What's Up Wednesday - DIY Christmas Ideas

I don't know about you, but this year has gone way too fast!  I can't believe it's already November, which means, it's time to seriously start thinking about handmade Christmas gifts and other Christmas-type ideas. 

Sometimes it's hard to come up with something new, unique, and memorable so I go looking for inspiration online. Here are a few great ideas I've found so far.

I've wanted to make one of these scrappy photo collage stars for a few years now and finally found a tutorial! Yay!

I'm in love with this personalized monogrammed tote bag. Elegant, easy, and best of all, inexpensive.

Check out this goodie box! Filled with cookies or other yummy treats, it would be perfect for coworkers, neighbors, church members, etc. It's made out of a single sheet of 12x12 paper. So simple and adorable. Check out the tutorial here.  Paper Pals has so much cute double-sided Christmas paper to choose from.

SPECIAL NOTE: Speaking of cute boxes and packaging for Christmas, Paper Pals has got a class coming up called Tags, Bags, Boxes, and More! where Karen will teach you how to make unique and fun Christmas packaging.

Here's a great project for the kids in your life - page corner bookmarks.  They would have fun making these for their classmates or maybe even a teacher.

Here's another project to get kids involved.  They can make their own bows! Give them a sheet of white paper, have them go crazy drawing and/or stamping on it and use that for the bows. What could be simpler? You could also use scrapbook paper that coordinates with custom tags!

I love these glass candle holders! These glasses can be found at any thrift store or dollar store.  Take rubber bands and stretch them around the glass at different angles, then take a can of spray paint to it. Wait for it to dry, then remove the rubber bands. Easy peasy!

This may be the most brilliant idea I've come across and I WILL be doing it! Transfer a photo onto a block of wood. AWESOME!  Here's a great little video tutorial. I had no idea it was so simple!

Now before you go thinking 'I don't knit,' this scarf is super easy and doesn't require any knitting. Isn't it adorable?!  I'm thinking this might be a good gift for the nieces this year.

These ornaments are absolutely adorable and what better way to use all that fun Christmas scrapbooking paper you have?

I absolutely LOVE these little guys too! Clear, glass ornaments decoupaged with vintage papers, sprinkled with glass glitter and tied with a "Noel" stamped tag. The Lost & Found Christmas collection by My Mind's Eye that is currently at Paper Pals would be PERFECT to make these.

I thought this was a cute idea for the envelopes for Christmas cards this year.

Mix up the tree decorating with this fun and easy twisted felt garland. What a cute idea!

I came across so many great ideas. There's no way I could share them all, but hopefully these few I chose will inspire you.

Amy Tangerine from American Crafts

Hey all, I recently had the chance to play with some really fun new papers from American Crafts-- their Amy Tangerine line!

It's fun, versatile and appeals to all kinds of hobbies and pleasures. Quirky and bright!

There were a few different layouts I created with the papers, and they're all very different.

The first was a feature of me-- a photo I took on my 37th birthday. Only thing missing: the letter I want to write to myself and tuck among the layers for posterity. My favorite part is the "banner" of pieces I cut from a pattern page and strung with bakers twine! I also used Martha Stewart fringe scissors to cut some fringe on the fabric paper.

My daughter dressed up for a rock and roll birthday party, and was a great model for me before she headed to the party. I think it will be fun for her to look back on the crazy outfit and hair she donned that day. I used little frames from a pattern page to create my visual triangle with the quirky objects in this line.

And lastly, my family layout. It's a recent photo of me with my siblings... and all our children. Wow. What a crazy fun crew! The matching dimensional stickers worked great for this layout.

Lastly, I used scraps to make simple cards. The bright colors made them fun to make for multiple occasions.

Have you used this line for any fun papercrafts?

Graphic 45's Christmas Emporium - easy to use and love!

Graphic 45’s Christmas Emporium line was a perfect choice for one of my favorite old photos of my Mom and her sister as little girls. The photo itself is in need of more “correction” than I can manage, but nonetheless, I think it is complemented by this new line really well!

This layout is really quite simple. If you follow this blog and “know” me, you know that I comfortably use patterned paper. However, the piece with the Santa scene was a challenge for me when I initially thought I should use the piece in its entirety. How freeing is was dissect it and use the Naughty or Nice list and Santa as embellishments instead of as part of the background. Because the paper is double sided, I was able to use pieces and parts from both sides to create the horizontal stripes on the bottom of the layout and the tag from the paper that is full of tags and small embellishments. After inking nearly every piece and edge to bring out the rich brown undertones, the layout came together in a snap.

The cards came together in similar fashion. Using both sides of the patterned paper, and parts of the papers as embellishments and tags, these cards came together quickly. Of course I utilized Diamond Glaze and glitter to add a little extra pizzazz to the cards.

Finally, I just hated to see the really small “bits” got to waste and the decorative Christmas tree was born! I simply cut the paper to size, used Diamond Glaze to adhere each piece to a Tim Holtz acrylic tile, glued the jute twine to each ornament, and added some bling for the final touch! My circle punch came in handy to create a simple garland for the tree that perfectly complements the ornaments! Simply use a hole punch on each piece and thread them onto a long piece of jute (don’t forget to tie a knot behind each one to keep them more evenly spaced).

You can get many more ideas for using Christmas Emporium after a quick Google search!

Enjoy!

Anita

What's Up Wednesday - easy, peasy photo editting!

Maybe you have such a fabulous camera that 100% of your photos look absolutely flawless 100% of the time. Or maybe, you have a less than fabulous camera, that takes flawed photos, and because you're not a computer wizard, or a graphic designer, you think you have to just settle for this mediocrity!

Not true!

If you are taking the time to document your family's life through photos, then you really must give Picasa, a free download from Google, a try! This may be really old news to some of our blog readers. If so, you can quit reading and just head to the store to see what new goodies Karen and Kristi have to compliment your fabulous and flawless photos.

Or, take a look at this quick tutorial and testimonial, then head over to Picasa.com, then over to Paper Pals once you are really inspired by your awesome photos!

Once you are at Picasa.com (which looks like this), you can watch a couple of tutorials (which are not really necessary, this software is soooooooooo easy to use). Follow the steps to install Picasa. Be patient, this may take a few minutes while Picasa finds all the photos on your computer and sorts a copy of them into the program. Don't panic, it sorts by date, and is really easy to re-sort into other folders/groupings if you want to later.



In literally a few clicks, you can adjust almost everything in your photos!



Admit it, you're not happy with mediocre photos. You do your best, and still get average results, and sometimes even worse results when you hand your camera to someone with less experience behind the lens than you. Fear not...here are two examples of what you can do in Picasa in under 60 seconds per photo:




Edits: red eye corrected, color adjusted (from very "yellow" to a cooler shade).




Edits: cropped to a more flattering landscape view, soft focus (to blur the background distractions), retouch tool (used to remove the piano lamp that was coming out of my head in the first photo), fill light, and slight adjustment to color saturation.

You can do so much more than simple editing in Picasa. You can upload photos to web albums or to order them from print labs. You can create collages* and many other sizes of photos for printing or web posting purposes. Basically, you can enjoy your photos more than ever before!

Enjoy!
Anita

*Visit my personal blog and you'll see how handy collages can be!

ADORN it-Holly Jolly Collection

I can't get enough of Christmas paper.  This paper from ADORN it is called the Holly Jolly Collection.  The papers I got to work with were Christmas Potpourri, Mix and Mingle, and Star Jazz.  I also got a sticker sheet that worked perfectly with the paper.  I almost used up every sticker on that sheet.  Cards are easy to do with these stickers.  I am having an obsession with baker's twine.

 This page was a scrap lift from Creaking Keepsakes September 2010 issue, page 54.  It is hard for me to leave that blank space at the top. 

This is the Mix and Mingle paper.  The back side has a pretty green pattern.  I didn't want to cut this page up.  I thought it would work great as a page.  I just cut my photos to fit over some of the journal spots.  I really liked the doodle design in the top left corner.  I had to resist the urge to color it all in.  I am sure it would look great colored if I had some of those copic markers.  Hmmm. Thanks for looking. 

What's Up Wednesday

Hello everyone.  I am going to show you my green ribbon organizer.  I had 2 overflowing baskets of ribbon.  I hardly used the ribbon I had because I didn't feel like digging through the mess.  So I came up with this solution.  I saved some cereal type boxes and cut out some rectangles that would fit in a little wooden box I have.  I then used 2 of my circle punches to make half circle slots for the ribbon to sit in.  I used the smaller punch for the narrow ribbon and the larger punch for the wider ribbon. 

I used rubber bands to hold the ribbon onto the card.

 I used small clothes pins to hold the ribbon onto the card while I wrapped the other ribbon.  After my first card I decided to punch some half circles in the sides of the card to hold the elastic.

Here is my stash of ribbon now neatly organized in one little box.  I can now see all the ribbon I have.  I do get creases in my ribbon but it hasn't been that big of a problem.  This was a free super easy, green project.  Thanks for stopping in.

What's Up Wednesday...

NO, your calendar is not wrong....today is Monday, but I will be "leavin' on a jet plane" tomorrow to go back to Washington DC to cheer on the Vandals when they play University of Virgina next Saturday (trust me, they need a LOT of cheering), so I'm posting my "What's Up Wednesday" blog a couple days early! :0)

For the last two years I have been doing "Personal Yearbooks" with my two granddaughter's classes.  The idea comes from Becky Higgens, and she has passed the idea on through her blog.  From Becky:

Description

This is an ongoing project designed for students to complete themselves – no matter if they're in public, private, or home school. This will work with children as young as preschool and can even be used for older kids. The end result is a very basic month-by-month look at their journey and growth in a single school year.

Why?
I believe that teaching children to record their personal history is important and should be fun! Highlighting their own handwriting and art and pictures in a format like this can really boost a child's self-esteem. This isn't the type of project that ends up in the garbage. Volunteering to help kids complete this is a great way to get in the classroom with your child and serve your community.

Getting started

Introduce yourself to your child's teacher if they don't already know you. Volunteer to do this Personal Yearbook project with each of the kids in the class on a monthly basis.

Determine ahead of time if you are going to provide all the materials or if you're going to ask for a small donation from the parents to contribute to the project. It could be $2-3 per student, depending on how fancy-schmancy you want to get. I recommend keeping it simple and un-cluttered. (I kept it simple and the cost to me was very minimal.)

Together with the teacher, create a plan of each month's topic/theme/activity so that the "big picture" feels good to both of you. For example, you could focus on a big-deal activity each month (first day of school, holiday performance, Valentines exchange party). Or you could focus on routine activities that paint a picture of everyday life for the students (library, cafeteria, recess).

Gather all supplies based on how many students are in the class.
What you need

Time to pop into your child's class twice a month.

Camera

White cardstock for printing the pages (title page + 2 pages per month of school)

Adhesive (most kids will already have glue sticks at school)

Pen or pencil (if the kids don't already have this at school there's a problem)

Crayons, markers, colored pencils for drawing art (again, they should have this)

Variety of patterned paper (optional)

I have SO enjoyed getting to go into their classrooms every month and get to know the children and work with them on this project.  After teaching Kindergarten for 17 years, it's always a treat for me to get to go into a classroom and work with the children.  Having it be my granddaughter's classes makes it an extra bonus.

In September I took each child's picture, they made the covers for their books and did the September page:

What's Up Wednesday

Hey all, here's another look at what's new for you at Paper Pals for Autmn. Go in and check out the scrapping goodness!


Which of the three products on the video most interests you?
Enjoy!
Angela

(A big THANKS to Kristi Wildung, my amazing videographer. But keep your day job-- I like seeing you at the store!)

"Savor" Little Yellow Bicycle's Awesome Paper!

I wish I was better at making cards. I am not doing this paper justice! I love this paper, the way it tears and stretches and feels, it is almost like material, you can clip and curl and mangle and it holds up beautifully. You can do just about anything to it and the double sides never let you down. I had a lot of fun with this. I didn't even know what I liked about my Kitchen until I thought about it with this paper. What a great thing to record: What we do in, and love, about our kitchen! It was fun!

My Minds Eye Lost and Found TWO

I was so excited to see the color options for the new Lost and Found Two line... they had several options, but I knew this one was PERFECT for the photos I needed to scrap.When I was taking a photography class in the spring, I had my daughter pose for a great little photo shoot with her and knew I'd love to scrap some photos from the day. Isn't she just adorable?

 This second layout using the MME line features two photos in the same place but at different times. I'd like to make more pages by featuring "now and then" photos in them.

The chipboard pieces were great for the cards especially! These cards came together simply and turned out pretty cute.

Which of the color combos in the Lost and Found Two did you like best?

What's Up Wednesday - Are you a "Pinner?"

Are you a pinner? Do you pin? Do you know what I'm talking about? I'm talking about Pinterest! One of my very favorite websites. I get soooo much inspiration from this site, especially for scrapbooking. For those of you who don't pin, let me explain how it works. Or better yet, let me just quote their explanation from their site.

"Pinterest is a virtual pinboard. Pinterest allows you to organize and share all the beautiful things you find on the web. You can browse pinboards created by other people to discover new things and get inspiration from people who share your interests.
People use pinboards to plan their weddings, decorate their homes, and share their favorite recipes." - And so so so much more!

You can read in more detail about it here. In the meantime, let's take a tour around my Pinterest.

Here's the main page that came up when I logged in today. It shows you the latest pins from the people that you are following. Kinda like if you were following someone on twitter.

So, when you see something you like you repin it to your own board. If you find something on the web, from say your favorite blog, you use the "Pin It" button to pin it to your board, and add notes about the picture you are adding (i.e., love the flower technique used on this layout). You can even use the search feature on Pinterest to find ideas/pictures of what you are looking for.

The beauty of Pinterest is that it's versatile and super easy, and it's in one place so no matter where you're at you can access it as long as you have a computer or a smart phone.

Here's the toolbar where you can go to your own pins, boards, preferences, etc.

 

This is a snapshot of some of my boards. I have 24 right now categorized for different things. This is different for everyone. That's kinda the beauty of Pinterest. You can create a board for anything that interests you; hairstyles, clothing, shoes, gardening, scrapbooking, home decorating, cooking, etc.

Let's look at my "Organization" board. There are some great ideas in here huh?

When I click on one of my pins, it takes me to where I've entered notes and it gives me the website this idea is from. If it is a repoin it also shows who I repinned it from. Pretty cool huh?!

These are some pins inside my "Paper Crafting" board. (I just love Tara Orr! She's amazing! Plus, Paper Pals carries most of the lines she works with.)

Here are some from my "Projects for the Kiddos" board.

Did I mention it's FREE? Are you ready to sign up?  If you need an invite, send me your email address to ambermemcatcher at hotmail dot com and I'll hook you up!  I hear that otherwise you have to wait a couple weeks. If you are already on Pinterest follow me!

Happy pinning!

My Mind's Eye - Lost & Found Two - Portebello Road - Absolutely Fabulous!

My Mind's Eye is on a roll. You've seen other Design Team projects from the new lines that are fully stocked at Paper Pals, and now it is my turn to share. I had the opportunity to work with the Portebello Road line, a gorgeous combination of blues and browns. This paper is so versatile too! I chose to break a rule at the Cory house and use a photo of my son Spencer for Design Team layouts that will be at the store! You see, Spencer isn't fond of being "recognized" by his female friends and begged me not to use him as my subject matter anymore. Alas, this photo and this paper, beckoned me otherwise.

OK. This is a really straightforward set of goodies. On the layout, I followed three easy steps:
Step 1 - No matter what you think of the patterns in the paper line, trust the designer, and trust yourself! As you can see, I tried to do both in using the glittery green and blue diagonal print as accents to the "flowery" background paper.
Step 2 - layer, layer, layer...bits and pieces of the other papers (front and back sides) using strips and circles here and there
Step 3 - Embellish, embellish, embellish! I used a tiny Ali Edwards stamp, and goodies from the decorative brads that are part of this line. In addition, I inked the pom pom trim a darker shade of brown to coordinate with this background paper better. The trim looks fabulous with the papers that have more of the blue tones as well!

Next, I turned to my Card Ideas for Paper Crafters magazine (the current edition) for inspiration You can get one at the store...it is good! The Thank you card was inspired by "Several Circles Birthday (p. 49). The You Are So Special card was inspired by "Gradient Blues" on (p. 64), and the Gratitude card just came to me after perusing the magazine over and over. I share these examples so you can see how to take a basic concept and make it your own.



Finally, I turned to the scraps I had left and wanted to do something else with the adorable pom pom trim*. I just couldn't toss the remaining piece of the background paper either. You see, when making a layout with a large photo and mat, I usually cut out the background paper from behind it so I can use it in other smaller projects. This cute little photo holder provides a nice stand for the little dresser decor item I made for my daughter to remind her of her long-standing friendship with her BFF. The girls are 12 now, the photo was taken at Camryn's 7th B-day party, and they have been friends since they were 4 years old!

There you have it... choose a line, trust the designer, and go for it!

Enjoy!
Anita

* I also think the pom pom trim would be a great embellishment to a lampshade, pillow, or curtain! Think outside the box!

My Mind's Eye - Lost & Found Two - Portebello Road - Absolutely Fabulous new products!

My Mind's Eye is on a roll. You've seen other Design Team projects from the new lines that are fully stocked at Paper Pals, and now it is my turn to share. I had the opportunity to work with the Portebello Road line, a gorgeous combination of blues and browns. This paper is so versatile too! I chose to break a rule at the Cory house and use a photo of my son Spencer for Design Team layouts that will be at the store! You see, Spencer isn't fond of being "recognized" by his female friends and begged me not to use him as my subject matter anymore. Alas, this photo and this paper, beckoned me otherwise.
Step 2 - layer, layer, layer...bits and pieces of the other papers (front and back sides) using strips and circles here and there
Step 3 - Embellish, embellish, embellish! I used a tiny Ali Edwards stamp, and goodies from the decorative brads that are part of this line. In addition, I inked the pom pom trim a darker shade of brown to coordinate with this background paper better. The trim looks fabulous with the papers that have more of the blue tones as well!
Next, I turned to my Card Ideas for Paper Crafters magazine for inspiration You can get one at the store...it is good! The Thank you card was inspired by "Several Circles Birthday (p. 49). The You Are So Special card was inspired by "Gradient Blues" on (p. 64), and the Gratitude card just came to me after perusing the magazine over and over. I share these examples so you can see how to take a basic concept and make it your own.



Finally, I turned to the scraps I had left and do something else with the adorable pom pom trim*. I just couldn't toss the remaining piece of the background paper. You see, when making a layout with a large photo and mat, I usually cut out the background paper from behind it so I can use it in other smaller projects. This cute little photo holder provides a nice stand for the little dresser decor item I made for my daughter to remind her of her long-standing friendship with her BFF. The girls are 12 now and have been friends since they were 4 years old!

There you have it... choose a line, trust the designer, and go for it!

Enjoy!
Anita

* I also think the pom pom trim would be a great embellishment to a lampshade, pillow, or curtain! Think outside the box!

What’s Up Wednesday has turned into Trying to Think of Something Thursday…

…and then it came to me when talking to a friend. You see, I am really a trash to treasure, or recycle/reuse, “I can make something else with this” sort of gal. I also have a high need to store all of my crafting supplies and goodies in a space efficient manner.

I’ve collected a few very useful pieces of the modular paper crafting storage pieces by Making Memories. The only thing I didn’t love about them is that they are white. My entire house has knotty pine, hardwood floors, black or brown accents, and white just really isn’t much a part of the color scheme.

Then it hit me. A can of spray paint could change everything! I used two coats of a high gloss chocolate brown and now these pieces add wonderfully to the décor of our family room (and my scrapbooking nook within it).



This isn’t exactly paper-crafting expertise, but when you have great storage and organizational pieces that create a alluring space in which you can create, you can get back to work on your favorite projects with ease!