May Arts Time!

In case you didn't already know, Stampendous is doing a blog collaboration with May Arts Ribbon this week and I always enjoy it when we collaborate with them, May Arts is my favorite ribbon in the whole wide world!!  That's no exaggeration!  I love their ribbon and twine!  They have the best variety and if there's ribbon or twine on one of my projects, 99% of the time, it's May Arts.  Today I have a fun project that was so easy to do!  I've been working on organizing my craft room and it seems I'm always in need of a box or jar to put something in.  I love to use clear jars because you can easily see the contents and they're just pretty to look at!  I decided to decorate one of my jars that I think I'm going to use for paint brushes on my mixed media table.  I haven't decided for sure if that's where I'm going to use it or not.  Actually, I think it's pretty enough that I could just as easily put a candle in it and stick it in my living room!  Anyway, here's my jar, you can tell me what you think:

I really like the shabby vintage look of this project.  While I do have the ring on the top of the jar, I have intentionally left the insert off.  I like the look of the jar ring.  I considered painting it or covering it in some fashion and decided against it.  On the jar itself all I did was layer a wide 2 1/2" May Arts ribbon on the bottom, a 1 1/2" burlap May Arts ribbon over the sheer and a piece of May Arts twine around the middle.  I used another May Arts ribbon to create my ribbon flower on a Gluber from Cosmo Cricket.  If you've never seen Glubers, they're like giant glue dots you use to create flowers; they're pretty darn cool!  I used my ribbon flower to cover the area where the ribbons connect.  Next I created my tag! I kept it pretty simple using Stampendous SSC1194 Vintage Ladies Perfectly Clear Stamps that I stamped with Coffee Archival Ink on a small shipping tag.  I used Peeled Paint, Scattered Straw, Tattered Rose and Dried Marigold Tim Holtz Distress Markers to color her in.  I used Vintage Photo Distress Ink Pad and a stipple brush to add some ink around the edges.  Next I added a touch of Zip Dry Adhesive around the edge of the tag and dipped each side in Stampendous Cinnamon Micro Glitter.  Once my glitter was dry, I tied the tag onto the twine around the jar.  Really simple but simply pretty!  My teammate Janelle is also playing along today, here's her link, check her out!

Janelle

That's it for today.  I hope you'll come back tomorrow for a look at my Blog Hop project.  I'm kinda crazy about it, too!  Thanks for stopping by and I'll see you again soon! 

Hugs,

Lea

A Daisy A Day!

Or, maybe I should say, "Think Spring!"  We've had a big snow here in my part of North Carolina and now they're calling for more!  I want Spring!!  I want to say good-bye to winter and hello to spring.  I want to wear my flip flops and put away my boots.  I want to feel the sun on my face, NOT snowflakes!

So, since it's winter and I'm not a fan of cold weather (in case you couldn't tell!) I've spent a lot of time in the craft room.  If you haven't seen the new Creative Palette from Stampendous, you need to check it out!  This thing is so much fun to create with!  The cool thing is, each page you print is different, no two are alike.  I've used acrylics and mixed them with a variety of sprays.  I've stamped into the paint with stamps and squiggled and sponged with other things I've found around the house and my craft room.  The possibilities are only limited to your imagination.  Here's a link to the Creative Palette on the Stampendous site which has a product video to explain how to do monoprinting.  Here's my card, the green background paper is one I've created:

I have to tell you, you won't believe how fun it is to create your own backgrounds!  I love it.  For this card I've used the following:

Delicate Daisy Stamp

Rattan Weave Stamp

Creative Palette

DecoArt Neon Green Glamour Dust Acrylic Paint

DecoArt Apple Green Americana Satin Acrylic Paint

Speedball Rubber Brayer

Neenah Classic Crest

Bazzill

Lasting Impressions Yellow Dot Paper

Memento Tuxedo Black Ink 

May Arts Ribbon

Copic Markers C0; Y13, 15, 17; YG07, 09, 25

Scor-Tape

Glue Dot

Thanks for stopping by today!  I hope you've enjoyed my project and I'll see you again soon.  In the meantime, get you a Creative Palette and get busy monoprinting your own cool backgrounds!

Hugs, 

Lea

PS:  I'm starting a really cool on-going project, I'll tell you more about it next week!  

Words of Love

Do words of love make your heart flutter?  They make mine flutter if they're said by my sweetheart!  
Are you ready for the new Dreamweaver challenge for the month of February? It will be a short month of posts for the Dream Team, but we're pretty excited to share with you our versions of "February Flutters", meaning anything that flutters. Heart flutters, wings that flutter, breezes, sails, etc. So, come along for the ride and link your own "flutterings" to the Dream It Up! blog for a chance to win the stencil of your choice. Meanwhile, here's my "fluttering" for the week:

I love the patterned paper with the words as it's little snippets from love letters written years ago.  I think that's really cool!  

Here's what I used to create this card:

Dreamweaver Stencil LJ 928 Swirly Hearts

Dreamweaver White Embossing Paste

Dreamweaver LM 2010 Paste Spreader

Dreamweaver Metallic FX Pink Blaze

Richeson's Acrylics in Scarlet, Crimson Red, Titanium White and Mars Black

Bazzill Cardstock

Echo Park "Yours Truly" Patterned Paper

Bo Bunny "Garden Girl - Wild Flowers" Patterned Paper

May Arts Ribbons

Me & My Big Ideas Pink Multi Pack Rhinestones

Studio 18 Rhinestones Strass Green

Zip Dry Adhesive

Q-Tips

Here's how I did it:

Trim papers to desired size

Tape down paper and stencil in preparation of pasting

Mix white paste with paints until you get the desired color, I went with a nice plum

Spread on paste and once applied, remove stencil (put in water right away), and set aside to dry

Once partially dry, apply Metallic FX with a Q-Tip and then heat with a heat tool to complete drying

Using the same Q-Tip, smudge some of the Metallic FX in various spots around the paper

Adhere patterned papers

Create bow with 2 ribbons and adhere to card

Adhere patterned papers to card base

Complete card by adding rhinestones as shown

 

This was a super easy card to create and I love the finished project.  I think the rhinestones give it just the right touch and balance the bow.  I love how the Metallic FX looks smeared around the paper! Here's the list of my teammates that have projects for your viewing pleasure, be sure to leave them some love:

Dream It Up!
Lea Kimmel
Louise Healy
Stacey Rumsby
Terrece Siddoway
Wendy Jordan 
Pam Hornschu
Cherylynn Moser

 

Thanks for stopping by today and I'll see you again soon.  

Hugs,

Lea

Wicked Wednesday...

...in a winter storm!  Don't know where you live but here in North Carolina the snow is coming down fast and furious and I'm kinda loving it.  I'm normally not a fan of the white stuff but It's been a cozy and snugly kind of day and that's the part I'm enjoying.  Plus, it really is pretty to look at!

So, it's Wicked Wednesday and time for another ATC challenge, here's mine:

This is Zodiac - Aquarius from Delicious Doodles, our sponsor for this week.  Since February's birthstone is amethyst, I decided to keep her in lavenders.  I colored her with my Copics and added a little sparkle with my Spica glitter pens.  Next, I mounted her on lavender Bazzill trimmed to ATC size.  I finished her off with a little sentiment from My Favorite Things and some Lavender Glitter from Stampendous.

I hope you'll play along and link your creation to the challenge blog.  Thanks for stopping by and I'll see you again soon.  Tomorrow I have a card for Dreamweaver and Friday I'll have a little Stampendous love for you.  Have a blessed day.

Hugs,

Lea

Stack Art is Regal in Red

Hello there, happy crafters!  I’ve got another cute little Stack Art piece from Stampendous to share with you today.  I love making these little works of art, they’re fun and easy to do but they look like you’ve spent hours creating them.  They won’t know the truth unless you tell them!  Here’s my project for  today:

For this piece, I’ve used the Regal Bird Kraftboard Kit, one of my favs!  I just love that little birdie!  From the Red Encrusted Jewel Kit, I used Red Glass Glitter, Aged Scarlet Embossing Enamel, Red Tinsel Embossing Powder and Scarlet Fragments.  From the Gold Encrusted Jewel Kit, I used Champagne Pearl Embossing Powder and Gold Halo Glitter Mix, which gave it loads of sparkle!  The sentiment comes with the kit, you just cut out the one you want and layer between the pieces!  Easy peasy!  I punched two holes in the bottom piece before I started and added some red craft wire that I had partially wrapped around a skinny paint brush.  Such a fun little project!  These are great for gifts for teachers, co-workers or anyone really!  It might be just the little gift someone needs to lift their spirits!  The nice thing is they’re so easy to slip in a little envelope and send along.

Thanks for stopping by today and I hope you’ll come back soon.  Have a blessed day!

Hugs,

Lea

Eureka! It's Wicked Wednesday!

Hey there crafty folks!  Hope you’re having a fun Wicked Wednesday!  Today our Wicked Wednesday ATC Challenge sponsor is Eureka Stamps and I love my little Hearty Dragon!  He makes my heart flutter!  I’ve colored him with Derwent Inktense Pencils and I have to say, these pencils are the bomb!  They are truly the most vibrant watercolor pencils I’ve ever used.  Here’s my ATC:

My base is Bazzill and I’m not sure what my patterned paper is as it was a scrap with no name!  My sentiment is from Memory Box.  The heart brads are from my stash. I do hope you’ll get wicked with us this week, it’s so much fun creating these mini works of art!  See you again tomorrow with a post for Stampendous!  Thanks for stopping by!

Hugs, 

Lea

Happy Birthday!

Desert Islands Crafters Challenge Blog is three today so we're having a mini blog hop!  Woohoo!  Happy birthday and congratulations, Suzi, for creating this challenge blog we've all grown to know and love!  Here's my card to help celebrate the occasion:

Our sponsor this time around is Sassy Studio Designs and my image is Rainbow Bright Sassy that I've colored with Prismacolor Pencils.  Boy, did this one ever take me back in time!  LOL!  One of my daughters used to love Rainbow Bright!  For this card I've used Bazzill, Neenah Classic Crest and My Mind's Eye Hootenanny Six by Six Designer Paper Pad papers.  The stars are punched, the ribbon is seam binding I colored with Tim Holtz Distress Paint in Barn Door and the number 3 is part of a Tim Holtz grunge board letter and number set that I painted with the same paint.  I put it all together with Beacon Zip Dry and a few pop dots.  Here's the itinerary for the current challenge:

1.  Birthday
2.  Party
3.  Cake
4.  Ribbon or Twine
5.  Add Some Sparkle
6.  Emboss It - Dry or Wet Embossing
7.  3 Patterned Papers
8.  3 Different Embellishments
9.  Favorite Colors
10. It's a Gift - Make a Gift or Gift Box/Bag

I used numbers 1, 2, 3, 4, 7, and 8 for my card and I'm kind of stretching #2!  LOL!  That's okay, I know the thought process behind the card so if I say I was thinking party, you just have to believe me!  Here's the hop list:

Alison

Erica

Jenn

Kelli

Lea (me!)

Suzi

Thanks for stopping by today and I sure hope you'll leave us each a little birthday love as you go!   Don't forget to play along, we want to see what you come up with!

Hugs,
Lea