Friday Eye Candy

A quick post showcasing a drop spine box I made using this box making kit from the Paper Source:

And the inside:

(It’s called a drop-spine because the spine is not attached)

What I like about these kits is that thick book board is already cut — to me, that’s the hard, icky part! Gettng those pieces cut straight… ugh. The kit comes with just the board pieces and instructions.  The paper and book binding cloth are also from Paper Soure. First you build the box (I used PVA to glue the pieces together) then you cover it. Such fun!

Have a great weekend, and thanks for stopping by!

Scrappy Friday

Yes, it’s a sick obsession. I save scraps. Every bit of them. Every so often (like when I’m trying to find something I’ve misplaced) I attempt to clean off my desk. At these times, I challenge myself to use up the scraps I have lying around.

Here are my latest efforts:

Yes, I’m a little punch crazy. But how perfect are scraps for butterflies? Especially this Martha Stewart punch. I ran the card through my Sixxix embossing folder/Big Kick to create texutre, then just punched my heart out and glued down the butterflies. (I would have stitched them down, but I don’t have a sewing machine… well, I have one but I can’t use it because …. you guessed it…. the sewing machine table currently houses a big, heavy set of drawers that hold stamps!)

Next are some tags made with cardstock trimmings:

(Most of the cardstock is from Paper Source — aren’t those the yummiest colors?) These tags were pieces of card stock snipped from other card making projects. Border and shape punches add panache.

The next set uses an oldie but goodie punch — a tag punch from Marvy — that I use a LOT. Then more punches and scraps of paper. So fast and easy! And it feels so good to use up those scraps!

Let’s get rid of some larger scraps, too! Here’s an example of a folded gift tag.

(Stamp by Hero Arts)

Thanks for stopping by!

Fabulous Friday — More Paper Goodness

My last post showed how I took a bunch of scrapbook papers from Close To My Heart and used them to cover a book. But I had scraps left. What’s a gal to do? I could simply store the scraps (where they would languish with my OTHER scraps!) or use them all up. So I used them! Here are the results: (all decorative papers are from Close To My Heart Stella collection)

(all stamped images: Close To My Heart, stamped in Lagoon; frame is Spellbinders; friendship sentiment is punched using a McGill punch)

(woman and sentiment from Hero Arts)

(purse, sentiment from Skipping Stones; ribbon from Close To My Heart.)

(Everything from Close To My Heart.)

(stamps by Hero Arts.)

Here’s a little inking tip. These Ink Blushers from Tsukineko (rebranding itself as Imagine Crafts) is a soft, dense sponge that is great for inking edges. I love the feel, and the ink application is easy to control. This definiely qualifies as a Fabulous Find!

Have a Fabulous Friday!

Paper Paper Everywhere

I love paper. I love the colors, the textures, the possibilities. The trouble is, I love paper so much I’m often afraid to use it. So I have piles of paper. This week I decided to change that. I decided to use some stash!

And I found the perfect surface — this mini book from Close To My Heart:

The papers are from the Close To My Heart My Recollections Stella collection.

Here’s what I did with it:

A closer look at the closure flap:

And the inside pages:

It still needs to be decorated, but it’s ready when I am! A little tidbit …. I made the paper a bit too snug on the flap of the book, so I used this great weight from *HeavyWeights TM  to make it bend to my will. These weights, made for book binders, are a little pricey, but are so useful. I used to stick my cards under books and bricks and other miscellaneous items, but these are much better.  I especially like the flexible weights.

But back to my paper. Here’s what I had leftover:

Tempting though it was to save the scraps, I was determined to use them so I didn’t have to put them away! Come back Friday to see what I did with the leftovers.

Thanks for stopping by.

(*Disclaimer: I received complimentary HeavyWeights to review for Crafts ‘n things magazines, when I wrote about book binding.)

Fabulous Finds Friday — Random Cards & Pretty Paper

Last week I played with some wonderful baby paper from Graphic 45. This week, I tore into another pack, a little funkier. Here’s a quick card (I puposely did not add a sentiment because I have a few possible uses for it.):

(butterfly paper, Graphic 45; background stripes by Hero Arts; butterfly stamp, Layers of Color; scallop border punch, Stampin’ Up!; text on border, Stampers Anonymous.)

Next up is a card using a stamp from LaBlanche, makers of the beautifully etched white silicone stamps.

The silver cardstock (from Wausau) was run through my Spellbinders Grand Calibur using a Cuttlebug folder that I bought before Christmas but never used — I love it! I had a piece of scrap paper that had been sprayed with two colors of Clearsnap’s Smooch Spritz. I stamped and embossed the ship (black ink, clear powder) on the scrap. I rounded the corners and layered it on black before mounting the whole thing to the card. The sentiment (Hero Arts) was stamped and black embossed, then trimmed and mounted using foam tape.

Here’s anothere use of the ship stamp (I’m not really fond of this card, but am sharing it anyway!) It needs a sentiment on the bottom!

Thanks so much for stopping by! Next week I will show a variety of cards — and a mini book! — made with papers from Close To My Heart.

Fabulous Finds Friday — Embossing & Fragments

Here are two Fab Finds from Stampendous!:

The top jar is Embossing Enamel, a thick, textured embossing powder. At first, I wasn’t sure I’d like it because it’s so chunky. But it worked surprisingly well with this thin-lined stamp from Hero Arts, giving the image a nice steam-punked look:

Because the powder is so thick, it’s best to heat it from underneath, rather than above, as you would normal embossig powder. Here’s another cool technique — add a big layer of powder, melt, then stamp into it with a solid stamp (ink your stamp first with clear embossing ink, such as VersaMark):

Let the powder cool before pulling out the stamp. Dontcha love the gold specks?

The other jars, the Fragments, are colored mica bits that add a nice touch of texture without the traditional mica shine. Here’s a little somethin’ I whipped up just to experiment:

I used a layer of thick white glue then added the fragments, pressing them gently into the glue.

Thanks for stopping by!