Mosaic Moments Design Team

I just got word that I made the Mosaic Moments Design Team! Woohoo! So, you'll be seeing a lot more mosaic work from me on this blog! I'm most muchly mosaic happy!

Learning New Things!

I'm taking an online class at My Creative Classroom on parchment craft. I've been trying to learn on my own, have bought a couple of books and some basic supplies. I'm hoping I'll get some good technique tips in this class. I already heave learned a few things about getting a more even look when dry embossing. Here are a few of my projects so far:

Mosaic Magic

I am applying for the Mosaic Moments Design Team and realized I haven't posted any mosaic work in a while. So - here are a few faves! This is a technique I come back to time and time again. Sure, it takes a little while to complete a layout, but they're SO awesome when you do one!

Welcome to the Paper Wishes World Card Making Day Blog Hop!

Welcome to the Paper Wishes (http://www.paperwishes.com/?ptpsalt) BLOG HOP - we are so glad you are here to help us celebrate World Card Making Day! Some card making day trivia for you:
• Today, card making is a worldwide hobby, especially popular in Australia, Canada, the United Kingdom, and the United States.
• 1 in 6 U.S. households participates in making cards
• 86% of scrapbookers also create handmade cards
• 92% of paper crafters create cards more than any other type of project

Be sure to check out all the blogs in this blog hop, as well as visit the Paper Wishes message board (http://forum.paperwishes.com//) as there are tons of things going on there today, all sponsored by Paper Wishes, with loads and loads of great prize packages! You don’t want to miss a chance to win!
This blog hop gives you TWO ways to win!!!

First – leave a comment on ALL THE BLOGS and a random drawing will be done to choose the winner, who will get a prize package from Paper Wishes.
Second – play H.O.T.P. (Hot Off The Press) bingo with us.
• Visit each blogger on the blog hop to find their bingo square. (Make a note of the blog name for each square too!)

• Click on this link to find the official BINGO CARD (http://forum.paperwishes.com/showthread.php?p=32493#post32493). (If you aren’t a member of the Paper Wishes message board yet, you are not only missing loads of fun but you may need to register to access the bingo card!)

• To win, you will need to make a bingo (4 squares in a row, horizontal, vertical or diagonal) by doing what it shows in each square. There are some free squares; there are some where you just have to post something specific on the message board, and there are some that tell you to use something. Where it tells you to USE something, that means to make a project (any kind of papercrafting project – a card, an ATC, a bookmark, a tag, etc.) with the item listed in that square.

• When you have your BINGO ready, follow these directions:
o Go to the Paper Wishes Message Board and click on “post reply” on THIS THREAD (http://forum.paperwishes.com/showthread.php?t=2297).
o In your reply tell us the four squares you are using for your bingo.
o Tell us the square number AND the name of the blog for any squares you are using that were mentioned on a blog.
o Post the items for each square in your reply, including a picture of the project you made for any square with directions to USE something.

• We will randomly select a winner from all the correct bingo entries! Be sure that we have either your blog address or your email so that we know how to contact you if you are a winner!!!

• Your bingo must be posted to the Paper Wishes message board not later than midnight U.S. eastern time Sunday, October 2 to be eligible for the prize drawing!

The BINGO SQUARE FOR THIS BLOG IS: T10

Here are all the participating blogs for this blog hop:

Nancy (http://www.nancyscreativespace.blogspot.com/)
Penny (http://www.pennydouph.blogspot.com/)
Michelle (http://preciousthoughtscards.blogspot.com/)
Robin (http://redrobinlane-rgcarr.blogspot.com/)
Patti (http://pattiscards.blogspot.com/)
Cheryl (http://cheringpapermemories.blogspot.com/)
Sam (http://unteachablepig.blogspot.com/)

So on with the fun – it doesn’t matter where you start the blog hop, just see where you are on the list above and make sure you visit them all and leave some sweetness behind!

Here is my project for the day. I used paper from the Roses in Harmony pack and the white lace doily scrapbooking Dazzles. The stamp on the outside is from Stampin' Up! The sentiment inside is from the Card Greetings and Sentiments CD. This is a card I will be featuring in a challenge in October on Paper Wishes - watch the Message Board for Guest Challenges - it's coming up soon! When it is posted, you can learn how to make this card.

Get ready for Christmas cookie baking!

Want to participate in a cookie recipe exchange? Come join us on the Paper Wishes Message Board. Sign up by Saturday 10/1 and you have until 10/31 to get your cards completed. You will need to sign up for the message board to respond to the post - but it's free and it's easy!

Here's the link to the main forum site to sign up:
http://forum.paperwishes.com/

Then, here is the info on the cookie recipe swap:
http://forum.paperwishes.com/showthread.php?t=2290

Fun Day of Activities Planned for World Card Making Day October 1

We are planning a fun day on the Paper Wishes Message Board for World Card Making Day on Saturday, October 1. You don't want to miss it. And there are going to be a LOT of prizes! It doesn't cost anything to be a member of the Message Board - just sign on - go HERE.

Here are just a few of the things we have planned. Everything is around a cooking/food theme this year:

• a blog hop with prizes for leaving comments as well as HOTP bingo


• cooking trivia questions


• a scavenger hunt


• "Make a Cake" contest - anything but a card


• "What's for Supper" contest - cards


• a cookie recipe exchange


• a cooking/food scrapbook layout contest

Come join the fun!

I'm Featured in a Sketch Challenge for Operation Write Home!

A few cards I created from an assigned sketch will be featured this Sunday (September 25) on the Operation Write Home blog! This time I made three versions to show how you can adapt a sketch to fit either your theme or the supplies that you have on hand. Join in the fun and see what you can create from this sketch! Just go to the Stars and Stamps blog on Sunday.

I hope you will be inspired to create some cards to send to Operation Write Home! It's a great organization bringing a needed service to our troops. You can have fun and contribute at the same time! For more information go to: http://operationwritehome.org/

Here are the cards I created:

This first one is the most straightforward. I used the exact measurements and only added the flowers and stamped on the top panel.

This next one I just inked the edges of two of the panels, added ribbon to one, and added bracket embellishments. Same sketch but it looks different! I even used similar colors!

This last one I changed a little more. I turned it on its side (landscape), and then, instead of the third panel, I added the "thanks" diecut.











Most of my supplies were from the Paper Wishes Citrus Creative Pack.

Welcome OWH Cardmakers!

I haven't posted much lately due to illness, but I did want to send a greeting to all of the Operation Write Home cardmakers visiting my blog this week! OWH is featuring my tutorial on pleating. So welcome folks - I hope you come back - subscribe to my blog to receive future tutorials. You're doing great work for our service folks!

Like It Love It Gotta Have It Technique for June - Pleating

This month we're going to explore pleating! I love the work that Anna Griffin does - and she does it so well. Below are my less-than-Anna-perfect attempts!

For the first one, I scored 1/2" then 1/4" on four pieces of paper 12" x 1" and made my folds:

Then I placed the four pieces just under the edges of my sentiment, making sure I had pleats exending past the edges on all four sides.

Then I cut the corners at a 45% angle to mitre the corners.

I then added the panel to my card, and added a few embellishments (which are great if one of your corners doesn't come out quite right!)

For the next card, I decided to do box pleats - I scored 1" then 1/4" then 1" then 1/4".

And folded like so:

I then added the strip to my card background.

I added a few border strips and a strip of Dazzles.

And here is the finished card:

Try this!

Like it - add a simple pleated border on a card or layout

Love it - try box pleats

Gotta have it - add layers of pleating and layers of borders for all kinds of interesting looks!

Like It Love It Gotta Have It Challenge for May: Black on Black

This month I'm putting a Paper Wishes spin on a technique I learned from Nathalie Metivier of Magenta. She teaches this easy technique using black embossing on black cardstock. I decided to see how black Dazzles would work and it worked like a charm! This looks nice as well using white Dazzles on white cardstock.

First, select the Dazzles you want to use and place them on your cardstock:




















Then, just begin to put spots of color in different areas. I like to use the metallic and pearlescent water colors by ArtQuest. You can try this with Twinkling H20s, or Smooch too.




















Now start with another color:




















Continue with a third color if desired. You don't want to go too crazy with too many different colors! You'll want to blend the edges where the colors meet one another so the effect is smooth.




















Here's another example where I colored in only the image, not the background:

Another Mosaic

I just realized I didn't include the Jamestown layout in my last post! This is the one that was a challenge on Paper Wishes to cut out a center image and then use mosaic for the background:

Mosaic Scrapbook Pages To Share

I've been doing a lot of mosaic work lately - I bought a bunch of page kits on Black Friday and over the past couple of crops, I've used up most of them! I also had a challenge on the Paper Wishes Message Board to try cutting out an image and using mosaic for the background so I did that on one of these (the Jamestown one). Hope you like these - just posting some recent work to share with Family and Friends...
If you want to learn more about mosaic scrapbooking, click the Tammi Potter or Snap 'n' Crop icons on the right-side of my blog!

Like It Love It Gotta Have It Challenge for April - Weaving

This month I decided to play with weaving a little. It's something I haven't done in years. I probably got introduced to this when I was in Junior Girl Scouts and we made our sit-upons - anyone else do that? Remember weaving the newspaper? This is the same thing, except with MUCH prettier paper!

First, I made a card background, weaving normally, but with 4 different patterned papers - I think the finished product came out great. You'll see in a bit that not all my playing turned out quite as nice! (I like to publish the good and the bad - how else do you learn?! :) )
















Next I decided to vary the widths of the papers - I alternated 1/4" and 1/2" strips. But I learned something - Doing this you end up with stripes instead of a checkerboard! But you do still get interesting texture. To get checkerboard you'd have to put all one color on the base and weave with all one other color. (Lesson learned!)

Next I cut the strips with curves - I learned this in a class I took with Peg Napier on altered books. It makes a really interesting effect - it's really bold in black and white (or other strongly contrasting colors). I decided to try it here with more muted tones. I like the way it came out.

Here's a closeup...














And finally, I covered a shape with weaving. The heart shape was a little challenging because at the top you can't really carry a piece all the way across - you have to use two smaller strips. But I really like the way it came out in the end.

















Note on all of these that instead of doing the weaving and just cutting the ends off at the edge of the base, I actually folded the ends over and taped them on the back - I think it makes for a much neater, finished look.

See what you can come up with this month!

Like It - try regular weaving on a square or rectangle
Love It - try using curved strips
Gotta Have It - cover a shape!

The Original Scrapbox Giveaway!

The Original Scrapbox is having a giveaway for National Craft Month! I'm posting this on my blog to get a point! I would really like to have the Workbox. Check it out:
http://http://www.facebook.com/TheOriginalScrapbox

Like It Love It Gotta Have It Project for March - Rosettes

I've seen a lot of rosettes lately on projects, but I had never tried making one myself until last month. I thought it would be a good project to share with you for our challenge this month. You can experiment with different sizes of rosettes, and different papers, border punches, and you can even weave ribbon into the edge! Here's how you do it:


Start by cutting a strip of paper - I used strips 1 1/2 inches wide by 12 inches long, but you can experiment with different sizes. Notice on one of the strips I tried using a border punch....
































Next, make accordion folds the entire length of the strip - I folded at about every 1/4 inch. Now for those folks who really feel the need to be precise, you can mark your strip every 1/4 inch, but I just estimated. You know who you are! :)

















Put a piece of STRONG tape on one end.



















Then join the two ends.





















It's going to stick up - not to worry! We'll make it flat in a minute! To do this we need to make a base - I just punched out a circle from a punch I had handy. You can cut a random little piece of paper -it doesn't matter what kind or color, because we're going to cover it up. Put glue on the base - I used a wet glue. A tacky glue would probably work fine too.


















Then press the rosette onto the base and hold it until the glue is set. I found I needed to put something on top of it - it can take a while. Actually, one of my punches worked good to put on top - the accordion pleats make it strong enough tht the punch doesn't smoosh it.
















There you have it! Now for the fun - finding something to put in the center and making variations of the basic rosette! Try different kinds of paper - don't be afraid to try stipes! Look below - I tried stripes in both directions:















And then I tried lacing ribbon through the edges of one (do the lacing before you put the strip into a circle):


















Here is the one done with a border punch:



















And finally, pick a topper for your rosette. You can use all kinds of things - small flowers, brads, buttons, and small die-cuts!













Let's see what you can come up with:

Like it: Just try making a rosette - any paper, any topper
Love it: Try a punched border
Gotta have it: try lacing the ribbon through the edge!