Kellso Collage

March D.T.

March??? March?!?  Seriously?  The days of quiet(er) winter months are already over, and we are heading full-bore into sports and lawn care season.  Bye-bye weekends!  I think God has sent the rain as a way of forcing us to rest before a very busy few months!

I was thrilled to find out our Design Team package would consist of beautiful papers by Jenni Bowlin, as well as TONS of  GRUNGEBOARD, Because what can I say…

I put this little plaque together to (hopefully) put on display at Mystic Paper near the Grungeboard.  I love this stuff, and wanted to give people some ideas of how to use it.  So, from left to right are the techniques I put together-

1- Paint, Sanded to show detail, accented with Distress Powder

2- Stamped with Staz-on Ink, Brushed with Distress Ink

3- White paint, pressed into Distress ink to show detail (dots)

4- (my favorite)  Adhere printed paper face down with Matte medium, then tear away when the glue is nearly dry.  The words leave a ’shadow’ on the Grungeboard!  Cool!

5-Paint, Glossy Accents, Sprinkle with Perfect Pearls.  This looks like stars in the night sky!

Here are the papers I received:

Can you believe the fun stuff I get to play with?!  The ladies at Mystic Paper have been so generous!  I love the Jenni Bowlin paper, it looks like the decor in a girls room from the 1950’s who likes cowbows…  Does that make sense?  No, just me?  Oh, well, either way it was very fun to use.  Our assignment this month was to do one Scrapbook layout and 2 cards.  Make sure to check back to see those, and jump over to Holly and Sherri’s blogs to see their goodies!

Also, a head’s up- (this is so exciting)  later this week I will be doing a GIVEAWAY!  It’s a local product I love called Herb ‘n Organics.  They have been great to work with, and I love their product so I can’t wait to share!  Stay tuned!

Cards!

This will have to be quick, but I couldn’t miss the opportunity to show you the cards I made for Mystic paper D.T.-

I used a combination of the Seven Gypsies paper, along with the Collage sheet to create these cards, along with the lined envelopes.  I wanted to point out the ‘hangy’ ribbon.  It was originally white, but I colored it with Tim Holtz Alcohol Inks to match the cherries-

These dyes are permanent, fast drying, acid-free, and so versatile!  I love being able to turn buttons, glitter, metal, glass, plastic, and fabric into whatever color I need to match my project!   If you ever want to experiment with these, just let me know!  I’d love to show you what these babies can do!

February Hang-time!

The first of 3 (phew) Design Team pieces is ready to be un-veiled!  The papers I was given, from the 7Gypsies Barcelona collection, were so bright and beautiful, I couldn’t help combine them with my mini Peaches (oranges?  Tomatoes?  Whatever they are, they’re cute!)  into an homage to the upcoming season-spring!

The little french hanger I was given was so inspirational-how could you not make something feminine and adorable with it?  I used so many elements to put this piece together.  My Slice, (to cut the circles),  Tim Holtz Grungeboard Letters, acrylic paint, and Tim Holtz Alcohol Inks for the Silver Distressed ’smudges’ around the circles and on the letters.  I used my Crop-a-Dile to place the eyelets (remember those?) to connect the circles.  I added a few embellishments from my Creative Scraps collage sheet, and Voila!

All of these materials are available at Mystic Paper, along with my project on display!  Make sure to peek in on Holly and Sherri’s websites to see their AWESOME hanging projects.  Our cards have yet to be revealed, but just wait- it includes a tutorial!

On my heart…

Just a quick post to show my Valentines Day cards/decor.  I bought these hearts months ago, as soon as I saw them I knew I wanted to put them up for Valentines day on my hanging mobile, a gift from my sister.  The hearts themselves did not turn out nearly so ‘grand’ as I had originally envisioned (they’re pretty homely), but the week got away from me with sickness and To-Do’s, and at least they’re up!

Each of the notes written to the 4 (other) people in my family not only declare my love for each of them, but I also focused the notes on the ways I had observed God working on their hearts this year.  Matt is such an amazing leader for our family, and he has been blessed to become a part of our Church’s leadership this year, as well!  Jonathan has been studying the Bible with Matt and the fruit from that is evident, as well as in things like his cheerful attitude when asked to help around the house.  I told Eden how excited I was to someday take her out to study the Bible, too!  Noah has such a spark that people are drawn to- I have literally seen strangers slowly gather around him as he is telling a story!  I pray that someday he can tell others about Christ, and make them laugh while he’s doing it!  Our family is so blessed, Valentine’s day and every day!

February D.T.

Here are the photos of February Mystic Paper D.T. materials- I have really been enjoying getting into the rhythm of picking up materials, having some time set aside each month to work on the project, and turning it in.  This months paper comes from Seven Gypsies, from the Barcelona collection.  I was also given several cool pieces of Ribbon, and a cut-out sheet from Creative Scraps.  On top of all that, I received a little french hanger (NOT pictured, oops, I’ll be sure to show it in the finished product), and was given the guideline of ‘One hanging project, and 2 cards’.  I am sooo not a homemade card person, but I have to say I enjoyed the challenge.  Can’t wait to show you what I made!

January D.T.

Well, after having the month of December off (with NOTHING else to do-how boring!)  the Mystic Paper Design team is back in full force.  This month’s theme (per Jennifer’s Request) is Love, getting everyone ‘in the mood’ for Valentine’s day.  The paper, stickers, and lace I got are great, from Cosmo Cricket.  The theme is a fun one, as well, tho I’m not sure what direction to take with it…

I am having a friend over to scrapbook tomorrow and I can’t wait to get started.  I have been ‘pre-planning’ my project, and I’ll give you a sneak peek-

Submitted…for your approval

Here it is, my first Design Team submission for Mystic Paper!  MP has been selling great antique bottles, and I wanted to give people a little inspiration…

These beautiful winter-themed papers are from Webster’s Pages, and they were all lovely.  The pastel colors were a bit of a challenge, as was finding wintery-type pictures of my Arizona family!  But, despite our red sweaters in the pics, I think it turned out OK.  The pictures are of our trip to the Kellso’s ranch last December at the annual Prescott tree lighting ceremony.  I used the theme ‘Give Yourself’ with these particular photos, hoping that special times together, during the holidays and always, are what influence my kids, more than presents and celebrations!

TECHNIQUE TUTORIAL:  I love the ’speckled’ look of the letters in ‘Give Yourself’, and it was so easy to do!  After cutting out the letters, I turned each letter over onto a Distress Ink pad, and, using the lid of the ink pad, pressed down gently onto the letter.

The chipboard (used for the stand), bottles, beeswax, ribbon, ink, and papers are all available at Mystic Paper!

Spoon Pendant How-to

Last month, I hosted a craft party at my house, and I promised a tutorial on how to make these spoon pendants.  I have seen these made with resin, which dries crystal clear and is very strong, but very smelly and takes 24 hours to dry.  However, I needed these done in less than an hour!  UTEE (Ultra-thick embossing enamel) to the rescue!  Here is the quick version of the directions:

1. Trim and bend spoons.  I bought the spoons already ‘halved’, and most of them were the right length.  If you were to buy antique spoons, trimming them would not be difficult.  I had to trim one spoon just a bit-I sawed it a few times with Matt’s hacksaw, then was able to bend the spoon with pliers and it snapped right off!  The best method I found for bending the spoons is to use 2 pliers, one at the center of the handle, one bending the end of the handle, moving closer and closer to the base.  Make sure it curves enough to keep a chain with in the loop, and WEAR GLOVES!!

2. On a flat top stove, lay a strip of tinfoil half on, half off of the burner.  Do not turn on…yet.2.  The materials-To decorate your spoon, you can use anything that is not heat sensitive.  I gave my guests options such as stained glass, glass beads, watch gears, glitter, and alphabet letters!  Many just added their choices randomly, my cousin Missy turned a watch hand and some stained glass into a flower-stunning!

3.   Once your spoon is decorated, scoop some UTEE to a slight ‘dome’ into the spoon.

4.  Place the spoon on the tinfoil above the burner.  Use metalic items, such as screws, to balance your spoon if necessary.  You want to be sure that the ‘butt’ of the spoon is touching the tinfoil, but you don’t want your UTEE to spill out the front of the spoon!   Sometimes, the spoon will begin to wobble once the heat is turned on-just us a kitchen tool to still it, and it will be fine!

5.  Turn on the burner to medium heat.  As the UTEE begins to melt, lower the heat.

6.  Once the UTEE is melted (goes from white to clear and smooth), slide the spoon off the burner using the far end of the tinfoil (the end of the strip of tinfoil that is NOT on the burner.)  Leave spoon for several minutes until set and cool.

First DT order of business…

I have received my first assignment and paper pack as a Design team member of Mystic Paper!  I had a chance to meet fellow DT members Surina and Holly, as well as our fearless leader, Patty.  I did not have a chance to meet fellow team member Sherri, am excited to see what she comes up with-her class samples are all so beautiful!  Each of us received Christmas paper, and not a moment too soon.  Can you believe how quickly the season has come upon us?

Truth be told, I have already completed my project and am ready to turn it in this week, but I will make you wait a day or two to see what I made.  What would you make with this pretty, pastel Christmas paper?

Fall craft night

This weekend was the 2nd annual Fall Craft Evening!  I have so enjoyed getting friends and family together to chat, eat, and build something beautiful.  I had, in the back of my mind, been keeping an eye out for just the right craft to do with a group:  Inexpensive, quick, not too intense, and widely appealing.  I had seen spoon pendants a couple of places online, and when I saw the spoon ‘heads’ for cheap on etsy, I knew I was getting close.  With a bit of experimenting, I came up with a technique using UTEE, directions to follow in a later blog post…

I didn’t get pictures of everyone that was there, but I was so happy to see everyone!  Thanks again to everyone who attended, it was such a blessing to have you in my home!

In the spirit of the season, I made a pumpkin cake from a recipe that has been circling around our church.  I made a bit of an adjustment to the recipe (I used a cup of applesauce instead of a cup of oil (!)), and while I know worrying about health while eating cake may be beside the point, you can’t ignore the fact that it cuts out 150 calories and 14 grams of fat PER SLICE!!!  And it was good!

Pumpkin Cake

Courtesy of Amy Williams and Lissa Booker

4 eggs

1 2/3 c sugar

1 c APPLESAUCE, (you can split the cup b/w applesauce and oil, if you’d like)

16 oz can pumpkin

2 c flour

2 t baking powder

2 t cinnamon

1t salt (optional)

1 t baking soda

Mix all ingredients.  Pour into 9 X 13 pan and bake at 350 degrees for 30-40 minutes.

Frosting:

3-4 oz cream cheese

1/3 c butter

1 t teaspoon vanilla

2 c (or more) powered sugar

Beat butter and cream cheese until smooth.  Add Vanilla.  Sift powdered sugar into mixture and blend until smooth

Frost when cool.  Sprinkle with cinnamon.  Can be frozen.  Makes 16 generous slices.