Unscripted Sketches #95

Good Saturday morning to you!  It's a gorgeous late winter day here in northern Georgia!  The skies are blue, the sun is shining, and I feel like there is spring in my heart today!  And my project for this week's sketch over at Unscripted Sketches has a springy feel as well!  Here is the sketch . . .

And here is my take on the sketch . . .

And here are all the details . . .

Product Info:

• Cardstock is DCWV
• Patterned paper is Jenni Bowlin Spring Picnic "Kitty's Floral"
• Image is from Crafty Secrets / Heartwarming Vintage's Creative Scraps 'Birds and Blossoms"
• Stickles 'diamond'
• Glitter Crystal Glitter 'gold ultrafine' by Mark Enterprises
• Pink pearls are Basic Grey
• Blue pearl is Prima eLine
• Ribbon is from my stash

Tips, Tools and Techniques:

• Base of card cut on Cricut Expression using A Child's Year cartridge, with card feature
• Frame was cut on Cricut Expression using Mother's Day 2010 frame1
• The sentiment was printed on my ink jet printer, trimmed, backed with matching cardstock, and popped up with foam squares

I sincerely hope you have enjoyed your visit today, and ask that you come back soon to see what's crafting at Camellia Cottage!  Be Joyful Always!  Becky

Unscripted Sketches #94 and a Piggyback!

Good morning!  Welcome to another week of fun at Sketch It Saturday at Unscripted Sketches!  This week's sketch features a 'piggyback' challenge to add fabric to your project.  Here is this week's sketch . . .

And here is my project . . .

I made a fabric collage wall hanging from the sketch, and am very pleased with how it came out!  I used two patterned fabrics, a vintage button, lace and pom-pom trim from my stash, and made a yoyo out of the red fabric.  This is the first time I've used the pom-pom fringe where it really looks well done, so I am happy with that! 

I made a bow from the red calico fabric and sewed it to the top - before I used the fabric for the bow I tried several different ribbons and none of themworked.  The torn fabric stip ended up being the perfect topping for the collage.

One tip that I will share with you today is how I got the verse on the center.  You take a piece of plain muslin fabric and iron it to the shiny side of a piece of freezer paper, then trim it to 8 1/2 x 11", and print it on your ink jet printer.  I use the 'other specialty paper' setting, and it prints like a charm!  Then you make sure you heat set it with a hot iron, and use a fixative found at fabric stores to keep it from fading.

Thanks so much for visiting Camellia Cottage today!  Be Joyful Always, Becky

Tag Tuesday Challenge - Friends

My 80 year old 'Mama' has been here to visit for a few days, and so my crafting and computer time has been limited.  I took her home yesterday afternoon, and last night began my project for this week's challenge over at 'Tag Tuesday'.  The theme for this week is 'Friends' and I had this image from Crafty Secrets that I had been saving, and this seemed just the perfect time to put it to use!  Here is my tag for this week's challenge . . .

I love using opposites in a project!  You know what I mean - the plain of the kraft cardstock vs the girly modern of the patterned paper and the Stickles; the modern paper vs the old vintage buttons!  (I scrubbed that white button, but those marks would NOT come off!).  The vintage looking lace vs the more modern crinkled seam binding.  It all works so well!  The 'hardware' was found in the clearance aisle at Hobby Lobby ages ago.

Here are more close up pics . . .




For the ruffle I cut a strip of the patterned paper about 1 1/2" wide, wet it with warm water, scrunched it up, opened it up, then pleated it and dried it in the microwave for about 45 seconds on high.



I have a friend who is having some health issues and isn't able to be out and about much right now.  I'm going to visit her on Monday and think I'll take this to her when I go - maybe my camellias will be blooming enough that I can take her a few blooms, too.

Thanks for visiting today!  Be Joyful Always, Becky

Busy Hands, Happy Heart . . .

Do you do one craft all the time, or do you try new things all the time, moving from one type of project to another and back again?  I love trying new things, but I also enjoy returning to old favorites!  I've been making things from felt for years; I guess I got started making felt Christmas ornaments at some time, and have progressed from there.  The other day I found THIS tutorial, and loved it!  I made one flower by the tutorial and put it onto a red and white gingham stuffed heart I had made.  Sorry I can't show it to you, but I gave it to a friend for Valentines without making pictures - oops!

Anyway, as I usually do, I put on my thinking cap and started looking at ways I could change it up a bit, and came up with the idea to cut scalloped circles from the felt using my cuttlebug and Spellbinders dies.  I made one, two, three, and now I'm on about # 20-something!  They are easy and soooo cute!  Here are the ones I have finished - and yes, they are all attached to cute elastic pony tail bands!



A Garden of Felt Flowers!



Aren't they adorable!  I hope to do several shows this year, and think these should sell pretty well.  I hope to make more as the pony tail bands and some as pins that could be pinned onto a jacket, bag, hat, etc.



Shades of pink.  The darker pink is actually more of a coral-pink than the hot pink they appear in the picture.

 

Any football fans out there?  Can you say Tennessee Vols and Auburn Tigers???



Ivory with turquoise vintage buttons!



I really love this pink one with the vintage red button!!!

 

And this red one with a vintage pink button.

 

I cut up a bunch of the circles in two sizes and keep them in a zipper bag in my sewing bag. They stitch up fairly quickly.

My plan is to make up lots of the flowers in different pro and college sports teams colors. Do you have a special team you would like to see represented in my garden? Email me and let me know and I will try to get some made up! These will be selling for $2 each for the small (approx. 1 1/3" across) and $2.50 each for the large (approx. 2" across). Anyone who is interested in either pony tail bands or pins can email me at lifeatcamelliacottage(at)gmail(dot)com!

So tell me, what do you think of my garden full of felt flowers???



Be Joyful Always! Becky

Unscripted Sketches #93 - Doing The Impossible!

Looks like it's Saturday again, and of course that must mean it is Sketch It Saturday over at the Unscripted Sketches challenge blog!!!  This week we are doing another of my sketches, so that's very exciting!  The sketch has a heart, and you'd think I would do a Valentines card since it's just a couple of days before Valentines day, but no, that's not where my creativity took me this time!  But is is a very pretty card, if I do say so myself!  Here's the sketch . . .

And here is my take on the sketch . . .

I am also linking this card up for the Alphabet Challenge Blog's challenge "O is for Orange" where the challenge is to make a project with orange as your dominant color.


 

And of course, here are all the details . . 

Product Info:

• Base cardstock is Bazzill
• Black and red bits of cardstock are DCWV, and the gray is Bazzill
• Patterned papers are from the Cosmo Cricket Material Girl Stack
• Buttons from my stash

Tips, Tools and Techniques:

Cricut:

• Base of card was cut using Walk in My Garden cartridge, card 2 set at 5" and patterned paper square was cut using card1 set at 4 3/4"
• Sewing Machine was cut using Nifty Fifties cartridge
• Stitching is machine done, edges inked with brown ink, sentiment was printed on ink jet printer and trimmed by hand.
• Buttons are from my stash, and threaded with brown bakers twine.

And that's about it!  I think it's a great encouragement card for a friend or family member.  Please go check out the Unscripted Sketches blog and go visit all our incredible Design Team members and see their takes on this week's sketch!

Be Joyful Always, Becky

Tag Tuesday Challenge - A Tag on a Tag!

Due to busy-ness, I missed the Tag Tuesday challenge last week, so I was determined to get something in for this week!  This will be a quick post to share my take on the challenge with you!  I don't quite know how, but when I read that the challenge was to put a tag onto a tag, I came up with a birdhouse with a for sale sign, and a tag saying 'cheep'!  Sometimes being an artist or crafter just means following your mind's leading and that is how I came up with this . . .

 I used a #5 manila tag, and toppedit with a bit of Basic Grey's 'lemonade/saltwater taffy' patterned paper.  I cut the roof freehand from a scrap of cardstock, and used my Carl rotary cutter to cut the scalloped bit of cardstock.

I cut a small circle of brown cardstock for the opening, and topped that with some bits of shredded paper. 

The House For Sale, and Cheep was printed on my ink jet printer, and cut by hand.  I used an oval jump ring for hanging the small tag from the roof.  Here is a picture of the back so you can see the original tag I used for the foundation . . .

The extra strip of brown cardstock is to reinforce the roof.  For a kind of 'flying by the seat of my pants' project, I think it turned out pretty cute!

Thanks for stopping by!  Be Joyful Always, Becky

Stitching Something New . . .

 

Last night, while hubby snored beside me, I was sitting up in bed, reading blogs, and watching TV (hmmm, Top Chef anyone?)  when I stumbled back to one of my favorite creative inspiration blogs - inspire.co - and fell in love!!!  If you've never visited Amy's wonderful blog, you really must go and just surf back through her archives.  There is so much inspiration there!!!  And her new spring issue of Inspired Ideas magazine is now available.  Each online copy costs only $3.30 and is available for purchase HERE.  I have bought it, and I have to say it if you are an artist or crafter, it is well worth the price!  There are pages and pages of ideas and projects from some of the most amazing artists/crafters around, including Mary Engelbreit, Charlotte Lyons and many more.

 

 

Anyway, I saw the idea of making a 'cuff' from the cuff of an old shirt and I happened to remember the shirt of hubbys I put in the corner of the closet the other day where we stash clothes to give to charities.  The shirt was a real 80's nightmare that I'd assumed hubby had already given away, but he pulled it out and wore it the other day (ewwwwww!), so when I washed and dried it, I tossed it into the corner.  The shirt was perfect for this project!  A silky feeling polyester and rayon blend in the prettiest color - somewhere between a very pale ice blue and a soft dove gray, and the light that hits it makes it look different every time.

So, I pulled the shirt out of the closet and whacked off the cuff!  Then I hit my ribbon and lace stash.  I used some vintage (60's?) lace hem tape for down the center, and some double sided lace that has faux pearls down the center for each edge.  I used my machine to stitch them on fairly easily. 

Then I tried a few different things for decorating it, but nothing worked until I remembered another idea I'd seen online the other day.  It was a tutorial for a pretty felt flower.  I had made one according to the tutorial and it was very cute, but I wanted something a little more soft, frilly looking, so I cut five scalloped circles of cream felt using my Cuttlebug and Spellbinders Nestabilities Scalloped Circles Small set.  Then I added a vintage metal button, and a Swarovski crystal bead for the center.  Everything is machine or hand sewn except for the small circle of felt on the inside to cover up my stitches and the knot, and it is glued with FabriTac.

I really love how it came out, and I'm ready to make another one from the remaining shirt cuff!  So tell me, what do you think???  I'm off right now to put it up for sale on my shop, Myrtle and Me, so if you are interested, you can check it out there.  The cost is $23.50 and that includes shipping.

Please know the colors in this picture do not do the cuff justice - at all!  The sun was off, and it was really hard to get a picture of the cuff opened up!

Thanks so much for visiting, come back soon, and . . . Be Joyful Always, Becky

Unscripted Sketches #92 - My Very First Sketch!

Welcome to Sketch It Saturday!  This is the day that Unscripted Sketches shares a new challenge with you, and eagerly awaits YOUR take on the week's sketch!  And I am very excited because this week's sketch was created by none other than little ol' ME!  Yep, that's right!  I submitted a couple of sketches and this week AND next week's sketches are my creations.  This is not normally something that I would do, but one day I was working on some Valentines tags, and when I finished one of them I looked at it and said to myself "this would make a great sketch!", and it did!  Here's the sketch for this week . . .

And here is my inspiration for the sketch, and yes, I went from round to oval, but I think that's what you call 'creative license' or 'artists interpretation'!  :o)

And here is my take on the sketch . . .

And of course, here are all the details . . .

Product Info:

• Patterned paper is from Prima Marketing, Shabby Chic Collection "Sweets"
• Card stock is from Die Cuts With a View
• Stickles 'Crystal'
• Prima eLine pearls

Tips, Tools and Techniques:

• Cut patterned paper to size and adhered it to a ready-made blank card using Glue Glider Pro and PermaTac adhesive
• For oval I used my Cricut Expression and A Childs Year cartridge The darker pink scalloped oval is using Monogram feature, cut at 4 1/2 inches, and the pink oval with 'LOVE' cut out is using Monogram feature, also cut at 4 1/2 inches.  Once the two pieces were glued together, I added the stickles inside the letters.
• For hearts, I also used my Cricut Expression and Plantin Schoolbook cartridge,  set at 1 1/4" for the two smaller, and 1 3/4" for the larger.  I then scored the hearts down the center, added stickles to the outer edges and a pearl to each. 
• Brown ink was lightly applied to the outer edges of the card for a little finish to the edges.

Once again, I have to say that I didn't think I would ever use the A Child's Year cartridge, but I keep coming back to it time and again!  There are so many things you can do with the different features available on it!  To learn more about choosing your cartridges, read Number Four on my post HERE.

Thanks for stopping by, and come back next week to see another project made from one of my sketches!

Be Joyful Always!  Becky