Lovin' this.

I love finishing projects just as much (if not more) than making them, and today I finished two.

1. My moleskine journal. I use it to write my favorites whenever I think of it. I'm shooting for once a month, but I'm a totally sporadic journaler. I wanted to make the cover something really happy, so I just kept adding and adding and adding layers. I LOVE IT! It's different than my usual style, but I have a feeling that this new layered style is going to be showing up a little more often now. :)
close-upppp
Supplies: Journal- Moleskine, Patterned Paper- Sassafras (Lines) and American Crafts (Floral), Cardstock- Bazzill, Black Ink- StazOn by Tsukineko, Embossing Ink and Powder- Ranger, Colored Pencils- Prisma (Grey) and Crayola (all others), Paper Flowers- Prima, Stamps- Hero Arts, Chipboard Letter- Basic Grey, Paint- Making Memories, Thread- DMC.

2. My 2007 Disney mini album. I finished putting it together today and now I just have to decorate the interior pages. It won't be much, though- it's already sooo thick. I love it, though. It's the perfect way to scrap all of my vacation photos. I promise I'll share more pages when they're completely done. There are a lot of pages. :)

Cover:
Side view:
Cover Supplies: Cardstock- American Crafts (Peach) and The Paper Studio (Kraft), Ribbon- Offray, Thickers- American Crafts, Number Stickers- Making Memories, Flower- Prima, Patterned Paper- American Crafts, Pen- Signo, Ink- StazOn by Tsukineko, Brad- Unknown.

3. Don't forget to check out my giveaway on the post below this. Tell your friends.

4. This Jennifer McGuire class- "Thinking Inking" over at Two Peas has me obsesed with inking things. I'm going out to buy some more colors of distress ink tomorrow. Colors on my list- Broken China, Shabby Shutters, Peeled Paint, and Mustard Seed.

5. The Hero Arts Blog is absolutely inspirational this week. Each of the win-a-day winners has their day this week, and their styles are so unique and gorgeous. One of my favorites that I definitely need to use as inspiration is by Lucy Abrams. I adore her work so much!

Hope you're inspired to create today. Thank you very much for stopping by!

Love.

Brit

Shares. :)

I've been creating, and I love it. :)

I signed up for the Cards For Heroes blog hop. Check it out and see if it's something you're interested in. If not, stop by this weekend and take a peek at some the the fabulous blogs that will be part of it.

1. The "Go Green" challenge this week at Hero Arts and the corresponding Flickr Pool really inspired me to create something. Here's an altered mint tin that I finished this morning:

Front view:

Side View:

Supplies: Stamps: Hero Arts, Paper- The Paper Studio (white), Patterned Paper- Daiso Japan (from this etsy seller: JapanKawaiiYa), Ink- Stazon by Tsukineko and Colorbox Chalk, Embroidery Thread- DMC, Colored Pencils- Prisma, Glitter- Art Institute Glitter, Diamond Glaze- Judikins.

Recycled things and notes:
-The pink backround is actually 5 to 6 layers of recycled tissue paper, then covered in Diamond Glaze for more shine and strength.
-The flower was simply sketched out on newspaper in 6 different sizes and then cut out. I inked the edges, covered every other layer in the Houndstooth stamp, and stiched the six layers together with a button and thread.
-The tin is from mints from Disney World and is the perfect fit for a gift card. Needless to say, this will go to use shortly, I'm sure.

Now, two more weeks for 52Q. I'm determined to catch up... eventually. (One of my cards was featured on her blog the other day- exciting!)

1. Week #7: What if you knew you could not fail?

Supplies: Cardstock- Archiver's (Blue), The Paper Studio (Kraft) and DCWV (Green), Patterned Paper- Making Memories, Paint Pen- ZIG, Ink- StazOn by Tsukineko.

2. Week #8: What is the last thing that made you laugh out loud?

Supplies: Cardstock- Archiver's (Green) and The Paper Studio (Kraft and White), Patterned Paper- Making Memories, Ink- Tsukineko, Border Punch- Martha Stewart, Foam Letters- Thickers by American Crafts, White Pen- Sakura.

I figured I'd share what I wrote on the back (it's not pretty, it's more about getting down the idea on the back for me), so I'll type it here:

"Last night was the finale of American Idol Season 8- Adam Lambert versus Kris Allen (Kris won! :) ) I laughed until I cried on just about a half dozen occasions, How ca you not giggle when Adam sang with KISS in super-high platform shoes? It was awkward, startling, and absolutely PERFECT."

Thanks for stopping by today- I'm glad you did. If you feel up to it, leave a comment telling me about what you're doing creatively this week. Did you do the green challenge for Hero Arts?

Love.

Brit

Houndstooth:

Dear Houndsooth,

I love you. In every size, every shape, in every color, you will always be my first true background stamp love. Especially this one from Hero Arts, which is awesome. Please continue to be awesome. Thank you.

Love,
Brit.

I think I have a problem. It's a really good one, though. Here's another card I made yesterday using my beloved houndstooth stamp:


That's a closeup of my true love. :) Trying something new today...

Steps:

1. Cut standard size card (8.5 by 5.5 unfolded, 4.25 by 5.5 folded) from black cardstock. Score and fold. Trim about .75" off the "front" layer's right edge and then punch the border using Fiskar's Threading Water punch (also one of my loves).

2. Clear emboss the light pink paper with the Hero Art's Houndstooth stamp, being careful to line up the pattern each time- I used my Stamp-a-ma-jig for precision.

3. Stamp the "Live in the Moment" stamp onto fuchsia paper with clear embossing ink and emboss with white embossing powder. Cut the image out with a slight border around the edge.

4. Cut the Making Memories polka dot paper (from the Just Chillin' Girl Collection) into a strip about 1.5" wide and 5.5" tall. Using the back part of the card as a guide, adhere the patterned paper to the back of the scalloped edge (put adhesive on the left edge of the patterned paper as well as right next to the scallops on the underside to insure proper adhesion).

5. Cut a strip of White paper slightly larger than the height of the stamped "Live in the Moment" stamped image. Also, cut a piece of pattern paper that coordinates with the Fuschia to fit comfortably in the middle of the white strip. Adhere white ribbon on top of the two layers, making sure everything is centered.

6. Ink the edges of the white cardstock, the fushcia stamped image, and the polka dotted patterned paper for extra emphasis.

7. Adhere everything to the card, making sure to page the houndstooth with a border on both the left and right edge, trimming as necessary. Adhere the white band next to the bottom third of the card, and then, finally, add the "Live in the Moment" stamped image using foam adhesive for extra texture and dimension.

Supplies: Cardstock- Bazzil (Light pink, Dark pink) and The Paper Studio (Black and White), Patterned Paper- American Crafts (pink woodgrain) and Making Memories (Pink Dot- Just Chillin' Girl Collection), Border Punch- Fiskars, Ribbon- Offray, Stamps- Hero Arts (Houndstooth and I Care Frame), Ink- Tsukineko (Black StazOn) and Ranger (Embossing Ink), Embossing Powder- Ranger, Foam Squares- EK Success.

I made this for Kelly Jo's Color Chef Challenge #4 using her colors of baby pink, bubblegum, watermelon, black, and white as my inspiration. Go over there and check out the other awesome entries. :)

Another thing- there's an AWESOME giveaway going on here at Passion for Crafts. You really need to see it for yourself! Good luck.

I decided this morning that I'm going to spend National Scrapbooking Day (a.k.a. NSD) this Saturday scrapbooking the entire day. Who else is doing the same? I could use a weekend like that. Now, I just need to choose what online forum to spend it in. What's your forum of choice?

See you soon! (wow, two posts in two days... I'm on a roll.)

Love.

Brit

Cards <3

Two cards to share with you today... Enjoy!

1. Happy #50, Color Inspiration Challenges! Kristina Werner is awesome :)

Here's mine:

Love it! Supplies: CS- Bazzill (brown and turquoise), American Crafts (Yellow), and Archiver's (red), ribbon- Offray, Thread- DMC, White Pen- Sakura, Letters- American Crafts.

2. Cute card for the Cupcake Challenge #65


Supplies: Stamps- Hero Arts, Colored Pencils- Crayola, Patterned Paper- Making Memories, Ink- StazOn by Tsukineko, Diamond Glaze- Judikins, Chipboard Bird- Maya Road, Pop dots- EK Success, Cardstock- Archiver's.

3. 52Q Week 5

Supplies: pp- Making Memories Just Chilin' Girl, cs- The Paper Studio (white) and Bazzill (yellow), Embossing Ink- Ranger, Embossing Powder- Ranger, Scallop stamp- Hero Arts, Pearl- Hero Arts, Clear Glitter Diecut- Making Memories Noteworthy, Marker- ZIG, Paint- Rheotech, and Thread- DMC

Thanks for stopping by! Let me know if you like them or if you want to know about some of the techniques I used. :)

Love.

Brit

How many times do I have to tell you?

Time: please slow down. I have too much to do and not enough time to do it in.

And yes, I know. I'm sitting here making a blog post when I could be working on the seven hundred million things I have to do, but I need my creative time, darn it!

So yesterday on my way back to Minnesota from Wisconsin, my mom took a wrong turn and we ending up going by a Tuesday Morning. Thanks to this post, I knew they sold scrapbooking stuff, so I asked if we could stop. We did, and I spent tooooo much money. Disclaimer: If you know what's good for you, don't go to Tuesday Morning.

Regardless, here's what I got- I was pretty impressed with the great bargains I got:

An AMM Tote 3 Shoulder bag: Sooooo many pockets, the sides are sturdy- this is going to be wonderful for crops and just bringing scrapbooking stuff places where I want to work on a project. My mom loved it, too- she said she was going to steal it. :)

Original Price: 44.99
Tuesday Morning Price: 17.99

AC Pattern Paper Celebrate Collection (because I need more paper... ha.) Well, I already have lots of AC cardstock in these types of carriers, why not have more?

Original Price: 19.99
Tueday Morning Price: 5.99

AC Cardstock in Blueberry- 25 8.5 by 11 sheets. Any ideas for how to use this? I'm thinking mini album...

Original Price: 5.99
Tuesday Morning Price: 1.99

Scenic Route Salem Product Kit- 20 Patterned Papers, 1 sheet of diecuts, 1 sheet of Alpha stickers (the real reason I bought the kit, admittedly), 1 sheet of accent stickers, 2 sheets of printed chipboard, 20 paper leaves, and 20 black brads. Of course, it's halloween-themed, but what sold me is the paper that doesn't have a theme- mostly stars and circles. Oh, and the price.

Original Price: 34.99
Tueday Morning Price: 2.99

Okay, so maybe I wasn't that bad... I got some really great deals.

A couple other things:

I got a Hero Arts order in the mail yesterday- yum! And I love the arrow stamp they included as an extra gift. I can't stand behind Hero Arts enough- their customer service is top notch, and so is the quailty of their products. I would buy every single one of their stamps if I had the money just to support such a great company.

By the way, I wanted to again mention how much in love with the BG Wisteria line I am. Give me a million packs of that, and I'll never buy patterned paper again. Seriously. (Okay, maybe not...)

Here's another 52Q card that I finished this morning- I really like it.

Supplies: CS- Bazzill (blue and white) and The Paper Studio (Black), PP- Basic Grey, Vellum- The Paper Studio, Markers- ZIG

That reminds me- one of my goals this week (or soon) is to go through all of my posts and add tags so that you can see all of my like projects in one place. I think that would be nice.

Now, for some links that have been open in my browser forever that I can't just seem to close:
1.This dress from Anthropologie... I hadn't really looked around the site until yesterday, and now I'm seriously considering only buying clothes from Anthropolgie for the rest of my life. Seriously.
2. Label Tulip's blog... I've noticed lots of postings from the Label Tulip DT on various websites, and I'm so impressed. Very inspiring!
3. This sketch website... absolutely to die for- even though I have no idea what they're saying.
4. Another sketch website... this one's in English, but the amazing inspiration just as high-quality. I love how they incorporate many different ways of using a single sketch.
5. I would love to do this... I'm really going to start applying to design teams soon. It's my personal goal to be on one- I think they would be super fun.
6. A year in cards- April... Kristina Werner rocks my socks off. Enough said.

That's all for now- thank you very much for stopping by! Leave a comment with your favorite link that inspires you and I'll add it to my next Links post along with a link to your blog. :)

Love.

Brit

Hola! Me llamo Brit. Me amo el arte mucho.

I just finished a Spanish speaking test, so I'm in the mood for speaking Spanish. I like these days. :)

Friendly reminder- have you backed up your photos lately? I'm doing that right now. Peace of mind is good for the soul.

Shares:

1. Happy four months with Greg, which was yesterday. I made him an old-school cd mix, too. It's the little (freeish) things that make ordinary days special :)


Supplies: Cardstock- Bazzill, Patterned Paper- Sassafrass Lass, "4"- Chit Chat White Thickers by American Crafts, Embroidery thread- DMC, Foam dimensionals- EK Success, paper piercer- Making Memories, other- buttons

2. Here's a card inspired by one by Taylor Vanbruggen for Jeb's birthday this weekend. I hope he gets it on time!
Supplies: Cardstock- The Paper Studio (Kraft), Bazzill (off-white) and Unknown (red), Patterned Paper- My Mind's Eye (Striped- I got it a while back- here) and Scenic Route (dot and arrow), stamps- Hero Arts, Ribbon- Offray, Ink- StazOn by Tsukineko

3. I worked on this embroidery using a font made from my own handwriting that I printed off and then eyeballed everything else- this was surprising relaxing. (Make your own font here.) I challenge you to give it a try by picking up a piece of embroidery cloth for a couple dollars and a simple hoop for a dollar or so- I bet you already have embroidery floss and a needle to work with!

4. A big thanks goes out to Hero Arts for the way cute goodies they sent me a few days ago for winning a blinkie drawing. Happy birthday, Hero Arts blog! I can't wait to use this scrappy goodness:
5. I've started growing wheat grass in my room- my mom sent me a "kit"- a.k.a. a chinese takeout bowl, some soil, some seed, and a spray bottle for "watering" the grass. It's so cool to see it grow. Here it is today after only two days... and I swear it's grown since then.
6. I'm dying to go home soon to see this new princess that's part of our family. Soooo excited:
My family adopted her last week from the local Human Society- isn't she gorgeous? I can't wait to get to know her. :)

Okay, well I'm off to nurse my injuries (tummy ache :( ) and have a very relaxing, creative weekend.

Love.

Brit

Oh Happy Day!

So I logged on to my computer this morning to discover that I took third in the Hero Arts Wrap-Around Card Challenge! I know I took third, but I feel like I too first- I've never won anything like this before! I'm a little excited... lol.

I love the scrapbooking community. People are so friendly and giving, it's unbelieveable. In fact, in the last two weeks, I've recieved not one but TWO packages in the mail from wonderful scrapbookers. The first one is from Paris and it's a Parisian Studio kit, and MAN is it loaded with wonderful things! I love the paper, chipboard... everything! Paris is so nice to give me one of her July kits. Thank you!


Also, Sabrina sent me some wonderful goodies for winning COCOA a while back. I can't wait to use everything! (And look at those mints in the bottom right corner... how cute are they?) Take a peak:


Also, I've finished two layouts in the last couple days. I wanted to get more done, but the creativity hasn't been flowing that easily lately. I have got to finish scrapping senior year before going off to college or I know I never will...

First, my COCOA layout with one of my favorite pictures ever. Me and my best friend, Jeb, get a little crazy together:


Supplies: pp- DCWV, cs- The Paper Studio (black and white), brads and overlay- unknown, embossing powder- Ranger, diamond glaze- JudiKins, chipboard letters- Basic Grey, border punch- Fiskars, black pen- ZIG, chipboard flourish- American Crafts

Second, here's my Outside-In Challenge using a guy color scheme for a girly layout. Okay, I think it's a little bit of a stretch, but still like how it turned out. I used a lot of my Parisian Studios kit. Everything in there is so awesome...


Supplies: cs- bazzill, pp- October Afternoon (I'm totally in love!!!), journaling spot- October Afternoon, foam letters- Thickers by American Crafts, ribbon- The Paper Studio, thread- DMC, buttons- American Crafts

Two more things:

I "met" my roommate this week. She seems really awesome the couple times we've talked. I'm getting really excited for college...

I've started this awesome applique for my comforter. It's going to be sweet!

I lied- third thing- I love Project Runway!

Love.

Brit

Life as I know it...

Life is a little insane right now. Insane in a really, really good way. I'm enjoying summer and get to spend time with some really awesome people this week, so I'm excited.

I was up late again last night, but this time, I was making cards. (Tonight is Stay Up Late and Make Two Layouts night...) The first one is Taylored Expressions Cupcake Challenge #26 using the sketch shown on her blog. Here's my take:


Supplies: My Mind's Eye patterned paper, Bazzill Basics cardstock (limeade), The Paper Studio cardstock (white), unknown cardstock (teal), Offray ribbon, Imaginisce stamp, ZIG black pen, The Paper Studio corner rounder, Fiskars border punch ("Threading Water")

The second one is one of my favorite cards possibly ever using Hero Arts stamps and awrap-around card technique for the Hero Arts Challenge this week. Here's my cupcake-y card (isn't it happy?):


Supplies: Hero Arts stamps, Bazzill Basics cardstock, Crayola colored pencils, Tsukineko ink (black and silver), Sakura pen (white)

Another happy thought... I came across a mystery walmart bag yesterday when I was organizing some of my scrapping drawers and look what was in it? I was so thrilled at my new find, I squealed!


Also, I finished a collage of all the senior pictures from my work this year. I really like how it turned out! Now you can see it hanging in the foyer of our wonderful local Applebee's (haha.) I would absolutely love to show you all of the adorable pictures, but I really don't want to get into copyright infringement with the photographers.


Supplies: cs- Bazill Basics, pp- Fancy Pants, marker- ZIG, pearls- Mark Richards, letters- Thickers by American Crafts, border punch- Fiskars (love that Threading Water!)

Three more thoughts:

1. By the way, my best friend loooved the mini book of us. I even have a couple pictures of him opening it, but he would kill me for putting them up here. Hehe.

2. I bought Mini Albums in an Evening and it's a fabulous book. I haven't gotten too much time to sit around and read it, but I love everything so far. I recommend it. :)

3. The Next Food Network Star finale is on tonight... I love that show! I'm a sucker for creative reality shows like NFNS and Project Runway. How can you not love all the creative juice and drama?

Alright, now it's off to go make smoothies, watch some t.v., and scrapbook late into the night.

Peace out.

Brit