Celebrating Spring!

I'll show you how with this cool wind sock! See the details on the Purple Cows blog!

Instructions

Here are the instructions for my Upcycled Prima Flower Tin! Participate in the challenge with us, post about it here (and provide me a link) and you could win this tin!!






Upcycled Prima Flower Tin

I don’t know about you, but I have a weakness for Prima flowers, especially the ones that come in those cute little tins. Problem is, what to do with the empty tin after the flowers are all gone? How about a little upcycling?

Tools:
Purple Cows 1040 2in1 Trimmer
Purple Cows #2806 Decorative Blade
Creative Memories Circle Punch
Martha Stewart Butterfly Punch
Tim Holtz Scissors
Paint brush
Tim Holtz Inker

Supplies:
Used Prima flower tin
Book pages
Vintage buttons
Vintage wallpaper
Vintage sheet music
Helmar PCV adhesive
Mod Podge
Ranger Crackle Accents
Ranger Distress Ink: Vintage Photo, Walnut Stain
Prima Say It With Pearls

1. Remove plastic insert in tin top. Mod Podge vintage sheet music to one side. Set aside to dry.
2. Paint tin and top with crackle accents. Let dry. Ink in both colors, working lightest to darkest. Let dry. Spray with sealer. Let dry.
3. Glue plastic insert into tin top.
4. With circle punch and scissors, create flowers. Glue together and add button center.
5. Trim wallpaper into strip. Glue to tin bottom.
6. Decorate tin with flowers and butterfly.

You have until April 30th to upcycle something and post about it! I will draw a random winner from all who enter the challenge here and at Scrap It Forward! !!

The Artistic Mother's Group

I'm sure many of you have heard about Shona Cole's book, The Artistic Mother. I follow her blog and recently started reading her book. I found this wonderful group hosted by Trudy Callan called The Artisitic Mother's Art Group .

We are reading and creating with Shona's book and giving ourselves and one another encouragement. I have been following along, but I am behind in keeping up with my creations. That silly thing called "life" tends to get in the way at times.


I love to create, but sometimes I have trouble juggling everything, household responsibilities, kids, pets, spouse, work, art.......Shona's book is helping me to learn to balance things better and appreciate even very small windows of opportunity to create. If you find it hard to balance your "life" and responsibilities and still create, you might want to grab Shona's book and join us! We're a large group and growing!

So, I created something small the other day. I was playing with my Purple Cows laminator and decided to make some bookmarks. I wanted to see what I could run through the laminator. I mixed alcohol inks, bits of crayons and stamped images for some interesting effects....

Going Green at Scrap It Forward

Our new challenge is up at Scrap It Forward .

Earth day is around the corner you know, and we are paper crafters with a conscience! We reuse, recycle and upcycle whenever we can and so should you! Don't just throw your old scrap supplies away, donate them to children's hospitals. There are plenty of kids who would love to use them and make a big mess while doing so. Just imagine the difference that you could make in someone's day.

Now for the not so obvious...your daily household items that you recycle or items that you think are old and you want to just throw away... may just be something you could upcycle. What is Upcycle you ask? It is to to transform discarded or second-hand resources into a new or altered object.

So that is what the design team did this time around in honor of our upcoming Earth day. We hope to inspire you as well. Here is what I came up with!



Now hope over here! to see what the rest of the DT came up with. then create something of your own!

Happy Creating!

Some Great News!

I have recieved the incredible honor of being a Guest Designer for Scrap It Forward Challenge Blog! Check out more here! Meet all the designers here!

Blog Candy!

Hey got your attention didn't I? I have a cyberbuddy who is having a giveaway and she's trying to get 100 followers on her blog. Won't you help her out? Visit Linda to help her out!!

A Birthday Card

There's a cool challenge going on over at Stamp, Scrap and Doodle Saturdays. There's a wonderful Glitz Design prize package involved too!

I made a birthday card for this challenge.



Come join the fun and Happy Creating!!!

PS here's a few more challenges you might like to enter YOUR creation into!
Meljen's Designs Challenge #2 - girly colors
For Fun Challenges - April Showers Bring May Flowers
Simple Doodles - SD Challenge #15 Inspire Others
Crafty Creations Challenge #61 Anything Goes

New Challenge at Scrapperie

There's a new Freestyle Challenge up at Scrapperie .

Here is my interpretation!


Go check out the site and join the challenge!

Winner, Winner Chicken Dinner!!

Okay....I know y'all thought I forgot about my RAK drawing today. But, I didn't!! Randomizer (DS Troy) drew THIS one:

Nikki Love said...
what a perfect spring pic!!!! Happy Spring, Vicki!!

April 6, 2010 10:42 PM

Whoo hoo! Congrats Nikki! Email me your snail mail and I'll get your RAK out next week! Happy Creating y'all!!!

Have you heard??

about a new and exciting place on the net? It's called The Color Room . Stop by and check it out!

Mixed Media Mini Album

Howdy y'all! I have finally focused on making some mini albums again. It's been a while, but I am back into the swing!

Here's one I created with a decidedly different twist.



It features mixed media! You can see more pictures and get inspiration from the Zutter Zisters And OZZer's at the Zutter Zisters site ! And, if you would like to see a full tutorial on this album, you can visit Jean's Art Dolls . Signing up is free and painless and you'll find LOTS of fun and ispriation!

And remember, you have until midnight (CST) tonight to post a comment here! to be in my RAK drawing tomorrow!

Happy Creating!!

Spring Banner

My Spring Banner that Purple Cows had on their Home Shopping Network segment in January is up on the Purple Cows Blog

Hope you hop over take a peek, and make one to celebrate Spring too!

Anniversary

My DH got my photo printer working for me for our anniversary. Eight wonderful years...love ya baby!

Here's my printer, it's an Epson Stylus Pro 4800 .........



is my DH Da Bomb or what??!!!

A Happy Spring! RAK

It's so beautiful here I feel like giving something away. Leave me a comment now through thursday at midnight CST. I'll pick a random winner for some goodies and announce it Friday!




Happy Creating!

A Layout for Spring

Up the Street Scrapbooking is having a cool contest for April. You can read all about it here!

I decided to create a layout for it, based on their sketch and the colors in their March kit. Here' what I came up with:





I've had many people comment on the lack of journaling in my layouts....well, the really isn't a lack of it, it's just not visible! My layout pictures show you what I mean.

Happy Creating!

Happy Easter

DS and I spent a lot of time yesterday decorating eggs for Easter. I decided to use some of my scrappy stash to liven up our decorating. We used stickers, rub ons, stickles, Copics, liquid pearls, raffia, scrap patterned paper (run through the shredder) and mod podge. Had a blast!

Here's how I displayed "mine"....in a circa 1940's Marx dump truck.



May all of you and your families have a Blessed Easter!

Scrap It Forward Challenge Blog

Yesterday I posted about Scrapbook Royalty and their new website. Scrapbook Royalty is a non profit organization that uses scrapping and creating as a medium to help charities of all kinds.

Along those same lines is a blog started by Jenn and Christine called Scrap It Forward . Here is what it is about, in Jenn's own words:

"THE ART OF GIVING
THE ART OF GIVING: Thanks for stopping by and getting involved in this great opportunity. In starting off the new year, Christine and I decided to put together a challenge blog that would not only provide you with inspiration and free goodies, but to also let you know about the many ways we can "PAY IT FORWARD" to others in our lives...in simple and GIGANTIC ways. We hope that in combining both inspiration and giving to others, we can all make this world a better place, one layout, card, and gesture at a time. Thank you for taking this journey with us."

I volunteer for Scrapbook Royalty and enjoy using my scrappy artistic skills any way I can to help others. So when I was asked to be a Guest Designer for Scrap It Forward for April, May and June; I, of course, said YES!

There's a new challenge up at Scrap It Forward here . I hope you can stop by, join in and Scrap It Forward with us!

Happy Creating!

Scrapbook Royalty Website is Live!

PLEASE VISIT!
Please Visit:
Our new Website here!
and Charitable Crafters Forum
Launching
on April 1st at 12:01 am!!

Don't miss YOUR chance to win!

We have Westcott Titanium Scissors to give away to 25 lucky people ( 2 pairs each 8" and 3") who register for the website on launch day and one lucky person will win a Westcott Prize Pack valued at $150!!

www.scrapbookroyalty.org/cms

Hope to see you there!