Frugal finds: flower embellishment using a mesh bag!

I love the Frugal Finds feature at Practical Scrappers, it is always play time and creative time, and the results are amazing! For the latest feature we had to use mesh bags and that was an easy one for me, as lots of the produce I can find here comes in mesh bags. For this layout I chose baby pics -probably the fact that my little girl is growing so fast and her front teeth are loose (yet another milestone) influenced the choice of pics for this layout. 

I love playing with this piece of JBS cardstock and my light blue inks. But the layout needed a girly touch, so I used my mesh to create a flower. It was a bit tricky and I needed the help of the glue gun, but I love how it turned out, especially with that piece of Teresa Collins bling on top. You really MUST check what the other Practical Scrappers designers have created using mesh bags, I promise you will not look at the produce aisle in the same way again!

I am also sharing this project at Scrapscene's WIP Mondays, as I love having my mid-morning coffee and checking what other people are doing. And what exactly am I working on right now? 

A Tortuga Headquarters Pinata!!! It's not exactly a beautiful project right now, but it will be!!!! I will keep you posted on how it goes!

Organizing my tapes

Yes, you've read right. I, the messy scrapper, am organising some of my stash - my washi tapes. I have given up on all kinds of organization tips, groups, or programs. Being tidy is simply not my style, and no matter how enthusiastic I am on the first day, things always start to get messy on the second one. However, I am having a washi tape problem. 

I haven't bought too many rolls of tape for the simple reason that, being such a trendy item as they are at the moment, I keep getting them with my kits. And, since I have been using them a lot, I keep them all in a clear container on my desk - the best tip I got for a messy scrapper, just keep things you use often on your desk! The problem with the tapes comes when I submit a project for publication or use it for one of my classes, and need to include a list of materials. As the tapes come with my kits, many of them came without any information of who the manufacturer is, and, the ones that had a box or bag, lost it a long time ago. I made a card today and I had to find the names of the manufacturers of five different pieces of tape: it took me way longer than making the card. I had to go the sites I get my kits from and check each one of their past kits until I found the tape I was using and wrote down the company's name. What a waste of time!

So I decided I needed some kind of system for keeping track of that information. I know if I make a file with that info in my computer I will never update it again, so it won't work for me. And I know that if I make a card with bits and pieces of tape and the manufacturer's name next to them, which was my original idea, I would lose among the stash on my desk and never find it when I need it. One of the only tidy things in my room is my cork board, so I realised that would be a good place for my little "catalog". I got some Blick hanging tickets that I have had since I started scarpbooking (way too many in a pack!) and put a pice of tape on each of them. Behind it, I wrote the name of the manufacturer. Simple. Easy. Something I can maintain.

They are all hanging from one clip, and the clip is pinned to my board, I will not lose it among the rest of my stash, and I can update it in seconds when I get new tapes. The only tape I could not identify was this:

If any of you knows who makes this tape, please let me know!

Layout Makeover at Practical Scrappers

Today it is my turn to post at Practical Scrappers, and I am doing a layout makeover, starting with this layout, which I was not too happy with:

If you would like to know how the layout looks after the makeover, you can click HERE to visit my post at Practical Scrappers. And please, let me know what you think about it! Have a great day and scrap a lot!

My first CARDS publication

I am thrilled today! My first CARDS publication is finally here (well, actually not here here, but on the way). I had the sweet Stephanie at Crafty Steals check to see if my card was in it (what if it wasn't????), especially because all the buttons I used were part of a bundle I got from her shop - and because I just couldn't wait!!!! I can tell you the poor guy who delivers my packages from the skybox will have a hard time these days!

In the meantime, I am getting my first Art Studio class ready to go! It is so exciting to be working on every single detail, making sure everything is just right for every student to enjoy the experience. I will be giving away a free seat and some stash you will need for the class soon, and I will have a discount code for any of my readers who wants to join the class, so keep checking!

Negative Space Layouts - Happy campers!!!

Today at Practical Scrappers we were asked to create a layout using negative space. It was my chance to use this fab JBS letter stencil I got with my Studio Calico kit some time ago, plus some camping embellies I have had for a long time, which came in one of my Scraproom kits. We never go camping, so I didn't think I would use them, but the cabin embellie looked just like the one in the photo!

Visit Practical Scrappers for more ideas on how to use negative space in your layouts. Have a great week!

Ribbons and fibers at Unique Crafter's challenge

This month I am guest designing at Unique Crafters' Challenge Blog, a new challenge site which runs monthly challenges based on products and gives away great prizes. This month's challenge is to use ribbons or fibers somewhere in your project, and you can enter up to three projects for a chance to win the prize. For my project I altered the cover of a Martha Stewart accordion album. I have several friends moving to other countries in the next few months, and I guess that will give me a chance to use it - just fill with some pictures, and you have a lovely gift ready.

I love the way my project turned out IRL, but I'm not so keen on the photos, as the white enamel embossed stems are not easily seen, and the flowers seem to be floating on the page. I guess real life is what counts most, anyway! I really love this ribbon flower:

This ribbon was thick and looked like coloured burlap, and it had wire on one side so it was so easy to work with. This is my favourite part of the project. Can you see the white enamel in the leaf below the flower? That is how good it looks IRL! 
If you feel like playing in this very easy challenge (I mean, how hard can it be to include some ribbon or fibers in a project????), please visit Unique Crafters' Challenge Blog HERE. You have until the end of the month to join in the fun!

A card with a white background and International Scrapbooking Month!!!

The latest feature at Practical Scrappers is cards with a white background. I had so much fun creating this card!

I mostly used bits and pieces from My Mind's Eye's Follow your Heart collection, which is my favourite from last month's Scraproom kit. I love the colours, the design, it is all striking. The paper ribbon is SC, just a few pieces I had left. I loved that ribbon, so easy to crumple. The white background is embossed, but you cannot see it in that picture, so here is a close-up:

Don't miss the rest of the cards at Practical Scrappers. And if you are feeling like having some fun, check International Scrapbooking Month at Let's Scrap HERE.