Getting Crafty on a Friday Night

My summer quarter ended on Friday (I got an "A" whoo hoo!), just in time for me to participate in Friday Night Challenge over at SOC.  I have been buried in academic articles and writing assignments for ten weeks, so the opportunity to get crafty was a welcome respite!  My dear friend Shirley hosted the challenges on Friday night and I managed to get each one finished, and on time!

Challenge #1 - Create a card to send to a friend. have at least 2 layers, an image and embellishments of your choice. The image can be a sticker, stamp or digi. Don't stress, you can draw the image. Just relax and enjoy the process of creating.

Challenge #2: Create a card to send Wedding Best Wishes to a relative, friend, etc. You must have at least one heart or the word ‘heart’ displayed, a sentiment an at least 3 embellishments.  You can make a card for new job, new house, sympathy...whatever your friend is in need of receiving love and hugs about.   I kind of missed the instructions about the three embellishments on this one!




Main challenge: card, LO, bookmark... any creation that expresses your love.

It felt really good to do some crafting and make a teeny, tiny dent in my stash. Hope to be able to keep up the momentum, at least until Fall quarter begins in three weeks! Time will tell!

Thanks for looking!

WrinkleFreeDiva

My Copic Journals

I am pleased to say that I have been getting some crafting done.  Last week I managed to FINALLY put together my Copic journals with pages that I printed from the Copic Munkies website over two years ago. I keep telling everyone that I am going to recommit to working with my Copics and become better at coloring. Coloring lots of little areas makes me impatient and I generally give up in frustration. I decided that if I practice while I'm listening to my recorded textbook, I'll get much needed practice and won't fall asleep as I listen to the book.  I figured that making the journals will set me on a path to being more like the Copic users that I admire.

In my zeal to get started, I printed out WAY too many pages using my Copic X-Pressit cardstock. I didn't want to waste it, so I ended up making two books and bound them both with my Cinch and 1-1/4" binding wires.  The paper is Basic Grey's Kioshi Collection which I received at my first ever CKC in 2010! I love that collection and now only have one sheet of paper left (hmmmm... may need to visit eBay and see if I can find some more)!  The little girl is a Robert Jackson image, and the bear comes from an online Copic class I took a long time ago.  Both images were previously colored and scanned into my computer, so those are actually copies instead of the original colored images. Used Spellbinders and my computer to make the labels, my McGill punch to make the tabs (sorry they're not visible in the pics), chipboard to make the covers and dividers, and embellishments from my stash.

These are some chunky little books!!! Hopefully they will both soon be full of practice images and a kaleidoscope of colors!

Thanks for looking!

WrinkleFreeDiva

Promoted!

So many milestones in my family these days! My darling boy has promoted from middle school and will begin high school in four short weeks. Where has the time gone? I am so behind on his school scrapbook and fully intended to get caught up this summer (I still need to do 4th through 8th grades!) but have so far only managed to get one page done. This page includes just a few of the photos taken on the day of promotion. The paper comes from the DCWV Homeroom stack and the fibers, Thickers, and embellishments are from my stash. The frame is a cut file from the Silhouette Design Store.

If you've read this far, thanks for sharing in a mother's pride!

WrinkleFreeDiva

Twenty-One!

A couple of my grandmother's GREAT-grandchildren are turning 21.  If she were still here she would be so tickled to see what wonderfully talented and loving adults they have become.  My nephew turns 21 today, and my cousin turned 21 on May 30th. Our family will be celebrating these milestone birthdays in Las Vegas very soon.

This card is for my nephew and was scraplifted from this card on Pinterest. I had the same embossing folder and loved the general idea of the card but as I worked on it, it evolved a bit.

This card was made for my mom and dad to give to my nephew. It is a cut file from the Silhouette Design Store. I used the print-and-cut feature to add the text to the "21." The cardstock is from the DCWV A Type of Art stack and was kind of flimsy, so I ended up adding another layer of kraft cardstock to the back to give it some substance. The little pebbles have been in my stash FOR-EV-ER!

This is the card I gave to my cousin in time for her birthday in May. I broke out my Copics for this one and a digital stamp whose origin I am unsure of.

Lastly, this is the card my mom and dad will give to my cousin when we see her in Vegas.  It's another card shamelessly scraplifted from Pinterest with a few modifications.  I changed the side the numbers were on so that I could use this CTMH stamp and not have her walking off the page with the numbers behind her.  I also heat-embossed the image using white embossing powder.

After fighting with my Cameo over it's refusal to recognize my registration marks, and FINALLY winning the battle, I had fun making these cards.

Looking forward to celebrating the newest adults in our family in Sin City! What happens in Vegas will definitely STAY in Vegas! (And maybe while I'm there, I'll get a chance to pop into Viva Las Vegas Stamps!)

Happy Birthday Zane & Morgie! Love you much!

WrinkleFreeDiva

Just a couple more....

While I was playing with my ink on Friday night,  I figured since I had the ink out, I should make a couple more cards. Not so thrilled with these, but hey they're done! And inking backgrounds is a fast way to get cards made without having to worry about matching paper or doing a fancy layout.

Thanks for checking me out!

WrinkleFreeDiva

It's All About the FOURth!

I had the pleasure of hosting Friday Night Challenge over at SOC last night. We did some 4th of July trivia and made three cards. Most of the instructions revolved around the number 4. **I don't send 4th of July cards, but wanted to keep the theme since the holiday is around the corner.**

Here is my take on the instructions I provided:

Challenge #1

Create a card that contains four different colors, four flowers, bling or pearls, and a sentiment of your choice.  All the rest is up to you. (This was a shameless scraplift from Pinterest.)

Challenge #2

Create a card using paper/cardstock of your choice + 4 different “inchies” stamps, ribbon or twine, bling, and a sentiment of your choice.

Challenge #3

Create a card (shape and size your choice) using a sponge and only TWO colors of ink to make a background on white or off-white cardstock.  You may use one or more stencils if you wish.  Then stamp one or more images on it using a RUBBER stamp and BLACK INK ONLY.  Add a sentiment.  You may mat your sponged cardstock if you desire; however, NO PATTERNED PAPER OR ADDITIONAL EMBELLISHMENTS ALLOWED!

That's it!

Thanks for looking!

WrinkleFreeDiva

Keeping it All Together

If you're anything like me, you have lots and lots of coordinating paper stacks from companies like DCWV or Recollections.  And, if you're anything like me, when you make a project from one of your paper stacks and have pieces of coordinating cardstock left over, you really want to store them with the stack they came from.  You could just slide them in the front of the pad; but, they might fall out, depending on how you store your stacks.

So...I thought I'd share a simple tip I came up with a long time ago, but just rediscovered (remember...I haven't visited my paper in a very long time LOL!). All it requires is gallon size zip lock bags, which you can find at your local dollar store, and some Scor "like" tape.

Open your paper pad, and adhere a strip of Scor tape along the top of the cardboard in the back of the stack. Open the ziplock bag and lay it across the Score tape, pressing it firmly into place.

That's it! You're done! As long as the bag remains open, it will hold a strip of paper that is 12" long.

Hope this helps somebody! Thanks for looking.

WrinkleFreeDiva!

Happy Father's Day

Hey everybody....

It has been some time since I've posted.  I've had lots going on... moving, returning to school so that one day I can change careers, my son's basketball practices and games... I've been all kinds of busy.  I also had to deal with the fact that someone (I know WHO you are, what your name is, AND where you live!) has been stalking my blog anonymously, leaving vile, baseless comments regarding circumstances in my life of which she knows absolutely NOTHING!  Unfortunately for her, those comments will never see the light of day. If she dares to leave anymore, I will dedicate an entire blog post just to her AND call her out by name. (So my dear, YOU have been warned!)

With that said, my crafting time has been minimal during the last year, though I have managed to get a few things done.  Most recently, I managed to scraplift some easy Father's Day cards thanks to Danita, one of my crafty friends on Facebook and the help of a very simple video on Youtube. You can check out Danita's blog here and check out the instructional video here.

When I originally began this blog, it was to share the things that I learned while crafting. Well...I wasn't doing much crafting, so I wasn't learning anything new; therefore, I kind of got away from that format. In making these Father's Day cards though, I did learn a thing or two, so I'll share those tips after I post my pics. By the way, these cards are also great for male birthdays or if you need some type of card for a male boss.

So here's what I did and what I learned. I used nothing but scraps for the shirts and rounded the shoulders of each one. I also embossed most of the ties. I learned that if at all possible, you DO NOT want to make your ties out of cardstock. It makes them too bulky which then makes them difficult to fold. The collars won't overlap them very well either. Also, when folding the square to make the tie, you don't need to crease all the way down; creasing one corner is sufficient to help you find the middle. If you are going to add brads, buttons or anything else to the collars, put them on after you cut out the shirt and collar, NOT when you are finished the shirt. It really just makes it much easier to add them if you do it first.

So that's it for today... and I thank you for looking!

Happy Father's Day!

WrinkleFreeDiva!

Moving My Craft Room

About a year and a half ago, I posted a tour of craft room here and here. It saddens me to say that I am in the process of breaking down my craft room so that I can move it (and me) across the street. With moving a craft room comes more organization, which my crafty friends think I am the queen of, but we will see!

This is what my room looked like...

...then my son and I managed to get that second book case down the stairs and across the street (and the next day, the two nail polish shelves with all of my stickles, glitter and stuff fell off the wall scattering bottles everywhere)

...and this is where it is moving to....

...and now it is going to be a combined office and craft space. I'll keep you posted on my progress!

Until then, Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

WrinkleFreeDiva

I've Been Nominated Too!

For what you may ask? Well, for the Creative Blogger Award. For some reason, we never think we are as creative as other people think we are, so I am grateful to my fellow blogger MJ for seeing something in me. She is one of the most gifted card makers I know, so please go and take a peek at her blog My Afrocentric Creations.

The Creative Blogger Award entitles you to join a group of talented people and share your personal thoughts and secrets on your creative endeavors and hopefully you will find some inspiration along the way. And now.... I think I am supposed to respond to some questions about my creative style, so hear goes!

What am I currently working on?
Well... at this time, since I am moving, I am in the process of packing up my craft room. I hope to be done by the end of December. I'll let you know how that goes! The move might even inspire a blog post or two. In between packing and hauling stuff across the street, I manage to work on a simple card here or there. Here's one I made for my Secret Soror late on Friday night.

 
What is my signature style?
I'm really still trying to figure that out. If I am short on time and need some cards, I probably stick very close to a Clean and Simple style. If I have more time, I try to branch out and try new techniques. I DO know that I'm not much for vintage or grunge-inspired style crafting. I've tried my hand at mixed media but prefer things a little less "mixed." If anyone ever figures out my style, would you please let me know?

How do I become inspired and stay inspired?
I love browsing through the SOC Gallery and Somerset's Take Ten Magazine. I'm a "tools" girl too, so sometimes I'm inspired to try to make something with a new punch, embossing folder, cutting die, or some other crafty gadget.

How does my creative process work?
In addition to being a "tools" girl, I am all about using sketches (as evidenced by the number of times I've used the word "sketch" as a label on this blog!). When I sit down to make a card or scrapbook a page and the ideas don't come, I often turn to one of my many books of sketches as a starting point. Sometimes my project turns out exactly like the sketch, but more often it doesn't.

I hope you've enjoyed this peek inside my crafty mind and will leave a comment about what inspires you and how your creative process works. I'm always looking for ideas and ways of working.

And now.... I nominate.....*drum roll please*....... Treva! Please go take a peek over at her blog Treva's Craft Corner and leave her some love. I met Treva on the Cricut Message Board probably well over five years ago. Treva has the sweetest spirit and although we have yet to meet face-to-face, I hope that she will be in my life for a lifetime. Like me, she is a scrapbooker turned card maker who enjoys showcasing her work on her blog.

Until next time!
WrinkleFreeDiva

A Very Merry Christmas

I had the opportunity to join MJ and Company in Tucson for their annual holiday crop. I had an absolute ball hangin' with all the ladies, gettin' our eat on, and oh yes... doing a little crafting too!

Part of the festivities included doing a card swap with a little twist. Each of the attendees had to make a card and then prepare enough kits to make the card for each participant. We each took turns presenting our card and sharing any tips or tricks for putting it together, and then the group made the card themselves, often putting their own little spin on it. If I get a chance, I'll post my cards on another day.

For now, I thought I'd share the cards I made for the group (using a shameless scraplift from Take Ten magazine). I made the same card with two different embellishments. I thought that if people were mailing the card they might not want to use the bottle cap as it would add weight and bulk to the envelope.

So... here are my two cards!

In case I don't get back here before Christmas, I hope that you have a Very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Gratitude

Last month my son and I attended a family bereavement camp. I wanted to show my appreciation to not only the counselor/supervisor but also the lady who owns the lodge where the camp was held so I made a couple of cards. The work they do is so important and helps many people as they navigate the road to healing.

Airbrushed using eBrush and Copics, Anna Griffin embossing folder, stamps from EK Success and cardstock from my newly organized "scrap stash!" 

Thanks for looking and I hope to be back soon!

WrinkleFreeDiva

Fight Like a Girl

Lest people think I have fallen off the face of the earth, I figured I'd better drop by and let y'all know that I'm still here, still creating [sometimes] and doing okay. Much has been happening and my life is in flux, but I still managed to knock out a few breast cancer cards using my new Cheery Lynn "Survivor" dies.

And now...I must really start packing up my craft room to prepare for my move, so I will probably be out of touch for awhile, but that doesn't mean I'm gone! I WILL be back!!!

Thanks for looking!

WrinkleFreeDiva

Father's Day

Father's Day is almost over, but I couldn't let the day pass without posting a few Father's Day cards I managed to make AND get in the mail on time.

This first one is for my brother and was made using a file from the Silhouette Online Store.

The next two were made for my uncles.

 

 

This last one was made for my Dad!

Happy Father's Day to all the men in my life!