Almost Autumn

I am just popping by to say hello and share a quick & easy scrapbook page.  
 

Supplies: stamp & ink from Hero Arts, cardstock from Neenah Paper; stickers & enamel dots from October Afternoon; pen from Foray; journaling line template & corner punch from Creative Memories; twine, charm, & sequins from my stash, fabric tag upcycled from old clothing; household mini stapler.

I made this page to showcase a few late-summer photos from the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum.  I love this time of year, when the rich, warm colors of autumn are beginning to appear, but the weather is still nice and warm.  It's the best of both worlds.

What I Did Last Summer

Hello!  It has been a while since my last post.  I'm still having trouble with wrist pain that comes and goes.  It has not forced me to stop crafting, but it has forced me to craft "smarter."  One thing that I continue to experiment with is a smaller, easy-to-handle album size for my scrapbooking.

Album by Mara Mi; page sleeves by Target.

This past summer my family took a vacation in the state of North Dakota, and I made a mini album to showcase our favorite photos from the trip.  I used a mini 3-ring binder with page sleeves that measure 5.5x8.5" (half the size of a standard 8.5x11" sheet of paper).  I photographed the album next to a tea spoon so that you could get an idea of the size.  It's a lightweight album that is easy to hold in the hand.

Most of my time in North Dakota was spent visiting relatives, but I did some sightseeing as well.  Here is a page commemorating my visit to "The World's Larget Bison" statue.
 

Cardstock by Bazzill; navy blue paper & mottled orange paper by Michael's; patterned paper by Doodlebug; floral stickers by Simple Stories; alphabet stickers by Lily Bee.

Most of the landscape I saw on vacation was very flat, since North Dakota is a Great Plains state.  That flat land makes the sky look so much bigger!
 

Cardstock by Bazzill; map paper by Echo Park; cloud paper & polaroid paper by Doodlebug; alphabet stickers by Lily Bee; pen by  Zig;

The rare occasions when a hill or a valley broke up that flat landscape definitely warranted a photo.
 

Background paper by Michael's; green patterned paper, tree sticker, & alphabet stickers from Simple Stories; plaid papers from Lawn Fawn; fussy-cut rainbow paper from Doodlebug; curve cutting template from Creative Memories; pen from Zig.

I loved working with this smaller page size, and I definitely plan to do it again sometime.  An added benefit was that the 3-ring format allowed me to add exactly the number of pages I needed.  I ended up using 11 page sleeves to house a total of 41 photos.  I hope you enjoyed this little peek at my North Dakota album!  The three pages that I've shown you here are some of my favorites.

Blogoversary

It's my five-year blogoversary!!!  Whether you have been with me for all five years or started reading my blog more recently, I want to say thank you. 

Outside of card: all paper from Basic Grey, stickers from Lily Bee, ink from Clearsnap, household mini stapler.

In honor of the occasion, I thought I'd share a design for a thank you card.  This design, which I call "interrupted grid," is great for using up scraps.

Inside of card: all paper from Basic Grey, ink from Clearsnap, household mini stapler.

Hope you find this card design useful.  I look forward to continuing to share many more crafting ideas with you in the future.  :)

Downsizing

Hello, world.  Did you miss me?  I missed you.  Here is what I look like, in case you have forgotten.  :)

~another library photo, of course~ :)

Due to my wrist problems, it has been a few months since I last blogged.  Over the last few months I have come to realize just how necessary wrists are for day-to-day living.  Wrist movement is involved in turning doorknobs, using scissors, grasping utensils, pressing buttons, etc.  Although, my wrists have gotten better over the last few months, I still feel a degree of pain when doing all of these things, and more.  Does this mean that I am ready to give up scrapbooking?

No, of course not.  :)  It just means that I am working on ways to make scrapbooking easier on my wrists.  After all, a hobby is no fun if it causes pain.  Right now my main strategy is to scrapbook on a smaller scale.  Those 12x12" albums are HEAVY, right?  So for this year's album I am trying a 5.5x8.5" spiral bound paper pad, which is much lighter and easier on the wrists.

Supplies: all paper & stickers from October Afternoon (they recently had a warehouse sale); pen from Zig.

Here is a sample page.  So far I have only scrapbooked January and February, and this is a page from February.  The photo on the left is a selfie from the Science Museum, and the photo on the right is from Valentine's Day.  Even though the paper pad is for mixed media, I have not felt like doing any mixed media work in it yet.  Maybe someday.  I'll keep you updated.  :)

Thanks for stopping by my blog today to catch up with me.  Have a great day!

2015 Top Projects & News for 2016

Hello, everyone!  2015 has come to a close.  I hope that 2016 is treating you well!  I'd like to take this opportunity to look back at and share some of my favorite projects from this year.  Here, in no particular order, are my top ten. 

 1--"Yeti are Cool!" scrapbook page 

2--mosaic-look Valentine card

3--northwoods "Family Vacation" scrapbook page

4--"geek chic" robot tag

5--"Mississippi River" scrapbook page

6--birthday card with "stained glass" stamped butterflies

7--"Wild!" scrapbook page

8--dragonfly beaded necklace

9--clean & simple summer card

10--"A Cat from the Past" scrapbook page

Seeing that colorful bunch of projects brought a smile to my face.  In many ways, 2015 was a good year.

Unfortunately, I suffered a wrist injury in November of 2015, and it is still giving me trouble.  Due to the injury, my papercrafting productivity is way down.  For now, I am going to take a blog break, in order to give my body more time to heal.  I hope to return to blogging eventually, but I cannot predict when that will be.  I want to wish all my blog buddies a Happy 2016, and I hope to return to posting on my blog and visiting your blogs sometime later this year.  Take care!

Back to the Future

Hi, everyone!  I hope that those of you who are celebrating holidays right now are having a good time.  I'm enjoying the Christmas season and spending lots of time with family, but I cannot let the month of December come to an end without sharing my last de-stashing tip of the year!

This month the tip is to use sticker negatives to make your own stencils.  I bet you have some half-used sticker sheets sitting around in your stash right now, don't you?  Well, why not put the used bits to work as stencils?  If you fill in these stencil shapes with Stickles (glitter glue), you will end up with shimmery shapes that add a little bit of wow-factor to any project.  I used the negatives from star-shaped stickers to create the glittery stars that you see in the detail shots above and below.

Those detail shots come a scrapbook page called "Back to the Future Day."

Supplies: typewriter phrase paper from American Crafts; all other paper from October Afternoon; alphanumeric stickers, puffy sticker, enamel shapes, & spray ink also from October Afternoon; star sticker negatives from Basic Grey; Stickles & pearlescent paint from Ranger; acrylic paint from DecoArt; washi tape from MT; metallic tape from 3M/Scotch; stamp from My Mind's Eye; stamping ink from Tsukineko; ribbon from Scrapbook Fantasies; chipboard phrases from Scrapmatts; pens from Zig; mini frames from Hirschberg Schutz & Co.

You may ask, what is Back to the Future Day?  Well, it took place on October 21, 2015.  That's the date when the film Back to the Future Part II is supposed to have taken place.  Back in the 1980's, when the Back to the Future movies came out, the year 2015 seemed unimaginable far in the future.  But now...it's here!  This is what I had to say in my journalling on this scrapbook page: "In proud Gen-Xer style, Scott & I celebrated 'Back to the Future Day' by watching the original movie.  Maybe the second movie in the series would have been more appropriate to watch, since it's set in 2015.  But we were in the mood for the original, and we sure enjoyed watching it."  Back to the Future Day ended up being a fun movie night/date night for my husband and me.

I think you'll believe me when I say that creating this title block out of all sorts of little bits and pieces was lots of fun.  The TV sticker with a heart on the screen is my favorite part.  :)

I printed out a couple of Internet memes to use as page embellishments.   This is a good way to add interest to a scrapbook page on the cheap.  Oh, and by the way, if you click to enlarge the photo above, you can learn how to write the phrase "Thirty years ago, lightning struck that clock tower," in Russian.  :)

Anyway, back to the whole point of this blog post--stencilling with sticker negatives and Stickles.  To do this, start by trimming around the sticker negative to separate it from the rest of the sticker sheet.  Next, stick the negative shape to your clothes a few times to make it less sticky.  Then gently press the shape onto your project and squirt Stickles into the shape.  You may need to use a paintbrush or a small paper scrap to spread the Stickles around and fill the shape completely.  Once the shapes is filled in, quickly and carefully remove the sticker negative.  Then, all you have to do is wait for the Stickles to dry, which is probably the hardest part of the whole process.  :)  

Before I sign off, I also want to mention that this layout was inspired by the Berry71Bleu November mood board.  Although I did not manage to finish my layout in time to participate in B71B's November challenge, I still wanted to share the gorgeous mood board (pictured above).  Maybe it will inspire you as much as it inspired me.  In any case, take care and enjoy the last few days of 2015!  Happy crafting.  :)

Seasonal Pocket Letters

In my last post I wrote about holiday mail.  Today I have just a bit more of my outgoing mail to share: two pocket letters.  First up is this autumn-themed letter.

Supplies: patterned paper from Doodlebug Design, alphabet stickers from October Afternoon, cat stickers from Mrs. Grossman's, pumpkin sticker from Mello Smello.

Click here for a closer look at that cross stitched acorn ornament.

Supplies: patterned paper from October Afternoon, to/from tag from Crate Paper, washi tape from 3M/Scotch, snowman stickers from my stash, all other stickers from Mrs. Grossman's.

And here is a Christmas-themed pocket letter that I recently mailed.  As you see, I use baseball card holders for my pocket letters.  My process is simple: I decorate the front of the card holder and hide the handwritten letter behind the decorations.  Long live snail mail!  :)

Cute Mail

They say that letter writing is a lost art, but I disagree.  I love mail.  This time of year is great because I get to send and receive so much extra mail, in the form of holiday greeting cards.  

Product sources: aqua striped tape from MT, all other tape from 3M/Scotch.

 
This year I'm having fun adding a strip of decorative tape to the bottom of each envelope that I send.  There are so many cute patterns and styles of tape available right now.

I also love choosing the postage stamp for each envelope.  Preparing all these Christmas cards can be a long process, but it's worth it to me because I so enjoy sending mail. 

Receiving mail is fun, too.  I've already received a number of cards, but today I want to show you one of my favorites so far from this year.  It's Santa Kitty!  This card did not come through the mail; my friend gave it to me in person.  The card accompanied this gift of a reindeer mug and a box of tea.  The name of the tea--"sweet cinnamon spice"--describes its flavor perfectly.  It's a roobois herbal tea, and I can definitely recommend it to all you tea lovers out there.

linking up here

Whether you're busy with holiday tasks or just enjoying a little free time, I hope things are going well for you.  Take care!

Music, Coffee, Pumpkin Pie, and a High-Tech Ornament

Lately I've been hearing the song "Sleigh Ride" on the radio a lot.  It's a good song.  I especially like the lines that say, "There's a special feeling nothing in the world can buy, when they pass around the coffee and the pumpkin pie."  That is exactly how I felt last weekend, when I celebrated Thanksgiving.

Now Thanksgiving has passed, and Advent has begun.  Our family put out our Christmas decorations, including the tree, on Sunday.  I have a new ornament on the tree this year, and it's very different from the cross stitched ornaments that I've been sharing recently.
 

Supplies: green paint from DecoArt, red paint & glitter from Ranger, star ribbon from Scrapbook Fantasies.

I made this ornament in a free class at the library.  The class was on how to use a 3D printer, and each class participant could design one small item and print it.  

The ornament was white (as pictured above) when it came off the printer.  After I brought it home, I painted it and glued on the ribbon hanger.  As the ornament indicates, all this happened in 2014.  However, our family didn't put up a Christmas tree in 2014, so I'm hanging the ornament for the first time in 2015.

I hope that the first day of December is off to a good start for you.  Take care and have a happy "T-Day"!  :) 

Making Greeting Cards with 3x4" Cards (November Destashing Post)

Hi, everyone!  For those of you who celebrated Thanksgiving last week, I hope that you had a nice holiday.  Mine was great--over the course of the long weekend we saw both sides of the family, plus we found time to celebrate with friends, too.

Supplies: 3x4" cards from Jillibean Soup, teal chevron paper from Bella Blved, thin white cardstock from Pulp, woodgrain paper from Fancy Pants Design, corner punch from Creative Memories.

But before I run out of days in November, I had better share my November de-stashing idea.  It's a simple one this month, because we all need a little more "simple" in our lives at this busy time of year.  My idea is to turn leftover 3x4" cards, be they journaling cards or pocket page "filler cards," into greeting cards.  In the photo above I have a his-and-hers pair of greeting cards for your viewing pleasure.  I've mentioned in other posts that I have some relatives who are really into camping, and these cards were a big hit with them.

Additional supplies: striped paper from Fancy Pants Design, journaling cards from Jillibean Soup, clear photo corners from Scotch/3M.

Besides decorating the fronts of the cards with pocket-page leftovers, you can also use journaling cards on the inside, as a writing surface.

I like to use clear photo corners to hold the journaling cards in place.  That way, you can remove the journaling cards in order to write your message more easily, and then replace them in exactly the right spot when it's time to mail the greeting card.

Hope you like this idea!  Take care and enjoy this last day of November.  :)

Autumn Acorn Embroidery

Looking for my T-Day post?  Click here.

Lately I have been showing a lot of Christmas embroidery on my blog.  Today I want to change gears slightly and show some autumn embroidery.  Here is a cheerful autumn acorn ornament.

Supplies: perforated paper from Mill Hill, embroidery floss from DMC, ribbon from Offray, cross stitch pattern adapted from Flowers2Flowers.

Thanksgiving, a major autumn holiday in the United States, is coming up on Thursday, so I want to take this opportunity to wish everyone a Happy Thanksgiving!  This post is pre-scheduled, but I look forward to visiting everyone's blogs again after the holiday.  :) 

Pleasant Surprises

Sometimes, life brings us pleasant little surprises.  Like when you just happen to go shopping on the day when the store is giving out free samples of peppermint mocha.  :)

Or when the day you visit the Science Museum just happens to be "Star Wars Day."  :)

Supplies: cardstock from Neenah Paper; all decorative paper from Echo Park; stickers, enamel shapes, and flair badge from October Afternoon; thread from Singer; ink from Hero Arts; pen from Foray.

As I mentioned on this scrapbook page, Darth Vader seemed interested in the museum exhibit on Minnesota natural history.  :)

Boba Fett, on the other hand, seemed to like a puppet show about the life cycle of a butterfly.

"Star Wars Day" was actually in February, but I hadn't gotten a chance to share this scrapbook page on my blog until now.  With all the hype surrounding the new Star Wars movie that's coming out soon, this seems like a good time to share this page.

Whether you are doing ordinary things like shopping or special things like visiting a museum, I hope that life will bring you some pleasant little surprises, too.  Linking up with T Stands for Tuesday.

More Library Love

Hmmm, so far this month I have not written much about the library...until now.  :)  The library scrapbook page that I'm sharing in this post is just my style: it uses bright colors and lots of scraps.
 

Supplies: red & yellow cardstock from Neenah Paper, blue cardstock from Bazzill, dotted paper from American Crafts, plaid paper from Bo Bunny, striped & floral papers from Pebbles, alphabet stickers from October Afternoon, punch from EK Success, journaling line template from Creative Memories, pens from Zig.

I've already scrapbooked and blogged about how much my son loved his summer library project.  But I also wanted to make a page that tells how much *I* love the library.  On my scrapbook page I wrote: "I think I enjoyed the library project just as much as A. did.  I explored parts of the county that were unfamiliar to me, checked out lots of library materials...& took lots of photos!  Clockwise from top: Brookdale (photo by A.), Pierre Bottineau (selfie), and Southeast (selfie).  A. & I had so much fun!"

Brookdale, Pierre Bottineau, and Southeast are all branches of the Hennepin County Library (HCL) system.  Librarians gave out HCL stickers to patrons this past summer, and I used my sticker as part of my title: "I Really Do Love My HCL."

There is nothing better, in my opinion, than sipping a cup of hot tea or coffee and reading a book.  The last book I read was a library book, which you can see in this photo.  It's hard to wait for the new Star Wars movie to come out, so I've been getting my fix by reading some of the old novels.  This one, called The Crystal Star, was very good.  As for tea, lately I've gotten into cinnamon vanilla herbal tea, from the same company that makes the pumpkin spice tea that I wrote about a couple weeks ago.  The cinnamon vanilla tea has a rooibos base, and the tea is so aromatic and scrumptious!

If you are a tea aficionado, why not check out the T Stands for Tuesday blog hop?  I'm going to link up now.  See you soon!