Blessed - Australian Scrapbook Ideas #20

The latest Australian Scrapbook Ideas magazine is out and here's the first of my layouts for them this issue.  I did a Masterclass on the Rule of Thirds, a principal I always seem to use, even unknowingly.

I've been going through the magazine daily since I got my copy in the mail... it's fabulous, getting better and better.  So many wonderful ideas to incorporate into your own style!

I've used lots of Green Tara Flowers and Handmade Halo Resin and Dew Drops on this one, and all those fabulous pinky peach tones, sigh... love girly girly sometimes!

Lots of sweet Dusty Attic chippy as well... painted and inked and covered in glitter {there's a little tutorial on how in the magazine}.

Love the tones in these papers... 

More closeups... lots of deliciousness!!

Thanks for visiting today, I hope this inspires you!

You can find the full materials list and step by step instructions for this layout in Issue #20 of Australian Scrapbook Ideas.

Be Happy - Donna Salazar Designs

Hi everyone... today I have a layout I created for Mandy of her sweet daughter Brooklyn!

When I printed the photo out, these Botanique and Spring in Bloom papers were a perfect match for the wall behind her, helping her gorgeous profile shine!

I have used some of Donna's Chipboard Swirls underneath the flower cluster and used some Wonderful Wings Bling over a butterfly cut from canvas using Donna's Wonderful Wings Die from Spellbinders.

And I stamped... again!  I'm loving Donna's new Mix'd Media Inx Chox, they dry instantly with such a beautiful velvety finish.  I have used Donna's 'Flowers' Stamp 1st with Driftwood Chox and then again, offset, with Sparrow Chox.  The 'Flowers' Stamp matches the Shadow Flowers Die beautifully.

This large flower was created using Donna's Grand Peony Die from Cardstock, and the edges inked with Wisteria Mix'd Media Inx.

Thanks for visiting!  

I hope you have wonderful New Year celebrations, take care and stay safe, see you next year!

www.mistrabutterfly.blogspot.com

Products used:

Patterned Paper

GCD Botanique

GCD Spring in Bloom

Chipboard

Want 2 Scrap Designer Embellies - Hand Drawn Swirls

Flowers

Green Tara 2cm Roses

Recollections Paper & Resin Flowers

Silver Flowers - Unknown

Bling

Want 2 Scrap Wonderful Wings

Colour

Clearsnap Mix'd Media Inx Chox - Driftwood, Sparrow

Clearsnap Mix'd Media Inx - Wisteria

Clearsnap Smooch Spritz - Mixed Berries

Stamps

Stampers Anonymous - Flowers

Dies

Spellbinders - Wonderful Wings, Girlie Grunge Labels, Rose Creations, Grand Peony Creations, Shadow Flowers, Romantic Rectangles.

Tools

Spellbinders Grand Calibur

Zutter Distrezz It All

Other

Want 2 Scrap Canvas

Clearsnap Fairy Dust Glitter - Mixed Berries

Clearsnap Glue Gloss

DMC Perle Embroidery Floss

Tool Caddy

Jen at Dusty Attic has created a fabulous paint caddy for all the new paints that are coming out... but I'm using mine for my go to tools and adhesives, and some paints... it holds a lot!

I have covered the caddy with Donna Salazar's Spring in Bloom 'White Roses' paper, with the internal part covered in Grandma's Garden paper {the reverse of the Garden Journal Cards}.

One side has the word 'enough' on it... it's a word I chose to hang onto and remind myself of this year, after my hubby gave up work I went into the usual panic mode that accompanies losing half your income each year.  But realising that I have 'enough' is getting me through, helping me to relax a little over our finances and enjoy the blessings we do have, and when you focus on that... you realise you often have more than enough! 

One side I stencilled brickwork with modelling paste, then sprayed it with Smooch Spritz.  Then I added some cute washi tape  to the corners.  The colour was a little dark so I added a light sponging of white paint over the top to help it blend in.

This is my word  that I've been using for a few years now... breathe, to remind myself to breathe when stressed, because I actually hold my breathe when stressed out and then get all dizzy!  

I added some handmade flowers, as well as some Dusty in Bloom, Kaiser and Recollections ones.  The handmade flowers were cut with Donna Salazar's Peony Creations Dies, I love the ruffled edges of these.

Among the flowers I've tucked in chipboard flourishes and butterflies.  All the chipboard was painted with white paint and then sprayed with Smooch Spritz... keeping the colour tones all alike.

I so love these new butterflies from Dusty Attic, simply gorgeous!

More closeup snippets...

Products Used:

Patterned Paper

GCD Studios Spring in Bloom - White Roses

Donna Salazar Grandma's Garden - Garden Journal Cards

Chipboard

Dusty Attic Bookman Alpha Set

Dusty Attic Flutterbies #3

Dusty Attic Mini Scrolls

Dusty Attic Corner Flourish #2
Dusty Attic MDF Paint Caddy

Flowers

Dusty in Bloom - Grassy Knoll

Kaiser Paper Blooms - Sage

Recollections Flowers - White

Recollections Resin Flowers - White

Bling

Want2Scrap BYOB

Colour

Clearsnap Smooch Spritz - River Mossy, Ice Rink, Mossy Mist

Dusty in Colour - Alabaster

Other

Gauze, Washi Tape
Mont Marte Modelling Paste

Love my Jeans - Donna Salazar Designs

Hi everyone!  Today I have a fun layout I created about my jeans!  I LOVE these jeans, I bought them when holidaying in the US, while shopping with Natasha... so not only are they cool {because they have rips and tears, and wear marks AND bling}, they have lasting memories with them as well.

I made some flowers with Donna's Rose Creations Die and used the watercolour paper and kraft labels from the Mix'd Media Stax.  Once cut out the watercolour papers were inked with Patina or Denim Mix'd Media Inx on the edges and the kraft labels sprinkled with Fairy Dust.  I was worried how the Fairy Dust would hold up on the labels after I wet the layers, squished them and then used the heat gun, but they kept their sparkle!!

How cute is this pocket?  It's one of Donna's new Dies - Pockets and Swirls Set - and the stitch marks are pressed into it, sew it's easy to sew!  I inked the die with Denim Mix'd Media Inx and used the embossing mat and plate on the Grand Calibur to 'print' the pocket outline.  Afterwards I then lightly brushed over some Patina Mix's Media Inx, hand sewed the detail and added some bling. 

This pic shows one of the Swirls from the die set, it's a sweet one, just perfect for tucking in behind a flower cluster.  I've also popped in some sweet roses, cherry blossoms and heirloom flowers from Green Tara to accent my handmade flowers.

And I was so excited to actually use Donna's Alpha's Dies, with the printed Botanique Alphas and the GCD Compatibles chipboard Alphas... LOL yeah I know, it's not a new thing but I've not used the 3 together yet and it was so easy!  I also used some of the words from Donna's Snapshot Die set to add to the title line.

I really had fun with this layout... I always do playing with Donna's designs, I think perhaps because she uses so many wonderful visual textures in her papers - like the denim print I have used from the Story Book Collection.

Thanks for visiting, until next time take care and be true to you.

Products Used:

Patterned Paper:

GCD Studios Botanique Collection - Family Portraits, Grandmas Pearls, Alphas

GCD Studios Story Book Collection - Fido

Flowers:

Green Tara Cherry Blossoms, Roses, Heirloom Flowers

Ink:

Clearsnap Mix'd Media Inx - Patina, Denim

Dies:

Spellbinders Donna's Alphas, Rose Creations, Pockets & Swirls

Tools/Machines:

Spellbinders Grand Calibur

Zutter Distrezz-it-All

Other:

Clearsnap Fairy Dust Glitter - Mixed Berries

ZVA Rhinestone Lines

Delish Rhinestones, Jute String

White Paper Doily, Invoice Sheet, White Tag

Handmade Holidays Blog Hop - Clearsnap

Welcome to Clearsnap's 2nd Annual Handmade Holidays Blog Hop!!!

Calling all crafters! Clearsnap have gathered designers from some of their favorite manufacturers to show you ways to create something from the heart this holiday season. This 3 day Hop (Nov.16 - Nov.18) includes over 60 stops with inspiration brimming from every corner. Explore all of the thoughtful and frugal handmade gifts you could create for the holidays, all in one place, during their second annual Handmade Holidays Blog Hop!

To sweeten the Hop, Clearsnap are offering a gift for you! For every comment you leave on the blogs in the Hop, you’ll be entered to win a prize pack from one of the participating manufacturer sponsors! Use the Rafflecopter widget on the Clearsnap blog to gain extra entries each day: http://clearsnap.blogspot.com

Visit the list of blogs below and leave a comment on each by Nov 27, 2012 at 11:59 PM PST. Each day of the hop Clearsnap will be sharing a brand new list of blogs with brand new projects for you to explore, be inspired by, and create from!

Clearsnap – http://clearsnap.blogspot.com
Hampton Art - http://blog.hamptonart.com/
Graphic45 – http://g45papers.typepad.com/
Fiskateers - www.fiskateers.com/blog
Donna Salazar Designs – http://donnasalazar.typepad.com/
Tombow USA – http://blog.tombowusa.com/
Authentique Paper - http://authentiquepaper.blogspot.com/
The Twinery - http://www.thetwineryblog.com/
Eileen Hull for Sizzix - http://eileenhull.blogspot.com/
Globecraft Memories – http://globecraftmemories.blogspot.com
Dana Warren - Hampton Art - http://kraftpaperstamps.blogspot.com/
Steph Ackerman – Globecraft Memories - www.stephaniescraps.blogspot.com
Arlene Cuevas – Graphic 45 -  http://butterflykisseswithlove.blogspot.com/
Susan Lui – Graphic 45 -  http://luv2scrap-pages.blogspot.com/
Ashley Bores – The Twinery - http://www.heartmadelife.com/
Mistra Hoolahan – Donna Salazar Designs - http://mistrabutterfly.blogspot.com ***YOU ARE HERE
Nina Yang - Hampton Art - http://waffleflower.com/ ***THIS IS YOUR NEXT STOP
Angie Blom – Authentique Paper - http://angieblomdesigns.blogspot.com/
Denise Hahn – Clearsnap – http://inmyblueroom.blogspot.com
Stephenie Hamen – Fiskateers - www.mycraftyadventures.com
Guiseppa Gubler – Authentique Paper - http://guiseppagubler.blogspot.com/
Jessica Fick – The Twinery - http://iembellish.blogspot.com/

I created this for a work colleague.  I wanted to get her something special to say thanks for her kindness in helping me out lately but couldn't think what... and then I thought I could make her something... and created this little wall hanging. 

I tried to keep all the tones neutral because I wasn't familiar with her home decor, but it needed just that little splash of red {lucky guess, it's her fave colour!}

I used a 5x7 canvas board as my base for this and added a thin coat of Fiber Paste and then placed a vintage crocheted doily over the top.  Then I added more Fiber Paste and sprayed it with Clearsnap's Smooch Spritz and set it aside to dry.  If you don't have Fiber Paste you could use moulding paste or texture paste for a similar effect.

I painted the chipboard scrolls white and then spritzed them with Smooch Spritz in Tea Party and Gingersnap and dried with a heat tool.  When dry, I used  Clearsnap's Glue Gloss randomly and sprinkled Clearsnaps Fairy Dust Glitter for that extra shimmer.

After positioning the chipboard I then added clusters of Flowers, Bling and Butterflies and added some bows.

The butterflies were cut from canvas with Donna Salazars Wonderful Wings die from Spellbinders, and the bling from Want2Scrap is made especially to match... love it!

The red cherry blossoms were originally white, I just spritzed them with some of Clearsnap's Holly Berries and Tea Party Smooch Spritz to get the perfect colour I needed.

Lastly I added a quote which I had printed onto some patterened paper, adhered to some thin chipboard and then cut out.  The edges were inked with Clearsnap Mix'd Media Inx.

Product List:

Clearsnap SmoochSpritz - Caranel Latte, Gingersnap, Holly Berries, Tea Party
Clearsnap Mix'd Media Inx - Honey
Clearsnap Glue Gloss
Clearsnap Fairy Dust Glitter - Pralines 'n Cream

Want2Scrap Canvas, Wonderful Wings Bling and BYOB

Spellbinders Wonderful Wings Die

Green Tara Roses, Cherry Blossoms, Gardenias, Tutu and Poppy

Dusty Attic Chipboard Scroll

Green Tara Natural Jute Ribbon

5x7 Flat Canvas

Vintage Doily

Golden Fiber Paste

Cheers to creating gifts from the heart this holiday season!

Happy Hopping!

A Promise Wall Hanging - Green Tara

Lately I am loving creating these little wall hangings!  They are such fun, just getting to make mess, adding beautiful lace, trims, flowers, chippy... letting it create itself, the process for me is absolute pleasure!

This one was inspired from a saying on a little notebook I was given, it was such a perfect verse.

I used an old vintage doily that my grandmother made as the base, then covered it and the canvas in Golden Fiber Paste.  Then while wet it was sprayed with Smooch Spritz and some LSG Starburst Stains... I love letting it sit overnight and seeing how the colours settled overnight.

Then I created a huge bouquet of lavender, pink and white flowers, all from Green Tara... the tones and shapes all blend together so beautifully.   

Green Tara butterflies were added to flutter all over the hanging...

Bows and Bling...the coloured jute ribbon always ties a perfect bow and the silk flowers with swarovski crystals add such an elegant touch.

...and gorgeous Dusty Attic chipboard completes it perfectly.

The chipboard was painted white, spritzed with mixed berries smooch spritz and then finished off with some Fairy Dust glitter {because all good wall hangings need to have some sparkle!} 

Green Tara Products used:

Flowers

 8cm Camellia - Lilac

5cm Sakura Silk and Pearl - Lilac XF9221L

4cm Heirloom - Pale Pink XF9317PP

2cm Roses - White FDR009Wh

3cm Silk Flowers with Swarovski Crystal Centres - Pale Pink SDPPL60

3 Layer Gardenia - Lilac FDV054L

4cm Apple Blossoms - White FDV044Wh

Cherry Blossoms - White FLC22Wh

Ribbons

Satin Leaf Garland - White - RB573AWh 

 Coloured Jute Ribbon 25mm White RB407Wh

 

Butterflies

Rainforest Velvet and Organza Butterfly 7cm Lavender XP0746L

Rainforest Velvet and Organza Butterfly 3cm Lavender XP0780L

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

How to become a Stamper {instead of Stamp Collector} - Donna Salazar Designs

This month here at Donna Salazar Designs we're featuring Donna's fabulous stamps.   They are all soooo cool.  Textures and Vintage Images, Script and Butterflies... such beautiful designs, but to feature them means I have to USE them, not collect them!   Yep, the look on my face was priceless... USE the stamps, seriously?  Gulp...

Hi, my name is Mistra Hoolahan and I'm a closet Stamp Collector.   There, I said it... it's out there!!

I love stamps... I have a huge collection!  They all look so pretty in their packaging.  But the thought of stamping on a perfectly good layout terrified me.  What if I stamped wrong?  What if it looked silly?  And so... I start my stamping journey here and now with you all, with some tags... which ended up as cards. 

I'll show you the finished products first, and then I'll share my step by step journey from 'Stamp Collector' to 'Stamper', with 3 simple techniques that any of us could do.

Happiness Is...

A Friend is...

Side by Side...

Growing Up...

I loved stamping on the tags!!  It was easy... true, I'm not kidding.  And it wasn't scary.  I think starting with a simple tag helped.  I feel I can move on now and actually get some stamped images on a layout without having a panic attack before hand!

Simple Stamped Tag {Happiness Is...}

Art Gone Wild Stamp - Bubble Wrap

Mix'd Media Inx - Truffle, Black, Patina, Honey

Clearsnap SmoochSpritz - River Mossy

Large Shipping Tag

Acrylic Block

 Place your stamp onto an acrylic block and ink it with Black Mix'd Media Inx.  I use a Colorbox Stylus and Foam Applicator to transfer the ink from the ink pad to the stamp, I found I got a more even coverage and less waste.

 Position and stamp, using a firm even pressure.  The Mix'd Media Inx are nice and wet and full of pigment so you don't need to press hard {it messes it up if you do, yep, been there done that!}.  I practiced on some messy stock first to get used to how hard I needed to press.  

I found the Mix'd Media Inx usually have enough pigment in them to keep stamping without reloading the ink... so I stamped in 2 more positions to achieve a fading effect.

Do the same again with the Truffle ink and then set the ink by drying if off with a heat gun.

Ink the edges of tag and over parts of the stamped image with Patina and Honey Mix'd Media Inx.  Spray with water to allow the ink to blend and dry off again.

Distress the edges and add a quick spray of River Mossy Smooch Spritz.  Dry it off and it's ready to use!!

Simple Resist Stamping {A Friend Is...}

Art Gone Wild Stamp - Crackle

Mix'd Media Inx - Jasmine

Mix'd Media Inx Embossing - Jasmine

Clearsnap SmoochSpritz - River Mossy, Olive Vine, Caramel Latte

Large Shipping Tag

Acrylic Block

Ink your stamp with Jasmine Mix'd Media Inx and stamp onto a shipping tag.

While the ink is still nice and wet, sprinkle on Jasmine Mix'd Media Inx.  You have time, that's the great thing about Mix'd Media Inx... they stay wet for a while so you don't have to rush.  Using the Mix'd Media Inx also means you don't need to use a clear embossing ink, love this ink so much!! 

Shake off the excess.   I do this on a piece of plain printer paper so that I can easily pour the excess back into the pot.

Activate the embossing powder with a heat tool.  You'll know its done when the powder turns nice and glossy.  Don't over heat it though, the embossing powder can bubble and burn off then!

You can also add more images over the top of the original if you want to, using different colours.  I have done this for "Side by Side" and "Growing Up".

Once the embossing is cooled, distress the edges of the tag.

 Spray the tag with River Mossy, Olive Vine and Caramel Latte Smooch Spritz.

Give it a light spray with water and allow the colours to run...

Dab off excess colour with a baby wipe to allow the stamped and embossed image to show through.   Dry the tag off and it's ready to be used.

Faded Edges {Growing Up...}

Art Gone Wild Stamp - Woodgrain, Butterfly, Branch

Mix'd Media Inx - Jasmine, Truffle, Wisteria

Mix'd Media Inx Embossing - Jasmine, Truffle

Clearsnap SmoochSpritz - SeaKiss, Olive Vine, Caramel Latte

Large Shipping Tag

Acrylic Block

 

This little technique works well if you want to use your stamps which have a defined squared 'finish' to the edges of the image as a 'floating' image on your project.  

First, ink up your stamp with Truffle Mix'd Media Inx. 

Using a baby wipe, gently take away some of the ink from the edges...

...like so.

And stamp away!  The edges are faded, leaving a softer finish.

I've embossed the woodgrain image and then added more resist style stamped images, sprayed with SeaKiss, Olive Vine and Caramel Latte Smooch Spritz.   Lastly I added some isolated colour to the butterfly with Wisteria Mix'd Media Inx.

I hope this helps get other stamp collectors out there stamping!  Now I am over my fear of "huh, how, why... what" I'll be off and running.  There is certainly something satisfying about adding ink to a stamp and having it appear perfectly on your project.  I could say it was latent talent coming to the fore that made these look good, but I'm pretty sure {ok, I'm positive} the quality of the stamps, the fabulous designs and the awesome Mix'd Media Inx were really the key to success!   Now to go learn some new things... I know there's a whole world of stamping out there to be inspired by!!

Until next time, take care and be true to you!

www.mistrabutterfly.blogspot.com

All Products used:

Patterned Paper:
GCD Studios Storybook- Army Men
GCD Studios Antiquities 8x8 Paper Pad
GCD Studios Spring in Bloom 8x8 Paper Pad
GCD Studios Crafty Chronicle Vol.2

Chipboard:
Dusty Attic Mini Ornate Frame

Flowers:
Green Tara Silk Flowers with Swarovski Crystals
Green Tara Paper Roses
Green Tara Heirloom Fabric Flower

Pearls:
Want 2 Scrap Swirls Finesse LeCreme

Bling:
Want 2 Scrap BYOB

Stamps:
Art Gone Wild - BubbleWrap, Woodgrain, Crackle, Cotton Lace, Branch, Butterfly

Ink:
Clearsnap Mix'd Media Inx - Jasmine, Truffle, Patina, Honey, Wisteria, Black

Embossing Powder:
Clearsnap Mix'd Media Inx Embossing - Jasmine, Truffle, Honey

Colour:
Clearsnap Smooch Spritz - Caramel Latte, River Mossy, Olive Vine, SeaKiss

Glitter:
Clearsnap Fairy Dust - Sugar Shimmer

Dies:
Spellbinders Rose Creations

Tools/Machines:
Spellbinders Grand Calibur
Zutter Distrezz-It-All

Other:
Zutter 5x7 Corrugated Board
Green Tara Lace
Green Tara Coloured Jute Ribbon
Green Tara Cobweb Ribbon
Green Tara Mesh Ribbon
Green Tara 2 Tone Trim
Green Tara Skeleton Leaves
Green Tara Decorative Spray
Gauze, DMC Embroidery Thread