Bella Unique Challenge~

Bella Unique Challenge: each month a different technique to try! March focuses on selective colorization or spotlighting. Look for the details in the Forum. Sponsored by Flying Unicorn. Check out the fabulous RAK for one lucky participant~

There are lots of ways to have fun at Bella Creations.

So nice~

Amy surprised me with this award! Thanks for mentioning my Blog, Amy, as I just started it at Thanksgiving.

To play along, I am supposed to share 8 facts about myself and mention some Blogs I visit to pass the Award to them~
*I drink lots of tea...no, duh! LOL !
*I walk 3 to 5 times a week, 2 miles minimum.
*I studied Urusenke for three years with my sensei. (Japanese Tea Ceremony)
*I think being a mom is the greatest honor and adventure.
*I have never seen the movie Gone With The Wind.
*I love good children's books, and I keep my favs in the house.
*I like old fashioned flowers, like Hollyhocks & Sweet Peas.
*I read political journals & newsletters everyday.

Check out these blogs~http://scrappygal-scraphappenings.blogspot.com/, http://mammasol.blogspot.com/,
http://scraptravelbark.blogspot.com/,%20 http://fairyrocks.blogspot.com/, http://carlascuriouslycraftychaos.blogspot.com/, http://maggiescontroledchaos.blogspot.com/,
http://scrapbookinwithg.blogspot.com/, http://scrappydayz.blogspot.com/

Spicy dinner for a Rainy Day~

We are having nice cool temps here in So. California, with big puffy clouds and chilly breezes. Perfect time, don't you think, for some hot enchiladas?

I toasted the corn tortillas on a hot, flat skillet until warm and pliable. In our family, we add a tablespoon or two of low fat ricotta onto the center, sprinkle with black pepper and a pinch of red pepper flakes.

Next, I added some 'Mexican Style' blended grated cheese over the ricotta and a few pieces of chicken. (in my case, veggie chicken strips by Morningstar). At this point you can add anything you like...spinach, onions, etc.! I then rolled the enchilada up and placed it seam side down in a baking dish coated with a thin layer of enchilada sauce.

Cover the rolled enchiladas with sauce of your choice. I mix two different kinds! Sprinkle with cheese, as desired. I also like to add sliced black olives. While this is baking, I make up a batch of Spanish Rice and heat some beans. The only thing left to do is grab the c.d. of Mariachi music and get that playing as we sit down to dinner. Mmmm :)

Oh! I almost forgot....fresh home-made salsa and tortilla chips, along with a tossed salad and cilantro dressing make this one of my favorite meals.

Bella Creations March Challenges~

http://www.bellacreations.ning.com/~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Bella Creations offers monthly Challenges and prizes. For the March Tres Chic Challenge (a project style challenge) the theme is 'Vintage' and the prize sponsor is Scraps Of Darkness. Look at this fabulous prize~

For the March Bella Muse Challenge go to the Forum to find the image you are to use on your entry. GeckoGalz is providing the fantastic prize for this challenge~

Wow! These wonderful RAK's will be given in a random drawing. There are fun Groups at Bella Creations also offering Challenges and prizes. I host a Group called 'Voila, Ink!' and the March Challenge is to use a claddagh symbol, and lots of green, on a project of your choice; you can enter a tag, mini album, LO, ATC, or altered item. The Claddagh symbolizes love, loyalty and friendship and is frequently seen on rings. I thought this iconic Irish symbol would be a perfect addition to a March project.

Roll Call~

Ink pads are best stored flat. Each pad is filled with liquid ink, and this ink can travel throughout the pad over time. If you stored your ink pads vertically, over time the ink would drop to the bottom edge of the pad, and you would no longer be able to get a fully-inked image when you tried to use the full surface of your ink pad.  For this same reason, it is highly recommended that you store your ink pads upside down.  This will keep the ink flow at the surface of the pad. This is especially important for dye-based ink pads, as this ink is thinner than other inks and will migrate through the pad at a faster rate.  Ink pads containing thicker inks, such as pigment ink, can be stored face up.
Upside down & stacked, my Distress Inks were difficult to identify...my solution? Labels~

Templates~

Starr, a fellow DT member at Bella Creations, shared a site with lots of fun templates. Want to make a specialty shaped card? Cute box? Custom envelope? ~ ~http://www.ruthannzaroff.com/mirkwooddesigns/templates.htm. Once you've made your card, head over to Bella Creations to enter Starr's March Card Swap. (check the Forum). Helene has a Bookmark Challenge in process in the Oh La La Group.Sandi has a gift bag Challenge in her Jingle Bellas. In the Voila, Ink! Group that I moderate, I have a Claddagh Challenge to participate in now through March 16. The leprechauns are going to choose a random winner of an RAK on March 17th. http://www.bellacreations.ning.com/.

Friday's Ironing~

I wanted to try the wax paper resist technique with brown ink and see if it looked sort of like animal print. I think it does! This time around, I used glossy paper by Krome Kote (been in my stash forever) as the background for the wax resist. Cool results!

I used various shades of brown Distress Inks, Verve Stamps, bakery string, and a scalloped square punch.
Crumple a piece of wax paper slightly larger than your project, then unncrumple it and lay it over the glossy piece.

You can either (1) make two waxed pieces by sandwiching the wax paper between the glossy pieces, then covering the sandwich with scrap paper and briefly ironing the whole thing or (2) place the glossy piece facing up, cover with crumpled wax paper, cover with scrap paper and iron with a dry iron. The second method leaves wax on the other side of the scrap paper, which is why you use it to ensure wax does not get on your iron! Make sure you do not use steam, and you need only iron for a few seconds. I used a Tim Holtz ink blending tool to spread various shades of brown ink on the glossy piece, once it was cool. Then I embellished with black Bazzill paper, bakery string and a stamped image from Verve.

I used black embossing powder on an Hero Arts Eiffel Tower image. Using my Verve stamps, I stamped a punched square with the 'you're my cup of tea', and fussy cut an additional teacup image to adhere with foam dots. I do not have any animal stamps, or I may have used one on this background since it does remind me of an animal print! Can't you just picture a giraffe on this background? Have a great weekend~ I think I may have a little more ironing to do!

Four Resist techniques~

Well, I have used the wax paper, and I broke a few crayons recently...I got a little carried away in a creative frenzy! LOL~ I have not tried the other two methods though, so it is back to my non-stick Inkssentials Craft Sheet for more 'craftivities'!

A Cup Of Life~

I have collected tea themed stamps over the years~~ go figure! LOL~ and my newest stamps are from Verve. They are from a set called A Cup of Life and include 13 stamps. My husband gave them to me at Christmas (smart fella shops from the list he always asks for in Nov!), and I am just now getting a chance to play with them.

I punched a scalloped square and stamped it with a teapot and teacup using Archival waterproof ink. I like to color my stamped images with Distress Inks and my Zig H2O Brush, so it is crucial to stamp the image with a waterproof ink!

Smear your choice of ink directly on your nonstick craft sheet, or you can use basic kitchen wax paper for this step. I saw somebody smear Distress Ink on a clean acrylic block instead of a craft sheet, but the craft sheet cleans up easier and I did not want to get out my Mr. Clean Magic eraser to get the ink off of my block. It is another option, however! You only need a small amount of ink on the craft sheet, then swipe your water-filled Zig pen through the ink and start coloring your image. I never need to squeeze my Zig pen as it always dispenses just a tiny amount of water as I paint, which is perfect.

See the ink in the foreground? As I paint the teapot I pick up more ink now and then as needed by swirling the brush bristles through the ink spot. I like the watercolored look as a nice change from colored pencil.

And here is the completed card! I covered the blank card in pink Bazzill card stock, then matted the yellow and pink Quick Quotes paper (designed by Joy) with brown Bazzill. A little bit of pink string, some buttons and ink finish the card. I know many of you have stacks of  Ranger Distress Inks...using the Zig H2O brush gives you another way to use them~ 

tim holtz - valentine mini book

Simple & quick booklet made from one sheet of 12"x12" scrapbook paper. Gotta love T!m. I am going to make one of these today :)

JJ~ I've Got You Under My Skin

With Valentine's Day just around the corner, I am thinking about how much my sweetheart means to me...yep, I get all sappy and sentimental. Let's take a spin on the dance floor soon, Mr.!

Sunshine in the garden~

I happened to look out in the backyard today when a bit of yellow caught my eye...look what I discovered blooming already! The gusty Santa Ana Winds were blowing the blossoms about, but they just bobbed in the breeze. Can't help but smile when I see these cheery little daffodils~

College Bound!

Acceptances are s.l.o.w.l.y trickling in for the students.....my daughter got accepted to UCI today! Everything is done online, not like in 'my' day! LOL~

Lightbulb Moment~

Don't you love 'lightbulb' moments? I had one last night while working on a tag. I have been playing around the past week with crayons, wax paper and ink. After using T!m Holtz The Journey stamps on a tag, I decided to stamp a car image and fussy cut it. I wanted to ink it with Distress Weathered Wood, but did not want blue windows. Suddenly it hit me...why not use the uncolored wax crayon (like you use to make images on hardboiled eggs before dyeing them at Easter) to protect the car windows?

I got a bit rambunctious with the wax crayon and it broke in half! LOL~ But I achieved the results I wanted. No blue windows! I used a vintage image from the Love Tickets I posted in my "Voila, Ink!" Group at Bella Creations under a T!m Holtz fragment, which I think pairs nicely with the automobile. In my imagination, this newlywed couple are taking the car to their honeymoon destination.  

Liebster Tag~

My sweet friend Heather, an amazing stamp maker and all-around ray of sunshine, tagged me with this Liebster Blog Award. Hop on over to her blog to see her creative flair. She is always trying something new and inspiring others with fun techniques.  Thank you, Lady of the Roses~
Now it is my turn to tag somebody...and I don't even have to hide behind a tree or count! LOL~
                                                                          ~Anne~
I started my blog at Thanksgiving. Anne has been a faithful and regular Follower since the beginning, which I greatly appreciate....THANK YOU, Anne, for leaving comments and letting me know somebody was reading my Blog!!! Anne has a great sense of humor and her blog always has tips, info and inspiration from an array of sources, not to mention her wonderful scrapbook pages.
                                                                           ~Helene~
Helene is more commonly known as 2amscrapper, and she DOES scrap at 2 o'clock in the morning! I am getting to know her through my DT work at Bella Creations, and am touched by her thoughtfulness. You must take a peek at her blog to appreciate her talent. She works magic with clip art, ink, lace & paper.
                                                                           ~ Patty~
She just started a blog this week, and is learning her way around a Dashboard! Patty is generous, caring and creative. She sews and scraps.  Take a look at her blog...her pages might look familiar; you've seen them in her gallery at Scrapbook.com

Wax Paper fun~

I have been 'experimenting' this week, as my husband calls it, in my Scrap Room with several resist techniques and Distress Ink. First I used a regular Crayola crayon~ "blue green"~ to draw spirals on a blank white card, then blended ink over the drawing.

I tried it again using a plain uncolored wax crayon and wrote words on a blank card, then used red Distress Ink~

Today I used regular kitchen wax paper and an iron. The iron hasn't seen the light of day for awhile! LOL~
I crumpled up a piece of wax paper that had been cut to fit my tags. Then I smoothed out the wax paper  and placed it between the tags, like a sandwich. Next, I used a dry iron on each side of the sandwich for about 5 to 10 seconds. Remove and discard the wax paper. When you hold the tag (or card!) up to the light, you will see the waxy design on the surface.

Now, the real fun begins. Mist, spritz, or blend ink over the waxy surface and watch the design appear!

See the awesome texture the wax leaves behind?! I matted the tag and embellished it with K& Co die cuts.

Tres Chic!

The Tres Chic Challenge at Bella Creations this month is to create a 'shabby chic' project using pink, turquoise and cream. I used cardboard coffee cup slides to make a mini album!  I started out by painting the ends and edges of the sleeves.

I covered the fronts and backs with paper after I stapled the bottoms closed. Next, I made tags to fit inside the sleeves which pull out vertically. I used a round punch to make pull tabs, and stamped them with a flower from Technique Tuesday.

I used vellum, ink, brads,T!m Holtz filmstrip, flowers, pearls...I had a grand ol' time going 'shabby'!

I even added a gorgeous clear moon charm to the binding ring~

I used lace from my mother-in-laws' old stash, and painted a grungeboard bird with crackle paint~

This was so fun to make....and a great 'green' project. Check out this fabulous prize for the Tres Chic Challenge!