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About a year ago I bought the antique shoe last pictured in my recent post “La Chausssure”. What, exactly, is a shoe last, you might ask? Well, according to the website www.shoeschool.com, (yes, it exists), a shoe last is: “the solid form around which a shoe is molded. The shoe last must represent the anatomical information of the foot, at the same time giving the finished shoe a pleasing and fashionable appearance.” Well, there you go. They basically look like wooden feet. Cute! Mine had the date ‘January 1958′ stamped on the side, coincidentally, 9 months before my dad was born!
Here is the last glimpse of my wooden shoe last before I stared going crazy on it:
I was envisioning an mail sorting/filing/desktop/decorative concept. So, the first thing I did was saw 2 slits in the heel, and 3 more closer to the front. I also drilled 3 small holes near the toes. I began to piece together my design. The Seven gypsies paper collection I got from Mystic Paper this month was so perfect for what I was picturing in my mind. The Paper has an antique theme to it, even a few note paper and postage themed designs! The colors were beautiful and muted.
I printed off pictures of my kiddos as infants, and dipped the photographs in wax. (Such a quick way to get a more permanent printed picture, as well as an antique feel to the pictures. The paper becomes translucent, as well!) I then created mini collages on the outside of 3 envelopes I had stained with coffee grounds, as well as 3 index cards to insert in the envelopes. Here is Noah’s envelope:
Noah’s envelope then gets files in the first slot. The metal-rimmed hole has now become a pencil holder!
Jonathan’s envelope and card is next: (The paper on the back of the 3×5 card is a list of the days of the week that Jonathan wrote in Kindergarten!)
Now beautiful Eden’s:
The view of the toe, with giant paperclip and bouncy flowers:
And finally, the comepleted project:
I went into this project with a specific idea in mind, and (for a change) I think I actually hit on what I was going for! What fun! Everything came together so smoothly with such wonderful product to work with! Thanks again for the great supplies, Mystic Paper! Make sure you take a peek at Holly and Sheri’s Seven Gypsy projects, as well!
Posted 1 year, 1 month ago. Add a comment
One evening, when Matt was having dinner with his Uncle, I initiated an activity for the kids- simply, paint a box! They had a blast, got messy, got a little silly, and, best of all, enjoyed one of the last few pleasant evenings here in AZ!
Posted 1 year, 1 month ago. 2 comments
I am having so much fun with my March/April Mystic Paper design team kit! I love the Seven Gypsies paper- their Camden collection is new and so much fun to work with. Between the vintage feel, the grungy, smudged texture, and the beautiful, muted colors, it’s right up my alley! I was also given 3 yards of beautiful ribbon, and flocked rub-ons to play with. The rub-ons stick to your paper, and feel like velvet once adhered. Super fun! As mentioned in my earlier post, I am working with these products and my antique shoe last (form), and I am getting really excited about how it’s turning out. Make sure to check in with Holly and Sheri to see what they’ve been working on this month.
Posted 1 year, 1 month ago. Add a comment
My antique shoe last is calling my name…
Time to go pick up my Mystic Paper DT pack… Oh, yes…
Posted 1 year, 1 month ago. 1 comment
Happiness is…
Some people get entire craft rooms, but I am thrilled to have my little craft closet all organized! Matt (and Jonathan helped a lot, as well) surprised me with an entire built in closet and organization system for Christmas, including shelving, drawers, and bins for everything Crafty! It is so nice to have everything in one place, and to have each ‘type’ of craft supply grouped together. You have no idea how much easier it is to work with everything so accessible! Thank you Matt, I love it!!!
Posted 1 year, 2 months ago. 1 comment
Well, after a slow start and slow going on my Graphic 45 Curtain Call mini book, (February was a bit of a blur – am I alone in that feeling? Anyone? ;) ) the finished product is ready for unveiling! Honestly, with such great product to work with, pulling a project together is quite easy. The sheet of tags that came with my paper made accenting each page super easy. I also love the glitter polka dots on each page- so fun and easy to do! I just felt like doing something brave and different, and out came the polka dots! I am also pleased with the lace accents around the entire book (see 1st pic) and on each page overlay. The beads on each flap are a fun and sophisticated accent, too. I also used coordinating GOLD paper inserted into each pocket, just waiting for further embellishment, or some black and white photos from a school play or ballet recital! I had so much fun putting this together. Using great product that works together (all found at Mystic Paper!) makes a project so fun and easy! I can’t wait to see what I get to play with next month!
Posted 1 year, 2 months ago. 2 comments
So… Graphic 45 is like, one of the hottest (if not THE hottest) paper companies out there right now. Their papers are very sophisticated and fun, and their product line keeps growing impressively each season. And, I get a chance to play with their brand spanking new, hot off the press paper collection, Curtain Call. Along with 4 pieces of the new paper (including a set of tags), and a coordinating Bo Bunny polka dot paper, I received a G45 Policy album and 2 lengths of gorgeous ribbon to help put it all together. Here’s the catch- I haven’t even touched the materials! Matt and I were so ill from Wednesday to Monday, and we are still recovering. Also, the state of my house doesn’t exactly allow for me to craft for a couple of hours, making more of a mess and ignoring the one we’ve already created. Well, hopefully I can get some work done on it this weekend! Until then, hop over to Sheri and Holly’s blogs to see if they’ve had a chance to dig into their goodies!
Posted 1 year, 2 months ago. 1 comment
This was my ‘big’ Christmas craft I worked on this year, and I still don’t consider it to be completed….I love the form of the angel, but the wings…
I had something else in mind and I have already tried a couple of different things, to no avail. And the banner… there is definitely something lacking there, yet I’m not sure what I want the finished
product to look like. Of course, my husband thinks it’s creepy, so that doesn’t help… Hmmm, maybe by next December she will be completed…
Posted 1 year, 3 months ago. 3 comments
The Holtz-a-palooza continues with Valentine versions of Tim’s 12 days of Christmas tags (2007, 2008, 2009, 2010). The above tags are ‘homages’ to different Christmas tags he’s done through the years. For example, Tag #1 above is modeled after this: (tutorial here)
Tag #2 is modeled after this: (tutorial here)
And, last but not least, #3: (tutorial here)
None of my tags come even CLOSE to the look or quality of Tim’s tags (nor do they come even close in cost, but that’s another story…;)) but I love the inspiration he offers in his step by step tutorials that can be adapted to any project, any time of year! All of the materials I used can be found at Mystic Paper!
Posted 1 year, 3 months ago. 1 comment
It’s all TIM HOLTZ this month with my Mystic Paper Design Team project for the month of february! Pictured above is the first project I turned in for this month- my first ever Configurations box! The Configurations line is relatively new among Tim’s MANY amazing products, and I’d been wanting to give it a try. After searching through all my doo-dads and thingamajigs, I was able to put together a Valentine’s themed box I was very happy with.
The box is spray painted with white (outside) and pink (the boxes), then sprayed with Tim’s new product, Adirondack color wash in Red Pepper, one of many fun products I won on Tim’s blog last December! (I love free stuff!) I feel it gives it almost a Robin’s egg speckle, but in pink!
Row 1 (L to R) consists of a hanging and free swinging red jewel, soda top and doll arm, and a Queen themed box with a crown and 50 pence pieces from England
Row 2 (L to R) consists of a dried flower, and a glass bottle with crushed flower petals and a pen nib inside (romantic!), and a vintage lightbulb along side a red Christmas light bulb.
Row 3 (L to R) is an homage to my family (2+3=5!) in the form of dominoes and dice, as well as an ‘X’s and O’s themed box. The X is a vintage printers block, and the ‘O’s’ were printed from a lino block that I carved myself- keep an eye out for an upcoming post on linocutting!
Row 4 (L to R) are a green glass and Bingo chip, as well as a tiny knife, fork, and spoon in the last box.
I had so much fun putting this together! I really wanted to stretch myself and be Fearless when it came to deciding what to put in, and where, and how. There are more projects coming up, so stay tuned, and in the meantime check out Shari and Holly’s blogs to see what they’ve been up to!
Posted 1 year, 3 months ago. Add a comment
