Another Collage Frame

I recently featured the heart shaped collage here that I did for my son and new daughter-in-law as a wedding present.  Close to the same time I had picked up another collage picture frame at Michael's that was 50 percent off!  Love those deals!  Anyway, I have fallen in love with this three dimensional concept of scrap booking.  It gives us the chance to highlight special events and pictures and have something that is visible on a wall, bookcase, or coffee table to be seen more often by family and friends than typical scrapbook pages that are filed away in an album.

Recently Kyle, Dana, and Nicky lost their beloved dog Shadow.  Shadow was a Doberman rescue dog and a wonderful pet!  A sweet, sweet boy who was afraid of his own shadow but would protect everyone in the house!  The loss of our pets is always hard, Shadow's was harder because it was so swift and unexpected.  I decided to use my recently purchased collage frame for a tribute to Shadow.

I had previously found some cute paper with glittery dog bones and paw prints at JoAnn's and decided these papers were perfect for my project.  I added some red shiny matching paper to these and  lined the 4 x 6 openings on the frame.  I added these different shots of Shadow to each of the frames and then accented them with a set of dimensional dog stickers and some three dimensional doggie buttons in different shapes.

The banner above the lower right picture was blank and an ideal place to add Shadow's name.  The upper right photo of Nick and Shadow was perfectly accented with the My Pal sticker.  Despite Shadow's size and breed we know he thought he was a lap dog!  He certainly slept as if he were small enough to fit in the cat's bed, which he frequently did as is seen in the lower middle picture!

To secure the papers in the wood frame I used the Terrifically Tacky tape from Michael's.  It's super strong adhesive tape and I'm certain those papers will stay affixed to the wooden frame.  The frame came with a small oval handle on the top.

The project turned out nicely and I know the kids are going to love it!  A special tribute for a special family member. RIP Shadow!

Until next time, Imagine, Create, Enjoy!

Another Card File

Previously I had made a Dates to Remember card file here.  The idea was originally featured over at Scrappin Cats blog.  I decided my girlfriend also needed one of these handy files for the other part of her birthday gift.  It was fun creating it...I used a K&Company Susan Winget Meadow paper pack.  It is a beautiful garden variety pack of papers I picked up at Michael's on clearance and it has made some wonderful cards and other projects.  I had saved the template I'd previously made for the individual months of dates and once all of the envelopes were covered with the Meadow paper I printed the date lists, inked around the edges and fixed those on each page.  I printed the months of the year on white card stock, used a punch to punch them out and after inking them, affixed them to the flap of each envelope.  I added a little bit of bling, both jewels and pearls under each of the month names.

For the back of the card file I used two cereal boxes cut to 6 x 9" the same size as the envelopes and covered it with white card stock and then matched the rest of the paper in the pack.  I put a two hole punch in the top and put two rings into the card file.  I covered the rings with a variety of yellow and green ribbons from my stash.

For the front of the file I printed the word Celebrations on card stock and then used a star punch to punch the edges of the paper.  I centered the piece in the middle of the front cover.

To complete her gift I added a small supply of hand made cards I had in my stash.

Until next time, Imagine, Create, Enjoy!

Tin box makeover

I had picked up these lovely little metal tins for a great price while shopping for another craft project.  I thought they would make a great gift project.  Another friend's birthday last month.  She loves when she receives my craft gifts...she's a big fan of my homemade goodies and I enjoy her delight when she opens them.  The tin's measurements are 5 1/2" by 3 1/2" wide and 1 5/8" deep.  I had used some papers from DCW's Tradewinds paper pack.  The piece I chose for the top of the box had two of these beautiful butterflies one at the top of the page and one of the bottom.  I'll get two different boxes out of that particular page.  I cut the strip to fit the top and rounded the corners.  I attached it to the top of the box with a tape runner after inking the edges with some Tim Holtz distress ink.  I cut the paper to showcase the butterfly which left some space on the lower right corner of the lid.  I wanted to personalize the box for my friend so I pulled my chipboard letters out, found a "J" and painted it with some copper paint I had.  After it dried I added some pretty pearls to the ends of the swirls of the letter.   I took some copper and gold threaded ribbon from my supply and glued that around the edge of the lid.  I also glued it around the inside rim of the box.  That was an accident, as I realized afterwards that it would make closing the box a challenge.  I would not do that the next time.  Around the outside of the tin I cut two strips to band the box; because there were two seams on each long side of the box I cut two small pieces of the ribbon I used around the lid edge to cover the seams on the band.  My adhesive of choice was E6000 to make sure everything stuck properly.  I also cut a piece that matched the lid piece and used it to line the bottom of the inside of the tin.

Once the box was all finished I started making matching note cards for the tin. I cut strips of natural card stock for the back of the card and pulled some of the other patterned paper from the Tradewinds paper pack.  I used the corner rounder to round the corners of the card and then cut a small square of the natural card stock.  I stamped the word "thanks" from a StampinUp! stamp set on the square and mounted it with foam tape to give it some dimension.  All together I made eight little cards to fit in the tin.

I decided the set needed some matching envelopes.  Since these were not standard sized cards I made some envelopes out of the same card stock I used for the cards.  When they were finished I stamped my girlfriend's initials on the back flap of the envelope to add a little flair.

Here is the completed set.  They turned out quite nicely.  Since I bought a few of the tins ($1.75 each online) I will be able to make a few more gift sets.  These would be cute with a Christmas themed paper, maybe little Christmas thank you notes!

 Off to do some more crafting!  Go ahead, Imagine, Create, Enjoy!

Grandkids Picture Project

I pin from Pinterest...I know, not an unusual thing to do these days, but I decided I needed to actually do some of the projects I had been pinning!  A friend's birthday is coming up and I wanted something special for this lady cuz she's pretty special herself.  I found this pin here.  She has a 5 children and 7 grandchildren all of which are her pride and joy.  I thought it would be great to recreate this project for her.  My disclaimer as I start this post is that I have not used my Cricut to cut anything other than paper..so for my first foray into other mediums I decided to do vinyl.  Why not do it up right the first time!  I made a trip to JoAnn's Fabrics with my android phone app and the sales flyer's...and lucked on a sale on the Cricut items along with an additional amount off of the total purchase!  Yay for me!

 So I picked up a roll of black vinyl as well as clear lifting vinyl!  It is a must if you are doing words or sayings! It lifts your cut letters in the position you cut them so your alignment on your project should be perfect!  I also had not yet downloaded Cricut Craft Room to my laptop!!! Why oh why did I wait so long!  It was so easy to use and much easier I must admit than my other Cricut software.  Once I found a font that I liked and for which I had the cartridge I set about designing the words and the layout.


I'm not a person that likes to "fly by the seat of my pants" if you will when it comes to designing stuff!  I like to have the dimensions, and know what the sizes are of the things I am cutting...but since I was working with a different kind of project I did some practice runs with the font size and spacing using papers that I didn't like...you know the ones that come in those paper packs and you're really not sure why they chose that pattern!  Once I liked the size of the letters I cut the first word...Grandchildren.  I was on pins and needles when I got ready to lift the letters...the vinyl requires some working with it to get the letters to lift correctly from the mat...the handy dandy little Cricut tool set was a lifesaver.  There are also very detailed instructions in the vinyl package you purchase.  Once I got the word lifted smoothly I laid it out on the board.  I had previously painted the board using Martha Stewart pearl paint as my base (2-3 coats) and then putting on a brown paint and wiping off most of it...I wanted the distressed look for the wood.  I the laid down the word Grandchildren using the clear lifting vinyl/paper and then rubbed the letters down.  It is very similar to transferring any type of letters like rub-ons...you gently work the vinyl with the stick to smooth it out and get it to adhere to the wood, then you slowly peel back the lifting vinyl/paper and presto, it's all nice and neat.  I decided I wanted a different color vinyl for the second row of words so back to JoAnn's.  This time I got the variety pack!  Yes there is a variety pack of vinyl...it comes with about 7-9 different colors in smaller sheets. I used brown for the second set of letters and following the same process set them down on the board.

I had picked up eyelet screws and screwed two of them into the board along the bottom edge.  I wanted them in the board before I put layers of Mod Podge on the board to secure the vinyl. I then put on Mod Podge, about 3 layers.  I wanted to make sure the vinyl was not going anywhere and I wanted to protect the project as well.  Once the Mod Podge dried I put two hangers on the back of the board through which I tied the pretty brown floral print ribbon and tied in a bow at the top.  I then tied a piece of jute cord I had in my stash to the eyelet screws and started adding the other embellishments...the bling at the top next to the word Grandchildren on both ends, the flowers, the butterfly.  I had picked up small clothespins to put on the cord to hold the photos, that was my intent in following the original pin; but when in Michael's I found in the dollar bins these really cute little rectangular and heart shaped chalkboards attached to clothespins.  I used these instead and I think they add a nice touch to the project and make it more personalized.  Sometimes those chance finds at the craft store are the best finds!

I wrote each of my friends grandkid's names on the chalkboards, rectangles for the boys and hearts for the girls.  I used a gold fine tipped pen...I couldn't find a white one. For illustration purposes I just added pieces of scrapbook paper to represent where the kids pictures would hang.

We had dinner last night and I gave her the gift.  It was a big hit, and I am wonderfully pleased with the end result!

Until next time, Imagine, Create, Enjoy!

Mother's Day

Capitalizing on the punch idea for Mother's Day, I had found another Pinterest idea here.  I used some more of my Asian inspired paper but I made both the top and the bottom of the dress out of the same paper.  I still used the tab punch for the top, but I took my scallop punch and punched across the top edge to give a scalloped edge to the top of the dress. For the skirt I took off the sides of the scallop and used those as layers so it gives the appearance of ruffles.  I tied up the waist of the dress with a gold edged ribbon and added some red bling along the top of the dress.  I used the SU! butterfly sizzlet and punched it out of the same paper and added bling along the spine of the butterfly.  I cut the strip for the sentiment and stamped it.  I then added a small flower in the corner with some more bling!  Finally to finish it off, I mounted it all on a reddish card stock on top of tan for the base of the card.  I added the same ribbon I used for the dress sash for the edge of the card and tied a little metal butterfly I had in my stash to finish it off!

That's it for this one.  Take care and Imagine, Create, and Enjoy!

Punch Birthday Cards

Lots of birthdays coming and going so needed to craft some cards.  I've been seeing a number of posts on Pinterest using punches.  I've admired them, but not yet tried the technique.  Time to do so!  There are two different pins I used for these cards...the first is here.  The cards are for women...I know they like to shop and they like their purses which is why I fell in love with this design.  I was using up scraps of paper and pulled both of these together.  The first one used some K& Company paper scraps leftover from one of my projects.  I actually pulled the majority of the papers from my scrap box just using a new piece for the card base.  I used my Swiss dots embossing folder for the ivory card stock and I always try to emboss the flap of the envelope too!  I think it just adds a little punch to the project!  I used the rounded tab punch for the purse bodies and added some jute cord I had for the handles.  For the flaps of the purses I used a small scalloped square and cut it in half diagonally and attached it to the top of the purse.  I added a small pearl for the clasp on the purse.  Once complete I mounted them on the squares the same color as the card base and then on to the ivory strip that I had embossed with Swiss dots.  All of that I mounted on to the green card stock base leaving enough room for my sentiment along the bottom.


For the second card I again used some scraps from another project and added orange as my base color to tie everything together.  I changed the orientation to replicate the original idea but offset the three purse squares as I was adding the sentiment square in the lower right corner.

The other idea from Pinterest is found here.  The paper I chose had an Asian influence in the design and I utilized the large circle scallop punch and the tab punch to create my dresses for these two cards.    The first card I used a a beige and brown card stock to complement the colors in the dress skirt and pulled a reddish card stock for the top of the dress.  I added some bling to the embossed card stock and to the top of the dress.  I popped up the sentiment and added bling to it to.


For the second card I used a gold card stock to complement the gold threads running through the skirt and added some red bling to the top.  On both of these I tied slim ribbons around the center of the tab punch to create the idea of a waist and a belt.


I think they turned out really cute and I'm looking forward to giving them!  Until next time, Imagine, Create, Enjoy.

Wedding Collage

Hi there...it's been awhile since I've posted.  Holidays, moving right after the holidays, and then wedding helper!  My oldest son was married in March in San Diego, California.  We instantly gained a beautiful daughter-in-law and another handsome grandson!  The weather was beautiful, the venue was lovely, a local park in La Jolla that overlooked the ocean and the reception was on Coronado Naval Air Station in a reception room looking out at the beach and ocean.  Before the photographer left San Diego I talked her into leaving a few of the wedding photos on my laptop.

Prior to the wedding I had picked up this heart shaped collage frame at Michael's.  I figured I would do a gift for the newlyweds with some of the pics from the wedding. As you can see the frame is divided into four sections with fixed dividers. Since the wedding was at the ocean I wanted to commemorate that fact in the background.  So these are the supplies I started with, the collage frame, some beach scrapbook paper, jewels, mini envelopes, flowers, and other accents.  When I first picked up the frame I knew I would have to cut the paper to fit each section.  I had precut a blank paper pattern to play with the sizing of the sections.  When I finally got the patterns to fit nicely in each section I had to decide how to cut the paper.  I wanted the word beach to be somewhat visible on the frame.  The word beach is at the bottom of the page and obviously that wouldn't fit around the curved bottom of the heart frame.  I took the patterns from the top of the heart and used them on the bottom of the scrapbook paper.  The word BEACH was divided and even though the divider falls in the middle of the word, I still feel it looks very connected.  I then took the patterns for the bottom of the heart and cut those sections from the top of the paper with the waves on them. I'll be honest, I bought extra pieces of the paper because it took a couple of times of cutting the shapes to get them nicely fitted in each section.

Once I had the paper glued in to the frame I started playing with all of the accent pieces to see how I wanted to lay out the design.  One of the examples I saw for this frame was to put the couple's wedding vows in envelopes in the design.  I found these cute little scalloped edged envelopes in the Martha Stewart section of Michael's and decided to ink them up to reflect the colors of the wedding which were brown's and roses.  I used Tim Holtz Vintage Photo ink and inked the envelope and the card insert.  I printed their vows on the computer with a small font.  In order for it to fit and still be readable I had to use both sides of the card.  I had these beautiful pink scroll letters and added their initials to each envelope.  I added pearls and brown gemstone schwoopies above and below the envelopes, lovely brown flowers with jewels in the center, and a pair of doves in the lower right corner.

Latrel Smith took a beautiful picture of Kyle and Dana praying together and I wanted to highlight that picture. I put it up in the upper right corner of the heart and added a small brass cross over the picture and a set of doves from Jolee's and a pretty jeweled heart with schwoopies next to it.  In the bottom left of the frame was one of my favorite pics of the kids.  They are facing the camera with Kyle's arms draped around Dana.  It is a beautiful shot of them and they look so very happy.  I added some more of the pretty brown and rose colored jeweled flowers and more schwoopies to finish it off.  All in all I think it turned out beautifully.

The finished result is shown below.  The kids were very excited when they received it.  I sent it to them with a couple of other items in the box.  This was on top and the first thing they came to...they didn't finish going through the box, they called me right away!  I think it was a hit!

Until next time, Imagine, Create, Enjoy.