Scraps and Ink

Tim Tags complete!

I have had so much fun completing my version of the tags from the "12 Tags Of Christmas" featured on Tim Holtz's blog. The boy is crazy talented and I just loved following along with his step-by-step tutorials. His examples are so beautiful- Tim really has gift and I appreciate him sharing his talents with us. So here are MY tags: 

Day 12:

  
 

So much bling on this tag that I can hardly stand it!!! Ya know, with just the background and roses on this, it could be used for just about anything, but with the addition of the holly leaves and glitter that looks like a fine dusting of snow, it just takes it to a whole new level of vintage Christmas goodness!

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Day 11:

 

 
I love this tag! The background green in just so vibrant. It really makes the reindeer and flowers pop right off the tag! Instead of making my own covered buttons and pulling my hair out getting them wrong, I used these fabulous pre-made covered buttons from KaiserCraft. I also love the look of the white flowers, rather than the more traditional poinsettias for this tag.

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Day 10:

 

 

Is this METAL tag crazy or what? When I first saw Tim's version on his blog, I thought the boy was off his rocker. But then I decided to follow along and...WOW!!! This thing just shines IRL!! Just like an old fashioned vintage mercury glass ornament! Just brings back so many memories of decorating the tree as a little girl. Believe it or not, this turned out to be my all time FAVE tag! The technique is just insane, I never would have thought this up on my own in a million years! LOVE it!

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Day 8:

 

 

You can't have Christmas without music, so the tag above is a tribute to those favorite carols, old and new. Which, by the way, I have been listening to all day long! Really gets me in the Christmas spirit. So much, in fact, that I have decided to cave to my children's demands and put up the Christmas tree tomorrow.

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Day 7:

 

 

So what do you do when you mess up while embossing a sentiment on an otherwise completed tag? You cover it with cardstock and try again! I originally stamped the "Joy and Peace" sentiment directly onto the tag front, but it got lost in the background of swirly white flourishes. So i tried again on solid green cardstock cut into a label shape. Much better, no?

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So that's it. Tags are done!!! But did you notice anything? You DID? You noticed that tag 6 is missing? Very observant of you! Yes, I did NOT do tag 6, but I will! Alas, I tried to do my best and use what I had in my stash, but when I saw the filmstrip ribbon that Tim used on Tag 6, well, I just HAD to have it! And those metal numbers? Simply MUST use those as well. So now here I sit waiting for an online purchase to show up on my doorstep! But never fear my friends, when the box of goodies shows up, you can be sure I will be busy creating something wonderful to share with you all!

Thanks sooooo much for all of your sweet comments and kind words! You are the reason why I do what I do.

later,

nancy

KaiserCraft goodness and BIG news!

As promised, I have KaiserCraft goodness to share and also some big news!!! But I will be mean and save the news for the end. So in the meantime, here are some fun KaiserCraft pages I did recently to inspire you. Actually, I do lots of work for the various DT's and publications waaaay before I post anything here on the blog, but I need to give the co's the chance to look over my work first and pull anything they may want to use for their own purposes. Then I get to share my work with the rest of the world! My other personal stuff I create, like the Tim Holtz tags, I can share right away. ;)

So here is some KaiserCraft I have been dying to share:

 
The above page is of my nephew, Kelsey, playing his guitar. He is super talented- maybe he will be a rock star some day!

Below is a card I created using the same paper collection as above. It is always a nice change to see something not quite so girly as my usual work, right? Thank goodness for the Rewind paper collection!!! They have the best brads and fasteners too! 

 
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So another not-so-girly collection by KaiserCraft is the Pack Your Bags collection. But of course, when I use photos of my beautiful girls on any page, I have to "doll it up" a little bit! These paper flowers, also by KaiserCraft, are perfect for doing just that:

 

And here is a card using the same collection- NOT girly at all!

 

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More KaiserCraft you say? But of course! How 'bout some Lilac Avenue:

 The above page is my best friend Becca and her perfect little family- sooooo beautiful! She is the best mom in the world to those little munchkins! Love you Ichabod!!!!!!

Below is a pretty card using the Lilac Avenue collection. And yes, in typical "Nancy Style"- VERY girly! love it! But I do fear it may need more glitter. :)

 

Next week I get to share all of my Christmas projects using the THREE Christmas collections by KaiserCraft! They are all so lovely!
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!!!!!!!ANNOUNCEMENT!!!!!!

So do you want to hear the big news? Huh? Do you? Well DO YOU?

Okay, so I have been asked to be on the Design Team for Scrap Within Reach! I am soooooo excited!!! I was honored when they called and asked me to be a guest designer for the month of August and be featured on their blog. I just loved working with the products they so generously sent me. And then when I got the e-mail a month ago telling me that they wanted me to be on their upcoming Design Team for 2010, well I was beyond thrilled to say the least!!! A month is a looooooong time for me to keep any secret, esecially one this FAB and exciting! Here is the official announcement on their blog: SWR blog 

Here is the list of the other talented ladies on the DT:

Angella Peardon
Claude Campeau
Renee Dowling
Elisa Kammerdiener
Cathy Schellenberg
Jenny Svensson
Julie Bonner
Jamie Lane
Tracey Taylor
Delaina Burns

(As soon as I get all their info, I will add a link to each one of them and their amazing work on the right hand side column.)

 I love this company- it is not one of the giants (YET) and is still growing, but they are turning out really great products that I know consumers will just fall in love with as much as I have! They have an UBER talented Graphic Designer for their products and I am really excited to see where their creative concept takes us next! But the even bigger news? Yes, bigger than being invited to join their fabulous team? They have asked me to work in their booth at CHA in Anaheim, CA this coming January 2010, to do demos and "make-&-takes". How cool is THAT?! I just LOVE attending CHA- I have not missed a year in the past eight years and love any opportunity to share my passion for creating. I am a Designer Member of the organization and often go on my own under my own business name, but it is always nice to have a manufacturer where I can "land" while I am there and hang out with new people and make new friends!   

So onward I go in this crafty little adventure of mine!

Thanks so much to everyone for your constant love and support!

later,

nancy

More Tim Tags!

So today I did tags #5 and #6. I wish you all could see these in person!!! I really love tag #5 and the little ornaments on it using Tim's fragment charms (small clear acrylic tags). They are attached to the tag with copper wire onto the "branch" so they each swing from side to side. Such a cool little detail! I wish I could have come up with this stuff on my own, but I didn't, so thank goodness for Tim's creative genuis!!! Actually, the faux "branch" on my tag was my idea since Tim used a branch stamp that I do not have. I have been really happy with how my tags have been turning out, but they are nothing compared to Tim's original tags found here: Tim's Tags. This guy just rocks my creative world! Don't forget to click on any of the photos for really close-up pics! 

Day 5:

 

Day 5 detail:

 

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Day 6:

I will not go into detail as to why the tag below just about did me in. But I will say that I did not have any of the four stamps that Tim used on the original tag. So instead, I did a bit of free-hand stuff, and some editing in PSE, and then did some detail embossing with a small embossing pen and tried to come as close to the original tag as I could. Note to self: just buy the damn stamps next time!

Anywho, here is my version, complete with torn out dictionary page from a dictionary that my family had while I was growing up. I latched onto that dictionary in grade school and have always packed it with me everywhere I have moved to. That thing helped me win countless spelling b's, and got me thru AP English my senior year in highschool. it is an old leatherbound book and the copyright date is 1962, severely outdated, and the pages are all worn and yellowing with age, but I just still love it so! At least it is still serving a purpose as interesting background art for my alltered projects!

 

Day 6 detail:

 
 

So that's it for this weekend's projects, but I will have more tomorrow. I have some KaiserCraft projects that need posting and also some exciting news to share!

Thanks for looking!

later,

nancy    

 
 
  

Time for Tim's Tags!

So several of my friends and I have been playing along with the "Twelve Tags of Christmas" that Tim Holtz is doing over on his blog: Tim's Blog

You can play along too if you just follow his "easy" (yeah, WHAT-everrrrr) instructions. Oh BTW, he fails to mention on his blog that you have to spend a crap load of money and drive all over God's creation to find and buy everything he is using. Obviously, I am NOT using exactly the same products he is using. Rather, I am using what I have in my stash and doing my best to come close to his original tags. 

I must admit, I do have some of Tim's products, and I did go out and buy a FEW new things this year specifically for making the tags, but most of what I have of his product has been stuff I have accumulated over the years or brought back from one of his classes at CHA. But I could spend hundreds more and not even come close to having all of his products. Don't get me wrong, I would really LIKE to have all of his products, but seriously, much of it I would only use for these tags. One more thing to mention: This is the third year Tim has done the tags (different every year), but this is the first time I am attempting any of them. 

Since this is day four and I have not posted any of these, they will be listed in reverse order below, so if you stop by tomorrow, I will have the one done he is revealing tomorrow, or my best version of it!

Day 4: 

 

Tim's version of this tag used a little "memory capsule" thing as a shaker filled with glitter. I did not have a memory capsule, so above you can see I used a watch crystal filled with glitter and stuck it to a metal frame. The stamp in the middle of the watch crystal is a stamp from KaiserCraft's Dear Santa Collection. 
 

 

Another view of the watch crystal. 

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Day 4 BONUS Tag:

 
This is my version of one of the tags that he did last year. I will have to add the pearly bead trim at the bottom when I find it.

On the close-up photo above, you can see a bit more of the embossed black on the background of the tag as well as the reindeer. This was a difficult tag to do. Glad it is done cuz I think it turned out pretty! The flourish stamp I used at the bottom is from KaiserCraft.

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 Day 3:

 

So above you can see that my alcohol ink plaid technique did not turn out as good as Tim's original, but at least it is done. This is DH's favorite of all the tags I have done so far. Probably because it is a little more manly with the mashed silver metal brads and washers in the corners. It's MY least favorite. Go figure.

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Day 2:

 

This one did not photo well, but it is my FAVE!!!!!! The frame thing in the middle is embossed with a cream/gold/pearly finish and it just sparkles!

 
You can see the detail a bit better in the photo above.

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Day 1:

 

It is fairly complicated how I ended up with the snowman above looking much like Tim's without actually using the stamp he used, so I will spare you. But I will say it involved alot of free-hand cutting and swearing (especially when i accidentally cut off the snowman's arm). My mother would be so proud (not)!!!

 

You can see the glitter and crackle finish much better in the photo above if you just click on it for a larger view.

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Thanks for looking!

later,

nancy

It's Christmas time!!!!

So Turkey day is over and the Christmas festivities are in full swing!!! Going to the Festival Of Trees tomorrow, and I can't wait to see all the beautiful greenery all decked out with ornament of all kinds! I love all the glitz and glam of a tree covered in sparking lights and dripping with beautiful ornaments!

This month at the Graphic 45 Community I am in charge of the monthly challenge! So of course, I chose a challenge about ornaments using the ever-so-festive Christmas Past line of papers! Challenge participants must make an ornamant using papers from this fabulous collection. I am sooooo excited to see what everyone creates, and then I get to pick the winner of the challenge. The winner will be awarded a special prize of Graphic 45 goodies! The challenge will be up on the site tomorrow so get out those fun Christmas Past papers and get to work!!! 

Thanks for stopping by!

later,

nancy

A winter wonderland...

 

So I spent last weekend in a beautiful 2700 sqft. cabin up in the woods at Tamarack Resort with five really amazing ladies-  Aimee, Lisa, Priscilla, Holly, and Joni. We had so much fun scrapping, chatting, creating, crafting and really getting to know each other. I barely knew a couple of them, and one I had never even met, but i feel like I made friends for life with these women. Even though we were different ages and from different bckgrounds, we all came together and had a really awesome time. Everyone was so open and we all learned so much from each other. I think women really need these get-a-ways with other women on a regular basis just to remind ourselves that we are people other than the wives and mothers, co-workers and such that we strive so hard to be. We work so hard to be all that society needs us to be, but in the end we are all just a bunch of girls that want to have fun at a really great slumber party! We need to re-connect with the amazing things that make us girls and we should celebrate that in each other.

Did I mention that this cabin had a hot tub outside on the giagantic deck? Oooooh yes!!! I found it after digging down through a foot of snow. AHHHHH!! I thouroughly enjoyed hanging in the hot tub while it was lightly snowing on my head- definitely a unique experience. Very relaxing and peaceful.

 

 Oh, and these women were all chefs extrordinaire!!! I have never ate so well in my life!!! I contributed a little breakfast dish of my own that I have honed to near perfection, if I do say so myself! Fresh stawberry crepes with whipped cream and confectioners sugar. Mmmmmm!!!! It took me nearly a year of trial and error to get the cooking process right, since they need to be super thin, lighly browned, and cooked perfectly even, but I finally figured it out and I am thankful for the ladies giving me the opportunity to make these crepes for them and especially to those who came back for seconds!

Here is a photo for your drooling pleasure!

Aimee being a Russian supermodel:

 
I want to thank them all for a FAB weekend of fun and laughter, tears and friendship. I will remember it always!!!

later,

nancy

   

Getting Caught Up Finally!

Hi all!!!
Wow it has been soooooo long since I have posted! Naughty me- I have so much to share! The hubs was gone for a couple weeks on business and it was all I could do to keep things here running semi-smoothly while he was away. I learned that the trash really does not take itself to the dump while I sleep in on Saturdays (besides other things), and if I needed something quick picked up on the way home from work- there was no one to call to do that for me either. I have a laundry list of things I seem to take for granted when he is home being my Super Hubs. Speaking of laundry, he usually does that too, and while he was gone, I don't think I ever got caught up! Don't get me wrong, he is so much more than the trash man and errand boy, but he has always done these things without me ever having to ask, and without complaint, or needing a gold star for his forehead (some husbands require fanfare for every little thing they do, and Andy has never wanted that- thank goodness!!!!) I love him dearly and I vow that I will do a better job of letting him know how much he means to me.
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So anyways, then there was Halloween....a crazy weekend for us since both my girls had parties here at the house on both Friday and Saturday night. This was the first year that Ashley was not deathly afraid of scary decorations such as skeletons, spiders and such,  so I went all out! I normally do just "Fall" stuff, so this year was lots of fun adding the scary stuff and dressing creepy rather than just being boring old mom in something "cute".
I will spare you my mad scientist outfit, but lets just say, I made a couple 13-yr-old boys scream like little girls. Hahahahaha!!! Good times, good times.....

A couple pics from the parties:

My beautiful little Greek Goddess! Trust me, this was not much of a stretch for her. She had the personna down pat!!! 

 

A few of the party invites. Why yes, of course they are hand-stamped by me! ;)

Some fun decor:

I channeled my inner Martha Stewart and made these "potions" myself. I filled with dyed Sprite and other various sodas, printed off labels from an online site and attached to various bottles I found at the thrift store. These are just a couple of the bottles I ended up making. There were 8 in all, made from bottles in all shapes and sizes with labels such as Swamp Fog, Snake Oil, ACID, Cyanide, etc. Lots of fun! Being the mad scientist/bartender at the party, I also dropped gummy eyeballs into the glasses as I served all the kids. You should have seen their looks of horror! CLASSIC! Needless to say, I referred to each drink as a "suicide" and they all had to be convinced that they would not really die if they drank it.    

 

Brain soup anyone? Really not as gory as it looks! it is just cauliflower in water and red foodcoloring. Not edible- for effect only. 

So anyone that knows me, knows that this next photo is really sub-par compared to photos I would normally share, but this was taken in the dark, no flash, hand-held and I was in as hurry. Need I say more? At least you get the general idea.

 
No pics of the rest of the house, or Miss Ashley. She refused to pose for the camera. I know, dissapointing, but you have to pick your battles when you are the mother of a moody 13-yr-old girl. 

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So now this brings us to all the projects I have made for various mfrs that I need to share!
Up first is a Halloween wall hanging using a wooden ProvoCraft pumpkin thingy that I covered with papers by Graphic 45 and then Glimmer Misted to make the pumpkins a bit more orange and glittery (the glimmer in the Tattered Angels Glimmer Mist never shows up well in photos).

Now a Fall decor box also using Graphic 45 papers and Glimmer Mist:

Covered balls: (no jokes please- and you jokers know EXACTLY who you are!!!)

All of the above projects were made using products by Graphic 45 and Glimmer Mist by Tattered Angels.

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Next up is a shout out for another company I design for- KaiserCraft- my FAVE Aussie company ever! They are always coming out with the best products and I just LOVE working with all the goodies they send me! When I find a box from KaiserCraft sitting on my doorstep, it is like Christmas! And speaking of Christmas, it is right around the corner and the little elves at KaiserCraft are not wasting any time! These cards that I created were featured on their blog today, along with several other talented artists' cards. So go check it out! KaiserCraft blog

 

These next two cards are not on the blog, but still use FAB papers from KaiserCraft's Dear Santa collection.

Phew!!!! That was quite a bit of stuff to add in one swoop, but tomorrow is another day and I still have oodles to share! So come back and visit soon! ;)

Thanks for looking!

later,

nancy 

Double Bow Tutorial

Since my girls are 11 and 13 now, and waaaay beyond the "pretty hair bow" stage, I have not made this type of bow in years! But a friend recently made me realize that I could still use them on cards and other projects (thanks Heidi!). So I made this lovely green one for a pretty card and photographed the process for an easy tutorial. Oh BTW, I just LOVE these Amy Butler papers by K&Co!

 

 

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So here is the step-by-step for the bow:

Materials:

Fine-gauge wire

Four lenghts of ribbon:

2- 8 inches, 1- 6 inches, and 1- 5 inches (ends cut diagonal).  

Tie a loose knot in center of the 6" length.  

With one of the 8" lenghts, loop each end so that they slightly overlap in the middle.  

 

Gather the center together and secure with fine-gauge wire.

 

Repeat the above step with the second 8" length of ribbon. Using the wire, secure the center of the second looped ribbon to the center of the first looped ribbon.

 
Place the 5 " length of diagonal-cut ribbon to the back of the double looped bow and secure in the center with wire.

 
Trim wire. Wrap knotted 6" length of ribbon around center of bow taking care that knot is in the front of the bow and secure ends to the back of the bow with hot glue.

 

All done! Now you can add your bow to all sorts of projects for that classic finishing touch!

 

Thanks for looking!

later,

nancy

30 Days of Creative Contests!!!!

So how fun is this:

KaiserCraft is having a month-long contest!  30 days=30 contests=30 prizes!

KaiserCraft blog

Join in the fun, visit the KaiserCraft blog during the month of September and you'll find daily contests and prizes, industry news, inspiration, guest blog posts and much more!

They have not even told the DT what the daily contests and prizes are as of yet, so we will be surprised right along with everyone else!!! It will be fun to see what the KaierCraft fans come up with!

So don't be afraid to join in and share your creations with us- you could win a fabulous prize! 

later,

Nancy 

Scrap Within' Reach

I was so thrilled when I was contacted by the company "Scrap Within' Reach" and asked to be a guest designer for their blog! They have some FAB new lines coming out that they just premiered at CHA.

They sent me a fabulous kit full of goodies and I had alot of fun creating a few projects for them.

Here is a pic of the kit they sent:

 

And this is a few fun things I created with it:

 

Close-ups

 

Cards

 

 

I took all the photos at different times of the day under different lighting conditions, so they may look a little wonky- sorry!!!

Thanks for looking! :)

Later,

nancy