Mini Scrapbooks as Party Favors

Before I start writing about party favors, let me just add that I’m sorry that the pedestal cake plate photo doesn’t show the glass base very well, but I think you can imagine what it looks like. If you enlarge the picture by clicking on it, the larger picture shows the entire cake plate better. Also on the other side of the wooden CD frame I adhered a rub-on, which says, “the things I love about you” and then I added lots of Dymo printed labels with what I think are my son’s best qualities. I forgot how much fun it is to use the Dymo label maker (everyone labeled everything with it in the 60’s or 70’s. (See photo.)
Well, back to the mini scrapbook kits. There are several companies who have kits, which include all the embellishments needed to complete a project. I am particularly fond of K and Co. kits because they have sparkly do-dads, ribbons, paper, etc. From their Berry Sweet line I made the little purse with a few changes. (See photo.) I thought that the flower on the front was too big and stiff so I punched out another one (using a Magic Punch) and K and Co. paper that was printed on one side and glittered on the other. I think it’s fun to change up the kit projects to suit your taste and you can always incorporate the extra items from the kit into another project. Anyway, the inside pocket was large enough to accommodate several photos so I was happy to quickly scrap a two-day visit with my sister. We did lots of shopping on that trip, so the purse shape of the mini-book seems appropriate. After making the kit I thought that the low cost might make it a great party favor for a young girl’s birthday. The guests could take instant photos or you could quickly print up digital ones. Making the booklet would be good party activity. If you have too many guests to afford the kits, perhaps you could make a simple purse from cardstock and supply embellishments, paper, and tools to your guests.


Okay, back to work on graduation cards and the next newsletter…Lynn

Recycled Crafts

I have been a collector of vintage and antique items for decades. Most of my treasures have been discovered at garage sales, flea markets, and antique stores. Usually I can’t resist purchasing some old china or jewelry. Recently in an antique store I saw a clever use for an old dessert plate. It was something like a cake stand with a pedestal made from a glass candleholder. Using an old European porcelain 8” plate and a 4-1/4” glass candleholder (from Ben Franklin Crafts), I was able to recreate the piece I saw. (See photo.) I glued the two pieces together with Loctite glass glue. The glue is a little watery so it is easier if you turn the plate upside down, place the candleholder (small end down) in the center of the plate, and then apply the glue at the joint. If you decide to try to make this dessert stand, please don’t use any plate before checking that it is not valuable. Personally, I would never use a dish from a set or one with a maker’s mark. Unmarked, non-hand painted, single plates usually have little value so I am comfortable recycling them. I plan to make lots of these mini-cake plates and give them as Christmas gifts along with my homemade cookies.
I love the new K and Co. papers called Berry Sweet and Mira. Since their color palettes are similar I think they work well together. A while ago I saved a wooden CD holder that came in the mail with a free demo disk. After peeling off the outer paper I decided that it would make a cute card if re-papered with some of the Berry Sweet line. I used the Martha Stewart decoupage glue and it worked really well as both glue and sealant. By adding a beaded Berry Sweet flower and a Mira dimensional sticker the cover looked just right. A disk and string closure by Making Memories completed the outer part of the card. Inside I used rub-on (K and Co., Mira) words and series of photos. (See photo.) I was very pleased that I didn’t throw away the free wooden CD box because the recycled card is just perfect for my computer-loving son’s birthday.

Lynn

Something New

Last week I purchased some great new craft supplies for wool felting. Manufactured by the Clover Company, these new items included felting wool in luscious colors, felting needle tools, and appliqué molds (rose, daisy, etc.). As soon as I got home I started to try out the new craft supplies. Although Ben Franklin Crafts did not have the felting block to work on, I found that a block of Styrofoam worked well as a substitute except for the fact that little bits of Styrofoam have to be picked off the back of the felted item. Anyway I was pleased with my first attempts at felting using the molds. (See the blog photo and website project for a hat card with felted rose.) I think that I might be able to create my own felted items using cookie cutters for molds. The orange daisy is actually a pin eyeglass holder. I used a piece of wire to attach the small side of a figure eight key ring to the pin back (one with holes). Amy in the Mapunapuna Bead Shoppe uses this figure eight key ring to make her angel pin eyeglass holder. I thought it was a great project so I ‘borrowed’ the idea to make this flower pin eyeglass holder.

More later about my shopping and crafting discoveries….
Lynn

Craft Something, Learn Something

Almost every time I craft I learn something new. Sometimes even when I craft something I’ve done before, I find a new way to speed up a process. I often learn the most from my mistakes . . .what not to do the next time.
Today, I decided to make a card for an upcoming nephew’s birthday. I usually find it difficult to craft guy-themed stuff because I like frills, glitter, flowers, hearts and other girly-girl embellishments. Anyway, I decided to start with a black card…all boy. This nephew was recently in a robotics competition so I found a robot rubber stamp in my collection. I wanted to keep the card simple so I thought maybe I would just stamp ‘Happy Birthday” with the robots in a row. I think colors are an easy way to establish a masculine tone to the card so I decided to use silver and turquoise because they would also stand out on the black. Anyway, I stamped and embossed with the same color powder as the ink so that any part that didn’t get embossed would still be the right color. I discovered that on the black card if the embossing powder didn’t stick to all of the inked design, the non-shiny design is really noticeable. To correct this problem I used an embossing pen (clear) to fill in the missing parts and re-embossed the design. I’m happy to say that this worked well and the card came out just right. The finishing touch was the copper eyelets that I added to the sides of the card. The rubber stamp letters were ‘Ransom Alphabet’ Clear Choice Stamps from Royal Brush Mfg. and the robot rubber stamps are by Personal Stamp Exchange. (I'm not sure if PSE is still in business.) Actually any machine-type rubber stamp (cars, planes, tools, etc.) could be used instead of the robots to give the card a masculine look. The ransom alphabet stamps are my new favorite letter stamps because you don’t have to line them up exactly since they are supposed to look messy.

Continue crafting and learning,
Lynn

Working and Organizing

It’s difficult to get much done when I’m so disorganized. I keep clearing off my work desk and it keeps filling up. It’s totally irritating to try to work on a 1ft. square of space and ridiculous since the desk is huge. One of the drawbacks of cleaning up and putting away is losing track of where I put everything (even though I do label my bins). On the up side, I do discover treasures I’ve stored away years ago. I am a really good pack rat.
The first photo shows a few of the cards that I made (using my new rubber stamps) in between tidying up. I decided to make a bunch of thank you notes (not written in) to give to my sister as my way of thanking her for her hospitality while we were in Washington. The other photo shows a necklace and earring set I made to match a favorite blouse. I found the beads while shopping at the Bead Shoppe in Mapunapuna. The pink and black colors of the large beads and the faceted shapes give the jewelry an art deco look, which I really like. Combining the beads with copper findings and beading wire pulled the whole piece together. I will try to put the instructions for the necklace on the website so you can make it for your mother, grandmother, or yourself. This design is really simple and you can easily adapt it to other beads. Turquoise and copper would be a pleasing combination and very trendy today. I have discovered that the Bead Shoppe stocks a good assortment of glass beads (many extra large ones) at very reasonable prices. When I leave the Bead Shoppe I always feel that I leave with more jewels to put in my (organized) treasure chests!

Lynn

Back Home

I’ve been away on two trips. The first one was to Washington during Easter. I only visited one craft related store, Impress, (a rubber stamp shop). It was a small store but I still found several stamps and embellishments that were new to me. There were lots of silhouette stamps, many with birds or New Orleans style. I’ve noticed that many magazines are featuring silhouette designs on their projects. I’m having fun making cards with my new treasures and I’ll try to post them soon.
In Honolulu I visited the Mapunapuna Ben Franklin Crafts. Of course, I stopped at the Bead Shoppe first where I purchased pearls in new shapes and large sizes. I was pleased to see that the store had strands of gemstone beads similar to other bead shops but at greatly reduced prices. Some of the cutest beads I found was a strand of polymer mouse beads. I’m not sure what I’ll do with them but I just couldn’t resist buying them.
At the BFC store I found some unique clear albums and instruction booklets, new K and Co. papers (colorful children prints) and kits (punch out purses and boxes), a rotary letter stamp from Provo Craft, and beautiful Bohemia papers and embellishments from My Mind’s Eye. As I make projects with these new items I will post photos and instructions on this website.

It’s good to be home again,
Lynn

Hi Donna!

I recently talked to Donna who works at the Hilo BFC and she told me that she reads my blog late at night when she is not making cards. So Hi, Donna! I hope your card making is going well and you are thinking up some great ideas for your class.
Besides talking to Donna, I did SOME shopping at the store, of course. I found a Magic Punch that I didn’t see before, the double petal flower. It makes a super cute flower, which works really well with paper printed on one side and solid colored on the other. I also picked up some Sizzlet die cutters for my machine. I’m sure that they would work in the Big Boss, too. The two tag shapes I bought have lots of possibilities.
As usual I found more scrapbook paper than I really need, but they were so pretty. I like the new floral papers from Me and My Big Ideas and S.E.I. Lots of the companies have glittery flower stickers and rub-ons, which coordinate with the papers. It’s so easy to put together cards and album pages when everything matches. Spring colors, flowers, and cute animals what could be more inspiring?
I can rarely pass the Bead Shoppe without finding something that makes my beading fingers itch. This shopping trip I noticed some carved stone pendants. They reminded me of the jewelry that the lead actress wears on the TV show, ‘Bones’. The jewelry on that show is fabulous and has an antique, sometimes earthy look. Anyway, I thought pairing the large carved pendant with some carved green chalk beads and agate and then stringing them on dark brown silk thread would give me the ancient look I wanted. See the photo. (Click to enlarge.) I made this necklace extra long (30”) so it would be more dramatic and used an S-hook clasp so that I can add more strands if needed. I’ll try to put this project on this website soon.

Lynn (Good night, Donna.)