (JoAnn's), task light (IKEA) and having frequently-used tools at my fingertips!

This is the storage underneath my table. It's a bar-height table (Ashley) so it allows for lots of storage. Plus I can stand up or sit down while I work.

This is the bookcase (Target?) adjacent to my table.

This is the scrap bag (Creating Keepsakes from JoAnn's) I keep packed and ready to go to crops at a moment's notice.Paper Storage:
I prefer to store my paper in hanging file folders. (The cubes are Crop-in-Style/Store-in-Style and I bought them on-line, the fabric bins are Itso from Target, the file folders are Crop-in-Style/Store-in-Style and I bought them on-line.) I just organized all of my paper in these bins and I love it! I sort my solids by color and patterns by theme.

I store my scraps in sheet protectors in a 3-ring binder sorted by color. I didn't used to keep so many scraps, but since I've been making more cards I find that the small scraps come in handy.

Bottle Storage:
This "bird cage" I got as a gift a long time ago. It came stocked with lotions and candles from Bath & Body Works. I've re-purposed it to store my bottles of embossing powder, paint, Stickles, etc.

Stamping Storage:
I store my stamp pads in these towers (all Close To My Heart). As you can tell they are stored by color.

I store my acrylic stamps in these organizers (all Close To My Heart).

Each organizer holds up to 15 stamp sets. Mine are sorted by theme and then alphabetized.

Ribbon Storage:
I posted some of this in another post so I'll try not to be too repetitive. I store my loose ribbon in jars, sorted by color (shelf from Home Depot, jars from IKEA).

I wind the longer pieces of ribbon around bobbins or small spools.

I tie the shorter pieces of ribbon to a binder ring. (I'm sure that's not the proper term, but I really have no idea what you call those things. You know what I mean.)
I store the ribbon that comes on small cardboard spools in a bead case (Michaels').

I still haven't come up with a satisfying solution for my large ribbon spools. I need to work on that.

Letter Sticker Storage:
I store my letter stickers in this expanding file (office supply store?) sorted by color.

Embellishment Storage:
I keep my large flat embellishments (rub-ons, stickers, die cuts, etc.) in this cute expanding organizer (Aaron Brothers) filed by theme.

I store my small embellishments (brads, eyelets, buttons, etc.) usually in craft jars (Close To My Heart) in these bead boxes (Michaels' or Wal-Mart) sorted by color.

I'm also able to store some other small embellishments in these bead boxes.

That's all that I'm able to fit in my tiny space. (I just got rid of a huge box full of stuff too.) In my son's room we installed closet organizers with this set of drawers (Closetmaid from Home Depot) and I store a few other things in there.

In the top drawer is where I store my photos and memorabilia. There is an envelope for each year and I put everything in there until I'm ready to scrap it.

The second drawer contains some small miscellaneous crafting supplies sorted in a nice drawer organizer (Linens & Things?).

The third drawer contains large crafting supplies/tools.

I did leave my son one drawer. The fourth drawer has some of his toys that he's outgrown. The fifth drawer has small gift boxes, ribbon, tags, etc. The bottom drawer has gift bags and tissue paper.

Believe it or not I could have gone into much more detail (photo storage, punches, chipboard, etc.). Maybe I will some other time. If you still have questions feel free to ask and I'll be happy to answer them. I hope I've motivated you to get organized!

Buddy Frame

2009-06-01T05:19:00.000-07:00

I made this frame for a 4 year old's birthday party... well, I guess for his mom ; ). Jackson loved watching me make it and was actually jealous I didn't make one for him too. When you're doing it the night before, you can only do so much. Ha ha. Frame is usual - brown paint, scrapbook paper, modpodge, and sealer. The letters are little wooden pieces from Michael's that I painted brown.
It's for these two rascals: my Jackson (top) and his best buddy Walker (bottom). This picture was from there first sleepover in September 08. He spent the night at Walker's again after the party in May - but I don't have any pics of that yet. They are only a few months apart and LOVE playing together. Walker is my babysitter's grandson so they played together a lot before Jackson grew up and went to preschool. They still play a couple times a month and are always so stoked. BEST BUDDIES!

My first quilt!

2009-05-18T14:52:00.001-07:00

I've begun a quilting project and am still in the beginning stages. So far, I have only sewn all the long, skinny fabric strips together, but I'm really excited about it! Especially becuase I did such nice straight lines:) My next step is to determine the fabric for my outside border and then learn what I'm supposed to do to actually sew the border on:) I borrowed a great beginner sewing book from a sister-in-law and I need to delve into it so my quilt doesn't stay in its current state.

Anywho, here are the fabrics before they were sewn together...I'll take some newer pictures once I get a bit more done.

(this is before I sewed them together...duh.)

May Shelf-sitters

2009-04-06T20:34:00.000-07:00

I know it's a little early, but I was having so much fun that I decided to go ahead and finish off my May shelf-sitters too. These flowers range from about 3 1/2" tall to about 6" tall. One of the things that has been really enjoyable about making these is that I haven't had to purchase much, besides paper, and so I've been able to use lots of cute embellishments that I've had sitting in my stash for awhile. It's also been fun to do something girly since most of my scrapbooking is boy-ish these days. Here's to hoping that April showers will bring May flowers!

A shot in front of the books

A close-up

Scraps of Magazines

2009-03-31T09:14:00.000-07:00

Memory Makers, Simple Scrapbooks, Creating Keepsakes and Scrapbooks Etc. are the scrapbooking magazines I usually subscribe to. They pile up quick! What is a girl to do with all that inspiration and instruction?

My motto is: Save what you like and recycle the rest.

I use a three ring binder w/divider tabs

I rip out the pages I like and label why I like them

and punch & put them in their category

What do you do with your magazines?

Untapped Potential

2009-03-28T15:46:00.000-07:00

I bought this wonderful magnet board while I was up in Utah for Christmas and, as you can see, I've done nothing with it. It's intended to go over my scrap table so I can post up ideas, inspirations, new products, etc. I'm afraid to Mod Podge paper onto the sides, not because I don't think I can, but because I'm not sure I can find paper I love enough to see that much of it every day. I had thought about painting it white, to match the rest of my scrapbook furniture, and then embellishing it, but I'm not sure if that's the best solution either. I'm leaning toward a black and white color scheme since that will go with a lot, but I think I might add some aqua (my favorite color). I haven't seen a lot of great ideas out there, but then again I haven't looked that hard. If any of you have any thoughts/ideas or come across anything like this please be sure to share. Thanks!

April Shelf-sitters

2009-03-28T14:42:00.001-07:00

I did it! I actually completed a set of shelf-sitters prior to the arrival of the month/holiday they were intended for. These eggs are a little bit smaller than the four-leaf clovers I made for March. The small ones stand about 3 1/2" tall and the tall one stands about 5" tall. I used paper that didn't necessarily scream Easter, but I think it still worked. I love the robin's egg blue. The chocolate accents remind me of, well, chocolate. What could be more Easter-ish than that? I love the one on the right, but then I've always liked striped Easter eggs. The one on the left reminds me a little bit of a Faberge egg, just a little bit.

Here is a shot in front of the books so you can see their size.

Here is a close-up.

Happy Easter!

Very very very small things....

2009-03-27T15:46:00.001-07:00

....take a llllooooonnnnngggggg time to organize, but it was so worth it! I had my brads and eyelets fairly organized before, but then I found this cool plastic "bead" bin and was able to consolidate all of them into one spot.I used my old container for just eyelets and a few big brads that still didn't have a home

How do you organize your very small things?

I'm in love with DYMO

2009-03-22T13:34:00.000-07:00

Label maker, where have you been all my life? I got one at Micheal's w/a 40% off coupon the other day so it ended up costing me $19. Well worth every penny already!

The possibilities are many - "The DYMO® LetraTag® LT-100H uses LT tape cassettes. They are available in different tape widths in paper, colored plastic, iron-on, magnetic, and metallic."

My test labels: our 2 indoor trash cans

I sat for a good hour or two after the kids were asleep and printed labels for my craft/scrapbook supplies. So exciting...

I can't wait to try out some of the other types of cartridges =)

March Shelf-sitters

2009-03-21T08:47:00.001-07:00

I finally finished my March shelf-sitters. I didn't get them done in time to enjoy them for St. Patrick's Day, but I think I'll leave them up until my April ones are ready, hopefully some time this week. Let me just say that green is not my favorite color and I had a really hard time finding paper for these. While I was working on them I was rather unsure about how they were going to turn out. Embellishing is always the hardest part for me. But I'm really happy with how they turned out. I'm thinking about submitting them to this contest. If you have something that fits the contest you should submit it too.

I took this shot so you could get an idea of how big they are. They range from about 5 to 7 1/2 inches tall.

More Ribbon

2009-03-21T08:08:00.001-07:00

I have several ways that I store ribbon.

My small rounds of ribbon that are on the little cardboard spools go in a storage container like this. (I think these are meant for beads and can usually be found by the jewelry-making supplies.)

My loose pieces of ribbon (short pieces that aren't worth leaving on a spool or those that came on flat pieces of cardboard, etc.) are stored in jars like this. I bought the shelf from Home Depot on-line and the jars are from IKEA. I love that the storage becomes a decorative element also. This is currently hanging in my bedroom, but someday I WILL have a craft room.
Lest you think that the inside of those jars is a tangled mess of chaos, I'll show you what's inside. There are some more small spools of ribbon. I took these off of the flat pieces of cardboard that they came on because I hate the creases they make in the ribbon. I try to avoid buying ribbon that comes flat now unless it's a super good deal or a perfect match for a project I'm working on. I wound these pieces of ribbon around the plastic circle that's left over at the end of a roll of tape or bobbins.
The other loose pieces that were too short to bother winding or too wide for tape spools/bobbins I attached to a notebook ring. When I want a certain color of ribbon I just reach in and find the ring and pull them all out. I take off the one I want and put the rest back. I haven't had any problems with them tangling so far.
However, I do have a few larger spools of bulk ribbon sitting on my desk that I might need to get an organizer for.

Ribbon, ribbon, everywhere!

2009-03-20T12:30:00.000-07:00

I found these nifty ribbon organizers at Walmart the other day

This shoe box full of unorganized ribbon needs serious help!

Finished product!

I still need a few more, but - wow, that's nice!
How do you store your ribbon?

I finally did something crafty this year

2009-03-17T14:45:00.000-07:00

Three frames for a coworker who just redecorated her bedroom with brown,
blue and a hint of pink. My card said, "Merry Christmas, Happy Birthday, and thanks for the cute pink bag!" I owed her a little, can you tell?

I got the paper from 2 K & Co packs I bought at Michael's on a good sale.

(sorry about the horrible pictures - I was rushing to get to work and it was still dark out!)

She was so excited and said, "Oh my gosh, they match perfect! Where did you buy these?"

Um, I made them =). She didn't believe me at first - don't you love that?!

Wall decorations

2009-03-17T10:16:00.000-07:00

I was checking out Ali Edwards blog last week and came across this post with the cutest alphabet/name picture for her daughter's wall...well, I tweaked the idea a bit and came up with this for the boys room:

And after that, I decided to come up with this one:

The frames are from Ikea and I spray painted them red... It's amazing how much time I spent on these two simple looking items! Now I just need to get them hung up on their wall!

Thank You Cards

2009-03-07T20:11:00.000-08:00

Here are some cards I made this week. I was really happy with how they turned out and they were a lot of fun to make. I got to use my Cricut, my Threading Water punch, stamps, several embellishments and cute paper. What more could a crafty girl ask for? Often, when I go to make a card I have an idea in mind and then when I go to execute it I end up changing it completely and it turns out nothing like what I thought it would. These ones actually turned out much like I had anticipated, maybe even better. I love it when a project goes well. It inspires me to do another project. Hmmm, what will it be?

A Giveaway!

2009-03-02T14:49:00.000-08:00

I'm excited to announce a KayteeBee Designs giveaway at s.i.m.p.l.e.!

s.i.m.p.l.e. stands for "showcasing interesting mom products loved everywhere".

Head on over to s.i.m.p.l.e. , check out the post...check out my etsy site...comment on your favorite (on the s.i.m.p.l.e. site) and you may just end up winning the item of your choice!!
Some of my newest items...

Three Columns!

2009-02-26T15:24:00.000-08:00

Ta-da! Our blog is now three columns:) I rearranged a few things, but rather quickly...so feel free to move stuff around!

If you want to change your own blog to three columns, follow this tutorial and you'll be able to do it in no time! It was a bit confusing when I first tried it, but I was able to figure it out within 30 minutes or so. This time went lots faster! I was just browsing the site with the tutorial and there are a ton of other great ones on there...

San Diego Scrapbook Expo!

2009-02-23T14:17:00.000-08:00

So I just found out that the San Diego Scrapbook Expo is May 1-2 this year at the Del Mar Fairgrounds and registration starts this weekend. It's so weird because it's usually downtown and in the fall. Anyway, if you're interested in going or were already planning on going let me know. I got a lot done by doing the all-day scrap thing last year and I'd love to do it again. I might even be interested in taking some classes.

A few things

2009-02-22T18:18:00.000-08:00

Here are a few Close To My Heart things I've been working on recently.

Some cards I'll be demonstrating at an upcoming open house

A layout I'll be teaching at a workshop in March (the white spaces are for photos, 1 - 4x6 on the left-hand page and 3 - 4x6's on the right-hand page, the white space with blue stars is for journaling)

Goodies for my guests

Valentine's Day Collage

2009-02-16T22:18:00.000-08:00

I know I'm posting this AFTER Valentine's day, but I finished it at the beginning of the month...I've just been a little slow in taking the pictures and getting the post up!

Step 1: cut out white, red and pink hearts using my cricut!

Step 2: make into stickers using my trusty xyron!

Step 3: place pink and red hearts on the white hearts...

Step 4: attempt to perfectly space all 20 hearts on the red background so it fits fabulously in the frame...

Some day, when I have a bit more money, I plan to buy a cuter white wood frame for my collage...for now, this will do!

Happy late V-day!

February Shelf-sitters

2009-02-14T13:49:00.000-08:00

One of the projects I'm working on this year is a set of 3 shelf-sitters for each month. I finished these ones this morning, just in time for Valentine's Day, and I am really happy with how they turned out. This Mod Podge experience was much better than my first one. I think I'm hooked! These were actually pretty easy and fun to make. The hardest part for me was waiting for each coat to dry and then choosing embellishments. I'm looking forward to making the rest of them. Hopefully I'll get them done in a little more timely fashion so I can enjoy them longer.

Another Invitation

2009-02-14T13:44:00.000-08:00

This is a tri-fold invitation I made for a church activity a few months ago. The tree is a stamp and the "fruits" are Stickles (the glitter doesn't photograph very well).

Cool Sewing Project

2009-02-13T14:44:00.000-08:00

Check out this cool tutorial I found on Prayer of Hannah blog! A 20 minute sewing project to make toddler belts. So cute! Fun project for gifts too =)

Toddler Belt: Pics and instructions taken from: My Longest Year
Not only is this an easy, 20-minute project, you can make these for both girls AND boys, as it's difficult to find projects you can make for both.

Materials:

Scrap of fabric 28” L x 3” W (cut up old corduroys, khakis, and curtains to find great fabrics for your little girl OR boy) I would use a thicker fabric if you can.

Thread (2) ¾” D rings (hint: the cheapest D rings are on the kiosk with the buttons at Walmart, though you can also find more expensive, larger ones in the same aisle as purse notions)

To Make:
1. If you haven’t already, cut a length of fabric 28” long by 3” wide (you can easily adjust this for an adult-sized belt). When I have to cut long strips of fabric, I always fold it in half across the shortest end to make the cutting easier.

2. Press your strip of fabric lengthwise.

3. Fold the raw edges in about ½” on each side (more if you need the strip to be narrower to fit through the belt loops).

4. Top stitch the folded seams closed.

5. Thread your belt through two D rings and fold the end over twice.

6. Top stitch. You may want to turn the needle manually for the first few stitches, since the fabric will be thick.

7. Finish the other end of the belt with a zig zag stitch, or serge the seam (you may want to try the belt on your toddler before doing this so you can cut it down a bit if necessary). For a more finished look, you can also top stitch a coordinating piece of fabric bent around the end of the belt. You can also pinch the raw edges in, and top stitch the opening closed.

And check this out for another belt tutorial.... this one looks sturdier for BOYS =)

Magnet boards!

2009-02-10T14:08:00.000-08:00

I love making magnet boards--I could fill whole wall with them and just smile in happiness. I think I like them so much because the paper is cute and it's fun to see it displayed for all to see:) Here are two I made yesterday and have posted in my Etsy shop...

I used my trusty bottle of mod podge as well as a varnish to seal it all and voila! It's finished!

An Invitation a la Cricut

2009-02-01T18:54:00.000-08:00

This is an invitation I made recently for a church activity using my Cricut. I used the Joys of the Season cartridge to make the candle card and Mini Monograms for the scalloped frame. It took a bit of work to get the printing figured out so the scripture would line up behind the candle just like I wanted, but I think it was worth it in the end.

A Towel for Every Month

2009-01-21T18:20:00.000-08:00

These are a couple of the "dish" towels I made with my mom while I was at home for Christmas. They are purely decorative. I now have one for every month (I already had 6 that she made and 2 of them are still getting stitched up). We got a lot of our patterns from Cricut cartridges. We used iron-on backing to adhere the fabric pieces that we cut out to the towels. My mom's sewing machine has a blanket stitch feature on it so she sewed up the edges for me, but my sister prefers to hand-stitch hers so it can easily be done either way. Now if only I can remember to switch them out every month.

Christmas Advent Calendar 2

2009-01-21T18:04:00.001-08:00

I was so inspired by Katie's advent calendar (posted previously) that when I went home for Christmas I got together with my mom and sisters and we all made one. The kits were sold out everywhere so my crafty mom found little chipboard boxes to work for the drawers and coaxed my dad into cutting the frames out of wood for us girls. It was probably a bit ambitious for my first attempt at using Mod Podge, but I think it turned out okay. Thanks for the great idea!

and the winner is....

2008-12-17T17:33:00.001-08:00

.....ME! I won my first blog giveaway on Skip to My Lou's blog. I won a digital card so I used it for my Christmas card. Thank you Lil'Sprout Greetings - I love it!

(Photos taken at The Picture People in Escondido)

8x10 Digital Christmas Present

2008-12-16T14:22:00.000-08:00

I have very limited digital supplies - just a few freebies I've downloaded recently.
Here are 2 pages I made today.

This is a "quick page" I dropped my photo into and resized the document to be 8x10

I made this one from scratch

We'll see how they turn out printed. I have a frame with an 8x10 opening for the picture. If I don't like either one I'll just print the photo with the messy border for him.

Blog Banner/Header using Photoshop Elements 5

2008-12-12T10:40:00.000-08:00

I did it! I made my own blog banner/header with Photoshop Elements 5. I started with a template (pre-formed layout only - no paper or embelishments) and ended up changing it quite a bit. I'm just glad I actually did something with the program before the end of the year - it was one of my goals =)

Here's my first one...

And then I found some more Christmas stuff and made a second

Check out my work blog, Citracado Dental Group.

Christmas Magnet Board

2008-12-12T05:53:00.000-08:00

I've been crafting it up quite a bit the last few weeks getting ready for a Holiday craft fair at my old work and boy I have a lot of stuff I hope to sell! Sometime over the next few days I'm going to lay everything out and take a picture. Hopefully it looks as impressive as I think it's going to...Anyway, here is a magnet board that went from boring plain white to super cute and Christmas-y. It is 8 1/2 x 11 and I have 3 magnets that come with it.

I've also made 4 or 5 12x12 size boards and 2 other 8 1/2 x 11's. I'll get those pictures up a little later today when there is some light to take the picture. It's 5:59am, pitch black and I can't sleep...I am so over this insomnia thing.

Christmas Cards

2008-12-11T22:00:00.000-08:00

I've always wanted to make my own Christmas cards and this year I finally did it. Here is the finished product. I made 50 of them. I know people probably think I'm crazy, but it wasn't that bad actually. I still haven't decided whether or not I'll do it again, but I'm glad I did it at least once. They've been finished for almost a week, but I still haven't sent because I haven't come up with a good enough letter to go inside of them. Hopefully I'll get them out this weekend, or sometime before Christmas.

Remember that organizing box?

2008-12-08T19:31:00.000-08:00

Remember that cool triple layered snap box I bought for organization?

Well, I finally got around to putting some stuff in it!

Birthday Boy Frame

2008-12-08T14:32:00.000-08:00

My friend's son turned 2 this weekend so I gave her a frame for a present.

I really wanted a big "2" on it, but didn't have one.

Digital Scrapbooking Coupon

2008-12-08T12:50:00.001-08:00

(click on the coupon and it will take you to the website)

We're on Tip Junkie again!

2008-12-07T16:41:00.000-08:00

We made it to Tip Junkie's website again. Check it out!

Baby Shower Gift Frame

2008-12-05T18:06:00.000-08:00

After I finished the "JOY" letters, I moved onto a baby shower gift.

The baby's name is Jed Prado.

Christmas Joy

2008-12-05T14:55:00.000-08:00

finally I made something for ME to keep =)
a little holiday wall decor

My new camera strap!

2008-12-04T15:49:00.000-08:00

I've been wanting to make a cute strap for my camera and I found a great, easy tutorial for a slipcover--meaning I can make lots and lots and trade them for whatever mood I might be in:) I'm loving it! I have very limited sewing skills and thankfully my sewing machine is fairly self explanatory...It's a good thing I'm not the swearing type and that I don't plan to take up swearing though. Ooooo, I was getting frustrated! I think I wasted as much thread as I actually used. In the end, it all turned out. Don't look too closely though, you can definitely tell this was the first thing I have sewed in a long time!

You can find the fabulous tutorial at Made by Petchy.

Christmas Boxes

2008-12-03T06:56:00.000-08:00

I made another crafty gift... I think I'm addicted to Christmas crafts! This time I made boxes. They can be used to hold ornaments or just be cute decoration =).

Same instructions as the frames.

Simple Christmas advent chain

2008-12-02T13:21:00.000-08:00

We made an advent chain this morning out of 5 pieces of scrapbook paper

Cut 2" strips

let 3 year old help

assemble the order you want them in

staple strip together to make a circle

add more to make a chain

go get a stapler that is easier...

keep going until you have 25 links (we did 30 and then ripped some off for fun)

I couldn't figure out where to put the chain... so for now it resides next to our stockings

Gift Picture Frames

2008-11-30T21:54:00.000-08:00

Christmas shopping and bargain hunting this weekend got me very motivated for gift giving.
I had to try out Katie's frame idea.

1. paint back and sides
2. let dry and then turn over
3. 1 coat Mod Podge adhesive
4. apply cute scrapbooking paper

5. smooth out wrinkles/bumps with brayer (I think that's what it's called)
6. Let begging sick 3 year old that just woke up early from his nap HELP
7. turn over and use craft knife to cut away extra paper
8. sand edges
9. apply more Mod Podge (I used 2 top coats)

10. smooth again with brayer
11. repeat with SEALER (I used 2 coats)

Finished project - three matching frames

Looks good vertical or horizontal

I also made this "friends" frame for a girlfriend of mine =)

I used 2 different papers, ric-rac, and flowers.

I attached the embellishments with a hot glue gun.

Want some but don't want to make them yourself? Check out KayteeBee Designs on Etsy.

Custom Christmas Stockings

2008-11-30T21:24:00.000-08:00

We found these felt Christmas stockings on sale for $4 while out shopping for a new Christmas tree. We decided to buy them since we don't have matching stockings. BUT, I was feeling semi-lazy and didn't want to SEW our names on....

So I went to Michael's and found IRON-ON LETTERS. I've never used anything "iron-on" before, so I had no idea what I was doing. But it was very simple!

First I cut out the letters for our names and placed them on the stockings.

2. Peel letter off and position where desired
3. Use DRY medium setting and iron letter on (10-20 seconds)

4. turn stocking inside out and iron with a medium/high heat

5. turn right side out and re-iron because I'm a perfectionist

Last: hang up and admire!

They're nothing fancy, but the family was so excited that we each had our own personalized stockings - and it only took about 30 minutes.

Christmas Advent Calendar

2008-11-13T19:54:00.000-08:00

I made this cute little box this past week with some other girls from my ward and I'm loving it! I thought it was going to be bigger than it actually is (it's about 8 x 8.5 inches) so I was initially a little disappointed, but it's absolutely perfect! I used a square punch and a round punch for the box fronts and mod podged all the paper on. I am thinking I still want to put paper on the opposite sides of the boxes (they pull all they way out and can be turned around) that would create a full scene or picture as the month goes along so by the 25th it is one complete picture. And I'm also going to put a really cute lime green with white dots ribbon on top, but have to learn how to do it first:)

I'm going to place a scripture in each pull out box along with some little treat for all of us.

Digital Christmas Card Giveaway

2008-11-13T19:32:00.001-08:00

Check out Skip to my Lou's sweet giveaway!
Enter to win digital help with your Christmas cards.

Ornament Card

2008-11-09T20:14:00.001-08:00

This is a card I made for the card exchange group that I'm in. I used the Joys of the Season Cricut cartridge to make it. I bought the cartridge at Michael's on one of their 50% off sales, but I wasn't sure I wanted it enough to keep it and almost took it back. I'm so glad that I didn't. Once I opened it I fell in love with it. There are a ton of creative things that can be done with it. Making this card got me excited for the upcoming holiday season. I'm feeling inspired to make my own Christmas cards this year. I have all of the materials and a fairly solid design idea. I just need my son to take a few good naps during the next week or two and I should be able to bust them out. Wish me luck!

Free Stuff in your Email

2008-11-07T14:22:00.000-08:00

I signed up for daily email from Go Digital Scrapbooking.com and get free stuff in my email every day! It is so cool. Have I used any of it yet? Nope. Just wanted to let you in on my little secret so you can get free digi downloads too =)

Oh Bow!

2008-10-15T14:51:00.001-07:00

My friend Alicia taught me how to make the white bows at the top and I thought they were so cute that I got inspired to make some more. I don't have a little girl (yet) so I made these ones for my newest little niece. I think they'll look really cute on her (when she has enough hair to wear them, lol). They were a little tedious to make so I don't think I'll be turning them out in bulk anytime soon, but it was fun to branch out and try something new (and girly). It helped me put my vast ribbon collection to good use too.

Christin's Crop Night

2008-10-11T06:15:00.000-07:00

Yeah! We gathered again! This time at Christin's house in Poway.

Katie was making magnets

look how fun and simple: punch and glue!

Christin inspired us with her label maker and organizational skills

I almost finished a DPG

Have I ever mentioned I love chipboard?

Thanks to borrowing this cute paper from Katie, this star was my favorite of the night =)

Thanks for hosting Christin!

Pink Pineapple Crop

2008-10-04T08:23:00.000-07:00

Vanessa called me in hysterics Friday early evening - needing to get away. She wanted to either see a movie or go to the Friday night crop at Pink Pineapple in Vista. So, I chose the scrapbook option since I already saw a movie last week.

Mike was a great sport and let me go very last minute...I mad our reservations at 4pm for the crop that started at 6pm. They had our name tags reserving our spots. I guess I got re-married to a Barker.We arrived around 7:30pm-ish after coincidentally both eating at Rubios before coming - me in Vista and Vanessa in San Marcos. Apparently Rubios makes you a tad bit bloated... More than a tad for Vanessa! NO she's NOT pregnant! We were cracking up at the belly.

Enter the The Scrap Shack for hours of scrapping fun

and be sure to stop by the PP Bar and Grill for Soda (yuck, not me!) or Water (yummy!)... and feel free to use any of their tools, inks, paints, and die cuts for free
(included in the $10 fee for the crop)

I was the hero of the night by capturing a HUGE bug (I think it was a flying cockroach) and flushing it in the bathroom. Too bad I didn't take it's picture before I sent it to it's death. But I did get this cute decoration

best part about going to a crop at a scrapbook store - when you're missing something or need a piece of paper you can just go shopping =). They do lots of give aways throughout the night - but neither of us won anything. I was not matchy matchy with my page on purpose - but don't you like my new tank from Old Navy? $5 baby!

page in progress

YES! I finished a double page layout in record time for me and even got half way through another DPL. Very productive night!

Vanessa was very proud of herself for *almost* finishing her DPL too. Her claim to fame was the little calendar embelishment she made - with a little advice from her personal assistant - me!

It was a great night and we're planning on returning soon - you should join us! Here's the link to the calendar of events.

OH, the Possibilities!

2008-10-02T13:29:00.000-07:00

I love organizing. Scrapbook stuff can be very overwhelming, especially if you're not organized. You can waste a lot of time looking for stuff! I was at Lowes the other day and ran across this nifty little Tupperware. Best part - it was under $10 - I think about $7.

Tripple decker that all snap together

One compartment came with even smaller little dividers

What a fabulous little organizer! I can not wait to fill it with my unorganized scrapbook stuff =)Oh the possibilities!

KayteeBee Designs is OPEN for business!

2008-10-02T11:10:00.000-07:00

My etsy shop is up and running! I've been busy making frames, boxes, magent boards and magnets for quite some time now, stocking up for when I was finally ready to go. And I am! So check it out--my shop info is over to your right:)

http://www.kayteebeedesigns.etsy.com/

Birthday Card & Present

2008-09-30T14:59:00.000-07:00

Jackson gave his first present for a teacher yesterday =). It was his favorite teacher's birthday. He loves Mrs. Shattuck. I had just enough wrapping paper left for the scrapbook paper pad I bought her (for $8 at Walmart).

I added twine and a quick home made card

"crayon" font from the computer, scallop scissors, and ink

Jackson had a blast putting the final touches on it with his crayons.

Turned out pretty cute and he was very proud to bring it to school. She wasn't there when I dropped it off, so I'm not sure how it went but he said she liked it. And just to see if he was telling the truth, I asked him what the present was... he answered Scrapbook paper!

Frames, frames!

2008-09-30T10:36:00.000-07:00

I completed my first commissioned job last week:) I made three frames for my cousin's newly decorated bathroom and I actually made some money! Yay me! Instead of just making the frames and having them sit around, they are now residing on a wall to be enjoyed by others. Now I just need to get going and get my etsy site up and running and perhaps I can sell a few more!

Snowman Picture

2008-09-29T11:02:00.001-07:00

I posted this on my family blog but decided I should post it here too just in case some of you haven't seen the adorable-ness of my snowman:) I saw it in a magazine made as a table runner/pillow and I changed it into a wall hanging. You can find the pattern in the Better Homes and Gardens Creative Collections Holiday Crafts magazine. I saw it both at Barnes and Noble and Target this past week. Too bad it doesn't snow here, this will be the closest I get to building a snowman this year!

Beach letters

2008-09-20T09:45:00.000-07:00

I made these BEACH letters for my mom's guest (currently MY) bathroom and I think they turned out great! I have already bought letters to do JOY for Christmas...now I just need to find some super cute paper and do it! I bought the letters at Michael's and used both scrapbook paper as well as wall paper on the letters. Used mod podge for gluing on the paper as well as two coats on top, then sprayed with an acrylic spray to seal it. :)

Tag!

2008-09-12T21:19:00.000-07:00

These are some tags I came up with and will be teaching at an upcoming church Super Saturday activity. It's going to be held on November 1 and anyone is welcome to attend. They are about 5 inches long by 2.5 inches wide. The cost to make the set of 4 is $1.50 if you're interested. There will also be some other crafts (picture frames, aprons, tiles with vinyl lettering and more). If you're interested in coming let me know so I can get you some more info since you need to sign up and pay in advance.

Digital Scrapbook Teacher Rules!

2008-09-01T21:30:00.000-07:00

I took 2 digital classes at the expo from the Digital Scrapbook Teacher - aka: Patty Debowski. She rocks! She wrote a fabulous book about how to use Photoshop Elements to make digital scrapbook pages and other digital stuff. Check it out! I tried to buy it at the expo with my special expo price that included other free stuff, but they didn't take AMEX and my debit card wasn't working. She is so cool, that she emailed me today and is still extending the offer for me for a few more days. NICE!

If any of you are interested in PSE, version 5 is the best one. 6 isn't good due to weird background colors of the program that make it distracting and hard to see. 7 just came out but there isn't any comparison yet, so I don't know if it's better. She gave me this link on Amazon to a sweet deal to get PSE 5.0 for free when you buy the Wacom Bamboo Fun Tablet. Check it out!

2 fun things I learned to do:
1- Create a black and white photo with a portion in color
open the original photo
duplicate the layer (now you have one photo on top of the other)
edit color - remove color (this makes it B/W)
use the Eraser tool to erase part of the top photo - so the color from the first one shows through
2- Quickly create a scrapbook page from a template (and from scratch)
(I used one of hers from a CD she gave us in class. The paper I downloaded a long time ago from a freebie website. I could've spent time looking for embelishments but didn't feel like it)
And there you have it! I finally can do something with my PSE... Yeah me! But I have 3.0 and want 5.0. We'll see =).

Expo Layouts from Class

2008-09-01T13:52:00.000-07:00

I took 2 Quick Quotes classes back to back for a total of 3 hours in one room. They were all one page layouts but for an extra $10 they sold a package of paper so you could add a second page... pretty tricky, but I bought it anyway. I don't do single page layouts unless they start or end a book.

Here are some of the layouts I came away with.

This one is on a thick piece of canvas... what to do with it???? They said you could use it as a cover to an album. It has a very nice letter that would be a great dedication page to a family album.

Precious Memories... I will probably use this with black and white baby photos.
One big photo in the top portion and one small one for the flower... then I'll do several small on the second page.

Photo goes under the flower

Yeah for PINK... which I never get to use b/c I'm always scrapping boys. Fun page for me and my girlfriends =)

I used a 3D foam sticker to make the center of the chipboard flower pop

The bottom velum piece is open to slide your pictures under a bit

Again, will use B/W photos since there is tons of color on this layout. One big photo on the first page, and 2 little ones on the chipboard tag with a little journaling. One big photo on the second page and little ones in the squares.

This piece folds out and is for a hidden journal

I will most likely type on velum and attach

Date and year will probably go on little tags and a small photo in the window and on the top portion.
There are more pages we were unable to complete in class... wowza is it very fast paced! It was not categorized Intermediate to Advanced for nothing. Fun fun fun =).

Expo Layout from Crop Night

2008-09-01T13:33:00.000-07:00

Another page closer to finishing my Beaver, Utah album from last summer - yeah!

I still need to add some journaling to the tags

I glued matching paper to the chipboard and sanded the edges... the swirly black chipboard came that way.

Got the letters at the expo crop - last minute - for 25 cents each =)

My favorite shot of the whole trip =)

I signed up!

2008-08-09T10:39:00.000-07:00

Okay Robin, I signed up for the scrap expo! I'm not doing any of the classes, but I will be there for crop night! And a little shopping of course:)

"Threading Waters Punch"

2008-07-29T21:56:00.000-07:00

OMG, so happy they made this! Can't wait to get it! I'm gonna wait until the expo to see if I can get it there though. Check out the little demo video.

Scrapbook Expo is Coming!

2008-07-20T15:28:00.001-07:00

The Scrapbook Expo is coming to SD! August 29 and 30th. I've got my schedule and would love company =) ....so join me! The shopping is FABULOUS - always deals to be found! The classes are motivating and hey, it's a day away from your kids. What could be better?

EVENT	DATE & TIME	SEATING	CHARGES
Free Gift	08/29/2008 08:00am	(1) ~ [Merchandise]	$0.00
Crop Night Ticket	08/29/2008 06:00pm	(1) ~ [Crop]	$20.00
Friday Admit	08/29/2008 09:00am	(1) ~ [Admission]	$6.00
Digital Scrapbooking	08/29/2008 09:00am	(1) ~ [Workshop]	$23.00
All My Children	08/29/2008 01:30pm	(1) ~ [Workshop]	$23.00
Vellum 911	08/29/2008 03:00pm	(1) ~ [Workshop]	$38.00

This will be my first year going to the Crop Night. I'm excited b/c I'll actually get something done - which seems impossible to do at my house (at this point in time anyway)! Hope you can make it!

Two fun easy crafty things!

2008-07-14T10:26:00.000-07:00

I found a fabulous crafty blog recently, Dandee Designs. She has lots of fun crafts that I'm looking forward to doing, but here are just a couple...

Notebook Clips

Mouse Pad Makeover

And Robin, I promise I'll get some tips up soon for the frames. I'm going to make one this week and write down the steps as I go and perhaps even take pictures. :)

Fun, easy frames and boxes

2008-07-09T06:07:00.001-07:00

I saw a cute frame on some one's blog a while back and decided I wanted to try and copy it myself. It was fairly easy and the results are awesome! Here are the "ingredients"...(along with a few extra items that can also be used)...

And the results:

I've made a few more since this picture was taken and will have to get pictures taken and uploaded. I made one yesterday for a friends baby shower and it turned out really cute--these make great gifts!