RAK

Dont' forget that you have until tomorrow - Wednesday to head on over to ScrapFIT and enter a challenge to have your name put into the hat for my RAK, these cute little flowers I crocheted:

You can leave a comment here letting me know which Workouts or Warm Ups you entered and you'll get one entry for each.

Current ScrapFIT

Workouts:

#49 Put A Banner On It ~ Enter by August 31

#50 Be Inspired by a Book ~ Enter by August 31

Weekend Warm Up:

#12 Scallops ~ Enter by September 2

I have been asked to give a pattern for my little flowers. I will start by saying I just dabble in very simple crochet. I actually took a couple different patterns and played around with them to get these flowers. Here is my attempt to give you a pattern for them.

I used size 10 bamboo crochet thread and a size 3 (2.10 mm) crochet hook.

Crochet Flower Pattern:

Start with a Base Adjustable Ring (directions below)

Make 2 more chain stitches, then into your ring,: 5(1Hdc, 2 ch) Now pull your base adjustable ring to take up all the slack, then slip stitch into first set of chain stitches you started with.  (second chain from the top) This connects your first row, making a little ring.

Then for next row:

Around first set of chain stitches (Don’t stitch into the threads of the chains, but all the way around the entire chain.) 1 Hdc, 2Dc, 1Hdc, then Sc into Hdc from first row, repeat around the circle to make your 6 petal daisy. 

These instructions for the base adjustable ring came from Applehead.

If anyone is a master crochet artist and you have ideas for better wording in my pattern, please let me know. :-)

~ Blessings ~

Rollicking Fun Memories ~ Reveal Day at The Stamping Scrapper

These photos of Elizabeth and Maria pushing each other around in a barrel are so much fun! I haven't had the time to write up my normal blog notes, but hopefully can have more details and a flower tutorial posted by Monday.


It's reveal day at The Scrapping Stamper. Here is my take on Shannon's fun and fabulous sketch:

Now for Shannon's Sketch, which I turned on its side:

Thanks for stopping by!

~ Blessings~

L'entree ~ ScrapFIT Reveal Workout #50 Book Cover Inspiration

It's reveal day at ScrapFIT for Workout #50 ~ book cover inspiration.

After the 9/11 tragedy, our home education was modified to accomodate our children's interest in New York. Because both sets of Gary's grandparents had immigrated through Ellis Island, that became a focal point of our studies. In June of 2002, we had the opportunity to take the ferry through New York Harbor and toured Ellis Island in person. This layout includes some photos taken that day. 

Now that you've seen my layout, here is the challenge:

Workout #50 - Be Inspired By A Book!

I love books, especially kids books! They are great for little minds and they can also be great to spark your crafty creativity! Use the book cover below to inspire your next layout! Use the design of the cover, the color, or the vintage vibe - be creative!

In all honesty, I was a bit perplexed when I first saw this book cover. But, the more I look, the more inspiration I see. I decided to go with the ironwork light pole and French as my inspiration. Thus the ironwork light pole and French title. If you look closely, the background paper's script is in French as well. 

Just look at all the different types of inspiration here: Retro, Color, Fire Truck, Couple holding hands, City Life, City Sky Scape, Layout Design, Cafe, and I'm sure you can find more. Pick an inspiration and have fun joining the ScrapFIT Workout.

The winner of this challenge will receive this gorgeous prize sponsored by Precocious Paper ~ Summer Twilight Sampler a fabulous selection of handcrafted goodies. Click on the photo for more wonderful details:

Now head on over to ScrapFIT to see the fabulous inspiration layouts put together by our design team!

Techniques:

1) Rub a bit of Pitch Black alcohol ink onto metal embellishments to give them some age.

2) I found out that grungepaper does NOT hold up to a heat tool - it warps and shrinks, but you can give it some texture by applying a thick coat of gesso before painting. Be sure the gesso is dry before painting.

3) To dress up lace, add some hand stitching. I added a small french knot to the center of each flower on the lace.

Chipboard Close-ups:

Bronzed Chipboard and Crackle Chipboard tutorial:

Here are the supplies you will need for this technique:

~ Chipboard

~ Gesso

~ Brown Metallic or Bronze Metallic Paint

~ Perfect Pearls in Perfect Bronze, Cappuccino, and Biscotti (Optional)

~ Crackle Accents (Sorry I just noticed that I put glossy accents in the photo.)

Studio G or other black glitter glue (Clear glue with black glitter) I wouldn't use black diamond stickles for this because it has silver glitter mixed in. I don't have black soot stick distress stickles, but if the glitter is only black, that would work. I have Walnut Stain distress stickles, and that looks like it would work as well.

~ Distress Ink in Black Soot, Walnut Stain, and Pumice Stone with foam applicators (I used make up wedges.)

~ Assorted paint brushes

~ Heat Tool

~ Tweezers (optional)

~ Misting bottle (only needed if you use Perfect Pearls)

~ Not Pictured - glass or other heat resistant surface

Step 1:

Paint the chipboard you will be finishing in bronze with a thick coat of gesso, in this case, the flourish. I applied the gesso with a paint brush in one coat - very thick and kind of gloppy. 

The butterfly will be finished with crackle, so I painted a thinner smooth coat of gesso ~ it may take two coats to get full coverage.

Set aside your crackle piece to dry.

Step 2:

While the gesso is still wet, use your heat tool to heat the piece(s) or portion of chipboard that you want in a bronze finish. If your crackle and bronze is all part of one piece, just heat the portion that will be bronze, being careful not to heat the portion you will be applying crackle medium to.

Heat the gesso until it bubbles up as much as you want. If part of it doesn't bubble enough, just paint on some more gesso and heat again until you get the look you want. Once it cools down a little (make sure it is cool enough not to burn you, but still warm and pliable), with your fingers, pop down any bubbles that don't collapse on their own. If your gesso makes a kind of tunnel, just push it down as well, or break it off and push down the edges to smooth them out. This is a very forgiving technique. If you don't like a portion, just play with it until it looks right. You can see in my next photo that I did some more molding with my fingers before I painted the gesso chipboard.

For my sign, I heated just the ironwork portion - the sign I left unheated so it would be smooth for the crackle finish. I just didn't point the heat tool toward that part of the chipboard, and didn't worry if the "ironwork" was  bubbled all the way to the sign.

Step 3:

I'm not sure if it is clear in these photos, but the perfect pearls, add more of a metallic shine and shimmer to the chipboard. Totally optional. I first brushed on the Perfect Bronze, then over that brushed on some Cappuccino. Perfect pearls contains a binder that is activated by water, so once you have the perfect pearls brushed on, mist with some water - shown in the second photo. After spritzing, I blotted it dry with paper towels.

Step 4:

Use a foam applicator to rub Distress ink over the chipboard. First I rubbed on Walnut Stain, then followed that up with Black Soot. Don't try to cover the entire chipboard piece, because you want the bronze to come through. Just rub into the crevices and wipe off the excess. I'd say start with a light hand and then darken more a little at a time as desired. 

Step 5:

Now brush on some black glitter glue. I used Studio G, but any clear glue with black glitter will work. As mentioned in the supplies, I would NOT use black diamond stickles, because I don't want silver sparkle here, just some black to settle into the crevices to give some more age. The Black Soot Stickles might work. I haven't tried them, but if the glitter chunks are black in a clear glue medium, they should work.


This photo doesn't look a lot different from the previous one, but trust me, in peson the black glitter really adds a lot of age/grunge, that isn't showing up in this photo.

Step 6: 

Now let's finish up the crackle part.

Once the gesso is dry to the touch, paint the edges of the chipboard with the brown or bronze metallic paint, then with a nearly dry brush, pull some of the paint onto the edges of the gesso. Then when that is dry, rub some Pumice Stone Distress Ink around the edges for a shadow effect. If you happen to get some paint in the middle where it doesn't belong (Go ahead, ask me how I know?? :-) just paint some gesso over it.

I forgot one step that I did for my sign in the layout. I wanted an aged slightly yellowed look, so I rubbed Biscotti Perfect Pearls onto the gesso and then misted with water. I don't have a photo of this so you'll just have to use your imagination! :-) You could also use a pale yellow or cream paint over the gesso or rub a similar color ink over the gesso to get the color you are looking for. I wanted a bit of shimmer as well as the color, so that is why I chose the perfect pearls for my sign.

Step 7:

Once everything is dry to touch, squeeze a generous coat of Crackle Accents over the chipboard you want to crackle. I start at one side and carefully go back and forth until the entire piece is covered. If you get any bubbles, take the point of a needle and carefully draw the bubble to the edge where it can be eliminated. It will take several hours or over night for the Crackle Accents to fully dry. It cracks as it dries. You will see cracks forming at the edges at first, then slowly across the entire piece as it continues to dry. Cool isn't it?

RAK Opportunity:

Don't forget. If you a follower, complete a ScrapFIT Workout or Weekend Warm Up in August, and comment to let me know on my "Today" post, you'll get you're name in the hat for my RAK, a dozen of these little crocheted flowers that I made. I'll put your name in the hat for each project you complete, just be sure to leave a comment for each one. (Or one comment telling me all of the Workouts you completed.)

Paper:

My Mind's Eye ~ Lost and Found - Union Square "Beautiful Day: Paris

My Mind's Eye ~ Lost and Found - Union Square "Home Sweet Home: Collage

My Mind's Eye ~ Bella Bella - French Flea Market

Ellis Island Post Card and Ship Recored Images Printed from the Internet 

Idea-ology ~ Grungepaper

Embellishments:

Creek Bank Creations ~ chipboard sign post ~ 12 x 12 chipboard set - Light and Swirls

Creative Imaginations ~ Blank Chipboard Shapes ~ Marah Johnson (flourishes)

Vintage Sheet Music ~ From vintage hymn book in my stash

Idea-ology ~ Word Sticks

Idea-ology ~ Word Keys

Lace ~ from my stash

Metal Letters ~ from my stash

Queen and Co. ~ Chocoloate Delight Pearls

Floral Corner ~ Yard Sale Find

Technique Products:

Liquitex ~ Gesso

Ranger Distress Ink ~ Pumice Stone, Black Soot, Walnut Stain

Ranger Perfect Pearls ~ Perfect Bronze, Cappuccino, Biscotti

DMC Embroidery Floss ~ #931

Studio G Glitter Glue ~ Black

Ranger Inkssentials ~ Crackle Accents

DecoArt Dazzling Metallics Paint - Metallic Glaze ~ Renaissance Brown

Tools:

Tonic Studios ~ Paper Distresser

Scotch Advanced Tape Glider

Darice ~ Heat Tool

Basic Grey ~ Precision File Set

Gazelle to cut Photo Mat, Thread Piercing Guide, and Title

I've entered this at:

Scrapbook Sisters ~ Anything goes

Thanks for stopping by and leaving a comment. I so appreciate your feedback! Let me know what you think of my tutorial.

~ Blessings ~

Today . . . I met you for the first time. Reveal for ScrapFIt Challenge #49 Put A Banner On It!

I am so excited! This is my first FITgirl layout. I had so much fun creating this page for my scrapping friend who recently gave birth to a precious and beautiful daughter.

ScrapFIT Challenge #49 ~ Put A Banner On It!

Banners of all kinds have become popular in the scrapbooking world. They can be pre-made or hand made, big or small. You can showcase your title on it or just decorate it to go with your layout. Let's see how you showcase your banner creativity!

Here is my example for you:

Look at the fabulous prize sponsored by Precocious Paper going to the winner of this challenge:

Before I get to the close-ups and details I normally share about my layouts, I have some exciting news!

To celebrate having the honor of being a FITgirl, I'm offering a little RAK this month. If you are already one of my followers, or become one, and complete any of the ScrapFIT challenges or Weekend Warm Ups in August, I'll put your name in the hat for a RAK ~ a dozen of my hand crocheted little flowers (yes, created by me) made of bamboo thread, so they can be dyed with your scrapbooking inks to coordinate with your page.  For each ScrapFIT Challenge/Warm Up you complete your name gets put in the hat. To be eligible:

~ Follow my blog

~ Complete and link your layout on the ScrapFIT blog

~ Leave a comment(s) here on this post telling me which challenge(s) you completed.

Feel free to post my RAK on your blog, but you do not need to in order to be eligible.

I'll be announcing the winner of my RAK on September 1.

I'll be adding a photo of the flowers later on, and if I get enough responses, I just might add on to my RAK, so be sure to check back. 

Techniques:

1) I created the two rose color flowers based on tutorials from the oh so talented Paulien Van de Bosch posted here and here at My Creative Scrapbook. I made some modifications, most notably to the lolipop flower. I cut circles from cardstock using my circle cutter every 1/4 inch from 1 inch to 3 inches and used them as a rough pattern to cut the circles of fabric. I dyed every other fabric circle a deeper shade of rose to give more dimension. As you can see my flower center is simply a dollop of Fabri-Tac topped with microbeads, and to the edges of the petals, I applied Art Institute glue and sprinkled with microfine glitter. 

The center of the petal flower is made of glass pebbles colored with alcohol ink and again adhered with a dollop of Fabri-Tac. I dabbed Fabri-Tac on the edges of each petal one at a time and sprinkled with Diamond Dust.

2) I purchased the crocheted doily at a craft store and used a foam make-up applicator to apply a light touch of rose distress ink to the outside edges. I wanted a delicate look, so I stitched the wispy lace to the back of the doily so that the long wisps would extend out beyond the doily.

3) The Bank Creek chipboard flourish was painted with gesso, then when dry, coated heavily with white puffy paint. On my first try I didn't use enough puffy paint, so ended up scraping it off and starting over again. Let the puffy paint dry at least an hour, then heat it with a heat tool until it starts to puff up like a marshmallow roasted over a fire. I wanted a bit of brown, so kept the heat tool on the puffy paint, until the edges of it turned a slight golden brown. To get the shimmer, I painted the puffed up paint with iridescent medium. I cut the flourish in half to use on both sides of my flowers.

4) I took a clear rhinestone flourishe and applied rose alcohol ink with a very fine tip paint brush. I put a drop or two of alcohol ink on my craft mat, and used my brush to apply the ink to each rhinestone. It's really not as time consuming as it sounds.

5) This isn't really a technique, but I had to point out the two white vintage buttons from my stash. They are kind of on the unattractive side sitting by themselves, but look so pretty on this page! I used wire cutters to remove the shank from the back, then sanded what was left with my Basic Grey files.

6) The journal block was cut from plain white cardstock, then I used a foam pad to rub several colors of Distress ink over it in a circular motion to get the color I needed. Use a craft mat or piece of wax paper and start rubbing on the mat and pull the foam onto the block to avoid square foam marks on your journal block. Distress inks do blend, so you can get such depth and color variations with them. I just experimented on a scrap until I found the combination and order to achieve the color I wanted. Once I colored the block, I used pumice stone distress ink on the edges to give it a little pop against a similarly colored background. 

7) My letters were cut from scraps of the background papers. To darken them and make them sparkle, I used a paint brush to apply stickles. I also applied stickles to the outer, pink portion of the banner flags. This gives the appearance of glitter paper, but is so much easier to cut! Painted on stickles dry much more quickly than thick dots of stickles.

If you plan to complete a banner layout, head on over to Scrap-Friendzy too. I just posted a recipe challenge there using my "Today" layout for an example. Here are the ingredients for the recipe:

Banner

Glitter or stickles (on my flowers)

At least 8 of something (9 flowers)

Something liquid (Puffy Paint, Gesso, Iridescent Medium)

Distress (around the circle and large square mats)

A handmade by you element (rose color flowers)

*** the items in the ( ) are the examples I used in my layout. You can choose anything that fits the ingredient for your page. 

You can create one LO for both of these challenges!

Paper:

My Mind's Eye ~ Laundry Line Stack ~ 4 sheets

Green CS ~ from my stash

White Card Stock scrap ~ from my stash

Embellishments:

Darice ~ 10 inch doily

Creek Bank Creations ~ chipboard flourish ~ 12 x 12 chipboard set - Light and Swirls

White Vintage Buttons ~ from my stash

Queen & Co ~ Pearls ~ Sunflower Yellow

Colorbok ~ Rhinestone Accents Adhesive Flourishes ~ Nocturne

My Mind's Eye Baker's Twine ~ Lime Twist, Out of the Blue "Smile"

Teal Feathers ~ gift from my scrappy friend, Thanks Kelly!

Petaloo Floral Embelishments ~ Chantilly Collection Mixed Blooms x 6 - blue/green

Petaloo Floral Embelishments ~ Velvet Hydrangeas ~ blue

Whispy Lace ~ Hobby Lobby purchase

Technique Products:

Glass Pebbles ~ found in floral department

Martha Stewart ~ Metallic Glass Microbeads ~ Florentine Gold

Floracraft ~ Diamond Dust Twinklets 

Crystal Glitter Ritz ~ MicroFine Glitter ~ Cool Highlight

Liquitex ~ Gesso

Tulip Puffy Paint ~ white

Windsor & Newton ~ Water Colour Iridescent Medium

Ranger Distress Ink ~ Pumice Stone, Victorian Velvet, Tattered Rose, Tumbled Glass, Bundled Sage, Stormy Sky, Pine Needles

Ranger Alcohol Ink ~ Butterscotch

Tulip Puffy Paint ~ white

Ranger Perfect Pearls ~ Plum

Ranger Stickles ~ Patina, Fruit Punch

Y & C Gel Xtreme 0.7 Gel Pen ~ Gold

Crinkle Organza, Ivory ~ from my stash

Art Institute Glue for glitter ~ clear

Fabri-Tac

Tools:

Martha Stewart ~ large circle cutter

Fiskars ~ circle cutter (small)

Darice ~ Decorative Scissors

Tonic Studios ~ Paper Distresser

Scotch Advanced Tape Glider

Darice ~ Heat Tool

Basic Grey ~ Precision File Set

Gazelle to cut Journal block and Title

Font ~ Mauritius Becker ~ from the internet

Now, be sure to head on over to ScrapFIT to take a look at the other DT examples and get inspired to join us in creating a banner LO, card, or project. You have until the end of August to complete an link your project. I can't wait to see YOUR work.

While you're there be sure to check out the Weekend Warm Up challenge to use those border punches and be in the running to be a featured artist at ScrapFIT! You have until this Friday, August 5 to enter your border punch project.

I have entered this in:

Bird is the Word ~ Today Challenge: I enjoy playing here, so when designing my LO, I took a peak at the current challenge words. When I saw the word "Today" I knew it was the perfect title to begin my journaling for this page. "Today . . . I met you for the very first time."

The Shabby Tea Room ~ Week 73 Mix and Match: Photo inspiration and use at least 3 different patterned papers. I used 4 patterned papers and was inspired by the photo's shabby chic style and colors!

Thanks so much for stopping by. I treasure your comments. 

Don't forget to come back and leave a comment each time you link a project for a ScrapFIT challenge in August for a chance to win my hand crocheted flowers. (Please leave a comment even if you're not participating in a challenge. Your feedback is such an encouragement to me.)

~ Blessings ~