A little birdie told me....

I was so excited to see the Design Team's theme this week!

BIRDS!

Enter and you could win:

Meljen's Designs - http://www.meljensdesigns.com/
* Winner Choice of 4 Images



Robyn's Fetish - http://robynsfetish.com
* Winner’s Choice of 5 Digital Stamps


Little Claire's Designs

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Love in the Spring"

I had been working on this project for my submission to

Stampendous Impressions (May challenge - a gift item)
for over a week, and knew it would be great to post it here for my

 "Do You Stack Up?"  
friends, too!

I decided to take pictures as I went along as a type of photo tutorial...and to give a tip or two on what to do and NOT to do!

Now, let's begin...

I started with this simple metal bird cage I have used a a photo backdrop
for a long time.

It seriously needed a facelift!

I wanted to give a vintage, old look to the papers on the bottom of the cage (twigs),

so I spritzed some old music sheets with a variety of colors of glimmer-type mists.

After letting several layers of the color dry thoroughly,

 I ran them through our paper shredder.

(I use it more as a scrap tool than to shred bank statements!)

 I also misted the silk ivy vines just to give them a hint of shimmer.

A tiny bit of moss gives the "female bird" something soft
for her and her eggs to rest on.

The next step has a warning included...lol!

Plastic "eggs" can NOT be heat embossed!

They looked adorable until they started collapsing on themselves. 
Kind of hilarious, and sad at the same time....
Next time, I may choose to go with wooden eggs...
But, I didn't have the energy to run out to my local craft store, so I needed to come up with a simpler solution...using the plastic ones....

This didn't stop me from using my favorite "go-to" bird egg finish...
Stampendous, Shabby Blue Embossing Powder.
I simply covered them with glue and sprinkled the perfectly colored powder all over the eggs and let them dry. A spritz of matte sealer, and they're good to go!
Still the perfect "bird egg blue"!

Oh, wait, the fun's not over!
If you've read along this far, thank you so very much!
For the record, this IS the longest post I've ever put together!

Next, I stamped two copies of the bird from Stampendous "Jumbo Songbird" rubber stamp onto a fine cream muslin and layered it with some batting.  Then, I sewed around the shapes and cut them out, producing two cute, PUFFY little birds as blank canvases.



What is terrific is that fabric heat embosses quite well!
A teensy bit of glue to hold the embossing glitters in place and hitting it with a heat gun is so easy!
Stays right where you want it, and will NEVER rub off!
They HAD to have some tiny rhinestone eyes, too!

I frayed and inked the edges of the birds to give them an even more rustic appearance.
A little Stampendous, Powder Blue Fran'tage Color Fragments
sprinkled into the "nest",
and then I assembled the cage.  (Eggs, Birds, Ivy...)

As the finishing touch, I added the Prima flowers to match the hues of my mother's  sofa and a splash of color to the project!

Ta-da!

Hopefully, this is going on my mother's end table in her livingroom.
She loves all things "country", and especially, birds.

Supplies:
Stamps:  Stampendous, "Jumbo Songbird"
Embossing Powder: Stampendous

This project is also being entered in the challenge at
LESSology (Birds of a Feather)

Again, thanks for all of your patience and reading through this post!

Kathy's got a giveway!

Kathy, at "The Daily Marker" , has a wonderful give-away from Simon Says Stamps!

If you like vintage, and are looking for an easy gift box,

check it out!

Simply leave a comment and post on your own blog, FB, or Twitter!

While you're there, peruse Kathy's past projects and become a follower, if you're not already!

Show and Tell at DoodleDragon!

The team at Doodle Dragon is at it again!

With so many terrific images to pick from,

it's easy to create some fun cards for Summer!

My grandson will be resuming his swim lessons in a few weeks,

and he loves getting my Dustin Pike cards!

I'm not sure what level comes next in his class, but after dolphin,

it MAY very well be"Torpedo"! LOL!

As for me, I don't swim. Never did learn, so it's all very impressive....

I colored and cut TWO of the gator images so that I could layer one curved and have it hovering over the bottom one.  Also, the areas of his jaw and "hands" are underwater, and therefore cut off of the top image.  Much harder to see the added dimension in the photos than IRL!

I also had an excuse to use some of my little metal flipflop charms!

Also, spritzed him with "Goose Bumps" to give him the look of a toy rubber raft.

(Thanks, Jenn!)

Perhaps this photo helps....

I love his little patch and the air valve.

Have a great week,

and thanks for looking! 

Your comments always make my day!

~Jan~

Thinking of You!

Hello! 

I hope everyone is having a wonderful weekend!

It's much too hot to do anything outdoors here in Phoenix in the afternoon,

so I am staying comfy in my A/C!

I was playing with my beads today and decided to make this cute little butterfly

pin for a card!

I pulled out an old Nikki Sivils paper pack,

and decided that this paper was perfect!

 I fussy cut and popped up one cloud and wrapped the sentiment

onto the flower stem with some twine!

The Unity butterfly stamp and the sentiment were both heat embossed with

Stampendous', Dark Bark detail embossing powder!

It's the best for capturing every tiny element of your stamped images!

Products that enabled me:

Unity, "Bevy of Butterflies" stamps

Nikki Sivils, "Willow Bee" papers

The Twinery, black and white twine

Stampendous Embossing Powder

Beads,  JoAnn's

This card is entered in the monthly challenge at:

Unity Stamp Company (Stripes)



Doodle Dragon Challenge time!

It's that time again,

and it's a sketch challenge!

I love the funny images Dustin Pike comes up with!

This one really felt perfect for the HOT days we've been having in Phoenix! 

The day I made this card, it was 106 degrees, 
with little sign of it getting much cooler. 
We have forest fires burning everywhere!

So, on a lighter note, here's how OUR summer Bar-B-Q usually ends up!

No, just kidding!

I colored the image with Copics, except for the apron. (which is paper pieced) Then fussy-cut and popped it up. Last, added a bit of Glossy Accents and Stickles.

The DP is Echo Park, This and That, "Charming".

I wanted some flies for the elements on the side, but didn't have anything that fit the bill.  So, I made my own... hey, I tried.

Again, I love these images and it's always fun to send these to folks!
I get the best compliments when I use a Doodle Dragon image!

Check them out here!   You can get a slew of them for very little money!

(Yes, slew is a word...LOL!)

Have a terrific weekend!

Jan

Home Sweet Home

The inspiration for this little card came from the sketch challenge at

DCWV Diary!

Here's the sketch:

Now, let me explain. I have been trying very hard to follow the sketch but NOT to use the elements that are so obvious in the sketch.  In this case, it would have been  simple to throw a large, single flower on the card with some twine.

Here's what I chose to do:

First off, I flipped the sketch on its' side.

Rather than a flower or a one-dimensional object, I used yellow netting and made a small "scrubby" like those we use in the kitchen.  For the banner pieces, or "leaves" (whatever someone may see in the sketch), I decided to place a folded kitchen "towel" over the laundry lines.

I found DCWV papers that resembled retro wallpaper for the chevron cuts.

The little clothespin was just for fun!

I love taking a sketch and making something rather UNEXPECTED with it!

Supplies:

Papers; DCWV, Celebration

Cord; Simplicity, Twisted Cord

Clothespin; Darice

Cloth; An actual cut-up kitchen towel!



DYSU Challenge #72-Landscapes!

Copic Marker Scrapbooking 6 copic ciao marker (North/South America), Martha Stewart punch (rest of the world)  Pink Cat Studio Winner’s Choice of 5 Digis The Ribbon Reel £10 Gift Voucher

I used the landscape image from Copic Marker Scrapbooking,

"Emerald City".

The glitter card base is American Crafts, and the Oz characters are Graphic 45 stamps.

I hadn't had a reason to use them yet.

Emerald City gets its' sparkle from Lime Green Stickles.

Everything is colored with Copics.

I tried to come up with a small poppy flower, and my MS punch is all I had. I wanted SOME sort of red/orange flowers for the field. 

(My first attempt at "dotting" them on ended up in the trash.)

Inside of card:

Please forgive the photo.  The card wouldn't sit up straight, and rather than grab a frog, I tried to take it "as is". The sentiment box IS stright and even...lol!

I had a good time putting this one together!

It really took me outside of my comfort zone.

Please check out the rest of the Design Team's projects!

And, as always, lots of prizes up for grabs!

Also, speaking of prizes, I am in real need for some VINTAGE "Alice" stamps!

 In an effort to win some, I've entered this card in the challenge at:

The Altered Alice (anything goes)

Join in!

Hanging 3D project!

The current challenge at JustRite Inspirations

is to create a 3D project as a home decor piece, gift, etc. 
and
Flourishes asks that we use 3 elements beginning with the same letter!  FUN!

("B", beads, bow, butterfly, brown ribbons, border stamps...)
This was made for my mother for her boudoir...in other words, her master bath.

The photo is one I've used before.  It is her 1951 high school graduation picture!

Everything was far more formal back then.

For these sweet little framed images, I used
JustRite's, "Fleur de Lis Labels Twenty"
and "Greetings from Paris",
which I stamped on dark brown cardstock and
embossed in cream powder.

This amazing, realistic looking "Lace" below was created using the

"Lace Border" stamp,

and heat embossed onto vellum!  Love this effect!

I then glued the two sections of "lace" to a strip of ribbon to hang my photo frame and stickpins from.

These stamps show so much detail and look so sharp when embossed!

The butterfly and crown are Tim Holtz' Grungeboard that has been painted brown , crackled, painted cream and then sanded to highlight the embossing.

The tiny bling is Recollections.

The stickpins I made myself.

The DP I used to cover the wooden hanger is "Lady Couture", DCWV.

Lastly, the little epoxy frames are those I picked up at Michael's when they

had them for 80 cents each! Wish I had gotten tons more!

Thanks for reading through this entire post!

I hope my mother likes this as much as I enjoyed making it!

Wheee! A DT call!

 Attention!

Do You Stack Up is having a DT call!

This call will be open until May 25^th!

DYSU is looking for *four* special girls who can Stack It Up with us! This is going to be a short & fast call, so if this is something you would be interested in...link up!!

What is required of you?

-create a project each week for our challenge using the challenge theme that week

-meet deadlines or communicate in advance if there is something preventing you from meeting your deadlines

-commenting on blogs; each DT member has blog #'s that are assigned to her, you must comment on your blog numbers. You may comment on others that you love and inspire you, but your numbers are a minimum and your responsibility to cover.

-be an active member on the DYSU Papercrafts Planet forum group

-have a wonderful positive attitude and a love to push yourself to create outside the box

What you will receive...

-first an amazing bunch of ladies to work with...these girls are so supportive in the crafty world and your personal world...This is truly a DYSU family.

-you will get free products each week (some will be digital products, some will be physical products depending on the sponsor/s that week)

             Check out the list of sponsors we have! 
                           Amazing images!

-our DYSU DT badge

-you will get to help pick the Top Three each week

-a fun, exciting experience of a lifetime :)

Your term would start on June 1st to Dec 31, 2012. If at that time you and everyone on the DT feels like you are a great fit for the team and wish to stay on for another term, you'll have that chance...:)

So what are you waiting for?

Link your project up to the DYSU blog, and we'll be visiting you!

This call will end on May 25th (as DYSU has physical product that needs to be shipped out to the new members)

Those of you who come here regularly KNOW how much I love being a DT member for DYSU!   These girls are TRULY so sweet and supportive, and you won't find a happier, nicer group!  So, if you feel you can commit a very reasonable amount of time to the team, have a desire to share your talents, and want to explore new ideas and areas, please don't hesitate! I would love to see some of my blogging friends send in their projects!

Jan

Waltzing Mouse challenge

The sketch challenge this week at

Waltzing Mouse

The brooch I used in my focal point is one that I found in a very old box of costume jewelry that I've had for 30+ years.  I have no idea whether this belonged to a family member or something I picked up along the way.

I stamped the little basket from Waltzing Mouse "Basket Additions" onto some french dictionary print patttern paper for an old, vintage look.  It also reminds me of the baskets we're seeing in the stores made of rolled printed papers!

The flocked black and white DP and the pretty little doily are both from

KaiserCraft.

Check out the Gallery on Waltzing Mouse!

This card is also entered in the challenge at

Crafty Catz Weekly Challenge,

for which I have also thrown in my hat for their Design Team!

I love their sponsors and the girls always have such nice projects!

Thanks for looking at my blog today!

Have a wonderful Mother's Day weekend!

I know I'll be seeing both of my "little ones"!  (36 and 34) 

LOL!

DYSU Challenge #71- Flowers

This week's sponsors are:

Inspired Stamps



Digi Darla

 

The Greeting Farm



Winner´s Prize
Inspired Stamps   $15 store credit
The Greeting Farm  -  Winners Choice of 1 Clear Stamp set
Digi Darla  -  Winner’s Choice of 5 Digis

Sponsor Website
Inspired Stamps   www.inspiredstamps.com
The Greeting Farm  -  http://thegreetingfarm.com/digital.html
Digi Darla  -  http://www.digidarladesigns.com/

My card this week uses the flower images from
Inspired Stamps.

I chose to stay with a CAS design and monotone coloring on the flowers.

Again,those who know me, know that red and black are my favorite combination!

The DCWV "Immortal Love" paper I used as a background is a satin photo print and gives a dimensional feel to this card that I could not have gotten otherwise.

I stamped the image repeatedly, colored with Copics, and layered,

placing a large black brad in the center. 

The twine simply "tied" it all together! 

Sorry, I was up late finishing all my cards!

All my projects should come together this easily!

Now, I see the rest of the DYSU design team has more ideas and eye candy for you!

Enter the "Flowers" challenge to win a great prize!

Also entered in the fun challenge at
Sweet Stampin' Challenge (Flowers)

Remembering Mother's Day...

Here is my card I made this year for my Mother.

I used the Cameo image from Cricut "Art Philosophy" and

papers from Cosmo Cricket, Odds and Ends.

Spellbinders and a bit of thread, button, and lace...

Happy Mother's Day, Mom!

Of course, this will be entered into the challenges at:

Paper Sundaes (Mother's Day)

Sentimental Sundays (For A Special Woman)

"Bob" takes a trip....

During a recent visit from a long-time high school friend, she mentioned that she had booked her flight on Travelocity.  We started joking about having a gnome (Bob) in the back yard who never gets to "come out of the bushes" and decided that she and I would take him up to Sedona on a day trip!  Yes, we get together, we get pretty silly!

So, we (she) seatbelted him into the backseat, and off we went!

He hit all the major sights up north, including the Amish Pie Restaurant,

the "Jack-in-the-Box" in Cottonwood, and most excitedly, Bell Rock in Sedona.

I have to tell you, I haven't laughed that hard in a while.
Ducking down and hiding poor Bob every time a car drove by, and asking him if he needed to stop and pee...

Why, yes, we DID graduate in the early 70's...why do you ask?  LOL!

Because Bob has never demonstrated any ability to swim, he was not able to join us to the bottom of Oak Creek Canyon to Slide Rock.  I guessed he would float, should the situation arise, but the sign did say "No Pets, of any kind" allowed.  Maybe if we dress him in a little onsie, he can go next year! LOL!

I assume this is just the beginning of Bob's escapades!

What fun!