A VINTAGE LABEL "LUCKY BOY" TART PLUMS

Just for something different!  This follows along with the  "Farmers Market" post of earlier and I've got a "quilt" background going on another set of ATCs which I will post soon'ish'.  Home themes appear to be running through my mind!   Click on the image and then click and save the larger image for the best resolution.  Tell me what you plan to do with this one.

St. Patrick's Day Vintage Image

This is just one of the image's I found at http://www.karenswhimsy.com/ under her menu "In the Public Domain".  I mentioned this website a few postings ago, it is a great resource, do go and have a look.  I'm working on an 8" x 8" St. Patrick's collage that will include some of the images I found there, I hope to get that up in a few days.  I have my step-mom Toni (Chehalis WA) and my step-sister Jena (Bellingham WA) visiting this weekend - so we are off for some Vancouver Island adventures!

Artist Trading Cards "Wild Irish Rose"

If you are watching my efforts at ATCs you know I am a beginner!  Hopefully each time I tackle a new theme you will see some development.  Are you  learning along with me - do feel free to offer suggestions!  These do actually look better than the picture.  I used a large background stamp which made 4 cards with each stamping, Ultra Thick Utee in Spruce Green, swarovski crystals and my trusty Krylon gold leaf pen.  I thought of using the EK Success corner punch after - so these were reworked a couple of times.  But here's my flash of brilliance (feel free to laugh!), let's combine the image from "Wearing O' the Green" and the background stamp from this one for a new ATC and then one of each will make a series!

Artist Trading Cards "Pot O' Gold" St Patricks Day Shakers

Shake, shake, shake those pots o' gold!  Inspired by a package of St Patricks' Day confetti (golden "pots o' gold" and teeny stars in gold and green).  I confess, make it glitter and you have my attention.  The frame is 1/4".  I used 1/4" double-sided Scor-Tape (dst) around the edges, put in the confetti, adhere cut to fit transparency, dst again and adhere 1/4" pieces of cardstock for the top frame.  Right now I'm edging everything with my Krylon gold leaf pen!  I used a fine line gold paint pen for the faux stitches and to write the title at the bottom left corner.  This image is in the public domain if you are looking for it.

A ST PATRICKS' DAY DOWNLOAD

A change from the typical.  I'm not really sure if this is meant to be an Irish Valentine but I think it just means more versatility!  This is a copy of a postcard from my own stash.  Remember to click on the image and then save the larger image for better resolution.  I will start posting Easter images soon so you have loads of time to use them for projects.

Artist Trading Cards "FARMER'S MARKET"

Buttery yellow and barnyard red cardstock, black gingham ribbon, mini brads and a sheet of "Farmers Market" from the graphic 45 "Domestic Goddess Collection".  Every single line from graphic 45 is "my favorite"!  Can hardly wait to get my hands on the latest releases.  If you (shocking!) aren't familiar with this group go here http://www.g45papers.com/  . 

Artist Trading Cards "WEARING O' THE GREEN"

Victorian Scrap images from TwistedPapers, micro glitter, a gold leaf  and a "Quickie Glue" pen continue to be the base for my favorite ATCs right now.  Add a shimmery shamrock and this mini-portrait (x6) is my first set of St. Patricks' Day ATCs.

The image is from a TwistedPapers cd "Victorian Scrap" of 126 images all from an actual 1880s Victorian Scrap Album.  I put this at the top of my list of "fabulous finds".

Artist Trading Cards "DAILY FORTUNE" "MISFORTUNE" AND A DRAW!

I've been quite taken with the theme of fortunes recently, the inspiration for this came about from a visit to RubyDog's Art House (http://www.rubydogonline.com/) in Vancouver BC.  RubyDog's is a unique shop full of all manner of  "wonderful bits" (new and vintage, so you know this has my attention) for altered art, collage etc. 

The "wonderful bits" in this case are a packet of fortune cards from the old fashioned "weigh yourself and get a fortune" machines.  There is often a fortune teller of some sort in the top of the best machines.  I have never seen one except in a museum but what fun! 

The next bit of thought on the theme coming to my mind (as opposed to what might come to yours!) was not "good fortune" but "misfortune", which likely says something about my twisted sense of fun.  And yes I did an evil laugh coming up with the "misfortunes", the ones above being a few of my favourites!

If this is a theme that interests you do visit the Skeptical Museum of the Paranormal at http://www.skeptiseum.org/  This site is both educational and entertaining.  Lots there to keep this theme going!

Comment on this post over the next two weeks and on March 5th I will do a draw for a packet of eight "Daily Fortune" cards.  

Artist Trading Cards "Vintage Tin Toys"

A mini-calendar I found in the sale bin (.75!) at Michaels' inspired these.  My eyes are a magnet for anything with a vintage vibe!  A quick dig through "the stash" and I came up with chipboard puzzle pieces, alphabet beads and the perfect paper from the Graphic 45 line Playtimes Past.   I backed the images on brown cardstock and used my pinking shears for the edges.  If you aren't familiar with the Graphic 45 papers check them out at http://www.g45papers.com/ .  These lines are more versatile than you might think, be sure to have a look at the gallery and blog.  I'm going to focus on ATCs for the next few days and I plan to have a give away so do check in!

HOTEL ST. FRANCIS BEAUTY PARLOR (vintage ephemera download)

Help yourself to this one!  This is a copy of ephemera in my own collection.  I can see this becoming the background for ATCs, on the front of a gift tag or used on any number of altered art projects.  Don't forget to click on this image and then save the enlarged image for the best resolution.

I encourage you to check out http://karenswhimsey.com/public-domain-images/  as a resource you may not have yet discovered.  You will find hundreds of images from old books, magazines, postcards and materials printed prior to 1923 (meaning copyright free).  She has put up a site map, index and search engine.  Please read her Terms of Use. 

A FAVORITE LOOKING FORWARD TO SPRING ACTIVITY - TUTORIALS EXTRAORDINAIRE!

A couple of years ago I discovered http://www.paperbellastudio.com/ the site where Teresa McFayden launches her craft E-Zines.  I have been head over heels with these since my first one - kind of like having your first crush.  Fortunately she often offers repeats of some of the originals and I've indulged in a number.  I say indulged but these are not an expensive indulgence and each one is loaded with different projects.   Absolutely, positively at some point I will be showing off some my favorite creations here.

Her latest "Free Style Embroidery" launched yesterday.  Go check it out, as her E-Zines (tutorials extraordinaire!) are available over a number of weeks once you sign-up.  If you aren't up to trying this one she has several others available.

CREATE A MINI ACCORDION ALBUM WITH ONE SHEET OF PAPER!

So maybe you have at the most a couple of hours to put together a gift or you are suddenly overcome with the need to delve into the scrap and leftover box and actually use some - then this is the project for you!   This structure was inspired by a project at http://www.scarletlime.com/  some time ago.  I've provided two examples using the same papers as the base.

Brads, buttons and ribbons and lots of bling - pearls, glitter and flowers! Bling – you make my heart sing!  Got two pearls of this, one flower like that and three pieces of short ribbons - use them here!

Simple enough for a beginner but still enough variety and flexibility for the experienced scrapper to enjoy and be challenged.  With two pockets for tags and at least six pages for pictures, it’s easy to make this about what or whom ever you like. The structure of this one lends itself to using those “bits and pieces” of pictures you really didn’t want to let go of.  I often punch out bits of pictures to use later - particularly if the entire picture isn't one I will use.

If you want detailed instructions for creating this cutie contact me and I will send them electronically.  If you are a brave one - start by cutting one 12" x 12" double-sided cardstock into thirds.  Fold each in half lengthwise- with one "mountain fold" going the opposite way.  Set the two with the same folds up on their sides (as in this picture) into a "W".  The third piece is behind the 2nd and 3rd pages.  Adhere this at the sides and bottoms, leave the tops for "pockets". 

If you are really challenged for time or want to make this a micro mini album just use two of the "thirds" - with one pocket.  Send me photos of your own versions of this and I will post them.  Have fun!

COMING SOON!

In early March our daughter Allison will have our 8th grandchild (her third).  Holy doodle!  So of course that has me thinking about yet more "paper possibilities".  I had been teaching a series of baby layouts at Scrapers' Anonymous but then had an unexpected hiatus from teaching. (Back soon though.)

I've some layouts to share with you from grandchild #7.  I actually hadn't thought of numbering them until just now, so far at least I can still remember all their names!

The title is "New Chick in the Nest".   Of course "girl chicks" get a flowered nest!  I really never progressed with quilting - loved the choosing of colors and fabrics, piecing by machine but not the actual hand quilting.   I showed my step-mom Toni how to do log cabin strip quilting by machine - she then dived into quilting and has done some stunning work.  We consider ourselves lucky to have been gifted with some.  However the quilting influence is obvious in these layouts.

The bird is an acrylic piece which has paper adhered underneath, I drew in "feathers etc", edged the piece with a gold paint pen and then used a white paint pen on top of that to do faux stitching.  Cut up some brown patterned paper to look like a branch, used fiber paper leaves drew on a bit of detail and added Prima flowers to build the nest. These papers were again one of the monthly contest kits from Scrapers' Anonymous.

Here I took the same layout, changed the colors, corners and embellishments to do a layout featuring Lucys' brother.  I use my 3" wide acrylic ruler (with 1/8 grid lines) that I used for quilting to do scrapping.  And I use my self-healing mat to work on - love that double duty!  For layouts like these the ruler saves a lot of frustration and re-cutting.

If you want to try this layout;  the corners are 3" x 3", the rectangles are 3" x 6" which leaves the center block 6" x 6".  Repeat your elements in each corner.  Send me a photo of your layout and I will post it!  Have fun.

SWEETHEART JEWELRY

The piece on the left is actually Sweetheart Jewelry. The term refers to momentos that soldiers, during both WWI and WWII, exchanged with their sweethearts, family and friends.  This was a way of connecting to those at home.   As you can see this features an Army soldier.  A mom, daughter, wife or sweetheart would wear this letting everyone know they had someone in the services. This piece is Bakelite (an early plastic product).  Lucky me as my husband collects items made from Bakelite.  He buys it, I wear it! 

The Valentine heart and key is likely vintage 1960s, .  Part of my Valentine's gift, along with a new stash of vintage cards and ephemera.  Wowee!  Just my thing!

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!

Mac the (Sock) Monkey inspired by a tea party that grandson McLean (Mac) and I had with his own sock monkey.  One of those moments we live for.

Just when you think you know love, something comes along to remind you just how big it really is.  Another beautiful little baby grandchild will be arriving soon, you remember why you have been together for almost 35 years, you depend on the love and support of close friends and you are reminded that you can give that back.

A special Valentine wish to my dear friend Cheryl.  You have inspired and amazed me. 

I hope you have enjoyed the postings of the last two weeks!  Whew!  I hoped to provide a few new ideas, share some of my stash of vintage goodies, suggest some new resources and meet some new papercrafting friends.

LOVE THEMED SCRAPBOOK PAGES

Of course anyday can be the inspiration for a love themed scrapbook page.  A summer day keeping Mac amused, a fall picture of Lucy printed in mauve tones.

But a wedding!  Is one opportunity after another!  Holly and Tyson with Madison and Liam on their wedding day.  Sandra, Tony, Brandon and Tiffany gathered for one of many family snaps that are just part of the whole celebration.

Allison, the morning of her wedding.  Dad and Toni in 1996 in wedding finery!

LOVE THEMED SCRAPBOOK PAGES

This layout started with a Scrapers' monthly contest kit.  Some of the most "challenging" papers I've encountered.  The flowers were all cut on Cricut (Basic George), the acrylic hearts and twirls from Queen & Co were doodled on with paint pen and the titles coated with Glossy Accents.  I used a background stamp and embossing powder to get the cloud like look around the edge of the picture.  Allison and Spencers' engagement picture - fitting for the layout.  The title was also their dance (performance) song for their wedding.

Seems like a good place to go back a few years (1979). When I started scrapbooking my goal was to do all of the kids' pictures. I'm still working on those! The 7 grandkids, with another coming in a few weeks, give me more material than I can keep up with!

WARTIME SWEETHEARTS

A simple vintage layout.  These are pictures of Bobs' mom (Jean) and dad (Wally) during the war.   They met in England, Wally was stationed with his Canadian outfit  near Horsham where Jean was from. These are pictures they exchanged, a war-time courtship.  His is noted on the back 1943, Massafra, Italy.  It was too faint to copy and display with his picture but I was able to that with hers.  Of course they both expressed loving greetings to each other.  I used the border of a vintage linen mat under her picture which served to add some texture and dimension and was in keeping with the period.  

VALENTINE SCRAPBOOK PAGES

Funny, whenever I contemplated doing a blog it was always going to be about scrapbooking.  I've almost done a full two weeks on Valentines' Day and so it is more than time for a couple of scrapbook pages!

A favorite picture of one of the "grandgirls".  This layout started on plain white cardstock, after creating the "garland" from "Little Yellow Bicycle" papers and acrylic circles, twirls and hearts from "Queen & Co" (with the photo covered of course!) it got a number of sprays of "Tattered Angels" Brick Glimmer Mist.  The circles, twirls and hearts I "doodled" with white and gold paint pens.  (My favorite thing to do with acrylic pieces).  Again my photo skills need improving!

 Another favorite picture, Mac so enamoured with his brand new little sister Lucy!  It's the title I particularly like on this lay-out.  The alphabet was cut with the Cricut Jasmine cartridge and the journaling block with the Basic George cartridge, I thought both created a "deco feel" that went with the muted tones in the papers. 

VINTAGE VALENTINE MUSEUM

This is an image from the Vintage Valetine Museum site and not one of my own.  If you are interested in finding out more about vintage valentines or would love to own some (they also have a store site) then check them out. (see my links)

A FEW MORE VALENTINE ARTIST TRADING CARDS!

In an earlier post I told you I had attended my first "trading night" with the Scrapers' Anonymous ATC group.  I really felt like I had hit the jackpot with all of the amazing cards done by these women!  I will have to lift my game - though I do have a couple of fun ideas for March and St Patricks' day.

SINCE IT IS OPENING DAY FOR THE 2010 OLYMPICS

Swiped off my daughter's blog!  Can this be considered "scraplifting" if I haven't scrapped it yet?  This is Lucy, her brother McLeans' occupational therapist was the torch bearer for Sechelt and of course they were all out rooting for Sarah! 

THE SWEETEST CUPID

"Cupid Asleep" and "Cupid Awake"   No Valentine collection would be complete with out a set of these!  They are easily found on-line and should be fairly inexpensive.   These photos were taken in 1897 by New York photographer M. B. Parkinson.  The model was Josephine Anderson, who died in the 1970s.  These are copyrighted images held by the Ohio Art Company (remember Etch-a-Sketch?)

I'M LOVING SHARING MY VINTAGE VALENTINES WITH YOU.

Here you go..a couple more copies of my own stash of vintage Valentines.    Don't forget to click on the image and then save the larger image.  That way you get a good resolution to work with.

Though you can't really see it, the "fellow" in the stew is holding a bit of fabric in his up-raised hand.  I'm guessing that he is meant to be wiping his face with a napkin.   If you are going to recreate this one as a Valentine, it would be easy to cut a small slit and tuck a bit of lace in.

How cute is this guy?  In "real life" he has articulated arms and legs.  He could be a bit scary looking?  I think this face will be doing double duty on a Halloween project.

There is still time for me to share a few more vintage images before the 14th.  If you have the time leave a comment letting me know what you will be doing with these.  Enjoy!

ANOTHER SWEET VALENTINE GARLAND

This one is for my step-mom Toni who collects silhouettes.  The images came from Hedgehog Studios (see links).  Don't you think the Cinderella theme is perfect for Valentines? 

And honestly, yes I did think about keeping this one for myself!

The scalloped hearts and circles were cut out on Cricut using the Doodlecharm cartridge.  I use Cricut every chance I can to do the basic or repetitive work so that I can concentrate on the fun bits!

Glittery (micro glitter) red faux stitching (you will find faux stitching on almost everything I do), bigger chunky red glitter around the edges, a rosette in the center and tulle between each element.

I used my Scor-pal to make easy work of prepping a perfect paper (say that three times quickly) strip for the rosette.  I cut a 1" x 12" strip and scored it at every 1/2 inch.  Fan fold and adhere the ends.  Now holding this together can be a bit tricky.   I used a piece of double sided tape on the underside then a few drops of  Glossy Accents in the middle of the top for good, quick hold and topped this with two glittery foam pieces.

I bought a small package of glittered foam hearts at Michaels - I still have a few left and I used them on 6 six garlands, a number of ATCs and even gave a few away.  Love it when one purchase goes a long way!

QUICK HANG A VALENTINE GARLAND AND A WREATH !

Monday night and I am running around doing laundry, packing a suitcase getting ready to go bargain (work!)for a three day stint.  But I haven't got enough Valentine decor out!  I started this project last year but by the time I finished a garland for each of the kids and a couple of friends, I was finished!  The same sort of situation happened this year.  Can't believe I'm admitting it but between this years' garlands and the ATCs - I'm "glittered out"!  I used a variety of Valentine scrapbooking papers, red heart shaped buttons and glittery foam hearts to cover the wood, scalloped heart shapes I picked up at Michael's last year.  New this year for me is the making of rosettes (another post on that).  Each of the hearts has a rosette and are separated by tulle - maybe I will get glitter on this next year?  All I have to do is string this together and hang it up..done!  What else?

The heart shaped twig and flower garland I picked up a couple of weeks ago at my favorite local place to find "wonderful bits, large and small"  http://www.frenchvanillahome.com/ .  So throw on some stuffed, red felt hearts and hang it on another mirror.  I will take the hearts off and this sweetie will stay up until the fall.  It wasn't that expensive and if I divide the days that it can be displayed by the price - then someone owes me money!

A LITTLE BIT ABOUT MY LINKS

Scrapscene is all about who is doing what and where in the world (and I do mean the world literally) of papercrafting.  A great place to start a Sunday afternoon winding through some of the most amazing sites and checking out what is new.  The daily posts can be checked out and managed easily.  I like keeping on top of things and this makes it easy.

Red Lead Paperworks check out the free techniques, another site with a vintage feel that inspires me.

Peachy Cheap, I've been "peachy keen" on this one.  A good place to load up on inexpensive basics and embellishments.  No not the latest lines but I've found a lot of old favorites here.  I did lots of shopping here when I was housebound on medical leave.  The postage is relatively inexpensive and all of my packages arrived intact.

I will try not to add too many links and to change them up once in awhile.  The endless lists of links I often see on sites just gives me a headache!

VALENTINE ARTIST TRADING CARDS (ATCs)

These "gilded and glittered" images are all courtesy of Twisted Papers (see my links).  Love this site! In addition to the free downloads every month there are enough images available for purchase and in a variety of formats and media to suit whatever project you have in mind.  I purchased several CDs and quite a bit of ephemera after Christmas, the postage was reasonable and my package arrived quite quickly, with all intact.  This is a site I check first when looking for inspiration. 

Last Thursday night was ATC night at Scrappers' Anonymous (my LSS-local scrapbook store).   My first "trading night" and what fun.  This is a fairly new group - a few experienced "artists" and a few brand newbies.  Of course everyone is willing to share, offer suggestions and resources.  I will do a post about our altered albums soon.  Here is a look at some of what I got in trade.

 

A DAY TO REMEMBER DAD AND SHARE A VALENTINE PROJECT

Now for a project!  Love, love, love this one!

It was Midnite Crop last night at Scrapers' and I got a great start. These 8" x 8" vintage feel Valentines were inspired by the January project at http://www.jbsmercantile.com/ .

Cut an 8" x 8" piece of chipboard etc. for your base, cover it with cardstock or paper for background.   Decide on a picture.  I used one of Bob's primary school pictures in black and white for my first one.  I had both pictures printed to 5" X 7" and then cropped them.  4" x 4" or close provides a good balance.

Gather your "wonderful bits".  I marked the background off in four squares and adhered my photos as a place to start.  After that I took a patchwork approach - measuring, cutting and moving bits around.

Be sure to do some layering to create depth.  The JBS project used "Tim Holtz Fragments" which I also used.  You can't tell from the picture (I need to take better pictures!) but the large heart on the Lucy project is a velour stuffed little sweetie (thanks Linda!).  Now that I have done two, I will use my stash of vintage ephemera or copies on the next ones.   I'm thinking I will be doing these awhile!

Today would have been my dads' 84th birthday.  No one replaces the person who made you feel  that everything you did was great.  You had the best kids, partner and of course the best ideas.  He was pretty good at keeping any differing opinions from me .. not so much with other people :) 

GAGA FOR GARLANDS!

For the last couple of years I have been "ga ga for garlands" (I was quite surprised to find a "ga ga for garlands group").  Instead of making cards for various holidays, I've indulged my passion for garland making.  The directions for this were handed out at "Scrapper's Anonymous" (my LSS and where I am a member of the Design Team and sometimes instruct classes) as a customer thank-you last year. I used my Cricut (Basic George) to cut all of the heart shapes and alphabets.   Use all the bling you've got!  (Bling, bling you make my heart sing!) I did quite a few of these using a mix of brads, rhinestones and Stickles depending on the recipient and my color choices for each one.   Platinum Stickles are my fav! This is an easy, basic garland for beginners!

MY FIRST POST!

 

My own blog!  My first post!  I’m thinking the trick isn’t to get this perfect but just get started.   When I get stuck and can’t get going on a scrapbook page, I try and remind myself that every page doesn’t have to be a work of art!  How many good ideas and intentions have I had that never get anywhere hmmm.. a few.

Why blog?  One of the aspects of paper crafting I love is that we women (our group has one brave man!) regularly get together to work on our projects.  We share our skills, ideas, supplies, advice and our stories.  I hope my blog is an extension of that.

Since my family is featured in almost all of my scrapbooking and paper projects, that seems like a good place to start.  This picture (not yet scrapbooked) was taken last September at our son Tyson’s wedding, not a perfect picture just a snapshot but there we all are.  Lot’s more to come of this event – it was the first time all of us with partners and children were all together.

Valentine’s Day is just around the corner so you can expect to see that featured in coming posts - papercrafting has encouraged me to go holiday crazy!