*IMPORTANT* Memory Works announcement. Memory Works will be going out of business December 31, 2013. Products on the website will be discounted and I can order for you until the end of December. Out of stock items will not be reordered. Please email me scrappingtales@gmail.com  to place an order, or if you would like more information.

And now for somthing completely different!

The past few weeks, I've been working on painting up a concrete lawn ornament.
 I "volunteered" to do this for my landlord. I'd never worked with concrete before, so seemed like a chance to try something new.

Did some research and bought supplies. We started out with outdoor craft paint, easy to find at any craft store.

     










But the results weren't super because he didn't want me to use primer (long story, the client is always right). And there were some imperfections on the concrete, even after cleaning that showed through the paint. So he went rogue and found something else from the hardware store he wanted me to try. Note that concrete is very porous and I will never not use a primer again.

 

 

 

Paint with built in primer, not specified for outside, but we gave it a whirl and the coverage was nice.

For the detailing portion, went back to trusty outdoor craft paint in Citrus Green (dead on match for your basic John Deere green). He's happy with how it came out and after putting a waterproof sealer on it, it will be placed in the yard.

 

 





Alcohol inks on wood embellishments

This past Saturday I was at the Captured Moments "Christmas in July" crop and had a lovely time as usual. One of the last layouts I started had a photo of part of an installation from a favorite artist of mine, Jenny Holzer. I also had yet to use wood cut embellishments on any major pieces and wanted to remedy that lapse.

First let's talk about Tim Holtz alcohol inks ~ vivid permanent pigments, mmm! I wanted to use these because I knew the colors would be just right for this project and that it would bring out the texture of the wood as well. I decided to go with a combination of Lettuce, Bottle and Mushroom.

 

I poured a little of each in a tray and used a little blending solution to smooth out my application.

 

 

 

 

I think this one is my favorite. The color has a luminous quality I really like. After they were dry, I sealed them with matte Mod Podge and added them to my layout.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Here is the finished piece. Wasn't able to get the larger sized image to load, but you get the idea.

 

 

 

 

Smashing Fourth of July

Hope everyone was keeping cool over the holiday! It was a scorcher here, but the man and I went out and about in the early evening to hear some music and catch the fireworks. I'm still enjoying and using the I Heart Summer collection from Simple Stories. I had some colorful Sassafrass Lass paper, so threw that into the mix as well.

Just a reminder, I'll be at the Crop Circles Summer Lovin' Crop in East Greenbush on Saturday, July 20th. We'll be at the Holiday Inn and I will have a table with products for sale. Hope to see you there!

Cropping @ the Library

Went to a lovely *free* crop at the East Greenbush Community Library yesterday. This was a Capital District Crop Circles event hosted by my good friend Carol Casatelli Vivenzio.

I've been using the new Simple Stories I Heart Summer collection for quite a few things lately. Here's a layout about my unseasonable freckles popping out during an unusual spell of HOT weather we had at the end of May. Everything is Simple Stories except the washi tape.

Used one of the cute printables she passed out to complete this smash page. I love incorporating doodling into my work.

I didn't make these at the crop, but I will have kits available for sale to make one of these adorable altered mini-composition books. More of the I Heart Summer line!

If you come out to the Capital District Crop Circles "Summer Lovin' Crop" on July 20th, 2013, I will have a table with Memory Works products to sell & some finished items. We'll be at the Holiday Inn Express, Route 4, East Greenbush, NY 12061, so come on down for some scrapping fun!

NSD Crop at Albany Yacht Club

Very late to posting on this, but it was too fun not to cover. Better late than never!

I went to a wonderful small crop at the Albany Yacht Club on May 4th. Here I am sharing a table with my scrapping buddy Kathleen.

We had lunch right on the Hudson River ~ beautiful day!

There was a 2 page layout workshop given by one of the hostesses. Here's the one I finally finished up today. Photo is my youngest sister sacked out on Grandma's couch in 1972.  We used mostly Close To My Heart products. Don't you love the Bumble paper?! You can find out more about it on Carol's site

Also worked on some new smash pages. Very nice day!

Spring/Summer 2013 Catalog here!

Email scrappingtales.gmail.com if you would like to receive a catalog. Or click on the link at the top right under Order Products section to go directly to the website.

Transform lunch bags into gift bags!

I finished making these super cute gift bags for the ladies coming to my crop and I wanted to show you how quickly you can pull these together.

First, pull together your lunch bags and stamping materials. I went with a floral theme.

Next, fold down top of the bag about half an inch. Repeat. Grab your hole punch and make holes all around the bag.

I grabbed a few tags I had around and finished them up with some gel pen accents and metallic rub on product. Names on the back of the tags.

Last, I finished them off by threading some burlap through the holes, adding some ribbon, and attaching the tags & a bit of bling. Pack with goodies and a puff of tissue on the top and you're done!

Memory Works clearance sale!

The Spring/Summer 2013 Memory Works catalog will be out in a few weeks, and I will post when I have it available for you. In the meantime,  all products from the Winter 2012 Catalog have now been reduced to clearance prices and will no longer be available once they are gone!

Click here for deals

Party favors with Washi tape!

Here is a cute idea for party favors you can whip up in a jiffy! I made these for a small group crop I'm hosting in a few weeks.

You'll need: nut cups (find with cake decorating supplies)
lollipop sticks or bamboo skewers
washi tape!

First I covered the nut cups with washi tape

Then I grabbed and halved 2 bamboo skewers to use to make flags.
 Make your flag and wrap the pole with contrasting colored washi tape.
Fill cup with treats, add your flag and call it done!

Monday, April 8  Pick your Plum deal of the day is for nut or treat cups ~ get a bunch and save a bundle!

Easter

Happy Easter everyone! I've been steadily working on smash book/art journal pages. I have to say that the quick turnover on this type of work is very fun and addictive! Plus, I've been using up old papers and scraps in my stash. The next thing I plan to post about is working on some gift bags and favor cups for a mini crop at my house in a few weeks. There's some distance that separates us, so we only do this twice a year, rotating locations and hostesses.

Color

this entire page. Wrecked journal idea. I've seen some amazing things done with this. I like working in a composition book for some things. This would have worked better on traditional sketch book paper, which is a heavier weight. It still felt great to break out all the colored pencils though.

And the WINNER...

is Bekah!  Thanks for entering everybody! Words of the The Man when he did the drawing this morning: "not only am I impartial, I'm half asleep and don't know what I'm doing." Hee-hee!

Bekah, please email me at scrappingtales@gmail.com with your address information. Or send me a message on Facebook.

Getting ready to spend the afternoon scrapping with one of my oldest scrapping buddies.  Have a great weekend everybody!

GIVEAWAY extended!

HAPPY ST. PATRICK'S DAY!!

In honor of St. Pat's Day, extending my blog giveaway through the end of next week. See details to enter on previous post. 

GIVEAWAY new Memory-Works products!

I have some new Memory-Works products (Winter CHA) in the house!  It's definitely time for another giveaway. The Spring/Summer 2013 catalog should be available soon for ordering, so this is just a little taste of what's to come!

From the BoBunny "Family Is" line, these lovely dimensional stickers.

and these sweet buttons....

and finally, new stamps from My Mind's Eye "Collectable"

TO ENTER: 1) Become a follower of my blog. 2) Leave a comment telling me about a project you're currently working on, or the last project you did.

Winner will be randomly selected by an impartial 3rd party (the man) and posted next week.
GOOD LUCK!!

Note: Although the Spring/Summer 2013 catalog is not out yet, you can order new products already in stock on this page of my Memory-Works website at any time.

Smashing

The lure of the smash book has caught me. I'm working in an altered black & white composition notebook and having a great time. I'm trying to do looser, more artsy things in here, maybe experiment a little. We'll see where it takes me!  Here's a page I really like.

I recently purchased some of the newest Memory Works spring products and am planning a giveaway soon. The spring catalog isn't available yet, so this is a great way to sneak a peek! Stay tuned!

Upcycled packing becomes mantel decoration

Remember the accordion cardboard packing I mentioned at the end of the last post? It became a lovely spring mantel decoration. I confess I don't usually get too seasonal on the decor when it's not Christmas. But this lovely is getting me through until the snow fades.

Used Mod Podge to cover with Sassafrass "Nerd Bird" paper alternating with an old stash postcard print. Oh, first I inked the edges with CTMH "Pacifica" ink.
Next, I cut out Michael's Recollections poppy flower paper. Then I used my Cuttlebug and Tim Holtz elegant flourish die to get these lovely spring green accents.

This was the only new product I used ~ bought K&Co Susan Winget die-cuts & acetate. The colors were so beautiful and light. I put a little bee on each panel. :-)  Doodled with Sakura gel pens and the ribbon is stash from Petaloo.

The finished product on the mantel.

Organizing the small things

So I finally got this tote I've had my eye on as good storage for brads and buttons. It will also be easy to grab quickly to take to crops. 50% off coupon of course!
 I love the individual trays that slide right out.

This is what I started out with and the plan was to get all the brads out of the big drawer and into the tote.

And yes, I did have more than I remembered. Here are my neutrals.

Colors

I have a 3rd drawer partially filled with specialty/odd sized brads, and a 4th empty drawer to fill. I especially like this top storage area for sets of brads and my tweezers. Why the tweezers? Easier for me to pick things out of the teeny sections without having to dump anything out!

While I was doing this, I found a few things I had been missing that were stuffed in the original drawer...so it's good to go through your inventory every now and then. Now I have to think about what else I can get in that tote....


The other thing I've been puttering around with lately is a spring decoration for my mantel. I'm using this cardboard folder that was packing for an item we received at work. Recycling! Stay tuned for how that turns out.

So, Happy Groundhog Day! Regardless of shadows being seen, I always feel like we're moving towards spring when we get through January (such a looong month). And the sun is out here, which is a good thing.

Also finished up my holiday paper bag album at last Saturday's crop. I created this mainly with the Bo Bunny Rejoice line, with odds and ends from my stash. It's kind of nice to have a photo of myself in an album. Thanks Mom!

My question is ~ how do you store or display your various small albums? I love making them for gifts, but I seem to have ended up with a certain percentage of them accumulating in my own house.

Captured moments crop

At Lynwood Reformed Church in Guilderland. Scrap on!

Special birthday card

I finally got my scrap table cleared off from holiday crafting and working on anniversary party items.

It felt great to break out some new supplies I received over the holidays but hadn't had a chance to get into yet. Used my new Elegant Flourishes (Tim Holtz) die on Graphic45 Fairy Folk paper to put together a sweet birthday card for my Mom. Also used some new Prima paper (can't remember the line, sorry) and various scraps & inks, ribbon, script embossing folder. I went for more of a 3-D effect on this card, since I'll be able to hand deliver it on Monday.

Scraps of Darkness blog hop and prizes!

My, it's been almost a month since I last posted.

Scraps of Darkness has unique and interesting kits. They are hosting a blog hop Jan. 18-Jan. 20. The winner gets a January Scraps of Elegance Kit! Winner will be announced on Jan. 21st.

Click here to join in the fun! Scraps of Darkness