Fall Leaves for RRR Fall Leaves Challenge

Fall is in the air here in northeast Ohio. We live atop a large hill in an open field completely surrounded by forest. As I look out my kitchen window each fall day, I see such gorgeous colors that change day by day. The photos on this page were taken just last week, and my view is much different only a mere week later.

These photos are just perfect for the Really Reasonable Ribbon challenge starting today ~ Fall Leaves. I got to combine some of my favorite products on this page including ribbon, lace, cording and WOC flowers from RRR, Clearsnap Smooch Spritz and Mix'd Media Inx by Donna Salazar Designs, 7 Dots Studio 9th Wave collection, Prima Stencils and Helmar Adhesives.

Really Reasonable Ribbon Challenge #82

Fall Leaves 

And of course include some ribbon, lace or cording on your project! 

"Enjoy Fall"

To enter this challenge, create a card, layout, or any handcrafted project. Just be sure to follow the theme and use ribbon, lace, or trim somewhere on your project. 

Really Reasonable Ribbon Products

Seam Binding, White, 1/2"

Jute Rope ~ Natural

May Arts Netting ~ Champagne, 1.5"

Chloe Natural Crochet Lace, 5/8"

Wild Orchid Crafts Mulberry Flowers ~ Sweetheart Blossoms, White

Wild Orchid Crafts Mulberry Flowers ~ Cosmos Daisy Stem Flowers, White

Wild Orchid Crafts Mulberry Flowers ~ Cherry Blossoms

Tombow 3D Foam Tabs

Scor-Tape 6" x 6"

Zutter Bow-it-All

I used the Dusty Attic October Sketch as inspiration for this layout:

Tips and Techniques

I created this beautiful five-loop bow using White Seam Binding and the new Zutter Bow-it-All. this new bow tool is so handy and Bonnie has put together a fabulous video tutorial on making basic bow which can be found here. The Bow-it-All is so easy to use and creates tiny to large bows. I love how quickly I can put together a multi-loop bow and know that all the loops will be nice and uniform in size. There are a few hints to using this tool which Bonnie does a wonderful job explaining. 

After tying the bow, I brushed some Sea Breeze Smooch Spritz across the bow, heavier in some spots than others to get a mottled appearance. Then, I dry brushed the bow in spots with gesso. 

I also dry brushed many of the elements like this metal piece and flowers with more gesso. All the pale blue flowers tucked in around the larger orange flower are white WOC flowers tinted pale blue. A close-up and details follow. 

Bonnie sells a wide variety of gorgeous Wild Orchid Crafts flowers in the Really Reasonable Ribbon Store. I like to keep white flowers in my stash so that I can color them as I did here on this layout. I had a mostly used bottle of Donna Salazar's Sea Breeze Smooch Spritz. I added a little water and poured the colored liquid out onto my craft mat and with a fine tip paint brush, applied to these flowers. (I always save those nearly used up bottles of mist until I get every last drop from them. lol) Of course when dry a bit of gesso was brushed on. 

The rolled flower is created with Natural Jute Rope and the tutorial can be found here. Instead of dabbing with black ink, I brushed on gesso and dabbed with pale blue ink. You can also see the beautiful Chloe Lace I tucked into the layers surrounding the photos. 

 A side view of the focal cluster.

I adore texture and the May Arts Champagne netting was roughly cut along the edge and tucked under the edge of the painted corrugated board and photo. I added some blue ink under the tucked in flowers and butterfly, the netting took this color so beautiful giving a crackle appearance. 

This sweet butterfly came in a Bits and Pieces prize I won from C'est Magnifique earlier this year and is handcrafted by Cathi O'Neill. Yes indeed, I brushed it with the Sea Breeze Smooch as well. 

This Dusty Attic Foliage piece represents my fall leaves. I painted it with Super Heavy Gesso to apply a base of texture. I then brushed on several layers of ink in yellows, golds, orange, and red. It is raised and adhered using Tombow 3D Foam Pads. 

This Dusty Attic Wrought Iron piece is painted in metallic cobalt blue and dry brushed with gesso. Here you can see some of the mixed media background - stamping, molding paste, misting and paint. 

The title was created with the DA UPPER mini ABC chipboard letters on a background cut with Spellbinders Decorative Labels Twenty-Two, then inked. The letters were painted with DA Sunshine acrylic, then dabbed with Mix'd Media Inx. Finally, I sprayed them with Helmar Crystal Kote Glossy Spray to set the color and give a glossy shine. 

I hope you've been inspired to create a project for 

Really Reasonable Challenge #77 ~ Fall Leaves

Be sure to stop by the RRR Blog for all the details and prize information.

The Really Reasonable Ribbon Store is a fabulous place to find that special ribbon or fiber to fit your paper crafting needs! 

Thanks for stopping by! I treasure your comments.

~ Blessings ~

"Men in Black" ~ Really Reasonable June 1 Challenge

If you are here for the ScrapThat! June Kit
Reveal and Blog Hop, please go here.

I enjoy creating grungy masculine pages, and the Really Reasonable Ribbon Challenge #73 gave me the opportunity to put one together. I just adore this photo of Andrew and his groomsmen enjoying those last final moments before the wedding. 

I ordered some of my favorite masculine jutes and burlaps from the

RRR store and the quality is so wonderful! 

The theme for the Really Reasonable Challenge #73 is "Masculine with Ribbon or Trim." 

To enter this challenge, create a card, layout, or any handcrafted project. Just be sure to follow the theme and use ribbon, lace, or trim somewhere on your project.

"Men in Black"

Really Reasonable Ribbon Products:

Burlap Woven Ribbon ~ Natural 1/2"

1.5" Jute Ribbon ~ Natural

Jute String ~ Natural

Black Grosgrain Ribbon 1/4"

Button Grab Bag ~ Natural

Score Tape 6" x 6"

I'm also featuring some Donna Salazar Products on this layout which I will list at the end of my post. Donna's Girly Grunge style (emphasis on grunge) is just perfect for a masculine page. 

Tips and Techniques:

Jute Twine Flowers ~ I used Jute String to create the twine flowers and my tutorial can be viewed here.  I selected buttons from the Natural Button Grab Bag for my flower centers sized so that you can still see the woven stitching. Of course I tied the buttons with some of the Jute String. 

Rolled Burlap Flower ~ I used the Burlap Woven Ribbon to create the smaller burlap flower and some vintage washers and a screw for the center.

Chipboard Flourishes ~ I painted Donna Salazar's card size Hand Drawn Swirls chipboard, then stamped with her "Dear Sir" Stamp and edged with Chox Mix'd Media Inx. 

Textured Flower Background ~ I cut flower petal sections from black card stock using Donna Salazar's Grand Peony Dies just larger than each of the jute/burlap flowers. I then dry embossed using the Tim Holtz Burlap embossing folder. I rubbed the raised portion with a little Faber-Castell Gold Gelato. 

Textured Leaves ~ The leaves are also cut from black cardstock using the Grand Peony leaf dies. I hand creased the leaves where the natural veining would be and colored by dry rubbing with Gelatos. 

Stenciling ~ I used Donna's new Midnight Chox Inx over the TCW Diamond Stencil for a fabulous masculine design over the bricked background. 

Woven Gears ~ My friend, Mandy, gave me these vintage gears and machined pieces that her grandfather had stashed in his basement. I wove them together using Black Grosgrain Ribbon. Aren't they a delightful touch? I cut pieces of Score-Tape to adhere this piece to the page. This strong yet thin tape is perfect to adhere anything from delicate ribbon to heavier metal pieces. 

Layers ~ I love how the photo was taken at an angle. I turned it so the guys are straight and the photo angled. I layered lots of textured pieces at more angles under the photo - More embossed and Gelato'd card stock, grunged DSD Corrugated board, and this delightful Jute Ribbon. 

Gears ~ I used a mix of metal and die cut gears to tuck into the edges of my page and around the cluster. I die cut and embossed black card stock with Donna's Sprightly Sprockets dies and rubbed gold Viva Ink Gold to give the grungy metallic sheen. 

Distressing ~ I used the DSD Distrezz-It-All for all my distressing.

Arrows ~ I mixed black paint into Liquitex Blended Fibers and used Donna's new Want2Scrap Large Arrow Stencil to create these arrows.

You can see more of the grungy layers here and how gorgeous the Jute Ribbon is in the mix. 

Bonnie's natural fiber burlap and jute really take the show on this page. I hope you've been inspired to join us in creating a masculine project for Really Reasonable Ribbon Challenge #73. 

RRR Challenge #73 ~ Masculine with Ribbon or Trim

Be sure to check out the RRR Blog for all the details and prize information.

Donna Salazar Products Used:

Antiquities ~ Steampunk Gentleman; Tags Ribbons, and Mosaics by GCD 

13x13 Corrugated Board by Zutter

Hand Drawn Swirls Chipboard by Want2Scrap

Mix'd Media Inx ~ Truffle by Clearsnap

Mix'd Media Inx Chox ~ Sparrow, Midnight by Clearsnap

8x10 Large Arrows Stencil by Want2Scrap

Dear Sir Stamp by Art Gone Wild

Grand Peony Dies by Spellbinders

Sprightly Sprockets Dies by Spellbinders

Distrezz-It-All by Zutter

Other Products Used:

Black Cardstock

Basic Grey Alphabet Stickers ~ Lime Rickey

Kaisercraft Fonza Alphabet ~ Chocolate

Vintage washers, screw, and machined pieces

Tim Holtz - Mini Paper Clip

Spare Parts - Arrow Photo Turn

Bead Landing Found Parts ~ Gears

Bead Landing Bezels, Frames and Filigree ~ Gears

7Gypsies Vintage Clip ~ Antique Silver

Faber-Castell Gelatos ~ Pistachio, Gold, Black

Tattered Angels Glimmer Mist ~ Cork

Heidi Swapp Color Shine ~ Bronzer

Art@ Gltter Mist Copper

Deco Art Acrylic Paint ~ Black

Deco Art Americana ~ Driftwood

Liquitex Blended Fibers

Viva Inka Gold

Distress Ink ~ Pumice Stone

Tim Holtz Embossing Folders ~ Gridlock, Burlap

TCW 12x12 Diamond Stencil

Beacon Fabri-Tac

Beacon 3-in-1

Scotch ATG

Sizzix Big Shot

Ranger Heat-It Craft Tool

Basic Grey Craft Files

I have entered this project at:

Word Art Wednesday

Thanks for stopping by! I treasure your comments.

~ Blessings ~

"Maid of Honor" for RRR Challenge #71 ~ Sparkle, Bling, and Ribbon

Weddings are such special days, celebrated with the people closest to us. You can see the joy and sweet friendship shared by Rachel and her Maid of Honor, Amber. 

I am so excited to share my first post as a designer for Really Reasonable Ribbon. It was a delight to work with the gorgeous RRR ribbon, cording, and lace on this wedding layout. My original thought was to use some beautiful white seam binding and wrinkle ribbon for this page, but when I realized how PERFECTLY the red ribbon in the RRR May Ribbon Club Assortment matched the red on the girls' dresses, I had a change of plans. 

The theme for RRR Challenge # 71 is Sparkle, Bling, and Ribbon

To enter this challenge, create a card, layout, or any handcrafted project. Just be sure to follow the theme and use ribbon, lace, or trim somewhere on your project. 

"Maid of Honor"

RRR Products used for this Layout:

Metallic String Iridescent White

RRR May Ribbon Club Assortment ~ both red ribbons and white lace. 

I used this fabulous sketch from The Scrapping Stamper May Challenge:

Be sure to stop by Shannon's blog for the details of her May Challenge and to link up a project using this delightful sketch. Use Ribbon, Sparkle, and Bling to enter RRR Challenge #78 as well. 

Tips and Techniques:

Ribbons ~ I cut paper ribbon strips then wet and scrunched them to give a fabric-like appearance. I clustered them below the flowers, then topped with the red RRR ribbons. This gorgeous red metallic satin and satin/organza ribbon with the sparkling white iridescent stitching are both part of the RRR May Ribbon Club Assortment. Joseph and Rachel had a December wedding so their colors were red and green. Rachel had accents of red on her gorgeous dress and Amber's maid of honor dress was this same rich red. I really couldn't believe my eyes at what a perfect match this ribbon is to the dresses. 

Distressing ~ I used my favorite scrappy tool, my Donna Salazar Distrezz-It-All by Zutter.

Twine Flowers ~ I enjoy creating twine flowers, so I thought I'd try making some up with the Iridescent, Metallic White Thread in several sizes. I added a large rhinestone to each as a flower center. My twine flower tutorial can be found here. 

Embossed Vellum Flowers ~ I created these beauties to use with my ScrapThat! May Kit and am so glad I had extras to use on this page. They make such a lovely cluster with the twine flowers. If you would like to learn how to create some for yourself, be sure to stop back for my tutorial on May 9. 

Lace ~ Not only was the red ribbon a perfect match, this white lace included in the RRR May Ribbon Club Assortment is perfect for a wedding page as well. I cut a paper strip to go across the page, distressed the edges, and topped with this gorgeous ribbon. 

Title ~ I printed my title using Chopin Script (found on the internet) onto ink jet transparency paper, fussy cut to the shape of this opening so the edges would be less visible, and adhered to the page with krylon spray adhesive. 

Chipboard ~ I blinged up this chipboard from the BoBunny with Rhinestones from my stash. 

Butterfly ~ I added some black diamond stickles to the body of this Martha Stewart vellum butterfly, then rubbed a touch of black soot Distress Ink across the veins. A snippet of a Zva crystal flourish finishes it off for a butterfly trail.

I'd like to give a special thanks to Nicole Doiron. I recently won a fabulous prize over at her blog, Scrap-Utopia, that included this paper, doily and some of the bling. Thanks Nicole!! 

I hope you've been inspired to create and link up your project for this fun challenge.

RRR Challenge # 71 ~ Sparkle, Bling, and Ribbon

Be sure to check out the RRR Blog for all the details and prize information.

I've entered this LO at:

Word Art Wednesday Challenge #78 ~ Anything Goes. 

Oh, be sure to check out their Word Art this week. It is one of my favorite verses - Lo, children are an heritage of the Lord: and the fruit of the womb is His reward. Psalm 127:3 We home educated for 19 years and our home school was called Heritage Christian School based on this sweet verse. 

Thanks for stopping by! I treasure your comments.

~ Blessings ~