Journaling Jigglers

How did you get your name?  Are you named for someone in the family, friend, etc.  Do/did you have a nickname?

Describe a childhood birthday.  Do you have pictures?

If you could meet one person in the world, who would it be?  Why?

Yesterday, it was my pleasure to present a program on Preserving Our Family Stories in Venice, Florida.   As part of this presentation we discussed journals, and their uses in telling our personal stories, starting family conversations, and as triggers for successful interviews with our ancestors.  I have prepared a list of 50 such thought provoking prompts.  If you would like to download them, the link for JOURNALING JIGGLERS is HERE.   I hope they will help you get started telling YOUR story!

PS  Many thanks to those who were there and helped me!  I fell ill, and they jumped right in and took over.  Off to the doctor again tomorrow.

Happy creating to all!

Paper Filigree

It has been a long time since I have done any Quilling, but since it is making such a lively comeback, I have pulled out the paper strips, and started twirling again!

Here is the first card that I did.... so much fun, and pretty enough to give my nephew and his new bride!

Here is a second card featuring a couple of different shapes, and some aditional colors. 

This week's UStream Class will be all about Quilling or Paper Filigree.  Learn the basics, and, as always, I will have some tips and tricks to share with you.

I hope to see you on my UStream Channel at 8:00 Eastern Time Tuesday evening.  Just click on the blue icon in the upper right corner of my blog and it will take you to the channel.  You will also find recorded classes from previous weeks there, too.  

I am on vacation with great kids like this one, and will be enjoying their Scout Court of Honor tomorrow just before class.  (If I'm a minute late, don't give up on me... I'm coming!)

I hope you are enjoying your summer, too.

Happy crafting ~

Birthday Train

All Aboard!  It's Porter's fourth birthday (already??!) and he has asked for "a train to go around the tree" for his birthday.  I asked him what tree?  He said "the Christmas tree"... he wants a very pricey

Polar Express train for his birthday.  I asked him who he thought might give him this wonderful gift

for his birthday, and without batting an eye he said "Santa Claus!"  His Mom and I nearly cracked up!  We quickly informed him that Santa doesn't do birthdays, too.... so he told me Mommy would be getting him the train, then... Oh, the sweet faith of a four year old.  When I asked what he would like Nana and Papa to send him, he said "A Yo-Yo" .... whew, we get off easy! 

This is the card I made for my little Engineer.  The stamps are a favorite old set from Close To My Heart, and the paper is from DCWV Celebration Stack.

This is the inside.  The pennant is a moveable feature, so he can run it along the twine and point to the numbers.  The section along the bottom is a pocket which carries a gift card, so he can be the big brother and take his little sister out to lunch, and cash for going shopping for a yo-yo!!!

I will be linking to I{heart}2stamp.com for their sketch challenge this month.  I encourage you to give it a try. 

***Note:  I had announced that my UStream Class for Tuesday evening had been cancelled due to Bob the Babe's health situation.... however, I am more than happy to say that he has made a very unexpected turn for the BETTER and I should be able to have class tomorrow night!! 

I hope you will be able to join in for

50 Ways To Love Your Digis!! 

Just click on the blue icon in the upper right corner, log in, and you are in the class.

We start at 8:00 eastern time, though we begin visiting a few minutes earlier.  Come and play!

There will be a freebie for you :)

Happy crafting ~

New and Revisited... Cards

This week's card class had three delightfully different techniques for the ladies to try out...
You saw the fun and cheerful layered sunflower card in my last post.

Here is the flashback project we revisited:

 This Criss-Cross Card was created in kraft colored paper, and layered with celebration papers, and borders were punched with Martha Stewart edge punches.  Add a belly band, and it is a fun way to send special greetings anytime of the year! 

 This shows the tag removed from the inside of the card, ready for your message.  This card can also be done in a horizontal mode, like this one from a couple of years ago:

Here's the link on this style Criss-Cross Card.  Hope you like it!

Our next beautiful creation was done with the new Martha Stewart STAMP AROUND THE PAGE stamping set.  I will be doing a video very soon showing some of the tips and techniques I have come up with to help make this is a very easy to use set, with great results.  The ladies made fabulous cards!

This was made on cream cardstock with copper cardstock on top, which had been punched with a Martha Stewart Punch Around the Page punch set to create the layered background.  The sentiment was a layered combination of Studio G and another small stamp that I had.  I will be sharing

these tips soon... (See the note at the bottom of the post.)

AND... Last, but certainly not least, here is a sample of the brightly colored creations made for

Little E's First Birthday Celebration!

 There were lots of banners, posters, cupcake toppers, a big 1 tied with ribbons, and other goodies... check out BettyBee Designs FaceBook page in a day or two to see the whole array!

And the Birthday Princess came by the hospital to visit with her Papa... who,

unfortunately, couldn't go to her party :(

She brought her smiles to him.

That brings me to my NOTE for this week's UStream Class... due to Bob the Babe being in the hospital, I will not be holding class. See you next week...

Wishing you all the best.



and Happy Crafting ~



 

Happy Birthday and Lettering tutorials

Since it is after midnight, it is officially my beautiful daughter's birthday, so I can take this opportunity to wish her a wonderful and happy birthday full of delight and surprises!  I made this card for her which is just her style!  The package should arrive this morning, with something really yummy in it!

Tonight's class on UStream was all about different kinds of lettering, from basic handwriting to calligraphy, and what types of instruments to use. Here are some of the samples we created:

This is a hand done monogram "B" with sketched shadows.

 I want to give a big thanks to Shoo-Rayner for his great You-Tube videos for inspiring the next two designs.  This guy is a great instructor. 

Wouldn't this cheerful block letter design make anyone feel better?!

 Cheerful colors, and adding dots create lots of action in your message. 

 Bubble lettering, with highlights and shadows.  This was colored with watercolor pencils.

 Freestyle, colorful, and plenty of action!

Practice adding swirls and serifs to your handwriting, as well as seasonal images,

and you will be able to create your own holiday cards.

Practice, practice, practice, and you will be a pro in no time!

I invite you to check out the recorded UStream class if you want to see how we did all of these, and other things. 

Happy crafting ~

Happy First Birthday, P!

Is there anything more delicious than a one year old baby girl?

Last year our family was blessed with two darling granddaughters, and I can hardly believe they are having their first birthdays already.

Photographer JuliMcKendrick captured a series of wonderful photos of Miss P to celebrate this milestone, and they make me quite delighted and weepy at the same time!  Sure miss her!

She is "all girl" so this is the card I have created for her.

It is made with papers and designs done with my Imagine, the
Teresa Collins Baby Boutique cartridge, as well as some pieces done with my Slice.

The design is a shutter-fold card with a full front.

For info on how to create a card like this one,

check out Splitcoaststampers. Their resource section is a true treasure trove.

Wishing you a happy "girly" day with lots of love! 

Happy creating ~

Summertime, and the Livin' is Easy!

SO, when you think of summertime, what memories pop into your head?  Do you remember skate keys? the ice cream man? playing tag in the dark? catching lightning bugs? going camping? cruising the drive in? how about drive-in movies? Did your pool open up Memorial Day weekend, and the water was FREEEEEEZZINNNNGGG ~ but you went anyway?  Oh, the memories!  And our kids are making theirs just like we did! 

 

This week at BettyBee's Buzz we are all taking a walk down memory lane, and hope you will be joining us.  I have the last day of school in mind with the sneak peek project you see here.  My daughter has an end of school party for the grands and their friends when they get off of the bus the last day... (or is it for the bus driver?! hehehe)  I have used the SUN and the HERE COMES THE SUN papers from the new Grillin' and Chillin' release from Digital Delights, and started on some FUN in the SUN party pieces.   I have several more pieces to this party project, and you can learn to make all of them at my very first USTREAM class!  It will be posted very soon, in conjunction with the most awesome Pita Queen, KATHY at Paper Phenomenon!  I DO hope you will be joining me :) 

 

Cupcake wrappers are so much fun, but with co-ordinated papers, they really make a statement!

Add your own custom designed water bottle labels!  (Sneak peek here!  More to come later!)

 

And who knew that cupcake wrappers were the perfect fit for snack cups?!  An assortment of favorite treats is always a welcome sight! 

In the meantime, make a BEE-LINE over to BettyBee's Buzz, and bee inspired by those talented HoneyBees, and leave a comment about what YOU did in the summertime, and then create something summery, and you could be one of TWO winners this week!!!  YEP!  Two prize packages up for grabs! 

 

Happy creating~ 

Easter Basket Baby and Iris Folding!

Good morning, and welcome to Monday musings here!  I have news!     We have all been a-buzz about IRIS FOLDING over at BettyBee's Buzz, and our HoneyBee, Wanda, was going to do a great tutorial on it today, however, she's a bit under the weather at the moment, so your's truly is doing the honors! BUT FIRST...I want to show you what was in our Easter Basket!!

Meet our newest granddaughter, Erin Amanda, who was born on Thursday!  Just add bunny ears, and the Just Hatched outfit that I made with the Freezer Paper technique that we showcased a couple of weeks ago!  How cute is this???

And, is there anything more precious than this???  Her little bloomers were exactly the same colors as some of the eggs...  Thanks, Easter Bunny (And Mommy Brianne and Daddy Doug!)!!! 

**************

Now, on with our regularly scheduled programming!

This is IRIS FOLDING!  It is a very old technique, that originated in Holland, and is called this, because the opening in the center represents the IRIS of a camera, or the eye.  There are a few basic folding shapes, and myriads of cut aperture (opening) shapes to lay over the top.  It is a very easy craft to follow, and the results are quite fun.

This is a budget friendly class, as this is one of many FREE patterns available on the internet!!

This is also a great project for scraps!

 

Here are my beautiful folded paper strips, all laid out in color specific order just waiting to become a gorgeous flower!

For my project, I decided to do a five petal flower.  I chose one from George, a Cricut Cartridge, You can cut your design opening with any die cutting machine, embossing machine, or by hand. 
 Isn't that neat!  And look at the IRIS in the center!  This is the PENTAGON pattern, and the five sided shape is very evident!  Now it's time to finish the center.

I opted to repeat the yellow paper that I had used on the outside of the card, and then added a gorgeous pink gem to reflect the pinks in the papers. 

Here is my finished card.  It is a special "thank you" for a friend who gave me a great big pad of scrapbook paper... and these came out of it!   Adhering the card front to the card base with dimensionals is helpful in compensating for the bulk of the paper and tape.  It doesn't look thick or awkward at all.

I do hope you will make a bee--line over to BettyBee's Buzz and follow the tutorial, and give it a try!  Come back on Wednesday and see what the HoneyBees have created, and that is where you will find the link to post your IRIS FOLDING projects! I will try to get a ribbon project done for you by then.... want to see one??? 

Happy creating ~



 

Freezer Paper on Paper!

If you recall from Monday's post, I said I'd be back with another type of project, and it is using the Freezer Paper stenciling project on paper.  So Cool!!


  My additional project is the "retitling" of a special book that I made for my grandkids for Christmas.  Little fingers have picked at the original vinyl lettering, so this new stenciled lettering is now permanent.

 It is VERY easy to iron the FREEZER PAPER to cardstock.  Then carefully paint your lettering.
I cut the title from the Base Camp Cricut cartridge, and spaced it out just like I wanted it with my Gypsy.  This ABC project has 26 4x6 mounted photos, with the "definitions" written on each page with a silver Elmer's Paint Marker. 

Each page was scored at the end, and it was bound in a cardstock cover made for the Your Story by Provo Craft.  This is an easy project to create.  It features Church pictures and a few personal photos of family and friends, which make it even more exciting for the children.

 To make it a personal treasure, be sure to add a testimony page from you to your loved ones.  This started on the front side, and these are the finishing thoughts. 

Two year old Porter has loved this special book, and delights in sharing his knowledge of the Gospel ABC's.  I plan to make one for each young family.  I got this idea from another blogger, and I sincerely apologize for not giving her credit here and now.  I am away from my home computer, (as most of you know) and the link is back at home.  I will amend this post as soon as I get the proper information. If you are interested in the link to the photos, please leave a comment or send me an email, and I'll be happy to send them to you. I hope you will be participating in the Freezer Paper challenge over at BettyBee's Buzz this week.  We have a lot of different projects to whet your whistle!    I'm headed back to Florida in the morning.  It will be hard to leave these precious little ones and their parents, whom I love so much, but I will be happy, too, to get back to my dear hubby, and the other little family waiting there.  Another precious granddaughter is about to enter this world, and Nana is anxious to meet her. Blessings and Happy Creating!!