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Fairyland Inspiration + Free Download

(Photo from Lil' Blue Boo)

I was so excited to find this sweet Box O’ Princesses @ Lil Blue Boo! If you have never been to her site it is a MUST see! I thought it was a perfect gift idea for Ella who is six. So, I grabbed a tin I had and painted princess dolls. Then I printed the FREE download and voila a perfect gift that is well loved!

I wanted to do something similar for Natalie, who is almost nine and definitely BEYOND princesses. So, I thought I would create something similar, but with FAIRIES, because Natalie loves fairies. I illustrated the fairy homes and printed it onto white cardstock and then painted a set of wooden fairies. I used tulle for the fairy wings and made a few leaf sleeping bags that I had seen. It turned out super sweet and Natalie loves it. She has colored in the houses and today had her fairy village set up in front of her computer making a fairy movie! Too stinkin’ fun!

Just another set of two semi-handmade gifts that were made for Christmas this past year.

Here is the FREE download for Fairy Land if you want to create a fairy land of your own! Download Fairyland

Art Week - day one!

I am back. I know completely MIA for a while, but I needed to live life in real time and focus on my family. And today's projects are created by my family and students I work with.

So, I figured out my uploading issues, and want to share what we have been up to.

Part way through the school year I decided I needed to spend more time creating art with my kids. I decided that about every six weeks we would take a week off from our normal school work and spend a week creating and learning about different art styles. This kids LOVED it. This week I want to share our first official ART WEEK.

On the first day of Art Week we created self portrait collages. This was perfect for using up my scrapbooking scraps and the kids really loved the results. I found the idea at Better Homes and Garden.

Olivia created the portrait above. The girls each drew an outline of how they felt their face is shaped and then started gluing torn pieces of scrap paper in the correct color hues of their skin, hair and eyes. They then did the same for a shirt.

Next. we cut out the final portrait and using dimensional squares adhered the portrait to some patterned background paper.

This was a great project to kick off Art Week, because everyone felt super successful.

 

It took some patience, but because we had an entire day to work on it the kids didn't feel any pressure and ejoyed the creativity.

Tomorrow I will show you some of the mini art pieces we made.

Monday Chalk Board Calendar Tutorial

I have calendar tutorial for you today. The best part is that it is fun, easy, and a great way to dress up the walls of your home!

I finished a project this weekend that I have been thinking about for over 2 years. I know long time, but I was never quite sure exactly how I wanted to pull it off. I bought this calendar a couple of years ago with my only thought being: I want to do something with this!

I LOVE calendars! I only really knew that I wanted to cover the frame with patterned paper to coordinate with my kitchen walls. I measured the edge of the frame and cut strips of paper to 1.25 inches and using ModPodge I adhered them to the frame. I added a coat of ModPodge to the top of the paper as well.

I like to use recyclable material whenever I can on projects! I thought I could do that for what I had in mind for each calendar square. So, I gathered several boxes of packaging from my kitchen that were the thickness of a cereal box.

I used my Slice to score 2.5 inch circles out of this material. Doing this made these boxes really EASY to cut through! I cut 31 circles for the days of the month. Measure the days of the month squares before choosing the size circle to cut.

When I was picking up spray paint for my daughters birthday I grabbed some chalkboard spray paint as well, for this project.

I sprayed both sides of my 2.5 inch circles with the black chalk board paint.

I adhered a magnet to one side of each circle and then selected 31 pictures from my fall photos. Using the circles as a template I cut out 31 circles from my photos and adhered them to the magnet that is adhered to the circles. That makes sense right? I now have a magnet sandwiched between a photo circle and a chalk board circle.

Using chalk I wrote the numbers of the month on the chalk board circles. I LOVE the way this looks!

I wanted a calendar that was both art and fun for my young kids to learn the days of the week when we school this fall. They already totally enjoy turning the days over as they pass. The only thing left for me to do is hang it on the wall! Super fun and easy project to make and a great way to use your photos!

One last thing! I plan on making a set of circles for each season of the year...yes that makes 3 more sets of circles and 93 more photos. Super cool!

Home Decor and Match Boxes?!

Making home decor always makes me smile. Maybe it is because unlike a scrapbook page that gets tucked into an album, home decor gets displayed and admired each day! 

I bought a 12 X 12 inch craft wooden frame and covered it with 2 inch squares of patterned paper. I used Mod Podge to glue down the squares of paper and applied another layer of Mod Podge on top of the paper to help secure it. I use a matte finish because I don't want it to look glossy.

I then enlarged a photo and matted it on black paper. I used a TON of adhesive since I am going to cut this photo into match box size rectangles.

I flipped my matted photo upside down and traced around the matchbox to create the perfect size rectangles to cut. Yes, I could have just measured the matchbox and cut, but I have lost the large half of my Purple Cow cutter...I know how can you lose that, but it is most certainly gone. So, I traced and cut and hey it all worked out.

I then applied a thin layer of Mod Podge to one side of the match box and adhered one rectangle of the cut photo. Cut, apply, and repeat to all of the match boxes.

Then I laid out the match boxes with small gaps, let's call it 1/4 inch-ish. I used a ruler to make certain that all of the edges were even distance to the edge of the frame.

It is a fun home decor piece, using match boxes as a large light weight dimensional aid. Fun, easy and perfect on my wall.

I am guest blogging...is that even a correct phrase...at Big Picture Classes this week. If you liked this home decor piece you might want to check out my Self Paced class A Window to Your World.

I am finishing up a new page for my 100 Life Changing Moments and will be posting it tomorrow. I still think these are some of my most favorite pages that I have created!

Canvas Art and Home Decor

Over the past couple of years I have been slowly creating a series of 3 canvas art pieces that I can change with the seasons. This is the summer set! I LOVE how these look side by side on the wall.

Super easy and the trio can be made in a weekend.

I have to make a fall set this month to put up in October and then I will have all four seasons created.

Would you like a tutorial on line? Let me know what you think!

Quick and Simple Valentine Cards

 
Valentine's day tends to sneak up on me. Probably because I am planning Natalie's birthday party, and forget that Valentine's day is just two days later. I really was not wanting to just buy little valentine cards for the girls to put there names on and be finished, but I needed something quick, simple and inexpensive.

 

 

First, I picked up these cute little Martha Stewart stickers and these stamp stickers.

 

Plus, a couple of chocolate treats that the stickers attach to perfectly!

Also, I grabbed these $1 finds by Studio G! Super cute blank cards that can be easily embellished with some ribbon I just happened to find in the $1 section as well. Then I went to work creating several style cards for my kiddos to make and give this Valentine's day!

 

Using these simple items and some ribblon I was able to create a cute little valentine.

 

 

Adding this ribbon inside the card added a sweet sentiment.

 

The larger cards are sweet and have a cute little cut out on the front cover. I added the ribbon sentiment to the front and inside and then added some detail to the envelope.

I attached the cute little chocolate stamp to the front and made up a loving address, Natalie is going to LOVE this.

 

These cards had circular windows on the front, so I punched a couple of pink card stock cirlces to cover the art work and added my chocolate stickers to the inside.

 

Super quick and easy valentines with a tasty chocolate treat!

Weekend Halloween Project!

Halloween is fast approaching...CRAZY!

This year I am making each of my kids their own trick-or-treat bag to haul around all of their sugary loot.

I am headed to the store to pick up all of the necessities. Here are a few ideas I found to inspire me to create and personalize my daughters treat bags this year.

 
Love this! On a larger scale this could be adorable!

 
Found this...super cute.

 

 

 

All three of these I found at Better Homes and Garden! Plus there are directions!

I am not certain which I will create yet, or maybe my own version of pieces from each...I know my girls will be completely delighted with our outing for the day. And I will love getting creative.

If you create bags this weekend leave a link here so I can see what you have created. I will post my finished bags next week!

Questions and Answers

I have had some questions lately about Saving Your Sanity: Throughout the Holidays, my new class at BPS that starts the end of September. I thought I would try and clear up any confusion about what this class is or isn't.

SYS: Throughout the Holidays IS

• a class where you will learn how to organize your creative ideas, so that you can create over the fall and winter holiday season

• a class to keep you prepared to be creative during a time of the year that can eat up your creative time

• a class where you will be filled with creative holiday decor ideas and projects for Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas (or whatever winter holiday you celebrate), and even New Years Eve!
• a class where you will create several holiday hand made gifts to give during any holiday this season.
• a class where you will learn new creative ways to scrapbook your holiday photos on both pages and a mini album.
• a class filled with tips and techniques for keeping and organizing your ideas and inspiration so that you can easily create holiday projects and pages during the holiday season
• a class that gives you 13 handouts filled with creative ideas for you to create and scrapbook in a four week period.

SYS: Throughout the Holidays is (NOT)

• NOT going to plan out and organize the holiday season such as party and dinner plans ( I did this in the SYS: Celebrations class and the same principals apply to the holidays)
• NOT a class that is ONLY Christmas focused, but rather focuses on ALL holidays throughout the season.
• NOT purely project driven ... expect to do BOTH pages and projects in this class
• NOT going to cook your holiday meals, clean your house, and do your dishes in a creative way...BUT wouldn't that be COOL! :)

Hope this clarifies any questions you may have. Let me know if you have a question I haven't answered! I hope to see you in class!

My 100 moments design process

I NEVER know how a page is going to turn out before I start.

 

For the 100 moments project I have found that I start with writing the story for whatever moment I am working on.

After the story is written I then select photos.

For moment 11 I didn’t have a lot of photos, so I opted for a single page layout and only one photo, a photo of me waiting to ride the bus to school when I was in kindergarten. I could have added photos of my dad…but I don’t have a lot of photos from this time period of me, so I decided one photo was good enough, and quickly moved onto the next decision.

Choosing a color palette was next on my list.

I decided to go with green and found some coordinating pattern papers.

Once I printed the story I then lay out the journaling where I think it will look best.

Then I add the photo or photos.

Next, I simply add in the pattern paper to fill in the gaps.

After it is all attached I dig through my stash and find some coordinating embellishments to add the number moment and a small touch to the upper left corner of the page. There is no science here. I simply dig, toss, and layer…oh, and I hope for the best! J

 

Because I have determined that all of my pages will have a gridded feel for this album each page design has a similar feel, even though they are not EXACTLY the same design. I LOVE how easy this page came together. I am not certain yet how I will deal with the fact that some of my pages are double and some are singles… it’s a work in progress, but I will fill you in when I make a decision.

This week I will answer a couple more questions I have had in regards to this project and share a super cute project I did with my daughter a couple weeks ago.

Just a reminder…

I am teaching a new class at BPS at the end of September!

Saving Your Sanity: Throughout the Holidays is a super fun class (I guess I have to say this, but it is true!) to organize all of your fabulous creative décor, gift giving, and scrapbooking ideas starting with Halloween all the way through the new year! There are over 13 projects or organizational ideas for you during the four week workshop!

I hope you join me in the journey!

Style and Design

 

Another good question about 100 Moments that Changed MY World, from Laura:

“Are these layouts going to be put in its’ own album?”

I am creating a specific album for my 100 moments. If I was only doing a few moments I could easily have put these pages in my All About Jen album (can you tell I am an LOMer? J ), but I am looking to showcase these albums as a life story, not an overview of what I have done, people I have spent time with…this album to me reaches far deeper than most scrapbook pages go.

 

 Oh, an believe me there are times I want to simply create a fun page that is simple and doesn’t require depth. For these reasons I chose to place my 100 moment pages in their own album.

This question also leads into what I wanted to discuss today: style and design of my pages.

My 100 moment pages are really story intensive. The story is the heart of each page. Pictures become an illustration to my pages, because the story is the focal point. I have decided that I will NOT include any hidden journaling in the design of my 100 moment pages, simply because I want my family to feel like they are invited to read my story … that I welcome them into part of my life that at one time held no windows for them to see into. There is something about being open and honest with a story. A closeness develops between myself and whoever chooses to peer into the window of my life. I feel the minute I hide my words I am pulling a window shade closed and asking people not to come any closer. I want to open 100 different window shades, blinds, and curtains and give people a chance to learn about the REAL me. So, the style of each page will be determined by the story that is shared. This doesn't mean I feel hidden journaling won't work, or that I haven't used it in the past, it is just not the style I am going for with this project.

The design of my pages will be simple.

· Each page will be color blocked

· Each page will be gridded to a certain extent

· Each page will have the number of the moment from my list.

Outside of these three elements I will use embellishments sparingly so that the focus stays on the story and the illustrations – my photos, MY world.