Thanks for visiting!


Welcome! This is the place where I share my artsy and crafty projects. I am an evolving artist these days ... finding myself enjoying less of the cards and mini albums that I have made for years, and turning to art journaling and more artistic endeavors. I have always enjoyed some craft or other, and some of my earliest memories of my mother helping me make paper dolls and other crafts. I am now in my 60's and finding myself more passionately enjoying creating beautiful things and learning new skills and techniques and products.

While you are here I hope you will find inspiration and ideas for making your own projects, however any images or projects you find here are my personal property and should not be used for your own monetary gain, or for contests or challenges. Thank You!

2/26/2011

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

2/19/2011

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


2/18/2011

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

2/14/2011

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

2/12/2011

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