Sunday, December 29, 2013

My own 13 favorites for 2013...

 I can't believe it is almost the end of the year. It has been a very creative year for me, and I am hoping 2014 brings as much if not more creativity to my scrap table!! I have scaled down on Design Teams to give me more creative freedom to work on what I truly want to do. I have big dreams for 2014...And will be venturing into scrapping outside the box more. Mixed media has a hold on me at the moment. Art journaling will be added to my scrap list. So, now I will leave you with 13 of my very  favorite layouts that I did in 2013. And although they may not be the most beautiful, they each have a special meaning to me. I want to  wish you all a very creative 2014. May the Scrap Gods look upon you!! Thank you to Blue Fern Studios, Bo Bunny and Splash of Color for having me on their current Design Teams. Thank you to Scraps Of Elegance, Paper Haus Magazine, Tresors de Luxe, The Crop Stop, The Color Room, Scrap That, Donna Salazar Designs and Ceste Magnifique for inviting me to Guest Design this year. It was a pleasure getting to know all of you a little better!! I have made a lot of new friends and I was totally inspired by so much talent out there. I hope to get back to my roots and do more flower work with tutorials for you all. And I have something HUGE I am working on...So you will have to stay tuned to my blog to see. Love and Creativity to you always!! xo

















Happy New Year Everyone!!
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Friday, December 20, 2013

BoBunny Design Team December Blog Hop ~ Elf Magic is in the air ~

 Welcome to the BoBunny Design Team December Blog Hop!
Today six of us that are on the Design Team are sharing a little bit more about ourselves and our paper crafting style. I dont usually do cute, but this one was fun for me.  You will notice that on the BoBunny Blog, there is a question next to each of the designers name. Click on each of our  names to visit each of our blogs, and look for the answer to our question. Collect the correct answer to each of the questions and enter them below using the Rafflecopter widget for your chance to win. One lucky winner will be randomly selected to receive this amazing BoBunny prize package!!! The giveaway will be open until December 23 at 1200 AM MST.

We have quite the few Christmas Traditions that my family follows every year. This year we started The Elf On The Shelf. Yes, a little late as my kids are grown, but a little naughty elf on the shelf lends some laughter to the holidays now. Our oldest tradition is buying a bear ornament for the tree every year. Well needless to say after 28 years of Bear ornaments, our tree has had to get bigger and bigger every year to hold all of the ornaments. I wasn't the only one buying a bear, my mother inlaw always bought 2 or 3 every year for my tree. But I love each and every one of them. But now I love elves!! They are just as cute!! So for my Elf Magic project, I opted to create a 9x12 canvas to hang on the wall. The Elf Magic collection is perfect to do those cute projects you have meaning to work on!!



The little boy and girl elf were just to adorable to leave in the package. They wanted to come out and help decorate the tree!! So I have them holding the wonderful banner across the tree.


 Here is a close up to show that the canvas has a little dimension to it. I also covered the whole canvas using medium mat Mod Podge to seal everything onto the canvas, and leave a very slight sheen to it. I love that it doesn't hide any of the detail.


 Products used:
BoBunny Pattern paper: Elf Magic North Pole, Mischeif and Magic Dot
Elf Magic layered chip board
Elf Magic Dimensional stickers
Elf Magic Noteworthy
Elf Magic Combo sticker

 Now Head on over to my very talented friend Lisa Novogrodski's Blog but just in case you get lost along the way, here is the order of the blog Hop
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Tuesday, December 17, 2013

Art Journaling with Luminarte for Splash Of Color



I am on The Splash Of Color Blog today and as you can see, I have finally ventured into the world of Art Journaling. I LOVE quotes, I collect them from everywhere. So I decided instead of just putting them on one of my 12x12 layouts, I would place my collection on art journaling pages. I found an old book the perfect size, pulled out my silks and went to work!! It started with a YouTube video that caught my creative eye. The mixed media artist's name is Rachel, and she did a journaling page that I simply had to recreate. I had to give it a go and try my hand at Art Journaling. So this is the tutorial that inspired me. It is a piece called Life On Hold. And you can find Rachel on YouTube under the name, RachO11..She will inspire you with her work!!

 I prepared my journaling pages by gluing a few of the pages together to give them stability. Then I primed them with gesso. Once it was dry, I sprayed the pages with a very fine water mist, then painted on a layer of Luminarte Silks Glaze in African Jade. Then I stroked on some random streaks of Silks Pretty Peridot and blended it all in. Once it was dry, I used a mask of diamond shapes and blotted on some Silks Glaze in Bolovian Blue. I tore some book pages by hand in random shapes and cut out some hearts in different sizes and adhered it to the background pages using a type of decopauge medium. I used a charcoal pencil to outline the hearts and rubbed it in using my fingers untill it blended in softly.



 I used another mask of tiny circles and used the Silks in Nutmeg to go ove the pages in random spots. I placed some Washi Tape in different places and Used a faux stitch stamp on te pages as well. I used a toothbrush, dipped it into Silks Love Struck and splattered it over the pages. I printed the words on book pages, cut them out and adhered them to the pages. I painted around the works with Silks Emporors gold. I outlined the hearts as well. Once the page was dry, I brushed the Mod Podge over both pages to seal everything in.


Thank you for stopping by to take a peek. I think you will start seeing some more art journaling from m in the future!! I will be experimenting with other Splash Of Color medium in the near future.

And a special shout out to Rachel for allowing me to use her video as a total inspiration for me to create this piece of journaling art!!
And a very special shout out to Limor Webber and her Mixed Media Art Group...Cause ya'll started me on this new venture!!!
But the most special shout out goes to Splash Of Color for opening my scrapbooking world to COLOR!!!
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Thursday, December 12, 2013

Magical Trinket Boxes***Bo Bunny Silver and Gold Collection***

Since it is the season of gift giving. I needed a few small trinket boxes for some special gifts. I didn't want to stick a beautiful piece  of jewelry in a plain old white jewelry box, so I decided to make my own trinket boxes kicked up with BoBunny Silver and Gold paper for an elegant look. No wrapping needed.


Once my boxes were die cut from thick card stock using my Sizzix 657726 ScoreBoards XL Die, Box, Candy Drawer by Eileen Hull , I assembled them according to instructions. I painted the edges with Luminarte Silks Glaze  in Solar Gold and on the rims of the boxes, I rubbed in some Viva Colour Metallic rub in Gold.  and covered the exposed box with paper from the Silver and Gold collection.



I cut strips of paper, then ran them through an edge punch to create the look of lace. I then wrapped the lace strip around my box.


Instead of the traditional bow, I created some little roses and festive leaves to top the trinket box.The flower was die cut and before it was assembled, I used a pearl pen in gold to edge the petals. they look like those old porcelain roses rimmed in Viva Dimensional Pearl Paint Pen “Gold Pearl"


Here is a view of the boxes closed. Just slide out the inner box to open. Wouldn't it be pretty to place some ornate gold filigree buttons on the front of the drawers??


 The boxes can be used for a variety of goodies. Candy would be nice as well!! Can you imagine a few pieces of Lindt Lindor truffles in the box??? yummmmm.....


 Another idea would be to line the inside of your boxes in felt.That would make them much more elegant.



BoBunny Supplies:
Pattern paper: Silver and Gold Gold and Red, Gold and Yuletide, Silver & gold & The List
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Tuesday, December 3, 2013

Blue Fern Studios...It all started with 2 pieces of Kraft Paper...And a special gift for a dear friend...And paying Homage to a wonderful artist!

 It's me, Lisa!! December is here!! I hope that everyone is getting into the holiday spirit!!! Well, with the hustle and bustle of the season, It may be a little difficult to find time to create. But Create I must, so I pulled out 2 pieces of 12x12 Kraft paper..After all, it is the color of chipboard. I covered them with gesso...Then the magic began...Of course, I had some major inspiration for both projects.

 I created this first layout as a gift for a dear friend who lost her husband this year. Laura was a respiratory therapist at the hospital where I work. One day she was at work, the next she was battling a rare form of spinal cancer. We were shocked beyond belief that the girl who always bought a smile to  whoever she came in contact with, would be battling for her own life. And just when life seemed to be getting back to normal for her and Keith....the love of her life is suddenly gone... I wanted Laura to tell you a little about her life with Keith and the story behind the photo I used for this layout. Here it is in Laura's own words...

"What can I say about my husband, Keith? (and this beautiful piece of art my dear friend Lisa made) Keith and I loved the beach...it was our sanctuary, our "place"... Our friends would make fun of us, because we would go to a hotel on Clearwater Beach for the weekend--we live in Clearwater! But there's something about sleeping and hearing the waves crash--it doesn't get better. We laughed with our friends and went anyway... Keith made me laugh everyday for 20 years... I was diagnosed with a rare spinal cancer a few years ago. Treatment would take place in Boston. We dubbed it our "Radiation Vacation". Keith planned something special each and everyday for 6 weeks, so the radiation really got to be the stupid thing I had to do in the middle of all the fun. He also got me a CD to help me sleep at night---waves crashing... I wound up in a back brace after surgery for 18 months (and multiple surgeries)...he called me his "Little Turtle"...when I got better I bought him his turtle shirt (he is wearing it in the picture)... My husband, the love of my life, passed away April 16th 2013. I will love and miss him everyday for the rest of my life... Lisa caught our love, and my wonderful life with Keith, with her artwork. (there are stories about butterflies and flowers, but I've rambled long enough). Lisa you are a treasure, and I will treasure this...XOXO"



This girl has a smile that never quits. It is as big and beautiful as her heart...

 Butterflies and flowers...hhmmm...those are a few of my favorite things to work with..So I guess I was meant to create this piece of art for my friend Laura....Love you girl!!

 I primed the Graduated Circles with gesso. Then painted them with Silks Acrylic Glaze and dabbed some black paint over it when it was dry. I did some machine sewing around the edges of the paper. I love how Heather Jacob meanders her stitches in this manner. Heather is one of my  beautiful Australian artist friends. I did some masking with texture paste and stamping around the layout. I managed to stamp a couple of butterflies on the page, but did not want to distract from the turtles.
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 I painted the By the Sea words with flat black acrylic paint. The cute little turtles are 2  dies by Memory Box. I just had to incorporate them in this layout. I layered them and folded them up a bit for dimension.


  I always save the innards from my panels chipboard. The diamonds came from the Harlequin Page Panel. I glued them to the background and painted them with gesso to blend in, before I sprayed the whole page with mists. The I loaded a small paintbrush with black paint and did some splattering.

  All of the flowers in the cluster were once white. I painted most of them with Silks Acrylic Glaze. I even mixed some colors together to  get the colors I was looking for. In real life, the colors shimmer. I even tucked a turtle or 2  in the flowers.

  This next layout was totally inspired by Australian artist Di Garling. She designed a gorgeous layout for Scrap Around The World.  I just pulled some chipboard and Splash Of Color products from my collection and got busy. You must go see Di's layout that inspired me so much that you can call it a scraplift!! It is simply jaw dropping gorgeous!!


To adorn the Spring Branch, I covered it with some texture paste and let it dry. Then I painted it with Silks Acrylic Glaze. The leaves were done on Pretty Peridot and Olive Vine, the branch part was done in Nutmeg.
 
 I painted the Doodle Flowers with acrylic glaze as well. I added a rhinestone to the middle of this one.

 
 I bought a small hydrangea bush at Hobby Lobby, plucked off all of the flowers, threw out the stem, and saved them for a rainy day. I used a few here and outlined them with Viva pearl pen in gold and placed a rhinestone on the middle of each one.
 

The frame was die cut with a Sizzix die. I painted it with some Viva Base coat before I applied the white Viva Crackle paint over the top. Once the paint was dry and cracked, I added a couple of colors of Silks Acrylic Glaze. The Silks is transparent so it does not cover the crackle effect. My mom grows the most amazing Passion Flowers in her yard.


I painted and tucked some of the Doodle Flowers among the flower clusters.




I hope you join me at the  Blue Fern Studios Blog. Make sure you check back often to see the inspiration created by the Design Team over there.And don't forget to join in on the December Sketch Challenge.

  Blue Fern Studios Products used:
Graduated Circles
 By the Sea
 Harlequin Page Panel
 Spring Branch
 Doodle Flowers
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Sunday, December 1, 2013

Blue Fern Studios December 2013 Sketch Challenge

 I cant believe it is the first day of the last month already. That only means Blue Fern Studios sketch Challenge is here!! Michele Singh creates the most beautiful sketches!! She also designs the chipboard for Blue Fern. So come and join us and have a chance at winning some wonderful Blue Fern Studios Chipboard!


 My daughters cat Bentley, who lives with us now, absolutely adores my father in law. They have a daily routine. Grandpa sits at the kitchen table or breakfast, Bentley lays at his feet. He actually has to be touching my father in laws feet. When grandpa is finished with his coffee, Bentley goes to his dish to eat. Every day. It is the cutest thing. Something we will always remember.
Well, there are some new designs at Blue Fern Studios!! And there are always new designs being added to the Wholesale store all the time. I have used a few of the newer designs on this layout.
I also colored everything with Splash Of Color product. I find the marriage HEAVEN!!! Luminarte  Acrylic Silks Glaze and  Viva Color Pearl Pens added the perfect touch for my flowers and chipboard. I was excited to find a piece of  Bo bunny Et Cetera in my stash. I absolutely adored that BoBunny collection. I feel VERY blessed that I am able to use all of the products from the 3 manufacturers I design for all in one spot!! They are complimented beautifully!!


The chipboard flower is only 1 piece from the 12 piece Bohemian Flowers set. I just dabbed on  Silks Acrylic Glaze in African Jade and Guatemalan Green. Then I used the Viva Pearl pen in Gold to adorn the flower. The mulberry flower beneath was once white, and I painted it with Silks in Emporors Gold.

                                                                    Bohemian Flowers

 For the title, I painted it the same as the flower above, then did a little random outlining with the Viva Pearl Pen.

                                                                   A Perfect Moment

  One of the newer designs is the Shabby Brick Bits.  I cut 1 in half and used it on this layout. The flowers hide the split where I split it. All of the flowers were painted with the Emporors Gold and Same mixture I used on the chip board. The leaves were painted with Silks Fern. Goodness the glaze has a wonderful shimmer from the pigment mica in the paint.

                                                                   Shabby Brick Bits
 I created some little layered banner strips with the scraps and stapled them together with my Tiny Attacher from Tim Holtz.


OH!!!! I almost forgot to announce here on my blog!!! I have been invited to stay on the Blue Fern Studios Design team for the 2014 term!!! I am so honored and very excited to be creating with this gorgeous chipboard for another year!! 
Go check it out and see who I will be working alongside!! I am very excited to be working with some "old" friends, and excited to get to know the new ones even better!!.


BLUE FERN STUDIOS 2014 DESIGN TEAM


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