Bella Creations Muse & Tres Chic Challenges~ February

Bella Creations has some fabulous prizes for the February Muse and Tres Chic Challenges! You won't want to miss out on the fun. Scraps Of Darkness is providing the prize kit for the Muse Challenge.

There is another fabulous prize for the Tres Chic Challenge. Wow! You have to see it to believe it~ The Tres Chic style for February is Shabby Chic using pink, turquoise and cream.

Playing with Crayons~

My friend Heather shared a fun technique on her blog using Crayons and ink! See her artwork here. Isn't it funny how you have done something before but it did not occur to you to do the same process in another situation? What I mean is that I have used crayons to draw on hard boiled eggs at Easter, then dyed them...it just never occured to me to use crayons on my tags or cards, then ink them. I rummaged through my daughter's discarded pencil boxes from school and found some crayons! I gathered my ink, blank card & tag, stamps and adhesive.

After I inked & stamped the tag, I stamped the face image using Wendy Vecchio Studio 490 stamps, and matted it with square-punched cardstock. Next, I drew spirals on the blank white card using Crayola's blue green crayon. I blended Distress Inks over the spirals. Then I assembled and embellished. I love how it came out....and to think I have a box of 63 more colors to try! :)

Tea and Cookies~

I saw fabric  fortune cookies years ago and always wanted to try my hand at them. The other day I remembered how cute they were and looked online for a pattern. There are not many patterns or directions available, but Martha Stewart's' version popped up, and her site actually has a short tutorial. I experimented with a variety of materials and methods, starting with Fun Foam. Cut a 4 inch circle from the Fun Foam. Martha instructs you to use a piece of wire inside. Place a 3.5" piece of wire down the center of the circle. Fold the circle in half (wire sitting in the fold, straight), then bend wire in 'U' shape, bring corners toward each other. Insert a printed 'fortune'. It was cute, easy and quick to make!

Next I tried felt as Martha directs. She says to glue ribbon over the wire, to conceal it, but this was difficult to do and is not really neccessary. The nice thing about foam and felt is that no hemming or finishing is neccessary, and you need only cut one round per cookie! Fun Foam or felt would be nice if you don't mind the texture and look of each, and you want to make a bunch of cookies fast. Next, I got out my fabric scraps  and cut two 4" circles, placed them right sides together and sewed around the edges. I did not leave an opening to turn because I did not want to have to close the gap later. I used an old quilting technique of separating the layers and snipping a cut/slit in the center of one side.

After I cut the slit, I turned the cookie circle and pressed it. The floral wire I was using was green and heavy, so I decided to try white pipe cleaner. Lay it on the circle, fold fabric over like making a taco, wire is sitting along the fold and is straight inside. Then bend the wire into a "U" shape, bringing the fabric points/corners toward each other. A peak will form on one side of the cookie. At this point, you can use a small dab of hot glue at the curve of the "U" to keep it secure, if desired.  

The red and cream cookies were made with felt. The gingham, red stripe and tan cookies are fabric. I discovered that you can dispense with using wire if you use a bit of hot glue inside the cookie before folding.  This takes practice and is a bit more tricky than the wire method. This project, in felt or foam, would be a great thing for Scout Troops to make! Yesterday, at Big Lots, I saw adorable Chinese style food-to-go containers ~~ wouldn't these look adorable in one of those?  "Bake" up a batch for your Valentine and have fun writing you own 'fortunes' or love notes~

Caulk isn't Just For Bathrooms!

I took one look at Nancy's page and the cake decorator in me went, "WOW!" You've got to see her short tutorial on using bathroom caulk on a scrapbook page. See the details at her blog; http://justaboutthedetails.com/. Isn't this fabulous?? Nancy designs for Twisted Sketches~

Be Brave and Go Loose!

I am surprised at how many tea drinkers have never tried the 'good stuff,' and make their daily cuppa from inferior tea bag tea. It is not complicated, difficult or expensive to drink quality tea and the difference is amazing! It amounts to under a dollar per cup to drink the finest teas in the world~ Tea purveyors are happy to send you samples so you can try the tea before you buy. Coffee afficionados savor fresh roasted beans, not freeze dried instant, and tea drinkers can experience tea fit for The Queen! Companies like Harney & Sons print brewing instructions  on their websites. On my sidebar I have a list of Tea Vendors which sell great tea and are reliable. Here is a site that gives you  'brewing 101'  info, and includes short videos on the many ways to steep fresh tea leaves. Be a 'loose' woman, not a 'bag lady'!!

Mon Coeur~ My Heart

This is my entry for the Oh La La Group Avi Challenge over at Bella Creations. The guildelines are to use the Group avi on a tag. There is still time for you to enter! I  used one of my favorite tags, which are 5"x5" square. Using Distress Ink, I colored the background, then put a coat of Rock Candy Crackle Paint on it. I hand sewed a vellum pocket to the front. That is when I went...AHA! I had no plan when I started, but after I sewed the pocket on I got the idea to make the tag a keepsake. With the avi photo as inspiration, my imagination conjured up a newly engaged young lady placing a love letter, pressed flowers from the bouquet her beau gave her, and a calendar page from the month she was betrothed in the pocket.

Rock Your World with T!m~

Ok, Peppermint Patty, I decided to share some info about one of my 'can't do without' items~Distress Rock Candy Crackle Paint. I constantly reach for it ! Wish they sold it in bigger containers. My dear friend in Texas sent me my first bottle and she had NO IDEA how that transformed my crafting! See T!m using Rock Candy Crackle here~ It gives fine porcelain-like cracks to the surface of your project. You can use it on paper, photos, and grungeboard. Make sure images are stamped in waterproof ink before using it.

Playing with Ink after 10 p.m.~

I am so excited about my newest craft tool! My sweet husband ordered the Inkssentials Ranger Heat It Craft Tool for me and I got my first chance to use it yesterday afternoon when my sister was visiting. I introduced my sis to Distress Inks, clear stamps and Rock Candy Crackle Paint. She has a crafty side, but had not done any stamping or inking. She helped me break in the Heat It Craft tool, and when she left she had a romantic Valentine to give her husband! I LOVE how quiet it is. It can be used to emboss on paper and other projects, dry ink & paints, and shrink decorative shrink plastic. It provides gentle air flow so it does not blow away your embossing powders. And the best thing is I can use it after everyone else is in bed!! LOL~

  

You're A Hoot~

Anytime I want instant creative gratification, I grab my ink. Otherwise, I grab chocolate! LOL~ I used a 5"x5" tag I bought at the 2010 CHA for this Valentine. Love this size tag. First thing, assemble your weapons! Then, smear Distress Ink (you can use more than one color) on the Ranger non stick sheet. If you do not have this sheet, use wax paper. Mist with water, and the ink will bead up. Press tag onto beaded ink, let dry.

Next, I crumpled the tag and smoothed it out. Run an ink pad~ I used Quick Quotes Powder Puff~ over the surface. Notice how the ridges/lines catch the ink?

Then I stamped some images using Archival Ink because it is waterproof, which is crucial before the next step. I love what Rock Candy Crackle Paint does for my tags but it will smear ink that is not waterproof. Once I was happy with the stamping, I coated the tag in Distress Rock Candy Paint. Mat & embellish. Notice how the baby owl is having fun entertaining his family?

Prima !!

Oh, Yummy! Check out Prima's January Product Pick and Palette. It is gorgeous. If you visit Prima's page, you can see how the design team used this color scheme and products. Off the top of my head, I bet Distress Inks in Broken China, Antique Linen, Tattered Rose & Frayed Burlap would coordinate nicely.

Fun Freebie~

I found these sweet tickets at cutiepieinspiration.blogspot.com. Aren't they cute? How will you use them?

January is Hot Tea Month~

Perfect timing too, since January is also the month of renewed fitness goals! Tea is good for you in so many ways. Research findings have reported that drinking black tea may improve the body’s defenses and quicken the response to bacteria and viruses – giving people more of a reason to brew themselves a hot cup of tea in celebration of National Hot Tea Month. Green tea is chock full of flavonoids. Good stuff. And tea preparation is not rocket science! Just buy quality loose tea and add hot water.  There are a variety of infuser baskets and Tea Sacks which make steeping up a delicious cuppa easy as 1-2-3: Tea + hot water + steeping time. Keep in mind, the darker the leaf the hotter the water. Black tea can stand boiling temps, but green tea brews up better with water just under the boil. Most online companies will send out samples for you to try. Inexpensive teabags are to quality tea what instant coffee is to fresh ground beans...do yourself a favor and buy the good stuff! The best part of teatime is the chance to s-l-o-w down, inhale the fragrant steam, enjoy a moment of reflection, or connect with a friend or loved one. Hold the warm cup in your hands and join in the cozy tradition shared by people around the world~ Teatime!

Voila, Ink!

Wanted to include a tag with a gift I was sending through the mail, so I tore the edge off a blank tag and got out my Distress Inks. (Faded Jeans and Scattered Straw) I used  spongy blending tools, pictured in the post below, to color the tag. Next, I used Archival Black to stamp the grid, quote and branch. I stamped the bird onto plain cardstock~ it is by Inkadinkadoo. I fussy cut the bird, inked it too for good measure, then adhered a button with silver stretch cord knotted in the center. Voila! Just took minutes~

I host an Inking Group over at Bella Creations called "Voila, Ink!" Come join us and get your fingers dirty!

New Year, New Stamps~

My friend Patty sent me the coolest stamps for my birthday this week! I got a chance to play with them today, and I took some pics to share here. First thing, gather supplies and ink up a tag~

I used Distress Ink in Scattered Straw and Worn Lipstick to color a tag. I swiped ink across the nonstick mat, spritzed it with the water in the Mini Mister, and pressed the tag onto the beaded ink.  

Then I got to work on the second blank tag. I chose a stamp from Studio 490, stamped an image and cut it out.Next, I used Distress Faded Jeans (one of my favs!) to shade the stamped tag. I also tinted the lips and used my Bonjour Stamps by Cavallini to finish the image.

Before assembling, I brushed a coat of Distress Rock Candy Crackle Paint onto the pink & yellow tag. It smears ink that is not waterproof, but I liked the effect. After the Crackle Paint dried, I matted both tags with black cardstock.

The last thing I did was add Prima flowers, a gold leaf, pink crystal bling, and a pearl brad. Voila!

Bonjour, Bella!

Bella Creations is a brand new site for scrapbookers, stampers, and paper artists of all kinds. There are lots of Groups to inspire you, as well as monthly Challenges to get you motivated. The Design Team can't wait to share tips & ideas, or just chat a bit with you during the upcoming Live Chat. (Thurs, Jan 13). Stop by!

Who'd a Thunk it?

I just discovered these Mr. Clean Magic Erasers take ink off my acrylic blocks after stamping! Woohoo! I tried an ink remover that I use to clean my clear stamps, but it did not remove all the ink from the blocks. Guess what? This little sponge does! They also work great on grout & appliances...if you are so inclined to do housework! They cost about $1 apiece. I tried Target's version of the Magic Eraser and they worked great too.