Today I’m going to show you how to create a spooky house using the Milk Carton Template Set by Kelleigh Ratzlaff. I decorated the house using an absolutely gorgeous brand-new Glamourween kit from ETC by Danyale…it’s so new that it’s not even in the shop yet! It’ll arrive on Thursday, September 29. Enjoy your sneak peek, this kit is just fabulous!

Supplies I used:

• Milk Carton Template Set by Kelleigh Ratzlaff
• Glamourween kit from ETC by Danyale, arriving at TheDigiChick on Thursday, September 29, 2011
• Epson Premium Matte Photo Paper
• red line tape
• scissors
• embossing stylus
• Fiskars Paper Trimmer
• Licorice Premium Dye Inkpad by ColorBox and Stephanie Barnard

To start, I opened the small milk carton psd file in Photoshop. To create the window, I selected the rectangular marquee tool and drew a rectangle on the template. Then I pressed delete and this created an empty space where I could build my window scene.

I created a clipping mask just a bit larger than the window I created, and clipped one of the damask papers to it to create wallpaper. Then I added the frame, cat, curtains, and candelabra. The cross bars were taken from the birdcage element in the kit.

To achieve the shadowing on the window, I applied a drop shadow style to the box with a blend mode of Linear Burn, Opacity set at 88%, 45° angle, 0 px distance, 10 % spread, and 44 px size. I clipped the grey stripe paper to the box. Next, I added the iron fence to all sides of the box. Then I added the broom and zebra pumpkin just outside of the window.

The best way to create the  roof is to make a clipping mask that is 4″ high x 2.5″ wide. These measurements allow for a 1/2″ overhang at the bottom. I goofed and ended up piecing mine together. Learn from my mistake!

I printed the canvas onto Epson Premium Matte Photo Paper. Next, I cut out the milk carton using both my Fiskars paper trimmer and my scissors.

I used the embossing stylus to score along the fold marks. I added red line tape to the edge of the template and then adhered the edges together to join the sides of the box together.

I folded the bottom of the box together by following the instructions that are included in the Milk Carton Template Set.

Because I wanted a flat roof line, I added more red line tape to the inside edges of the milk carton. This action seals the box for good, but you can still fill it with treats by unfolding the bottom of the box.

I folded the edges together and then folded them down toward the back of the box. I added more red line tape to the outer edge to keep it down.

Now it looks less like a milk carton and more like a little house, which is exactly the look I’m trying to achieve.

If I had used one rectangular roof piece that was 4″ x 2.5″, I would have scored the roof in the middle and 1/2″ in from each short end but instead I had to attach the two roof pieces to the top of the milk carton. I again used red line tape. Finally, I used a sponge to apply black ink to the edges of my spooky house.

I really like how it turned out. I can see quite a bit of potential in using this milk carton template for other houses – a gingerbread house for Christmas, a flower shoppe for spring, and a school house in September!

If you use this template to make a house of your own, be sure to leave a link to your gallery so I can check it out!

I use the inked edge technique in many of my hybrid creations and I think it may be one of my favorite techniques. It is a quick and easy way to add interest to an element on a project, and I am going to show you just how simple it is to ink the edges using a piece of sponge and an ink pad.

I love creating these altered 4″ bar coasters. They are great to showcase a quote or Bible verse and make a nice little accent decoration for a bookshelf or corner of a desk. They’re also wonderful for quick, easy, and inexpensive gifts.

To create the coaster I made today, I used the Around The World collab that will be available starting June 23 at The Daily Digi and then at The Digichick in July. This kit is absolutely packed with some of the most beautiful papers and detailed elements I’ve ever seen! I had a hard time deciding which pieces of the kit to use and ended up creating two coasters. In addition to papers and elements, I also used some of the cutting files from the kit with my Silhouette.

Supplies:

• Digital scrapbook kit
• Photo editing program (I use Photoshop CS5)
• Epson Premium Matte Photo Paper
• Matte Mod Podge
• sponge brush
• inexpensive synthetic sponge (I get mine from Dollar Tree, there are 8 in a package for $1.00)
• brown ink (I used Close to My Heart Desert Sand)
• coarse sandpaper
• straight pin
• Tim Holtz Regal Flourishes embossing folder by Sizzix
• Sizzix Big Shot
• embroidery floss in white
• Clear Zap Dots by Helmar

I bought my bar coasters in packages of six for about a quarter on clearance at Michaels. They always have new designs in the dollar bin, or you can ask your server next time you go to a casual dining restaurant if they would please give you a few to take home with you. These particular ones were pretty glossy, so I sanded the front to help the Mod Podge adhere the paper better.

After sanding the coaster, I used the sponge brush to apply a fairly thick coat of Mod Podge. I recommend using a piece of wax paper to protect your work surface (Notice what is not present in the photo below!).

Next, I placed the coaster onto the back of the background paper. I turned the whole thing over and applied firm, even pressure to the front, paying special attention to the edges and corners.

I’ve found the easiest way to remove the excess paper is to run a straight pin around the edge against the edge of the coaster.

After making a rough cut in this manner, I took my sandpaper and brushed it against the edge of the coaster at about a 45° angle in one direction only, from the top of the paper toward the floor. If you go the other direction, you run the risk of separating your paper from the coaster.

You’ll end up with a nicely distressed edge once you’re finished.

Now it’s time for my favorite part! I cut off a new piece of sponge and dabbed it onto my ink pad. I brushed the sponge along the edges and corners of the coaster using the same motion as I used for sanding the edges – at approximately a 45° angle and from the top of the paper toward the floor. I reapplied ink as needed (every 3-4 brush strokes).

I just love the extra touch the ink adds!

After placing my clouds on the background paper, I could see they needed some additional definition. I added ink to the edges in the exact same manner as I did with the coaster. You can see here what a difference just a little ink makes in the definition of the edges! The top cloud is inked, the bottom one is not yet.

I wanted my large cloud to have some additional pizzaz, so I used one of my embossing folders to add a swirl texture to the cloud. I placed the cloud into the embossing folder and ran it through my Big Kick die cut machine.

With just a few turns of the crank…

I’ve added an awesome texture to my cloud. How cool is that?!

Of course I couldn’t leave this cloud with bare edges, so I broke out the ink pad and sponge again. After that, I adhered the clouds to the coaster using a dry line adhesive.

I took one of my clear Zap Dots adhesive squares and cut it down to fit on the back of the airplane. I took one strand from my DMC embroidery floss and placed the center onto the adhesive. Then I put the plane onto the coaster on top of the largest cloud.

Next, I put adhesive onto the Adventure banner and attached the tails of the floss, trimming the ends.

I placed the banner onto the coaster and called the project complete!

I mentioned earlier that there were so many fabulous things in the kit that I couldn’t stop at one coaster. Here’s the other one I made. I simply added some of the word art to one of the journaling elements, cut out three of the flowers and layered them using a brad in the center and cut out three butterflies for the top right-hand corner. It went together very quickly and I love how these turned out!

I also inked the edges of this coaster and probably could have even inked the journaling oval and the butterflies, as well!

I hope you’re inspired to try this quick and easy technique to add dimension to your next project!

SUPPLIES

• Candy Dispenser Template Set,  Kelleigh Ratzlaff Designs

• Digi Paper – Little Boy Bluebird, HeatherT & JM Designs, 120 lb cardstock
• Ink and dauber-Stampin Up, Not Quite Navy

• Etc.,- Glue, Post it notes – 2X2 inches, paper clips, pen, button, cord

It can sometimes be more challenging to make a gift for a male teacher so  masculine papers were chosen for this sample.  Kelleigh has a great tutorial on how to  use templates HERE which will show you how to place your digi paper onto the template to print.

Print out the template on cardstock (you want to make sure it is a nice sturdy weight) and cut out the shape.

Follow the instructions included in the template and assemble the box.

A little navy ink was sponged along the edges to add a bit of depth.

To make the pen holder, a 3×2-3/8 inch rectangle was cut out of the same paper used for the box. Make sure that the edges of the design will match up evenly with the design on the box.

Score the rectangle at 1/2, 1, 1-1/2, and 2 inches parallel to the 3 inch side.  Score at 1/2 inch parallel to the 2-3/8 inch side. Cut as shown.

Fold along the score lines, tucking in the bottom to form a little box.

I keep a supply of small clothespins to hold edges together while glue dries.

This is then attached to the side of the Candy Dispenser box.  Make sure that the edge of the pen holder is flush with the box so it sits flat.

Attach the button to the front and the post-it notes to the top.  Fill it with paper clips or other small office supplies and slip in a pen (maybe one a little nicer than the one I chose! LOL).

Thanks  so much for stopping by!

Today I thought I’d run through a few of my past hybrid projects and highlight some of the ways I’ve incorporated the use of stamps into them. Once you realise that stamping isn’t just using black ink on white paper, you’ll have ideas to make all sorts of projects!

I love to keep loads of spare greeting cards ready in case my kids go to a birthday party, or we’re invited to a wedding or a baptism, or Christmas comes upon you all of a sudden. I just reach for my shoebox and there’s always something suitable hiding in there just for that special occasion! I have made lots of cards that I don’t use because the greeting that I’ve used on them isn’t relevant for the particular occasion I’m searching for. So go ahead and make up your hybrid cards but leave off the greeting on the front. That way, you can reach for those greeting stamps when you actually need to. I’d leave a blank area where you can stamp ‘happy birthday’ or ‘thank you’ or whatever the occasion calls for. My greeting stamps are my most used ones in my collections. You can never go astray buying a ‘happy birthday’ or a ‘merry Christmas’ stamp can you?

WISHING YOU LOVE CARD

Another part to stamping is the ink you have on hand. I just love inking up the edges of my layouts, my cards and just about every project I make has something inked on it. It gives your projects that extra bit of warmth and depth that you may not otherwise be able to achieve. Try it and you’ll be amazed at the difference some shading or shadowing can make! Just check out Julee’s post yesterday as her shading is just exquisite. I tend to just go for it with a sponge dabbed onto an inkpad and slowly build it up around the edges of whatever you’re inking. Start off lightly and build it up to the depth you want. You can apply the inkpad directly to the side of your paper/photo but remember this will come out dark from the get-go. This gives a rather dramatic result which you may be looking for whereas sponging the edges will give you a softer, more subtle effect. Give it a go as I’d never heard of inking up an edge until a teacher in a paper scrapbooking class showed us how easy it was. From then on, I was hooked and my inkpads don’t always get used just for stamping now! Make sure to check out our DISTRESSING link at the top of The Hybrid Chick where you’ll find some further tips on distressing with ink.

LOVE CARD

And a final thing that I just treasure my stamps for is being able to create my own embellishments or to jazz up an existing embellishment. Before I’d had any ‘official’ stamping lessons, I had never thought to stamp an image, maybe colour it some way, but then cut it out to use as your own personalised embellishment! Who would have thought to do that!?! It’s great to be able to stamp a duplicate of an embellishment that you may have used on your project and use 3D foam tape to double it up so it gives the embellishment a more realistic and dimensional look. Take a close look at the flower on the right of the card.

THANKS CARD

It’s so much cheaper to be able to change up a flower you might have or some plain old chipboard with a bit of inking and/or adding some stamping to it. I love being able to stamp a script stamp onto a silk flower or in this layout, I have used a script stamp on some plain chipboard to add a bit of a vintage touch to the pieces. Can you see the word ‘you’ and the keyhole and the dramatic effect the stamping has on it in the layout below?

LOVING YOU 2 LAYOUT

For this baby keepsake tin, I used a stamp for the greeting ‘treasure’ and also for the angel wings. It’s so easy to stamp them onto your own papers, colour and cut out.

BABY KEEPSAKE/TREASURES TIN

And here’s my last example showing a beautiful butterfly that I stamped, painted up with some shimmery paints, cut out and 3D mounted. A special little touch to add to my canvas.

COLLAGE CANVAS

So there you have it! A few more simple stamping tips to explore when you’re hybrid scrapbooking!

So, we decided that it would be fun to change things up a little bit and have “Stamp Week” here on The Hybrid Chick this first week of October! Stamping can really add the perfect finishing touch to your hybrid projects! We’ll show you a few ways that you can easily incorporate stamping into your hybrid papercrafting. And I’m here today to explain some of the basics of stamping to get you started!

First of all, let me hop down a rabbit trail for a minute with a little story. You see, if it wasn’t for rubber stamping, I wouldn’t have ever tried my hand at designing digital goodies! When I was in high school, I took a few art classes that I loved. But after high school, I always felt like the outsider looking in at the cool world of creative people, wishing I could do something—anything—like they did. Well, one day a girlfriend of mine sent me a pack of hand-stamped baby “thank you” cards. I was amazed at what she had done. The cardstock she used was a beautiful soft pink and yellow and the ink matched the cardstock perfectly! I had never seen anything like it. All I had in my collection was a random set of stamps my mom gave me (kittens and fairy line art stamps!) and a rainbow ink pad… needless to say, this gift opened my eyes to what you could do with stamps!

I signed up with a home party plan company and started to host workshops to teach others all about rubber stamping, too! I loved teaching people about the little tips and tricks that I had picked up (much more than I liked trying to sell them anything—LOL!) And maybe you can tell that I still love this? This is the whole idea behind our Hybrid Chick blog… sharing, teaching and helping others just makes me all warm and fuzzy inside! And enabling others with something you love is just plain fun.

Rubber stamping gave me the confidence to believe that after all I could be crafty—I could learn something new! So, I started to teach myself to knit, quilt and scrap. And then one day when I stumbled on to a free digital kit—well, that was the end of that! I had a new obsession! I wanted to learn how to make paper. (hee hee!) Bye-bye, rubber stamping blog!

All that to say that stamping is a wonderful hobby! It’s simple to do and can be so elegant. A raging addiction to stamping can be a little expensive (like anything else) with all the things you feel like you “have to have.” But there are also a lot of ways to save and make do with the products you have in your collection.

So, what do you need to get started with stamping? It’s pretty simple! You just need:

• Stamps,
• Ink, and
• Paper

Flutter Top Gift Set by Julee

There are two kinds of stamps that call for two kinds of ink. One kind is called “Line Art” stamps. This would be the kind that you’d color in (like this cute little snail in this gift set by Julee which also uses Strawberry Café [Revised] by Sugarplum Paperie). You’d typically need a black or dark brown ink for this kind of stamp. The other kind of stamp is a “Solid Stamp. It’s the kind you’d use with colored ink or markers. This pretty leaf stamp from Verve would be an example of a solid stamp; you’d want to use green ink, for example, when you stamped with this.

To start off a collection of ink, I’d recommend:

• One black ink pad (that’s water-fast; meaning it won’t bleed when you color or paint over it)
• 4-6 ink pads in your favorite colors (like green, red, blue, etc.). I’ve found that the lighter the color, the more I use it. Ranger makes some great dye-based inks.
• Versamark: a clear ink that’s great for stamping a light background on colored cardstock (and because it’s just FUN!). It can also be used to hold embossing powder because it’s sticky until it dries.

And there’s another thing you might find to be confusing: ink! There are several kinds of inks on the market but they come in two main types. There are water-based dye inks (which you are probably the most familiar with already) and pigment-based inks that are more like “stampable paint” (this would include chalk inks, too). Dye inks are great for stamping and coloring. You can press your ink pad on to a plastic surface and use a watercolor brush to paint with your ink pads (which can save you $100 when it comes to buying a set of good markers—LOL!). Pigment inks are great for stamping on various surfaces where you need the ink to stand out and not soak in… like if you wanted to stamp a light ink on a dark paper. And I love to use pigment inks for distressing the edges of my paper! It’s my ink of choice for that.

Also, I wanted to mention that the other day, my daughter (who’s a total crafting nut!) went to town on a paper I had printed out for her. She’d colored on it with crayons and then discovered that if she piled a ton of watercolor on it until it was all purple and black, the crayon resisted the paint. Well, I discovered that my black printing ink is water-fast! Yay! I know that the color ink will run on me, but none of the images that were printed in black bled. And so if your printer is the same, that can open the door for you to use all sorts of digital images as stamps, like this cute set of Halloween doodles (Jeepers Creepers by Danielle).

And now for the last thing you’d need to get started with stamping: Paper!

Most cardmarkers will use cardstock for their projects because it’s sturdy and stiff. You’d need a great white cardstock, preferably one that is as smooth as can be. I know Stampin’ Up! offers a great white cardstock. Smooth white cardstock makes for crisp, clean impressions, so it’s worth the money!

And you’ll also want a pack of plain colored cardstock, too. You’ll use this for all sorts of things, like cards, boxes, tags, mats. It’s the base that will take the backstage to your stamped images and your hybrid embellishments.

Purse Ensemble by Julee

Well, I hope you’ve found this introduction to stamping to be helpful! I have a few more links for you that you might find useful! I’ve made two lenses on a site called Squidoo all about rubber stamping:

• Stamps, Ink and Paper: Get Started with Rubber Stamping! which has lots of tips that I brought in from my old rubber stamping blog.
• Stamping Shopper – Shop for Rubber Stamps, Ink and Paper which needs a little love and updating (some products might have been discontinued?). But it still gives you an idea of all the goodies you can incorporate into your stamping projects.

And enjoy Stamp Week as the girls are planning lots of fun things to show you!

Happy stamping and happy scrapping!

So let’s see how I put this beautiful little hybrid gift altogether!

Supplies:
* TINY PRINCESS digital kit from Sugarplum Paperie, available at The Digi Chick
* Crystal Effects from Stampin’ Up
* Tim Holtz Distress Ink – Tattered Rose
* Sponge to apply ink
* 3D foam tape
* Pritt Gluestick
* Crop A Dile from We R Memory Keepers
* Jump rings
* Making Memories Jigsaw Chipboard Alphas
* Cream cardstock
* Kaisercraft DUSTY PINK acrylic paint
* Making Memories MANILA acrylic paint
* Sandpaper
* Craft knife
* Cutting mat
* Jump rings

First off, I grabbed out the letters that spelled ISABELLA from my Making Memories chipboard alphas. I love the Jigsaw font as it’s nice and fat, easy to cut out and you can easily embellish them too.

I grabbed my paints out and very roughly painted over them leaving lots of raw chipboard showing through. On some areas, I painted the two colours over each other as I wanted to get a nice shabby and worn effect.

Next up, I worked out the size of my digital elements from the beautiful TINY PRINCESS kit from Sugarplum Paperie, and printed them off. I decided to use three different papers to cover my alphabets with and I cut each piece to 3×2.5 inches to fit each one.

To add to the distressed and shabby look, I used sandpaper to wear down the edges.

I then used my glue stick to adhere them to the front of each alphabet.

I then flipped the alphabet over and used my craft knife to cut out the negative part where the alphabet would go.

To give the alphabets more stability, I decided to adhere a piece of cream coloured cardstock to the back of the alphabets and I also inked up the edges of the area where my alphabet would be placed back into.

I took the alphabet piece and gave it a rough sand around the edges and glued it into my embellished background piece, allowing the cream cardstock to show through the areas in the middle of my alphabets.

And to add some more pizazz to each alphabet, I cut out, inked and adhered my embellishments randomly. I used Stampin’ Up’s Crystal Effects in the centre of my flowers and on the buttons to give a nice and glossy shine – it might be a little hard to see the shine from the photos.

Now for the final touch to hold this altogether, I have used the smaller hole on my Crop A Dile – I punched two in each side of the alphabets – and joined them together with some gold jump rings, and voila! The finished project

At the time I made the tin, I did not know the sex of my friends baby so I stuck with some soft green and neutral shades. She ended up having a little girl and named her Isabella, so I decided to make the index cards in some pretty girlie colours but I might just go and add a touch of pink to the ribbons on the handle of my tin to tie in the baby girl theme. Here’s a picture of the tin I made on that baby shower post:

I measured the width and height of my tin to determine the size for my index cards – they’re approximately 6.5 x 4 inches. I then made a template to clip each of my papers to. I’ve made a few general cards that any memory or story can be recorded on then I’ve done a card for each of the months of baby’s first year. Here they can record feelings, events and special memories that they have experienced with their new little baby.


Here are my index cards bundled up with some pretty satin ribbon and ric rac, ready to pop into my keepsake tin.

You may notice that there isn’t quite 12+ cards in this bundle. I’ve still got to make months 7-12 but it’s getting too late where I am and I wanted to get this posted! But you get the gist of what my little hybrid goodie is for!

And here’s a closeup of a few of the cards so you can see all the details.

Supply list:
Digital kits from Sugarplum Paperie, available at The Digi Chick
** TINY PRINCESS kit
** FIRST KISS OF SPRING kit, a collab with Flergs
** LOVEY DOVEY SENTIMENTS
** LEMON TWIST kit
** MEADOWLARK kit
** PROJECT 365 EMBELLISHMENTS
** PLUMBERRY TEACAKES kit
** Tim Holtz Distress Ink – Tattered Rose (my new-fave colour)!
** sponge for distressing
** corner rounder punch
** Making Memories coloured staples
** satin ribbon
** ric rac
** scraps of cream lace and ribbon

For this project I didn’t stop to plan everything out and just grabbed things as I went along (I even cleaned up my work space a bit first so I could find everything!) so even though only the box itself is pictured, I ended up using the following supplies:

What I Used:

• Photo storage box (from Michael’s)
• Little Sugar Mini Kit by Elise’s Pieces at  The DigiChick
• 65 lb. white paper
• Making Memories acrylic paint
• Paper Mod Podge
• Colorbox Chalk ink
• Offray white ribbons
• Prima flowers (green)
• Making Memories flower (white)
• Clear button
• Glue Dots
• Memory Stor tape runner

The first thing I did was measure out the dimensions of the box so that I would know how big to create my Photoshop documents. The lid was 11.25 inches long so even if I did have a borderless printer, I knew that I would be able to print a document big enough to cover the whole thing. Instead of piecing something together out of multiple print-outs, I decided that I would simply leave a white border around the edge of the box.

So I pulled out some of the acrylic paint and got to work painting around the edges.  The box soaked up the paint a bit, and it took about three coats to completely cover the bright pink of the lid. I think next time I’d give the lid a quick once-over with ModPodge to seal if first.

In between coats, I began creating my Photoshop documents and deciding which papers and elements I wanted to use. After getting it all set, I began to print. Apparently I didn’t measure quite as accurately as I thought that I had however, and some of the sizes had to be adjusted and reprinted. Whenever that happens though, I just set aside those first pages so that I can go back later and cut out the printed pieces to make cards or other projects out of. Since measuring is not really my strong point, I have quite the stack of rejects waiting to be recycled!

After I printed the papers for the lid, I discovered that the green in them was a perfect match for the bottom of the box. I was originally planning to cover the whole thing, but this happy accident saved me quite a bit of work. I started by covering the sides in the strips that I had printed, matching up the pattern as I went along.

I started at a short end and wrapped the paper the whole length and then folded onto each of the long sides. I figured that the edges would stay neater if the ends didn’t meet there. I used Mod Podge for my adhesive and just smoothed it onto the box as I went. After I got all the sides covered I let it dry for a few minutes, then turned it upside down, cut the corners and started folding it over, again using Mod Podge to glue it. My reverse tweezers came in handy here to help hold the paper down while it was drying. As you can see, even after I remeasured, I still didn’t print off big enough strips of paper to cover all of the pink that was originally there.

To make it look neater inside, after my fold had dried, I grabbed the original printout that I had set aside and used those strips to finish the covering job. Then I added a spot on the inside of the lid for jotting down important phone numbers, like the pediatrician, as well as a spot for a baby photo and a little embellishment from the kit. I used my tape runner to glue down the journaling spot so that a photo could be slipped underneath the top of it, like a photo pocket.

After the sides had dried, I inked the edges with a creamy brown color, and set to work on the top. I inked around the edges of the cover and then, using the Mod Podge again, glued it down. I didn’t think that the polka dot letters stood out enough against the polka dot background paper, so I added a second piece of solid, neutral paper to the top with the title on that instead.

Then I started digging around for some matching embellishments and found some flowers, a bit of white ribbon, and a clear button. I stacked up my flowers, threaded my button and stuck them all together with glue dots. Then I slipped a piece of paper behind the label and added some folded ribbons to the front. Voila! All finished…

But wait… I’m giving this project away! Plus, I’ll even throw in a couple of diapers and two coordinated onesies, so all you’ll have to do for the perfect baby gift is add your own creative items to the box! Just leave a comment to this post for your chance to win it. If you want to double your chances of winning then make your own blog, Twitter or Facebook post telling everyone about the Baby Shower we’re having here at The Hybrid Chick and post a link!

I am by no means a Donna Downey or an Emily Falconbridge, so this was just a run-by-the-seat-of-my-pants project where I just did a bit of this and a bit of that. I still don’t know if I like the finished project, but I’m like that with all my scrapbooking projects and eventually it will grow on me!

So let’s see how I created this masterpiece (LOL)!

I have a large stash of cheap paint canvases that are about half an inch deep – the canvas is stretched around a wooden frame and this one is roughly letter sized. I primed it roughly with Gesso first.

I recently bought myself some Tattered Angels Glimmermist and Glimmer Screens so have been itching to try them out. So I used one of my ‘Blossom’ screens and ‘Garden Fairy’ Glimmermist to come up with this on the base of my canvas. I love the subtle mask it gives you and I love how it all bled slightly into the canvas. It’s oh-so shimmery too.

You might also notice that there are some brown images on my canvas. I ‘attempted’ to stamp a couple of images onto the canvas and the ink ran when I used the Glimmermist but that’s just added to the effect for me! Note to self – stamps do not really work on a soft canvas, thus the whole image does not appear and need to use waterproof ink (not water-based ink) if spraying any liquid onto them! But there are no mistakes in scrapbooking, just creating art, and I continued on!

(By the way, you can click on any of these images if you want to see them in more detail.)

Next, I started to gather up and lay out some of the bits and pieces that I pulled together for this project. I printed off a paper from Gypsy Couture’s ENCHANTED AFTERNOON kit which is due for release on Thursday.

I scrunched it up a little, scratched it, distressed the edges and cut it to size. I then tore out my photo to fit – and yep, I’m only a spring chicken in this photo – maybe 16 or 17!

I adhered some white tulle to the left of the paper and some pink fibre across the bottom of the paper. I also had a go at making some embellishments out of tulle.

I cut out a number of rough circles with green and white tulle, layered them, stitched on a button with some fibre underneath and stuck a couple of digi leaves in behind the button.

I also ruffled up some ribbon and hand-sewed it to the canvas with some clear beads scattered along it.

Next, I stamped a couple of butterfly images with black Stazon ink, which is waterproof, then used some H20 Twinklings luminescent paints to colour the images. After I cut out the images, I stacked the butterflies with 3D foam tape to give it a more realistic look.

You’ll notice that I have added some pink glitter around the bottom of my tulle flower and onto the green paper – I added some drops of Crystal Effects and tipped the glitter onto them. On the paper, I also tipped some heart confetti onto the Crystal Effects. There is also some hand stitching around the paper to hold it to the canvas.

Using some metallic rubons, I worked some colour into the corners of my canvas with my fingers and you’ll see that it highlights the texture of the canvas too.

I have added the word ‘beautiful’ to the bottom left hand corner of my canvas with a Basic Grey rubon. I just adore how versatile rubons are and they adhere to just about any surface. There’s a couple more flourishes rubbed onto the bottom left corner of my photo which you may see in the images below.

And here’s some pics of the final canvas which I could have kept adding to. It’s fun to just get your goodies out and have a play around and see what you can create!

Supply List:

• Paper from ENCHANTED AFTERNOON by Gypsy Couture
• Gingham leaves from COTTAGE GARDEN MINI by Kaye Winiecki
• Letter-sized paint canvas (from a Dollar Store)
• Gesso
• Glimmer Mist – Garden Fairy
• Glimmer Screens – Blossom
• Tulle
• Basic Grey button and rubons
• Thread
• Fibre
• Ribbon
• Beads
• Butterfly stamp from Lucy’s Stamps
• Crystal Effects from Stampin’ Up (a/k/a Diamond Glaze)
• H20 Twinklings by Luminarte
• Glitter
• Heart confetti
• Assorted stamps used on canvas
• Tim Holtz Distress Ink – Vintage Photo

Supplies List

• Mini-Envelope by Kelleigh Ratzlaff kit & Lottie Dottie Add-on kit by Pamela Donnis        
• scallop, label, and key Stampin’ Up! punches
• double sided sticky tape
• Tombow adhesive
• pop dots
• scissors
• paper piercer
• white cardstock
• ink/sponge
• stapler
• 3 1/2 x 2 1/2 piece of vellum
• sticky velcro circles
• Items to place into kit–1 needle, 2 pins, 2 buttons, 1 safety pin, needle threader, sewing thread & small scissors  

I’m going to use the below Mini-Envelope Template from Kelleigh Ratzlaff and the Lottie Dottie Add on freebie kit by Pamela Donnis:

Here’s what my scrapped envelope looks like:

1. Print on a piece of cardstock. On mine I chose a different paper that was the same size as the template and printed it on the on the opposite side.  Remember, if you want your colors to look brighter to adjust the contrast.
2. Cut envelope out and sponged ink around the outside and inside & score lines.
3. Grab your 3 1/2 x 2 1/2 piece of vellum and put a small strip of double sided sticky tape along both sides and bottom of the inside of the envelope.
4. Cut or punch out shapes for your thread, buttons and pins and needles.
5. Apply velcro to inside top flap and outside bottom flap of envelope.  
6. Place all the sewing goodies inside

Here’s a finished picture of the outside of the envelope: