Mer Y Sol~

I just finished creating a scrapbook page with photos of my daughter using the August Bella Beach House Kit being sold by Bella Creations. She heads off to college this Fall, can you believe it? Where did the time go? I warn new parents not to blink....if you do you will open your eyes and find a teen standing before you asking for car keys! This page reminds me of all our days spent at the beach each summer. And, my special girl still likes digging for sand crabs at the water's edge~

I used Martha Stewart's deco art (I call it seashell) punch and Distress Inks on all the edges. I also stitched wrinkled bias tape below the lower photo. The old book pages were cut into circles and inked...the title on the page is 'Where The Blue Begins', and the sweet cabana is fussy cut from Brenda Walton's Around The World K & Co paper pad. I also made a flower from crepe paper streamers and misted it with Tsukineko walnut ink. There are sequins, a stickpin, flowers and a tiny silver fish charm on the page! The title letters on the fish banner are cork and say "Sea and Sun"~

The Bella Beach House Kit has sand, glitter, fish net and other seaside embellies just perfect for days at the lake or ocean.

I am entering this 12" x 12" layout in Ashleyvanatten's Mist & Paints Challenge and Lamoo12's Three Pictures Challenge at Scrapbook.com.
Visit here  to see my Gallery, which includes cards, tags and lots more scrapbook pages!

While I have been working away on this page, my daughter has been busy making bracelets and an anklet with leather and hemp . The apple does not fall from the tree! (she also has her own gallery at Scrapbook.com!)

~the bottom one has a jumping dolphin bead~

Hope you get a chance to create something...in your craft room, garden, or kitchen!

Stick Pins and Tee Pees!

One of the three monthly challenges at Bella Creations is a technique challenge. The Design Team and site members are asked to use a technique in their creations. For the month of July the Unique technique (say that three times fast!) is to make a stick pin. I used a bumpy little bead that reminded me of a blackberry for my stickpin and placed it on a fairy tee-pee card I made.

 See the blue and green beads above the white flower? That is the simple stick pin I created. I also used Fairyopolis rub-ons and die cuts on my tee pee card. I just love how charming and whimsical the Fairyopolis line is and how well it works on cards, scrapbook pages or altered items. Here is a YouTube tutorial showing how to make these simple but striking tee pee cards.

Fun birds-eye view of my Fairy card. I made this for a friend and she was delighted. She also scrapbooks, and like a true crafter immediately opened the card to see how it was constructed! It closes with velcro so you can flatten and mail it.

 The prize for this Challenge is from Flying Unicorn, one of Bella Creations wonderful sponsors.

Collect a few beads, pearls or gems and make a quick stick pin for your next project. And if you complete a tee pee card, be sure to come to my inking/stamping Group at Bella Creations called Voila, Ink! to enter your creation in my Tee Pee Card Challenge. I am giving away something 'Tim Holtz'! Now I have your attention, eh? lol :)

Quick Cards~

I made a couple of quick cards last week, despite being hit with a flu bug...can't keep me out of my scraproom for too long!

I call this one Heart Throb...haha! I used my new brick rubber stamp, cork, and G45 Curtain Call paper.

Yup, used the brick stamp again! This time I also used a piece of canvas (recycled tote bag), a playing card and Tim Holtz ribbon ruler tape. Using 'The Journey' car stamp I stamped the old car on cardboard, then fussy cut it. I like having cards ready in my stash for when birthdays come along, and it seems like I usually have a shortage of masculine cards.
Just fyi~ the deadline for the May Pole Challenge at Voila, Ink! is May 25. Use the digital Graphics Fairy May Pole image on a project, along with ink, and you could win this cute Studio K Tag Book!

May Bella Muse Challenge~

I had such fun making a shrine from a match box for the May Muse Challenge. First step, empty a matchbox and make a cut lengthwise up the center of the sleeve. (box I used is 4.5" x  2.5 ")

                                Paint any surfaces that won't be covered with paper or cardstock.

Once painted, replace the box into the sleeve but bend the slit cover (top you cut) outwards, like wings. You will have a box with wings, and this is what you will attatch to the shrine front after you cut a central opening.  

 Using a separate piece of thin cardboard, cut a house shaped piece 5" by 7 and 3/4", which will give you about a 1.25" side  to which your box will attatch from behind. NOTE~ the top will be where the peak is, so if you want your shrine to sit horizontally instead of vertically the peak would be on the west or east side, not north. Cut a central opening for the box to be seen inside.

I wanted my shrine to be horizontal, thus I cut a piece that looked like this~ above! Just trace around your matchbox and leave a border. A quilters/sewer ruler comes in handy.  I used the Muse image from Bella Creations and placed it inside the box. Next, I covered all surfaces with G45 Curtain Call.

I decorated the front of the shrine with Tim Holtz filmstrip, punched paper, feathers, ribbon, a metal charm, and a The Journey stamped car. I stamped the car on cereal box cardboard; next I stamped the same image on the striped g45 paper and mounted the cardboard car with foam dots to the striped paper which gives a nice 3D shadowing from underneath.

Happy May Day at Bella Creations!~

This month is PACKED full of fun and goodies at Bella Creations! We have three monthly Challenges and wonderful sponsors and prizes, so come play along! For the Tres Chic  Style Challenge the sponsor is

and they are offering an RAK which is a kit to make this sweet mini album~

For our Bella Muse Challenge make a project using this image from Gecko Galz~

and you could win an RAK from the Scrappy Gourmet! And last but NOT least, Flying Unicorn is offering a fantastic RAK for one lucky participant in the Bella Unique Challenge, which will have you making a sueded embellishment for your project~

And next month we are having a Blog Hop with prizes, surprises, and our first monthly kit designed by Lacee~ Don't miss all the excitement!!

April and May Challenges at Voila, Ink!~

I host an inking and stamping group, and we have monthly challenges; we had a nice turnout for the April Showers Challenge at  Voila, Ink Group over at Bella Creations. Participants had to use an umbrella in their artwork. June at Dezinaworld sponsored the April RAK, which was a voucher for the winner's choice of clipart. The winner was Helen H., who is our newest member...way to go, Helen! Our Group is sure growing!  We now have 81 Inkers. Here is Helen's entry~

The theme for May's Challenge is the May Pole~ Participants are to use the following image from Graphics Fairy on a card, ATC, tag, LO or altered item. You have plenty of time to enter as the deadline is May 25.

The RAK for a lucky random recipient is a fun Studio K Tag book...come dance around the May Pole with us at Voila, Ink!

My Muse...an empty gum package!

Standing in Target and buying another multi-pack of gum for my teen, it occured to me that these little containers would look adorable if altered. Because of Ms. R I have access to a plethora of empty Trident and Orbit boxes!

I started by opening the gum package on a piece of Cosmo Cricket paper, tracing the shape and cutting it out. I creased the cardstock where it would fold once it was glued onto the package, then used a liberal amount of Beacon's 3 in 1 Glue, my favorite for a permanant hold.

You can paint the interior and/or cover with pretty cardstock. In this photo you can see where I cut a part of the gum package away (green section) so I could more easily attatch the stretch cord throught the bottom. I planned to use a decorative brad and looped stretch cord for a closure. I have also used velcro tabs in the past, and if you can find them, mini magnets work too! I used the Bella Muse Challenge image for April and made a charm for the front of the gum box with a Tim Holtz Fragment and Glossy Accents. (Put Glossy Accents on one side of the fragment and press the wet side onto an image of your choice. Trim excess, if any) Don't forget to insert brad BEFORE you add decorative cardstock in order to hide prongs.

Can you see the stretchy cord loop extending from the bottom? Poke a small hole and insert the ends into the box bottom. Once inside the box bottom, tie a secure knot. You can also tie a tiny bead, safety pin or Tim Holtz Game Spinner onto the ends to hold  them securely inside through the fastening and unfastening of the altered box. (won't pull out!)

Here is a shot of the gum box opened and the interior tags exposed. I made double sided tags for photos, quotes or small memorabilia. I also added 7 Gypsies stickers to the face of the box above the stretch cord.

This is the outside of the box. The Muse image is a woman sitting on the moon. In my imagination, she was daydreaming about travel, and thus pictured herself on the moon....so I made the little box with a travel theme. The 'bon voyage' is chipboard matted with mulberry paper and there is a vintage postage stamp under the fragment charm. Scraps Of Darkness is offering an RAK for the April Muse Challenge~ Come play!

Tried Liquid Pearls?

I had not used Liquid Pearls until I made my submission for the Bella Creations April Technique Challenge. Our sponsor, Flying Unicorn, is offering a wonderful RAK for this challenge. I used the gorgeous G45 papers and lavendar Liquid Pearls from the Flying Unicorn Store to make a Springtime card~

I started with a Prima Build A Swirl stamp and Inkssentials Watermark Ink to stamp the umbrella. Next, I followed the stamped image and placed pearl drops along the design. I layered and punched Graphic45 Baby To Bride and Flights Of Fancy, and finished it off with flowers and brads. The final touch was a K and Co bee~ The trick to using the Liquid Pearls is to draw an imaginary circle as you stop squeezing and pull away from the surface, otherwise you may get a Hershey Kiss shape instead of a plump pearl.

Here is a tutorial to get you started.(I placed my pearls directly on the umbrella, but you can use a sheet of acetate too). http://www.swirlydoos.com/page.php?35

 You could win these goodies from Flying Unicorn!!

New Month, New Challenges~

We have over 200 members now at Bella Creations, all of whom will have the chance to win fabulous RAK's by entering the April Challenges. This month's Tres Chic Style challenge is 'Grunge' with turquoise, silver, metal and painted cardboard. Here is the 12x12" layout I designed~

This page is called Last First, as the photos were taken on the first day of my daughter's senior year~ her last first day of high school. I used Adirondack Paint to stamp in the uper & lower corners. I also used silver ink to stamp 'enjoy the journey'. The smaller photo is double matted and mounted on foam dots to elevate it.The fabulous embossed metal strip was made for me by a dear friend. The brown shape next to the photos is the high school mascot, an American Indian head. I always put items representing my daughter's personality and likes on her pages. She loves Peets tea so my painted cardboard is a cup sleeve. I added her initial, and the butterfly fit perfectly on this LO because her word for her senior year is 'evoluer'! (evolve,change,grow like a caterpillar to butterfly). I also used discarded gum wrappers to punch tiny silver hearts....Miss R chews gum everyday! LOL~

There is a quote by O.W.Holmes written on the edges saying, "A person's mind, once stretched by a new idea, never regains it's original dimensions."

Rogue Redhead Designs is offering a sweet set of stamps for a random winner. Come play!

I'm A Little Teapot~

I never made an ATC until last weekend. I made this to participate in the ATC Challenge hosted by the Oh La La Group at Bella Creations. This particular challenge uses a background and image from Bella Creation's sponsor Gecko Galz. I printed out the background stripe, as well as the black & white girl image. Then I added a tiny 3D awning made with graphic45 Flight Of Fancy and trimmed in Spiced Marmalade Stickles. I colored the girl's dress with Distress Ink Broken China, and cut off the teapot lid to give her a hat! I used Hero Arts 'Paris' stamps to make the sentiment, and voila! My first ATC~

This Week~

This is my DT submission for the Bella Creations Tres Chic Challenge, which is a 'style' challenge. We were asked to use a ticket, metal, vintage theme and navy & khaki color scheme. I added sheer ribbon, cardboard and a heart stick pin, as well as a Graphic 45 teapot image. The Challenge runs to the end of March and has a wonderful RAK~ see post below!
I also played around with two punches and fabric this week. I decided to punch shapes in a tag, then cover the punched opening with fabric. Next, I backed the fabric with a larger second tag so the fabric was sandwhiched in the middle. On my first try, I used plain muslin behind the punched shape. I used pencil and chalk to color the leaf.

 My Distress Inks were calling my name...yooohoo! LOL~ So for the next tag I used my Mini Misters and ink.

I punched a teapot (what else?), inked the tag, then quick dried it with my Ranger Heat It Craft Tool. This time around I used a small floral fabric which reminded me of a chintz pot.

I completed the tag with bakery string, a Verve Stamps sentiment and red ribbon. What punch shapes do you have that this technique would work with? It only takes a small amount of fabric and it gives the tag a cool tactile effect.

Voila....viola!~

About this post's title...I could not resist the word play! My Group at Bella Creations is called Voila, Ink! We have over 60 members and share inking and stamping techniques, methods, and tips. I have the best time trying new things and sharing my results with the members, and it is so much fun to be cheerleaders, if not 'enablers', for each other! LOL~ The March Unique Challenge at Bella Creations is to use "spotlighting" or colorization of a black & white image. This is one I could sink my teeth into! haha. I gathered ink, punches, my Zig H2O pen and a stamp to try out this color technique.

I watched this Spotlighting with a punch tutorial before I started. (Bless our men & women in uniform!)
I stamped the viola on Krome Kote with waterproof Archival ink. Then I stamped the viola a second time on a smaller piece of paper. Next, I used a square punch to remove a portion of the second image. I used the Zig H2O pen and Distress Ink to color the punched portion, then matted it in black Bazzill. Then I attached the punched section to the bigger main image with foam dots. I embellished with ribbon, used a Martha Stewart punch on the corners, and stamped a sentiment on an oval punch. Voila!

This coloring method is striking! I think I am going to try it again soon. And something I will be using regularly while experimenting with ink will be the Distress Ink chart shared with me by Pcgirl over at Scrapbook.com. Laurie made a funny LO about her obsession, I mean appreciation of, T!m Holtz inks. I can relate. I already printed out a copy for myself and stamped it with the ink in my collection....and NO, I do not have every color...yet! 

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.

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.