As American as Apple Pie!

Hi all my wonderful crafty friends!  Brenda here and this week at Sweet Sassy Diva our theme is apples!

 
I knew just the pics I wanted to scrap with an apple theme so I got out my trusty Gypsy and layout out my plan on how to do my layout.  I used this sketch:

I did change it up some by the time I was finished. lol But still I followed the sketch pretty well.  I don't know where I got this sketch from as I just save them to my computer.  I need to start marking where they come from.

Here is what it looks like on my Gypsy:

I then started with a white base and started building my papers.  For my pattern papers I used Hobby Lobby's brand Paper Studio Vintage Nation paper.  This is my first time using my Scrap' in Easel and can I just say I am already loving this thing!!  It is so nice to have the layout sitting up right, much better on your neck and shoulders!

Next I cut out my apple shadow border using Making the Grade Cricut cart.  I welded my apple shadows together at different heights and cut out of black cardstock.  Then I hide the inside of the apple in my Gypsy and cut out enough apples for the shadows.  I also hide the outside of the apple to cut out the white flesh of the apple using off white or vanilla cardstock.  I think they look pretty good after getting it all together.  I placed it on the pattern papers with a magnet.  Nothing is glued down as of yet.

Next came my title and journeling box with apple.  The word "American" came from 3 Birds on Parade, I hide the "all" and the "stars" with my Gypsy as I just wanted the word "American".  Both words "as" came from Billionaire that I welded together, "Apple Pie" came from Blackletter and my journaling box came from Elegant Edges, my apple on my journeling box came from Preserves cart. I also did some distressing with Tim Holtz Vintage Photo ink.  I was going to mat my pics on white cardstock but then changed my mind. lol


                                     

Here what it looks like after the pics have been added and it's all glued down.  I'm a pretty happy with the way this turned out!  I hope that you have been inspired by the SSD design team and get crafty too using apples as your theme.  Please post your creation using the theme "apples" on Facebook by Click here!

Until next time Happy Crafting my friends!

All around Fall!

I absolutely love fall colors. I could decorate my entire house in these colors for year round. They are so warm and inviting to me. So I really enjoyed making this wreath for my fall decorations.
All of my paper came from DCWV (mainly the new fall cardstock stack) and some from the neutral stack. I cut the paper into strips that were 4x8 pieces. I pinched the bottom sides together and glued them (could have stapled them but didn't try that one).

After I had them all glued and dried I inked the edges so there were no white ends on the larger end.
Then I glued the ends together to make a circle. This took a while because of letting it dry as I went. (patience was much needed and I lack it greatly)

Once I completed the circle and it was dry, I cut a 6' circle for the center of my wreath. I lined it with leaves cut from doodlecharms at 1' in red, orange and green. I then tied a bow (still a skill in developement) used floral wire to attach it thru the center of the circle and there it is my fall wreath.

*recipe*
dcwv cardstock
cricut cartridges doodlecharms, george and basic shapes
ribbon
lots of glue
TONS of PATIENCE
I have a few others that I made in the past week or so, and I thought I would add them as well. If you happened to see my birthday banner you saw all of the fairy princesses and butterflies that I had cut out for my daughter's birthday. I kept some for scrapbooking and still had some left over. I didn't want to just throw them away so I made a "memory wreath" for her. This is a great project for kids (considering the first time I made one I was in elementary school) Christmas is coming so this would be a fun indoor cold yucky day project....

I used a wire hanger, bent into a circle shape, the table cloth that I bought for the birthday party (cheap plastic one) and her decorations with some of the ribbon from the gifts. The good thing is nothing has to be cut straight just into strips. Tie the strips to the hanger, squish them together as tight as you would like until it is completely full and then glue on the rest....and there it is a simple wreath. (I used white trash bags in elementary school with plastic poinsettas)
Last bit and I'm gone....I've been busy ;) This one is the circle of friends that was made for my daughter's birthday party as well. I wanted something for each girl to be able to take with them, so it wasn't a "wreath" so to speak but could easily be made into one with wooden dows, or, styrofoam, anything you want. This is basically a 6' rosette with a fairy in the center (cut from once upon a princess) the banner (cut from blackletter) is upside down and the girls names were glittered in them. The birthday girl takes center stage. I asked for favorite colors before the party, or room colors, so that each one was tailored for each guest. I hope you enjoy.

Angie

Trick or Treat!

Hello! Have you missed me? I took the whole month of September off! It was a nice break to hang out with my husband & the kids and get ready for winter. We have all started to try and predict when we will get our first snow fall. I say Oct 25th. I guess we will wait and see! The leaves are almost all out of the trees and in my gutters lol. I plan on putting up my Christmas lights soon so I will clean them out then. For this weeks project I was back and forth on what to do. I had at first had a great idea I planned to use from a wreath I had seen over on Splitcoaststampers back in August. But that idea was seen by another popular blogger and caught fire so there was tons of people making this style of wreath. I just couldnt bring myself to make it after that. So I sat and sulked for awhile until I got this brilliant idea. Back in July I hosted a baby shower for my sister. I made tissue paper flowers for it and I thought 'hummmmmm I bet I could make a bunch of these flowers and glue them down onto a circle and make a wreath!' Thats just what I did. I dug through my tissue paper stash and pulled out the Halloween colors I wanted and as they say....the rest was history. Take a look to see how I did it below....

I wanted to make a somewhat circle so I used the ole string and pencil trick (it looks like a toilet seat)


Gathered up my tissue paper and cut it into rectangles


After layering the tissue I folded it accordion style then tied it in the center


Trimed the ends into a point then unfolded them


Started pulling the paper up one layer at a time


Until you are all done with the layers and then glue them to your toilet seat I mean paper ring



I cut out some spooky shapes on my Cricut using the Post It craft paper that I peeled the back off and glittered the sticky side


I made the words 'Trick or Treat' on my Gypsy using Blackletter and glittered them as well and wrapped the weath with green Fun Fur yarn and a purple ribbon

~*Recipe*~
~*Cardboard circle
~*Tissue paper
~*Post-it craft paper
~*Cricut Cartridges Blackletter, Gypsy Wanderings, Doodlecharms and Indie Art
~*Green Fun Fur Yarn
~*Purple ribbon
~*Lots of glitter
~*Jen*~ www.mymentalinstability.blogspot.comhttp://www.mymentalinstability.blogspot.com/

Candy Corn Galore!

Fall is in the air...the trees are turning gold, and nights are getting cooler. I love this time of year...I wish it lasted longer. Here fall comes and goes as fast as a bag of candy corn. Which brings me to our project of the week....Halloween banners. It's time to start preparing for all of the decorations needed throughout the season. I've never been much for the spooky, scary, part of Halloween so I went with something a little sweeter.

Yep you guessed it...candy corn. I cut the banner pieces from the Country life cartridge, then layered smaller banner pieces (triangles basically) to make the base of my banner.

I tore the very top edges of the white and orange triangles so that it wasn't a straight cut....candy corn isn't straight afterall. (I know because I think I went thru 2 bags while creating this one....only for inspiration of course.) I then placed an accordian rosette in the center so that I could attach my letters. I cut the letters from Blackletter at 2 in.
I also cut 2 jack-o-lanterns from gypsy wanderings at 2 in. To give them a little shine I used my heat embosser with some black embossing powder with a tiny bit of gold powder mixed in to it.

Then all that was left was attaching the letters, running the ribbon and hanging the banner. I used pop dots so that the letters would stand up a bit.

*recipe*
2 bags of candy corn (for inspiration)
yellow, orange, white and black cardstock
Gypsy and Cricut cartridges Gyspy wanderings, country life, black letter
ribbon
pop dots
heat embosser and embossing powder
possibly another bag of candy corn if the kids are around....Happy Halloween!

Spooooooky!

I hope you guys are all having a wonderful week out there. I know I have been! I was in helping with Allis class a few times this last week and filled an order for cards. I dont think I have ever told you guys before but I sell my cards I make. Its been alot of fun! So with all that going on I really had to focus myself to get my project done for this week. Our fall is here. The trees are turning yellow. The grass is going dormant and just this morning it was 37 degrees out at 8am. We were also lucky because my dad got a caribou last Saturday and I always help process the meat. For my hard work I get a share of the meat so I was able to put a little in the freezer, YAY! This coming weekend my son and husband go up to hunt for our caribou. Oh oops kinda got off subject there. So anyways yah for this project I was excited to get a start on my Halloween decorating...

I picked out some fun but spooooooky colors

Cut out my banner pieces. Went with the triangle.

Got out my wonderful Martha Stewart score board and made some rosettes

Got out silver and black glitter and added some sparkle



*super secret here* I will pick up sample paint cards at the store when I know I need a small piece of a color that I am sure I dont have. So for the letters I picked up these samples :D

The letters all cut out to say 'SPOOKY'

Started putting it all together. The wisker looking things are pieces of tissue paper that I added that, when it gets a slight breeze, flutter. I put up my banner near a heater vent and when the heat comes on it gives the banner some silent movement, almost like a floating ghost :D

I ran the black through my Sizzix. cant really see it in the other pics

Finished banner hung up :D
~*Recipe*~
~*Black and purple cardstock
~*Orange, green and yellow paint sample cards
~*Polka-dot paper from K&Co
~*Newsprint from an old book
~*Silver and black glitter from Martha Stewart
~*Blackletter Cricut Cartridge for the letters

So here is some of the cards that I sold this week. I usually make them on a request basis. So they will say..... baby shower card done in purple and grey......

This was Hawaiian themed birthday card for a girl...(notice the surf board)

This was Coffee themed birthday card for a girl....

This was fishing themed brithday card for a guy (bet this looks familiar if you remember my Fathers Day post ;)

Well I hope you all have a great week! I know I will! My sister is having her 3rd child this week and I am making her a mini album. Always trying to keep busy!!
~*Jen*~
http://mymentalinstability.blogspot.com/
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