Monday, April 27, 2015

Die Storage System

Hi:

Anita here with my system for die storage.  I have picked up bits and pieces to make up this system as I perused blogs and Pinterest.  I can always find what I am looking for with this system and I don't lose any of the smaller pieces.  My post is on the CardMaker Blog today.

I bought kitchen bins from Amazon.com and you can find the link and current price below.  They measure 10X6X3" which is perfect for fitting the envelopes.  The bins come in a longer length as well.  This was the size that fits perfectly on my craft shelf.

I bought Memorex CD/DVD keepers plastic sleeves in a 50 pack for my smaller dies. They came from Amazon as well with the link below. 
These envelopes are so nice and sturdy and you can clearly see what the die set is.  I also took a photo of the back so that you could see how nicely they close as well.
There are some dies that don't fit in this envelope or have coordinating stamp sets so I needed a larger envelope as well.  I bought Avery Elle Stamp & Die Storage Pockets which you can find the link to below as well.

I used project life 4X6" cards and my label maker to label each set.  You can use whatever size 4X6" paper you like.  It will take some work to get it set up, but it will be so pretty and organized when you are done.  Happy organizing.
Hugs,
Anita



Project Supplies:
Avery Elle Stamp & Die Storage Pockets #SS-25 25 pack for $9.00
 Amazon.com
Project Life by Becky Higgins 4X6" cards





Wednesday, April 15, 2015

Happy Day Watercoloring


Anita here with a fun water coloring technique that is so pretty for those spring and summer cards.
Here are the supplies that you are going to need for this project.  The embossing powder is white.
Here is the image before embossing and after.  You are going to want to make sure that your VersaMark or other embossing ink pad is juicy enough to pick up all the details in your stamp.

The white embossing really pops on the kraft paper but any dark color would also work really well.  You want to choose a stamp set that has spaces that are not embossed that you will be able to add color into.
I used an aqua painter but a regular paint brush and a cup of water will work just as well.  You are going to want to paint a thin layer of white watercolor over the whole image.
Next you are going to add color. This photo was taken when the paint was still wet.  You can apply color and then move the color by adding some more water to your paint brush.  You need to be careful with this paper though because it is not watercolor paper and it might start to break down with too much water.  You could also certainly use watercolor paper which I have used previously as well.
Here is a cropped photo close up of the flower painting.  Thanks for looking and have a great day.
Hugs,
Anita
Supplies Used:  Stampendous Daily Thanks stamp set, Bazzill kraft and white papers, American Crafts, Dear Lizzy Serendipity patterned papers 6X6 pad, Versamark and Memento ink, Stampin' Up white embossing powder, Michael's watercolor paint set, aqua painter









Monday, April 13, 2015

Our Story


Hello Everyone:

Happy Monday.  Here is my layout for the latest issue at Paper Issues called Prints Charming.  My husband and are went on a cruise to celebrate our 30th wedding anniversary and had this photo taken while we were on the boat.  I used the kit from Scrapbook Circle which is filled with such wonderful embellishments and papers.  I also used some of their printables on my page as well.

Here is the write-up for the challenge:
Prints Charming's Beautiful Papers: charms, prints of all kinds, subway art, Disney trips, castles, stamping, animal and paw prints, pets, animals, princes and princesses, dress up, use your favorite patterned papers, especially the ones you've been hoarding. Go ahead, cut into them and showcase them so you can enjoy them and document a memory, use Scrapbook Circle kits.
You can check out the challenge at Paper Issues and play along for a chance at a lovely prize.  Cant wait to see what you make.

Materials Used:
Webster's Pages Allison Kraft Happy
Simple Stories I Am
My Mind's Eye On Trend Sticker Sheets
Pebbles, Cottage Living Love Notes
Pink Fresh Screen Printed Wood Strips
Bella Boulevard Felt Bow
Cork embellishments
The Twinery Twine

Scrapbook Circle Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/scrapbookcircle
Scrapbook Circle Pinterest Page: https://www.pinterest.com/scrapbookcircle/
Scrapbook Circle Instagram: https://instagram.com/scrapbook_circle/
Scrapbook Circle Twitter: https://twitter.com/scrapbookcircle
Scrapbook Circle Product Site: http://www.scrapbookcircle.com/
Scrapbook Circle Blog: http://www.scrapbookcircle.com/blog

Here is the prize:
Be sure to use my code for a 20% discount at check out.



Hugs,



Sunday, April 12, 2015

Today

Anita here with a post using the fabulous April SWAG bag.  Cassie always puts so many wonderful treats inside and you can do so many wonderful creative things with them.  They are chock full with 3X4" cards and lots of goodies like the paper clip and sequins on my card.

Be sure to shop at Paper Issues and use my discount code nita for 20% off.

Hugs,
Anita

Friday, April 10, 2015

Nana's Birthday Gift Set

Hi Everyone:

Anita here and I'm so excited to be sharing my first post as part of the amazing DigiPlayGround Creative Team.  My mother-in-law had a birthday on 4/3 and I created this lovely gift set using files from the DigiPlayGround Store.  I will link to the specific file below.  My mother-in-law is a girlie girl and a special lady and I wanted her gifts to be extra pretty.

I put together the bow for her package using some lovely papers from Echo Park called Jack & Jill. 
I ran the pink strips through my Zyron machine, which I love using for altered items.  It put adhesive on the back of the papers which allowed me to stick them on the green papers.  These files are by the fabulous designer Jamie Cripps and she has an easy to follow, clear tutorial on her blog which links from the DigiPlayGround store.  This paper is really on the thick side so I ended using three brads when I put the bow together.  One for the bottom row, one for the second row and one for the middle.  I used a wet glue to adhere the three layers together and pushed down on it gently while it was drying.  For those who are curious, the wrapped present is a pound of chocolates.

3d gift package bow
I fell in love with this Rose a2 card cut file also from Jamie Cripps.  I love how it came out and I didn't have to worry about fluffing up the dimension because it went into the gift bag with her gift card.
It was such an easy file to work with and made such a beautiful card for my recipient.  This cut file  can be found in the DigiPlayGround store.  I used pop dots between the layers to give it even  more dimension.
rose a2 cut out card
Lastly I made a gift bag which comes from a great file set also from Jamie which makes two sizes of gift bags.  It is super easy to put together and I ended up cutting an extra piece at the top to have some contrast on my white box.
This bag is called 3d large scalloped fold over gift bags by Jamie Cripps and the link takes you to the store to buy yourself this awesome cut file. 
This gift bag set is made to work perfectly with two sided patterned paper and would look so pretty done that way also.
3d large scallop fold over gift bags
Enjoy the rest of your day and I will be back soon with some more lovely projects from this fabulous store.
Hugs,








Joy to the World

Here is the card that I made CASE-ing the lovely Helen's original card.  You can check out the challenge here and I hope you have a chance to play along.


Hugs,



Monday, April 6, 2015

IPad Case

Happy Monday:

I hope that you had a nice weekend everyone.  I created an Ipad case today using some lovely fabric from the Esty Store called Love My Fabrics.  There are so many wonderful collections there that you just have to check out.  My post is also on the Love My Fabric Blog which you can check out and see what my fellow designers have been up to.

I used a pattern from Indygo Junction by Amy Barickman for  a Tech Pocket & Portfolio.  I made the tablet portfolio to fit my larger Ipad and to have the pockets that are included in the pattern.

This whipped up quickly and let me use all the fabrics in the collection which was really fun.  I also created some rolled fabric flowers and made a You Tube video to show you how I did it.  You can view the video here.  Hope that you have a chance to check it out.



Here is a close up of the pockets on the left side.  There are three small ones and two larger one's as well as another one under the Ipad.  Lots of storage spaces.

Thanks for looking and be sure to pop on over to the Love My Fabrics store to see some of our wonderful new collections.
Hugs,





Friday, April 3, 2015

Home Sweet Home Card Tip

Hey There Fellow Card Makers:
Anita here to share with you a new twist on and old technique.  I am sharing with how I made the background for my card using baby wipes and various mists.
This is a photo of the mists that I used.  I chose my patterned paper and then matched that to my mists.  This technique has always called for reinkers, but I don't have any of those any more.  I never used them so I got rid of them, but I do have plenty of mists.
I used a plastic coated craft mat to spray the four mist colors on.  You could use wax paper if you don't have a craft mat.
I then took a baby wipe that I made extra wet and dabbed it into the four colors, trying to spread them out.
I used white cardstock and made lines for my card with my wipe.  You can go back and touch it up if you miss any spots or need to add any colors.  You can make any design that you want with the wipe.  This gave me a perfectly matching background for my card.
The lines match the design on my flair, which was what I intended.  Hope that you have a chance to try this out for yourself.
Supplies Used:
Paper Sweeties Home Sweet Home stamp set
Lawn Fawn Beachside
Stampin' Up Cardstock
Baby Wipes Huggies
Spray Mists, Summer Sky, Prima, Heidi Swapp Color Shine Coral and Navy, Mister Huey's Dewey
A Flair for Buttons Watercolor Words
Martha Stewart Pearls
Memento Tuxedo Black Ink
Hugs,


Wednesday, April 1, 2015

Cruising

Here is my layout that I created for the Product Spotlight today at Paper Issues for Simple Stories I Am.  This was such a fun cruise and it was so much fun to create with this line.  

Dreaming 12x12 Paper-Simple Stories-I AmCourageous Gold Foil 12x12 Paper-Simple Stories-I AmGrateful Gold Foil 12x12 Paper-Simple Stories-I Am
Be sure to look for these items and more for this gorgeous line in the Paper Issues store.  
Hugs,